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Feb. 8th, 2004 05:57 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
rusty_haloSaw "Mystic River" with ![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
soulmate815 last night. I quite liked it; certainly won't be devastated if Sean Penn beats Johnny for the Oscar.
Then we met up withjaydk for drinks, and ended up being out until almost 4am. (How did that happen?) It was fun, though--good conversation. Had a debate about RPF, which amuses me because I don't read and am very squicked by RPF, but I'm always the one defending it.
And we talked about conventions.jaydk and I are definitely going to DragonCon. Woo hoo! So, who else is going? Or is it too early to decide?
I can't get anyone to come with me to WriterCon. So maybe I will end up looking for a roommate after all. Or staying in my own room, but that's kind of expensive. Althoughsoulmate815 said she might go, depending on which fic writers are there. Isn't it neat how fanfic writers are sort of minor celebrities themselves? Going to a con to meet a fic writer that you admire ... that's cool.
I'm going to the Creation con in NJ in March. Must figure out transportation ... I guess I can wait until closer to the actual con date to figure that out, though. I figure I'll come on Saturday, stay the night, and leave on Sunday. Probably will travel withsoulmate815.
I'm not going to the Cleveland Vulkon. Must write and ask for refund soon.
I am going to Moonlight Rising, but I haven't a clue how I'm going to get there. Must figure that out.
Still have to decide about Toronto Trek.
what decade does your personality live in?
quiz brought to you by lady interference, ltd
High School Meme
School and Year you graduated
Graduated in 2000.
Number of people in your graduating class:
Not sure ... 200? 300?
Nickname in high school?
I didn't have a nickname. The word "freak" was uttered in the hallway under someone's breath more than once. I had some rather nasty nicknames in middle school, but I wasn't even on the radar enough for people to bother in high school.
Sport you were into?
You're kidding, right?
Had a circle of friends?
In 9th and 10th grade? Yes. Best friends I ever had--everyone who rejected the elitist, self-obsessed, money-and-popularity-focused, utterly conformist high school culture gravitated together. We were very different individuals--really, people from every social group ended up there. The people with whom I was closest were the creative types--we wrote stories together, wrote a screenplay, made videos, that kind of thing.
We had a falling out in the summer between 10th and 11th grade; I didn't have a social group after that.
Best subject?
I was in advanced classes for everything. I got the highest grades (high As) in math classes, because they're graded objectively. I had low grades (low and mid-As) in English classes, because they're graded subjectively. I was actually better at English than math, it's just that an English teacher is more likely to give you a 95 for a good essay than 100, whereas a math teacher will give you 100 for a perfect exam.
Worst subject?
Gym. One of the most personally degrading experiences of my life. I will never send my children to public schools. (Y'know, if I ever had children.)
A teacher you owe life lessons to?
Mr. Bush. He was probably the only teacher I ever learned anything from. He taught Media Arts, which was an elective class that I took in 10th grade. He gave us a wonderful history of film class, and had us producing our own amateur films. It was amazing. Our final project was a 13-minute short movie that we shot, acted in, and edited ourselves. That class is definitely the reason I studied film in college.
Unfortunately, the year we were to take Media Arts II (more focus on making your own films), the school cancelled the program. Because it was focused on creativity instead of money. They replaced it with "TV Production," whose sole purpose was to make poorly-done propoganda glorifying our repulsive, repressive, conformist school and town. (The town had high property values because the school had a good reputation, so everything in high school was about making the school look good and hiding/eliminating any signs of individuality or creativity or nonconformity). We organized several meetings with the administration, got our parents involved, did everything we could to keep the media arts program, but they eliminated it.
Describe in one word...
Freshman (year 9): Miserable
Sophmore (year 10): Not-Quite-As-Miserable
Junior (year 11): Suicidal
Senior (year 12): Numb
Your best friend was?
In ninth and tenth (and seventh and eighth) grades, Danielle. My best friend in the world. We wrote stories together, made movies together, analyzed each other's dreams, wrote in each other's journals, finished each other's sentences...
No best friend in 11th grade.
In 12th grade, my best friend wasdizenchanted. Who lived in another state and who I only talked to online and saw occasionally at concerts.
Worst friend?
What's a worst friend? Shouldn't it be, like, worst enemy? I mean, if they were such a bad friend, why would you still be friends with them?
I guess, in retrospect, it would be the girl who was best friends with me and Danielle from seventh to tenth grades. I wasn't quite as close with her as I was with Danielle, but we had our moments. We hung out and talked to each other and were there for each other when things were bad. One of her family members had a mental illness that was very difficult for her to deal with, and I was always there for her. People used to ridicule her at school, but I would always step in to defend her. But when I had a falling out with Danielle, she just ditched me, with no explanation, after four years of friendship. I was going through the worst period in my life and I guess she just decided my issues were "inconvenient" to her, and that was it.
