Bohemia Bunny

The Funnerology Principle

Monthly Archives: December 2007

How Do You Make A Venetian Blind

*Paid Post*

SelectBlinds.com provides window coverings, and are featured on Extreme Makeover: Home Edition, where presumably an expert team rips up your interior decorating and leaves something better in its place.

Among the offerings seen on the show are Mini Blinds which cover smaller windows, such as kitchen windows and sitting room windows. The mini blinds are made of aluminium, but are still affordable. Plus they come in 29 colours, so you can always find a set to match your decorating scheme.

Besides mini blinds, wood blinds and vertical blinds are also available. And if cleaning between the slats of those window coverings aren’t your thing, you can always opt for window shades, which have the fabric quality of curtains but won’t billow around as much. Not to mention, you won’t need to get them specially tailored like you do with curtains.

A Study on the Happiness Levels of University Students

Today, I would like to present my findings on the happiness of university students as a function of time.

Happiness against Time Chart

With reference to the chart above, we notice a gradual downward trend from the beginning to the end of the semester, with a sharp spike in happiness once vacation begins.

If we set the values of +/-10 to be Extreme, and +/-5 as Moderate, we can see that the average student starts the semester extremely happy, and no doubt full of good intentions. The euphoria declines slightly in week 2, and drops further in weeks 3 and 4 to a moderate level. This drop is due to the beginning of tutorial classes, which means less free time.

The downward trend of weeks 5 and 6 is interrupted by a small increase to a level of moderate happiness, due to the midterm break. The increase is only very slight as many students still have to contend with midterm assessments.

From week 8 onwards, happiness levels begin to dive, culminating in the nadir of extreme unhappiness at the beginning of exams. The following week brings a recovery to somewhat extreme unhappiness levels, as most students have completed a significant portion of their papers and are beginning to see the light at the end of the tunnel.

Finally, the semester ends on an extremely happy level as vacation begins. This graph does not extend all the way to the release of results, where it is postulated that happiness levels will plummet to “somewhat unhappy”.

This concludes my presentation on the level of happiness of university students as a function of time.

Military Discipline for Teens

*Paid Post*

Military Schools are, despite their name, not schools where Army personnel and other members of the armed forces send their kids. Rather, military schools are just schools that practice military discipline – wake-up time is non-negotiable, tasks should be completed, and students should be on their best behaviour at all times.

While some may find this environment stifling, military school can be a conducive environment for kids who need structure and discipline in their lives. Unlike the old days when military school was seen as a dumping ground for juvenile delinquents, such schools are now an option for both parents and children who find the public school system unable to fulfill their needs.

The website offers a national directory, as well as a toll-free number to call for information. More importantly, there is a section on what the schools can and cannot do for your troubled child. Since military schools do not offer therapy, kids with ADHD or emotional problems may benefit from going to a specialty school instead. It’s a very informative and helpful addition that shows the site’s commitment to assisting parents, instead of just pushing their services.

Kipley goes to the vet – again.

Kipley the mouse went back to the vet on Monday for a post-operative checkup. The naughty rodent had managed to bite out some of her stitches, but since there wasn’t much bleeding from the wound, the vet decided to leave it as it was.

I told Dr Heng that I had to resort to subterfuge in order to administer Kip’s medicine. I put her liquid medicine on a cornflake and she ate it all up. Since that worked so well, I decided to save myself and Kip the stress of dosing. Throughout the consultation, Kip was running up and down my arms, around my waist, resulting in my having to reach around behind me to make sure she didn’t fall and injure herself. I think she was agitated by being picked up and prodded again.

The total bill for everything, from the initial consultation to the surgery and the post-operative review, came to slightly over 100 dollars. That’s not too bad, actually. The Animal Clinic had quoted me a higher price, so I was prepared to pay more. But when you factor in the taxi fare that I paid for the times I was coming back, the total cost becomes comparable. I didn’t realise that 5 minutes’ walk away was a bus stop for the 188, which I could take directly back to my place. Gah!

Boarding Schools Directory

*Paid Post*

I was just telling my friend the other day of my radical idea that teenagers should be packed off to boarding school from ages 13-18, to spare their parents the stress of raising them and to give the kids what they crave so much – time with their peers, away from their parents.

Obviously it’s not a totally feasible idea, but if you’re really searching for Teen Boarding Schools, a national directory would be a good place to start. You can search for traditional boarding schools that serve to prepare your teen for college, or find a specialty school that’s tailored to helping troubled kids. There are also toll-free numbers to call, to make your search a more pleasant experience.

Kipley Saved!

Kipley went in for her surgery on Thursday afternoon to remove her giant tumour. The vet called at 6.20pm to inform me that they’d just finished the surgery, but she was a bit weak and had lost a lot of blood. Could I come at 8pm instead of 7pm?

Ooh phew, for a moment I feared that they were going to tell me she wouldn’t make it. At 8.30 a nurse brought out my carrier, and inside was Kip, awake and climbing all over. “You’re awake!” I exclaimed into the box, inadvertently ignoring the nurse who was asking if I’d like a look at the tumour. They gave me her medicines and I brought her home.

Anyway, the surgery was done by Dr Grace Heng at The Joyous Vet, she’s quite famous in the small-animal circles. She seemed eager to do the surgery, as opposed to the first vet I consulted at The Animal Clinic who was very reluctant because of the size and proximity of the tumour to the jugular vein. Dr Heng even buried the stitches (no idea what that means) so that Kip wouldn’t be able to kick or nibble them open. So I don’t have much to worry about, postoperatively.

My relief is immeasurable. The most dangerous part of surgery on small animals is the fear that they won’t recover from the anaesthetic, or that they succumb to blood loss. Kip seems to have made it through just fine, she’s as active as ever and her appetite is voracious, which is normal for mice. I hope her fast metabolic rate also means that she quickly replaces all the blood she lost, because her ears and tail looked a bit pale when I had a good look at her.

Strangely enough, she refuses to take her medicine. It’s strange because the medicine is sweet, so she should absolutely love it. Her cagemate seems to like it just fine, so maybe Kip just doesn’t like sweet things? I thought it might be the medical smell on the syringes so I washed them, but she’s still stubbornly refusing. One of her medicines is a pain reliever, and I wish I could make it clear to her that it’d be good for her, but inter-species communication is still in its infancy. Well, as long as she’s not in terrible pain, I’m happy.

At least some things in my life still have a happy ending.

Cheap Overseas Calls

There’s an ad on Singapore TV now that takes the form of a gameshow, pitting an Einstein-lookalike against a family of squirrels. The family of squirrels informs us that a certain phone company has free IDD calls to 18 overseas destinations. That’s well and good if you really only call those 18 countries. Otherwise, you’d probably either pay through the nose for IDD fees or rely on international phone cards.

If you need a cheap way of calling relatives, friends or even business partners overseas, these would be it. Instead of sending a card to wish them Happy Holidays, just pick up the phone and make sure you don’t speak for more than 5 minutes. These phone cards come with a 3% rebate for online purchases, and even cover faraway places like Africa and South America.