Funniest Sarah Palin caption yet!

Calculate your energy use!

You may have to ask your parents for help with this one (how many square meters is your house, how much do they spend for electricity and heating oil). But you will be surprised at the results!

http://www.onedidit.com/

So you want to write a novel?

If you are a budding author, National Novel Writing Month is coming up in November. Check out www.nanowrimo.org The idea is to write 1667 words every day (about 5 pages, double spaced) and at the end of the month you will have a novel-length manuscript. Of course, it will need to be edited before you publish it, but at least your ideas are on paper! You do NOT have to write in English (there's even a special section for German-Austrian authors). If you sign up, find me under pocketjoey and we can be writing buddies!

Maturaball vs. Prom

Last night at the Maturaball, I explained to some of you that prom in the United States is very different. Our prom is always at the end of the school year, just before the senior students graduate, usually in May. Prom is really a dance for the seniors, but they often invite students from other classes to be their date, so I went to prom when I was a junior and a senior.

We choose a theme for our prom, and decorate like a Maturaball. The junior class has to pay for the prom itself (through fundraising), but the parents of the junior class pay for the "Party After the Party". We don't invite the entire community, and only a few teachers and parents are there to chaperone. Of course, we don't have any alcohol because the drinking age in the US is 21.

Girls have dresses similar to the ball gowns in Austria, but the boys have to rent a tuxedo. Before the prom, the boy picks the girl up and the parents take lots of photographs. The boy gives the girl a corsage (a flower she wears on her dress or on her wrist) and the girl gives the boy a boutonniere (a flower for his jacket lapel). Then they go to an outrageously expensive restaurant. Sometimes, a group of students will rent a limousine. It's not unusual for each couple to spend $1000 in clothes, food, transportation for prom.

At prom we don't have a Polonaise or a Mitternachtseinlage. It's really just a lot of dancing with a DJ. The Party after the Party is in a safe location where the students can go to play ping pong, billiards, laser tag, basketball, or just chill. Once the students go the PAP, they are locked in until about 6:00 am so they can't go out and drink and get in trouble.

If you want to hear more about MY proms (themes, my dates, my dresses, my flowers, the restaurants we went to) just ask!


P.S. Thank you, thank you, students of the 8A for including me in the Maturazeitung, for arranging my date ;-), and for the dances! I had SOOOOO much fun!!

Public Property

Public Property has been called the "blackest white reggae band in the world" and the guitarist is a good friend of Joey's! If they get enough downloads from Austria, the band will consider a European tour. So check out Public Property at: http://www.publicprop.com/index.asp?show=yes or on MySpace www.myspace.com/publicprop. Remember to download some of their music!

Interest in Cribbage Club?

Cribbage is a British card game, and Joey is an expert! If you would like to learn how to play this game, please email me at pocketjoey@gmail.com and we'll set up a tutorial!

I'm baaaa-aack!

Hey y'all! Thank you for welcoming me back to BG/BRG Stainach and BBAKIP Liezen. I missed you over the summer. I've tidied up the blog, and hope to make it easier to use this year. If you have any suggestions, please leave a comment or send me an email: pocketjoey@gmail.com You can also find me on Skype (pocketjoey). At school, come and visit me in the conference room between classes.