Compression
Why do people use compression? To save space. But when space is not at a premium, its actually a pain in the arse to unzip stuff.
I'm doing a big clean up as we are getting carpet in a few weeks time, so if I throw some stuff out less to move. Instead of throwing shit out I am finding that I have more of everything. An example are razor blades. As we all know they are expensive, so loosing them sucks. Hard. When you run out/can't find new ones you go out and buy some more, not a big deal. I found 3 whole packs. One in the stationary draw, one in my junk draw (mainly contains stationary for my bedroom) and one in the stationary basket.
What can I learn from this experience? Firstly I have too many places for the same types of things. Which leads to buying more of things that I will never get around to using. Waste of funds and a waste of space. Totally inefficient. What about the stationary? Yeah, too much of that too. I am now trying to consolidate it into a box(s), for things like souvenir pens they should really just go into a souvenir box. Stationary seems to be something I can't control. But at least now that it's in one place it will save space.
Variety, thats the problem. Must have one of everything...
What can I learn from this experience? Firstly I have too many places for the same types of things. Which leads to buying more of things that I will never get around to using. Waste of funds and a waste of space. Totally inefficient. What about the stationary? Yeah, too much of that too. I am now trying to consolidate it into a box(s), for things like souvenir pens they should really just go into a souvenir box. Stationary seems to be something I can't control. But at least now that it's in one place it will save space.
Variety, thats the problem. Must have one of everything...
Exam is over but now I don't know what to do with myself. I do have a backlog of projects, but since its so friggin hot I don't want to move away from the fan. I have been so involved with studying for my exam I have forgotten what I did before then.
I should also mention kiwi fruit and ice cream is awesome. However I recommend putting the kiwi fruit in the freezer and mine were a bit soft. The acidic juice also melts the ice cream quickly. Something different from mango or passion fruit which seems to be the norm.
I should also mention kiwi fruit and ice cream is awesome. However I recommend putting the kiwi fruit in the freezer and mine were a bit soft. The acidic juice also melts the ice cream quickly. Something different from mango or passion fruit which seems to be the norm.
Exam
I'm back from my exam. Obviously I went ahead and just did the exam instead of piking out and deffering.
Wow, just wow. When you know you have a deadline you become very efficient. But I still didn't think I had a chance. But After my a week of study and after doing the exam I might just have a chance of passing. The main reason for this is MCQ. Most people find MCQ easy. Mainly because you automatically have a 50% chance of at least passing. Without even completing reading the options you can cross out 2 of the options. My average on MCQ is about 80%. Which has something to do with the way I learn and the inherant nature of MCQ's, and the secondary problem solving nature of MCQ's.
Ofcourse this isn't your average exam. Firstly you need 65% to pass which is the equivalent to a credit (5) at uni. Secondly the MCQ's often had sub lists.
Which options are correct:
1. something
2. what
3. I like cheese
4. it
A. 1+2+3
B 2 only
C 1+3+4
D 3 only
So it can get a little complicated, but since you can eliminate 3 as it makes no sense what so ever the answer is B.
I have learned a lot not just on Professional Practice and Reporting, but on how I learn. It had been two years since I have taken an exam, so it has been a struggle to get back into studying, hence my predicament of if I will pass and preparing for exams and the best way to present my work. I have come across a lot of different ways to study and now that I am studying externally its just another way. Written answer questions are of particular importance as they help you display your reasoning and therefore knowledge on the topic. Being able to construct your argument in a logical fashion is important in an exam, but also at work. At work you are constantly being tested. As long as you have the correct answers everything will be fine, but if you put in the extra effort and go through the process you will learn a lot more. And be able to actually justify your position clearly is someone questions you. This is rare, but it can happen. And as "The Code" says, you need to show due care. The decisions and therefore answers that you come up with and recommend to clients effects a lot of people. You need to take and go through the process, that also means proper documentation/working papers. Not only is it better for the client, but it also covers your own ass. The other benefit comes when writing letters and explaining to clients the reasoning behind a certain accounting procedure.
As a lot of these ideas are still fresh in my mind I am going to spend the next few days writing them down, so that next time I have an exam I know what to do/avoid. Motivation wise its good to have a reason to do something other than you have to. It has to have some benefit other then the fact you need to do an exam.
Wow, just wow. When you know you have a deadline you become very efficient. But I still didn't think I had a chance. But After my a week of study and after doing the exam I might just have a chance of passing. The main reason for this is MCQ. Most people find MCQ easy. Mainly because you automatically have a 50% chance of at least passing. Without even completing reading the options you can cross out 2 of the options. My average on MCQ is about 80%. Which has something to do with the way I learn and the inherant nature of MCQ's, and the secondary problem solving nature of MCQ's.
