Third Book Review: Fahrenheit 451

Hey guys!

Aaaaww yeah, another book review is coming up! Actually, this is not really a book review as I have not finished reading the book yet but I am going to tell you what this book is about until page 85. 

Book cover

Fahrenheit 451 was written by Ray Bradbury sixty years ago and is considered "a classic of world literature set in bleak, dystopian future". I actually did not plan to buy the book but when I saw the cover and read the first page, I was like "hm, I think I should read that piece". As university is pretty exhausting right now I don't have too much time to spend with reading.

The story is all about Guy Montag who is a fireman. The duty of firemen in this book is not to extinguish fire but to start it in any household where they can find books. Books are considered to make manhood unhappy because they are maybe written in the future (but people live in the here and now) or they are fantasy novels (unicorns are not real. One cannot own a unicorn = making people unhappy). Guy Montag believes in his duty and also thinks that what he does must be done. Everything changes when he meets a 17-year old girl named Clarisse. 

Ray Bradbury

I am definitely not going to tell you what happens next (oh yes. I'm only on page 85 and I know already. Get started to read it!!). 

The book was turned into a movie in 1966. I have not seen it yet (I haven't finished the book, remember?) but I am totally sure that I'm going to watch it as soon as I finished the book. I would like to know how the director of the movie shows firemen and I also want to know what Guy Montag looks like!!



I hope you are now interested in reading 'Fahrenheit 451'. Maybe you have already read it? What do you think about it? Leave a comment!

and..


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U*k*u*l*e*l*e ♥♥

Hey guys!


I think I'm overposting, again and not for the first time, but I think I found a really nice topic to write about: MY NEW UKULELE!

A few posts earlier I told you that I turned twenty, right? As I was very clumsy in trying to play the guitar, my boyfriend bought an ukulele for me. On the right hand side you can see a photo I took. Its colour is purple, it looks kind of blue on the photo. I added the stars and the shamrock :)

I really enjoy learning how to play the ukulele. It is SO much easier than playing the guitar because it only has four strings and the chords are SO easy to strum! I was thinking about giving the ukulele a name but there was no name that came to my mind which satisfied me. I think it just needs an AWESOME name. I'm not talking of "Lulu" :D It's not a good name for it even though it's Hawaiian.
On the left hand side you can see a photo of me with my ukulele. I adore that cute little thing!!! :)
I would love to be once able to play the ukulele like the guy in the video is. He's awesome. It must have been soo hard learning how to do this!!

Isn't this a beautiful piece of music? Isn't this a wonderful piece of art? I love listening to the sound of his ukulele. His is bigger than mine but I think it might be possible to try to play it on mine. Maybe when I'm really able to play the instrument I'll try how to play the Bohemian Rhapsody. Maybe. :)

But first, I'll stick to listening to this guy while he plays it :)

What do you think, do you like the sound of an ukulele or do you like the 'normal' sound of a guitar ? Do you like both? Tell me, leave a comment! :)

Keep reading! (:

Corrected Culture Topic Essay

Hey guys!

One post earlier I told you about our Culture Days. So, here you can read what I talked about during my presentation!


CHARLIE WILSON'S WAR

Humankind has always been fighting. Fighting for land, fighting for freedom, fighting for stability. War is a constant in human history. Whether in 333 in Issos or in the 1800s in America, mankind has never been reluctant to use force in order to fulfil its goals. When the Russian army invaded Afghanistan in 1979, the war between these two countries would soon become a cold war between Russia and the United States of America. The US wanted payback for the war in Vietnam, where Russia had “secretly” fought next to the Vietcong, providing weapons. The war between Afghanistan and Russia became a proxy war. The Cold War has had many heroes but there was one man who surpassed them all: Texas Congressman Charles Wilson.

Charles “Charlie” Wilson was a man who led a very eventful life. Born in 1933 in a small and conservative town called Trinity, Texas, he grew up as a devout Christian. This helped him to get elected to represent his district in the US Congress. Wilson was a man with many weaknesses of character. He loved women, alcohol -- mainly Scotch -- and he was accused of taking cocaine during a party in Las Vegas. However, in spite of these flaws he was a strong man who never broke his promises. In his last years he was known as “Can-Do Charlie” because he made it possible to beat Russia in Afghanistan by vastly increasing the budget of the American Defence Appropriations Committee. He was the first civilian to be honoured for his commitment by the CIA.

