Dammit Man, I'm A Postganglionic Nerve, Not A Preganglionic Fiber!
CIVILIAN LIFE:
Q1. Name: MC
Q2. How did you find out about Elite of the Fleet? munanna had a promotional banner in her journal.
Q3. When did you first become interested in Star Trek? I think I was born interested, actually. My father was the Trekkie in the family, and I'm fairly sure I first developed my interest in order to spend more time with him and to have something in common with him. I have two sisters, and he was the only guy in the family (even the dog was a girl), so there weren't a great many bonding activities for us once I got past Candyland age and into things like Jem and Barbie. Star Trek not only offered me the chance to do something cool with Dad (and something that no one else in the family liked, so it was doubly cool!), it appealed perfectly to my natural curiosity and imagination. I've always found reality a little mundane, and the fact that Captain Picard could get his hair cut by a blue guy (who wasn't a Smurf) and it was just like walking down the street and seeing anyone else in the neighborhood just fascinated me. I can remember watching a couple of the old reruns of TOS with my dad, but I know that the twelve years that TNG and DS9 ran were probably the most memorable ones in my life- or at least they were the times when I was most impressionable. In fact, when I was growing up the local station that ran TNG and DS9 ran them back to back on Saturday evenings, and it just so happened that it fit our family's schedule perfectly that we could go to 4:30 evening mass, eat dinner, and then my father and I could settle down for two whole hours of Star Trek! It became such an institution that there are still Saturdays that it rolls around 7:00pm, and I get excited and for the briefest minute I think, "It's almost time for Star Trek!"
Q4. Why have you decided to join Elite of the Fleet? I've decided to join Elite of the Fleet because I love Star Trek, I love the challenge of competition and of bettering myself (such as working my way up through the ranks), I love the feeling of teamwork and comradery that comes working in communities such as these, and because I would love to meet more people who love the Star Trek universe like I do.
Q5. Who is your favourite Star Trek character? Until the seventh season of Deep Space Nine, the unequivocable answer to this question would have been Jadzia Dax. In fact, I loved her so much that when they killed her off my father called me at work so that I wouldn't have to hear the news from anyone else (or wait to watch it on the video tape later). Jadzia was always so smart and calm and serene and polished. She knew what she wanted and she went after it, even if it meant going through the symbiosis training twice when no other Trill ever had. And to be perfectly frank, she was also drop-dead gorgeous, and I was ten years old when the show started. I just wanted to grow up to be tall and thin and beautiful. It just seemed that Jadzia had everything- the brains, the brawn, and the beauty. She had it all together, and I loved her. I wanted to be just like her. But then the seventh season came around, and Ezri Dax was introduced. And Ezri was awkward and bumbling and unsure. She had never wanted to be joined, which was such as huge contrast to Jadzia, and since she had never wanted a symbiont, she had no idea what was of expected of her or even who she had become. I was graduating high school the same year that Ezri Dax was introduced, and I literally wanted to have a triple major in college even though due to finances I couldn't even afford to go. I definitely could relate not only to feeling like there were way too many more voices than were good for me in my head but also having no idea what to do with my life when all that I always thought I'd wanted was no longer an option. I may have wanted to be Jadzia, but I was Ezri, and she endeared herself to me immediately.
Q6. And the least? This answer is going to sound ridiculously understated and un-thought-out (that sounded like a word in my head) compared to the last one, but I honestly have no good reasoning for it. Please do not hate me, but I genuinely cannot stand Kathryn Janeway. I have no idea why, but from the very first, everything about her just rubbed me the wrong way, and I just could not watch her. There's no good reason, and I apologize. I'm sure she's a lovely character, but it's just one of those personality things.
Q7. Which television (or film) series is your favourite? My absolute favorite series is Deep Space Nine. I adore how deep the stories go, how well the characters are developed, and all of the political/religious/military intrigue that's involved in the entire series. I have always been interested in different cultures and how their clashes affect their people on a personal level, so DS9 was amazing for me, with all of the Bajoran/Cardassian conflicts, the struggle within Odo about whether to be faithful to the people he's lived with his whole life or to support the Founders during the War, even the cosmic ping pong match between Sisko and the Prophets (Pah Wraiths, any one? That was amazing!). I suppose to me the personal, moral, and spiritual conflicts are much more powerful than any battle or exploration, and that's why I loved DS9 the most.
