Monday, September 28, 2009

Compliments- The Best Kind of Speech

I love compliments, although, I can't really remember the last time I gave one out openly. I believe it was at lunch, when I told Alan that he was awesome and cool, and in PE I told Elliot that he was good at badminton. Alan thanked me, and Elliot just smiled.
The last time I was given a compliment was in homegroup, when Mrs. Lemos said my grades were good (although I want to improve my Humanities and Spanish), which made me feel proud.

More often than not, people tend to dish out hurtful comments rather than compliments, and I'm no exception. I want to improve this, and after seeing the video, I'll think about what I say more before I let it loose. I find it funny that people go and just give out compliments for two hours. I mean, it makes our world a better place, not arguing about that, but I think it's a really good idea on the guys' part, and good on them for wanting to improve the dull, dismal, depressed, law-breaking, wasted, un-environmentally friendly, horrible ecomony world we live in.

I actually want to try this out here at lunch, as it would raise the spirits of everyone, and make life more fun and joyous in general.

And, to parrot Tesco's (as in the UK supermarket), "Every little helps!"



http://www.teeshamoore.com/Image0233.JPG

Found on http://www.teeshamoore.com/Image0233.JPG

I chose this image mainly due to the quote on it- "Find your light and then let it shine." I feel it matched the theme of compliments, with people finding the inner light of each other, and letting out you inner light by complimenting them.

Thursday, September 24, 2009

My Name- The Final

My Name

Aidan Stewart Lindsay. That’s the name I know and love. Sounds powerful, doesn’t it?
Much and all as it isn’t an exotic name, like Taisala or Chi-Gong or Kanji, I enjoy saying my name. It has a certain ring to it, a ring like a high-pitched little bell. That high-pitched little bell, that lifts the spirits of the day.

Aidan means “little fire”, which really suits me. Me with my love of fire and short temper. Even in my Pokemon videogames, my favourite starter pokemon is always the fire type. I am like a wildfire, spreading my personality and thoughts quickly through the forest of middle school. I always have a glint in my eyes, similar to a spark. A spark of hope, hope that I get the A+, or hope that I pass the grading in Tae Kwan Do. Hope for just about anything. I just find that funny. That is, funny that a first name can suit a person so well.

Stewart has a fairly interesting meaning too- Guardian of the House. When you think about it, the name Stewart and its meaning both radiate power and responsibility. When I think about kings, I think about the name Stewart. Of course, that makes me think of, well, me. The high, mighty, potentially guardian, me. I actually agree with that last part- I do have the potential to be a guardian. I’m protective, mostly responsible, and have the ability to care for people and objects. That’s just what the name makes me think of.

Now that you know all this, there is bound to be a question in your head- what does Lindsay mean? It comes from linden, as in the tree. Sounds plain and boring on its own, and it’s not a really interesting meaning, but it gives me a sense of belonging. Lindsay is my clan. Lindsay is my tartan. My red, green, gold-striped patterned fabric kilt. The threads in it tie me to my family, the Lindsays, in much the same way that they pull each other together to stop me from standing in my boxers. Lindsay is everything. It defines where I come from, gives me a home and a shelter, not to mention a really cool-looking garment to wear on a cold day.

Now I’ve established why my name is so fantastic in my eyes. But how did I become Aidan Stewart Lindsay, seventh grade legend, with the spiky hair? Well, my mum wanted to find a Scottish name for me at the time, as well as something unique. She flipped through a book, and eventually she found Aidan. She liked the meaning, and went with it. Stewart is actually my maternal grandpa’s first middle name (he has two middle names, Stewart and Shedden), and seeing as he had two daughters and couldn’t carry on the good name of Brown, my mum decided to put a bit of his name in mine. Lindsay was my dad’s surname, so it got carried on to me, obviously.

Already you can tell that I have many interconnections and bindings in my name, with Stewart being one of my grandpa’s middle names, Lindsay being my clan and tartan, and Aidan being very Scotland-related. They give me a place to run to when I make the wrong choice. When everything closes in on me. When it feels like the world hates me. There’s always a warm home for me to stay in. I could be with my fellow Lindsays, all wearing red and green kilts with small golden lines. I could live with my grandfather, with the obvious name link. Or, I could just stay in Scotland, and have a sense of belonging, knowing that I am in the home of my name.

