Exams

One of those nothing posts where I complain about exams.

Re: Exams: "Complain, complain, complain." [Repeat as necessary.]

I was all excited about studying international law, but then I ended up with a lousy lecturer and realised how much of a fiction the whole thing really is. Not that law itself is not a fiction, but at least municipal law has enforcement mechanisms. International law really doesn't have that many effective enforcement mechanisms. As they say in the first chapter of our (badly written, badly indexed and generally bad) textbook: "Yes, well, international law seems to work, and States adhere to it - but we don't really know why..."

Then there's Kelsen and his search for the grundnorm, i.e. the God Norm in whose image all other norms are formed. Which, personally, I think is complete bullshit. You cannot say that every single "norm" descended from one original standard of behaviour.

Then there's the ridiculous article in our readings about how the concept of the State is inherently masculine. It's apparently all to do with impermeable boundaries and the penetration thereof. Apparently our definitions of statehood also reinforce the view of women as inferior. It's people like these writers who give feminism a bad name.

The hippogriff, sorry, the elephant in the room in international law classes appears to be the fact that, unless the powerful States participate, international law is meaningless. I don't think it's been mentioned once in the entire course how ineffective the UN is without US support. Then there's China, whose human rights violations are the stuff of legend - and yet nothing is done about it. (Then there's the Sudan, where nothing is done either, but I don't think that's got anything to do with their economic clout.)

Sigh.

And I was so looking forward to international law!!

Yay! Bujold in paperback!

Get this widget!

(You can't tell I'm supposed to be studying for exams right now, can you...?)

For all you library larcenists out there...

This is section 525 of the Crimes Act 1900 (NSW):

525 Stealing or damaging books and other things in public library and other places

Whosoever steals, or removes, secretes, or damages with intent to steal, any book, print, manuscript, or other article, or any part thereof, kept for the purposes of reference, or exhibition, or of art, science, or literature, in any public library, or in any building belonging to the Queen, or to any university or college, or a council (within the meaning of the Local Government Act 1993), shall, on conviction by a Local Court, be liable to imprisonment for one year, and to pay a fine of 10 penalty units in addition to a fine equal to four times the value of the article stolen, or intended to have been stolen.

So, tell me, which of you has never nicked a library book?

Horn Performance Degree vs. 4 Years of Intensive Video Gaming

Hoping to demonstrate the value of music education as a replacement for video gaming, a psychologist arranged for the controlled education of two similarly-qualified high school students. The first student was provided with a 4 year education at a major university, unlimited access to a video arcade and an inexhaustible supply of quarters. The second student was provided with a 4 year education at a major music conservatory, unlimited access to a horn teacher, and a professional quality double horn.
The study was summarised as follows:
Student A became obsessed with and spent 8+ hours a day playing PacMan. Normal personal hygiene and social skills declined, and no friendships were formed, except with students similarly obsessed. Student A did not find regular employment after graduation, preferring instead to continue his long hours playing PacMan. After three years, he began to understand that he could not earn a living playing PacMan, and after 5 years, Student A has obtained reasonably secure employment as a computer programmer.
Student B became obsessed with and spent 8+ hours a day playing his Paxman. Normal personal hygiene and social skills declined, and no friendships were formed, except with students similarly obsessed. Student B did not find regular employment after graduation, preferring instead to continue long hours playing his Paxman. After three years, he began to understand that he could not earn a living playing his Paxman, and after 5 years, Student B has obtained reasonably secure employment as a computer programmer.
Conclusion: There is no significant difference between an undergraduate degree in horn performance and 4 years of intensive video gaming.
Source: http://www.thefrenchhorn.net/jokes.html

Recipe consolidation & a culled recipe

I have been consolidating my recipe collection: transferring the ones I liked into my shiny Word document cookbook and consigning the ones I didn't like to the Recycle Bin.

The recipe cited here is one of the culled recipes - however, I'm including a link to it, simply because of the effort I expended in making the damn thing. You need about 3 mixing bowls and have to clean the mixer in the middle of the preparation process. Juicing mandarins is a fraught process and let's not even get into how impossible it is to grate mandarin peel...

