The Dead Poets' Society
1. Name: Emily
2. Age: 19
3. If you could live anywhere in the world, where would you choose? At this point, I see myself settling wherever I have the right to get married. (Agh, I told myself I wouldn’t talk about that, but it’s the first question and here I go.) Mostly, anywhere quirky, seasonally changeable, fairly large, accepting, and preferably near water (I grew up on the San Francisco Bay and now live on the shores of the Columbia River). Man, I don’t ask for a lot, do I?
4. What would your Room of Requirement look like? A library and a tea shop put together. Someplace I could go to unwind, or get some work done, depending on my mood. A few squishy armchairs, bookcases, several jars of tea (and maybe biscuits!), some art on the walls…black and white photographs, and one large window. Enough room for friends to hang out if they needed an escape as well.
5. Who is your least favorite Harry Potter character? As a character or as a hypothetical person? As a character, Cho. I see NO purpose in her, apart from reminding us that Harry’s just a normal teenage boy. However, that’s really redundant, given Ginny. As a hypothetical person…actually, Tonks. I adored her in OotP. I thought we were finally getting an independent, strong, young female character (no offense meant to Hermione, Ginny, Molly, Minerva, Lily etc…but how many were like the Tonks we first met?). Finally, here’s a non-stereotypical female role model!...And then her 180 turnaround in HBP infuriated me. I felt a little personally betrayed, which is ridiculous, I realise. I just hate that a) she let herself fall so far because of a man (ok, I’d want to bang fall for Remus, too. But that’s beside the point.) and b) that Rowling made that decision. Agh.
6. Is the glass half empty or half full? Depends. I don’t see the world in extremes. To me, everything is a shade of gray. Generally, I’d say “half full”, because I’m not a pessimist by nature, but I can never answer these kinds of questions definitely. Life has so many ‘what-ifs’ and variables.
7. Give us a quotation (Can be from a famous person, a song, or even a poem-whatever you want) you feel represents your life or personality. "Ich möchte jemandem einsingen./Bei jemandem sitzen und sein./ Ich möchte dich wiegen und kleinsingen/Und begleiten schlafaus und schlafein." von Rainer Maria Rilike "Beim Einschlafen zu Sagen". Translation: "I would like to sing someone to sleep./ To sit next to someone and be./I would like to rock you and sing to you softly/and to go with you to and from sleep." from Rainer Maria Rilke "To Say Upon Falling Asleep". It's always been my favourite poem. I almost always recite the lines to myself (in my head) before turning off the light. It summarises my view on love perfectly. It makes the time go faster (I'm in a long-distance relationship and a hopeless romantic.) Also, I adore the German language.
8. In your life, who comes first: family or friends? My friends are my family, and (mostly) vice versa. I live almost 700 miles from my parents and have a very small, slightly dysfunctional, family besides. I love my father dearly (I’m a Daddy’s girl, I’ll admit) and have recently to come to understand my Mother and her sister more. In contrast, if I never spoke to my maternal Grandfather again, I’d be happy. I live with one of my best friends, my pseudo-sister. I eat dinner with her, Sarah, Andrew, Ramya, Warren and Cecily every night. They’re my chosen family. We found each other at this school. Chose it an inadvertently chose one another. I’m just as devoted to them as I’d be to real siblings. I love the idea of a chosen family, somehow. If the choice came between my family and my friend-family, I’d sooner die myself. Though, oftentimes I have to remind myself to step back and realise "Oh, Y is incredibly self destructive and needs to stop using illegally obtained medication" (yeah, this is an actual revelation for me!) or "X needs to get off that pedestal". I adore them and go too easy on them.
9. What is your favorite childhood memory? It’s not a specific moment, but a reoccurring event. My family used to own an old RV. No AC, a shower so tiny I don’t understand how my 6’2” father could stand up in it, smelling entirely of bad cologne and mothballs. Every year from the time I was 7 until I was 15 my parents, my dog, and my childhood best friend Eric would take an “epic road trip”. I saw 12 states, 2 Canadian provinces, and the miles and miles of road in between laying on my stomach in the loft next to Eric, listening to cassettes and reading books (mostly Nancy Drew and Harry Potter) aloud. Eric and I have since grown apart (I'm a bisexual tree-hugging pot-smoking liberal and he's an evangelical Republican Roman Catholic who would probably try and "cure" me, now.) I like remembering how we were before we "grew up".
