Tell us a story: trick or treat

Is there a pattern to the Halloween costumes you've chosen over the years? Do you usually pick a human character of some sort, and if so, fictional or real? Or do you frequently go as a monster? Or maybe a concept, or a pun? Do you dress as things you admire and would like to emulate, or as things that cause fear?

Great on a plate

What is your favorite food?

Money can't buy everything

What is one of your current problems that could easily be solved if you had more money? And what is one problem that you would still have, you even if you had a lot more money?

This week's theme is money.

Paper or plastic

Do you spend more freely when you buy with a credit card, and more cautiously when you spend cash? Or is it more often the reverse — cash flies out of your hands quickly, but you hesitate to post new charges on your card?

This week's theme is money.

I couldn't pass it up

Do you sometimes buy things just because they're such a good price, even though you might not have any need for them in the near future?

This week's theme is money.

When I win the lottery

Do you dream of striking it rich? How often do you buy a lottery ticket? Have you worked out detailed plans for what you will do if you win a million dollars?

This week's theme is money.

Money

How much is your self-worth tied to your net worth? Can you feel good about yourself even if you don't have much money?

Thinking back over your life, have your wealthiest times been your happiest times?

This week's theme is money.

Tell us a story: tough decisions

What was the hardest decision you ever made? What made it so difficult?

I got sidetracked

Looking back over your life, what time period was most like a dead end or a detour? What part of your life seems a little bit outside the main narrative of your life story?

Denied!

Was there any activity your parents expressly forbade you to do, or people they didn't want you to see? How did that impact your life as an adult?

This week's theme is your parents.

It's like my parents always said...

What is one lesson that you heard over and over from your parents — something that they wanted to make sure that you understood?

Did you heed their advice, or did you disregard it?

This week's theme is your parents.

From generation to generation

Regardless of whether you have children of your own, are there habits or behaviors of your parents that you sometimes find yourself repeating in your interactions with others?

This week's theme is your parents.

With parents like these...

When you think of your most difficult interactions with your mother or your father, what moments come to mind?

This week's theme is your parents.

Your parents

What's your most positive memory of an interaction with your mother? What's your most positive memory of an interaction with your father?

This week's theme is your parents.

Tell us a story: "No, really, I can do this..."

Did you ever take on a daunting responsibility, only to realize quickly that it was too much for you? What did you do? Did you continue on, nonetheless? Or did you quit, leave, or otherwise bail on the responsibility?

Causing pain

Did you ever hurt someone very badly?

Leap

What is one giant leap — a big change in your life — that you would like to make before the next leap day (February 29, 2012)?

This week's theme is change.

When you weren't looking

What is one big change that seemed to come out of nowhere because it happened while your attention was focused on something else?

This week's theme is change.

Mirror, mirror on the wall

How has your appearance changed in the last year? In the last five years? What is the most dramatic change in your appearance since you were in school?

This week's theme is change.

Change on a grand scale

When was the last time something huge changed for you, effectively changing your whole life (or a part of your life)? Have you had more than one massive change in your lifetime?

This week's theme is change.

Change

Do you embrace change, or fear it? Would you rather things continue on as they are, even if they aren't optimal, rather than face the unknown?

This week's theme is change.

Tell us a story: Lucky I was there

What was one time when you just happened to be in the right place to help someone who needed immediate assistance — for example, to escape danger, avoid embarrassment, or handle an emergency?

Living in a generous universe

Think quick: what are six valuable things that you got for free in the last 24 hours?

Roadblock to learning

What's the one thing that is most likely to get in the way of you learning new things — whether in school or in other situations?

This week's theme is education.

Cast of characters

In every movie about high school, there are certain typical characters. What character were you in high school? If you weren't an easily defined stock 'type,' what were some of your strongest defining characteristics during that time?

This week's theme is education.

After school special

When you were in school, did you participate in clubs, sports, arts, or other extracurricular activities that would keep you at school longer than the usual school day? Or did you prefer to spend as little time at the school as possible?

What was the highlight of your extracurricular life?

This week's theme is education.

Hard-earned lessons about learning

When you look back at your education, thinking both about what you studied and about how you approached it, what decisions do you regret? What would you do differently if you had a second chance?

This week's theme is education.

Education

What is your overall relationship with education? Do you have fond memories of going to school, and learning? Or does the memory of it make you shudder a little? Do you miss going to school? Do you sometimes wish you still were? Or have you closed that door and never look back on it?

This week's theme is education.

Tell us a story: and the winner is...

Have you ever won anything? What's the most notable thing you've ever won? A large amount of money? A cool piece of electronic merchandise? A trip to somewhere fabulous? The chance to meet somebody famous? A tremendous stuffed toy?

Did you win this great prize by luck, or was skill or talent involved?

The hue of you

What color is most closely associated with your personality and personal style? If your friends had to pick one color to represent you, what would they most likely pick?

Buying and reading

How well does your pace of book purchases match up with your pace of reading? Do you read books as soon as you get them home, or do you have a growing stack of books that you're hoping to have time to read someday? If you had to guess, how many unread books are there in your house?

This week's theme is your reading habits.