The Topic of Great Randomness

[Stormwind]

Dai, MagicalMike, and welcome back.

I'm so excited! I got news earlier today that my sister delivered a healthy baby boy! 7lbs 13 1/2 oz. I am excited for her, but a bit sad that I won't get to see him soon, as I live in South Texas and she lives in Washington State... Oh well, that's life... wish I had that Beam Me Up Scotty spell...

Good luck to everyone as they start moving into finals, midterms, etc... I remember how it was, and was glad when it was over.

Tsakaki: *HUGS* Hunt's Luck to you, and remember, just breath and take things one at a time...

[Tsakaki]

MagicalMike: heh, high school, believe or not, despite all the crap that ensues, I do miss it, because once you hit post-secondary, you no longer get to see your friends(the ones you actually like to see) whenever you want. And the work load, hard though it may be to believe; that's not to say graduating doesn't have it's perks. You get along with the teachers better, you're actually treated like an adult, you're learning things your interested in, and your class schedule is less regimented, meaning you could have 3 extra hours to sleep in.

Stormwind: Thanks. Today's going better for the most part, still depressed and stressed, but overall, I'm feeling better today. I think I just really needed to cry and get it out.

Awesome news, my Print teacher loves my idea for my add campaign. (3 part print ad campaign. On a subject that suits the magazine we created earlier in the semester). The only thing is it requires a lot of photography and multiple models, so I need to figure that out/find the time for it.

That's about all today,
Later!

[kk]

Hi!

Right now I am going to rant like crazy about nothing in particular. So, here goes:

My first rant is about the Amazon Kindle Ebook Reader. It looks cool, I know several people who have one. I was looking at information about it, and it seems interesting, I guess. If you buy the old model, it's around $275, plus shipping. But I was being weirded out about this, when I found out something: It can crash! I mean, like a computer crashing, it can crash! What ever happened to "I like books, they don't crash?" Amazon has officially invented a book that can crash! Well good for them. I think it's all a bit silly.

Second: I don't think I like Harcourt. Not now, anyways. *Wants AWoM!* Recently, I've seen the phrase "AWoM" as slang for a book that has either been delayed like crazy, or will never come out. In example, "Oh yeah, that book should come out this summer...unless they pull an AWoM on us," or "Wow, that book looks good! I hope it doesn't turn into an AWoM!" I've seen it used like that a few times, by friends and other people on websites, and in life. It's sad.

I'm depressed because A Wizard of Mars did not come out today. And it's even worse that nobody has heard of it coming out at all. I found somewhere on the internet that Harcourt might have said 4/1/2010, for the book to come out. Another year, perhaps? Whyyyy? I'm still waiting eagerly on that reply from the company... Heheh, I emailed 'em. If you didn't know that already.

I think that's a long enough post... Dai!

[Emi]

Okay... way too lazy to read everyone's posts... but I'll just start off by saying I have massive excuses.

One. I'm super busy. Two. I'm super sick. Three. I'm super... well, I'm just super. Haha.

Anyway, does anyone know what National History Day is? Well, if you don't it's this competition that happens every year. Groups or a single person chooses a person or topic that they want to do a project on based on the theme. They can write an essay, do a documentary, make a poster, etc. How is this relevant? Well, I am doing it. The State competition's this Saturday, so my partner and I have been sweating over finishing up our little documentary on Henri Matisse... which might I add is a real winner. Unfortunately I can't go to the competition this Saturday because my co-worker needs to be there for her group. Blah! Anyway, I hope I we win because then we get to go to nationals... and it's at D.C. Fun! *crosses fingers*

That's partially the reason why I haven't been on here. Another is because of all the scholarships I have to fill out for my local town. It's so annoyying. And I have three more to do... All deal with Essays. Fun, fun, fun. I'm actually avoiding doing that right now.

Oh and my musical I'm in, is supppperrrr time consuming. Sundays 1-5 Mondays 6:30 - 9:00 Thursdays 6:30-9:00 and thennnn I have to work Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Saturdays and Sundays. See why I'm never on?

I can't wait until school is OVER. June 13th, that's my graduation date!! So the whole week before that I will be doing.... NOTHING. Yeah, it's senior week, meaning the Senior trip, Finals (which I probably won't have to take), and Graduation practice....

Gah, my battery is dying so I gotta go. I'll come on later.

Dai everyone.