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STARFLEET LIFE:
Q8. What do you hope to gain from your service in Starfleet? Personally, I find that I enjoy the challenge of an assignment more than the gain most times- to me just accomplishing is usually the best reward, but I suppose that besides learning new things and growing as a person, I would hope to gain new friends.
Q9. Is there any occupation in Starfleet you feel you would be particularly unsuited for? The only occupations I think I would be unsuited for would probably be those which required a great deal of mathematics. I am great with theory, and I honestly love the physical work of engineering-type work, but when it comes to whether I would trust me in an emergency to correctly calculate what would save a ship full of people, I definitely wouldn't risk it.
Q10. The four current Academic Tracks at the Academy are Tactics, Operations, Exploratory Sciences and Medical Sciences. Describe how you could be an asset to each of these departments.
Tactical: I am very organized, and very, very determined. Bull-headed, some would say. I'm very efficient when it comes to getting things done because to me, there is simply no other option than to get it done and to get it done correctly and quickly.
Operations: Building on what I wrote for the Tactical answer (since I feel that these two tracks are quite similar to each other), I also have a lot of experience in management that would probably be a good fit in either Diplomacy or Administration, but I'm also not afraid to get my hands dirty. In fact, I kind of crave a bit of physical work, which might come in handy in something like Security.
Exploratory Sciences: If given the chance, I would sincerely never leave the confines of my own head. Exploratory Science certainly holds a great appeal for me, as a thinker. I love a good "what if?"
Medical: As I stated in my "favorite series" answer, I genuinely enjoy getting to know the ins and outs of different people's characters. I think that I'm a very empathetic person (not empathic, mind you), and if given the chance I think I would sincerely like to get to know what makes every single person tick.
Q11. What are your top five strengths?
01. I am honest. I am a very black and white person- something is either right or it isn't, this is against the rules or it isn't- and I won't hesitate to tell the truth.
02. I'm compassionate. If you ever need anything, I will be there. If you ever even hint that you're in trouble, I will worry about you for a month.
03. I'm determined. When I want something to get done, it will be done. And not only will it be done, it will be gift-wrapped, tied with a bow, and overnight-shipped.
04. I'm empathetic. I don't know why, but for some reason, I just kind of get suffering. It's more than just a common sympathy, I just really understand and want to help. And if I can't actually help, I want to help just by letting someone know I know how they feel.
05. I love to learn. I don't want to put "I'm intelligent" because that's the point in these applications when everyone starts looking for typos and things that just prove that the applicant is really not smart, but I really do enjoy learning, and I read constantly- a lot of history along with a healthy mix of fiction.
Q12. What are your top five weaknesses?
01. I'm honest, and I do not cushion my words when someone asks for an opinion. I sometimes forget that not everyone see things the way I do, and that I should be more careful with the way I say things, but then I get angry because I think that people are babied way too much nowadays (like I'm 100), and I say something even worse. No less honest, just less tactful.
02. I'm a perfectionist. Normally this is a good thing, but if I'm being completely honest with you, I take it to the extreme. I absolutely need everything I do to be the best, and it needs to be done perfectly. If I can't do something perfectly, I just don't bother doing it. This is why I have a sewing machine and a keyboard sitting forlornly in my closet. Because I'm only okay at sewing and playing the piano. Okay, I lied; I'm okay at sewing, but I'm wretched at the piano.
03. I'm overemotional. Everything is important to me, and I take everything seriously. This again could be a good thing, but like most things, I take it to extremes, and I'm either super-psyched about something or totally gutted. At one of my previous jobs I had gotten upset because something in my department was not up to my specifications, and I was nice about it as long as I could be (which, regrettably wasn't long), but when it wasn't fixed, I finally exploded. I told my supervisor I didn't care if everyone thought I was a bitch, I wanted it to be done right, and she responded that she wouldn't call me a bitch, just... "passionate." Which was probably one of the truest statements I've ever heard. Not to sound flakey or anything, but this goes with my astrological sign, Gemini, because even though I am always 100% convinced that my opinion is right and that I am doing the right thing (that black-and-white thing again- or is it white-and-black?), my opinion does tend to change. Once it IS my opinion, I will defend it vigorously and cry and shout and be passionate about it, but tomorrow I may have a change of heart and then I'll feel just as passionately about the other side.
04. I procrastinate. I'm the kind of person who can't clean a room without looking through every old magazine I find or reading every old piece of paper. I suppose it's more of a stubborness, really, because it's more of me just rebelling against having to do things I don't want to do, when if I just got on with it, I could have been done with it a million years ago, and could have been enjoying that old magazine in a clean room.
05. I have an extreme lack of patience. Luckily for others, I have a talent for holding my tongue (unless someone asks my opinion on something), but I get really angry about really little things. People who won't walk fast enough, people who sit too close to me in church even though the whole rest of the pew is empty, people who complain about things like they're entitled to them. For example, I love making graphics, but I taught myself, and I'm JUST at the point where I feel confident to enter contests. I finally entered a layout contest and won it, but when the mod for the community put it up, she was like, "Oh, the comments were making my eyes go all wonky, so I changed them." But I worked really hard on those comments! Even so, that shouldn't bother me that much. It does, but I don't say anything because I'm being nice. All of these things build in my head, and then I keep not saying anything, thinking I'm being nice, and then one day I end up exploding, probably on the least offender. It all stems from a lack of courtesy, I think. I was raised to be courteous, to put others before myself, and to think of how what I do would effect others, and it just really, really angers me when people do thoughtless things because it seems to me to mean that they're only thinking of themselves. I know that there are stories behind every action, and that not everyone knows that I need to get somewhere and is walking slowly just to annoy me, so I'm working on my patience issues, but things like not saying "please" and "thank you" just really make me want to smack people.
Q13. What is your biggest fear? This is going to sound like a cop-out, but at this point, I honestly can't think of a biggest fear. I can think of lots of little fears, like insects and things like that, but I'm drawing a blank at the others. All I can say is that all of the usual suspects for big fear answers- at least as far as I can think- I've pretty much made peace with. I've been surrounded by the deaths of loved ones since I was about 8 years old, and since then I've had someone close to me die about once every 3 to 4 years. At this point, the worst thing I can think of happening is for my mom to die (my dad died about 5 years ago), but it isn't a fear. I know that my family and I would be fine eventually if she died. I'm a religious person, and even so it might be weird, but I don't fear my own death. Up to a few months ago, I might have even said that my biggest fear was dying alone, but I've even made peace with that. I suppose if I did have to pick something it would be losing my mental faculties. Being driven mad or even just losing my cognitive abilities would definitely be the absolute worst thing that could ever happen to me. I pretty much live inside my head; I'm constantly thinking, and the thought of having that taken away from me or even somehow twisted and made completely unfamiliar is just terrifying.
Q14. Do you consider yourself to be a leader, or a follower? I am a leader, definitely. I know that I can follow instructions when I need to, and I even look forward to learning from people who know more than I do and who have something great to share with me. But I really start to bristle when I am forced to follow someone who refuses to accept advice (or even listen to it). I like to have a team feeling even when I'm in charge.
Q15. What do you admire the most in your peers? I admire people who are their own people, who have their own ideas, their own personalities, and their unique attributes. I love to see people who have seemingly disparate personalities come together and be friends. I love someone who knows how to have fun, as well, since I'm not usually one for bending or breaking rules on my own. I need encouragement.
Q16. You are stranded on a Class M planet that has not been mapped by The Federation. You are only allowed to choose two of the following items to keep with you: a phaser, a tricorder or a communicator. Which two would you choose to have? I would choose to keep the communicator and the phaser (and hope that there was someone else in the away team with a tricorder). First of all, to leave off a communicator would be somewhat foolhardy, since its what the ship locks on to to beam you back up. I know that someone else might be able to grab on to me, but I've seen transporter accidents, and no thanks. I'll keep my communicator, thank you. Besides that, why on earth would I give up my lifeline not only to the ship but to the other members of the team? What if someone got lost or hurt on the planet's surface? How would we find him, by playing Marco Polo? As far as the phaser goes... I'm not expecting any trouble, but like the question says, this planet has not been mapped by the Federation. Who knows what kind of wildlife is down there? And, again, I'm not expecting to go hunting the equivalent of this planet's last Giant Panda, but if something big and fang-y comes charging me, I need to be able to protect myself and my team. And that's why phasers have settings, as well. I know that a tricorder would have been useful for an unmapped planet, but for being stranded, I've got to go with communicator and phaser.
