melsnowbelle's Xanga

Tuesday, October 21, 2003

Tue, 21 Oct 2003 08:31:49 GMT

Margaret (Mardy) Murie 1902-2003

Beauty is a resource in and of itself. Alaska must be allowed to be Alaska. That is her greatest economy. I hope the United States of America is not so rich that she can afford to let these wildernesses pass by. Or so poor, she cannot afford to keep them."

Mardy Murie

Yesterday the world lost a very inspiring and hard working person.When I first learnt about Mardy and Olaus I was in awe at how they started their life together and what they had achieved.Theirs was a true love, not only for each other but also for the Alaskan wilderness.What is even more inspiring is how Mardy kept working after the sad loss of her beloved Olaus.

She has shown us what one person can do to make a difference and make this world a better place.

Rest in Peace

http://www.muriecenter.org/mardy100.htm

Monday, March 10, 2003

Mon, 10 Mar 2003 02:44:13 GMT

Why I’m not Anti-American and why I despise that word

Last Saturday I was browsing through a local antique shop looking for a present for my Dad’s 50^th birthday when I spotted a book on American history. I knew I had to have this book, as I love anything to do with history. When I was purchasing this book, the store-owner said to me "I’m really anti-American at the moment". I normally would have questioned his reasoning behind this comment, but because I was running late, I didn’t have enough time. Driving home, I began thinking about the man’s opinion and how vehemently I disagree with his views. "Is that what it is?" I thought. "Anti Americanism?" In a world where US films, music and books are in every imaginable place, even those of us who oppose President Bush celebrate a great deal that is American. No, the world’s relationship with the US is not fundamentally anti-American. Many of my hero’s are American, such as JFK. Through my love of movies, I idolise the genius of Welles, Ford and Capra. My love affair with American music runs deeply through my veins in the form of John Denver. I respond to the great Woody Guthrie song "This Land Is Your Land" like a native-born American. And I always thrill to the symbolism of France’s great gift to the US, The Statue of Liberty.

Anti-American? I envy America’s Bill of Rights and the freedoms guaranteed in its constitution. My view of the US has never really changed. It is this: America sets the most noble and the most awful examples in almost every sphere of human activity. In segregation, the aftermath of the crime of slavery, we have America at its most appalling. But in the civil rights movement, we have the US at its most inspirational. I have an immense respect and affection for what’s best in America – in its ideals and its history. But I fear and deride what’s happening to the US these days, what the US is doing to the world, and sadly, to itself.

Are we to describe those Americans who oppose Bush as Anti-American? Of course not, however Bush might use the term "un-American". We’re in the era of "You’re with us or you’re against us", and that term is used to slander anyone who doesn’t agree with the policies of the current administration, no matter how insane they are.

I’m sure sometimes we might wish that American mass culture didn’t extend to the way we dress, what we eat and our own policies. On the other hand, we recognise the great generosity of spirit within the American people – immensely useful in rolling back the ideologies of the Soviet Union. But this was done through inspiration, not invasion. Sometimes I think it would be more positive if US power and influence was counter-balanced by the views and values of others, such as a more-powerful Europe.

It’s no more anti-American to oppose the Bush administration than it is anti-Semitic to oppose Sharon. Just as I support those Israeli’s who oppose Sharon (because of his long history with brutalities), I support those Americans who oppose Bush. Which makes me pro-Israel and pro-American, but selectively so. Anti-American? Certainly not. Anti-administration? Absolutely. Anyone who can’t see the difference is an idiot – or a US ambassador.

Friday, February 21, 2003

Fri, 21 Feb 2003 04:55:56 GMT

Teaching and Poofy-Doo

I just had my first day of casual teaching today. Yeah!! It was so much fun. I had Year 7, 8 and 9 Science and Year 7 Art. One of the Year 7 boys said to me today "Why arn't you really stern with us like all the other teachers are?". "That's not my style" I replied. And then the boy commented "I like your style". Made me feel really nice

Every teacher i've known has catch phrases, or words that they use alot. I've been trying to think of a few catch phrases that would be uniquely mine and this is what i've come up with:

Poofy-Doo
Princess Puffball
Snafu (something that goes wrong)
Willy-Nilly
Widget
Giggly-Poos
SAW-REE!
You've got money, honey!
The bathwater along with the baby
Shmoozing
Wishy-Washy
Ok, beauty school is over. (starts singing Beauty School Drop Out)
The hostest of the mostest
Nobody doesn't like Sara Lee!
Sure join the parade!
(sings) R-E-S-P-E-C-T!!
BLLLEEEHHH!!
(sings) We are the world! We are the children!
My Bad!!
Let's have a whispering contest!
Who wants cake?