So here you are: Choc-mandarin mousse

Books I have read in Holland

From 25/2/2007 to 24/2/2008

1 Wynne Jones, Diana Tough guide to fantasyland, The
2 Wilkerson, David Have you felt like giving up lately?
3 LaHaye, Time & Jenkins, Jerry B. Left behind: the mark
4 Heinlein, Robert A. Double star
5 Eco, Umberto Name of the rose, the
6 Greenberg, Joanne I never promised you a rose garden
7 Clarke, Arthur C. 2001: a space odyssey
8 Bradbury, Ray Martian chronicles, the
9 Adair, Gilbert Act of Roger Murgatroyd, the
10 Beaton, M.C. Death of a cad
11 Beaton, M.C. Death of a gossip
12 Beaton, M.C. Death of an outsider
13 Kerr, Katharine Red wyvern, the
14 James, P.D. Murder room, the
15 Haggard, Henry Rider King Solomon's mines
16 Weyman, Stanley Under the red robe
17 Hope, Anthony Prisoner of Zenda, The
18 Doyle, Sir Arthur Conan Lost world, the
19 Wren, P.C. Beau Geste
20 Wodehouse, P.G. Stiff upper lip, Jeeves
21 Brontë, Emily Wuthering Heights
22 Kipling, Rudyard Jungle book, The
23 Heinlein, Robert A. Moon is a harsh mistress, The
24 Kipling, Rudyard Captains courageous
25 Lackey, Mercedes Burning water
26 Mortimer, John Rumpole for the defence
27 Lee, Tanith White as snow
28 Kipling, Rudyard Second jungle book, The
29 Douglass, Sara Druid's sword
30 Douglass, Sara Serpent bride, The
31 Bujold, Lois McMaster Sharing knife: beguilement, The
32 Orczy, Baroness Scarlet pimpernel, The
33 Dobbs, Michael House of cards
34 Dobbs, Michael To play the king
35 Dobbs, Michael Final cut, The
36 Brontë, Charlotte Jane Eyre
37 Miller, Keith Book of flying, The
38 Mortimer, John Rumpole on trial
39 Kipling, Rudyard Under the deodars
40 Wodehouse, P.G. Joy in the morning
41 Bester, Alfred Stars my destination, The
42 Bester, Alfred Demolished man, The
43 Heinlein, Robert A. Podkayne of Mars
44 Kipling, Rudyard Kim
45 Feynman, Richard What do YOU care what other people think?
46 Peters, Ellis Rose rent, The
47 Peters, Ellis Hermit of Eyton Forest, The
48 Peters, Ellis Raven in the foregate, The
49 Rhys, Jean Wide sargasso sea, The
50 Harris, Joanne Chocolat
51 Mortimer, John Rumpole à la carte
52 Bujold, Lois McMaster Komarr
53 Wodehouse, P.G. Carry on, Jeeves
54 Herriot, James Every living thing
55 Bradley, Marion Zimmer Fall of Atlantis, The
56 Bujold, Lois McMaster Civil campaign, A
57 Rowling, J.K. Harry Potter and the deathly hallows
58 Lawrence, D.H. Lady Chatterley's lover
59 Gooden, Philip Pale companion, The
60 Kipling, Rudyard Light that failed, The
61 Steinbeck, John Of mice and men
62 Kipling, Rudyard Debits and credits
63 Sayers, Dorothy L. Have his carcase
64 James, P.D. Children of men, The
65 Stevenson, Robert Louis Kidnapped
66 Bujold, Lois McMaster Cordelia's honor
67 Bujold, Lois McMaster Young Miles
68 Bujold, Lois McMaster Miles, mystery and mayhem
69 Bujold, Lois McMaster Miles errant
70 Bujold, Lois McMaster Memory
71 Mortimer, John Rumpole and the Penge bungalow murders
72 Golding, William Lord of the flies
73 King, Laurie R. Moor, The
74 King, Laurie R. Letter of Mary, A
75 Mortimer, John Rumpole rests his case
76 Mortimer, John Rumpole and the primrose path
77 Mortimer, John Rumpole and the reign of terror
78 Martin, Valerie Mary Reilly
79 Laskas, Gretchen Moran Midwife's tale, The
80 Kipling, Rudyard Willie Winkie, The
81 King, Laurie R. Monstrous regiment of women, A
82 Doyle, Sir Arthur Conan Hound of the Baskervilles, The
83 Moon, Elizabeth Trading in danger
84 King, Laurie R. O Jerusalem
85 King, Laurie R. Game, The
86 Mortimer, John Quite honestly
87 Birmingham, John Weapons of choice: World War 2.1
88 Turtledove, Harry Ruled Britannia
89 Ludlum, Robert Tristan betrayal, The
90 Drabble, Margaret Sea lady, The
91 King, Laurie R. Justice Hall
92 King, Laurie R. Locked rooms
93 Sayers, Dorothy L. Lord Peter
94 Wodehouse, P.G. Small bachelor, The
95 Marsh, Ngaio Overture to death
96 Kipling, Rudyard Day's work, The
97 Lloyd, Martin Passport, The: the history of man's most travelled document
98 Lovecraft, H.P. Tales of H.P. Lovecraft
99 Kipling, Rudyard Plain tales from the hills
100 Vonnegut, Kurt Slaughterhouse-five
101 Jerome, Jerome K. Three men in a boat: to say nothing of the dog!
102 Beaton, M.C. Death of a village
103 Beaton, M.C. Death of a poison pen
