If you like to know...

Yes D'arcy, I play Sims2 as well, was an addict of Sims back in college..
How I miss the old days of my life :)

And my Q for you, You seems like an active and talkative kind of person, do you have many friends?

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POSTED BY CAMPER : I'm most probably (90%) gonna be an auntie

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Seriously...well, Congratulations....Now you really need to work on that bad habbits to be a good auntie ;) :D

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POSTED BY BADDAD: SUB: I have three children, one biological, two that I married and love equally. But I started as a very young man, I was 18 years old when my son was born. I was only 37 when two of my kids were graduating high school, and the youngest (now 26yrs old) was running away from home to join the Hollywood movie set! My babies are quite OLD now, 29,29, and 26years old. They love me, I love them, and all my ex-wives love all of us..........

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Being a parent sounds insteresting...

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POSTED BY AP:
Crisaor: What would it take for you to be an atheist?

Dyrwen: What would it take for you to believe in God?

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:lol: :lol: :lol:

I'm sorry, but I found that funny...I'm sorry...:)


AP, what would it take you to be a Christian? :)

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POSTED BY CRIS: No. In fact, I haven't studied philosophy per se since high school. I have read some philosophy book occasionally in the last time, but it's not my usual thing. I like Schopenhauer particularly, he doesn't strike me as the usual philosopher, he just lays his thoughts in an open, clear manner, without any false pretenses or aspirations. I like Hume too, a brilliant man, wise in many subjects. There are others, but those two are the ones I like better, although I don't necessarily agree to all their opinions (which is particularly relevant to the first one).

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I think Cris is blessed with great memorry. He just need to read it, maybe few times, while many others have to study it to understand...

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Anyway, is there any band you like above those two?

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Let see....well maybe if i have a bf who plays/sings in a band, I'd tell him that his band is the greatest band ever....for the sake of love of course...

What is your most fav band/singer Cris? And would you dressed up like Marlyn Manson?

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POSTED BY KOA: btw Sub, do you like the Simpsons? Or do you prefer South Park? And isn't the weather in indonesia sticky and humid? And is it ever cold? And you have the season of rain I guess...and is Jakarta on the sea? (ok I could look at a map for that...) And how are the people there? I mean is life very different from Europe or UK in yuor opinion? And have you ever travelled around the world, especially out of Asia, and where and why and what and how etc?

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South Park is cleverer than The Simpson in a way...both of them are my favs though..
The weather: humid in rainy season but in dry season, it's very ..well, dry :)
Is it ever cold? yes, in rainy season...And Yes we have 2 seasons, dry and rainy..no winter, summer, spring, or autum...jusr dry and rainy...Jakarta is located by the sea...not a very nice sea though..
The people: well the people in gerenal is nice I suppose, we have some norms and habbits which the Westerners might think silly or irrational...the criminal rate is very high though..but I guess you find that in many megapolitan cities in the world.
Around the world? Nope, I only did some domestic travels..

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Originally Posted by Jay

I live in Liberec, a little hole in the North of the rep, near German/Polish border, going to uni in Brno, second largest city/town in the rep, it's called Masaryk University in Brno

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You're kidding! We've been there...year 2000, if my memory is correct. I remember we went to the zoo, and the flamingos stood so still they almost looked artificial...actually, when I showed a photo to one of my friends, she thought it was made of plastic...lol...I really liked Liberec, from what I remember...and they had a "Swan Lake" as well (in the zoo)...

This time I'm sandwiching my questions in between my answers so I don't run out of time again, so:

Jay: Have you ever been to Stará Ostrá? We went there last time, it was really good even though it was cold and overcast. It's a little specially-constructed medieval village not very far from Ostrá, where you can see all these medieval-clothed people at work, stone-carving, making pottery, wood-carving, and other things like that...and you can do stuff as well, if you pay. I really liked the Guild Hall, though there were lots of flies around because of the sweet drinks...we ate on plates made of circles of tree trunk...Have you ever seen those Botanicus products in the store? (There's a Botanicus shop in the centre with Tesco just out of Prague) Well, Botanicus owns this thing. They also have large herbal gardens just outside the village.