10. What would you say is your biggest flaw? I have, in equal parts, an inferiority complex and a horrible ego. The complex is bigger of the two (I’m shy as hell, never feel like I’m good enough, always consider myself the “ugly” friend, never feel like I’m smart enough, even as I’m looking at 102% on a Spanish test etc.) but I’m also quite judgmental of people who I don’t think are “intelligent”. I know, this is horrible and I really dislike admitting it. But all my life I’ve been hailed for “how smart [I am]”. Near valedictorian in High School, the first in my family to go to college (still the only one on my Mom’s side), fluent in two languages and working on a third…but I’m not exceptionally attractive or rich, without it I’d be doomed. School was all I had to prove myself and in recent years I’ve seen that subtly turn against me. I'm never open about looking down on others, which doesn't really redeem me but I feel is worth a mention.
11. If you had been at Hogwarts during Harry’s fifth year, do you think that you would have joined the D.A.? Definitely. I believe in justice and the right to protect oneself and one’s family/friends. Umbridge was nothing but personified government propaganda, something I feel like I’d have recognised and been disgusted by. Besides, stuff like expecto patronum isn’t exactly easy. I’d love the challenge, especially juxtaposed with the rubbish Umbridge taught.
12. Describe how you react to difficult or stressful situations. Agh, chaos is essentially my boggart. Depending on how directly the situation and problem had to do with me, the worse I’d do. I’m very good at taking control of a situation when someone else is falling to pieces. I don’t necessarily lead well, but I delineate and can easily take stock of most things. I guess I spend too much time in the reference section! But when it comes to fixing or handling my own life? I’m a mess!
13. Which do you value more: compassion or justice? This is difficult. The two go hand in hand, was my immediate gut reaction. Is that totally against the rules to say? Because justice without compassion is just an empty gesture (an authority figure granting someone rights or concessions because s/he “has to”? Bullshit. Empty and worthless.). But compassion without justice is essentially fruitless (nothing will come of it, outside the spectrum of emotion). I guess I’ll have to harken back to what I said about shades of gray. The two are one in the same, without each other they’re quite empty.
14. Would you say that you’re a child at heart, or that you have an old soul? I’ve been told I have an old soul. I’m a history aficionado/major/freak, so I definitely gravitate more towards the past. I connect more with older people than children. I get ridiculous thrills from just thinking about all the people that might’ve walked on an old cobblestone before me, but don’t spare a thought for those that come after. Also, I can be pensive. I don’t let things go easily and have to try very had to find joy in small things, like a child might.
15. Which Hogwarts House do you think that the Sorting Hat would place you in? Ravenclaw, definitely. I’m ambitious as all hell and, as mentioned, a bit of an (accidental?) elitist. But at the end of the day I feel like I’m too much of a liberal tree-hugging (I have an actual photo of this) hippie for Slytherin. I’d never hurt someone else to benefit myself. I’m far too much of a coward for Gryffindor. I may be passionate and loyal, but I think things through too much. I value justice, loyalty, all-for-one-and-one-for-all, but I’m still an elitist asshole. Someone has to earn my trust, I feel like I’m too cynical for Hufflepuff. But it’s not just power of elimination…I’m shy and quirky, hyper-analytical, frenetically intellectual, a perfectionist, constant maker of lists and maps and plans...I collect books on German/Spanish grammar for crying out loud. And I mentioned before, it’s my devotion to academia that I see as my greatest asset.
16. Do you care which gender you are stamped as (If yes, tell us which gender you would like to be stamped as)? Not at all. I won’t go so far as to say gender is entirely socially constructed (because this has been proven time and time again to be false) but it’s not something I consider at all. We’re all equal parts male and female, I think.
17. Anything else? No. You've got a very thorough application here!
18. If you have a picture of yourself and feel comfortable posting it, please do so! Pictures are fun! Here's that tree-hugging photo I mentioned! Taken in the Humboldt State Redwoods Nat'l Park in Northern California last month.
