I'm going nowhere, where I am it is a lot of fun

[angerfish]

LUMOS SORTING APPLICATION

Name: Steph. (Short for Stephanie. But everyone calls me Steph because “[I] look like a Steph.”)

Age (13 or up; we stick to LJ rules): 18. It was fun turning 18. My friends and I would give one another lottery tickets. And porn. Ah, corruption!

Location: Ish… I’ve spent a decade in Centre County, Pennsylvania. However, by late August, I will have three places I could consider home. My family is moving to Virginia. The majority of my friends will be in college in Centre Country. My college (and a few friends and my long term boyfriend) will be in Philadelphia. For convenience sake, I’m going to consider Philly to be home from now on.

Where did you hear about this community? (Please tell us which lj user recommended you for he/she shall be given a point.) roguebelle

How much time are you willing to invest in this community? I’m addicted to lj. I know I will be able to vote on new applicants and contribute to writing. Other things might appeal to me too… I’ll have to see. But I’m online daily, so time shouldn’t be a problem!

PART 1 - Canon

1. Have you read all the books? Oh yeah I have. I’ve also found that multiple rereads unearth interesting details I didn’t notice on the first read through. I’ve read GoF the most, I think.

2. Give us your personal interpretation of each Hogwarts house (in terms of atmosphere, mentality, intra-house relationships et cetera - these are just a few examples).

Hufflepuff: I think that friendship among the Hufflepuffs runs very deep. I suspect that friendship with a Hufflepuff is very hard won, but also well worth it. I have a feeling many Hufflepuffs don’t get close to anyone until they are sure they can trust said person. And if you harm a member of the Hufflepuffs… that’s just unacceptable. Consider the Hufflepuffs reaction to Harry when they believed that he was the Heir of Slytherin, and when they thought he was taking away Cedric’s glory. Anyway, I think that a combination of personality and outright prejudice towards Hufflepuff have made Hufflepuffs a bit wary and standoffish when it comes to the other houses. Despite that, they are generally kind and friendly towards strangers, if a bit reticent. However, once a person gains a friendship with a Hufflepuff, they will have one of the best companions they could ask for. They’d be with you, thick and thin. They’d be type who’d travel across an entire country to be with a friend if they need help. Loyalty is a key word to a Hufflepuff. This house is probably the most easygoing and downright fun house to belong to. I bet the Hufflepuffs have enough inside jokes to fill several dictionaries. There’s not much internal drama.

Hufflepuffs are hard workers. While doing homework/taking tests/etc, they are calm, collected and dedicated. They won’t cut corners, “modify answers from friends while really kind of just copying,” slack off, or write a paper that they know is less than their best effort. Cheating is forbidden. Each Hufflepuff likely has an internal honor code. They are fully aware that other students do some of the things that I listed, but they still refuse. They approach their work at school (and later in life) with honesty, patience and forbearance.

Slytherin: I view Slytherin as the most realistic and practical of the houses. They seem to see exactly how the world works and, more importantly, how to manipulate it in their favor. This is not to say that they dispassionate and coldly calculating. They can be quite friendly and polite. They’re just more aware of the world around them. If a Slytherin was in Harry’s position (dirty!) in Goblet of Fire and had to deal with Umbridge… I could see him/her suavely pretending to go along with Umbridge’s rules. Meanwhile, he/she would form the DA on the side. Umbridge would never know what hit her.

One of Slytherin’s chief characteristics is that of ambition. They certainly protect their own person. This can be viewed as selfish, but also as a pragmatic action. Since Slytherins know the world so well, they also have a strong understanding the dark side of human nature. A Slytherin likely thinks “I can’t expect anyone to watch out for me. I’ll have to watch out for myself.” I also see Slytherin ambition as extending far beyond the advancement of the individual. The Death Eaters, for example, have wildly ambitious plans. It seems as if they’re looking to completely change Wizarding Society. (Note: I am using the Death Eaters as an example because of the unreliable narrator problem. I strongly hope that Rowling will show an equal number of “good” Slytherins by the seventh book.). Slytherin ambitions extend beyond the evil megalomaniac sphere as well. Consider Snape’s teaching style. He has highly ambitious hopes for his students and demands the best constantly. When students don’t match up to his expectations, he gets pissed off. However, Slytherin ideals are also well defined: get rid of muggles, have better students etc. You won’t see many Slytherins supporting vague ideas like “happiness for everyone,” or “a better life for myself.” Slytherins look at the world, figure out precisely what they want, and plan, to the minutest detail, how to obtain their desires.

This sort of cunning planning means that Slytherin likely has the best parties. And the administration never knows.