Emi

[Septimus]

I just have one question.... Did anyone know that Earth Day is this month, and that in the U.S. it's a government regognized holiday.... AND EASTER ISN'T?!

I suppose that easter can be explained for as being a religous holiday, but what about April fool's day? What did Earth Day do that elevated it above all those other poor holidays?!?!

[Tsakaki]

Septimus: (btw, did you get the name from Stardust? Or something else?)
Heh, yeah, that always messed with me. Easter isn't a recognized holiday, but Christmas is. They're both religious. I'm not sure what it's like in the States, but here in Canada, (bear with me, I may be remembering wrong, but I THINK I'm remembering right). Good Friday is a paid holiday, Easter is not. But the stores are all still mandatory closed. Drives me nuts. I mean, I'm glad for the day off, and if it was an optional holiday or something then I'd get it, but it's not, all the stores are closed so we don't get the option to work it. To my understanding, that's the reason we get paid for holidays in the first place.

[Lazy Leopard]

Easter (both Good Friday and the Monday after) is a holiday here in old England, and really I'd rather it wasn't. The trouble is it wanders about so much, sometimes being as early as the last weekend in March, and other times being as late as the last weekend in April. I suppose it makes for some variety in the holiday, but really it would be much easier to plan for if it didn't vary so much. We get eight fixed(-ish) holidays in the year:

1. New Year's Day
2. Good Friday
3. Easter Monday
4. The first Monday in May
5. The last Monday in May
6. The last Monday in August
7. Christmas Day (or the first weekday after it if it falls at a weekend)
8. Boxing Day (effectively the first weekday after the Christmas Day one)

So four of them can fall in one six-week period if Easter's late. That leaves a lot of year without any holiday.

[Tsakaki]

O.o wow, you lucky bum. You get a bunch of holidays that we don't. The only day off in May we get is for Victoria Day, August we have I think, but it's called Labour Day.

Yeah, Easter moves here too. It's because it actually follows the Church Calendar Year, it's 40 days after Ash Wednesday, and that's a certain amount days away from Christmas, as opposed to falling on certain set dates like Christmas. I agree, it sucks, but at least it has a reason?

[Lazy Leopard]

Oh, I've got a whole long formula somewhere for determining the date of Easter. It's the first Sunday after the first full moon after the vernal equinox. I think that means it can't be earlier than March 21st (because it is just possible for the equinox to fall on the 20th rather than the 21st), but if the full moon was on March 20th then the first one after the equinox would be April 18th (I think), and if that was a Monday then Easter could be April 24th. Or something like that. Complicated, anyway.

The most recent extremes I remember are 2000 when it was on April 23rd, and 2008 when it was on March 23rd.

[illiriam]

I still tend to think of it like back in the olden days...
Tossing some chicken bones in the air to determine if its a good day for Easter (like the Romans did. I think it was augers? something like that). They also used to sacrifice and read the omens that way, but I would imagine the CHurch doesn't like that.

Now I really am imagining it, with my local priest in with a bunch of others, and some guy in the middle of the circle tossing bones...
Sorry. I know that was random, but I have been reading books set around Rome's conquest of Britain...

[wizardsrreal]

[quote=Tsakaki;48541]It's because it actually follows the Church Calendar Year, it's 40 days after Ash Wednesday, quote]


It's actually 48 days after Ash Wednesday because Sundays aren't counted in the 40 days of Lent. I never could really understand how Easter could move around so much, like what makes it move around if it is a certain number of days after Christmas shouldn't it fall on the same day every year? Oh well, not that it matters to me when it is, as long as it happenes. just my random technicalliities. <-- isn't this just the cutest thing!!

[Zirsta]

Thanks everyone! You can never have enough luck...

Ok, so today was the first day of Junior Olympics. I think it went well, although I was freaking out when I was there. At least I got to skip school...

I got some good times, better than my previous bests, which is nice. (Ok, if you don't know swimming lingo, this'll be rather meaningless to you) For the 200 IM my time was 2:49 (dropped three seconds!) and the 50 backstroke was :34 (one second dropped, but still good) I was fourteenth in both events, which is great, considering it's out of pretty much all the swimmers in Alaska. Also, I didn't DQ (yay!)... Yet.

Tomorrow will be day 2. I'll be swimming the 100 freestyle and 100 backstroke. I'm not sure about the 100 free, but in the 100 backstroke I'm probably going to kick some butt, because backstroke is my best stroke. Everyone does freestyle, so that event won't be as good.

I'm sorta dreading the rest of my weekend, because I'm going to have to be at the pool by 7:15 each morning, which is not fun. That's the one thing I hate about swim meets... You have to get up so-freakin-early on weekends!

[EDIT]
Oh yeah, happy birthday Wiccangixie!

[Another edit]

Since no one has posted, I guess I'll just edit this post.

Day two of JO's: better and worse.

Better, because I wasn't that nervous, because I got to swim my two favorite events, and because I knocked a few seconds off my previous best times. Worse, because I came in 21st in one event, and I finished my book before the meet was over.

All in all, the day was good. (watch out, more swimming lingo) I got 1:06 for my 100 freestyle, which was good because I shaved off three seconds from my seed time. I was also first place in my heat, which was unexpected, since I was in lane 8. For my 100 backstroke, I cut down four seconds off the 1:19 to the 1:15 (YES!) and was 12 in the event. Unfortunately, I was two places too low to be an alternate for the finals. (they only take one heat, which is 8 girls)

Tomorrow I swim the 200 backstroke. I've got a decent time in that, and I am (surprisingly) ranked 10th by seed times. I bet I can cut my time down quite a bit, so with luck I'll be going to finals tomorrow. Yay! Of course, that really depends on how the other swimmers do, but still. Let's keep optimistic.

[Tsakaki]

Oooookay, so I've been gone for a few days, lots of hectic-ness and whatnot. I also work mostly weekends, so a lot of my time is eaten up that way too.

Wizardsrreal:48? Lol, they seemed to have neglected telling us that, they always said 40, but it makes sense since when you give something up for Lent, you're aloud to indulge on Sundays. This isn't something I know for a 100% fact, but I believe the day of Jesus' birth, in our calendar year, was actually figured out to be sometime in september. (If I remember correctly, I got this from some documentary thing on tv, but it was late at night and I was tired, so again, not 100% certain). It does, however make sense to keep Christmas in December, because the winter season for most results in depression because of a lack of sunlight and cold/gloomy weather. For most people, Christmas and New Years provides a good boost.

Zirsta: congrats on your standings in your meet! Man, finishing books early sucks. I hate it when that happens. Good luck on your next events!

[illiriam]

Interestingly enough, many feel that the reason the day of Jesus' birth is celebrated in December was to help mesh the pagan religions that permeated Europe with the new and uprising Christianity. The winter solstice was commonly celebrated as the longest night, and there were other holidays as well. They placed Christmas in December, to bridge the gap and allow both pagans and Christians alike to celebrate at the same time and hopefully convert people. I can not for the life of me remember where I heard that, it just seems to be one of those things that you just remember knowing. We also touched on it a bit (briefly) in my history classes, while trying to stay impartial during the discussions (didn't want any arguments to occur).
So, been doing nothing much. Just watching Firefly (and loving it!)
Yesterday we had the oddest weather though. It was raining most of the morning. Not too hard, but harder than sprinkling. All of a sudden it starts pouring. Just, cats and dogs. An hour later the rain had stopped, and it was just really overcast. It was like that when I went into the diner to get food. When I left the diner with my food, five minutes later, the sky was practically clear. The the wind had also started. 15-20 mph winds, with gusts around 30. I thought I felt the room move after one of them. Even with the windows shut, the wind still got in. I had to line the window with towels, which helped some.
I was hoping that we would get the thunderstorms that they were calling for, but sadly, even if they were there, the winds probably blew them past us. I loooove thunderstorms. When I was little, we used to watch them. We would go into my brother's room (which had a view out over the cornfields, and the only area not surrounded by trees) and watch, and remark on which strikes were better. And so my friends started talking, and I realized that most people are on the extremes with their views about thunderstorms. They are either afraid of them or love them like I do.

And congrats Zirsta! Hope today went as well as you said yesterday did!

[Tsakaki]

Illiriam: Hmm, yeah, that would make a lot of sense. The Catholic Church often assimilated aspects of pagan religions in with their own. Art was a major one, many of the really old pieces (I'm talking before the renaissance and such) that are associated with the Church came from other religions and were assimilated when they entered different countries.
Hmm, I both love and am terrified by thunderstorms. I think they're gorgeous, but at the same, really freak me out. I just love the rain in general though.

Heh, up here, it was pouring rain all day friday, and then 'round midnight ti turned to snow. I woke up at ten saturday morning to the streets being blanketed with the stuff. I was not a happy camper about that. I want nice weather again.