I Am Back, With The Results You've All Been Waiting For...

Hello everyone, I now can grace the blogosphere again, after a weekend off when you were probably screaming at your screens "Why Can't She Post At Scout Camp?????". Well, while you were screaming that, I was probably doing one of the following:

1) Hanging out in the sunny communal field with Rihanna belting from a speaker (whoever owns that iPod has impeccable music taste).

2) Running around in a forest playing a wide game I don't understand but still find fun.

3) Waiting in an impossibly long queue for a climbing wall that I eventually gave up waiting in.

4) Hearing birdsong at 5am and believing that it was breakfast time and I had to wake up.

Or, most unfortunately:

5) Having to miss my favourite part of camping, the campfire, to help wash up. All because some annoying boy in my Troop was swearing. GRRR.

But on to the bit you've all been waiting for...

The Results!!!

Anyway, lately I've been having some comments asking where the results are for my swan-themed quiz competition (I'm touched by this, because it shows I'm choosing the right prizes :D). Well, I have them, and I'm proud to announce that the winner of The Dramatis Persona Quiz Competition 2013 is...

(drum roll please, bom bom bom bom)

The Human Guide!

Yep, the pseudonymous blogger and aspiring writer behind The Human Guidebook is our winner this time, with 8/10 questions right! Thank you to everyone who entered, and commiserations to those who missed out on the prize. Here are the correct answers:

1. The word "swan" is derived from what ancient language, a) Latin, b) Ancient Greek or c) Old English? c)
2. True or False? Swans are always omnivorous. False
3. Which of the following is a real swan, a) Arctic Swan b) Tundra Swan or c) Alaskan Swan? b)
4. An old legend tells the story of a stepmother turning her stepchildren into swans, but what nation is it from? Ireland
5. Mute swans can reach what weight? a) 23 pounds, b) 33 pounds or c) 43 pounds? b)
6. The Swan ____; complete the title of this 2010 novel by Elizabeth Kostova? Thieves
7. What North American city gave Queen Elizabeth II the original six pairs of Royal Swans? Ottawa
8. Which of the following swan breeds are migratory, a) Tundra Swan b) Mute Swan or c) Black-necked Swan? a)
9. Name the 2010 movie, successful at the 2011 Oscars, with a swan in its name. Black Swan
10. How long on average do mute swans live, a) 1-10 years b) 10-20 years or c) 20-30 years? b)

So, I talked to HG about the prize she would like earlier this week, and she seems certain on selecting an interview with me on her blog. Therefore, if you want to see my interview (which I'm sure HG will conduct and post soon), pop over to the aforementioned link. HG also writes other posts apart from fellow-blogger interviews, mainly personal ones about her life, and it's really worth having a look around there if the interview hasn't been posted when you look/you have time to kill online once you've read the interview/you don't like interviews. 

To conclude, thanks to everyone who entered, and well done again to The Human Guide. This competition has been successful and fun, so you can expect more contests and perhaps some giveaways in the future!

-DP :)

PS If you're wondering why I'm posting again when I said the blog was shutting down last post, then you evidently didn't read that post's PS.

Just A Quick Note...

Hi there followers, I just wanted to post a very short notice about an amazing giveaway on Emma-lee's blog In Real Life! It's to celebrate her first blogaversary, and personally I can't resist! They are amazing prizes up for grabs, such as ad space, your very own blog button and a custom portrait drawing of yourself! I can't wait!

It's really simple to enter, all you have to do is follow Emma-lee's fantastic blog!  And like all blog giveaways, you can win other entries by following her other blogs and social media accounts, and also blogging about the giveaway (like I've done!). But I won't bore you with the rules, I'll just give you the thumblink!

-DP :)

Swans Doing A Very Odd Thing And A Random Quiz Competition

Wow, two milestones in Dramatis Persona history have been achieved today. Firstly, and more obviously, I now have separate pages (Get In Touch!!! and About This Funny Little Web Page), which is important to the sophistication of my blog. And secondly, this April has the most posts of any DP month! Including this one, it has 10 compared to the previous record of 8 in February 2012! Isn't that cool?!

I bet you're thinking, "well no, DP, not really", but that's not what I pressed "New Post"for. I just thought I should mention it. But no, I came to entertain (hey, that rhymes. A bit. Not really). And I came to entertain with this funny picture of two swans from the river who apparently mistook grass for water. Seriously, this should be on BuzzFeed.

Amazingly, their poses are exactly the same as they would be on the water. Wings ready to raise, head up straight, body as perfectly in line as a right angle. But couldn't they tell that this ground is just slightly dissimilar to their homeland? Or maybe they're on holiday, and taking a while to adjust to the new setting and how you're meant to walk there. Perhaps times are hard back in the river, and they're resting in the field for a moment of solace. But in their posture, there are signs that they can't forget all of home. Sorry, my swan fantasy is going crazy now, this my mental conversation with you guys.

READERS: Zap back to reality, DP, they are probably just making nests.
ME: Boringggg!!!!!

Anyway, leave the madness behind. I like swans. They have interesting personalities. And I mean that seriously, one moment they're gliding serenely along without a care in the world, and you make one false move and they jump out of the water, caw at you and possibly break your leg. Of course, that's only when they need to protect their cygnets, and I don't mean to make you from this day on petrified of all swans. But yeah, they're calm and a second later they're mad. They're volatile. A bit like all of us, really. Nothing humans don't share.

MY FIRST COMPETITION!!!

So, to commemorate this picture and the other swan picture I took yesterday, I thought I'd set up my first blog competition. No prizes for guessing that it's a quiz about swans. Seems as this is virgin territory for both of us, I thought I'd start with my questions:

1. The word "swan" is derived from what ancient language, a) Latin, b) Ancient Greek or 
2. c) Old English?
3. True or False? Swans are always omnivorous.
4. Which of the following is a real swan, a) Arctic Swan b) Tundra Swan or c) Alaskan Swan?
5. An old legend tells the story of a stepmother turning her stepchildren into swans, but what nation is it from?
6. Mute swans can reach what weight? a) 23 pounds, b) 33 pounds or c) 43 pounds?
7. The Swan ____; complete the title of this 2010 novel by Elizabeth Kostova?
8. What North American city gave Queen Elizabeth II the original six pairs of Royal Swans?
9. Which of the following swan breeds are migratory, a) Tundra Swan b) Mute Swan or c) Black-necked Swan?
10. Name the 2010 movie, successful at the 2011 Oscars, with a swan in its name.
11. How long on average do mute swans live, a) 1-10 years b) 10-20 years or c) 20-30 years?

I hoped you enjoyed my questions and as many of you enter as possible! Now for the boring bit the rules…

Rules

1) Anyone may enter.

2) Send all entries (with all questions answered) to thedramatispersona@gmail.com. ENTRIES SENT ELSEWHERE WILL NOT BE ACCEPTED.

3) The contest closes on the 22nd May. NO LATE ENTRIES WILL BE ACCEPTED.

4) I will notify winners through my blog and theirs, if they have one.

5) Those with the most correct answers win, and I'm sorry, but there won't be 2nd or 3rd prizes, because I can't do that many guest features at once. Ties will be resolved with random selection. MY DECISION IS FINAL.

6) The prize is your choice of:
a) an interview on this blog
b)a guest post on this blog
c)a post request for this blog
d) an interview with me for your blog

Happy entering!
-DP :)

Remember That Story?

It's a long while ago now, but back in June-Julyish last year I posted about my conversion to reading on my new Kindle. On a similar literary theme, the PS of the post mentioned a 500-word story competition I entered at a similar time with the first line "Dad was flabbergasted when he heard the news", which was run by the children's books section of the Guardian newspaper. However, I couldn't publish for reasons concerning the story being elsewhere on that pesky ol' web. But I was quite proud of my entry, even though its theme, the possible end of the world, was not as topical back then!

So anyway, while I was in Sri Lanka, I read a very curious and helpful follower's comment on that post. They said, "so give us the story then!!". I had completely forgotten about the contest  (which I sadly lost to a very annoying, in my opinion, story about a girl stealing jewellery from a beach or something), but I vowed to tell you guys the story when I got back home and didn't have any elephants, monasteries or New Years to blog about. But now the results have been announced and my yarn is free to be published on this site. So here it is. And it is 500 words, I promise, count if you want. And I made a conscious decision to change the colour to differentiate between it and my normal blogging.

Dad was flabbergasted when I told him the news. And, to be absolutely honest, you can’t blame him really. I felt exactly the same way when the morning radio was cruelly interrupted by the strange voice. It was a beautiful yet supercilious female tone, reminiscent of the authoritative commands aliens hear through hi-tech communication devices in sci-fi movies. But all thought of heavenly cinema afternoons was thwarted when I heard what this mysterious woman had to say:

“People of the Universe, I, representing the official masters of fate, announce that, after many conferences with the supreme masters of every aspect of life, a unanimous decision has been made to return the Earth to how it naturally was. All life forms will end life in approximately 24 hours 46 minutes. Thank you for your cooperation.”

Dad’s immediate reaction when we heard the rerun was to blame me. Typical.

“Cassandra Perry, what were you thinking? Recording ridiculous speeches like this and wasting your father’s time! I should never have got you that voice recorder!”

“Dad, no. There really was a weird lady talking about the world ending. Honest.” I said unconvincingly. 

“Fine, then,” Dad replied, slightly sarcastically. “What d’you suppose we do, Miss-I-Live-In-Fantasy-World-So-Trust-Me-On-This-One-Perry?”

"Run away.” I said, as persuasively as possible. “Far away. Major disasters happen in thriving metropolises, and nowhere else.” I must point out that although I said that so cleverly, the core facts were mostly gleaned from alien movies. Given the situation, they seemed the best thing to trust.

“Alright. But don’t blame me if it all turns out to be a waste of time.”

News spreads like wildfire, and soon the extended family was coming on our Great Expedition. Mum’s Notorious Panics were in full swing, and Dad was hastily assuring her that “It was all Cassandra’s idea”. My little sister Naomi was shouting from upstairs:

“Cass, can I take the television?” 

“Don’t be silly, Naomi! Where would we plug it in?” I replied. 

And there was still trekking through the woods to come. The packing was calm in comparison. Naomi was constantly complaining of feet “literally falling off”, non-outdoorsy aunts stumbled over pinecones, my fashion-crazy cousin had torn her best jeans and Dad was sighing with dramatic discontent. I seemed to be the only one who got anything out of it. But the revelation I did eventually have benefited everyone:

“Dad, none of us is really having a great time. We’ll all die in a matter of hours, we must enjoy life while we can.”

Dad stared in disbelief, but the moment was short-lived. Soon everyone around us had heard the new edition of my Brilliant Idea and was nodding vigorously.

So here we are, with 23 minutes left. But it’s been a great five hours. We’ve relaxed, chatted to one another, had a last visit to our favourite places and, best of all, haven’t had to suffer Naomi’s pestering. Maybe it’s sunk in now. Would you rather exert yourself or enjoy yourself for your final hours?

Oh, and by the way, here's a funny cartoon I found while randomly searching the end of the world on Google Images (note: This image is not mine). 

-DP :)