Guild Blog, whatwhat?

[CraftyCow]

Thanks for the support!

Things are indeed already looking up. Although he's still job hunting I am far more relaxed about things now. I worked a spell and asked the Goddess for some financial assisstance, just to see us through and pay the bills and lo and behold, we found out that the 'working tax credits' system in this country actually owes us money! After months of being told that we were overpaid last year and therefore having our payments cut we have now been told that they were wrong and we have been given about £500, which will certainly see us through Christmas and the new year! Whoo hooo!

Not a lot else has been happening. My book of shadows befell an accident so I have had to start again. I decided to invest in a handmade leather bound one, I'll post a picture of it when I get it delivered.

I feel like everything in my life is starting again, I have a renewed enthusiasm for everything.

Also I can't wait until the wedding. For a while there I was actually dreading it but now I'm really looking forward to wearing my dress, saying my vows and having a BIG party! We've got a woman coming round to meet with us about our rings on Monday evening. I must say though, I'm starting to get pretty nervous. The big day is only around 16 weeks away! redface  

[JVCA]

Ok, I'm sorry, but you knew it was coming. >.< Exam rant approaching...

My last exam was yesterday. I now have no more school for the rest of the year.

Let's see.... Exams...

Well, I had English first, on Tuesday last week. I was feeling quite confident about English, but after doing the exam, I'm a little worried. Every three years, the person who's in charge of setting the papers changes - and this was the year it changed. It's a really bad thing, because NCEA (National Certificate of Educational Achievement - it's the system of secondary school qualifications we have here in NZ) is a very new system - this is its third or fourth year, and only last year they were starting to get things right. But anyway, all the study and practise I'd done was based of the exam questions of previous years - and of course the examiner is different this year, so...

Normally (or previously) in English, you get 6 questions for each external paper you're sitting to choose from (external = nationally moderated exam, internal = assessment in school). The externals I had were Formal Writing (write an essay exploring a topic given), Unseen Texts (Answer stupid questions about poems and speeches and posters), Film Study (write an essay about a film), Extended texts (same as Film, but for novel), and Short Texts (write an essay about two poems/short stories).

Questions for writing essays about come in two parts - one is "Describe (something - eg. and important character/idea/setting/conflict/technique/etc.)" and the other part is "Explain how (something, eg. "this helped you to understand an idea or ideas in the text"). And that's pretty much the questions you get. However, this year, they made the second parts to the questions really, really random. Eg. "Describe an important character in the film. Explain how at least TWO of the following tools/props/production techniques showed this" was the character essay we got for film study.

I had a character essay for film study all lined up - "Daniel Hochleitner is an interesting/impotant character in the film "Witness", directed by Peter Weir, because he is a character of contrasts. He is polite, but blunt, displays his dislike of people but can put his feelings aside to develop a mutual respect relationship with them, and despite all this, can still be a show off at times like the rest of us." How in the hell I'm supposed to write a good character essay in 30 min about the topic I said before, I'll never know.

Normally, I'm good at Formal Writing - but all the topics were ones you'd expect stupid teenagers to like - like the kind of thing you'd find in a Dolly Magazine or something. I know that I'm technically a teenager and all, but (not trying to sound full of it or anything) I am an intellectual, and those kinds of topics, to be completely honest, are total bullshit. It's Formal Writing - you cannot write a formal essay on the topic "It's more important to be an individual than to be popular".

So yeah, English sucked. I'm pretty sure I'll pass, but I don't think I'll be getting the excellences I'd hoped for. (NOTE: Not acheived = fail (approx 40% of people who take the external standard), Acheived = pass (approx 40% of people), Merit = passed and did fairly well (approx 15% of people), Excellence = passed and did extremely well (approx 5% of people).

Math... Math was easy. I liked math. I'm dead serious, I actually enjoyed my math exams. It's very, very weird. It was a very good difficulty - not piss easy, but not impossible - the kind of exam where you can't work it out in your head, but you can pinpoint where to start, in order to start working it out. There were only three evil questions - the excellence questions in probability and in geometric reasoning were horrible, and there was one other that I can't remember.

Science was good too - I answered everything with no difficulty, although I forgot what the hyphae in Fungi were called, which was lame, but it's not a big deal, because it was only an acheived question. I ended up leaving an hour early (three hour exam), because I finished, and checked my answers three times, and got bored.

