The Other Blog

Dancing Hotdog Man

2009-11-21T09:23:00.003+13:00

This is from a website about not getting stink jobs or something. See more of them at www.directyourdestiny.org

Class Mascot

2009-11-18T14:56:00.002+13:00

Our class mascot is awesome. He is an elephant.
I have been making him suits out of paper. First I made him a superhero, with a cape, mask, and trunk thing. Too bad I didn't get pictures, and he got wrecked.
So, I made him another costume, but this time he has a cool pair of glasses, a cane, a feathered hat, and a floor-length fur coat.
Below are some pics:

Can anyone guess what he is supposed to be?
I am not allowed to say it online, so I made a link to it:
HIS IDENTITY

My first ever glog

2009-11-17T16:36:00.000+13:00

My first Glog:

100 POSTS!!

2009-11-14T12:00:00.000+13:00

A BIG THANKS TO ALL MY FOLLOWERS AND FRIENDS, I HAVE FINALLY ACHIEVED THE GREAT ONE HUNDRED.
THE AWE-INSPIRING TRIPLE DIGITS.
YAY!!!!!!!!
FINALLY!!!!!!
MR WOODY HAS 150-SOMETHING BUT I DON'T CARE BECAUSE I HAVE GOT 100!!!!!
YAY FOR ME!!!

Try to watch this withour laughing or grinning - seriously

2009-11-14T11:52:00.000+13:00

This actually has "23,851,712 views" on YouTube!

More bad jokes

2009-11-14T11:34:00.000+13:00

Seriously, these are some really bad jokes. Dunno why I'm even posting them, other than to say I did. At any rate, these are pretty much the worst jokes I could find. Enjoy! .... or maybe not.
Two fish were in a tank. One said to the other, "Do you know how to drive this thing?"
Did I ever tell you the story about the broken pencil? It had no point.
I was reading a book about adhesive the other day. I just couldn't put it down.
Q: What's the friendliest school?
A: Hi school.
Q: What's black, white, black, white, and green?
A: Two skunks fighting over a pickle.
Q: What do you give a dog with a fever?
A: Mustard. (It's good for hot dogs.)
Q: What do you call a bass vocalist who sings by himself?
A: So-low.
Q: Where do books eat dinner?
A: At the table of contents.
Q: Why were the suspenders arrested?
A: For holding up a pair of pants.
Q: What do you get if you cross a cow with a camel?
A: A lumpy milkshake.
Q; What did the angry inflatable teacher say to the irresponsible inflatable child in the inflatable school?
A: Not only have you let me down, you've let yourself down, and you've let the whole school down!
Q: Why was the broom late?
A: Because he overswept.
Funnyandjokes.com

23 of the worst jokes you'll ever hear

2009-11-14T10:52:00.000+13:00

23 of the worst jokes you'll ever hear

1. Two blondes walk into a building........ .. you'd think at least
one of them would have seen it

2. Phone answering machine message - "...If you want to buy
marijuana, press the hash key..."

3. A guy walks into the psychiatrist wearing only Clingfilm for shorts.
The shrink says, "Well, I can clearly see you're nuts."

4. I went to buy some camouflage trousers the other day but I
couldn't find any.

5. I went to the butchers the other day and I bet him 50 quid that he
couldn't reach the meat off the top shelf. He said, "No, the steaks
are too high."

6. My friend drowned in a bowl of muesli. A strong currant pulled him
in.

7. A man came round in hospital after a serious accident. He shouted,
"Doctor, doctor, I can't feel my legs!" The doctor replied "I know you
can't, I've cut your arms off".

8. I went to a seafood disco last week...and pulled a muscle.

9. Two Eskimos sitting in a kayak were chilly. They lit a fire in the
craft, it sank, proving once and for all that you can't have your
kayak and heat it too.

10. Our ice cream man was found lying on the floor of his van covered
with hundreds and thousands. Police say that he topped himself.

11. Man goes to the doctor, with a strawberry growing out of his
head. Doc says "I'll give you some cream to put on it."

12. 'Doc I can't stop singing The Green, Green Grass of Home'. "That
sounds like Tom Jones syndrome." 'Is it common?' "It's not unusual."

13. A man takes his Rottweiler to the vet. "My dog is cross-eyed, is
there anything you can do for him?" "Well," said the vet, "let's have
a look at him". So he picks the dog up and examines his eyes, then he
checks his teeth. Finally, the vet says, "I'm going to have to put
him down." "What? Because he's cross-eyed?"
"No, because he's really heavy".

14. Guy goes into the doctor's. "Doc, I've got a cricket ball stuck
up my backside." "...How's that?"
"Don't you start."

15. Two elephants walk off a cliff...boom, boom!

16. What do you call a fish with no eyes? A fsh.
What do you call a deer with no eyes? No idea.

17. So I was getting into my car, and this bloke says to me "Can you
give me a lift?" I said "Sure. You look great ... the world's your
oyster ... go for it."

18. Apparently, 1 in 5 people in the world are Chinese. There are 5
people in my family, so it must be one of them. It's either my mum or
my Dad, or my older Brother Colin, or my younger Brother Ho-Cha-Chu?
But I think its Colin.

19. Two fat blokes in a pub, one says to the other "Your round." The
other one says "So are you, you fat bast**d!"

20. Police arrested two kids yesterday; one was drinking battery
acid, and the other was eating fireworks. They charged one and let
the other one off.

21. "You know, somebody actually complimented me on my driving
today." They left a little note on the windscreen. It said, 'Parking
Fine.' "So that was nice of them."

22. A man walked into the doctors, he said, "I've hurt my arm in
several places". The doctor said, "Well don't go there anymore".
"Doctor, doctor when I bend my arm like this it hurts." "Well don't
do it!"

23. Ireland's worst air disaster occurred early this morning when a
small two-seater Cessna plane crashed into a cemetery. Irish search
and rescue workers have recovered 1826 bodies so far and expect that
number to climb as digging continues into the night.

Top ten worst Christmas cracker jokes ever

2009-11-14T10:45:00.000+13:00

From Telegraph.co.uk

What's brown and sweet and glides around an ice rink?
Bourneville and Dean
What's a specimen?
An Italian astronaut
What do you call a short sighted dinosaur?
A do-you-think-he-saw-us!
What do you call a man with brown paper trousers?
Russell
What do you call a man with a pole through his leg?
Rodney
Why would you invite a mushroom to a Christmas party?
He's a fun guy to be with.
Why was Santa's little helper feeling depressed?
He had low elf-esteem.
Who was England's first chiropodist?
William the Corncurer
Why should husbands make the early morning tea for their wives?
Because the Bible says He Brews
What's the longest word in the English language?
Smiles, because there is a "mile" between the first and the last letters.
Nuts magazine's top 10 worst Christmas cracker jokes.
1. What is Santa's favourite pizza?
One that's deep pan, crisp and even.
2. On which side do chickens have the most feathers?
The outside.
3. What kind of paper likes music?
(W)rapping paper.
4. What's white and goes up?
A confused snowflake.
5. What do you call a woman who stands between two goal posts?
Annette.
6. Did you hear about the man who bought a paper shop?
It blew away.
7. What's furry and minty?
A polo bear.
8. How do snowmen get around?
They ride an icicle.
9. Who hides in the bakery at Christmas?
A mince spy.
10. What do you call a penguin in the Sahara desert?
Lost.

John McCain

2009-11-14T10:35:00.003+13:00

I just hope the GIF image above works. If it doesn't, click HERE to go to the original image.
McCain, “Yes, I am on TV and this is how I express my feelings through my eyes, not words. When I become President, this is what I will do to anyone I dislike including all the other Presidents of the world I will meet.”
Hahaha John McCain andhis vegetable friends everyone!

Hello, my friends. I hope you enjoy this movie about John McCain's vegetable friends, my friends. MY FRIENDS.

A bit of info on the Grumman HU-16 Albatross

2009-11-13T19:40:00.000+13:00

"The Grumman HU-16 Albatross is a large twin-radial engine amphibious flying boat. Originally designated SA-16, it was renamed HU-16 in 1962.
The majority of Albatrosses were used by the U.S. Air Force, primarily by the Air Rescue Service. The USAF utilized the SA-16 extensively in Korea, where it gained a reputation as a rugged and seaworthy craft. Later, the HU-16B (long-wing variant) Albatross was used by the U.S. Air Force's Aerospace Rescue and Recovery Service in the Vietnam conflict. The HU-16D Albatross was used for United States Navy Search And Rescue and "skunk runs" on Guam during the Vietnam War at NAS Agana. Goodwill flights were also common to the surrounding Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands in the early 1970s. Open water landing and takeoff training using JATO was conducted frequently at Apra Harbor, Guam. The aircraft was also operated by the United States Coast Guard for many years."
Info from "jaglavaksoldier", thank you.

Hilarious Japanese Show

2009-11-13T19:27:00.001+13:00

Hahaha. Those are some wierd shows they have in Japan!

Aisling Symes

2009-11-13T19:21:00.000+13:00

The sad, sad case of Aisling Symes has come to a conclusion.
She first went missing on Monday 5th October, 10 days ago. She had light brown hair, and was wearing a green parker/ski jacket, jeans with embroidered flowers on them and white tennis shoes and answers to her first name Aisling -pronounced "Ashling".
The police searched a 3 kilometre radius around the spot where she went missing, and asked locals to search their properties for another 2.
A witness saw Aishling being approached by and Asian lady, and police started searching for her in relation to the disappearance.
The police then found the body of a small child in a drain near her grandparent's home from were she went missing.
It was, unfortunately, her, and she was very sadly killed.
Her parents are just glad for some closure after worrying about her for so long.
The drain cover had been lifting off in the recent rains, and it is believed that she wandered down there by herself.
There are some other rumours, but I cannot confirm nor deny any, so I will not state them here.
*EDIT* sorry this post has been so long in the making, I had trouble finding all the facts, and then I kind of just left it unfinished for a while.

Follow your dreams

2009-11-13T19:13:00.000+13:00

This video below has a very important message, followyour dreams and do whatever you can to achieve them.

Stay true to yourself and remember that if you try, you can achieve anything.

Rick roll worm for iPhone users

2009-11-13T19:06:00.000+13:00

"By A Netguide contributor, Monday, 9th November, 2009

Some iPhone users in Australia have been on the receiving end of the first in-the-wild virus for Apple’s iPhone, which changes the phone’s background photo to one of 1980s singer Rick Astley, a technique commonly known as Rick rolling.

The virus is named “Ikee” and is thought to have been developed by a 21-year-old in New South Wales who recently tweeted that he is “kinda…worried about legal implications”.

The infection appears to be confined to Australia, but there are unconfirmed reports of the virus in Thailand and Japan.

The virus spreads using SSH, which is pre-installed, but not enabled on the iPhone, but many users who have jailbroken their phones may have SSH enabled as a way of accessing their phones from other computers and devices.

The virus targets phones throughout several large IP ranges belonging to Vodafone Australia, Optus and Telstra. The virus is not explicitly destructive, but iPhone users with jailbroken phones are being urged to by Sophos to change their SSH passwords immediately.

“If you have a jailbroken iPhone, change your SSH passwords now,” said Paul Ducklin, Sophos Head of Technology Asia Pacific. “If you don’t have a jailbroken iPhone, you probably also ought to change those passwords, since it makes no sense to have poor passwords pre-configured for any operating system service, whether it runs by default or not.”

A Dutch hacker recently used the same approach to log in to jailbroken iPhones to put a message on phones asking for 5 Euros and offering to give advice on how to secure the phone against future attacks. "

Hahahaha. For more info about the "RickRoll" business, visit THIS LINK RIGHT HERE.