Ofcourse this isn't your average exam. Firstly you need 65% to pass which is the equivalent to a credit (5) at uni. Secondly the MCQ's often had sub lists.
Which options are correct:
1. something
2. what
3. I like cheese
4. it
A. 1+2+3
B 2 only
C 1+3+4
D 3 only
So it can get a little complicated, but since you can eliminate 3 as it makes no sense what so ever the answer is B.
I have learned a lot not just on Professional Practice and Reporting, but on how I learn. It had been two years since I have taken an exam, so it has been a struggle to get back into studying, hence my predicament of if I will pass and preparing for exams and the best way to present my work. I have come across a lot of different ways to study and now that I am studying externally its just another way. Written answer questions are of particular importance as they help you display your reasoning and therefore knowledge on the topic. Being able to construct your argument in a logical fashion is important in an exam, but also at work. At work you are constantly being tested. As long as you have the correct answers everything will be fine, but if you put in the extra effort and go through the process you will learn a lot more. And be able to actually justify your position clearly is someone questions you. This is rare, but it can happen. And as "The Code" says, you need to show due care. The decisions and therefore answers that you come up with and recommend to clients effects a lot of people. You need to take and go through the process, that also means proper documentation/working papers. Not only is it better for the client, but it also covers your own ass. The other benefit comes when writing letters and explaining to clients the reasoning behind a certain accounting procedure.
As a lot of these ideas are still fresh in my mind I am going to spend the next few days writing them down, so that next time I have an exam I know what to do/avoid. Motivation wise its good to have a reason to do something other than you have to. It has to have some benefit other then the fact you need to do an exam.
Marketing "People"
This reminded me of something I drew a while back. It was in a marketing class in my notebook, so it also has the feint lines through it.
Baconpops
Bacon on a stick. That should be McDonalds next menu item. Yes, its unhealthy and wrong. But they need to compete against KFC who have ingeniously created hotrods chicken nuggets on a stick. Its basically a sishkebab, but without vegetables.
McD, need to hit back with something equally awesome and since they are pushing bacon at 80 cents a pop, they should just put some on a stick, fry it and sell it for $2.95.
McD, need to hit back with something equally awesome and since they are pushing bacon at 80 cents a pop, they should just put some on a stick, fry it and sell it for $2.95.
Stalled
So, the last 2 days I have had relativly low external distractions to my studies so I should have burned through a whole heap of material. But as it is Sunday evening, I feel it is time for another review.
I have not completed what I wanted to. And again I guess it is due to my underestimation of the difficulty of the material. I have also found that I can't concentrate in reading for more that 30 mins, which isn't that bad as I then spend 15 mins running through in my mind what I have read and how that relates to other shit. etc. Basically an internal review.
At this point in time I am very certain I am going to fail.
I am trying to be calm and relaxed about this whole thing, as I know I do not respond well to that sort of pressure. I guess if I set my self a goal of finishing all reading by Monday afternoon, then go get my exam supplies that gives me a few days to revise and prepare for the actual exam. Preparing for the exam seems to take a while, so as long I leave enough time for that I should be fine.
I have not thought about deferral but I think come on Tuesday I will.
I have not completed what I wanted to. And again I guess it is due to my underestimation of the difficulty of the material. I have also found that I can't concentrate in reading for more that 30 mins, which isn't that bad as I then spend 15 mins running through in my mind what I have read and how that relates to other shit. etc. Basically an internal review.
At this point in time I am very certain I am going to fail.
I am trying to be calm and relaxed about this whole thing, as I know I do not respond well to that sort of pressure. I guess if I set my self a goal of finishing all reading by Monday afternoon, then go get my exam supplies that gives me a few days to revise and prepare for the actual exam. Preparing for the exam seems to take a while, so as long I leave enough time for that I should be fine.
I have not thought about deferral but I think come on Tuesday I will.
the last of last.fm
It has come to my attention that my last.fm has not been updating. Curse you old plugin!
Anyway, I am back, but I have to use the official plugin/program which uses extra computer resources for no reason, untill the winamp plugin starts working again.
Anyway, I am back, but I have to use the official plugin/program which uses extra computer resources for no reason, untill the winamp plugin starts working again.
Dread
So my CPA exam is this Thursday and all my plans regarding study have shattered into a million pieces of despair. I knew Friday was going to be a write off but then I figured I would wake up on time. I was also concerned about the mess so, most of today has been spent tidying up. So now its 5pm Saturday afternoon. In the last 3 days I have done 4 hours study. Possibly less considering I don't remember anything I read yesterday. I still have about 1 days worth of reading to do, 2 case studies and revision. My tagging system is really dumb as I can't read my own handwriting. So I'm going to be spending time fixing that up. Went and bought some real tag thingys, hopefully they will help.
