Shows To Watch (June 2016)

First off apologies for my long absence, as you may know from my blog procrastination is my thing. So in some ways writing this is a bit of a procrastination from uni exams but hey, it's still a post. I thought I'd start something off a bit easy and hope that there will be more posts to come.

Here are some of the shows I'm currently watching. For the show to be listed it must currently be airing or recently ended (or between series if it is still going). It can be from TV and online streaming services (such as Netflix, Stan, or Hulu [for all you Americans]).

Once Upon a Time (2011 - )

(Source: http://www.playbuzz.com/lilyanna10/can-you-match-the-once-upon-a-time-character-with-the-disney-name)

Once Upon a Time just finished it's fifth season and has already being confirmed for a sixth! Although this show hasn't been everyone's cup of tea it is still really good. After the whole 'curse' premise of the show ended in season 1, season 2 was definitely a bit Lost (haha, forgive me, if you know a bit about the show you will get the joke). However things did start to pick up from the third season and the show finally found a flow with it's half-season major plot points as well as story arches throughout the whole show. Plus there are some pretty amazing scenes in the show and plenty of emotion. If you love fairy tales give this show a try.

Wentworth (2013 - )

(Source: https://www.foxtel.com.au/watch/wentworth.html)

Wentworth is an example of great Australian television recognised around the world. It is the contemporary remake of the Australian classic drama series "Prisoner". It is absolutely amazing. So good in fact that despite its young age it has broken the glass ceiling of Australian television and become a worldwide phenomenon which has already sparked off multiple spin-offs in other languages and countries. The greatest thing about these is that they use a lot of the same cinematography and scripts (after translation of course) which really is a testament to how great this show was already. It really is filmed like a movie for the television and the characters are all so well-written (guards and prisoners alike) that you really feel for them all.

The Real O'Neals (2016 - )

(Source: http://www.citytv.com/toronto/shows/the-real-oneals/)

This hilarious new show with an amazing (and perfectly cast) cast is all about a seemingly perfect Irish-catholic family. The mother (Eileen) is practically head of the church committee, her husband (Pat) is a police officer, her eldest son (Jimmy) is a high-school wrestler, her middle son (Kenny) is a star pupil with a girlfriend and her daughter (Shannon) is a socially aware child who is always raising money for the church or other charities. Their family is the pride of the church. All this is turned upside down when Eileen and Pat decide to get divorced, Jimmy reveals he is anorexic, Shannon reveals that she keeps all the money she raises and Kenny decides to come-out as gay. All this is made all the more awkward by the fact that the whole church finds out at a charity event. With the help of Eileen's hilariously unaware sister Jodi the family try to navigate their new lives with all their secrets out in the open. It is a really great show that is equal parts funny and touching. The way they handle Kenny's coming out and subsequent coming to terms with his sexuality is also refreshing and realistic. It is a great show and I'm glad that it's being renewed for a second season.

UnREAL (2015 - )

(Source: http://blitz.arc.unsw.edu.au/2016/review-unreal-tv-show/)

UnREAL is the amazing new drama show about the producers behind a Bachelor-like show called "Everlasting". It's all about the manipulation and truth behind shows like The Bachelor. It is really well-written and has some really amazing scenes. The second season starts Monday in the United States and it has already being renewed for a third season (before the second even airs!). It was created by someone who used to work as a producer on The Bachelor and it's actually really interesting viewing. You will be amazed and everyone will be exposed.

Of course these are just some of the amazing shows out there right now. There are many more shows that I do watch that do also deserve to be on this list but maybe another time.

#IllRideWithYou

Yesterday saw one of the darkest days in Australian history in recent years. It saw the siege of the Lindt Cafe in Martin Place Sydney. A place central to the large city of Sydney and close to Government Authorities and broadcasters. It was also very close to famous landmarks like the Sydney Opera House and the Sydney Harbour Bridge.

Source: http://www.news.com.au/national/siege-at-sydneys-lindt-cafe-martin-place-long-identified-as-a-terrorist-target/story-fncynjr2-1227156454320

It was something that captured the attention of all Australians. This siege, done in the name of ISIS, finally came to an end just after 2 this morning, more than 16 hours after the siege began. This end came at the cost of three lives. One was the gunman himself who was holding the hostages. The other two were poor innocent people who had just gone out for a quick bite at the cafe. They were the 38 year-old barrister and mother of three Katrina Dawson and the 34 year-old manager of the cafe, Tori Johnson. Our thoughts go out to their friends and families at this troubled time.

[from top] Katrina Dawson and Tori Johnson 

Source: http://www.news.com.au/national/martin-place-siege-victims-were-katrina-dawson-38-and-tori-johnson-34/story-fncynjr2-1227157794423

However, if there was one thing good to come out of this it was the sense of community that came out of it all. Despite the fact that the act was done in the name of ISIS many Australians stood up for the Muslims they knew had no support for the group who were destroying their reputation. In the face of adversity and immense suffering our country pulled together despite the ISIS plan to separate the Muslims from the rest of Australia. This was embodied through the hashtag "I'll ride with you".

Source: http://descrier.co.uk/news/world/illridewithyou-australians-show-solidarity-sydneys-muslims-siege/

It continues to trend on Twitter with thousands of people showing their support for their fellow Muslim Australians. It is a promise to show solidarity when you are with a Muslim, or anyone, and they could fear racial backlash from connotations regarding their faith. The following picture shows the Facebook post that started it all by Rachael Jacobs.

Source: http://www.smh.com.au/nsw/martin-place-siege-illridewithyou-hashtag-goes-viral-20141216-127rm1.html

Since this many posts have come to show their supports and most Australians would have found at least one mention of the hashtag on Facebook or Twitter. This response to the attack by a person on Facebook which has since been shared by many people and pages sums up Australia's response to this incident perfectly.

