Sat up all night with sick toddlers in their arms, wiping up barf laced with Kraft dinner and wieners, birthday cake, and cherry Kool-Aid saying, "It's OK honey, Mommy's here."
Who have walked around the house all night with their babies when they kept crying and wouldn't stop.
This is for all the mothers who have shown up at work with spit-up in their hair and milk stains on their blouses and diapers in their purse.
For all the mothers who have run carpools and made dozens of cookies for school teas and sewn Halloween costumes. And all the mothers who HAVEN'T because they're at work trying to keep on top of the bills.
This is for the mothers who gave birth to babies they'll never see. And the mothers who took those babies and gave them homes and all their love.
This is for all the mothers who have frozen their buns off on metal bleachers at hockey, baseball or soccer games any night of the week instead of watching from their cars, so that when their kids asked, "Did you see me?" they could say, "Of course, I wouldn't have missed it for the world," and meant it.
This is for all the mothers who have yelled at their kids in the grocery store and swatted them in despair when they stomped their feet like a tired 2-year old does, who wants ice cream before dinner, and then hated them- selves for "losing" it.
This is for all the mothers who sat down with their children and explained all about making babies. And for all the mothers who wanted to but just couldn't.
For all the mothers who read "Goodnight, Moon" twice a night for a year. And then read it again. "Just one more time."
This is for a ll the mothers who taught their children to tie their shoelaces before they started school. And for all the mothers who opted for Velcro instead.
This is for all the mothers who taught their sons to cook and sew and their daughters to be brave and strong (and sink a jump shot.)
This is for all mothers whose heads turn automatically when a little voice calls "Mom?" in a crowd, even though they know their own offspring are at home.
This is for all the mothers who sent their kids to school with stomach aches, assuring them they'd be just FINE once they got there, only to get calls from the school nurse an hour later asking them to please pick them up right away. And they do.
This is for mothers whose children have gone astray, and who can't find the words to reach them.
For all the mothers who bite their lips sometimes until they bleed when their 14 year olds dye their hair green.
What makes a good Mother anyway? Is it patience? Compassion? Broad hips? The ability to nurse a baby, cook dinner, and sew a button on a shirt, all at the same time?
Or is it the heart? Is it the ache you feel when you watch your son or daughter disappear down the street, walking to school alone for the very first time?
Or the terror in your heart at 1 AM when your teenager with the new driver's license is an hour late getting home.
The jolt that takes you from sleep to dread, from bed to crib at 2 A.M. to put your hand on the back of a sleeping baby? Or to feel the dull ache as you look in on your sleeping daughter or son the night before they leave for a college in another city.
The need to flee from wherever you are and hug your child when you hear news of a fire, a car accident, a child dying?
For all the mothers of the victims of all the school shootings, and the mothers of those who did the shooting. For the mothers of the survivors, and the mothers who sat in front of their TVs in horror, hugging their child who just came home from school, safely.
This is for mothers who have tearfully placed flowers and teddy bears on their children's graves. Whose children have died from illness, accidents and the worst of all and hardest to comprehend, suicides.
This is for young mothers stumbling through diaper changes and sleep deprivation. And mature mothers who have learned and are still learning, to let go. For working mothers and stay-at-home mothers. Single mothers and married mothers. Grandmothers whose wisdom and love remains a constant for their grown children and their children's children. For Mothers with money, and Mothers without.
This is for you all. So hang in there.
Sunday, May 31, 2009
Friday, March 27, 2009
I don't really even believe in cliques, but the internet is filled with jewels of trivial knowledge
7 Common Roles Girls Play in Cliques
1. The Queen Bee: Through a combination of charisma, force, money, looks, will and manipulation, this girl reigns supreme over the other girls and weakens their friendships with others, thereby strengthening her own power and influence.
2. The Side Kick: She notices everything about the Queen Bee, because she wants to be her. She will do everything the Queen Bee says. The Queen Bee, as her best friend, makes her feel popular and included.
3. The Floater: She has friends in different groups and can move freely among them. She has influence over other girls but doesn't use it to make them feel bad.
4. The Torn Bystander: She's constantly conflicted about doing the right thing and her allegiance to the clique. As a result, she's the one most likely to be caught in the middle of a conflict between two girls or two groups of girls.
5. The Pleaser/Wannabe/Messenger: She will do anything to be in the good graces of the Queen Bee and the Sidekick. When two powerful girls, or two powerful groups of girls, are in a fight, she is the go-between. However, the other girls eventually turn on her as well. She'll enthusiastically back them up no matter what. She can't tell the difference between what she wants and what the group wants.
6. The Banker: Girls trust her when she pumps them for information because it doesn't seem like gossip; instead, she does it in an innocent, "I'm trying to be your friend" way. This is the girl who sneaks under adult radar all the time because she can appear so cute and harmless.
7. The Target: She's the victim, set up by the other girls to be humiliated, made fun of, excluded. She can be part of a clique or outside the clique. Either way, she feels isolated and alone.
- http://parenting.ivillage.com/tweens/twsports/0,,ppdebate_j733,00.html
-What would I be?
I'd always like to think it's better to be on the outside looking in than being on the inside looking out. Because at least it wouldn't be like you're trapped behind bars.
Wednesday, March 25, 2009
A clarifying metaphor for depression
A ship, sailing in calm waters, is going along nicely with a following wind. The crew, who know they lack some of the more tricky skills of dealing with bad weather, are perfectly happy in such good conditions.
But then a storm blows up. The crew don't know what to do and so sail right into the middle of the storm. Once in it, they lose their way, not knowing how to set a proper bearing and stick to it.
They go round and round within the storm, getting sicker and sicker, and the ship getting more and more battered. They try to do what they know but nothing seems to work, and after a while they become so exhausted they stop trying.
Eventually, the storm dies down and calm returns. After a time, the crew recover, and sail the ship onward, albeit in its slightly worn state.
They realise that if another storm comes along, they are going to be in the same position again, and so decide to put into the nearest port to learn the skills of coping with bad weather.--------------------------------------------------------
So the crew above (the depressed person) realise they don't know how (haven't learnt the skills) to take a ship through a storm (a life crisis, or difficult situation.) Once in the storm (the depression), they don't know how to set a proper bearing (get themselves out of depression.)
Once storm abates (life circumstances change), they decide to learn the necessary skills (balanced thinking styles, meeting basic needs etc.)
What the equivalent of them using drugs would be - who knows? Pouring oil on the sea?
But then a storm blows up. The crew don't know what to do and so sail right into the middle of the storm. Once in it, they lose their way, not knowing how to set a proper bearing and stick to it.
They go round and round within the storm, getting sicker and sicker, and the ship getting more and more battered. They try to do what they know but nothing seems to work, and after a while they become so exhausted they stop trying.
Eventually, the storm dies down and calm returns. After a time, the crew recover, and sail the ship onward, albeit in its slightly worn state.
They realise that if another storm comes along, they are going to be in the same position again, and so decide to put into the nearest port to learn the skills of coping with bad weather.--------------------------------------------------------
So the crew above (the depressed person) realise they don't know how (haven't learnt the skills) to take a ship through a storm (a life crisis, or difficult situation.) Once in the storm (the depression), they don't know how to set a proper bearing (get themselves out of depression.)
Once storm abates (life circumstances change), they decide to learn the necessary skills (balanced thinking styles, meeting basic needs etc.)
What the equivalent of them using drugs would be - who knows? Pouring oil on the sea?
Thursday, February 26, 2009
This essay got me 7 marks out of 8, and helped me get my scholarship X-P
QUESTION ONE(8 marks)
Sickle Cell Disease [SCD] is a human genetic disorder resulting from a mutant form of the Hb gene, which is located on chromosome 11. The Hb gene codes for the protein haemoglobin, which is found in red blood cells and transports oxygen. The mutant allele Hbs produces haemoglobin that differs in one amino acid from the normal haemoglobin. Red blood cells that contain the abnormal haemoglobin collapse into a jagged sickle shape in a low-oxygen environment. The Hbs allele produces pleiotropic effects in individuals who inherit it.
The sickled cells may clump and clog small blood vessels, often leading to other symptoms throughout the body. Individuals with sickle cell disease can suffer severe anaemia, pain, organ damage, and even paralysis. In Western countries, frequent blood transfusions can be used to treat individuals with SCD. This alleviates the symptoms and reduces the chances of organ damage.
Individuals can have the following genotypes / phenotypes:
HbHb have normal red blood cells•
HbHb• s have sickle cell trait with some of their red blood cells being sickled
Hb• sHbs have sickle cell disease [SCD] with all of their red blood cells being sickled. The severe physiological effects that result often cause death before the individual reaches reproductive age. SCD kills about 100 000 people annually throughout the world.
HbHb
All red blood cells are normal
HbsHb
Mixture of normal and sickle red blood cells
HbsHbs
All red blood cells are sickle-shaped
The frequency of the Hbs allele
The frequency of the Hbs allele varies between populations around the world, with the highest frequencies of up to 20% being found in Africa. In comparison, New Zealand has a very low frequency of less than 1%. In the USA the frequency is similar to New Zealand in the general population, but can approach 10% amongst black Americans.
Malaria is a major global disease with most cases seen in Asia, Africa, and countries bordering the Mediterranean [Fig 2]. About half a billion people annually contract the disease with about one million dying from it. Most of the fatalities are children under the age of five, most of whom live in Africa. Malaria is caused by Plasmodium, a unicellular parasite, which is transmitted from person to person by Anopheles mosquitoes. The plasmodia enter the red blood cells where they repeatedly reproduce to release large numbers of new parasites.
The mutant Hbs allele provides some protection against malaria because the parasites are unable to reproduce inside the sickled blood cells.
Discuss the genetics, inheritance and frequency of the Hbs allele and evaluate whether modern biotechnological applications could, in the future, provide a cure for sickle cell disease.
[For copyright reasons, this resource cannot be reproduced here.]
MY ANSWER!!!
The mutant Hbs allele appeared in the gene pool through a random mutation, and passed down onto subsequent generations by inheritance. The Hbs allele shows codominance over the Hbs gene, therefore creating a combined phenotype: I.e. in the HbsHb heterozygous genotype, proteins that cause red blood cells to be sickle shaped and proteins that cause blood cells to be normal co-exist and form a combination of both normal and sickle blood cells in the body in equal volumes.
The mutation is located on chromosome 11 so is likely to have been an error made while replicating DNA in the formation of gametes; or caused by mutagens and carcinogens such as radiation, pollution and toxins in the gonads causing the gene to be spread down the lineage and passed onto subsequent generations.
