As part of Niel's great interview experiment I was interviewed by Ally of Acting Like a Mama.

Here's the interview:

1) We both gave birth to our first baby in May 2007. This means the eventful 1st birthday is not too far away. We are planning of planting a tree for our son – have you thought how you might celebrate Willa’s 1st birthday? Do you have any family birthday traditions?
I can't believe that this kid who was in my belly is going to be turning one in three months. To be honest I have NO IDEA what we are going to do for her birthday. About the only thing we do know is that we will be donating to the Woodstock Farm Animal Sanctuary in her name.

2) I see you are a picky vegetarian – you are also went to culinary school so must have passion about cooking – If you were able to decide, what would you choose to cook for your last meal on earth?
Wow. That's such a tough question for me. I have a love/hate relationship with food. I would probably have to choose Tagliatelle with cashew cream sauce and parmesan cheese.
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3) You and your husband sing – what are your musical influences – if you had one song that you had to sing to an audience of 20,000 – what song would you pick?
I used to sing all the time, but some where along the way I lost my confidence. My father-in-law is a singer and I've performed a couple of times with him. I tend to prefer to sing simple folk songs as opposed to rock. My voice doesn't have a lot of power. I was supposed to sing "All that we let in" by the Indigo Girls this year at the Guthrie Center, but my father died the day of the concert, so I canceled at the last minute. My favorite song to preform live would probably be "Tangled up in Blue". Not the Bob Dylan version, but the Indigo Girls version. I really enjoy singing their stuff because I love the harmony. If i had any balls at all I would put a video of me singing on my blog.

4) You say you don’t like the movies that ‘everyone likes’ – what is your all time favourite movie and what do you think makes a good movie?
I don't think I could pick one favorite. I like different movies at different times because of my mood or what happens to be going on in my life . Off the top of my head here are some of my favorite movies: American Beauty, Forrest Gump, Dirty Dancing, Office Space, Clerks, Love Actually, Face Off, Terminator 2, Notting Hill, Garden State. I obviously like a weird mix of action movies and romantic comedies. I don't need a movie to be profound or have amazing cinematography I just need it to entertain me.

*Edited to add- I just saw Juno and I thought it was completely overrated.

5) The last year must have been particularly difficult for you, a pregnancy, giving birth and raising a child, and losing your father. What would be the one thing grief has taught you?
Grief has taught me that I am stronger than I thought I was.

6) Your husband seems to work an awful lot, something that I can totally sympathise with – I find it really hard to cope especially in the early evening - What strategies to do you use to cope?
Yeah. He does work a lot, but he still spends more time with Willa than most fathers I've met. He's VERY involved. I think I complain so much about how much he works because I really like him and I miss him when he's not around. Life would be much easier if I didn't like him so much. And, of course, there are days when Willa is being particularly challenging and I miss having some help. On those days I try to go out for a lot of walks- Willa is really happy when we are out and about. The winter is really hard because sometimes it's just too cold to take long walks. On those days we read a lot of books and I put on some music and dance around. Kayne West is Willa's favorite. I have managed to not let her watch television although I have been REALLY tempted.

7) You are an excellent photographer with your work appearing in the New York Times and for Nikon. My favourite photo on your blog is “The Sunshine on My Cloudy Day” (August 6, 2007). What do you like about taking photos? What is the number one tip for us armatures?
Thank you. I really am not a technically skilled photographer, I just have an eye. My number one tip for amateurs is TURN OFF YOUR FLASH. That's the difference between a snapshot and a professional photograph- the lighting. I almost never use a flash and when I do it's a professional flash- not the one that is built into the camera. When you have to use the flash because the light is too low, tape a piece of wax paper over the flash to diffuse it.

8) Once I write a post on my blog, I very rarely return to read it again – the only exception is my labour/birth story – Do you re-read your posts? Why/why not?
Sometimes I read my old posts. I have a horrible memory, so it helps me figure out what I was doing when. Also, if I'm having a rough time, the supportive comments can be really uplifting.

9) If there was one thing that you hoped your blog will achieve – what would it be? Do you write mainly for yourself? Or others?
For me my blog is a social network. I've met so many wonderful people because of it. I know that I'm not a good writer, but it's still nice to be able to express myself and get stuff off of my chest.

10) The blog community can be wonderful at times, and not so wonderful at other times – What are your thoughts on meeting your blog contacts in real life – have you ever done this and did it change your perception of them/their blog?
I have met so many bloggers. Tracy Manford, Heather Hunter, Heather and Jon Armstrong, Sarah Brown, Heather B, Melissa, Schnozz, and so many more. I consider most of the bloggers I've met as my friends. There are also several people who I've "met" on the internet who I haven't met in real life who I consider friends. I want to kiss the internet on the mouth for introducing me to so many fantastic people.

11) You live in Manhattan – I have never traveled out of Australia and would love to go to New York one day – If you had to take me on a tour to your three favourite spots in Manhattan/New York – where would you take me?
First, I would take you to all of the hidden corners of Central Park that most people don't even know about, them we would go to The Museum of Natural History and stare at the giant whale suspended from the ceiling, then we would go to Alice's Tea Cup for high tea.

12) Your blog is titled “I pretty much Hate everything” which can sound very negative, but your posts are far from it – You display such emotion, both good and bad, and some great humour, and lets not mention the wonderful photographs again! How and why did you pick this title?
I REALLY love to complain. it's actually a habit that I am trying to break because I don't Willa to be as negative as me. My problem is that I am constantly disappointed by people and their lack of common sense. I am generally a very nice person, but if you piss me off or hurt someone I care about, WATCH OUT.

Feel free to ask me any additional questions in the comments.

Also, when I can find some time,I'll be interviewing Aimee of Put Your Flare On. She's an American living in Paris, so it should be an interesting interview.