Source: https://www.facebook.com/DanAndMaz

Nothing more needs to be said. See you soon.

My Kokoda Journey: Day 8 on Kokoda (Day 9 in Papua New Guinea)

We had made it! There was only three hours ahead of us before we could say that we had completed the Kokoda track. It was a bitter-sweet realisation as it would also mean saying goodbye to our porters with whom we had formed a connection with over our experience. We woke up to the usual "Good morning, turn your torches on please" from our guide from PNG Trekking Adventures which was a big moment in itself but I think it was more a moment of relief more than anything. Still, it made for some great memories that we still refer to today. After we had packed up our tents for the final time and had eaten our final breakfast (our ration pack only consisted of breakfast that day which meant less weight in our bags for the big climb out) we listened to the head porter give us a run-down on what was going to happen and what the terrain was going to be like before we had our last morning chant. We then took a group photo of our porters and began our final bit of the journey.

After about ninety minutes of hiking (in which I only fell down a few times in the mud) we came to this river which was not too deep but deep enough that the water was over our waists. The porters went through first to take some of the packs and other materials across and to prepare for our crossing. They then formed a line, sort of like a guard of honour, and they guided each of us across.

You can see in the picture above how some of the porters have their hands in the water, that is because as we went past they would splash us with water. So while the water was not deep, we came out the other side drenched. Luckily though it was sunny and none of us really cared if we were wet anymore. There was a massive water fight when everyone had gotten across and we even chased down our head porter and dumped him in the river too (he was also splashing us before and dunking some of us in). We had a short break on the other side before we started the last forty-five minute climb to Owers Corner which was very steep. The worst part was the end because once you came to the sunlight it was a further while of criss-crossing before we reached the top and even when we saw the arches we were to pass through it was a while until we reached the top. We all formed a guard of honour before entering the arches and let our porters go through first. Then the rest of us went through and it was an amazing feeling. We had done it. It was hard to believe but we had done it. I still cannot believe it as I look back now.

We were greeted with cold cans and salad rolls (after 8 days of ration packs, they were amazing) which we all happily feasted on before we took hundreds of photos under the arches and then gathered in a circle with our porters. We made a few presentations to them and they also made some to us. Some of them even carved a few of us sticks with our name on it. I was surprised when one of the porters had made one for me but I held on to it the whole way back to the hotel (except when I gave it to others to look at) and I still treasure it to this day. It was an amazing gift that was so intricate. It had my name on it, the name of the trekking company (PNG Trekking Adventures), the name of the trek (Kokoda) and also the year. I was so grateful to him.

  

Before long though we had to say our final goodbyes and get on the buses that would drive us back to the hotel (it was about a two to three hour bus drive) in Port Moresby. On the way we saw a lot of Papua New Guinea which was amazing and down below you can see a ferris wheel at their Adventure Park which we drove past on our way back. It was so nice to be able to sit down and be driven somewhere after eight days of hiking.

  

When we arrived at the hotel we took our bags up to our rooms and had a long-awaited and well-deserved shower. I basically felt sorry for everyone else in the hotel at the time because we must have stunk. We couldn't tell because we had all grown used to it over our time on the trek but it must have been pretty bad. There is not much river water and eco-friendly soap can do in the long run. Especially after splashing around in a river and hiking in the sun. After the shower we had a buffet lunch (more real food!) as it was only around 1pm and everyone was so excited and there was a lot of chatter. It felt refreshing to finally be able to relax. After that, a few of us lounged around the pool area for a bit (it was still a beautiful sunny day) and then after that sat on our beds and watched some television.

That night when we had dinner we also had some presentations where all the students/young leaders went around and talked about what they had learnt about themselves on the trek. I am not going to discuss that though as it was a very emotional and deep moment. It was something special that we will all share. After that we were handed a certificate from PNG Trekking Adventures with our name and the dates of our trek as well as a PNG Trekking Adventures shirt that also had "Kokoda" on it which I still wear today (I actually wore it today to be honest). We were then given the second dog tag to go on the necklace with the one we had received on the morning of the second day at the Isurava War Memorial (click here for that day's post). It had "Courage", "Endurance", "Mateship" and "Sacrifice" written on it which were the four words/values that were on the pillars at the Isurava war memorial as they are the key values associated with the Kokoda campaign. I still wear those dog tags to this day and will cherish them for the rest of my life. After more chatting it was then time to head to bed as we had to be up at 3am the next morning so we could get to the ANZAC Day Dawn Service at the Bomana War Cemetery in Papua New Guinea.

This may have been my last day on the Kokoda trek but I still have one more day to post about before this Kokoda series is over. I hope to have this one out tomorrow but usually when I get a run of two posts in a row it stops but I will try.

Hope you are well, see you soon!

The History of Kokoda

As you probably know by now I am in Kokoda right now. Well, actually I am on a flight to Papua New Guinea right now but this is a scheduled post so anyway. Before I get into anything else regarding Kokoda it is important to understand the history of the place. However, I am no historian and no scholar on the matter so I have found this information on the trekking company site. You can find the source by clicking here or by following this link:
http://www.pngtrekkingadventures.com/tab/detail/kokoda_treks_-_battlefield_tours_kokoda_ww11_history

Kokoda Historical Overview

 More than 600 Australians were killed and some 1680 wounded during perhaps the most significant battle fought by Australians in World War II.

Forced to repel a Japanese invasion force, which landed at Gona on the north coast of Papua on 21 July 1942, the Australians fought in appalling conditions over the next four months. The Japanese objective was to capture Port Moresby, the main Australian base in New Guinea, by an overland strike across the Owen Stanley Range. The most direct way across these rugged mountains was by a jungle pathway known as the Kokoda Track.

