2013: The Year that Was

2013 was a year of many highs and, regrettably, many lows. For some, 2013 was just a year. Just 365 ordinary days. For others, however, 2013 was more than that. For some it was 365 extraordinary days. A lot did happen in 2013. Australia had three Prime Ministers (Julia Gillard (27th PM), Kevin Rudd (26th and 28th PM), and Tony Abbott (29th PM)) which, when you think about it, was quite the achievement. 2013 also saw the creation of this blog, the Daily Lukey (in case you were blissfully unaware). New Zealand also allowed Same-Sex Marriage and the United States of America abolished a few of their own anti-gay laws. 2013 was a big year for the LGBQTI community. Aside from the setback and prosecution (now legal) in Russia 2013 saw many strides forward for equality and 2014 is sure to offer some more. I started a VCE subject as well as receiving a literary award early on in April/May. I was selected to be a part of a surely life-changing leadership program culminating in a trip to Kokoda this April which I am very excited and nervous about. However, 2013 did not end on such a high note for everyone. There was a typhoon in the Phillippines as well as other disasters and accidents all around the world that resulted in the loss of family members. 2013 was a mixed bag but all in all it was a great year.

2014 is set to be a good year (hopefully). See you tomorrow!

Pandora's Box

There are many stories about the infamous Pandora's Box and what it holds. However, despite this infamous object's fame, very few people know much about Pandora's Box and its origins. Look no further for this post will aim to inspire you and inform you about the mystical mystery (yeah, I went there) of Pandora's Box. Pandora's Box is an artifact in Greek Mythology, taken from the myth of Pandora's creation in Hesiod's Works and Days which I think is some Greek mythology story. The "box" is actually a large jar which was given to Pandora and it contained all the evils of the world. You can see how such an object would appeal to such a wide variety of people and how it can be a source of great story telling. A popular phrase (that I have never heard of) which is "to open Pandora's box" means to do a little innocent action that has far-reaching and severe consequences. I do not know why that is important but it is, so deal with it.

Source: http://www.insanelymac.com/_/osx86/news-pandoras-box-beta2-is-out-r1000

In Greek mythology, Pandora was said to be the first woman on Earth. Zeus ordered Hephaestus, the god of craftsmanship, to create her and so he did. Athena then clothed her, Aphrodite gave her beauty and Hermes gave Pandora speech. In retaliation of Prometheus stealing fire from heaven, Zeus gave Prometheus' brother, Epimetheus, Pandora. In doing so he also gave Pandora a jar with strict instructions not to open it under any circumstances. Of course, due to her curiosity, Pandora opened the jar and all evil contained within escaped and spread over the Earth. Before Pandora had the chance to shut the jar, all of the evil had already escaped leaving only the one thing that lay at the bottom: the Spirit of Hope named Elpis. Then even Hope escaped into the World. So after this the world was full of every kind of evil, but it was also full of Hope. Pandora's Box has become something of a modern obsession for story-tellers due to its rich history and the possibilities it holds. Some people see the evil as truth and so that by opening the box an unimaginable number of truths, some good and some bad, would be let free into the world. Others see Pandora's Box as something which contains all the secrets of our world and existence and once found and opened our new lives can begin. The point of Pandora's box, however, is not the story. Rather, Pandora's Box is merely a vessel in which the ancient Greeks believed that evil and hope entered the world. It is a nice story.

I do not know how I got onto this topic, see you tomorrow!

First Impressions

In today's world, first impressions are everything. This is true for a wide manner of things including (but not limited to) people, places, people, games, shows, and did I mention people? We do not realise how big a role first impressions play on us until we look back and think about why we did or did not like or do something. We then realise that our decisions and our interests have been based on the impressions we made when we first encountered whatever we are reacting to (can you believe I almost typed stimuli?). Our emotions play as big a role, if not bigger, in our lives then logical thought processes.

