COMMUNITY SPOTLIGHT: KATYA PRINCE
did it hurt? -- ellie russo Is this a line? Because you already know I'm in love with you, right?

is that a mirror in your pants? -- ellie russo A teeny, tiny one, I'm afraid. It's compact. Get it? God, I'm uncool.

do you believe in love at first sight? -- ellie russo I don't think so. Unless we're talking baby animals, in which case, I do. I believe in lust at first sight and I think you can have a very strong connection with a person when you first meet them. But I think that comes from talking, from sharing something more than just a look. Love at first sight always seems to end tragically in all the stories, anyhow. It might be boring or unromantic, but I think love takes time and I'll take a razor sharp wit over anything else every time. That said, I fell in love with Matthew McConaughey the first time I saw him on the big screen, so I could just be a hypocrite.

are you tired? -- ellie russo I have a feeling this is another line. I have a feeling these are all lines! I am always tired. Even when there's an epidemic that forces me to sleep for 17 hours, I end up exhausted.

have you been doing your school work? -- jacqueline gris I have! That's all I've been doing! I can't wait until that clock strikes midnight on the first of April. I will do cartwheels and backflips in the living room when this monstrosity of a thesis is handed in!

You've gone to hell and have to drink one thing for eternity, and since it's hell it shouldn't be something you like, it should be torture. So what is it you're drinking for eternity? -- rhett russo Of course you'd ask me this question, Rhett. Barring all the typically disgusting substances that shouldn't go anywhere near a person's mouth, it would have to be cough syrup. The really foul tasting kind that is more of a mouth gargle than anything. I hate the feeling of a sore throat and since it's hell, I'm assuming I'll have to contend with that as well for all eternity. Gross. Couldn't you have asked about my favourite flower?

how would you want to die if you were given a choice? -- lola daniels In my bed, surrounded by all my family. I would want to say my goodbyes to each one. I hope that it will be peaceful and not at the end of a long or painful illness. This took a very dark turn...

are there any ways that you prepare for the day? -- lola daniels I am not a morning person and I am not a Monday person, so it's always a struggle to get out of bed. I like to shower first thing and if I have enough time I'll take a few minutes to meditate and try to visualise myself having a pleasant day. It doesn't always work, so I don't think I have any prophetic powers, but it does give me a moment of calm before I start the day and I tend to react to things in a more productive way even if the world around me has turned to chaos. I've been getting up a lot earlier to take my puppy out for a walk and to get her used to the neighbourhood and it's the worst. Luckily, I love her to pieces.

if there was a time you've considered quitting everything, when was it? what did you want to do separate from routine? -- lola daniels Every day in this last month. I have been editing my thesis and I've reached my wits end. I tend to have very dramatic ideas about changing up my routine, so there's all sorts of ridiculous thoughts I have from cutting off all my hair to painting my room to colour coding the clothes in my wardrobe and on and on. At this point, I'm so ready for a vacation.

are you more of a realist? or optimist? -- lola daniels I've always believed in a higher power and that in itself has kept me optimistic from a young age. My grandmother was very big on the interceding of saints and making sure I said all of my prayers at night. I had lapsed for a long time, but I find myself praying a lot more now. There have been times in my life when I've bypassed the realist altogether and turned into a cynic, but I don't like feeling like that, so I will try everything to change that when it happens. I believe that even if things seem dire now, something good will eventuate.

can you remember the one item that kept you safe as a child? -- lola daniels When I was two or three I had a pair of overalls that I would never want to take off. They were red corduroy (oh, so stylish!) and I wore them so much that they had to be repaired all the time and as I started to get too big for them, my grandmother got fed up with patching them up so she used to use safety pins to hold them together. Eventually, I couldn't wear them anymore and I was so distraught that she turned them into this weird looking teddy bear that I carried around all the time. We lived near a forest and on stormy nights the trees would hit my bedroom window and I'd pretend that my teddy would stay up all night and watch over me.

is there a line from a book that resonates with you as a child and still and now as an adult? -- lola daniels “Logic!" said the Professor half to himself. "Why don't they teach logic at these schools? There are only three possibilities. Either your sister is telling lies, or she is mad, or she is telling the truth. You know she doesn't tell lies and it is obvious that she is not mad. For the moment then and unless any further evidence turns up, we must assume that she is telling the truth.” -- The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe.