Waiting for Japanese was worse than the exam itself - afternoon exams suck. Like waiting to get your teeth pulled, pretty much. The exam wasn't until 2 pm. gonk
The exam itself wasn't great - it wans't hard, it wasn't easy, it just... was. It happened. I think I'm probably getting merits in Jap. I left an hour early in Jap too - in each booklet they have a thing saying "It is recommended that your spend ## minutes answering the questions in this paper" - I added them all up, and it turns out that the NCEA people only think your exam should take you 2 hours and 10 minutes, instead of the 3 hours they give you. >.<

So yeah, now I'm off school until late January or so next year, and somehow, my list of things to do in the holidays doesn't seem so easy to fufil afterall. confused  

[[Helmorana]]

Almost over. The week, the term... Almost there, just one more day, just a few more hours... and freedom... I was sick a lot a little while ago and had this week to get all my marks. 2-4 subjects a day... Studying... haven't slept properly since Saturday... Still 3 negative marks... But I don't care, I just want it to be over, I can fix it next week. For now I'm just sorry I had to miss so much of the party... Just one more day.

Mikael died Friday. I was at the doc's all Wednesday and Thursday and Friday I had to go to the Vet. I skipped school to take her there... She actually let me hold her, she never did that, she was just too weak to resist. The vet gave her a shot of something, told me to come back the next day... I was at my dad's the rest of the day, helping my cousin with her English... When I came home Mikael was cold and stiff. I buried her behind the house the next morning. Akerfeldt misses her... She just stays in the house thingie now, doesn't eat much... She's bored. I'd play with her, but she's not any less mean as before... and her teeth are just as sharp.

One of my old classmate's brother killed himself. The funeral was today... I don't know what to think... about anything. Last year a girl from my cousin's school hung herself. She was 13... They say we're like the Finnish. A lot of alcoholism and a high suicide rate. I know so many people who tried and failed... A few who didn't fail.

It's been a strange week... I feel as if I got caught in the twilight zone... But I'm scared it might be the real world. It's what grey looks like.

Just one more day.  

[ForbidenFaeryDesire]

I am finaly over being sick!

I was sick pretty much all of Dec. I had the flu then I got phemonia, I think I spelled that right)

Of corse this was before I went to North Carolina to meet my fiancee's parents...

That went well... they were nice people... her dog liked me too!

Um as for school...

Yay for me I passed all of my exams and I only have 1 D(almost failing grade) out of the 4 classes I have...!!!

I have an A in my lab class... the one that is 3 hours long...

I now have a ring from my fiancee and I plan on moving out of my parents home sometime in June.... Almost imediantely(MS) after I graduate from highschool to move in with her and her parents...

I'm going to college in North Carolina... HOPEFULLY....

Oh North Carolina... is where I am moving too... I hope to get my my fiancee in college with me ...for her sake to just get a general degree in computers... and for me to get a degree in teaching of art, english and pshyical(MS) education

If the education thing doesn't work out I'll get a psycology(MS) degree, to become a school councilor(MS) and/or psycotrists(MS)

Wooot for my slaughter of all of those words!!!!

I am trying out for the varisty softball team in feb. I hope to make the team my senior year... ^.^

I'm already in my schools musical, I'll have to get the video of it on youtube so that you all can see it!

My British Lit. teacher is insane... but adorable...
I won a scholarship for on of my pictures I took of a rose and then a nother one for the vine fence I took...
^(-.-)^<(-.-<)(>-.-)^ v(-.-)v ^(-.-<)(>-.-)>^(-.-)^

That's it for me...

 

[Aurellion]

Aww... Vix... It does sound like you've been in the Twilight Zone.. >_> I want to say a lot more, but just dunno how to get it into words. At the very least, you've got my sympathy. smile

So are you on holiday now?

Congrats, Lex! biggrin Being sick sucks... and it sounds like you had a horrible run of it. >_> Glad you're feeling better. ^_^

Meh, I don't mind about butchering of words. ^_^ As long as you try, 'tis okay. If you get the new firefox browser, it's got an in-built spell checker, which is quite handy.

Good luck with college, and the move. whee

I for one would love to see the school musical. ^^

Uhm. Me..