Source: http://catghost.net/2011/04/07/first-impressions/

If you will excuse the language in the comic above and the dark undertones it does show us how first impressions... Just kidding, I only chose it because it looked funny. It only really has minimal links to first impressions but it was enough for me! I am sure I have discussed first impressions with people a variety of times throughout a range of posts so instead I am going to focus on other first impressions. For example, a television show. The first episode you are ever going to watch of a show will determine whether you will want to watch another or just move on. Your first episode of a really good television show is not one you easily forget as it was your first insight into a new world you have grown to love. Your emotions at the time of watching that first episode also determines how likely you are going to pursue that show in the future. If you are in a foul mood you are most likely not going to have very positive experiences with the show you are watching. Conversely, if you are feeling great you are more likely to be more receptive to enjoy what you are going to watch. As the old adage goes (which comes in many different wordings), you can only get out of something what you put in. If you go into a show with a bad mood and not thinking you will enjoy it then you are not going to enjoy it as that is what you expect. Only in rare cases will this not be the case and this can be for a variety of reasons including those around you, the quality of what you are doing and the level of your receptiveness. So you can see that this can be applied to a wide range of things from television shows to camps or recreation days. First Impressions are everything and if that first impression is not good, neither will the rest of your time.

First impressions are very important, see you tomorrow!

Stubborn Sandy

So I realise that this blog is doing a lot of discussion around Sandy. In that respect you could say that Sandy is a "Daily Lukey Star". Getting past that horrible title and introduction lets move on to the new 'topic' for 'discussion' today. So Sandy definitely has his moments and the poor dog is quite the source of inspiration. I swear, each time I take him for a walk (so basically every day) I find at least three points of inspiration for my post. However, I tend to save these posts for a rainy day. For instance, the day I write this post is Saturday yet it is scheduled for release tomorrow (Sunday to those of you reading this). As it is Fathers Day in Australia today (Sunday 1st September for those of you reading this post days after it was posted) I did not want to worry about writing a post. Okay, enough of that crap. The truth is I started writing this post for Saturday but forgot that I had my political party series that night. Since I had already given it a break on Thursday I could not do it again so here we are right now. Then the truth is that I published it with the stupid schedule thing not working so it came out today instead of tomorrow. Now you know the truth so let's move on. Politics coming out tomorrow.

Source: http://www.123rf.com/photo_575089_boy-walking-dog.html

So today I discovered another point of inspiration from Sandy. Actually you could say I rediscovered it as he has done it many times before. The thing about Sandy is that at times he can be a bit lazy. Sometimes he gets two walks a day (these are both full hour walks mind you) when Mum and I take him at different times and within a few days he just does not want to go for another walk. Sandy is one of the only dogs that I know that does this. He is so stubborn too that you can not drag him along as he sits his bum down or stands tall and does not move. He also gives you a face full of concentration when you try to pull him. As soon as you  let go however his face becomes very happy as he thinks he has won. Usually he does this as we are about to leave our front step at home. However, today he decided he would make me look like an idiot when we were crossing the road. We get to the corner and he sits like we always do. I praised him and then I started to move across the road. I put the 'I' in bold on purpose. Sandy made me look like an idiot by not moving and just sitting there. I thought at first he was just been cautious as there was a car coming even though it was a long way away. However, after five minutes of me struggling to cross the road I discovered it was just Sandy being stubborn. At one point I was holding it with two hands and it was only when I used my whole body to try and move Sandy that he, begrudgingly, began moving. I thought that would be all but no, a few stops down he does it again. It was obvious he just wanted to go home though because if you went in any direction he recognised as the way home he would move again. It was really annoying and incredibly embarrassing. Sandy is one stubborn dog.

A walk a day keeps the dog at bay (unless they are full of energy), see you tomorrow!

Parent Teacher Interviews

So today was Parent Teacher Interviews at my school for students with surnames starting from A to M and next Wednesday (1st May) the other students (N-Z) have their interviews. That means we get two days off school (Hooray!) which is really good for us because this week we also have Thursday off for ANZAC day which means we only go to school Monday, Wednesday and Friday which means any homework we get that day can be done the next so we can relax. I still do the homework the night I get it though so I can relax the whole day and if something happens and I can't complete my homework (in case the TV turns itself on or  a DVD plays itself) I don't have to worry. Anyway, back to Parent Teacher Interviews.

