The Plasticine Anology

Mood: selfish...in a good way
Listening to: 'Unwanted' by Avril Lavigne
Hungry for: nothing much...

So, in philosophy, we're learning about the suppression of selfishness. You may think that this is a good thing. It's not.

Because, you see, all human beings...all life forms, really, are essentially selfish. It's one of the very few common traits that all living things share. Our primary instinct is simply to stay alive.

And then, of course, society had to warp all of that. No, it's not cool to save your own skin, you've got to save your friend. Who's probably going to be so guilty that you died instead of him he'll commit suicide anyway. Lovely.

And then there's the other classic example that I'm looking at in philosophy: it's not cool to be happy, you've got to give your happiness to someone else, who then has to give it to someone else, and the useless cycle goes on.

Don't get me wrong, I think it's good to help people, but let me tell you about my plasticine anology.

Okay, so all human beings are children sitting around a table. There is a giant blob of plasticine in the middle of the table, and when it runs out, a grown-up (who could represent God or Allah, if you want), puts another giant blob of plasticine on the table. The plasticine represents happiness.

Logically, every child should take a hunk of plasticine to play with, and if there was not enough, or they wanted more, the grown-up would put more down for them to take.

But this is what really happens.

The children stare at the plasticine for a considerable length of time, daring each other to take the plasticine first. Finally, one child (Child A) reaches out and tears off a hunk. Instead of following suite, the children's eyes move from the big blob of plasticine on the table to the small blob in that child's hand. Under the silent pressure of awkwardness and social morality, the child quickly passes the plasticine to the child next to him who, after a few seconds, passes it to the next child. And so the plasticine gets passed from person to person in this senseless manner, without anyone benefiting from the plasticine.

Finally, one child (Child B) stops the cycle and says that this plasticine is his, and that everyone else has to take their own from the abandoned blob in the middle. The other children just stare at him, and some start shouting abuse ('I'll dob on you! That's so unfair!'), whilst others try another kind of blackmail ('My mummy says we should listen to God and God says that we should all share').

But the kid is just a kid. He eventually cracks, and surrenders the plasticine to the waiting hand of the child next to him. And so the cycle starts again.

After a while, a child (Child C), who was brought up in a no-nonsense Atheist family, stops the cycle and repeats what Child B says, only he stands firm. He starts making his plasticine into different shapes, even taking more from the pile in the middle. The others are utterly disgusted, but eventually give in and finally take plasticine of their own.

And so this continues, although they are very reluctant to take more plasticine from the middle if they need it - the effort is just too much, apparently. So there is endless stealing and then consequent bickering, and it drives them all mad. And then, just as the wind changes direction, it suddenly becomes 'not cool' to steal from each other. You have to take from the middle pile now - that is cool.

And then there's the particular way of taking from the middle pile...which is a ritual in itself. The lists of 'cool' and 'uncool' go on and on, and this is just about happiness. If we all cared for ourselves and got happiness for ourselves without worrying about other people, we'd all be happy.

Note that this anology doesn't apply to third world countries.

You probably didn't get it, anyway. Too confusing much.

Strange

Mood: strange
Listening to: 'Nobody's Fool' by Avril Lavigne
Hungry for: grapes

Some people here hate me,
That I know,
They hate that I'm different,
I don't go with the flow.
I've got many names here,
They're not nice at all,
But there's one I don't mind: strange.

Strange is a sense of being,
It's a frame of mind,
It's a token of individuality,
It's a badge of pride.
I'm strange, so what?
By being strange you get the most out of life.
Put your hand in the fire,
And get what you want.

RED HAIR!!

Mood: meh
Listening to: 'Teardrops on My Guitar' by Taylor Swift
Hungry for:...

I HAVE RED HAIR NOW!!!

Well, not really. Black with red highlights. Still, pretty cool.

I've wanted to get red streaks in my hair for a long time - and it surprises a lot of people. At my school, all Asian girls have the exact same kind of hair - black and long and straight, with blunt ends and choppy bangs. Not that there's anything bad about that, but I want to break out of the mold. I always want to.

I consider my hair my best physical asset. On good days it's thick and soft and silky...on bad days it's dreadful, but then, that's why it's called 'bad hair days'. But it's always been jet black. Jet, boring, black.

There is not much you can do with black hair when it comes to dying and colouring - especially Asian hair, which is known for being pretty much impenetrable and stubborn as hell. You can use bleach to dye it yellow (like, cheese yellow) or a strange kind of brown, or you can use very strong hair dye and dye the whole mop a very dark brown - think Bella Swan in the Twilight movies - but ashier.

The funner, wilder option is streaks - and red is pretty much the only option. But black and red looks striking. Black and red says 'don't mess with me'. Black and red says 'I don't give a shit'. Black and red says 'So what? I'm awesome'. Black and red says 'I refuse to blend in'. Black and red says 'I refuse to bow down to anyone'.

