It's Friday, so I'm reaching back into the deeps of time, all the way back to June First, and presenting you with Friday Fun: Fives Edition.

1. What are the last five books you have read?

The Diamond Age, Or A Young Lady's Illustrated Primer; Wetware; In The Blink Of An Eye; Shiny Adidas Tracksuits And The Death Of Camp; and You Don't Have To Be Evil To Work Here, But It Helps.

2. Name five places in the world you would love to go to.

I'd like to say that I'd like to visit the pyramids at Giza, but from what I hear, it's a total tourist trap. Instead, I'd like to visit the pyramids in Central America. I'd also like to visit NASA: Mission Control, Cape Canaveral and/or the JPL. I'd like to go the Smithsonian, and to the Great Barrier Reef, and to London.

3. Name five people who have strongly influenced your life, both good and bad,… not counting family!

Hmm, tricky. I'd have to point to my sixth grade teacher, without whom I'd have become an even more odious nerd than I'd ended up; the sysops of the BBS's I used to use for showing that there were still intelligent people in the world, and that they were building communities; Gene Roddenberry for his vision of a possible future; Cheile, who encouraged an odd sense of humour; and of course someone who would be uncomfortable even being mentioned, let alone for all the reasons behind the mention... so we'll just leave it at that.

4. Name five things you have accomplished that you are proud of, big or small!

I thought pride was a sin? Anyway, IT Which Must Not Be Named was an accomplishment for sparing as much pain as it did. Then there was last year's big project, Do In Three Days What The Last Guy Wasted Two Months In Not Doing. Then before that was— ah, right! how could I forget?— Fine, I'll Write The Entire Proposal Myself, Here Are Your Lines. I went through that twice, so it counts both times. And finally there was my favorite project, What If They Designed An Intranet And Nobody Used it? Amazingly, they still use it!

5. Name five things you still want to do in your life.

Well, visiting the places listed in Question Two would be a good start. I would love to go on a cruise. I'd like to be the recipient of a surprise party. I'd like to learn to play a musical instrument. And I'd like to do something that I can mention to people and have them say, "that was you?" (but in a good way, of course.)