win or die

[stillarium.livejournal.com]

Name: Lisa
How did you find out about the community? If it's through an LJ user, please tell us who it is (individual user if possible, not just a community name!): Sorry, I don't remember any particular user. I saw the link posted somewhere on LJ a while ago. I am reapplying now, because when I first filled this out I had only read 1 1/2 books and wasn't sorted. I've now read 4 books, so I guess the character section will be completely changed. I will also edit my application as I go. BTW, I would really appreciate it if you could just shortly state why you think a certain house would fit when you vote, I'm always curious. xD Last time, many voted for one house (I won't say which as to not influence you now :P) and I wondered why.
Age: 22
Location: Vienna, Austria
Occupation: Student: I'm studying Sinology and will be abroad in China for the upcoming semester. I may take up English and American Studies too... it does sound appealing to me and I want a second subject. I also tried Transcultural communication with German, English and Chinese, but it wasn't really to my liking. I would love studying about literature or writing, but sadly there aren't many subjects about that at our universities here.




All About You

1. Describe your ideal house/home. Please go into as much detail as possible, and be sure to include your ideal geographical location in the description!.

I've always thought that it'd be either Middle Europe (perhaps England or Germany, besides Austria) or maybe Canada (since I already visited relatives there and liked it), preferably a country where german or english was spoken. I also would love to visit Japan and China (my mother's from China), but I don't think I'd be able to live there permanently. It would not only be crowded and the expectations immensely high, but when I visited there I was a bit shocked at how low the living standards are for some (at least in China, haven't been to Japan yet). I hate the cold, so I wouldn't consider Sweden etc. even though they sound like very social and advanced countries. Many of the other countries just seem too dangerous or I just don't know enough about them that I would want to go live tehre.

2. Imagine you’re given the classic opportunity: a genie granting you three wishes. What would you wish for? Please be as elaborate as you can. Wishing for more wishes is not permitted!

Wow, this is hard. First of all, I'd probably wish for health and happiness for myself, people I know and probably just anyone. But in some measure of course, I don't think you could never be sad and you shouldn't live forever, but I'd want no greater unfortunate events etc. Second, I would wish that everyone would stop being stupid and I don't mean silly stupid, but truly stupid, like warring among themselves or destroying the envinronment beyond repair. Third, I would wish that there were many different worlds / planets with enough food out there we could reach and I could go to one where magic existed and I could experience some grand adventure, haha. 8D Since if everyone was peaceful, the worlds wouldn't battle each other, would they? So I guess my wishes will stay wishes forever, but if I had the chance, why not aim for something higher? X)

3. In your life so far, what accomplishment are you the most proud of? Why? You can list more than one if you have trouble deciding. ;)

Another difficult one. o.o It really depends on what one would see as an "accomplishment". Most people would probably name something to do with their job or studies, but I don't think that's always such an accomplishment except for when you've really earned it yourself. I mean, some people can go to the best universities just because their parents have loads of money, so...
I don't really remember any particular great accomplishment right now. There have been small instances where I did something for friends to cheer them up which made me happy too in return and also things not really worth mentioning where I was proud because someone praised my work, be it winning some kind of competition, writing a story book when I was a kid or baking muffins and presenting them to my class for a presentation that was very well-received etc. I remember that when I was small, I was most proud of a time when we rode bikes for about 20 km, climbed a mountain (it wasn't that steep though) and rode 20 km back home. And of one time where we rode bikes while completely drenched in rain and I apparently thought I was going to die, it's still in my daily journal from back then. xD

4. Which of the following is most important to you: Love, Money, Knowledge, Family, Friendship, Adventure, or Pleasure? Which is the least important to you? Please explain why for each choice.