Well, I'm exhausted. I've spent all weekend working from 6AM->9PM using heavy machinery, rakes, shovels and of course my horribly aching thighs and back. All because we sealed our driveway. biggrin

Because, before, ya'll see, you could scarcely drive up the first slope, and you definitely couldn't drive down to the house, so every day, for four years, we've had to walk up and down a massive hill just to get into the car. Great for getting fit, but a curse if you're late for school, forgot something from the car, or it's raining, or if you've got really heavy shopping/luggage.

As well as that, we now have a Visitors Parking Area, sign and everything. xp I hope to plant some things around there. (The previous farmer who owned this land hated trees, so it's like a wasteland here - too long grass and no trees apart from the willows by our stream.)

Soooo, I payed for our garden at the side of the house. Apart from some pots and stones 'round the front, and some wild flowers, there's no flowers or trees other than willows in sight for 18 acres. I remedied that though. biggrin $200 or so can get you a few things.

The side of the house was just a barren desert, but instead of sand it was waist-high, brown, dead grass. So, Dad got a huge digger, pulled it all out, flattened it and I planted some things - an olive tree, lavender, silver bushes, lillies and verbenas as ground cover. We've got our BBQ, fountain (from our old restaurant) and picnic table out there, so it looks pretty spiffy - apart from the fact that it's just clay - no grass. gonk When it comes to Autumn I hope to pay for some top soil and grass (about $500.) If I were to do it now though, we'd probably run out of water, as it's summer here and it'll need watering. (It was about 32 degrees Celsius yesterday. o_O) But, I'm really impatient... I may try and get Grandma to help pay for it, and a tank load of water ($200) as she loves gardening, and'll have pounds. (Roughly one pound is 3 dollars.)

All that (diggers, stones, soil, flowers, parking) was about to cost $60,000 or so - double what we payed for the house. O_O But, we did it ourselves, so it only cost about $2500. We don't have that kinda money.. but.. it really, really needed doing.

I know for all you people in the Northern Hemisphere this is kind of hard to imagine... Well, I shall try and elaborate.

Four years ago, we went up to Stratford and chose a house - and it wasn't a perfect house - think along the lines of a friendly, derelict, old, old house - kinda like those ones in horror movies, but not nearly as elaborate. They then cut the house into three pieces and shoved it onto three trucks. Back in Hawke's Bay, we bought 18 acres - a lifestyle block, with no fences, electricity, water, sewerage, trees, driveway - nothing. The house then arrived, so we put in a driveway and a water tank - all our water is rain water, from gutters stationed around the house. No council provided water for us, no sir. We did all the plumbing ourselves.

So, the house came up a driveway that was made by a monkey-builder (seriously - he had no brains whatsoever) and dumped on the house site. They put the three pieces back together, and the three trucks struggled up the driveway, ruining it.

We then moved out of our rented apartment and moved in here. For about two weeks we had no electricity, which meant we had no water - our pump is powered by it. It was so cold - partly because of no heaters or fire, partly because the house had no doors and too many holes. We still had to go to work and school whilst all this was happening.

I remember sleeping in my bedroom, looking up at our roof and seeing a possum there - there was no ceiling. For a ten year old, who's used to cities, it was a nightmare come true. I remember my bed falling through the floor.

Ever since, for four years, we've been repairing holes, walls, floors, ceilings, plumbing, electrics and roofs. We've had no garden, and most of the time no money.

Although, when it's all finished it's gonna be soo good. Really pretty. whee

...back to the future.

As well as all that gruelling physical work, Grandma and Uncle Mick will be coming over and staying here for two weeks.

So far this year, I've escaped from seeing "Him" - my real father. I'm so thankful... But, he is in the country, I think. gonk Dad will be going into a kind of toned down family court with him on Monday.

Anywho, away from the house and court. blaugh

I:

- have been getting into drumming again ^_^
- am insanely glad I won't have gym next year
- have bought from the Gaia store the Gwee tee-shirt and the demonic wing clips sweatdrop
- will be seeing Evanescence in concert in February (proud of me, Vix? mrgreen  

[Sirenic-Angel1014u]

I'm really happy right now, my older sister just had another baby on friday, so I have another nephew, he's so cute! lol. His name is Aiden. But my mom doesn't like that name, I don't know why. I love it. His middle name is Travis, so his name means Fire at the Crossroads. ^_^ How cute. Do yall think it's a nice name? lol. I know i'm silly for asking, O_o.  

