Monday, July 28, 2008

Guess what?! Google told me something while i was looking up household conductors today at school! And i thought, aww i'll just share it with my readers, who probably all know anyway. It's beatrix potter's borthday today! and thats my story. later dudes

Wednesday, July 23, 2008

A Little Knowledge Along With the Ramblings Today

Unfortunately, nothing big enough has happened around about the 23rd of July for Google to make a logo out of it, s i couldn't just steal an idea off them.
I had to go looking for something. And i found it. An interesting little fact that i can discuss monologue-ically.
On the 23rd of July, 1829, William Burt patented the typographer, which was the first typewriter.
And i thought, 'Oh.' You see at first i was going to skip over ti but then i went
'Wow...maybe if he hadn't invented it, i wouldn't be typing on the same keyboard right now. Like I'd be a keyboard, sort of, just not really a keyboard. You know?'
Ah but then an argument i think I've heard elsewhere popped into my brain. It said, 'Don't be daft! [interesting etymological roots for the word daft you know]. Someone else would have invented the typewriter, obviously. This, William Burt just got in first! Course their typewriter would have been maybe slightly different, but history finds a way, doesn't it?'
You see, if Edison hadn't invented the light bulb [or one of those other hundred of things he invented] someone else would surely have seen a need for an item that emitted electrical light fr as long as you needed it [no matter if it took a different form than the light bulb, per say].
And as this is a confusing subject, i now have to stop. But just stop, every July 23rd, and remember that on this day in 1829 William Burt patented the first typewriter and helped us all to an easier way of life in some way or another.

Also remember this:
Ont he 23rd of July, 1914, Austria-Hungary issued an ultimatum to Serbia following the killing of Archduke Francis Ferdinand by a Serb assassin. The dispute led to World War I.
This ultimatum was quite unfair. Poor Serbs, they just wanted independence. Plus you know, it was just an individual! come on Austria, it at least wasn't proven that the government had anything to do with it. Who would be that stupid [i mean in governmental terms, obviously the individual who's name escapes me was] Wait, lots of governments are that stupid. Stupid, Alyssa!

Monday, July 21, 2008

Because it's Been a while...

I have several things to share today. Note that the use of the word several just means i haven't counted/worked it out yet. Lets count as we play shall we? (I feel obliged to tell you that they're all quotes. As of late i have had no original thought for posts, and the extensive reading i've carried out has given me plently of quotes to share. So i thought i would).

1) "There is a story of Auberon Herbert – I do not know whether it is true or not,
but I do not mind connecting it with his name ... which I always recall with a
sense of satisfaction and encouragement. He was staying in his country home, and
some visitors were announced. He received them with perfect good manners, and,
after a cordial welcome, he said to them, ‘And now what would you like to do? –
we are reading.’"
- Viscount Grey, ‘The pleasure of reading’

2) "Lu-Tze, who was not holy and therefore could think unholy thoughts, occasionally wondered whether the chanting monks were chanting anything, or were just going ‘aahaaahahah.’ You could never tell with that echo."
- T.Pratchett, 'Thief of Time'

3) "‘Dojo! What is Rule One?’
‘Do not act incautiously when confronting little bald wrinkly smiling men!’
‘Good rule, Rule One,’ said Lu-Tze."
- T.Pratchett, 'Thief of Time'

4) "‘You read a lot,’ said the behatted kvetch indicating the two novels he had open. He nodded, because there was no denying it and because he didn’t want to put up the ante or a conversation.
‘Books aren’t life.’
‘No, they’re better,’ he replied and flipped through the thirty – two library cards in his wallet to remove his one credit card to pay."
- Tibor Fischer, ‘Bookcruncher’

That post was really just for me. Im sure you'll think it's boring. Oh well, is it not written, "such is life?" (Anyone i know, anyone read any of the Discworld series?)

Tuesday, July 15, 2008

I'm gunna go Cry at the Injustice Now..

I just thought i'd take a quick peek at HBP releas dates in repsonse to a friend's question a month ago about when it's to be realeased. So i did, just then, on mugglenet and was absolutely appalled by what is up at the moment. For Australia, New Zealand, Hong Kong and another asian country, around the 11th of december. And i was like, awesome not too long to wait excpet that
EVERY OTHER COUNTRY ON THE LIST GETS IT NEARLY 2 WEEKS EARLIER!
Gah flipping movie people. Hate em all, specialy America (haha it has a special place in my heart)

Sunday, July 13, 2008

The Nasty Little Letter C

The appropriately beautiful or ugly sound of any word is an illusion wrought on
us by what the word connotes.
Max Beerbohm, writer, critic, and caricaturist (1872-1956)

I've been pondering this quote for a long time. Since it grabbed my attention in the AWAD emails i get and made it the part of my email signature which i always erase anyway (only certain people get it) actually. The point is...so it actually hasn't been a long time. I have no idea why i said a long time, that was stupid, so was just putting a space before a comma, but whatever. THE POINT is that i've been thinking about it and then another little post prompted even further thought ( as seems to be hapening alot lately) so that this post, was born.
I think its true.
To an extent.
The extent being when the words you are comparing don't mean the same thing (as an aside, that's the correct spellign of mean int hat context isn't it? Gosh i prove Miss. Tate theory worng. But only to an extent. I'll not tell you to what extent, that's too divergant). See, i've seen his theory proven right in all the owrds i can think of but amicable and amiable are two that i ahve a problem with.
Hmm i think i just foudn a porblem with this whole post. Connotes could in this case mean "means" right? So... the definitions of the above words (from dictioanry.com of course) are:

a·mi·a·ble
–adjective
1.having or showing pleasant,
good-natured personal qualities; affable: an amiable disposition.
2.friendly; sociable
3.Friendly and agreeable in disposition; good-natured and likable