Oh, and another question, what exactly are you studying? :)

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Originally Posted by Sub

You seems like an active and talkative kind of person, do you have many friends?

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Many have told me so (that I sound like a talkative person) on the internet...and yet the truth is that in real life I'm somewhat introverted, and somewhat awkward with people I don't know. I can be (used to be) a bit of a chatterbox with people I do know, of course...and yes, I do have quite a few friends, though considering I homeschool you might think I'd have almost nil. Some I know from childhood, and others from orchestra and Suzuki workshops/conferences, and yet one other whom I have retained since a very brief period at school.

Sub: I've just been wondering...what's your religion, if you have one...is it Christianity, or...? (excuse the confused phrases, when I'm confused I tend to use them like that ;))

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Originally Posted by Mono

Miss_Darcy: do any other members of your family play instruments or have such a passion for music as you do?

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Well, on my mum's side, I have an great-aunt (or something of that kind) who used to be a very active musician (I think she played both the violin and the piano); she gave me a rare original copy of Beethoven's signature once, she's really nice. Then there's another great-aunt-or-something-of-the-kind who sells(/ed?) tickets for the Prague National Theatre. On my dad's side I have a cousin who's been through Conservatorium (in Brisbane) playing the tuba and used to be a compere on the ABC Classical radio station.

Mono: Who's your favourite author and why?

Shea, I just remembered I forgot to answer your question about what I usually do with my mum...and my answer is...everything. She teaches me, we go for walks together, we talk, we go shopping together....:)

As to your Q, what do you usually do in your spare time? (Nothing original due to time pressure, sorry ;))

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Originally Posted by Koa

Miss Darcy, i saw you study Czech! How lovely! Why did you choose that? I wish I could study it too (I once tried by myself but my great constance made me gave up after a few words ). And so, you're still at school? I thought you were older! What a great selection of studies you have though!

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Well, I've spoken Czech ever since I was small, learning from a natural environment, and lately we found out that there's a HSC course for Czech which is closing after this year, so we thought I might try it. It'll be handy to learn the written/grammatical side a bit more in depth in case I ever end up living there. It's still not certain, though...

Koa, what's it like living in Italy, and Verona to add to that?!

Must be off, these posts always take longer than I intend them to...:D

Miss Darcy

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Originally Posted by mono

Koa: do you intend to travel more in the future, distant or near?

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Absolutely yes! I think I'd be seriously depressed if it wasn't in my plans to leave this place as soon as possible...I came back from Hungary thinking 'come on, you won't have to stay home for more than 6 months if everything goes right'. I applied for a sort of teaching job in England for next schoolyear (I'm not so interested in teaching, I just want to live in England and have a job), I don't stand a chance cos there are 24 places for that and it was on a national basis... Argh. If that doesn't work, the plan B is Russia... If I go to England, I should try Russia during the summer...or if it's not Russia, it will be France or Germany or Hungary again, in every case for language-improving purposes (and there are good cheap study-holidays offered by my Uni in France, Germany and Spain). In the meantime I also plan to graduate around October... I'm crazy, I have too many plans and it's impossible to fit them all.

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Koa, what's it like living in Italy, and Verona to add to that?!

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I apologise for those who heard this million of times... I hate to live here. I don't feel part of the Italian mentality in many cases, and Verona is a horribly posh narrow-minded city. I thought it was me who couldn't fit with humanity, now I know I'm just int he wrong place... Many times I've heard people from other cities saying bad things about Verona, now I realise where these opinions come from. People here only judge, one of the main Italian sports is to put your noce in other people's business... Individuality here is a negative thing, I'm often criticised for going my own way not following the mass, doing something on your own is weird especially if you're a woman... Italy is nothing but a medieval country with a beautiful landscape...
In a way I am proud of my Italian culture, my language and literature and history... But I really don't share the views of the mass here.
As for the cities, well I used to love Verona for its beauty, but after Hungary it started to irritate me...even the builidngs seem to say 'look at how majestic we are', like they were showing off...I'm actually getting used to this city again so that might just have been the shock of the return. As I said somewhere else, even the most stupid tiny Italian city has some wonderful spots, and that's quite interesting... But it doesn't make up for the rest, it won't make me spend all my life here.
Rant over. I apologise again.