It's one of my favourite books. I used to have this fear as a child that one day something unbelievable would happen to me and no one would believe me. I think I got the idea from watching so many films where people who are telling the truth are looked up in asylums and no one realises until the very end. Lately, a lot of strange things have been going on and I've been thinking about this quote more and more.

what kind of music gets you in the mood? -- lola daniels Oh, old school rhythm and blues. A great bass line and smooth vocals get me every time. Beyonce's "Dance for You" is a winner for me. It's got such a great groove and the lyrics are... descriptive.

if you won a lottery ticket and had a million dollars, what would you do with it? -- kathryn snow I'd be boring and sensible and invest in property. I'd love to contribute some of it to a charity or join a goodwill effort somewhere in the world where it's needed. I think education is so important, so I'd want to give disadvantaged kids something though I don't know how I'd go about that exactly! I'd help my little sister out with her medical school tuition and probably buy a lot of shoes because they are my weakness.

you’ve been given access to a time machine. Where and when would you travel to? -- kathryn snow I am too attached to technological advances that make modern hygiene possible, so I don't know how I'd manage in the past. I'd love to witness a historic event or see something like the pyramids in their original splendour. Maybe pose for Leonardo da Vinci and then come back to our time and pretend like I don't know why the Mona Lisa looks like me. I worry too much about the future to want to go forward in time, I don't want to tear a hole in the space time continuum!

what was your favorite TV show when you were growing up? -- kathryn snow There are so many! I watched a lot of cartoons. We had a lot of weird television back in the Ukraine. When we moved to America, I fell in love with Charmed and used to sit in my room for hours trying to make things move with my mind. The episode where Piper dies and says "Leo" when she comes back to life and breaks Dan's heart sometimes plays in my head at really inconvenient times and it's brutal.

what is your dream job? -- kathryn snow A full-time one! With paid leave! I've been working so many odd jobs and juggling things for so long that I'm ready to have a 9-5 stint in an office somewhere where I have my own coffee mug and my own desk and I can say things like "Hi Susan!" in the morning and a portly middle-aged woman will smile at me and offer me cake because it's always someone's birthday in an office and then tell me about how her kids are driving her crazy. I wanted to be a warrior princess when I was growing up and that still stands but I don't know if it's feasible.

What is your secret wish to the universe and why? -- irene avery If I tell it, does it still count as a wish? I want peace and calm and it's always been my wish to know that my loved ones are taken care of.

What is something you could stay up all night giggling about? -- irene avery Everything and nothing! I find almost everything funny, the more nonsensical the better, but dirty jokes always amuse me, especially when they're made by innocent looking people, so my little sister is perfect for that. If I stay up past 2am I always reach a point of mania and I forget how to speak properly but I've got so much energy and can't go to bed. And then I inevitably crash into a heap and sleep through my alarm. I'm really ticklish too, so that usually factors in at some point if the person I'm talking to knows that about me!

What is your strangest pet peeve? -- irene avery I don't know how strange this is but I have something of a foot phobia and weird looking toes freak me the hell out. I don't know why or how it started or if it will ever go away but I can't stand to look at a person's feet if they're all mangled or the nails are unkempt or something. G-r-o-s-s.

Is happiness or intelligence more appealing to you? -- irene avery I am -- without sounding really conceited -- very smart so I've always preferred to be around people who can keep my attention with interesting conversation. I can't stand a boastful person or someone who puts another person down to seem more intelligent. That is deplorable to me so I avoid it at all costs. I think happiness is a state of being that anyone can reach. They say that ignorance is bliss, but I don't know if I believe that.

If your incredibly sexy boyfriend wanted to take you on a vacation, where would you want to go? -- ken clarke Funnily enough, he's sweeping me away to Hawaii next week! But I would go anywhere just get this thesis away from me.

What are some items in your Amazon Wishlist? -- ken clarke Far, far too many books. The entire SK II beauty line because if it can make Cate Blanchett look that luminous then I'll have what she's having! There's a super cute pastel green vintage bicycle that I've been eyeing for months on there. Lately, it's full of puppy things for Rizzo and I have no regrets.

What is your favorite English word? -- ken clarke "Verily". I don't really know why, but it floats off the tongue nicely and it's always sounded very poetic to me.

Do you think men and women can just be friends? -- ken clarke I do! But I think it takes a certain type of man and a certain type of woman to do so. I think every situation is different, but I think if both people want to maintain a friendship, they will, no matter what. I believe it has to be a conscious choice to go from friends to something more, so you're always faced with that moment. The point of no return, as they say.

What do you think is the greatest invention of our time? -- ken clarke Oh my god, how do I only pick one? I can't decide between anaesthesia, penicillin, toothpaste or the toilet. But the other night I was watching one of those gruesome medical shows where they were performing a kidney transplant and I think that is mind-blowing. Fifty years ago, my grandfather died because they couldn't get him to the hospital in Kiev in time to remove his kidney stones and now they can give a person a brand new one!

Will you be my valentine? -- ken clarke
Just kidding! The answer is always yes. Especially since I was supposed to do this a month ago...

If you were a rapper, what would you call yourself? -- ken clarke "The Wor$t" it has a nice ring to it, don't you think?

What is your tiny pearl of wisdom? -- ken clarke It's so hard for me to not laugh at the word pearl and that's because I'm a five year old. But, okay. Well. "Don't forget that the internet is forever," is up there. There are times when I check my instagram feed and can't comprehend the things people post online. It's called a digital footprint for a reason!

What color do you dislike? -- ken clarke Peach.


You live in a world in which everyone gets a word tattooed on their forehead. Which one do you pick? -- ken clarke "Inimitable" -- Thank you, Lin Manuel Miranda for reminding me of that word.