The movie Slumdog Millionaire by Danny Boyle that collected 8 Oscars this year in February tells one of the most remarkable stories of this decade. Set in India, the story of Jamal is shown in flashbacks that illustrate how he succeeds in the Indian version of "Who wants to be a Millionaire". Because of its innovativeness, it deserves a rating of 5 stars.
Not only the story, but also the setup, and especially the music are unexpectedly catching and well-chosen. The viewers learn about India and its culture while being entertained by a suspenseful series of actions and a young love. In addition, the relationship of Jamal and his brother Salim, who flee after their hometown is being attacked and their parents killed, is put on the test. Salim develops a dominant and violent nature that scares his brother Jamal.
Who expected light entertainment will be shocked by the many violent scenes. Overall, however, the movie offers more than the average theater visitors. It opens peoples minds and helps broaden their horizons.

It is finally there! The Massey-Vanier YEARBOOK of 2009!! Yes, the one everybody had to complain about. And what can I say?? It is even much better than the ugly blue one I saw when I ordered the new yearbook. Yes, it is brown. And it looks sooo pretty! Good job, Annie! This had to be said!

...Onion news!

Well, it wasn't quite an onion for me... I used a newscast from the CBC news... The one called "Farewell, Miss Canada" captured my attention. Et, en plus, it was first broadcast in my birth year!

Those Miss competitions look really fancy, glamorous...and so cheap. I mean, what do you think is the reason why the feminist Judy Rebick had more interview pieces included than Miss Canada 1981 and Miss Canada 1992? Both Misses only got half a sentence granted in this podcast! And then it was only something like "Quebec, Vancouver, British Columbia, Winnipeg... it brings the whole of Canada together!" and "I think I have to inform people what it's all about".
(More or less) surprisingly, they seem to be the typical "Miss"-stereotype! Looking good, but not much behind that beautiful face. Hm. Interesting.

I am happy that they finally realized (in 1992, MY birth year!) that those Miss competitions are outdated and deliver the wrong image of women. However... why then, if they all got over this presenting-women-like-meat-attitude, did the USA come up with America's Next Top Model in 2003? What else does it provoke than complexes in thousands of girls, and ambitions to become America's Next Top Model (which is, all in all, pretty much the same as a Miss competition)? This show already spread throughout the whole world, reviving the craving for superstitious beauty.
Does that mean society has made another step back in the fight for the treatment of women? Is being rated by one's exterior the new trend again?

I watched the sun set, and then went down to watch TV.

My host Dad watched some kind of discussion round...

A guy made a comment:
"One out of four children under the age of ten is obese. Obviously, those children do not feedthemselves. Can't that be considered child abuse?"


Hmm....



Good question! Sue the parents!

Yay, I finally read Kite Runner... I am actually on the second to last chapter right now! And I can tell you: This book has captivated me. Not decapitated ;)

I personally always have issues with the main character. He or she is always perfect, flawless in the eye of the author. Most of the time this character thinks about himself (or herself) very low, though. It freaks me out. That's why my favourite characters always come from the main character's environment, and often it is his or her enemy that I truly adore! ;)

In The Kite Runner, Amir narrates his own life. All the corny stuff that makes him so loveable is omitted. I actually despised him after chapter seven, up to chapter eighteen(and this is what amazes me). I never, ever despised a major character of a book in that way because of what the person actually did rather than what the author has made of him or her.

The book is als not tangled in difficult political issues, like some WW II books I have read before. It is not entirley about the war (or cold war) in Afghanistan (which is what I first thought when I heard about The Kite Runner). There is only so much information that the reader knows who is good and who is evil.The interested reader can google for more details on the internet. Even the time period of the war can be drawn form Amir's story.

Speaking of books: Today in French Mme Brault declared that she does not intend to teach us anymore until the end of this school year, but rather let us read another book... Thus, I started reading it, and -Oh My God!-why are all of the French books so cliché and predictable?? Want an example?
The girl in the book sees her crush standing in the hallway but does not dare to talk to him. Then she looks away, and the next moment she looks his way, he is gone. She is frustrated about letting her chance pass by... But: Look at that! She turns around and bumps into that boy of her dreams (turns out he's freshly imported from California, just moved to the region, just like her). And what does he do? He apologizes for running into her, she stutters, he flirts, invites her to eat lunch with him, and on top of that, both discover that their fathers have the same flaw of wanting to know exactly who the other one is hanging out with all the time... Tadah! I can hear the bells! One day he'll have to introduce her to his family, they'll go to prom together, and they'll live happily ever after... after they successfully solve a murder, of course ^^

