Post by Zea on Aug 31, 2010 14:37:45 GMT 1
Country: New Zealand (Aotearoa)
Real name: William Green
Personality: Will’s a friendly and gentle person, with a very laid-back attitude to life. He swears and jokes around a lot with family and friends, but is quick to apologise if anyone takes offence. If any of them are in trouble, he’ll be there in an instant to help them. He is, however, reluctant to ask anyone for help when he needs it as he views doing so as a sign of weakness. He also speaks Maori fluently, and occasionally Maori words will slip into his sentences when speaking English. Will also dislikes arguments unless there’s a very good reason for it, and tries to defuse tense situations with humour. He’s also quite competitive especially when it comes to sport, and always tries his best.
Likes:
- Sport
- Fishing
- His pet sheep
- Animals in general
- Camping
- Reading
- Listening to music
- Spending time with Australia
Dislikes:
- Seeing people being bullied
- Australia claiming/stealing his stuff
- People holding protests on his birthday
- Being mistaken for Australia
- Excessive sheep jokes (a little bit of that is okay though)
History:
- c.1280CE – Polynesians from Eastern Polynesia settle in NZ, and their descendants became known as the Maori.
- c.1500CE – Moriori settle on the Chatham Islands to the east of New Zealand.
- 1642 – Dutch explorer Abel Tasman finds New Zealand and leaves after a fight with local Maori.
- 1769-1770 – Captain Cook arrives and circumnavigates New Zealand creating the first map of the country.
- 1790s-early 1800s – European and American whalers, sealers, and traders arrive in NZ to trade with the Maori.
- 1821 – Musket Wars begin and end in the 1830s when most tribes had gotten muskets.
- 1832 – James Busby appointed as British Resident to try to control the European population, but had no authority or support to do so.
- 1835 – Declaration of Independence signed by the United Tribes of Aotearoa and acknowledged by William IV of England.
- February 6, 1840 – Treaty of Waitangi signed, and New Zealand becomes part of New South Wales.
- 1840 – Okiato (Russell) becomes the capital of New Zealand.
- 1841 – New Zealand becomes a colony in its own right.
- 1841 – The capital shifted from Okiato to Auckland.
- 1852 – The New Zealand Constitution Act is passed, and grants the right to self-govern.
- 1858 – Chief Te Wherowhero crowned as the first Maori King, Potatau I.
- 1860s-1870s – New Zealand Land Wars occur in the Waikato & Taranaki regions.
- 1865 – The capital shifts from Auckland to Wellington.
- 1893 – Women gain the right to vote.
- 1899 – NZ soldiers are sent to South Africa to fight alongside Britain in the Boer War.
- 1901 – NZ decides against becoming part of the Commonwealth of Australia.
- 1907 – NZ becomes the Dominion of New Zealand.
- 1914-1918 – NZ takes part in World War One as part of the Allied Forces.
- 1915 – New Zealand and Australian forces participate in the Gallipoli Campaign.
- 1939-1945 - NZ takes part in World War Two as part of the Allied Forces.
- 1947 – Statute of Westminster is adopted, and New Zealand gains independence from Britain.
- 1951 – ANZUS treaty signed between New Zealand, Australia & the US.
- 1975 – Waitangi Tribunal established to investigate claims of breaches of the Treaty of Waitangi.
- 1987 - New Zealand Nuclear Free Zone, Disarmament, and Arms Control Act is passed, and New Zealand’s land, sea territory and airspace becomes nuclear-free.
- 1997 – Jenny Shipley becomes NZ’s first female Prime Minister.
- 1999 – Helen Clark becomes NZ’s first elected female Prime Minister.
- 2004 – Supreme Court of New Zealand established.
(Hello there massive list. I did my best to condense this a bit, but it still turned out rather long.)
Role Play Example:
November 8th, 2008.
Will sat on the couch and watched the election results on TV as they were counted and released. After weeks of waiting, he would finally know if he would be working with Helen Clark for another three years, or if he would be working with John Key instead. He had seen John Key around Parliament, but wasn’t sure what he would be like to work with. Would he be a boss he could get along with on a personal level as well as a professional level? That was what he wanted to find out if he won.
He leaned back into the couch cushions, and felt Ruby’s warmth by his side. The sheep always knew when Will needed a bit of comforting, and election nights were usually one of those times. Will began petting her absentmindedly and continued watching the results pile up. More and more of the seats were going to National this year, but he half-suspected this would happen as he had felt his people’s opinions tilting towards the centre-right party throughout the campaign. A number of people and politicians had asked his opinion on who would win during the campaign, but he refused to give an opinion and wished the politicians luck instead.
By now most of the results were in and National was clearly the winning party. John Key had given his victory speech, and Helen Clark had announced her resignation as the Labour Party’s leader in her concession speech. Will picked up the cordless phone and a card that was on a table next to the couch. He dialled one of the numbers on the card and waited until someone responded.
“Hello, may I speak to Ms. Clark please? Thank you.” Will waited until he heard Ms. Clark respond before continuing. “Hello, Helen? It’s Will Green speaking, and how are you? You’re good? I’m glad to hear it. I just rang to say that it’s been great working with you and your party for the last nine years, and I hope your party elects a new leader soon.” Will listened to Helen's response and nodded. “They’re considering Phil Goff for the job? I think he’ll do well. Anyway, I’d better let you go. I wish you all the best for the future, and take care. Bye Helen!”
Will pressed the button on the phone to end the call and smiled. He had liked working with Helen over the last few years, and he hoped he would like working with John Key just as much. He dialled the other number on the card and waited for a response.
“Hello, may I speak to Mr. Key please? Thank you.” Will waited until he heard Mr. Key respond before speaking. For some reason he felt nervous even though he’d done this many times before. “Hello, Mr. Key? My name is William Green, and how are you? You’re great? That’s good to hear. I’m calling to congratulate you and your party on your victory tonight, and I look forward to working with you for the next three years.” Will frowned as he heard John’s response. “No, I’m not a MP from another party.” He frowned again as he heard the same question again. “Who am I, Mr. Key? I’m New Zealand.”
Will heard the phone click as John Key hung up on him, but he didn’t really mind. All of his new bosses had done that in the past thinking that they’d been prank-called, but it was usually sorted out by the end of Monday afternoon. He got up off the couch and made his way towards the kitchen. He then let Ruby out the back door and switched on the kettle. The kettle soon boiled and switched itself off again, and Will made himself a cup of tea. He felt better than he had in weeks now that he knew who would be running his country. He drank his tea and waited for Ruby to come back inside as the cordless phone rang again. It was already after midnight, so who would call him this late at night?
“Hello? Bro, how are you?” He should’ve known. Only Australia would call him in the small hours, but it was for a good reason this time. “I’m good, and thank you! I’m glad it’s all over.” He listened to Australia’s next question. “Yeah, I meet the new boss on Monday morning, and yeah, he hung up on me tonight as usual. The new bosses always do. Hey, do you want to catch up next weekend? You do? Sweet, and you can bring Wy over too if you want! Ruby will be around if I’m out in the boat when you get here.” Will nodded. “Uh-huh, uh-huh, yeah, see you next week bro!”
Will pressed the button on the phone as Ruby walked back into the house, and he closed the door behind her. A new boss to meet and Australia coming over next weekend? This coming week was shaping up even better than he thought.
Sorry about the RP sample being so long. I thought it would be small, then it essentially turned into a fic.