Planning for things that are variable like study, as you don't know how long it will take you to understand a particular topic, is easy. You guess. But then when it all falls apart you are left with a timer to failure. The pass mark is actually 65% not the normal 50% which I thought it was. Which is just another thing that is going to stop me from passing. The other thing is the exam location, its in Carsledine. Which is supposedly a one hour drive, but from what I know about the gateway its probably about 1.5 hours. So any extra cram time I could have had in the morning is now gone.
The one positive is that I know the first 3 modules really well. But the last 2 modules are worth 45% collectivly, so I really need to get those 2 down to have any chance.
The other spanner in the works is the option of deferring. I can defer my exam or cancel out of the subject and do it next semester. Deferring will leave a deferred mark on my record and will cost money. Canceling leaves no mark and the subject is removed from my record, but I still have to pay fees next semester to do it again. Money is not so much of a problem, just my ego that I couldn't do the subject.
Would failure be such a bad thing? It would give me a new perspective, just like the last time I failed. Which forced me to have significantly improved results from that point forward. But knowing this, would it be the same this time around.
The first step will be to finish reading. The second step will be to do the case studies, as they account for a large portion of the exam. The third step will be to prepare for the exam, by retagging and getting my notes organised so it is easy to find in the exam.
Time wise I am screwed, but I may be able to make up time magically, by not sleeping.
Planning for things that are variable like study, as you don't know how long it will take you to understand a particular topic, is easy. You guess. But then when it all falls apart you are left with a timer to failure. The pass mark is actually 65% not the normal 50% which I thought it was. Which is just another thing that is going to stop me from passing. The other thing is the exam location, its in Carsledine. Which is supposedly a one hour drive, but from what I know about the gateway its probably about 1.5 hours. So any extra cram time I could have had in the morning is now gone.
The one positive is that I know the first 3 modules really well. But the last 2 modules are worth 45% collectivly, so I really need to get those 2 down to have any chance.
The other spanner in the works is the option of deferring. I can defer my exam or cancel out of the subject and do it next semester. Deferring will leave a deferred mark on my record and will cost money. Canceling leaves no mark and the subject is removed from my record, but I still have to pay fees next semester to do it again. Money is not so much of a problem, just my ego that I couldn't do the subject.
Would failure be such a bad thing? It would give me a new perspective, just like the last time I failed. Which forced me to have significantly improved results from that point forward. But knowing this, would it be the same this time around.
The first step will be to finish reading. The second step will be to do the case studies, as they account for a large portion of the exam. The third step will be to prepare for the exam, by retagging and getting my notes organised so it is easy to find in the exam.
Time wise I am screwed, but I may be able to make up time magically, by not sleeping.
pre code
Pre-Code films were created before the Motion Picture Production Code or Hays Code took effect on 1 July 1934 in the United States of America.
Films in the late 1920s and early 30s reflected the libertine attitudes of the day and could include sexual innuendos, references to homosexuality, miscegenation, illegal drug use, and profane language (such as the word "damn") as well as women in their undergarments. Such behavior was common in the liberal climate of cities at that time, although it often shocked audiences in rural areas.
Popular character roles include tough-talking, assertive women, gangsters, and prostitutes.
Of particular note were both the references to sexual promiscuity, drug use, bloody gangster life, and morally ambiguous endings, which drew the ire from various religious groups – some Protestant, but overwhelmingly Roman Catholic.
In particular, Amleto Giovanni Cicognani, apostolic delegate to the American Catholic Church called upon American Catholics to unite against the surging immorality of the cinema. As a result, many religious groups (overwhelmingly Roman Catholic) created their own leagues, such as the Catholic Legion of Decency (eventually renamed to the "National Legion of Decency") in 1933, premised around controlling and enforcing decency standards in theatres, and boycotting movies which they deemed offensive. Conservative Protestants tended to support much of the crackdown on "immorality", particularly in the South, which had its own form of censorship. By 1939 "Even black bellboys were routinely cut out of films shown in the South; from the evidence of Hollywood pictures of the 1930s, one might not suspect that black people existed in America" ([1]). Anything relating to the state of race relations in the South or miscegenation could never be exhibited below the Mason-Dixon line.
By 1934, theatre revenues were slumping (likely, in part, to the Depression) and those in the film industry were unhappy with the prospect of losing even more of their audience, particularly in heavily Catholic cities (New York, Boston, Chicago, etc).
Thus, the pre-Code era effectively came to a close with the establishment of a special bureau (eventually christened The Breen Office, after Joseph Ignatius Breen, a former public relations executive), whose purpose was to review scripts and finished prints in order to ensure that they adhered to the new Code.
The Code did not begin to weaken until the late 1940s, when the formerly taboo subjects of miscegenation and rape were allowed in Pinky (1949) and Johnny Belinda (1948), respectively. By the late 1950s, increasingly explicit films began to appear, such as Anatomy of a Murder (1959), Some Like It Hot (1959), Psycho (1960), and The Dark at the Top of the Stairs (1961). In the early 1960s, films began to deal with adult subjects and sexual matters that had not been seen in Hollywood films since the early 1930s. The MPAA reluctantly granted the seal of approval for these films, but not until certain cuts were made. The code was finally abandoned in 1966.
Last Sunday I decided to test my self and see if I could go without porn for a week. By Tuesday I had a desperate urge to eat ice cream, everyday since then I have had ice cream. I think there might be a correlation between ice cream and porn. I haven't figured out why, hopefully by this Monday I will have the answer as I am no doubt putting on weight because of this.
Live Music
Yay! Rage Against the Machine are coming to Australia. Yes its sold out. No one can get tickets. It is kinda RATM's fault for playing in small venues and not playing enough shows. But they are playing at BDO, so there is still hope. Most of the tickets are going for $400, which I guess is ok, but since they dont have any new material since they last split, its not really worth it. Also It sort of goes against what RATM are about, they are not about paying $400-$800 to see a band. Even if it is themselves. There are also some good people who are actually raging against the machine and stinging the scalpers. Scalpers are evil scum. Every time a scalper sells a ticket God kills a kitten.
As much as you want to see rage, its not worth it. Instead use that money to buy some massive speakers and have your own rage party until the police come kick your head in.
BDO should be good. There are only a few bands that I would like to see. Obviously rage. But also Bjork, LCD Soundsystem *swoon*, Dizzie Rasccal should be interesting and lastly cut off your hands. I have never heard any of the bands music, I like the name, so its going on the list. I imagine thats what happens when you rock out, your hands get cut off whilst trying to perform the most ultimate riff ever. They are kinda like the lepers of rock n roll.
Also the Chemical Brothers have announced a tour for March next year. And lets not forget who has a ticket to see Daft Punk in December... I can't really complain in terms of live music, for the past year and the next 6 months. But I just wish it was more frequent. Ideally once a month would be good. Thats only 12 acts a year, maybe I need to look further than the mainstream chart music and look into smaller, local, acts that actually play music not for money. But then theres the fact that they suck and thats why they don't do it for money. Its a vicious cycle.
Only a few complaint this year so far is missing out on Bloc Party. They only played in Sydney and Melbourne. Its only a small complaint as I didn't like their second album. And parklife, as Mstrkrft, Justice and Digitalism would have been cool. Ok mainly wanted to see Mstrkrft, and I'm not paying that much money to see one band. Splendour in the grass would have been awesome except for the fact that it sold out before I could ring up Butter Beats to reserve me a ticket (I work in a fucken music store and I still miss out. WTF!).
Thats actually a lot of complaining. I'm sure I missed out on other stuff, but since I don't remember I'm not going to bring it up and feel sad about missing it. The future is near and is ready to take my money away from me.
As much as you want to see rage, its not worth it. Instead use that money to buy some massive speakers and have your own rage party until the police come kick your head in.
BDO should be good. There are only a few bands that I would like to see. Obviously rage. But also Bjork, LCD Soundsystem *swoon*, Dizzie Rasccal should be interesting and lastly cut off your hands. I have never heard any of the bands music, I like the name, so its going on the list. I imagine thats what happens when you rock out, your hands get cut off whilst trying to perform the most ultimate riff ever. They are kinda like the lepers of rock n roll.
Also the Chemical Brothers have announced a tour for March next year. And lets not forget who has a ticket to see Daft Punk in December... I can't really complain in terms of live music, for the past year and the next 6 months. But I just wish it was more frequent. Ideally once a month would be good. Thats only 12 acts a year, maybe I need to look further than the mainstream chart music and look into smaller, local, acts that actually play music not for money. But then theres the fact that they suck and thats why they don't do it for money. Its a vicious cycle.
Only a few complaint this year so far is missing out on Bloc Party. They only played in Sydney and Melbourne. Its only a small complaint as I didn't like their second album. And parklife, as Mstrkrft, Justice and Digitalism would have been cool. Ok mainly wanted to see Mstrkrft, and I'm not paying that much money to see one band. Splendour in the grass would have been awesome except for the fact that it sold out before I could ring up Butter Beats to reserve me a ticket (I work in a fucken music store and I still miss out. WTF!).
Thats actually a lot of complaining. I'm sure I missed out on other stuff, but since I don't remember I'm not going to bring it up and feel sad about missing it. The future is near and is ready to take my money away from me.
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