...and something I also noticed (for everybody wo is in my French and L.A. class): The Germans are always the bad guys! ;)

Reading is my passion. One of my passions, to be exact. I love to get into a good story so that I don't want it to end. Of course it ends at some point, but the fascination still goes on within me. Sometimes I feel the urge to express my amazement in public. As with some Harry Potter books in Grade 5, with the Lord of the Rings, Breaking Dawn, and others. Especially when I praised the three books I just mentioned, I always came across a bunch of people who have a total objection, a burnt-in dislike of those; and they haven't even read the books.

Take Harry Potter, for example. When my friends and I planned to go to the theatre to watch the latest movie, one of my buddies expressed that he will boycott the movie, simply because the people make to much a fuss about it. Everybody was indignant at that comment and his stolidity.

Same thing happened with Twilight. When the movie came out, it was the sensation everywhere. I slowly started to comprehend why my friend acted that way. I read the twilight books, so I could build my own opinion on "how great" it really was; and the movie didn't even touch the "magic" that evolved around the plot in the book.

Now, I finally get to the point where I myself am biased against a book- and this book is the Kite Runner. Don't get me wrong! Indeed I have heard what critics say about it. Everywhere they praise the story, maybe criticize the dry writing style, but point out the remarkable theme. My friends were so excited when we finally got it for L.A. class. Some of them already started it, while I want to finish the novel I am reading at the moment first. Now that I hear that they actually are impressed and addicted to the Kite Runner, I have my doubts that I will like it as much as they do. It seems to me that they have been forced to like it by what people say- that I am forced to like it now, otherwise I will be eyed and shunned, and banned from the country. Even though I don't know yet what the plot is about (because I can't paint the picture with words like "Afghanistan", "Russians", "war", and, of course, "kite runner") I am not sure if I like the theme. I am not reluctant to read it. I am curious, but also afraid that the effects of the book on me will be less intense than they were on my friends.

With this said, I will soon post my first impressions of the book- as soon as I start reading!

One of these days:

6:23 am
Alarm Clock rings. A clean cut from my dreams. Crappy Noise. Can't reach it. Damn. Have to get up.

6:25 am
I am falling back into bed, even though I am already set the alarm clock to my *I-am-only-allowed-to-sleep-that-long-limit*.

6:34 am
Waking up again. Turning on every light in the room to stay awake. Where is the sunshine today? *looking-out-of-the-window* Snow?

6:58 am
Having breakfast. No coffee. I hate coffee. Still half-asleep.

7:26 am
Bus is there. A "bon matin" to the bus driver as every day. Sinking into my place, turning on my ipod (thank you Chelsey).

7:27 am
GOD! The music is too loud, it bombed my ears! Finish Rock! Thanks, I am awake now.

7:28 am
Damn. Ipod froze. Clicked too hastily to turn down the sound. So, that means 1 hour without music. Bored in the bus. Guess I am going back to sleep again.

7:48 am
Something woke me up. Realized it was a kick in the back. Ah, arrived at the French High School in Farnham. The elementary school kids entered. Noises everywhere.

7:55 am
Missed my second bus. Waiting in the rain for the next one. Did I miss that one, too?

8:02 am
No, I am fine.

8:15 am
Arrived at school. My friends aren't there yet.

8:35 am
Finally someone I know arrived! Talking about random stuff. Laughing about random stuff.

8:45 am
Ran into somebody. It was embarrassing.

9:00 am
Woohoo, French. -.-

10:00 am
Are we there yet? (Nobody seems to care that everybody's on facebook. But why is myspace blocked then?)

10:25 am
Gym next!

11:50 am
Hit someone in the face with a birdie. Not intended. It was wicked fun. Seriously.

12:00 pm
Hanging out with my friends. Best time of my day!

1:05 pm
L.A. next :)

1:45 pm
Mr. Fontaine stared down Arianna. Nobody seemed to believe he was serious! His face... It was hilarious! :D I love this class.
Jason: "Hamlet is dead? :o"

2:30 pm
Journalism class-a good way to end a three-day week! Tim danced on the table... again ;D

3:40 pm
Bell. War.