Hey Jay, I just found out that your Uni is in Brno (Bruno for those who can't prononuce it, as my friends named it :D)! I thought it was in Liberec! So are you living out of home during the week, in a flat or a drom or something?

Miss darcy, I might have missed something...so are you of Czech origin?

Shea, you said in another thread that at some point you were 'pretending' to be catholic to please your family... But from what I know about you, if I'm not wrong you are rather religious: does that mean you started feeling religious later, or that you are not catholic but something else? Just curious...

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Originally Posted by subterranean

South Park is cleverer than The Simpson in a way...both of them are my favs though..

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Oh...I prefer the Simpsons by far. I really don't like South Park infact, but I saw 1 or 2 episodes I actually liked. Maybe also because they were in original, the ones I saw that made me hate it were maybe losing something cos of the trnaslation.... Nothing can beat the Simpsons for me though. :)

Darcy: That's cool, hehe, the flamingos are still standing there doing nothing ;), the swan lake is still there as well, even have three black swans ;). Did 'we' have white tigers in the zoo back in 2000 already? lol, can't remember. The zoo's recontruscted, looks better.
You speak Czech? You do? hehe, any questions, feel free to ask ;)
Nope, I haven't been to Stará Ostrá.
I'm studying... big surprise ;), English language and Literature

Koa: I live in dorms, I'm going back home usually every other weekend

Oh cool, well how is it to live in a dorm? I don't know why but it fascinates me...I don't know, it's sort of an experience I feel I'd like to try. (like e lot of Italian students I live with my family and go to uni in my city...Of those to move, most of them rent a flat cos there are almost no dorms at all in Italy...I often wish I could start again and afford to go do all of my studies abroad, I dont like the system here.)

You didn't live in dorms when you were in Hungary?

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Originally Posted by Miss Darcy

Mono: Who's your favourite author and why?

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I would love to answer that question with ease. :lol:
Hmm, perhaps if I split some categories, I could answer your question more thoroughly:
Fiction: D.H. Lawrence (for his insightfulness and inspiring intuition), Virginia Woolf (for her randomness and often provoking thought), J.D. Salinger (for his metaphors and works that require deep thought), Emily Brontë (for her revolutionizing of story formation and ethical dilemmas), and Fyodor Dostoevsky (also for his thought-provoking and ethical writings).

Non-fiction: (see my response to crisaor's question of my favorite philosophers), and I want to include Dag Hammarskjöld, Havelock Ellis, C.S. Lewis, T.S. Eliot, James Carse, James Woodruff, and Virginia Woolf (for being merely greatly inspiring), and Robert Anton Wilson (for his extreme controversy).

Poetry: Dante Alighieri, John Milton, and William Shakespeare (just because), D.H. Lawrence again (for his perception of aesthetics and free thought), Emily Dickinson (for her unique expression), E.E. Cummings (same reason), Ralph Waldo Emerson, Henry David Thoreau, and William Ellery Channing (all for their transcendentalism), Sylvia Plath (for her randomness and deep thought), Rumi (for his spiritualism), John Keats, Samuel Taylor Coleridge, and Percy Bysshe Shelley (just because I love romanticism), and Robert Browning and Elizabeth Barrett-Browning (for their contributions as the most romantic, in my opinion).

Plays: Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (for his profound wisdom, in general), William Shakespeare (just because), Sophocles, Euripides, Virgil, Homer, and the anonymous writer of Beowulf (for merely being classics and inspiring all later generations), and Heinrich von Kleist (mostly for his dark comedies).
Whew! :)

Miss Darcy: you briefly mentioned that you write sporadically, what do you write - poetry, fiction, essays, plays? And, a second question, what do you find as the most touching piece of music? (I would have to choose Samuel Barber's Adagio)
Koa: thinking of writing, just out of curiosity, do you write at all?
Scheherazade: did you always desire the occupation of a college instructor?

