Amy's Interests, Pastimes, Areas of Knowledge

This list of topics has been excerpted from the
Mensa Membership - Personal Data Questionaire - Areas of Interest
Amy was a member of American Mensa from 1982 to 2003.

Animals and Arts and Crafts have been filled in so far.
Additional sub-topics are listed below, starting with Astronomy

Entries marked with * indicate general interest.
Unmarked entries are areas of knowledge and/or expertise.

This is a fairly long list! Eventually, every entry will have a comment.
(well, maybe. . . the last comments were added in February 1998)

Animals

Animal Behavior
"I think I could turn and live with animals, they are so placid an self-contained;
I stand and look at them long and long.
They do not sweat and whine about their condition;
They do not lie awake in the dark and weep for their sins;
They do not make me sick discussing their duty to God;
Not one is dissatisfied --- not one is demented with the mania of owning things;
Not one kneels to another, nor to his kind that lived thousands of years ago;
Not one is respectable or industrious over the whole earth."

[from "Song of Myself" by Walt Whitman]

Animal Training - I'm familiar with Basic Obedience training for dogs. I can get SOME cats to play Fetch, although I wouldn't exactly call that "training," since it depends on whether the cat is interested in the game. I can persuade many birds to come closer to me and/or sing.

Birds - When I was a teenager, I had a male Canary, yellow with black wings. He looked a lot like a goldfinch and was a marvelous singer, so I called him Finnegan. I also kept a pair of Strawberry Finches for a girlfriend, during the year she lived in France. I had another male Canary for a short time in 1970, but he would waken us with his enthusiastic singing as early as 4:00 am (in a covered cage, on the shelf inside a closet, with pillows to muffle the din) so I gave him to a nice lady who kept parakeets.

Cats - My first cat was black with white paws and named Mittens, but I was very small and don't remember him at all. I didn't have any other cats until I got married in 1969, but I've usually had at least one ever since then. My current cats are numbers thirteen, fourteen, fifteen, and sixteen [Minerva, Apollo, Yang, Yin].

Dogs - When I was growing up, my family had a thirteen-inch Beagle named Bugle, who was mainly my brother's dog. Skip and I have owned several German Shepherds --- our last one lived twelve years.

Marine Aquariums - I kept a small salt-water tank (15 gallon) for about three years. My first fishes were goldfish, but I started a tropical tank when I was about ten. That one had an in-tank corner filter, the kind with charcoal and angel-hair (and snails, from eggs on the live plants). Later tanks had outside siphon filters and under-gravel set-ups (and plastic plants). Right now, I have a goldfish pond made from a four-foot wading pool.

Wildlife - I have personally seen dozens (hundreds?) of wild animals. Squirrels have taken peanuts from my fingers. I can catch a frog with my hands.

Arts and Crafts

Carving - I see or feel or hear what's inside a block of wood, and use an Exact-o knife (and lots of blades) to remove the outside. You can view pictures of some of my carvings.

Ceramics - I once worked part-time at a ceramics shop. I've made a few pieces using different techniques. I've also worked with mosaic tile.

Crewel - I still have the first crewel embroidery piece I ever made. When I was twelve or thirteen, I designed and stitched a vase holding blue bell-shaped flowers as a gift for my paternal grandmother. The framed piece was given back to me after she died.

Crochet - My maternal grandmother crocheted lots of afghans and dressed zillions of ten-inch dolls, but I didn't learn to crochet from her. I studied crochet books and practiced, and now it's my favorite needlecraft. Rarely do I make a piece exactly like someone else's pattern --- sometimes I adapt one, usually I design my own. Soon you can view individual pictures of some of my work. A few pieces are in the backgrounds of my cats' photos.

Dressmaking - My mother taught me how to use her Necchi sewing machine. I've made most of my own clothing since I was in high school.

Embroidery - I've been using cotton embroidery floss since I was five. My first needlework piece was a stamped cross-stitch and lazy-daisy sampler. I'm very good at counted cross-stitch. Soon you can view some of my work. (We really are taking lots of pictures.)

Furniture Refurbishing - I 'm pretty good at repairing and re-covering.

Knitting - I learned how to knit when I was thirteen. My first project was a blue, rectangular, fringed shawl for my paternal grandmother.

Lapidary - Someday I'll get a tumbler and polish some rocks, probably when I take up silversmithing.

Leather Craft - I've made several pairs of moccasins and a nice pair of knee-high moccasin boots.

Macrame - I've made plenty of plant-hangers, belts, and wall hangings, and a few 3-D pieces.

Metal Sculpture - I can use a soldering iron or gun, but I have no welding experience. I'm pretty good at wire sculpture, and I can make cute pipe-cleaner people.

Needlepoint - I learned needlepoint stitches around age eleven. I think my first project was of my initials, glued to the outside of a straight-sided oval basket which was lined with quilted cloth. Sometimes I use the half-cross-stitch for the background of my regular cross-stitch pieces.

Origami - I got interested in origami when I learned how to make a "cootie-catcher" in grade school, and I'm very good at wrapping presents.