The inheritance of the gene is most likely through the heterozygous individual who contains both the normal Hb allele and the Hbs sickle celled allele, as a carrier. The receissive allele and the dominant allele co-existing through co-dominance creates a lesser effect than homozygous recessive, by having both sickle celled and normal blood cells. The individual can then have enough normal blood cells to carry out general functions sufficiently and carry oxygen around the body as usual with less efficiency but the difference between the sickle cell trait and the sickle cell disease is that many affected by the homozygous recessive SCD die before reaching reproductive age. Through natural selection, this allele combination is selected against, and those alleles disappear from the population. However the alleles don't increase in frequency but remain in the population because those with sickle cell disease reach reproductive age and passes the recessive gene onto the carriers of the next generation.
In Western populations, where Malaria is not as common, the allele isnot so frequent, being less than 1% of the population in New Zealand and USA. This reflects the inheritance pattern described above, where HbsHbs is selected against but HbHbs is retained in the population as it is not significantly affecting the individual's health and they can reach reproductive age.
However in African countries, Malaria is more widespread, affecting half a billion people contracting it from Africa, Meditaranian and Asia combined.
In the areas where Malaria is caused by Plasmodium, there is a general geographic pattern that favours the presense of the sickle cell allele. E.g. Central Africa has the greatest concentration of the sickle cell allele, and is also an abudance of malaria in individuals. Having the sickle celled allele is beneficial to those in the malaria-stricken areas and therefore increase in frequency, being an added survival advantage. Most of the fatalities are children who live under the age of five in Africa, and coupled with the lack of access to healthcare resources for malaria, the sickle-cell allele is their best advantage for survival and is increased in frequency due to natural selection. The individuals with the genotype HbHb are likelier to die out due to the lack of protection against Malaria, and HbsHbs as they're incapable of carrying oxygen around the body as well as having no access to blood transfusions as Westerners do, will die from anaemia, organ damage and other illnesses caused by the loss of oxygen. The abundance of the genotype HbHbs will increase the frequency of the Hbs allele reflective of the 20% found in Africa.
The reason why sickle-cell allele is less prevalent in places like Asia or less coastal areas of the mediteranian or Egypt is to do with socioeconomic development rather than a biological one. Individuals there have greater access to Malaria cures and preventions and do not rely on the pleitropic effects of the sickle-cell allele as a survival agent.
That also explains why the poverty stricken West of North Africa has a higher frequency of the sickle-cell allele than the East, in Egypt, although Egypt has greater incidences of Malaria than the West. The frequency of the Hbs allele increases in the West because of lack of knowledge about the condition, and also gene flow from the surrounding Malaria stricken areas.
African Americans retain the gene from their roots, as immigrants to the country from Africa, however the frequency is levelling out, decreased to 10% after many generations since their arrival due to better access to healthcare, interracial marriages and an absense of Malaria.
The nature of sickle cell disease is that it is a genetic condition, not an infection or a cancer, therefore there cannot be a direct cure such as there is no direct cure for genetic illnesses such as cystic fibrosis. Currently blood transfusions are used as a treatment that alleviates the symptoms of the disease, but because a fault in a gene causes the wrong protein to be made, the resulting error in a process cannot be a reversed – the same genetic instructions are present in every bodily cell and therefore when replication of DNA happens, the wrong “message” is passed onto the new strand so all newly formed cells will contain the mutant gene, creating the difference in physiological structure.
But treatments such as the hormonal treatment for cystic fibrosis can help make living easier for the affected individual with SCD, by injecting a hormone that encourages the sickle-blood cell to carry oxygen and perform normal duties as a red blood cell however it is unknown whether this would be possible, as the sickle cell shape would prevent oxygen transport, therefore the hormone treatment wouldn't function.
The only other option for a genetic disease is not just to treat the individual, but the entire population, as the gene is spread to subsequent generations. Modern biotechnology have effective ways of genetic screening, through amniotic testing, a sample of amniotic fluid from the womb of a pregnant mother would give genetic information of whether the child has the gene or not, through gene mapping or karyotype and the position of the gene is identified and checked for its presense or absense. In the case that the sickle cell allele is found, the child can be aborted. While this method has moral implications in human society, it is an example of direct selection, a variance to natural selection that doesn't rely on mate selection to choose favourable genes; and ensures that the allele frequency will decrease, as well as the prevalence of sickle cell disease. If cure is not possible, then prevention should be implemented.
-1074 words in 1 and a quarter hours :O
Sickle Cell Disease [SCD] is a human genetic disorder resulting from a mutant form of the Hb gene, which is located on chromosome 11. The Hb gene codes for the protein haemoglobin, which is found in red blood cells and transports oxygen. The mutant allele Hbs produces haemoglobin that differs in one amino acid from the normal haemoglobin. Red blood cells that contain the abnormal haemoglobin collapse into a jagged sickle shape in a low-oxygen environment. The Hbs allele produces pleiotropic effects in individuals who inherit it.
The sickled cells may clump and clog small blood vessels, often leading to other symptoms throughout the body. Individuals with sickle cell disease can suffer severe anaemia, pain, organ damage, and even paralysis. In Western countries, frequent blood transfusions can be used to treat individuals with SCD. This alleviates the symptoms and reduces the chances of organ damage.
Individuals can have the following genotypes / phenotypes:
HbHb have normal red blood cells•
HbHb• s have sickle cell trait with some of their red blood cells being sickled
Hb• sHbs have sickle cell disease [SCD] with all of their red blood cells being sickled. The severe physiological effects that result often cause death before the individual reaches reproductive age. SCD kills about 100 000 people annually throughout the world.
HbHb
All red blood cells are normal
HbsHb
Mixture of normal and sickle red blood cells
HbsHbs
All red blood cells are sickle-shaped
The frequency of the Hbs allele
The frequency of the Hbs allele varies between populations around the world, with the highest frequencies of up to 20% being found in Africa. In comparison, New Zealand has a very low frequency of less than 1%. In the USA the frequency is similar to New Zealand in the general population, but can approach 10% amongst black Americans.
Malaria is a major global disease with most cases seen in Asia, Africa, and countries bordering the Mediterranean [Fig 2]. About half a billion people annually contract the disease with about one million dying from it. Most of the fatalities are children under the age of five, most of whom live in Africa. Malaria is caused by Plasmodium, a unicellular parasite, which is transmitted from person to person by Anopheles mosquitoes. The plasmodia enter the red blood cells where they repeatedly reproduce to release large numbers of new parasites.
The mutant Hbs allele provides some protection against malaria because the parasites are unable to reproduce inside the sickled blood cells.
Discuss the genetics, inheritance and frequency of the Hbs allele and evaluate whether modern biotechnological applications could, in the future, provide a cure for sickle cell disease.
[For copyright reasons, this resource cannot be reproduced here.]
MY ANSWER!!!
The mutant Hbs allele appeared in the gene pool through a random mutation, and passed down onto subsequent generations by inheritance. The Hbs allele shows codominance over the Hbs gene, therefore creating a combined phenotype: I.e. in the HbsHb heterozygous genotype, proteins that cause red blood cells to be sickle shaped and proteins that cause blood cells to be normal co-exist and form a combination of both normal and sickle blood cells in the body in equal volumes.
The mutation is located on chromosome 11 so is likely to have been an error made while replicating DNA in the formation of gametes; or caused by mutagens and carcinogens such as radiation, pollution and toxins in the gonads causing the gene to be spread down the lineage and passed onto subsequent generations.
The inheritance of the gene is most likely through the heterozygous individual who contains both the normal Hb allele and the Hbs sickle celled allele, as a carrier. The receissive allele and the dominant allele co-existing through co-dominance creates a lesser effect than homozygous recessive, by having both sickle celled and normal blood cells. The individual can then have enough normal blood cells to carry out general functions sufficiently and carry oxygen around the body as usual with less efficiency but the difference between the sickle cell trait and the sickle cell disease is that many affected by the homozygous recessive SCD die before reaching reproductive age. Through natural selection, this allele combination is selected against, and those alleles disappear from the population. However the alleles don't increase in frequency but remain in the population because those with sickle cell disease reach reproductive age and passes the recessive gene onto the carriers of the next generation.
In Western populations, where Malaria is not as common, the allele isnot so frequent, being less than 1% of the population in New Zealand and USA. This reflects the inheritance pattern described above, where HbsHbs is selected against but HbHbs is retained in the population as it is not significantly affecting the individual's health and they can reach reproductive age.
However in African countries, Malaria is more widespread, affecting half a billion people contracting it from Africa, Meditaranian and Asia combined.
In the areas where Malaria is caused by Plasmodium, there is a general geographic pattern that favours the presense of the sickle cell allele. E.g. Central Africa has the greatest concentration of the sickle cell allele, and is also an abudance of malaria in individuals. Having the sickle celled allele is beneficial to those in the malaria-stricken areas and therefore increase in frequency, being an added survival advantage. Most of the fatalities are children who live under the age of five in Africa, and coupled with the lack of access to healthcare resources for malaria, the sickle-cell allele is their best advantage for survival and is increased in frequency due to natural selection. The individuals with the genotype HbHb are likelier to die out due to the lack of protection against Malaria, and HbsHbs as they're incapable of carrying oxygen around the body as well as having no access to blood transfusions as Westerners do, will die from anaemia, organ damage and other illnesses caused by the loss of oxygen. The abundance of the genotype HbHbs will increase the frequency of the Hbs allele reflective of the 20% found in Africa.
The reason why sickle-cell allele is less prevalent in places like Asia or less coastal areas of the mediteranian or Egypt is to do with socioeconomic development rather than a biological one. Individuals there have greater access to Malaria cures and preventions and do not rely on the pleitropic effects of the sickle-cell allele as a survival agent.
That also explains why the poverty stricken West of North Africa has a higher frequency of the sickle-cell allele than the East, in Egypt, although Egypt has greater incidences of Malaria than the West. The frequency of the Hbs allele increases in the West because of lack of knowledge about the condition, and also gene flow from the surrounding Malaria stricken areas.
African Americans retain the gene from their roots, as immigrants to the country from Africa, however the frequency is levelling out, decreased to 10% after many generations since their arrival due to better access to healthcare, interracial marriages and an absense of Malaria.
The nature of sickle cell disease is that it is a genetic condition, not an infection or a cancer, therefore there cannot be a direct cure such as there is no direct cure for genetic illnesses such as cystic fibrosis. Currently blood transfusions are used as a treatment that alleviates the symptoms of the disease, but because a fault in a gene causes the wrong protein to be made, the resulting error in a process cannot be a reversed – the same genetic instructions are present in every bodily cell and therefore when replication of DNA happens, the wrong “message” is passed onto the new strand so all newly formed cells will contain the mutant gene, creating the difference in physiological structure.
