Interview Meme

[sarea]

What the hell this is, and how you can play.
1 -- Leave a comment, saying you want to be interviewed.
2 -- I will respond; I'll ask you five questions.
3 -- You'll update your journal with my five questions, and your five answers.
4 -- You'll include this explanation.
5 -- You'll ask other people five questions when they want to be interviewed.

As far as I'm concerned, people who have already been interviewed by other people can still apply. After all, my questions will (hopefully) be different. Or if for some bizarre reason you still want to ask me questions after this, I will applaud your bravery and answer them.

Also I get really rambly and verbose, which is nothing new, but it's also 2am so my weaknesses are magnified.

Thanks to sydney_lynne for the questions!

1. Tell me about the Pacific Northwest. What's the best and worst thing about living there? Where would you move to if money was not an issue?

Ah, the Pacific Northwest. I have to say, I'm a little biased, because I wouldn't be here if not for my job. I'm away from my friends and my family, and I don't really like my job all that much. So this reflects poorly on the area, which isn't fair, but I can't help it. I'll try to be as objective as I can. So, worst thing, for me, would be the fact that I'm away from "home" and I'm none too enamored of the area (it's not a very "interesting" place to live, imho -- unlike DC, where I was before moving here). Plus the rain. Gah, it rains sooooo much it's crazy. It didn't bother me at the beginning, but man, it bothers me now. Best thing: When it actually stops raining, it's gorgeous. The summers are usually really nice (that is, if we get a real summer, the way we have this year) -- usually hovers in the 80s, the skies are really clear and blue, and being around water all the time is awesome. If the Puget Sound area were like this all year long, I don't think I'd have as many issues. People are also really laid back, which is a big change from LA and DC.

Edited to add: Ooops, I forgot to answer the second part of this question. If I could live anywhere in the world, I'm pretty sure I'd pick London. I absolutely loved it the couple of times I've been there, and it has everything that I love: historical beauty, mad shopping, theatre, people who speak with British accents, scones like we don't get in the U.S., a rockin' tube system, and is just hours away from other fun and cool countries like Ireland. :D

2. How did you get into the D/G ship and what makes it your OTP in the Harry Potter fandom? Do you find them similar to any other ships you support in other books/movies/tv shows?

I got into D/G by reading the DT -- or more specifically, DS. Originally I had actually been into D/Hr because of DD (funny because I hate that ship w/ the white-hot intensity of a thousand suns now), but it didn't take me long to adore D/G. Of course, it's all very ironic that the DT is what got me into D/G in the first place, when Cassie herself seems rather anti-Ginny and I have no idea how that trilogy will end. She doesn't seem entirely anti-D/G (and actually claims to like it), but the way she's spoken about it in the past makes me think it's pretty low on the totem pole. So I wonder how she'd feel to know that she'd spawned all these D/G fans, particularly if she intends to give them the shaft in the DT. (I don't know she will; I'm just being hypothetical!)

I'm not sure why they're my OTP. I'm a little too close to the situation, I think, to speak on it objectively; maybe it's just a gut preference. I mean, I could say that I love the idea of opposites attracting, but in some ways, Hermione would be more of an "opposite" than Ginny. I mean, Draco's all about his pureblood heritage, so Hermione, as a mudblood, would be the total opposite of that, whereas Ginny herself is a pureblood. Of course, her Weasley status would rather negate that in Draco's eyes (not to mention that they're Muggle sympathizers), and she's also poor as a church mouse while he's wealthier than Croesus (Hermione seems financially stable). Plus there's already established tension between their families. I love the idea of two people who don't have anything in common and who should never, ever be together being drawn to one another. I also think that their personalities -- whether Ginny is shy or spunky -- would mesh well (yin and yang), whereas I think canon Hermione would only be grating to Draco and vice versa (yang and yang). But of course, that's only my personal viewpoint. I'm sure D/Hr shippers would say differently.

Also, I find D/G slightly more probable in canon context, although that's not why I ship them (I'd be in for a world of disappointment, LOL!). The enmity between Draco and Hermione in the novels does not feel like UST to me, but actual, real loathing. Whereas Ginny and Draco have shown no personal hatred (though that could also be because it's all seen through Harry's eyes, or because Ginny and Draco have had no cause to interact as much as Draco and the trio). Even OotP has helped the situation somewhat, as now Ginny has been shown to have some spunk and also date boys that her brother and Harry have no idea about. And in canon, Hermione already seems promised to Ron (or Harry, but I think Ron), and that's already been so slow to happen that I just don't see JKR attempting anything with Draco. It'd make for some pretty interesting tension if Ron's little sister began to date their worst (peer) enemy, though -- particularly in light of the Sorting Hat's latest song, and if we believe that all the Houses have to unite in order for Voldemort to be defeated.