Gryffindor: All right. If Slytherins see the world as it is, then Gryffindors see the world as it should be. This is not to say that all Gryffindors are mere day dreamers with their heads up in the clouds. They are aware of reality. They just don’t think that “that’s how the way things are” is a proper excuse, when it comes to whatever they feel passionate about. The definitely think with their hearts and not their minds. They identify what they want to do or change and rush in to take action immediately. It barely occurs to the trio, in the first book, that a group of twelve year old first years versus a highly trained dark Wizard is not an even match (to say the least.) This sort of blunt force and enthusiasm is both inspiring and occasionally problematic. When Gryffindors set out to do something, they will often meet with two results:

1. A complete, sweeping, mindblowing victory
2. Utter, spectacular defeat.

For Gryffindor is truly the house of extremes. The world is frequently very black and white. Gryffindors find Slytherins cold hearted appraisal of the world to be distasteful, so they are deemed to be trouble etc. Dumbeldore has always helped me, so he must be good. This sort of mindset leads to immediate action… but also a lot of turmoil. I can see Gryffindor house as being full of internal drama. A breakup among Gryffindors would be messy as hell. Pottery will be thrown. Curses (of both types) will fly. Gossip will run rampant.

Gryffindors really don’t regard authority as set in stone. They know that authority figures can be as flawed as other person and act accordingly. There are many examples of this. The obvious one would be, of course, Harry constantly breaking the rules. Heh. There’s also: McGonagall eventually rebelling against the government. Neville constantly facing his fears. Percy breaks away from his closely knit family (complete with authoritative mother) to pursue a goal he believes is right, and Peter betraying his charismatic friends.

Gryffindors generally make good friends. They are exciting, likeable and enthralling. They are passionate in their loyalty to their friends, nearly rivaling the Hufflepuffs in that regard. They demand a lot, but also give much in return.

Ravenclaw: Ravenclaws also have a very keen insight into the workings of the world. I suspect that many Ravenclaws view life as very complex, and complicated thing. As a result, I can see Ravenclaws attempting to study every side/opinion of an issue. Some Ravenclaws will see things as bit too complex, and become loathe to take sides on anything too controversial. I think it’s no accident that the Ravenclaws seem like the house that’s least likely to be drawn into inter-house politics and squabbling. (Though Harry has been the source of their ire before. No one’s perfect I guess.) Ravenclaws, though proud of their house and school, also view these seven years as a tad transitory. They don’t like getting caught up in drama, when there are more important things to focus on.

Like, oh, knowledge, for instance. Ravenclaws love to learn. Learning isn’t just a means to an end for Ravenclaws. Learning is a joy unto itself. Ravenclaws are blessed with the ability to absorb information quickly, and retain it for long periods of time. You probably won’t see Ravenclaws with their noses stuck in schoolbooks. They do schoolwork fairly quickly, and then move on to whatever interests them. Ravenclaws probably have a wide ranging variety of passions and outlooks. Some students are fascinated by, say, Ancient Runes. Others, like Luna, are immersed in the supernatural. The list goes on (and on and on and on.) I can see Ravenclaw as having quite a few social butterflies. Neutrality goes a long way in a drama prone school. Also, Ravenclaws are adept at memorizing, which means they can remember details about a person easily. (See Luna telling Ron that he went with Padma to the Yule Ball. Cho and her friends are probably similar too.) Ravenclaws are also witty, and many of Hogwart’s funniest students likely reside in this house.

Ravenclaw is probably the only house in which a slightly tipsy prefect will try to take off points for someone wearing an inaccurate toga to a toga party. And I mean that in the best possible way.

3. What would be your favourite flavour of Bertie Bott’s Every Flavour Beans and why (note: as the name implies, all possible flavours
exist)? Hah hah! I’d like some sort of palate cleansing Every Flavour Bean. I’m completely serious. The flavor of nothingness, if you will. Too many times I’ve eaten something that leaves a horrible aftertaste that never seems to go away. (Spinach?) Since I’ll be eating dorm food for a while, I’d like a nice stack of nothingness beans to take away the abject pain.

4. If you were on your House’s Quidditch Team, which position would you preferably play and why? I’ll admit right away that I do not excel at team sports. I’m more of a lone hiker/lap swimming type of girl. So, I will arrive at a position by the almighty process of elimination. (Insert ominous music here.) Seeker is immediately out, thanks to me have precisely the wrong build for it (Curvy, rather than slender.) I would also get bored rather quickly, which would lead to me spacing out, which would lead to me not noticing the Snitch. Completely ineffectual. I would rather enjoy being a Beater, except for one crucial detail… Bludgers are painful and if said bludgers hit one of my teammates I would feel horrible! I couldn’t be a Chaser because, again, I’m HOPELESS AT TEAM SPORTS. I don’t know why, but it seems like my brain goes on a vacation to another planet. If someone passed the Quaffle to me, I’d flip out and send it in completely the wrong direction. This leaves me as a keeper, a position I think would be good for me. First of all, I was competent goalie in gym class. Heh. More importantly, my role in the game doesn’t change much. I stay in one place and always send the Quaffle in the exact same direction: away from the goal. While this will strike many people as dull, I like this sort of reliability in my sports. I’d be a crucial part of the team (go team!) but I’d fly solo much of the time, which is very appealing to me indeed.