Russian soldiers invading Afghanistan was the start of a war Charlie Wilson would soon care about. Thousands of Afghan Muslims joined the Mujahideen, which was a guerrilla force. While Russia told the public that they had been invited by the government and were not invading the country, the Mujahideen declared a jihad – a holy war. First they were equipped with old rifles but America managed to play weapons into the hands of the Mujahideen. That was the turning point – the Mujahideen were finally able to defend themselves and their country successfully. According to Chris Trueman, a historian, the Russian Army used napalm, poison gas and helicopter gunships but they had to experience the same military scenario as the US had in Vietnam. The Mujahideen had proven to be a rough opponent for the Russians. Mikhail Gorbachev, Russia’s president at that time, had to withdraw the Russian troops when he realised that his army would not be able to win.

The woman who made Charlie Wilson confident about the war in Afghanistan was Joanne Herring. She was the sixth richest woman in Texas, very afraid of communism and had a very close relationship to him. In 1980, she contacted many influential people and tried to convince them that people in Afghanistan needed weapons urgently. Aside from that, she was sure that if Afghanistan lost the war, America would be next to be attacked. She was such a strong-willed person that Charlie Wilson was not able to say “No” when she informed him that she had organized a meeting between him and Pakistan’s president Zia. When Charlie flew to Pakistan, he also visited the big refugee camps with thousands of Afghans. All this pain and suffering touched him, so he made a decision.

He decided to contact the CIA. The man who was sent to him was Gust Avrakotos, a quick-tempered and confident man with a strong will, who would turn out to be his most important link to the CIA. With his help it was possible for Charlie Wilson to successfully make deals with the presidents of Israel and Pakistan. These two men promised to provide weapons so nobody could trace them back to the United States. This was necessary not to make a real war out of a cold war. When the Mujahideen were finally able to defend themselves they struck back hard and drove Russia out of their country. The CIA mission to supply Afghanistan was the most successful operation in CIA history. Making a big mistake, the United States stopped caring when the Russian troops were gone. That is why Charlie Wilson talked about having “fucked up the endgame” because they a the country that would have needed help to rebuild itself.

If Charlie Wilson had not been the confident and caring politician he was, the story might have ended differently. The Congressman and his commitment for another country in need remains unique up to this day. Although Charlie Wilson was a politician with weaknesses, he was the only Congressman to care enough to make a difference. This is what really impresses me especially because we live in a world where so many people have stopped caring about their fellow man.

I hope you like my essay! What do you think about it? Leave a comment! :)

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Culture Days @ ITAT, yeeeeha!

Hey guys!

Past monday and tuesday we, the students of SUK2, did presentations on topics chosen by us. I am going to post my Culture Project Paper after this post, don't worry, you'll be able to read it :)

We had to watch at least 10 presentations, 7 of our home culture and 3 of the foreign culture. (We have two teachers. One is Irish, one is American. I'm in a group taught by both of them, this is why our group does not really have a home culture.)

The presentations I watched were:

• F.Scott Fitzgerald's Masterpiece: The Great Gatsby
• The reinventions of Malcolm X
• David Norris and LGBT rights
• Obama's drone war on terrorism and how it's reflected by arts and hollywood
• As American as smoking pot
• Ellis Island: The cradle of immigration to America
• Media violence in America
• Boston Tea Party
• Earnest Hemingway
• Captain America and Propaganda
• Black Power Movement Mexico Olympics
• Is Irish a dying language?
• Comparison of the Irish and Austrian Educational System

#1 The Great Gatsby

The presenter was Verena Belsky. The Great Gatsby is a novel published by F.Scott Fitzgerald in 1925. He lived with his wife Zelda (OH YES. Zelda - The Legend of Zelda! – That way at least the first thing I thought about when hearing the name :D) I NEEDED to tell you that fact because it was my favourite fact of the presentation :) I think Verena did a good job. She spoke loudly, slowly and understandable. It was noticeable that she was really interested in her topic what made it somehow more interesting to watch!

#2 The reinventions of Malcolm X

The presenter was Sarah Konrad. When I heard about the title of her presentation I had no clue what to expect. This is why I actually watched it. I didn’t know that Malcolm X had had numerous ‘identities’. My favourite fact of her presentation: He was once called ‘Detroit Red’ (Seriously?) and also El-Hajj Malik El-Shabazz. I think changing the identity, convictions and attitudes several times is a bit…hm, how should I express it…strange is a good word I think. I mean, no offence, I think he was a great man. The presentation was very interesting. Sarah also did a good job. Her Prezi (OMG I love Prezi!!!) was very well- structured. She spoke loudly, freely, understandable und slowly. I really liked her presentation!

#3 David Norris and LGBT rights
Actually, I hadn’t planned on watching this presentation but I happened to be still in the presentation room when she started to talk so I decided to stay and watch. The presenter was Katharina Luttenberger. I think her topic is very interesting because it’s very popular right now. (Conchita Wurst won the Eurovison Song Contest, but I think most of you know that, don’t you?) Katharina also did a good job, but I think she shouldn’t be sooo nervous. (Even if I think that I was really really nervous too when standing in front of all the students and talking about my Culture Topic.) She sometimes lost the thread and didn’t really know how to end a sentence and stuff like that. Fun Fact: She talked and talked and forgot to start the presentation. It was really funny because she was so enthusiastic when she talked that she just didn’t notice that she forgot completely about her PowerPoint presentation J All in all I think she did a good job J

#4 Obama's drone war on terrorism and how it's reflected by arts and Hollywood
The presenter was Jennifer Mächtlen. I think she did a really good job. She spoke absolutely free and had almost no text on her presentation. It was noticeable that she was interested in her topic and showed enthusiasm. She spoke loudly and clearly. I enjoyed watching her presentation. My favourite fact was that the issue of drones was discussed in the movie “Captain America: the winter soldier”. It’s not a fun fact, it’s just an interesting one J

#5 As American as smoking pot
The presenter was Szilveszter Szentes. I really liked his presentation because it is also a big topic in Austria (at least I think so). In my view he also did a good job in presenting his topic, although he was talking a bit quietly. My favourite fact of his presentation was that smoking pot was a symbol of rebellion during the sixties. I know that many many hippies took acid and this is why I think it’s interesting that pot was a symbol of rebellion. The presentation was well-structured.

#6 Ellis Island: The cradle of immigration to America
The presenter was Magdalena Prpic. I liked her presentation, but there were pictures covering some parts of the text of her presentation and I think she should have checked this! She was talking a bit quietly but I was able to understand her very well, though. Her presentation was very interesting for me because I didn’t know very much about Ellis Island. I am sorry to tell you that I didn’t find a favourite fact! If one comes to my mind later, I am going to update my post instantly ;)

#7 Media violence in America
The presenter was Lili Hegyi. I think she did a good job in presenting her Culture Topic. It was very interesting and I really liked the movie scene of ‘Pulp Fiction’ that she showed us. (‘I shot Marvin in the face’ ‘Why would you do that?!’) What can be improved is maybe that she shouldn’t smash the keys of the keyboard like she did. She was obviously interested in her topic and I really enjoyed watching her presentation. My favourite part of the presentation was the video she showed us (you might have guessed that :D).

#8 Boston Tea Party
The presenter was Lucinda Von Teichmeister. I absolutely liked her presentation because she had a very awesome prezi (and OMG I love Prezi!!). It looked like a newspaper article. For me her presentation was very interesting because I have heard the name ‘Boston Tea Party’ sooo often but I never knew what the whole thing really was about. My favourite fact was that tea worth of a million (or a billion?) dollars was thrown into the waters. I mean…it’s kind of funny, right? Or maybe it’s just me having a strange humour, who knows J

#9 Earnest Hemingway

The presenter was Jerneja Lojen. I liked her presentation because I got the feeling that she is an expert when it comes to Hemingway. She talked loudly and freely. My favourite fact was that Hemingway once said ‘The first draft of anything is shit’. It is an awesome quote, isn’t it?? And…actually, I think he was right. The PowerPoint was also nice.

#10 Captain America and Propaganda
The presenter was Anais Auger. What I liked most about her presentation was that she was wearing a Captain America t-shirt. I just thought that she had to know what she was talking about because it was obvious that she was a fan J Sometimes it was a bit hard to understand what she was saying and I had problems with following her. Maybe she should talk a bit more clearly and more slowly next time J

#11 Black Power Movement Mexico Olympics
The presenter was Eva Haider. I think that she did a good job in presenting her culture topic. I liked her PowerPoint presentation and she spoke loudly, freely and I had no problems in understanding her. There was only one thing that was not ‘perfect’ – her pronunciation of the word ‘Gesture’, but I really think that this mistake is not too bad!! J There is no favourite fact I could tell you about now, but there is one photo I really liked. Go to GOOGLE and tipe in “black power movement Olympics”. The photo I mean is the one with the two guys holding up their fists.

#12 Is Irish a dying language?
The presenter was Nina Mikusch. She was a bit nervous but I think she has such a likeable look that it just didn’t seem to be really so hard for her to talk in front of people. (Actually, I might be wrong. If you read this and you don’t think so, I am sorry and I think that I misinterpreted something. J )I do not have a favourite fact, but her presentation was really interesting because I didn’t know like anything about Irish!

#13 Comparison of the Irish and Austrian Educational System
The presenter was Simone Wohlkinger. I think that her presentation would have been sooo much better if she hadn’t been soooo nervous. Her topic was really interesting, but she was talking a bit quietly and even turned away from us while talking  (showed us her back) what made it hard to understand what she was saying. I think she should improve holding eye contact while talking. What could be also improved is that she was either looking at her notes in her hands, the screen or the wall behind her.

I really liked our culture days because I learned so much about….like, everything! J I hope I could pass on some good information to you guys!

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Correction of my report

Hey guys!
A few weeks ago we had to write a report about a health-based topic. I decided to write about a vet's office.
What follows is the corrected version of my report!

Introduction

This report provides a summary of the findings of a customer satisfaction survey which was carried out over a four-week period during which the owners of the animals were questioned. The survey consisted of 150 evaluation forms as well as 20 face-to-face interviews with the owners of the animal patients. While the survey showed overall satisfaction with the premises and the vet, there were serious issues raised regarding the behaviour of the rest of the staff.

Premises
In general, the questioned people praised the premises for being light-flooded and having an appropriate size. The waiting room was felt to be big enough. There were similar results with regard to the treatment room. The cleanliness of the premises was also praised.

The vet

People's overall impression of the vet was very good. They praised her for being very pleasant and friendly and also appreciated her ability to remain calm in stressful situations. It was felt that the doctor truly cared about every animal and was not only doing a job. The owners questioned were also pleased by the doctor remembering their names.

The rest of the staff

One serious issue which emerged from owner responses was the rest of the staff being impatient and unfriendly. Several customers complained about having been left waiting for ten minutes or more while the receptionist kept talking on her private mobile phone.They felt this was not at all professional behaviour.

Recommendations

It is clear that certain points need to be addressed. I would strongl recommend banning private mobile phones from work in order to avoid situations like the one mentioned above. It is also essential to inform the receptionist about her impolite behaviour and is she does not see a reason to change it, the vet should consider employing another receptionist.





I hope you like my report!




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PC 1: corrected writing task

Hey guys!

I totally forgot to post the corrected version of my writing task of PC1. So...here it is!

The most extraordinary restaurant serving typical Austrian dishes I have ever been to is 'Gasthaus Derflers' in my hometown, Ternberg, situated in Upper Austria. I went there with my boyfriend a few years ago. When we got in we were able to smell a wide range of odours and I got peckish instantly. Since everything was new at that time we could also smell that 'new-furniture smell' mixed with Schnitzel which is one of Autrias most known dishes,chocolate and cigarette smoke.

I can highly recommend ordering a garlic cream soup as a starter. I did and I was really satisfied. It was the best choice I could have made. The soup had a really smooth and creamy texture and was very well-seasoned. I was able to taste many herbs and I really like it when I can taste herbs in soups. My main course was 'Kaiserschmarrn'. If I were you, I would try it too. It was the best Kaiserschmarrn I have ever eaten! I do not know what kind of magician their cook is, the only thing I know is that his creations tasted like heaven. You should definitely not leave Austria without having tried Kaiserschmarrn at Gasthaus Derflers!

The staff is very nice and I am sure you will love the delightful atmosphere there. As the restaurant is normally booked out in the evening you're best going there around noon. I hope you will spend such a nice time there like I did! 



Sooo...this was my writing task of PC1 :)


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20 - finally!

Hey guys!

I'm pretty sure nobody of you knew but I turned twenty this weekend. I wasn't having a big party or something but my boyfriend and me attended a tiny festival in Upper Austria. The location was amazing. Even though we had to walk like ten minutes to get to the actual location of the festival, we absolutely enjoyed our time.

Link to the homepage of the festival:
http://www.seewiesenfest.at/2014/de/


Directly next to the stages the people were able to go bathing in a branch of the river Enns. The water was sooo cold but as the sun was burning down on us we didn't care if the water was cold, very cold or ice-cold. I think we would have been happy with every kind of cooling we could have got. The photo on the left is one of my boyfriend and me. (Nope, I have no idea what I'm doing with my face. Has to be some kind of lip-biting. Looks a bit strange, I know :D )


One of the bands that had a gig there was "Keston Cobbler's Club". I "accidentally" watched their performance and in the end I was SO happy that I had seen them. They did a great performance. The band consists of 5 people. They play instruments like a tuba, two trumpets, a keyboard, an ukulele and "normal" guitars and they sang all their songs polyphonic - which is something I absolutely adore in songs. Check them out!!

We had a really great time at the "Seewiesenfest" and decided to go there again next year. I hope it will be as awesome at is was this year! Maybe some of you are from Austria, so this is a hint for you - Seewiesenfest, Kleinreifling, Upper Austria. Go there and have an awesome time! :)


keep reading (: