Saturday 15 December 2012

HSC Results Countdown

13 years of schooling as led up to this. How exciting. 

I've been asked several times whether or not I'm nervous and honestly, I'm not. I've worked this year the hardest I have ever worked in my life and I'm not desperately hoping for a 99.95 ATAR or for all my subjects to be Band 6. Instead, I'm anxious in anticipation. One of my great flaws is my impatience. I can't stand waiting, so I've been occupying my days with:

Work:
I've been working a lot recently, saving up for my future exchange overseas which costs a whopping 26k. While I'm not fond of work, it has kept me sane and has stopped me from going crazy in waiting for my results.

Movies & Television Shows:
Perks was amazing. I loved the book and I was pleasantly surprised to how it translated into film. I did think Emma Watson's performance was weak, but Ezra Miller and Logan Lerman were amazing. The movie fleshed out Patrick's character more and I'm so glad it did because there was a lot of potential within it. I would have liked more background on Charlie (ie. more on his late best friend) but how they portrayed his relationship with Aunt Helen was subtle and chilling.

With Pitch Perfect, Rebel Wilson stole the show. Overall, it was a fun, cute and hilarious movie.

Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind was so lovely and evocative. It made me wonder so much about fate and love and I have so much respect for Jim Carrey (who was in The Truman Show and I Love You Phillip Morris which I both adore) and Kate Winslet.

Skyfall was the first James Bond movie I ever watched and it was exciting. I don't really have much to say about it except that Q is a qt.

Misfits seasons 4 has been a let down so far this season (I'm only up to episode 6) but Rudy is forever wonderful.

I like this season of American Horror Story more than the last one. It's more gritty, shocking and less focused on tenuous relationships I don't care about. Spoiler: highlight to see (holy crap Zachary Quinto is such an amazing actor. The huge twist at the end of I am Anne Frank part 2 was so frightening, god DAMN. I loved how the apartment scene portrayed, that is one freaky lamp.)

Books:
I bought 1Q84 during late 2011 and it was only after the HSC that I have gotten the chance to read it. I might make a separate post for it but I'll just say that it was a really interesting and thought provoking novel. Like a lot of Murakami novels, much is left up to the reader to decipher, but if you want something action packed, more so than The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle, 1Q84 is for you.

I re-read The Door Into Summer and while I'm usually not a fan of sci-fi novels, this has got to be one of my favourite books. It's hilarious and well paced and is a prime example of where one should not judge a book by its cover.


That's about it from me. I hope all my fellow school leavers receive the marks that they're hoping for and good luck to the current year 12s.

Monday 10 December 2012

6 days of freedom in Kiama.

Between the 22nd and 28th of November, 6 friends and I stayed for almost a week down south in Kiama and let me tell you, it was one of the most liberating, relaxing experiences of my life.

The house contained 3 bedrooms (2 double beds and 2 bunk beds) and was four minutes from the beach.

The sunset was well worth waking up at 5am for. I don't think I have ever properly watched the sun rise in my life, certainly not during my time in Sydney, so it was quite a surreal experience. A perfect time to be inundated with existential questions and dilemmas of what is life and how different the world can be a few hours from a major city.


Whenever asked about what I did in Kiama, the truth of 'going to the beach' and 'cooking' never sounds interesting. However, the fact that I was there with the people that I loved made the whole trip exciting enough for me.

We made a blanket and pillow fort and played cards, watched V for Vendetta and ate ice cream inside it.

We also took plenty of walks, one time which we came across a group of elderly ladies with several dogs. They were so cute and the large white one was so friendly, it wouldn't leave us ;~;. Additionally, we climbed over a lot of rocks to get near the edge of a cliff. Frightening stuff, especially when it began to rain.


The move list: (underlined are the ones I slept through partially or wholly)
The Descent 2 (horrible, terrible, etc.)
We Need To Talk About Kevin
Rosemary's Baby (i really wish i didn't fall asleep, it seemed like my kind of movie)
Treasure Planet
Finding Nemo
Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone
Zombieland
Kill Bill 1, Kill Bill 2
The Fountain
V for Vendetta
Snatch.
Get Him To The Greek

Overall, it was the most fun that I have had in awhile, making the whole ordeal of the HSC beforehand so minuscule. But never mind that, HSC results come out in a week. The relaxation within my life will soon be gone. Oh well, there's always Kiama.