Win or Die

[jadeandlilac.livejournal.com]

Name: Jade
How did you find out about the community?: mrstater :)
Age: 23
Location: New England
Occupation: Student



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 love quite a few different styles and color palettes, and as I'm about to move into a new apartment I've been thinking about this a lot lately! If money were no object and I could manage to mesh various inspirations in a way that didn't look like a kindergarten collage, the decor in my ideal house would probably be some combination of rustic, romantic and nature-themed, but still clean and hopefully not a hot mess. I love bare wood floors with rugs and wooden/metal furniture--old, classic farm tables and antique brass or iron bed frames--and I'm not a fan of most super modern looking things. Location is a bit trickier for me, because I'd love to live somewhere a bit secluded with lots of natural beauty, but I also don't drive, so living in a city (as I always have except during college) would definitely be more practical. Maybe I'll be inordinately wealthy with a country home with an overgrown garden in rural France and an apartment in San Francisco. I'm thinking not, but one can always hope.

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!
1. LOTS of money in trust funds for myself, my immediate family, and several close friends. Money can't buy happiness blah blah, but it would be silly (for me, personally) to not use one wish to get rid of all financial worries or hardships for myself and the people I love.
2. I'd have to think about this one for a lot longer and with a lot more attention to detail, but I'd wish for an education initiatives that would do a lot more work than schools in the US currently do to produce students with open minds. There is so much wrong with the way children are taught to view race, class, disability, gender and sexuality, and if the genie was willing to wait, I'd try to craft a wish that would put a curriculum in place to address these issues. (This probably sounds like brainwashing but really I'd just be grateful for a curriculum that taught tolerance and acceptance.)
3. The power to become invisible! This one seems totally ridiculous next to the other two, but whatever. I probably wouldn't get up to anything devious (I'd have unlimited money, so shoplifting and bank robbing wouldn't be temptations), but it would be nice to be able to walk around wherever and whenever I wanted without being seen or bothered (sketchy back alleys late at night? no problem!) And I do love observing people, so I'd probably use my invisibility to that end as well.

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. ;)
I recently applied to graduate programs in creative writing and was accepted to several. Before I look like a douche for bragging I'll say that there are many, many extremely talented writers who, for whatever reason, don't get in, and there are many writers I'd consider mediocre who do. So grad school acceptance is not an indicator of being a "good" writer (cue diatribe on subjectivity!) but to me, it's an indicator that a good number of established, successful writers who are on admissions committees think I have potential and want to read my work--I definitely count that as an accomplishment! :)

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.
I'm gonna go with love being the most important. I was hesitating between family and friendship too, but I feel like I can cheat and use love as an umbrella term. I could be happy to a certain extent without money, knowledge, adventure and pleasure (reading it here as physical/sensual pleasure) but I don't think I could be truly content without love. And that goes for the people I love as well as the things--writing is something I love pretty intensely, and it's absolutely one of the most important things in my life. I'd say that to me, adventure is the least important. I love traveling but I'm not the type of person that needs an adrenaline rush to have a good time, and I'm perfectly happy to take a leisurely walk rather than, say, go sky diving.

5. What's one quote (or passage, song lyric, etc.) that effectively describes you and your values? Explain.
As a self-professed literary nerd, choosing a single quotation is really difficult. I thought of picking something from To the Lighthouse about the characters' relationship to and dependence on the sea (I live on the coast and hate to be landlocked for long periods of time), but that's not really a value system, I guess. In I Capture the Castle by Dodie Smith, the narrator's family live in a run-down old castle; her father is a writer who has lost inspiration, and they've slowly been forced to sell all of their nice things--good clothes, jewelry, even furniture and china. At one point she arranges some leaves in a jar to make a nice centerpiece in their drawing room and she says something to the effect of, "At least we can still have beech leaves." As someone who loves natural beauty (and who doesn't care about being a walking cliché, apparently) I've always liked the sentiment.