Friendship would be the most important one, I guess. I've only been in love and never truly loved yet (like being in a very serious relationship), but I've been thinking for a long while that friendship is more important anyway. Love comes and goes, but friendship stays - or at least it should stay, if it's a true friend. I'm not that close to my family, but they say friends are family you choose and some of my close friends really felt more as if they were my brothers at times than my biological brother. And now that I think about it, I think every "real" love is like some great friendship IMHO too, since the way I see it, friendship is pure platonic love felt for someone and love is just the same plus something extra as well. (Which may be a strange way to put it but oh well, I can't really describe it well... I just mean, I think the foundation of a romantic relationship is also some kind of "friendship")

The least important one is hard to say, because in a way each of them is important. Money seems the most likely one to say, but in this world, you're pretty poor off without money. Without any money, the chances that you can be really happy and have all of the other things listed - or any at all - are not that good. Knowledge isn't necessarily needed to live happily either and you could be well - even better - off without it, but personally I probably wouldn't want to be without any knowledge. Adventure would probably be something most people wouldn't need either, but I guess once in a while, I would need at least some kind of adventure in life. A life wholly without pleasure would be dull as well. And family, friendship and love are too important, those I would rule out. I can't really decide, but money, adventure or knowledge would have to go. xD Most likely money. If you had real knowledge, you wouldn't need money that badly anyway...

(I'm ranting too much... XD)


5. What's one quote (or passage, song lyric, etc.) that effectively describes you and your values? Explain.

My favorite quote is probably "Don't dream your life, live your dream." It's a very idealistic quote and of course I can't live the fantasies I spin in my mind, but I think the essence of this quote does represent a part of me. It may be a naive way of thinking, but I think you shouldn't be bound by your family or morals or any other "should" and must"s, just live the way you like (as long as you're not harming others and being a creepy psycho :p ). Why not "waste" a year by just going to another country just to live if you life or be together with someone you love even though others oppose it? It's better than hiding, listening to others all the time and then regretting it for the rest of your life.

6. How do you manage your money? On that note, how important is money/financial security to you? Go into as much detail as you can.

Until recently, I've had a side job as a waitress. I've worked as a waitress for about one year before that as well. Besides that, I've only had traineeships in the summer and the like. I had moved out twice already for a period of time, but now I live with my parents. If I need money, my father gives it to me, though I guess that's just fair since here in Austria, you get financial aid for every child under a certain age (24, I think) so he probably gets more money by having me than if I was away anyway (because the money would rightly belong to me and he would theoretically have to send the whole amount to me then), since I don't require that much money each month. XDD

I don't buy clothes that often. If I like them and they're well enough, I'll wear them for years. Contrary to many girls I only have a few pairs of shoes. If I buy something, it's mostly DVDs, video games, books.... I hardly ever go into discos either, but the money is often spent when I go out with friends to eat, to the cinema or a bar.

I wouldn't say that money is that important to me, I don't need a whole lot of it. I often see the way some friends waste it and thinks it's stupid, even more so those who buy brand products to show off. I'm not stingy either though, if I go somewhere I usually give tips and I don't turn every penny over twice. Sometimes I feel like I'm spending it too easily, thuogh. I'd say that I just need so much that I don't have to constantly worry about it and that I still have some money left if I suddenly was in dire need of some.

7. Name (and elaborate on) some of your hobbies. What are your favorite things to do outside of school/the office?

Now I already began talking about that in the previous section... xD I like meeting friends to hang around and just talk or go to the cinema, eat, drink, play videogames, watch DVDs... I also like anime/manga (but I haven't occupied myself with it for quite some time now), browsing the internet, reading and writing, watching TV shows, listening to music. As for sports, I enjoy swimming and DDR, that dance game, if that counts (it should, it's really tiresome! @-@). I also like other sports like badminton or riding a bicycle but I hardly ever get to it. I probably should do more sports but yeah... luckily it's not that urgent at least in the aesthetic sense since I'm skinny (more like too skinny as I'm always reminded of D:<) etc, but just because... you know, it would be healthy. xD I used to play piano, I'd like to pick that up again too.

8. Name three things you are afraid of. Explain.

- Spiders, especially really big spiders. I don't know, the thought alone already scares me a bit. I think my biology teacher once said something about it... that the more different something is from you, the more you fear it. And spiders are pretty different with their 8 legs and eyes and hairy body etc...

- Syringes, I even ordered globuline (a friend whose mother knows more about homeopathic medicine told me it'd work) so I wouldn't have to get injections for my trip. Again, I don't know exactly why. I can't really look at blood sometimes and the thought of a needle going in is also... ew.

These are strangely both fears that I could have cared less about when I was a kid, but when I grew older they took to me more and more.

I can't really think of a real third fear right now. I don't like bats and sharks too much and I also fear some diseases that are very hard to stomach. And in general, fear of failing or disappointing.