But treatments such as the hormonal treatment for cystic fibrosis can help make living easier for the affected individual with SCD, by injecting a hormone that encourages the sickle-blood cell to carry oxygen and perform normal duties as a red blood cell however it is unknown whether this would be possible, as the sickle cell shape would prevent oxygen transport, therefore the hormone treatment wouldn't function.
The only other option for a genetic disease is not just to treat the individual, but the entire population, as the gene is spread to subsequent generations. Modern biotechnology have effective ways of genetic screening, through amniotic testing, a sample of amniotic fluid from the womb of a pregnant mother would give genetic information of whether the child has the gene or not, through gene mapping or karyotype and the position of the gene is identified and checked for its presense or absense. In the case that the sickle cell allele is found, the child can be aborted. While this method has moral implications in human society, it is an example of direct selection, a variance to natural selection that doesn't rely on mate selection to choose favourable genes; and ensures that the allele frequency will decrease, as well as the prevalence of sickle cell disease. If cure is not possible, then prevention should be implemented.
-1074 words in 1 and a quarter hours :O
Creative Musing
No, not Creative writing, because that sounds way generic and lame. Creative Musing sounds much more intellectual, which is ironic because these Creative Writing samples from English are far from intellectual. These were written in like 5 minutes so excuse the bad grammar, punctuation and generally, writing!
Description: Drinking a very hot drink in 4 sentences -
This is satisfaction. Every cell in my body was being ignited, awoken from the blunt inactivity that winter brought. I closed my eyes and wrapped my fingers around the cup, alive with warmth in my thawed hands, steam rising and tickling the frozen cavern of my nostrils. I hesitated not, and took a drink.
Breakfast without an "e" in about 10 sentences
I am hungry. But I'm also too fat. So what do I do? I munch on a carrot and savour that slight flavour. Yum? Probably not. So I push on with a loaf of sourdough and jam. Still no satisfaction! Raiding cupboards madly, I find junk upon junk. My stomach is a void, I'm inhaling with vigour: donuts, with syrup; and bacon dripping in lard. My passion for consumption is my pain, I cannot stop my own body, my hands or mouth from the compulsion to fill to brim. At long last my body is unhollow. I wash my bowls and go to school.
Description: Drinking a very hot drink in 4 sentences -
This is satisfaction. Every cell in my body was being ignited, awoken from the blunt inactivity that winter brought. I closed my eyes and wrapped my fingers around the cup, alive with warmth in my thawed hands, steam rising and tickling the frozen cavern of my nostrils. I hesitated not, and took a drink.
Breakfast without an "e" in about 10 sentences
I am hungry. But I'm also too fat. So what do I do? I munch on a carrot and savour that slight flavour. Yum? Probably not. So I push on with a loaf of sourdough and jam. Still no satisfaction! Raiding cupboards madly, I find junk upon junk. My stomach is a void, I'm inhaling with vigour: donuts, with syrup; and bacon dripping in lard. My passion for consumption is my pain, I cannot stop my own body, my hands or mouth from the compulsion to fill to brim. At long last my body is unhollow. I wash my bowls and go to school.
17 Rockerfeller Drive, Teenage-hood
In spirit of myself joining the Magazine committee as an editor i decided to publish this article i wrote last year about Cambridge English:
Cambridge English '08!!!
"But my heart will not bleed poetry. Not a single drop to stain the blueprint of our past's tomorrow"
What a tumultuous year of varied ups and downs it has been for the Year 12 Cambridge English class!
Ploughing through 29 poems, a 522 page Victorian novel, a Shakespearean, a Victorian drama, and a Bollywood-esque update on Pride and Prejudice... We discovered the true value of hard work, the challenge of juggling NCEA and Cambridge assessment, and our hidden vocal talents reciting page by page our texts in class with utmost enthusiasm.
We developed an aversion to water fountains and the excessive consumption of muffins [insert blatant innuendo here], and discussed relevant societal issues paying close attention to the presentation of predictable retaliation from the very masculine Hamish Roake during our often emotionally saturated classroom discussions of which, typically had underlying feminist connotations (haha) in a class with only three boys.
We grew together through our weekend tutorials in the ESOL room, savouring the biscuits and coffee kindly donated by Ms Baumberg and sacrificing Thursday lunchtimes for the fulfilling pursuit of a greater literary knowledge, pen in hand, analytical mind at the ready.
We bonded with each other was we:
- Suffered with Maggie and her misfortunes...
- Joined the "seamen" on the "deck's smooth face" (Lauren Hall)
- Enjoyed our own bit of Bunburying,
- And learnt to pat the light bulb and screw in the dog!
We would like to thank the very sagacious Ms Baumberg for being our saviour, our everything, our ever-raging resident feminist! And we wish all the best for next year's Cambridge class, may fate deal you an even better hand than ours this year!
"One thing then learnt remains to me, - the Woodspurge has a cup of three..."
By: troubadour Lily "Lillian Moonbeam" Zhang with some hearty contributions from her partner-in-crime Kerri "Kerrimel Square" Bell.
Cambridge English '08!!!
"But my heart will not bleed poetry. Not a single drop to stain the blueprint of our past's tomorrow"
What a tumultuous year of varied ups and downs it has been for the Year 12 Cambridge English class!
Ploughing through 29 poems, a 522 page Victorian novel, a Shakespearean, a Victorian drama, and a Bollywood-esque update on Pride and Prejudice... We discovered the true value of hard work, the challenge of juggling NCEA and Cambridge assessment, and our hidden vocal talents reciting page by page our texts in class with utmost enthusiasm.
We developed an aversion to water fountains and the excessive consumption of muffins [insert blatant innuendo here], and discussed relevant societal issues paying close attention to the presentation of predictable retaliation from the very masculine Hamish Roake during our often emotionally saturated classroom discussions of which, typically had underlying feminist connotations (haha) in a class with only three boys.
We grew together through our weekend tutorials in the ESOL room, savouring the biscuits and coffee kindly donated by Ms Baumberg and sacrificing Thursday lunchtimes for the fulfilling pursuit of a greater literary knowledge, pen in hand, analytical mind at the ready.
We bonded with each other was we:
- Suffered with Maggie and her misfortunes...
- Joined the "seamen" on the "deck's smooth face" (Lauren Hall)
- Enjoyed our own bit of Bunburying,
- And learnt to pat the light bulb and screw in the dog!
We would like to thank the very sagacious Ms Baumberg for being our saviour, our everything, our ever-raging resident feminist! And we wish all the best for next year's Cambridge class, may fate deal you an even better hand than ours this year!
"One thing then learnt remains to me, - the Woodspurge has a cup of three..."
By: troubadour Lily "Lillian Moonbeam" Zhang with some hearty contributions from her partner-in-crime Kerri "Kerrimel Square" Bell.
Thursday, February 12, 2009
I have youtube account!
Now all the hijinks i get up to in my spare time can be documented for the wide world to view!!! Yay!!! thank goodness for technology and rich parents who buy you a digital camera for Xmas :)
www.youtube.com/lilyisdabomb not many vids up yet but they are coming it just takes ages to upload on my excuse for an internet.
www.youtube.com/lilyisdabomb not many vids up yet but they are coming it just takes ages to upload on my excuse for an internet.
Friday, January 30, 2009
Stuff to think about
Me and my friend Emma were sharing stories at Ohiwa a few weeks back on the little grassy knoll overlooking the vast expanse of sea. These were lifted from actual books. The 'sad stories' are from Affluenza which is about consumerism, and the riddles are from 'the tenth circle' which is a Jodi Picoult book that everyone goes ape for right now. They're not grammar'd and spell'd good because they're lifted from my memory.
SAD STORY
A workaholic man finds himself with one free day off work for the first time of his life. He is so intensely dedicated to his work that he neglects his wife and their depressed teenaged son so he decides to spend his free day taking his son fishing. So they go fishing and the boy has the time of his life and they really felt a connection to each other for the first time and the boy is lifted from his depression, even though they catch nothing. After that day the man returns to his work and they never share another day together again. However the boy really cherished that day and felt that it gave him the will to live happily again. Many years later the father dies and the boy grows up, but never forgets the day they went fishing together. In his death the father leaves behind the work diaries he kept when he was still working . The boy looks at the entry under the date of their fishing trip and it said “Waste of a day.”
Moral of the story?
ANOTHER SAD STORY
Another Father-son epic fail tale.
A certain boy wants a car for his 17th birthday, which his father had agreed with. However, on his 17th, he receives not a shiny red corvette he'd wanted but a Bible. He considers this to be an insult and leaves home hastily without a word to his parents, and travels across the country to avoid any contact with them. Despite many attempts to contact him again, his parents never see him again. 15 years later the boy is fully grown and receives a message that his father has died. The boy reaches into his bedroom drawer and looks at the Bible he received for his 17th birthday that drove him and his father apart to their deathbed. He opens it for the first time and finds inside a cheque for $5000, enough to buy his ideal car.
These stories are true, BTW.
RIDDLE:1:
A woman meets a man at her mother's funeral, whom she considers to be the love of her life and her soulmate, but she forgot to get his number. A week later she murdered her sister. Why?
Think of your own answer before you scroll down.
The woman murdered her sister in case she would meet the man again at the funeral.
If you hadn't answered like this, congratulations, you are not a psychopath :)
Most serial killers in prisons respond with this answer when the question is given.
RIDDLE:2:
A father and his son go out fishing. However, during their fishing trip the son injures his leg badly and is rushed to hospital in the ambulance. He is sent to the operating table in hospital but the surgeon sees him and goes “Hey, that's my son!”
How is this possible? Think and it will come to you as an incredibly obvious answer. Scroll down if you're desperate.
ANSWER: The surgeon is the boy's mother.
This riddle proves the sexist ideals in the career world
SAD STORY
A workaholic man finds himself with one free day off work for the first time of his life. He is so intensely dedicated to his work that he neglects his wife and their depressed teenaged son so he decides to spend his free day taking his son fishing. So they go fishing and the boy has the time of his life and they really felt a connection to each other for the first time and the boy is lifted from his depression, even though they catch nothing. After that day the man returns to his work and they never share another day together again. However the boy really cherished that day and felt that it gave him the will to live happily again. Many years later the father dies and the boy grows up, but never forgets the day they went fishing together. In his death the father leaves behind the work diaries he kept when he was still working . The boy looks at the entry under the date of their fishing trip and it said “Waste of a day.”
Moral of the story?
ANOTHER SAD STORY
Another Father-son epic fail tale.
A certain boy wants a car for his 17th birthday, which his father had agreed with. However, on his 17th, he receives not a shiny red corvette he'd wanted but a Bible. He considers this to be an insult and leaves home hastily without a word to his parents, and travels across the country to avoid any contact with them. Despite many attempts to contact him again, his parents never see him again. 15 years later the boy is fully grown and receives a message that his father has died. The boy reaches into his bedroom drawer and looks at the Bible he received for his 17th birthday that drove him and his father apart to their deathbed. He opens it for the first time and finds inside a cheque for $5000, enough to buy his ideal car.