Mono, you have a very interesting selection of favourite authors...a few of whom I haven't read and yet esteem...and others whom I have read (er...Shakespeare, Shelley, Emily Bronte, etc.) and love...I'm looking forward to expanding my have-read list to be as versatile as yours.

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Originally Posted by Mono

Miss Darcy: you briefly mentioned that you write sporadically, what do you write - poetry, fiction, essays, plays? And, a second question, what do you find as the most touching piece of music? (I would have to choose Samuel Barber's Adagio)

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What do I write...poetry, fiction, essays, plays. :D Well obviously not all at once, but I have experimented with all those genres at some time of my life (well, ever since I have been able to write). Mainly fiction and poetry, though. The "play" part really has to be very vague, as I have only written a screenplay (based on the parable "The Wooden Sword") which itself is very vaguely in the definition of "screenplay", as at the time of my writing it I had never read a screenplay before and had no idea about how to write one. So it turned into a sort of "play for the screen", basically.

As to music...most touching...oph, that's difficult. There are many examples of extremely touching classical music, and you have named one of them. I think I'd be choosing between Meditation from Thais (Massenet), some of Chopin's Nocturnes (the B Flat and C Sharp Minor especially) and Preludes (the B Minor especially)...Andante from Mendelssohn's Concerto in E Minor...I repeat, that's really difficult...also, the profound simplicity of Bach's Cello Suites...I give up. I wouldn't be able to name you the piece of music I consider most touching any more than you could your one favourite author (or I, for that matter).

And as to a question for you, I'm feeling philosophical right now...so...

Mono: Do you think there is a meaning in life, or for that matter, in anything? If so, what? (I know that's very bland, just asking like that, as there was nothing more to it than a question in an English workbook analysing a text...) And also, what do you think lies outside the Universe, if indeed anything? Very ambiguous question, I know, but you can interpret it in any way you like.

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Originally Posted by Jay

Darcy: That's cool, hehe, the flamingos are still standing there doing nothing , the swan lake is still there as well, even have three black swans . Did 'we' have white tigers in the zoo back in 2000 already? lol, can't remember. The zoo's recontruscted, looks better.
You speak Czech? You do? hehe, any questions, feel free to ask
Nope, I haven't been to Stará Ostrá.
I'm studying... big surprise , English language and Literature.

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I think there were white tigers then, I'm not absolutely sure. I think there was some particular tiger propaganda going on, though, because I bought myself a (normal Bengal) tiger figurine as a souvenir. I still have it...somewhere...:D

English Lit & Language? Cool...if I went to Uni(versity), I'd want to study that too, probably minus the Language part. ;) But I think I'd want to go to Con(servatorium) first...

Jay: What do you plan on doing when you leave Uni?

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Originally Posted by Koa

Miss darcy, I might have missed something...so are you of Czech origin?

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Lol, I forget that not every single person has read my every single post. :D Yeah, my mum's Czech, dad's Aussie though, and I was born in Australia. We go over there every...oh...two years, or so, to visit family and we usually make a little tour of the rest of Europe as well. I consider the Czech Republic as a second home...I'm fixed in that awkward position of being homesick while in Australia and homesick while I'm over there as well...but seeing as we do travel a fair bit it's not so intense.

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In a way I am proud of my Italian culture, my language and literature and history... But I really don't share the views of the mass here.

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Who wouldn't be proud...it was in Italy that they had the very first proper university. In Salerno, I think it was...and as to not sharing the views of the mass, well, neither do I, I think the only people who share views with the mass are part of the mass themselves. If you get me. It's certainly a beautiful country, though...from what I've seen of it, I loved it. You should travel some more, say, to Australia, then you'll be glad you live in Italy. Not to say that Australia is bad, or indeed isn't good, but it's...not Italy. :D You know, the mass media, mass opinion here is really strong and there are really few individuals who don't fit in with it. I suppose it's a bit like that almost everywhere. *Muses*

Koa: Is there a Verona dialect of Italian? I mean, anything different from standard Italian? I'm learning (*cough* sort of) Italian (a little :D) and from what I hear (I mean, from what I read...I'm not that good yet ;)) Italian varies greatly...who was it who said that even spaghetti doesn't unite Italians? Well, never mind that...speaking of food, I absolutely love the Italian kitchen; oh pasta, oh pizza (Italian-style, of course...it's unbeatable), oh gelato! Seriously, I've never seen a country with so many gelaterias. Very convenient. :nod: And, on an entirely different note (A# :D) how long did you stay in Hungary?