Q17. Please describe your understanding of the Federation’s Prime Directive. The Prime Directive is the most vital rule in the entirety of the Federation, and it states that Starfleet officers may never interfere with the development of a pre-warp civilization or in the internal affairs of already-established civilizations. Basically, it's like a kid and... pretty much anything. You have to be careful how you treat a kid because EVERY SINGLE THING YOU DO impacts how that child develops. You can't just hand a ten-year-old the keys to a Porsche and say "Have fun!" You'd have a street full of wrecked mail boxes and turfed lawns, let alone whatever damage that ten-year-old might have done to himself. But if you let that kid grow up and figure out how to drive a car on his own, then you can share your secrets with him- the best route to the mall, the best place to get those little fuzzy rearview mirror dice... But you can't thrust knowledge or power into the hands of a kid- or a civilization- that's not ready for it yet. Everything and everyone has to grow up on its own.
Q18. The United Federation of Planets includes more than 150 member planets, and the galaxy has many more besides. Which planet do you most want to visit? Ever since I was little, I have been obsessed with the color purple and the cold weather, so you show me a planet with purple oceans and ice cliffs to climb, I'm going to pick that one! Trill for me, please!
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KOBAYASHI MARU:
The following questions describe situations you may commonly find yourself in as a member of Starfleet. You will be read the scenario, and then given two options to choose from. You may expand upon the reasons for your choice, but you must indicate one of the two that you feel best describes your likely response to the situation provided.
Q19. Service in the Fleet can be draining at the best of times, and on one particular day everything seems to have gone wrong. You’re exhausted, but your shift is finally over and it’s time to unwind. Your roommate is already on their bed when you get back to your quarters. Do you:
b. Say hi, then stick in some earphones for music or grab a PADD for some recreational reading. A lie-down sounds pretty good right now, or maybe a bit of time relaxing on the observation deck - it should be pretty quiet by this time, which will give you a chance to sort through the day’s events in your head.
Honestly, depending on the exact situation, I could probably see doing either (I'm always up for a good vent, me), but since the question says that my roommate is already on her bed, the best thing would be to just settle in myself. Music is always a good way to unwind- especially if the day has been a bad day in the depressing way and not necessarily in the angry way- and who doesn't love a nap? Besides, what's really sticking with me about this question is that my roommate is already in bed. I could never disturb another person just to unload my troubles unless we were complete best friends or something truly horrible happened.
Q20. You’ve intercepted what sounds like a pretty important transmission - you feel like the Captain needs to know. When you report, do you:
a. Give them all the facts: what it said, what the voice sounded like, where the inflection was, the language it was in, and so on. Details and facts are the important part, everything else is subjective.
I give the Captain the facts. I don't embellish for a couple of important reasons: 1). I intercepted the message- I didn't converse with anyone, it wasn't like I was crafty and tricked the bad guy into saying what he did and where he was hiding- everything valuable about the message is the message, and that's what I'm giving to the Captain, and 2). The Captain knows better than I do what he needs to know. If there's anything he feels he's missing, he'll ask questions. I would rather spend my time knowing everything there is to know instead of thinking of what the Captain might think of what I was thinking about when I heard the transmission. Facts are facts, that's the simple truth.
Q21. There are many decisions to be made in Starfleet, and some are harder than others. Faced with a decision where things could go wrong in any number of ways, do you:
a. Stay impersonal and objective. Weigh up the pros and cons, think out all the possibilities, and focus on the basic truths. A careful analysis of the situation will reveal the best possible choice, even though some may not approve of it.
This question is a little bit misleading, because I think that even though a lot of people wouldn't believe it of people who answer this question this way, the perspectives of those involved does come into play- it's just a matter of whether a particular person's perspective lands as a pro or a con. It might be a little bit strange to think like that, but I know that even if I had to make a hard decision, a person's feelings would never be discounted. The only way to really make a good decision is weigh all of the factors, and any "careful analysis" of a situation would include other crew members' feelings. However, there are times in a Starfleet officer's career when sacrifices must be made, and I would hope that anyone affected by my decision would know that had the situation called for the sacrifice to be mine, that would be the decision that would have been made.
Q22. The day-to-day life of Starfleet can be quite arduous at times, and quite exciting at others. Everyone has their own way of approaching everyday work, but would others see your approach as:
a. Planned and orderly. You seem to prefer to have decisions made and matters settled, rather than hanging over your head. You appear comfortable when in control over such matters. You seem to be task-oriented, and plan ahead.
I am nothing if not task-oriented. I think I make to-do lists in my sleep, and it literally makes me itch when people say things like, "Oh, we'll just hang out and play it by ear." On vacation, maybe. But if you're talking about a normal, average day, please tell me you have something in mind. Please. Because if you didn't before, you do now.
Q23. You can earn 5 points for your future Track by promoting the community in your Journal. Please link the post here if you wish to do so:
Here it is!
Q1. Name: MC
Q2. How did you find out about Elite of the Fleet? munanna had a promotional banner in her journal.
Q3. When did you first become interested in Star Trek? I think I was born interested, actually. My father was the Trekkie in the family, and I'm fairly sure I first developed my interest in order to spend more time with him and to have something in common with him. I have two sisters, and he was the only guy in the family (even the dog was a girl), so there weren't a great many bonding activities for us once I got past Candyland age and into things like Jem and Barbie. Star Trek not only offered me the chance to do something cool with Dad (and something that no one else in the family liked, so it was doubly cool!), it appealed perfectly to my natural curiosity and imagination. I've always found reality a little mundane, and the fact that Captain Picard could get his hair cut by a blue guy (who wasn't a Smurf) and it was just like walking down the street and seeing anyone else in the neighborhood just fascinated me. I can remember watching a couple of the old reruns of TOS with my dad, but I know that the twelve years that TNG and DS9 ran were probably the most memorable ones in my life- or at least they were the times when I was most impressionable. In fact, when I was growing up the local station that ran TNG and DS9 ran them back to back on Saturday evenings, and it just so happened that it fit our family's schedule perfectly that we could go to 4:30 evening mass, eat dinner, and then my father and I could settle down for two whole hours of Star Trek! It became such an institution that there are still Saturdays that it rolls around 7:00pm, and I get excited and for the briefest minute I think, "It's almost time for Star Trek!"
Q4. Why have you decided to join Elite of the Fleet? I've decided to join Elite of the Fleet because I love Star Trek, I love the challenge of competition and of bettering myself (such as working my way up through the ranks), I love the feeling of teamwork and comradery that comes working in communities such as these, and because I would love to meet more people who love the Star Trek universe like I do.
Q5. Who is your favourite Star Trek character? Until the seventh season of Deep Space Nine, the unequivocable answer to this question would have been Jadzia Dax. In fact, I loved her so much that when they killed her off my father called me at work so that I wouldn't have to hear the news from anyone else (or wait to watch it on the video tape later). Jadzia was always so smart and calm and serene and polished. She knew what she wanted and she went after it, even if it meant going through the symbiosis training twice when no other Trill ever had. And to be perfectly frank, she was also drop-dead gorgeous, and I was ten years old when the show started. I just wanted to grow up to be tall and thin and beautiful. It just seemed that Jadzia had everything- the brains, the brawn, and the beauty. She had it all together, and I loved her. I wanted to be just like her. But then the seventh season came around, and Ezri Dax was introduced. And Ezri was awkward and bumbling and unsure. She had never wanted to be joined, which was such as huge contrast to Jadzia, and since she had never wanted a symbiont, she had no idea what was of expected of her or even who she had become. I was graduating high school the same year that Ezri Dax was introduced, and I literally wanted to have a triple major in college even though due to finances I couldn't even afford to go. I definitely could relate not only to feeling like there were way too many more voices than were good for me in my head but also having no idea what to do with my life when all that I always thought I'd wanted was no longer an option. I may have wanted to be Jadzia, but I was Ezri, and she endeared herself to me immediately.
Q6. And the least? This answer is going to sound ridiculously understated and un-thought-out (that sounded like a word in my head) compared to the last one, but I honestly have no good reasoning for it. Please do not hate me, but I genuinely cannot stand Kathryn Janeway. I have no idea why, but from the very first, everything about her just rubbed me the wrong way, and I just could not watch her. There's no good reason, and I apologize. I'm sure she's a lovely character, but it's just one of those personality things.
Q7. Which television (or film) series is your favourite? My absolute favorite series is Deep Space Nine. I adore how deep the stories go, how well the characters are developed, and all of the political/religious/military intrigue that's involved in the entire series. I have always been interested in different cultures and how their clashes affect their people on a personal level, so DS9 was amazing for me, with all of the Bajoran/Cardassian conflicts, the struggle within Odo about whether to be faithful to the people he's lived with his whole life or to support the Founders during the War, even the cosmic ping pong match between Sisko and the Prophets (Pah Wraiths, any one? That was amazing!). I suppose to me the personal, moral, and spiritual conflicts are much more powerful than any battle or exploration, and that's why I loved DS9 the most.
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STARFLEET LIFE:
Q8. What do you hope to gain from your service in Starfleet? Personally, I find that I enjoy the challenge of an assignment more than the gain most times- to me just accomplishing is usually the best reward, but I suppose that besides learning new things and growing as a person, I would hope to gain new friends.