These stories are true, BTW.
RIDDLE:1:
A woman meets a man at her mother's funeral, whom she considers to be the love of her life and her soulmate, but she forgot to get his number. A week later she murdered her sister. Why?
Think of your own answer before you scroll down.
The woman murdered her sister in case she would meet the man again at the funeral.
If you hadn't answered like this, congratulations, you are not a psychopath :)
Most serial killers in prisons respond with this answer when the question is given.
RIDDLE:2:
A father and his son go out fishing. However, during their fishing trip the son injures his leg badly and is rushed to hospital in the ambulance. He is sent to the operating table in hospital but the surgeon sees him and goes “Hey, that's my son!”
How is this possible? Think and it will come to you as an incredibly obvious answer. Scroll down if you're desperate.
ANSWER: The surgeon is the boy's mother.
This riddle proves the sexist ideals in the career world
Thursday, December 25, 2008
Countdown to the New Year
Out with the old, in with the new.... Out of the frying pan and into the fire.
And so ends the year of 2008. Bonds made and broken, lessons learnt and mistakes made.
And what is to become of us when we leave 'the veritable garden where everything comes easy'?
This Christmas is the last one I'll be spending with the people I've grown up in Hamilton with, whom I know inside and out and dont wish to part with. New years mean new beginnings but its so hard to leave the life you have now. Sometimes it feels like whenever things start to settle and become fixed and constant someone has to come and stir the pot and make me get up off my seat.
And while I was wrapping my Christmas presents a few days back I had one of those -a spark goes in your head- epiphany moments when I just realised that everyone was 1 year away from finishing High School, which is supposedly the rite of passage to adulthood. And I couldnt stop thinking about what will happen in the future... In 5 years, where will everyone in High School be? No one really took High School seriously but when you think about it, every adult you know has been to High School. Whether they got through or got caught 'doing coke lines in the urinal'. And that's what made them who they are now, whether they realised that at the time or not.
And now I feel really, really old as if suddenly someone put me on the time lapse photography like that guy called Noah on Youtube. When you're an adult you're alone, except that you're constantly surrounded by people. I already miss my warm bed.
This New Year I'm going to make the same default 2 resolutions I make every year: study hard and lose weight, they're pretty much welded to my brain. And I wonder what other people wish for themselves to do, such as the cliche'd enjoy life more, or help people, or get organised. hbjlxdf
whooooops, drifted off to sleep there. Good thing my laptop broke my heads fall with a nice thump, thats going to cost me a few braincells
And so ends the year of 2008. Bonds made and broken, lessons learnt and mistakes made.
And what is to become of us when we leave 'the veritable garden where everything comes easy'?
This Christmas is the last one I'll be spending with the people I've grown up in Hamilton with, whom I know inside and out and dont wish to part with. New years mean new beginnings but its so hard to leave the life you have now. Sometimes it feels like whenever things start to settle and become fixed and constant someone has to come and stir the pot and make me get up off my seat.
And while I was wrapping my Christmas presents a few days back I had one of those -a spark goes in your head- epiphany moments when I just realised that everyone was 1 year away from finishing High School, which is supposedly the rite of passage to adulthood. And I couldnt stop thinking about what will happen in the future... In 5 years, where will everyone in High School be? No one really took High School seriously but when you think about it, every adult you know has been to High School. Whether they got through or got caught 'doing coke lines in the urinal'. And that's what made them who they are now, whether they realised that at the time or not.
And now I feel really, really old as if suddenly someone put me on the time lapse photography like that guy called Noah on Youtube. When you're an adult you're alone, except that you're constantly surrounded by people. I already miss my warm bed.
This New Year I'm going to make the same default 2 resolutions I make every year: study hard and lose weight, they're pretty much welded to my brain. And I wonder what other people wish for themselves to do, such as the cliche'd enjoy life more, or help people, or get organised. hbjlxdf
whooooops, drifted off to sleep there. Good thing my laptop broke my heads fall with a nice thump, thats going to cost me a few braincells
Wednesday, December 10, 2008
When the lion fell in love with the lamb
Yes, I've hopped on the bandwagon. The one swollen and saturated with squealing hormonal teenaged girls. I actually kind of liked Twilight, it was I suppose refreshing, to have the theme of forbidden love intertwined with bloodlust fantasy set in a 'typical' american high school life. Some bits are just sickly sweet to the point of it leaving a bitter aftertaste i.e.
Edward:”Besides,friends don’t let friends drive drunk.”
Bella:”Drunk?”
Edward:”You’re intoxicated by my very presence.”
and I predict it has something to do with the author being in the middle of a midlife crisis being like my high school love life was dried up and unsatisfactory, I'll just exaggerate my own fantasies after I get married and have children to the point of no return!
And the character of Edward is beyond words. And my English teacher was right, he's the oldfashioned admirable gentleman that doesn't absorb all the nasties the world (coughcough MTV) presents to young boys such as arrogance, dirty manners, rudeness to girls, immaturity, unfaithfulness the list goes on; and hes an unrealistic benchmark for other boys of this era to aim for. Then again he is like 90 years old, and would hold out doors for poor fragile girls as if by reflex. And even though Bella Swan is the main protagonist of the story, there are a billion more Edward fansites on the internet that cater to 'both girl and boy fans' like this one http://www.freewebs.com/eamcismyobsession/index.htm Edward Cullen - Every Girl's Dream [ insert drooling and glazed eyes here ] And 'Cedric Diggory' isnt even THAT attractive, he just has a protruding bone structure and a tall gargantuan build. His eyebrows bother me.
You know you're obsessed with the Twilight Series when:
1. you download every song from Stephanie Meyers playlist and listen to them non-stop on your iPod.
2. you dream about it every night.
3. you want to go to Forks for your spring break.
4. you squeal every time you see a silver Volvo, even if it's not your favorite car.
5. you cringe whenever you hear/see Edward's or Bella's name and it has nothing to do with Stephenie Meyer.
6. you've ceased to believe that vampires actually have fangs or any weakness. And you believe all vampires must be inherently hot.
7. you're counting down the minutes until Breaking Dawn comes out.
8. you quote lines from the books for use in your everyday speech.
9. you solidly believe your boyfriend is a vampire simply on the basis that he's sexy.
10. you refer to your ideal boyfriend as an "Edward."
11. you pre-order your copy of Breaking Dawn at Barnes & Noble.
12. you name your characters after the Twilight characters.
13. you cry because your father used New Moon as a coaster for his drink
14. you count down the days till Edwards birthday 60 days before it starts. (June 20th)
15. a love song comes on and you immediately think of Edward and Bella.
16. you have bought both the audio books.
17. you have bought t-shirts from twilightteez.com.
18. you relate even the weirdest things to the book.
19. you carry the books with you.
20. you go to Forks.
21. you almost faint when you first saw the cover of Eclispe.
22. you think you can feel Edward beside you while you're reading(or just doing nothing at all).
23. you talk to nothing but think you're talking to Edward.
24. you stay locked in your room until you've read it over a million times.
25. you start talking to it (the book).
26. you talk to your friends about it...even though they have no idea what you're talking about!
27. you ask them how you know you love the Twilight series even though they STILL don't know what you're talking about.
28. you sleep with the book cradled in your arms.
29. while talking to your friends, they mention something that reminds you of Twilight, and you mutter a joke for Twilight-lovers with super hearing and start laughing your head off.
30. you are highly considering naming your future children the characters names.
31. in class, you relate every project to something in the book.
32. the name Edward becomes your new favorite guy name.
33. you didn't let anybody else touch your books.
34. you and your boyfriend call each other "Edward" and "Bella".
35. you sit on the roof of your house every night waiting for Edward to come.
36. you name random people at your school the characters' names.
37. you wish for them not to make a Twilight movie because it could never be as good as the book but still want to see it.
38. you start failing in school because either your reading the Twilight Series. Or you are thinking about Edward and his family.
39. you make a protective cover for your twilight to ensure that you never leave your copy of Twilight when it goes with you to yours friend's house.
40. you create a debate in class over Edwards "perfection"
41. you and your friends try to guess the entire plot to Breaking Dawn.
42. you refer to it as "The Black and Red Bible"
43. you start imagining scenes from the books in your head before you go to bed.
44. you try to compare a lot of things to the book.
45. your cry at sad parts of the book... Even though you've read it 20 times.
If you agreed, laughed at, or even remotely understood at least 10 of these, you are obsessed with the Twilight series. XD
^ that was copied and pasted from the website, all rights reserved to my own personal usage :P
I'm still going to see the movie when it comes out on Boxing day. Not for Robert Pattison of course...
Thursday, November 20, 2008
I love Pop Psychology
Robin Hood morality quiz
To do the test you must give your honest opinion about morals and honesty of the four characters in our story of Sherwood forest.
Forget any preconceived ideas you may about them - this is a different sort of story from all the others.
The sheriff of Nottingham captured Little John and Robin Hood and imprisoned them in his maximum security dungeon. Maid Marion begged the Sheriff for their release, pleading her love for Robin. The Sheriff agreed to release them only if Maid Marion spent the night with him.
To this she agreed.
The next morning the Sheriff released his prisoners. Robin asked that Marion tell him how she persuaded the Sheriff to let them go free.
Marion told the truth, and was bewildered when Robin said that he never wanted to see her again.
At this Little John defended her, inviting her to leave Sherwood with him and promising life-long devotion. She accepted and they rode away together.
Now in terms of realistic every-day standards of behavior, put Robin, Marion, Little John and the Sheriff in the order in which you consider they showed the most morality and honesty (from most moral to least moral).
There is no "right" answer. What follows is an analysis based on which of the 24 possible arrangements you chose.
Analysis
Who did you list first? Robin, Marion, Sheriff, or Little John?
Little John, Maid Marion, Robin Hood, The Sheriff
You are fairly broadminded, romantic and reasonably contented. You value kindness greatly and try to live by your ideals. You do not conceal from yourself, or from others, your strong need for security, which may be either emotional or material.
Men: Perhaps you tend to idealize women and credit them with virtues they don't possess.
Women: Your experiences of men have not all been happy, perhaps because you hope for a little too much?
This combination represents 15% of total, 15% of men and 16% of women
Little John, Maid Marion, The Sheriff, Robin Hood
You are the slightly romantic realist. You respect truth, and are broadminded and flexible. Whether you are a man or a woman you are probably a happy person. You like people and they can readily make friends with you. You are not very adventurous, but this does not bother you.