No really, who does want cake? What type of cake do you want?

(Animations courtesy of Pepsiluver)

Sunday, February 02, 2003

Sun, 02 Feb 2003 22:50:56 GMT

Time for a few smiles I posted this a long time ago, and thought i'd re-post it for the pleasure of my viewing public. Enjoy

What If Food Was Dirty And Sex Was Clean?

When you think of it, there are only two things you need to make people. You got to have sex. You got to have food. That's it. You don't need clothing, shelter, or TV. Okay, maybe TV, but otherwise it's sex and food. But for some reason sex is dirty.

Somebody said, "Alright, you want to propagate, go ahead, but only late at night, with all the doors closed, man on top, once a week, that's it." But not only can you eat the charred decaying flesh of other major mammals, you can do it in broad daylight and invite all your friends to watch: "Hey, Chuck, why don't you come over on Sunday? We're going to kill a pig, cut him up, burn him, and eat him. Bring the kids, have a hell of a time."

What if they had been switched around? What if, through a simple twist of fate, sex was clean but food was dirty? Our entire culture would change. Food would become a four-letter word.

When people got angry at you, they'd yell out "Oh yeah? Well, food you! Suck cheese you Popsicle slurper."

Punks in passing cars would flip you the fork.

Flashers would have pizzas strapped to their chests. "Ohmigod! It's a pepperoni."

Locker room talk would change. "Hey, man, how'd you do this weekend?" "Two burgers and a bag of fries. Crinkle cut."

Supermarkets would check I.D.'s and charge admission to the poultry section.

Foreplay would be listed as a menu selection.

The police would conduct raids on backyard barbecues. "All right, put down your meat. Just back away from the buns, mister."

Hookers would become cooks. You'd be accosted on street corners by plump ladies in Day-Glo aprons. "Hey, big boy, looking for a hot meal? Wanna crack some crab?"

Many sexual positions would be found to be carcinogenic.

Parents would tell their children not to play with their food or they'll go blind. And we would all remember the first time our mother caught us marinating.

In other news, i'm beginning falling in love with my boyfriend's best friend. He's leaving Australia to go to England in 3 months time. He'll be over there for at least a year. What a typically Melanie thing to do!!

Mel's Household Hint #10 - Sick of that "doggy" smell in rugs and furniture? For a fast, effective remedy, try cat vomit.

Saturday, February 01, 2003

Sat, 01 Feb 2003 23:21:11 GMT

We shall never forget....

Seated in front are astronauts Rick D. Husband (left), mission commander; Kalpana Chawla, mission specialist; and William C. McCool, pilot. Standing are (from the left} astronauts David M. Brown, Laurel B. Clark, and Michael P. Anderson, all mission specialists; and Ilan Ramon, payload specialist representing the Israeli Space Agency.

In 1986 John Denver was one of the three candidates to be a member of the crew of the Space Shuttle Challenger. President Reagan choose teacher Christa McAuliffe to go.
John's beautiful memorial song, "Flying For Me", expressed his deep admiration for the Challenger crew.

Today I dedicate it to those courageous hero's aboard Columbia

"FLYING FOR ME"

Well, I guess that you probably know by now
I was one who wanted to fly
I wanted to ride on that arrow of fire right up into heaven
And I wanted to go for every man, every child, every mother of children
I wanted to carry the dreams of all people right up to the stars

And I prayed that I'd find an answer there
Or maybe I would find the song
Giving a voice to all of the hearts that can not be heard
And for all of the ones who live in fear
And all of those who stand apart
My being there would bring us a little step closer together

They were flying for me, they were flying for everyone
They were trying to see, a brighter day for each and everyone
They gave us their light, they gave us their spirit, and all they could be
They were flying for me

And I wanted to wish on the Milky Way and dance upon the falling star
I wanted to give myself, and free myself, enjoin myself with it all!
Given the chance to dream, it can be done
The promise of tomorrow is real
Children of spaceship Earth, the future belongs to us all

She was flying for me, she was flying for everyone
She was trying to see, a brighter day for each and everyone
She gave us her light, she gave us her spirit, and all she could be
She was flying for me

They were flying for me, they were flying for everyone
They were trying to see, a brighter day for each and everyone
They gave us their light, they gave us their spirit, and all they could be
They were flying for me

Friday, January 31, 2003

Fri, 31 Jan 2003 04:03:55 GMT

How to tell if you're Australian!

If you're Australian...

You know hardly anything about the Constitution and what it actually contains. Before the whole republic thing, you may not have even known it existed.
You're familiar with Neighbours, Home and Away, Playschool, A Country Practice, Norman Gunston, Barry Humphries, Blue Heelers, Ray Martin, Bert Newton, Lisa McCune, Jon Burgess, Number 96, Molly Meldrum, Kerry O'Brien, and of course, Kerry Packer and Rupert Murdoch.
You can't remember past the second line of your national anthem, let alone the second verse . . .
Whether you're male or female, you watch a lot of sport. You watch the cricket, and support your footy team... which code is best is a matter of controversy and depends on your upbringing. You can be sure that the contest is between League, AFL, and maybe Union-- none of these fancy Northern Hemisphere games, like soccer or gridiron.
Snow is always a memorable and freakish occurrence.

The Rine in Spine faws minely on the Pline

"Australian" is pronounced with one syllable.
You can't understand why overseas people who supposedly speak the same language have great difficulty comprehending you.
"Stubbies" are either short shorts or small beer bottles, a "drongo" or a "mug" is an idiot, someone in trouble is in "strife" and you're liable to burst out laughing whenever you hear of Americans "rooting" for something. . .
For some reason, -o is a popular ending for words: arvo, combo, garbo, kero, lezzo, metho, milko, muso, rego, Salvos, servo, smoko, speedo, etc.
Although you do say "g'day" and "mate", rarely would you ever say things such as "sheila", "cobber" or "dry as a dead dingo's donger".

His Excellency Sir What's-His-Name

The month comes second: 26/1/88. (And you know what happened on that date).
World War II was a fairly important time in history: the age-old Australian nightmare of invasion from Asia nearly came true. Granted, the US did save the day, but Churchill and Roosevelt could have been much faster and more concerned about us.
World War I was fairly important too; after all, we suffered the highest per capita death toll of any Allied nation. You think the Anzac spirit is still important, so long as the Kiwis don't win the sporting tests.
If a man has sex with another man, he's a homosexual, and, until recently, a criminal in Tasmania.
Once you're introduced to anyone (perhaps besides the Governor-General, but who is likely to meet him anyway?) you can call them by their first name.
You know who the first American President was, but not the first Australian Prime Minister. You don't really know what happened in Federation.
If a politician cheats on his wife (e.g. Bob Hawke), it has no bearing whatsoever on his ability to govern. After all, your nation was founded by criminals rather than Puritans.

Aussie Aussie Aussie! Oi! Oi! Oi!

You are proud of exports such as Geoffrey Rush, Peter Weir, Barry Humphries (a.k.a. Dame Edna Everage); Paul Hogan, Nicole Kidman (her marriage break-up is still front page news), Cate Blanchett, Baz Luhrman, Olivia Newton-John, ACDC, John Farnham, etc. Even so, you still are suspicious of terms like "Australian culture".
Your country has never been conquered by a foreign nation (you don't count 1788).
You measure things in metres, kilograms and litres, unless you are over about 50.
New Zealanders are basically our naive country cousins, who talk funny and for some bizzare reason, think that they invented pavlova. They are to be pitied and laughed at. They have no hope of gaining the upper hand in the endless sporting rivalry between our two nations.
The nationality people joke most about is the Kiwis (New Zealanders), particularly their fush-and-chups accents and their sheep.
There's parts of the city you probably want to avoid at night.

Out past Woop-Woop

Christmas is right on the summer solstice and is quite often the hottest day of the year. You spend it with your family, give presents, and put up a tree. Your decorations still feature sleighs and snowflakes. You send people cards with pictures of White Christmases. There is nothing unusual in having Christmas dinner outdoors.
Sydney 2000 was a wonderful opportunity to show the world (a) that we are the greatest sporting nation on Earth; and (b) that we do have flushing toilets. But everyone will forget about it within months.

