Liebster Blog Awards - 2013

 

So I wake up, check my Hotmail and realise I've gotten an email from a girl named A and Kaykay who has nominated my blog for The Liebster Blog Awards.
So what this means, is that someone who has less than 200 followers, an upcoming blogger and is nominated by someone who feels that persons blog deserves the recognition from all the hard work that's been put into writing and maintaining it. I thank you for that, A and Kaykay! This gives us all a chance to see new blogs which you love as well as getting to know each other to the blogging community.

The word Liebster means 'favourite' in German. Meaning The Favourite Blog Awards.

In order to accept and participate for the awards, there are certain steps you have to undertake in order to be officially nominated.

1. Tell 11 things about yourself.
2. Answer 11 questions from the blogger who nominated you.
3. Post 11 questions for those who will be nominated by you.
4. Nominate 11 bloggers who have less than 200 followers.
5. Get in contact with those 11 bloggers in order to inform them that you nominated them.

I'll start off with 11 things about myself:
1. I've been writing for a long time, creating stories and poems and showing them to as many people as I could find.
2. I'm very interested in the paranormal and I love writing stories having to do with the supernatural and thriller genre.
3. I am currently writing a novel called Murder Case: The Secret. It's a supernatural/thriller/crime story. You can find 5 chapters for a sneak preview by clicking on the name of my novel, or by going to the tab at the top and clicking on its name. I've also published poems in school newsletters.
4. I've won two writing competitions in my lifetime so far. One led me to do a photoshoot and the other led me to be promoted with a professional review about my writing skills. You can see the link here. http://oneminutewriter.blogspot.com.au/2013/01/fff-winner-mindy-saini.html
5. I love reading books. I still haven't got a bookshelf as of yet, but I've collected at least 4 large boxes full of my favourite books. They are mostly in the sci-fi, thriller, supernatural and crime genre.
6. I'm a Harry Potter nut. I've read each book more than 30 times. Yes, you heard right. I love the series so much that I know everything about it! Ask me any question about it.
7. I love reading other people's blogs that have to do with writing and reviewing books they've read.
8. I created my blog to write about my writing, put my novel chapters up, write about my life experiences (like kissing and flirting with Jeremy Renner) as well as writing about haunted places around Australia.
9. My most favourite actor and movie is Arnold Schwarzenegger and Terminator 2.
10. One day my books will be available in the bookstores and I hope to be a bestseller one of these days. I really want people to love reading my books and I want them to be immersed into the world I created.
11. My most favourite food is Chicken Rice. It's an Asian dish which I can eat for breakfast, lunch, dinner and snack. Yeah, I love it THAT much. Try it out. It's amazing. :)

The second are the 11 questions from A and Kaykay who nominated me. I'll be answering the questions.

1. Why do you blog?
I blog because I love to write. I have all of these ideas that need to get out of my head. I blog because I want people to see the side that I'm so passionate about and to know that I'm serious about my writing.
2. Do you read other blogs and why?
Yes, I do read other blogs; other writing blogs actually. I like to see how others use their imagination, because we all use our imaginations differently and it's interesting to see how others work. Plus, it's extremely fascinating to read their work.
3. Which is your favorite book and why?
Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban. It's my favourite because firstly, I love Harry Potter and I really love time travel stories. Plus, Sirius Black!!! I've read so many times, it's just so fascinating and I love it so much.
4. What writing means for you?
Writing means letting a part of your imagination and soul onto a piece of paper (or on the computer). It means expanding your mind to many different things.
5. How do you spend your free time?
I love to read my favourite books, watch my favourite movies, listen to my favourite movie soundtracks and work on my blog and novel. All of these go hand in hand in helping me expand my mind. I also love cooking and experimenting with food.
6. What was your greatest moment for the year that passed?
This answer is very simple. It happened on the 8th of August, 2012. The day I kissed and flirted with Jeremy Renner. Jeremy is a great man, so to read about my experience with pictures, check it out! =)
7. Which five words describe you best?
Shy, imaginative, romantic, commitment and persistence.
8. What would you encourage other people to do?
Follow your hearts, really. If you're really passionate about something, go for it. Take steps to get to your goal, whether it be writing for freelance to get your work out or taking courses to up your skills. Go for it.
9. What would you change in your life if you could?
Become more confident about my body and up my self-esteem. I'm working on it at the moment so I can make myself stronger.
10. What advice you would give to a new writer?
Check out my article for inspirational tips: http://sksainitheauthor.blogspot.com.au/2013/01/10-techniques-to-gain-inspiration-for.html
Like I said before, go for it. Write everything down, expand it. Research and do what you need to do in order to make yourself better. Get people to review your work.
11. If there’s a word that would describe how you want this year to turn out, what is that word?
Efficacious.
These questions are from KayKay which will be answered by me.
12. How would you describe your blog?
I would say it's full of a variety of the paranormal and my life experience.
13. Has blogging made you a better writer?
I would say that it has. I've really gotten loads of feedback and advice for my writing and always try to make myself a better writer.
14. What inspired you to start writing?
When I was younger, my parents gave me loads of books to read (not for my age group), and with my ghostly experiences, I loved to write down little stories I made on the computer. I thank my parents for my ability to write.
15. Have you published any book, if not, do you plan to publish soon?
I haven't published a book yet, but I am writing my paranormal novel which I hope to publish in the future. It's called Murder Case: The Secret which  you can read 5 sneak peak chapters on the top of the tab.
16. Define what success means to you as a writer?
It means having been reviewed by critics in a positive light. It means people love what you have to read and look forward to future projects. That's happening to me at the moment. It's getting exciting!
17. Favourite author?
My favourite author is definitely J.K.Rowling. I love the universe she's created, she's inspired me so much to finish my dream as a writer.
18. What are your hopes for this year?
I hope to finally get into my Bachelor of Arts in Creative Writing at University, so I can up my skills as a writer and become a published author and editor. I hope to finally get more recognition for my blog, my novel and my writing skills.

