Wednesday, August 18, 2010

These Are A Few of my Favorite Things











How best to describe me in ten objects? Maybe these particular items will shed some light on my personality. My bookshelf, My dog, a script, a rugby ball, computer, my bike, an Irish passport, chocolate cake, an airline ticket, and a T.V.

I love to read, as anyone who knows me will tell you, so I need a bookshelf to hold my vast collection of books, or rather, medium-sized collection of brilliance. As I once said in 4th grade, "Reading is a hiding place from boredom". But for me, reading is more than a form of entertainment. It is a portal into different worlds, past, present, future, a gateway to somewhere halfway round the world activated by opening a book. I know this sounds cliched, but reading, for me, is a different world.

Once, not so long ago, about a year, my family and I were at the pet store, when, in a cage in the back of the shop, on top of some other cages, we saw a tiny dog, barking, and throwing itself against the side of the cage. The dog was so pitiful that it could have made a war veteran cry. After begging, pleading, and a school essay, my mum finally agreed to get the dog. We named her Sheila, because she was an Australian Silky Terrier.

I first started playing rugby two years ago, although it feels like an age. I got this rugby ball at my first tournament, and for some reason, I can't pump it up. I first started playing rugby when my neighbor told me about Bintang Rugby Club in-you guessed it-Bintang. I recently quit BRC because the kids there only passed amongst themselves, and joined the ISKL rugby team. Rugby is my favorite sport along with basketball, and I follow neither.


There isn't really much to say on this topic. My mum dropped her laptop, got a new one, and the one she dropped still works, so it's mine, and I'm using it to write this essay. It's cracked screen gets my attention when I'm trying to edit blogs. Like this one.


I got my bike for my tenth birthday and I love it. It is very durable, has twenty four gears, and I've had it for a long time, so it feels comfortable riding it. I doubt I'll find a better bike anywhere, but if I do, I'll still keep my old one.


I have an Irish passport: I am an expatriate. I was born in the USA-by the way, my mum is Irish, and my dad is English- then we moved to England, my brother was born there, then we moved to Hungary for four years, and now I am here, in Malaysia.

My mum makes phenomenal chocolate cake, and usually it's gone within three days, courtesy of me and my brother. Chocolate cake is my favorite food, and I can also make it quite well.


I travel a lot, as you have seen from my passport paragraph, but I also go to a lot of places over the vacations, as do most expatriates. I have been to Bali, Phuket, Ankor Watt, although curiously, I have never been to KFC. But anyway, I do get around a lot, but the place I would like to visit most is where I was born: the USA.


As do most people I know, I have a TV. Often, after homework like this, plopping down in front of a screen and sitting there for an hour is quite enjoyable. Most people wouldn't write about watching TV, but I like to write about things most people would overlook as common. But, like everyone, I know that too much will rot your brain. It has been drilled into my skull quite a bit actually.

Well, now you should have a clearer idea of what kind of person I am. If you don't, well, you should probably talk to me for a while. That should clear things up.

Tuesday, August 10, 2010

Reflection on The Compliment Guys.


I think the Compliment Guys is a really excellent idea. It makes people happy, but more than just that. If someone is stressed, or has low morale, a compliment can make them feel better. A good compliment is almost as good as having a discussion with a councilor. Also, and this is a suggestion for the school, maybe we could have our on "compliments club". A few willing students could stand at the school entrances every morning and give compliments to passers-by. So back to the reflection. I think, tomorrow at school, I'll make a goal to compliment at least 5 people. The Compliment Guys are just normal people with a mission. Making people happy.

I chose this image because it is like the sign that the Compliment Guys were holding. Also, it emphasizes that compliments are "price-less".

Monday, August 9, 2010

Response on Matt Harding Video


I think that the video had a very "feel good" atmosphere. It also touched me that he was dancing with the children in Africa, who were probably quite poor, but they just danced like they didn't have a care in the world. Also, almost everywhere he was, people joined in dancing, from New York to Istanbul, North, South, East and West. There was an exception though. The Demilitarized Zone in North Korea. But, if there wasn't a soldier standing by, and there were normal North Koreans in the room, they would have definitely joined in, and North Korea isn't the best example of globalization.

As for the essay, I totally agree with the statement "Globalization is forcing our brains to evolve." Being able to fly all around the world and see different places makes us more open to other cultures. Also, he says that the new generation will have brains so slightly better suited to the culture and complexity around them. Matt Harding has made an excellent statement, and one which, in the future, I believe will almost definitely become a reality.


I chose this image because it shows people connecting, and Matt Harding's video is all about connecting the earth. Also, from the silhouettes, all of those people look different, and possibly are from different countries.
http://blog.worldvitalrecords.com/2008/01/16/world-vital-records-inc-changes-name-to-familylinkcom-inc/