SHURIKEN BUILDING INSTRUCTIONS

2009-11-10T10:37:00.001+13:00

Start with a square (4x4).
Valley fold in half, and unfold.
Cut the square in half, to get two 2x4 sheets. (Evil!)
Optionally, turn over one sheet.
Valley fold each half lengthwise, to get two 1x4 sheets.
Valley fold each half the other way, to get two 1x2 rectangles.
Unfold to step 4, to return to two 1x4 sheets.
On one sheet, valley fold the bottom half to the right,
creating a 45 degree crease that ends at the intersection
of the crease and the edge of the paper.
Valley fold the top half to the left,
creating a 45 degree crease that ends at the intersection
of the crease and the edge of the paper.
The paper should now be in an "S" shape.
Repeat steps 7-8 on the other sheet,
BUT IN MIRROR IMAGE:
valley fold the bottom to the left, and the top to the right.
Turn both sheets over.
Valley fold the outermost squares in half along 45 degree angles.
Yes, there are two diagonals to choose from.
Pick the diagonals that bring corners closer to the
centers of the sheets. This will make the sheets
look even more like mirror image "S"es.
Fold the two triangles created in step 10
across the centers of the sheets.
You should now have two mirror image parallelograms,
each with proportions of 1 x 1.414...
Turn one parallelogram over, so that the halves are not mirror images anymore.
One half will have a slit in the middle,
and the other half will have two flaps showing.
On one piece of paper, open out the flaps, so they stand up.
On the other piece of paper, open out the flaps, so they point down.
(3-D View.) Rotate one sheet 90 degrees.
Place one half on top of the other,
so that the slits face outward.
Make sure that:
- Two flaps point up, and two flaps point down.
- Both slits face outward.
- The flaps are rotated so that the crossed parallelograms
  are the shape of the finished star.
Tuck the tip of one upward-pointing flap
into one half of the upward-facing slit.
Tuck the tip of the other upward-pointing flap into the other half of the upward-facing slit.
Turn the model over.
Tuck another flap into the upward-facing slit.
Tuck the last flap into the slit.
The finished 2-piece shuriken (throwing star)

HAVE FUN THROWING AT PEOPLE.

Sourced from THIS SITE

Year Summary

2009-11-10T10:34:00.000+13:00

Reflection task: State clearly and succinctly one or two main concepts you learnt from:

Quality Learning (Term 1)
Sustainability (Term 2)
Entreprenurial, enterprising, etc... (Term 3)
Writing skills as a group [Matainui] (Term 4)
ICT related general stuff

TERM 1:

I learnt about the traits of a quality learner (SEE LINK HERE AND HERE).
I also learnt about metacognition and learning about learning.
We also studied Socrates, Aristotle, and Plato.

TERM 2:

We learnt how to sustain our environment so our future generations will have an Earth to live on.
I also learnt how to survive in an untouched environment without destroying the natural resources and wildlife.
I improved my eco footprint by biking to school more often and taking shorter showers (SEE LINKS HERE, HERE, AND HERE).

TERM 3:

We learnt about supply and demand and the ever changing market.
We learnt about how to market product and influence our target market.
We also designed and marketed our own product to sell at the trade fair.

TERM 4:

We are learning to write descriptive stories for the fictional Matainui stories (SEE HERE).
We have been developing our writing skills.

ICT:

We started up successful blogs with an international audience (SEE THIS BLOG).
We have been integrating ICT with all out other subjects throughout the year using various means (InterActive WhiteBoard, Blog, etc...)

That's about that.

Funny signs

2009-11-10T09:30:00.000+13:00

This is a random blog post featuring a lot of different signs.

Bush Screw-ups

2009-11-08T08:55:00.001+13:00

I was doing some research for my speech when I found this video...
Enjoy:

Matainui

2009-10-29T18:09:00.003+13:00

I have started a new blog for our class writing, a story of survival that intertwines with everyone in my class's.
It is for my Matainui story, and to visit it, click anywhere on this post!

Cool link

2009-10-19T16:20:00.004+13:00

Click the link below before continuing please:

http://tinyurl.com/253ftf

HAHAHAHAHAHAHA.
HAHAHAHAHAHAHA.
HAHAHAHAHAHAHA.
You just got "Rick Roll'd"
Click the following link to see what Rick Rolling is all about:

http://tinyurl.com/maotmf

Just kidding, here's the actual video of how to Rick Roll someone:

If you haven't been Rick Rolled yet, you probably will be. It's the biggest prank in the online world. Find out how to Rick Roll like a pro.
HAHAHAHAHAHAHA.
Hilarious.

Swiss Army Knives

2009-10-15T17:48:00.006+13:00

When it comes to swiss army knives, Victorinox are definitely the best.
If I was going to get one, I would be spoiled for choice. Below are the catergories and links to them:

EVERYDAY	LED FLASHLIGHTS	DO-IT-YOURSELF

OUTDOOR	EXECUTIVE	GARDEN

CAMOUFLAGE	POCKET TOOL LED	SPECIALS

SPORTS & LEISURE

BOY SCOUTS OF AMERICA®

Not only do they come in lots of shapes and sizes, but they are versatile, tough, and very enduring. There is one in particular, under the outdoors section, that caught my eye.
The ultimate survival tool.
The SwissChamp s.o.s. set
Not only does it feature all the below stuff (see below), but it also comes with a deluxe leather pouch and a life time warranty.
Sharpening stone
Pressure pencil
Writing paper
Three bandage strips
Sewing thread (black and white)
Two sewing needles
Five matches
Two safety pins
Nylon string
Signal mirror
Ruler (in)
Ruler (cm)
Compass
Spirit level
It's pretty snazzy (check out the below photo)

Some Unsolvable Puzzles

2009-10-15T16:17:00.004+13:00

The Mutilated chessboard
Question: Suppose a standard 8x8 chessboard has two diagonally opposite corners removed, leaving 62 squares. Is it possible to place 31 dominoes of size 2x1 so as to cover all of these squares?
Answer: The puzzle is impossible. Any way you would place a domino would cover one white square and one black square. A group of 31 dominoes would cover 31 white and 31 black squares of an unmutilated chessboard, leaving one white and one black square uncovered. The directions had you remove diagonally opposite corner squares, and such squares are always either both black or both white.
Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mutilated_chessboard_problem
The three cottage problem
Question: Suppose there are three cottages on a plane (or sphere) and each needs to be connected to the gas, water, and electric companies. Using a third dimension or sending any of the connections through another company or cottage are disallowed. Is there a way to make all nine connections without any of the lines crossing each other?
Answer: There is no correct solution: it is impossible to connect the three cottages with the three different utilities without at least one of the connections crossing another.
Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Water,_gas,_and_electricity
The three cup problem
Problem: Starting with three cups place one upside down and two right side up. The objective is to eventually turn all cups right side up in six moves. You must turn exactly two cups over each turn.
Answer: The puzzle is impossible. An even number of cups are facing up and you are allowed to turn two over at a time. Since an even plus an even is an even, not an odd, no number of even flips will ever get all the three cups face up. You need an odd number of cups facing up, so the problem is impossible. The possible version of this puzzle is to start with two cups facing down and one cup facing upward. This is possible. Turn up an even number (two) of cups, and all the cups are facing up; an odd plus an even is an odd (1+2 = 3).
Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Three_cups_problem

A test - of sorts

2009-10-09T10:05:00.006+13:00

Please click on the image to enlarge it and make it better quality.
Sourced from funnymos.com

Funny news for today

2009-10-09T10:03:00.001+13:00

Killer rabbits attack snakes

A PAIR of rabid rabbits has been caught killing a series of snakes near Cairns.

For three weeks Armando Del Manso believed his dog was responsible for the dead snakes showing up with teeth marks all over them on his East Barron property’s lawn each morning.

But it turns out it was a pair of rampaging rabbits killing the snakes.

The 42-year-old boilermaker first made the discovery Tuesday night when he spotted the two wild rabbits attacking a king brown snake.

“The snake was raised up in the air in the striking position and the two rabbits worked their way around him and killed him in two minutes,” Mr Del Manso said.

“I’m gobsmacked, it’s absolutely incredible.

“We were watching from the veranda with a spotlight, and I thought, who is going to believe this, they’ll think I’m crazy.”

Wildlife expert Paul O’Callaghan of the Cairns Wildlife Safari said it was the first time he had heard of rabbits attacking snakes.

Funny news sourced from funnymos.com

VNZMA

2009-10-09T09:45:00.002+13:00

Yes, that's right, the 44th annual Vodafone New Zealand Music Awards were last night, and with Ladyhawke taking out 6 of the six awards she was nominated for, the event was pretty exciting.
The following information was sourced from tvnz.co.nz (click this link to find the original article):

Album of the Year:
Winner: Ladyhawke - Ladyhawke
Finalists:
The Mint Chicks - Screens
Midnight Youth - The Brave Don't Run
Cut Off Your Hands - You And I
Fat Freddy's Drop - Dr Boondigga and the Big BW

Single of the Year:
Winner: Ladyhawke - My Delerium
Finalists:
Midnight Youth - All On Our Own
P-Money - Everything featuring Vince Harder
Smashproof - Brother
Kids of 88 - My House

Best Group:
Winner: Midnight Youth
Finalists:
Fat Freddy's Drop
The Mint Chicks

People's Choice Award:
Winner: Smashproof
Fat Freddy's Drop
Ladyhawke
Midnight Youth
The Black Seeds

Best Male Solo Artist:
Winner: Savage
Finalists:
Dave Dobbyn
Don McGlashan & The Seven Sisters

Best Female Solo Artist:
Winner: Ladyhawke
Finalists:
Boh Runga
Ladi 6

Breakthrough Artist of the Year:
Winner: Ladyhawke
Finalists:
Midnight Youth
Smashproof

Best Music Video:
Winner: Chris Graham - Brother (Smashproof)
Finalists:
Sam Peacocke - I Can't Stop Being Foolish (The Mint Chicks)
Tim Van Dammen - Turn Around featuring Iva Lamkum (Sola Rosa)

Best Rock Album:
Winner: Midnight Youth - The Brave Don't Run
Finalists:
The Mint Chicks - Screens
Cut Off Your Hands - You And I

Best Urban/Hip Hop Album:
Winner: Ladi 6 - Time Is Not Much
Finalists:
Smashproof - The Weekend
Savage - Savage Island

Best Aotearoa Roots Album:
Winner: Fat Freddy's Drop - Dr Boondigga and the Big BW"
Finalists:
The Black Seeds - Solid Ground
The Woolshed Sessions - The Woolshed Sessions

Best Dance/Electronica Album:
Winner: Ladyhawke - Ladyhawke
Finalists:
Antiform - City In Exile
Sola Rosa - Get It Together

Best Gospel/Christian Album:
Winner: Mumsdollar - Ruins
Finalists:
Parachute Band - Technicolour
The Ember Days - EP
Primalband - Your Way

Best Classical Album:
Winner: David Bremner - Gung Ho
Finalists:
Gareth Farr - Gareth Farr: Tangaroa
Ogen Trio and NZ Chamber Soloists - Ahi

Highest Selling NZ Single:
Smashproof feat. Gin - Brother

Highest Selling NZ Album:
The feelers - The Best: 1998-2008

Radio Airplay Record of the Year:
Tiki Taane - Always On My Mind

International Achievement:
Ladyhawke
Brooke Fraser

Legacy Award:
Ray Columbus and the Invaders. They will also be inducted into the New Zealand Music Hall of Fame.

Word of the day - Pwned

2009-10-01T09:56:00.003+13:00

"I am Dr. Hanatewakusoshiseotadashiteteriyakisuzukihondacivic. Here making the world a little less dumb with every video"

The iPod Human

2009-10-01T09:49:00.005+13:00

Here is yet another one of Ryan Higa's hilarious ads:

Sorry again for any un-PC-ness (retarded red).

