Wednesday, December 23, 2009
New Zealand
Like giants rising out of misty chills.
Here and there, flowers, purple and yellow.
Lambs and cows, they bleat and bellow.
An ancient land, with forgotten tales,
Of men and gods and giant whales.
With woody forests and open plains,
And Summer sun with flooding rains.
All people welcome and all things allowed,
Here in the Land of the Long White Cloud.
I was in New Zealand from the 10th-15th of December, for a total of six days. Blow-by-blow summary:
Day one: 5am wakeup, to get to airport for four hour flight. When finally got there at around 2 in the afternoon (two hour time difference), we had to wait another hour for the tour group to arrive and pick us up. Around forty Asians in total in the tour group, mostly North Islanders, but had people from Malaysia and China too.
Drove west straight off, passing through Arthur's Pass, which looks absolutely spectacular. First view of snow-capped peaks in summertime, ever. Spent the night at Greymouth, pretty scenic little town at the mouth of the Grey River (hence the name). Rain, rain and more rain.
Day two: 7am wakeup, which was one of the later ones of the trip. Headed south, stopping at Franz Josef Glacier (which we didn't see, accessible only by helicopter), as well as Fox Glacier, which was seriously epic. Until you see a glacier in real life, you can't begin to fathom how giant they are, and the impression that they make. Spent the night in Haast, which was pretty dull. Plenty more rain.
Day three: 7am wakeup, went through Haast pass, which was awesome. Threaded through snow-topped mountains, then through a 100m long single-lane tunnel, emerging to be surrounded by a veritable wall of mountains on either side, with waterfalls plunging from snowy heights. Passed by Lake Hawea and Lake Wanaka, which are amazingly scenic, both backed by mountains in the distance; even the weather cleared up just in time for our photos. Spent the night at Queenstown, our first night in a town of any great size. Roamed the streets a bit, went to the summit of a nearby mountain by cable car and...well, the view was simply spectacular. Lake Wakatipu bracketed by mountains as far as the eye could see, idyllic and breathtaking.
Day four: Drove direct to Te Anau, dropped off stuff at hotel, then drove to Milford Sound, from whence we boarded a boat and headed for the mouth of Milford Sound. Foggy mountain peaks with giant waterfalls emphasised the ancient rugged beauty of the place. It's probably been that way for many thousands of year, untouched by the all-pervading hand of humankind. Simply wonderful.
Day five: Longest drive of the entire trip, with a 6:30am wakeup. Stopped at Dunedin for a while, found out my VCE results at the local library. Internet is seriously expensive in NZL: 10 cents per minute, most places offer $4 for an hour. Even VA is cheaper WITHOUT membership, AFTER you convert the money. Seriously, major rip. And Mum was pretty pissed with 96.00. >_> Spent the night in Oamaru.
Day six: Headed up to Christchurch for a quick look around town before our flight home. For New Zealand's second biggest city, it barely compares to an inner Melbourne suburb. More excited to get home than anything.
That's a basic overview...if you want more detail about anything at any particular place, just get in touch :) Didn't visit the north of the South Island, nor the interior, but if the coast is anything to go by, it's a spectacular place.
Monday, November 9, 2009
Sunday, November 8, 2009
Mottos
Repensum est Canicula (Payback is a bitch) - SolForce, Sword of the Stars
Draco Dormiens Nunquam Titillandus (Never tickle a sleeping dragon) - Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry
Nemo me impune lacessit (No-one attacks me with impunity) - Royal Motto of Scotland
Exitus Acta Probat (The end justifies the means) - UNSC Spirit of Fire, Halo Wars
Homo sapiens non urinat in ventum (Man should not piss against the wind) - Greek temple-like building, Amsterdam
Thursday, November 5, 2009
Tuesday, November 3, 2009
Funny stuff 4
~~~
Specimen; Teeny Bopper ; (genus; Teenikin bopperili.)
General Description:
In this case, we are observing the ‘AzN~~~~’ subspecies of TB, each race, generally has their own kind of TB, but this is the one I am most familiar with.
Likes: Name Brands, Any car that was featured on Initial D, Morning Glory, Sanrio, Zogabi, Sticker Photos, Dream Photos, Daytona, Counter-strike, WarCraft, Bitching, Backstabbing, Heavily Peroxided Hair. DDR.
Dislikes: Not being able to afford name brands, Other TB’s, Anyone deemed ‘cooler’ than themselves, People who don’t wear name brands, people with black hair, anyone that isn’t AzN~~~~.
Can Be Seen At: LAN Café’s, VA, Excalibur, Whitehouse, Chapel St, Outside underage Club venues (most popular being Salt, Soul, Red, Blue, Green, Magenta.), Hanging around State Library, Sticker Photo shops, Morning Glory, the “CT”, Box Hill, “Glenny” “Shoppo”
Can’t Live Without: Mobile Phone (with enough dangly decorations to cause a landslide, and little fluffy things the size of a small child, and photo compatibility to add to their plethora of photos taken with all their TB friends they don’t actually like), Trends to follow, “Pocket Money” (has been known to rival the family fortune of some lower income households.)
-------------Demeanour
Females: (Towards Males) Ridiculously Cute, Ditzy, Disarmingly Nice, (This, is scientifically proven to be all an act, to attract a TB of the opposite sex, who, unknowingly will be sucked dry (emotionally, financially, more the latter) and discarded in a few weeks. Much like those Praying Mantis things you see on the Discovery Channel.)
(Towards Females) Calculating (ie. Breast size, or in fact, any evidence of chestal baggage whatsoever), Cold, Extremely Snobby, Backstabbing, General Bitch. (When Males of the genus are not around, the real personality of the Female ‘AzN’ TB comes to the fore. Most evident in the many enemies they make during their regular incursions into other TB’s territories (The female of the species is much like the Male of certain large predatory cats, in that they roam a wide and well defined boundary, with a desired number of Males within, worshipping them. The only time a Male will see this side, is when they are in a relationship with one, and by then it is too late.)
Males: (Towards Females) Overtly Loud Mouthed trash talking gangsters.
(Towards Males) Overtly Loud Mouthed trash talking gangsters. Extremely Competitive, love talking themselves up. Tends to over exaggerate, everything, including attractiveness, their “admirers”, and their “rice ride”.
-------------Distinguishing Features
Females: Hair colour: Never ever Black, due to perceived ‘uncoolness’ of having a natural hair colour. Can vary from either “I washed my hair with industrial strength cleaner” blonde to “I have just enough colouring to be cool” brown. May also involve highlights of other, cuteness enhancing colours.
Hair Style: Whatever is trendy in Japan/Hong Kong/Korea. Hair if needed to be clipped, usually full of “cuteness enhancing” pink/blue hello kitty/pucca/blue bear/morning glory clips. Takes at least 45 minutes to create. Is more artificial than biological, due to repeated chemical straightening/permin g treatments. There has been many cases of the hair actually taking on a life of it’s own, and controlling the TB itself (Because of the little difference in demeanour between a regular TB and one affected with the above disorder is so minute, the number of victims is unknown.)