3:50 pm
Just got through to my locker! No DEPs or after school activities today!

4:15 pm
Arrived home. Shower. Food. Switching off my brain for today.

5:00 pm
Better switch it on again. I just tried violently to take a glass out of the cupboard and broke it.

7:00 pm
TV time. American Idol. People can get so addicted to it!

10:30 pm
Listening to "Mamma Mia" while falling asleep. Weekend! ;)

From Culture Club, Elton John, and George Michael to the Scissor Sisters... Many of my favourite music bands and singers are gay. All of them have different 80s music styles I happen to enjoy very much. A few days ago I received an email from my sister in Germany and she sent me some songs that are popular in Germany right now. On youtube I checked out the #1 hit in the charts to get an idea of what is going on back in my homecountry. I discovered the newcomer band Polarkreis 18 with their song "The Colour of Snow" and "Allein Allein" (German for "Alone Alone"). I fell in love with them. They are singing in a mix of mostly English, but also German lyrics. However, it seems pretty obvious when I watched the music video that the band's singer is homosexual. Of course, I don't have a problem with this (the singer is really cute, and isn't it that people always desire what they can't get?), but reading the comments some people left below the music video...

I read funny comments like, "I thought it was a woman singing" (in German).
But I also found statements like that, "I don't know what you think about this, but I don't like homos". Everybody can have his or her own opinion on this issue, but I honestly thought that arguments and the rejection of music or songs because they are sung by a homosexual was old-fashioned! Since the 80s the trend rather grew towards tolerance. Are homosexual singers still discriminated against? Or is it just funny to find the flaws in celebrities, pick a little on their vulnerable sides and see how they flinch? It is like a chem lab... "Examine the behaviour of this species after telling him that you avoid him because he is gay". How immature!

I found a nice quote describing how I feel. it is from Dr. Seuss and says:
"Be who you are and say what you feel, because those who mind don't matter and those who matter don't mind".

If you are interested in listening the music of Polarkreis 18, I would recommend "Allein Allein" (chorus in German, rest in English) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=444L2Kc4zIg

Imagine that: Yesterday I came home at 6 pm, ate supper, and searched for a way to relax before the end of the day. I went to check my emails. I couldn’t believe my eyes when I saw 15 (!) new emails coming in.
“Finally, my friends sent me some news” I thought, and I awaited their arrival with excitement. Of course (and how could it be different) half of the mail was spam and notes telling me that I had messages on facebook. (Why don’t they just include my facebook messages in the messages that they send saying that I have a message on facebook? That would save so much time!) But a couple of the emails actually came from Germany- all the way over the great pond in seconds to inform me about what is going on in my friends’ lives!!!
I opened the first email, coming from somebody I barely talked to… What a nice gesture of her!
Well, when I started reading, pretty pictures, glittering animations and the sweetest things about me caught my eye! It said,
“Today is sister’s day. I want to tell you that you are everything for me. You are my lucky charm, my best friend, and I never want to lose you!”
Awwwww, how cute!
However…
When I scrolled down, the beautiful rainbow-picture suddenly faded, together with my smile. “You have to send this email to more than 15 friends in less than an hour, and you will find true love during the next week. If you don’t send the mail in this amount of time, you will have bad luck, your friends might turn their backs on you, and your cat will be run over by a FedEx van.” I suddenly understood: I am just the means, not the end. In front of me, I found a chain letter like any other, only sent to me to fulfill the required amount of people. Seriously, I was not flattered at all by this email anymore.
Honestly, what is the sense of sending chain letters via email? Sometimes they have a little note saying, “attempt to enter the Guinness Book of World Records”, but how who when and why does anybody control these letters? Where are the times when chain letters were actual letters? As a matter of principle, I refuse to forward chain letters I receive on facebook or in my email account. I really wonder why I am still alive and happy! ;) In elementary I got a real chain letter- one I could touch. From a person I knew. That was exciting! And it did not include those stupid threats that make me feel very uncomfortable.
So I sat in front of my computer, feeling the urge to act. So I typed the following:

“Anti-Chain-Letters-Chain-Letter:

Do you also feel intimidated and annoyed when you see another chain letter in your inbox? Do you want to stop the disappointed feeling when all of the mails you receive haven’t been addressed to you, but to a group? Send this letter to all of your friends to stop getting chain letters and feeling of your life being threatened!”

I sent this to my contact list!
There you go! Problem solved!