This essay is going to tell you my opinion that why Americans are crazier than Finns. I wanted to talk about this because some of my messenger friends from other countries thinks that Finns are crazier. So first im going to compare Dudesons to Jackass.
Dudesons have became pretty famous lately so I can talk about them, because people should know who they are. So Dudesons are almost like the American Jackass, they both do some random and ridiculous stunts and if they hurt themselves, they dont even care and when they are back on their feet they just keep doing the same stuff without caring about their lives. However in Jackass they have taken stupidity to a whole new level. I mean seriously… they are Americans and that explains a lot already. But you want me to have an example so here it comes. In Jackass when the camera is on they do the stupid stunts or whatever, but even when they are not filming they keep teasing each other and they never stop and when I say never, I really mean it. I know this because I just saw an episode like a week ago where they are interviewed one by one and they all told this same thing. They said: “when you are on a tour with these guys, you have to sleep only one eye closed” so yeah it must be like that, because they got some serious issues and i think they can’t never change their lifestyle to something normal than what it’s now. If you have proof that Dudesons keep messing around after filming like Jackass, show me your proof before saying that im lying.
Finns have some other crazy things also, for example the sport called wife carrying. The thing is to carry a woman through an obstacle course and I heard that the winner will get as much beer as the woman weights. Yea sure it sounds crazy, but the thing is that nothing bad can’t really happen in that sport unlike in American football. American football is so messed up that if you are not focusing on the game and prepared for an incoming tackle, you might broke your leg, arm or maybe even die. I believe foreigners might still think that Finns are crazier because they are not quite familiar with Finland yet and it’s probably new for them unlike America. But anyways, I still think that Americans are crazier than Finns.
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Article Summary
Wife carrying is a finnish sport that was started in Sonkajärvi. At first it was a joke and then it grew and is what it is right now. The idea is to carry a wife trough an obstacle course as fast as possible before the other competitors comes to the finish line.
SOURCE : “Wife carrying” by CNN
Thanks Al! Your comment means a lot to the students. However, adjective forms of countries ARE always capitalized.
http://www.eslcafe.com/grammar/countries_adjective_forms_nationalities13.html
Just like we have English literature, we have Finnish food.
Love this website…what a great experiment! Makes me wish they had the web when I was a teenager.
Just one thing I noticed:
“Finnish, Finns, Finland (ALWAYS capitalized)”
This mostly correct. Proper nouns are capitalized; however, “finnish” used as adjective modifying a noun would not be capitalized. As an example, “We are going to a finnish restaurant tonight in the country of Finland.”
Hope that helps! And great job everyone! 😉
-al
Ms Leino
I read your CV on the internet and am very impressed with your qualifications and education. You are so young to have accomplished so much already! I was with friends last night and a lady there who works in a private school here started to talk about Finland and how teachers are more highly regarded than in most other countries. She also said the education level of most teachers is well beyond our Canadian or American teachers. Your CV certainly illustrates a very high level of education and knowledge which benefits your students greatly.
I will show the art video to my son tomorrow and see what he thinks.
When your next courses start I would be delighted to exchange emails with yout students or help in any way I can.
Let them know that Mikka Kiprasoff is our hockey goalie and as much a hero here in Calgary as he is in Finland.
Since both of my parents still get a war pension from Finland for fighting in the Winter War I have been studying this conflict to understand what my parents went through and how it was for the Finns.
I am fascinated by your young people’s attraction to the Japanese and the appeal of dressing up like their toy’s. I have not seen our youth imitate another foreign culture like that, if you can discount the British and Americans. It seems they are trying to establish a connection with something from outside the country to perhaps appear different and more attractive. It would be interesting to get views on this from your students.
Veli
I was only 7 years old and am now…..58 !! Please do not tell anyone. I am very proud of my heritage and regularily must explain to people that I am not from Japan, China , India or Hawaii. Very few people here recognize the name as Finnish. I was born in Tampere with my 2 brothers and our parents brought us here in 1958. Both parents still get a war pension from Finland as they fought the Russians. After the war they decided to leave as they feared the Russian’s would return someday.
I love telling people that Nokia is Finnish and not Japanese. I am creating a list of interesting things about Finland and will send you a copy soon so your students may add to it and correct my English.
Though I work for the English commercial real estate firm DTZ during daytime I also teach real estate classes at the university. I love teaching though some of my adult students can be difficult.
Where do you teach and how long have you been doing it? I have been married to my secondary school sweetheart ( we met in grade 6 ) for 38 years and have a daughter Alisa 27, and a son Mitchell 22 who is just finishing art collage.
Our daughter is a counsellor ( did I spell that correctly?? ) at a shelter for battered women and children.
Once our son finally graduates I plan on coming to Finland and Russia and see where I grew up.
Is there anything I can do to help you and your students ?? I could send information about life here and what is going on. As a Rotarian I have had many exchange students at our home but no Finns yet. What would your students like to know about and what grade are they in??
Veli
Hi Veli! Sorry it took me so long to reply but we have been very busy here at our school since exam week is about to begin. Your life story is very interesting and I have actually been to Calgary myself, it’s a nice city about the same size as Helsinki. Canadian people are extremely friendly and they have a great sense of humor 🙂
I have been teaching for about 3 years now on different levels (university, adult language courses, STS, elementary and high school). And YES you spelled counsellor correctly 😉
Itäkeskus High School in Helsinki is where I work for now and I am trying to combine teaching English and using social media. Without comments like yours, this would not be possible, so many thanks to you. My students really appreciate it. They are about 15-18 years old and feedback is always valuable. Senior high school in Finland does not have grades at all, it’s based on a different system. Basically, there are all kinds of courses that the students get to choose from to put into their curricula. English is very popular.
This course has already ended, but if you have any information that you could send us, I’m sure I could use it for another course! We go through English-speaking countries and their culture in course 2, for example.
I hope you get to re-visit Finland some day. It would be something special and I’m sure your son would love it here. Especially if he loves the arts. If you are curious about our school, you can check out this movie that we made for Drama in English. This is as artsy as it gets!
http://sweetsweded.wordpress.com/
PS These articles might come in handy when traveling in Finland!
http://placesaroundtheworld.wordpress.com/category/finland/
Love all your notes about my homeland. Keep them coming
The Fly n Finn
What does his spelling and punctuation have to do with his message?? Are Anna and Janne English teachers??
I am a Finnish born Canadian and I think Americans are far crazier than anybody. They are largely ignorant about the rest of the world and most don’t even know their own country let alone their northern neighbors. They all carry guns because they are afraid of everyone including their neighbors next door. They loose more people to guns in Washington DC than they have in Afghaistan. That’s crazy.
Like many small countries they combine church and state and that is crazy. They try to right all the world’s wrongs and try to help everyone in times of crisis and sometimes get it wrong and that’s crazy. Finns throw boots and carry wifes which is harmless fun and likely needed in a country where people would rather talk to each other by cell phone than look at them.
I love my origins and am very proud of my heritage but do noy thinks Finns are crazy but rather odd in some ways which may have to do with the long winters and dark nights. Overall everything I read about the country makes me very proud to have been born there but I will definately stay Canadian. We have our craziness like you but in different forms..try strapping a 1,500 lb bull between your legs and riding it for 7 seconds without getting hurt..tha is crazy..same goes for trying to stay on a horse that has a rope around it’s belly and will try jumping and kicking like mad to get rid of you and the annoying rope.
Try racing a motorized bathtub across 25 miles of ocean for fun…that is very crazy.
All these crazy things we all do is necessary to relieve every day stress and have fun like a child for just a few moments. I like to think of myself a little crazy and everyone else just boring.
Hi Veli! Thanks for the comments!
Yes, I am a teacher and the rest of the bloggers here are students from Itäkeskus High School in Helsinki. In addition to providing information about Finland in the form of argumentative essays, I was trying to teach them some English. I’m thrilled that you have enjoyed our posts! What do you miss most about Finland over there in Canada?
Argumentative essay: Good
I like your dark humor and the idea behind this essay. However, you do not have to explain WHY you chose this topic in the first paragraph. Instead, introduce the topic to your reader in an intriguing way. The second paragraph is way too long and includes many unnecessary generalizations. The ending is quite vague too. Your argument can be crazy, but the structure should not be. Next time use a mind map, it’ll help you visualize all the main arguments for and against.
Summary: Good
You have left out all the color, which is exactly what you were supposed to do. However, your summary is a little bit too concise. What about the rules and the prize? Those are important facts…
Grammar: Good
–> opinion ON something
–> Finnish, Finns, Finland (ALWAYS capitalized)
–> no comma before ‘because’
Watch out for slang! = ‘it’s like this and like that’
Source: Very good
Media / appearance: Very good
I’m not a fan of either of these groups (Duudsonit or Jackass) and I have never really watched their shows. I’d have to disagree with you because the differences in the populations of these countries is so big that you would rather compare the craziness of people than nationalities. There are some problems with the structure of the essay but the structure doesn’t make it impossible to read the text. The summary was too short compared to the argumentative essay but the essays lenght covers up for it. I was able to spot a few mistakes in the grammar but not too many.