Q9. Is there any occupation in Starfleet you feel you would be particularly unsuited for? The only occupations I think I would be unsuited for would probably be those which required a great deal of mathematics. I am great with theory, and I honestly love the physical work of engineering-type work, but when it comes to whether I would trust me in an emergency to correctly calculate what would save a ship full of people, I definitely wouldn't risk it.
Q10. The four current Academic Tracks at the Academy are Tactics, Operations, Exploratory Sciences and Medical Sciences. Describe how you could be an asset to each of these departments.
Tactical: I am very organized, and very, very determined. Bull-headed, some would say. I'm very efficient when it comes to getting things done because to me, there is simply no other option than to get it done and to get it done correctly and quickly.
Operations: Building on what I wrote for the Tactical answer (since I feel that these two tracks are quite similar to each other), I also have a lot of experience in management that would probably be a good fit in either Diplomacy or Administration, but I'm also not afraid to get my hands dirty. In fact, I kind of crave a bit of physical work, which might come in handy in something like Security.
Exploratory Sciences: If given the chance, I would sincerely never leave the confines of my own head. Exploratory Science certainly holds a great appeal for me, as a thinker. I love a good "what if?"
Medical: As I stated in my "favorite series" answer, I genuinely enjoy getting to know the ins and outs of different people's characters. I think that I'm a very empathetic person (not empathic, mind you), and if given the chance I think I would sincerely like to get to know what makes every single person tick.
Q11. What are your top five strengths?
01. I am honest. I am a very black and white person- something is either right or it isn't, this is against the rules or it isn't- and I won't hesitate to tell the truth.
02. I'm compassionate. If you ever need anything, I will be there. If you ever even hint that you're in trouble, I will worry about you for a month.
03. I'm determined. When I want something to get done, it will be done. And not only will it be done, it will be gift-wrapped, tied with a bow, and overnight-shipped.
04. I'm empathetic. I don't know why, but for some reason, I just kind of get suffering. It's more than just a common sympathy, I just really understand and want to help. And if I can't actually help, I want to help just by letting someone know I know how they feel.
05. I love to learn. I don't want to put "I'm intelligent" because that's the point in these applications when everyone starts looking for typos and things that just prove that the applicant is really not smart, but I really do enjoy learning, and I read constantly- a lot of history along with a healthy mix of fiction.
Q12. What are your top five weaknesses?
01. I'm honest, and I do not cushion my words when someone asks for an opinion. I sometimes forget that not everyone see things the way I do, and that I should be more careful with the way I say things, but then I get angry because I think that people are babied way too much nowadays (like I'm 100), and I say something even worse. No less honest, just less tactful.
02. I'm a perfectionist. Normally this is a good thing, but if I'm being completely honest with you, I take it to the extreme. I absolutely need everything I do to be the best, and it needs to be done perfectly. If I can't do something perfectly, I just don't bother doing it. This is why I have a sewing machine and a keyboard sitting forlornly in my closet. Because I'm only okay at sewing and playing the piano. Okay, I lied; I'm okay at sewing, but I'm wretched at the piano.
03. I'm overemotional. Everything is important to me, and I take everything seriously. This again could be a good thing, but like most things, I take it to extremes, and I'm either super-psyched about something or totally gutted. At one of my previous jobs I had gotten upset because something in my department was not up to my specifications, and I was nice about it as long as I could be (which, regrettably wasn't long), but when it wasn't fixed, I finally exploded. I told my supervisor I didn't care if everyone thought I was a bitch, I wanted it to be done right, and she responded that she wouldn't call me a bitch, just... "passionate." Which was probably one of the truest statements I've ever heard. Not to sound flakey or anything, but this goes with my astrological sign, Gemini, because even though I am always 100% convinced that my opinion is right and that I am doing the right thing (that black-and-white thing again- or is it white-and-black?), my opinion does tend to change. Once it IS my opinion, I will defend it vigorously and cry and shout and be passionate about it, but tomorrow I may have a change of heart and then I'll feel just as passionately about the other side.
04. I procrastinate. I'm the kind of person who can't clean a room without looking through every old magazine I find or reading every old piece of paper. I suppose it's more of a stubborness, really, because it's more of me just rebelling against having to do things I don't want to do, when if I just got on with it, I could have been done with it a million years ago, and could have been enjoying that old magazine in a clean room.