2. Age: 19
3. If you could live anywhere in the world, where would you choose? At this point, I see myself settling wherever I have the right to get married. (Agh, I told myself I wouldn’t talk about that, but it’s the first question and here I go.) Mostly, anywhere quirky, seasonally changeable, fairly large, accepting, and preferably near water (I grew up on the San Francisco Bay and now live on the shores of the Columbia River). Man, I don’t ask for a lot, do I?
4. What would your Room of Requirement look like? A library and a tea shop put together. Someplace I could go to unwind, or get some work done, depending on my mood. A few squishy armchairs, bookcases, several jars of tea (and maybe biscuits!), some art on the walls…black and white photographs, and one large window. Enough room for friends to hang out if they needed an escape as well.
5. Who is your least favorite Harry Potter character? As a character or as a hypothetical person? As a character, Cho. I see NO purpose in her, apart from reminding us that Harry’s just a normal teenage boy. However, that’s really redundant, given Ginny. As a hypothetical person…actually, Tonks. I adored her in OotP. I thought we were finally getting an independent, strong, young female character (no offense meant to Hermione, Ginny, Molly, Minerva, Lily etc…but how many were like the Tonks we first met?). Finally, here’s a non-stereotypical female role model!...And then her 180 turnaround in HBP infuriated me. I felt a little personally betrayed, which is ridiculous, I realise. I just hate that a) she let herself fall so far because of a man (ok, I’d want to bang fall for Remus, too. But that’s beside the point.) and b) that Rowling made that decision. Agh.
6. Is the glass half empty or half full? Depends. I don’t see the world in extremes. To me, everything is a shade of gray. Generally, I’d say “half full”, because I’m not a pessimist by nature, but I can never answer these kinds of questions definitely. Life has so many ‘what-ifs’ and variables.
7. Give us a quotation (Can be from a famous person, a song, or even a poem-whatever you want) you feel represents your life or personality. "Ich möchte jemandem einsingen./Bei jemandem sitzen und sein./ Ich möchte dich wiegen und kleinsingen/Und begleiten schlafaus und schlafein." von Rainer Maria Rilike "Beim Einschlafen zu Sagen". Translation: "I would like to sing someone to sleep./ To sit next to someone and be./I would like to rock you and sing to you softly/and to go with you to and from sleep." from Rainer Maria Rilke "To Say Upon Falling Asleep". It's always been my favourite poem. I almost always recite the lines to myself (in my head) before turning off the light. It summarises my view on love perfectly. It makes the time go faster (I'm in a long-distance relationship and a hopeless romantic.) Also, I adore the German language.
8. In your life, who comes first: family or friends? My friends are my family, and (mostly) vice versa. I live almost 700 miles from my parents and have a very small, slightly dysfunctional, family besides. I love my father dearly (I’m a Daddy’s girl, I’ll admit) and have recently to come to understand my Mother and her sister more. In contrast, if I never spoke to my maternal Grandfather again, I’d be happy. I live with one of my best friends, my pseudo-sister. I eat dinner with her, Sarah, Andrew, Ramya, Warren and Cecily every night. They’re my chosen family. We found each other at this school. Chose it an inadvertently chose one another. I’m just as devoted to them as I’d be to real siblings. I love the idea of a chosen family, somehow. If the choice came between my family and my friend-family, I’d sooner die myself. Though, oftentimes I have to remind myself to step back and realise "Oh, Y is incredibly self destructive and needs to stop using illegally obtained medication" (yeah, this is an actual revelation for me!) or "X needs to get off that pedestal". I adore them and go too easy on them.
9. What is your favorite childhood memory? It’s not a specific moment, but a reoccurring event. My family used to own an old RV. No AC, a shower so tiny I don’t understand how my 6’2” father could stand up in it, smelling entirely of bad cologne and mothballs. Every year from the time I was 7 until I was 15 my parents, my dog, and my childhood best friend Eric would take an “epic road trip”. I saw 12 states, 2 Canadian provinces, and the miles and miles of road in between laying on my stomach in the loft next to Eric, listening to cassettes and reading books (mostly Nancy Drew and Harry Potter) aloud. Eric and I have since grown apart (I'm a bisexual tree-hugging pot-smoking liberal and he's an evangelical Republican Roman Catholic who would probably try and "cure" me, now.) I like remembering how we were before we "grew up".