Males: Hair Colour: See Females. Although, replace cuteness with ‘Hardcaw gangstaZ’
Hair Style: There are two main types. Down or Up. Down is either a middle part, or something stemming from the “middle part” (commonly known as ‘Default Asian Hair’) “Up” generally involves…. Well… spikes… depending on ‘hardcoreness’ the length of the spikes increase accordingly. Has been compared to stelecmites and antlers on a deer. Both involving an environmentally unfriendly amount of hair product, sometimes even more than the Female TB.
-------------Clothing: Generally, extremely fixated on brand names (that they’ve stolen, or haggled from some black market in Chinatown or Malaysia), and will go to no end to bring up talk about clothes in general conversation, just so they can talk about what brand they are wearing. “Hey, like my new pants/top/scarf?”
-------------Females
Would Like: Anything by Ralph Lauren, Banana Republic, Sass and Bides, etc.
Actually Wears: Supre, Miss Shop, Misc. Imitation Clothes from South East Asia, Anything deemed cute or “KaWaAaIiizZzZ~~~!!¬ !~~” by peers. Also, has an abnormal affinity with scarves and spray-paint jeans (with flares that can envelope a developing nation), even in hot weather. Very fickle, and will change entire wardrobe according to what the girl they hate is wearing. Simliar to normal girls clothes, but usually 1 or 5 sizes smaller. Wardrobe in severe cases is worth more than the house which houses them.
-------------Males
Would Like: Anything by Ralph Lauren, Tommy Hilfinger, Hugo Boss etc.
Actually Wears: Mooks, Giodarno, Stussy, Imitation Clothes from South East Asia
Exclusively dresses in the colours: white black and tan. Clothes are either on the “suss” side of tight, or the “homeboy” side of baggy (usually with the waistband hovering about the skinny boy’s ankles).
-------------Language
TB’s speak in a total sub dialect of English, which normal people have the capability of understanding, but this involves an incredible amount of brainpower that only 60% of the population possesses. When speaking the males of the species tend to say “Man” “Yo” “bro” “dude” and “sup” a lot, interspersed with a lot of grunting and head nodding. The Females, on the other hand, are somewhat at the other hand of the scale, as they tend to run words together, producing an entirely incomprehensible babble eg: “weeeeeiiheywhatchuuptotodayhowyabeenivebeenkewlhaveyouseenmynewscarfisntitcuteohmygodmyphonesringingsorry”. Their language deteriorates even more online, where communicating with a TB is akin to talking to a Giant SMS message, with more pictures. Eg. Common phrases encountered online include:
-------------Girls
Hi, how are you?
"e3iOwO3zZ HuNN4iiZz~!!! mwAahZ~! wAtcHuZ b3eN aRpzZ `2~~~??"
I must be going now, I’ll talk to you another time.
"o3wZz~~ ai` gOtz tA gO3Z bUbBi3Z~~~ iMMa tOrk `2 yOoHz `8rZ mMk4iiZ~??"
Good bye.
"bUh`b4iZz~~!! MwaHhZz~!! LuB chUuZ~!!! (k)(l)(f)"
Oh no.
“OmiiGaWdzZ~~!!! OmGzZzzZZZ~!!!!!!!!1 11one”
I don’t think that girl is very nice.
“OmiFaRk`N gAwDzzZ dAt b!tCh~???!!!!?!!!”
I find that hilarious.
“LoLLi3z~!!! rOfFl3Zz~!! LoOlzZ~!! K3k3k3k.. shOo faRn3yZ~~!!!??!!”
Do you like the present I received from my boyfriend; isn’t it pretty?
“OmiGaWdzZ~~~aAAwwWz z~~ mAii bOO gAb diZ 2 me3hZ~!! ai LuBz mAi huNnaiiZ~~!!!! itSh shOo pw3ttiii~!!!!”
I don’t know.
“iuNnOeZz~!!” or “ieRnO3z~~!!” or “*shwuGz*”
-------------Guys
Hello how are you? -
"supz" or “sarp” commonly followed by “man, dude or manGz”
Yes, thank you -
"yer"
No, I dont want to -
"nar"
I don’t know. -
“the fk?”
I've got to go, i'll speak to you again another time. -
"gtg man"
Goodbye -
"l8r"
I find her very attractive -
"fkn hot bish"
Oh my, that news really surprises me -
"fk man"
I think you are being unfair, and hostile. -
"fk u man"
Perhaps you should think before you say something quite so unjust? -
"stfu noob"
Would you like to accompany me upon an outing? -
"go cs man"
---------------General Language Notes
How to say “love”: luV, LuBz, wuV, wuBz, h34rTz, riC3 bOi 4 foUndaSh`N kwe3n, me3hZ 4 yoOhZ, and the most perplexing of them all…“eshtOOhs” - is "ess, too".. meaning, "s" and "2".. meaning.. "s2" meaning.. "heart".. meaning "love"; “OmiGawDzZ RiC3 bOi esHtOOhZ FoUndAsHuN Kw3eN”.
Affectionate names: huN, huNnaiiZ, beYbiiZ, baiBaiZ, buBbi3z, buU, bOO
Sunday, November 1, 2009
Funny stuff 3
Note: I don't claim ANY of this as my own work. Props to the Internet and all those bored guys out there :D
~~~
American and Chinese conversation
This is a radio conversation of a US naval ship with Chinese authorities off the coast of Vietnam in South China Sea in October 1980.
CHINESE: Please divert your course 15 degrees to the south to avoid a collision.
AMERICANS: Recommend you divert your course 15 degrees to the north to avoid a collision.
CHINESE: Negative. You will have to divert your course 15 degrees to the south to avoid a collision.
AMERICANS: This is the captain of a US Navy ship. I say again, divert YOUR course.
CHINESE: No, I say again, you divert YOUR course.
AMERICANS: This is the Aircraft Carrier USS MIDWAY, the second largest ship in the United States Pacific Fleet.
We are accompanied with three Destroyers, three Cruisers and numerous support vessels. I DEMAND that you change your course 15 degrees north. I say again, that's one-five degrees north, or counter-measures will be undertaken to ensure the safety of this ship.
CHINESE: This is a lighthouse.
~~~
George Bush: "Condoleeza! Nice to see you. What's happening?"
Condoleeza Rice: "Sir, I have the report here about the new leader of China."
George: "Great. Lay it on me."
Condoleeza: "'Hu' is the new leader of China."
George: "That's what I want to know."
Condoleeza: "That's what I'm telling you."
George: "That's what I'm asking you. Who is the new leader of China?"
Condoleeza: "Yes."
George: "I mean the fellow's name."
Condoleeza: "Hu."
George: "The guy in China."
Condoleeza: "Hu."
George: "The new leader of China."
Condoleeza: "Hu."
George: "The Chinaman!"
Condoleeza: "Hu is leading China."
George: "Now whaddya' asking me for?"
Condoleeza: "I'm telling you Hu is leading China."
George: "Well, I'm asking you. Who is leading China?"
Condoleeza: "That's the man's name."
George: "That's whose name?"
Condoleeza: "Yes."
George: "Will you or will you not tell me the name of the new leader of China?"
Condoleeza: "Yes, sir."
George: "Yassir? Yassir Arafat is in China? I thought he was in the Middle East."
Condoleeza: "That's correct."
George: "Then who is in China?"
Condoleeza: "Yes, sir."
George: "Yassir is in China?"
Condoleeza: "No, sir."
George: "Then who is?"
Condoleeza: "Yes, sir."
George: "Yassir?"
