So I realize it's been about 6 months since I blogged. And I'm pretty sure not very many people will even read this, however, I've missed blogging so I am going to try to take it up again. And having just finished Treasure Island by Robert Stevenson for my Children's Literature course, I thought it would form a great basis for a new post.
This was my first time reading Treasure Island, although I did see the Muppet's movie version many many years back, but it wasn't until I was about halfway through the book that I even remembered the story. The only thing I remember from the movie is Kermit the frog in a pirate hat. So apparently the story had little influence on me at that time, however reading it now sparked a few thoughts.
First of all, let me just say that I really enjoyed the book. I sat down yesterday and started it, and it took me about 5/6 hours to finish it over the course of yesterday and today. (There was a LOT of pirate lingo to wade through, but it was entertaining at least). I really was dreading reading it, because several of my friends absolutely hated it. What can I say, I guess I'm into the whole male coming-of-age adventure story. Haha.
In short, Jim, a young boy of about 16 is swept away on a pirate adventure to find gold with a crew of "baddies" and "goodies". He idols Long John, a pirate who turns out to be a mix of good and evil, who plans to betray the Dr. and captain of the ship with the crew in the form of a mutiny. Jim finds out about this by accident, and tells the "good guys" about it. Once they get to the island there is fighting, shooting, and lots of action, and Jim has a chance to mature and really become responsible, etc (the whole coming-of-age aspect really kicks in). In the end, the good guys win (of course) and sail home with the treasure.
The story to me is like a Victorian Pirate's of the Caribbean. Which of course, makes sense. Characters, themes, and even setting descriptions (the description of the cave where Ben Gunn stored the treasure matches the cave of Aztec gold in Pirates of the Caribbean almost to a T) made me think of Jack Sparrow and the crew. If you've read the book you'll understand what I'm talking about. Long John = Jack, Jim = Will Turner... even their relationship reminds me of Jack's manipulative behaviors on the young naive Will Turner (who just wants to free his girl, haha) in the first Pirates movie.
It also amused me that so many themes in old books like this one are seen today. Themes of good vs. evil are obvious, but also things like coming-of-age, betrayal, and gender stereotypes (for males, a coming-of-age requirement is often that of action while coming-of-age for girls is often seen as being passive, learning around the house, etc.) are seen time and time again, not just in similar genres like Pirates of the Caribbean.
Another observation I had while discussing in class today was that there were about 2 girls that raised their hands when asked if they liked the book (out of a class of about 40) while I'm pretty sure most of the boys in the class did. Why is it that often girls are not into these pirate stories and movies, while boys are? Is it simply because of the environment and expectations we place on boys and girls? Boys are allowed to like Pirates and Ninja Turtles, etc. while girls are expected to like Cinderella and Snow White? Or is it because the action is actually more appealing to boys? Personally I see the environment playing the biggest role... that said, I wasn't really raised to play sword fighting and shoot'em up games and yet I thoroughly enjoyed this book, as well as Pirates of the Caribbean, etc.
So really, I'm not coming to any real conclusions here just using the blog as an outlet for me to write some thoughts on the book - feel free to comment on any of my musings if you so desire. :)
Showing posts with label school. Show all posts
Showing posts with label school. Show all posts
Tuesday, January 08, 2008
Wednesday, April 25, 2007
DONE
Oh yes. That's right. I'm done first year! I honestly can't believe how fast it went by. Except for the last week, which felt like a month in and of itself, I feel like it was 2 months ago that I started University. I'm going to be in 2nd year next year!! Craziness.
As for celebration procedures, I have purchased the mandatory Ben and Jerry's ice cream and plan to watch/fall asleep to movies this afternoon. I only got 3 hours of sleep last night so it sounds like a heavenly plan to me.
:D More meaningful posts to follow... once I catch up on my sleep.
As for celebration procedures, I have purchased the mandatory Ben and Jerry's ice cream and plan to watch/fall asleep to movies this afternoon. I only got 3 hours of sleep last night so it sounds like a heavenly plan to me.
:D More meaningful posts to follow... once I catch up on my sleep.
Wednesday, April 11, 2007
Done... in 14 days
So today I had my last lecture of my first year of University. I'm actually kind of shocked. Scratch that, I'm a lot shocked. I can't believe how fast this year went by. Wow.
Anyways, this is what my exam schedule looks like:
Monday 16: CSI at 2pm
Sunday 22: Astronomy at 7pm
Monday 23: History at 9am
Monday 23: Sociology 7pm
Wednesday 25: Psychology 9am
I'm not looking forward to the whole 24 hour period with 3 exams, but what can I say, they'll be over and done with really quickly! Lol.
Okay, and now for the question of the day.
Do you believe in extra-terrestrial intelligent life? What about UFOs? If you believe in ET life, do you believe that Earth has been visited? (And by UFOs, I don't just mean objects in the sky that we don't know what they are, I mean ET UFOs.)
My thoughts to come.
Anyways, this is what my exam schedule looks like:
Monday 16: CSI at 2pm
Sunday 22: Astronomy at 7pm
Monday 23: History at 9am
Monday 23: Sociology 7pm
Wednesday 25: Psychology 9am
I'm not looking forward to the whole 24 hour period with 3 exams, but what can I say, they'll be over and done with really quickly! Lol.
Okay, and now for the question of the day.
Do you believe in extra-terrestrial intelligent life? What about UFOs? If you believe in ET life, do you believe that Earth has been visited? (And by UFOs, I don't just mean objects in the sky that we don't know what they are, I mean ET UFOs.)
My thoughts to come.
Sunday, April 01, 2007
Fill an Empty Tummy
I just thought this was a really special and worthwhile idea and am participating myself, and thought some of you would be interested. No pressure whatsoever, but I thought I'd give some info about this anyways.
One of my TAs in the CSI (no, not the movie show, the Childhood and Social Institutions program at Kings) program has a daughter who has taken it upon herself to compile a recipe book. The title of the recipe book, "Fill an Empty Tummy" is a great representation of what she wants to do with the recipes. She's going to make a recipe book and then sell it to raise money for kids in India who don't have enough to eat.
Delaney has asked for recipes from the following groups - (1) snacks, (2) appetisers, (3) main course, (4) soup, (5) desserts, (6) side dishes, (7) salads, and (8) baked foods. If you would like to participate, please pass the recipes along to me (through e=mail or via the comment section) in the following format:
Name of dish:
Category of the dish:
Your name:
Ingredients:
Directions:
How hard it is to prepare - rating it from 1 (really easy) to 5 (sort of tricky)
How many people it will serve:
Once again, this post is not meant to put you under pressure (come on, it's a blog :P) but if you feel like sending in a recipe or two I will make sure it gets passed along. She's going to be selling the cookbooks at some point as well, so if you'd like one of those I could definitely order one for you.
One of my TAs in the CSI (no, not the movie show, the Childhood and Social Institutions program at Kings) program has a daughter who has taken it upon herself to compile a recipe book. The title of the recipe book, "Fill an Empty Tummy" is a great representation of what she wants to do with the recipes. She's going to make a recipe book and then sell it to raise money for kids in India who don't have enough to eat.
Delaney has asked for recipes from the following groups - (1) snacks, (2) appetisers, (3) main course, (4) soup, (5) desserts, (6) side dishes, (7) salads, and (8) baked foods. If you would like to participate, please pass the recipes along to me (through e=mail or via the comment section) in the following format:
Name of dish:
Category of the dish:
Your name:
Ingredients:
Directions:
How hard it is to prepare - rating it from 1 (really easy) to 5 (sort of tricky)
How many people it will serve:
Once again, this post is not meant to put you under pressure (come on, it's a blog :P) but if you feel like sending in a recipe or two I will make sure it gets passed along. She's going to be selling the cookbooks at some point as well, so if you'd like one of those I could definitely order one for you.
Thursday, March 22, 2007
So this is why the youth of society are messed up...
Before you read anymore, go and read or listen to this song. It's called Lips of an Angel by Hinder. In all likelihood you've heard it on Fresh FM or Cool FM.
I've been thinking about blogging about this particular song for a while, and so after hearing it on the radio AGAIN today, I thought I'd just go for it. It's a bit of a rant, but meh, according to my "fans" *cough* that doesn't matter. :P Before that, however, let me say that I don't have a problem listening to decent music on the radio. There is a lot of good non Christian music on the radio that I certainly have no problem with. This is not a rant against the radio, or against non Christian music, it is against musicians and music like this.
So just in case you didn't read/listen, here's the song in a nutshell. Guy is with girlfriend (#1). Guy is up talking to girlfriend #2 late at night. Guy wishes he could be with girlfriend #2, but needs to stay with girlfriend #1, so instead, he kisses and talks to girlfriend #2 on the phone late at night. Guy then laments that it is hard to stay "faithful" to girlfriend #1 when girlfriend #2 has "lips of an angel".
So first, let me say this. I have heard this song (or the beginnings of it before I turn it off) probably about 7 or 8 times on the radio. Once I started hearing it on Fresh FM, turned to Cool FM and 1 song later it was playing there. This song is a big hit right now. Apparently.
Secondly, I'd like to say that music wise, I think it's a decent song. I have listened to it the whole way through and the actual music is pretty decent. The guy's voice is okay as well. (It's not like some random band that sounds crappy and has crappy lyrics.) It's not U2 or something amazing like that, but it isn't horrible either. Combine that with that it plays on the radio a lot, and I'm sure a lot of people have heard this song.
So. I honestly couldn't believe it when I first heard it. This is what we are promoting to our youth. And yes, I know I'm a "youth" but when I say that, I'm referring to preteens and young teens. It's that age category that listen to Fresh FM. Not only are we encouraging guys to be unfaithful and treat their girlfriends disrespectfully, but we're teaching girls this is normal behaviour. What is society coming to?
What bothers me even more is that the clincher line is: "But girl you make it hard to be faithful....with the lips of an angel." The use of faithful in that sentence isn't even accurate!! Obviously if this guy is going around kissing other girls, etc. etc. he isn't being faithful. Once again, we're promoting this as "normal" or even "cool" behaviour. This isn't just a stab at guys however, this negatively paints girls and is providing a bad example for young girls too. We're basically teaching girls that if they put themselves out there available to guys and their every whim (not to mention cheat with a guy), they're going to be beautiful, and have lips of an angel? Not only is this not reality, but I think it's wrong.
All this to say, that quite frankly, I think society is going off the deep end. In fact, maybe they're already there. I mean, this is what's popular. Combine that with provocative advertising and music videos and it's no wonder once people get to University they're so messed up. Okay, okay, Overheard at Western is amusing, but more often than not it's crude and inappropriate.
*Sigh* I know this was a huge rant, but I think it's something that needs to be said. People need to start acting mature and have some morals. I believe that as a society (and even older teens like me) need to start setting a good example for younger teens (ie: be a Big Brother like Jamie) and show them that what's being displayed in the media isn't the way to go.
Just some thoughts. Sorry it's so long. Take it or leave it, it's just my opinion.
I've been thinking about blogging about this particular song for a while, and so after hearing it on the radio AGAIN today, I thought I'd just go for it. It's a bit of a rant, but meh, according to my "fans" *cough* that doesn't matter. :P Before that, however, let me say that I don't have a problem listening to decent music on the radio. There is a lot of good non Christian music on the radio that I certainly have no problem with. This is not a rant against the radio, or against non Christian music, it is against musicians and music like this.
So just in case you didn't read/listen, here's the song in a nutshell. Guy is with girlfriend (#1). Guy is up talking to girlfriend #2 late at night. Guy wishes he could be with girlfriend #2, but needs to stay with girlfriend #1, so instead, he kisses and talks to girlfriend #2 on the phone late at night. Guy then laments that it is hard to stay "faithful" to girlfriend #1 when girlfriend #2 has "lips of an angel".
So first, let me say this. I have heard this song (or the beginnings of it before I turn it off) probably about 7 or 8 times on the radio. Once I started hearing it on Fresh FM, turned to Cool FM and 1 song later it was playing there. This song is a big hit right now. Apparently.
Secondly, I'd like to say that music wise, I think it's a decent song. I have listened to it the whole way through and the actual music is pretty decent. The guy's voice is okay as well. (It's not like some random band that sounds crappy and has crappy lyrics.) It's not U2 or something amazing like that, but it isn't horrible either. Combine that with that it plays on the radio a lot, and I'm sure a lot of people have heard this song.
So. I honestly couldn't believe it when I first heard it. This is what we are promoting to our youth. And yes, I know I'm a "youth" but when I say that, I'm referring to preteens and young teens. It's that age category that listen to Fresh FM. Not only are we encouraging guys to be unfaithful and treat their girlfriends disrespectfully, but we're teaching girls this is normal behaviour. What is society coming to?
What bothers me even more is that the clincher line is: "But girl you make it hard to be faithful....with the lips of an angel." The use of faithful in that sentence isn't even accurate!! Obviously if this guy is going around kissing other girls, etc. etc. he isn't being faithful. Once again, we're promoting this as "normal" or even "cool" behaviour. This isn't just a stab at guys however, this negatively paints girls and is providing a bad example for young girls too. We're basically teaching girls that if they put themselves out there available to guys and their every whim (not to mention cheat with a guy), they're going to be beautiful, and have lips of an angel? Not only is this not reality, but I think it's wrong.
