2012 London Olympics

Top of the morning guys,

This post should have been written days ago, when the opening ceremony was the thing on everyones minds, but on that Friday I was busy. Doing what I normally do on Fridays, which is sleep, eat, watch TV and turn oxygen into carbon. I would have watched the ceremony if I could have, but it was that or The Simpsons. And I love The Simpsons more than my own family, so it's obvious why it ruled my TV screen.

I've only seen about 3 Olympic Games in my short but sweet life: The 2000 one in Sydney (but I didn't care for sport or patriotism at that age), the 2004 one in Athens (too busy doing other stuff) and the 2008 one in Beijing. That one I actually paid some attention to, mainly because everyone in my class was making fun of the foreign kids whose homecountries were losing. And because if you went to the school library, all the librarians were staring at the TV, coffee cups in hand, yelling obscenities at the losing athletes.
Also if the Winter Olympics count, I saw the one where Australia's Torah Bright (We love you Torah!!!) got gold in snowboarding. That was just awesome.

I can't really write much more about the Olympics, except to just say that I hope Australia wins, at the moment we're doing OK, but c'mon!!! We can do better guys!!!!

Sorry, I'm a little patriotic. That was a lie. I'm VERY patriotic!!

So before I go nuts, I shall say.......

Goodbye for now, Vivmarie1407

Our Screwy Universe

Bella notte,

Lately I've been thinking about things that should happen. Things that are possible and that for the sake of the universe, should happen. And then I feel a large amount of disappointment when these things just don't happen. Things like people that clearly belong together but aren't together. Things like not driving species to extinction. Things like finding an unbiased political party.
But these things aren't going to happen because I wish they would. They have to happen if change is made.
But since nothing really changes much in my life, despite the daily screw ups I always seem to have, I now know that I have to make changes myself sometimes, for our screwy universes own good. If change isn't made, our universe remains in disarray, in the hands of politicians, teenagers with bad taste in pop stars and other people that shouldn't have an influence on society.

Sorry guys, I'm ranting. Lately I've had many a late night, we are now doing physics in science and there is a million other things wrong with my life.
So it is understandable why I'm stressed.
And with all this anxiety in my head, I need to keep calm and carry on. I need to keep drinking my tea and focus on the good stuff in my life. For example, I got a high distinction in a national geography competition, am winning my battle with acne, finished my musical and I found out that I can balance stuff on my head.

Sorry, once again, ranting. I shouldn't be making a post so early in the morning, but: I was bored.

So before I write more crazy stuff, I shall bid you all.......

Adieu, Vivmarie1407

Stop The Shark Cull (and remember Amy Winehouse)

Dia duit guys,

I don't know if viewers outside of Australia have heard the recent news, but if you haven't, here is the basic stuff:

Recently in Western Australia, a 24 year old man was killed in a shark attack, which has been the state's fifth fatal attack in less than a year (10 months to be exact). The shark in question is a great white shark, which currently holds a protected species status in Australia. The Fisheries Minister of Western Australia, Norman Moore, is currently calling for and end to the great white shark's protective status, and officials are calling for a cull to reduce the number of attacks in the area.

As a proud shark lover and environmentalist, this really angers me. Shark populations have declined rapidly over the past 50 years, due to them being killed for their fins (mostly for their fins), cartilage, liver oil and in some cases, meat. It also doesn't seem to help that we overfish their food supply and continue to purchase products made from sharks; which supports the shark trade industry.

Some of you may think: "They're sharks, they hurt and kill people and they aren't vital to the ecosystem". Well if you do, it's utterly incorrect.

Sharks have been on the planet for 400 million years, humans have been on the planet for about 200,000 years. Humans aren't a shark's natural food source, the only reason we get attacked is because we willingly take the risk of swimming in their territory. Sharks are curious animals, and even though they are an evolutionary miracle, they just cannot know for sure if something is edible or not, without taking a bite. They aren't ruthless man eaters, in fact, to quote my favourite comic, 'Shaaark!'; "We're not ruthless man eaters, more like accidental man tasters".

Now it's time to answer the question: "How are sharks vital to the ecosystem?". When I was asked that, I'll admit that I was thinking for a while. Because all sharks really seemed to do was just swim and eat. But they do so much more than that. They are a food source for other animals that eat sharks; killer whales and other sharks are some of the few animals that have sharks included in their diet.
It's a well known fact that sharks are what is known as 'apex predators', which means that they are at the top of the food chain; they can basically eat anything that tickles their fancy. Like other apex predators, like the lion for example, they feed on the weak and sickly, which keeps the gene pools of their prey healthy. This ensures healthier generations of animals like fish, seals, seabirds and, yes, dolphins.
And eating all those fish and seabirds keeps their populations in balance. No sharks= overpopulation crisis which endangers the ecosystem.
These are just a few of the best reasons why sharks are important.