During the next four months, until 16 November 1942, Australian soldiers fought the Japanese, first to keep them from reaching Port Moresby and then to push them back over the Owen Stanleys to their north coast strongholds at Buna, Gona and Sanananda.

In late July 1942, as the Japanese advanced towards Kokoda village, they were engaged by forward elements of the Papuan Infantry Battalion and the Australian 39th Infantry Battalion. Despite the Australians' stubborn resistance, Kokoda fell to the larger Japanese force and by 27 August the Australians and the few Papuan troops who had stayed with them had been forced back to Isurava. Reinforcements were sent from Port Moresby: first the 53rd Battalion, which protected a side-track behind Isurava and then the veteran 2/14th and 2/16th Battalions, which had previously served in the Middle East.

At Isurava, in the last days of August, the 39th and the 2/14th Battalions, with support further back from the 2/16th and 53rd Battalions, were able to temporarily hold the Japanese during an intense five-day action. Three days into the battle, on 29 August, in the face of yet another enemy assault, Private Bruce Kingsbury, 2/14th Battalion, was killed as he rushed forward with his Bren gun, driving back the enemy in a determined counter-attack. He was awarded a posthumous Victoria Cross, the first VC awarded during the New Guinea campaigns.

Throughout September, the Australian units withdrew down the Kokoda Track, being joined by the 2/27th Battalion. They made further stands against the Japanese at Eora Creek, Templeton's Crossing, Efogi, Mission Ridge and Ioribaiwa. Allied airmen dropped supplies and made repeated attacks on the enemy's supply lines. During those gruelling days, the Papuan men employed as carriers played a vital role in the battle. They carried supplies forward for the troops and then, as the number of troops who were wounded or fell sick increased, carried back to safety those who were unable to walk.

By 16 September, after more troops had come forward from Port Moresby and dug into a defensive position at Imita Ridge, the Japanese were exhausted. They had been forced to fight hard to cross the mountains and had run out of many supplies. Following setbacks on other battlefields against Australian and American forces, which robbed them of further reinforcements, the Japanese on the Kokoda Track were ordered to withdraw. As Australian patrols pushed forward of Imita Ridge on 28 September, they found that the enemy had slipped away.

During the next six weeks, the Japanese fell back over the mountains. They were pursued by troops of the 25th Brigade, comprising the 2/25th, 2/31st and 2/33rd Battalions and the 16th Brigade, comprising the 2/1st, 2/2nd and 2/3rd Battalions, along with the 3rd Battalion and men from medical and supply units. Significant actions were fought at Templeton's Crossing, where it took more than a week of hard and costly fighting for the 25th Brigade to push back the enemy, and at Eora Creek where the 16th Brigade also doggedly attacked enemy strongpoints to slowly make ground.

The Australians were plagued by supply shortages that increased the difficulties of jungle warfare. Finally, on 2 November, Kokoda was retaken. The Australians had one more tough battle to fight at Oivi-Gorari, where the Japanese were determined to make another stand, before they were able to finish the advance over the mountains. By 18 November the Australians had reached the Kumusi River. The battle for the Kokoda Track was over.

I hope you enjoyed your history lesson! See you tomorrow.

Graffiti

Can we just pause for a moment and reflect on the idiotic act that is graffiti. Graffiti that is actually a nice artwork I can understand, I personally like Graffiti Lane in Melbourne. However, when graffiti is used just for the sake of vandalism and to be "cool" then I have a problem. This blog post was sparked after some horrible graffiti that vandals sprayed onto the iconic Captain Cook's Cottage in Melbourne which is a big thing in Melbourne as it is part of our cultural heritage. However, some idiots decided it would be fun to defile it and cover it in graffiti. You can see the photo below. It says "26th January Australia Shame!" There is a time and a place to protest but to do this to an Australian landmark is totally unacceptable.

Source: https://www.facebook.com/MelbourneMemes

What to they think gives them the right to do this? It is bad enough that they wrote on the wall but did they have to continue with the other coloured graffiti. The worst part is that the culprits are likely to never be found and be brought to justice. It really is despicable how they can do this and get away with it. To do it on any other brick wall is still bad, but this is an Australian icon and landmark which makes the crime a hundred times worse.. I feel sorry for the council workers who have to clean up someone else's mess. It really is very selfish. There are thousands of ways to protest about Australia Day but this should have never been an option. As I mentioned earlier, graffiti can also be appealing as it can  be very artistic. Sometimes, people even hire graffiti artists to liven up an area with an interesting mural or piece of art. The following is an example of good graffiti which does no harm and is actually appealing.

Source: http://ciuki.wordpress.com/category/centrum/page/3/

What I am trying to say is that graffiti has a time and a place. Captain Cook's Cottage should never be a place or a time yet a disused plain wall could use with some artistic graffiti. Though I emphasise the adjective; 'artistic' because just scribbling swear words is not artistic, no matter how much effort you put into it.

Just think before you act. See you tomorrow.

Weird News Tuesday: Merry Christmas!

Can you believe that it is only one more day until Christmas? Neither can I. Anyway, as you all know this a post where I go through a news site and find some odd news stories that probably should not have been considered news or are just so out there that they had to be news. Sometimes this is easy and other times it is tricky. This week, I will be using stories from Perth Now. As always, just click on the name of the news site and it will take you to the home page. The first story I get to reads "Inside King Henry's Love Nest". Aside from this the story is pretty straight-forward in that it is about a house that used to belong to some of King Henry VIII's wives which is now going up for auction. Was the title really that necessary? Could they not have chosen something different like "Royal House for sale" or something similar? The next story is also a straight-forward one about William and Kate flying in the same plane as their son (Prince George) which is against tradition as it risks the loss of two direct heirs (William and George). The weird thing about this story is how the title says "Wills and Kate". Since when did anyone call Prince William, Wills? It sounds like something you would call a good friend (like "oh, here comes good ol' Wills") not something you would call an heir to the throne. I am beginning to realise how informal Perth Now is.