Condoleeza: "No, sir."
George: "Look, Condoleeza. I need to know the name of the new leader of China. Get me the Secretary General of the U.N. on the phone."
Condoleeza: "Kofi?"
George: "No, thanks."
Condoleeza: "You want Kofi?"
George: "No."
Condoleeza: "You don't want Kofi."
George: "No. But now that you mention it, I could use a glass of milk. And then get me the U.N."
Condoleeza: "Yes, sir."
George: "Not Yassir! The guy at the U.N."
Condoleeza: "Kofi?"
George: "Milk! Will you please make the call?"
Condoleeza: "And call who?"
George: "Who is the guy at the U.N?"
Condoleeza: "Hu is the guy in China."
George: "Will you stay out of China?!"
Condoleeza: "Yes, sir."
George: "And stay out of the Middle East! Just get me the guy at the U.N."
Condoleeza: "Kofi."
George: "All right! With cream and two sugars. Now get on the phone."
Saturday, October 31, 2009
Funny stuff 2
Note: I don't claim ANY of this as my own work. Props to the Internet and all those bored guys out there :D
The Laws of Anime!
Law of Metaphysical Irregularity
The normal laws of physics do not apply.
Law of Differentiated Gravitation
Whenever someone or something jumps, is thrown, or otherwise is rendered airborn, gravity is reduced by a factor of 4.
Law of Sonic Amplification, First Law of Anime Acoustics
In space, loud sounds, like explosions, are even louder because there is no air to get in the way.
Law of Constant Thrust, First Law of Anime Motion
In space, constant thrust equals constant velocity.
Law of Mechanical Mobility, Second Law of Anime Motion
The larger a mechanical device is, the faster it moves. Armored Mecha are the fastest objects known to human science.
Law of Temporal Variability
Time is not a constant. Time stops for the hero whenever he does something 'cool' or 'impressive'. Time slows down when friends and lovers are being killed and speeds up whenever there is a fight.
First Law of Temporal Mortality
'Good Guys' and 'Bad Guys' both die in one of two ways. Either so quick they don't even see it coming, OR it's a long drawn out affair where the character gains much insight to the workings of society, human existence or why the toast always lands butter side down.
Second Law of Temporal Mortality
It takes some time for bad guys to die... regardless of physical damage. Even when the 'Bad Guys' are killed so quickly they didn't even see it coming, it takes them a while to realize they are dead. This is attributed to the belief that being evil damages the Reality Lobe of the brain.
Law of Dramatic Emphasis
Scenes involving extreme amounts of action are depicted with either still-frames or black screens with a slash of bright color (usually red or white).
Law of Dramatic Multiplicity
Scenes that only happen once, for instance, a 'Good Guy' kicks the 'Bad Guy' in the face, are seen at least 3 times from 3 different angles.
Law of Inherent Combustability
Everything explodes. Everything.
First Corollary - Anything that explodes bulges first.
Second Corollary - Large cities are the most explosive substances known to human science. Tokyo in particular seems to be the most unstable of these cities, sometimes referred to as "The Matchstick City".
Law of Phlogistatic Emission
Nearly all things emit light from fatal wounds.
Law of Energetic Emission
There is alway an energy build up (commonly referred to as an energy 'bulge') before Mecha or space craft weapons fire. Because of the explosive qualities of weapons, it is believed that this is related to the Law of Inherent Combustability.
Law of Inverse Lethal Magnitude
The destructive potential of a weapon is inversly proportional to its size.
First Corollary - Small and cute will always overcome big and ugly. Also know as the A-Ko phenomenon.
Law of Inexhaustability
No one *EVER* runs out of ammunition. That is of course unless they are cornered, out-numbered, out-classed, and unconscious.
Law of Inverse Accuracy
The accuracy of a 'Good Guy' when operating any form of fire-arm increases as the difficulty of the shot increases. The accuracy of the 'Bad Guys' when operating fire-arms decreases when the difficulty of the shot decreases. (Also known as the Stormtrooper Effect)
Example: A 'Good Guy' in a drunken stupor being held upside down from a moving vehicle will always hit, and several battalions of 'Bad Guys' firing on a 'Good Guy' standing alone in the middle of an open field will always miss.
First Corollary - The more 'Bad Guys' there are, the less likely they will hit anyone or do any real damage.
Second Corollary - Whenever a 'Good Guy' is faced with insurmountable odds, the 'Bad Guys' line up in neat rows, allowing the hero to take them all out with a single burst of automatic fire and then escape.
Third Corollary - Whenever a 'Good Guy' is actually hit by enemy fire, it is in a designated 'Good Guy Area', usually a flesh wound in the shoulder or arm, which restricts the 'Good Guy' from doing anything more strenuous than driving, firing weaponry, using melee weapons, operating heavy machinery, or doing complex martial arts maneuvres.
Law of Transient Romantic Unreliability
Minmei is a bimbo.
Law of Hemoglobin Capacity
The human body contains over 12 gallons of blood, sometimes more, under high pressure.
Law of Demonic Consistency
Demons and other supernatural creatures have at least three eyes, loads of fangs, tend to be yellow-green or brown (but black is not unknown), and can only be hurt by bladed weapons.
Law of Militaristic Unreliability
Huge galaxy-wide armadas, entire armies, and large war-machines full of cruel, heartless, bloodthirsty warriors can be stopped and defeated with a single insignificant example of a caring/loving emotion or a song.
Law of Tactical Unreliability
Tactical geniuses aren't....
Law of Inconsequential Undetectability
People never notice the little things... Like missing body parts, or wounds the size of Seattle.
Law of Juvenile Intellectuality
Children are smarter than adults. And almost always twice as annoying.
Law of Americanthropomorphism
Americans in Anime appear in one of two roles, either as a really nasty skinny 'Bad Guy' or a big stupid 'Good Guy'.
First Corollary - The only people who are more stupid than the big dumb Americans are the American translators. (Sometimes referred to as the Green Line Effect.)
Second Corollary - The only people who are more stupid than the American translators are the American editors and censors.
Law of Mandibular Proportionality
The size of a person's mouth is directly proportional to the volume at which they are speaking or eating.
Law of Feline Mutation
Any half-cat/half-human mutation will invariably: be female, will possess ears and sometimes a tail as a genetic mutation, and wear as little clothing as possible, if any.
Law of Conservation of Firepower
Any powerful weapon capable of destroying/defeating an opponent in a single shot will invariably be reserved and used only as a last resort.
Law of Technological User-Benevolence
The formal training required to operate a spaceship or mecha is inversely proportional to its complexity.
Law of Melee Luminescence
Any being displaying extremely high levels of martial arts prowess and/or violent emotions emits light in the form of a glowing aura. This aura is usually blue for 'good guys' and red for 'bad guys'. This is attributed to Good being higher in the electromagnetic spectrum than Evil.
Law of Non-anthropomorphic Antagonism
All ugly, non-humanoid alien races are hostile, and usually hell-bent on destroying humanity for some obscure reason.
Law of Follicular Chroma Variability
Any color in the visible spectrum is considered a natural hair color. This color can change without warning or explanation.
Law of Follicular Permanence
Hair in anime is pretty much indestructable, and can resist any amount of meteorological conditions, energy emissions, physical abuse, or explosive effects and still look perfect. The only way to hurt someone's hair is the same way you deal with demons... with bladed weapons!