This combination represents 10% of total, 9% of men and 10% of women
Little John, Robin Hood, Maid Marion, The Sheriff
You are a cautious type, neutral, and rather insecure. You would agree with the idea that everybody has his price - and in your own case it would not be high.
Men: You are sexually inhibited with an underlying distrust of women.
Women: At least one man has made you unhappy, and you are now on your guard.
This combination represents 6% of total, 6% of men and 5% of women
Little John, Robin Hood, The Sheriff, Maid Marion
You are not easy to assess. Basically you are ruled by an inferiority complex and feelings of insecurity. How do you present yourself to the world? An idealist, a moralist, a conformist keeping up with the Joneses?
Men: Your conflicting views on sex and morality may lead to every sort of sexual problem. You have always feared women, probably starting with your mother.
Women: It is a shame you have not accepted the ideal of woman as the equal (and sometimes stronger) partner of man.
This combination represents 2% of total, 2% of men and 2% of women
Little John, The Sheriff, Maid Marion, Robin Hood
You too, believe that morality is another word for commonsense and suitability, and not something which is universally valid or a religious truth. Your feeling for security is strong, and you would rate reliability as one of your virtues.
Men: Your estimate of women as the inferior sex suggests that you are a little uncertain of them.
Women: You are more permissive about the morals of others than you are about your own.
This combination represents 3% of total, 2% of men and 3% of women
Little John, The Sheriff, Robin Hood, Maid Marion
You are conventional, unimaginative, and something of a prude. It would be surprising if your love life was a roaring success.
Men: You have an old-world authoritarian attitude. One thing is sure: you have some sorry illusions about women.
Women: You accept a double standard of morality in which women are very much the "second sex."
This combination represents 1% of total, 1% of men and 1% of women
Maid Marion, Little John, Robin Hood, The Sheriff
We would expect you to be a happy, well-balanced person who likes people and is liked by others. You question whether many conventional views on morality are valid under all circumstances.
Men: Do we detect a sense of chivalry and idealism under the sophistication?
Women: You will expect high standards from the men to whom you give your love.
This combination represents 13% of total, 13% of men and 12% of women
Maid Marion, Little John, The Sheriff, Robin Hood
You are essentially a contented person, even if you consider yourself a little superior. You are moral by your own standards, for you believe that morality is what best suits the occasion.
Men: You are sexually uninhibited, more romantic than you may appear, and more dependent on the approval of others than you care to admit.
Women: You like being a woman, you understand what love is, and frankly enjoy sex.
This combination represents 10% of total, 9% of men and 11% of women
Maid Marion, Robin Hood, Little John, The Sheriff
If you are not happy - and we suspect you are not - it maybe because you feel guilty about your own emotions, and lack confidence in your opinions.
Men: No doubt you consider yourself a moral man, and a fair one. Your fuzzy ideas about morality may make their mark on your sex life.
Women: You are too concerned about what others think.
This combination represents 4% of total, 4% of men and 4% of women
Maid Marion, Robin Hood, The Sheriff, Little John
You know the so-called facts of life, but not to enjoy life itself. You are not a realist and you are inclined to be stubborn.
Men: Women, you think, are either good or bad, and you overestimate the differences between the sexes. A woman may find you difficult to live with.
Women: You are not sure whether truth and morality go hand in hand or are in opposition. You don't hold a very high opinion of men.
This combination represents 1% of total, 2% of men and 1% of women
Maid Marion, The Sheriff, Little John, Robin Hood
Such an emphatic rejection of ready-made values is probably partly camouflage. You hate to be thought weak or insecure. You value honesty, and abhor hypocrisy.
Men: Women are very much part of you life, and you are - or perhaps would like to be - quite ruthless, both with women and life in general.
Women: You are tolerant about men and their failings - but we mean men, for you have no time for boys on men's errands.
This combination represents 3% of total, 3% of men and 3% of women
Maid Marion, The Sheriff, Robin Hood, Little John
You associate morality with honesty and truth more than with religious values. You are impulsive and somewhat unpredictable.
Men: We suspect that you are a would-be lover rather than a very successful one.
Women: You are a realist and a rebel, a defender of women's rights. You like men but despise weak ones.
This combination represents 2% of total, 1% of men and 2% of women
Robin Hood, Little John, Maid Marion, The Sheriff
You are a moralist with conventional ideas, which some people would call old-fashioned.
Men: You probably consider yourself a fair-minded man in a world which falls badly below your standards. Your inhibitions and sense of guilt are in the way of your happiness.
Women: Unlucky in love? Perhaps you hope for too much in a man. Be a realist, not a romantic.
This combination represents 5% of total, 5% of men and 5% of women
Robin Hood, Little John, The Sheriff, Maid Marion
You are conventional and puritanical.
Men: You moralize and see women as a great conspiracy against man, with sex as their principal weapon. You are missing a great deal in life.
Women: Your parents probably played a big part in the formation of such a guilt complex as yours. Your mind is in chains and it's time you did something to free it.
This combination represents 2% of total, 2% of men and 3% of women
Robin Hood, Maid Marion, Little John, The Sheriff
Your philosophy of life is a sad hotchpotch of the conventions of society, your own convictions and romanticism. You are not unkind, only staid and unimaginative.
Men: You see women as weak but desirable.
Women: You resent the arrogance of men.
This combination represents 4% of total, 4% of men and 3% of women
Robin Hood, Maid Marion, The Sheriff, Little John
You find it hard to accept the permissive attitudes of others, or to convince them of the validity of your own standards. You are not disposed to trust people.
Men: To you "love" involves sex and duty, rather than charity and forgiveness.
Women: You blame men for the problems in your life.
This combination represents 2% of total, 2% of men and 1% of women
Robin Hood, The Sheriff, Little John, Maid Marion
You have a very chauvinistic and outdated outlook on life. Your values and principles are defined not by clarity of conscience but by popular beliefs.
Men: You see women as objects and possessions. You demand complete loyalty and devotion without offering it in return.
Women: You see yourself as having only one purpose in life - to satisfy your man. You lack self definition as you derive all of who you are from him.
This combination represents 3% of total, 3% of men and 3% of women
Robin Hood, The Sheriff, Maid Marion, Little John
Men: As a ruthless authoritarian you are as moral as it suits you and no more. You do not apply the same rules to men as you do to women.
Women: How worthless you seem to think women are.
This combination represents 2% of total, 2% of men and 2% of women
The Sheriff, Little John, Maid Marion, Robin Hood
You have a confused, immature sense of values. You are erratic and stubborn, and inclined to get angry or sulk when you don't get your own way, but at least you are not a moral hypocrite.
Men: "Love 'em and leave 'em" is the motto of a man who is basically afraid of women.
Women: Perhaps you would rather be a man than a woman?
This combination represents 2% of total, 2% of men and 2% of women
The Sheriff, Little John, Robin Hood, Maid Marion
Not a moralizing pattern, but..
Men: You share with many other men the idea that most women are fickle and inferior to men. Perhaps a view that you got from your father, or as a reaction to a domineering mother.
Women: You have a pretty poor opinion of yourself, haven't you?
This combination represents 1% of total, 1% of men and 1% of women
The Sheriff, Maid Marion, Little John, Robin Hood
You claim to be a realist or even a cynic, but you are more emotional, romantic, and truthful.
Men: Although you are by no means inhibited, your amorous adventures are as much a matter of fantasy as fact.
Women: You have been hurt in the past by men, or one man in particular, and will probably let it happen again.
This combination represents 3% of total, 3% of men and 3% of women
The Sheriff, Maid Marion, Robin Hood, Little John
If you are not living a happy life, the cause is within yourself. You are a rebel with a trace of spoilt child about you. You value truth above morality, but you are reasonably tolerant of those who disagree with you.
Men: Any problems you have are not likely to be centered in sex.
Women: Despite your experience and intelligence, you are a bad judge of men.
This combination represents 2% of total, 2% of men and 3% of women
The Sheriff, Robin Hood, Little John, Maid Marion
Although you make a brave show of being self-sufficient, beneath this you are unhappy and rather mixed up.
Men: You don't understand women - probably you are afraid of them. You do not know what love is, and you are more likely to boast about your conquests in a bar than prove them in a bedroom.
Women: If men attract you at all, they probably are the wrong sort.
This combination represents 2% of total, 3% of men and 2% of women
The Sheriff, Robin Hood, Maid Marion, Little John
Men: The warmth and give-and-take of love are not for you. Your sex life is ringed with unreality, and you neither understand nor appreciate women.
Women: If you really believe this is the right order, you baffle us completely.
This combination represents 3% of total, 3% of men and 2% of women
To do the test you must give your honest opinion about morals and honesty of the four characters in our story of Sherwood forest.
Forget any preconceived ideas you may about them - this is a different sort of story from all the others.
The sheriff of Nottingham captured Little John and Robin Hood and imprisoned them in his maximum security dungeon. Maid Marion begged the Sheriff for their release, pleading her love for Robin. The Sheriff agreed to release them only if Maid Marion spent the night with him.
To this she agreed.
The next morning the Sheriff released his prisoners. Robin asked that Marion tell him how she persuaded the Sheriff to let them go free.
Marion told the truth, and was bewildered when Robin said that he never wanted to see her again.
At this Little John defended her, inviting her to leave Sherwood with him and promising life-long devotion. She accepted and they rode away together.
Now in terms of realistic every-day standards of behavior, put Robin, Marion, Little John and the Sheriff in the order in which you consider they showed the most morality and honesty (from most moral to least moral).
There is no "right" answer. What follows is an analysis based on which of the 24 possible arrangements you chose.
Analysis
Who did you list first? Robin, Marion, Sheriff, or Little John?
Little John, Maid Marion, Robin Hood, The Sheriff
You are fairly broadminded, romantic and reasonably contented. You value kindness greatly and try to live by your ideals. You do not conceal from yourself, or from others, your strong need for security, which may be either emotional or material.
Men: Perhaps you tend to idealize women and credit them with virtues they don't possess.
Women: Your experiences of men have not all been happy, perhaps because you hope for a little too much?
This combination represents 15% of total, 15% of men and 16% of women
Little John, Maid Marion, The Sheriff, Robin Hood
You are the slightly romantic realist. You respect truth, and are broadminded and flexible. Whether you are a man or a woman you are probably a happy person. You like people and they can readily make friends with you. You are not very adventurous, but this does not bother you.
This combination represents 10% of total, 9% of men and 10% of women
Little John, Robin Hood, Maid Marion, The Sheriff
You are a cautious type, neutral, and rather insecure. You would agree with the idea that everybody has his price - and in your own case it would not be high.
Men: You are sexually inhibited with an underlying distrust of women.
Women: At least one man has made you unhappy, and you are now on your guard.
