My Name

I think it's about time I sit down with a cup of tea and tell you how the very British girl got her very usual and foreign name.

If you didn't know, my name is Jonna and is pronounced as Yon-nah. My name is Finnish (can also be Danish or Swedish), explaining why the j is pronounced as a Y, and for some reason, my parents didn't want to translate my name into English, the language that we and our country speak.

The reason behind my name

This is a story told to me by my dear mother. My mum's name is Julie, a very common name. Growing up my mum had at least four Julies in her class and everywhere she went she would meet a Julie. So my mother wanted her child to have a very usual and very uncommon name so they wouldn't have to go through what she went through. My mum found the name through a woman she had met and befriended while travelling, her name was Jonna and she was a fair-haired, nice girl from Finland. My parents always liked the name and decided that is what they would call me. I'm sorry there's not a more exciting reason behind my name, I'm just a plain old common white girl trash from a very northern, very British family.

Although I do moan about my name quite a lot and make jokes and although it does make this awkward person even more awkward, I do quite like my name. I've never wanted to change it, not even the spelling. I don't know if it's my name or the type of person I am, not many people tend to forget my name. Many people will spell it wrong and may pronounce it wrong at the start, but they never forget it and I like that. 

Thank you for reading and I hope you enjoyed a look behind my name.

Jonna x

  

High School Musical

Do you remember that Disney film that came out in 2006? The one with the teenagers running around high school sing? Well, of course you do. Even if you're apart of the few people that have never seen High School Musical, you most likely have heard of it and have probably listened to one of the many songs from it. Today I am going to be finding out and sharing with you, is HSM really that good?

First things first, who and what is it about?

High School Musical is set in a very stereotypical American high school called East High in New Mexico. It revolves around a big group of teenagers who go to this school but the main six characters are: head of the basketball team, Troy Bolton who becomes very close to new girl, brainiac Gabriella Montez. You also have Troy's best friend and fellow team mate Chad Danforth who takes a shine the school's smart girl and Gabriella's new friend, Taylor McKessie. Last but certainly not least, the head of the drama club Sharpay Evans and her twin brother Ryan Evans. 

The Audience 

High School Musical was clearly based at a younger audience but from what I have found out pretty much anyone can enjoy it! Anyone can enjoy this film from a child to a teenager and even some adults. I think I am a perfect example of this, as from the moment I first saw this film when I was 6 years old I have loved and continue to love this film. I have watched this film countless times and I am still yet to be bored of it and I have noticed that I enjoy the songs now even more than indidnwhen I was younger. To move on to someone else so it's not just my biased opinion, my mother. I have sat down with my mum some many times to watch this films and she enjoys just as much as me. She loves the characters, the plot, the songs and even now still enjoys listening and singing to Breaking Free. 

Overall 

I think the idea for HSM is so simple, yet so brilliant. It has taken features out from lots of different films and put it into one film that is suitable for children and all ages. All the actors fit sir characters

perfectly, the fashion is amazing and the songs are amazingly written. I think High School Musical is a film that will go down in history and if you haven't seen it yet, I 100% recommend it. But I do think the main reason that our generation loves this film so much is because we had the privilege to grow up with HSM 1,2 and 3. We have had the chance to go back and watch this film from different points in ours lives and each time having different understanding, viewpoints and appreciation of it. Not only did we grow with High School Musical, it grew with us with every film and that is what makes it so amazing and unique. 

 Jonna x

Gender Stereotypes

From the moment we are born we are put into gender stereotypes based off of our genitals: boy or girl. We expected to live our whole lives in a category assigned by a doctor, by a stranger, before we are even born.

If you're a girl, like myself, you are shoved into pink, pretty, room and put in skirts and dresses. You are expected to have long, beautiful, hair and a well made up face. From our earliest ages, we are given toys, such as Bratz and Barbies, that focus on fashion, makeup and hair. Girls aren't expected to play outside or play sports. It is almost like we're expected to look up to a Disney princess and want to be them and find our Prince Charming, our knight in shining armor, rather than to aspire to be something meaningful to the world and stand on our own two feet

And yes, I do have long hair and, I do wear make up and, I do wear pretty floaty skirts, but I don't do this because I was put in this category by a doctor or because society expects me to. I do this for me because this how I want to look. Don't be pressured into a category that you don't feel comfortable in and that you don't want to be in. If you don't want to be a girl, that's fine. If you don't want to be a boy, then that is fine. If you don't want to be either, that is also fine. Just don't be pressured into an identity that isn't really you.

Jonna x

My Top 5 Games

Over the years I have played many games over many consoles and many different genres of games, the following games are my favourites.

5. Grand Theft Auto 5
This is quite a recent game (late 2013) but already I love this game. My love first grew for this game when I brought the original Xbox with GTA Vice City and ever since I've enjoyed playing them. With every new game of Grand Theft Auto there are major improvements. This being the newest GTA and the most advanced game probably explains my love for it. My favourite feature of the game is GTA Online. Unlike most I prefer just to mess around than do mission and doing this with friends is a lot of fun! I also enjoy watching gamers (such as: Vannos and I AM WILDCAT) which says a lot about the game if you love watching others play it just as much and playing it yourself.

Console: Xbox 360

4. Roller Coaster Tycoon

Nobody will ever understand my love and bond with this game. It was probably my most played game from when i was younger. I remember sitting on the families huge crappy PC that didn't have wifi and being told off by my mum for spending so long on the computer (which I think my love for technology started) then pretending to go to bed just to sneak back on the computer. The point of the game is to create a theme park and meet the objectives you are given. My park were always, in my opinion, running smoothly. I recently re-brought the game to work on Windows 7 and even though it is an old game it still is amazing to play.

Console: PC

3. New Super Mario Bros
Mario includes some of my favourite video game characters ever! Every Mario game i have played, I have enjoyed all of them but this one has to be my all time favourite. Even though I sucked at this game I never gave up. I still never completed it though... I got up to world 8 i think and this one level i just couldn't get pass, I asked all my friends to help and then I'd run out of lives. I was even worse on the Wii version. To this day I still love Mario and I am cosplaying as Mario at Comic Con this Saturday, with my friends as Luigi and Peach!
Console: DS Lite

2. Animal Crossing: Wild World
This game was all i played with my friends when I went to Wales in a caravan and it (always) rained. My town was weed free, all my villagers loved me, I had every fruit the game had and I had rare flowers everywhere. We would spend hours exploring each others towns and i would always steal some fruit and flowers. Nintendo made a new AC for 3DS last year, which was the reason I brought a 3DS but although it was a fantastic game, the original will always hold a place in my heart.
Console: DS Lite/DSI

1. The Sims 3

When I first bought this game I got it for Nintendo Wii, which I now realise isn't anything compared to PC version but it was good enough for younger Jonna to play it non stop and run out of the room when one of my sims died... I liked it enough to make me save up and buy The Sims 3 for PC and then Pets, then Late Night and quite a few more... Even though I'm sure this game was the reason my laptop broke and now can't even manage the small job of playing YouTube videos, I still love it.

Console: PC

Jonna x