The Fair Go Ad Award Results

2009-10-01T09:41:00.003+13:00

FIVE FINALISTS FOR BEST AD:
TOYOTA - SNOWBOARDING
Snowboarding taps into Toyota’s marketing phrase that we believe anything is possible. This ad’s central point is that a young guy breaks into Snowplanet each night to practise his snowboarding to impress a girl who works there; he’s hopeless. But by ad’s end he makes it to the bottom and gets the girl.
MITRE 10 – LITTLE BOYS DIY
Kids in the playground, talking in adult-speak, about getting together at the weekend to help one of them with his DIY job. It sounds like a conversation had by many a DIY’er in pubs up and down the country and seeks to reinforce Mitre 10’s catchphrase that “DIY’s in our DNA.” It also has a poke at our Aussie neighbours.
INSTANT KIWI – MEXICAN DOUG
It seems many don’t know what product this ad promotes, but its line (in a Mexican accent)”get a perm” has entered the Kiwi vocabulary. It seems to be encouraging people to listen to the wild voice inside them, “live a little” and buy an Instant Kiwi.
2 DEGREES
This ad, and its variants, launched the new mobile phone network 2 Degrees. It stars comedian Rhys Darby from Flight of the Conchords and plays on the premise that everyone in NZ is linked, not by six degrees of separation, only by two.
CADBURY – MOVING EYEBROWS
The kids with contorting eyebrows certainly provoke reaction – it’s hilarious or intensely annoying. These ads are made in Britain and have global appeal but ultimately appear to say nothing about chocolate.

FIVE FINALISTS FOR WORST AD:
THIN LIZZY
An advertising jingle that sings as it sells make-up you brush on that covers all
TELECOM XT – RICHARD HAMMOND
The big campaign that kicked off Telecom’s new digital mobile network
CADBURY – MOVING EYEBROWS
See above
SENSODYNE – JELLY FISH
The swimmer struck down by tooth pain in the pool
TOWER INSURANCE – DISHWASHER DRAMA
The ad that shows men can load dishwashers and women can be grateful for that.

And now, the moment you've all been reading for; the winners:
Winner of the best ad:
MITRE 10 - LITTLE BOYS DIY
Winner of the worst ad:
TELECOM XT - RICHARD HAMMOND

Quick Update:

2009-09-30T19:42:00.001+13:00

The Fair Go Ad Awards are an event that occurs once a year. The are on right now, and I am posting in the ads. The Cadbury Eyebrows ad on one of my older posts was amazingly featured in both the best 5 and the worst 5 ads. the winners are yet to be announced, and I will keep you posted.
Teehee

Big Bouncing Inflatable Green Ball

2009-09-30T19:16:00.003+13:00

Here is another one of Ryan Higa's hilarious videos

Ryan Higa

2009-09-30T18:45:00.003+13:00

I was on YouTube the other day and found out about this cool guy named Ryan Higa (His username is nigahiga), and he has made a bunch of cool videos, includin the popular 'how to be a' series, featuring 'How to be a ninja', 'How to be an emo', and 'How to be a gangster'.
He has also made some shorter videos, adverts mainly, which I have uploaded below:

Sorry for any slight un-PC-ness

How about Whamilton instead of Hamilton?

2009-09-23T17:21:00.000+12:00

By WARWICK RASMUSSEN - Waikato Times

How about a "w" in Hamilton?

Hamilton's Graeme "Laird McGillicuddy" Cairns wants to add a letter and, potentially, controversy by calling Waikato's only city Whamilton.

Inspired by the Wanganui/Whanganui furore, Mr Cairns has a plan to rebrand the city.

Hamilton was named after British naval officer Captain John Fane Charles Hamilton, but rather than stick with its "embarrassing colonial past", Mr Cairns suggests the city take jetboat inventor William Hamilton's name.

"Let's look to the future and name our city after a zooming, high-tech modern industrialist," Mr Cairns said.

The full name would be a bit of a mouthful, he said, but reduced to its essence is Whamilton.

The beauty of saying so long to the Tron was that the new name can be pronounced four different ways. "With a silent 'h', a silent 'w', an 'f' sound or the aspirated 'w' sound "as in the word `which' when it is pronounced correctly."

Whamilton had "real impact and was a punchy kind of a name" that reflected the city's status as a premier boxing and V8 racing venue.

By flipping the "i" upside down another option was WHAM!lton. "It's got plenty of biff, bam and wallop that way."

The "team-effort" brain wave has been sent to Hamilton City Council's marketing department.

HAHAHAHAHA

Funny Mr Woody

2009-09-16T16:20:00.003+12:00

Here is my teacher giving a lesson on Maori pronunciation:

Marketing Tricks

2009-09-13T13:21:00.003+12:00

To sell their products, marketers often use different approaches to influence you. One such way is to present a problem that you didn't even know you really had, and then immediately show you their solution. Another way is to show someone you admire or look up to using the product, such as a toy aimed at five-year-olds being used by an older person, around the age of seven or eight, because smaller children look up to older people. Some ads aim to form an emotional bond with you, such as showing a lady with a baby in an advertisement for a product aimed at single mothers. Cadbury uses a similar approach, by showing you something that has nothing to do with their product, but instead makes you think, "Wow, that's cool". Here are a few examples of this:

Stuff we need to know about for our term project

2009-09-10T19:10:00.002+12:00

Consumers Guarantee Act
• The Guarantee means that when someone sells you something they automatically agree to the following terms and conditions:
• Manufacturers have to make sure that goods do what they are made to do, and that they have replacement parts available. The manufacturer also has to honour any warranties that people give them.
• Retailers will make sure that their goods match the display model and the description given in the advertisements. Also, the product must belong to the consumer once paid for, and it must be sold for a reasonable price.
• Providers of a service guarantee that their service will be performed with reasonable care and skill, will fit for the particular purpose they were supplied for and will be completed within a reasonable time for a reasonable price.
Ministry of Consumer Affairs
• You are covered if you are buying everyday products such as clothes, washing machines, cars, etc… or services of a type that people ordinarily have carried out for a personal or household purpose, such as car repairs, haircuts, dry cleaning, painting or work done by a lawyer. From 8 July 2003, the Consumer Guarantees Act applies to electricity, gas, water and computer software. From this date, the Consumer Guarantees Act also applies to services relating to the supply of electricity, telecommunications, gas, water, and the removal of wastewater.
• You are not covered by the Act if you buy the product from a private seller or from an auction/tender. It also doesn’t cover commercial goods, e.g. goods or services of a type that are ordinarily bought for use in offices, factories or farms (although these may be covered by the Sale of Goods Act).
• There are remedies that traders must provide if a guarantee is broken. There is a range of remedies dependent on such issues as which guarantee was broken, how serious the problem is and whether you want a remedy for faulty goods against the manufacturer or retailer.
Advertising Standards Authority
• The ASA sets the rules and guidelines for what you can and can’t put in a advertisement directed at children, food (well not at food but about food, you get my point), etc…
• The purpose of the Advertising Standards Authority is to “self-regulate advertising in New Zealand”.

Term topic

2009-09-10T18:36:00.003+12:00

Hi, I know I haven't posted in AGES, but I have been pretty busy with stuff, so I thought I'd bring all my readers up to date.
This term we are learning about entrepreneurs, innovators, and inventors. We have to design and create a product to sell at a trade fair between our classes in week 10. Sprint Gas Racing and I have been developing a set of tutorials that we are going to sell to people who need ICT assistance.
Now for some definitions. Dictionary.com says:

en⋅tre⋅pre⋅neur

–noun

1.	a person who organizes and manages any enterprise, esp. a business, usually with considerable initiative and risk.

2.	an employer of productive labor; contractor.

–verb (used with object)

3.	to deal with or initiate as an entrepreneur.

–verb (used without object)

4.	to act as an entrepreneur.

in⋅no⋅vate

–verb (used without object)

1.	to introduce something new; make changes in anything established.

–verb (used with object)

2.	to introduce (something new) for or as if for the first time: to innovate a computer operating system.

3.	Archaic. to alter.

in⋅ven⋅tor

–noun

a person who invents, esp. one who devises some new process, appliance, machine, or article; one who makes inventions.

Also, in⋅vent⋅er.

10 things that I want to learn more about

2009-07-02T16:18:00.001+12:00

Firstly, I would like to learn more about space. I mean in general. Like all about the horoscopes and how they work and stuff, but also about space travel and other planets and how the whole solar system works and stuff like that. Specifically, in how many years will technology be advanced enough for us to start a habitat on Mars? Will it be like that movie where people grow moss on Mars to produce Oxygen for us?
Secondly, I would like to learn some more about War and stuff. Like what is the difference in the planes and tanks that the Nazis used as opposed to the ones that the Allies used? And how much has battle plans and war strategies improved from back in the dark ages when we had wooden catapults and used sticks to poke each other?
Another thing that would be interesting to learn about would be the Medieval times. How much better has our technology gotten from trebuchets and Viking weapons and stuff? Also, what are the differences in the economies, did there used to be banks and trading posts and stuff? And was there an exchange rate or were all currencies equal?
I think animals would be another cool topic. It is, however, a very wide topic. Like would we study their habitat, or their behavior in the wild and in captivity, or would we study what they ate and what they descended from and their placement in the classification hierarchy. Perhaps a bit of all of these...
What about studying ancient civilisations? I know I'va already said Medieval, but this time I mean like Egyptians, or Greeks, or Romans, or Mayans, or Incans, or Aztecs, or something like that. The list could go on for ages, there is like tons of Horrible Histories books about stuff like that.
Also, I think that carrying on with our sustainability topic would be quite cool, as we have done quite a lot of work on that, but I don't think that we have quite wrapped that up as I think there is still quite a lot of stuff to cover, and some more activities and stuff that we could do.
A bit of history could come in really useful later on in life if we were to be a person who was good at trivia or quizzes and stuff. Also, I think history would come in handy at high school, because we will probably need knowledge of history and stuff like that there.
I think learning more ICT would be cool as, and though I already know lots about ICT I would like to hone my skills and practice and stuff. I could also possibly be an ICT mentor and teach people ICT...
Electronics also falls in the above catergory. Although in electronics I have a lot more to learn still, and I don't think that many people in my class would want to learn stuff about electronics. Oh well, it still made my ton ten things I want to learn more about.
I'm not sure, but I don't think ICT covers film-making, and some other people mentioned that on Mr Woody's blog, so I think that would be pretty cool. I know how to do the editing and filming and stuff, and I know that Midnight Baloney wants to be a film director or something like that when he grows up, so if you [reader] want to be an actor, filmer, script-writer or anything like that for a movie when you grow up, then please leave a comment saying what you want to be.

Quote of the day: Since we cannot know all that there is to be known about anything, we ought to know a little about everything. - Blaise Pascal

Crop circles in Aussie

2009-06-25T17:34:00.003+12:00

The Australians of Tasmania have finally solved the great mystery of the crop circle in their poppy fields. The accused are wallabies, who have been found eating the poppy heads (or narcotic seed pods actually), thus getting high, and hopping round in random circles. Many people believe crop circles that mysteriously appear in fields around the world are created by aliens. There has been 17 thefts resulting in 2280 poppy heads stolen throughout the financial year. Stolen from the poppy farms that are considered some of the safest in the world. Here are some quotes:

Attorney-General Lara Giddings said "the drugged out wallabies had been found hopping around in circles squashing the poppies, creating the formations".

Poppy producer Tasmanian Alkaloids said "livestock which ate the poppies were known to "act weird" -- including deer and sheep in the state's highlands".

Mr Rockliff said "There have been many stories about sheep that have eaten some of the poppies after harvesting and they all walk around in circles".

Tasmania is the world's largest producer of legally grown opium for the medicine market. Farmers grow the crop supplying the market with about 50 percent of the world's raw material for morphine and related opiates.

Weird, huh.

Quote of the day: Silly is you in a natural state, and serious is something you have to do until you can get silly again. - Mike Myers

Hahaha very funny cats...

2009-06-22T17:22:00.007+12:00

NB: I did not make these images, nor do I accept any responsibilty for any claims to ownership.
Quote of the day: In all recorded history there has not been one economist who has had to worry about where the next meal would come from. - Peter Drucker

These are rather random...

2009-06-22T17:12:00.007+12:00

NB: I did not make these images, nor do I accept any responsibilty for any claims to ownership.