Now... :confused: ...I'm trying to remember if I asked Scher anything yet or not. Well, I'll solve the problem by asking a question anyway. So...

Scher: What's the weather like over there in England? (Trés originale, I admit it!)

Miss Darcy
For once, not so pressed for time!

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Originally Posted by Miss Darcy

Mono: Do you think there is a meaning in life, or for that matter, in anything? If so, what? (I know that's very bland, just asking like that, as there was nothing more to it than a question in an English workbook analysing a text...) And also, what do you think lies outside the Universe, if indeed anything? Very ambiguous question, I know, but you can interpret it in any way you like.

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Wow, you seem full of such good questions.
For the first question, I would like to think that a meaning of life exists, even if each life seems so minute and petty compared to the nearly 7 billion people in the world, plus the numbers of other animals and plants. Surely, I question if fate and/or predestination exist, but, in a rather Aristotlean sense, the meaning of life merely seems the pursuing of happiness; in every action, big or small, happiness, I think, results as the aim. For example, why does one attend college? - to, perhaps, get a good education and job, resulting in a better future - one person's idea of happiness. Additionally, for a simple example, why does one eat/drink while hungry/thirsty? - to lengthen life, and relieve the discomfort of hunger/thirst, resulting in contentment.
Though 'happiness,' itself, seems such a general, large aim, I instead question the subjectivity of happiness; what one person labels happiness, another calls misery.
As for the second question, I cannot imagine what, if anything, lies outside the universe; I literally cannot imagine. Indeed, as science has shown, the universe expands at an unknown speed, but one can question: 'what is the universe expanding inside? Does it have a capacity?' especially in terms of what astronomers and physicists call 'black matter.' In an existential sense, as the universe (or what others call a 'multi-verse') expands, its non-existing state, what will exist within minutes or years, does not yet exist, and, surely, no mind can imagine what does not exist (only derivatives of what does exist already, like a rabbit with the hind legs of a kangaroo, and eyes of an eagle). This brings a much larger question, as I believe the popular Latin phrase, 'ex nihilo nihil fit' (out of nothing, nothing comes); with that in mind, does something that exists contain the universe - perhaps fate, time, . . . God, something infinite, as, indeed, the universe seems thought of as 'infinite' itself?

Miss Darcy: same question, as you ask such good ones. :)

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Originally Posted by Jay

You didn't live in dorms when you were in Hungary?

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Nope, we had to rent flats...the first week was actually hell from that point of view: the research of a flat (in the meantime we were staying at a crappy hostel). The city where I was staying didnt have many dorms either so most local students were staying in flats as well.
Still wondering how it's like, Jay (or anyone else)

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Originally Posted by mono

Koa: thinking of writing, just out of curiosity, do you write at all?

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Oh yes: shopping lists, autographs to my fans...and I even take notes at Uni, not to mention I love writing letters...and see how much I write on forums. :D
Jokes aside, have a look at the personal poetry section from the time before you joined...(I see you joined when I left for Hungary, more or less). Basically, I used to write some sort of *coughs* poetry and I've started several short stories without ever getting far cos I completely lack discipline and I'm horribly lazy. I actually finished 3 very short ones some centuries ago and I found out that the floppy where I saved them is not working on this pc (I wanted to save them on cd now)...nevermind, they are still handwritten somewhere, for what matters.
I haven't written anything decent in ages though, and in the past few months I've written very little. Lately I sometimes feel a tiny inspiration coming but I can't catch it. That's another of those moments when I sort of miss my depressions... :eek2: At least they were productive.

