Gotta be startin' Somethin' Part 1: My Story.

So you may have asked yourselves what I may have been up to recently.

And if you follow any of my other Internet Presence's then you will know that to some extent.

I have been Volunteering for the Political Campaign of a Candidate in the Irish General Election.


A Stock photo to Illustrate an election...


To describe how i got to this Point i will blitz through some of the history of this blog and provide some links here and there.And after that i will talk about the campaign itself and what inspired me, my involvement and some of my closing thoughts, and what next...

Considering the Length i will make this all kind on you dear reader and split the whole story into part's.
This being the first obviously.

So where may you ask did my interest in politics emerge from?

Well back in September 2008 my life took an unplanned course exactly at the same time the Country's economy was hitting it's first rough patches.

In fact exactly on the Monday morning that Fianna Fáil were announcing that the government had given a Guarantee to the Banks on their bad debt, money and so on, to keep the banks running. I was setting out on this new Twist to my life story. I had just failed my Supplemental exams for 2nd year of General Nursing. So in a panicked and confused state i accepted my parents suggestions and applied for a repeat year.

Now i won't go into mass detail, but Seeing i had a new Chance, path and opportunity in life i decided i would spend more time on Campus in Trinity college. To do this i committed to Joining The Society, which to past readers it was obvious which society this was, but i might as well name it, The Hist. Through my long time Friend Gammaman who was the Recruitment type person for that year I started hanging out in The conversation room, reading newspapers, absorbing Campus Society and the issue's of the day. From time to time i debated but i never really was very good.


Obama's Plagerrised Can Do attitude slogan!


By the morning of November 5th Barrack Obama Was Elected the first American-African President. To say i was skeptical of The American System was an understatement, but i Admired the man and was caught up in the Zeitgeist of the Politic's students, fan's, nerds and Anorak's around me. I also took part in what was an epic way to celebrate the President's Success. A Lecturer in Trinity was kind enough to take a bunch of us to a Hotel penthouse that night where we drank Champaign and had breakfast at sunrise.It was a rather impressive night.

That Winter i Jetted off to Australia with my Family for my sisters wedding and spent about a month there. A different world completely. I Adored several Aspects of Melbourne but i was pretty alone with all the Wedding prep and even a wonderful Tram System, trips to the cinema or a 3 day spot trip to Sydney could console me.

My time with the Society was also good socially, but my college work was slipping. My heart wasn't in it. And Spending time in The Hist was a more a distraction than a Social experience. I learned of the wider world Passively without my own opinions and the same i gained friends and admired people i saw as Impressive future movers and Shakers.

The one person that had caught my attention was the rather impressive Dylan Haskins. Who i have referred to as DJ in the past on this blog.


(Pictured a much younger Dylan in his Gig space in his House)

First I had seen him around as any other young debater.But i sat up and payed attention when i learned that he was the Manager of The Heathers. Who only month's before i had found on myspace and fell in love. While in Australia i had the Margie in Irish stuck in my head.

I first learned of Hide-Away records, his Label in an Irish Times List of up and coming Irish artists which featured the Heather's. The Conversation room table switched to talking about them and Dylan and I was impressed to say the least. He also ran gigs out of his Own House, Hide Away House.

As the Internal Committee elections for the next year approached I ran into him further as We were both Candidate's. We had a interesting conversation one day about Social Networking and the Emerging demise of Bebo and Myspace at the time. I could tell at that time, that not only from what i knew about him, but from that conversation that this guy had a more impressive head on him than a lot of the others i had met in my time in the Society and i was certain he could go far.


The Strange thing about Hist Elections is that you are not allowed Canvas. And i adhered to this. A female friend tried to Insinuate that we might have a pact with each other, to support each others vote, but being a stickler for the loftiness of tradition i was now entering to, I didn't really discuss it with anyone, and didn't go through with it. Just brushed it off. The same Person was subject to a rather odd Facebook Canvassing Troll of some kind that upset the election a bit, but remained a mystery.

Come the Day off the election I, in stupidity didn't put myself as my 1st preference for MC (member of committee), big mistake. As far as i recall, i also put 1st preference for Dylan on the ballot for deputy Correspondence secretary. However he didn't get it, and neither did he get elected MC.

He came second with 27 of 85 votes for Deputy Corr-Sec.

He also received 6 of 89 1st prefs for MC.

I received 3 first preference's, none of which were my own vote, as i didn't give number 1 to myself.

That summer I was still in a massive funk and Failed further a 2nd exam that year, leaving 2 I had the whole summer to prepare for, and a Paper i never submitted to do for the first time in its entirety. This process wasn't exactly very productive, but somehow i pulled off the exams... but the Paper was a disaster of laziness.

In contrast to my Self-Uncertainty, and downward spiral, Dylan had just established Exchange Dublin a collective arts space in Dublin's Old Town in Temple Bar. I wanted to help out, but amongst weak studying and depression i had not searched for a job, so was unable to commit any time.



Due to the poor Quality of paper i turned in, despite passing my exams. I failed my supplemental year. So in Turn i was left Unemployed and at home. I made little effort to help my situation, and eventually it was Decided that i was to go off to Australia and live with my sister for a year and try and find work there.

Parts of this journey were chronicled in my other blog: http://reticsplinesoz.blogspot.com/

That however didn't pan out.

One of the day's i did venture up to Dublin to see my college friends I hung out again in the Hist for a while and Dylan was in the Corner Panicked over an Essay. Using the TCD wi-fi and talking to someone about the Trinity Arts festival which he was helping organise that year. He noticed me and said he was sorry he couldn't talk to me, which at the time i thought was strange as i had barely known him in the past. But the idea was nice. As well as a late essay he was late for RTÉ as he was also working for Rté 2's Young Adult evening period at the time.

In the weeks after that i spent some time Looking for work, but not much. I even Volunteered for Exchange Dublin a few days. But eventually i couldn't afford it. While there i met young people just as impressive as in the Hist but from creative and not entirely intellectual backgrounds. Some of their diverse stories were impressive and i would have loved to have been more of a part of that experience but Living in Louth, and still without a job it was not possible.

I had applied for the CAO again on my return home and Even attempted to Sign up for the Dole, but i had hit a stumbling block. Thanks to a momentous clerical Error, i was down as Off-Books with TCD. Somehow my appeal was miss-marked and when entered into the computer i was given a 2nd Repeat year at Nursing if i could pay for it. Which i couldn't.

During the summer i got a part time job and things were on the up.

However the money was not exactly much, and i wasn't paying tax. And as it was cash in hand, i just spent spent spent. By the time my CAO results came through I was not in the position to attend college financially. So sort of Hap-Hazardly i accepted my Place in Arts in Galway and sent off to post-pone enrollment till the next year.


I continued to work right up to christmas but still not saving anything really. And with the snow driving down business it was a bad time for the Bar that i worked in. I also didn't try and get a shift during the week of melt just before exams. And then took the time off. The week after Christmas I tried repeatedly to get work but to no Avail. I aimed to get New Years eve but it never happened. It turned out i WAS needed back on St Stephens day but by the time this under-staffing was realised it was to late.

However for the next 3 to for weeks in January I kept trying to get shifts but to no Avail.

I wasted my Christmas money and other gift money on DVD's, such as 2 box sets of The West Wing.

I was inspired by this Show and slowly started to turn towards possibly including Politics in my Reserved Art's course in Galway.

In Late January i Applied for a Fás course to help boost my CV and started to apply for the Dole again. I had  given up on my Work as i was no longer able to contact my Boss and he seemed to not care about my call's when i tried.

On Febuary 1st my CAO application was due. I completely forgot about this. By not applying, i forfitted my place in Galway. My mind was else where. Seriously unemployed and Sad about my Isolation and birthday alone i wasn't in a good place. And neither was Ireland.

An election looming i had switched to watching more Irish news.

And when Dylan Haskins Announced his Campaign with the video below. I was Certain what my next step would be:

In Absence of a pen, Blog.

The battle with the dark, insomnia and Rowling thoughts...

(This was a blog post i composed early last week, never finished it though...)

Sometimes i hate this time, others i embrace it. The moments before sleep you cant achieve, where you mind ebbs and flows with worries, analysis and memories. From this past week i have many new memories, good, bad, and ugly.

And it is a struggle to come to terms with it all. Despite good intentions, the week never really turned out like i imagined. In some instance's it was great that it didn't follow a set plan, in others plans fell apart or didn't emerge as hoped. It was hodge-podge of uncertain results that have left me dumbfounded as to which actions to pursue in several situations.

And for the most part the only voice i have to express is my internal one. And the only person listening, at the moment, is me. This is very hard to return to, when socialising and dulling my mind have been more equal than weeks past. Yes, most of my points in this post will greatly refer to my screen name, and the philosophy and connotations i use to express how i see myself...

I suppose the best way to tell of my week is to speak in a structure. Not quite the good, the bad and the ugly, more the social, the disappointing and the negative self reflection. Catchy title's no?



The SOCIAL:



So in keeping with my last blog post i set out upon my new found semI-optimism by making plans with friends for the week.

I planed for the cinema with DS and anyone who could join, on Thursday. To see toy story 3D.

For Friday i would catch up With Dona over lunch or "coffee" and following that Budsey for drinks of some kind.

Unfortunately Gammaman was unavailable, and my wallet limited, so a Wednesday meet up had to be ruled out.

My usually ever present Ex, PG, was on nights, and not really talking to me about much anyway, so i ruled her out automatically. All over built up spite over the past couple of years really, harking back to the same issue's as to why i broke up with her via an extended textual conversation one depressed rainy spring weekend.

I also expressed further dismay that Ming would not be returning to Dublin anytime soon, and was off to London. I'd like to go to London, or anywhere! My parents are off to Venice next week. Oh how jealous i am on many levels, more on this later.

The cinema was a good time. Nordie 1 saw my facebook status update invite to my entire social circle to see who wanted to see toy story, and joined the outing. This was good considering i hadn't seen him in about 3 and a half years or so, and especially not as much as every day in secondary school. Such nostalgia is likely to pop up more as i make my student film over the next few weeks as i hope to get as many friends as possible to help out in the creation of it.

I loved Toy Story 3, it was a heartbreaking reminder of childhood and just damn brilliant.

I couldn't stick around with DS and Nordie 1 though as i had to head home. Just barely meeting my mothers train on time on arrival in Drogheda by a bus that left 30 minutes early.

Late on Thursday night though my plans with Dona were canceled. Whether i willl talk about this is a matter of conjecture in my head....

Plans still held though with Budsey, so that would be good...

Setting off in the overcast skies of Friday morning i was frightfully nervous and uncertain. The weight of Dona's cancellation, and fearing job hunting were barring down on me, not to mention uncertainty over how things would be, on several levels, around Budsey.

Somehow i found the time and effort to walk up and down Dublin looking in windows for job positions. Barely a catch. Try as i might i could not find the courage to enquire anywhere. A failing i must admit, but at the same time, positions i did find, were looking for people with experience, and qualifications. None of these i can really offer, and i was pre-emptively defeated.

One strange posting however caught my eye.

Hair model's wanted.

I passed this location, in a quite Alley twice. I have grown to love this ally as a sort of a Harry Potter link that i used to not know about. I love to duck through it to get from random to random, and also to admire the pub fronts and quirks it has to offer. For the life of me i had never noticed a barbers.

Upon relieving myself in public facilities in TCD, i returned and entered.

I asked the Women there, apparently the only staff, what the post meant?

Apparently one of them is a student Barber/Hair Dresser/hair stylest/Male grooming facilitator, and they were looking for training subjects, who would get their hair cut for free.

Well i had hair, it was unruly and needed cutting, i said yes.

So i sat in the chair, and several awkward moments ensued.

The trainee was actually kind of hot, this would not be easy. Having you hair washed, when getting a cut, was alien enough, but having to lean forward???

Then the general chit chat, few and far between, but different to the silence i get in my usual place. At first my usual barbers would ask questions and so on, back when i was a teenager, but since then they seem to have recognised that i am not interested, and that i am slightly different to them. The accent, the vocab, and quite possibly the socio-economic background and interests. Football, in a barbers, wheres the music, this may be 9 quid a cut but your establishment is "beneath me". (that being what i think, they think i'm thinking, when i'm there)

The Irish have a Unique capacity for cynicism in the face of this economic crisis. We all think the world is impossible and unforgiving, or at least that is how we casually accept how we must talk to others. Pretend were all equal, or all suffering, and hide any positives, or i am worse off anecdotes. This Trainee had a lot of this.

My, i was a male nurse, now just a bar back on the weekends was nothing compared to her. She was utterly without a 3rd level prospect, deriding the whole Career Counseling profession as expecting all girls to be Nurse's. She herself could not be a nurse, not the usual thing of gore etc, but the self revealing story that her Mother recently died. Hospice's was mentioned, but i dare not pry, i had no idea how to take this offering of conversation. Yes nursing is very noble, and not for all, but to continue down that cul de sac of connecting memory dots for her could not be a good thing. I could not really mention all i saw in James's, her mother had been there. The Cancer ward i admired was off limits, the STD's and the HIV or Burns also. Suddenly my disgust at the care of the elderly Overcrowding i had already derided was now insensitive, and i couldn't say anymore at all about nursing, or college.

She was also finding it hard to learn in her job of a year. To find hair models, or prove her skill.

Okay i was top-trumped by economic woe, a first. This had fizzled all conversation.

I was left to staring in the mirror at my hair receding, or at the ornate nature of the Dunnes Stores window down the street. Certainly not at her. That was difficult, used to ignoring men who ignore me and do a task. Instead i had a unsure nubile young woman at close quarters slowly changing my appearance. While i sat as a training instrument, trying not to let my mind undo a century of feminism and social change.

With my new head of hair i did more window job hunting, but to no real discovery of anything i gave up.

A very good busking group performed Dakota by Stereophonics with a box, an acoustic guitar and a violin, and a 3 part harmony. I had heard this rendition before while walking on Grafton street, and assumed the Guitarist must play there regularly, but the first time without the other 2.

With some red bull cola, and a guardian in hand, i sat at the base of an O'Connell street statue and waited for Budsey to arrive on the Luas.

I must have been engrossed in the G2's article on BASE jumping to notice her arrival so i got up, with a slightly stiff lower body and met her at the steps of easons.


We walked and talked and decided on Some Milkshakes from college green. Then consumed and chatted in Temple bar Square to the background noise of tourists, locals, Restaurant pushers and an Eastern European Folk group that also played some Rolling Stones acoustically.

We then went looking for a pub and eventually settled on the Czech Inn in Old town. What followed was, of course, Drink, open and frank discussions on sexuality, personal histories and religious belief. To say i did most of the talking was an understatement, but with most questions originating from Budsey i was all to happy to share and answer as much as i could. A good time had.

And after waiting for a heavy shower to pass we walked along wood quay to the four courts and parted ways on opposite Trams.


The Disappointing.



I wanted to blog a lot more this week, but i didn't.

I was perturbed and put off by the fact that my efforts to review an album and include youtube video's were scuppered by a crashed tab of blogger. And when i returned half of the post was missing due to several glitches and alterations, that were subsequently a lesser post than what i had been pre-typing on my Notebook.

And i also further dulled my mind with excessive internet use. Tumblr being a large component of this. It is fucking addictive stuff. And if you dear reader have not noticed, i have added a tumblr display to the bottom of my page, and have also started to FLOOD my twitter with, what i can only assume is annoying, auto-updates. I apologise for this if some do not appreciate the Tumblr medium, or generally don't like non-narcissistic twitter posts.

I also did not receive any round Zero offers on my CAO application. This is supposedly a round for people who have done the leaving in the past, and mature applicants, and for certain course's but nothing. Why i don't know but oh well. I have no clear concrete plans yet anyway...

Work was alright this week. I'm well into the swing of things, but it felt like a lackluster affair for some reason.

Maybe because i was so tired afterwards, and that i had spent so much money during the week after doing 2 nights in a row.