Quote of the day: My idea of an agreeable person is a person who agrees with me. - Benjamin Disraeli

Hahaha this is really funny...

2009-06-22T17:09:00.001+12:00

Did I read that sign right?
TOILET OUT OF ORDER. PLEASE USE FLOOR BELOW
In a Laundromat:
AUTOMATIC WASHING MACHINES: PLEASE REMOVE ALL YOUR CLOTHES WHEN THE LIGHT GOES OUT
In a London department store:
BARGAIN BASEMENT UPSTAIRS
In an office:
WOULD THE PERSON WHO TOOK THE STEP LADDER YESTERDAY PLEASE BRING IT BACK OR FURTHER STEPS WILL BE TAKEN
In an office:
AFTER TEA BREAK STAFF SHOULD EMPTY THE TEAPOT AND STAND UPSIDE DOWN ON THE DRAINING BOARD
Outside a secondhand shop:
WE EXCHANGE ANYTHING - BICYCLES, WASHING MACHINES, ETC. WHY NOT BRING YOUR WIFE ALONG AND GET A WONDERFUL BARGAIN?
Notice in health food shop window:
CLOSED DUE TO ILLNESS
Spotted in a safari park: (I sure hope so)
ELEPHANTS PLEASE STAY IN YOUR CAR
Seen during a conference:
FOR ANYONE WHO HAS CHILDREN AND DOESN'T KNOW IT, THERE IS A DAY CARE ON THE 1ST FLOOR
Notice in a farmer's field:
THE FARMER ALLOWS WALKERS TO CROSS THE FIELD FOR FREE, BUT THE BULL CHARGES.
Message on a leaflet: IF YOU CANNOT READ, THIS LEAFLET WILL TELL YOU HOW TO GET LESSONS
On a repair shop door:
WE CAN REPAIR ANYTHING. (PLEASE KNOCK HARD ON THE DOOR - THE BELL DOESN'T WORK)
Now that you've smiled at least once, it's your turn to spread the stupidity and send this to someone you want to bring a smile to (maybe even a chuckle). We all need a good laugh.
Quote of the day: There's no present. There's only the immediate future and the recent past. - George Carlin

Values

2009-06-11T11:41:00.005+12:00

We are doing the DARE (Drugs & Alcohol Resistance Education) program in class at the moment, and today we learnt about bullying, but also the values that you will need in life.
The first one was Hard Work.
The second one was Knowledge.
And the third one was Attitude.
We started off by doing this strange activity.
You get all the letters of the alphabet, and you assign them a number, "A" is 1, "B" is 2, and so on:
A=1 B=2 C=3 D=4 E=5 F=6 G=7 H=8 I=9 J=10 K=11 L=12 M=13 N=14 O=15 P=16 Q=17 R=18 S=19 T=20 U=21 V=22 W=23 X=24 Y=25 Z=26
Next you spelt out the word on a bit of paper, and gave the letters their numbers.
For example: CAT= C (3), A (1), T (20), so the total sum of all the numbers is 24.
Now for the actual virtues:
H (8), A (1), R (18), D (4), W (23), O (15), R (18), K (11), total sum (98).
K (11), N (14), O (15), W (23), L (12), E (5), D (4), G (7), E (5), total sum (96).
A (1), T (20), T (20), I (9), T (20), U (21), D (4), E (5), total sum (100).

The overall message was that, although you need all these skills, knowledge will only get you 96 percent of the way through life, hard work 98 percent of the way, but attitude will get you 100 percent of the way through life! ! !

Successful Learner PPT

2009-06-04T17:32:00.002+12:00

I was recently referred to a site called "SlideShare". This is what the SlideShare website says: "Upload and share your PowerPoint presentations and Word documents on SlideShare. Share publicly or privately. Add audio to make a webinar". I am enjoying using it and already have two uploads and gaining. You will notice a widget on the side of my blog showing all my SlideShare uploads. Anyway, back to business. Earlier in the year I wrote a post about the traits of a successful learner, and I mentioned that I didn't know how to upload the PowerPoint I made to Blogger, so this seemed like the perfect solution. To see the earlier post, click here. So here is my PowerPoint [Please note that the actual PowerPoint had a short but inspiring clip in it. To see the clip, click here]:

Successful Learner PPT

View more OpenOffice presentations from A S.

Book Review ~ Payback

2009-05-25T15:26:00.002+12:00

Here is a book review I wrote a while ago for something… Anyway, here it is:

Payback

Payback is written from the (rather short) view of a vertically challenged fourteen-year-old boy. Riley is your typical teenage midget, bully problems, worrying about his growth, and desperately trying to regain his girlfriend. This book is well-written by middle-aged novice author Michelle Kelly. She used her own teenagers as inspiration when writing Payback, and I found Riley’s personality much easier to relate to than other teenage story-book characters. The plot is great in the way it starts off simple, but grows more complicated as the book goes on, and pulls you into the story until you could almost imagine that you are being picked on by McGerk the jerk, and worrying about your height whilst hiding under your bed. I enjoyed this book, in particular all the ways that Michelle Kelly lures you into all the stunts and antics Payback has to offer. It was a really cool and gripping book leading up to a twist at the end, which was definitely one of the most thrilling and hilarious chapters of Payback. I would recommend this book for boys and girls (although boys might like it a bit better), of an age from nine to a light read for adults too.

NB: I learnt how to do this thing: “~”

Quote of the day: The reverse side also has a reverse side. - Japanese Proverb

Architecture throughout the ages

2009-05-05T16:30:00.007+12:00

There has been numerous geniuses throughout time that have designed buildings and great structures. These are architects. There has been lots and lots of styles of buildings in time, from the pyramid structures of the Egyptians, Incans, Mayans, and the Aztecs (see first lot of pics) to the ionic-columned buildings of the Romans and Greeks (see second lot of pics).

Quote of the day: A poet who reads his verse in public may have other nasty habits. - Robert Heinlein

New blog

2009-04-28T15:34:00.003+12:00

I have created a new blog for our class topic: Sustainabillity. It is for all the work we are doing in class, my own environmental endeavors, and some information about sustainability, our environment, and the economy etc...
To make it easy to access my new blog, you could visit my profile and follow the link to my new blog, but to make it easier, this whole post is a link to the website.
If you want to visit it via the address bar, just enter "sustainabilityinnz.blogspot.com".
Quote of the day: When a thing ceases to be a subject of controversy, it ceases to be a subject of interest. - William Hazlitt

New posting thing

2009-04-23T16:06:00.002+12:00

I have decided to try a new regular post thing, a review. It might be of a movie, a book, or even some form of game. Please feel free to comment your opinion on my views, the item I am reviewing, or anything else you wish to say. So here goes:

Ratchet Gladiator [Format: PS2, Rating: PG, Created by Sony Corporation & Insomniac Games]

The fourth in the Ratchet & Clank saga, this is an enjoyable game with changeable difficulty levels [Couch Potato – Contestant – Hero – Gladiator – Exterminator], hilarious but occasionally annoying commentary throughout, and a “hands-on” and “all buttons useable” feel. The “blurb”-ish thing on the back cover says “Coming to you live from the Shadow Sector – the new season is about to begin! The Lombax known as Ratchet is the contestant that Dreadzone’s six trillion fans are all talking about. But never fear, folks – five-time Grand Champion Ace Hardlight and the rest of the Exterminator crew will surely cut him down to size!”.

The basic plot is that you are a “Lombax” named Ratchet who is kidnapped from his ship, along with his side-kick “Clank” and a technician from previous games “Al”, and put on deadly game-show “Dreadzone”, in the “shadow sector”, where the name of the game is survival. It is set in a universe without humans, and you have to have played the previous games in the saga to fully understand the plot, but it is a fun game either way.

Modes: You can play in single player, in which two bots will fly around your head. They can be used to control certain control points in the game called “nodes” and “hacker/security orbs”. They can also provide covering fire, and once every so often, go mental and destroy your opponents. You could also play in Co-op mode, this requires two controllers, but you can both play next to each other and cover each other’s backs* (*requires two people). There is also a completely different mode called “Multiplayer”, which is split into two sections. Local play is against people who are plugged into your console (2-4 players). Online play is against pretty much anyone (2-10 players).

Weapons: There is quite a few weapons in this game, and my post is quite long-winded, so I’ve decided to drop this section (Unfortunately. I was looking forward to this bit). This section would’ve been quite long because a lot of the game revolves around your arsenal (Not the football team).

My final score for this game would have to be 10/10 (an awesome score for an awesome game).

Quote of the day: It was on my fifth birthday that Papa put his hand on my shoulder and said, 'Remember, my son, if you ever need a helping hand, you'll find one at the end of your arm.' - Sam Levenson

Hamilton Zoo

2009-04-18T15:40:00.001+12:00

Hamilton Zoo is a fairly average zoo. I am not going to try and glamorize it. My family and I went there today and it was cooler than normal because our trip coincided with about three types of the animal’s feeding times. We saw the Brown Capuchin Monkeys being fed, which was quite amazing how resourceful they were when they unscrewed the caps off bottles of nuts (that sounds a bit weird) and peeling/smashing corn on branches three metres up: And the chimps that fought over cobs of corn and apples: It was strange when one monkey wasn’t allowed outside yet it was sitting and staring forlornly out one of the windows: We also saw the pack of African Hunting Dogs (also known as the African Painted Dogs) being fed chickens: There are numerous other animals at the zoo such as rhinoceroses, giraffes, lizards, emus, tigers, and lots more. Here’s some of them:

I had a pretty good time at the zoo, and maybe I’ll see some more interesting stuff next time I go. That’s all from me for now...

Quote of the day: Nobody got anywhere in the world by simply being content. - Louis L'Amour

Mobile Blogging

2009-04-18T15:02:00.002+12:00

I have been meaning to try mobile blogging for a while, and I just managed to get round to setting it up. It is a feature where you send a photo to Blogger and they post it straight on to your blog, unfortunately, I believe this also reveals what you sent it from (Email, Cellphone, etc ...). I did not want this to reveal my details when I did so, so I configured it to save it as a draft so I can edit it before it posts. Mobile blogging seems like a great tool, and you can set up “Mobile Blogging Agents” who can post from “the field” (Winged Hussars blog, Blog Field Resistance comes to mind), by sending a picture to the address [classified].

If you set it up through your dashboard, in the top right hand corner there is a small music player thing that plays a cool jingle: *snap a photo and type some text, send it to Blogger and we’ll do the rest*.

I hope to be mobile blogging soon and I hope at least one of the readers of my blog will be looking forward to it!!

Quote of the day: The road to hell is paved with adverbs. - Stephen King

PUMA, vehicle of the future

2009-04-15T11:36:00.001+12:00

General Motors and Segway have joined to create the revolutionary vehicle of the future, the PUMA. PUMA stands for Personal Urban Mobility and Accessibility, and has a top speed of 35 miles per hour. On the same topic, it has been said that on a single charge it will go for 35 miles. So that means that unless you have another lithium-ion battery or somewhere to charge it, you can only go about 50 kilometres, which will take you about an hour.

The PUMA has about four wheels (I think), though it only drives on two, like the regular Segway. This new vehicle is an electrically powered, two-seat pod that has the potential to let people move around cities or “concrete jungles” in a quicker, safer, quieter and cleaner fashion than we do now. Unfortunately it's still in the prototype stage, and GM hasn’t released a production date for them yet, but with the traffic in most urban areas, it hopefully won’t be too long. I just found that GM aims to be making them by 2012. Here is a video of the new PUMA, and what GM and Segway hope to achieve with them:

I wonder how old you would have to be to drive one of these things, and if your regular driver’s licence would cover it. And would they go on the road, the cycle track, or would they have to build a new track for them in every city?

Quote of the day: I don’t make jokes. I just watch the government and report the facts. - Will Rogers

Waikato Classic Car Monthly Meet

2009-04-15T10:24:00.002+12:00

I went to the meet of the Waikato Classic Car club the other day, and there was about 15 or 16 classic cars, Mustangs, a Dodge Viper, a Buick or two, and lots more. Here are some of the pictures I took, and edited on Paint to the out the number plates (I took about 40, but there’s only a few here).

And at the meet, there was also a Segway that everyone got a go on (I liked it so much that I went on lots and lots of times). There was a photo of me on the Segway, but to stay cybersafe, I edited it:

On the way back, we saw a cool carving out of a Japanese Cedar so I took some pics:

Can you see the little kiwi in the base of the fern carving underneath the eagle. Unfortunately I can’t remember the location of the carving, but it was easy to spot from the road. It was great fun, and I hope to go again when they meet up next time.

Quote of the day: If there were no God, there would be no Atheists. - G. K. Chesterton

The Taitua Arboretum

2009-04-15T10:10:00.001+12:00

On Monday, my family and I went for a walk round the Taitua Arboretum and being out in the country, it was so quiet and peaceful (except for my brother, that is). There were lots of chickens, pukekos, bird life and the like. There are two loop walks there, and they are set out in kind of a figure eight design. The sign says that you should allow about 90 minutes for both walks, although you can do it in less. It is situated part way outside of Hamilton. Here is a map or two to help you find your way there:

There is wonderful scenery and wildlife and I couldn’t resist taking some photos of the park:

And I also found a photo gallery online with pictures of the flora and fauna at the Taitua Arboretum, and to visit it follow this link: The Taitua Arboretum Gallery. Some people may say there isn’t much to do in Hamilton, but there sure is a number of fun walks.

Quote of the day: If the only tool you have is a hammer, you tend to see every problem as a nail. - Abraham Maslow

Traits of a Successful Learner

2009-04-09T17:53:00.005+12:00

In class and at home we made a presentation about successful learners, their traits, and all the other things that make up great/intelligent people. Ours was a PowerPoint, and we made one about all the different types of learners (Leader, Quiet, Risk-taker, Team Player, ME). Unfortunately, I can't figure out how to upload that to Blogger, though I am working on another way to get it on the web...
There are numerous ways to recognize great people, from all throughout the ages. Renzulli’s triad of multiple intelligences, the 16 Habits of Mind, the NZ Curriculum Key Competencies, Blooms Taxonomy (classification, not stuffing animals).
This post may seem a bit weird, but it was set as homework by my teacher, Mr Woody. There are numerous examples of brilliant people nowadays, but now people only excel in one area, back in the time of Leonardo Da Vinci, or other such people, there were geniuses who dabbled in a little bit of just about everything.
Renzulli’s triad ties in with this quite a bit so…

The 16 Habits of Mind are super important for this so here they are:

Persistence, sticking to it and remaining focused and being willing to follow it through to the end. Managing Impulsivity, not calling out or being disruptive and thinking before acting. Listening, being understanding of who you are listening to and empathise to make an effort to perceive another's thoughts. Thinking Flexibly, look at a problem or challenge differently and be able to change your view or way of thinking. Now I’m sure that I could go on like this and bore you to death, so I’ll skip to the next paragraph. To view the rest of the Habits of Mind, CLICK HERE!!!
One of my modern greats would have to be Barack Obama, who won the US election late last year, and was sworn in as the first black president of the US in January this year.

Quote of the day: History is the version of past events that people have decided to agree upon. - Napoleon Bonaparte

Wordle

2009-04-09T17:14:00.004+12:00

There is this really cool website called Wordle, where you enter your blog address/URL (if you have one) and it gets all the most used words off your website, or if you don't have a blog, then you enter a bunch of keywords, and it jumbles them up to make a really cool picture which you can edit, like change the font, colour, way the words face, and a bunch of other stuff, before you save it to the "public gallery"
Here are two I made with just keywords:
and
And here are two I made with the other feature, where you enter your URL, and it does the words for you:
and
As you can probably see, the bottom ones are far busier, because I couldn't be bothered typing in that many words :). To make your own click here: Wordle, or click on any of the Wordle links in this post. Wordle Wordle Wordle Wordle Wordle. You should try it, whether you have a blog or not!!!
Quote of the day: Anything too stupid to be said is sung. - Voltaire

New Library at the Waikato University

2009-04-08T17:53:00.007+12:00

There is going to be a new library at the University of Waikato, and it's gonna be awesome!!! It will be one of the greenest buildings in NZ!!!! I know the architects were Warren and Mahoney Architects Ltd. It's just coming out of the ground, as you will be able to see from the photos I am going to add at the end. It will be more of a computer wing, because I think all the books will be on the computers, and I know that they use wireless broadband to find the information in the library. Here is some text and an image of what it will look like when it's done from Warren and Mahoney about the building: "The Student Centre will provide a social heart to the campus where people can meet; enjoy cafe, bookshop, and relaxation spaces; access a range of student services including re-enrolment; visit the Library; and much more. The design allows for many learning and social spaces, and brings many services conveniently together in one place. It will be a focal point for the campus, which will draw people together in a modern, light, energy efficient and environmentally sustainable building."

Here are the images that I got from a friend of the new wing being built:

On a related topic, Warren and Mahoney also recently designed the "Hub", which I don't know much about, but think is a foodcourt type thing by the bus stop in the University. I hope you enjoyed this post, and I will continue to keep you posted as the library continues to rise from the ground, or, to follow the progress on the Uni's website click here.

Quote of the day: A compromise is the art of dividing a cake in such a way that everyone believes he has the biggest piece. - Ludwig Erhard

Sunday pacing and Trolley racing

2009-04-07T16:13:00.010+12:00

On Sunday morning, after going to the rugby the night before (with a close win going to the Chiefs), my family went for a 2 hour stroll along the river paths. It was a nice day, and the paths were perfect except where one bit was closed. We took a few photos of the scenery:

When we went past the museum area of the river there was an event on that we hadn't heard about. It was the Trolley derby, where you built a cart for the different categories (10-12, 12-14, Father & Son races etc.) and then raced it down the hill as fast as you could go. I think the older groups started on ramps... It was super fun to watch, and we got there just in time to watch the highschool-ish aged boys race. Here are some of the photos we took:

We started our walk by Memorial Park, walked all the way up to Fairfield Bridge, over the river, and back down to Victoria Bridge, and back to the park. we think it was about 5 kilometres, but we are not entirely sure. If you live in the Hamilton region and you haven't already been to Memorial Park/Parana Park you should definitely go there, it's a bunch of fun, and there are cool tributes to those who fought in the war, plus a cool playground, with a big paddling pool in the warmer months!!!! Here is a picture of one of the things that was there:

It was an awesome walk and I hope you have the opportunity to do great things as well.

Quote of the day: Democracy is a process by which the people are free to choose the man who will get the blame. - Laurence J. Peter

Weird news for today

2009-04-04T14:32:00.003+13:00

COWS CHASES BEAR AWAY
Residents of a rural Colorado town say a cow named Apple chased off a bear that had climbed into her favorite apple tree. Jack McDonald of Hygiene, about 30 miles northwest of Denver, said the bear had climbed out of the tree when the cow approached it Sunday afternoon. McDonald says the animals touched noses and hung out together for a bit before Apple chased the bear off. “It was hilarious,” McDonald says. There’s no sign that either animal was hurt. Apple belongs to McDonald’s landlady, Nancy Dayton, who has a house and three rental units on 14 acres. Dayton says Apple weighs about 1,200 pounds and is more pet than livestock. She got her name because she loves to eat apples from the tree the bear had invaded.
Story sourced from Funnymos.com, check them out for the funniest news and weirdest humor!!!
Quote of the day: I finally figured out the only reason to be alive is to enjoy it. - Rita Mae Brown

Results of my poll

2009-04-04T14:06:00.004+13:00

I set up a poll about a month ago, with the question: What do you think about the drinking/driving age? Some people have said I should have made this two separate polls, and others said you shouldn't be able to drink and drive at all, and I suddenly realised that I worded it wrong. It's not supposed to be the drinking and driving age, but the drinking age and the driving age. Silly, silly me!!! I hope this did not affect your vote too much, so without further ado, here's the results:

It depends on the person: 52% (18 people)
It should be lowered 17% (6 people)
It should be higher 23% (8 people)
It should stay the same 0% (0 people)
I don't care 5% (2 people)

As you should be able to see, "It depends on the person" was the clear winner, getting over twice as many people as the runner up ("It should be higher"). The total number of votes was 34. Here is a table with the results in order on:
1) It depends on the person (about 1/2 of the votes)

2)It should be higher (about 1/4 of the votes)

3)It should be lowered (just less than 1/5)

4)I don't care (about 1/20)

5)It should stay the same (0%)

I am currently pondering these results and wondering what to do with them, and how I can act upon them. Suggestions would be appreciated :) :) :) :) :).

Quote of the day: Advice is what we ask for when we know the answer but wish we didn't. - Erica Jong

Dallas ISR Opening Speech

2009-04-04T13:48:00.004+13:00

Here is a video of a young boy from Dallas, he is a school-age boy who is giving powerful opening speech to Dallas school employees at the ISR meeting. Sorry, but this is the edited version, because the actual version is about eight or eight and a half minutes long, and it would take too long to load. So here it is:

You can watch the original here: Dallas ISR Opening Speech
Quote of the day: The difference between a democracy and a dictatorship is that in a democracy you vote first and take orders later; in a dictatorship you don't have to waste your time voting. - Charles Bukowski

That weird eye thing

2009-04-03T16:38:00.002+13:00

Have you ever noticed that weird eye thing that animals do and they go all cute and stuff? Here are some pictures of what I mean:

Doesn’t it just make you go AWWWW? They are so cute. I got my pics from Google images, and there’s a bunch more out there that are also SUPER cute and you should try viewing some time!!!

Quote of the day: Remember, Ginger Rogers did everything Fred Astaire did, but backwards and in high heels. - Bob Thaves

Funny news for today!!!

2009-04-03T16:17:00.002+13:00

Versace, the renowned fashion house, is to create the world’s first refrigerated beach so that hotel guests can walk comfortably across the sand on scorching days.The beach will be next to the the new Palazzo Versace hotel which is being built in Dubai where summer temperatures average 40C and can reach 50C.The beach will have a network of pipes beneath the sand containing a coolant that will absorb heat from the surface.The swimming pool will be refrigerated and there are also proposals to install giant blowers to waft a gentle breeze over the beach.

LOL!! That’s so silly, I know it’s boiling over there but……

Sourced from Funnymos.com

Quote of the day: "Discipline is the bridge between the goals and accomplishments." (Unknown)

Cool Optical Illusions

2009-04-03T16:08:00.002+13:00

There was a cool email going round, and I thought it would be a cool thing to put it on my blog, I don’t know who made them, but I thank them, so here it is:

In black you can read the word GOOD, in white the word EVIL (inside each black letter is a white letter). It's all very physiological too, because it visualize the concept that good can't exist without evil (or the absence of good is evil ).

Now, what do you see?

You may not see it at first, but the white spaces read the word optical, the blue landscape reads the word illusion. Look again! Can you see why this painting is called an optical illusion?

What do you see here?

This one is quite tricky!

The word TEACH reflects as LEARN.

Last one.

What do you see?

You probably read the word ME in brown, but.......

when you look through ME you will see YOU!

Do you need to look again?

Test Your Brain

This is really cool. The second one is amazing so please read all the way though.

Alzheimer' EYE TEST

Count every " F" in the following text:

FINISHED FILES ARE THE RE

SULT OF YEARS OF SCIENTI

FIC STUDY COMBINED WITH

THE EXPERIENCE OF YEARS...

(SEE BELOW)

HOW MANY ?

WRONG, THERE ARE 6 -- no joke.

READ IT AGAIN !

Really, go Back and Try to find the 6 F's before you scroll down.

The reasoning behind is further down.

The brain cannot process "OF".

Incredible or what? Go back and look again!!

Anyone who counts all 6 "F's" on the first go is a genius.

Three is normal, four is quite rare.