104 Moon, Elizabeth Speed of light
105 Westbrook, Kate Moneypenny diaries, The: guardian angel
106 Willis, Connie To say nothing of the dog, or, how we found the bishop's bird-stump at last
107 Bujold, Lois McMaster Curse of Chalion, The
108 Bujold, Lois McMaster Paladin of souls
109 Bujold, Lois McMaster Hallowed hunt, The
110 Pratchett, Terry Monstrous regiment
111 Conrad, Joseph Heart of darkness
112 Proulx, Annie Shipping news, The
113 London, Jack Call of the wild / White Fang
114 Canavan, Trudi Magician's guild, The
115 Canavan, Trudi Novice, The
116 Canavan, Trudi High lord, The
117 Wynne Jones, Diana Eight days of Luke
118 Nicholson, William Wind singer, The
119 Nicholson, William Slaves of the Mastery
120 Nicholson, William Firesong
121 Greenberg, Martin H. & Davis, Russell (eds.) If I were an evil overlord
122 Smith, Dodie Hundred and one dalmatians, The
123 King, Laurie R. Beekeeper's apprentice, The
124 Stevenson, Robert Louis Treasure island
125 fforde, Jasper Something rotten
126 fforde, Jasper Big over easy, The
127 fforde, Jasper Fourth bear, The
128 Sarrantonio, Al (ed.) Flights: extreme visions of fantasy, vol.1
129 Forster, E.M. Room with a view, A
130 Fowler, Christopher Seventy-seven clocks
131 King, Laurie R. Locked rooms
132 Fitzgerald, F. Scott Great Gatsby, The
133 Cervantes, Michel Don Quixote de la Mancha (a third thereof - but it was a very LONG third!)
134 Pratchett, Terry Going postal
135 Pratchett, Terry Small gods
136 fforde, Jasper Well of lost plots, The
137 Seigel, Jan Prospero's children
138 Doyle, Sir Arthur Conan Study in scarlet, The
139 Doyle, Sir Arthur Conan Sign of the four, The
140 Doyle, Sir Arthur Conan Adventures of Sherlock Holmes, The
141 Doyle, Sir Arthur Conan Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes, The
142 Doyle, Sir Arthur Conan Return of Sherlock Holmes, The
143 Doyle, Sir Arthur Conan Valley of fear, The
144 Doyle, Sir Arthur Conan His last bow
145 Doyle, Sir Arthur Conan Casebook of Sherlock Holmes, The
146 King, Laurie R. Monstrous regiment of women, A
147 Pratchett, Terry Sourcery
148 Pratchett, Terry Equal rites
149 Pratchett, Terry Wyrd sisters
150 Pratchett, Terry Witches abroad
151 Potok, Chaim I am the clay
152 May, Julian Perseus spur
153 King, Laurie R. Game, The
154 May, Julian Orion arm
155 May, Julian Sagittarius whorl
156 Aiken, Joan Night fall
157 Austen, Jane Pride and prejudice
158 Aldiss, Brian Super-state
159 Aiken, Joan Eliza's daughter
160 Bujold, Lois McMaster Komarr
161 Atwood, Margaret Blind assassin, The
162 Nesbit, E Railway children, The
163 Bujold, Lois McMaster Cordelia's honor
164 Baantjer, A.C. DeKok and the death of a clown
165 Chase, Loretta Not quite a lady
166 Pratchett, Terry Light fantastic ,The
167 Salinger, J.D. Catcher in the rye
168 Pratchett, Terry Mort
169 Elbling, Peter Food taster, The
170 Pushkin, Alexander Queen of spades (and other stories), The
171 Roth, Philip Portnoy's complaint
172 Pratchett, Terry Guards! Guards!
173 Sayers, Dorothy L. Clouds of witness
174 Doyle, Sir Arthur Conan Disintegration machine, The
175 Nesbit, E Dragon tamers, The
176 Stenbock, Eric True story of a vampire and more, The
177 Doyle, Sir Arthur Conan When the world screamed
178 Austen, Jane Northanger abbey
179 Sayers, Dorothy L. Murder must advertise
180 Heyer, Georgette Corinthian, The
181 Greene, Graham Monsignor Quixote
182 Pratchett, Terry Lords and ladies
183 Heyer, Georgette Civil contract, A
184 Martel, Yann Life of Pi
185 Haddon,Mark Curious incident of the dog in the night-time, The
186 Pratchett, Terry Colour of magic, The
187 Fraser, George Macdonald Flashman
188 Durrell, Gerald Drunken forest, The
189 Pratchett, Terry Men at arms
190 McEwan, Ian Amsterdam
191 Herriot, James Let sleeping vets lie
192 Pratchett, Terry Feet of clay
193 Pratchett, Terry Jingo
194 Roy, Arundhati God of small things, The
195 Walker, Alice Color purple, The
196 Atwood, Margaret Handmaid's tale, A
197 Maguire, Gregory Wicked
198 Lewycka, Marina Short history of tractors in Ukranian, A
199 Pratchett, Terry Fifth elephant, The
200 Pratchett, Terry Night watch
201 Sayers, Dorothy L. Strong poison
202 Pratchett, Terry Thud!
203 Sayers, Dorothy L. Gaudy night
204 Steinbeck, John Grapes of wrath