Source: http://www.miningfamilies.com/

In other news, a streaker interrupted holiday-goers by chasing around seagulls and going through a busy restaurant all with no clothes on. Some people got a bit more than they bargained for on that day but at least the Police put some clothes on him before they escorted him to the police vehicle. A pilot in New York allegedly delayed a flight for two and a half hours while he waited for some gourmet sandwiches. Someone is definitely getting fired over this. How did he even explain it though without anyone kicking up a fuss? Surely if they knew what was actually going on they would have found a replacement pilot. Well, you would hope so. Someone apparently was trying to trade a live alligator for two six-packs of beer. I wonder what the clerk would have done? I mean, what would you do if someone came up and offered to give you a dangerous (and very much alive) alligator in exchange for two six-packs of beer? Ever heard of the phrase "Shop till you drop"? Well, a man in China jumped to his death in a mall after he had had enough of his girlfriend's shopping. Wow, he must have been really tired of her to do such a thing just to get away from her. Has he never heard of separating for a little while or just coming back for her later? Surely there were better options than to just jump. An idiot of a criminal (who shall remain nameless although his name is on the news site) who was wanted posted comments on his own wanted page on Facebook. Needless to say it was this which helped the Police find him. Was this guy stupid or did he just want to go to prison? Sometimes the answer is not very clear-cut. India's chief investigator has caused a massive uproar when he said "If you can't stop rape, just enjoy it" while comparing sports gambling to sexual assault. Something tells me that this guy is going to have to fight a very hard losing battle to maintain his job after that 'little' 'slip of the tongue'. A woman, after having sex in the parking lot of a fast-food restaurant, was so drunk that she tried to wear a hamburger as a shoe. I wonder how that would have turned out if she had succeeded and how long it would have taken her to become sober enough to realise what was going on. Apparently, if you want an alternative to Christmas because you are sick of all the merry cheer you can celebrate Festivus. I have absolutely no idea what it is but it is a thing now. It happened and we all let it happen.

Merry Christmas for tomorrow everyone! See you tomorrow.

Best Australian Christmas Carols

Over the past few non-scheduled posts I have written Australian versions of pre-existing well-known carols and poems. Well, today I have decided to go on a quest to find some good Australian Christmas Carols. See down below for all the carols I have chosen that truly represent an Australian Christmas or at least have some relation to Christmas Down Under. Before I continue with the carols I also want to point out that Saturday's scheduled post went missing (presumably accidentally deleted) and as I missed out on Doctor Who Sunday yesterday (though I still did post something) and to celebrate the Eleventh Doctor's final episode (commiserate may be a better word) in The Time of the Doctor and  Capaldi's new reign as the next Doctor (however he fits in the timeline of events is a mystery as of yet) I will be posting two Doctor Who Sunday posts. One on Wednesday (Christmas Day) and another on Thursday (Boxing Day). You will still be able to catch up next Sunday with another Doctor Who Sunday but this is just to make up for missing one and recognize such a momentous occasion as the death of one Doctor and the emergence of another. Anyway, on with the Carols!

6 White Boomers sung by Rolf Harris (in this version)

Personally, I prefer the Russel Coight version of this song (same words, just different singer) but Rolf Harris does do this song some justice. It does not get much more Australian than the 6 White Boomers. Here are the lyrics:

in australia, christmas comes in the middle of a very hot summer
so when santa claus delivers his presents
he's not taken around by reindeer because

they can't stand the terrible heat

he's taken around by six big, white, old man kangaroos
called the six white boomers

early on one christmas day
a joey kangaroo
was far from home and lost
in a great, big zoo

mommy....where's my mommy?
they've taken her away

we'll help you find your mommy, son
hop up on the sleigh

so up inside the bag of toys
little joey hopped
but they hadn't gone far when santa stopped
unharnessed all the reindeer
and joey wondered why
then he heard a far off booming in the sky

(boom, boom, boom, boom, boom, boom, boom, boom)

[chorus]
six white boomers
snow white boomers
racing santa claus through the blazing sun
six white boomers
snow white boomers
on his australian run

pretty soon old santa began to feel the heat
took his fur-lined boots off to cool his feet
into one popped joey
feelin' quite okay
while those old man kangaroos kept pullin' on the sleigh
hey!

[chorus]

then joey said to santa, "santa, what about the toys?
aren't you giving some to these girls and boys?"

"well, they've all had their presents, sonny
we were here last night
this trip is an extra trip
joey's special flight

[chorus]

soon the sleigh was flashing past
right over marble bah
"slow down there!" cried santa
"it can't be far
hop up on my lap here, son
and have a look around"
"there, there she is!
that's mommy! bounding up and down!"

[chorus]

well, that's the bestest christmas treat
that joey ever had
curled up in mother's pouch feeling snug and glad
the last they saw was santa heading northwards from the sun
the only year the boomers worked a double run

[chorus]

Aussie Jingle Bells by Bucko and Champs

This is a carol I actually did not know existed until I went through YouTube to get the last song. It is a very Australian version of the classic song Jingle Bells though and this music video is very entertaining. As you will see at the end of the video, they have a few other humorous and just as entertaining ones as well but I will not list them all here. Here are the very Australian lyrics:

Dashing through the bush

In a rusty Holden Ute

Kicking up the dust

Esky in the boot

Kelpie by my side

Singing Christmas songs

It's Summer time and I am in

My singlet, shorts and thongs

Oh! Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells

Jingle all the way

Christmas in Australia

On a scorching summer's day

Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells

Christmas time is beaut

Oh what fun it is to ride

In a rusty Holden Ute.

Engine's getting hot

We dodge the kangaroos

The swaggie climbs aboard

He is welcome too

All the family's there

Sitting by the pool

Christmas day, the Aussie way

By the barbecue!

