Shut Up and Read.

ABOUT KEN PATTERN

2008-05-06T19:06:00.000+07:00

Hi! I'm Elizabeth! It's been a very long time since I haven't post any blog. heheheee... anyways, today's topic is about KEN PATTERN....

GUESS WHO HE IS?

he's an artist from CANADA where MS. JEss' from.
So, he said: "Creating visual images has always been a part of my life. As a child, I loved to draw and I was the typical school kid bringing home the creations all parents are so proud to receive (hopefully). I took art seriously throughout my school years until I graduated from high school in 1961. For me art was right up there with rock & roll and girls."

in 1963, he left Canada to explore Europe for six month then four years later he returned after having spent two years in Europe and two more in Africa and Asia.
he then move to Jakarta in 1988 but in 1990, he started to draw about JAKARTA, here he's works:

"food court" by KEN PATTERN

this looks so real right? he wanted is to potrayed Jakarta not through the tall buildings and the modern things in Jakarta, but the slums and the traditional living.

this is my favourite, because it looks so lively and beautiful... i hope i can be as good as him one day, hehehee.... well, that's all!

Confessions of a Shopaholic : The Movie

2008-05-04T19:33:00.001+07:00

For all you shopaholic fans out there!! This is the time to get excited because Confessions of a Shopaholic, the first book of the Shopaholic series, is going to be made into a movie. The movie is in the making right now and it is scheduled to release February next year. I know it's a long time to wait, but i bet its going to be worth it. Isla Fisher (who you all probably know as the wife of Sacha Baron Cohen), will be playing the lead role as Rebecca Bloomwood or the shopaholic in the story.

I am a fan of the shopaholic series and i have read all five of the books from the series. Basically the shopaholic series tell stories about the life of Rebecca Bloomwood, a young woman who cannot control her shopping habits. It was a fun story as there is also some romance and comedy in the story.The first book is about her early career as a financial adviser in England. In the next books, she moved to New York, plans her wedding, met her long lost sister, and the last book is about how she prepares to be a mother as she finally got pregnant.In all five book, Rebecca continues her struggle to manage her money and it also tells about how she overcomes the problems from her spending habits in the end of each book. I find all five books very interesting and fun to read. It is a very light reading material, and the language used are pretty general English. Personally the third book from the series is my favorite one, but overall they're all very nice to read on your spare time. For all you girls that adores fashion, you will surely like the shopaholic series. For the guys, these books maybe a little too girlie, but hey, one of my guy friend (i wont mention any names here :p )read one of the books and he loved it! So some of you guys might want to try reading them too.

I read the synopsis of the movie and i found out the the story is a little twisted from the real story from the book. But overall it was similar and in the movie we will surely see some great clothes and handbags and also shoes! I can't wait for the movie!

- Angelina -

Indonesian TV series suck!

2008-04-27T23:24:00.001+07:00

Few months ago, I accidentally watched Indonesia TV series in an Indonesian channel because I have nothing to do. At first, the story is quite interesting. It told about a story where there was a girl, whose family was running a pasta
restaurant, accidentally met a guy that was an actor. Then tha girl prtend to be the guy's girlfriend but at last they fall in love each other. I think i was quite nice to watch, but after watching it for 30 minutes I got boring, so i chenged the channel into other indonesian channel that plays a different TV series or "sinetron". So, rather than I have nothing to do, I was just continue watching. But then, I realize that the story was the same with the one that i watched before from the other channel.

Don't you think it is crazy? They were actually plagiarizing each other! They played the sinetrons at te same time but in two different channel with wo different title.

the worst thing is that not so long ago i found out that those two sinetrons that were plagiarizing each other were actually copying a Taiwanese drama called "Smiling Pasta". In other words, Indonesia plagiarized the storyline from other country's drama.

It is very unbelievable that there are no more creative people who con produce somehing original. I hope, someday the future generation of young people
can create something new and produce a high quaility original creations eapecially in movie industry.

-Valencia-

2008-04-27T20:30:00.001+07:00

“QUESTION OF MY THOUGHTS”:
Still wondering. Unconsciously, media have a great affect in one's life. Media can just pass with a click or catch someone in a blink and tied them tight using TV wires.
How come I'm easily 'kidnapped' into the media world?

Will come out soon. =p

Blog...Blog...Blog....

2007-12-10T02:52:00.000+07:00

I think everybody is rushing to finish their 12 blog entries. Maybe it sound easy for some people, but for me it is
really hard. Ineed to find a lot of topics to talk about especially because I miss a lot of daily posts.

Some people think that writing a blog is boring, but actually I find it ver interesting and fun because we can share something with other people and read their comments about our blog entries. Sometimes they can give you a very useful suggestion to improve our language or we can also read the comments about their different opinion that is contradict with ours.

But all the funs of writing a blog become a very boring thing because sometimes we just lack of interesting topics that
can attract our stressed out mind and relax it.
From the blog, I sometimes find something that makes me eager to know and it will make me to read and read until i finish it all.
That is kinda cool becaus by one reading we can know more about the things that we don't know.

So, have you guys finished writing your 12 blog entries?
You can find it interesting even tough sometimes it is a boring work to write about something in it.

-Valencia-

Unlimited wants Part II : How far is too far?

2007-12-10T02:51:00.000+07:00

I am a big fan of the novel shopaholic series. It was such a fun book to read and i recommend it to you girls who loves fashion and also to you girls who love shopping! Anyways the novel basically tells the story of this one woman who loves to shop, and when i said love i mean she is obsessed. We all know when there is an obsession involved it is no longer healthy. And her passion for shopping ended up ruining her life. She calls herself a shopaholic which as you all know means crazy for shopping.

In the novel, what is described as a shopaholics are those who would do anything to shop, even if they have to borrow other's money. Shopaholic would still shop even though they know they are broke, unemployed, and have very little if not no money at all. They would shop using their credit card and never pay the bills. It is kind of scary, right? In the novel, i is also described that the main character would buy things she does not need, and she would also buy ridiculously useless things that she cannot even remember buying.

The problem with those shopaholics is that they cannot resist temptation. Once they see one thing they like, they would buy it, no matter what situations they are in. Even though they are broke or even if the thing is not for themself, they would not think twice to buy the things. I personaly think it is not some sort of sickness but it is just a bad habbit.

When you buy EVRYTHING you want, not caring about whether you can afford it or not, then you might be a shopaholic. Always keep in mind that you should never go too far in shopping; meaning if all you think about is shopping, beware. If you see yourself similar to the categories mentioned above then you should definitely change your shopping style and improve you mix and matching skills.

-Angelina-

Unlimited wants : Do you really NEED it?

2007-12-10T02:13:00.000+07:00

As a girl i think we all understand that shopping is a guilty pleasure and one of the most irresistible things that the world could offer. I , myself is really fond of shopping and i could just spend days shopping (or spending my parents' money) without ever feeling tired or satisfied. I would usually stop shopping when i started to realize that its not my own money that i'm spending and there are other important things to do in life besides shopping. Though, i have to admit that shopping is one enjoyable activity that could relieve me from stress and that could sometimes make me forget about time. i usually love to shop for clothes, handbags, accessories, and even food. One of the things that i don't like to shop for, in the other hand are electronic things.

We all know fashion come and go. According to Heidi Klum (a former model and reality tv presenter), "In fashion, one moment it's in, and the next thing you know it's out!". That explains why most of us are never really satisfied with what we already own. When i want something; a bag for example and i finally have it, i would be very happy about it for a while. But then i'm gonna start reading more fashion magazines and look at new trends from the new season's collection and i would most likely desire another bag. This is a problem i have that i know some of the girls (or guys) also have. But then again, you can't always have what you want and it's not easy to get money and spend it on new handbags every new season. But the desire is still within us and that desire will haunt our every minute, until we decided to buy that certain thing that we wanted.

What i usually do is think twice before i buy a certain thing that i want. I sometimes want something just because it looks pretty, whether it might be useful or not. I always have a question in mind before i buy something; am i buying this because i NEED it, or is it just because i WANT it? Then i would ask other's opinion if the thing suits me or if it is really worth the price i'm gonna have to pay for it. If i ended up not buying the thing, of course i would be upset, but hey, fashion come and go and there will always be another season coming up. There is a big possibility that there will be much better things coming out the next season and all i have to do is wait. Or i could just be thankful for what i already have and use it to the maximum. Because not everyone could be as fortunate as me, considering that there are so many people out there that even struggle just to have a decent place to live and also food to eat.

So think about what you already have. Also before buying something, think twice. Do you really NEED it? Or is it just what you WANT?

-Angelina-

Weekend blast : Sleepover, reunion, and so much more.

2007-12-10T00:46:00.000+07:00

Last week is rather refreshing and for the first time in a month period i finally remember what its like to be free. After long days and nights of studying and reading boring textbooks and such, last week i got the chance to let out all frustrations and boredom. What made last week even better is that my parents, my sister, her husband and my baby niece were away for the whole weekend! it was absolutely peaceful and quiet in the house.

One word to describe my last weekend would be : PERFECT
What made my fabulous peaceful weekend perfect? I would have to say my friends. So two of my friends actually came later on Friday night and they decided to sleepover my house. They came around 11-ish at night, just after they attended the Friday night concert ( They told me it was awsome! it's such a shame i couldn't go with them). Of course, they didn't come with empty hands; because they brought along a box of hot fried chicken from McD. It was guilty pleasure of course but its okay to have junk food once in a while on special occasions like this, right?
When girls get together and have sleepover together, i think then the greatest guilty pleasures would be doing each other a makeover and gossip. We didn't really do the first one, but we sure did some gossiping. Me and my friends ended up staying up until l around 2 am, gossiping through our whole night until we got sleepy and all of us fell a sleep.

Okay the next morning i had a math lesson but let's just not talk about that. After math lesson, i went to see a hilarious new indonesian movie called quickie express. I also had lunch at sushi tei. But i would have to say that the highlight of the day was meeting my friend who moved to england earlier this year. She is here in Indonesia for Christmas break and i am excited! Also we had dinner with some other friends and we chat and we also shared experiences. It was a fun night because i missed her so much and after about 4 months of not seeing her we finally got to catch up with her and everything.

All in all i had a very awsome weekend and i know this would probably only happen a couple times a year. But my friends are the one who made this weekend wonderful for without them it there would not be any kind of fun going on in my weekend.

-Angelina-

Christmas lalala...

2007-12-09T22:59:00.000+07:00

ALOHAAA.....

The school is almost over and christmas is coming, have you plan your vacation trip?
I saw an advertisement in Disney Channel says that there will be a big party in Hong Kong Dineyland. There will be many spectacular shows and parade. Last year they held the party in Tokyo and this year will be in Hong Kong.

We can already feel the Christmas in school. People are buying candy grams for their friends and start decorating the coridors
(I hope grade 11 will win the competition with the Pink Christmas)

But why is the holiday only 3 weeks? I need moree holidays!!!
I think it will be hard to come back to school after the holiday. Honestly, I have spent this las two weeks of school just with watching DVDs and doing nothing at home, I have already felt the holiday sindrome that makes people feel lazy and don't want to do any work. And you know, I just ignore my homeworks and just do it at last minute (just likr this blogs)

I am just wondering what present i will get at the christmas day. In my old school, we usually take a draw and exchange gift with our partner from that draw. But we must not find out who is the partner until the Christmas day and it become a big surprise for us. Usually, our partner is a guy and we are shy to give the gift to him bacause people will talk about the exchange gift and we don't want people to make gossip from it.

Do we have such exchange gift in SPH? I hope there will be one someday because it is realy fun.

So guys, have you decided where you're going and what will you do during this Cristmas break?

-Valencia-

Elvis Presley

2007-12-09T21:43:00.000+07:00

Ni Hao!!!

About 3 days ago I wrote about a legendary band, and today i want to talk about Elvis Presley, "The King of Rock 'n' Roll"!!!

Elvis is one of my favorite singer, even though his songs are oldish but I think his songs are great and really fun. We can feel sad, happy, joyfull and other feelings by listening to his songs. When I listen to his songs, suddenly i can sing with the song or dance that is unusual forme because i don't like singing or dancing.

Elvis Presley was an American singer with the rock and roll style, but he also sang many mello songs, one of them is Can't Help Falling in Love. I'm not sure if it it was a mello song but at least it was a slow beat song. Many of his songs are used as soundtracks in many modern movies, for example is Lilo and Stitch. Or we can hear is song in the new film, Game Plane, when the Rock sings one of Elvis songs.

Not only a singer, Elvis was an actor too. He plays some films in Hollywood but unfortunately his films were not as famous as his songs. Nowadays, people start to reproduce Elvis's films but I think the reproduced films will not as successful as his reproduce albums.

Elvis was a great singer and always give great performance but behind those great work he had done, his family was broken. He suspected that his wife had affair with another man. He became really depressed and he paid a murderer to kill that man. Fortunately, he cancel it and he just divorced with his wife. After his divorce he became overweight and he used drugs that really affected his health.

He died in age 42 because of too much health proplem and some of them chronic. He was reburied at Graceland. Now, it become the museum of Elvis presley with all af his old stuff, including his costumes that worth a very high price.

-Valencia-

2007-12-09T21:10:00.000+07:00

"QUESTION OF MY THOUGHTS":

Why is it hard to forget somebody?

It looks like that not even the most advance computer have beaten the memory of a person. I admit that I'm a very forgetful person. Just check the school's office, some of the ladies there know that I lost many things so it's normal if go to the office quite often. I hate the most if I lost my handphone because I did lost a couple and more. Everytime it happen, I felt I want to cry because all of the memory that I kept inside there is gone forever.

