"Halo"

In my totally bias opinion, I have two of the most talented cousins in the world. They have created the most beautiful movie for their media assignment. Titled "Halo" as an obvious link to the song used, the plot starts with Elle Ullman who grieves over the loss of her husband Phil. Jett and Samantha Dante remind her of the moment she and Phil had. Phil's "halo" guides Elle into a positive light; aiding her to move on through life.

Postless and Papers

Sorry all for letting my blog be so postless... (sigh) but pens and papers have regained attention; that's right school is back. It's incredible how boring school is once you've been there for a while. After only the first day I thought I'd been there for an entire term and I was ready for the holidays.

I remember in year eight, I said to my mum that it didn't even felt like school; the day just slipped away and soon it was over. But now it's the complete opposite. Everything is so monotonous, boring and sometimes hard. I have already started counting down how many months until I graduate. Yep that's right... I have 30 months to go. That's about 900 days including holidays, weekends, public holidays, pupil free days, borders' long weekend and days off.

Anyway, two days in and my diary is already full of work. Assignments, journals, study, general work, tasks, sheets to sign... it's all too much. Seriously, is there anyone else that feels school applies too much pressure? No really... let me know because I'm not a retard that just finds school 'boring and pointless' and I don't aspire to work at McDonald's... 

Mother's Day Madness

I really wanted to do something for mother's day. It's the one time of the year when I actually am the only person that can spend time with mum. But here's the deal, she just decides she wants to have lunch at her friends' house. 

Anyway, hopefully she will find my plans much more interesting. I have organised for us to go to the Perth Mint at 9:00 so that we can take the 9:30 guided tour. Then we will drive over to the new "Wheel of Excellence" and take a ride on that followed by a walk up the bell tower.

So all in all, I have organised a $64.00 day (without lunch) and she wants to go to her friends' house? That's absurd! I have put so much thought into this... bloody parents! They don't understand.

Nature vs Nurture

Parents by definition are a father or mother; one who sires or gives birth to and nurtures an offspring but in my opinion, it's who raises you and nurtures you that fulfill the role, be it your biological parents or not.

Many disagree saying that blood is the ultimate connection but to me a bond is stronger. If you are raised by foster or adopted parents, relatives of friends from birth or a young age, they are grown to fulfill a parental role. Of course whether or not a child acknowledges them as their parents is a decision of their head and heart.

In another frame of mind, many children grow strong bonds with friends, relatives, neighbours etc. whilst still in the care of their biological parents. Some even acknowledge these "friends" to be "like parents" or "second parents".

In conclusion I think it's fair to say that there is a difference between your biological parents and your mum and dad. Nature automatically distributes the title of parents when a child is born, but the title of mum and dad must be earned by love, nourishment and compassion.

Fully Booked

O.M.G. My holidays are suddenly becoming interesting. Not only has my overly over-protective mother let me go to Albany next week with a friend she doesn't know, but my BBFL has just invited me to the footy TOMORROW!!! Yay. The WCE are versing the bulldogs. I'd better get out my merchandise.

A Creative Couple

I have two twin cousins, and they're really talented... in a technological way. They're great at making movies and have such an imagination. For a class project, they had to remake a scene of romeo and juliet in their own style. They chose "gangster" style. This is one of my favourite movies that they've made, I think it's hilarious...

Abortion: Yes or No?

Abortion is the termination of pregnancy by the removal of an embryo or fetus. The term abortion is typically only used in reference to induced abortions while spontaneous abortions are termed miscarriages. In the context of human pregnancies, there are two types of induced abortions. An abortion induced to preserve the health of the pregnant woman, terminate a pregnancy that would result in a child born with a fatal disorder or leave it with significantly disabled or selectively reduce the number of fetuses to lessen the heath risks involved in multiple births is called a therapeutic abortion. An abortion performed at the request of the pregnant woman for any other reason than maternal or fetal health is referred to as an elective abortion. 

In Australia, abortion is legal to protect the life and well-being of the woman. Currently the law states that it is primarily the decision of the pregnant women and there is no law in Australia that requires consent of the child's father. Also, except in Western Australia, no parental consent is required for a minor to undergo an abortion. 

In 2003 alone, 42 million abortions were performed worldwide and believe it or not; that was a decline from nearly 46 million in 1995.

Although my views steer away from induced elective abortions, in the case of one I strongly believe that the pregnant woman should have to notify or gain consent from significant other. For example a minor, her parents; a married woman, her husband; or any other, the biological father. Obviously many agree with me shown in the 2003 Gallup poll. In this US poll, 79% of males and 67% of females supported spousal notification.

Now I don't know about you but I am definitively pro-life rather than pro-choice. I strongly argue that a fetus is a human being and has the right to life. An elective abortion is, in my opinion, murder, and to inflict pain and death on a helpless human being is immoral and cruel. Many say that it's the pregnant woman's choice and her choice only but do you really believe that? Is it right to give one human being total freedom to decide the existence of another? If so, what other human beings does the pregnant woman have the freedom to terminate using common sense and choice? Is it just her children? Is she allowed to murder her eight year old daughter because she believes she can't care for it? 

I just don't understand how you could kill someone. Yes, someone, not something. Now I understand therapeutic abortions and a I completely support them. I don't at all think that it's immoral to terminate a pregnancy to preserve the health of the child or mother. But for personal, social, cosmetic reasons? It just doesn't cut it... not for me.

A person's a person no matter how small.

Gift For A Good Report

I can't believe it... my mum is pretty damn cool. She's buying me a Ragdoll for getting a good report. I got four A's, three B's and two C's... but the C's were in the two subjects I don't care about so they don't matter. Ok... it might not seem as quite the "wiped off my feet" present but trust me it is. Let me trace back to the start, or close enough.

A few months ago I asked mum for a cat as a result of three reasons:

1. The only other pet I had was a fish (Geoff)

2. We couldn't bring my other cat back from QLD and I missed having  a cat

3. I need to take up responsibilities and follow through on something

However, mum didn't want me to get one and she had good reason. She knew that I have never fully taken care of my pets by myself and she didn't believe I could do it. Secondly, she didn't want to pay for a cat and she didn't want me to waste my money either. Also, she hates cats. However, for one reason or another, she gave in and let me get one.

Then when I received a good interim report, she said she'd buy me a Ragdoll, a Ragdoll, do you know how much they cost?! Also, she said she'd buy me all the equipment and supplies I need. 

Coffee: Tick or Flick?

Coffee mightn't be good for pregnant women and children but how does that affect everyone else. Should we be giving coffee the tick or flick?

Coffee has gained the image that it is bad for you and you shouldn’t drink it. But is that really the case? Now I’m not one to diminish coffee, in fact it’s possibly my second oxygen however; the rich taste comes at a price of many factors.

Firstly, buying brand name coffee from places including but not limited to Dome and Gloria Jeans and Starbucks in the US can cost over $3.50 for a small coffee. Thus totaling to over $1000 per year if one coffee is bought Monday through to Friday. For home brewed coffee such as Nescafe, a year’s worth (of black coffee) would only total to over one-tenth of the price. However, keep in mind the extra costs such as electricity, water, sugar, cups, spoons etc.

The second and most debated factor is health consequences. Not only does coffee have a negative effect on your digestive system, particularly your stomach but it also causes heartburn. The acidity in coffee is a cause of stomach ulcers, which in tern can cause death. An early symptom of ulcers is coughing up blood, which in its self is horrible. Regardless of whether you drink regular or decaf, coffee can lead to liver disorders which is linked to premature death.

Large amounts of coffee can cause a fast heart rate, excessive urination, nausea, vomiting, restlessness, anxiety, depression, tremors, and difficulty sleeping, resulting in fatigue. However, a large amount isn’t three cups, in fact this is considered a standard daily intake. Drinking two or three pots by yourself is definitely a large amount.

Although it is a misleading notion that decaf is better, regular coffee is actually addictive. It’s no mistake that there are quitting programs for coffee consumption. Also, the above effects of a large consumption are more common in regular coffee drinkers to compared to decaf.

However, regardless of this information, I am still asking to make my… fourth coffee for the day.

Miami Bay Election: Speech

In year nine political studies, we had to act out a political election. I ran for leadership in Miami Bay, a fictional suburb home to many middle-class working families and retired elders. Here is the speech I wrote.

Thank you for that enthusiastic welcome. It shows just how much you care about the future leadership of Miami Bay.

I stand before you today, not to persuade you or promise you unachievable goals but to tell you the truth. And the truth is that you, the people of Miami Bay deserve better. You deserve security, luxury and affordability. But most of all, you deserve certainty. Certainty of your jobs. Certainty that your children will be educated. Certainty of your safety. And certainty of your future.

My purpose today is this. I will not stand here and promise you millions of dollars or free taxes. But I will deliver my precise plans for the future of Miami Bay.

At present, our government is providing a satisfactory living environment for the residents on Miami Bay. But you deserve better. You deserve more educational opportunities. You are deprived of healthcare facilities. You are lacking security and safety.

The current government has heartlessly given up on areas such as Miami Bay but we, The Nationals have the ambition, the ideas and the energy for change.

Educational systems and facilities in Miami Bay are falling below standards. The rapidly increasing teacher shortage is depriving Miami Bay from basic education. The Nationals believe that every child is entitled to a qualified education. However, the current government believes there is nothing that can be done. We are willing to rise both primary and secondary teachers’ wages to increase education in Miami Bay. We will also provide government funding to increase the standards of local schools and provide better educational facilities such as learning resource centers and computers. We will also establish another local university to increase the constantly dropping number of students entering tertiary education.

However, education is sadly only one of the areas that the current government has neglected. Miami Bay is currently deprived of healthcare facilities. Time after time, politicians promise to repair the healthcare system, yet nothing is being done. Aged care facilities are unable to be accessed without extensive delays so elderly residents are stuck in hospital beds. This is not the place for them.

They should be transferred to a comfortable facility that is fully equip to their needs. Not only is this unfair for them, it’s unfair for those who desperately need hospital beds but are now forced onto long waiting lists.

My plan is to extract the money given to private healthcare in the community from the budget. As they are already well facilitated, we believe that the money should be put into healthcare that is more generally available. A portion of the funds previously given to private healthcare will provide funding to facilitate public aged care facilities.

We will further equip these facilities with the latest technology to accommodate the needs of every single elderly resident requiring the assistance of this facility. To ensure you are given an adequate amount of staff, we will provide financial incentives for doctors and nurses to work at your local aged care facility. However, we have more plans for healthcare in Miami Bay.

We believe that working families with young children deserve a place of medical reassurance. We intend to use another portion of our funds to establish a new public maternity and children’s hospital. Plans have been discussed to waive as many financial medical charges as possible. In term, this means only minimal payments are required for the use of this medical facility. The remaining money will be cut from the budget to decrease taxes.

Miami Bay can no longer be a good suburb. You can no longer settle for what you’ve been given. You can choose new leadership with fresh ideas and innovative plans. You can give everyone a fair go. You can vote for me, because together we will transform this community. Thank you.

One In A Billion: Speech

In year eight, I entered an interhouse public speaking competition. There were no topic restrictions (besides a time restriction) so I found it quite hard to choose a topic. However, I realised the best topic came from inside my own house. This was my speech.

My mum. Just the sound of my topic might bore you to death but honestly, her life isn’t simple nor easy.

When I was only five, mum began to feel weak and unwell and it wasn’t just every once and a while. Everyday, as she describes it, mum felt as if she had run a marathon but she kept performing her home duties as well as working full time, hoping the pain would disappear. As you might have guessed it didn’t and after a doctor’s appointment, the doctor suggested she had chronic fatigue, a disease which makes you weak and tired. He perked her up with iron and vitamin B injections but after a only three weeks, the vitamins wore off and she was back to feeling bad.

In March 2001, mum was forced to quit work as the doctors diagnosed her with a rare disease called myositis. The disease, as it usually does, ate away at the muscles in mum’s limbs, making it hard to pick up things and walk. In the colder months of winter, mum found it hard to get out of bed and a lot of the time, she didn’t have the strength or energy to.

When 2002 came mum began to have difficulty breathing. Even walking made mum short of breath and soon she felt very limited in what she could do. The doctors knew something wasn’t right when mum’s face broke out in a butterfly rash. They ran some tests which proved she had DermatoMyositis, a disease which not only affects the limbs but her skin as well. She was put on heavy doses of steroids to help the disease but that also ended up affecting her. Mum’s right eye began to turn in each time she woke up or became tired and she gained around 20kg. Then the worst part came.

On the 21^st of September 2003, mum was rushed to hospital not being able to breathe. In the early hours of the next morning, mum was pronounced clinically dead when her organs shut down. She said she saw herself inside a coffin with her children and husband standing over her. She saw the coffin closing but begged God not to let her go, that she was too young and that she would give up smoking if he let her live. Many doctors gave up but two young doctors wouldn’t let her go and thank god to them because mum pulled through. For three days, mum was unconscious but when she finally awoke, she stayed true to her promise and to this day hasn’t had another cigarette.

Later that year, mum’s GP was concerned at the fact that she was continually short of breath and having heart burn as well as high blood pressure. He referred her to a heart specialist at Sir Charles Gardner Hospital and in 2004 she was told she had heart failure. They kept monitoring her but finally decided to put a device in her which would monitor her heart. Bad results were found from this and at end of April 2005, mum was notified that her heart had deteriorated and she had Cardiomyopothy would require a heart transplant. Cardiomyopothy is when the heart enlarges itself to try and cope with the body’s workload. They implanted a deliberator which is a device that jump starts your heart. Over the course of six months, mum’s deliberator went off thirteen times, all for false reasons such as electric blankets or hot showers.

Around 11:30pm on Tuesday the 6^th of December 2005, mum’s pager started to beep. The message lit up, “please ring the hospital” we knew this was the call we’d all been waiting for. Mum immediately got dressed and packed her bags before rushing to my grandma’s to tell me the good news. Half asleep I smiled “That’s great news” and soon mum was at the hospital. There was still four hours of tests to insure the donor’s heart was completely compatible. Fortunately it was and on Wednesday the 7^th, mum was having the biggest operation of her life. However, during surgery, a large amount of air accidently entered mum’s body, causing her to fall into a coma.

She was immediately put into the Intensive Care Unit under 24 hour watch and two days later I was able to see her. Seeing her in that bed was one of the hardest moments of my life but the doctors were worried she wouldn’t make it through and wanted her closest friend to be with her. She had a large tube down her throat breathing for her, a nasal tube taking bile out of her stomach and her face was puffy and a weird colour. They tried three times to remove the breathing tube but every time she had a seizure. They finally got it out and on Saturday I came again to visit her. The doctors tried to wake her from her coma but they were unsuccessful. I sat on the edge of her bed and stroked her hand. I talked to her and asked her to wake up. I almost cried when I saw her eyes slowly open. It was a miracle.

Things weren’t all better though. Within the first three months, mum was in hospital on four different occasions, three times with an infection and once because there was water surrounding the heart. Over the next two years mum was in and out of hospital and in April 2007 mum’s new heart went into complete heart block and she was required to have a pace maker implanted. It helped immensely as it started getting her back on track but then something else went wrong. She was diagnosed with chronic kidney disease and had stents implanted in her arteries. These began to improve the function of her kidneys and the blood flow to the heart. So things still aren’t exactly perfect now, they’re testing to see if something is wrong with her oesophagus, she’s still taking 20 tablets daily and her myositis will never be cured. So with the myositis and the way her condition has deteriorated, doctors have stated that she is really, one in a billion.

It's Time For A Change: Speech

When I entered the Rostrum Voice of Youth Public Speaking Competition in year eight, I wrote a speech under the "It's Time For A Change" category entailing the problems of body image and incorrect self-perception. This was my speech.

Do I look fat in this? Why can’t I look like the girls in magazines? How come people stare at me? These are the questions that many teenage girls ask themselves. I can probably guess how many people in this room put themselves down. Close your eyes, and raise your hand if you have ever told yourself that you are not beautiful, that you could lose weight or someone looks better than you. Open your eyes and look around, this number makes me feel terrible because it’s not only us in this room that put ourselves down, it’s many girls locally, nationally and globally.

In fact around 80% of teenage girls have body image issues. This means that day in and day out girls tell themselves that they are not beautiful, that there is someone better than them and that they aren’t special, but why you ask? I’ll tell you why, all adolescents are susceptible to the psychological phenomenon known as 'the imaginary audience'. What this means is that many teenagers are extremely concerned with what other people think and see of them because they believe everyone is constantly watching them, analysing them and making judgements about them.

A stain on their shirt, a pimple on their forehead; these are common examples of issues that most people would never notice about another, sometimes even themselves, but teenagers feel like it’s the only thing others notice. Teenagers feel the strong desire to fit in and be ‘like everyone else’ or do something like go on a diet because ‘everyone else does it’. If their peers are striving to look like supermodels then they will feel the need to do the same. For most teenagers trying to achieve an unrealistically thin body can lead to endless dieting, constant vigorous exercise, depression and the sometimes fatal eating disorders such as anorexia and bulimia.

Add this obnoxious imaginary audience with a civilization obsessed with being sickly skinny, wearing expensive clothes and meeting the requirements of a certain trend and you can start to understand the day to day issues that each and every teenager has to contend with. However, these are not the only things you need to contemplate, what most people don’t realise is that you’re not always guaranteed to grow out of this phase. Studies have shown that many women over 40 are still dissatisfied with their appearance. This can mean that women of all ages, shelter themselves inside their homes, hiding their image from the world, it’s like a caterpillar living in a cocoon and never showing itself as the beautiful butterfly it is.

