Win or Die!
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westerosortingJoely:
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jadeddiva and mrstater informed for me. I know them from a former fandom existence, many moons ago. Age:
31
Location:
Lincolnshire, UK
Occupation:
English Teacher
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!.
In terms of geographical location, I live in Britain and would not change that. I have also always lived in the countryside and could not imagine living anywhere else. I find cities quite intimidating and tend to get quickly fed up of the strange smelling air and the crowds of people. I was born and raised in Yorkshire and would not choose to live in the South. For a start, it’s way too expensive and the people talk funny! (Since when has it been grarss? It’s grass!) ;)
I suspect unlike many other responses, my ideal home actually exists. It is a place I spent a lot of time in as a child, a place of fond memories, fun and good times. It is a stone cottage called Low Water End, owned by my father’s best friend, which backs directly onto Lake Coniston in the Lake District, England. It seems quite small on the outside, but is actually rather TARDIS-like on the inside. You walk in the front door straight into a large living room with a ceiling so low you have to be careful not to knock your head on it! There is a beautiful inglenook fireplace that dominates the room, complete with copper kettles, horse brasses and a coal scuttle big enough to fit a six-year-old in. The cottage itself is a little, erm, primitive. It has no central heating! But there's an AGA in the kitchen and the fireplace in the living room makes the downstairs plenty warm enough. Much as this is quaintly interesting, if I bought the place I would have to install some heating as I can clearly remember sleeping with three pairs of socks on! Upstairs there are six bedrooms, of varying sizes, and a huge bathroom with a claw-footed bath and one of those toilets where the cistern hangs high up on the wall behind.
Outside, there is a wide lawn with huge great rhododendron bushes that flower spectacularly in springtime, but the rest of the grounds are simply turned over to woodland. Then there is the lake, which is beautiful whatever the season. If you follow the path from the cottage, through the gardens, you come to a wooden boathouse where there are rowing boats you can push out onto the lake and use to just disappear away for a while.
To me, the whole house always seemed as if it had been stuck in a time warp, and little had been changed for a century. As a child, I loved that, and the curiosity of a place that was older than I was, that had been home to many others beforehand, is something that still intrigues me. I live in a modern house now, and while it is convenient and warm, it just does not have the same attraction.
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!
My own, and my family’s, health and happiness (oh, and my dog’s too because I’m a soft bugger!).
Financial security – I don’t want to be loaded, but I would like to have enough to live comfortably and well, without needing to worry about money.
To not have to struggle with my weight – I have spent my life on diets and I would love to be someone who didn’t have to worry about this.
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 am a teacher and I am always proud of the achievements of the children I teach. Nothing pleases me more than to see their success and progress. I know I’m good at, and well-respected in, my job and I’m proud of that too.
I’m also proud of myself. And it’s taken a long while and a lot of convincing myself in the face of my inherent self-deprecation for me to be able to say that, to be honest.
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.
MOST IMPORTANT - Family - closely followed by love. Friends come and go, but family are always there for you. They will love you and stand by you no matter what. I am fortunate enough to have been born into a close-knit family where I have had that kind of experience. I would wish to one day be able to create the same thing with children of my own.
LEAST IMPORTANT - Adventure - I suppose I’m a bit of a stick in the mud, really, and I definitely prefer the quiet life. I haven’t done much foreign travel and aside from wishing to visit Rome at some point in the future, I have no desperate desires to live a wild life. My ideal holiday would be somewhere in Britain, perhaps the Lakes or the North Norfolk coast or Scotland. I also spent my honeymoon on the Scilly Isles, and it was beautiful there.
5. What's one quote (or passage, song lyric, etc.) that effectively describes you and your values? Explain.
I struggled to limit this to one, so I’m afraid I picked two. The first one is the chorus taken from a song called Keep Your Head Up by Ben Howard from his album Every Kingdom. It’s such an upbeat song with what I consider to be a powerful message about life.
‘Keep your head up, keep your heart strong
Keep your mind set, keep your hair long
Keep your head up, keep your heart strong
Keep your mind set in your ways
Keep your heart strong’
My other choice would be a quotation from Albus Dumbledore that I have printed on the wall of my classroom that I constantly point my students to:
‘It is our choices that show us what we truly are, far more than our abilities.’
I think it is possibly one of the sagest observations of humankind I have ever read and as good a lesson as any I might teach.
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.
Ha! I’m not very good at managing my money (ask my husband!). He does the saving while I do the spending, but it balances out in the end. I would love to be in a situation where I didn’t have to worry about money, but the reality is that in my line of work, I am unlikely to ever become rich, so therefore you have to keep one eye on the future. Although I confess that I sometimes don’t succeed! But, I do my best and that is all anyone can do, I suppose.
7. Name (and elaborate on) some of your hobbies. What are your favorite things to do outside of school/the office?
Reading – a damn good story preferably, in bed or in front of the fire. However, I am also rather interested by history and science.
Writing – fanfic, mostly, although I dream of writing my own novel, in between all the marking and the cleaning and tidying and the other commitments of life I have to keep!
Walking – out with my dog, preferably, somewhere in the country, well away from roads and people so she can run free and chase rabbits!
Good food and good beer – something like bangers and mash (they have to be proper sausages) and a well-kept pint of Black Sheep. Failing that, my Mum’s roast beef and Yorkshire pudding or a Chinese take away. Nom.
8. Name three things you are afraid of. Explain.
Losing someone close to me. I don’t really want to elaborate on this as it’s a bit personal and I’d rather keep the details to myself. But the thought terrifies me.
Spiders. Ugh. I have to call my husband to deal with them. I’m not a very brave person when it comes to spiders.
Letting people down. I dislike it when anyone thinks I’m not doing my job or pulling my weight or when I make a mistake. I strive to keep the people I care about happy and am always a little afraid of disappointing them.
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
Loyal/Reliable – I stick by the people that matter to me and I can always be counted upon.
Kind-hearted – I like to think that I am generous of heart. My friends say I am and that I am a good listener.
Considerate/Intelligent – I think about others - the kids I teach say that I am an understanding teacher. I know stuff – some of it useful, the rest not.
WORST
Drama Queen – I have a tendency to overreact when something goes wrong. I tend to retract my overreaction when I’ve had chance to calm down though!
See the good in people too much/too trusting – I tend to believe that people are inherently good. I’m often too trusting of people and end up being disappointed when someone shows their true colours.
A terrible tendency to think I’m right! – Oh dear… And I’m pretty stubborn with it. In some ways my stubbornness is good, because it means I don’t give up without a fight, but in other ways it is NOT good.
A Song of Ice and Fire Related
1.How many books from the series have you completed?
All of them. I’m just starting to read Dunk and Egg.
2.Who are your favorite three characters in the series? Why?
Jon Snow – I love the mystery of his story. I am a firm R + L = J believer and I am so looking forward to the revealing of his parentage – the whole ‘bastard to king’ thing just pleases me immensely. But, if it is as I suspect, I think it will come as a big shock and something of an obstacle for Jon, as he believes his father to be a rapist and a kidnapper. I firmly believe that Lyanna went willingly and she and Rhaegar were in love and I hope Jon gets to find this out. I like how he has struggled to become a leader and hasn’t always got it right. I like that he tries to do what is right and stands by his decisions, too. Initially, I felt a lot of sympathy for him, but now I am sort of strangely proud of him (which is a bit ridiculous really, as he’s a fictional character) and the journey he’s made.
Ned Stark – The most honourable man in Westeros, and yet I like that he was fallible like the rest of us. From the very beginning, his character fascinated me. He was firm, just, fair and well-loved. If I knew nothing else about him, that would be enough. But we do know more! He loves his children and would sacrifice the very thing that is so important to him for them. He made a loving marriage and a good life from out of sadness and adversity. That kind of stuff impresses me.
Arya Stark – The girl’s got guts. I wish I had half of her courage.
3.Who are your least favorite three characters in the series? Why?
Tywin Lannister – I found him dark, ruthless, and a little scary. I would never trust him. His trickery and the underhand, unsympathetic way he operated was quite disturbing. I also disliked how he treated Tyrion.
Ramsay Bolton – Is there any further reason to dislike him other than his psychopathic behaviour? He’s a liar and a cheat and a sadist.
Randyll Tarly – The way he treated his son was abominable. When I heard Sam’s story of how he ended up at the wall, it made me quite sick. He may be a great fighter, and he may have a cool sword, but the idea that you could treat your own son like that is awful.
4.#1 Favorite moment in all of ASOIAF so far? Why?
This is really difficult. I ended up making a list of several, including the Frey Pie, Syrio Forel laying into the Lannister guards with a wooden sword, Jaime saving Brienne, and the Knight of the Laughing Tree story, but in the end, the one I just could not ignore was the Tower of Joy fever dream. I just love the mystery and that Ned is clearly trying to confirm his suspicions with the questions he asks. I have my ideas about what was promised, but I desperately want the confirmation. And the whole ‘we swore a vow’ makes me admire the Kingsguard men even more than I did beforehand. Oh, and Arthur Dayne intrigues me big time.