[prince[ss]]

I got a Rant D: I cant find a decent
boyfriend over here; thats into wicca :/

-rantrantrant- Yes random but its annoying me.

 

[[Helmorana]]

You make it sound like a job, or finding a sweater. I can't find the specific shade of green that I adore.

Aren't relationships supposed to be about love? Can you control who you fall in love with?  

[JVCA]

I dunno... Things have been kinda low, lately. (Ironically, the government funded ad about depression just came onto the telly)

If something happens to you - something bad - you feel sad, sort of in your head.

I can deal with being that kind of sad.

But at the moment... It's like my heart's sad, and my brain can't make my heart happy. It's just like... feeling numb, except I can still get really, really sad, or feel really angry. And normally I don't feel angry - like, ever. I get annoyed, but I don't ever want to slap people or hurt people.

In a way, it scares me. Maybe I'm crazy or something. Maybe I just need to go on something like Prozac.

It's stupid, 'coz you're supposed to be happy 'round the time of your birthday.

It's like, at the moment, little things are rubbing salt into the wound - my sandal broke on Friday, and then they didn't have a spare one my size, so I had to walk round barefoot for half the day. Then one of my friends had a needle and thread, so another one of my friends started fixing my shoe for me, and then gave it to me to finish. Then when I did finish, I realised she sewed it on upside down, so I had to cut it off, and find more thread, and start all over again.

And yesterday I lost my necklace - the perfect pentacle - Vaughan and I found them at a Jewellers while on holiday, and he bought mine for me. It's stupid, it's just a necklace, but I cried my eyes out last night.

10 PM tonight, and I still haven't found it.

Today I came home, and just cried. Then I got up, had a cup of tea, watched some cartoons, and just... started crying again...

I dunno, it's just like, my heart hurts, and I can't fix it.

I've been feeling like this for a week now.

I hate it.

I really, really hate it.

It's just like year 9 all over again.

I thought, I was over it all, and I'd be okay.

It's been maybe... 9 or 10 months since the last time I cut.

I don't think it'd make me feel any better now if I started again anyway, though, so I guess I can keep that up.

I just don't really have the will to live. I don't wanna die, and I don't wanna kill myself...

I just don't want to exist.

It's funny - I'd just gotten a load of books out of my locker, and was walking up the hill, feeling really dragged down, and the phrase "carrying the world on my shoulders" came to my head. I actually laughed at that. I guess it was the practical aspect that made me giggle - while the saying was true metaphorically, my bag was bloody heavy too.

I'm going to regret writing this at some stage, but oh well.

I probably sound like a frigging emo.

I hate that - they turned being depressed into a ******** stereotype.

Damn emos.  

[TwatMockery]

I got an update I guess...
For Lex, I went to her senior prom, that was cool. I didn't go to my own.
She was really excited and I am glad she enjoyed me going with her.
She and I have been together for 1 year and 3 months on the 24th like 6 days ago.
Yup a simple update.

 

[[Helmorana]]

I hate April Fools.

I am too effin naive.

Grrrrrrrr. scream  

[Aurellion]

Oh yeah... that's right... It was april fools a while back..

I was obviously fooled into the day not existing. >___>

Glad the Prom went well, slip. ^^

3 more days... 3 more assesments... 3 more hours of rehearsal... Then I can collapse. X___X  

[[Helmorana]]

Everything's been weird lately.

My classmate's mother disappeared. Went for a walk in the woods, didn't come back.

My other classmate's father died.

My friend's loved one broke contact.

And I am... shockingly enough, heartbroken. A guy... I didn't even know I cared.

These days are just too... weird for me. Demanding.  

[DJ Cyber_lolliPop]

i am so bored and i want to teach myself a languge. plus my grades at school suck rly HXC. ((hardcore)) my grades were 2 Fs, 2 D-s, and a C-. im so pissed...Grr. n e ways i need to learn how to be organized. :[  

[koudelkaW]

I hate college now lol. I do work experience there so I work in a training office. The photocopier hates me x_X It has this key card slot where you put a card in that has credit for the photocopier. But it keeps giving me electric shocks! scream And they actually kinda hurt after about 5 of them ;_;

Weeeee now my dad has given me a cupcake so I'm happy whee