Quote of the day: The keenest sorrow is to recognize ourselves as the sole cause of all our adversities. - Sophocles

RAINBOWS!!!!

2009-04-03T15:43:00.002+13:00

I was thinking about what I could post on my blog the other day, and I thought, I’ll post a rainbow. Now if you are wondering how I could possibly do this, then I am planning to do this by typing a bunch of text, and then colouring it a bunch of pretty colours. Do you know what colours are in the rainbow, what order they are in, and how to remember that? I do. Firstly, Red, Orange, Yellow, Green, Blue, Indigo, and Violet. Secondly, in that order. Thirdly, by getting the first letter of each colour (Red [R], Orange [O], Yellow [Y], Green [G], Blue [B], Indigo [I], and Violet [V]). If you put all those letters together, they spell ROY G BIV. You could pretend that that’s a famous person, or someone you know, but to me it’s just a cool name that you can use to remember all the colours of the rainbow. Do you know any other acronyms? I can think of a few. Did you know that “laser” is an acronym for Light Amplification by Stimulated Emission of Radiation? What about NASA (National Aeronautics and Space Administration] or BLOG [weB LOG or Big Load Of Gossip :) :)]

Quote of the day: Illegal aliens have always been a problem in the United States. Ask any Indian. - Robert Orben

The effects of light and shadow on photos and paintings...

2009-03-31T17:59:00.007+13:00

I was thinking about famous paintings and photos, and I realised what made them so great; effects of light and shadow!!

Here are some examples of photos from Google Images:

I am not that great at said skill, although I am willing to give it a fair try. I think that some areas of art are much harder than others, like drawing lines could be classified as art, but that's not too hard is it? I would say random artwork like Picasso's are much harder to imitate and actually pull off!!

For my artist that we have to attempt to do a self-portrait in the style of, I have decided to do Salvador Dali. He was a Surrealist, and according to "Salvador Dali, exploring the irrational" (a book by Edmund Swinglehurst): he was finally expelled from the volatile group because his art and vision encompassed much more than mere ideology.

He was a fantastic artist, and even years after his time, his artwork continues to astound and inspire. Here are some of his famous works:

The Persistence of Memory (Soft Watches)

The Face of War

Slave Market with the Disappearing Bust of Voltaire

He has some really interesting paintings, especially of his wife Gala, and numerous animals and other cool objects and double-effects (like the picture above, can you see the people and the bust?). Now ... as for the one I'm going to base my self portrait on ...

Possibly The Man with the Head of Blue Hortensias (top), or Sleep (bottom)...

Quote of the day: The world only goes round by misunderstanding. - Charles Baudelaire

MUSIC EXPERIMENT!!!!!

2009-03-30T15:46:00.003+13:00

Here I shall publish a bit of work we did this morning:
Learning styles and classroom environments for better productivity
-How does loud raucous music affect our ability to concentrate and/or work?
Today in class we listened to some "drum and bass" style music (by Conchord Dawn) while first just listening and some of us reading, then reading some posts and comments on Mr Woody's and Bubbles' blogs, and after that we attempted to drum out the beat on our desks with our hands. The beat made me more energetic and twitchy than usual, and this made me do reading, writing, and other such activities a lot faster than I normally do.
Music in the classroom affects (or effects) me in different ways: Slow or classical music makes me feel kind of sleepy, and slows me down a bit, but fast-loud-rock-metal type music makes me do things a lot quicker, and wakes me up more. It definitely makes me do more work, and it affects my overall work outcome for the better. It helps me concentrate and think, I am also less affected by the people around me and the overall class when the loud music was playing.
I think that next time we could try some softer music and see how that turns out!
Quote of the day: The future is here. It's just not widely distributed yet. - William Gibson

Balloons over Waikato

2009-03-26T17:35:00.008+13:00

The Balloons over Waikato festival is upon us once again!!! It is an annual festival where a bunch of hot-air balloons come and fly around Hamilton each morning for a few days, and then there is a "Night glow", where all the balloons inflate but don't fly at night, and they all glow really bright, here is a night glow picture from last year from a website:

This morning the conditions were foggy, though a few balloons went uo later in the day. Earlier on my blog, I talked about Earth Hour, and how it coincided with the nightglow, and I found out that the streetlamps on one of the main roads in Hamilton are going to go out for an hour, two words: ROAD CRASH!!!!!! I also heard that for the hour between 8:30 and 9:30 the balloons will also go out???? This will mean a bunch of people who go along for a nightGLOW will be standing round in the dark for a while!!!!
Here are some pictures my family have taken in the morning when the balloons went up:

Above: a wide spectrum of all the balloons.

Above: the birthday cake balloon.

Above: the lucy the ladybug

For more information, and a guide to the balloons, visit the Balloons over Waikato website

Quote of the day: To teach is to learn twice. - Joseph Joubert

Wear odd socks day!!!

2009-03-26T17:15:00.004+13:00

I recently (this afternoon) learned that tomorrow, the 27th March, is "Wear odd socks day". This holiday is to support the blind and vision-ally impaired, and for them, some everyday activities can be very challenging. Choosing matching socks and other clothing are some of the many challenges they face, so this day is to support them. The Royal Society for the Blind (RSB) is a sponsor of "Wear odd socks day", though I think they are based in South Australia. Another place that support "Wear odd socks day" and a school in Gambia is Sicklinghall Primary School in the UK. The Wetherby News says: "Pupils decided to wear odd socks to school for the day to raise money for their chosen charity The James Ogoo Memorial Nursery School in Gambia. The school’s council planned a variety of fundraising events and publicity to help raise money for the less fortunate school in Gambia". I think it's a great way to raise money for charities, and have fun in silly socks!!!!!

Quote of the day: America had often been discovered before Columbus, but it had always been hushed up. - Oscar Wilde

Countries in funny places

2009-03-22T14:57:00.004+13:00

Today, when I checked my "FEEDjit", I was stunned to find that someone from Saint Lucia had visited my blog!!! I know who it was, but can any of you guys guess who??? When I thought about how many countries I had on my Clustrmap (23 including Saint Lucia), I wondered how many left to go, and what percentage of all the countries in the world I had. After visiting About.com and finding out that there are 195 countries in the world, I quickly found out that I have 172 countries to go, and I have hits from around 12% of all the countries in the world so far. If you believe you are a geographical genius, see how many of the countries you can name. I didn't even know lots of them existed!!! Like Berkina for example, or Nauru and Suriname. Also, if you can do that (unlikely), then try and name their capitals (some have more than one). Now you're never going to get that!!!
There are only 192 member states of the UN, they do not include Vatican City (Holy See), Kosovo or Taiwan. Taiwan was a member state of the UN until 1971 when China claimed them as a province of China. Taiwan meets all the requirements of an independent country, and continues to press for full recognition as an independent country, but it is also due to political reasons that it continues to fail this struggle. The US department of state also only recognizes 194 countries, also leaving out Taiwan.
However, you need to recognize that there are dozens of places that are sometimes called "countries" but aren't at all - they're governed by other countries. Places commonly confused as being countries include Puerto Rico, Bermuda, Greenland, Palestine, Western Sahara, and even the components of the United Kingdom (such as Northern Ireland, Scotland, Wales and England, they come under the umbrella of the UK- they're not fully independent countries).
Either way, I am enjoying blogging, having fun learning all this stuff, and I hope you enjoy it too.
I got most of my information from About.com: Number of countries in the world and Capitals of every country in the world.
Quote of the day: The greatest mistake is trying to be more agreeable than you can be. - Walter Bagehot

Really cool scenery

2009-03-17T18:13:00.002+13:00

Some time last year (I think), my family went on a walk around Lake Mangamahoe, and I took some really cool pictures:

It’s near New Plymouth (Taranaki, west coast of the North Island), off State Highway 3. I got a ton of photos, but I only put these ones on. It takes about 2 hours to do the circuit walk, but you would want to stop and admire the view for a while!!

Quote of the day: The 'Net is a waste of time, and that's exactly what's right about it.
- William Gibson

Earth Hour

2009-03-17T17:04:00.008+13:00

Have you heard about Earth Hour? It is coming up, and soon. It is one hour when you should turn off your lights, TV, computer, and save the world!!! As it says on the Earth Hour website "1,539 cities and towns in 80 countries have already committed to VOTE EARTH for Earth Hour 2009, as part of the worlds first global election between Earth and global warming". At 8:30PM local time, wherever you live on planet earth, Saturday 28 March 2009 you should turn out your lights, and support the earth. Sign up at the Earth Hour website: http://www.earthhour.org/, or click the widget at the bottom of my blog to vote green. Plus, if you are in NZ, you could be in to win a Toyota Prius!!!! The HTML for the widget at the bottom of my blog was sourced from the downloads section of the Earth Hour website (http://www.earthhour.org/downloads/). Earth Hour is a great way to save you power, and draws attention to what measures we should be taking regularly to save electricity, and the world. YOUR LIGHTSWITCH IS YOUR VOTE, VOTE EARTH IN THE ELECTION AGAINST GLOBAL WARMING!!!!!

Quote of the day: I'm a godmother, that's a great thing to be, a godmother. She calls me god for short, that's cute, I taught her that. - Ellen DeGeneres

GO GRANNY GO!!!!

2009-03-15T12:39:00.001+13:00

I saw in the paper last night a most interesting article:

Group conference for youth

A teenager who wet his pants after a pensioner hit him over the head with a rolling pin as he tried to break into her Hamilton home has been referred to a family group conference. The 15-year-old smashed the window in the back door, reached through to unlock the door, became stuck during the early-morning incident last month. When police found the youth he was stripped down to his boxers and crying. Sourced from the Waikato Times, click here to read the full article online.

Quote of the day: You are not superior just because you see the world in an odious light.
- Vicomte de Chateaubriand

Pauanui

2009-03-14T20:01:00.003+13:00

Here is the rough location of our camp in Pauanui :-)

Pauanui is on the east coast of the Coromandel Peninsula, North Island of NZ

Quote of the day: I can think of nothing less pleasurable than a life devoted to pleasure. - John D. Rockefeller

Da Vinci Machines

2009-03-14T19:56:00.004+13:00

I went to the Da Vinci machines exhibition today, and it was AWESOME!!!!! It was a really enjoyable display of some of his machines, categorized by Flight, Machines of War, Mechanics, Hydraulics, and Optics and Others. I bought a guide book that contained sketches, a description, and a bit about 56 of his inventions, plus a bit about him. The exhibition was great, and I would definitely recommend it. It is open from the 14th of March to the 29th of June (this year of course), although the tours are only today and tomorrow (14th and 15th of March ‘09). I liked all of the inventions there, but my favourite interactive ones were the “Archimedes Screw” and the “Fly Wheel”.

I must thank “Artisans of Florence” for creating this exhibition, and “Stainless Design”, “Waikato Times”, “Media Works”, and “Beca” for sponsoring this exhibition!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Located at The Waikato Museum: Waikato Museum; 1 Grantham Street; Hamilton.

Quote of the day: Who is more busy than he who hath least to do? - John Clarke

I’M BACK!!! WOOHOO!!!

2009-03-14T18:50:00.004+13:00

I'm back from Pauanui, and I'm liking it. I got a bed that was big enough to fully stretch out my legs in, and not have to worry about being chucked outside for talking to my friends before 7am, or having a cold shower in the morning. The term's pretty much all downhill from here, and I'm gonna enjoy it. Camp was a lot of fun, and there was some great scenery, if you have any pics, I would like to put some of them on my blog (If that's all right with you). There was SOOOO much walking on camp, on one day we must have done at least 5 hours altogether. Before camp, I told you I was looking forward to 'overnight', but it was not as cool as I had hoped. I will type some of my camp diary here to show you what it was like.

On Sunday we got to camp and did a HUGE mountain walk up Mt. Pauanui (about 3.5 hours), and everyone was pretty tired.