5. (Optional) What HP conspiracy theory do you hold true unless it is textually proven otherwise? (i.e. Snape is a vampire, Ron is Dumbledore, etc. -there are loads of these theories. Feel free to contribute
your own)? I’m a fan and member of ”unplottables”, but I’m not sure I subscribe to any particular conspiracy theory… Well, I do expect Petunia to show some latent magic later on. Either her or Dudley. I don’t know why I think this. Maybe I just hold out hope that they’ll prove to be slightly less cartoonish and annoying. I think it would be funny if Petunia has been using magic to keep her house immaculately spotless this whole time!

6. (Optional. If you can't answer #5, make sure you answer this one.) What is your favorite book aside from HP and why? Ummm… I like so many books that this question is difficult for me. One book that affected me deeply was The Things They Carried by Tim O’Brien. It’s… I can’t even competently describe it. It’s a semi fictional, semi autobiographical book about the Vietnam War. It’s completely unsentimental and really imparts upon the reader the real cost of war. There were so many times that I had to put down the book for a while and just think “Wow…” It completely blew my mind. It shook my world view to the core. That’s what great writing is to me. It draws you into the experience and allows you to see the world from another angle. Needless to say (though I am… damn it!) this book achieved that.

7. What would your Room of Requirement look like? Apart from it looking exactly like Hagrid's Hut... It would be pretty big first of all. I’m a fidgety person. Plus, in order to think properly, I need room to pace all over the place. Also, there’d be enough space for my friends. Ummm… Since this is a Room of Requirement room, I’m going to go all out. It would change daily to reflect a different time period. Ancient Egyptian, one day, Renaissance Italian another and so on. It would be quite accurate. (although not completely. I’d leave out some of the gross details, because I’m fastidious like that. Heh.) In fact, it would be a bit like a museum. However, it would be much better than a museum because I could interact with it. Plus, like I said, there’d be tons of room for my friends. The room would constantly supply me with good food and drinks, which would just make the parties I’d inevitably have in there even better. There would be interesting books, a great deal of paper and pens, and all the music I could need. The couches would be comfy as hell and excellent for cuddling.

8. Describe your wand and tell us why you picked that design. Thanks for pointing out this site, roguebelle. Anyway, though it sounds funny, my wand would be made of wood from a fig tree! The characteristics of a “fig” person are as follows: Very strong, a bit self-willed, independent, does not allow contradiction or arguments, loves life, family, children and animals, a bit of a social butterfly, good sense of humor, likes idleness and laziness, of practical talent and intelligence. It’s a good summary of my personality. Fig trees also grow in tropical areas, and I prefer warm weather. The wand itself would definitely be small, 7 inches at most. This would keep it from being obtrusive, as well as making it easy to hide! The core would be a phoenix feather. I am drawn to idea of rebirth, both in real life and in metaphor. When things go badly in my life I freak out (burst into flames) but after that initial reaction, I emerge stronger than before (rebirth) armed with the knowledge I have gained from the experience.

PART 2 - You

Yay! Quizzes!

Please go here
and fill out the short Myers-Briggs test.

9. Paste the URL of your results (TOP 5) including its description
here.

Your #1 Match: ENFP

The Inspirer

You love being around people, and you are deeply committed to your friends.
You are also unconventional, irreverant, and unimpressed by authority and rules.
Incredibly perceptive, you can usually sense if someone has hidden motives.
You use lots of colorful language and expressions. You're quite the storyteller!

You would make an excellent entrepreneur, politician, or journalist.

Your #2 Match: INFP

The Idealist

You are creative with a great imagination, living in your own inner world.
Open minded and accepting, you strive for harmony in your important relationships.
It takes a long time for people to get to know you. You are hesitant to let people get close.
But once you care for someone, you do everything you can to help them grow and develop.

You would make an excellent writer, psychologist, or artist.

Your #3 Match: ESFP

The Performer

You are a natural performer and happiest when you're entertaining others.
A great friend, you are generous, fun-loving and optimistic.
You love to laugh - and you like almost all people equally.
You accept life as it is, and you do your best to make each day fantastic.

You would make a good actor, designer, or counselor.

Your #4 Match: ISFP

The Artist

You are a gifted artist or musician (though your talents may be dormant right now).
You enjoy spending your free time in nature, and you are good with animals and children.
Simply put, you enjoy beauty in all its forms and live for the simple pleasures in life.
Gentle, sensitive, and compassionate - you are good at recognizing people's unspoken needs.