But it's different with a person. I don't forget a person that easily. Actually, I'm really good at recognizing people's faces but I'm totally bad at remembering names. I have to interact directly with that new person in order for me to remember their names completely. However, I would always remember their faces especially when I took a good look for only once.

One of the reasons for why it is hard to forget somebody meaningful in my life is that the memories that had been spent through. For instance, my family and my closest friends, they are part of my life and I would never forget them even if they would leave me forever. It's too hard to forget because the time that we spent together are both irreplaceable and irreversible. The time spent could only be live inside my memory which held strong the memory of that person for as long as I live.

Memory is the strongest force that prevents me from forgetting someone.

It really hurts when you know that the person would never come back but everything that you do always reminds you about the same person. I bet that everyone would go through that phase in life even though it stings the heart. Therefore, I recommend that we have to always have good relationships with other people to minimize the regrets you'll be burdened with when that person is totally gone forever.

But always keep the people you love to be living in your mind, be happy for it and let the memory accompany you for the rest of your life.

BRATZ

2007-12-09T20:36:00.002+07:00

Ok people! let's talk about BRATZ the movie!

I think Bratz movie is quite simple, you don't have to think much when you watch it. You can directly know the ending of the movie and the storyline is similar with My Super Sweet 16 the movie. It starts with very different best friends, they go to new school and meet new people, suddenly their friendship is broken, each of them goes with in their own way, but at the end they realize thati they have done something wrong and become best friends again.
Both movie also use fashionable dresses and glamorous parties. and the amazing thing is that MTV Super Sweet 16 is involved in the film too.

In Bratz, there are sweet things that make the movie different fom others. I like their hardwork to help their friend and even though they are different, they can out their differences together to create a new unique thing with their own specialities. It also shows that a fashionable girl can be also good in math, soccer, and other things. And also I like the deaf guy (I forgot his name), I think he is quite cute and I love the way he listen to musics by feeling its vibration and hear it with his heart. It shows that nothing can stop people to express their feelings and what they like, especialy art or music.

Btw, don't you realize that the girls in Bratz really look like the real Bratz doll, especially their eyes!?

I like the Bratz's costumes. They are very unique and have their own style. I like the Clown costumes the most. Even though it just clown costumes but they can modify it and change a silly clown costume to a fashionable costume plus the cool make up. Unfortunately, the cast don't really sing their song beacause it is obvious that they just do lip sings. But anyways, over all is good and you may want to watch it again and again.

-Valencia-

YURAKU Restaurant

2007-12-09T09:23:00.000+07:00

Hello everybody!

I want to share something with you. I know that most people like to eat so i want to share this.

Yesterday, I had a dinner with my family in Kelapa Gading Mall. We found an "all you can eat" restaurant, Yuraku. It serves yakiniku, shabu-shabu and other food. you can eat as much as you can but you have to eat them all or els they will charge it as 1 portion and you have to pay more. The price is not really expensive, for adult: monday-friday is Rp 69,000/person and saturday-sunday is 71,900/person.

They serve the foods in raw material, so we have to cook it by ourselves. We can boil it or bake it. There are beef, pork, fishes, squid, shrimp, siomay and other kind of dim sum, salad, ice cream, many kind of drinks, many kinds of soup, puddings, sausage , meat ball, fish ball, and many more.

If you want to go there, you have to prepare your stomach. Do not eat any thing first, so you can eat much there.

I don't know if you can find it in other place besides Kelapa Gading because I never saw it before. The place is cozy and it quite like Hanamasa but I think Yuraku is cheaper and you can eat a lot there.

So, enjoy the food guys!

-Valencia-

2007-12-07T23:21:00.000+07:00

"QUESTIONS OF MY THOUGHTS":

Why are my friends so important in my life?

Truthfully, I would never ever think that I could survive living in this cruel world on my own without no one supporting my back. I make friends with a lot of people and few to be the closest. Considering someone to be close to me is to fully trust them and be able to tell them anything as they listens.

I can say that I know a lot of people but not all of them are my friends.

I can say they are my friends but not all of them are my best friends.

I can say they are my best friends...

and no one can replace them.

Life is not fair as we all know or perhaps for those of you who will eventually go through the unfairness in life, just be prepared. Friends come and go (like usual), but when I chose someone to my best friend, personally, I would expect a lot of trust between each other and accept the minimum of lies. That's one of the reasons for why I care about my friends.

Now I'm in grade 11 and have different classes with different people everyday. This makes me to have many types of friends. This next two year until graduation, I'm sure that I would never be one class with my best friend since grade 7 since she chose totally different subjects than mine but we remain as friends. Even though its not as much as we use to due to many activities that we're going through, but I will always have her as my best friend.

On the other hand, in my classes now, I still have a few close friends where I really enjoy hanging out together with them. Feels totally different with my best friend but I love it. With my close friends, we go to the canteen together and laugh at our stupid jokes loudly in the hallway. Also, sometimes I go out with my friends to eat together and chat for a couple of hours or more. This group of friends is quite a mix but I really enjoy hanging out with them.

For these friends, maybe they know who I'm talking about, I just want you guys to know that I REALLY enjoy spending time with you guys for the past few months. I'm looking forward to our next breakfast, lunch, brunch, dinner, you just name it and I will be there! ^^ I think we're going to be planning a christmas food-hunting,hahaha... One thing I know for sure is that we love an ALL-YOU-CAN-EAT restaurant. I'm really excited for this christmas because I'm expecting a miracle to happen in my favorite time of the year.

To my best and close friends, I'm really looking forward to be hanging out a lot with you guys for this upcoming holiday but it doesn't mean that you can't go anywhere with your family. Just don't forget to bring me some presents back if you're going somewhere... ^^

For your information, even though my friends and I are half around the world apart later in life...

I would always keep you guys in my heart.

P.S. To anyone who knows an all-you-can-eat restaurant, tell me please.

I'm dreaming of a white christmas..

2007-12-07T22:33:00.000+07:00

"I'm dreaming of a white Christmas

Just like the ones I used to know

Where the treetops glisten,

and children listen

To hear sleigh bells in the snow."

While people in europe and the US or Canada are experiencing the beautiful white christmas, again and again I will spend my christmas here in Jakarta; where there are really not many changes on the weather all year (except for the fact that sometimes it rains heavily and the whole city's gonna be flooding). Anyways the exams have stressed me so much and it made me so desperate for holiday and also for christmas. I was so despreate that i even started listening to christmas songs since a month ago.

I was so envious when i saw my sister's photos in facebook, she and her friends are actually freezing in the snow, sitting by the fireplace with marshmallow and hot chocolate, all the typical stuff that is related to white christmas. I was thinking of all the things i could do just if i can spend christmas with my sister in boston. It would be a lot of fun. We can have a snowball fight and everything. But then i realized that i am being such an ungrateful person.

I realized that christmas is really not just about that.

So what if even though all the department store in Jakarta has christmas decorations but it still doesnt feel like christmas? Sometimes people forget that we celebrate christmas to remember the birth of our Lord Jesus. Now that i think of it, i can feel the christmas sprit from within me. And now i can already feel the warmth of christmas...

So what if we're celebrating christmas in this hot weather? it doesnt really matter. I should feel thankful that my sister is coming back from US and my family would be complete for christmas. Even though we might not go anywhere outside of Jakarta but the fact that the whole family is celebrating christmas together feels nice. And togetherness of the family is what completes the christmas spirit!

Never mind about white christmas. I just can't wait for christmas, wether its white or sunny. :)

-Angelina-

CROP CIRCLE, UFOs?

2007-12-07T19:08:00.001+07:00

Ever heard about crop circle?

Crop circle is known for it’s unique circle pattern that are made by flattening crops in the crop field. Examples can be found worldwide and is believed that it is man made or either UFOs. The early recorded incident claim in the 17^th century that describing the circle crops are made by devil mowing a circular pattern around the crop field.

Crop circle designs

Earlier days, the design are circles that connect to each other, but after some years there are complex geometric shape

Most people in the world believe that it was made by the aliens but in 1991, there are some men said that they made the crop circle for prank. In this case some people might think that it is really man made, UFOs and other lights in the sky have been reported in connection with many crop circle sites, leading to them becoming related with UFOs and aliens. Some people claim to have seen images of UFOs forming crop circles or flying on top of the field, though photographs have been dismissed by skeptics as being unclear or clear trick.

So which one do you think is the truth? Aliens or Man made? I believe it’s man made and if it’s really are man made, the people who are doing it, just doing it for prank and for fun.

Whew! Everyone is relaxing right now because the exam result. Many people do sad and happy. For the people who got good grades, CONGRAGULATIONS! Hahhahaa… keep your good job and be successes. For those people who didn’t do so good, try to do better next time because this is just the first IB exam and we have lots more to do!!! Don’t be sad, I believe all of us can do better next time and study well. Don’t forget to pray to God so that you can be bless while studying and be SMART!!! :)

Christmas is comiiiing!!! Where do you all guys wanna do and where are you going for the holidays? I really like Christmas time because it feels so peaceful and calm. I really like to listen to Christmas songs because it sounds so happy and cherish! I really love Christmasss!!! So everyone, one more week to go before the holiday, spend your last week with joy and have FUN!

BYE!!

-elizabeth-

THE MYSTERY OF THE BERMUDA TRIANGLE

2007-12-07T19:05:00.001+07:00

You guys must have heard about the BERMUDA TRIANGLE, right?

Bermuda triangle is also known as the Devil’s Triangle is located at the northwestern Atlantic Ocean in which where aircraft and vessel are believe to disappear mysteriously. Some of these disappearances have been attributed to the paranormal, the laws of physics, or activity by outer space beings by popular culture. Sudden storms can and do appear, and in the summer to late fall the occasional hurricane strikes the area. Many vessels are found in storms and lost without a trace and believed that the Bermuda Triangle have the relation to the lost vessels and aircrafts.

According to the Triangle authors, Christopher Columbus was the first person to document something strange in the Triangle, reporting that he and his crew observed "strange dancing lights on the horizon", flames in the sky, and at another point he wrote in his log about strange manner in the area. From his log book, dated October 11, 1492 he wrote:

‘The land was first seen by a sailor (Rodrigo de Triana), although the Admiral at ten o'clock that evening standing on the quarter-deck saw a light, but so small a body that he could not affirm it to be land; calling to Pero Gutiérrez, groom of the King's wardrobe, he told him he saw a light, and bid him look that way, which he did and saw it; he did the same to Rodrigo Sánchez of Segovia, whom the King and Queen had sent with the squadron as comptroller, but he was unable to see it from his situation. The Admiral again perceived it once or twice, appearing like the light of a wax candle moving up and down, which some thought an indication of land. But the Admiral held it for certain that land was near...’

Hurricanes

Hurricanes are extremely powerful storms which happened in the Atlantic near the equator, and have historically been responsible for thousands of lives lost and billions of dollars in damage. The sinking of Francisco de Bobadilla's Spanish fleet in 1502 was the first recorded instance of a destructive hurricane. In 1988, Hurricane Gilbert, one of the most powerful hurricanes in history, set back Jamaica's economy by three years. These storms have in the past caused a number of incidents related to the Triangle.

Freak waves

Extremely large waves can appear seemingly at random, even in calm seas. One such rogue wave caused the Ocean Ranger to roll over in 1982, then the worlds largest offshore platform. There is, however, no particular reason to believe rogue waves are more common in the Bermuda region, and this could not explain loss of airplanes.

There are also many people who believe that incidents that were happening in the Bermuda Triangle is only caused by human error, because human can make mistakes and have accidents everywhere.

Famous incidents

Flight 19

Mary Celeste

The mysterious abandonment in 1872 of the Mary Celeste is often but inaccurately connected to the Triangle, the ship having been abandoned off the coast of Portugal. Many theories have been put forth over the years to explain the abandonment, including alcohol fumes from the cargo and insurance fraud. The event is possibly confused with the sinking of a ship with a similar name, the Mari Celeste, off the coast of Bermuda on September 13, 1864, which is mentioned in the book Bermuda Shipwrecks by Dan Berg.

Spray(sailing vessel)

Captain Joshua Slocum's skill as a mariner was beyond argument; he was the first man to sail around the world solo. In 1909, in his boat Spray he set out in a course to take him through the Caribbean to Venezuela. He disappeared; there was no evidence he was even in the Triangle when Spray was lost. It was assumed he was run down by a steamer or struck by a whale, the Spray being too sound a craft and Slocum too experienced a mariner for any other cause to be considered likely, and in 1924 he was declared legally dead. While a mystery, there is no known evidence for, or against, paranormal activity. No one ever knows what is actually happening to him.

BYE!!!

-elizabeth-

MICHAEL BUBLE BIOGRAPHY

2007-12-07T17:32:00.000+07:00

Hai! My name is Elizabeth!

Date of Birth: 9 September 1975

A 25- year old Vancouver vocalist has a gift for making great songs of all time. His name is Michael Buble. "My grandfather was really my best friend growing up," reveals Michael.

"He was the one who opened me up to a whole world of music that seemed to have been passed over by my generation. Although I like rock & roll and modern music, the first time my granddad played me the Mills Brothers something magical happened. The lyrics were so romantic, so real ‘the way a song should be for me. It was like seeing my future flash before me. I wanted to be a singer and I knew that this was the music that I wanted to sing."

"He asked me, as a favor to him, to learn the songs that he loved so much," Michael continues.

"It was kind of a guilt trip, but he didn't have to do much convincing. I started practicing and entered a local talent contest. I won the competition, but was later disqualified for being underage. That was when my granddad, who was a skilled plumber, started offering to do free work for musicians in town in exchange for letting me perform a few numbers with them on stage."

His father Lewis is a salmon fisherman and his mother, Amber, raised him and his two younger sisters.

He is a older brother of Crystal Buble

At 18, Bublé entered a talent contest in a local bar even though the rules stipulated contestants had to be 19. After he won, the organizer, a local publicist and entrepreneur named Beverly Delich, disqualified him but was so impressed by his talent that she later called him at his parents' home and suggested he enter the British Columbia Youth Talent Search. He won, and Delich then helped him record an independent CD.

His single, "Home" has the feature of being the most-heard song on Canadian radio in 2005, reaching an audience estimated to go above 382 million people.

Won 4 Juno Awards (2006) for Best Singer, Best Album "It's Time", Best Artist,and Best Pop Album of the Year "It's Time".

When Michael's 2006 Valentine's Day EP - "With Love, Michael Buble"- was released only for a week, the album reached Gold status selling 500,000 copies. The album also became the biggest selling CD Hallmark has ever released, selling in excess of 3 million copies.

"Everything", the first hit single from the 2007 album Call Me Irresponsible, boasts the fastest trip to Number 1 in three years on Billboards Adult Contemporary chart.

Set the record in 2005 at The Sydney Opera House for the most tickets sold in one day ever.

Personal Quotes

"You can try to trick the people and come out wearing a fedora and a tuxedo but that's not me. I was born in the late '70s, I wear jeans. I don't hang out in casinos. The lifestyle isn't my thing. I don't drink martinis and I don't smoke cigars."

I really like his voice because it’s so unique and low. My favorite songs are ‘Everything’ and ‘Home’. Both of that song is sooo good. Hahahhaa… anyways, holiday is coming up! I can’t wait. But there are many homework need to be done, art photography, geography presentation and also English drama. Well, see you all!

BYE!!!

-elizabeth-

The Legendary Band: THE BEATLES

2007-12-06T23:26:00.000+07:00

Hi!
Today I’m going to talk about one of my favorite bands, The Beatles. They are one of the legendary bands that have produced high quality of songs. Their music is well known in all over the world until now.

The Beatles is an English rock group that is formed in 1960 with four members, John Lennon, Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr and George Harrison. They have sold over one million discs over the world when they were still active. They started from United Kingdom and continue their success in other countries. They were ranked NUMBER ONE in the list of the Greatest Artist of All Time by the Rolling Stones magazine in 2004.

At the beginning, they built their success in peace and no envying each other. They produced extraordinary works that brought them to success. Some of their songs are: I Want to Hold Your Hand, Lat It Be, Yellow Submarine, Michelle, Yesterday, Help!, Back to USSR, Love Me Do and Can’t Buy Me Love. Their songs were really creative and inspirational. Almost all of their songs were composed by themselves.

When John Lennon had a girlfriend, Yoko Ono, and married her, things were changing. The other member thought that Yoko had taken all of John’s attention until he didn’t have any time for the band anymore. Some issues said that the problem was at Paul McCartney because he was becoming too domineering. Then they broke up. After the broke up of the band, each of the members created their new album.

Now, only two of the members of The Beatles are left, Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr. Jon Lennon was killed by his fanatic fan and George Harrison was died because of lung cancer. But even though they had been inactive in the entertainment world, they are still exist and active in their fans’ heart.

-Valencia-

2007-12-06T21:44:00.000+07:00

"QUESTIONS OF MY THOUGHT":

Why do I really think that we must be really thankful at all times?

I guess many people are bored listening to me saying that we always have to be thankful, thankful, and thankful all the time. But when you come to think of it, even if you say billions of "thank you's", it would never be enough for every single breath you take.

When my brother, one of my sisters or myself whine about something like,

"Ah, I don't like the food. It's disgusting,"

"I don't like to have that".

Then my mom would always say,

"You should be thankful of what you have,"

all the time.

Sometimes, I get really annoyed when she said it over and over again. But it then really can remind me by myself when I own things, I would not really whine of what I have. I realized that not everyone have the same oppurtunity like I do.

I realized that I have two normal eyes, two hands and feet, I can talk and do sports, and also having a great family that contains my parents and my brother sisters. My heart would sunk when I see someone in the TV who is not borned normally. They went through difficulties and really takes time to grow to be a strong person. Also, not everyone have their own parents because they were adopted. I enjoy watching about people's lives like in Discover Human & Health.

I really love when watching sextuplets where the children that was born are not only twins but can be much more. It's really fun to see how the parents deal with their kids and it's really cute. Once, I saw a family that have 12 children and their house is really huge. They have like a really big closet and a small cafeteria. The errands around the house are divided equally to every child and it's interesting to see how they actually work it out together. Also, when a parent is dealing with their kids who are still young babies. I watched that this one couple have 6 kids borned at the same day. The parents even make a specially designed baby's table that fits all six together and two triple baby carriages. Since having 6 babies at the same time rarely happens, it caused many interviews from famous shows to be investigating and recording their lives.

Everytime I watch it, I would always hear how the parents are really blessed and thankful of their children. I understand that sometimes in life, it's really hard to be thankful all the time. But hey, life is not always fair and good to everyone. There are always obstacles in life that must be faced by everyone and there's nothing you can prevent it from happening. There are always challenges to sort of test your mind and personality which eventually gives you an experience and let you improve your life more.

Once again, I would never be tired of reminding people to be thankful of what you have. I'm thankful for the normal body I'm borned with, a great family and friends. For all people in the world, don't forget to be thankful of what you have and try to minimize the whining even it's tough.

I know I am.

2007-12-06T07:35:00.000+07:00

"Questions of My Thought":

Why can't Indonesia be like other developing countries?

Yesterday, my mom picked me up from school and we went to the supermal to find something to eat. Then we went back to our car, heading to pick up my younger brother and sister at another school. As I was putting my seatbelt on, I suddenly thought about the government.

I said to my mom, "Mom, so far, it looks like that the only policy set by the government that actually WORKS is where people have to use their seatbelts..."

"Plus the No Smoking in the malls...", my mom added.

I replied, "Yea, that's true... I think the busway would eat a lot of time in order for it to work smoothly around the city."

Deep in my thoughts, I wonder whether the busway would really work. Since the busway started, there have been a lot of complaints because the vehicles are now together in smaller lanes as one lane is only allowed for the busway to go through. People in Jakarta, I guess, is not that cooperative. The government must have find real difficulties when dealing with the people in Indonesia who tends to do whatever they want. However, I think that the government should've follow other countries' positive improvements.

Deep down, I really want my country to developed in many ways. Sometimes, when I went for holiday outside the country, people tends to ask where I'm from. Of course, I answered that I'm from Indonesia but sometimes I can see the difference in their eyes when looking at me. The eyes that I think, shows an underestimation of the country that I proudly live in. The country that have a very polluted environment, unstable economy, population that is most likely not cooperative and a corrupted government.

But, I never had any doubt that Indonesia can really improve themselves. It seems like that the government should just need a creative solution that would trigger the cooperation of the population. There will always people who prays for Indonesia and I know I'm one of it, which indirectly supports the development of Indonesia. Thus, I hope that Indonesia can make their people to be proud of their countries and make the people to be confident when going overseas to say where they're from.

Because I am and will always be from Indonesia.

2007-12-02T16:45:00.000+07:00

"QUESTIONS OF MY THOUGHTS":

Why photos are important to me?

(Myself, Agnes my cousin and Patricia my sister)

A week ago, I was chatting with someone from my friend's house because my laptop is being fixed since a virus had taken over everything up. We were both chatting about the MATH exam out of anything in the world and I was whining about my laptop.

I said, "Ugh... did you know that my laptop is being fixed because some evil virus has taken over it? I'm really upset... It will be formatted and all of the files will be gone... All the photos..."

Then he replied, "Why are photos so important to you?"

"Photos have a slight life in it," I replied.

Someone said it's a moment frozen in time.

Someone said a good snapshot stops a moment from running away.

There are people who doesn't really care about photos but some people do. Sometimes they put a picture beside their bed to kept hold of that memory every time. Sometimes they put in their wallet so that everytime they open their wallet, they would also remember to buy something for the person in he picture. I guess pictures always revolves around us, just to remember what was it like again.

Photos really meant a lot for me, especially if the picture contains the person that I care about. I would always want to cherish it, even though maybe it might hurt but I would still like to have the memory. Even though photos are really important for me, it doesn't mean that I'm 'narcistic'.

In other times, I really hate when I loose my handphone. All of the sms and picture are gone forever, almos cried the last time I lost my handphone. I kept thinking that in there I kept all of the good photos and sms but now I can't see any of it anymore.

Well, I really do care about photos because I always felt something when i flashed back through my memories and I specially want to cherish the good memories. Thus, it is true that pictures are very important to me and don't forget to take pictures with me, friends, before we graduate!!! ^^

2007-11-29T21:24:00.000+07:00

Hey…It’s been quite a while since I wrote my last blog. But I’m going to fill some more to increase my report’s grade (of course). Thanks to Ms. Jessica who reminded the class last lesson that we have to got a certain amount of blogs and it’s not about copy and pasting but writing about your thoughts. Therefore, for all of the next entries I’m going to write, it would be based on one of my “QUESTION OF MY THOUGHTS’.

Today, the “QUESTION OF MY THOUGHTS”:
Is this statement true: There’s no such thing as pure friendship between a man and a woman?

*Sigh* In some areas, the statement might be true. Looking from the romantic movies I’ve watched and romantic books I’ve read, it seems that a love relationship has always started from just being so called “friends”. Usually on the Medias, a loving couple started being friends/best friends when they were young and resulted in a strong love relationship when they become teenagers or turned into adults. Also, the first step of being a couple is being just “friends”. The step where they start to get to know each other while also spreading their charms to each other and then fall deeply in love crazily even if they don’t realize it.

In addition, it’s totally different from having a best friend with the same sex and feels, think and acts the same which leads to a great openness with each other. Contradictory to a couple of best friend that is the opposite sex, because there are limitations on how much you can talk about a particular thing. But when you get to a deeper relationship, there have to be a great openness also where the man and woman should accept each other for who they really are. Also, no one can limit their feelings of love to each other because it just comes naturally within human beings.

On the other hand, I don’t think it’s impossible for a man and woman to be just friends either. They may be fond of each other, enjoying each other’s company and just be brothers and sisters. I, myself, am the oldest in the family, having 2 younger sisters and brother. Being the oldest is not always fun and I would like to have an older brother or a sister to lean on. If I have a brother who is slightly older than me, I imagine that his size would be bigger obviously; he would protect me, take me anywhere using his car and doesn’t have to feel afraid.

So, I guess that the statement in the beginning that says: There’s no such thing as pure friendship between a man and a woman, is 50-50 true. Since sometimes a man and a woman tends to fall in love when they were fond of each other but can also be just best friends like brothers and sisters that enjoys each other’s company. Well, that is what I think…

HANA-KIMI. A girl or a boy?

2007-11-29T19:14:00.000+07:00

HAI EVERYBODY!!!
I'm back!
it has been a long time since my last blog. i think it's almost 2 months.
But anyways, i want to share something with you guys...

Few weeks ago, I just finished wtching a taiwanese tv series named Hanazakarino Kimitachihe or Hana-Kimi for short.

This tv series is based on a Japanese comic or manga. It tells a story about one girl named Riu Xi who comes from America and join an all boys school to meet her favorite high jump athlete, Yi Quan. She also lives in a boy dormitory, the shocking thing is that she gets the same room with Yi Quan. At the first time, Yi Quan is really cold to her and not friendly but with the time going, Yi Quan becomes her best friend because he feels encouraged to go bect to athletic world after quiting high jumping.
Unfortunately, Rui Xi's gender is discovered by Mei Tian, the school's doctor who is a GAY! He is very sensitive with women, so he can directly discover Rui Xi's biggest secreT when Rui Xi gets an injury to her head. Then he becomes Rui Xi's private couselor.
At the same day when Mei Tian discovers Rui Xi's gender, Yi Quan accidentally discover it too because when he wants to help Rui Xi who is fainted by the injury, he accidentallly touch Rui Xi's breast and find out the she's a girl. But for some reasons, he just keeps the secrete for himself.

Rui Xi also has another best friend named Xiu Yi. He finds out that he falls in love with Rui Xi without knowing her true identity. He is really panic because he thinks that he is a gay, but he can not hold his feeling anymore and confess his feeling to everybody in the school including Rui Xi.

After many obstacles, Yi Quan falls in love with Rui Xi too. But, even though he knows that Rui Xi is a girl he doesn't confess his feelings because he wants to keep Rui Xi to be beside him forever.

This drama features by Wu Chun and Jiro from a famous Taiwanese boyband, Fahrenheit, and also Ella from the Taiwanese trio, S.H.E.

This drama is very funny and refreshing. It also has the Japan version and some people said that the japan series is better, but I still don't know about it because I haven't watch it.

I think this drama is very good and I recommend it to you to watch it to clear your mind from the exam disaster. ^^

-Valencia-

2007-11-19T17:18:00.000+07:00

HEY ^________________________________________________^

last blog is about how to prepare for the upcoming exam, and in this blog, i will tell about how to go through the exam or tests.

Tips for Taking Tests:

Read the instruction carefully. Read all the questions first through the pages.
Look at the easy problems and do it first. Don’t spend 20 minutes on each problem.
Keep busy! If you can’t do a question don’t think too long, instead go to the next question or the easy question rather than the hard one. The answer might come to your mind as you do the exam.
Don’t leave any problem blank, if it’s a multiple choice, eliminate the answers that you know it’s 100% wrong. Then guess, because it’s better than leave it blank.
Keep it neat! If your teacher can’t read your writing you might lose points.
Leave time at the end to look again on your answers and don’t get out of the exam room so quickly, you might find an answer wrong and you still have time to correct the answers.