I also noticed a very cute redhead at the bar several times. And she appeared to be alone, a very rare sight. I actually had asked a colleague where she had gone. Disappointingly she had left for a rival club that is usually mentioned as preferred by the locals. A pity on many levels.






The Negative

Hmm where to begin on all that negative...



(Thus ends a this post. Can't think of a way to mend it, or end it, so i'll leave as is.)

A month of Good Intentions...

In which i make life long choices, and have fun doing it.


So we're in august 2010. We're so far in the future that we have surpassed Lisa Simpsons wedding.


Evidence:







Honestly at no fixed point in time did i have any idea what i would be doing with my life in the future.

One fantasy that remained was that i wanted to be a film director or writer. Recently it has molded into the idea that i want to be a "cineauteur". Which means i want to be involved in the make process of all aspects of film or tv production. I want to be adept at all parts of my interest and weigh in as much as possible on everything that i love.

No obviously, this isn't something you can train for. More practically for the immediate future i have to get a 2nd job, i have to save money, and i have to go to college and learn.

I have to take charge of my life entirely by myself. And despite the muddle of the past year, and my lower mood during my recent blogging gap, i feel i have to express myself, i have to control my fate, and i have to live my life as it comes.

I just worked 2 days in a row. That's 100 euro. Straight away i had to give 20 to my dad for petrol costs and for 10 euro credit i desperately needed for my phone. I need more hours in my current job, and i also need a second job.

By August 5th i expect some CAO offers to come through. I have no idea what i am likely to get, but for the most part i'm convinced i will have to differ or decline them. I can't afford college again yet. My parents are not able to support me any further, and they are currently going through some aesthetic and cosmetic changes to the house and its gardens.

I have not talked to them about any of this. I haven't had a strong clue of what i'm going to do, or at least what i want to tell the parental units. For the most part i avoid conversations with them, i don't want to fight.

The most recent issue is that i just passed my road theory test. At my own expense, one weeks wages, and now i have entered into a sort of deal with my parents to get driving lessons. My Mother will fork out for my provisional license and i will pay for alternate lessons. However adding me to the insurance on any of the cars is next to impossible. It would cost 700E or so until the next policy change over date, or some such, and the in excess of 1,500 a year. Frankly that sounds like an insult, and money better spent on education or even supporting me if i decided to move out of the house and possibly avail of benefits, or live off 2 or 3 low pay jobs.

As well as the up coming CAO offers over the next month is an interview with Bellyfermot and their film course.

For this i need to prepare a portfolio of some kind. Including video work, 20 photos, Storyboards, screenplay drafts etc. I hope to work on this over the next month.

This is where my student film comes in. A documentary style thing of asking friends who volunteer their time, what they would think if they were to go to war, in space. And also other issue's specific to them and Irish youth.

This gives me an excuse to repair and plaster up a lot of my friendships that have been damaged over the past year, and also to rekindle old ties to school friends and so on.

On top of my portfolio commitments is the over barring stroke of good luck that is the chance to return to nursing. Thanks to the mother of all technical fuck ups i have a chance to do 2nd year, a third time. Now frankly i have reached the overwhelming consensus in my emotions that this would be the worst thing possible. That i do NOT want to be miserable in that course for another 3 years. That despite it being a steady career and allowing me to go anywhere i just could not commit to it. I would be so aware that i could repeat past mistakes that i would be miserable. I do not want it.

That and frankly as a peer group, beyond the friends i already have, i don't want to have to socialise with more nurses. They would all be THREE years younger, or more. This is a large stretch, and frankly its scary and alienating. Its hard enough to approach girls as a shy male as it is, but to have to return to the same situation that i have crashed and burned in again and again is just humiliating. I see nothing positive about choosing it.

My Friends and school mates are now all graduating/graduated recently. I however am nowhere further in the world than i could have been 4 years ago. I have bigger ideas, bigger aspirations and bigger dream than where i have ended up.

For the most part emotionally and socially i am still a lost and confused teenager, at 22. I feel i have not reached artificial milestones inside my head, and frequently this bothers me. I am shy and closed in and find it hard to be assertive or to let loose or open up to new people. I also find it hard to be heard, or to have anything interesting to say that i know will be heard. I'm a bundle of uncertainty.



However what i know i can be certain about is my love of Cinema. And my vast imagination that i have had to suppress and let only slip out slowly from time to time to distract myself from reality.

In the past few weeks i've taken to wasting even MORE time on the Internet, like the cyber-addict i am. Amongst that time wasting has been Switching wholesale to Tumblr as a blogging medium and means of dulling my brain, so i don't have to think about the outside world. Its damn near addictive, its twitter on crack for internet hipsters and fanboys/girls. Its not a bad place, but the time spent on it is. I really should unfollow some people, and post more meaningful stuff, but be restrained about it. I have also noticed that my twitter use has pretty much died off as a result. Yes there is auto shares and so on, but me actually expressing words and not video and photo, all but gone.

Shocking really. And it must all be rectified.


I am amongst the Job Aspirations, the saving of money, the life decisions, the social life, the portfolio etc, also hoping to make a stronger stab and maintaining my blogging, and web-presence.

Thus i am writing this, of course, and getting my self-narritive touch back. Also expect film and music reviews to come thick and fast and more often as i embrace my interests instead of self moaning, as has been a common theme of this here blog.

I may also take a stab at annotating, editing and improving the links and narrative of older posts. I've hinted at this several times, but usually i have not. I've made stabs at guides and link lists and so on, but usually its all been half arsed. Hopefully i will be a better blogger. Spring cleaning is needed.

Another issue which i especially felt today, is that i am lonely. I know i need my better stab at a social life and so on but i really do feel that i am starting to really feel the need to be with someone, to have a significant other. I know i am going to be VERY busy over the coming months, but i really am lonely. I have urges not only of the sexual kind but also to share my time with someone. Ye know to really love someone, and to be loved. I'm not even sure if i have ever been in love. The whole PG thing was hormones reaching an impasse where to two of us had to hook up and explore ourselves in order to survive as young adults, as for love, i don't know if it was there.

Then my fling in January? I was so ALONE that the only strong friend i had made in Australia was a release. A threesome and then being part of cheating, wasn't exactly the most normal way of going about anything like that, but i needed someone to be with, and for the week i was leaving, it was exactly what i needed. The following "trouble" was sort of insulting, it was no slight on anyone else, i NEED to be me. I need to live my life and make my own mistakes. I needed to feel something other than pure sadness and loneliness. I was on the edge of screaming. Stuck with an unfamiliar sister in an alien country 11,000 miles from what tenuous friendships i had was hell. And with my parents dragging me home because i was living exactly the same as at home, with no one, not even myself, believing that i could find work. It was Utterly shit. And frankly i don't regret my personal actions, i needed a friend, and i needed a good "root".

But despite how busy i know i have to make myself this month, i am raring to go. I want to embrace it all. I want to document it, i want to share what it is like to be me via this blog as i have in the past, and i want to develop and become the person i want to be.

I have the side urge of wanting a physical person to share this with, beyond friendships, but realistically i don't know if i can also attain this. I probably am still not "ready" for it, but then again, can you be ready for "love" or even the lust i so desperately want to quench. Despite not being fully interested in more promiscuous or impersonal aspects of some of modern youths sexual practice's and courting methods, i to want to get my rocks off. I don't see the full appeal of one night stands or constant flings. For the most part i want Relationships. At the same time my body wants to have its way with many attractive women, but my emotions want someone to talk to and share things with all at the same time. I don't want to separate them. I want a partner in life/crime/love etc, purely sex isn't as appealing to me.



I'd rather the affirmation of a relationship, than the gratification of a one night stand.



Its the one thing of over the next month i am still uncertain about.



Bring it on regardless.

I lost a match, an election, and a mud fight all in a few days.

And somehow it took me twice as long to blog about it!


Rallying the Troops:

On good friday the legendary and oh so important face off match between the society and the Others took place.

Considering The Society has Won the past 4 years, last year 11-2, it was bound to be a good time. Although this year, we were quaking in our boots a bit. As Malkovich, an interloper between both societies, fond of the drink, and a massive football fan was now in charge of the Others side.

The society,  had Letch. And this time we couldn't call upon any of the over 25 former members releaving their youth like previous matches. So instead The society had to field nothing but it's own people, including myself and a ringer from UCD.

I arrived early at the Gimby and was the only society member in sight for ages. The fear built as i saw the ARMY of other's arrive. A sea of red... Some 18 plus actual players and a team of supporters too.

Soon Nordie 2 and Letch showed up and soon followed by Apollo, this years Auditor. It quickly became apparent that we were short a few players, and even lacking people to cheer us on.

So everyone who was there went into overdrive phoning everyone we could think of to get them to play in the match. Unfortunately this only ended up amassing a team of 10 people, for certain for the match.

So we arrived at the pitch, red army in toe, with only 10 or so players. At the last second just at kick off, Sherminator and Egyptian Paul popped up racing in on Bikes, just in time!

I played for a few minutes but was flat footed and awful. So i ended up on the metaphorical bench and decided to take a few photo's and be a linesman for a while.

Slowly but surely the slaughter grew. Within the first half the score was around 7-0 with a few contested goals.


The society had gained a few more players by this time, With Capone apparently falling asleep on the bus so still missing in action, his arrival later, albeit hilarious didn't make any difference.

The 2nd half was a stronger performance for a few minutes, by some miracle. We didn't let anything in for at least 10 minutes or more, but most of our team were knackered.

Eventually they started to fly in, and despite switching goalies many time's we couldn't stop it.

I myself even let in at least one, maybe even two... It was just impossible in the mud, with no physical skill or co-ordination, or even proper gear.

The final score was 15+ - 0.


The Societies winning streak destroyed. It's pride and players battered emotionally, and in some case's physically.

So we huddled around, claimed a girl Fresher was the Man of the match for being our best Mid-fielder, and then decided to shake hands with the Opposition. But with a slight ploy.


Slaughter in the mud:


The Society did the honourable thing and shook hands with the opposition. But we had a target in our cross-hair's. Why i'm not sure, but we did. It was an american who we'd shouted to have as a sub since the very begining, just because of his nickname. And he probably seem'd like the best target.

We sought him out. The Others were already flinging each other around in the mud and delighted with themselves. The society wanted some kind of act of anything, whether fun, vengence, ignorance or plain stupidity, they were going to get their man.

We all weaved through the crowd shaking hands. Target spotted.

Within seconds of a reached out hand he was pounced upon.


As i flung myself into the breach i just thought of that colloquial adage, "PILE ON" that's usually screamed when people, ye know, Pile on.

In the ensuing mud soaked mass, huddle and seething of pushes, tustle's and groan's we all got very muddy.

And as i rose from the mass as it cleared the target caught me and slapped to large wad's of Mud into my head with both hands with an almighty smack.

Icky, sticky, uncomfertable and sort of sore, it was still worth it.

Although this was the extent of my tustling in the mud, several people continued to drag, push, throw and pin people all over the place.

I composed myself on the side lines, some people changed and we got an Other to help take a team photo, with some difficulty as some of our members were still knee and face deep in the mud. But we got a proud, mucky photo of the Losers in Blue.

Both side's then joined together in a mass huddle and an Overall photo was taken, something which didn't occur last year, mainly because of the 11-0 for the 4th year in a row.

This time i think the victory was far more obvious. The society knew it was beat, and despite cries of "It's a Pyrrhic victory, if we had 1 goal we would have won it on a emotional level", the hatchets were buried.



GET THE HOSE OUT!


So with it all said and done the 2 teams started to pack up.

I had brought a spare change of cloths so with my coat and some well placed shuffling i changed out of my mucky Tracksuit bottoms, and even changed top and t-shirt, as well as shoes. Despite little play i was well prepared to not sully Bus Eireann whenever i headed home.

As the crowd trickled away i asked where everyone was heading. Most of the Society were heading different ways, Home, buses, town etc The other's though had a house near by to go to and even clean up. That and promise of a place to drink and wind down etc, although it being good friday it was BYOB.

So i followed the crowd and joined in.

At the free gaff i queued with the rest of the others as they all waited to get clean. Out back some used a hose, while others waited for the bathroom.

I was relatively clean, with the exception of my face. So i was near the end of the queue.

After the passing  underwear, wet cloths and freshly cleaned bodies of several people passing me over about 20 minutes i was informed the sink was actually free and separate in the Toilet so i popped in and washed my face.

As i washed someone else joined me at the sink and also started to clean while i was almost finished, so i had to hover my hands over the open toilet bowl while i ringed my hands to the full extent of my Nursing training.



TAKING ONE FOR THE TEAM:

Letch and our man of the match had also joined the mass at the house, but after a while i was the last Society only representative left. But the "craic" was good, and i was having fun laughing at several random stories and with and at all the company so i stayed.

In fact i was there a good while. And i enjoyed it a lot. A fresh reprieve from the slightly more serious talk that you get several times when around Society people. The others were almost from another world, ye know, actually acting like young people and not overtly Intellectual or constantly arguing. Free spirits if you will.

For the most part i just sat and laughed along with all that was happening, rarely pipping up much. After all i knew all of 4 or 5 names of the people around me and couldn't think of much to say. But i was comfortable enough and having fun. Although my rash was visible and it bugged me a lot, so much so i took an emergency extra tablet just to make sure it went away, and didn't bother me to much.


By the evening we ended up playing I never, or in this strange Hiberno-English version, Never have i ever, ye know, for the unintentional grammar nazi's that the Irish language make's us.

This is of course, a drinking game. But i took a glass of water, wasn't unwinding that much, and there wasn't a communal supply going anyway.

A lot of hilarious stories came out, all private of course, so no scandal i'm afraid. But my answers are perflectly admissable.

Never have i ever been involved in sexual act on public transport. Drink.
Never Have i ever had a threesome. Drink.

Someone noticed this and jokingly called me a "Sexual Deviant" in a sort of surprised slagging i guess.

To which my instant response was, strangely and honestly, "Different Continents."

I enjoyed my time, but by 9 i had to leave to get a bus. I wasn't sure what schedual the buses were running on so i had to make my exit.

And by pure luck i got on the bus within a minute of it's departure.


ON THE BENCH:

On tuesday was the election for the society.

I ran last year, and that was chronicled in several posts (which i should link to at some stage).

I voted pretty early after a brief spell in an internet cafe.

I ate Mc D's for lunch, far more expensive than Burger King, bad choice. But i ate slowly, layer by layer of my Big Mac as i watched music video's on the plasma's upstairs.

I kept popping up to the pav to see the drinking voters, but no one was around. That is if i would even recognise my competition, mainly newbie's.

I popped into the national gallery for a while and then back to campus.

Finaly Lenn and Capone were there drinking away with cheap can's of Bevaria, oh memories.

The one armed man joined us. As he sat down i prepared my 750 mil bottle of Pepsi i had been drinking all morning and started to pour the Jameson Whisky i had swipped from the Cloak room's upper shelf. I'd say i added about 100ml to what was left of the pepsi.



Then Nordie 2 and some of the Freshed faced younglings.

Then the new Auditor elect, Joker.

Ming eventually joined us and the storries and laughter lasted a few hours before the count.

Before we all left the Whiskey started to hit me. My face had become pretty numb, it felt like it was drooping. I was a bit dizzy and sort of tingly. And everything was even easier to laugh at. Faster and stronger than any other drunk i had ever been. And even slightly more fun than the downer i get from beer or beer equivilant alco-pops.


The count was just as devastating as i remember. And Ming didn't get elected. I had a long wait for my result.

Several long counts later, i still had all of 3 votes.

And then that was it, i was "eliminated" for not having enough votes. I guess not being around all year, being in another continent etc kind of acted against me.


I shook hands, met the new committee. But it was just as devastating as before. But if i am returning to nursing, as i fully intend to unless some Monetary miracle allows me to do a film course, i will use the Society as a massive social safety net next year. For sanity's sake i'll have to. I'll also get more involved with The Others, as i think they're a bit more my kind of people than i ever realised.


As for the summer, working hopefully. And of course, my student/amateur film...


Until the next time i do something note worthy.. Ciao.

In which i hope to return to College and the Society.

Oh how i neglect thee dear blog, no more, never more, not again!


Well, maybe at least once a week if all else fails.



So i have ACTUALLY decided anything but i have put myself forward for Election in The society so that i can be on the committee next year and get more involved etc

And in all likely hood i am returning to nursing next year, as its the cheaper and better option.



So it's 3 years of Nursing. Okay so it made me unhappy but if i can do it my way, work hard, and be involved in college and other things as well then all the better. It's not beyond the realm of possibility that i can do it.


I also have idea's to quench my filmographic thirst while i'm studying. Translation i have an idea to make a cheap as chips student film that's right in my general interest. More to come as i start to get it together. But what i can say blog wise, without giving away to much, is that it's a Drama/Sci-fi about conscription to an Alien war. 


Yeah it's all just an idea. But i hope to make a short film, maybe under an hour all about the drama of young people deciding if they will go to an unknown war for the saftey of humanity etc All do able on the cheap with home video equipment etc and a lot of orchistrated and rehearsed scenes and so on. Maybe even some improvised stuff in the form of a Debate.


More to come latter i guess. And more clear etc.


Oh and i'll be playing some Football on Good Friday in great Trinity college tradition in the Society Vs Others Match. The same match i was at last year actually..

Blogged with the Flock Browser

a day of networking and free books, plus some catch up...

Well how could i not mention what i have been up to lately.



In regard to college, i may have briefly mentioned that when i went to get a form signed for applying for the dole, the wise people of Trinity told me i was down as off books.

A few weeks later i got around to calling my tutor and i saw her last friday.


It turns out the mother of all technical fuck ups happened. A computer input error of some kind means that i now have a 3rd chance to do 2nd year, providing i can pay the fee's.

I don't have to decide anything until September, but still its one hell of a fleuk-y jammy chance.

Before i am due to go back i am also going to be recieving my CAO results. We can't afford paying for 2 whole years of another course compared to just 1 of nursing before my other free fee's kick in, so this may or may not be mute. But i don't have to decide until then.


So on Friday, as well as phonning my parents, and going to the carreers office in Trinity to book an appointment i also went to a debate for the laugh. See old friends etc etc

Well it didnt exactly go as i'd hope, infact i was so out of the loop so to speak that i barely talked to anyone i knew and very little to stay. I sort of latched onto some people i barely knew and had just met but even then i wasn't exactly dazzling people with verbal calistenics and trope's, meme's, anecdote's and banter. No mainly i was pretty mute.

By the time the rather good debate was over i couldnt really see anyone i had anything to say to in the crowd, and it was A CROWD. I sort of got negative thoughts, a but panic-y and just left.




In other news i joined up with a Exchange Dublin and am now volunteering for them, and hope to get involved in a few of their groups and projects in the near future.


I was actually there today, on my first "shift" watching the place and meeting people from 3 til 7.

It effectively is a meeting place, of people and idea's and frankly as one guy said to me, it's far better than sitting in the house not meeting people and not talking to them about things.

Not only will helping out one day a week be great fun, with free tea, if i drank tea, but also wi-fi/ a linux computer at the front desk to toy with. New friends and connections to be made and the art/drama/photography/poetry and shared dvds and youtube findings of Dublin and even the worlds aspiring young adults and bohemian layabouts.


I discussed everything from the futility of a must see movies book, the amazing trips you can have stoned on european railway's, helped a cyclist with some bruised ribs while a german tourist got scared away from the bizzare gallery we crazy irish were in, recieve advise on the "proper" conduct when applying for the dole and i also rumaged through Oxfam's Rubbish in order to score free books that were being thrown out.  I could have gotten more, but it was cold, i didnt know when the truck would be there and my Hugo boss bag is not the property of Merry Popins, ie it has a spacial limit.



All in all it was a good day slash weekend. For the foreseeable future i will have to start looking for work, hand in those belated forms to the social welfare office. Study drivers theory test, read all my new film themed books that i was slowly buying with food money while my parents were away, and maybe even start my own amateur film's?

I'm also cotemplating returning interest in The Society and running for election in order to be "active" in college and get on certain people's good side's if intend to return to Nursing, maybe even do schols or try and get a room on campus in 3rd and 4th year??? Somewhere in a paralel universe i may do just that, and more.


Who know's. Oh and of course, blog more often, how could i leave that out?

2 weeks alone, 1 day out, 1 week left..

till the Parents get home and i have to find work and study for the driver theory test.




So 2 weeks of squalor and laziness down. Yeah i seemed to spend most of my time doing absoloutly nothing, but i'm home a lone. The food is slowly running out and all creativity is gone from my veins. Well i say that, i have idea's but with my desk and personal computer gone, i have no place to work or be myself, the house and even my room has almost no sense of being "mine" anymore.

So even though i'm me, my creative side has been absent. So i've basically just lounged around the place and done very little.


Last weekend, not yesterday, the weekend before that, i did attempt to Cycle to the shops but i ended up a bit exhausted and with a sore arse so i didn't quite make it.

On Monday i walked to the shops and got some additional supplies and on the way home bumped into my neighbour who gave me a lift.

On Wednesday i finally headed into town to run some errands and see old friends.

I got into town around 1 but no one was about in the Gimby because of some debate, the Office i needed in Trinity for a form to be filled out was closed, so i went window shopping.

I walked into bookstores, pre-ambled through Temple bar and went through back streets to Temple Bar South. I looked around in Lazer and then the Secret bookstore and tower records. I then went into mobile shops for a little more shopping around, looking at potential new phones.

I eventually reached the 3 stores and discussed getting the new INQ 3G Chat to replace my INQ1, but i wasn't to sure whether to get it on bill pay or best of both. For bill pay the guy tried to sell me some Nokia Blackberry rip off, that was actually a better phone than the INQ, but in the end i thought the Chat was what i truly wanted, and if i could afford it and prove i had enough in my bank account i would get it. Neither of which were true... So i told the Salesperson i would think about it and left sad knowing i couldnt have the cool gadget.


By that stage the office i wanted had to be open so i started heading back to Trinity.

PG then started texting me to meet up like we had planed, but i was running very far behind and almost out of credit.

I entered the office and asked for them to help with what i needed, wrong office...

The correct office. Apparently the version of the form i had was far longer, and also, i'm apparently on "Off Books". Something i didn't apply for since i thought once i failed my appeal, i was out.

I was sent to the origional office to check my official status. Yes, apparently through massive clerical fuck up i'm still IN Trinity, albeit off Books. Now i have to sort that out with my Tutor and the Senior Tutor.

Here's me thinking i'm a free agent, i've been and come back from Australia looking for work, and i'm apparently still in college??? I've even applied for the CAO to enter college next year. I'm also applying for the dole and need this letter saying i'm no longer IN Trinity, and some how i am. WTF?

All while sorting out this mess i was getting texts from PG to meet her in Some pancake cafe in Temple Bar.
I bought some credit and also heard for DS who had agreed to meet me to hang out.

I met with PG and another old gang member and PG gave me very belated Xmas and birthday gifts. The only present i had received for my Birthday as my parents had left a day or two before. We then went for some White hot chocolate from Butlers Chocolate Cafe. My treat for some reason. Which PG apparently loved.

We then Parted way's at the Whore (Molly Malone) and PG went off to meet up with Avril.

I met DS at the bottom of Grafton street and he told me he had some cloths shopping to do, so we did that.

Truly out of our comfort zone's we went into BT2, the mens department was in the basement, how demeaning.

It was all over priced and slightly rediculous, half this stuff wouldn't be worn by straight men. It was all, so, fashionable, it's like they don't know men at all!

DS couldn't find what he was looking for, a pair of black Size 29 Jeans. Skinny feckar.

So we then tried Brown Thomas.

Even the Door greeters are gone now, sign's of the recession!

I told my anecdote that as a child i always thought the Make-up stands looked like the control's of the Enterprise, or would make good cheap props for sci-fi.

Again, the men's department was in the basement. Further insult.

But this one was almost identical, but with mirrors on every wall to make the place look bigger and disorientate the customer. DS couldn't find what he was looking for and we both Moaned about how shit the selection was, DS even saying he'd prefare to just go to London or Milan again on cheap Ryanair flight to find cloths he wanted. Not a bad idea, this place was just disturbing, and overwhelming not suited for "normal" men.

Lost, we ascended an exit and it took me a few seconds to get my barrings. The Make-up area of Brown Thomas has displays too tall to see the exits, and they are all in line of sight to prevent you from moving smoothly through the store, it's a shopping TRAP!

We exited on a side street and we were safe!

I then went book shopping, first to re-view books i'd seen on film in The Secret Bookstore and another one on College Green.

The books in the secret bookstore weren't that good, but i did find a book on Watergate for 1 Euro, how could i say no to that!


We went to college green where there were 3 books i had my eye on.

1 on Road movies, another sort of essay/academic book explaining On the Road by Jack Kerouac and one on Music festivals in america. All "research" for a road movie student film that i hope to make myself, somehow in the near-by future.

In the end i bought the Road movie book and a Film Studies text book that i found. All about 30 euro altogether.

After that i couldn't think of much else to do other than spend time with college friends, and i didn't have the money to see a movie, so DS and myself parted ways.

I popped into Trinity via Nassau street and was met with the Rotting smell of the Tree that once stood there. I had witnessed it's removal while studying during the summer and now it was a foul smell. How nice...

I arrived in the Gimby and ascended to the Societies room's. Not that many people were around.

DJ was in the corner Hurridly writting an essay and talking to someone about his work for the Trinity Arts festival, his comunity centre and how he knew certain people.

And Nordie 2 was sitting reading Philosophy, in German, a language he only picked up of his Dutch roommate last year.

I told him about my time in Oz and my college status etc etc He then returned to reading and passed a few Joke's and discussions on German grammar with Letch.

Then Nordie 2 recieved a phone call in which he said "...all you need is a thick Belfast accent and a threatening tone and you're set..." I have no idea what he was talking about but i couldn't help but smile.

A few panicked Society dealing went on while i sat there, as the Ballot box had dissapeared, found again, in the Other's hands for some reason. And a person who lost a phone popped up looking for it, but a big clean had been done and such item's put in a box, who's whereabouts was unknown and only one person who was unreachable knew where it might be. So basically a normal day for the Society, just that it was my old friends now in these positions of power, and i could have been one of them.

Few people were around and a Workshop for debatting was starting so i left.

I then left town as there was nothing left to do and PG and met up with her other half so i knew of no-one still hanging around.



That was Wednesday. I didnt do much for the rest of the week and my sleep pattern hasn't been the May West.

Yesterday 2 family friends popped by at different times, witnessing my disheveled unshave tracksuit waring self. But luckily my parents had rung in advance to warn that one of them might be comming over so i was able to scrub the kitchen in time to make it look like i was on top of things. I was just about to have the last of the Porridge when the first popped by.

Then latter in the day i heard the sound of a car arriving. I looked out, it was a Garda car. Confused i answered the door.

It was a friends of the Families wife, she was handing in books for the Driver's theory test that had been borrowed by the same guy who helped me with my CAO application. Very handy, i might pick them up over the next week or so and be ready to have the test ASAP when my parents get home.


5 days left and i've little to do, as usual. Just started reading the Road Movie book out of boredom, even woke at a reasonable time.

Sorry for the lack of blogs, i've had little to say and i left talking about wednesday off for age's.

Task's to do:

Clean house fully
Buy Staples and food for parents return.
Sort out "off books" status with college/tutor/senior tutor.
Bring forms to Social welfare office.
Study for Driver Theory Test

FIND A JOB.


Tuddles.

Run Dos, C Dos Run, Run DOS Run!

To borrow a turn of phrase from a friend, if you don't get that reference you need to get out less.


So this morning i woke to the call of chores and having to phone the doctor.

You see i still had my stitches in from my biopsy and mole removal. Now not only was this laziness but it was forgetfulness and very bad. But it's not like we have much money, and i'm not working. So it saved us in the long run, sort of. I wasn't exactly sick from them, yet...


I also had to help my dad with a few things.


I had porridge as he painted the edge's of the walls where a flower wallpaper was previously plastered. My mother had added it to the wall instead of all 4 walls being red. Why i don't know. But i kind of got the idea. But now she hates it even more than when it went up. She went so far as to call it common.

So, in a rare showing of action my dad actually followed orders and ripped it down and started painting. Now this could have something to do with my sister returning home, so what MOTHER says in terms of the look of the house has to be obeyed.




I then phoned the doctors and got a late appointment for 10 to four.


Then when that was done we, me my dad and mad dogs, had to move a bookshelf out of the way for painting.


We catagorised the books. A LOT of cookery books. Some older than myself. Some with stains of food older than myself sticking page's together. Dust with more back story than my very existance. Dust that has passed through at least 4 house's and 30 years to get on my hands and in the air and make me sneeze. Books that were wedding presents they are that old! Books that are rejects of the 70s and are a main influence why Meat Fondu is one of our family's favourite communal meals. (I remember loosing 5 euro on the insistance's that that was what a fondu was, ignorant to the fact that it even means melted cheese in french..)

A choice example of the sort of cook book on the shelf was, A guide to Garden Herbs, Or Blender Recipe's. Seriously, blender recipe's? Who knew you had to learn what to fuck into a blender?



Then on the next shelf was my dads books. Wood working books, IQ test books, information books. Dublin and Dubliners, a collection of essays on Dublin and it's people. And a lost map of Louth that my father miss placed circa when we moved here.

He was a slightly irate however. Several of the very very old and specialist woodwork books, re-sourced from amazon to replace old copies he had years ago were now chew toys. Their bindings long since deafecated by the puppies in the gravel yard out back. And the two little mutts just woddled about unaware of any wrong doing with muddy paw prints ruining the floor i mop infrequently with great urgency to make it appear like i actually do all my chores! The cheek!


We then moved onto the upper shelves. Assorted odd cuttlery, two sugur containers, oddly with sugar in them. And candle sticks shapped like funky drink glasses with burnt out Night Lights (Tea Lights) still in them.

Assorted old birthday cards, including strangely inapropriate "sweet" sixteen cards for myself that made refference to A Shag Bird, and how i wasn't going to get any. Some's up my teenage years right there....


Old baby photos and 2 choice photo's of my sister that show her with our first dog lucy, when she was a toddler and another when she was around 14 with a baby Thrush she rescued. That girl was born to be a Vetenary nurse!


We then moved the bookshelf into the pantry beside the dogs night time cage/kenel.  We stuffed the washing/ironing onto the lower shelf and tidied up the rubbish and recycling that was collecting.



Then we sat down to some computer updating.



As i mentioned before, my dad is down grading several 1,000 euro laptops from Vista to XP so he can control them more easily in his old schools network. ( I say old school, as he retired, but he still works for them since they never hired another IT teacher capable of running every computer in the school.)



So as i tinkered on the one laptop i have temporarily personalised i put in a usb key into the newly XP'ied laptops and changed their identities to the each number he wanted.

There was some trouble getting them to connect to the old network we still have here in the house.

Then my sister rang and my dad was on the phone for at least 10 minutes. Good blog reading time...


When he came back we had a shouting match of hypothosising of what the problem was. The problem was they couldn't find an IP adress because the server wasn't on. The network existed and the laptops, "mine", his (the super widescreen), the school one's and an ancient computer in the Garage could all talk to each other, but they had no IP Adress's. Strangely my dad, the IT and Technology teacher was initially stumped by this. I'm no expert but i quickly assumed you needed the server to tell the Transmitter what to do, and what to call each of the computers connecting, ie the "IP adress". From my limited knowledge of computing, it turns out i was pretty much right. The exact techinicalities are beyond me, but in essance i was right, and once the Server was turned on, it was all fine and dandy.


We XP'ied 10 laptops before i had to take a shower and dash out to do several tasks with my dad before my doctors appointment.


Showered, shaved. Hobo beards aren't good in public, no matter how rugged and Douche like you appear.


So out we went.


A Glass Glaziers first.


It was in a business park.

It wasn't well advertised so we had to drive past each of the "Plots" to see what business occupied them. I say plots, they were warehouse's of varrying size standing inside a terrible one way system of traffic in what was almost a ghost town from some angles.


We eventually found it.


The bollocks of shite rattled about Private and Public sector pay on Liveline was doing my tits in so i flicked the radio to Newstalk. No better. It was Moncrief, and something about suicide service's or some dreary shite. It was raining and murky out, i was in the car with my dad, who can be dull in a car at the best of times, this wasn't helping.


iPod earphone's in!

Didn't help.


Next stop a lamp store. Across the road from an Lidl and and an abandoned plot, adjacent to an abandonded plot that now had an "Australian Circus" in it.


As i sat there with "Dear Maria" by All Time low in my ears. I witness a horde of tracksuited youths nuckle dragg themselves across the car park of Lidl and across the wasteland towards the circus.

Then a minute or so later another one on his own came out onto the road with a Heavy lifting Trolley, the kind you see in homebase.


He just looked like he was going to knick something.

Then as my dad returned. Kids half the age of the others passed on our side of the road with a similar trolley and a stack of Wooden packaging crates. Yep it's Halloween, and it's Drogheda....



We went to yet another Retail Park around the corner, passed at least a few dozen acre's of abandoned large warehouse's and former factories or tech companies. Then into a uniformed grey business park with a large "WATER PARK" in its entrance. An indoor water park, inside a rather large Grey corrigated warehouse with odd windows here and there showing off rainbow platforms and twisty tube's and slide's.

The business my dad was looking for wasn't answering. The only "business" doing business in this god awful development was the water fun house thing.

Drogheda has some of the worst town planning imaginable. It was utterly appaling.


Then back to the lidl.

I sat and starred at the main Road that goes to the M1 but doesn't actually go onto it, and also goes back into town and the Bus Depot.

Coache's and traffic huddled by in the murkey overcast evening. I bopped about to the dying battery of my ipod as Immigrents and local yokels shoped.


We finished and head to the doctors.


While approaching the bus depot i saw a teen pushing a pram. She didn't exactly look enthusiastic....


The Doctors.


I spent most of my time waiting on my mobile, surfing on Opera Mini and Snaptu. Passing the time.


In the corner 2 toddler siblings played noisely with the toys. There mother in a pink velure tracksuit butting in every few minutes to shut them up.

Beside me a African family sat with a young girl standing beside her mother, sheepishly staring at the other children, waiting to get a chance to use the toys.

Her mother kept asking her to sit down in the seat beside me but she didn't. She stood there with her dread lockes, coloured plastic beads and sheepish face, waiting to play.


The two siblings coughed and spluttered all over the shop as the screamed and talked relative nonsense to each other and bounced around on their plastic chairs.

Then they started asking each other "do you have TICKULLLZ!!!" And then that started to get out of hand.

So angry and frustrated the Pink Tracksuited mother dragged the two out with her, either for a smoke brake or to refill the meter. It seemed like she had been called to the doctor, so the little African girl was over at the toys in a flash. Happy as larry when she found a Book on Tiger.


Then the other two returned but sat in a differnt place.

The second they came in, the floor was now their play space.

The boy instantly prosented the Door stop to his mother's face asking "what's this, what does it do?"

"put it back, Lulia get off the floor, get out from under der, yer gonna get all muckie, look here come's the doctor, the doctor's comin', he's gonna be cross with ya!"

They eventually went in.

The look of relief from the 2 OAP's tag-reading a newspaper and all it's supplements barely talking past idle celebrity gossip and tv schedule's, was priceless. They didn't really say anything but i could hear from their sighs and distain "Utter Disgrace" and so on.

Even the African Mother was relieved the terrible two were gone.


My dad then arrived in a sat with me. I had been waiting so long at this stage that he had had time to walk all the way down to West Street to the Pharmacy and back again with the perscription for my Rash (Lichen Pilanus, the rash's suspected name and diagnosis), a persciption i should have bought a week before my biopsy and mole removal, which was at the start of the month!



Finally in with the doctor.

It was the male doctor. Ie i had gone full circle over the summer after 5 appointments i had seen all the doctors, 3 of them female, 1 his wife, 1 a newbie. And now i was back with him again, after first showing him the rash 5 months ago.


The Stich on my Wrist had already snapped and all he had to do was pull it out.

The 3 on my chest were a bit harder, but standered snip and pull. They had stayed in so long the site's are a bit swallon, excoriated and scabby, but they're fine. I doubt it will leave much of a mark, but they will look like this for a while i bet. My own fault, but hey, it's not life threatening that i delayed. Not this time or for these stitches anyway.



Chit chat about failing my course and heading off to Oz. No health concerns, it's summer there soon and they got the Swine flu jab first, so all i have to worry about is putting sunscreen on EVERY day.


We got home and my dad and myself hurridly tidied up the computers, moved the books, cleaned the kitchen and started chopping onions and carrots for my mother's dinner within half an hour.

When she came in, she wasn't pushed about the stew and told the dad to put it in the lower shelf of the AGA. The Dad and I had Curly Chips and Burgers.



Thus ends my "riveting" day....


On Friday and Saturday i am attending the UCD IV with Ming as my teammate for the craic like. So i'll be AFK for a couple of days. I will loose this laptop to it's XP-ing also.


Expect some sort of word along the way. Keep an I on my facebook or twitter if you're really desperate to hear about my dull life and moderate prose.

Until next time, it's a good night from me, and it's a good night from him. Goodnight.

Blogged with the Flock Browser

Less than a month left till i'm gone, let's make it a good one!

Yes, you read right. I'm leavin', on a jet plane, not sure exactly when i'll be back again, but it's in a years time....


If you're a friend or a stalker you will already know that i am upping my lazy ass and packing my not very warm weather orientated cloths to take with me.

I moving down under to get work and to help pay for a return to college at some stage.


So in lieu of my departure i will be celebrating my life in Ireland coming to a brief closure, by seeing "most" of my friends and aquatance's in some manner of farewell.



Firstly i'll mention the day i bought my tickets, Wednesday, and then i will discuss what i hope to squeeze in in some way, funding forgiving.



So at an un-godly and dark hour of 5 am i woke to join my mother on the bus into town. Yes the train is still out of service, how annoying.

I showered and collected all my things and headed off into town.

I almost slipped up buying a return ticket, for the train, by not saying "student". I may not be a student anymore but i still have a valid travel card until the end of the year. I almost had to fork out 18 euro or something. But i said, in shock, student, but the ticket was already printed, the guy re-printed. €14.80 please....

Eh... wasn't it 12.50??? So i scrambled for change and was left with no coins and only my dads visa for buying my way to Australia.

Getting off the bus in town i told my mother of this and kindly i was able to recieve 5 euro to get me through my day. Possibly the last spending money i'll see for a long time.


I hoped on the dart in connolly to get to Pearse. It was raining and going via the Docklands is just not as nice as going up and down steps and ramps and being carried through the murk of 730am Dublin in Autumnal weather.

So in my computer loving way i thought, let's see if i still have access to the college network.


Aras an Phiarsigh... or IS services as i've always called it was locked, it was still not 8am.

The arts block however was open. Off i went.


Ahhhh computer fix. Okay so these awful College computers may now have Vista, but i'll use 'em either way!


This lasted till 930 or so and i hoped over to the Gimby for some newspapers. It was still raining, and i had only one task to do, with another in reserve, weather and time permitting.


I got into the Society and it was all so queit. Contract cleaners doing there thing and not another soul about.

There however, were NO newspapers. Just the dreaded TCD student newspaper.....

It was reading but it wasn't good reading. A Rockstar can and my iPod Nano kept me company whilst reading about college issue's, rejoice's about no fee's and a life that i have now left behind.