To the people that I nominate, these are 11 questions for you to answer in order to participate. The same questions as above.

1. Why do you blog?
2. Do you read other blogs and why?
3. Which is your favorite book and why?
4. What writing means for you?
5. How do you spend you free time?
6. What was your greatest moment for the year that passed?
7. Which five words describe you best?
8. What would you encourage other people to do?
9. What would you change in your life if you could?
10. What advice you would give to a new writer?
11. If there’s a word that would describe how you want this year to turn out, what is that word?

These are my nominees. I have picked you guys because I feel you guys have worked so hard to get where you are now and that you deserve the recognition.

1. Esabella S.
2. JoAnn. L Hill.
3. Edward Gardner.
4. Dogwalk Musings.
5. Rhyme Me A Smile.
6. Musings of an Unapologetic Dreamer.
7. On the Edge of Life.
8. Always a Mom.
9. Little Things in Life.
10. Talia's Creative Printing.
11. Alone in Holy Land.

This message is for my nominees, when you complete all the steps, you'll be officially entered!!! Good luck to all and make sure you leave the link of your blog post down in the comments below with all the steps done like mine. Have fun! This gives us all a chance to get to know each other as well as promoting our favourite blogs to the world. :)

10 Techniques To Gain Inspiration For Your Story.

Don’t you hate that feeling when you’re staring at your paper or your screen and you just can’t think of anything to write? There are endless amount of ways where you can gain inspiration when getting ideas for a good story. This post will talk about how I get my motivation and many diverse ways you can get yours too.

 

 

The many different ways I go about for inspiration it’s quite easy if you have a very vivid imagination. Here are my top ten picks for expanding your mind:

1. Daydreaming: I like to sit - no matter where I am - and just stare into space. Yes, people might see a weird person just staring at air, but they have no idea what goes on in my head. It’s like a whole new universe just opened up and I’m the creator. I like to imagine different scenarios for myself. I like to put them in situations to see how they’d react and what actions they’d do. Thinking about it continuously can give you so many new ideas and visualisation is one of the best ways you can gain inspiration for a story.

 Just give it try right now. Depending on your preference, – whether you like the quiet or a bit of noise – just sit down and clear your mind of any worries that you have. Picture a character you’d like to put into a story, or picture someone you know and put them in any kind of chaotic situation that pleases you. Ask yourself questions. What would that person do? How would they react? How are they feeling being put into this very situation? Play it in your head as if you’re watching a movie. Use your senses around you and imagine being in that moment.  Write them down if you must so you can remember them.

2. Reading books: Reading lots and lots of books is undeniably another way to gain inspiration. Read books that are the genre of what you want to write about. Look at how the author portrays their characters. Look at the dialogue and the details of the story. Does it grab your attention? Is there anything that jumps out at you when you read the story?
For me, I like to read lots of supernatural themed books. I look at how the author creates their own characters with their own personality as if it’s a completely new person stuck in a world full of paranormal happenings. I look at the details that bring us closer to the character and I look at how the little details in the words lets us imagine a world completely different from our own. I’m against plagiarism, so if you want to write a story, don’t copy it from something you read. You can draw inspiration, however. Look at how the author writes. Are there lots of descriptive words or are there fewer ones? For example Lord of the Rings is packed with descriptive words, it tells us everything of the world that J.R.R.Tolkien created and it gives us an extremely vivid visualisation of Middle Earth.

3. Dreams: For those that remember their dreams can also achieve inspiration for writing. Get yourself a dream journal and every time you wake up, write it down before you forget. I always hop on my laptop – yes, the screen can be blinding when first waking up - and I have a special folder where I write down the dreams that I remember. One dream actually helped me get inspiration for a paranormal book series I’m making. You can read back over your dreams to see if anything jumps out at you.

4. Music: Listening to music makes my brain go wild! Whenever you listen to songs, don’t you always just sit back and imagine a whole new world? Loud music gets me distracted and in my case I love listening to soft piano music or movie soundtracks to get my mind going.

5. Life Experience: This is a brilliant way for getting new ideas. Instead of being in familiar surroundings, go somewhere you’ve never been before. Do something you’ve never done or always wanted to. This is a sure way of getting story ideas and great locations for your stories. Look at your own life, yourself and the people around you. Is there anything that you want to write about?

6. Senses: I’ve put this separate from Life Experience, though both can correlate with each other. Using all five of your senses – hear, smell, touch, taste and sight – you can create yourself a world of your own for your own locations. Just imagine being your character, you’ll feel what they feel, you’ll see what they see, you’ll touch what they touch, you’ll hear what they hear and you’ll smell what they do. Write them down and you could be at the start of creating and expanding your own story’s universe!

7. Movies/TV Shows: Watching any kind of Movie or TV Show can get anyone’s mind reeling with ideas. Watch new movies and TV Show’s that you haven’t seen before. Watch something that is specific to your genre of writing. I was watching a movie the other day called ‘Midnight in Paris’. It stars Owen Wilson and Rachel McAdams. The story is about a man who goes to Paris with his fiancé. He’s a screenwriter and is having trouble writing his first novel. He is finding that he lacks the inspiration and falls in love with the 1920’s era of Paris. Since being in Paris, every day at midnight, Owen’s character mysteriously finds himself in 1920’s Paris; where he meets his most favourite and most influential authors. There he finds his inspiration into writing and I urge all writers to actually watch this movie and see it for yourself. It’s really beautiful and it really makes you think. What would you do if you saw your most favourite author?

8. History: Go to the library and look up some of your favourite parts of history. Go on the internet and watch documentaries. It’s amazing how some of our Earth’s history can inspire a writer to think up amazing ideas. It’s also great for locations in your story as well as what the people were like back in the days. My favourite is Egyptian history; it’s so vast and really exciting.

9. Writing Groups: Join a writing group. Whether it is on the internet or in person. You’ll find that other people have the same writing style as you do or different styles altogether. You can all brainstorm together various ideas and you may even find something which you’ve never even thought about! I heard that J.K.Rowling and J.R.R.Tolkien were in the same writers group. I’m not sure how true this is, so I’m not stating it as a fact.

10. Writing Journal: Get any kind of exercise book. I have a large one with over 200 pages. Anytime you have a story idea or any kind of idea at all, just jot it down and get back to it later. I have over 15 pages of ideas, which progressed into storylines.

I hope this has been helpful to you all and that you get some ideas for how you can go about your own inspiration. If the ideas don’t come to you, don’t fret. It takes time and you need these steps in order to expand your imagination. It’s amazing that anything we do can give us inspiration; you just have to look deeper in order to find it. Keep writing, everyone!

Feel free to write down below ways YOU get your inspiration. By working together we can all help each other out with various techniques of expanding our imagination.

Dealing with vulgar comments from an opinionated reader…

Let me start off by saying that I am in no way a doctor of ANY sort. Those who read my blog and somehow assume that I am, you're wrong. How people get to that conclusion is beyond me. My blog clearly states itself as a writing blog, filled with my stories, experiences and crazy ramblings.

My readers tend to be very insightful and extremely benevolent; they always add more to the conversation instead of posting senseless comments like some immature child.
I don't often get negative posts. I always take the good with the bad when it comes to my blog. It's great to get advice, feedback and comments about my posts.

So imagine my surprise when I wake up this morning to receive an vulgar email from a rather serious university student, trying to insult my blog with their words, assuming that I'm claiming to be in the medical field and giving wrong information.

It all started when I wrote about my experiences about Narcissistic Personality Disorder. I wrote about my experiences and backed them up with the signs and symptoms associated with that disorder. In fact this university student who commented wrote: "Unfortunately came upon this trash looking for valid material to reference a third year Sociology essay..." - "What qualifications do you have to discuss a Disorder such as this? Are you a Doctor? Are you a Psychologist? Do you have any training what-so-ever in mental health issues?"

This person evidently could've realised that I wasn't in the medical field, when I clearly wrote in the introduction, "I will be writing my own experiences." Did they somehow miss that sentence?

But for some reason they felt compelled to read the entire thing anyway and take the time to write a long comment about the post. It is definitely not a crime to write about experiences with someone who suffers from a disorder and yet I somehow grabbed the eye of an attention-seeking jerk who wrongly read the article itself and starting writing a load of crap about it.

This person proceeded to write, "Trying to pass themselves off as an authority..." As I re-read my article, there is no place where I even made someone assume that I was some kind of authority. I found it quite interesting that they'd even think that. I continued reading their comment, fascinated by the supposed 'insults' they tried to dish out. Obviously this person was taking my post so seriously that they continued to bash not only the blog post, but my entire blog itself.

They wrote: "This site is absolute trash - you'll be stupider for reading it."
Wow, even more interesting! This person definitely has some sort of anger issues, all because they 'came across it' while doing an essay. They clearly felt interested enough to read the entire thing.

I like to write about my own experiences in life and from my heart as well as showing off my writing and crazy antics. This person however wasn't offended by the post itself, but was somehow pissed off about me writing it. They stumbled across my post and as I left it open-endedly, they pounced on it like a shark to its prey. Now this blog won't please everybody, I understand that, but if you want to write a proper comment, even if it is negative, state the proof of why you think that instead of actually misinterpreting something you read and writing derogative remarks about it. There is a massive difference between constructive criticism and destructive criticism.

They also wrote: “barely talented writer who quote THEIR own pathetic ramblings in cyber-space.”  I’m pretty sure they missed the part where I like to write about my ramblings, in this case I wrote about my experiences with some parts of rambling. So when this person proceeded to bash my blog, they obviously didn’t bother to read the entire thing. It's amazing how rude and cruel complete strangers can be. Of course it must be a keyboard warrior, hiding behind an anonymous name as they are too cowardly to actually face me like a normal person instead.

The funny thing is I'm not insulted. I'm actually quite interested in what was going through this person's head as they were typing the comment. This person obviously relishes on being extremely negative to try and belittle someone. This comment had profanity in it and was deleted by BlogSpot before I could publish it. But fortunately it hasn't affected me in a bad way and I felt compelled to write this post to see how others deal with really harsh comments, especially those of a vulgar nature.

Writing this blog of mine means I take a risk each and every time I post something. As a blogger you must always take the good with the bad, because let's face it, not everyone will be happy with something you write and you can't please everybody. So I ask you once again. How do you guys handle rude and profane comments?

I'd like to thank everyone who has been there for me since I started this blog in 2009. Your words of encouragement, hope and postiveness have made me want to write more and learn more. Blogging is a learning process and each time is a different experience to others and myself.

I also wanted to thank this person for giving me the reason to write this post in the first place and would like to hear their intelligent views (without the profanity) on what I think of their comment. Although, I highly doubt they'll come back again.

Remember everybody, the less negativity in this world the better. Positive energy, language, mood and thinking is what will make this world a better place. Don't let the hatred of something consume you to the point where you never get past it. Try to move on and turn it into a positive, like I have.

 

Maxmoefoe - Our very own Aussie Comedian!

Max Stanley - WA

Max Stanley, otherwise known as his Youtube counterpart Maxmoefoe, is slowly taking all of us by a storm. At just 19 years of age from Perth, Western Australia, Max has already developed quite a large fan base for his hilarious pranks, trolling adventures and a rather healthy Pokémon addiction - who doesn’t love Pokémon, seriously?  

Since creating his Maxmoefoe Channel 5 years ago, Max now has over 26,000 fans on Facebook as well as 183,000+ fans around the globe on YouTube. There millions of views on his videos combined, the numbers climb up with each passing day. He continuously entertains fans around the world, incessantly making our sides cramp like Hell and gets our cheek muscles sore due to his sidesplittingly amusing videos.

Max has 3 other Youtube Channels, although not as popular as his Maxmoefoe Channel (http://www.facebook.com/maxmoefoe), they however still have popular viewings:

Maxmoefoetwo – it basically consists of extra bits of footage such as bloopers, content and more trolling videos. http://www.youtube.com/user/maxmoefoetwo

MaxmoefoePokemon – involves most things Pokémon! Need I say more?
 http://www.youtube.com/user/maxmoefoePokemon

Maxmoefoegames – its content is full of awesome gameplay with hilarious and enjoyable commentary by Max. http://www.youtube.com/user/maxmoefoegames

Gaining even more admiration among the social media world, his continual collaboration with his audience makes him a delightful and charismatic person. He frequently interacts with his fans via Twitter (https://twitter.com/maxmoefoe), Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/maxmoefoe), Skype (maxmoefoe) and his Youtube videos/Channels.

Recently Max attended the Supanova Pop Culture Expo (2012) in Perth. For those who are confused at what this Expo is about, it’s where all the nerds, ahem, fans come face-to-face with celebrities and are surrounded by a variety of creative talent that inspired their imaginations such pulp TV/movies, toys, console gaming, trading cards, animations, comic books, fan-clubs etc.

As unreal as the experience was, Max was continually in awe and amazement as fans of all ages came up to him for autographs, chats and photos.  He was even lucky enough to score an interview with the one and only Verne Troyer, better yet known as Mini Me in the Austin Powers movies!

Nearly most days, Max receives fan mail at his P.O box in Perth and every Sunday he releases a comical video on his YouTube Channel, opening up fan mail and showing his appreciation to his fans. In the background of the videos Max puts up nearly every single drawing that his fan base has sent to him throughout the years.

Max with his fans pictures in the background.

On Thursdays, Max releases his prank call videos to his audience.

Max is a great comedian, he can think on the spot when tricking people with his prank calls and he is a wonderful video maker. As well as engaging with his audiences from around the globe, Max is always looking to chat with fans and is always keen for feedback. 

I became a fan of his about 5 days ago when I came across a video on Youtube of Max trolling around on Omegle (which is an online chat and webcam site). I found it so hilarious that I started to watch his other videos, daresay I quickly became a fan. For the past 5 days, his videos have kept me up until 5:30am! His videos are pretty addictive once you get into them and as you keep watching, you realise the charm that he gives off into his videos. I wish him the very best in continuing to make us laugh like crazy and hope he keeps engaging with his fans like he does every other day. Respect!

For everyone wanting to check Max’s videos out, go to www.youtube.com/maxmoefoe.

 

The Bourne Legacy Melbourne Premiere - The day I met, kissed and was flirted by Jeremy Renner!

Waking up yesterday and realising this will be the day I will meet my love Jeremy Renner for the first time (after years of obsession), made me extremely excited and nervous with a major feeling of longing. I have been waiting for this Premiere since I first heard about it a couple of months ago. Weeks of sleepless nights, lying in bed thinking of what to say to him and what I would do still played in my head. Don’t you always get those moments? Playing a forthcoming situation in your head in different ways?

The night before, I spent about 2 hours braiding ALL of my layers in front of the mirror, leaving it overnight to give it that curlish look. Let’s just say it didn’t turn out as well as I thought it would, but being my first attempt at performing that kind of hairstyle was quite alright in my books!

As I was getting ready for the day, the weather outside was battering down on us. Heavy ice cold winds pierced through our skins and bones and the rain was so annoying that wearing extra jackets for the day made me irritated as I was planning to wear a dress for the Premiere. But that didn’t get my hopes down as I was still rather looking forward to meeting Jeremy.

So, I took the 1:50pm train with my brother and Mum. My brother and I have been major fans of Jeremy since watching The Town in the cinemas. When we showed The Town to my parents after it came out on DVD, they become fans as well. Ever since we saw The Town, my obsession started. I’ve basically seen EVERYTHING that Jeremy has starred in now. I love him for his personality, his attitude towards life, his acting and his singing, a great inspiration and perfect man in my books.

We sat talking in the train. About Jeremy, what the Premiere would be like (as it would be our first time going to a red carpet event) and what we’d do. I briefly mentioned I was planning to kiss him. Oh, how I wanted to so bad! It was one of those moments that were repeating in my mind from those sleepless nights.

As we reached Flinders’ Station and started walking towards Crown Casino, the forthcoming event was starting to hit me. My heart was pounding in my chest and once again I wondered what would happen. As we reached Crown Casino, we went to the bathroom to freshen up. The state of my thick and messed up hair made me self-conscious, so fixing it up as best as I could and re-doing my makeup made me feel slightly better.

We took the escalator up to Village Cinemas and upon reaching there, there was already a few people sitting down near the barriers of the red carpet. A small bald man with glasses (who was one of the security guys) came up to and told us, “Yes, Jeremy Renner will be coming here. I didn’t know myself as I was wondering why people were coming here to sit down in front of the barriers.”

He mentioned a few people had been there since 11am. I would’ve been one of them, but an appointment with placement forced me to re-consider that thought.

There was a perfect spot near the red carpet, so my brother, Mum and I quickly sat there before anyone could take it. We looked at our clock, three hours to go. I looked at the other people around me and immediately jealousy seeped in. How long have they been fans for?  Since 2012 when The Avengers aired in cinemas around the world? Wait, why was I jealous again? It must’ve been that obsessive moment and fan girl side leaking out of me.

I looked around my surroundings. It was hard not to notice that something major was about to happen. In front of the escalator’s leading up to the cinemas, there were black barricades in a medium-sized circle on top of the red carpet. It was surrounded by yellow tape which would later be taken down so you could step right up to the barrier. Posters of Jeremy from The Bourne Legacy filled the room as more than 20 posters surrounded the area. Many people walked past, oblivious to the event but noticing the many people sitting down against the wall, obviously waiting for something.

An old man came up to us and asked us who was coming. He didn’t know who Jeremy Renner was despite the list of movies I mentioned to him. He thanked us and told us he’d tell his daughter what I said.

I’ll skip forward to 5:00pm now. He would be coming in one more hour. We saw a few people standing up near the barriers so my brother, Mum and I quickly walked up to the barriers so we could get front row views and more of a higher chance to touch Jeremy and get an autograph. Okay, the touching thing was my idea haha.

Once we went up there, EVERYONE started to surround the barriers and luckily we had the perfect spot. I met another Rennerian (this is my new word for a Jeremy Renner fan). I won’t mention names as I respect people’s privacy. We talked about Jeremy, about what movies we’d seen of his and what we would expect when he comes. She made this really awesome cartoon of Jeremy as Hawkeye with The Lion King 2 for him to autograph. Talent, I say! I just made a photo shopped picture for his to sign and she said it looked really awesome. Aw, bless you.

Security guards surrounded the red carpet, standing around with their hands folded on top of each other and the ear pieces in their ears, reminding me of the Sentinels in The Matrix.

Before 6pm hit, one of the girls in the behind the barriers, collapsed. The guards went up to her and I saw her slumped over the barrier. They held her up and she looked pretty drowsy. My guess was the lights and the heat affected her pretty bad. She was taken away and the paramedics showed up not long after (I think they are always there at these kind of events JUST in case something like this happens). The girl came back not long afterwards.

The announcer finally stated that Jeremy had just entered the loading dock and was now on his way to the red carpet. We all erupted in screams and anticipation. It was getting SO close now! Finally we all started yelling out, “Jeremy! Jeremy! Jeremy! Jeremy!” We all said this for less than 2 minutes and suddenly we all started screaming even more when Jeremy walked up from behind the black curtain. The excitement in the air was so much that I shook my camera, completely forgetting for a second that I held it in my hand. He came up to the first part of the barriers near the curtain, signing autographs and getting pictures with fans. At one point someone screamed out, “I LOVE YOU JEREMY!” Oh, how I felt the same way! It was truly amazing to see him in person, to see the person I’d been fantasising over for such a long time!

I stopped recording and put my camera on photo mode. Let’s say, I went crazy while taking pictures. I was so tempted to fill up my 8gb SD card. As he was going around to the fans, the security guard was walking around. “Do you guys have the pictures and camera ready?” Of course, mate! =D

Jeremy was coming closer and closer to me now. My heart was beating frantically in my chest and all those sleepless nights of thinking up fantasy situations were hopefully starting to happen. He finally reached me now, he looked down at me with those gorgeous eyes and I was instantly falling all over again for him. I quickly told him that I have loved him since The Town and his eyes lit up with happiness and did his sexy chuckle which I love so much.

“You did? Thanks so much!” He signed my picture which I made and I told him that I made it. He loved it! I asked him if I could have a picture and he automatically leaned into me as I held the camera in front of us. I put my hand on his shoulder and took a picture. He was winking.

He smiled and I thanked him. He went to my Mum who was beside me and signed the card which I gave her for to sign. I touched his suit while he was signing; it was so smooth and well smooth! Ah, I know it’s obsessive, but seriously I have waited for this moment for SUCH a long time!

As he was taking a picture with my Mum, I quickly called him back and asked for another picture.

“Another picture?! You sure?” He said, chuckling to himself. After he said hey to my brother he came back for another picture. This time I did what I’d always fantasised to do. I kissed him. I could smell the ciggies and could feel the scratchiness of his stubble. Let's say I liked the feel of it haha. I took the picture. The crowd suddenly went wild as I kissed him and started screaming their heads off. I did it! I finally plucked that courage deep down inside myself and kissed him!

As I was looking through the kissing picture of us on my camera, I looked at Jeremy staring at me with a rather mischievous look on his face. He was walking backwards with his eyes on me and he made a rather dirty motion with his two pointer fingers by rubbing them together in a back and forth motion. I was so flustered at this point and the crowd went even wilder at what he was doing. I couldn’t believe that moment was just for me! For me! This was better than any fantasy that I had ever thought up in my head! Here was Jeremy Renner being cheeky and giving me the moment that I had always hoped for! He went back to signing more fans autographs and I was still reeling from that amazing moment. I knew I would never forget it. That moment was perfect that I don’t think Jeremy realised just how loved I was feeling inside!

After making the round around the barricade, he went up the escalator, waving at all of us and we screamed his name out in happiness. And then it was over. My heart was still going crazy and this was quite possibly the most amazing moment in my life. If Jeremy were to ever read this, you’ve made my life mate! You have seriously given me the night of my life and I thank you for being such an amazing person and kindred spirit. Here are some of the photos. I hope you’ve enjoyed reading this just as I have experienced it. Also check out my YouTube link here for the Premiere video which I took with my camera. Also check out the other Jeremy Renner I have made of him. You'll love it!

The Bourne Legacy Melbourne Premiere Video - Jeremy Renner
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cWYcNItXW4M

Haunted places in Melbourne, Australia - Greenvale Sanatorium

Greenvale Mental Hospital

This article is a little close to home. Literally. The Greenvale Sanatorium, also known as the Mental Hospital was situated in Greenvale, Victoria, Australia. But before I get any further, let me give you a little bit of history regarding this Mental Hospital.

The Greenvale Sanatorium was established by the Victorian Government, under the administration of the Health Department in 1905. It was established for the treatment of consumptives.

On May 10th, 1905 it was finally opened. But the 11th of May, there were 10 patients already.

The land is situated on a large 300 acre property, on the wooded uplands near Broadmeadows. It is 500 feet above sea level. It was put there to provide fresh air and a nice temperate climate. It was also in close proximity to Melbourne City, as well as the beautiful lands that surrounded it.

The main ward block and administration wing was designed by Percy Everett.

This was the very first institution in Victoria dedicated to the treatment of TB, or as you know it, Tuberculosis.Whenever patients would come in, they had to abide by the strict regiment which awaited them. The primary purpose of such an institution is. by means of generous and selected food, open-air life, and other forms of recuperative treatment, to develop the resistence of the body to the disease, and to arrest the progress of the disease, and to restore the patient to their normal condition.

Now what's a little history without the paranormal side? Greenvale Mental Hospital was known to be one of the most haunted Sanatoriums in Victoria. It was told (as well as experienced) by people, that the former occupants still reside in their residence, roaming the halls and rooms of the beautifully structured building.

Jane used to be a nurse who worked in the Hospital, treating patients with TB. Now I'm not exactly sure when she was there, but all I know is that she eventually died there and now her ghost walks the halls of the building. Another is the groundskeeper who roams the lands of the site, he has also been seen by a few people.

The Sanatorium is also situated right next to an Aboriginal Cemetary. If you don't already know, it is known around Australia that most of the Aboriginal land, is haunted.

It was surrounded by 6 foot high fences to keep people out. Security had intervened, and patroled the lands and buildings to keep people like us out. Haha.

Anyway, I can't find any ghost pictures or videos relating to the  Mental Hospital, But if anybody does have any, why not share the love and show it to us?

In 2008/9, the Government demolished the building, cleared the land and turned it into some residence for the elderly.

Have you ever been to Greenvale Mental Hospital? Did you have any experiences you'd like to share with us?





Haunted Places in Melbourne, Australia - La Rundel Mental Asylum

So, this is a paranormal blog right? We need more paranormal things. I thought I'd cook up a writing post about different kinds of haunted places where I live. I live in Melbourne, Australia of course. Born and raised. In this post, I will talk about the different haunted places in Melbourne. I will talk a bit of history, the hauntings and if you're really lucky, I'll chuck in a few ghost pictures to make it even more exciting.

Larundel Mental Asylum - Bundoora, Melbourne

Larundel Hospital was created in 1938. It replaced the then outdated Kew Mental Hospital. By 1940, the works on the building were coming steadily fast, by then the Second World War interrupted building. As first it was considered to be a U.S Military Hospital, or a Children's Welfare Depot. But when the R.A.A.F took it over in 1942, they used it as a W.A.A.F training depot. Part of the building was also used as a R.A.A.F hospital.

In 1946, Larundel was given to the Department of Housing. They converted the wards into flats. By 1948, 109 families were living there.

In 1949, the last of the families had moved out, and 30 male patients were then transferred, even though parts of the hospital remained unfinished. A fire at Beechworth Hospital forced a change in decision, and more funds were done in order to open more wards at Larundel for the Beechworth patients.

In 1953, Larundel was officialy opened as a mental hospital. It had 387 patients, a quarter of them were women. Two years later an additional 8 more wards opened up, which allowed at least 360 more patients to arrive (270 of them were female).

By the 1970's, there were different kinds of psychological illnesses. Many patients at Larundel had from Acute Psychiatrics, Chronic Schizophenia, Chronic Psychotics and Geriatric Illnesses.

In the 1990's they moved away from institutional care to community based care. This change resulted in a lot of Victoria's Mental Hospitals to close and many patients were transferred to Austin Hospital.

Right now, the site is being developed. There are plans to build 550 new homes on the site itself as part of a housing development. The building site is closed and there is no access to the general public.

Now you know a bit about the history, we come to the haunting part. Despite being closed to the public however, many people find ways inside the building. Word of mouth had got out that the building was haunted, and as curious as one get's, they wanted to find out whether it was true or not. People who have been there have experienced cold spots and strange smells in the buildings. Even from the outside, banging noises can be heard from outside the building. Music boxes and babies crying can also be heard from outside.

Many people state that everyday at exactly 12am, the music box will start playing. The sound is very faint, and it moves from different spots in the building. There have also been accounts that people have experienced of doors slamming of their own accord, children crying.

If you do happen to want to go one day, be careful of asbestos and security. The building is now getting ready to be knocked down to make way for housing.

Unfortunately, I can't find any ghost pictures, but here are a few pictures of the building.

Has anybody every been to the Larundel Mental Asylum in Bundoora, Melbourne? Have you had any experiences? Do you have any ghost pictures? Would you WANT to go?



Interview with local Australian radio show, Hear & Now.

Hear & Now Interview - Featuring radio presenter, Matthew Romania!

(Hear & Now radio presenter, Matthew Romania)

Once again, this is completely different from what I normally write, but as the moment came, I got to do my own interview for the first time with an amazing local radio show in Victoria, Australia.

I was lucky enough to score an interview with Matthew Romania, who hosts local radio show Hear & Now. At just 22 years of age, Matthew had always been interested in creating and producing a radio show. Since joining the committee at the Kinglake Ranges Radio Station, Matthew finally got to have what he'd been working towards, creating a radio show called Hear & Now.

Mindy: "Why did you create Hear & Now?"

Matthew: "I really wanted to produce a radio show that focussed on three things: amazing music with a local focus, intriguing bits and pieces about life and relevant community news. A variety of segments on the show reflect these three aspects and all have the potential for listener involvement – which is important at a community radio station."

Mindy: "What steps did you take to get to where you are now?"

Matthew: "Radio has always intrigued me, so I didn't hesitate to contact the radio station when I stumbled across an advertisement for new presenters. It's thanks to the incredible team at Kinglake Ranges Radio, that I was guided through the process of producing and presenting my own radio show. Over time, the concept of 'Hear & Now' started to take shape. Every week after the show, I think about how I can improve for the next week."

Mindy: "What kind of songs do you play?"

Matthew: "I aim to feature two or three local bands on the show whilst playing a mixture of great classics that most people know, as well as not-so-well known songs that I love."

Mindy: "You seem big on listener interaction?"

Matthew: "Absolutely! Any time during the show, listeners can text, email or facebook the show with song requests or anything important they want to share. There are a few local segments on the show such as the 'Kinglake Ranges Employment Board' and 'Buy, Sell, Swap'. They rely on interaction from listeners in the community."

Mindy: "How can people listen in to your show?"

Matthew: "'Hear & Now' broadcasts live from Kinglake every Sunday between 4pm and 6pm. If you're in or around the Kinglake Ranges, tune your radio to 94.5 FM, or you can listen live online at the Facebook page, (www.facebook.com/hearandnowradio) or on the radio station’s website (www.kinglakerangesradio.org).

So guys, whether you're in Australia, near Kinglake, or somewhere around the world, listen in to 'Hear & Now' every Sunday between 4-6pm. Congratulations to Matthew Romania for creating a successful and entertaining radio show!

 

Narcissistic Personality Disorder - What is it? How do you deal?

Now, before I talk about this, I just want to say, yes this is a change from what I normally write. But it is interesting and very common nonetheless. I feel this needs to be heard in case people don't know what they're dealing with or if they have even heard of this disorder. I will be writing my own experiences too.

http://people.tribe.net/echidna/blog/73268f67-0c79-4a40-b8fe-e126e8a3305e

To start off, what is Narcissistic Personality Disorder? Let's go back to the very beginning:
It starts off from the Greek Mythology, about a hunter named Narcissus who was renowned for his beauty. He was a proud person, and hated those who loved him. He was attracted to a pool where he saw his own reflection in the water, and fell in love with it. Not realising it was just an image, he was unable to leave the beauty of his reflection and Narcissus died. The image above depicts Narcissus peering at his reflection in the pool of water, gazing at his beauty as he fell in love with it.

Now for the Personality Disorder. It refers to someone who is thought to be full of themselves. Unfortunately in this day and age, it is a universal problem and very common in households. I'm sure we all know people who suffer from this disorder, even without them realising it themselves.
There are symptoms of this disorder, which I'm sure most of you are familiar with (or know about):

1. Reacts to criticism with anger, shame or humiliation.

2. Will take advantage of others to reach their own goals.

3. Tends to exaggerate their own importance and talents instead of others.

4. Imagines unrealistic fantasies of power and intelligence.

5. Requires constant attention and positive reinforcement from others, but doesn't do it from their end.

6. Becomes jealous quite easily.

7. Lacks empathy and disregards the feelings of others.

8. Obsessed with oneself.

9. Trouble keeping healthy relationships.

10. Is easily hurt and rejected.

11. Wants the best of everything.

12. Appears tough-minded or unemotional.

Now I'm sure if you know someone with this disorder (even if they don't know they have it), you can pin-point most of these behavioural symptoms to that person.

The traits are quite similiar of individuals with strong self-esteem and confidence. They have an higher sense of self-worth that they 'always value themselves more better than others'. But really they have a fragile self-esteem and cannot handle criticism. When they can't handle it, they will try to compensate this inner fragility by 'belittling' or 'abusing' others in an attempt to prove their own self-worth.

Unfortunately for this disorder, the cause of it is relatively unknown. But there are certain things that have been identified as possible factors for this disorder:

1. An oversensitive temperament at birth.

2. Excessive admiration that is never balanced with realistic feedback.

3. Being praised for perceived exceptional looks or abilities by adults.

4. Severe emotional abuse in childhood.

There are more, but it'll take too long to write. I just wrote down the main things.

There are theories that a parents relationship was unhealthy and were unable to form a empathic attachment to the child, forcing the child's perception of her/himself as unimportant and unconnected to other people.

But there are other theories that, from that start, the parents relationship with the child from birth was healthy, they made an empathic attachment to the child, the child grew up with a large space of age between the other siblings, and therefore felt themselves unconnected to the family and not as important, even when the parents give each child the same amount of love and respect. The child can be seen as controlling, blaming, self-absorbed and intolerant of others' views. They are unaware of people's needs and they are clueless of the effects of their behaviour on others. They also insist that others see that person as they 'wish' to be seen.

People who are overly narcissistic, commonly feel rejected, humiliated and threatened when they are criticised. To protect themselves from this, they will often lash out and react with disdain, rage, abuse, violence (not matter how slight the criticism is). To avoid these situations, they tend to withdraw socially from the household, but may often fake it to modesty and humility outside the household.

Individuals with this disorder have the inability to tolerate disagreements or criticism, along with lack of empathy. This makes it hard for them to work cooperatively with others or maintain long-term relationships.

It is really sad that a lot of people suffer from this disorder. With no way of helping them, or getting them to realise that they suffer from this, is horrible and sad. Especially if it's somebody who you love a lot, but that person doesn't love you back. I happen to know somebody with that disorder, and she doesn't even know it. I've realised now that because of this, some people can't have that normal relationship with them, as other people can. I will never have that relationship. :(

People with this disorder tend to have a STRONG sense of self-importance, for example they expect to be recognised as superior without any commensurate achievements). They believe that they are special/unique and can only be understood or associate with certain people, for example a best friend or close friends.

They are often envious of other people, for example siblings affections. They always show arrogance, and lacks empathy, not caring or unwilling to recognise the feelings of others but their own.

Another thing to be associated with this disorder is Narcissistic Rage. It means that when a person suffers from Narcissistic Personality Disorder, and they perceive a threat to their self-esteem or self-worth, they will get into a irritation, annoyance to a serious of outbursts which also include violent attacks.The first layer of rage within these individuals can be thought of as a constant anger towards someone else and the second layer being self-aimed wrath.

In a personal experience I had with this certain person, They will lash out at people, and one day they mishear what someone says. That perception of that miscommunication leads into an argument and fight, as they don't want to believe that the miscommunication they heard was in fact wrong. People with Narcissistic Personality Disorder, tend to think that they are always right, and will always disregard what other people have to say. People with this disorder tend to think they are always the victim, and that they are right and everybody else is in the wrong. They can change the perception of themselves by manipulating the people around them into believing their lies, therefore changing the perception of the actual victims, making other people think that the actual victims are in fact the perpetrator.

