Wednesday, April 18, 2007
The Interview
*Bob-Kat* invited me to be interviewed, and I accepted. Below are her questions and my answers.
~S
* * *
Bob-Kat: Hi Shephard, nice to be chatting with you again. I like your jumper. Lovely shade of purple.
Shephard: Why thank you! I like your sweater too. Is that a giraffe eating a piano on it?
Bob-Kat: Erm... no. It's a Picasso painting.
Shephard: Are you sure it isn't a giraffe eating a piano?
Bob-Kat: Pretty sure. Shall we begin? (turns tape recorder on)
Shephard: Sure. (smiles) But I refuse to answer any questions involving last Tuesday and Ben Affleck.
Bob-Kat: Fair enough. Okay. (smiling). First question. This one's a thinker. Who is your favourite role model in life?
Shephard: That's hard. I've very rarely admired someone to the point of modeling myself after them. For a while I admired Shirley MacLaine's very brave public exploration of the meaning of life and reality. I tend to admire people for their compassion or personalities, but I never try to intentionally pattern myself after them. I'd have loved to have had any gay role models at all when I was growing up. Kids today are so lucky to have Ellen DeGeneres.Bob-Kat: Question two. If you could be granted one super-power, which would you choose and how would you use it? Shephard: That's easy. Invisibility would get old. Flying wouldn't be fun if no one else could fly with me. Turning into an animal might be fun, but obviously accompanied by danger and risk and possibly civil unrest.
Bob-Kat: Civil unrest?
Shephard: Yeah. I mean, what if I visited Harrod's and turned into a giant vampire squid right in the middle of fine lingerie?
Bob-Kat: I see what you mean. Continue.
Shephard: Okay, so no on invisibility and flying and morphing. And I wouldn't want strength or bullet-proof bracelets, and being a healer would require a life-time dedication. So I think the most fun super-power would be the ability to speak and understand all languages. Enormously versatile and useful. I'd use it as a life-long career and bridge of understanding. As best I could, anyway.
Bob-Kat: (looking at her notes). Question three. If you absolutely had to give one up, would it be art, music or literature?
Shephard: No way could I give up music. I can't imagine life without being able to sing or without having music to lift my moods.
Bob-Kat: You sing?
Shephard: Yes, I trained for like 15 years almost.
Bob-Kat: Why didn't you pursue it?
Shephard: Have you watched Idol lately?
Bob-Kat: We have Pop-Idol, but I know what you mean.
Shephard: You guys created a monster with this show. Of all the winning idols, ours or yours, I actually like your first winner, Will Young, the most. Anyway, I am not capable of vocal pyrotechnics like they expect now days. And I'm not the "whole package." My voice is very Broadway/Pop-Standards.
Bob-Kat: You'd have probably had a greater chance in the U.K.
Shephard: Maybe. I've always admired that about England. Your pop charts are less ... controlled and more versatile than America's, with everything from musicals to reggae.
Bob-Kat: So you wouldn't give up music....
Shephard: Right. And I wouldn't give up art, because art makes the world more beautiful. It makes the drab and lifeless alive and refreshing. I can't imagine a world without art, because that also means decoration and it affects fashion, architecture and home decor. So, oddly enough, even though I'm a writer... I'd have to give up literature. Because I can still find magic or fantasy in the real world.
Bob-Kat: Interesting.
Shephard: And there'd still be art books, magazines, how-to books and novels. Those aren't technically literature. Bob-Kat: So you could still be a writer, technically. I'll give you that one. Question Four. Who would you most like to make eat their own words? Shephard: (without hesitation) The entire Republican Party, the Religious Right...oh, and anyone who says being gay is a choice. I know, dream on....
Bob-Kat: Almost done. Fifth and final question. Just for fun, if everything was edible, what flavour would your house be?
Shephard: It would be red velvet cake with dark chocolate frosting and mocha piping. Bob-Kat: Really? That sounds scrummy. Well, Shephard, thank you for taking time to answer questions today-- Shephard: Happy to, Bob-Kat. But it's my turn, I have a question for you. Bob-Kat: (surprised) You do? Alright. (smiling) Shephard: Where did you find that? Bob-Kat: Find what? Shephard: A sweater with the giraffe eating a piano. (Bob-Kat throws a pillow at Shephard) ~S
Anyone want to be interviewed by Shephard? I promise my five questions will not be ones you've been asked lately (heh heh heh).
Labels: Questions Answered
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