1. In the book, Orange Buffalo by Grayson Queen, the orange buffalo is a legend. Tracking a regular brown buffalo is a feat of skill. A rare white buffalo thus represents the nearly impossible hunt for something, whereas an orange buffalo represents the search for something that simply doesn’t exist. Have you ever searched for an orange buffalo– a truly false or impossible dream?
I only remember one search for an orange buffalo in my life, and that was my very (very, very, very) short-lived dream of being a stay at home mother and raising two and a half adorable children, and a puppy. My family is all kinds of abnormal, and for about half a year through high school, the image of the white picket fence just really appealed to me. Then I met someone who lived behind one of those fences– and she was awesome, and her family was fun, but their lives certainly weren’t perfect or normal.
After that realization set in, I started searching for things that would give me the capacity to wake up on the outside, the way I felt on the inside. It turns out those dreams were to be found in a whole different direction.
Dave is a stay-at-home husband, and an artist and author. We’re child-free. We’re cat people. I work full-time, and with the exception of nearly a month off in 2011, I have always have had a full-time job, or two. Or three. We don’t have a classic white picket fence because we rent and it would be wholly unnecessary, but we have a good family. A good life.
The normal-life-behind-a-white-picket-fence life is probably a very possible dream to some people, but for me– it was definitely an orange buffalo.
If we had a fence, it would probably look like this. Take THAT, housing associations.
2. What’s the greatest lesson you’ve learned from a break-up?
Building a relationship is about the shape of your life, as much as it’s about the shape of your personality. Sometimes people fit, but lives don’t.
3. Do you remember what you wanted to be when you grew up? Did you get there? If not, what happened?
I wasn’t really one for pinning my dreams on a job. In terms of work, I’ve only ever wanted to do good and be needed and trusted. Once, in sixth grade, I was strong-armed into writing a long piece on what I wanted to be when I grew up. I chose astronaut– not because I really wanted to be one, but because I thought it would make a more exciting presentation.
I didn’t end up being an astronaut, but I’ve done a lot of good.
(Also, my presentation was amazing.)
4. Is there something in your past you’d like to do over? How do you think it would change your life if you had the opportunity to do so?
I’m intrigued by the concept of what my life would be like if I changed everything I wasn’t thrilled with, because– more and more– I believe I’d still be right here where I am today. With you.
Fate unfolds in funny ways, and sometimes it feels like she’s made a mistake– but I trust her.
5. In the novel there’s a repeating series of lines, referring to society’s predictions for the main character– the good and bad.
“What a nice boy, a good boy, so much potential. He’s going to grow up to be president, a novelist, a hypocrite, a sellout.”
Write your own.
You’re welcome to answer these questions, too. I’d love to hear about your orange buffalo. If you put something together, link back and I’ll put your link on my sidebar with anyone else who decides to play.If you’d like to read the book in question, written by my darling husband who will be turning 34 in just a few days, right now is a good time because he’s made it available for free. More details here: http://graysonqueen.wordpress.com/2014/02/18/happy-birthday/________________________________Did you ever want to be an astronaut?