This combination represents 6% of total, 6% of men and 5% of women
Little John, Robin Hood, The Sheriff, Maid Marion
You are not easy to assess. Basically you are ruled by an inferiority complex and feelings of insecurity. How do you present yourself to the world? An idealist, a moralist, a conformist keeping up with the Joneses?
Men: Your conflicting views on sex and morality may lead to every sort of sexual problem. You have always feared women, probably starting with your mother.
Women: It is a shame you have not accepted the ideal of woman as the equal (and sometimes stronger) partner of man.
This combination represents 2% of total, 2% of men and 2% of women
Little John, The Sheriff, Maid Marion, Robin Hood
You too, believe that morality is another word for commonsense and suitability, and not something which is universally valid or a religious truth. Your feeling for security is strong, and you would rate reliability as one of your virtues.
Men: Your estimate of women as the inferior sex suggests that you are a little uncertain of them.
Women: You are more permissive about the morals of others than you are about your own.
This combination represents 3% of total, 2% of men and 3% of women
Little John, The Sheriff, Robin Hood, Maid Marion
You are conventional, unimaginative, and something of a prude. It would be surprising if your love life was a roaring success.
Men: You have an old-world authoritarian attitude. One thing is sure: you have some sorry illusions about women.
Women: You accept a double standard of morality in which women are very much the "second sex."
This combination represents 1% of total, 1% of men and 1% of women
Maid Marion, Little John, Robin Hood, The Sheriff
We would expect you to be a happy, well-balanced person who likes people and is liked by others. You question whether many conventional views on morality are valid under all circumstances.
Men: Do we detect a sense of chivalry and idealism under the sophistication?
Women: You will expect high standards from the men to whom you give your love.
This combination represents 13% of total, 13% of men and 12% of women
Maid Marion, Little John, The Sheriff, Robin Hood
You are essentially a contented person, even if you consider yourself a little superior. You are moral by your own standards, for you believe that morality is what best suits the occasion.
Men: You are sexually uninhibited, more romantic than you may appear, and more dependent on the approval of others than you care to admit.
Women: You like being a woman, you understand what love is, and frankly enjoy sex.
This combination represents 10% of total, 9% of men and 11% of women
Maid Marion, Robin Hood, Little John, The Sheriff
If you are not happy - and we suspect you are not - it maybe because you feel guilty about your own emotions, and lack confidence in your opinions.
Men: No doubt you consider yourself a moral man, and a fair one. Your fuzzy ideas about morality may make their mark on your sex life.
Women: You are too concerned about what others think.
This combination represents 4% of total, 4% of men and 4% of women
Maid Marion, Robin Hood, The Sheriff, Little John
You know the so-called facts of life, but not to enjoy life itself. You are not a realist and you are inclined to be stubborn.
Men: Women, you think, are either good or bad, and you overestimate the differences between the sexes. A woman may find you difficult to live with.
Women: You are not sure whether truth and morality go hand in hand or are in opposition. You don't hold a very high opinion of men.
This combination represents 1% of total, 2% of men and 1% of women
Maid Marion, The Sheriff, Little John, Robin Hood
Such an emphatic rejection of ready-made values is probably partly camouflage. You hate to be thought weak or insecure. You value honesty, and abhor hypocrisy.
Men: Women are very much part of you life, and you are - or perhaps would like to be - quite ruthless, both with women and life in general.
Women: You are tolerant about men and their failings - but we mean men, for you have no time for boys on men's errands.
This combination represents 3% of total, 3% of men and 3% of women
Maid Marion, The Sheriff, Robin Hood, Little John
You associate morality with honesty and truth more than with religious values. You are impulsive and somewhat unpredictable.
Men: We suspect that you are a would-be lover rather than a very successful one.
Women: You are a realist and a rebel, a defender of women's rights. You like men but despise weak ones.
This combination represents 2% of total, 1% of men and 2% of women
Robin Hood, Little John, Maid Marion, The Sheriff
You are a moralist with conventional ideas, which some people would call old-fashioned.
Men: You probably consider yourself a fair-minded man in a world which falls badly below your standards. Your inhibitions and sense of guilt are in the way of your happiness.
Women: Unlucky in love? Perhaps you hope for too much in a man. Be a realist, not a romantic.
This combination represents 5% of total, 5% of men and 5% of women
Robin Hood, Little John, The Sheriff, Maid Marion
You are conventional and puritanical.
Men: You moralize and see women as a great conspiracy against man, with sex as their principal weapon. You are missing a great deal in life.
Women: Your parents probably played a big part in the formation of such a guilt complex as yours. Your mind is in chains and it's time you did something to free it.
This combination represents 2% of total, 2% of men and 3% of women
Robin Hood, Maid Marion, Little John, The Sheriff
Your philosophy of life is a sad hotchpotch of the conventions of society, your own convictions and romanticism. You are not unkind, only staid and unimaginative.
Men: You see women as weak but desirable.
Women: You resent the arrogance of men.
This combination represents 4% of total, 4% of men and 3% of women
Robin Hood, Maid Marion, The Sheriff, Little John
You find it hard to accept the permissive attitudes of others, or to convince them of the validity of your own standards. You are not disposed to trust people.
Men: To you "love" involves sex and duty, rather than charity and forgiveness.
Women: You blame men for the problems in your life.
This combination represents 2% of total, 2% of men and 1% of women
Robin Hood, The Sheriff, Little John, Maid Marion
You have a very chauvinistic and outdated outlook on life. Your values and principles are defined not by clarity of conscience but by popular beliefs.
Men: You see women as objects and possessions. You demand complete loyalty and devotion without offering it in return.
Women: You see yourself as having only one purpose in life - to satisfy your man. You lack self definition as you derive all of who you are from him.
This combination represents 3% of total, 3% of men and 3% of women
Robin Hood, The Sheriff, Maid Marion, Little John
Men: As a ruthless authoritarian you are as moral as it suits you and no more. You do not apply the same rules to men as you do to women.
Women: How worthless you seem to think women are.
This combination represents 2% of total, 2% of men and 2% of women
The Sheriff, Little John, Maid Marion, Robin Hood
You have a confused, immature sense of values. You are erratic and stubborn, and inclined to get angry or sulk when you don't get your own way, but at least you are not a moral hypocrite.
Men: "Love 'em and leave 'em" is the motto of a man who is basically afraid of women.
Women: Perhaps you would rather be a man than a woman?
This combination represents 2% of total, 2% of men and 2% of women
The Sheriff, Little John, Robin Hood, Maid Marion
Not a moralizing pattern, but..
Men: You share with many other men the idea that most women are fickle and inferior to men. Perhaps a view that you got from your father, or as a reaction to a domineering mother.
Women: You have a pretty poor opinion of yourself, haven't you?
This combination represents 1% of total, 1% of men and 1% of women
The Sheriff, Maid Marion, Little John, Robin Hood
You claim to be a realist or even a cynic, but you are more emotional, romantic, and truthful.
Men: Although you are by no means inhibited, your amorous adventures are as much a matter of fantasy as fact.
Women: You have been hurt in the past by men, or one man in particular, and will probably let it happen again.
This combination represents 3% of total, 3% of men and 3% of women
The Sheriff, Maid Marion, Robin Hood, Little John
If you are not living a happy life, the cause is within yourself. You are a rebel with a trace of spoilt child about you. You value truth above morality, but you are reasonably tolerant of those who disagree with you.
Men: Any problems you have are not likely to be centered in sex.
Women: Despite your experience and intelligence, you are a bad judge of men.
This combination represents 2% of total, 2% of men and 3% of women
The Sheriff, Robin Hood, Little John, Maid Marion
Although you make a brave show of being self-sufficient, beneath this you are unhappy and rather mixed up.
Men: You don't understand women - probably you are afraid of them. You do not know what love is, and you are more likely to boast about your conquests in a bar than prove them in a bedroom.
Women: If men attract you at all, they probably are the wrong sort.
This combination represents 2% of total, 3% of men and 2% of women
The Sheriff, Robin Hood, Maid Marion, Little John
Men: The warmth and give-and-take of love are not for you. Your sex life is ringed with unreality, and you neither understand nor appreciate women.
Women: If you really believe this is the right order, you baffle us completely.
This combination represents 3% of total, 3% of men and 2% of women
:D
 | I took the free ColorQuiz.com personality test! "Wishes to find her stimulation in a voluptuous atm..."
|
Tuesday, November 18, 2008
ladedahjodpurwearingmanofstock
I've apparently got 'phryngitis'
Yes you've read right, 'phryngitis'. A man who's supposedly been to Otago medical school and all that fluff in between can't spell. Sure he's just having a bad day but thats simply inexcusable for him to be venting to a patient!
So picture this: I'm going to the Hillcrest Medical Centre in my daddy's shiny red car, and they tell me they're all full up with appointments with every doctor except Dr Ahmed whom I've never heard of in the entire time I've been to Hillcrest Medical Centre. I didn't picture it to be seedy at all nooo... And then im there sitting on the sterile like patients chair in the clinic and im feeling awful and probably looking it too (considering I'm rather ill its nto surprising) and he is bold enough to ask me all these personal questions like what i want to be when I leave school.
Then fully goes into a rant about how his life sucks and one should never be a Doctor. Ladedah, no opportunity for expansion et cetera, patients filing for litigation and bad treatment et cetera , and i was sitting there thinking:
Can I get my drugs now?
Yes you've read right, 'phryngitis'. A man who's supposedly been to Otago medical school and all that fluff in between can't spell. Sure he's just having a bad day but thats simply inexcusable for him to be venting to a patient!
So picture this: I'm going to the Hillcrest Medical Centre in my daddy's shiny red car, and they tell me they're all full up with appointments with every doctor except Dr Ahmed whom I've never heard of in the entire time I've been to Hillcrest Medical Centre. I didn't picture it to be seedy at all nooo... And then im there sitting on the sterile like patients chair in the clinic and im feeling awful and probably looking it too (considering I'm rather ill its nto surprising) and he is bold enough to ask me all these personal questions like what i want to be when I leave school.
Then fully goes into a rant about how his life sucks and one should never be a Doctor. Ladedah, no opportunity for expansion et cetera, patients filing for litigation and bad treatment et cetera , and i was sitting there thinking:
Can I get my drugs now?
Wednesday, October 29, 2008
Procrastination and other facts of life
I have an exam tomorrow
Not just any exam
But a Cambridge exam
the exam for those who are elite
and privelleged enough to take it.
Currantly I'm in my mother's study, supposedly studying but failing. Fail is an interesting word, it can rouse anxiety and despair in some, while others revel in using it ---> see www.failblog.org for an example. I'd rather not fail if all possible, it would mean being on the lower half of the bell curve where 50% of the rest of the population lie, which is mediocre. And I'd rather not be associated with mediocrity, I'd rather not that whenever others think of me the word mediocre is the first word to pop up in their heads instead of much more favourable words like pioneer, or belligerent, or girl. I'd rather not be famed as "most likely to be mediocre" in the school yearbook.