05. I have an extreme lack of patience. Luckily for others, I have a talent for holding my tongue (unless someone asks my opinion on something), but I get really angry about really little things. People who won't walk fast enough, people who sit too close to me in church even though the whole rest of the pew is empty, people who complain about things like they're entitled to them. For example, I love making graphics, but I taught myself, and I'm JUST at the point where I feel confident to enter contests. I finally entered a layout contest and won it, but when the mod for the community put it up, she was like, "Oh, the comments were making my eyes go all wonky, so I changed them." But I worked really hard on those comments! Even so, that shouldn't bother me that much. It does, but I don't say anything because I'm being nice. All of these things build in my head, and then I keep not saying anything, thinking I'm being nice, and then one day I end up exploding, probably on the least offender. It all stems from a lack of courtesy, I think. I was raised to be courteous, to put others before myself, and to think of how what I do would effect others, and it just really, really angers me when people do thoughtless things because it seems to me to mean that they're only thinking of themselves. I know that there are stories behind every action, and that not everyone knows that I need to get somewhere and is walking slowly just to annoy me, so I'm working on my patience issues, but things like not saying "please" and "thank you" just really make me want to smack people.
Q13. What is your biggest fear? This is going to sound like a cop-out, but at this point, I honestly can't think of a biggest fear. I can think of lots of little fears, like insects and things like that, but I'm drawing a blank at the others. All I can say is that all of the usual suspects for big fear answers- at least as far as I can think- I've pretty much made peace with. I've been surrounded by the deaths of loved ones since I was about 8 years old, and since then I've had someone close to me die about once every 3 to 4 years. At this point, the worst thing I can think of happening is for my mom to die (my dad died about 5 years ago), but it isn't a fear. I know that my family and I would be fine eventually if she died. I'm a religious person, and even so it might be weird, but I don't fear my own death. Up to a few months ago, I might have even said that my biggest fear was dying alone, but I've even made peace with that. I suppose if I did have to pick something it would be losing my mental faculties. Being driven mad or even just losing my cognitive abilities would definitely be the absolute worst thing that could ever happen to me. I pretty much live inside my head; I'm constantly thinking, and the thought of having that taken away from me or even somehow twisted and made completely unfamiliar is just terrifying.
Q14. Do you consider yourself to be a leader, or a follower? I am a leader, definitely. I know that I can follow instructions when I need to, and I even look forward to learning from people who know more than I do and who have something great to share with me. But I really start to bristle when I am forced to follow someone who refuses to accept advice (or even listen to it). I like to have a team feeling even when I'm in charge.
Q15. What do you admire the most in your peers? I admire people who are their own people, who have their own ideas, their own personalities, and their unique attributes. I love to see people who have seemingly disparate personalities come together and be friends. I love someone who knows how to have fun, as well, since I'm not usually one for bending or breaking rules on my own. I need encouragement.
Q16. You are stranded on a Class M planet that has not been mapped by The Federation. You are only allowed to choose two of the following items to keep with you: a phaser, a tricorder or a communicator. Which two would you choose to have? I would choose to keep the communicator and the phaser (and hope that there was someone else in the away team with a tricorder). First of all, to leave off a communicator would be somewhat foolhardy, since its what the ship locks on to to beam you back up. I know that someone else might be able to grab on to me, but I've seen transporter accidents, and no thanks. I'll keep my communicator, thank you. Besides that, why on earth would I give up my lifeline not only to the ship but to the other members of the team? What if someone got lost or hurt on the planet's surface? How would we find him, by playing Marco Polo? As far as the phaser goes... I'm not expecting any trouble, but like the question says, this planet has not been mapped by the Federation. Who knows what kind of wildlife is down there? And, again, I'm not expecting to go hunting the equivalent of this planet's last Giant Panda, but if something big and fang-y comes charging me, I need to be able to protect myself and my team. And that's why phasers have settings, as well. I know that a tricorder would have been useful for an unmapped planet, but for being stranded, I've got to go with communicator and phaser.
Q17. Please describe your understanding of the Federation’s Prime Directive. The Prime Directive is the most vital rule in the entirety of the Federation, and it states that Starfleet officers may never interfere with the development of a pre-warp civilization or in the internal affairs of already-established civilizations. Basically, it's like a kid and... pretty much anything. You have to be careful how you treat a kid because EVERY SINGLE THING YOU DO impacts how that child develops. You can't just hand a ten-year-old the keys to a Porsche and say "Have fun!" You'd have a street full of wrecked mail boxes and turfed lawns, let alone whatever damage that ten-year-old might have done to himself. But if you let that kid grow up and figure out how to drive a car on his own, then you can share your secrets with him- the best route to the mall, the best place to get those little fuzzy rearview mirror dice... But you can't thrust knowledge or power into the hands of a kid- or a civilization- that's not ready for it yet. Everything and everyone has to grow up on its own.
