Up Above The World You Fly
1. Name: Emma
2. Age: 18
3. If you could live anywhere in the world, where would you choose?
I love where I live now, really. That being suburban Sydney, for those who are unaware. The weather is generally warm (I can’t stand the cold) and the people are friendly. I live in a community where everyone knows everyone else, and is very family oriented. It’s far enough from the city for the air to be clean and the pace to be calm, but close enough to give me access to all the amenities I require. Plus I’m maybe an hour from the best beach ever. Sometimes I think I’d like it even better further north, where the weather’s even hotter and the people are even more relaxed, but then I just factor in global warming. “Don’t go to Queensland, ‘cause Queensland’s coming to you!”
However, I do want to travel before I commit myself to just this location forever and ever amen. I want to see Europe, especially England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales. See where my family came from. And listen to their gorgeous accents. And then from there I can go to Switzerland and Sweden and Germany and Austria and everywhere else. I really, really (prepare yourself for extreme nerd-dom) want to do the Sound of Music tour and run up that hill blasting “THE HILLS ARE ALIVE WITH THE SOUND OF MUSIC” at the top of my lungs. I’m a tad dramatic like that.
4. What would your Room of Requirement look like?
Well that depends greatly on how I’m feeling at the time. But always there would have to be chocolate. And big windows to let the sun in. And a king-sized canopy bed with silky sheets (I sleep a lot). And a water feature.
And Christmas baubles with my face all over them. I do admire Dobby’s interior decorating.
5. Who is your least favourite Harry Potter character?
Peter Pettigrew. He is weak and he is snivelling and I can’t stand people like that. He couldn’t even stand up and take the blame for what he did. He just turned himself into a rat and down the sewer he went. And I cannot abide by the way he betrayed his friends. Maybe they weren’t the best of friends to him, but they were the only friends he had. And would Voldie REALLY have treated him any better? I completely agree with Sirius, and he should have died rather than betray his friends, as they would have done for him. And I just went against all my Gryffindor tendencies and actually spared you some capslock.
6. Is the glass half empty or half full?
Half full! I’m ever the annoying optimist. Or maybe twice as big as it needs to be? Though I always say you need context to answer that question. I mean, if you’re sitting in a restaurant, you don’t hail the waitress and say “MY GLASS IS HALF FULL! Fill it, whore!”
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.
Now you’ve really let yourself in for it. I LOVE quotes. Tee hee.
“Take some more tea,” the March Hare said to Alice, very earnestly.
“I’ve had nothing yet,” Alice replied in an offended tone, “so I can’t take more.”
“You mean you can’t take less,” said the Hatter: “It’s very easy to take more than nothing.”
- Alice in Wonderland
"The grand essentials of happiness are: something to do, something to love, and something to hope for."
- Allan K. Chalmers
"Life is what happens to you while you're busy making other plans."
- John Lennon
"If there is ever a tomorrow when we are not together there is something you must always remember: you are braver than you believe, stronger than you seem, and smarter than you think; but most of all, even if we're apart, I'll always be with you."
- Christopher Robin, Winnie the Pooh
8. In your life, who comes first: family or friends?
It depends on what period of your life you’re in. In childhood family is infinitely more important. In teenagerhood (I invent words. So sue me), you fight with your family and their importance is overshadowed by that of your friends. It’s only natural. However, all in all they have equal importance. We literally couldn’t exist without our family (well, without parents anyway), but I don’t think we could continue existing without our friends. Anyway, I don’t I could ever choose one from the other. And then I think you need to take into account that my friends ARE my family, and for the most part, my family are my friends.
9. What is your favourite childhood memory?
This question is tough. Not because I’m all so emo (woe) and my life has always sucked. Just because I think I had a rather mild childhood experience. It all kind of blurs together. But I think I might go with a memory from the first grade. I spent most of kindy acting like I was an average student. But then I got to the first grade and I had this teacher named Mrs Duke. I remember her as being terrifying, and she made me scared of just being average. So for the first time ever, I actually tried my best. And I shocked everyone. I’d written this story, and I’d spelt everything right, and my handwriting was - well, I wouldn’t call it perfect, but it was good for a six-year-old. And then Mrs Duke decided she was going to stick me out in front of the whole school to read it out. Up until then I’d been fairly shy, but when I was in front of the school and they’d liked what I’d written, and they were applauding me, it was a sort of turning point. It went a short way to making me into the attention seeking spotlight hogging person I am today, I guess.
And of course then there are Christmases and birthdays. They’re all fairly awesome memories too.
10. What would you say is your biggest flaw?
I have a lot of flaws. Don’t make me choose my favourite. I suppose I can boil it down to two, though. Just for you.
First of all, stubbornness. Determination is a strength of mine, and the flip side to that coin is my stubbornness. I never, ever let anything go. I will argue something until the day I die, if you push me to it. I cannot admit when I’m wrong; I would much rather just keep fighting. I also have a really, really hard time apologising for something if I think I was right in doing/saying it. Once I get my mind on something, my stubbornness tends to make me very focussed, and not allow other opinions (either from myself or from others) in. It makes me rather a handful to live with…
Second, impatience. If something is worth doing it is worth doing at mega-speed. What’s the use in waiting, really? Ever since I was little I could never wait for anything. I would sneak around the house looking for presents because I couldn’t stand the suspense. For the same reason, I have a terrible tendency to read the end of novels before I read the beginning. My impatience won’t let me think about the consequences of my actions before charging on in. It gives me a little bit of recklessness.
11. If you had been at Hogwarts during Harry’s fifth year, do you think that you would have joined the D.A.?
Heck yes! I love running around on causes. And I hate Umbitch, so doing anything to defy her right under her frog-like nose would bring me much joy. I’m not too keen on rules, really.
12. Describe how you react to difficult or stressful situations.
I confess to being a terrible procrastinator, so I will avoid such situations until they are right on top of me. But once I am confronted with them, I think I probably work better with them than I do when things are easy. Being under pressure forces the best out of me. I’m one of those people who likes to be contrary, and defy the odds at all times. So if they were all stacked against me, and nobody expected me to cope, then that is when I would do my very best work.
13. Which do you value more: compassion or justice?
Well, I personally am a fairly compassionate person - a bit of a bleeding heart at times, I guess you could call me. And I’m not always particularly just. I’m that person who offers to share the chocolate cake with you, cuts it in half, and then persuades you to take the smaller half. But all in all, I would much rather feel justice than compassion. I can often be too proud to accept compassion, especially considering it can so often be insincere. And if you’re going to get all soppy and sentimental on me… I don’t like it. Then again, maybe the two are linked? Compassion could lead to justice, at any rate.
I don’t know. I value both in different circumstances, I suppose.
14. Would you say that you’re a child at heart, or that you have an old soul?
I am definitely a child at heart. I’ve never grown up properly. In both the bad ways and the good ways. Many bad ways. You should see me with things that are shiny! Want a game of “I know you are, but what am I”? I still master the pout and sulk. I’m rather demanding, occasionally self-centred, and I tend to expect people to work themselves around me. I get upset over silly things and can be very intolerant. And I still like to eat baby mush. Especially the apple baby mush.
15. Which Hogwarts House do you think that the Sorting Hat would place you in?
Well, I’m always sorted into Gryffindor, and I would say that is about right. I’m passionate, headstrong, reckless… the usual strikes against Gryffindor. But I do have a little sliver of green running through my veins; just a small dose of Slytherin that helps me get what I want, when I want it.
16. If you have a picture of yourself and feel comfortable posting it, please do so! Pictures are fun!
Pictures of me are NOT fun. But I relent anyway.