You would make a good veterinarian, pediatrician, or composer.

Your #5 Match: ENFJ

The Giver

You strive to maintain harmony in relationships, and usually succeed.
Articulate and enthusiastic, you are good at making personal connections.
Sometimes you idealize relationships too much - and end up being let down.
You find the most energy and comfort in social situations ... where you shine.

You would make a good writer, human resources director, or psychologist.

What's Your Personality Type?

10. Who is your role model and why? My AP Government teacher from my high school senior year, believe it or not. First of all, he was a very compassionate person. He was very respectful of his students, and he treated us with respect. Incredibly, most of his students liked and respected him as well. Many students came away from the class as better, more knowledgeable people. That class was like a safe haven. He was also very happy with his own life. He really seemed to know what was important to him and valued everything that he had. I would like that level of contentment, as well as the ability to effect change in my corner of world.

11. What would you like to have accomplished at the end of your life? I would like to go to college this fall and… well, not completely change myself, but I would like to take advantage of the fact that no one knows me there. I want to become more assertive and friendly. I want to graduate from undergrad and grad school successfully. I’d like to have a career that excites and challenges me. I want to find my purpose in life. I want to be a wife and mother. I want to visit all of the continents, including Antarctica, maybe. I want to visit all of the countries that I have ethnic ties to. I hope to even visit some of the towns my ancestors came from. I want to tour as many ancient sites as possible, explore them and think about the people that made them and contemplate how many people will gaze on them long after I’m gone. I’d like to have inspired some people. I want to be fluent in German. I don’t necessarily want to be a leader, but I would to write something that makes people sit back, think, view the world in a new way, and become inspired to take action. Finally, I’d just like to make people laugh a lot. It never fails to make me happy.

12. Would you sooner commit a crime against your kin or your countrymen? I would reluctantly say I would commit a crime against my countrymen. I do appreciate my country and the ideals it claims to stand for. However, I have spent all of my life with my family. I don’t always agree with, or get along with my kin, but there is no doubt that I would defend them. I love them too much to do otherwise. I also consider the idea of “countrymen” to be a bit vague. While I appreciate the ideals behind my country, I don’t feel aligned to everyone in my country solely due to the fact that we were born in the same country. However, my opinions may be blinded because I’m a bit wary of the government and don’t always see it as particularly moral.

13. What would your animagus be and why? I would definitely be a rabbit. One aspect of the rabbit that is very apparent is its aloof and observant nature around strangers. According to my mom, ever since I was a toddler, I have had a tendency to observe new situations from the outside until I have learned it inside and out. Then, when I feel comfortable, I throw myself into the group with unparalleled enthusiasm. Like a rabbit, I’m very alert as to my surroundings. Rabbits live underground in burrows, when they are not above ground. When I am sleeping, I have a tendency to burrow into my blankets. You can’t see me at all. When you get to know a rabbit, they tend to be friendly and playful. I sure hope I come across as such to my friends! In culture, rabbits are sometimes seen as a sign of, ah, sexuality and though I’m not “breeding like a rabbit,” romantic relationships are important to me. The rabbit is often associated with mythological archetype of the “trickster,” a witty figure who breaks the rules with positive results. While I don’t necessarily consider myself to be a trickster, I am intrigued by tricksters and love reading about them. (see: Hermes. And Kyprioth in Trickster’s Choice, by Tamora Pierce.) Finally, I was born in the Year of the Rabbit, on the Chinese Zodiac. Oh yeah.

14. What would your patronus be and why? It would be a sphinx! The Ancient Egyptian statue is a very iconic image of mysteries and the supernatural, even today. Also I was obsessed with Ancient Egypt as a child, so the Sphinx would be a familiar, comforting image to me. Sphinxes confused enemies with riddles... I’m not physically strong, and I’d need some sort of advantage over my enemy on another front in order to achieve victory. I could see my Patronus taking this sort of idea to the extreme. It would completely confound my opponent. Since, I’m bad at riddles myself and am in awe of anyone who can solve them, I believe my Patronus would embody such a skill that I admire.

15. What career would you consider if you were indeed part of the wizarding world and why? I would like to be some sort of ambassador to a foreign country. It appeals to my interest in politics. Also I like to travel, as I’m sure you gathered. (Of course, being an ambassador wouldn’t be just involve tourism. Heh.) The state of international relations in Wizarding world in the books seems really incompetent. (Fudge didn’t even know the Bulgarian prime minister’s name!) I’d like to change some things around… and have that much responsibility.

If that doesn’t work out, I’d like to be a comedic writer for The Daily Prophet. I’d be a sort of Dave Barry for the Wizard World. There’s so much to mock… And I honestly love writing.

Thanks for taking your time to read this. This community looks wonderful.
-Steph.