Moral of the story? Don't try unless you know you'll succeed?
There's a disturbing amount of dust on this keyboard of my mothers. I'll be sure to tell her that.
The 7th formers in my bio class were talking about graduating which is something which I won't experience for another 2 years... not sure whether that's a good thing or not cause I'd looove to escape right now and be free, but then when I really think about it I'd have to cook and clean for myself, and actually pay for things which is not the most pleasant thing. The thing is, I like living with my parents who do every thing for me which leaves me with more time to procrastinate and write pointless blogs like this one. Ahh, such bliss is teenagehood, the turbulent transition between an idyllic childhood and a harsh but liberal adulthood . We know that the world sucks but we can't do anything about it, we're trapped in a little box of parental expectations and limited social experiences.
BTW everyone's obsessed with the Twilight series! I'll have to add it to my list of books to read along with Gone with the Wind, Pride and Prejudice, The Time Traveller's Wife, and an innumerable amount more, like Kerri's Mum's book about the Children of God which I still haven't read yet. If you're reading this Kerri, I'll return it to you possibly in the next few months or years.
-Procrastination - stress from doing nothing
Not just any exam
But a Cambridge exam
the exam for those who are elite
and privelleged enough to take it.
Currantly I'm in my mother's study, supposedly studying but failing. Fail is an interesting word, it can rouse anxiety and despair in some, while others revel in using it ---> see www.failblog.org for an example. I'd rather not fail if all possible, it would mean being on the lower half of the bell curve where 50% of the rest of the population lie, which is mediocre. And I'd rather not be associated with mediocrity, I'd rather not that whenever others think of me the word mediocre is the first word to pop up in their heads instead of much more favourable words like pioneer, or belligerent, or girl. I'd rather not be famed as "most likely to be mediocre" in the school yearbook.
Moral of the story? Don't try unless you know you'll succeed?
There's a disturbing amount of dust on this keyboard of my mothers. I'll be sure to tell her that.
The 7th formers in my bio class were talking about graduating which is something which I won't experience for another 2 years... not sure whether that's a good thing or not cause I'd looove to escape right now and be free, but then when I really think about it I'd have to cook and clean for myself, and actually pay for things which is not the most pleasant thing. The thing is, I like living with my parents who do every thing for me which leaves me with more time to procrastinate and write pointless blogs like this one. Ahh, such bliss is teenagehood, the turbulent transition between an idyllic childhood and a harsh but liberal adulthood . We know that the world sucks but we can't do anything about it, we're trapped in a little box of parental expectations and limited social experiences.
BTW everyone's obsessed with the Twilight series! I'll have to add it to my list of books to read along with Gone with the Wind, Pride and Prejudice, The Time Traveller's Wife, and an innumerable amount more, like Kerri's Mum's book about the Children of God which I still haven't read yet. If you're reading this Kerri, I'll return it to you possibly in the next few months or years.
-Procrastination - stress from doing nothing
Monday, October 27, 2008
As I promised, photos!!!!!!
AWwwww Mr Steele gets a group hug from the AntiHarassment team
A bunch of somalian guys got booked in by police. freaaaakkaaaayyyy me and emma were there to witness it by bike, long dodgy shadows dragged out by the late afternoon
She said specifically not to cross the barriers!!!! Chem trip to Rotorua wow it smells like eggs
This is probably my best photography yet, it captures the innate characteristics of each of the Bryant Twins, aren't they great. As you can see, Nick on the right was born about a minute before Matthew on the left so you're left with the explanation of the picture
Bethany pays her respects to the ancient Maori traditions of Rotorua and whatnot, before whoring it for chemical experiments
Guinea pigs!!! They're just wee babies
Mr Steele's birthday was celebrated well, compliments to Casey who baked the cake which was coated with marshmallows *drools*
Look daddy, its the chocolate factory! -Trip to steel (no pun intended) mill for Chemistry
With all my mandatory safety gear on, I am the epitome of cool. I could totally picture myself growing into that hardhat aye
Emma injured herself in soccer. All good, we'll just push her home lalalalala
Iiiiiitttssss JamesCain! Hes controlling his evil sorcerer orb with such mastery - set of the Tempest still in preliminary rehearsal stages
John is - very cool, undoubtedly. He let me have his EP for free! but I owe him $10 (darn it) at smokefree rockquest Britanny in the front row threw her bra at him, and John's dad was in the audience (awkward moment) this was at a performance at boys high
Me (trying to look as retarded as possible) and Bella Hristova, a pretty established violin player. I have her autograph *eeeeep* and I saw her live omg
Whooo! Wheel of fortune! Ryan trying to win me the Cranium game and failing, winning us some spoons which I kept but with contempt : Primal Youth yuhh!!
Guy from the morning viewing of Pericles Prince of Tyre!!!!! at the Summer Garden arts festival, as you can see in the background dawn is just starting to break
At Hahei beach, or some coromandel equivalent. Lisa and Ron decided to bury themselves in sand. Pity they couldn't stay there ...
V8 supercars!!!!! I sold food in a caravan which is ok except I was paired with the most annoying guy ever who kept trying to flick me. Can't see much from here with all the barriers, well if I wanted to get close I'd have to have paid $130
You can't spell gangstah without Chemistry.... Go Bethany.
Lauren, Me and Lucy in Orchestra repreprep yeah lol times on the set of 100 years of broadway
The Secondary Enviroschools youth forum thingy? I gave the lady my email but she never sent me anything. i got a random invitation to a yahoo! group but i couldnt join it so I gave up. We discussed worm farms, and generally how Te Awamutu College was bigger than Hillcrest
100 Years of Broadway....... Yeah Sali!
Brettus Chibnallus in his natural habitat. Teaching his students with the most effort possible of course, and not looking at soccer scores on the internet.
ICEPAK explosion!! From the street off hood street, Alexandra I think? Pretty big
Taking pictures with randoms off the street is fun!
Orchestra on set of 100 years of broadway!! Kushal and Simon decided to let the animal inside them out.
Steele in its naturally occurring allotrope. As you can see it is in a very unable state and is prone to combustion
Why, mama, you look ridiculous in that stupid hat! And I don't care much for your dumb dress neither, Cecily. -- Cambridge English forever!!!!! Importance of Being Earnest
A particularly significant event in my period of hiatus
Um I got my hair cut. It was pretty epically long beforehand. I kinda annoyed my stylist cause I had so much hair she had to charge me $5 extra . And I didnt help by changing my mind about styles. I started with just some layering which took some effort then I decided naaaaah i wanted it to go on a gradient to the back then came the fringe and at that point she could've torched me alive with a straightening iron she was so frustrated so it wasn't spectacularly great but I had a feeling she would've threatened me with an electric trimmer if I made another comment ...
It was good, but I'll miss my natural curling rapunzel hair *small tear*
Sunday, October 26, 2008
Last post in.... July! *blinks*
That makes it.... 4 months ago! Joy! And I haven't been away from the computer or internet so I can rule that excuse out for not posting.
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I'm now 17 years of age, not that it really makes a difference to my maturity level. I've still got the yoyo body clock: speaking of which, my amount of relative sleep each night of the week just past varied from 4 hours a night to 13 hours. Surprisingly last night I got a pretty staple 8 hours and I woke up with the most massive headache, like someone had taken a well sharpened rock and brought it down on the top of my head as if they were a clever primate opening a nut.
How many weeks are left till NCEA exams? Not sure. That's how awareness I have of time and other things that generally require a brain. Wait I'll check the calendar beside my bed (wahwahwaaahhhh noise of disappointment) ........................ exactamundo 4 weeks from today! I'm panicking. Really.
Somehow I don't think its really sunk in that an entire year's worth of work comes down to these few weeks and they're the sole opportunity in which you can prove your intelligence to the scrutiny of the world. Not that I had any intelligence anyway.
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Dear blog,
I hate my life *slitslit* I wish poor people can be friends with rich people *slitslit* I want there to be less mistreatment of animals *slitslit* People place too much emphasis on appearances nowadays *slitslit* my parents wont let me get a car *SLITSLIT*
AFTERNOTE: by the way i dont actually slit my wrists its just an over dramatisation to attract attention.
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What's happened in the last 4 months?? it seems to have flown by so fast, like businessmen on the main street during their lunchbreak. What have I accomplished? The usuals: eating, sleeping, drinking... curing world hunger, discovering a cure for cancer, finding an inexhaustible source of energy...... maybe not the last one: that'll take jobs away from people :P
I was watching Beauty and the Geek last night (which was season 4), and I'll admit to having watched the first season hosted by Ashton Kutcher; but even though this is the most 'deep' subject matter MTV has ever based a reality tv show on its still got the essense of every reality tv, that is, stereotypes and shallow sexist ideals that don't even apply to society!!! It suggests that only males are geeks, and even they can be sought after by pneumatic blondes for their obsessive intelligence and pipe bomb social skills. It's a shock to everyone when, in season 4, they introduce a female 'geek' and a male poser, but she's not even a rocket scientist or anything shes a musicologist . We know secretly all the rocker boys love the girls with thick rimmed glasses , quiet intuitive contemplation, and an IQ to boast about.
- The ones who are most critical of society are usually the ones who can't fit in it
Sunday, July 13, 2008
Long time no post
'Tis the holidays and 'tis a time to be lazy and complacent . Procrastination levels are going through the roof and my body clock is trying to balance itself in a dire time like the scales of justice. But life moves on after these 2 weeks of delayed progress and our daily set busybody schedules will once more dominate our lives.
Its just over a month till my 17th Birthday, not the most significant age of them all but its the year in between being 16 and 18 so some big decisions will have to be made during this time which require my own maturity and a bit of self control :P
I've come to understand that life is short and although I've technically only lived out less than a quarter of my life expectancy I've learnt an immense amount from my experiences which can only help me in the future in whatever we choose to do. And like what movies and tv and books and music and everyone else tells us, we should live every day to its full instead of worrying about whether we're 'wearing clean underwear' before being hit by a bus. That doesn't mean I should accept and welcome death at this age o_O I am only 16 after all.
So to be annoyingly non-conformist, I'm conforming to the non-conformist ideal to do everything out of the usual box for 'my kind' so I'm taking a full good year away from schooling to pursue a costly but worthy experience that will only enrich my understanding and appreciation for the world and all who inhabit it. My parents being the most wonderful people on the face of this world who made me *beams* fully support me and wish me the best of luck for my foreign student exchange to France halfway through next year.
I'll be leaving halfway through 7th form sadly missing graduation with my own year (boohoo) as well as the ball and any other social experiences with them (cries louder) but I'll get to graduate in France and what could possibly be better than that?
Its just over a month till my 17th Birthday, not the most significant age of them all but its the year in between being 16 and 18 so some big decisions will have to be made during this time which require my own maturity and a bit of self control :P
I've come to understand that life is short and although I've technically only lived out less than a quarter of my life expectancy I've learnt an immense amount from my experiences which can only help me in the future in whatever we choose to do. And like what movies and tv and books and music and everyone else tells us, we should live every day to its full instead of worrying about whether we're 'wearing clean underwear' before being hit by a bus. That doesn't mean I should accept and welcome death at this age o_O I am only 16 after all.
So to be annoyingly non-conformist, I'm conforming to the non-conformist ideal to do everything out of the usual box for 'my kind' so I'm taking a full good year away from schooling to pursue a costly but worthy experience that will only enrich my understanding and appreciation for the world and all who inhabit it. My parents being the most wonderful people on the face of this world who made me *beams* fully support me and wish me the best of luck for my foreign student exchange to France halfway through next year.
I'll be leaving halfway through 7th form sadly missing graduation with my own year (boohoo) as well as the ball and any other social experiences with them (cries louder) but I'll get to graduate in France and what could possibly be better than that?
Thursday, June 19, 2008
It would really really suck to live in South Auckland right now
When South Auckland decided the killing of the Liquor store owner wasn't enough, 39 year old Joanne Wang got her handbag snatched in a shopping mall carpark and run over to death in front of her 8 year old son. What has Auckland come to? I used to remember it as a vibrant cosmopolitan where people respected each other in their upbeat daily businesses but now (especially the south) it is wracked with p-producing gang members who do nothing but terrorise people to the extent of taking their lives, foul mouthed erratic drivers and bored youth that tag everything that's solid. And in the last two weeks there is an ominous emerging pattern of killings in Manukau that should be a wake up sign for worse things to come.
* Three murders
Saturday June 7: Navtej Singh, 30, is shot during a robbery of his business Riverton Liquor in Riverton Rd, Manurewa. He died in Middlemore Hospital the next night.
Wednesday June 11: Yang Yin Ping, 80, is attacked in her Manurewa home and left inside a wardrobe. She died from her injuries on Saturday afternoon.
Monday June 16: Joanne Wang, 39, is run over by a vehicle as she protested over her handbag being stolen in Manukau. She died early yesterday.
Life of a liquor store owner is tough too believe it or not. They depend on the success of their business for the future of their children and Navtej Singh had two children who were both under 10. He picks the poorer areas with worse crime because they bring the most customers. It makes sense doesn't it. But how much is a life? A life is certainly not worth the $2000 worth of prepaid phone cards that were burgled from the shop. A life is certainly not worth a handbag, whatever was in it.
But residents of Manakau like the place they live and don't want the media to tarnish where they've grown up in just because of a few pot stirrers terrorising innocent people.
"Manukau is the best place to bring up children because we have lots of places to go to and with the costs of living going up a lot of these places are cheap or sometimes free. We have the airport, Butterfly Creek, Ambury Farm, botanical gardens, Rainbows End, libraries, the biggest flea market in New Zealand, big malls, creeks, Totara park, Telstra Clear Stadium, Mangere fun pools the list is endless. Most importantly the people that live in Manukau are proud to be here and have a strong community spirit. Don't let a few bad headlines and people ruin our image. "
And on the other hand, its really not that bad when you compare globally. At least in this instance it's not a mass political killing or any scary fluff like that. New Zealand is pretty mild. And although it has one of the highest crime rates per capita, we're still relatively low on serious murder charges and things that really tingle your spine with fear at night. And as "Paul" of Auckland says:
"I've lived in manurewa all my life. It's alright and I feel safe here. Id agree we're probably a crime capital of New Zealand but that doesn't matter cos New Zealand has hardly any crime. Imagine if New Zealand actually punished criminals (im not even talking death just suitable sentances) and cops actually did work rather than handing out traffic offence tickets! We'd have the least crime in the world."
Hopefully its going to get better from now on in Manakau. It's now illegal for youth to tag which is super because they'll get fined anything from $200 - $2000 from anything as simple as a vivided scribble on a bus, and spray paints can only be bought by people over 18. I pity the juniors who still have science fair boards to paint! But I think as soon as the Manakau mayor recovers from his heart bypass surgery things will be hunky dory and we'll hear no more terrible news from South Auckland.
Hopefully.
* Three murders
Saturday June 7: Navtej Singh, 30, is shot during a robbery of his business Riverton Liquor in Riverton Rd, Manurewa. He died in Middlemore Hospital the next night.
Wednesday June 11: Yang Yin Ping, 80, is attacked in her Manurewa home and left inside a wardrobe. She died from her injuries on Saturday afternoon.
Monday June 16: Joanne Wang, 39, is run over by a vehicle as she protested over her handbag being stolen in Manukau. She died early yesterday.
Life of a liquor store owner is tough too believe it or not. They depend on the success of their business for the future of their children and Navtej Singh had two children who were both under 10. He picks the poorer areas with worse crime because they bring the most customers. It makes sense doesn't it. But how much is a life? A life is certainly not worth the $2000 worth of prepaid phone cards that were burgled from the shop. A life is certainly not worth a handbag, whatever was in it.
But residents of Manakau like the place they live and don't want the media to tarnish where they've grown up in just because of a few pot stirrers terrorising innocent people.
"Manukau is the best place to bring up children because we have lots of places to go to and with the costs of living going up a lot of these places are cheap or sometimes free. We have the airport, Butterfly Creek, Ambury Farm, botanical gardens, Rainbows End, libraries, the biggest flea market in New Zealand, big malls, creeks, Totara park, Telstra Clear Stadium, Mangere fun pools the list is endless. Most importantly the people that live in Manukau are proud to be here and have a strong community spirit. Don't let a few bad headlines and people ruin our image. "
And on the other hand, its really not that bad when you compare globally. At least in this instance it's not a mass political killing or any scary fluff like that. New Zealand is pretty mild. And although it has one of the highest crime rates per capita, we're still relatively low on serious murder charges and things that really tingle your spine with fear at night. And as "Paul" of Auckland says:
"I've lived in manurewa all my life. It's alright and I feel safe here. Id agree we're probably a crime capital of New Zealand but that doesn't matter cos New Zealand has hardly any crime. Imagine if New Zealand actually punished criminals (im not even talking death just suitable sentances) and cops actually did work rather than handing out traffic offence tickets! We'd have the least crime in the world."
Hopefully its going to get better from now on in Manakau. It's now illegal for youth to tag which is super because they'll get fined anything from $200 - $2000 from anything as simple as a vivided scribble on a bus, and spray paints can only be bought by people over 18. I pity the juniors who still have science fair boards to paint! But I think as soon as the Manakau mayor recovers from his heart bypass surgery things will be hunky dory and we'll hear no more terrible news from South Auckland.
Hopefully.
News
My life is a boiling pot of excitement ready to burst out with hot hot soup of dreams, hopes and thought...
One of the downstairs boarders we found was very obviously pregnant so we have decided to up her rent by $10 for reasons of inflation, price of living, etc we told her. Secretly tho its cause another person is living in the flat and not being charged! We wish her good luck on her uneasy and clandestine road to motherhood. May she come prepared with lots of nappies!
Sadly our gym ball of 2 and a bit years from a guilty boxing day shopping spree had burst from rolling onto our heater. Queer situation really, we were all occupied with the television so no one had realised that it mysteriously on its own accord rolled over toward the heater and burnt its backside to a crisp. Its now seriously warped with a huge hole on its underside and my brother's distraught as it was his favourite piece of furniture (certainly beats the $2000 leather couches!) so we're going to have a proper burial and a newer better replacement.
I'm currently supposed to be working on my bio report, although I cannot see any biological benefits for stretching your leg bones, so my page is whitey white filled with invisible ideas that will never quite materialise. Darn NCEA and its criteria needing concrete evidence and sourcing throughout the entire essay. Its distracting to the actual writing, and its not like I'll be leaving school and doing nothing but wikipedia'ing for my sources of info. Even my English teacher said only a University student would understand the complexity of standard based assessment. Its loop upon loop of rules and exeptions, standards, and achievement. It all makes no sense that to ace NCEA you need to learn how to ace the assessment than ace the topic you're learning.
And I have yet again dreamed up a far fetched plan that no one likes the sound of and I myself think I'm a bit mad for even thinking it up, but it should be fun to try and carry it out, if my will power takes me that far. All will be revealed if I decide to continue on with it. In the meantime I'll have to keep everyone in suspense...
PS: Smokefree Rockquest tomorrow night! Can't wait! I'm bringing my red carpet clothes i.e. tshirt and jeans.
PPS: I'll upload photos soon, my excuse is its too cold outside and my mums office is too far. Plus im busy all weekend obviously (blatant scorn)
One of the downstairs boarders we found was very obviously pregnant so we have decided to up her rent by $10 for reasons of inflation, price of living, etc we told her. Secretly tho its cause another person is living in the flat and not being charged! We wish her good luck on her uneasy and clandestine road to motherhood. May she come prepared with lots of nappies!
Sadly our gym ball of 2 and a bit years from a guilty boxing day shopping spree had burst from rolling onto our heater. Queer situation really, we were all occupied with the television so no one had realised that it mysteriously on its own accord rolled over toward the heater and burnt its backside to a crisp. Its now seriously warped with a huge hole on its underside and my brother's distraught as it was his favourite piece of furniture (certainly beats the $2000 leather couches!) so we're going to have a proper burial and a newer better replacement.
I'm currently supposed to be working on my bio report, although I cannot see any biological benefits for stretching your leg bones, so my page is whitey white filled with invisible ideas that will never quite materialise. Darn NCEA and its criteria needing concrete evidence and sourcing throughout the entire essay. Its distracting to the actual writing, and its not like I'll be leaving school and doing nothing but wikipedia'ing for my sources of info. Even my English teacher said only a University student would understand the complexity of standard based assessment. Its loop upon loop of rules and exeptions, standards, and achievement. It all makes no sense that to ace NCEA you need to learn how to ace the assessment than ace the topic you're learning.
And I have yet again dreamed up a far fetched plan that no one likes the sound of and I myself think I'm a bit mad for even thinking it up, but it should be fun to try and carry it out, if my will power takes me that far. All will be revealed if I decide to continue on with it. In the meantime I'll have to keep everyone in suspense...
PS: Smokefree Rockquest tomorrow night! Can't wait! I'm bringing my red carpet clothes i.e. tshirt and jeans.
PPS: I'll upload photos soon, my excuse is its too cold outside and my mums office is too far. Plus im busy all weekend obviously (blatant scorn)
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