Tuesday, January 28, 2003

Tue, 28 Jan 2003 03:04:19 GMT

Hi ho, hi ho, it’s back to school I go.....

School starts back in two days time, so tomorrow i’ll be going around to all the high schools in my area and putting my name down for some casual teaching. There’s a big shortage of casual teachers in NSW, so hopefully i’ll get lots of work. And the pay is excellent - i’ll get $212 a day, and if I get work 5 days a week, that’s $1000! I can’t wait to start working, but i’m not expecting to get work in the first couple of weeks, as most permanent teachers shouldn’t have much time off then.

I stole this from some enchanting person

10 Things I Have Done

1. I have played the guitar for 4 years.

2. I have broken my arm. Twice. And my little finger.

3. I have been to 4 Australian states (New South Wales, Victoria, Queensland and Tasmania) and 1 Territory (Australian Capital Territory).

4. I have been skinny dipping before.

5. I have eaten a dog biscuit.

6. I have been snow skiing.

7. I have seen Dolphins and Whales in the wild.

8. I have kissed a teacher for a dare while I was a student.

9. I have been the goalie for my soccer team in primary school and was the only girl on the team.

10. I have got kicked out of class once (Year 9 English - for telling a joke, which the teacher apparently did not find funny, but I found hilarious)

10 Things I Have Never Done

1. I have never gone out with someone younger than me.

2. I have never had anything pierced.

3. I have never had a one night stand.

4. I have never been out of Australia.

5. I have never smoked.

6. I have never eaten veal, pork, bacon, ham, lobster, squid, kangaroo, crab or oysters (And never will).

7. I have never been scuba or sky diving.

8. I have never failed a test or a class at school or uni.

9. I have never text messaged someone on my mobile.

10. I have never driven a manual car.

In answer to the question asked on my last blog: How do I know Mark and Julie?

I knew and met Mark and Julie before Xanga. In 2001 they posted an ad on a John Denver internet site asking if any other John Denver fans would like to come to an Australian gathering to celebrate the life and music of John. Well, I answered it, and went to the 1st Australian gathering of John Denver lovers, where we first met.

I actually stumbled upon Xanga one day through Mark and Julie. I couldn’t remember the website address of the Australian John Denver club they formed, so I went to Google, typed in Mark & Julie & John Denver, and up popped a site called Xanga. When I asked Mark and Julie about it, they suggested I join too, and I did! So, if I had never of answered that ad calling for Aussie John Denver fans, I wouldn’t be here!

Mel's Household Hint #9

Trying to attract a man but fresh out of pheromones? Try wearing a box of doughnuts on your head.

Thursday, January 23, 2003

Thu, 23 Jan 2003 00:53:01 GMT

Day 4

This day was filled with shopping, shopping and more shopping in a suburb of Melbourne called St. Kilda. They have lots of antique shops, which I really enjoyed looking through. They also had many hookers, just standing on street corners at 11 in the morning. I guess they've got to earn a living somehow. We also went to Crown casino at night, and I lost $50. At one stage I was ahead $70, but then lost it all on roulette

Day 5

Today was another touristy day. We first went to St. Kilda beach. I use the term "beach" very loosely here. The width of the sand was about 5m, while the weather in Melbourne is rarely hot enough to go to the 5 metres of sand. They're nothing like New South Wales beaches, such as Bondi Beach.

Photo of random people frolicking with their dogs on the "beach".

We also went to Luna Park, which is a famous amusement park in St. Kilda. It was so much fun, except I felt a little icky after going on a ride called "G Force". I'm just glad I had lunch after that ride, and not before

We also went to the Royal Botanic Gardens, Myer Music Bowl (where they hold concerts), Shrine of Rememberance and Captain Cooks Cottage.

That night we went out to dinner with Mark and Julie, and heard one of their friend's sing and play guitar. She was really amazing!! She's got such a strong voice and sounds exactly like the lead singer of 4 Non Blondes.

(Julie, Mark, Sunburnt Me and Patrick)

Everybody saw awe! Don't they make such a cute couple

Day 6

Today we went shopping with Mark and Julie to the biggest shopping centre in the Southern Hemisphere. It was so big it actually went over the top of the highway!