Now I'd like to ask you guys a question: Would you like to live in a world without sharks?? A world with starving killer whales? Weak and sick animal species? Overpopulation problems? Seafood prices skyrocketing due to poor fishing hauls? A world where shark exhibits in aquariums are now shrines to a mighty and great animal?
If you think that this world would be a truly terrible place, I'd advise you to do all you can to help save the sharks. Give up eating them with fish and chips. Stop buying products made from sharks. Stop eating shark fin soup. Use lipsticks that are squalene free (Squalene is oil from a sharks liver. Yeah, you put liver oil and whole bunch of other gross stuff on your lips).
Join conservation organizations. Sign petitions. If you want to really make a difference, why not try to stop local. Asian restaurants from selling shark fin soup?

Or if you think that a sharkless world is the best idea since sliced bread, think again. Think not of yourself, but of the future generations of people that have to suffer because of something we did.

And those are my thoughts on why we should save the sharks and stop the threat of a cull before we bring about the extinction of another awe-inspiring animal. If you'd like to sign some petitions, find out some cool stuff or read 'Shaaark!', the links can be found here:

http://www.change.org/petitions/end-the-west-australian-great-white-shark-slaughter

facebook.com/supportoursharks

http://www.shaaark.com

facebook.com/seashepherdaustralia

facebook.com/Shark.Cartoons


And this 23rd of July marks one year since the tragic death of Amy Winehouse at age 27. Until her death I had never recognized her for her talents, and only saw her as a wreck. That makes me sad to think that now, because she truly was talented, and it wasn't until her passing that I began to really become a fan of her music. So today, dear readers, I ask you to remember the gifted and exceptional young woman that was Amy Winehouse.


If you have any memorable shark encounters, love sharks as much as I do or if I've left out any important information, let me know in the comments below.

May the force be with you, Vivmarie1407

The Scariest Thing

Guten tag guys,

In Australia, there's a time of the year that strikes fear into the hearts of everyone, whether they be a child or an old person. It lasts for about 2-3 months and even stepping outside your house can be hazardous to your health. It's called: Magpie Season (cue scary music!)

Ahh, magpie season. That time of the year when you walk down the street and every step you take could lead to an unexpected attack. Or more, if you're unlucky, like me the other day.

On Monday, I was walking to my school. When I was another street away from the street my school is on, I saw a sign that the council had put up: WARNING: MAGPIES NESTING! It said that this area had nesting magpies, that you should be careful and it also featured a list of precautions to avoid attack. But of course, me, never having been attacked before while walking through magpie territory, didn't try to avoid attack. Now I can bet you can guess what comes next...
After I thought: 'Screw the sign, I'll be OK', I kept on walking. I only walked about 5 steps before hearing a whooshing noise, and it was then I thought: 'Sh*t, it's a magpie!'. And then the magpie hit me on the right side of my head, grazing my ear. I swore really loudly, thinking I'd now start bleeding to death. I then grabbed a book out of my bag, used it a head protectant in case of another attack, and ran. After a minute, I stopped to catch my breath (I blame the smokes, just kidding!) and as I was gasping for oxygen, I looked around and saw......the magpie!! Perched on a telephone wire, watching me. I began to start running, then I heard the whooshing noise again. I put the book behind my head again, ducked and waited for the bird to crash through my head and knock my brain out of my skull. But it flew over me, and as it did, I tried to hit it with my book and I told screamed at it to go away, then began to run at inhuman speed for my school. Fortunately it didn't attack me again and also it was lucky that the scratch I got hasn't left a mark.

And that, dear readers, is the grand tale of my first (hopefully last) magpie attack. I haven't learned much from that experience, except:

• Pay attention to signs, especially ones with WARNING! written on them
• Don't be an over-confident idiot in magpie season
• Yellow does NOT go with peach.

That last one has nothing to do with magpies, but it is something we all should know. If you have any unpleasant animal encounters, let me know in the comments below.

In other news, it was Bastille Day last Saturday and it also happened to be my birthday. So happy (late) Bastille Day to all my French readers and bonne anniversaire to me!!!

And so on that cheery note, I'd like to say....

Au revoir, Vivmarie1407

NOTE: If anyone from the government or an animal rights group has read this post and thinks that my trying-to-hit-magpie-with-book-thing is an act of animal cruelty, I do apologise. I wasn't trying to hurt the magpie, at least not seriously hurt it, instead I was trying to get it to leave me alone.

Also, to Aussie readers: the killing of magpies is a crime as they are a protected species. If you have a problem with magpies, contact your council instead of trying to blow the bird's brains out.