And this is where i'm proven worng because i thought they meant the same thign btu the slight differences in their meanings affects their connotations (which actually cannot mean "meaning" because a connotation is a suggestion besaides the primary meaning.

am·i·ca·ble
–adjective
Characterized by or
showing goodwill; friendly; peaceable:
Characterized by or exhibiting
friendliness or goodwill; friendly
And really they pretty much are the same word and can be used mostly inter-changably, but shades of meanign suggest i was wrong. I [the whole 'i' thing is important, becaus ebeauty is in the eye of the beholder isn't it?) see being amicable as having great potential to just being a show,a facde, a mask of pleasantness and friendliness (see the word characterised? [i 'corrected' the spelling]). On the other hand being amiable, you are likeable and firnedly and pleasant and don't only have the potential (less potential too i think) to be a fraudster, but in more likelihood actually possess these qualities. (see the word having). Also, lovable or lovely is an obslete meaning, suggesting (connoting) actually possession of "likeabliity."
And of course i think amiable is a much more lovely looking word than amicable. Personally, i belive that it is due to not only the connotations of the words (previously explained) that lend this illussion, as Max Beerbom suggests. I think it aslo due to the letter c and its not so fortunate placement within the word amicable. I think, mis-placed, that the letetr c can mark the difference between an ugly word and a beautiful one, not that amicable is an ugly word but it's ot beautiful.
If you don't believe me just take the letter 'c' out of the word amicable.

Thursday, July 10, 2008

And Now You Label me a ....

This post could be seen as following on from a previous post, written about two months ago. However, think of it as an entirely new one please (but i wonder if anyone knows the post I'm referring to. Probably not - sadly i have no scarily die-hard fans out there.)
Why did school have to go and ruin youths' perception of what an essay is? I'm not going to turn this into a hate post about school (hey i like school - well mostly) but i am going to again condemn society.
You (as in general 'anyone' you, not second person you) mention the word essay to another school kid these days and they go "oh that's so boring." Trust me i know. The various people I've told that I'm studying the essay this year in ext English and who are in school just reply with "oh.....how fun" and search for a new topic. Why did i limit that to school kids? A lot of people have a warped perception of what an esssay is. (For my problem with school writings click here). I'm not saying the things we write in school aren't essays, i just want people to know that good essays exist. As in, essays that are interesting to read.
Despite the fact that whilst reading Montaigne's works, they felt dense and difficult to get through (oh i now have to read 60 more pages of him, joy), i feel an affinity with the man (again, see our ext english class); same with Betty Churcher (i got quite excited when i met her again on TV the other night). Bacon is more like a trusted advisor (but nice all the same, just not as friendly) and the essays we read recently by ..... [name forgotten] were instantly likable (to me anyway, and as such i decided that the guy must be quite amiable [which is a much nicer looking word than amicable don't you think?]). I haven't forgotten James either. We just got to know each other better through the recent acedemic studies (i think i understand the book i little better too). The point is, however nutty you think i am from all this, essays are really ..... good things to read. They're not just what we do at school: they are an exploration of any topic the essayist wishes to explore, which actively engages with us, the audience, and allows us to get to know the author
Excellent.

So Now Im Batman

Christian Bale has the same birthday as me.

Is it just me or is hat more worthy of a trifling facts post. I thought about it, but its too....random for trifling facts. You know, there is a line with that blog, however thin it is, it exists and i know what it is, but ..... okay totally just backstabbed myself.

Wednesday, July 09, 2008

Random Fact

The most exhausting book to read (for me anyway) is harry potter seven. I didn't want to start reading another book after i finished it yesterday, i just had to not read for a while. Hahah it was weird. And so i thought i would tell you all.

Tuesday, July 08, 2008

"On This Day"

The 8th of July.
2000 - J.K. Rowling's "Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire" was released in the U.S. It was the fourth Harry Potter book.

Just thought i'd let veryone know that. I mean, this is a significant day: he eight anniversary of the release of the book that marked the middle of our journey with Harry. Okay, its not really significant but i wante dot play it up. I still remember the day it came out......And that book has one of the best covers in my opinion.
Do you ever hear people say in my personall opinion? How stupid is that its like triple tautology!
See yas later, alligators.

Saturday, July 05, 2008

Ooo I feel and essay coming on...

Does anyone else miss the imagination they had as a child? I never really thought of myself as having much of one, even as a young child, but when i think about the games i played with my invisible friend and the way my house and backyard could become somewhere else for a while, i start to think i had more of an imagination than i gave myself credit for.
Now, in the holidays, i get bored and (strangely for me) lonely much quicker, and i think that i just made the connection. I used to be able to go and 'seek comfort' as it were with some made up friends, and they were all i needed to have fun. But, well, its not like i engage in the active story-games of the imagination any more.
Instead, i can now live vicariously in the holidays and seek comfort in the imaginary characters of books.

Wednesday, July 02, 2008

Rhythm and Rhyme Where Art Thou?

I was thinking just now
About what and how:
What am i doing
wasting my time?
And how come Im
So terrible at writing
Spontaneous poetry that rhymes
Dimes.