On Monday we went kayaking, but we didn't have the keys, so we had to go back to camp and come back after lunch instead. Then we went snorkeling, but I stopped because I had leaky goggles that caught in my hair, a leaky mouthpiece (I swallowed seawater), and I kept falling over in my flippers. After that we just hung round the estuary for a bit, and got some mussels off the docking pontoon. Then we went back to camp and had dinner, and I got a sore stomach, I think it was from eating that seafood pasta, with the fresh mussels in it.

On Tuesday we went to over night by bus (at least we didn't have to walk the 26kms there with all our gear!!!). We did like 5 or 6 hours walking and I got aching calves, because alot was uphill. Dinner was fairly nice, even though we had to cook it ourselves, and there was TOO MUCH CHICKEN SOUP MIX, thanks to my friend. I only slept about an hour (or a half) because the wind was so strong that the overhang on our tent got broken, and we had to go out the back. Also because the two back pegs on our tent came out, and our tent was pretty much crushed and blown away by the winds.

On Wednesday, we climbed Mt. Paku, but it was easy, and the view was spectacular!!!! We also got back from our horrible experience at overnight as well.

On Thursday, we went "orienteering", a 3.5 hour trek round Pauanui, to all the parent's stations. It was kind of like the amazing race, except we weren't in taxis. In the end we were 16th, and it took us about 3 hours, 43 minutes. The winning team did it in about 2 hours, and it went from 9am to 1pm. Thursday night was the camp concert, a range of talent, from none, to a fair bit. There was a freestyle guitarist, who made up the words on the spot, and a few cool skits, and so much else. it went from about 8:45 to about 11:30, it was a very late night.

On Friday, we packed up all our gear (the girls took a bit longer), and hung roung camp for a while. After an 11 o'clock lunch, we set off (all 99 kids, plus adults) in two buses, one of which had two TV's that were playing a movie, and had really comfy seats (the one I was in). After a week, it was nice to have a really comfy bed, my family, and a constantly hot shower.

Overall, camp was cool as, and it was a really great experience. I would like to say a big thanks to all the parents who cooked and looked after us on camp.

Quote of the day: Any war that requires the suspension of reason as a necessity for support is a bad war. - Norman Mailer
The only obligation to which in advance we may hold a novel, without incurring the accusation of being arbitrary, is that it be interesting. - Henry James

New Application!!!

2009-03-14T10:48:00.002+13:00

I discovered this new program called “Windows Live Writer”, that you can use to publish posts to your blog without actually being on it, I am using it right now!!!

I am going to inform you of everything that has been going on at camp soon, because I AM HOME, FINALLY!!!!!!!!!

Quote of the day: Punctuality is the virtue of the bored.
- Evelyn Waugh

Mouse in the house!

2009-03-07T11:34:00.003+13:00

At approximately 2am friday morning, my cat was at the back door, mewling for entry. When my parents finally gave up trying to go to sleep, they let her in (It was Tatty). A while later, and the cat was still mewling for their attention. So my mum got up to see what was going on, and Tatty was sitting in the hallway, proudly showing off the mouse that she had caught. The "dead" mouse was liberated from the cat's jaws, and thrown into the outside bin. Imagine our suprise when this morning, we opened our bin to find a (very much alive) small mouse peeping out from the top of the rubbish bag, where it had nibbled a little escape hole. We managed to get the little rascal into an icecream container, from where he (or she) was deposited into the park down the road. We managed to get a picture:

Keep an eye out for this mouse!!!!

IT'S ON THE LOOSE!!!!!!!!

Quote of the day: A signature always reveals a man's character - and sometimes even his name. - Evan Esar

CAMP!!!!

2009-03-06T16:29:00.003+13:00

As of Sunday, I shall be at Pauanui. We will be having a bunch of fun, while you are stuck wherever reading my blog :). Hope the weather improves, at the moment it is drizzling down outside, the type that is not hard and cold, but warm, light, and sticky. I hate the rain, if you are not already aware of this, try reading my previous post (Rain, horrible rain). Camp will most likely be super fun, but it also means that I will not be able to post on my blog :(. I just thought I would let you know that, and also that I will write a large post Saturday (I get back on Friday).
Sayonara, Caio, Buenos Pronto, Goodbye, and See ya,
The Other Boy

Quote of the day: The reason why so few good books are written is that so few people who can write know anything. - Walter Bagehot

My Favourite Artist

2009-03-04T15:48:00.004+13:00

The Mona Lisa Da Vinci's Vitruvian Man

My favourite artist would have to be Da Vinci. He was one of history's great intellects, inventing what he could not build, writing what others could not read, and thinking what others could not even possibly understand. He was an inspiring man, he designed helicopters, Leonardo's studies in science and engineering are as impressive and innovative as his artistic work, and he recorded all his ideas and drafts/sketches in his notebooks (overall about 13,000 pages of notes and drawings(WOW!!!)). Leonardo Da Vinci was an Italian, and a scientist, mathematician, engineer, inventor, painter, sculptor, architect, musician and writer. He is often called one of the greatest painters of all time, and in my opinion, the greatest man in the 15th-16th century (sorry if I offended anyone, I don't know many people from back then). There is a Da Vinci exhibit coming to Hamilton on the 14th and 15th of this month (BOOKING IS ESSENTIAL). I will probably check it out, at Hamilton Museum, and a guided tour is given, but you have to book!!! The exhibition is $12 for adults, and $6 for children. These reasons and more are why Leonardo Da Vinci is my favourite artist, and one of the greatest men ever!!! (not meaning to be sexist or anything)

Quote of the day: The truth is always a compound of two half-truths, and you never reach it, because there is always something more to say. - Tom Stoppard

More about my Aim

2009-03-02T16:15:00.003+13:00

If you are a long-time reader of this blog, you will know that I set an aim to get as many views as possible from around the world. This aim is coming along nicely, and I am slowly becoming a bit more recognised globally. Last time I checked, I had had views from about 7 countries worldwide, most of whom I knew (As I told Bubbles, "I have sent my URL to friends and family round the world, and hopefully they still check their emails. I sent it to people from Aussie, Ireland, quite a few in England and NZ, Germany, Canada, and also other places that I can't remember"). Although there has been a few mystery views, like my dot from the US and A, who must have got on to my blog somehow.
Quote of the day: If not actually disgruntled, he was far from being gruntled. - P. G. Wodehouse

The Cool, the not so Cool, and the just plain not Cool

2009-03-02T16:00:00.003+13:00

This is my list of the cool, the not so cool, and the just plain not cool. This is what I think:
THE COOL: Books, Computing, Science, Math, Reading, The Internet, Blogging, Electronics, customised iGoogle, and a bunch more that I cannot be bothered naming.
THE NOT SO COOL: The new layout of Microsoft Office, Dial-Up Internet connections, stuff that doesn't work, Cutting down trees to make paper, the Nazi regime, and so much else.
THE JUST PLAIN NOT COOL: Poverty, Smoking, Disease, and lots and lots and lots and lots and lots and lots and lots and lots and lots and lots more that I can't even be bothered thinking about because they are not cool.
Quote of the day: Love is a snowmobile racing across the tundra and then suddenly it flips over, pinning you underneath. At night, the ice weasels come. - Matt Groening

"Followers"

2009-02-26T18:57:00.004+13:00

Have you seen the new "Follower" box on the side of all our blogs? The new ones are hideous, and what is with the "Google Friend connect? I do not like it, and want my old one back, but unless Google is reading my blog right now, I do not think change is going to happen. The new ones make the icons look big and pixely, but the old ones were just right. The new ones only display 12 people, but the old ones displayed 18. The new ones have a funny line around them, but the old ones didn't.
I WANT MY FOLLOWERS LIST BACK THE WAY IT WAS!!!
Quote of the day: Today's scientists have substituted mathematics for experiments, and they wander off through equation after equation, and eventually build a structure which has no relation to reality. - Nikola Tesla
No man is exempt from saying silly things; the mischief is to say them deliberately. - Michel de Montaigne

The truth about the NZ flag

2009-02-24T15:59:00.006+13:00

Warning: I am not sure if all the material in this post is historically, or at all, accurate
The NZ flag has a very gruesome past...
Or not :) :) :) :)
When the Europeans first came to NZ, and the capital of NZ was Russell, they introduced a flag that is very different to the current one, it was basically the St. George's Cross with the top-left-hand corner blue with the southern cross in it. I will see if I have a pic of it somewhere...
[I will acknowledge my source (Wikimedia commons), or else I would be plagiarising. PS: View my website on plagiarism at: Plagiarism 4 Dummies ]
This is roughly what I think it looked like, but I am not entirely sure (correct me if I am wrong). We were doing some stuff about it in class today, and this looks kind of like what Mr Woody drew. That is about all I know about the old flag, so I will say some stuff about the current one [ ]. I think this design came from a sailing flag that the far reaches of the British empire used, and that is why Australia has a similar one, but again, I am not sure. If someone who is reading this knows the truth, please leave a comment or email me at: SombreroMan5@hotmail.com.
There have been a few NZ flags over time, and most of them are at this site: Wikipedia NZ Flag. That is about all I know about the NZ flag, so in the words of Me, 'I shall go now'
Quote of the day: Politicians are the same all over. They promise to build a bridge even where there is no river. - Nikita Khrushchev

BOOKS!!!

2009-02-23T16:17:00.002+13:00

As it may or may not say in my profile, I love to read. I haven't been reading as much lately, but I still love it. I have read so many books that I have a LOT of favourite authors. Some of my Teen/Junior fiction authors include: Garth Nix, C.S. Lewis, Christopher Paolini, Anthony Horowitz, Eoin Colfer, William Nicholson, Charlie Higson, Emily Rodda, James Patterson, John Flannagan, J.R.R. Tolkien and lots lots more. Please note that these are NOT in any particular order, or in any order at all. Now for some of my favourite Adult fiction authors: Dan Brown, Chris Ryan, I am reading a good book by Andrew Gross, and I cannot think of any other Adult fiction authors right now. But these are just some of the authors that I like and/or have recently read a book by, and I hope this proves that I absolutely love reading.
Quote of the day: A book, tight shut, is but a block of paper. -Chinese Proverb

SCIENCE!!!!

2009-02-23T15:53:00.005+13:00

To science we owe a lot. If no-one discovered science, we would be without most technologies such as: TV, Computers, Microwaves, Fridges/Freezers, CDs, DVDs, Electricity, and probably even Toasters.
Science is a hugely vast subject, it's offshoots include: Astronomy, Chemistry (Organic, non-Organic, and a couple more), Mechanical science, Engineering, Electronics, Biology, Microbiology, Marine Biology, Natural sciences, Medical science/Health science, Mathematics, and hundreds more.
Without science the world would be nothing, I don't know if we would even have concrete. So I say it again: WE OWE SCIENCE A LOT!!
Some may blame scientists for causing environmental disasters, but I thank them for the things they have done. Some people have called scientists "evil", but without them we wouldn't have the technology that so many people use so often. Cellphones, TVs, printers, the lists go on and on...
Scientists are the coolest people ever, but not everyone is a scientist, so say "Hi" and try to be helpful if you see one doing an experiment, survey, or simply walking around.
Quote of the day: Football is a mistake. It combines the two worst elements of American life. Violence and committee meetings.
- George F. Will

Incredibots

2009-02-22T13:37:00.004+13:00

I play this cool as game called Incredibots, and you build robots to either do challenges, or just to play with. If you do the tutorials it will explain the whole game. If you go into "Sandbox mode" and "Load robot" you can play with a bunch of other peoples robots, and some are even games and stuff. I hope this appears as a link not a bunch of HTML:

Play'>http://www.xgenstudios.com/play/incredibots">Play Incredibots

This did not work properly, I have included a widget with the link below.
Quote of the day: Fall not in love, therefore; it will stick to your face.
- National Lampoon

Controversial News

2009-02-22T12:59:00.003+13:00

Are you interested in the global and national news? I want to find out what sort of stuff you want from my blog. I could make this a news-desk kind of website, or I could continue posting completely random items that pop into my head. If you so wish, I could even do both, all I want is a comment saying what sort of stuff you want to read on my blog. And if you do post a comment, try to say what kind of news, I could post the week's weather, or some politics stuff, or the really interesting controversial news, like the aussie bushfires, or the situation at FFC (Fairfield College). So just tell me what you want, and I'll do my best to give it to you.
Quote of the day: The rule is perfect: in all matters of opinion our adversaries are insane. - Mark Twain

Silly Census

2009-02-21T10:19:00.005+13:00

Warning: This post may contain incorrect information, and I am sorry if I offend anyone.
Have you ever done a census? Unless you are under the age of 4, you should have done one before. You know, one of those things where you put your name, age, D.O.B. and lots more. Do you remember that part where you have to put your religion? Well here in NZ we only get choices of the usual ones, like Christianity, Buddhist, Muslim. In some other countries, like the US (I think, not quite sure), there are much cooler religions to choose from. You could be a Jedi Knight, and worship the Force, or Yoda (or something). You could be a Spaghetti-ist and worship the Spaghetti Monster. Like Winged Hussar said, you could be a Pastafarian. There are so many cool religions on offer, and none of the cool ones are in NZ!!! May the Force be with you.
Quote of the day: There are three rules for writing the novel. Unfortunately, no one knows what they are. - W. Somerset Maugham

My Cats!!!