10. What would you say is your biggest flaw? I have, in equal parts, an inferiority complex and a horrible ego. The complex is bigger of the two (I’m shy as hell, never feel like I’m good enough, always consider myself the “ugly” friend, never feel like I’m smart enough, even as I’m looking at 102% on a Spanish test etc.) but I’m also quite judgmental of people who I don’t think are “intelligent”. I know, this is horrible and I really dislike admitting it. But all my life I’ve been hailed for “how smart [I am]”. Near valedictorian in High School, the first in my family to go to college (still the only one on my Mom’s side), fluent in two languages and working on a third…but I’m not exceptionally attractive or rich, without it I’d be doomed. School was all I had to prove myself and in recent years I’ve seen that subtly turn against me. I'm never open about looking down on others, which doesn't really redeem me but I feel is worth a mention.
11. If you had been at Hogwarts during Harry’s fifth year, do you think that you would have joined the D.A.? Definitely. I believe in justice and the right to protect oneself and one’s family/friends. Umbridge was nothing but personified government propaganda, something I feel like I’d have recognised and been disgusted by. Besides, stuff like expecto patronum isn’t exactly easy. I’d love the challenge, especially juxtaposed with the rubbish Umbridge taught.
12. Describe how you react to difficult or stressful situations. Agh, chaos is essentially my boggart. Depending on how directly the situation and problem had to do with me, the worse I’d do. I’m very good at taking control of a situation when someone else is falling to pieces. I don’t necessarily lead well, but I delineate and can easily take stock of most things. I guess I spend too much time in the reference section! But when it comes to fixing or handling my own life? I’m a mess!
13. Which do you value more: compassion or justice? This is difficult. The two go hand in hand, was my immediate gut reaction. Is that totally against the rules to say? Because justice without compassion is just an empty gesture (an authority figure granting someone rights or concessions because s/he “has to”? Bullshit. Empty and worthless.). But compassion without justice is essentially fruitless (nothing will come of it, outside the spectrum of emotion). I guess I’ll have to harken back to what I said about shades of gray. The two are one in the same, without each other they’re quite empty.
14. Would you say that you’re a child at heart, or that you have an old soul? I’ve been told I have an old soul. I’m a history aficionado/major/freak, so I definitely gravitate more towards the past. I connect more with older people than children. I get ridiculous thrills from just thinking about all the people that might’ve walked on an old cobblestone before me, but don’t spare a thought for those that come after. Also, I can be pensive. I don’t let things go easily and have to try very had to find joy in small things, like a child might.
15. Which Hogwarts House do you think that the Sorting Hat would place you in? Ravenclaw, definitely. I’m ambitious as all hell and, as mentioned, a bit of an (accidental?) elitist. But at the end of the day I feel like I’m too much of a liberal tree-hugging (I have an actual photo of this) hippie for Slytherin. I’d never hurt someone else to benefit myself. I’m far too much of a coward for Gryffindor. I may be passionate and loyal, but I think things through too much. I value justice, loyalty, all-for-one-and-one-for-all, but I’m still an elitist asshole. Someone has to earn my trust, I feel like I’m too cynical for Hufflepuff. But it’s not just power of elimination…I’m shy and quirky, hyper-analytical, frenetically intellectual, a perfectionist, constant maker of lists and maps and plans...I collect books on German/Spanish grammar for crying out loud. And I mentioned before, it’s my devotion to academia that I see as my greatest asset.
16. Do you care which gender you are stamped as (If yes, tell us which gender you would like to be stamped as)? Not at all. I won’t go so far as to say gender is entirely socially constructed (because this has been proven time and time again to be false) but it’s not something I consider at all. We’re all equal parts male and female, I think.
17. Anything else? No. You've got a very thorough application here!
18. If you have a picture of yourself and feel comfortable posting it, please do so! Pictures are fun! Here's that tree-hugging photo I mentioned! Taken in the Humboldt State Redwoods Nat'l Park in Northern California last month.