1. Last December, the family bought a duplex in San Francisco. Steve and Lise’s mother met with the real estate agent and put down the offer. When did Lise first see it?
Correct answer: B
The realtor thought I was crazy telling my husband and mother to go ahead and just make the offer, but it’s worked out well. The house is lovely, and when I saw it a couple weeks after our offer was accepted, I love it.
2. In January, work began on renovating the house we’d just bought. New floors, upgrading the kitchen, taking out the fireplace, removing a wall. When was it finished?
Correct answer: D
Each of the dates listed was a date given to us by our contractor, and each one came and went while our garage remained full of their tools and our kitchen full of individual, unassembled kitchen parts. True, as of right now there are appliances and flooring and working plumbing, but the dishwasher needs to be replaced. I’m sure that once all the construction work is done, it’ll be time to repaint or something like that!
3. In February, Athena had another birthday. Where did we go to celebrate?
Correct answer: C
While we love all the listed places, Athena chose the Exploratorium’s Tactile Dome, a place where visitors entire a completely light-free tunnel and must explore with only their other senses. It’s huge fun, and one of our favorite treats.
4. Also in February, Steve started a new job about which he’d been dreaming since he was a tyke. Where did he work?
Correct answer: D
Sadly, he only stayed at NASA for two months. While he was really excited about working there, the horror of mind-crushing bureaucracy quickly outweighed the awesome of space travel. Which he wasn’t going to ever get to do anyway.
5. In April, Athena started karate at Rod Sanford’s Academy in Soquel. She took to it like a ninja to darkness, and as of the beginning of December had attained what rank?
Correct answer: C
The belts available are white, yellow, orange, blue, green, purple, brown and black. For white through purple belts, students must learn one or more katas or forms – a series of moves. After purple belts, the going gets a little tougher with weapons training thrown in. But don’t worry, even though she’s only a blue belt, she’s already lethal.
6.Lise had her first grad school residency in December and her second in June. At her school (Antioch University, Los Angeles), each cohort (group who starts at the same time) gets a name. What is the name of Lise’s cohort?
Correct answer: B
While I love my school, the jacaranda as a cohort, um, mascot (it’s not really a mascot, it’s just an identifier) has a few strikes against it. First of all, all the Latino people want to sound superior by pronouncing it in Spanish: “hah kah RAHN dah.” Which I guess is okay, because it does keep it from sounding like “jackass.” The other thing is that the color that signifies our cohort is a sort of light purple, a color that I personally find really ugly. Except that it was my grandmother’s favorite color. All of this is to say that I would way rather have been part of the “rose” or the “starfruit” cohort.
7. Athena went to camp this year, but for the first time since she started going to camp at the age of 6, it wasn’t YMCA’s Camp Campbell. Where did she go instead?
Correct answer: A
Athena went to surf camp at Camp Campbell the year before, but they no longer offer surf camp. We found another great surf camp that used not only the same campsite, but had several of the same counsellors from her YMCA experience. She had an amazing time, despite the fact that mid-week, we got a call from the guy who ran the camp to ask whether we thought they should call an ambulance for our kid when she twisted her knee. Forget that! An ice pack and a cold drink and she was back on the board!
8. Just after the residency in June, Lise started a new job at Lunch Ticket magazine. What is her title now?
Correct answer: C
I’ve been editor in chief for this issue of Lunch Ticket, and I’ll keep the same title for the next issue. It’s a demanding job, but getting to read great new literature is huge, and getting to work with my fellow students putting the magazine together has been great. Have you checked out our new issue yet? Why not?!
9. Steve has hit the competitive bagpipe circuit pretty hard this year. As of the end of the summer, what was his ranking in the Western Division among Grade 4 pipers?
Correct answer: A
Rankings are based on points. The more events pipers compete at, the more points they get and the higher ranking they achieve. The top-ranked piper attended literally every event sponsored by the Western United States Pipe Band Association, and so amassed a lot of points. And probably a lot of air miles.
10.This fall, Athena started seventh grade! Now that she’s solidly in the middle-school years, she’s looking at her career options. Which career has she settled on?
Correct answer: D
This past summer, Athena came down to Los Angeles to visit Lise during the last few days of the grad school residency. The city worked its charm on her, and she had been there less than 36 hours before uttering the phrase: “I want to direct.” We’ve already started her on the prerequisites: serve from the left, take away from the right, automatically add in the tip for parties of 8 or more.
11. Hurricane Sandy has delayed Steve’s plan to acquire a new and exciting thing. What was it?
Correct answer: B
Steve had been wanting a set of smallpipes, a kind of bagpipe that can be played indoors without hurting anybody. Thinking it would be faster if he ordered them from a domestic manufacturer, he ordered them from a fellow in New York. Who knew that a natural disaster would strike?
12. Lise, Steve and Athena went to Phoenix in August to hang out with Lise’s childhood friend (and birthday sister) Yvonne. Phoenix in August? Of course! The smart set travel during the off season when rates are cheap! What fabulous resort did they stay at?
Correct answer: A
Lise and Steve had stayed at the Biltmore last summer, and thought it would make a lovely getaway. The family availed themselves of the daily breakfast, wine and hors d’oeuvres each evening and an enormous pool with a swim-up bar. Athena has now decided that she was made for resort living. She’d better hit it big as a director, hadn’t she?
13. Athena put quite a bit of thought into her Halloween costume this year, watching several movies for research. Who was she this year?
Correct answer: C
She watched Breakfast at Tiffany‘s, and decided that she needed an extremely long cigarette holder and some fabulous gloves for her costume. Along with some gruesome wounds, and a lot of fake blood. But she looked ethereally lovely and just the tiniest bit horrifying in her costume.
14. San Francisco isn’t the only place getting an overhaul. We’ve put some work in on the Boulder Creek digs, as well. What upgrades did we NOT do this year?
Correct answer: D
This one was a bit tricky. We did have an archway built on the deck, but it was last year. The archway looks amazing still, and it’s a lovely addition to the view of the creek, which as of right this minute is a roaring brown river (it’s been raining pretty steadily here).
15. What is the Co-Prosperity Sphere’s fondest wish this holiday season?
Correct answer: D
Of course our answer is D! Come out and see us, send us an email, drop us a line. We miss you! We don’t see you nearly often enough!
Post your score in the comments so we can see who’s been paying attention. Bear in mind that even Steve didn’t get 100%.
The Quintana-Beitzel Coprosperity Sphere 
I can’t report my score because I cheated, starting with the website and only then reading the other answer choices. Merry Christmas anyway!
Bwahahahahaha! Actually, I kinda think that most people are going to do it that way.
8 out of 15… that’s what i get for moving away.
But given that you’re no longer local, that is a totally respectable score!
I cheated and went straight to the blog. We were in San Fransisco last weekend and I want tell you all about it, Lise. We’d love to come and see you! Please call me (hopefully you still have our number).