9. Name (and elaborate on) your top three BEST and top three WORST qualities (personality-related, not physical). Please answer as fully as you can, as this is an important question.

OK, let's see:

+ I think I'm someone you can talk to easily if you try. I usually stay patient and friendly and I can listen as well as talk. That's one of the things I like to do with my closest friends anyway, we could just talk for hours about anything. It could be something stupid, but if it's an insider, it would be all the more fun and create a bond since it would be a secret etc. I also feel pretty loyal about my closest friends. I prefer a few close friends to a lot of superficial ones.
+ I'm usually humorous and imaginative. There'd be a lot of jokes and I'd usually be good at coming up with written work, be it essays or stories for school / university or just stuff in my freetime like fanfictions / RPGs.
+ I guess I'm pretty tolerant which should be a given in these times, but sadly it's not so I'll name it too. E.g. I think racism, homophobia and animal cruelty are horrible and did already tell a lot of people so when asked and argue with them about it. My graduation work in English was about homosexuality in literature and I also once talked about it "in public" (more or less, it was a stage in a shopping mall), but more by coincidence. xD (Funny thing is that most homophobes can't really exactly name why they don't like it and the most common argument for people who don't care about animals is always "they're only animals", so again the argument about not understanding different creatures comes up again...).

The bad traits somehow tend to come easier to mind...!
- I'm really messy and chaotic. Wherever I am, it soons looks like a bomb has went off or something. There's... not much I can elaborate on here... xD;; It's not a very nice trait and one most people would stereotypically not expect of a female, but yeah... I've always been kinda like that, I doubt it will change much. I vow to try to do better abroad though, won't do much good if the flat is like a battlefield for half a year.
- I'm easily jealous. And I don't mean just in the romantic sense, I also hate it when f.e. two friends meet without inviting me, at least or especially when they got to know each other through me anyway or we were always together before that. Some people might not have a problem with that at all, but I always feel left out and I'd question as to why they haven't asked me etc. Maybe there's a bit of a complex there. I have two siblings, an older brother and an older sister. He's the oldest and was always pampered and there was a strong rivalry between me and my sister (she's almost 3 years older) back in the days because we were similar, at least judging by looks and our accomplishments. We both only had A grades, both played piano, both went to ballett etc. Eventually she fared better while I was dropped behind since I didn't have any motivation to keep studying anymore (private problemts etc) but those years were really not pretty. I envied her because she was better at many things but some people like my cousins liked me better nonetheless because she was... uh, a tad bitchy. It's been better now since she moved out and we're both adults... or something like that. xD
- I tend to overthink and bear grudges. It's horrible how fast my mood can pummel, especially on public transportation, when it's crowded and I suddenly hate everyone who crosses my way. Also, I sometimes really dislike someone but don't say it aloud and just brood in silence. If it's some friend who just did something stupid, I wouldn't have a problem mentioning it (just in a normal way, without making a drama), but if it's someone I don't know that well, I usually can't bring myself to say anything. A few years ago, I couldn't have said anything back even when sometimes random teenager stranger bullies in the tram would start to pick on me since I had been very shy, but at least that's over now. Back then I also used to swallow all my anger at friends until it suddenly came out all at once. :/





A Song of Ice and Fire Related

1.Who are your favorite three characters in the series? Why?

There are really many I like. I remember that just from the series and GoT, I first liked Ned, Robb, Arya, Jon, Renly, Loras, Tyrion, Jaime, Petyr, Daenerys and Viserys (series-only, he was very amusing xD the magnificent bastard trope I guess?) best.
Over the course of the books, I didn't like Jon that much anymore though... and the others I came to like are Brienne, Sandor, Oberyn, Davos, Gendry, Jaqen, the Sphinx, Pod (I was glad when he finally got a bigger part in Brienne's POV, daw!)... Sansa who seems to be hated by many. °°;

It's really hard to pick out 3 though:

I always thought Jaime was interesting, but it was difficult to judge who he is. On the first glance, he might be Prince Charming and at the same time he's the Kingslayer. And that will forever be his curse... during his first POVs I was surprised at how cruel he actually is (how he handled Brienne etc) and thought that maybe I had idolized him, thinking he was really sorry about Bran etc. But after that, when he finally saved her etc., he turned for the better. I was glad he broke off with Cersei (though I felt really sorry for her during the end of the 4th book) and so far, he has always proven to be just and righteous IMO - just like Tyrion -, not that the other characters will see it. Also interesting is his contrast to Ned, their thoughts about honor etc. I think it'd have been interesting to see an AU where they were on the same side. xD

The story about Renly and Loras is really sad, even though it's only hinted at. I loved some of the quotes about them. Though I have to say I like them in the books much better. It's not just that the actors, especially Renly, aren't as handsome as described (not to be superficial, but it's one of the main aspects about the character in this case, his charisma and good looks etc xD ), they also come across different. Renly's only important scene so far makes him come across like some snob who always complains and can't even look at a trickle of blood. It's hard to imagine him being such a well-loved leader. But I'm drifting off. °° Thing is, they were always very interesting in the book IMO. I think both of them totally smell of "summer knights", they come across so well on the outer side and have their idealistic aspirations, but it ends for them before it even begins. Also, Loras getting doused by hot oil is also such a cruel symbol, since even if he survives now he won't be that good-looking shining knight anymore.

And just shortly:
Sandor... I hope he isn't really dead :/ A friend of mine told me the theory about how she hopes that the priest actually saved him and only kept quiet that he's still alive. Seems unlikely though. The passages about him and Sansa or him and Arya were always so interesting.
Brienne is such a cool character. Now that I think about it, she is a bit like Ned, only that she was unfortunate to have been born as an ugly woman. :/ It's refreshing to read about her, she's one of the few so honest and nice characters in the series.
What I loved most about Oberyn was his fight against the Mountain, very epic scene. Too bad he got offed so soon :/ And his threesome comment seems to have made him famous in fandom xDD

2.Who are your least favorite three characters in the series? Why?

I wasn't sad at all when Joffrey and Gregor Clegane died, though that was probably to be expected with the way they were portrayed. I also disliked Theon, so if he's really dead I won't be sad either.
A character who I probably love to hate is Cersei. I think my favorite POVs were Cersei, Jaime, Arya (most of the times at least) and Sansa. Cersei was just looking down at everyone and thinking she was doing so great when in reality, she always made it worse. I kinda saw it coming but it was still thrilling to read her last POV. I did feel with her sometimes, though. And strange as it is, but I have also come to dislike Margaery a bit. o.O; Maybe because she does seem a bit Mary Sue-ish (in Cersei's eyes X'D) or come across as perfect and even if the evil scheme is untrue, she's not as innocent as she claims to be.
It's a lovehate thing with Sam. I like what a nice guy he is, but it's exhausting to read about him sometimes too, the way he is failing and being craven etc... x3

3.#1 Favorite moment in all of ASOIAF so far? Why?

I remember a few thrilling scenes where I just had to read on. The typical plottwists and deaths of characters (Lady, Ned, Renly, Gregor, Sandor, the weasel soup, Robb, Cersei's capture).

I have to say, my least favorite POVs are probably those on the Wall... I also thought Daenery's POV really boring during COK. And I hate those cliffhangers when just in the last moment, there's a shocker and you're left to ponder (like Arya's last POV where she apparently became blind).

4. In your dream-world, how would you like to see the series end, and why?

Hmmh... I think it would be cool if after their battle against each other and against the Others there would finally be peace again, with the characters I like still alive (most importantly 8D ) and having a happy ending. F.e. someone righteous ruling in King's Landing (Daenerys?), with Tyrion and Littlefinger in the council, Jaime, Loras and Brienne in the Kingsguard. Definitely reunion of the remaining Starks, if that hasn't happened before the end.

There's just so many sad and horrible things in the series that it would be cool if at least the ending wasn't so bad. Of course it's a dream-world, I can't really imagine Daenerys teaming up with the Lannisters to reign (or that they would let Tyrion back into the council after killing Tywin anway 8D) etc.

Comments

Martell

[kittenmittons.livejournal.com]

Hmm, I see bits of Martell, Targaryen, Greyjoy, and Tyrell in you, and could probably make a decent case for any of those houses. However, I think I'm ultimately going to go with Tyrell. It's more of a general vibe than anything, and it's kind of a process of elimination - you don't seem as intense as the Greyjoys or as, erm, insane as the Targaryens, for example. I can definitely see the Martell in you, but I think your sweetness (all the talk about your friends and what you'd do for them!) and empathy, along with your outdoorsy nature, would fit in well with Tyrell.