Another poem by someone else

Résumé
Dorothy Parker

Razors pain you;
Rivers are damp;
Acids stain you;
And drugs cause cramp.
Guns aren’t lawful;
Nooses give;
Gas smells awful;
You might as well live.

Book ratings

I now plan to adopt this system of book ratings - it seems pretty comprehensive.

Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?

This was a film I knew of for many years, and was in fact the immediate association I made whenever anyone mentioned Virginia Woolf herself. However, I only watched it for the first time quite recently.

I thought it was fantastic - at the very least, it finally explained my father's use of the phrase "Shall we play Get The Guest?" and a friend's use of "where do you keep the euphemism?" [f you are confused - watch the film!] - but the story itself was driven, intense and absorbing. Elizabeth Taylor was brilliant and Richard Burton is close to becoming one of my great cinematic loves (after Peter O'Toole, Jimmy Stewart and Fred Astaire, naturally).

However - am I the only person who would like to be in a George&Martha-esque relationship?

I mean, I know they are god-awful and nasty to each other, but I think they do genuinely love each other. In my opinion, it would be better to be in a relationship where you loved the other person and fought until it made you sick, than to be in one where you felt nothing much at all.

Maybe it's just me...

Kiwi Muffins!

Yes, it's Teddy Tahu Rhodes!


(Though the photo I really wanted to use was the one from Opera Australia's production of Don Giovanni - the one involving black leather underwear. You can see that photo here. The drooling going on from all the women - and probably a good number of the men - in the audience was almost palpable.)

But this is in fact a Bad Pun brought on by people's insistence of referring to kiwifruit as kiwis. This is wrong: kiwis are either small flightless birds from New Zealand, or the small flightless New Zealanders themselves. Trust me, I'm a Sydneysider - we know these things :)

Bad Puns aside, my main point is in fact kiwifruit muffins. Thus:

This is the sort of muffin that will probably work with any kind of fruit - I just happened to have a couple of kiwifruit that were threatening to go off if I didn't do something with them soon, and I remembered I'd found this recipe. Thus, kiwifruit muffins, with non-blurry photo (the bananas in said photo are mostly there to block out my housemate's laptop):

KIWIFRUIT MUFFINS

Ingredients
185g self-raising flour
2 tbsp sugar
1 tsp baking powder
80g butter, melted
1 egg, lightly beaten
3/4 cup milk
2 kiwifruits, peeled and diced
pinch of salt

Method
1) Preheat oven to 200°C
2) Grease a six hole muffin tin (or be lazy like me and get a silicone one....)
3) Combine flour, sugar, baking powder and salt in a large bowl
4) Combine butter, egg and milk and then stir into flour mixture
5) Fold kiwifruit into mixture.
6) Spoon mixture into the muffin tin
7) Bake for 20 min, or until golden
8) Cool in tins for 5 min and then on a wire rack

Preparation time: 15 min
Cooking time: 20 min
Serves: makes 6 muffins

Source: Lynne Mullins, Cuisine.com.au, http://www.cuisine.com.au/recipe/Kiwifruit-muffins, 16/10/07

Banananana bread (with added raspberry!)

The Netherlands only has one Starbucks at the moment, which may go some way towards explaining why the Dutch seem to be ignorant of the concept of banana bread. I was surprised by this - given how popular it is in Australia as the addition to one's morning coffee - and so I made some yesterday, taking it to work today to try and convert the natives.

No photo, but recipe follows:

BANANA BREAD WITH RASPBERRIES

Ingredients
150g butter
1 cup brown sugar
2 eggs, beaten
2 bananas, mashed
2 cups self-raising flour
1 tsp baking powder
½ cup milk
½ cup frozen raspberries

Method
1) Preheat oven to 180°C
2) Grease and line a loaf-shaped cake tin
3) Cream butter and sugar
4) Gradually add in eggs
5) Add banana, flour and baking powder, milk and stir
6) Carefully add raspberries
7) Pour into pan and smooth surface
8) Bake for 45-55 min
9) Cool in pan for 10 min before removing to a wire rack to cool completely

Preparation time: 15 min
Cooking time: 55 min
Serves: one shop’s worth of staff

Source: Kim Meredith, Taste.com.au, http://www.taste.com.au/recipes/365/banana+and+raspberry+bread, 16/12/07

Additional notes
Add the raspberries to taste, however be careful as too many will distort the structural integrity of the loaf (i.e. it will fall apart when you try to slice it...) The recipe I cribbed from said you could use fresh raspberries, however that to me is the worst kind of food sacrilege - my reaction here mirrors Gollum's reaction to the idea of spoiling the nice fisheses by frying them! Disgusting!

Eliza's Daughter

Eliza's Daughter
by Joan Aiken

A sequel to Jane Austen's Sense and Sensibility, Eliza's Daughter takes up the story of the illegitimate daughter of Colonel Brandon's ward Eliza and that dastardly cad Mr Willoughby. In keeping with the we-only-have-10-female-names standards of the times, Eliza's daughter is also named Eliza, as was Eliza's mother - something which does cause a little genealogical confusion later in the book as bloodlines start to be explained.

I tended to side with an Amazon customer reviewer who complained that it would have been a good book if Aiken had not used Sense and Sensibility as a base and just come up with her own characters. Now, much to my chagrin, I have not read the book; however, I have seen the 1994 film and thus have a basic familiarity with the characters. Much to my dismay, those who are not killed off during the course of Eliza's Daughter would be unrecognisable, were it not for their names. Marianne Dashwood is a spiteful and shrewish woman, Margaret has become foolish and quite pathetic, and a subdued Elinor is controlled by the now bitter and vindictive Edward.

The plot is quite entertaining, but suffers from continual changes of location and a high companion character turnover-rate. Many characters are introduced and then summarily killed off a few chapters later for no apparent reason. One notable example involves a character who has served no real plot purpose before her abrupt disappearance from the tale, who then returns some chapters later - still without the contribution of any plot points.

Character assassinations aside, overall the story is carried along by the independent and engaging heroine and is an entertaining read.