2009-02-21T09:41:00.011+13:00

Here are some pics of my cats :-). The tortoiseshell cat (white, cream, brown and grey coloured) is named Tatty Cat, and the tabby cat (brown and black striped) is named Scooter. Here are the pics:

This is Scooter asleep, and my brother put a little hat on her

Here Tatty is viewing my blog :-)

Here Tatty and Scooter are asleep next to each other, strange, they are normally fighting

In these pictures, Tatty decided to sit in the sheet that was on the washing line, crazy cat

Here Scooter is yawning, she just woke up after her long nap.

I hope you like my cats, they are the best cats in the world, and I love them lots!!! 8-)

Quote of the day: I can resist anything except temptation - Oscar Wilde

Rain, horrible rain!

2009-02-20T16:34:00.003+13:00

I absolutely, completely and utterly dislike, show no affection for, or even slightly like the rain. I hate it when it is just pouring down, soaking everything and making everyone miserable. The endless stream of water falling, falling, and still falling that dampens everyone and their spirits. Cold rain that chills you to the core. Hard rain that stings like stones. Drizzle that makes you feel unhappy and sad. Warm rain that takes so long to dry. I hate rain.
Quote of the day: To err is human - and to blame it on a computer is even more so. - Robert Orben

Shiny rocks

2009-02-19T18:03:00.003+13:00

I am not the sort of silly person who collects rocks because they are shiny, I collect various types of rocks, and I am more interested in the way they were formed than how shiny they are. I do not mean to say that I don't like shiny rocks, but I do not want it to appear like I am a shallow person who collects 'pretty' objects. I have a large collection of geologic rocks, most of which are shiny, but this is just by coincidence. I weigh my rocks, and they weigh about 1.65 kilograms. I have been collecting my rocks for about 3 years now, and I have a whole lunchbox full of obsidian, quartz, granite (possibly) and lots more that I dont know the name of. My teacher has a box full of granite and quartz and hybrid-strange-rocks in our classroom, there are so many types of rocks that basic geology must be really hard!!
Quote of the day: A complex system that works is invariably found to have evolved from a simple system that works. - John Gaule

Swimming Sports 8-(

2009-02-19T17:38:00.006+13:00

Today at school we had swimming sports. I do not particulary like swimming or sports, and I dislike the combination of the two even more. I participated in the first boys race, the freestyle stroke. I had a bad start, and my 'dive' ended up leaving me blinded, and with every one else a few metres ahead. When I was around halfway down the pool (everybody else was about three-quarters) I accidentally swallowed some water, and it got into my lungs. I stopped, and was gagging, choking, and coughing, and by the time I was feeling well enough to continue, all other competitors had finished. So I was floundering along, with a wretching cough all the while, and managed to get to the end. When I got out I developed chestpains, and a sore stomach. By the time I was feeling better (about two hours later), it was final time, and there was no races to participate in, and absolutely nothing to do. After the finals, there was the fun races, widths of the pool instead of lengths. I participated in the freestyle (again, but a width this time), and had another bad start, and tied for last. Overall, I hated swimming sports, did not have a good time there, and I am not looking foward to any similar event next year at high school.
Quote of the day: Never try to tell everything you know. It may take too short a time. - Norman Ford

More about my class

2009-02-18T16:18:00.004+13:00

My class is still totally cool, a few days later. We are still doing awesome stuff, and even now I do not understand the awesomeness of our teacher and all my fellow classmates. I seriously recommend that you go into my profile, and follow one of the links to their great blogs. As we are an accelerate (pronounced ak-SELL-ar-at) class, we are all brainy learners. This helps us understand the world, study it, empathise with it, and help make it a better place. This year we shall do just that, and with Mr Woody as our teacher, anything is possible!
Quote of the day: It's not a matter of whether or not someone's watching over you. It's just a question of their intentions. - Randy K. Milholland

Bush Dwellers

2009-02-17T18:58:00.005+13:00

On camp soon we are gonna be going on "OVERNIGHT". Overnight is super fun 'cause you get to sleep in tents or shelter somewhere where we are gonna be surviving on our own wits and how much we can carry in our backpacks (insert dramatic instrumental). Just kidding, but we will be tramping and living in the bush overnight. Last year at Port Waikato overnight was so much fun, and I reckon this year at Pauanui will be even more fun. 8-)
Quotes of the day: I told the doctor I broke my leg in two places. He told me to quit going to those places. - Henny Youngman
Anyone can do any amount of work provided it isn't the work he is supposed to be doing at the moment. - Robert Benchley
When ideas fail, words come in very handy. - Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

My Aim

2009-02-16T14:29:00.003+13:00

I have a new aim. I want to get views from as many people as possible round the world, and have fun doing it!!!
Quote of the day: Almost all absurdity arises from the imitation of those whom we cannot resemble. - Samuel Johnson

Dan Brown and stuff

2009-02-16T14:13:00.002+13:00

Have you ever read any Dan Brown books? If you haven't, you should definitely try them! They are really good books and full of action, mystery, puzzles (and maybe a bit of romance). I am currently reading The Da Vinci Code for the 3rd time, and I am still enjoying it. He has written the Robert Langdon series, which consists of Angels and Demons, The Da Vinci Code, and soon to be released, The Solomon Key (I have been waiting for it for ages, and I hope it comes out soon). He has also written two stand-alone novels, which are Digital Fortress and Deception Point.
(Off Topic) You should all check out one of the blogs that I follow called "Green Grass and Rainbows". That Blogger has some really good points and views, same with "dragonrider" and "The Unknown Blog".
Quote of the day: Before I met my husband, I'd never fallen in love, though I'd stepped in it a few times. - Rita Rudner

My Class

2009-02-15T17:54:00.002+13:00

I am in a class taught by Mr Woody, he is totally awesome. We r gonna do lots of blogging and stuff like that. ;)
Quote of the Day: Always forgive your enemies; nothing annoys them so much. - Oscar Wilde

More Tennis

2009-02-15T17:42:00.003+13:00

Today I went to a thing called 'Interclub'. I have played at interclub 4 a while, it is where a bunch of clubs get together and play in a tournament. I had to serve quite a bit, but I actually got most of them in!!! So I am pretty happy 'bout that and although I lost both my games I had a really good time!!!
Quote of the Day: It's kind of fun to do the impossible. - Walt Disney

Woodmonstas

2009-02-12T17:08:00.006+13:00

Left: My woodmonsta.

It is an amphibious woodmonsta, it lives mostly underwater, in deep pools or streams. It is a deep azure blue, like sapphire, but it's fins are a lighter shade. My woodmonsta sleeps 16 hours a day underwater, but it's favourite past-time when it's not sleeping is sunbathing on flat rocks near it's home. It mostly lives upon small fish or insects, though it occasionally feasts upon other small animals that wander too near. It may look dull to the naked eye, but is actually very intelligent. When sunbathing it often puzzles over complex equations or situations. It's intelligence rivals that of dull humans, and if captured and tested in a lab, can easily find it's way out of rat-mazes and other such challenges. Overall I think it's pretty cool.

Quote of the day: If all the world's a stage, I want to operate the trap door. - Paul Beatty

Class Councillor

2009-02-12T16:43:00.005+13:00

I am currently in the running for class councillor. I believe I would be pretty great at it. Here are my reasons:

I am a helpful person by nature, if you don't believe me, ask one of the four or five people who's blogs I helped set up today. I could use this in class, to help our class become the best in the school. I believe that we can do it.
Our environment is very important to me. When I arrived at our school, I was shocked that there was no recycling bins. If I become class councillor, one of my first acts would be to get a recycling bin for our classroom at least. That would just be the beginning, I believe that our class should have our own garden space, where we could retreat, relax, and care for plants and the environment. I would do much more than that, but unfortunately, too much to list here.
Another thing that I would do as class councillor would be to get more for you. If you are bored of doing really tedious tasks for math*, I will see to it that we do a more exciting math activity. If writing things out over and over again*, I will make sure that we do something else ( Unfortunately I can't change the curriculum, so we will still have to do some things ;] ). If you don't want to do as much reading, and your legs are itching for some exercise*, I will do something about it.
If I am class councillor I will be saving YOU work, yes that's right, YOU. The class councillor has to take the money-bag and the yellow absentee slip to the student centre every morning, and every fortnight has to sit through a long meeting about the school. It is at these meetings that I will bring up YOUR ideas, and what WE want from our school to do with our learning environment.

CHANGE WE NEED!

*This will never happen under Mr Woody's teaching, but it is still one of my points ;]

Quote of the day: Lies are like children: they're hard work, but it's worth it because the future depends on them. - Pam Davis

The Other Blog

Dancing Hotdog Man

Class Mascot

My first ever glog

100 POSTS!!

Try to watch this withour laughing or grinning - seriously

More bad jokes

23 of the worst jokes you'll ever hear

Top ten worst Christmas cracker jokes ever

John McCain

A bit of info on the Grumman HU-16 Albatross

Hilarious Japanese Show

Aisling Symes

Follow your dreams

Rick roll worm for iPhone users

SHURIKEN BUILDING INSTRUCTIONS

Year Summary

Funny signs

Bush Screw-ups

Matainui

Cool link

Swiss Army Knives

Some Unsolvable Puzzles

A test - of sorts

Funny news for today

VNZMA

Word of the day - Pwned

The iPod Human

The Fair Go Ad Award Results

Quick Update:

Big Bouncing Inflatable Green Ball

Ryan Higa

How about Whamilton instead of Hamilton?

Funny Mr Woody

Marketing Tricks

Stuff we need to know about for our term project

Term topic

en⋅tre⋅pre⋅neur

in⋅no⋅vate

in⋅ven⋅tor

10 things that I want to learn more about

Crop circles in Aussie

Hahaha very funny cats...

These are rather random...

Hahaha this is really funny...

More about SlideShare

Values

Successful Learner PPT

Book Review ~ Payback

Architecture throughout the ages

New blog

New posting thing

Hamilton Zoo

Mobile Blogging

PUMA, vehicle of the future

Waikato Classic Car Monthly Meet

The Taitua Arboretum

Traits of a Successful Learner

Wordle

New Library at the Waikato University

Sunday pacing and Trolley racing

Weird news for today

Results of my poll

Dallas ISR Opening Speech

That weird eye thing

Funny news for today!!!

Cool Optical Illusions

RAINBOWS!!!!

The effects of light and shadow on photos and paintings...

MUSIC EXPERIMENT!!!!!

Balloons over Waikato

Wear odd socks day!!!

Countries in funny places

Really cool scenery

Earth Hour

GO GRANNY GO!!!!

Pauanui

Da Vinci Machines

I’M BACK!!! WOOHOO!!!

New Application!!!