That night we went on a night tour of Old Melbourne Jail, (or Gaol to us Aussies ), which is now closed. Our tour guide pretended to be a warden from 1901, and it was all very realistic. The only scary part was that we had to wear silence masks made out of calico, and they smelt like they hadn't been washed in 20 years

Melbourne Gaol was the place Ned Kelly was hung on 11th November 1880 (Exactly 100 years before my birthday). Here's a photo of me dressing up like Ned Kelly. The sign said "Hey Kids, Dress Up Like Ned Kelly". Of course, I had to do it. It was actually very heavy and as you can see, the helmet was too big for me.

Day 7

We left Melbourne and began our drive home on the Princes Highway, which runs along the coast of Victoria and NSW. Before leaving we stopped by Mark and Julie's house to say goodbye and say hello to their bundle of joy.

That night we stayed in a beautiful place called Lakes Entrance. I could really live at this place!!

After two more day's travelling we finally reached home.

And that concludes Melanie's Marvellous Melbourne Trip. Hope you all enjoyed it

Sunday, January 19, 2003

Sun, 19 Jan 2003 06:39:10 GMT

Melbourne Trip - Day 3

Consisted mainly of shopping and touristy things, all of which were lots of fun. First we went shopping in Bourke Street Mall, where I bought some jeans and a shirt. They were on sale, how could I resist?

After our shopping frenzy we went and checked out some of Melbournes famous landmarks, such as Flinders Street Station, which is an amazingly beautiful train station.

We also went to Saint Paul's Cathedral, which was just breathtaking inside, as you can see from the photo below.

Next stop was Federation Square, which only opened last year. Federation Square is now a major landmark of Melbourne, bringing together a creative mix of attractions and public open space. It had an amazing art gallery and an interactive show by The Australian Centre for Moving Arts. This show involved exhibits which used moving images as their art, such as one exhibit called "Tall Ships", which involved you going into a dark room, while images of people were projected onto the walls. On the floor were sensors, so the closer you got to the walls the closer the images were to you. It gave the people a "ghostly" appearance.

After that fantastic place, we walked down to the Yarra River, which runs right through the heart of Melbourne. It's known for rowing tournaments and being really unpolluted. Not! Here's me on the banks of the river. Really, how big do my breasts look in this photo? For some reasons they look bigger than normal. Maybe I was feeling a little chilly.

Next stop, the Rialto Tower, which has an observatory on the top floor. It gives you a 360 degree view of the entire city. Here's a photo of Crown Casino, which is were we went on Thursday night.

That night we were fairly tired from all the walking around, so we had a break and then went to the Queen Victoria Night Markets. Its major focus is on food and entertainment. About 20 food hawkers provide a culturally rich and diverse range of take-away foods including African, Mexican. Spanish, Malaysian, Indian and Middle Eastern street food.

The Market also includes a specialised health, wellbeing and new age section offering tarot readings, spirit guide drawers, massage and a range of alternative health ideas.

To be continued once again.....

Have a wonderful weekend everyone. Peace and love

Thursday, January 16, 2003

Thu, 16 Jan 2003 00:20:52 GMT

Hi everyone. As you can see, i'm back, and my trip to Melbourne was absolutely fantastic.

Day 1

We left Maitland, NSW at 7.00am and started on our 11 hour driving trip to Melbourne, Victoria. It took us about 2 hours to drive to Sydney and then we got onto the Hume Highway, which would take us straight to Melbourne. We drove through towns such as Bowral, Goulburn and Yass. We stopped at Yass McDonald's for lunch and I actually got lost in the McDonald's. Hey, it was a big MacDonald's Ok!

We also went through a town called Gundagai, which is famous for "The Dog on the Tucker Box". Here's a photo of me and the cute doggie.

We kept driving until we reached a town called Albury, which is on the NSW and Victorian border. We decided to stay there overnight as we had already driven 8 hours that day.

Day 2

We left Albury at 9am for our 3 hour trip to Melbourne. We ended up getting to our apartment at 2pm, after stopping for lunch and getting stuck in some traffic.

One of the things Melbourne is famous for is their trams, which I absolutely fell in love with. Here's a photo of the first tram that we seen driving into Melbourne.

Once we got settled into our apartment, we went for a walk around the Melbourne CBD and got aquainted with the area. We did a little bit of shopping before going to the Hard Rock Cafe for dinner.

To be continued.......

Peace and love everyone