Law of Topological Aerodynamics, First Law of Anime Aero-Dynamics
*ANY* shape, no matter how convoluted or odd-looking, is automatically aerodynamic.
Law of Probable Attire
Clothing in anime follows certain predictable guidelines.
Female characters wear as little clothing as possible, regardless of whether it is socially or meteorologically appropriate. Any female with an excessive amount of clothing will invariably have her clothes ripped to shreds or torn off somehow. If there is no opportunity to tear off the afore-mentioned female's clothes, then she will inexplicably take a shower for no apparent reason (also known as the Gratuitous Shower Scene).
Whenever there is a headwind, a Male characters will invariably wear a long cloak which doesn't hamper movement and billows out dramatically behind him.
First Corollary (Cryo-Adaptability) - All anime characters are resistant to extremely cold temperatures, and do not need to wear heavy or warm clothing in snow.
Second Corollary (Indecent Invulnerability) - Bikinis render the wearer invulnerable to any form of damage.
Law of Musical Omnipotence
Any character capable of musical talent (singing, playing an instrument, etc.) is automatically capable of doing much more "simple" things like piloting mecha, fighting crime, stopping an intergalactic war, and so on... especially if they have never attempted these things before.
Law of Quitupular Aggultination
Also called "The Five-man Rule," when "Good Guys" group together, it tends to be in groups of five. There are five basic positions, which are:
The Hero/Leader
His girlfriend
His Best Friend/Rival
A Hulking Brute
A Dwarf/Kid
Between these basic positions are distributed several attributes, which include:
Extreme
Coolness
Amazing intelligence
Incredible irritation
Law of Extradimensional Capacitance
All anime females have an extradimensional storage space of variable volume somewhere on their person from which they can instantly retrieve any object at a moment's notice.
First Corollary (The Hammer Rule) - The most common item stored is a heavy mallet, which can be used with unerring accuracy on any male who deserves it. Other common items include costumes/uniforms, power suits/armor, and large bazookas.
Law of Hydrostatic Emission
Eyes tend to be rather large in Anime. This is because they contain several gallons of water, which may be instantaneously released at high pressure through large tear ducts. The actual volume of water contained in the eyes is unknown, as there is no evidence to suggest that these reservoirs are actually capable of running out. The reason water tends to collect in the eyes is because Anime characters only have one large sweat gland, which is located at the back of the head. When extremely stressed, embarrassed, or worried, this sweat gland exudes a single but very large drop of sebaceous fluid.
Law of Inverse Attraction
Success at finding suitable mates is inversely proportionate to how desperately you want to be successful. The more you want, the less you get.
First Corollary - Unfortunately, this law seems to apply to Otaku in the real world...
Law of Nasal Sanguination
When sexually aroused, males in Anime don't get erections, they get nosebleeds. No one's sure why this is, though... the current theory suggests that larger eyes means smaller sinuses and thinner sinus tissue (see Law #38 above). Females don't get nosebleeds, but invariably get one heck of a blush along the cheeks and across the nose, suggesting a lot of bloodflow to that region.
Law of Xylolaceration
Wooden or bamboo swords are just as sharp as metal swords, if not sharper.
Law of Juvenile Omnipotence
Always send a boy to do a man's job. He'll get it done in half the time and twice the angst.
Law of Quadrotriscadecophobia
There is no Law #43.
Law of Nominative Clamovocation
The likelihood of success and damage done by a martial arts attack is directly proportional to the volume at which the full name of the attack is announced.
Law of Uninteruptable Metamorphosis
Regardless of how long or involved the transformation sequence or how many times they've seen it before, any 'Bad Guys' witnessing a mecha/hero/heroine transforming are too stunned to do anything to interrupt it.
Law of Flimsy Incognition
Simply changing into a costume or wearing a teensy mask can make you utterly unrecognizable to even your closest friends and relatives.
Friday, October 30, 2009
Funny stuff
Note: I don't claim ANY of this as my own work. Props to the Internet and all those bored guys out there :D
~~~
No known species of reindeer can fly. BUT there are 300,000 species of living organisms yet to be classified, and while most of these are insects and germs, this does not COMPLETELY rule out flying reindeer, which only Santa has ever seen.
There are 2 billion children (persons under 18) in the world. BUT since Santa doesn't (appear) to handle the Muslim, Hindu, Jewish & Buddhist children, that reduces the workload to 15% of the total -378 million according to Population Reference Bureau. At an average (census) rate of 3.5 children per household, that's 91.8 million homes. One presumes that there's at least one good child in each.
Santa has 31 hours of Christmas to work with. This is due to the different time zones and the rotation of the earth, assuming he travels east to west (which seems logical). This works out to 822.6 visits/second. That is to say that for each Christian household with good children, Santa has .001 second to park, hop out of the sleigh, jump down the chimney, fill the stockings, distribute the remaining presents under the tree, eat whatever snacks have been left, get back up the chimney, get back into the sleigh and move on to the next house.
Assuming that each of these 91.8 million stops are evenly distributed around the earth (which, of course, we know to be false but for the purposes of our calculations we will accept), we are now talking about .78 miles/household, a total trip of 75.5 million miles; not counting stops to do what most of us do at lease once every 31 hours, plus eating etc. So Santa's sleigh must be moving at 650 miles/second, 3,000 times the speed of sound. For purposes of comparison, the fastest man-made vehicle on earth, the Ulysses space probe, moves at a pokey 27.4 miles/second. A conventional reindeer can run, tops, 15 miles/hour.
If every one of the 91.8 million homes with good children were to put out a single chocolate chip cookie and an 8 ounce glass of 2% milk, the total calories (needless to say other vitamins and minerals) would be approximately 225 calories (100 for the cookie, give or take, and 125 for the milk, give or take). Multiplying the number of calories per house by the number of homes (225 x 91.8 x 1000000), we get the total number of calories Santa consumes that night, which is 20,655,000,000 calories. To break it down further, 1 pound is equal to 3500 calories. Dividing our total number of calories by the number of calories in a pound (20655000000 / 3500) and we get the number of pounds Santa gains, 5901428.6, which is 2950.7 tons.
The payload on the sleigh adds another interesting element. Assuming that each child gets nothing more than a medium-sized Lego set (2 lb.), the sleigh is carrying 321,300 tons, not counting Santa, who is invariably described as overweight. On land, conventional reindeer can pull no more than 300lb. Even granting that "flying reindeer" (see #1) can pull 10 TIMES the normal amount, we cannot do the job with 8, or even 9, reindeer. We need 214,200. This increases the payload - not counting the weight of the sleigh - to 353,430 tons. This is four times the weight of the ocean-liner Queen Elizabeth.
353,000 tons traveling at 650 miles/second creates enormous air resistance. This will heat the reindeer up in the same fashion as a spacecraft reentering the earth's atmosphere. The lead pair of reindeer will absorb 14.3 QUINTILLION joules of energy. Per second. Each. In short, they will burst into flame almost instantaneously, exposing the reindeer behind them and create deafening sonic booms in their wake. The entire reindeer team will be vaporized within .00426 of a second. Meanwhile, Santa, will be subjected to centrifugal forces 17,500.06 times greater than gravity. A 250 lb. Santa, being very conservative in terms of guessing Santa's weight, would be pinned to the back of his sleigh by 4,315,015 lb. of force. If Santa ever DID deliver presents on Christmas Eve, he's dead now.
