Periodic Table?

From Wikipedia:

Vodka usually has an alcohol content of 35% to 50% by volume. The classic Russian, Lithuanian and Polish vodka is 40% (USA 80 proof). This can be attributed to the Russian standards for vodka production introduced in 1894 by Alexander III from research undertaken by the Russian chemist Dmitri Mendeleev. According to the Vodka Museum in Moscow, Mendeleev found the perfect percentage to be 38.

You mean that old guy Mendeleev we've been studying actually did something interesting other than create the periodic table?

And you thought chemistry was boring...

And I'm working on a shot for schoolies, I need a name... Vodka, Sambuca and Whiskey probably... And it burns... Like actually on fire burns... Suggestions?

I’m ready...

Wow... I'm graduating tonight...

It feels so weird, being that person you never thought you'd be, one of the members of the graduating class.

So today was my last day.

Final assembly, where we formed our circle and passed the colours, will remain with me forever, as will our final chapel service, where we belted out Jerusalem louder than I'd ever heard it before.

We spent a lot of time signing shirts. There's quite a few memorable ones:

"James, what a great name" –Pant

"I can feel your ass crack!" –Da only black guy in Methods CAS

"I'm... Sad..." –Ajit

"You dirty DOG!" - Ongas

"S.E.P.S" –Bevo

And a quote Matt could add to his blog: "There is nothing either good or bad – thinking makes it so" – Mr. P

And Picka's is right... It isn't good or bad that we are leaving, it's what we make of it after we are gone... If we choose to leave the school and never look back, so be it. But if we miss the place, we will return. To repeat someone's words from today: Haileybury has defined us, become a part of us, and everywhere we go from now on we take Haileybury with us.

I'm ready... Ready to say good bye, ready to leave school, ready to start the next chapter of my life book... But I'll never forget school and the way it has changed me.

New Boxes

Yawn! I feel nice and tired! And I know it was last night and my final speech night I'll be a part of, my final speech night that I'll walk across stage for... *tear...*

It wasn't until after I'd walked across stage twice and received all my awards that it fully set in how close to the end I am, how much I'll miss it all.

But now I have another decoration for my wall and a gold medal I apparently can't eat... The subject prize for VET Electrotechnology was no surprise for me, I thoroughly deserved it, being the top student in every aspect... But my high distinction was a little bit of a shock to me, because I didn't think I'd done all that well in some of my other subjects. A high distinction is defined at Haileybury as someone who manages to achieve a majority of A+'s throughout the year (Distinction is majority A's) and I hardly feel like a had a large proportion of A+'s... Though it could make sense considering I'm a member of Haileybury's Honours Society - with a total acheivements for the year of zero!

But the real shock to me was a Barney Allen Gold medal, for high performance in a number of areas around the school. I have Academic Honours, Drama Honours and Lawn Bowls Colours; which I'm led to believe is enough performance for a gold... Alastair got a silver, because he lacked a sport probably. Christiaan also did well, with the subject prize in Drama, which he was very impressed with (he is the best after all). Luke recieved one of the more... lethal... prizes of the night, with a trophy that's heavy enough to be a doorstop for his excellent contribution to the school, plus a Malthouse contribution to drama award (I feel like I'm missing something with Luke's prizes...). Our resident prefect, Matt, also wandered across the stage to receive a Editorial prize, plus a Citizenship prize.

And it seems that once again, the males at Haileybury have been discriminated against... Girls who received two prizes got two plaques, but males with two prizes (High Distinction and VET Electrotechnology) only got one...

But I forgive them for the fact they are in a new type of box to last year, more sturdy... And harder to open!!!

Mental Countdown

Is anyone else watching the days fly by before the end? Kinda sad isn't it...

I'm still not in the mindset that I'm at the end. It just doesn't seem as... final... as it's supposed to. I've been doing the same thing for thirteen years and now I'm at the end all of a sudden, and I feel like I'm being pushed of this plank...

Sure, I've had enough of school. Sure, I've had enough of these early mornings. Sure, I've had enough of putting of with bullshit from idiots.

But I haven't had enough of seeing my frineds everyday at school, and I don't think I'd ever get sick of it. It's always seemed like a part of our conversation is missing when someone isn't there to share it with us. It's that permanent feeling that I'm going to hate next year.

Okay, yeah, I'll make new friends, but I know that I'll never ever forget the ones that I met at school, they're the ones that change who your are. And I know that a day won't go by that I won't think of them.

They claim the whole purpose of going to school is to learn academically, to enrich your head with knowledge shared throughout generations, to learn the foundations of the knowledge that will make our society great... They are wrong... The whole purpose of schoool is to learn socially, to enrich your head with knowledge about others and their beliefs, to learn the foundations that won't just make our society great, but to make each and every person within it great, to make a person able to walk past a stanger to them and bid welcome and to create the one thing that no person in the world can truly succeed without... Friends...

Large Seafood?