Even though my name is extremely interesting, descriptive, powerful, and meaningful, I do get teased about my last name from time to time. Lindsay Lohan is one of the many names people call me, but it’s tolerable, mainly because I’m used to it. I do consider it teasing, but I occasionally laugh at other people’s names (that is, if they laugh at mine), so I feel it gives me a wee bit more wiggle room, although I know teasing is never acceptable in a peaceful, respectful society.

Another joyous point about my name is that I’m the first person in people’s contacts on their phones, seeing as my name starts with an A. Generally, that means people call me when they’re in a flap about homework. Sadly, that occurs a LOT, and it kind of irritates me, although at the same time, it feels nice that people ask me for help. However, it does take away from my time, although I generally get through my work quickly, so it’s not a huge problem. But the name symbolizes a lot more than that. My life is the beginning of a new adventure for my family, I’m the first born child of my parents, not to mention the only one. I always try to pioneer new thoughts, new methods, new ways, even though most of them fail or are too complicated to be feasible.

There is one slight problem; there are 3 Aidan’s in my grade including me, meaning my name isn’t so individual. But I’ve come up with an ingenious way to morph the negative into a positive: to confuse teachers with our names… I never will get to old and mature to say “I’m Aidan Carroll, he’s Aidan Lindsay,” when Aidan C’s around. Most teachers hate it when we do that, but it’s really fun… Still, I probably shouldn’t be doing it…

My name. Man. I’ve never realized just how lucky I am to have a good name till now. My name is a fantastic name. I mean, it suits me, as I love fire, I’m mostly responsible and I belong to the Lindsay clan. I’ve never met anyone with a name as good as mine. Some come close, but it’s like comparing a gummy bear to a grizzly. They just aren’t the same! That is to say, my name would be the grizzly bear, which is magnitudes stronger than a gummy bear, although I am fond of gummy bears…. My name sounds poetic, just the way it naturally flows out of the mouth. Not the accusing way teachers say it, but when just saying my name for what it is. Aae-din. It has that flowing, calming sensation. Overall, as you, the reader, have probably figured out by now, I love my name. The flowing sound, the warmth it brings, being a name of fire, the meanings behind it, and the places it binds me to. So many positive points, so little negative points. Everyone should have a name as radiant, as brilliant, and utterly descriptive as mine.


http://www.thescotlandkiltcompany.co.uk/images_cache/350x350_000844.jpg

(Found on http://www.thescotlandkiltcompany.co.uk/images_cache/350x350_000844.jpg)

I chose this picture because not only does it show I'm from Scotland, but it features the powerful Lindsay tartan, along with the large cow-skin sporn, wee dagger, and ridiculously high socks. That, and you can see that the threads are tight enough to bind this man to the Lindsays like me, and keep his kilt up. All in all, the kilt is rather self sufficient like me- a sporn for storing objects you find, a knife for hunting your dinner/self-defence, high socks and a large kilt for warmth, and a belt for keeping you kilt on with.

My Quote- The Background

Success is a journey. The doing is often more important than the outcome- Arthur Ashe. I think this quote helps represent my life. I'm always journeying, hoping that my journey is always a stellar one, leading to whatever outcome. Even with mistakes, if you learned from it, it mostly does not matter what your grade or punishment is. As my mum says- It does not matter which side won, just so long as you enjoyed playing the game. I believe that to be true in all things. In the book I'm currently reading, Furnace : Lockdown, by Alexander Gordon Smith, the main character, Alex, goes on a horrid journey of betrayal and lies, winding up in jail. However, he does not care that he is in the world's worst prison- he only cares about the truth being revealed, that he isn't responsible for the murder of his best friend.

The image I chose was a rather abstract-looking blue line in a background of orange, by Beth Cornell. I feel the line shows the twisting journey of success, even when you are the only one on it (the orange background). The paint strokes symbolize the learning and experience gained on the journey.

http://www.fineartregistry.com/featured_artist/images/cornell/cornell-fine-art.jpg

Found on http://www.fineartregistry.com/featured_artist/images/cornell/cornell-fine-art.jpg