All this to say, that quite frankly, I think society is going off the deep end. In fact, maybe they're already there. I mean, this is what's popular. Combine that with provocative advertising and music videos and it's no wonder once people get to University they're so messed up. Okay, okay, Overheard at Western is amusing, but more often than not it's crude and inappropriate.
*Sigh* I know this was a huge rant, but I think it's something that needs to be said. People need to start acting mature and have some morals. I believe that as a society (and even older teens like me) need to start setting a good example for younger teens (ie: be a Big Brother like Jamie) and show them that what's being displayed in the media isn't the way to go.
Just some thoughts. Sorry it's so long. Take it or leave it, it's just my opinion.
Tuesday, January 23, 2007
"Um, Sir, it smells like gas up here..."
So I was supposed to have class until 10:00pm tonight. Obviously, since I am posting this at 8:30, I am not in class (unlike some people *cough* Joel *cough* who used to post blogs in class). So the night went something like this...
Prof: Blah blah blah blah blah (going on about some astronomy phenomenon) ... and if you were to answer this question on the midterm...
Guy: Um, Sir, it smells like gas up here.
Prof: *blinks, and looks a little bewildered*
Guy 2: Yeah, it really does...
Prof: Um... okay, well it seems like several people are smelling it so if that's the case I guess we'll have to evacuate the building (as he says this everyone jumps up and packs their stuff up) and pick this up next week.
....
I proceed outside so I don't die of all that inhaled gas, and as I'm standing there waiting for my ride, I hear Guy 2 start talking.
Guy 2 (to Guy 1): DUDE! I LOVE BUSES! Was that great or what? YEAH!
[EDIT: I am assuming the buses had just got gas and the smell had gotten into the building because of all the doors opening and closing (around 7 hoards of people come in and out).]
Guy 1: *laughs*
Me: *looks at the guys in complete and utter shock*
So yeah. I just paid 50 something bucks for a class that two guys didn't want to sit through.
And that's university for you.
[EDIT: Since then, my astronomy professor has posted on the astronomy course webpage: "Campus police and Physical Plant workers responded that evening. A strong gas smell was detected but no source could be found. University maintenance staff are looking into the cause. We expect that the class will resume at the usual time on Jan 30."
So there you go... the mystery of the gas smell continues...]
Prof: Blah blah blah blah blah (going on about some astronomy phenomenon) ... and if you were to answer this question on the midterm...
Guy: Um, Sir, it smells like gas up here.
Prof: *blinks, and looks a little bewildered*
Guy 2: Yeah, it really does...
Prof: Um... okay, well it seems like several people are smelling it so if that's the case I guess we'll have to evacuate the building (as he says this everyone jumps up and packs their stuff up) and pick this up next week.
....
I proceed outside so I don't die of all that inhaled gas, and as I'm standing there waiting for my ride, I hear Guy 2 start talking.
Guy 2 (to Guy 1): DUDE! I LOVE BUSES! Was that great or what? YEAH!
[EDIT: I am assuming the buses had just got gas and the smell had gotten into the building because of all the doors opening and closing (around 7 hoards of people come in and out).]
Guy 1: *laughs*
Me: *looks at the guys in complete and utter shock*
So yeah. I just paid 50 something bucks for a class that two guys didn't want to sit through.
And that's university for you.
[EDIT: Since then, my astronomy professor has posted on the astronomy course webpage: "Campus police and Physical Plant workers responded that evening. A strong gas smell was detected but no source could be found. University maintenance staff are looking into the cause. We expect that the class will resume at the usual time on Jan 30."
So there you go... the mystery of the gas smell continues...]
Monday, November 27, 2006
Catch up and University questions
Hey everyone...
So again... it's been a few days, and I've been busy. Seems to be my life story. BUT - in exactly 15 days I will be done school for almost a month. I'm SO looking forward to that time to catch up on some reading, catch up with some friends (I STILL LOVE YOU I PROMISE!!) and just relax. I have a CSI essay to write before next Tuesday, an annotated history bibliography due next Wednesday, and an exam to study for. Meh, it's not bad.
Work has changed SO much. It's pretty crazy. Of the associates (the low people :P) there are only about 5 of us left that were there last Christmas. And we just hired about 10+ new people, so no one knows what they're doing, and that means that all of us oldies have to do twice as work most of the time. Which, I must admit isn't much fun. It's also not much fun that none of us get any credit for it. But hey, that's retail for you. I can't imagine working in retail my whole life. I really really admire people who've been there for so long because I've been there for a little over a year and I'm already getting frustrated with it. But hey, all in all it's a really good job. The hours are completely flexible and I can work it really well around my schedule. So really, I shouldn't complain.
BUT - one thing I've noticed over my 3 months at University, is that apparently, I'm a fast walker. I had got the impression of this before (ahem, Sarah) but it had never seemed like a big deal. But now, I'm always stuck behind some group of 3+ people (or just a really really slow person) taking up the sidewalk. Lol. Again, not a big deal, but a rather interesting observation. I'm hoping I'm not the only one who gets annoyed with these slow walkers who take up the whole sidewalk, but hey, it's happened before so who knows?
One more quick note to mention. Why is it that people talk in class when they have absolutely no idea what they're talking about? I mean, I'm the type of person who rarely talks in class. I'm shy, and I don't like to be wrong. SO - unless I'm about 110% sure I'm right, I'm not going to put up my hand. But then there are random people who go on for minutes about stuff that either doesn't relate to the class or that isn't right. This happens countless times, and the best times are when the prof essentially tells the people to shut it. For example:
AG (annoying guy who does this ALL the time in Psych)
P (Psych Prof)
P: So what does everyone think?
AG: Well, I think that this is true because..... blah blah blah (takes a good minute or two to develop his point - which he didn't really make)
P: And why do you think that? (looking quite complexed)
AG: I don't know...just because.
P: Can I say you're wrong..... just because?
*laughter*
I mean..... WHY?
Oh well. Who knows. I don't understand University. It's where everyone seems to pretend its different than highschool but in reality, it doesn't seem that much different. You've still got the clicky girls who spend more time on their makeup in the morning than time studying, still got the whole guy-girl drama... I mean seriously? Does it change at all in further years?
So again... it's been a few days, and I've been busy. Seems to be my life story. BUT - in exactly 15 days I will be done school for almost a month. I'm SO looking forward to that time to catch up on some reading, catch up with some friends (I STILL LOVE YOU I PROMISE!!) and just relax. I have a CSI essay to write before next Tuesday, an annotated history bibliography due next Wednesday, and an exam to study for. Meh, it's not bad.
Work has changed SO much. It's pretty crazy. Of the associates (the low people :P) there are only about 5 of us left that were there last Christmas. And we just hired about 10+ new people, so no one knows what they're doing, and that means that all of us oldies have to do twice as work most of the time. Which, I must admit isn't much fun. It's also not much fun that none of us get any credit for it. But hey, that's retail for you. I can't imagine working in retail my whole life. I really really admire people who've been there for so long because I've been there for a little over a year and I'm already getting frustrated with it. But hey, all in all it's a really good job. The hours are completely flexible and I can work it really well around my schedule. So really, I shouldn't complain.
BUT - one thing I've noticed over my 3 months at University, is that apparently, I'm a fast walker. I had got the impression of this before (ahem, Sarah) but it had never seemed like a big deal. But now, I'm always stuck behind some group of 3+ people (or just a really really slow person) taking up the sidewalk. Lol. Again, not a big deal, but a rather interesting observation. I'm hoping I'm not the only one who gets annoyed with these slow walkers who take up the whole sidewalk, but hey, it's happened before so who knows?
One more quick note to mention. Why is it that people talk in class when they have absolutely no idea what they're talking about? I mean, I'm the type of person who rarely talks in class. I'm shy, and I don't like to be wrong. SO - unless I'm about 110% sure I'm right, I'm not going to put up my hand. But then there are random people who go on for minutes about stuff that either doesn't relate to the class or that isn't right. This happens countless times, and the best times are when the prof essentially tells the people to shut it. For example:
AG (annoying guy who does this ALL the time in Psych)
P (Psych Prof)
P: So what does everyone think?
AG: Well, I think that this is true because..... blah blah blah (takes a good minute or two to develop his point - which he didn't really make)
P: And why do you think that? (looking quite complexed)
AG: I don't know...just because.
P: Can I say you're wrong..... just because?
*laughter*
I mean..... WHY?
Oh well. Who knows. I don't understand University. It's where everyone seems to pretend its different than highschool but in reality, it doesn't seem that much different. You've still got the clicky girls who spend more time on their makeup in the morning than time studying, still got the whole guy-girl drama... I mean seriously? Does it change at all in further years?
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)