Cafeteria food sucked?
I wouldn't know; I wouldn't eat that stuff if you paid me. I usually ate my lunches in the library, or brought something vegan to snack on.
Wore uniforms?
No. You wouldn't have been able to force me to go if we did. The dress code was bad enough--my (male) friend repeatedly got sent home for wearing skirts, for example.
How was the prom?
How would I know? I was probably at home on the computer.
Who were the prom king and queen?
Someone I hated, I'm sure.
Any achievements?
I got out alive.
Were you popular?
I was so not popular, I don't even think I'd fit anywhere on the popularity scale. I had, like, negative popularity.
Best song that reminds you of high school?
Most of Nine Inch Nails' "Downward Spiral." Pearl Jam's "Jeremy." Nirvana's "School."
soulmate815 last night. I quite liked it; certainly won't be devastated if Sean Penn beats Johnny for the Oscar.Then we met up with
jaydk for drinks, and ended up being out until almost 4am. (How did that happen?) It was fun, though--good conversation. Had a debate about RPF, which amuses me because I don't read and am very squicked by RPF, but I'm always the one defending it.And we talked about conventions.
jaydk and I are definitely going to DragonCon. Woo hoo! So, who else is going? Or is it too early to decide?I can't get anyone to come with me to WriterCon. So maybe I will end up looking for a roommate after all. Or staying in my own room, but that's kind of expensive. Although
soulmate815 said she might go, depending on which fic writers are there. Isn't it neat how fanfic writers are sort of minor celebrities themselves? Going to a con to meet a fic writer that you admire ... that's cool.I'm going to the Creation con in NJ in March. Must figure out transportation ... I guess I can wait until closer to the actual con date to figure that out, though. I figure I'll come on Saturday, stay the night, and leave on Sunday. Probably will travel with
soulmate815.I'm not going to the Cleveland Vulkon. Must write and ask for refund soon.
I am going to Moonlight Rising, but I haven't a clue how I'm going to get there. Must figure that out.
Still have to decide about Toronto Trek.
what decade does your personality live in?
quiz brought to you by lady interference, ltd
High School Meme
School and Year you graduated
Graduated in 2000.
Number of people in your graduating class:
Not sure ... 200? 300?
Nickname in high school?
I didn't have a nickname. The word "freak" was uttered in the hallway under someone's breath more than once. I had some rather nasty nicknames in middle school, but I wasn't even on the radar enough for people to bother in high school.
Sport you were into?
You're kidding, right?
Had a circle of friends?
In 9th and 10th grade? Yes. Best friends I ever had--everyone who rejected the elitist, self-obsessed, money-and-popularity-focused, utterly conformist high school culture gravitated together. We were very different individuals--really, people from every social group ended up there. The people with whom I was closest were the creative types--we wrote stories together, wrote a screenplay, made videos, that kind of thing.
We had a falling out in the summer between 10th and 11th grade; I didn't have a social group after that.
Best subject?
I was in advanced classes for everything. I got the highest grades (high As) in math classes, because they're graded objectively. I had low grades (low and mid-As) in English classes, because they're graded subjectively. I was actually better at English than math, it's just that an English teacher is more likely to give you a 95 for a good essay than 100, whereas a math teacher will give you 100 for a perfect exam.
Worst subject?
Gym. One of the most personally degrading experiences of my life. I will never send my children to public schools. (Y'know, if I ever had children.)
A teacher you owe life lessons to?
Mr. Bush. He was probably the only teacher I ever learned anything from. He taught Media Arts, which was an elective class that I took in 10th grade. He gave us a wonderful history of film class, and had us producing our own amateur films. It was amazing. Our final project was a 13-minute short movie that we shot, acted in, and edited ourselves. That class is definitely the reason I studied film in college.
Unfortunately, the year we were to take Media Arts II (more focus on making your own films), the school cancelled the program. Because it was focused on creativity instead of money. They replaced it with "TV Production," whose sole purpose was to make poorly-done propoganda glorifying our repulsive, repressive, conformist school and town. (The town had high property values because the school had a good reputation, so everything in high school was about making the school look good and hiding/eliminating any signs of individuality or creativity or nonconformity). We organized several meetings with the administration, got our parents involved, did everything we could to keep the media arts program, but they eliminated it.
Describe in one word...