Q18. The United Federation of Planets includes more than 150 member planets, and the galaxy has many more besides. Which planet do you most want to visit? Ever since I was little, I have been obsessed with the color purple and the cold weather, so you show me a planet with purple oceans and ice cliffs to climb, I'm going to pick that one! Trill for me, please!
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KOBAYASHI MARU:
The following questions describe situations you may commonly find yourself in as a member of Starfleet. You will be read the scenario, and then given two options to choose from. You may expand upon the reasons for your choice, but you must indicate one of the two that you feel best describes your likely response to the situation provided.
Q19. Service in the Fleet can be draining at the best of times, and on one particular day everything seems to have gone wrong. You’re exhausted, but your shift is finally over and it’s time to unwind. Your roommate is already on their bed when you get back to your quarters. Do you:
b. Say hi, then stick in some earphones for music or grab a PADD for some recreational reading. A lie-down sounds pretty good right now, or maybe a bit of time relaxing on the observation deck - it should be pretty quiet by this time, which will give you a chance to sort through the day’s events in your head.
Honestly, depending on the exact situation, I could probably see doing either (I'm always up for a good vent, me), but since the question says that my roommate is already on her bed, the best thing would be to just settle in myself. Music is always a good way to unwind- especially if the day has been a bad day in the depressing way and not necessarily in the angry way- and who doesn't love a nap? Besides, what's really sticking with me about this question is that my roommate is already in bed. I could never disturb another person just to unload my troubles unless we were complete best friends or something truly horrible happened.
Q20. You’ve intercepted what sounds like a pretty important transmission - you feel like the Captain needs to know. When you report, do you:
a. Give them all the facts: what it said, what the voice sounded like, where the inflection was, the language it was in, and so on. Details and facts are the important part, everything else is subjective.
I give the Captain the facts. I don't embellish for a couple of important reasons: 1). I intercepted the message- I didn't converse with anyone, it wasn't like I was crafty and tricked the bad guy into saying what he did and where he was hiding- everything valuable about the message is the message, and that's what I'm giving to the Captain, and 2). The Captain knows better than I do what he needs to know. If there's anything he feels he's missing, he'll ask questions. I would rather spend my time knowing everything there is to know instead of thinking of what the Captain might think of what I was thinking about when I heard the transmission. Facts are facts, that's the simple truth.
Q21. There are many decisions to be made in Starfleet, and some are harder than others. Faced with a decision where things could go wrong in any number of ways, do you:
a. Stay impersonal and objective. Weigh up the pros and cons, think out all the possibilities, and focus on the basic truths. A careful analysis of the situation will reveal the best possible choice, even though some may not approve of it.
This question is a little bit misleading, because I think that even though a lot of people wouldn't believe it of people who answer this question this way, the perspectives of those involved does come into play- it's just a matter of whether a particular person's perspective lands as a pro or a con. It might be a little bit strange to think like that, but I know that even if I had to make a hard decision, a person's feelings would never be discounted. The only way to really make a good decision is weigh all of the factors, and any "careful analysis" of a situation would include other crew members' feelings. However, there are times in a Starfleet officer's career when sacrifices must be made, and I would hope that anyone affected by my decision would know that had the situation called for the sacrifice to be mine, that would be the decision that would have been made.
Q22. The day-to-day life of Starfleet can be quite arduous at times, and quite exciting at others. Everyone has their own way of approaching everyday work, but would others see your approach as:
a. Planned and orderly. You seem to prefer to have decisions made and matters settled, rather than hanging over your head. You appear comfortable when in control over such matters. You seem to be task-oriented, and plan ahead.
I am nothing if not task-oriented. I think I make to-do lists in my sleep, and it literally makes me itch when people say things like, "Oh, we'll just hang out and play it by ear." On vacation, maybe. But if you're talking about a normal, average day, please tell me you have something in mind. Please. Because if you didn't before, you do now.
Q23. You can earn 5 points for your future Track by promoting the community in your Journal. Please link the post here if you wish to do so:
Here it is!