Hi, my name is Elizabeth.

I’m 21. I go to college at Columbia University. I study East Asian history (and other East Asian stuff, like Japanese film, and non-East Asian stuff, like classical mythology, when I feel like it).

Mostly, though, I work at the Spectator, Columbia’s undergraduate daily newspaper. Right now I’m managing editor, last year I was arts & entertainment editor, and before that I was the founding editor of the video games section. I don’t work very hard at school, but I work very hard at the things I care about–like Spec, various jobs I’ve held, & web design.

I was born in New York, and raised in and near Philadelphia. My background is a crazy mix of Norwegian (that’s the part that I look like), Welsh, English, Scottish, Irish, Russian, Polish, and probably something else I forgot.

I was raised Jewish (though I also celebrate Christmas, which is my fave holiday), but I don’t go in for organized religion these days. Also I’m an atheist and stuff. I don’t do drugs. I’m extremely liberal.

Stuff I’ve written:

1. @ Buffalo News
2. @ Washington Post Express
3. @Columbia Spectator (mostly really old!)

Want to know some random facts about me?

1. I was on Wheel of Fortune when I was 16. No, really, I swear. (That’s the fact that I tell everyone when I’m asked for an interesting fact.)
2. I have my septum pierced and I have my ears pierced 3 times on one side, 1 time on the other. I used to have 2 helix piercings on the less-pierced side, but after spending months and lots of money tending to them, they closed up in like two seconds. WTF. I have a tattoo of “Expelliarmus,” the spell from Harry Potter, on my right arm.

   Below, the tattoo (day I got it) and the piercings (click for bigger!):
   

3. I have obsessive compulsive disorder. It’s (usually) not that bad though.
4. Last summer, I took a 24-hour-long bus trip (should have been 17 hours) on Greyhound from Washington, D.C. to Chattanooga, TN, and that is the last time I will ever take Greyhound. BoltBus all the way.
5. I collect Alice in Wonderland paraphernalia. When I was little (like 3), I used to dress up as Alice every day.

Stuff I like.

I like really sharp cheddar cheese, playing video games, all kinds of cereal with milk, vampires and vampire-related things, piercings, web design, Steve Madden shoes, Japan, retail therapy, Surrealism & Dada, and my dog, Watson:

Stuff that sucks.

I hate bugs, all bugs (except for some butterflies), Salvador Dali (ask me why!), Pixar, bad grammar, people who talk endlessly about how “print is dead,” and getting wet grass on my feet.

Fangirl.

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Tunes.

According to the last.fm “paste my taste” function, my music taste (as of 10/20/09) is as follows:

I’m into indie, alternative, electronic, rock and experimental, including:
of Montreal, Islands, Belle and Sebastian, The Unicorns, Okkervil River, Blonde Redhead, Dr. Dog, The Smiths, The New Pornographers, Bearsuit, Camera Obscura, 植松伸夫, The Apples in Stereo, Ratatat, Final Fantasy, MGMT, Clap Your Hands Say Yeah, Fleet Foxes, The Beatles, Elbow, Fiona Apple, The Magnetic Fields, Beck, Pavement, De Novo Dahl, Architecture in Helsinki, The Knife, Spoon, Crystal Castles, Frightened Rabbit, Japancakes, Broken Social Scene, Morrissey, Someone Still Loves You Boris Yeltsin, Justice, Okay, Bon Iver, Wolf Parade, Son, Ambulance, Say Hi to Your Mom, The Teeth, Wire, The Strokes, 光田康典, The Submarines, Cut Copy, Hot Hot Heat, The Futureheads, White Rabbits, The Dears.

The Japanese names are Nobuo Uematsu (composer of Final Fantasy soundtracks) and Yasunori Mitsuda (composer of Chrono Cross soundtrack). I pretty much agree with this assessment of my taste. Proceed to judge me.

Tube.

My favorite TV show ever is Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Other greats include True Blood, 30 Rock, Arrested Development, How I Met Your Mother, Dollhouse, Hell’s Kitchen, It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia, Veronica Mars, The Simpsons, and The OC. I’m a big fan of pretty much any cake-building show, too, like Ace of Cakes and Cake Boss. To be fair, though, I also occasionally enjoy such trash as The Bachelor(ette), Trading Spouses, and the like.

Pages.

The book that had the strongest emotional effect on me ever was Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. I cried my eyes out for like four hours the first time I read it. So obvs the Harry Potters all rank pretty high. My other favorite books: Dracula (duh), The Historian, Watchmen, Moscow to the End of the Line, Tender Is the Night, Liberty or Love, and various (actual) autobiographies of geisha. I generally like nonfiction better than fiction, but clearly fiction is what sticks with me.

Pixels.

The Final Fantasy games are wonderful, especially IX, but also especially IV, VI, and VII. Even though they’re spin-offs, I’m also partial to Final Fantasy Legend III (because it was the first game I ever beat) and Final Fantasy Adventure. My actual favorite game of all time, though, is Earthbound. I also love the Katamari games, like, a lot. And Chrono Trigger, Chrono Cross, New Super Mario Brothers, Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, Guitar Hero II, and Retro Game Challenge. And so, so many others.

Big screen.

My favorite movies are the Kill Bills–both of them. Other faves are After Hours, Metropolis (the anime version), There Will Be Blood, Gozu, Alice in Wonderland, Tampopo, and martial arts films, especially Japanese ones. The Sword of Doom comes to mind. Also classics like Mean Girls, of course.