The best way to ease the stress from teenager dealing with body issues is to let them know that they are unique and should express themselves in their own way. They should also be informed that everyone has imperfections and issues such as acne are a part of life, but be careful not to say 'no one cares'. Telling a teenager no one cares is like telling them that no one will notice them. It’s an odd situation because while the teen fears everyone is watching them at the same time they don't want to feel like no one is noticing them. A common example is when a girl goes to get her hair done but when her boyfriend sees it, he says nothing. Wouldn’t you feel bad if that happened to you?

Being a teenager, I understand that teenagers will still do and believe in what they please, the best one can do is show teenagers that the Hollywood image is not the perfect image or the only image. It can be tough being a teenager with all the mixed signals one receives from society, the media, their parents, peers and friends. The pressure to have the ‘perfect’ body image in the 21^st century is immense, especially with all the photo editing products used these days. Photoshop, Printshop and Paintshop are only a few of the photo editing programmes available nowadays but who would want to spend hundreds of dollars buying products to lower your self esteem, I’d suggest you all go and spend the money on a photo shoot instead of turning yourself into a stereotypical image

Stereotypical figures like the manikins in the shopping centres portray the wrong image.  The size six plastic dolls help to ruin our self esteem. Am I right by saying that the clothes always look great on them but somehow not so great on us? These dolls are coat hangers for our clothes just as fashion designers are trying to make us. But who wants to say, isn’t she a lovely coat hanger or when I grow up I want to be a coat hanger. Designers are only interested in selling their clothes, no matter who gets hurt. It’s disgusting to see models that are size 4 and 6; they can barely work down a runway. They show these skeletal girls in magazines standing like racks with clothes on them. It’s a shame that healthy, normal sized women cannot be shown off to the world.

Magazines send the wrong impression to not only teenagers but older women as well. We look at these photos and see beautiful faces and stunning figures, but really what we’re looking at is 2D objects. These people don’t exist; you can’t even say they are plastic. They were once beautiful women but they entered the world of computer screens letting men and women edit their figures and touch-up their faces. They became pieces of papers, lies hidden under a computer screen. We look up to these people and think “why can’t I look like them” but really what we’re saying is why can’t I look like that piece of paper.

You may laugh but it’s true. Raise your hand if you have ever read a magazine and thought, I wish I was that pretty. I thought so. Everyone repeat after me. I don’t want to look like a piece of paper, I am me and I am beautiful. So, next time you read a magazine I don’t want you to say, I wish I was that pretty but say, I don’t want to look like a piece of paper, I am me and I am beautiful. So, it’s time for a change but not to change our bodies, it’s not time to change our lifestyle, our eating habits, our clothing, it’s time to change the rules.

Everlasting Battle: Poem

For the creative writing competition in year eight, I decided to write a poem based on domestic violence and the way a child sees her parents. This was my poem, titled "The Everlasting Battle".

From evening to dawn they quarrel, in front of her teary eyes,

It’s those brutal bashings in which her mother endures, of which she does despise,

She says “Stop hitting mum”, but he responds only with another yell,

She crawls under the covers but his voice only echoes, like a bellowing wave inside a shell,

When morning comes he does not recall, the things that he has said,

Those crazy words that came out of his mouth, and those thoughts inside his head,

He does not bear in mind, that those bruises on her arm,

Are from his own two fists, which caused this mother so much harm,

In the best interest of their happiness they have now parted, and gone their separate ways,

So long gone are those tragic fights, and those unforgettable days,

But what about that little girl, who’s had to pick a side,

Who day and night was scared of her dad, but no longer wants to hide,

That little girl I’m sad to say, is closer than can be,

Because that little girl who saw those fights, has grown up, and that girl is me.

This is the truth and nothing more, of what I saw each night,

But don’t feel sorry for me or that little girl, because it was my mum that had the battle to fight.

Play. Rewind. Repeat.

Forget Rebecca Bloomwood and "Confessions of a Shopaholic", meet me and my story - confessions of a Gilmoregirlsaholic. I have just finished watching the complete season of Gilmore Girls - for the fourth or maybe fifth time.

It really surprises me how you can (or at least I can) watch a movie or in this case a TV series repeatedly and not become bored. Even with knowing almost all the punch lines, songs, jokes, anecdotes etc. it never becomes repetitive or tiresome. I even jump, cry and scream when bad "unanticipated" things happens even though I've expected them.