Sunday, October 25, 2009
Friday, October 23, 2009
Final words...
Vivant omnes virgines, faciles, formosae. (Love live the girls, easy and beautiful).
I am so fucked for exams.
Spent 7 hours at Box Hill Library today, and in that time...I read a book about 1st SFOD-D (Delta Force), beat Hungy and Charles at Mario Kart, did Brain Training, played some Final Fantasy Tactics A2, watched Hungy beat the final level of Advance Wars 2: Dual Strike, read chapter 10 of the Claymore manga, bummed around, didn't do anything. Yay. Just one week left till English exam. Whooo...
Thursday, October 22, 2009
Final days
As usual, we had singing for the last twenty minutes of period 5. However, due to the veritable horde of people who recieved prizes (kudos to Steve, Kevin...and none of the other prize winners go onto this, so let's end it there.) we didn't actually get let out till about 1:40 or something. And singing went overtime too, but I don't mind that, since the songs this year are actually pretty awesome. I'll list the songs here:
Kasey Chambers - The Rain
Boom Crash Opera - Dancing in the storm
Toto - Africa
Ennio Morricone - Vita Nostra
Les Miserables song (I don't know, I don't care, but it's about class struggle which makes it SWEET.)
Music staff really did do a great job this year with song choice. And that human percussion bit...well, let's just hope that the whole school manages to pull it off!
Anyway, so, back to the PLC visit. So I was running mega-late already (was hoping to arrive at 2:22 at PLC the night before when I was organising), but I didn't give up hope!
Got to Richmond Station, and it was like an 8 minute wait for a Lilydale train, but like a 3 minute trip to Hawthorn Station. Managed to get lost at Hawthorn and couldn't quite get off the platform for a second, and then walked the wrong (and longer) way to the tram stop. Tram journey took literally ages, and nothing interesting to do except look at scenery, which would have been nice if I actually had a window seat. So instead I played imaginary Battlefield 2142 in my head, which is, by the by, a really good futuristic first-person shooter that, quite simply, works. Oh, except that you can camp the Titan corridors way too easily if you have the right squad (two recon with Lambert carbines, two assault with underslung rockets, two support with sentry turrets and a machineguns), making it near impossible for an assault force to get in there (especially on the longer corridors in 1 and 2). Not that any of that will mean much to...anyone, except maybe Hungy and Long. So yes.
And then when I finally got off the tram at stop 61: Presbytarian Ladies' College, it was like, massive. Seriously, huge. Fully-owned indoor heated pool, extensive gardens that get watered and look lusciously green despite the water restrictions, and giant modern buildings. The entire place just screamed rich. I felt really out of place, with my (dirty) public school blazer, scruffy shoes, white socks and pants with a hole in the right knee. And, while I've vowed to not put anything political on here, I will say this: Why can't MHS have resources that PLC evidently has? Are we any less deserving?
So, yes, Vi gave me the grand tour and...I was impressed. If I were a girl rolling in cash (which I'm not), I'd pick PLC as my institution of choice for secondary schooling. Actually, if I were a guy, I'd probably pick PLC too. Yay girls! ^^
Yesterday was the final day of classes...didn't really feel special, I guess. More just a sense of apprehension regarding exams in *gulp* one week as of today. And I did detect just a slight hint of relief in the air, as the class of 2009 gathered up their books from their final classes, and headed home for one of the final times.
Water fight on Tuesday was seriously epic, but kind of confusing and just a little disappointing. While the SRC promised a line of cones down the middle of the oval, with half the year level on either side, with a massive all-out fight, they arrived late and by then the fight had already spontaneously erupted as several small skirmishes. And not only was there barely enough time to prepare properly, but the limited amount of waterbombs that were supplied or prepared was seriously inadequate for the twenty-five minute melee. And, to Kevin, DAMN YOU for getting me. And David, WHAT THE FUCK AS IF GET ME WHILE I WAS DOWN. And Henry, HOW DID YOU MISS LONG FROM THAT CLOSE?!
Wednesday was milk run. Something about 18 year old half-dressed males drinking milk and lemon juice, then running laps, seems to stir a primal interest in the student body, because there was a massive crowd gathered to watch. That is, until the end, when milk was liberally thrown around. Oh, and watching people dance on regurgitated milk is quite sickening.
Today. The last day. Didn't actually see many of things that were done, except Hoy's office moved to the foyer and covered in post-it notes (Seriously awesome job, to whoever did that). Heard about a lot of other things, and managed to see the Vladimutch poster hanging in the stairwell near the Library as I ran up to print my resume.
Final Assembly went for three full periods plus ten minutes of recess, and despite it's undoubted entertainingness, I freely admit that I was disappointed; our planned events that would have happened during periods 2-3 did not occur as a result, and after that we were "encouraged" to leave the school with due haste. Not that we did; stood around at the front gate posturing with Long and David for a while, before Nam gave me a sip of bourbon, and I went and found the rest of the guys hanging around at lockers. Oh, and whoever stacked the tables and chairs in T30 did a great job :D
Went to Box Hill for lunch, dropping off my resume at EB (here's hoping that I get the job!). Awesome noodle place; must go there more often. Owe Hungy $5, if I ever get moneys.
Updates: Just $10 short of CoD6 now!
Mass-mailed MHS contacts regarding Team MHS online gaming clan, got a couple of new signups. Hoping for more after exams.
PLC and Macrob had their Valedictory dinners last night; hope everyone enjoyed their evenings!
A couple of "end" quotes:
"Si finis bonus est, totum bonum erit" (If the end be well, all will be well) - Gestoe Romanorum (tale LXVII)
"Whatsoever thou takest in hand, remember the end, and thou shalt never do amiss" - Ecclesiasticus (ch. VII, v. 36)
"In my end is my beginning." - Jean de la Fontaine
"Now this is not the end. It is not even the beginning of the end. But it is, perhaps, the end of the beginning." - Winston Churchill
"Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter." - Martin Luther King, Jr
"I existed from all eternity and, behold, I am here; and I shall exist till the end of time, for my being has no end." Kahil Gibran
Tuesday, October 20, 2009
Plans, post-exam style
- Read The Five Greatest Warriors, the newest book in the Jack West Jr series by acclaimed author Matthew Reilly
- Play Call of Duty 6: Modern Warfare 2
- Co-found and maintain the Team MHS online gaming clan (invites, just ask me)
- Get a job
- Go out
- Play Call of Duty 6: Modern Warfare 2 (some more)
- Get braces (oh no...)
Hmm. I'm planning on doing at least 9 hours a day of CoD6 (9am-6pm), online, as long as my laptop can take it. Should be AWESOME. Can't wait! Put in my preorder today...anyone else need details, just ask me! :D
Friday, October 16, 2009
Rant
Dearest Mother,
I hate you. I hate how you try to dominate and control MY life. Who do you think you are, Mao or someone? Piss off. If I want to do something, I damned well will do it, and if you stop me, you'll pay the price in the future. Want me to be a nice filial son and visit three times a week when you're old? Hell no. Fuck off. I'll be out living my life, free from your constraints. Who's fault will this be? Yours.
I mean, take Cadets for example. At the start of this year, you were all like "Oh, you're going to join the Army, so you don't even need to take part". And then at the same time you were like "Make sure you have backup plans for your tertiary education". Well, now look what happened! Army rejected me because I'm too passive (which I also blame on you, by the way, for making me so goddamn submissive I can't even socialise properly), and I haven't done anything at all in Cadets this year! Bare minimum attendance to Training Camp, didn't go Annual Camp, no Annual Parade, no Officers's Dinner. Hell, if you hadn't opposed it so strenuously I mighta gotten an actual position this year, instead of a superfluous sergeant with no real role at all. Fuck you. Fourth (and final) year of Cadets, with nothing to show for it other then three stripes that I don't even deserve. Cadets was all that kept me going through MHS. And now I feel like I've let the Unit down, and I've let myself down. And there's no way to redeem myself. Cadets has been, in some respects, my family, and in letting everyone down...it just feels absolutely shit.
You say you give me freedom because I can go out in the holidays with friends. Then you tell me off for going out when everyone else, like Kevin and Bill, stay home, because apparently that makes me a bad student. Then, on top of that, you claim that you don't control my life! And when I compare your dictatorial management of the family to Hitler, you hit me. Fuck you. Am I wrong? If I speak out, if I even try to correct one of your mistakes, I get shouted at. Just because you are old and wise and all that shit doesn't mean you're always right. You have experience, sure, but that doesn't mean you've drawn the right conclusions. I have knowledge, and I have the gift of foresight, the ability to step back and look at the consequences of the actions of others in a similar position. You think you're so high and mighty, but in reality, you're nothing. Stop trying to control my life.
I mean, do you honestly give a flying fuck about what I career path I choose? Who gives a shit if there's not many job prospects? It's what I want to do, and I'm going to do it. I refuse to follow some other career path that I like less, purely because it means I'll get a job and earn money sooner. This is not China, where secure jobs are few and far between. I actually have a CHOICE of what I want to do. Your thoughts, opinions, and experiences belong to a different place and time, one which is not applicable to there here and now. You went to high school at a time when modern computers and the Internet did not exist. I'd tell you to get with the times, but you are so stubborn in your outdated ways, believing that all new methods must be wrong because they conflict with yours, that it'd simply be a waste of breath. No longer does the book reign supreme in the halls of study! With the World Wide Web, I can access more than sufficient information regarding any topic in the time it takes you to find your car keys. Change or die.
And despite all this, you tell me to follow your example because supposedly you are some sort of super perfect person. Hate to break it to ya, but you ain't. Welcome to reality, 21st century style.
Oliver
Thursday, September 3, 2009
Beginning of the end...
"Now this is not the end. It is not even the beginning of the end. but it is, perhaps, the end of the beginning." - Winston Churchill
Sums up Year 12, doesn't it? First 18 years of our life over...tomorrow is the rest of your life. Guess we better make the most of it. You only live life once, after all. Gotta make my mark, then get out of here...the illness is life, the cure is death.
Can't believe that, 13 years ago, I was some kid in Prep who had glasses and couldn't do anything very well. Now all that's different is...I need glasses, and I still can't do anything very well. ^^ How times change...
I guess the aim of this blog was to try and explore my past, and in some respects come to terms with many of the things that happened in my life so that I can face tomorrow confident that I have mastered the past. It truly is so that he who controls the present controls the past, and he who controls the past controls the future.
~~~
Congratulations to every with cross country today :) Guess we'll find out the results on...Monday? And while every house can't come first, I wish we didn't have losers...today, everyone was a winner.
~~~
Memory of the day: Final assembly, Grade 6. The entire class stood outside the hall afterwards holding on to each other, hugging, crying, shaking hands. Even me. Song of the day is my graduation song :)
~~~
Today is the 70th anniversary of Britain and France's declaration of war on Germany, thereby beginning the Second World War. I think Australia was the next country to declare, about 30 minutes after Chamberlain announced it to the world via shortwave radio. Also happens to be Legacy week this week. I encourage everyone to go buy a badge and support our diggers. Lest We Forget.
Wednesday, September 2, 2009
Today
October 1st - 60th anniversary of the declaration of the People's Republic of China. Should have a massive parade in Beijing - looking forward to it!
October 15th - Annual Ceremonial Parade
October 16th - Officers' Dinner
October 22nd - Muckup day. Time to start planning...
November 18th - VCE 3/4 exams finish (for me)
December 1st - Last speech night
December 3rd - Valedictory dinner
December 4th - 18th birthday
I'm pretty sure that covers everything. Can't wait for this year to be over...but I'm going to miss it. Well, actually, compared to last year, this year is easier schoolwise, but far worse socially. I'm going to miss being a kid.
Memory of the day: Personal news presentation for grade 3. I was so lacking in ideas that I wrote a story about playing cricket with my family in the front yard. It was absolutely shit. But, for my family, that was about as much together time as we got. And then in grade 5, Dad left and went to China with sister, and life's been pretty shit since then. Sure, I barely had a father figure before then, but having none at all is just crap.
Tuesday, September 1, 2009
Colourblindness
Hope you got your Formal photos today; if not, check out the Hockey Pavilion on Friday. Remember your money!
I hate my laptop.
My headphones suck.
I had an argument with a close friend and the world is going to shit.
~~~
If you grow up being taught that a specific colour is "red", but someone else is taught that it is "green", while in reality they are both the same colour...then who is right? If each truly has an inherent belief that they are correct, then neither is lying. If that is so, then both must be telling the truth. But how can they both be telling the truth if it is a mutually exclusive event? The colour is obviously either "red" or "green". Thus, either different realities exist for different people, or something must exist other than right and wrong, or true and false, or yes and no. At the same time, this something else must also be an absolute, not a "maybe".
Reality is all about perception. How you see the world around you defines what you believe. Even if that brings you into conflict with other people's perceptions, it doesn't mean either of you is wrong...rather, simply that different people live different lives in different worlds. So it's entirely possible that religion isn't a lie...but that doesn't mean it's not mass delusion.
~~~
Memory of the day: This isn't really a memory, but today is such an important day that I'm waiving that...
1st September, 1939
The Invasion of Poland
60 German divisions with 9000 guns and 2750 tanks, supported by 2300 warplanes, crush Polish resistance within two weeks. It is the continuation of the Great War, which paused 20 years earlier. Now begins the March of the Dictators in a war far more terrible.
Lest We Forget.
Monday, August 31, 2009
Insecurity
~~~
Jokes. What is a joke? An attempt to humorise an object, person, or situation. But why? It is my ardent belief that jokes are a sort of survival tool used by people to belittle or play down or rationalise situations. But, at the same time, jokes are used to make oneself feel good by making oneself feel like they belong to the majority. It feels good to belong, and people are always afraid of being an outsider. Laughter shows other people as being ostracised, excluded, decreasing their chance of succesful reproduction. Humour is thus a biological trait to improve one's own chances of producing offspring. You make fun of those that may be fitter than you (fit in the sense of being able to produce children) because, secretly, you are afraid of them. In essence, when you make a joke, you're revealing a hidden fear, giving insight into what scares you. Every time you tell a joke, you're showing an insecurity about yourself, whether that joke be about sex, women, money, Polish people, blondes, etc. etc. You make fun of them because you're not one of them.
~~~
Just a note to everyone that professional formal photos will be on sale tomorrow at the Hockey Pavilion for $10 each; if you miss out tomorrow, they'll be around on Friday as well.
~~~
Memory of the day: Start of this year, I was on the tram on the way to Richmond pool for Senior Swimming (yes, because apparently I can't swim...). Some lady on the tram got pissed off at all the MHS kids (there were a LOT of us) for filling up the space. When Faisal tried to explain to her that he couldn't physically make more room, she started screeching about how she was "older and so deserved respect."
Sorry Ms, but respect must be earned through one's actions. What you did? Hell no am I going to respect you. Respect cannot be so freely given.
Respect for someone does not imply that you like them; rather, it acknowledges their proficiency, skill, or experience. Thus, elderly people are immediately worthy of respect due to their obvious survival skill in achieving old age; not only that, but with age comes experience. When the age gap is smaller, however, actions speak louder than words; what you do is how people will judge you. Complain loudly about a bunch of teenage boys on the train, and then demand respect? Dream on. I'd sooner respect Hitler (and I do).
Kids these days have no respect. Some Year 11 guy today called me "nigger" after I didn't throw his tennis ball back to him. Next time he does that, I swear I'm going to throw that ball into the carpark next to the N building. Why must he respect me? Because I'm older, more experienced. And while you may see a contradiction with what I have written before, I see none. Because I am older, more experienced, there is a certain baseline of respect that should be accorded to me. Through negative actions, I can revoke that respect, but upon first contact the paying of proper respect is simple politeness. Perhaps my failure to return his tennis ball in a timely manner was such a shock that all potential respect for me was lost. While you're at it, why don't you start abusing people for breathing your air?
Sunday, August 30, 2009
Dreams
Dreams are, ultimately, nothing more than an attempt by the brain to decieve itself, to persuade the rational side to be irrational, to believe in the impossible, to hope for that which will never come to pass. Give me a dream, and I will show you a two-edged sword, a broken promise, a shameless lie. But such is the power of a dream, that many a man has fallen to it's poisoned lure; Lincoln - Hitler - Mao - Obama. Look how far their dreams got them. A cold grave (or, in Hitler's case, cyanide and a 'warm' sendoff). To the common man, dreams are merely a temptation to keep them happy with their current circumstances, secure in the knowledge that there is a possibility of things getting better. But here's Reality for you. Things will never get better. Get used to your backbreaking 10 hour job, because the only way you'll get out of it is in a coffin.
~~~
It is almost impossible trying to find piano sheets for Chinese songs. If anyone can find sheet music for 甜蜜蜜 (Tian Mi Mi) by 邓丽君 (Teresa Teng), could you please send it my way? :)
On that note (haha, pun intended), song requests are always open. I'll keep them up there for a day at most, no more than one song per person per day.
~~~
Memory of the day: Year 11, Hari sends me a song by Flobots called Handlebars. I watch the video on Youtube. It's amazing, moving, touching. It's message still resonates with me today. I encourage you all to go see it: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AuK2A1ZqoWs and decide for yourself.
I'm going to keep it at the top of my playlist for a day.
Saturday, August 29, 2009
Balance
~~~
Everything in Nature is about balance. Male/Female. Life/Death. Black/White. Up/Down. Left/Right. Fire/Water. Earth/Sky. Right/Wrong. Hot/Cold. Good/Bad. Life will often oscillate between two extremes, but remember that, for every bad day, there is a good day coming. It's like karma, but for life, rather than for your actions. Even when things seem absolutely horrible and there's no possible way it can get any worse, all that means it that things can only go uphill from there. The glass isn't empty; it's just not full right now.
This inherent balance in Nature is applicable to everything, a sort of all-pervading state of homestasis, if you will. Balance is everything. With the good comes the bad. With the bad comes the good. You think you're happy now, but sadness is inevitable.
~~~
Passed by PLC today. Massive. Rich school. =="
~~~
Galactic Circus is freaking awesome. Thanks for the invite, Sam ^^ M9 is great. Definitely will go back there when year is over. It's like room clearance, but with a billion little kids running around. And you get to shoot them! Got the perfect plan for next time...
~~~
Had a retarded as all fuck dream. But I know not to trust my dreams. Dreams are for the foolish, the weak, those who still have hope for something better. And yet...I can't get it out of my head.
~~~
Memory of the day: First day of Year 7. Thinking that none of my class looked very intelligent, so we couldn't have been the ALP class. Then finding out that we were the ALP class. Relief on other people's faces too...guess I don't look very smart. I'm not. Thought Man-Hin and Sam were twins. :) Didn't know anyone. Lonely. Kinda got used to that, through year 7. Only contact I had with outside classes was...PE, and debating.
Friday, August 28, 2009
mp3 players
~~~
Every morning on the train, on the bus, on the way to school, I observe all kinds of people listening to mp3 devices, totally removed from the rest of the world. It's like they've been insulated in some of kind invisible bubble, thousands upon thousands of them descending upon the city every morning like some greyish mass of humanity. But at what cost? Sure, you can swap music, and that's pretty sociable, but at the end of the day, when you're on the train with four other guys, and no-one's talking because they're all listening to music...that's just sad. This isn't like the Internet creating anti-socials, because the Internet is the greatest tool for mass communication that exists today. But mp3 players? You're just rebuilding the Tower of Babel, seperating the population in a jumble of people who are unable to communicate with one another because, even if they desired to do so, the other party would not be able to hear them. You're creating a society in which everyone listens, but no-one speaks.
Yes, I'm a hypocrite. I'll gladly don my headphones every morning, afternoon and night. But hey, what else is there to do? Silence is deafening.
~~~
Just finished the first three books of the Alex Rider series, and they're pretty good. Not as good as, say, Matthew Rielly, but still good nonetheless. Fancy gadgets, sure, but usually only one use, and rarely more than two or three each book. Anthony Horowitz can really piece together a good plot.
~~~
Note to anyone wishing to buy any of the professional pictures from the Melbourne High School Year 12 Formal 2009, they'll be available for purchase next Tuesday 1st September at the Hockey Pavilion.
~~~
Memory of the day: Grade 6, Cross country. My vice captain and I agreed to run across the line together and so finish equal first, thus increasing the point value of our victory by a bit, and relegating the next person to measly third place. We pulled it off, handily. Looking back, I was a bit of a bastard...fun, though, that's for sure.
Thursday, August 27, 2009
Bus ride
*update* New one added, the right side gets cut off, but have a look and see if it works. Any song suggestions are welcome :)
~~~
Francis - "I'll sleep you with some time, Vino."
Nice to see that Francis and Vino are such..."close...friends. ;)
~~~
Got to school late today...left the house at 7:42 and saw the 7:47 bus leaving. Managed to get onto a bus that came at 7:53, though, but for a while there I was completely lost. So, the question is, am I truly the bus driver of my life, or am I merely a passenger to Fate? Was thinking about it, and I think that it's a mixture of the two. Of course, everyone's life is dictated by Fate. But, along the way, I can steer it in particular directions. Think of life as a stream, constantly carving a new path. Ultimately, the stream will always flow downhill. But along the way, a variety of factors can affect the path that it takes. Rock type, soil type, plants, animals...even the tiniest ant can dam potential paths.