Quilting - I've made several bed-sized quilts and a few smaller pieces, using my sewing machine.

Rug Making - I've crocheted a couple of small area rugs. I know how to use a latch hook and how to make a braided rug, but I've never made any large pieces.

Sewing - I started about age four with yarn-cards --- small cardboard rectangles that have holes punched along the outlines of printed pictures, to be laced with lengths of yarn or shoelaces. I'm a skilled seamstress.

Silversmithing - Someday I'm going to invest in proper silversmithing tools and learn to use them.

Stained Glass - Someday I'm going to assemble some stained glass kits.

Tailoring, Clothing Design - I'm very good at making clothing. I frequently adapt patterns to suit me. [ouch]

Woodworking - I'm pretty good at small around-the-home kind of projects, like shelves, tables, and cat towers. I've built a dollhouse from a kit (modified, of course) and I'm making all the furniture and people. I can do a fair job at woodburning. I've made a dulcimer and a floor harp from kits. You can view photos of the instruments.

Others not on the original list

Ball-point Paint - I've colored pre-stamped embroidery pieces and made some free-hand projects.

Beading - I can string them, weave them, and sew them onto cloth or leather.

Crayons and Colored Pencils - I think I've always known how to use a crayon (once I realized they didn't taste very good) and could color neatly inside the lines by age five. I learned to describe colors by their names in the original box of 64 Crayolas.

Paint-by-number - I did my first one at age five (a Clown in water-colors) and have finished several oil-based kits.

String Art - I've made several kits and a few of my own design.

Weaving - I've used small square looms (Weave-It and pot-holders) and table-top looms, but someday I'd like to have a good-sized floor loom.

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Astronomy
Biorhythym Cycle Theory
Broadcasting - Radio
Business - *Technical Writing - *Women in Business
Cartography
Computers - Computer Hobbies - Home Computers - Word Processing
Coincidences
Cooking - Breadmaking
Correspondence
Creativity
Dance - Ballet - Ballroom - Folk - Modern - Square
Death and Dying
*Doomsday
Ecology/Energy - Alternative Energies - *Back to the Land - Conservation - Environment - Marine Ecology - Nuclear Power - Solar Energy - Water Pollution
Education - Degree Free - Early Childhood Learning - Gifted Children - Languages/Linguistics - Math - Off-Campus Education - Sciences - Sex Education - Social Studies
Electronics - Amateur Radio - Kit Building - Shortwave Listening
*Engineering - *Design - *Electronics
Expert Advice
Feminism
Games - Cards - Chess - Computer Games - Crossword Puzzles - *Darts - Poker - Puzzles - Scrabble - Word Games
Genealogy
Geodesics
Geography
Graphic Arts - Calligraphy/Lettering - Graphic Arts/Design
Handicapped Persons
Heraldry
History - American - Ancient - Civil War - Colonial - Egyptology - European - Medieval - Music - Science - World
*Hobbies - Star Trek [the original show] - Trivia
Homes - Decorating - Renovating - Repairs/Maintenance

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*Horticulture - African Violets - Gardening - Hydroponics - Landscape Design
Human Rights
Humor/Absurdities
Imagination
Isolated Ms
*Left-Handers
Literature and Words - English Literature - Mythology - Poetry Writing - Semantics/Lexicography/Etymology - Science Fiction and Fantasy - Sherlock Holmes - Tolkien - Writing
Medicine - Alcoholism - Allergies - Biofeedback - Brain Research - Cardiology - Chiropractic - Dentistry - First Aid - Genetics - Holistic Medicine - Laboratory - Medical Ethics - Mind Altering Drugs - Natural - Healing - Neurology - Nursing - Nutrition - Optometry - Pharmacology - Technology
*Military
Music - Johann S. Bach - Bagpipes - Barber Shop Quartet - Beatles - Classical Music - Composition - Folk Music - Guitar - Keyboard Instruments - Voice
Occult - Astrology - Mysticism - Paganism - Psychic Phenomena - Pyramid Power - Spiritualism - Telepathy - Witchcraft
Patriotism
Philosophy - Libertarianism - Metaphysics
Psychology - Body Language - Child Psychology - Counseling - ESP - Graphology - Human Behavior - Hypnosis - PSI - Parapsychology - Problem Solving - Psychiatry
Public Speaking
Publishing
Religion - Bible Study - Christianity - Eastern Religions - *Judaism - *Mormons - Mythology - Theology
Science - Alchemy - Biochemistry - Biology - Bio-Physics - Botany - Chemistry - Cosmology - Cryptology - Geography - Geology - Herpetology - Hypnosis - Mathematics - Meteorology - Microbiology - Natural - Physics - Zoology
*Scouting
*Security Systems
Smoking/Non-Smoking Issues
Sports - Firearms - Archery - Guns - Small Arms - Target Shooting - Indoor - Billiards - Bowling - Martial Arts - Yoga - Outdoor - Birdwatching
Technology
Theatre - Acting - Attending Plays - Set Design
UFOs
Young People

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