Me: "Hey, could I get a large seafood?"
Shopkeeper: "No problem"
*Sits and waits, reads magazine in front of him*
Shortly afterwards,
Random Female: "Excuse me?"
Me: "Hi!"
"Could I ask you a question?"
"No problem"
"But, uh... this is sorta a personal question. Is that okay?"
"Sure!"
"I mean, you don't have to answer if you don't want to, it's just that y'know"
"Okay"
"Well, uh... this is gonna sound a little weird but..."
"Mmmhmmm..."
"I, er, um... I'm having a few self esteem problems and uh,"
"Mmmm..."
"I was sorta wondering... do you think I'm pretty?"
*I lean back in chair, contemplating the correct answer*
"Yes."
"Oh okay"
*Brief pause, random female goes back to facing the wall, I go back to reading magazine (good article on HD-DVD)*
Random female: "What makes you say that?"
Me: "Well, you do have quite a pretty face, I'm not lying. You obviously put some effort into your appearance which means that you care about the way that you look. Some girls don't put any effort at all in, and it doesn't quite work for them. And some try too hard, and you can't see their face and who they really are. I don't like to look at faces so much as what's behind the face and what the people I'm looking at believe in and their ideals."
"Yeah, but beauty is in the eye of the beholder."
"True, and you can't judge a book by its cover. You need to see the beauty on the inside as well..."
*Random female absorbs this*
"Could you do be a favour?"
"Uh, sure!"
"Could you tell me I'm pretty?"
"You are, you're pretty."
"No, just say 'you're pretty!'"
"You're very pretty."
"No I mean like, just 'you're pretty!'"
"You're pretty!"
"Thanks."
*Random female faces the wall again, I go back to the article (Dated July 2006...) *
Random female: "What would it mean if a guy refused to answer?"
*I lean back in chair again, connecting large quantities of information"
Me: "You've clearly had a guy refuse to answer that question to you recently, but I don't think you need to worry, you are quite pretty!"
"Yes, but what would it mean?"
"Well, it could be that he didn't understand the question; or that he was confused as to what to compare you to, or in what context; or it could be he doesn't want to tell you what he really thinks."
"Confused?"
"Yeah, when you asked me if I thought you were pretty, I could have given you a completely different answer, it all depends on what I compare you to. If for example I had decided to compare you to a super-model, then I wouldn't have called you pretty; and if I had decided to compare you to someone not so desirable, then I would have been over-enthusiastic in my response. I decided to compare you to the Australian population as whole, which I believe to be an adequate comparison."
"Ohh..."
"The problem with guys and that question is that we have trouble picking who to compare you with. Trying to pick someone to compare you with when there are three billion people in the world is not an easy task, most guys can't handle that."
*Information sinking in, my eyes are starting to wander back to the magazine again*
"So how old are you?"
*I'm thinking that by now she's going to want my number or something, but the simple 'I have someone special (very special) in my life' will save me*
"Eighteen"
"Oh good, I didn't want to be asking that question to someone young"
"Mmmm..."
"It's just that he confuses me sometimes..."
"I know."
"...and he never quite understands..."
"Yeah"
"I just wish he would pay more attention."
"It seems to be a running theme amongst men."
"So what do you think it was? Lack of understanding, confusion or didn't want to answer?"
*I think to myself: ">Removed - Too detailed for female readers<"*
Me: "Confusion"
Random female: "Thanks so much" *pause* "Could you tell me I'm pretty again?"
"You're very pretty!"
"No, just I'm pretty"
"You're pretty"
Shopkeeper: "Large seafood?"
Me: "That's me!"
*I get up, take pizza, about to leave*
Random female: "One more time please, it feels good to hear it"
"You're pretty"
"Thank you so much for helping me"
"Anytime! It was good meeting you"
"You too, I'll see you around"
*Shakes hands (what else was I supposed to do? Hug her? I don't know where she's been???) and leaves*

And that was my random pizza shop experience...

What can I get you?

So I finished my Responsible Serving of Alcohol and my Food Hygiene Certificates on Saturday. I can now apply to jobs behind the bar and legally sell people alcohol, assuming that I'm selling it to people with adequate ID and all that jazz... Also part of my course was a basic coffee making lessons and wine appreciation. Turns out Cappuccino's and Latte's are almost exactly the same, just I fold the milk with a Latte (and I've also got to be careful not to destroy the crema).

And while the bar downstairs burst with roars of excitement when a favourite team would kick a goal, our group was pulling beers, foaming milk, sipping wine and breaking glasses. For a lovely change, I didn't see a single minute of the grand final this year due to my thoroughly enjoyable and very worthwhile course. The purpose of this is to lead into part time work for after exams and university, and I've already applied to several places including the place I was training at, the Belgian Beer café; even if it's a little annoying to get to (I hate public transport).

Today, while in the process of trying to backup Izzy's Tablet, I stumbled across something which has distracted me for a couple of hours now. While virtual desktops aren't original, the 3D cube model of them is relatively new, and my notebook now takes on a whole new flippy feel as I whir around the box. A separate background on them all helps me remember which desktop I'm on, handy! Only a few things I need to get used to, one of them is checking conversations in other desktops, because they don't make noise when they aren't on the active desktop. Nevertheless, I can see this as something that will change my productivity process. Have a screenshot of my computer, flipping between the desktops: