Alice 50 questions

1. What is your full name? Alice Hoshigumo

2. Date and place of birth? Tampa, Florida, January 28. If you need help remembering it it's the same date as the challenger disaster :(

3. Tell me about your parents? My dad's an businessman and my mom works at home. They have almost no interest in space themselves and work really hard but they've been hugely supportive anyway

4. Brothers? Sisters?  I have a little brother, I love to get him excited about space travel

5. Where/how do you live? I live with my family in a suburban home, it's not very interesting. I'm not there very often

6. Do you have a job? If yes what is it? I keep the space dream alive! That is, I tour the country and give talks. Technically I don't get paid for it but I work with the group that got me into space so I feel like I owe and take it as seriously as any job. I'm also still a student.

7. How do you look? Hair, eye and skin color, height, weight, any marks, style of dress.
“I look Japanese. I dye my hair brown because I like it that way. Have you seen my jacket? It's got patches from some of my favourite space missions. We're not here to discuss my weight”

8. Do you have any allergies, mental illnesses, psychical weaknesses?
“Nothing that would make me unfit for space travel”
9. Are you left or right handed?
“Right handed”
10. Do you have any tics, certain habbits or other things like that?
“I like tapping people on the shoulder in a friendly way, I hope people don't find it intrusive.”

11. What do you usually carry in your pockets?
“Phone. Sometimes speech notes”
12. Describe your childhood
“I always wanted to be an astronaut, I knew that from a very early age since watching some tv program. Most of my childhood was finding more about it and convincing the people around me I was serious”

13. Did you like going to school?
“Yes! I knew learning was important to get me where I wanted to go. Even the parts of school I didn't like were bearable because of that. I guess I missed it when I was pulled out for tours.”
14. Where did you learn most of the things you know?
“A lot of it was self study just because I was interested in it. Libraries and the internet.”
15. Who did you look up to when you were younger?
“Neil Armstrong without a doubt, I wish I got to meet him. Later there was Toyohiro Akiyama”

16. Did you like your family? Why/why not?
“I got so frustrated with them when I was younger it's embarrassing. I love them now and I couldn't bear to let them down”
17. What was your dream job?
“Astronaut!”
18. What kind of child were you?
“Probably a spoilt high maintenance wilful child”

19. What’s the most important thing you did in your life?
“That would be when this little girl came up to me and said one day we'll go on a space mission together, it was incredibly adorable.”
20. Have you ever had any romantic relationships? And if they ended, why did you break up? “There was a girl in the soccer team I fooled around with but that didn't keep up after I started touring the country. There was also a guy I had a fling with because I thought he was a budding astronaut too but he was more interested in watching star trek in his basement than following me”

21. Do you have a relationship now?
“No, but I do have a pick up line about joining the 100 mile club I wouldn't dare actually use”
22. What is your greatest regret?
“I'd rather not say”
23. What is the worst thing you ever did?
“The worst depends on whether you think the means justify the ends”

24. What are you scared of?
“Letting people down and another world war.”
25. Best memory? And worst?
“Seeing a space launch in russia and getting to go behind the scenes and meeting the astronauts first. Worst memory was a feeling of dread about a week before my own space launch.”
26. What are your religious views?
“Buddhist, brought up with it”

27. Would you kill anyone? If yes, why?
“I'm sure I would never kill someone, I can't understand people who try to think up bizarre situations in which they would ”
28. Would you die for anyone?
“I would risk my life but I don't think I'd die for anyone, not as long as I think I can do more good alive”
29. Do you make friends quickly?
“I certainly think so!”

30. How would you describe your manners?
“A bit upfront, lacking on formalities? I think someone would have to be pretty uptight or just old to consider me rude thought.”
31. Turn ons?
“Passion, that's probably the big thing. And being cuddly and cute.”
32. Turn offs?
“Lying. That and being gross and icky”

33. Are you close to your family? Why/why not?
“I wish I could share more with my family but they've been as supportive as they can.”
34. If you desperately need help, who do you turn to?
“I don't know”
35. Your hobbies?
“I feel my journey to be an astronaut has gone beyond a hobby now. Astronomy is there. I like playing soccer for real now, I used to be such a nerd and shy away from all physical activity.”

36. Your most treasured possession?
“Signed photograph of me meeting real astronauts”
37. Favourite color and food?
“White, and shrimp ramen (okay so at least part of that is how quick and easy it is to make)”
38. Favourite book/genre?
“Ender's game/hard sci-fi no surprise there I'm sure”
39. Do you smoke/drink/do drugs? And if so, why?
“No, and never”

40. What is your favourite way of spending a Saturday?
“Anything that doesn't involve sitting around doing nothing”
41. How do you deal with stress?
“I don't know send help”
42. Favourite joke?
“The story is that Albert Einstein's driver used to sit at the back of the hall during each of his lectures, and after a period of time, remarked to AE that he could probably give the lecture himself, having heard it several times. So at the next stop on the tour, AE & the driver switched places, with AE sitting at the back, in driver's uniform. The driver gave the lecture, flawlessly. At the end, a member of the audience asked a detailed question about some of the subject matter, upon which the lecturer replied, 'well, the answer to that question is quite simple, I bet that my driver, sitting up at the back, there, could answer it...'. “

43. How do you react if someone disturbs your routine?
“I try to be polite but if there isn't a good reason I end up thinking of the things I could have said”
44. Do you like yourself?
“No but that's probably a perfectly ordinary teenager thing there's no reason why I shouldn't”
45. Introvert or extrovert?
“Extrovert”
46. What are you good at?
“Talking big”

47. And what are you not good at?
“Probably not good at judging character”
48. What words describe you?
“Charismatic, astronaut, space enthusiast, nerd”
49. what is your weakness?
“Cute people (joke)”
50. What would you want to add that you feel is important?
“I have a recurring nightmare that started a bit before my space flight”