That same example came from a personal experience with someone I care about. She misheard what someone said, and blatantly kept yelling at this person because she heard something else. She ended up attacking me because once again she misread what was going on, and blamed others. She had to be held down because she was out of control, and she kept getting up to attack again. I had never seen her like this before, and I couldn't believe my eyes. She threatened afterwards to call the police. Why? Because she was physically held down to stop her from attacking anybody else. She was like a zombie. More likely she would have been arrested as there were witnesses to her attacking me. People with this disorder are blind to their own actions. As we develop in our early years, we learn that our actions give out consequences, and that we need to accept these consequences in order to learn from our mistakes and move on. But in her case and countless of others, that is not it. They believe themselves to be the victim, and as I said before, they manipulate the people around them, including family, friends and family friends. Those people believe that we're the bad guys, shun us instead, and go on to believing the lies that have been told by her.

I cannot believe how manipulative she is. I can't believe that she can change the minds around the people of her so easily and turn them against us. If people knew what she was really like, SHE would be the one shunned right now. With this person that I care about, I've had to live with this for my entire life. I've had to live with the relentless bullying, cyber-bullying, violent behaviour and people turning against me because of her. The only way I can let out, and be myself, is my blog.


Afterwards, she disowned us. Why? Because she thought that she was the victim and always right, and that we were wrong. Is there a way to help these people? Is there is a way to help them realise they are sick and they need help? It's sad to think that relationships are broken because of this. Countless of people I've spoken to have been in this similar situation. Countless of people's experiences I've read about, are the same as mine. I've been cyber-bullied by her, I've got the proof. Whether I should put it here or not is another story. People need to know what she is like. I can't stand the fact that people are turning against us because of her lies. It is time to tell the truth, regardless of people trying to stop me, and opt for justice.

Another experience I had was when someone I know went overseas. I was in the house, with her, and she wanted to MAKE me do the dishes. Why? Because she thinks that whatever she says, goes. I still did it anyway. I told her softly, "to calm down." And you know what she does? She comes back and tries to pull my hair. She starts swearing at me. All I felt was her behind me, and the tip of her fingers reaching to grab my hair. Luckily she was stopped by somebody else in the house. Just because you're older, doesn't make you the boss. It doesn't make you right and it certaintly doesn't give you the right to do whatever you want. To make matters worse, she called up the person that went overseas and complained, saying that she's a victim. She got told off of course, because that person knows what she's like. You see how these people think that they're the victim? I had to live with it. My entire life.

If people I know read these experiences, I am NOT making them up. Why would I, anyway? What could I possibly gain by putting up lies? Nothing. What would I gain from telling the truth? A lot.


I've seen on the internet that this can refer to many families, like siblings or parents, or grandparents. I've read their experiences, and how it has affected them, and how they had no choice but to cut away from, as to not get brought downhill with them. After reading various experiences on the internet from different people, I had come to the conclusion that this needs to be heard, so people know about this disorder, and the awareness put out.

Some people think that parents are always in the wrong, on how a child turns out. In some cases yes, but in most cases no. There are some parents who don't look after their children, treat their children like trash as they grow up, are unattentive and unappreciative, which can cause a child's development into this disorder. You DON'T need a license in order to raise a child. That is a stupid idea, and an extremely biased and manipulated opinion.

But there are some parents out there, who would do anything for their children, does everything for them, loves all their children equally, doesn't believe in favourites and tries to put up with their behaviour. Some days, like with the violence incident, can prove all too much. The person with this disorder is always cooped up in their room all the time, never comes out (only to get food and go back in), doesn't speak to anyone, ignores them, doesn't interact and doesn't even make eye contact with you. Sometimes they can suffer from depression, but how can you help them if they don't want to be helped? How can you help someone with these disorders, when they won't even interact with you and even look at you? How can you communicate with somebody that cuts you out of their life? Takes away your pet (who you love more than the entire world)? These are difficult questions to answer, and some of the questions that people find hard to deal with. I find it hard to deal with it.

But now you know what Narcissistic Personality Disorder is, how do you deal with it? How do THEY deal with it? Do you know anybody with this disorder, or anybody with the same behavioural patterns as stated above in this post?

What if the person with this disorder cuts you out of their lives? They are still there, but they never talk to you (not like that did before anyway), they never look at you, send angry threatening messages, tell other people lies about you, and that sadness that those people believe it?

How do you change that perception of the people who were lied to, to try and get them to believe your words as true and not the lies that changed their views in the first place?

How would you feel when you can't have the proper relationship because they never felt the need to interact or find things in common with you? How do you deal with someone who lashes out violently, abusing you since you were little, only to realise that they don't give a damn about you at all, even if you love them?

These are the questions that people can relate to and face themselves. Do we let them cut us out of their lives completely? Do we just let them go, no matter how much you love them? Can you deal with never seeing the person you love ever again?

I guess the questions won't be answered straight away, they take time and possibly years to deal with. But the same question comes. Do you know anybody with this disorder? How do you deal with something like this?

I posted this article, because I want people to be more aware of this disorder. I want people to realise that maybe the person close to you or someone you know, might be suffering from this disorder and you both have no idea. I wanted to share my experiences because I want people to know. I'm sick of keeping things to myself, it bottles up emotions, makes it unhealthy. People need to know. People can relate. To know that I'm not the only one in this situation makes me kind of relieved.

Unfortunately, no matter how much you treat a person with respect, love and kindness, they will throw it back in your face, make you the bad guy instead, not realising themselves that they suffer from this Personality Disorder.

They have no way to help themselves, if they can't see what the problem is. Comments are very much appreciated.

Keep writing everybody!

"If perception can really mess with our minds. Is what we see; what people want us to see, or does it let us see what's right in front of us?" - S.K.SAINI