I read the first one and half of the second one (which is the worse in the series I have been told) but I stopped because it was really boring! I'm thinking about trying to finish it after I'm done the series I am reading now (Stephen King's "Dark Tower" series, holy I am in love with these books <3) Your coworker is right, though, Cersei is more of a bitch in the books, Tyrion is also worse in the first book but after he meets Shaye he starts becoming nicer. xD
That. Is. Amazing. Holy crap, I want a toilet like that! And the mirror... it's my biggest pet peeve when the mirrors fog up when I'm showering even when I open a window or turn on the fan, so I think I need a heated mirror. It's just a must. XP As for the communal bathrooms, I think I could do that! It would depend on who I was with and the situation. It would definitely be little weird at first, though. Boo, period problems! Otherwise that sounds like it was pretty cool. What were the classes like??
The comp was great! They mark 1st, 2nd and 3rd place and everyone gets a medal of either Gold (80% or more) Silver (50% or more) and Bronze. I placed 1st with a gold for my Cabaret Solo, I also got a recognition award from the judges and a high mark for all Open Cabaret solos/duos/trios (there was five up for that award). My duo placed 1st with a silver (those two routines were the only ones in their categories, so obviously I got first. It doesn't even really count :p) which is only to be expected because it's a really silly number called "Don't Call Me [Trailer Trash]". You either love it or hate it :p The only group routine that I performed this competition placed 1st with a gold. We messed up a bunch in it so it didn't do as well as we were hoping (my cousin said she expected the routine to win the entire competition). One of my productions placed 1st with a gold and received a special award for creepiness (there was a lot wrong with that routine. We had to change and do make up backstage in like 30 seconds, I was sitting down getting my make up done and my ballet teacher was like "It's fine. It's fine, we have time." And I just laughed and said. "Nance, I'm on right now." We also were way too late at the end and had to finish the piece without music). My other production also placed 1st with a gold and we got an invite into the showcase which was awesome! My trio placed 1st with a silver, don't get me started with this one because I'll end up seeming like a snotty little bitch! Anyways, I'm gonna stop now because I could go on forever.
Edit: Bright Eyes is the best band ever <3 I love them! What type of music do you listen to?