AFTER THE TEST:

Don’t be sad when you got a low grade because it proves to you that you have not study well.
Read the teacher’s comment and learn all the mistakes on your exam paper.
Save the test so you can revise it for the end exam on may.

HEHEHE….

AFTER TAKING THE TEST... we should go refreshing ourself in the most coolest place or in the place that can make you relax. such as malls, restaurant, spa or playing sports.

for me, i want to go for karaoke near my house, it just open and my friends said that it's good and the place is also nice. so i plan to go there at next Saturday after the exam with my friends. just having fun and sing your favorite songs! hehehee =p for me, i like spending my time with my friends and just having fun, chatting and make jokes for them. So i think going for karaoke is the best thing for me to do for refreshing. Some people maybe going to the mall for refreshing or eat with their family. Or even going for swimming, tennis, soccer and other kinds of sports.

anyways... for us holiday is the time for us to refresh, forget about school and have fun...

or maybe just go to Paris...

hahahaa... well i suggest to all of the students in grade 11 to go refreshing on the weekend after exam. just go somewhere and have fun! hahhaaa.. see you and once again, GOOD LUCK ON THE EXAM!!! BYEEE

2007-11-19T17:08:00.000+07:00

Hello, grade 11! and whoever read this blog.

My name is Elizabeth! and now i'm stressing out because of the upcoming exam. We got a lot of revising to do and MEMORIZE MEMORIZE MEMORIZE everyyyyyything!!!

Hey, check this out, i found this in the internet a GLASSWING BUTTERFLY. this butterfly only can be found in Mexico... it's so cool right? This butterfly have transparent wing just like the name

To start this blog, i just want to tell you all something interesting...

Do you know?

You use 14 muscles to smile and 43 to frown.
An eyelash lives about 150 days before it falls down.
You blink your eyes about 20,000 times a day.
Your heart beats about 100,000 times a day.
When you sneeze, air rushes through your nose at a rate of 100 miles per hour.
Humans breathe 20 times per minute, more than 10 million times per year and about 700 million times in a lifetime.

WOW! I just knew that stuff from the ALMANAC book! I mean, we never ever going to count those things right. Hahahaaa… anyways exam is coming very soon and it’s time for us to revise everything that we ever learn from pre-IB.

These are some tips how to study for test. Let’s think test and exams as a challenge for us, not a burden. Even though we have to study day and night, we have to put the best in 2 hours of exam.

BEFORE THE TEST:

If possible, find out the materials of the test and know what type of the test it will be, multiple choice, true or false, short answer or essay. It will help us a lot more to prepare.
Study at a time when you are not sleepy or hungry. At the afternoon such as 12 pm or 2 pm.
Don’t wait until the last minute! It’s what we usually did. We have a lot of materials to revise and we can’t just memorize it in 2 days or 1 day perhaps.
Divide the materials for each day, so that you may memorize well and not in a rush.
Repeat! Repeat! Repeat! Read and reread your notes. Better to read it out loud or take a note of the dot points.
Don’t forget to have someone to test you.

IN GROUP STUDY:

Compare your notes with your friends and review old homework.
Next, discuss what should be memorized and the topics that will be in the exam.
Lastly, test each other and discuss about the particular materials.

REMEMBER – BE PREPARED!

We should prepare everything so we can put our best in the three days exam. Don’t study in the last minute, I repeat, DON’T STUDY IN THE LAST MINUTE. We have 6 subjects to revise and we have to make a schedule on those subject to be revise.

GOOD LUCK TO YOU ALL GRADES ELEVEN! GOOD LUCK ON YOUR STUDY AND DON’T FORGET TO REVISE! =p

Music (sometimes) makes people lose control.

2007-11-06T23:09:00.000+07:00

Music plays a huge part in most people's life. People listen to music to relax, or also to express their emotions. Like most people, i enjoy music for relaxation, but the type of music i often listen to is usually far from what people defines as relaxing. I enjoy listening to metal and rock music because i think they are lively and energetic.

Anyways, on the weekend two of my friends and I went to see a metal concert. These two friends and I share the same passion and also taste of music. One of my friend got me the ticket to see this band's concert as a birthday present. I didnt really know the band but i trusted my friend because we usually like the same type of music. And i didnt regret going to the concert.

The band that was performing was an american band called the black dahlia murder. They might not be as famous and well known as slipknot or avenged sevenfold, but i think their performance was really awesome. At first when i listen to the cd i thought it was just so-so, but then black dahlia murder is actually one of those bands who sounded way better when they perform live. I got the chance to stand in the festival area and the audience were very energetic that night. But to be honest i was kind of scared and i felt insecure because compared to the other guys who came to concert, i was like little child. I felt so small being around these tall big guys with dreadlocks and tatoos. It was somehow fun but there's this thing about metal concerts that we all should be careful about.

The thing is, music sometimes makes people lose control. And in a metal concert, what i mean by lose control is of course their habbit of slam dancing. It looks cool and all, but i dont think i will ever want to be a part of it. Because if i do, there's a big chance that i will either be squashed to death or those guys are gonna step on me untill i die. Slam dancing occurs when a big amount of people are slamming their bodies against each other in reaction to the music they are listening to. When the first song starts the slam dancing is actually still pretty normal, but the more they listen to the songs, the more people join this very dangerous act. Audiences usually created a large empty space in the middle of the sea of people, and about hundreds of metal fans are usually involved in this 'dance' while they are also head banging at the same time.

So i really enjoyed the music, and the performance and evrything, but definitely not the slam dancing. It's cool and evrything but it's pretty dangerous. But i guess we can't stop people from expressing their emotions through music, and we also can't prevent people from enjoying music they way they like it. But when the audiences are loosing control things can get really ugly and it is very possible for people to get hurt. Moshing is fine, as long as they know the limit and beware of the people around them so that no one gets hurt.

-angelina-

2007-10-28T19:55:00.000+07:00

Hi! I'm Elizabeth

Today, I'm going to talk about my favorite TV series which is HEROES!

Heroes is an American science fiction drama television series created by Tim Kring. The show tells the story of several people who "thought they were like everyone else... until they realized they have incredible abilities." They all have different kinds of super powers. Tim Kring said that this drama will be until season five! Yeay! When the series premiered in the United States, it was the night's most-watched program among adults aged 18-49, attracting 14.3 million viewers overall and receiving the highest rating for any NBC drama premiere in five years. The second season of Heroes will consist of 24 episodes.

These are the main characters in Heroes:

Claire Bennet: Spontaneous regeneration (can’t die and can recover even a single scratch)

Isaac Mendez: Can paint the future.

Hiro Nakamura: Can bend space and time, allowing teleportation, time manipulation, and time travel.

Matt Parkman: Can hear people’s mind.

Nathan Petrelli: Fly

Peter Petrelli : Power mimicry

Niki Sanders: Superhuman strength and have two different personalities.

They all fight one enemy that tried to kill them by eating their brain so the enemy can use their power.

Sylar/Gabriel Gray: Intuitive understanding of how things work, multiple acquired abilities. He's mean!

I can't wait to watch the second season and now it already played until episode 4. Can't wait!!! hahhahaa...

So, this drama had already been watch almost all over the world! America, Australia, Finland, Hong Kong, Italy, South Africa, Netherlands, and many more. And of course Indonesia. Even though there are hundreds of heroes in the world, this drama only tells about some of them and how they were actually related to each other. In season one many of the heroes died and end up seperating from the others, but maybe at the second season, they will met again. Even though at the beginning of second second it's a little bit confusing such as Peter Petrelli that we thought he died, suddenly he came back to earth without being told. This drama always been puzzling at the first but at the end we know that actually all are related to each other, as if the puzzle have become one and clear. Hahahha... so you out there, if you haven't watch heroes or have no idea what is heroes, just buy it at the DVD nearest store to your house and buy the whole package. hahaha... well but you're in IB, you must study first then watch it in your spare time or in the weekends. haha.. oke then see you next week!

The Heroes symbol:

Dumbledore is Gay?

2007-10-28T19:06:00.000+07:00

So i was just surfing the internet without any particular purpose the other day and i found something really shocking. I couldn't believe what i read and at first i thought it was only a rumor because thats what i thought the media sometimes like to do; they like to make up stories and somehow made us believe some gossip without even giving us evidences that support the news.

But i am pretty sure this news that shocked me the other day is telling the truth because it came from a somewhat reliable source. I mean, BBC news is a very well known company and the news that they publish usually are used by other media as a reliable source and reference. That's why even though it might seem unbelievable, but to think that it comes from BBC news i started to accept the fact and believed what i read.

Anyways, there's this article writing about how the seventh book of the truly incredible Harry Potter series came out as a huge success. It broke the record of the most books sold in just one day after the release date; with 11 million copies sold just in 24 hours. So J.K. Rowling, the author of all the harry potter books is on a tour to the United states promoting the seventh book, Harry Potter and the deathly hollows. One of the audience that attended the conference in New York asked Rowling about Dumbledore's love interest which is quite questionable because it has never been revealed in any of the books ever. And looking at the enigmatic past that he he's been through, with the family problems and all, readers can't help but to question Dumbledore's love interest. It was always kept a secret until that night in New York, Rowling revealed the truth, saying "Dumbledore is gay" as the answer to all the mysteries kept for so long. Audience were gasping in astonishment, and then gave Rowling a big round of applause. The audience were satisfied that they now know the real truth.

According to Rowling, the character of Dumbledore has always been in love with Gellert Grindelwald, the bad wizard that is also his rival from a long time ago. Dumbledore beat Grindelwald at a battle in the past. “Dumbledore was ‘horribly, terribly let down’ and his love for Grindelwald was his ‘great tragedy’ ” , Rowling added.

So far, the audience’s reaction to the statement was all positive and they are delighted to finally know the truth. Rowling then admitted that she knows there are some people that does not like and support her best-selling fictional novel. Christian groups have accused Rowling of promoting whicthcraft to children and her confession about Dumbledore’s love interest would give them another reason to hate her books even more. On the other hand, gay rights activist really supported Rowling’s confession saying that it could teach children about the reality of this world and it would “send a powerful message about understanding and acceptance” (Tatchell).

Well, it is up to readers how they want to interpret a story they read. And of course different groups of people have different opinions about the Harry Potter series. To me it is just a very interesting and breathtaking fiction series and i personally really enjoy reading the Harry Potter series, especially the final book of the series. I admit that i am one of the 11 million people who grabbed a copy of the book on the first 24 hours of the release. I remember it was released on midnight, but i couldn't go so i waited in front of the bookstore the first thing in the next morning. It meant that much to me and i couldn’t put the book down once i got it. Even though i think the ending of the series is quite satisfying, i am both glad but also sad that the book is over. The statement about Dumbledore doesn’t change my opinion about the series at all and i don’t think anything would.

-angelina-

Read and then watch it.

2007-10-08T21:26:00.000+07:00

Finally, it’s the two weeks of school break.

I can relax and spend time with friends and family. But during my relaxation time, I watch movies as well, this time, its Korean movies. I’ve gain time starting from a few days before the holiday starts to watch movies, Korean movies particularly. At first, I borrowed a movie from a friend a couple of weeks before the holiday and got the time to watch it right just before the break starts. The movie that made me cried simultaneously starting from the middle of the movie; A Millionaire’s Love.

Usually, the stories would be about love contradiction between two to four people, the main character suffer from an illness or a problem between a man and woman that ended into a love relationship. However, the storyline that goes throughout the movie is the trigger of making many young or old ladies’ feelings to be touched and fell in love to watch more Korean movies. But when I come to think of it, the men that acted very sweetly and romantic would be just in the story and a one-night dream and would be hard to find in real life.

*SPOILER ALERT ON*

I’m going to tell a little bit about the movie, A Millionaire’s Love. It’s a story about a young spoiled brat who when he turns 17 years old, he will inherited his entire grandfather’s wealth, we’ll call him Mr. A. However, his grandfather had made a will forcing his grandson to graduate from a small school in an old village. There, he met a girl, Ms. B, whom he had forgotten because he didn’t want to remember the tragedy that happened in the past.

Long time ago, Mr. A and Ms. B had spent their childhood together. But one day, Mr. A’s family forces him to leave the village and promised Ms. B to get back. However, Mr. A had an accident where his parents left him to be with his grandfather. From then on, he was greatly devastated and forgotten everything about the village.

Ms. B had tried to remind Mr. A about their childhood together and as they started to live the past again, they have to undergo it hardly since Ms. B suffers from an illness. An illness of the heart that one may not be surprised nor suddenly be happy, preventing Mr. A to express his love. But this young lover just can’t help it since they are both deeply in love. One of my favorite scenes is during the last days of Ms. B; Mr. A had prepared a small birthday party even though it’s not that day. As a present, Mr. A gave s bottle full of colorful plastic fills and inside is small strips of paper written by him about how much he loves in sweet words to Ms. B.

When he handed the bottle to Ms. B, he said with a sad smile and tears in his eyes,

“Hey, only one per day, don’t overdose it.”

She excused herself to the bedroom. She opened one of the pills and read it. She cried and opens another one again, again and again. As she read those words, she was welled-up with tears.

Soon, Mr. A came into the room and she said it with tears,

“I’m afraid that I won’t be able to have time to read it all.”

Mr. A wanted her to read it all but also doesn’t want her to read it all because he’s afraid that her heart couldn’t handle it.