5. In your dream-world, how would you like to see the series end, and why?
Jon Snow revealed to be Rhaegar and Lyanna’s son, him to understand that they were in love and for him to end up as king of Westeros. I want Bran to end up as Lord of Winterfell and Arya to be chosen to the Kingsguard.
For a long, long time, I thought that the three heads of the dragon were likely going to be Jon, Dany and Tyrion, but I am currently contemplating the idea that GRRM could be trying to trick us with the whole three heads = three individuals concept. I’m wondering if it could in fact be Jon’s ‘first a man, then a wolf, then a man again’ as the three different heads, or alternatively, that it could be three names Jon will have: Targaryen, Snow and and then I’m wondering if perhaps he’ll do a Henry VII and create a whole new house in honour of his Stark and Targaryen heritage.
I want to see a big battle between the Others and the Dragons, with Jon, Bran and Arya warged into them to control them, but I’m not sure whether that will actually happen, or whether it will be something to do with the Night’s Watch. Whatever it is, I think Jon will play a prominent role because he is DEFINITELY NOT DEAD! Other characters I think will still be around at the end are Asha Greyjoy, Brienne, Arianne Martell, Sansa Stark, Samwell Tarly and Stannis.
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[TARGARYEN]
Date: 2012-09-10 10:51 am (UTC)[TULLY]
Date: 2012-09-10 10:59 am (UTC)[MARTELL]
Date: 2012-09-10 11:06 am (UTC)[TYRELL]
Date: 2012-09-10 11:15 am (UTC)That being said, I originally started to see Tyrell, but your good qualities etc are not superficial enough to be a Rose ;) Off to swim with the fishes with you! I vote Tully
Re: [TYRELL]
Date: 2012-09-10 08:43 pm (UTC)[TARGARYEN]
Date: 2012-09-10 02:27 pm (UTC)[MARTELL]
Date: 2012-09-10 03:12 pm (UTC)[TULLY]
Date: 2012-09-10 03:46 pm (UTC)[MARTELL]
Date: 2012-09-10 04:10 pm (UTC)[TYRELL]
Date: 2012-09-10 04:39 pm (UTC)[TULLY]
Date: 2012-09-10 05:03 pm (UTC)Come swim with us!
[TYRELL]
Date: 2012-09-10 05:39 pm (UTC)[STARK]
Date: 2012-09-10 07:14 pm (UTC)[STARK]
Date: 2012-09-10 08:35 pm (UTC)[TARGARYEN]
Date: 2012-09-10 08:50 pm (UTC)[TARGARYEN]
Date: 2012-09-10 09:33 pm (UTC)Secondly, I've always found that Tullys are the most nurturing and conscientous children-raising family. So, no brainer, Tully. Your whole application is consistently Riverrun-bound, I think.
[STARK]
Date: 2012-09-10 11:04 pm (UTC)[MARTELL]
Date: 2012-09-11 01:03 am (UTC)[LANNISTER]
Date: 2012-09-11 02:47 am (UTC)[TARGARYEN]
Date: 2012-09-11 08:42 am (UTC)[TULLY]
Date: 2012-09-11 09:20 pm (UTC)Stark
Date: 2012-09-12 01:01 am (UTC)[GREYJOY]
Date: 2012-09-12 07:32 am (UTC)[LANNISTER]
Date: 2012-09-12 02:03 pm (UTC)[STARK]
Date: 2012-09-12 02:13 pm (UTC)[Tully]
Date: 2012-09-12 05:41 pm (UTC)[LANNISTER]
Date: 2012-09-12 10:38 pm (UTC)<b>[MARTELL]</b>
Date: 2012-09-13 01:30 am (UTC)[TYRELL]
Date: 2012-09-13 01:55 am (UTC)[TARGARYEN]
Date: 2012-09-13 02:55 am (UTC)[MARTELL]
Date: 2012-09-13 03:22 am (UTC)[TYRELL]
Date: 2012-09-13 06:48 am (UTC)[Stark]
Date: 2012-09-13 10:24 am (UTC)LANNISTER
Date: 2012-09-13 02:55 pm (UTC)[LANNISTER]
Date: 2012-09-13 11:28 pm (UTC)[TULLY]
Date: 2012-09-13 11:35 pm (UTC)[TULLY]
Date: 2012-09-13 11:58 pm (UTC)[LANNISTER]
Date: 2012-09-14 01:58 am (UTC)SORTED: TULLY
Date: 2012-09-14 09:12 am (UTC)You may join
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