Oh! Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells

Jingle all the way

Christmas in Australia

On a scorching summer's day

Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells

Christmas time is beaut

Oh what fun it is to ride

In a rusty Holden Ute.

Come the afternoon

Grandpa has a doze

The kids and uncle Bruce

Are swimming in their clothes

The time comes round to go

We take the family snap

Pack the car and all shoot through

Before the washing up

Oh! Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells

Jingle all the way

Christmas in Australia

On a scorching summer's day

Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells

Christmas time is beaut

Oh what fun it is to ride

In a rusty Holden Ute.

I am going to end it here for now and say good night and wish everyone a merry Christmas as the following posts until Friday are all going to be segments (Weird News and Doctor Who) so if I do not say anything have a safe and merry Christmas as well as a happy New Year. See you tomorrow.

The Night Before Christmas in Australia

I have had enough of the whole idea of a white Christmas. Forgive me America but we all do not live in a land where snow on Christmas day is normal (although in Melbourne, hail never goes amiss). So maybe, just once, could we present Christmas from a different perspective? Could we drop the snow and turn on the heat? We do not all live in America and so a little change from the quintessential Disney Christmas Movies like "Frozen" would be nice. No more, I say, no more. I believe it is time for Christmas in Australia so settle back and enjoy as we melt the snow, turn on the heat and add some random weather patterns in there to get into the Melbourne Christmas.

Source: http://www.abbeytravel.ie/abbey-travel-blogs/christmas-in-australia.aspx

The Night Before Christmas (in Australia)

'Twas the night before Christmas, when all through the house

Not a creature was sleeping, not even a mouse;

The stockings were hung by the air-con with care;

In hopes that St Nicholas soon would be there;

The children were sweating, all hot in their beds,

While visions of ice-cubes danced in their heads;

And mamma in her clogs, and I in my thongs,

Had just settled down for a sweaty sing-along,

When out by the pool there arose such a clatter,

I quickly stopped singing to see what was the matter,

Away to the window I flew like a flash,

When, what to my wondering eyes should appear,

But a miniature sleigh and eight tiny reindeer,

With a sweaty old driver, so lively and quick,

I knew in a moment it must be St. Nick.

More rapid than Melbourne Weather his coursers they came,

And he whistled, and shouted, and called them by name:

"Oi, Dasher! Oi, Dancer! Oi, Prancer and Vixen!,

On Comet! On Cupid! On, Donder and Blitzen!

To the top of the porch, to the top of the wall!

Now dash away! Dash away! Dash away all!"

As hot flames that before the bush-fires fly,

When they meet with an obstacle, mount to the sky,

So up to the house-top the coursers they flew,

With the sleigh full of toys, and St. Nicholas too.

And then, in a twinkling, I heard on the roof

The prancing and pawing of each little hoof.

As I drew in my head, and was turning around,

Down the air-vent St Nicholas came with a bound,

He was dressed for the beach, from his head to his foot,

But his boardies were still wet from sweat and mildew;

A bundle of fans he had flung on his back,

And he looked like a mechanic just opening his pack

His eyes -- how they twinkled! His brow so sweaty!

His cheeks were like roses, his nose like a cherry!

His droll little mouth was drawn up something nice,

And the beard of his chin as white as the ice,

The stump of an ice cube held tight in his teeth,

And the water it pooled around his gums like a wreath;

He had a broad face and a little round belly,

That shook, when he laughed like a bowlful of jelly.

He was chubby and plump, a right jolly old elf,

And I laughed when I saw him, in spite of myself;

A wink of his eye and a twist of his head,

Soon have me to know I had nothing to dread

He spoke not a word, but went straight to his work,

And filled all the stockings; then turned with a jerk,

And laying his finger aside of his nose,

And giving a node, up the air vent he rose;

He sprang to his sleigh, to his team gave a whistle,

And away they all flew like the down of a thistle.

But I heard him exclaim, ere he drove out of sight,

"Happy Christmas to all, and to all a good night."

That was The Night Before Christmas as set in Australia. Over the coming days before Christmas where there are no scheduled posts I will do more of these to show to you that not all of us live in a "Winter Wonderland".

Only 6 more sleeps until Christmas! See you tomorrow.

Weird News Tuesday: Wednesday Edition

I really am beginning to regret making the titles of segments include days because whenever I post it on a different day it becomes all the more obvious. Anyway, sorry for missing out on this post yesterday but Mum was on the computer for the majority of the day and I never got the chance to write a full-sized post. If you do not already know, this segment is where I go on a news site (a different one each week) and find some of the weird things that people have considered news-worthy enough to write a story on. This week I will be using The Australian (online website). We all know how dangerous using a phone while driving is  but many people do not fully understand the dangers of using a phone and walking. Sadly (for the woman), a lady walked off St Kilda Pier because she was to focused on her Facebook news feed. Luckily she is still alive but oh, that would have been great to have seen occur. What would you have done? What could you have done? It just goes to show that "walking and social media is no LOLing matter" (apparently that is what Victoria Police said but I doubt it). I really thought The Australian was a little more sophisticated.

Source: http://www.digitaltrends.com/mobile/texting-while-walking-claims-another-victim-woman-falls-off-pier/

The next story talks about two of the most searched topics on Google as well as a third which, ironically, are all concerned about life and death. The first two are for deceased actors Cory Monteith (best known for his role as Finn Hudson on Glee) and the more recently deceased actor Paul Walker (best known for his role in the Fast and Furious franchise). The third is of the royal birth of baby George to his parents William and Kate. It really is wonderful in this age that we can just search whatever we want (and I mean whatever we want) on Google and receive a number of results. In other news, there is a "raging" debate on whether children who misbehave in school should have to say "sorry". Some are even going as far to say that they should not actually use the word because they have no idea what it means but rather use it as a means of escaping a worse punishment. I never knew that this "raging" debate was going on but apparently it is, and it makes the news! You may have realised by now that it is a lot harder to find odd news stories that are not on the home page when there is no tab marked "odd-spot" or something similar. It does make finding the stories harder but I will not give up on it yet. New extremes of entertainment are emerging with a 20km endurance challenge called the Tough Mudder becoming increasingly popular around the World. It is basically a 20km obstacle course challenging common fears such as heights, claustrophobia, fire and electricity (oh, you better be scared because that electricity is coming to get you). It really does seem gruelling and very tough yet many people are flocking to it by the week. It began in Harvard all the way over in America and already has arrived at our shores in a very short space of time. In 'exciting' (and somewhat selfish) news, Australian scientists have reason to believe that the New Zealand Kiwi bird may have been descended from an Australian animal. As the story says, Australia is giving New Zealand "the bird". It has also been discovered that perhaps female scientists are 'more creative' when it comes to science meaning that they are more likely to be at the forefront of innovation. All this because of the way women view abstract art. I am just going to say that it was probably a female who carried out this investigation. There really is a lot of weird things going on in our world these days.

It is very hard to find weird stories on The Australian (plus I could barely read any of it because of their stupid digital subscriptions). See you tomorrow!

Americanisation

It has come to that time of year again where people get dressed up in 'scary' costumes and go "Trick or Treating" for Halloween. It is at times like this that you realise how much Americanisation has affected countries that we live in (that is not, obviously, America). Halloween is a typically American holiday which is celebrated more over there than it really is down under. However, in previous years Halloween has gone up in popularity around Australia and everyone is getting involved. It is a sure sign of Americanisation in our modern world. Such an occurrence would normally be termed Globalisation but due to the sheer amount of American influences we see every day I think it is a safe thing for me to further categorise it. Americanisation is definitely a growing problem.

Source: http://blog.antonemdin.com/2012/02/americanisation-of-australian-politics/

We can see Americanisation in Australia in more places than just Halloween. For instance, you have the American companies who have come into Australia and already seem to be part of the fixture. These are companies like McDonalds  and KFC. Even Hungry Jacks, known in America as Burger King, is an American company along with Subway and many other things. In recent years we have also seen the introduction of giant bulk-buying stores like Costco which is yet another American company settling in Australia. However, for some companies the settlement is not so easy. Starbucks for instance. Though they are insanely popular in America they have struggled in Australia with the competition from Gloria Jeans. You do not see many Starbucks stores outside of the Melbourne CBD. Another such instance is with the American doughnut company, Krispy Kreme. Though originally very popular they since went out of style. Now there are only a few stores where there used to be many and it is only in recent years that they have started crawling back into the Australian market through chains such as 7-Eleven. Americanisation, however, is not always such a bad thing. There are many great things we have in Australia that have been influenced or is directly from America. For instance we have all the great (and not so great) movies that come out of Hollywood. We have our very own little Broadway in Collins Street as well as numerous American fashion chains and companies with stores all across the country. Americanisation, like most things, comes with its benefits and its deficits. Sometimes, we just have to weigh the good up against the bad.

Americanisation, is it such a bad thing? See you tomorrow.

Fundraising

So the trouble with going to a school with so many fundraisers (besides the constant loss of money) is that when it comes time to have one you have no idea what to do because most of them have already being done. As those of you who have been reading this blog for some time may know that I am part of a leadership program run by Wyndham Police called 'Leaders of the Future'. Part of this program (the culmination in fact) is walking 96 kilometres of the Kokoda Track. Some of what we are doing involves raising money for a local Health Centre in the village of Menari which is along the track. So now that it comes time to think of brainstorming ideas with the other person from my school who is also doing the program we are at a bit of a loss. Damn you charitable school.

Source: http://desktopmag.com.au/project-wall/fundraising-downunder-logo/

Do not ask me why I chose that picture. I used Google to image search "Fundraising" and that was the only one that caught my eye. Do not judge me. Anyway, so I spoke to one of the assistant principals at my school and managed to secure the casual clothes day at the end of term for our cause. The thing with our school is most end-of-terms (except the end of year since we all finish different days) are casual clothes days to raise money for whatever organisation in the school puts their hand up for it (or organises) it first. If no one organises it then there is no casual clothes day. That was the easy part. The hard part is thinking of other things we can do on the day to raise even more money. We can not do a talent show as so many other groups have already done that this year. A guess-the-lollies in the jar competition is also out of the question as they only just did that a few weeks ago for the 40 Hour Famine. I was thinking of maybe doing a raffle with jars of lollies as prizes or something. That way there could be more than one prize and we could get away with charging more than 50 cents a ticket. Anyway, I better leave it at this as it is getting late.

Why does our school have to be so damn charitable? See you tomorrow!

As Parties End

So I am really tired and so I am just going to finish this politics series off. The final nine will be explained today and so do not expect one on Thursday. I can hear some of your cheers already. Great, I feel like Daria saying everything in a monotone. Daria was actually a pretty good show, you guys should go check it out if you have not already. Anyway, getting back to politics. Let's get started! As it is late there will be no pictures today. Just words and politics.

The Shooters and Fishers Party is the voice of "hunters, shooters, fishers, rural and regional Australia and independent thinking Australians everywhere."

The Smokers Rights Party is one a whole-heartedly do not support as I do not support smoking in any way, shape or form. This political party believes that "Australian Smokers have been unfairly targeted by all major political parties." They basically fight for the rights of Australian Smokers as they see them.

The Socialist Alliance is an alliance (obviously) of socialist organisations and individuals within Australia. It was created by people who "saw an urgent need for greater left unity to fight attacks on the rights and living conditions of workers and the poor."

The Socialist Equality Party is a political party "of and for the working class. The SEP seeks not to reform capitalism, but to create a socialist, democratic and egalitarian society.

The Stop CSG Party is concerned about the devastating effects of coal seam gas and other unconventional gas mining. CSG stands for Coal Steam Gas.

The 23 Million is a political party of "fair-minded non-politicians who just want a better-run Australia." They are called The 23 Million to represent the 23 million Australian Population (which has since risen obviously).

The Wikileaks Party was set up by Julian Assange the founder and owner of the infamous site Wikileaks. It stands for "unswerving commitment to the core principles of civic courage nourished by understanding and truthfulness and the free flow of information.

The Uniting Australia Party is another one of the parties that plans to put everyday Australians back in power and into politics.

Finally, the Voluntary Euthanasia Party is a self-explanatory party created to "provide the choice and dignity that current legislation is denying the most vulnerable Australians." They wish to legalise voluntary euthanasia.

With so many parties is it not nice to see the end? See you tomorrow.

The Parties Go On

So we are now at Part 4 of this series which received a bit of a siesta over the past few days as time constraints and bad excuses got in the way. I like to think that this would prevent you from getting bored although politics is actually not that boring. I am going to reiterate the fact that if you have not seen some of the scenes in Parliament you have not witnessed one of the best (well at least most entertaining) moments of Politics. Anyway, continuing on with this series let's get straight to it! As there are only 18 parties left I am going to do nine today and another nine on Tuesday. So that will be why this post will be slightly shorter than the other ones in this series.

Let's begin with the Non-Custodial Parents Party (Equal Parenting) is only a small party but with members in all states and territories in Australia. It supports less government control over many aspects of daily family life. It particularly supports a number of policies seeking changes in the areas of family law and child support.

Source: http://www.virginvoters.com.au/parties/non-custodial-parents-party/

The One Nation party is a right-wing political party founded by the infamous Australia Pauline Hanson. It has received much unfavourable coverage earlier this year following an interview one of its candidates gave to Seven News which contained a lot of misinformation. The said candidate has since withdrawn from a political career. It has a long list of objectives I will not name out of the tedious nature of that list.

The Outdoor Recreation Party is a minor party in New South Wales. It represents the outdoor community and interests such as cycling, bushwalking and camping just to name a few. They are committed to less government control over outdoor recreation. They are very opposed to the Greens political party. So much so in fact that in 2013 they added to the end of their party name Stop the Greens.

The Palmer United Party is a new one founded only this year by mining magnate Clive Palmer. Among other things they plan to abolish the contentious Carbon Tax, revise the current refugee policy and create mineral wealth.

Finally, an interestingly named party for this post. Pirate Party Australia represents civil liberty issues. It focuses on copyright reform, internet freedom and ending censorship. It is also a new party having only been registered with the Australian Electoral Commission in January of this year.

Source: http://www.geekinsydney.com/2908/pirate-party-australia-approved/

The Republican Party of Australia is a party concerned with ending Australia's links with the commonwealth and become a republic. Basically it is what it says it is.

The Rise Up Australia Party is a socially conservative political party. It is focused on nationalist and christian conservative issues such as opposing the spread of Islamic doctrine in Australia as well as opposing Same Sex Marriage (if I could vote, I would not vote for them).

The Secular Party of Australia stands for secular humanist ethical principles. They aim to separate Church and State within Australia and promote secularism worldwide. They also stand for other things like human rights and social justice, the maximisation of civil liberties and to defend freedom of expression.

Finally, the Senator Online party has no policies but instead has pledged to conduct online polls for every bill that passes before senate. So in a way they stand for the representation of every Australian in parliament (well at least Senate).

Don't forget to check back on Tuesday for the final part to this series, see you tomorrow!

No Politics Today

So today I decided I would give you all a break from the 'boring' world of politics as it is often referred to as being. Of course, as I may have demonstrated through some of the political parties Australia has to offer, this is not true for all of politics. Such an assumption would be absurd and tantamount to stereotyping. Actually, it is stereotyping. Not all Politics is boring obviously political parties like the Australian Sex Party and the Coke and Bubblers Party contradict this statement. Also, have you seen parliament? It is like a court-room drama with one side fighting against the other and constant bickering. You may have realised that today's post is only a short one and that is, of course, because Thursday nights are a bit of a busy time for me and sometimes I am able to pre-write long posts and times where I have tests and essays coming up I do not have time to do all this. You guys are actually pretty lucky I still manage to reach my daily post quota at times. So yeah, I thought I would give you all a break from Politics today (see that 'smooth' transition back on topic) and so the series will continue in two days and I am pretty sure we are already past half-way through the parties so there should really only be two or three more. Hope you guys enjoy the rest of your week, it's Friday tomorrow!

Can't wait for Friday, see you tomorrow!

The Melbourne Writers Festival

So today I had a glorious excursion into the city and particularly federation square. Why was it glorious you ask? Aside from the fact I had no classes that day and the weather was near-prefect it was really interesting to get a writer's perspective on how they approach their reading and their writing. Today I attended three sessions. The first was with Morris Gleitzman and two other authors but I cannot remember what the actual topic was other than them reminiscing about their reading techniques. The second session was with two bookdesigners who design the cover for books. It was basically a look at how they approach it and would be interesting for someone looking to work in this area. I therefore did not enjoy it as much. The final session was three people, two of which were authors, recommending books for us to read. It was interesting and I already have a few books that I will be looking out for. It finished with the announcement of the short-listed books for the 'Inkies' which is a literary award chosen by teenagers for teenagers and this was also interesting. The sessions I went to last year were focused more on the authors and their writing processes. For this reason I enjoyed myself more last year but still had a blast this year.
You should really check it out, see you tomorrow.

Still more Parties

Yeah, I am still in disbelief at the amount of political parties in Australia but I guess there are a lot of people who have a lot of different opinions to express. You may remember from the first part of this post that was published on Friday that there are fifty-four political parties in total. Some of them are your average parties while others are just a little bit "out-there". Some have some pretty good policies while others do not seem to have many plans in place. I went through twelve on Friday and another twelve today so let us continue our journey through Australian Political Parties.

Source: http://radioadelaidebreakfast.wordpress.com/2011/04/05/topsy-turvy-world-of-australian-politics/

The following list is from the Australian Electoral Commission Website which has the complete list accurate as of the ninth of August 2013 when it was last updated. Here is the link: http://www.aec.gov.au/Parties_and_Representatives/party_registration/Registered_parties/

We will begin with the Australian Sovereignty Party which believes that Australia should be "a united, democratic and sovereign nation - standing on a firm foundation of truth, freedom and justice for all". Then they go on to say that they are more than the over parties for what they are known for (I am not going to list everything they say).

The Australian Sports Party believes in "Healthy Living Through Sport". They focus on helping Australian live a "healthy well balanced lifestyle through sport and recreation, which provides enjoyment and creates strong communities".

The Australian Stable Population Party stands for a more stable population such that they do not want to have forty-million people living in Australia by 2050 and instead aim for twenty-six million in a bid to relieve many overstretched areas as well as reduce the cost of living and to promote education and training.

Australian Voice Party stands for a "free, open and fair society ... the principles of democracy" and believe they can fix all the problems that current politicians "seem incapable of solving" such as the health system, rising living costs, crime, small businesses, immigrants and food security.

The Bank Reform Party wants "strong banks for Australia, fair banks for all Australians" and want more control over the banks and their rising interest rates.

Building Australia Party supports "Housing Affordability, Sustainable Development, Cutting Unnecessary Red Tape, Protecting the Building Industry [and] Better Health Infrastructure".

Source: http://www.virginvoters.com.au/parties/building-australia-party/

The Bullet Train for Australia Party is a self-explanatory party that stands for the introduction of high-speed rail as a faster and environmentally friendly solution to congested highways among other things.

The Carers Alliance Party emphasises support for carers and people with disabilities.

Christian Democratic Party (Fred Nile Group) exists to support Christian representation in every level of Government such as Federal, State and Local.

The Citizens Electoral Council of Australia Party is a minor, left-wing political party affiliated with the LaRouche movement to fight for Peace through Economic development. It is a widely criticised party.

The Coke in the Bubblers Party is another one of those surprising parties you would not expect to be in politics. I could not access their website and could not find any other information about them.

Finally, the Country Alliance Party is a minor political part in Victoria with an almost contradictory focus on "anti-green but pro-environment" policies.

So you can see that Australia has some very interesting politics if you just dig a little deeper or run a Google search like I did. See you back in two days for the continuation!

So many parties but so little choices, see you tomorrow!

So many Parties

Yeah, before I go on I just have to say something. I am talking about politics in this post so when I say party I do not mean dance parties or birthday parties. No, I mean political parties. Did you know that Australia has fifty-four political parties? I mean, come on there are just so much yet still no clear options to vote for. I am just so grateful that I am only registered to vote and not yet old enough to actually vote. It really is a blessing. The following is a list of the fifty-four parties so yeah, let's have a look at what some people have come up with. This is only part one of a new series coming out every second day. This post will contain twelve parties so there will be more in two days.

Source: http://auspolitics.tumblr.com/

The following list is from the Australian Electoral Commission Website which has the complete list accurate as of the 9th of August 2013 when it was last updated. Here is the link: http://www.aec.gov.au/Parties_and_Representatives/party_registration/Registered_parties/

The Animal Justice Party stands for Animal rights and the banning of live exports.

The Australia First Party (NSW) Incorporated is not a very interesting one with a horrible website. All I managed to glean from this site was their core values of Identity, Independence and Freedom.

The Australian Christians is a self-explanatory one that believes in joining the politics with religion and one without the other is not desirable. (Again, I am no expert so check Xavier's awesome current affairs blog for better and more reliable information).

The Australian Democrats is a very interesting party in terms of their website which is full of colloquialism and the first thing you see as soon as you open the site is a quote from the party founder which reads "Keep the bastards honest". Need I say more?

Australian First Nations Political Party does not actually have a website but rather a Facebook Page which I am not going to search through so instead I turn to Wikipedia. They focus on indigenous Australian sovereignty and Northern Territory statehood. Refer to Xavier's blog for better information.

Australian Fishing and Lifestyle Party are pretty laid back and has a site with parts left unfilled and can be seen as using a theme as there are parts that tell them what to write there but there is no writing. Editing is vital. I am not too sure what they really stand for though there are a lot of references to fishing so probably more focused on the related legislation.

The Australian Greens is the party that is more well-known and is pretty much an environmentalist party with a few other policies on the side.

Australian Independents believe in a better democracy where anyone who wants to run for parliament can easily do so to get their voice heard. They are very critical of the current democracy in place.

The Australian Labor Party is the current party in power and, along with the liberal party (see below), are the main two contenders for Parliament although neither is a very good option at the moment.

Source: http://www.parliament.tas.gov.au/ha/polley/polley.htm

The Australian Motoring Enthusiasts Party is pretty self-explanatory party set up in response to legislation "inflicting on their lifestyle".

The Australian Protectionist Party with protectionist and nationalist parties. They aim to "protect, preserve and defend our identity, heritage and freedoms".

Australian Sex Party is one that is turning a few heads and is actually pretty interesting. Their policies include (but are not limited to) the legalisation (and heavy taxation) of marijuana, same-sex marriage, the legalisation of euthanasia and the abolishment of tax exemptions for religious groups.

So as you can see there is a lot of political parties and in two days come back for some more, see you tomorrow!