the P.Pole v.2.1

Note: Post what your names mean in the comments section!

This was taken from ThinkBabyNames:

The girl’s name Amy \a-my\ is pronounced AY-mee. It is of Old French and Latin origin, and its meaning is “beloved”. Anglicised form of the Old French Amee, meaning “beloved”, which originated as a nickname from the Latin Amata, from “amare”, meaning “to love”. Mythology: wife of King Latinus, whose daughter Lavinia married Aeneas and according to the “Aeneid”, became the mother of the Roman people. The name was given prominence by Louisa May Alcott’s “Little Women”. Olympic swimmer Amy Van Dyken; poet Amy Lowell; evangelist Aimée Semple McPherson; actresses Amy Madigan, Amy Sedaris; singer Amy Grant.

Amy has 21 variant forms: Aimee, Aimie, Aimy, Amada, Amata, Ame, Amee, Amecia, Ami, Amia, Amiah, Amice, Amie, Amiee, Amil, Ammie, Amye, Aymee, Aymi, Esma and Esme.

For more information, see also related names Amita, Amelia and Emily.

Baby names that sound like Amy are Amey and Ama.

Amy is a very popular female first name and a very popular surname (source: 1990 U.S. Census). Displayed below is the baby name popularity trend for the girl’s name Amy. Compare Amy with related baby names.

[taken 4:14 PM, December 13, 2008, original page here]

Note: If anyone was wondering, here’s what the same site says about my name:

The boy’s name Carl \c(a)-rl\ is pronounced karl. It is of Old German origin. From Karl, the German form of Charles (Old German) “free man”. See also Carlos. Poet Carl Sandburg; journalist Carl Bernstein; astronomer/author Carl Sagan; psychologist Carl Jung.

Carl has 3 variant forms: Carel, Karel and Karl.

For more information, see also the related name Carlyle.

Baby names that sound like Carl are Carly, Carlo and Caryl.

Carl is a very popular male first name and a very popular surname (source: 1990 U.S. Census). Displayed below is the baby name popularity trend for the boy’s name Carl. Compare Carl with related baby names.

[taken 4:14 PM, December 13, 2008, original page here]

Note: Hit the jump to skip to the latter part of this post–it’s a passionate criticism of our society worth your time, I promise! Yeah, click ahead if you’re interested in hearing me rant about a stupid child. It might be worth your while (especially if you happen to be that freaking girl).

5 new things I’ve adopted as part of my routine on campus:

• typing up my hand-written (in class) notes into Evernote (in my room)
• washing my dishes immediately after using them
• entering everything (and I mean everything) into iCal + Anxiety
• getting royally annoyed with foolish childrens here
• walking more or less everywhere

It’s funny how easy humans can adapt to pretty much anything. Quite a marvel of design, in my opinion. I decided this year I’d start doing things in school a little differently (y’know, with working and stuff) and so far it’s paid off. Typing in my notes at night a day or two after the lectures really helps to keep my head refreshed on what I’m supposed to be learning here. The same goes for keeping on top of things and being organized with my time on iCal and Anxiety (which works with iCal). The habit of washing dishes right after is something I picked up from Keith while in Hong Kong and I’ve stuck with it here (I hate it when my room mates leave their stuff in the sink so I don’t do that myself). Walking everywhere is probably (I say probably because I can’t tell at the moment) good for my overall health and fitness. Getting angry at silly childrens and their idiocies probably isn’t great for stress levels, but getting to play badminton in the UW club on Wednesday and Friday nights, as well as Saturday mornings probably fixes that.

› Continue reading

After finishing a quaint little bowl of noodles downstairs at Fairwood (a fast food restaurant here in HK), I whipped out my copy of “A World of Difference” and began reading again (I had put it aside for quite awhile, started and finished “Dethroning Jesus” before this). Here’s a direct quote from a side box on page 111, headed “Does It Make Sense to Believe the Bible Is a Revelation from God?”:

Historic Christianity considers the Bible to be the propositional Word of God. The following list offers six reasons why it is intellectually credible to believe the Bible is God’s actual revelation to man.

1. Unlike most other religious books, the Bible is uniquely connected to history. Therefore, many of its central claims are open to historical investigation (verification/falsification).
2. To some degree, a number of the scriptural accounts (though certainly not all) have been corroborated or supported by extrabiblical historical sources and archaeological evidence.
3. The bibliographic evidence (manuscript abundance, authenticity, and integrity) on the part of the Bible far surpasses all other ancient literary works, secular and religious.
4. Though written in antiquity, the Bible presents a cosmology (a singular beginning to all matter, energy, time, and space) that matches well with the prevailing views of modern science.
5. The Bible appeals to the fulfillment of prophecy and to miracles to substantiate its claims. Both areas can be evaluated in terms of their historical accuracy and explanatory power and scope.
6. The Bible presents a realistic view of human beings (their nature, predicament, and resolution) and offers a world-and-life view that is rational, viable, and existentially fulfilling for humanity.

Surely and obviously, this list is nothing close to 100% absolute proof that the Bible is the Word of God, as it claims itself to be–all it does help us and our discussion along by putting ideas in the realm of probability. The above reasons and reasoning for the Bible’s authenticity as being what it says it is can never consequentially result in guaranteed acceptance of the Bible as truth (i.e. there’s going to be some, if not many people who will still think it’s all a hoax or some sort of conspiracy even in light of sound reasoning). It can, however, suggest with a very high degree of probability that the Bible is more likely as credible and reliable as it claims to be. Reasoning and rationalization cannot create faith in something, but it can substantiate and supplement faith in something.

Hopefully, some nay-sayers to the Bible’s truthiness (to borrow from Colbert’s vocabulary) based on intellectual reasons will have been softened by this excerpt. Alternatively, perhaps this quote has provided good material and stimulus for consideration for already-believers of the Bible who needed some additional support for their God-given faith.

This was for an English assignment, but have a look anyway and see what you think. The original poem by cummings is linked at the bottom.

nothing happens in this stuffy drowned town
(with stacks so smoking healthy smog brown)
spring lever auto splinter
they buy their uses and sell their souls

buildings and builts(both ugly and tall)
filled with the living, not at all
slaving away the day and the night
sounds touch taste sights

people pressed(much more than a few
as more they commute, as more they stew
auto splinter spring lever)
as drivers stopped for more and more

this is how one kills belief
in lasting life and death that’s brief:
hear the show and see the song
overthink any and all your days

somedays buried by everydays
lost in borings that score a loss
(see hear pause but then)in
stead of living we opt for death

taste sights sounds touch
(not only the old but even now children
are people who ought to regret their existence
with stacks so smoking healthy smog brown)

one day i know i’ll leave i guess
(will no one care to hate this place?)
anyone hurry to fill my shoes
rattle the cages and wage the battles.

malls and malls for seek and keep
and store by store to steal your reap
not one will anyone please come april
and yet you wish as if by will…

buildings and builts(in which we cling
lever auto splinter spring)
will sub living and fix despite
sounds touch taste sights
- Carl Wong, nothing happens (parody, see: anyone lived by e. e. cummings)

Edit: Fix’d!

Today’s plans deviated even farther from usual date hotspots as Amy and I headed out (after picking up letters from school for Amy and a doctor’s appointment for myself) for the IKEA near Leslie subway station. I don’t remember who suggested it first (though I suspect it was probably me), but we ended up actually browsing through the showrooms at IKEA and having a fun time trying out different pieces of furniture and using any pairs of anything as make-shift bras for me. We also started doodling little animals, including an elephant, a hippo, a pelican, a pidgeon, a giraffe, and  a Pacman, all over random pieces of paper (and even the wooden floor, in the case of  the giraffe) throughout the store. Of course, we didn’t buy any things (apart from replacement lightbulbs for Amy’s lamp) but it was a decent couple hours spent in IKEA fooling around.

After a quick lunch of hot-dogs, we  boarded the shuttle bus back to Leslie station and made our ways home. When I got off the bus near home, I decided since I was already out and it was still early to hit up my grandparents’ place to see what they were up to. On the way there, my grandparents actually got off a bus (returning from a haircut and shopping) at a stop just a bit ahead and on the way. I ran up beside them and helped carry their stuff home. After some chilling, I grabbed the bike and pumped its tires up. Amy had suggested a couple days ago that she would bike from her place to mine eventually. I thought this was a little dubious since she does live many city blocks away and although she does bike a lot, she’s no Olympian. Can you see where I went with this? I grabbed my bike and kicked it into gear, pedaling my way all the way (talk about cutting a long story short) to her front door before turning around and heading right back to my grandma’s. I traveled at a decent but not breakneck pace and the round-trip took about an hour and ten minutes, not bad for my first biking session of the summer.

[before I decided to bike today]

Carl: “I don’t know, it’s a pretty long trip. I’m not sure it’s even possible!”

Amy: “I am thinking it will take maybe… what, 45 minutes?”

“What if you collapse halfway through and can’t get to my place?”

*pretends to look at watch

“‘Man, it’s three. Where are you Amy?!’ Haha, that would suck.”

“Haha, well my pride and ego will prevent that from happening.”

“Very well, whatever pleases you.”

Needless to say, it is indeed possible and not nearly as grueling as I had thought. If I can do it on a smoggy day such as today in jeans without water or even a decent lunch and facing into the gusty wind, I’m more than certain Amy can do it when she attempts it. Yes, I do feel a little bit like a hero for having tested it out so I’m gonna revel in this moment of honourable exhaustion for a bit. Actually, it wasn’t even that tiring but I was sweating pretty bad and getting stiff neck and elbows from the long trip. I know I will sleep well tonight.

There’s a funny page on Uncyclopedia about the International Baccalaureate program featuring a quote from Gandalf on IB:

You shall not pass!

Well, as of 2 o’ clock today, I officially finished my career as an IB student, completing the final paper for HL Math.  Some of my friends who have Physics and/or Computer Science will  be done by Wednesday or Friday, respectively.  In any case, we’re all more or less done.

This is where I reminisce about my past four years and talk about either how much of a hassle high school was (it wasn’t that bad) or how much I’ll miss the great times I had (indeed they were great, but I probably won’t miss them much). I imagine university will be more or less the same flavour of mostly self-directed learning as IB has prepared me for, with living on my own in residence as the main/only real significant change.

I think non-IB people out there have a misconception about IB and what it is. I myself thought it was like extended French or intensive Math programs, only for everything. It’s not so much a program for extra-elitist people, and it’s not like the gifted program at Woburn CI.  It’s surprisingly not that much different from the regular Ontario stuff, except that we write standardized exams (broken up into sections that we call “papers”) and our marks are then used to apply everywhere.  In terms of difficulty and depending on which subjects you’re talking about, IB can be harder or easier than the regular OSSD courses. For one thing, the IB standard Biology is way easier than the Ontario  curriculum, as is standard Physics. The only courses worth bawling about are higher Math and Chemistry, but even then, they’re not too bad if you’re willing to actually learn the stuff.

Higher and standard level usually don’t differ by too much, excepting that higher level stuff has more depth and more or less the same  breadth in terms of materials.  Also,  if you do well enough in higher courses, universities will usually accept a HL IB credit as equivalent to a first year credit. I’m personally going to have to find out whether whatever I got in Chemistry, Math, and English will be good enough for me to skip first year courses in those three areas (which usually means I’d need a level 6 or 7). I really don’t feel like doing English or Math (specifically, Calculus) anymore.

People say IB kids end up with no social lives due to the large amounts of homework and labs we have to do, but I can testify to quite the opposite. I really don’t think my life has been particularly difficult or packed by IB stuff, be it with homework, assignments, lab reports, essays, or whatever the teachers feel like throwing at us, and I didn’t even skimp too much on doing the optional work. It’s not as bad as some people will have you think. I think people in IB like to hyperbolize about their workload or the studying they just have to do mostly to be self-important. I know IB kids who get those magical level 7’s (i.e. perfect score in IB) with little to no effort and kids who get the same or worse with days (or you know, weeks and months) of studying and wrecked social lives.  Like with anything, there’s natural talent or exceeding sponginess versus solid studying or needed diligence to account for lack thereof. Of course, there are also smart people who also work hard, so yeah, those are there too but most people (who do well at least) are either one or the other.

Of all the exams this year and last (I had standard Economics and French exams last year), I’d say the easiest one had to be, surprisingly enough, Chemistry–known to usually be absolutely the worst exam ever. As for difficulty for me, it would have been Math hands down, while puking blood, and having someone kicking me in the nuts, but not having had food in days, and then one guy is punching your soul in the face. Something like that. Actually, if it weren’t for the advanced Calculus P3 and one or two befuddling questions in P1 and P2, Math wasn’t all that bad either. Again, none of them were particularly challenging as wholes, but it’s just one or two stellar “What do I do?!” questions.

I studied the most for last year’s French exam of all  of my exams and the least (next to none) for Biology–not because I thought I wouldn’t need to (which is more than slightly arrogant), but other stuff came up and I figured sleep would benefit me better than cramming, which never works for me anyway. I am actually undecided whether I should be overjoyed that with a bit of focused review I could do as decent as I think I did, or severely concerned about my complete lack of “proper” study habits. I’m leaning for the former, since I’d much rather sing my didn’t and dance my did.

All in all, it’s been an interesting past four years and I sure am glad I stuck with what I chose. I don’t know how much “real” advantage doing IB has given/will give me over the average OSSD student, but I can’t imagine that it’ll be a huge deal now and especially not in a year or two. I’m glad for having gone into this program, because if I hadn’t I wouldn’t have made the wacky friends I have or been exposed to the same kind of atmosphere elsewhere. Without comparison to people in the normal branches of schooling, I think most people if not everyone (myself included of course) in Victoria Park’s IB class of 2008 are freaks and quirky characters, and even though I definitely wouldn’t say I got on with all or even a lot of them, I’m still rather enthused at having met the people I have. I’m going to stop here before I get all e-sentimental or e-incriminating.

And just to spite you regular  TDSB students, I’m going to be having the greatest week and half with a promising early vacation starting promptly after Amy’s Physics exam while you pitiable souls languish in your schooling for one more grueling, painful month and some. Enjoy, because I know I will.