Hi all,

I just returned from my winterover psychological exam in Denver, and
due to popular request, I thought I'd spam out a description of my
experience.  The office specializes in screening law enforcement
agents, firefighters, etc in addition to winterover candidates, and
when I went, there was only one other winterover with me (also named
Cynthia, oddly enough).  We were herded into a room and given our
packets, and mine consisted of the MMPI-2 and 16PF tests: about 500
mind-numbing multiple choice questions in total.  While we were
filling out the scantrons, we were pulled out individually for brief
interviews.  The interview itself wasn't very exciting and was a bit
of a blur -- a series of rapid-fire questions about crimes, debt,
alcohol, drugs, and child porn.

The multiple choice questions, on the other hand, were gems of insight
into the bizarre and surreal world of personality typing.  So without
further ado, I present to you: THE BEST OF MMPI-2.  These are some of
my favorite true/false questions (and now that I'm staring at my
written copy, I can't help but feel that I'm looking at the mad
scrawlings of a lunatic):

----------------------------------------------------------
* I like mechanics magazines.
* My mother is a good woman.
* I love to go to dances.
* Evil spirits possess me at times.
* There seems to be a lump in my throat much of the time.
* At times I feel like swearing.
* My hands and feet are usually warm enough.
* Ghosts or spirits can influence people for good or bad.
* I am very seldom troubled by constipation.
* I think I would like the kind of work a forest ranger does.
* I do not have a great fear of snakes.
* Someone has been trying to poison me.
* Everything tastes the same.
* Someone has been trying to rob me.
* Bad words, often terrible words, come into my mind and I cannot get rid of them.
* Often I feel as if there is a tight band around my head.
* Peculiar odors come to me at times.
* My soul sometimes leaves my body.
* I would like to be an auto racer.
* When a man is with a woman he is usually thinking about things related to her sex.
* I often feel as if things are not real.
* Dirt frightens or disgusts me.
* I like repairing a door latch.
* Someone has it in for me.
* I am not afraid of mice.
* My neck spots with red often.
* Once in awhile I laugh at a dirty joke.
* I hear strange things when I am alone.
* In walking I am very careful to step over sidewalk cracks.
* At one or more times in my life, I felt that someone was making me do things by hypnotizing me.
----------------------------------------------------------

The 16PF test was somewhat shorter, and the first part consisted of
multiple choice questions that were similar to the MMPI-2.  Here's a
random sample (starting with my favorite, for those who know the
associated story...):

----------------------------------------------------------
* If people act as if they dislike me:
  A: It doesn't upset me
  B: ?
  C: I usually feel hurt

* I'd prefer to spend an evening:
  A: Working on a quiet hobby
  B: ?
  C: At a lively party

* I greatly enjoy the racy and slapstick humor of some television shows:
  A: True
  B: ?
  C: False

* If I could, I would rather exercise by:
  A: Fencing or dancing
  B: ?
  C: Wrestling or baseball

* What this world needs is:
  A: More steady, solid citizens
  B: ?
  C: More reformers with opinions about how to improve the world

* I'd rather stop in the street to watch an artist painting than a building being constructed:
  A: True
  B: ?
  C: False

* Many people are too fussy and sensitive and should toughen up for their own good:
  A: True
  B: ?
  C: False
----------------------------------------------------------

The last part of the 16PF test was a "problem solving" section.  I'm
not sure what it's supposed to reveal about one's sanity...boh.  For
completeness, here are a couple of those questions:

----------------------------------------------------------
* The opposite of "right" is the opposite of:
  A: Left
  B: Wrong
  C: Correct

* Which word does not belong with the other two?
  A: Cat
  B: Near
  C: Sun
----------------------------------------------------------

So there you have it, the questions that are used to determine whether
or not we're (in)sane enough to spend 6 months in the dark.  Thank the
spirits that there are no snakes or mice in Antarctica, because those
critters freak me out.

enjoy!
Cynthia