That's what my hair means to me. It's a statement. I am Lady Renegade.

Your sister...

Mood: musicky (i know that's not a word)
Listening to: 'Things I'll Never Say' by Avril Lavigne
Hungry for: nuthin...just ate...

My sister gets 'your sister...'ed all the time. No, it's not like getting 'yo mamma'd - it's not as funny and twice as annoying, apparently.

You see, I'm known for being a bit of a weird one at school. Smart at things I shouldn't be. Incredibly dumb at things I should be good at. Eccentric. Different. Rule breaker. That kind of thing.

And then people forget that I do live in the same house as my sister, and also forget she's my sister, not my mother and constant minder. So she gets 'your sister'd all the time. Like, 'your sister had a strange hairstyle today' and 'your sister was getting told off just then', or, occasionally 'your sister was crying at recess' or 'your sister was having a yelling match with some dude'.

That kind of thing. It's not that my sister doesn't care about me, but this is the 21st century, and she is my sister. She generally knows all this stuff, and if she doesn't, she isn't gonna die without it.

Do you get 'your sister'd? Does your sister get 'your sister'd'? Do you 'your sister' people? Intentionally or not?

And it's the feminist thing. Again.

Mood: tired
Listening to: 'Losing Grip' by Avril Lavigne
Hungry for: milk

And here we are again. Back to feminism.

Lately I have been asked a lot, mostly by boys 'so you think women should rule the world?'.

You might think this is a funny thing for fourteen-year-old boys to ask a fourteen-year-old girl, but I've kind of built a reputation of being a feminist. And I don't mind in the least. I'm damn proud of being a feminist.

But, it's back to more myth debunking.

1. Feminists want women to rule the world.

The correct term for people believing in female supremacy is gynocentrism - feminists believe in equal rights for men and women.

2. All feminists hate men.

I am living proof that that is not true - I'm utterly boy crazy. It is perfectly possible to fall in love, be friends with, and be physically attracted to men, and be a feminist.

3. All feminists are lesbians.

Not true. I'm 200% straight.

4. All feminists hate children.

That is like saying 'All people with blonde hair don't drive Toyotas' or something stupid like that. There is no connection between feminism and dislike of children.

5. Feminism is irrelevant in the modern world.

That is untrue. I have statistics to prove it. In even the most developed countries, wages for women are lower then the wages of men in many professions and trades. Women are discriminated against in occupations such as cooking, engineering and building. 3/4 of all abused children are female, and 2 in 3 women would have experienced some kind of abuse or assault in their lives. In less developed areas, honour killing, wife beating, FGM, rape, breast ironing, bride burning, daughter selling and forced arranged marriage is all still common. Female literacy and access to education is lower than that of men. The majority of women of all ages, races and backgrounds will have been subjected to some kind of sexual assault, abuse, and/or prejudice in their lives and women are still perceived as weak sexual objects in popular culture.

6. You must be a woman to be a feminist.

Some feminists believe otherwise, but I believe that men can be feminists, or at least feminism-supporters. Being a feminist is not betraying masculinity or giving way to femininity, but is confirming that you have some sense of human emotion in you. It takes a great man to be a great feminist.

A feminist is someone who believes in equality between men and women. We are essentially human rights activists at heart - we fight injustice and seek peace. Feminists are often discriminated against, and 'feminist' is now a degratory term - but we wear the name as a badge of pride. Feminism is about being proud of being a woman, seeking respect for being a women, respecting other women and men, and seeking ways to ensure all women are respected for who they are. We fight for women's suffrage and equal rights, through any means necessary. We demand to command respect, and in return we respect our supporters. And remember, the battle is not yet won. But one day, we will stand together, united, man, woman, black, white, at the dawn of a golden era.

Book Review: Jasper Jones

Mood: meh
Listening to: 'One Less Lonely Girl' by Justin Bieber (still waitin' for my valentine's day fantasy to become a reality)
Hungry for: dunno

A book review!

I won't give you any more spoilers than the stuff revealed in the blurb, promise.

I got this book from the Perth International Writer's Festival - Jasper Jones, by Fremantle-based WA writer Craig Silvey (writer of Rhubarb, which is apparently good but I haven't read.) And I must admit, it's good. It's a nice break from the stiff classics I've been poring over - very good, modern read.

The cover is orange, with an apple motif, with A Novel: Jasper Jones scrawled over it, with the author's name. But don't be fooled by the bright cover - the pages narrate an eerily dark and sinister story discussing deep and shady topics like sexuality, racism, sexism, murder, discrimination and torture.

The story is set in the fictional country town of Corrigan, which is somewhere in Western Australia. Just a bit of background info: Australian country towns have a bit of a reputation of being old fashioned and prejudiced. Not all of them, obviously, but some of them. The narrator of the story is Charlie Bucktin, who dreams of being as bold as the dashingly rebellious outcast Jasper Jones, who is half-Aboriginal, so he can somehow pluck up the nerve to strike up a conversation worth remembering with Eliza Wishart. One night, Jasper Jones taps on Charlie's window and leads him to a horrific crime scene that chills Charlie to the core. How can Charlie help Jasper when the whole town is against him? How can Charlie keep this horrible scene a secret?

So, as I said, eerily dark. It's not a book for kids, obviously - both the themes and language are very strong - and it's a very moving book with a very unpredictable end. The chilling crime story is balanced off by some very funny conversations between Charlie and his Asian buddy, Jeffrey, who, despite his bullying, has a very bright take on life.

I recommend this book to adults, older teens, and younger teens who can stomach crude language, dark crime, strong themes and stuff like that. You'll be hooked from the first word, I guarantee. The pace is swift but not rushed, complex but not overly confusing. Perfection.

It's All In The Balance

Mood: relaxed
Listening to: 'Breathe' by Taylor Swift ft. Colbie Callait
Hungry for: juice

At school, I cop a lot of slack for being the only nerd to own foundation and wear makeup to school.

I really don't see what's wrong with it. Sure, I'm smart and I like getting good grades, but I also pay attention to how I look. After all, no-one wants to be the brainless barbie, or the smartass who looks like Shrek. It's all about the balance.

Most of my classmates fail to see how you can be in this balance - it's like x + y = puppydog or something. But I think academics and looks is important, you know?

I think all women should care to a certain extent about their looks - or at least, if you can't be bothered putting in the effort to look good, try to put in the effort to not look bad. Just the little things, like NO SOCKS WITH SANDLES and BLUE EYESHADOW PINK CHEEKS AND RED LIPS WILL NEVER WORK NO MATTER HOW HARD YOU TRY.

And of course, there are the girls who spend three hours in the morning tonging their hair, two hours painstakingly applying fake eyelashes...all to go to school to receive another stack of F's and a detention for wearing stilettos. How is either of those extremes attractive? Why can't you be the best of both worlds?

I'm a nerd, and proud of it. I also know how to apply eyeliner and do a smashing smokey eye. That's just me. Don't like it? Tough.

Cold.

Violent,
Force me into silence,
Death stares,
Ghastly stares,
Blank, cold eyes...
My greeting.
Their voices icy,
Their gestures frosty,
Dying of cold...
No warmth.
The sun does little but blind,
Does nothing to cut through the chill.
It's supposedly a warm day,
A hot day,
But I'm cold and getting colder still.

My blood boils,
My heart aches,
But they fail to warm me,
My senses heighten,
My nostrils flair,
But they do little to warn me.
Fat.
Ugly.
Slut.
Whore.
Their whispers seem louder than screams.
'What's she wearing?'
'What's she doing?'
Their whispers cut worse than knives.

But I have my own sun,
Something else to keep me warm...
The calm flow of the ink from my pen.
It keeps me safe,
Blocks them out,
And with my pen,
I am happy.

Wuthering Heights

Mood: tired
Listening to: 'One Time' by Justin Bieber
Hungry for: milk!

I am currently addicted to the 2009 two-part series of Wuthering Heights, starring Tom Hardy as Heathcliff and Charlotte Riley as Cathy Earnshaw.

I love Wuthering Heights.

Okay, so I haven't actually read it, but I've read enough Twilight to get some direct quotes. I love the storyline.

The last time I tried to read Wuthering Heights was two years ago, and I couldn't get a word of it. I'll try again after I finish Jane Eyre.

I love Heathcliff. I love how he's so dark, so evil, so wronged, so passionate. Heathcliff, I think, has beaten Romeo, who has a stupid name and is too girly and cowardly for my liking, and Edward Cullen, who's hotter than Heathcliff, but boring. Two dimentional. No-one should be so exquisitely perfect as he is.

Writer's Festival

Mood: nostalgic
Listening to: 'Cold As You' by Taylor Swift
Hungry for: dessert

Writer's festival...

Can I describe the atmosphere? I can certainly describe the heat. Blistering, contrasting sharply with the air conditioners on overdrive in the theatres. I don't think I've ever been with so many people of my kind. I don't remember being myself so much for so long.

I love writers. I think they're the best kind of people They're all smart, they're all freaks, they're all cool. I've learned so much, laughed so much...I wish school was that fun. I'd take the heat a thousand times over if I could just forever stay at the festival.

I bought two books at the festival - Jasper Jones, by Craig Silvey, and The Imperfectionists, by Tom Rachman - got them both signed, too, which is cool. The authors were there, giving talks and signing books, and they're both very nice and inspirational. I've read a couple of chapters from each and I'm addicted. I recommend them both to you.