If you're ever lost in a really cold location, like Antarctica or Greenland, wherever the temperature is below 0 degrees Celsius, do NOT warm yourself by exercising. Exercising means sweating, and sweat will freeze, encasing your body in a suit of ice, leading to immobilization and possibly death. Something that seems to be a logical choice can have deadly consequences...even if the consequences do not logically flow on from the action. But, hey, we're humans, possibly the most irrational beings around. Which other animal will cry when their breeding partner sleeps will another individual?
Things are better now. Had a good talk, managed to work some things out. I have hope. But...will leave everything else till after exams, for both people concerned. Go get your 99.95 :)
To all you stargazers out there, for the next three weeks, Saturn's rings will be invisible as they will be lined up exactly with Earth. From one side to the other, those rings are 300,000km wide...and have a thickness of barely 15km. Happens once every 15 years...encourage you all to go take a look.
Memory of the day: 1995, four years old, in China during Autumn. Sitting on my uncle's bike as he tried to ride through mud. We got stuck. Can't remember anything else of that visit...but I remember that bike ride. Strange, what one remembers as we get older...it's not the extraordinary times, important as they are, it's the normal times, the times that all is at peace in our Universe.
Wednesday, August 26, 2009
Opportunities
~~~
OJ: "As they say, the window of opportunity is very small."
Steve: "So use the door."
How often have we been so focused on the path that we have picked, the options that we see, that we forget to take a moment to see if there's a better way? Why try to climb through the window when you haven't even tried the doorknob? Is there something you haven't thought of yet? Life often leaves the keys under the doormat, the fake rock, the flowerpot. Just because we haven't found it yet doesn't mean that it isn't there.
This morning, as I was taking the train from Richmond to South Yarra, I noticed a small bird bravely flying alongside. The very next instant, that tranquil image was replaced by a train lurching past us at incredible speed. I didn't see what happened to the bird, but I knew somehow then that it was dead. Made me wonder...am I the bird or the train? Am I blindly flying to my downfall without regard for others, or am I causing the downfall of others?
I nearly finished the entire puzzle page in today's mX paper. Completed the Sudoku, Jumble, WordScrimmage, and about 3/4 of the Crossword. Simple achievement, in the greater scheme of things, but I feel more accomplished than finishing today's English SAC.
On the bus earlier, coming home from North Shore, a man on the bus pressed the stop button, but the light didn't light up. Not realising this, he got up to disembark, fully expecting the bus to stop at the next stop. Quick as a flash, the lady directly across from me hit her button and the bus stopped just in time. The man got off, never realising that he had been saved that tiny bit of trouble because of a well-meaning stranger. Made me wonder how many times I've gone through life not realising that there's someone out there looking after me, clearing the way, making things a bit easier.
Memory of the day: Year 9, first day of school, arrived late. 8:45 train from Richmond, by the time we got to school all the Year 9's were going into the Memorial Hall and we managed to tag onto the end. Nervous about new school, but Steve and Kevin were both in my class so it wasn't too bad, plus Hungy and Bill were around at recess/lunch. New beginning...felt good.
Tuesday, August 25, 2009
Crossroads
So here I am, on the eve of the sole English SAC for this term, and I find myself at a crossroads in life. A myriad of possibilities for the future stretch away from this one point in time...and, having paid the adequate fees, Life has kindly posted a couple of signposts. These signposts, my friends, my dear friends, have helped me rule out some paths already...others are still open. Where to go? The only thing I can do wrong...is to do nothing at all.
Been thinking of a couple of story ideas, since I like to write and it's fun to think.
First off, an alternate future set in America, in which Germany won World War I and went on to conquer the rest of the world. A group of isolated American rebels, led by the beautiful but enigmatic Emma Roosevelt, fight to throw off the yoke of the German world.
Second, well, kinda a sci-fi thriller. Theory states that telosomes, long repeat sections at the end of chromosomes, may be responsible for the ageing process; they get shorter with each reproduction, and reproduction happens with time. Thus, the length of a telosome is almost like a biological calendar. If it were possible to stop the shortening of telosomes...well, who knows.
Last senior sport session, this Thursday. It'll be a sad day...the finality of year 12 is really starting to hit home. I'm going to miss looking forward to the physical exertion that Thursday afternoons always promised. European handball...my new favourite sport. Not any good at it, but it's fun.
Heavy rain, today. Hail, in some parts. I hope all you guys out there in hail-affected regions are alright, staying safe. Just Nature letting us know she isn't especially pleased, right now. Spring's coming, so sunny days are just ahead :) Wish I could say the same for Year 12. Or my life in general, actually.
Memory of the day:
Day before Good Friday, 1995. Easter Egg hunt. Stepped on one of the eggs, broke it. One of the girls gave me a really wierd stare. Kindergarten...good times. Didn't even worry about school, or education, or life, or girls. Just nap time. *yawn*. Could use a good nap time.
New blog
Up until about a week ago, I had settled into a pretty good routine. Friends I could talk to, gossip with, trust. School was routine, life was pleasant. Even my relationship with my family had settled down to manageable levels (no more late-night arguments). Oh, how naive I was. Peace, so easily won, could not have lasted long.
I'm in some deep shit, now. Said some things I guess I shouldn't have, pursued a topic of discussion when it was clearly the wrong thing to do. Can't take back anything I've said, but hell, you've made me pay for it. I miss you. Can we please talk? Don't know if you'll even see this...don't know if you even care any more. I do. You're everything to me.
Seems like everyone's all grown up now. I mean, one moment we're playing four square in the schoolyard, getting to know each other after moving from different schools, and now we're preparing for the rest of our lives, about to seperate for the final time. Where'd all the time go? I miss being a kid. I'd give anything to go back to when nothing mattered. Carefree days of idyllic existance punctuated by brief but distant bursts of reality. Memory is Man's greatest gift, as well as his greatest curse.
A close friend said to me today, as she was leaving MSN for the night, that we had a good "D&M", Deep and Meaningful. Hadn't thought about it that way, to tell you the truth, but now that I look at it, that's what we had. But at the time, it just seemed like talking, no unusual emotional connections or anything. Does that mean everything I do is deep and meaningful, to someone? Maybe I need to start paying more attention to my actions (and inactions, as the case may be). Everything has an effect, even nothing.
To more physical, realistic, mundane things; Hungy gave me Firefly today! Thanks Vince, I'll get it back to you asap. Biology SAC tomorrow, I'm about a third of the way done now...and it's 12:35am. Joy oh joy. Another late night for me. Apparently I'm unblocked from Stooph/Hungy/Wong's blog, so it'll be good to catch up on the comings and goings there. It's been about 10 days since the Formal, and everyone's already moved on...biggest news of note recently is that Charles was called up to dance at Assembly (out of the 600 guys present) along with the Principal and Mr Wood, amongst others. Oh, and according to Francis, there's a hot Asian student teacher in the music department. MHS guys, I swear =="
Memory of the day: September 11, 2001.
Lucy Feng's family arrives at Melbourne International Airport from China.
Garrett's 11th birthday.
Normal Grade 4 school day.
3,017 people of various nationalities are killed in the 9/11 attacks in New York, Virginia and Pennsylvania. Footage of the two jumbo jets slamming into the North and South Towers are embedded in my memory. The Falling Man becomes my desktop wallpaper.