Does D/G resemble other ship pairings I enjoy? Dammit, it does. <g> I guess I have a "type," and I simply can't escape from it. My first OTP was Mulder/Scully, and they were all about complementing one another. They were like night and day, and yet they fit. I also enjoyed Michael/Liz for a time from Roswell, but actually, that came about through fanfic as I really liked Max/Liz until Max became a psychotic asshole. But yeah, Michael/Liz would definitely fit into my OTP mold -- in fact, shippers of that ship were called "Polarists," because they were polar opposites. Next up, Buffy/Spike. Again, total opposites. More so than Buffy/Angel, because at least Buffy and Angel were on the same side, and Angel was a good guy. Not so Spike. I have written many a treatise on dear Spike, so I will attempt to pare it down: I preferred Spike to Angel because it always seemed that he understood her. Buffy had darkness inside her, and would always have it simply because of who she was and what she had to do. And it seemed that Spike was the only one who recognized it and accepted it.

As for others, I'm not sure if the pairings are quite as clear cut in this whole "opposites attract" mold. Does Mark Darcy/Bridget Jones count? What about Anne and Gil (from Anne of Green Gables)? Or Michael and Mia (from The Princess Diaries -- the books, not the movie)? Or Georgia and Dave the Laugh (from the Angus, Thongs series)? Or Danny/Evelyn (from Pearl Harbor)? Or Rachel and Joey? Or Jack and Rose? Or Angel and Cordelia? Or Pacey and Joey? Or Cathy and Heathcliff? Or Emma and Mr. Knightley? Good lord, I could go on, but I shall stop here.

3. If you had the power to change the ending to any book, tv show, or movie that you otherwise enjoyed, which one would you choose and what would your ending be? (Explanation of why you hate the "real" ending also helpful).

Oh, this is such a difficult question! I just know that whatever I choose, I'm going to think of another one later and angst about it. Heehee. (The rest of this reply spoils for Quantum Leap and Identity, so if you want to read, you'll have to highlight the text.) Right now, I'll pick Quantum Leap (Jade doesn't agree with me about this, but she can't stop me!), and it has nothing whatsoever to do with ships. I find it completely heartbreaking that he never found his way home, that all he did for the rest of his life (or eternity? Was it ever established whether he aged?) was leap from body to body, never getting to rest, never having his final hope fulfilled. The thing is, they left the ending open like that in case they ever wanted to revisit QL again, and to allow him to return home would be to pretty much close out all the possibilities. Well, that's an external reason for ending a story; not that it's right for the story itself. Personally, I'd let poor Dr. Beckett get home. (Or I'd change the last 3 minutes of the movie Identity, which rocked up until then. I'd just make it so that it was anyone but the little kid. Gah.)

4. Who are the persons indispensible to you in HP fandom and who are the authors that you fangirl? Why?

Of course, top on my list is jade_okelani, who allows me to suck her into fandoms and who writes me stories on ship pairings she has no intense interest in, herself. She's my bestest friend in the whole world, and nothing would be the same without her. Then there's lissinthecity, who is a fabulous friend and writer; akscully and calliope14, who are new friends I adore chatting with (even if we don't squee about the same ships, but which is actually the coolest part), all thanks to triumvirate; and sydney_lynne, an unapologetic D/G shipper whose thoughts on the pairing are always well-spoken and intelligent, so I can't wait to read them (discussion about D/G is just as fun as reading about them, imho). The people I fangirl are all authors whose work I've enjoyed greatly, and squee whenever they have something new out: Jade, Liss, epicyclical, angiej, Davesmom, msscribe, StrangerWithMyFace, Tupper, and someone who doesn't write anymore (as far as I know), Renebre. And then I also fangirl specific stories, like "Rising from Ashes," by Arabella and Jedi Boadicea; "Dark Directed," by Fearthainn; and "Sea of Waking Dreams," by Cinnamon. (This isn't a comprehensive list by any means, but it's what came to me off the top of my head!)

5. Describe your ideal guy. Do you think he really exists?

My ideal guy: Draco, but in real life I probably would need him to be slightly less of a bastard. And he'd have to have a sense of humor, even if it's biting and sarcastic. I think I'd want qualities that anyone else would want, in reality. While in fiction I'm always drawn to dark, dangerous, exciting guys, in Real Life I'd need someone fun, dependable, and open-minded. He'd have: a similar sense of humor, a compatible outlook on life, the same priorities wrt to finances, a desire to travel and explore. I'd also need to find him attractive. Preferred, but not necessary: outdoorsy and athletic, to get me off my ass! <g> Does this person exist? I can't imagine that somewhere in this world, he doesn't. I don't think I'm asking for that much, and in fact have often found myself clicking with people who don't meet these "ideals" so nothing's set in stone. But then again, we'd have to be at the exact right place at the exact right moment to meet one another, and I'd have to be his ideal as well, and I'm not sure anymore if I can believe that that happens for everyone the way it does in the movies.

Comments

[sarea-okelani.livejournal.com]

Fuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuck. How could I have forgotten that? It's the excuse I use every time you dog me about HP! Of course, when it comes to HP I think of you running far and wide so of course I wouldn't have thought of you as an "indispensible" HP person. Hahahahaha. And don't think I don't know that you're just trying to give me a hard time, bitch.