Freshman (year 9): Miserable
Sophmore (year 10): Not-Quite-As-Miserable
Junior (year 11): Suicidal
Senior (year 12): Numb
Your best friend was?
In ninth and tenth (and seventh and eighth) grades, Danielle. My best friend in the world. We wrote stories together, made movies together, analyzed each other's dreams, wrote in each other's journals, finished each other's sentences...
No best friend in 11th grade.
In 12th grade, my best friend was
dizenchanted. Who lived in another state and who I only talked to online and saw occasionally at concerts.Worst friend?
What's a worst friend? Shouldn't it be, like, worst enemy? I mean, if they were such a bad friend, why would you still be friends with them?
I guess, in retrospect, it would be the girl who was best friends with me and Danielle from seventh to tenth grades. I wasn't quite as close with her as I was with Danielle, but we had our moments. We hung out and talked to each other and were there for each other when things were bad. One of her family members had a mental illness that was very difficult for her to deal with, and I was always there for her. People used to ridicule her at school, but I would always step in to defend her. But when I had a falling out with Danielle, she just ditched me, with no explanation, after four years of friendship. I was going through the worst period in my life and I guess she just decided my issues were "inconvenient" to her, and that was it.
Cafeteria food sucked?
I wouldn't know; I wouldn't eat that stuff if you paid me. I usually ate my lunches in the library, or brought something vegan to snack on.
Wore uniforms?
No. You wouldn't have been able to force me to go if we did. The dress code was bad enough--my (male) friend repeatedly got sent home for wearing skirts, for example.
How was the prom?
How would I know? I was probably at home on the computer.
Who were the prom king and queen?
Someone I hated, I'm sure.
Any achievements?
I got out alive.
Were you popular?
I was so not popular, I don't even think I'd fit anywhere on the popularity scale. I had, like, negative popularity.
Best song that reminds you of high school?
Most of Nine Inch Nails' "Downward Spiral." Pearl Jam's "Jeremy." Nirvana's "School."
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(no subject)
Date: 2004-02-09 02:27 am (UTC)Oh god. I'm so glad to be done with that. Worst class I've ever had to live through, period. I had it first hour every day for a semester, and it consisted of running six laps around the gym every morning at 7 and desperately trying to blend into my surroundings so no one tried to pass the ball at me for team sports. Not to mention the 20-minute-long-run at the end of the semester. ::shudder::
Also: "School" is a kickass song.
Re:
Date: 2004-02-09 05:13 am (UTC)Congratulations on being done with gym. :)
We had gym every day, every semester, every year. It's just ... I don't even want to think about it. Let's see: take off your clothes in front of a bunch of strangers who hate you. Put on ugly crappy clothes. Now, follow orders as they're barked at you by some big muscular mean rude person: lie on the dirty floor, getting your hair and hands and clothes dirty. Do strenuous physical activity; do it correctly and don't stop or the instructor will pull you out and make you do it alone in front of everyone else, totally humiliate you in front of your peers. Just feel lucky that you're not a boy; at least no one's dragging you in front of everyone and calling you a fag because you can't keep up.
Okay, now that you've done that for a while, you can (depending on the semester; we never had choices)--stand somewhere and try not to get hit while large scary teenage boys throw balls at each other at top speed while simultaneously trying to make it appear that you're "participating" whenever the teacher glances over (aka "basketball" "volleyball" "baseball"). Or run in circles for an hour with teachers standing at random intervals screaming at you if you stop, or walk instead of run.
Oh, and don't cut, because if you miss four classes you'll fail and won't graduate high school. Um, and if you're sick, or have debilitating cramps, we don't care; get your ass out here or you fail. And what was that? It's 10 degrees outside? Yeah, so?, get out there and freeze. What, you have a nose ring/tongue ring/navel ring? Too bad, you have to have it out or you fail gym. No, we don't care that you're not supposed to remove it yet or that the hole will close if you take it out. (Unless you have earrings, which are socially acceptable--you only have to remove "freaky" piercings). And, oh gee, class ran long. Guess you don't have time to change back into your regular clothes/fix your hair/wash your hands--get to your next class on time or you'll be counted as absent.
[Of course, if you're a jock, you can horse around and do whatever you want; no one will care. If you're unpopular, though, or one of those "fags" who wears black--take one step out of line and you'll be humiliated as thoroughly as possible. I had a friend--one of the smartest people I ever met--who nearly didn't graduate high school because she failed gym one year. And she never did anything that the jocks didn't do regularly and get away with.]
"Normal," "acceptable," "necessary," institutionalized degradation and humiliation. Like I said, my kids will never attend public schools.