So I get there early and so I go to my locker to get my books before going up to my first interview with my Science Teacher. When we get there we are still early which means we get to see the people before us go up and we notice how long she (the Science Teacher) talks for. I mean, she was talking for ages and always going overtime and we were lucky to get in just five minutes after our scheduled time but Mum was getting really worried even though I had left a five minute gap between each interview in case this happened. So when we got in to the interview Mum knew we only had five minutes until the next one so she was really asking questions that got to the point but it was all fine. My interviews are always good and the only problem the teacher had was that I had got a Very Good mark (somewhere above 75%) instead of an Excellent (somewhere above 80%) where the rest of my marks were. The science teacher being slow was actually a blessing because we got to the Maths teacher as she was finishing up with the previous student which was really good timing. The rest of the interviews went really well and were not as long as the Science teacher and they were all good [they never aren't ;) ]. My methods teacher was really quiet and it was funny because my Mum was doing a lot of the talking and when she asked "Is there anything Luke could improve on?" he just stared at his screen for a while and went "Uhmmm, no" and it was a little obvious that he wasn't a big fan of Parent Teacher Interviews. The other teachers were good and it was all good interviews (which I already said I think).

I really believe Parent Teacher Interviews are great because the parents/guardians get to hear straight from the teachers instead of a garbled version of what the student may tell them to make a bad mark seem better. I know some students who wait until the last minute to get their interviews so that they can't because of the teacher being booked out so they don't have to see them. So Parent Teacher Interviews, I really like them. Plus, I make all my interviews on the first day so I can see the teachers I (well, my Mum) wants to see at the times I want so I can leave enough space in between to prepare for teachers who talk too much (Science), talk too little (Maths Methods) or talk for the right amount of time (the rest). As long as its good reviews it can go for as long as they want.

May the odds be ever in your favour, goodbye

Sacrifice

Sacrifice, it happens all the time and is a vital part of life. No, I do not mean a religious sacrifice (put the goat back), I mean a sacrifice that people make either for those around them or for themselves. A sacrifice is not something that can be done easily, it takes a toll, but is well worth it in the long run. We all make sacrifices at some point in our lives, they may be done willingly or we may have no say in the matter. However, they are necessary and we can do very little to avoid them.

We sacrifice a lot for those we love. Many sacrifices are made in family situations. Sometimes, an individuals ideals need to be put aside for the better of others. Everyday we make sacrifices for our family. There may be a show you really wanted to watch but since the majority want to watch something else you have to sacrifice that and maybe watch it online another time. So you would make this sacrifice of missing out on your favourite show because you are the only one who wants to watch it and you don't want to make everyone else in the family miss out because you believe what you want is more important (somebody please tell my brother this). Other sacrifices you might make is the movie you go see (you wouldn't take your younger siblings (under 12) to see The Exorcist or Saw [I haven't seen them, don't worry]) or maybe its your sibling's birthday and you decide to let them choose what to do instead of doing what you want to do and ruin their special day (again, somebody tell my Brother this). We make a lot of sacrifices for our families and for those we care about.

Our friends are also very important to us and we want to keep them. We make certain sacrifices along the way to ensure we still have friends and that our 'friends' don't secretly hate us behind our backs. We might sacrifice some of our time to spend with them and catch up. We might even sacrifice our break times to help them with their homework or something they are stuck on. We may even find that these sacrifices lead up to us enjoying ourselves more than if we had of done what we were planning to do. We may sacrifice our weekends to celebrate someone's birthday (a lot more fun than staying at home) and in the end we have such a great time that we don't realise what we are missing back home (in most cases, this is nothing). In fact, most of the time we don't actually realise the sacrifices we make because we have much more fun than if we had of done what we were planning.

There are many other sacrifices we make, many of which lead to better things. Some of these sacrifices are moral, some of them are unconscious. Most of them have a positive endings and you only get out what you put in.

May the odds be ever in your favour, see you tomorrow!