FAQs, in two different ways

[kate_nepveu]

First:

Springing off a discussion in dw_suggestions, what do you like to see in people's DW/LJ profiles/blog about-boxes/whatever? What are interesting things you've seen people communicate in those spaces? What was really important to you to put in yours? Or if you don't use that kind of thing, do you use anything else instead?

As I said over there, I spent a ridiculous amount of time on my own recent profile revamp (feedback welcome!); I find this sort of thing intrinsically fascinating.

* * *

Second:

Two actual pregnancy-related FAQs, with my usual answers:

Q: How are you feeling?
A: Busy.

Q: What are you having? / Do you know what you're having?
A: A baby.

Preferred, though less frequent, questions:

Q: How are you? / How's it going? / How are things?
A: Busy. (In all likelihood. But at least I won't feel like I've been reduced to my reproductive capacity by the entirely well-meaning, yet cumulatively frustrating, replacement of "how are you" as the default acknowledgment-of-existence to me.)

Q: Do you know / are you going to find out the sex?
A: It's going to be a surprise.

Readercon post tomorrow, I hope.

Comments

[chomiji]

The Young Lady just suggested that your response to "What are you having" should be "I don't know, but I hope it's puppies."

As far as what I'd like to see in other people's profiles ... whatever they want me, a stranger, to know. If they're shy or very into privacy and don't post anything, that tells me something too. (As you know, mine's pretty verbose.)

[chomiji]

(LOL ... but not verbose in comparison to your new one ... !)

[kate_nepveu]

Hee! Yeah, I had the same thought.

I actually got around to the revamp when I discovered people thought SteelyKid was all metallic and stuff, but I did try to include only genuinely useful one-stop-shopping type things.

[redbird]

Q: Are you going to find out the sex?
A: That usually happens sometime in the first few years, yes.

[kate_nepveu]

Also true! (As you know, I dislike the overwhelming emphasis on sex and gender when it comes to infants, but there's only so much I'm prepared to do in small-talk situations.)

[sophie]

Hi! I just came over here from the Latest Things page when looking at the "dreamwidth" tag.

I'm also interested to know what people would want to put in their profiles, so I hope it's okay for me to watch the comments on this post. If somebody doesn't do it first (or if you're going to do it) then I'll probably try creating an informal all-questions-optional questionnaire that people can copy and paste to their bio, since it seems like that could alleviate some of the problems raised in the comments of that dw_suggestions entry!

(Also, I dislike the emphasis on the sex/gender of infants too. Not least that the idea of the traditional "It's a girl/boy!" exclamation would make me want to say "You might know their sex, you don't know their gender." I hope you'll be very happy as a parent, though!)

[kate_nepveu]

Hee. I guess my profile doesn't explicitly say that you can track comments as well as the whole journal, but yes, of course.

Though I suspect it's of far more interest to me than other people who read me.

[vehemently]

Q. Will you be naming your child Evergreen Ambrose?
A. Shut up, you.

[flea]

That question is only frequently asked by you, dear.

[kate_nepveu]

I was in fact coming over here to tell people that this is indeed a frequently asked question, just only by V! Great minds.

[missyb]

I hope the busy dies down enough that you can put your feet up and relax for a bit! Are you getting the hell roasted out of you like we are in Ohio?

(The weather is so vexing. My poor French exchange student would have to come during one of the worst heat waves I can ever recall.)