*SPOILER ALERT OFF*

It was such a great movie. I recommend it to all of you movie lovers because maybe sometimes you need to watch a sad movie as well. For the boys who are wondering why girls loves to watch Korean movies, just watch this first. ^_-

Ohhhhhh.... Noooooo.....!!!!

2007-10-05T20:41:00.000+07:00

Ohhh.... nO....!!!!
Arggghhhhhh.......
I'm so stress!!!

I will have my first SAT test tomorrow and I haven't studied anything. this SAT test just just a additional disaster to my suffering week.
Today, i got my math common test result and it was not satisfactory. I think i will fail in math, but Ms. Jessica said not to worry because we still have time to improve. Thanks Ms. Jess!!

OK, let's go back to SAT test. I still don't have any idea why the critical reading part is really hard. I think the complicated and unusual words in the critical reading section is unuseful. We won't use those "god" words for our daily life or even in university right?!

But anyway, I need your help to pray for me. And today's english class was really fun with the stories, especially the physics one which is good in physical education and has a good physic. But i really disappointed with the person who ruined my story. I started that story and hoped that the other people will continue it with an imaginative and cool story, but why did it become a disgusting story? hixhix...But, it's OK, it was still fun anyway.

Hmm....
I don't have any more to say because i'm really depressed.
I wish i can finish my SAT test quickly and get a good result.

-Valencia-

2007-10-04T17:08:00.000+07:00

Hi! I'm Elizabeth

HORAY!!! TOMOROW IS THE LAST DAY OF SCHOOL! UNBELIEVABLE! but we still have math.... T_T it's okeyy... hahahhaaaa..

today i'm going to talk about tennis, so for CAS, me and some of my friends are doing tennis for Action. at first, i'm doing it just for fun, but then, i finnaly like it and it's actually FUN!

Tennis is played on a rectangular, flat surface, usually grass, clay, or a hardcourt of concrete and/or asphalt. The court is 78 feet (23.77 m) long, and its width is 27 feet (8.23 m) for singles matches and 35.99 ft (10.97 m) for doubles matches. Additional clear space around the court is required in order for players to reach overrun balls. A net is stretched across the full width of the court, parallel with the baselines, dividing it into two equal ends. The net is 3 feet 6 inches (1.07 m) high at the posts and 3 feet (914 mm) high in the center.

There are a lot of things you should know before playing tennis, you have to look at the grip and i think it's the most important thing because you have to hold it right so you can hit it across the net. There are a lot of kinds of grip that use in tennis. When you're doing serve, forehand or backhand, you have to use different grip to make it right. The basic thing after grip is forehand, it's when you hit the ball across to your opponent, and also the same for back hand. But backhand is from your left side and forehand is for your right side.

There are also other shots name, volley is when you hit the ball before it bounce to the ground, then half volley, lob for defensive, overhead smash, drop shot, and spin.

There are also many different kinds of tennis racket that we can use to play. Children also have their own tennis racket. Adult tennis racket also have different kinds of weight. The heavier is for the expert and the lighter is for the beginner.

Wilson W Line W3 Gypsy Rose Racquet

There are also many kinds of tennis shoes and colors. we have to wear tennis shoes not running shoes because tennis have their own court and that's why we have to wear tennis shoes not other shoes.

Lotto Ace Magic Women's Shoes

so i suggest you all to play tennis because it's fun and also makes you healthy!!! =p

The Beginning of an End

2007-10-03T20:37:00.000+07:00

“The truth is . . . once you learn how to die, you learn how to live.”- Morrie Schwartz

The word “end” might sound depressing, but actually when i think about it i realize it is somewhat good to think that our life will end eventually. The bad news is that we do not know when it will happen. This taught came to me while i was reading a book called Tuesdays with Morrie by Mitch Albom. This book taught me a valuable lesson that i should always value my life now, and that one should always appreciate what they have for one will never know what they have untill its actually gone.

Tuesdays With Morrie: An Old Man, A young Man, and Life's Greatest Lesson is not a fiction novel, but it is a life story narrated by a stressed out journalist that wants to know his purpose of living. This narrator is Mitch Albom, who used to be Morrie’s top student while Morrie was still teaching sociology in Brandeis university. Mitch’s relationship with his favorite professor Morrie is more than just teacher and student, but Morrie treated Mitch as if he was his own son; just as Mitch treated Morries as his own father. Mitch loves Morries lectures so much that he attended to almost all sociology courses that Morrie had teaches. It came to the part where Mitch graduated from the university and he promised he will keep in touch with Morrie; but he never did. Untill one day Mitch faced dillemmas in his life concerning his job as a journalist, then he came back to Morrie to seek for advice.

Mitch found out that Morrie is now suffering from ALS (Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis) which cause his body to slowly become paralyze. The rest of the book talked about how each Tuesday Mitch drives from Detroit to Boston to visit Morrie. Each Tuesdays they disscussed about different things like about facing death and aging. Mitch recorded every single conversation he had with Morrie as a reference to write this autobiographical documentary that contains many valuable life lessons that Mitch discovered throughout the fourteen Tuesdays where he visited Morrie. Mitch Albom calls this book “their last thesis together”, as Morrie demanded that he wants to share his life stories to many people in the world.

This book has taught me many life lessons, but an important message which i got from reading this story is that evryone needs love in order to live. Morrie’s favorite poet, W.H.Auden once said that “to live without love is to live with nothing”. Morrie really values love and he believes that everyone can reach their highest sense of fullfillment through love. During his last days on earth, it can be clearly seen that Morrie would not have survived that long without the love and care of the people that he loves the most. One more thing that always stays in my mind even after i finished reading the book is when Mitch asked Morrie how he prepares for death. According to Morrie, everyone have to accept the fact that they will die someday in order to for them to really appreciate what they have on earth. That makes me realize that we humans have very limited time on earth, and we should value our time by only doing things that we will not regret later when our time on earth finally comes to an end.

-Angelina-

BEWARE!!!! Report card is coming soon!!!!

2007-09-29T11:59:00.000+07:00

Hi everybody!

As you know, our first term report card is coming soon. I wonder, how my score is.

October 30, 2007
The final judgement day.

For all IB students, especially the 11 graders, you are going to get your first report card in the new school year, 2007-2008, I hope you will be ready to face it. Some tips to face the report card day:

1. Do not think about it much, let it be a surprise (i think this one will make us shock and die)

2. Pray a lot

3. Relax, take it easy (just like Mika's song, hehehe...)

4. Act good in front of the teacher but do not suck up!

5. Enjoy the holiday to relax your mind and to get more energy to read your report card.

6. Prepare your heart and do not let it broken after you read the report card.

7. Keep your spirit to study more what ever your scores are!!!!

8. Be confidence

So, those are the tips and enjoy the field trip in October one. But you still have to beware with the report card's coming.

From your best friend who cares about your report card,
The Report Card Lover

(the letter above is only a fiction that is made by me and there is no such person as The Report Card Lover)

So guys, don't be to scared about your report card. I'm sure it will be fine, but I'm not sure that my repoert card will be as good as yours. I think my math, biology and econ's score will be the worst from all of my scores. Hix...Hix....Hix.... But it's ok! i still can do better in the next term and improve my scores.

Good luck everybody!

-Valencia-

COFFEE

2007-09-27T17:28:00.001+07:00

HI! i'm elizabeth
This is some fact of coffee that i found in the internet:

Germany is the world's second largest consumer of coffee in terms of volume at 16 pounds per person.
Over 53 countries grow coffee worldwide, but all of them lie along the equator.
Coffee trees can produce up to 10,000 pounds of coffee cherries. That amounts to approximately 2,000 pounds of beans after hulling or milling.
The percolator (the coffee machine) was invented in 1827 by a French man. It would boil the coffee producing a bitter tasting brew. Today most people use the drip or filtered method to brew their coffee.
With the exception of Hawaii and Puerto Rico, no coffee is grown in the United States or its territories.
Up until the 1870's most coffee was roasted at home in a frying pan over a charcoal fire. It wasn't until recent times that batch roasting became popular.
Each year some 7 million tons of green beans are produced world wide. Most of which is hand picked.

whew! hahhaa actually i don't like the raw coffee, i like the one in starbucks and other coffee cafe. So this are a few recipe that you can mix and blend with coffee:

This coffee shake is a thick and chilly delight, flavored with coffee and chocolate. The trick to making it thick, is the instant chocolate pudding mix.

INGREDIENTS:

1 cup coffee, strong and cold
1 cup cold milk
10 ice cubes
1/3 pkg of instant pudding mix (chocolate)
2 tbs cocoa powder
Hazelnut creamer, to taste
Sugar, to taste

PREPARATION:

Combine everything in a blender, and blend until ice is crushed and shake is thick.
I think this recipe will be very good and cold, and it's suitable for people who live in a tropical temperature, like us in Indonesia. The next recipe is for the one who like cinnamon because it's a mixture of coffee and cinnamon.

Add the cinnamon before brewing to give this recipe spicy touch. You'll need to stir well to blend in the caramel syrup.

INGREDIENTS:

6 tbs ground coffee
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 cup caramel dessert syrup

PREPARATION:

Mix the cinnamon into your loose ground coffee and then brew a pot of coffee by whatever method you prefer. Add the caramel syrup to the cinnamon-spiced coffee, and stir well until completely dissolved.Chill through in the fridge, and serve over ice cubes, with added milk or sugar to taste. The syrup makes this iced coffee pretty sweet as it is.

The next recipe is also related with coffee and bread!

BREAD PUDDING COFFEE CAKE RECIPE:

Here we have an interesting bread pudding and coffee cake combination flavored with plump raisins and cinnamon. It is sure to please all at breakfast or dessert. Take shortcuts with pre-made sweet dinner rolls and boxed muffin mix. The coffee cake is delightfully moist without being overly sweet. Feel free to make it a day or two in advance. It tastes even better after sitting awhile.

INGREDIENTS:

18 sweet dinner rolls (tested with King's Hawaiian)
4 large eggs, divided use
1-3/4 cups whole milk, divided use
1/2 cup sour cream
3 tablespoons granulated sugar
1-1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 box (15.2 ounces) cinnamon streusel muffin mix (tested with Betty Crocker)
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1 cup jumbo red raisins, soaked in hot water at least 15 minutes, drained and patted dry on paper towels
1/2 cup chopped pecans
.
Glaze:
1 cup powdered sugar
1 to 2 Tablespoons (about) milk or cream

PREPARATION:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line a 9 x 12-inch jellyroll pan with nonstick foil.

Slice the rolls in half. Set the tops aside. Tear the bottoms into 1-inch chunks and spread in a single layer over the bottom of the prepared pan.

In a medium bowl, whisk together 2 of the eggs, 1 cup of the milk, sour cream, granulated sugar, and vanilla extract until well-combined.

Tear the tops of the rolls into chunks about 1 inch in size and add to the milk/egg mixture. Set aside to soak up the liquid.

Combine muffin mix (reserve the streusel), remaining 3/4 cup milk, oil, and the 2 remaining eggs in a large mixing bowl. Beat on medium speed until combined.

Spoon 1/2 of the batter evenly over the bottoms of the rolls in the pan, and gently spread a bit using the back of a large spoon. Sprinkle with raisins and the contents of the cinnamon streusel packet. Spoon the remaining batter over the top of the raisins and streusel.

Spoon the reserved milk and roll top mixture over the muffin batter in the pan. Use the tip of a knife or wooden skewer to swirl the two batters together. Sprinkle with pecans.

Bake about 35 to 40 minutes, until toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Let bread pudding coffee cake cool completely in the pan.

For the glaze, combine powdered sugar and enough milk until smooth and just thick enough to drizzle. Pour into a ziptop bag, squeeze out the air, and seal. Snip off a tiny corner of the bag and use it to drizzle the glaze in a zig-zag pattern over the top of the coffee cake. Let glaze set before lifting cake out of the pan with the foil. Cut and serve.

Store any leftovers in a covered. This is even better the next day.

hmmm... look at the picture makes me hungry! hahhahaa.... i love cofee =p

-elizabeth-

Tale of Friendship

2007-09-25T20:44:00.000+07:00

During the summer holiday, i read some novels in my spare time. The novels i read on this summer holiday include freakonomics, the final book of harry potter: Harry Potter and The Deathly Hollows , tarian bumi (a book that we have to read and analyze in bahasa Indonesia class), and a collection of reflections and short stories called Like The Flowing River.

Out of all the story i read, there is one story that really catches my attention. This short story about friendship is one out of many stories included in the book Like The Flowing River which was written by Paulo Coelho. Out of many reflections included in the book, this story about true friendship is my favorite. When the author traveled to Mongolia, he heard a mythical tale about the great warrior called Genghis Khan. And this is the story he wrote:

One morning, the Mongol warrior, Genghis Khan, and his court went out hunting. His companions carried bows and arrows, but Genghis Khan carried on his arm his favorite falcon, which was better and surer than any arrows, because it can fly up into the skies and see evrything that a human being could not. However, despite the group's enthusiastic efforts,they found nothing. Dissapointed, Genghis Khan returned to the encampment and in order not to take out his frustration on his companions, he left the rest of the party and rode on alone. They had stayed in the forest for longer than expected, and Khan was desprately tired and thirsty. In the summer heat, all the streams had dried up, and he could find nothing to drink.Then, to his amazement, he saw a thread of water flowing from a rock just in front of him.

He removed the falcon from his arm, and then took out the silver cup which he always carried with him. It was very slow to fill and, just as he was about to rise it to his lips, the falcon flew up, plucked the cupfrom his hands, and dashed it to the ground. Genghis Khan was furious,but then the falcon was his favorite, and perhaps, it too, was thirsty. He picked up the cup, cleaned up the dirt, and filled it again.When the cup was only half empty this time, the falcon again attacked it, spilling the water.

Genghis Khan adored this bird, but he knew he could not, under any circumstances, allow such disrespect; someone might be watching this scene from afar, and, later on would tell his warriors that the great conqueror was incapable of tamind a mere bird. This time, he drew his sword, picked up the cup and refilled it, keeping one eye on the stream and the other on the falcon. As soon as he has enough water in the cup and was ready to drink, the falcon again took flight and flew towards him. Khan, with one thurst pierced the bird's breast.

The thread of water, however had dried up; but Khan, determined now to find something to drink, climbed the rock in search of the spring. To his surprise, there really was a pool of water and, in the middle of it, dead lay one of the most poisonous snakes in the region.

If he had drunk the water, he, too, would have died.

Khan returned to camp with the dead falcon in his arms.He ordered a gold figurine of the bird to be made and on one of the wings, he had engraved:

Even when a friend does something you do not like,
he continues to be your friend.

And on the other wing, he had these words engraved:

Any action commited in anger is an action doomed to failure.

This story really inspired me and i now realize how important my friends are in my life. I really learn that we should value our relationship with our friends and try to think before we act. What our friends suggested to us might be against our wants, but we should really think of how it might benefit us. After all, our friends want the best things to happen to us and we should not be stubborn.

This story really change my perspective on friendships and it inspired me to improve the current relationship i have with my friends. I learn a lesson that as friends we should really trust each other as it would strengthen our friendship.

I hope this short story about friendship could be a blessing to you readers because it taught me a moral lesson and i hope it would do the same to you too. :)

-Angelina-

Is it just a tradition or something more?

2007-09-24T21:32:00.000+07:00

It happened only once a year for one person,

in a certain date and month,

known as the date that we're born into this world,

the birthday.

A tradition where most people enjoy to do since it involves of parties filled with cakes, presents and laughters with many people.

The fact is, we are just celebrating a year closer to none other than death itself.

People hired event organizers to specially organized someone's brithday party to be the most memorable one yet it's just a tradition that we love to do.

Let me state the facts:

1. It doesn't make us any money but we rather SPEND a huge amount of money.

2. It doesn't give us any guarantee that we'll have longer and happy life but only blown wishes.

3. Getting a year older doesn't mean that you're definitely getting mature but just just understands how to behave better, even you might find old people sometimes are childish.

Maturity has more to do with what types of experience you've had, and what you've learned from them, and less to do with how many birthdays you've celebrated. - Kaye Cunnigham

Helding birthday parties are just what the majority of people loves to enjoy. I, myself, likes to go and make my own party because spending time with my family and friends is precious.

You are only young once, but you can be immature for a lifetime. - John P. Grier

Then again, birthday is just an international and world-wide tradition.

Japanese Anime and Manga

2007-09-22T12:04:00.001+07:00

Konichiwa!!!!!
Genki desu ka??!

Hi everybody!!!

Today i will talk about Japanese anime or cartoon, and manga or comics. Japanese anime and manga are very popular for the teenagers. There are some anime and manga that i really like. Some of them are not really new but they are very good.

1. Death Note
I watched the DeathNote anime and it was really cool. The story tells about notebooks of Shinigami (death god) and it is used to kill people. One day, a guy named Light found it and he started to kill criminals using that notebook. To kill people using that book, you just have to write theire fuul name and imagine their face so you won't target the wrong people with the same name with your target. You can also set the time and arrege the way hoiw your target will die. If you don't write any specification of the death, the target will suddenly die in 40 seconds by the heart attack. Light use the name Kira and tell everybody that he will save the world from criminality. But, it has been going to far. Fortunately there is a person called L fighting Kira and he work together with the police including Light's father because his father one of the polices that are in L side to defeat Kira. L is a very smart boy and very mysteriousl. But after all his struggle with Kira, he dies. Kira kill him by asking his Shinigami that can see L's real name. After L has died, there are two heir of L that will continue L's mission, they are Mello or M and Near or N. Mello dies in the middle of his struggle and Near continue to fight Kira. At last Kira dies because of his own Death Note.
I recomend this anime to the anime lovers because it is very clever and very cool.

2. Card Captor Sakura
This Card Captor Sakura is already old enough and read the manga version of it. It was about A girl named Sakura who had the power to capture the souls that are released from their cards. The story is not really long and quite simple. It has very cute dress design and cute creature. One of the cute crature is call Kero, it is Sakura's pet and it can transform into Keroberos, a big and cool creature that has maig power too. Sakura also had a sweet love story with a boy from china called Lee Shaoran. Lee had a super power too. The story of Card Captor Sakura is full of magic power and cute and sweet things.

3. Beauty Pop
I just started to read this manga and it is very good. It talks about hair styling and comepetition between har styling geniuses. Uftonately, i haven't finished rading it so i can not talk much about it. But i guarantee that this manga is veryy good!

There are a lot more good manga and anime but i can not talk about it all here. Sometime a manga has many fillers in its anime because the mana cannot ballance the anime. Producting a manga takes a longger time because there is only one or to people working on it. But, in anime production there are a lot of people and they use the studio system, so they work faster. Because there are many different people make an anime, the quality of the picture is not the same. Sometimes you can find a big difference in it, for example is Bleach. Sometimes they have a very good picture, but sometimes they have a bad picture. Even though the quality of the pictures is not the same, it's still a good anime.

So, enjoy your weekends with anime and manga!!
Jaa Naa!!

-Valencia-

beautiful beaches i can find

2007-09-21T17:54:00.000+07:00

HI! I'm Elizabeth

today, i'm going to talk about the most beautiful beaches in the world. i want to talk about this because i want to go there and relax, not thinking about homeworks, assignments, and exams.. hahhaaa....

Here's a small summary of the most beautiful beaches in the world.

Let's start with Polynesia. Thanks to the huge size and the geographic variety of this territory we can find many wonderful beaches there.

All the islands have great beaches. White sand (because of the corals), emerald green waters with some coral reefs which give a wonderful effect of contrast, coconut palms, and of course the sunset!!!

Bora-Bora and its very famous lagoon

Huahine (southern point of the island)

Then the archipelago of Tuamotus, still in Polynesia

Aratika (more precisely one of the small islands inside the atoll)

Kauehi (interior edge of the atoll)

and last but not least, another Polynesia's pearl : Gambier Islands (even if it's not the best place to have a sunbath -the spot is not really suitable for tourists-, however there're some really good beaches)

Cuba and in particular the beaches of Varadero

Here'a a 15 km beach, with white and fine sand. There are not so many fishes next to its shore, unlike Polynesia. The sea bottom is completely flat and without stones..

Beach of Varadero

still Varadero, here's the beach in front of the hotel Brisas Del Caribe

Crete Island

Peninsula of Elafonissi (South-Western point of the island)

Balos Bay and its amazing lagoon

Marathi Beach

Matala Beach

Thailand

Koh Rok Island - In this island protected by the rangers you can find two bautiful beaches: a small one and a really bigger one just in front. It's a little piece of heaven! The sea bottoms are full of corals and so it's really easy to see lots of fishes.

Ao Nang - next to Krabi : a wonderful beach that is often "assaulted" by "part-time" tourists: infact they arrive by boat and they usually don't stay more than few hours. There should be another beach not far from the first one, but i didn' see it.

loh Dalam Bay in Koh Phi Phi Don Island - a lovely touristic beach

Northern Bay of Koh Racha - a very peaceful place with white sand, palm trees, some quiet bars recreating the atmosphere of the late 60's

Dominican Republic (sorry for the bad quality of the images, which hides the natural beauty of the place)

Saona Island

still Saona Island - all sides are beautiful

Mexico

Beach of the archaeological site of Tulum - Take the perfect white of the sand, add the turquoise blue of the sea, and mix it with the amazing spectacle of the Maya site.....you'll have a cocktail absolutely unique!

one thing i want to do now is to go one of the beautiful beaches and just sit on the soft white sand while drinking coconut and just enjoy life...

hmmm.. =p

Yoga : Exhausting Relaxation

2007-09-18T21:39:00.000+07:00

Tonight my mom asked me to go with her to a yoga class at a sport club nearby. I have never been in a yoga class before, so i thought all you have to do is sit down, relax and do some strerching and then relax again. Since i had no idea how practicing yoga would feel like, i decided it wouldnt hurt to try this time. But my assumption turns out to be wrong. It was not just stretching and relax; in fact it felt as tiring as if i had just practiced tennis or went swimming. Probably this first try felt really tiring because my muscles are so tense and stiff that i couldn't even feel relaxed during the while practice. But i tried to think optimistically and there are actually positive benefits and purposes of practicing yoga.

In ancient hindu religion, Yoga is believed to be an exercise to meditate and focus our concentration to the nature surrounding us. These practices are also believed to gain our understanding of the world through our mind. The word “yoga” comes from the sanskirt language, and it means to unite or to control (yoga). In a more religious view, yoga is practices to worship the Hindu Gods because they believe that this activity helps them to have a more intimate relationship with their Godesses.

Nowadays, yoga exercises were done by people plainly for the purpose of health. Some movements in the exercise can actually help to improve our concentration skills, and it could also help us relax our minds. In yoga, controling our respiration is very important. We have to follow a certain beat and inhale or exhale at the exact right time and we have to do it at the exact amount of time while doing certain exercises. It is also im portant to have a really good balance within your body and flexibility would really help in doing yoga exercises.

Out of many different movements in yoga exercise, some movements are believed to have medical purposes because they have the ability to help heal back problems like scoliosis. Those exercises streched our muscles and it effects the shape of the bones as well. It is also highly recomended to do yoga because it has been prooved to improve the metabolism of the human body and of course it burn calories.

So i highly reccomend all of you readers to try practicing yoga for all the reasons i have written above. It is a calorie burning exercise, but also a stress reliever!

-Angelina-

Something to smile

2007-09-17T21:05:00.000+07:00

From time to time, people will definitely change. Its either being more positive or negative. Everyone always find a special friend or eventually, that plays a major role of being the best-friend character in your drama, your life. They will make you laugh until you can’t stop but will cry with you when you’re crying too. They make you believe that life isn’t always terrible but there are always glimpses of light that leads to happiness. They convinces you to believe that there’s always a way out in hard times, preventing you to fall into a deep hole.

It’s an enigma really. How can a person makes you feel all that?

But it’s plausible. You don’t have to know the answer through words.

Be a hedonist that just seeks the pleasure of having a special friend.

Be a special friend to someone and may they can feel the same way too. Help them when they’re in need. Be brave for them but it’s understandable when you are afraid as well. Always open your eyes, looking at every perspectives, avoiding tenacious results. I know there are hard times to do this, but it’s very crucial, LOVE your friends, no matter who they are and what they’ve changed into. Hold on to your friends since they are precious, very few and far between. Try to always indulge your friends and yourself in spending unique vacations yet leave amusing memories that releases the stress because as probably you’ve heard a lot of times, everyone got their own madness inside them.

In each and every new day, try to have a little fun with yourself and friends too. It’s healthy, for the heart. Say ‘I love you’ as often as possible but express it in imaginative ways. Don’t ever worried of being unloved because there’s always someone who loves you more than you realize. Cherish each day that you spent throughout your life and never regret it. At the end of the day, don’t forget to pray.

One more thing, don’t forget to smile at least once a day.

P.S. I know I always smile everyday. =)

Strawberry Yum...Yum...!

2007-09-15T12:31:00.001+07:00

HI PEOPLE!!!!

Today i want to talk about one of my favorite fruits, STRAWBERRY!!!! Strawberry is a very unique fruit, it has seeds on its surface which other fruits don't have. It has more than 20 named species.

Strawberry is very healthy and delicious. But I don't know why some people don't like strawberry. I have some tips to eat strawberry in fun and delicious ways.

If you don't like to eat strawberry by its fruit, you can make it into fresh drinks just like strawberry milkshake, strawberry smoothies, strawberry juice or if you still don't like it, you can add some orange juice into your strawberry drinks. It become very delicious and fresh. I have tried it by myself before. You can also make it into delicious dessert just like strawberry cheesecake, strawberry shortcake, strawberry puding, strawberry tart, strawberry cookies, strawberry ice cream and strawberry chocolate. you also can eat strawberry as strawberry jam with bread for you breakfast.

And not only for delicious foods, strawberry is also very useful for our health. Strawberry is useful to stabilize digestion and against hepatitis. It also good for oily skin, and pimples. There is a tips for Armepedia, mix 1 tea-spoon of strawberry juice with 1 eggyolk and put it on your face to remove pimples. And for oily skin, Boil strawberry and sugar, then put it in the refrigarator. After that put it on your body as lotion but for people who have sesitive skin don't try this, also don't put it on your face.

Strawberry business is a good business. Just like in Bandung, Indonesia, there is a strawberry field where people and their familes can pick strawberries by themselves and pay it according to how much you have pick. And cosmetic companies use strawberries as their cosmetic ingredient because strawberry is very good for skin care.

So, with the sweet and sour of strawberry we can get many useful idea from DELICIOUS to HEALTHY. Ejoy the STRAWBERRY!!!!!!

-Valencia-

JUNK FOOD: unhealthy but delicious!

2007-09-13T16:48:00.000+07:00

HI! I'm Elizabeth

Welll.. everyone got stressed out because of the test.. hahhahaaa...
So, I just want to write something for today's blog... =p

For 'JUNK FOOD' lover, today's blog is about junk food. We all know it's not healthy right? But me myself also like junk food so much!! ;p

Junk food is a term describing food that is perceived to be unhealthy or having poor nutritional value, according to Food Standards Agency.

Junk food typically contains high levels of fat, salt, or sugar and numerous food additives such as monosodium glutamate and tartrazine. It is also lacking in proteins, vitamins and fiber. It is popular with suppliers because it is relatively cheap to manufacture, has a long shelf life and may not require refrigeration. It is popular with consumers because it is easy to purchase, requires little or no preparation, is convenient to consume and has lots of flavor. Consumption of junk food is associated with obesity, heart disease, Type 2 diabetes and dental cavities.

We now know the consequence for us, consuming junk food. It is really dangerous, but people in the whole world still like it including me.. especially when you stress out of school, or when you're studying for your test, usually you just order junk food from the telephone and eat it for your dinner, right? Like me and my friends.. hahhaaa...

For example, fast food such as hamburgers and french fries supplied by the companies that you know already are often perceived as junk food, whereas the same meals supplied by more up-market outlets like pizzas and something like that are often having the same or worse nutritional content. Other foods such as rice, roast potatoes and bread are not considered junk food even with having limited nutritional content. Similarly, breakfast cereals are often regarded as healthy but may have high levels of sugar, salt and fat.

As human, we will surely seek for pleasure but, seeking pleasure and getting it, sometimes it is not right. For example like junk food, we know that it's not healthy, but we keep consuming it.

Taken from the BBC news:

By Brendan O'Neill

McDONALD'S:
Hamburger and strawberry milkshake
640 calories
18g fat

ED'S DINER:
Hamburger and strawberry milkshake
1,104 calories
31.8g fat

DOMINO'S:
Half an American Hot
507 calories
17.7g fat
59.4g carbs

PIZZA EXPRESS:
Half an American Hot
517 calories
13.2g fat
68.6g carbs

WOW! so many calories and fat! For girls especially, you all hate those kind of things, right? hahhaa...
So, it's now up to you readers, ARE YOU GOING TO EAT JUNK FOOD AGAIN?
I really know it's hard to let go, but just try to eat some healthy food, drinks and also exercise!

WHICH ONE DO YOU CHOOSE?

Taste of delicacy: Fine dishes from around the world

2007-09-11T19:37:00.000+07:00

Just like most people in this world, i love to eat. I really enjoy food (even though some delicious tempting food e.g. junk food are really not healthy but i cant help myself sometimes). When my family and I go traveling to different places around the world, we like to try different types of traditional dishes. Food is always a huge part of our vacation.

Through the years, food does not only play the role of fulfilling our physical needs. In fact, for those who are financially capable, food and dining has been a lifestyle. People are willing to travel around the world and spend loads of money to be able to try the uniqueness of different tastes of food and drinks. Those food-lovers are willing to explore different corners of the world in order to experience different taste of nourishments. The way people serve food have also changed. Professional chefs not only produce food with exquisite taste, but also food with stunning appearances. Food is just like art. Maybe physical appearance is one of the factors that could add sensations and stimulates the appetite of those food-lovers.

I, myself have tried several different dishes in the past. These familiarity is very much delightful. Even the most diminutive taste that my tongue has savored has not been forgotten until now. Several dishes are very much a requisite to be tasted by every capable individual from various backgrounds. Few examples of pertaining dishes are as follows:

1. Foie Gras

Foie gras [fwɑ gʁɑ] is french for "fat liver". Foie gras is the liver of a duck or goose that is specially fattened from from birth. Foie gras has been one of the most popular French dish . Foie gras can be served as a whole, but it is more commonly found to be served as part of mousse or parfait, or even just as an accompaniment to be eaten with toast or steak. It has a rich and tender feel with fat buttery taste that would make you crave for more. But i think it is best to be served just as little pieces for better enjoyment of the dish.

2. Abalone

Abalone is one of chinese cuisine's most popular delicacy. Abalone is the meat of a kind of shell fish that are often found in South America, Africa, and Japan. It also varies in sizes , quality, and also prices. The most expensive of all the abalones are the ones from japan. It is most tender and the size is just ideal. Abalone needs a long time to be fully cooked(2 days) and usually it is served with oyster sauce.

3. Bird's nest soup

Bird's nest soup is made from swallow's nest. It is one of the most expensive animal products that are consumed by human. It has been a traditional dish in China for more than 4 centuries and is still eaten until now. Its texture is gelatinous and it sometimes are also cooked as a sweet cold dessert.

4. Boiled maine lobster

These lobsters are mainly found in the Massachusetts, USA. The size of these lobsters range from 20-60 cm and weights about 4 kg. One of the best i have tasted is from Palms restaurant in Boston, MA. They usually serves along a butter dip to enhance the taste of the juicy lobster meat.

5. Caviar

Caviar is salted eggs of certain type of fish that are mainly found in the Caspean Sea. It is eaten as garnish or spread, usually as an appetizer. The most expensive of all the type is beluga caviar. In the west, caviar is believed to be the symbol of luxury and wealth because of its high price.

-Angelina-

Things i'm thinkking about

2007-09-11T19:23:00.000+07:00

HELLO EVERYBODY!!!

I'm so sorry that i did't post a blog last week because my internet connection was down for one and a half week... T.T!!!

To be honest, i don't know what to write
i think i will just write some random things...

Today we almost finish watching the Great Gatsby the movie. i think the movie is so scary when mr. wilson shot gatsby and kill himself by shoting his mouth. i really don't like Daisy. She cannot control her feelings and she always act childish. But overall the story is good.

I think the guy who played the role of Jay Gatsby in the movie looks like Brad Pitt. Is he Brad Pitt's father? hahahaha.... thats possible!

But i heard that Angelina Jolie doesn't love her real daughter as she love her othe daughter who is not her real daughter. I'm not sure why it is like that because i just heard it from someone that i forgot who...
hehehehe.....
I'm sorry for that....

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YOU KNOW WHO SECTION IS SENSORED

(Sorry for the inconvinience)

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Talk about YOU KNOW WHO, I have read the last book of Harry Potter twice!!!!
bwahahahahaha........!!!!!
it is sooooooo...... cool!!!!!!
I'm happy that it has happy ending. I hope that the movie will be as great as the book, but i don't hope too much about it.

By the way, Heroes season two is soming soon in this month!
That TV series is cool too. If i'm one of the special people in heroes, i would like to have Peter's power, so i can have other people's power without killing or hurting them and i can use the power to save the world! yay...!!!!!^^

I think that is all that i'm thinking about now.
I'm sorry if there are wrong spellings and other mistakes because i just type this in hurry. I need to do my homework...T.T

So. see you next time!

bubye!

- Valencia-

The Brain Story

2007-09-10T20:55:00.000+07:00

Last week, my TOK class had been watching this movie including the other TOK classes as well called THE BRAIN STORY. I found it as a very interesting movie as it tells about different cases about people's brain that effects their visualization.

There are several case studies that we watched. First, there's a woman who was about in her 40's who had a problem in her brain system because of a car accident that makes her eyes uncomfortable when looking at moving objects. Doctors had studied her by giving her tests like there's three dots in the computer and the woman should say something when she sees a dot moving. But somehow, when the object had moved, she had realized it for like a few seconds later.

The case was followed by a man who also had his brain system damaged due to a car accident can't recognize faces at all. He just can't recognize a face even when he can see the eyes, nose, lips and everything. The doctor showed him pictures of objects that he can easily name but when a picture of a famous person known as Marilyn Monroe, he still can't tell. A last picture of himself and his daughter was shown but still he can't recognize it. I can't imagine if I can't recognize anyone, solitary would come over me as dark as the shadows.

Another man was the vice versa. He can recognize faces but can't define objects. A doctor tested him by showing slides of pictures and one of them is the playing cards. He saw the playing cards as blotches of inks in cards but somehow he can see the faces of the kings, queens, and jacks. If I put myself in his shoes, I would be very miserable because I can't see the beautiful images of the world anymore but just blotches of paint and I can only guess where I am.

Last case, there's an old woman who doesn't pay attention to the left side of anything. The doctor tested her by giving her a picture of a cat that have two tails. She drew the full head but ended with only the half part of the body. Then the doctor told her what she had missed and she was really surprised that she forgot the other half even when she can actually see everything.

I just could never imagine if I have to live like them.

Being unable to see moving objects while I really enjoy sports a lot.

Being unable to recognize faces and have to pretend to love an unknown person but only with a recognizable voice.

Being unable to define objects, what can I do then?

However, we should really thank GOD for the oppurtunities to be able to see everything that he had created. Don't ever regret that you can see things even when sometimes you wish you wouldn't. Think about the unfortunate people who need to suffer for the rest of their lives, unable to see the creation of God. THE BRAIN STORY is a great movie that introduce the outside world to the world of a unique damaged brain system.

Question for readers:

What would you do if you can't see moving objects, recognize faces or define objects?

-BUTTERFLY-

2007-09-06T18:13:00.000+07:00

Hi i'm Elizabeth!

WEll..
a butterfly is seen as the personification of a person's soul; whether they be living, dying, or already dead. One Japanese superstition says that if a butterfly enters your guestroom and perches behind the bamboo screen, the person whom you most love is coming to see you. However, large numbers of butterflies are viewed as bad omens.

The Russian word for butterflies, pronounced "bah' bch ka", it also means "bow tie". It is a diminutive of "baba" or "babka"and in Greek it means soul.

In Chinese, they believe that when two butterflies are flying together, that is the symbol of love. So there's a famous Chinese folk story called "Butterfly Lovers".

In some old cultures, butterflies also symbolize rebirth into a new life after being inside a cocoon for a period of time.

Some people say that when a butterfly lands on you it means good luck. The idiom "Butterfly in your stomach" is used to describe a state of nervousness.

There are various of design in the butterfly's wings. It is so beautiful so butterfly were used in many arts until now.

There are also hundred kinds of butterfly even though they all look the same.
Many people said that butterfly are from caterpillar that looks very ugly, but time by time, it will grow to beautiful butterfly.

hahahahaaa.... see u all next weeekkk!!! XD

Coming soon.

2007-09-05T20:42:00.000+07:00

Hey readers.

I really have something interesting too tell you. It's about the movie that I watched in TOK class. It was really, really interesting and I really love it. The movie was called the brain story and it tells different stories about people's lives.

But, my next blog's gonna be on next monday. So, wait. It's coming soon. xp

Not another fairytale: The bitter truth about "soulmate"

2007-09-04T22:23:00.000+07:00

“At that moment, it seemed to him that time stood still, and the Soul of the World surged within him. When he looked into her dark eyes…he learned the most important part of the language that all the world spoke—the language that everyone on earth was capable of understanding in their heart. It was love….It required no explanation, just as the universe needs none as it travels through endless time. What the boy felt at that moment was that he was in the presence of the only woman in his life, and that, with no need for words, she recognized the same thing.” –Paulo Coelho, The Alchemist

Some people say there is such thing as love at first sight. Those people believe that the moment they looked at each other's eyes, you sort of get the feeling that he/she is "the one" for you. Those who believe are also what we call the soulmate seeker. They went through all the days of their life with the thought that there is a person out there in this world that are destined to live and die together with them. But is our soulmate really going to appear out of nowhere? Or do we actually have to try and find our own soulmate?

Well, according to a Greek mythology, a long long time ago some people of the world were trying to climb up to heaven and take over the kingdom ruled by the Gods. When the famous Zeus found out about this he was mad and he decided to punish all men, women, and people who were both man and woman by cutting them into half in order to weaken their powers. Since then on people have been spending all their days trying to find their other half, or what we now know as soulmate. ("Soulmate")

It is true that there will be someone that is going to be your life partner someday. They might appear out of no where, or they might be an old friend that you happen to meet again after a long period of not seeing each other. You never know who you are going to end up spending the rest of your life with. There are millions of possibilities of who that person might be. And it of course depends on the decisions you make throughout your life. Yes, it is also true that your future life partner will suddenly appear in your life. That person might be who you think is your soulmate, but each person has different perspective on the definition of soulmate.
If the world's definition of soulmate is someone that is destined to meet us even before we actually know we're gonna meet that person, or someone that is destined to be with us forever even though we don't even know that person very well; then i don't believe in soulmate.

The fact is that people who actually believe in soulmate often give up so easily when they are facing problems with relationships. Quite a lot of times i find them solving their problems by simply saying " I don't care what happens now, if we are truly soulmates we will meet again someday". To me that is not the best way of solving your problems. Even though it is somewhat reasonable that we are meant to meet our life partner someday, but that does not mean that things will always work between the couple without them even trying to keep the relationship strong. Everyone, whether they are sure if they have met their soulmate or not , needs to work hard to be able to get a relationship working.

In my opinion, you can't decide if a person is your soulmate or not just by simply looking into their eyes and experience a special feeling inside you. Everyone needs to know a person well enough to find out if they are the key to their lock, to find out whether they are the missing piece that will complete the unsolved puzzle. If you know a person inside and out then your common sense will decide whether that person would balance your weaknesses ans strengths. And as i said before there are millions of possibilities of who that person might be. It all depends if you are in the right place at the right time when you meet someone. There are billions of people in this world and there are many people who happens to have similar personalities that you could accidentally meet.

So if you think that you feel something special when you look into someone's eyes, think twice for it might just be a regular crush. There is no such thing as love at first sight, you might have mistaken it with something that is actually called crush at first sight. It is impossible to love someone just by looking at them. You need to go deep into someone to actually get the chance to love them. About soulmates, who knows if they exist or not. The reality is you will find the right partner for you if you look hard enough. So don't just sit down and wait for your "soulmate" to come find you; for they might find someone similar to you along the way and decide to stick with them forever even before they got the chance to look into your eyes.

-Angelina-

Melody Prayer

2007-09-03T21:31:00.000+07:00

I'm very exhausted today even though the new fresh week had just begin.

In the morning, my sister and I woke up earlier than usual but not because we're excited to go to school. Oh no. We did it because a new STARBUCKS COFFEE SHOP had just opened in the sideway of the highway going to Lippo Karawaci. However, I guess we're not lucky yet because when we arrived there at about 6.30 am, it was not open yet. So then we went to school feeling a bit pissed because both of us had been wanting to just sip a little of starbucks. We only have three lessons today since we were sent by the school to play badminton at Binus Badminton Cup. My sister and I played double but each with another partner. In the end, we both had lost in our game. I didn't really feel dissapointed though because my opponent was way better since they use to be a PROFESSIONAL player.

We finished by 3 pm and decided to get back to school.

My sister wanted to practice volleyball while I wanted to practice basketball. We love sports and that's why we doesn't really feel tired at all. But then, tomorrow, I'm going to lead Praise and Worship with my music team members who are Nita (Vocal), Jason (Pianist), Dave (Guitarist), James (Bassist) and Frederick (Drummer). So, we decided to practice after the afterschool sports in Frederick's house. We encountered some problems when we were trying to gather in Fred's house. But we finally made it and had practiced all of the songs for about half an hour. I'm satisfied though with the music that my friends had arranged because it sounds pretty good.

On the other hand, I'm a bit nervous since I'm going to be the one who's going to lead everyone to sing. But in the same time, I feel quite excited too. I think my voice is just normal but I like to lead people into singing. Tomorrow would be the second time after last year's in grade 10 for me to lead the Praise and Worship. I really hope that tomorrow, everything would be going smoothly and everyone would be singing with me. There's nothing much that I can do but to pray. SO...

I'd like to end this post with a short prayer.

A prayer from my heart

Dear God, my Heavenly Father

I think most of the people in the world is a 'cry baby'

They will never stop asking for help

And now, I would like to ask for your guidance, again.

Tomorrow is another Tuesday

Where the music team and I is going to lead Praise and Worship.

I'm asking You to give the music team the power

Give the power to lead my friends

To sing.

To praise Your name.

Thank you, God, for the oppurtunities you've given my friends and me

I know there will be never enough

Even I say 'thank you' a million times

For everything that you've given to me.

In Jesus name I pray

Amen.

True Friend

2007-08-31T19:33:00.000+07:00

One day, when I was a freshman in high school, I saw a kid from my class was walking home from school. His name was Kyle. It looked like he was carrying all of his books. I thought to myself, "Why would anyone bring home all his books on a Friday? He must really be a nerd." I had quite a weekend planned (parties and a football game with my friends tomorrow afternoon), so I shrugged my shoulders and went on. As I was walking, I saw a bunch of kids running toward him. They ran at him, knocking all his books out of his arms and tripping him so he landed in the dirt. His glasses went flying, and I saw them land in the grass about ten feet from him. He looked up and I saw this terrible sadness in his eyes My heart went out to him. So, I jogged over to him and as he crawled around looking for his glasses, and I saw a tear in his eye. As I handed him his glasses, I said, "Those guys are jerks. " They really shoul d get lives. " He looked at me and said, "Hey thanks!" There was a big smile on his face. It was one of those smiles that showed real gratitude. I helped him pick up his books, and asked him where he lived. As it turned out, he lived near me, so I asked him why I had never seen him before. He said he had gone to private school before now. I would have never hung out with a private school kid before. We talked all the way home, and I carried some of his books. He turned out to be a pretty cool kid. I asked him if he wanted to play a little football with my friends, he said yes. We hung out all weekend and the more I got to know Kyle, the more I liked him, and my friends thought the same of him. Monday morning came! , and there was Kyle with the huge stack of books again. I stopped him and said, "Boy, you are gonna really build some serious muscles with this pile of books everyday!" He just laughed and handed me half the books. Over the next four years, Kyle and I became best friends. When we were seniors, we began to think about college. Kyle decided onGeorgetown , and I was going to Duke. I knew that we would always be friends, that the miles would never be a problem. He was going to be a doctor, and I was going for business on a football scholarship. Kyle was valedictorian of our class. I teased him all the time about being a nerd. He had to prepare a speech for graduation. I was so glad it wasn't me having to get up there and speak. Graduation day, I saw Kyle. He looked great. He was one of those guys that really found himself during high school. He filled out and actually looked good in glasses. He had more dates than I had and all the girls loved him. Boy, sometimes I was jealous! Today was one of those days. I could see that he was nervous about his speech. So, I smacked him on the back and said, "Hey, big guy, you'll be great!" He looked at me with one of those looks (the really grateful one) and smiled. " Thanks," he said. As he started his speech, he cleared his throat, and began "Graduation is a time to thank those who helped you make it through those tough years. Your parents, your teachers, your siblings, maybe a coach...but mostly your friends... I am here to tell all of you that being a friend to someone is the best gift you can give them. I am going to tell you a story." I just looked at my friend with disbelief as he told the story of the first day we met. He had planned to kill himself over the weekend. He talked of how he had cleaned out his locker so his Mom wouldn't have to do it later and was carrying his stuff home. He looked hard at me and gave me a little smile. "Thankfully, I was saved. My friend saved me from doing the unspeakable." I heard the gasp go through the crowd as this handsome, popular boy told us all about his weakest moment. I saw his Mom and dad looking at me and smiling that same grateful smile. Not until that moment did I realize it's depth. Never underestimate the power of your actions. With one small gesture you can change a person's life. For better or for worse. God puts us all in each other's lives to impact one another in some way.

The story above reminds us that we are not alone. Our friends can change our life, they can give us hope. Friend are the angel who will lift us to our feet when our wing have trouble remembering how to fly.

Yesterday is history, tomorrow is mystery, and today is a gift.
A true friend will always be with you in every situation. wether it is sad, happy, or anything. A true friend will always care about you as he/she cares about himself/herself. Face the new days with smile and cares with your friends.

-Valencia-

i don't know what to write...

2007-08-30T18:08:00.000+07:00

Hi! I’m Elizabeth,

Well… I don’t know what to say, hahahaaa…

Okay, so last week there’s a man who got killed in Pantai Mutiara. He is a rich man and I heard that he got killed by his maid’s boyfriend who also worked at the neighborhood. My father likes to take a walk in the morning there, so the day the man got killed, my father’s friend tell and show him the man that dies. Well, at the end the man got capture because of the police dog.

Anyways, my family like to eat seafood at Pantai Mutiara in the night because it’s located along the river and it’s good to have dinner there because it’s so windy and I like it. Hahahaaa…

I will also start my tennis lesson this Saturday at Pantai Mutiara because Tara, my friend ask me to accompany her and I also can use this activity as my CAS, hahahaaa…

I don’t have so many homework but because of art, I got to do a lot of things… hahaha.. well, I’m doing my homework right now while writing this blog.

I learnt a lot of things in biology (double period). I learnt about cells and my class was laughing all the time because Ibu Virna is so funnyyy and she is so nice. While at Geography, we watch this movie called Thostie (I'm not sure how to spell it). And I think this movie is very brutal because at the beginning there were so many killing.

In Bahasa class we read a novel called 'Perempuan di Titik Nol' is a novel from Egypt that has been translated into Indonesian. The story is kind of interesting and tells about a women who has a hard life. At the start I don't think that it's a good book, but my friends who have already finish reading it said that the book have a good meaning when you read it to the end.

Yeay! Tomorrow is Friday which is almost weekend! I love weekend because I can rest all day and also doing my homework. Well.... happy weekend to those who love weekend!!! hahahaaa....

=P...

-Elizabeth-

It's my new posting name.

2007-08-30T17:33:00.000+07:00

To all readers,,

From now on, I'm going to be posting my blogs using under my name, Giovani Anggasta, and not posted by globeshopper anymore. However, the previous postings that I already made, I've wrote my initial G. So, don't be confused.

Keep an update on our daily blogger and other fellow groups. Enjoy.

P.S. For my group members, create another blog and then invite yourself through globeshopper account so that you can post under your name that would be easier for all of us. If there's any problem, just contact me.

H & G ( Hello and Goodbye)

2007-08-28T22:01:00.000+07:00

Ok, so of course we all agree that friends take huge parts in our life. Old friends, new friends, best friends, each of them always have ways to fill our needs, not our emptiness (Gibran). They also are the ones whom we share our laughters or sadness with. Can you imagine living without them? I imagine living without friends would make me feel alone even though thousands of people are around me; also beautiful things wouldn't matter because we have no one to share it with.
So OUR LIFE WITHOUT FRIENDS = HORRIBLE LIFE.

Anyways, if you are wondering why this entry is called H&G, they are actually the thing that i love the most but i hate them at the same time. Confusing right? Ok I'll try to explain.
"Hello" represents meeting new people, building relationships, getting to know your friends more, etc2. Sounds like fun? but the not so fun part about "hello" is that someday, or any day, there will be a "goodbye" following that hello. This would probably never cross your mind, but seriously, eventually you WILL have to say goodbye to the people you love someday. This thought never came to my mind; until tonight i actually went to the airport to send one of my close friend away because she is moving to another country far far away to pursue a better education. Before this, i never actually thought that i will be apart from my high school friends. Reality just suddenly slaps me and reminded me that time flies so fast. I mean you might think that you will be together forever with your friend but the next day *poof* they're gone! I realized that we only have two more years until we have to go to college and go our own ways; then there will be more "hello"s which will most likely be followed by even more "goodbye"s. Sad to think about it, but glad at the same time.

But wait, if you think we're gonna be left with nothing, then think again. I will have to remind you that "hello" will remain forever in our heart and memory. Its as if it was carved and its gonna leave a mark somewhere in your life. It means THAT much, so it won't fade away so easily. On the other hand, " goodbye" only means that we are separated by physical space. But actually we'll always gonna be stay close together because we live in each other's heart. And if your friendship is strong enough, you will always have each other's back to lean on to.

So worry not, for the strength of our friendship is determined by how faithful are you guys willing to stay on your commitment. And also how understanding you are of each other; to be there if one of you needs the other. Also in this modern era, communication is never going to be a problem. So long as you keep in touch, there's no such thing as "we're not friends anymore because she/he live so far away". Its not a good enough reason to break the friendship bond you created. Watching your best friend's back as they slowly get farther from your sight might hurt so bad. It might even cause you to cry a gallon of tears ( as i did myself earlier tonight --").
But the friendship we have built together will always last.

As a famous poet Kahlil Gibran once said in his book The Prophet (I rephrase it using my own words by the way :p) :

"When separating with your friends, you will not suffer. Because what you cherish the most from them will be clearly seen in their absence; just like a mountain that is clearly seen from a desert"

-Angelina-

i heart fashion

2007-08-27T22:03:00.000+07:00

A couple of days ago, i went to a glamorous FASHION show. It was my first time to actually watch a show. The place was in a big and long lounge where the runway goes all through the lounge although it was a bit crowded. The lounge is called Dragonfly and the place was really beautiful with all the lights and stripes loose-like-thread mirror hanging all over the walls creating such a glamorous sensation and twinkling lights above. I found it very interesting to watch and I love it. I was actually invited by one of the designers of X.S.M.L (Biyan's), so I went with a friend of mine.

I arrived there at about 9pm-ish since my friend wants to arrive as soon as possible although the actual show started at about 10pm. We both waited and sit around the lounge drinking sodas until we got bored and moved from our seats (which was actually a good place to watch the show), deciding to look around finding another better place to watch the show but ended up standing up as it gets more and more crowded.

Well, the show started and ended quite fast. I think the runway show was only half an hour. The designers used international models, I suppose. The guys have such a hot and great body and I think the women looks like they are annorexic. For the guys, the used different tops and uses silver-metallic converse-style type of shoes and the women got also different tops while walking in an about 20cm (I think!) high-wedges shoes with different types of colors. I guess it was just a new trend, huh? I don't really like the shoes but the clothes was great and unique. There's also this woman model who have a face that looked so sexy and I really adore her. The rest of the guys have weird faces but there's this one guy who looked really cute and very,very HOT. The fashion show ended at about 11pm and my friend and I went home right away because I need to go to church early in the next morning. OH, I got this X.S.M.L souvenir bag, it's based color is metallic gold with the writing of the brand on it and looks very gorgeous when I arrived.

Anyway, I'm very exhausted due to the basketball practice today but I actually enjoy it. I'm new in basketball, but I kinda love it now. However, there's still a long way to go and I'm eager to learn more of the techniques. I guess I better end it here and go sleep in my comfy bed.

-G-

In the beginning...

2007-08-24T22:32:00.000+07:00

"Shut up," shout Ms. Jessica in the computer lab towards the A2 HL, 11th grader class who are busy talking.

Therefore, it shall be our blogspot's title. So, friends, please just shut up and read.

-G-

WELCOME!

2007-08-24T11:10:00.000+07:00

welcome to shutupandread!

It's just a simple blogspot where four attractive teenagers are going to post the stories of their life.

Wonder why?
It's a creative and smart way by our wonderful teacher, Ms. Jessica W., to make the students to enjoy writing in a fun way instead of just writing gazzillion of paragraphs for a boring essay. But here in blogspot, we have live readers which is very challenging to think of interesting topics and to write it in details yet it is very exciting!

So, it's a short welcome to the teenager's world and shutupandread!

P.S. Here's the daily posts order:
Monday - Giovani
Tuesday - Angelina (Ina)
Thursday - Elizabeth
Friday - Valencia