Darcy, I see about Czech...It must be interesting to have a double origin and be bilingual, it must be a huge richness.
As for Italy, everybody loves it cos of the reasosn you listed, but I'm not convinced...it's not only that, there is lots of crap around here as well.
As for the dialects...absolutely. As you know, there are many dialects in Italy, and many regional words, I know people from cities that are like 50-100 km from here and we sometimes use different words for the same thing. Our dialects are not too different so we can understand each other if we speak it, but the dialects of the south are totally different from those of the north...I can understand a bit of the southern dialects cos I have relatives in the south, but if you take 2 old people from different sides of Italy they might not understand each other. I read that during the 1st world war there were interpreters in the army cos it was the very first time that Italians from different areas came in contact with each other. And we now all know standard Italian because of the TV, which was what unified the language in the 1960s. I don't speak so much dialect, maybe because I live in the city, cos I see that people from villages speak it much more, they basically use it everyday for normal comunication at least at home (while in my family we mostly speak Italian, except for some expressions or very short dialogues. I don't think i'ever prononunced more than 2 or 3 sentences in dialect in a row). It's a quite interesting side of Italy though.
Btw, I seriously doubt that it was Salerno to have the first Uni... I think it was Bologna, or maybe Padova..but I'm not sure, maybe Paris was first in Europe..I should know but I forgot.

So, darcy, where in Europe have you been? And where in Italy?
Btw, i just looked at your profile just out of curiosity and from how you write I must say that I thought you were much older...(I do underestimate young people, maybe cos I dont realise how old I am and consequently that people that are younger than me are old enough to use their brain. Even my brother (same age as you darcy) is starting to do so ...sometimes :eek:)

Oh Darcy, and I forgot: I stayed in Hungary for 5 months and a half. Doesn't seem much but it was the first time I lived abroad and it was a very important experience, I probably was stupid to be back at all, but that was to give space to more future experiences. Hopefully.

"To imthefoolonthehill: what made you first have a keen interest in mathematics?"

I had a teacher I really liked.

My interest deepened as I realized that math is one of the few subjects in which people aren't forcing their opinion on you.

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Originally Posted by Isagel

Shea - I know you had some trouble because of a storm, did it all work out well?

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If I'm correct, I believe that you're referring to the hurricanes of last season. ooh boy, talk about stress! And the only thing that happened at our house was a fence section fell down! The anticipation, sitting thru it, and wondering what will happen really plays on your nerves. But really, we were very lucky! Leo and I just went to a wedding this weekend in Ft. Myers where Charlie unexpectedly to a turn to (it was supposed to come straight for us). Its been 8 months and there are still crumbled signs and buildings. I even saw people playing on a golf course that still had uprooted trees everywhere!

It's very good to have you back to the forums when you can be here. Get lots o' rest! But come back as often as you can!

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Originally Posted by Koa

Shea, you said in another thread that at some point you were 'pretending' to be catholic to please your family... But from what I know about you, if I'm not wrong you are rather religious: does that mean you started feeling religious later, or that you are not catholic but something else? Just curious...

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It's quite a long story, but I'll try to be brief:
My dad's family are very devout catholics and when my parents divorced (the catholic church considered it annulled), I went to live with my dad. My mom met my step-dad who converted her to christianity and they were married. They then converted my sister and I, but when we tried to tell our Catholic family that we didn't want to be Catholic anymore (I was 12), they threw a fit, and we decided that pushing the issue would probably mean not seeing mom again till we were 18.

I am very religious, and I basically take all my beliefs straight from the Bible. If I can't find it in there, I won't believe it. On the flip side, I also believe in not omitting or ignoring anything from the Bible. I would love to take part in more discussions in the religious text forums, but I had to promise myself that I wouldn't until after I'm done with school, as it takes up quite a lot of my time!

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Originally Posted by subterranean

I think Cris is blessed with great memorry. He just need to read it, maybe few times, while many others have to study it to understand...

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Well, that's not true, but thanks.

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Originally Posted by subterranean

What is your most fav band/singer Cris? And would you dressed up like Marlyn Manso n ?

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Band, The Beatles, definitely. Singer, I don't know. I guess I'll settle with John just to make it easier. :D
If that MM question includes any type of make-up or fake br easts, then no, I wouldn't (I haven't). I do dress in black most of the time, though.