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.
I've never had a sum of money so large it needed anything so official sounding as "managing," but I guess I'm fairly wise with the money I do have. I'm not the sort of person who buys things that she can't afford or doesn't really need or want. I'm incredibly indecisive, so even buying clothing comes down to, "But will I wear it often?" because I hate spending money on things and then not actually using them. I also have no shame in buying the cheaper version of something whenever it's available! That said, when there's something I truly want and know I'll use and appreciate, I'll probably buy it even if it's a bit expensive. The latest example of this is a rather pricey leather handbag, but I've been carrying it ever since I got it almost a year ago. I regret nothing! I guess the bottom line is that I'm pretty practical about money things. As far as how important financial stability is to me... probably as important as it is to anyone? I don't need tons of money for lots of things or a super fancy place to live, but I know it would be incredibly stressful to have to scrape and fret about finances all the time.

7. Name (and elaborate on) some of your hobbies. What are your favorite things to do outside of school/the office?
Writing and reading are the two big ones (sorry, I'm predictable.) I also love being outdoors and go walking, running or hiking almost every day. I live by the beach, so in summer I also end up in the water on a daily basis. I love spending time with friends (sorry, cliché, I'm sure everyone says this!) and having long, exhaustive talks. Traveling is a big interest of mine, too, though not the high-stress, crazy itinerary kind. I'd rather spend time walking around, looking at things and, if at all possible, trying new foods. Speaking of food, I like cooking and really enjoy baking, though I don't pretend to be an expert at either. My single favorite activity is probably a picnic because it combines my love of outdoor activities, food, and (usually) fun, picnic-appropriate attire. Is picnicking even a hobby? Whatever.

8. Name three things you are afraid of. Explain.
1. Jellyfish. If you need me to explain this to you, we can't be friends. I see them and want to vomit.
2. Is "bad things happening to the people I love" too generic? Probably, since I don't see how anyone could not be afraid of that. Oh well, I'm keeping it because it genuinely is something that I fixate on and fret about way more than I should sometimes.
3. Fire. Not trying to sway your votes away from House Targ, it's just an honest fear of mine. I love sitting by the fire in winter and I like candle light, but I always make other people light the candles and the fire (and the jack-o-lanters and the cigarettes etc. etc. etc.) because open flames getting too close make me really jumpy.

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.
Best qualities:
1. Understanding: In general I'm very interested in people--observing them, thinking about why they do what they do, speculating on how they've come to make the decisions they have. Even with people I don't particularly like (or actively dislike) I feel compelled to ask myself what their motivations are rather than condemning them for whatever it is I don't approve of. I hope this inclination results in my being more compassionate, but maybe I'm just inappropriately curious :P
2. Logical: This quality probably goes hand in hand with the above, but I think I'm pretty good at evaluating situations/problems fairly and logically, similar to the way in which I try to evaluate people. I'm good at analyzing a dilemma before I let it overwhelm me, and at reacting to things in a pretty organized, rational way.
3. Sense of humor: I have a penchant for whimsy--making things up, speaking in accents and dancing badly. I don't think I'm particularly funnier than anybody else, but when I'm around friends, I have very little restraint when it comes to silliness and lightening the mood, and it's something I value highly.

Worst qualities:
1. Being an introvert: Don't get me wrong--I love being with friends and, when I am, I'm a downright extrovert. Sometimes, when I'm in the mood for it, I even like socializing with people I don't know well. I can be charming, feign interest, and chat it up when I need to (or just if I'm feeling particularly outgoing that day.) I can fake having fun at a social gathering when I'm not particularly engaged. But when I'm in a certain mood or I've had enough of people, or when I get tired and decide I'm done, I am done. My tolerance for socializing only goes so far, and after that point, it all goes downhill. I wish this wasn't the case because I'm sure I sometimes come off as a bitch, and I think life would be a lot easier if I had unlimited patience for social activities.
2. Anxiety: I used to be a lot worse, but now and then I still get a little crazy/anxious. It generally takes the form of, "Omg why did X not call me back? I wonder if I did something to piss her off...what could it have been? Why didn't she just tell me? DOES SHE HATE ME NOW?" And then it turns out that X had to have lunch with her grandma or whatever and I realize that I'm being totally irrational.
3. Limited patience: Stemming from my logical thinking ability (which I like) is the complication that I have very little patience for people who can't manage to be rational and organized. I have a lot of patience in certain situations--I've been a teacher and a camp counselor before and managed not to strangle anyone!--but in scenarios where I know the other person a) is not a child and b) should be capable of getting their shit together but still hasn't, I can get very short tempered. It normally manifests itself more in eyerolls and contempt than in anger and shouting though, so I guess it could be worse!




A Song of Ice and Fire Related

1.How many books from the series have you completed?
All of them! :)

2.Who are your favorite three characters in the series? Why?
I find it really difficult to pick favorite/least favorite characters--possibly my favorite thing about ASOIAF is that nearly every character has many faults to temper their good qualities, and vice versa. I've chosen the ones I most enjoy reading about, and those I could do without (although I believe that a lot of this has to do with GRRM's writing and not simply the characters' personalities.)
1. Cersei Lannister: My main reason for loving Cersei is simply that scenes with her are almost never boring. Her whole mentality is really intriguing--I'd probably read an entire book just about Cersei's life and the evolution of her crazy.
2. Asha Greyjoy: I love her straight up BAMFery, but I think my favorite Asha moment was at the King's Moot when she had her men open the chests of pine cones etc. I like that Asha has an eye for symbolism, and that secretly, she's a bit of a romantic--what could have been more poetic than those chests of stones and earth? I got a lot about Asha's thought process from that moment, and I've found her incredibly endearing ever since.
3. Tyrion Lannister: As with Cersei, I'm never bored by Tyrion's goings on. I enjoy reading his sense of humor and watching his resourcefulness get him out of (or into) sticky situations. I love that ultimately, though he understands the way the game is played and the prevalence of corruption, Tyrion is still a pretty good guy.

3.Who are your least favorite three characters in the series? Why?
1. Sam: At first I found Sam endearing, and I get that he's a sweet guy who ended up with a total douche of a dad we can probably blame for a lot of his shortcomings. But Sam's whining got old real fast, and I found myself skimming a good deal if his chapters.
2. Drogo: I can never quite get my head around the Drogo/Dany romance because we simply aren't given enough information about him. Why does she fall in love with him? Why should we care and feel for her when we see what's happened to him at the end of the first book? I'm sure I'd like Drogo if he had a more fleshed-out personality, but he doesn't, so I just can't.
3. Lysa Arryn: Does this need an explanation? She was just so irritating and insipid. She's obviously influenced her son in the worst way possible, and her actions toward Sansa (though I can understand that they were fueled by totally founded jealousy (which should've been taken out on Littlefinger)) were just crazy. I feel badly for her because clearly her life's been no picnic, but I couldn't stand reading about her.

4.#1 Favorite moment in all of ASOIAF so far? Why?
Honestly? Probably when Tyrion shoots Lord Tywin. There is so much material to cover between all the books and I know there are lots of moments I've really loved, but that was definitely one of the most satisfying and memorable.

5. In your dream-world, how would you like to see the series end, and why?
This is probably not the answer you're looking for (and I apologize if it's totally unhelpful), but I don't tend to do a huge amount of speculation. The story is so intricate and expansive that I'd find it difficult to make any predictions, and to be honest, I'm perfectly content to watch as the story unfolds, and to pay more attention to the character development. I wish I was the type to come up with elaborate theories, but I'm just not.

Comments

[TYRELL]

[hamsterwoman]

Very Tyrell, from your ideal house onwards! Your combination of wishes (financial security for yourself and close friends/family, thinky good things for the world, and the safety/fun of invisibility), ranking love and family high and adventure low, your best traits

I'm getting an overall vibe of refinement, thoughtfulness, amiability, and gentle charm, which all adds up to Tyrell to me. (Also, there were passages in your application that reminded me very strongly of myself, so, you know, that too :)