There i sat. A fresher couple on their laptops. A hanging guy crashing face down in a couch and the odd head popping in and out of the door.


Then in came Kaffee. He rounded the entire room before noticing me but came over and we started a good chin wag and catch up.


Then the "Tea and toast" service started. Dona and her boss lady, who's nickname i have forgotten rolled in and set up the wee event for Freshers and others.

At first i wasn't interested, but the smell of toast was all to good.


Dona, with her Tattoes, bouncy charm and Public Enemy t-shirt was happy to see me and everyone and handed out toast galore. With Spreads of Nutella and i think some jam available.

Although i'm actually doubting the jam... I think that essential toast-al condiment was ommitted for some reason.

Not being a flavoured water man i had no liquid to acopany my toast. But Dona soon rectified this by discussing how she and almost no one else she knew in the entire college didn't drink tea. I piped up and we shared some Semi-flat Cadet orange that was left over from a previous event. Dona mainly extracted this gloriously cheap muck as a means of getting on the wrong side of her OTHER boss lady, Boop.

I never got the full details but from what i could gather all is not so happy in the MC department. I want name names but it seems like its not exactly peachy.


Kaffee, myself and Ming sat down at the head of the room in a semi-circle and discussed, the society, life, friendships, and the social impact of facebook and it's wider implications on how we now live our lives....


IT's girlfriend arrived and Ming talk to her. So i then started to discuss the Society and college life with Kaffee. He's a tad disillusioned with the "cliques" and certain key figures about the place but instead of egging this on i just reassured him that he was still an important figure, and sort of a Yoda type. Dispensing little gem's and trope's of debating and knowledge wisdom. He listened but i don't know if it invoked the same zeal and enthusiasm by witch he has instilled in some like myself, or the same caffinated over-acting that Gammaman gives to any story...


I then slowly departed the Gimby with Ming in toe and we discussed my trip to Oz and how we should SO do another movie night soon. I suggested that the NEXT drinking game should be to all the "Fucks" in In Bruges.(A suggestion from my sister) I think it should be done. Just for the challange.


He also mentioned how my leaving is sort of like "abondoning" him. I don't take most of his comments about my leaving, or my failing nursing to heart, but i do sense he's uncomfertable about it. But we've made plans for another movie night and other stuff so hopefully we'll have a good friendly good bye and so on.



I walked across front square with Ming as we discussed my departure but then he ran into his GF so i waited a minute or so but then moved on waving goodbye.


As i walked to the travel agent i got out my notebook and sorted what page's of notes and information i needed. Oddly this meant i ran into Egyptian Paul as he was walking somewhere up Dame Street. I walked and talked with him briefly and then stopped, i had a bin to find for the ball of paper in my hand, there wasn't one. How strange. I walked back to Trail finders and walked in.


I had been directed to talk to someone specific that my sister knows from her School days. Some former Gonzaga or Clongoe's guy that she hung out with years ago. In short someone i wouldn't have met ever, so aiming to deal with him was optimistic at best.

I got to the visa desk and it was a slow process of odd questions and hovering pen movements to get it all finished. The woman who handled my visa application was nice and saw the funny side of the form and i exchange some words with her.

Then it was back to the front desk where i asked again for the stranger i was meant to go via, he was on the phones that day. So i was sent to someone else.

I told this guy where i wanted to go and he started typing and searching away.

Bermused by the lack of back and forth i mentioned the Date i wanted to leave, the city i wanted to go to and the specific airline. Why he hadn't asked me was annoying.

Then 5 minutes of silence later was the random question:

"Have you ever been to Israel?"

"eh, what, uh, no?"

"okay."


And then more silence.

Asked for visa. Used it. Done.

He went away, came back. Went away, came back. And i had a printed ticket. A few awkward thank you's and goodbyes and i was done.


I left and phoned the Dad and i was done. Now for more hanging out in the gimby.

No one was about, and no newspapers. So i used the computers in the attic.


Eventually Gammaman replied to my question about free for lunch and we met up and walked and talked.

I had had a Londis roll earlier and was left with no money, just change. So we went to M&S.


He got pasta salad while i bought a Doughnut for 60cent.


We went back to his room in Goldsmith, it has a hidden courtyard behind Pearse, pretty cool.


Then we sat down as he wrote his speech for that nigths debate. He paced and discussed stuff while I, well i just listened and played the wii. Yeah he has a Wii. Lucky bastard.

It was a pretty good speech.

Over to the debate and i spent time with a few people a few hello's etc but mainly sat beside Ming who gave the first Op speech. It wasn't that bad, but he seemed a bit upset over how it went.

The first expert's speech went on a tad too long and i had to leave after it for the 9pm bus. I walked fast and got it on time.




So here we are now.


And the plan for the next month is not exactly set in stone.

I hope to do the following over the next few weeks:


Lunch with Budsey and PG in Eddie Rockets.

Another Movie night with Ming and his friend Ché.

A movie and meet up with DS when he's back at the end of this month.

Maybe the UCD IV as a novice or to help some newbie get by.

Then maybe a movie night of my own, The Godfather Trilogy, all at once???

A Goodbye party, or two.

One with the society people in town, and another at my home close to when i leave, and when the trains are back.

A Chamber Debate on the wednesday before i leave, as a final goodbye to the Society.


All will be planned over the next week....

Until then toodles bloggers, readers, stalkers and wierd people i may like or fear some day.

Updatarooney

This week is rather complicated/busy/unplanned/chaotic/tiring/awful/shite/strangely fun/exhausting and difficult.


I failed my Assignment in my resits and am no applying for the long shot of an appeals process, including my rash and other issues in my appeal.

It's a long story which i'll write about later.

Just to keep people informed and to maintain parts of my sanity i will regale you of this little story curtsy of Kaffee.

In all his wisdom and Guru ways of hang about the Society and being Kaffee he shared this with me:

K: Do you know the biblical story of Job?
SD: I know it was a McGuffin in..(stutter).. Mission Impossible. (it's more technically a plot-point)
K: Right, well it goes like this.

There was this guy called Job. God gave him everything in the world to test his faith. One day God and the Devil were watching tv, they weren't really but for the purpose of the story it works great. So god turns to the devil and say's: 
OLOS: Ye know what would be hilarious, if you went and fucked with that Job guy, ye know, for a laugh like?
Luke: Alright, yer on.

So Lucifer Goes down to Earth and like, takes away all his posetions, all his land, rapes and murders his wife, slaughters his children, give's him boils and basically goes to town on him. And Job takes it all and after all this has happened God turns around and says, What the fuck like, and pays Job a visit.

OLOS: Eh, Job, Why did you not denounce me after all that shit went down.
Job: I knew you were testing me. I knew that i believed i would be rewarded.
OLOS: Seriously? Well alright then.

So God, feeling sorry for poor old Job, give's him his land back, give's him his posetions back, and generally repairs all the harm done. Cept for his wife and so on, that's just impossible.

SD: Wow, thats eh, pretty bad. Where's the morale of the story.
K: Yeah i know, it's not exactly light hearted.
SD: Yeah but it's not like the bible to not have a clear cut, ye know, ending. (Doi)
K: I Suppose so..
SD: Well actually, what am i saying, if you look at it, he never gave up, his "FAY-T" Never wavered.
K: Yeah exactly, the world just shits on you sometimes, but ye gotta take it. (Words of Gammaman sub-planted for dramatic effect)
SD: Well on monday, after i found out i failed, i played the euro millions, well the monday million and even though the ticket was a dud, and this week keeps going up and down, i get ye...





On a Side not this is also a bit of wisdom of Kaffee's.......


K: There's no such thing as poor people, except for Druggies and Paedophiles.



Larger post soon. I will keep you informed.       

The Big MO FO Post

I had intended to chronical several idea's in seperate posts but instead i'll cram them together in brief snippets, because i'm lazy and just want to talk about all of them.


This morning i woke several times in my double bed. The feeling of oversleeping where you can just go to sleep again. Not a care in the world stopping me. It was great it was heaven and there were several dreams to keep me entertained, confused and generally comfertable that my imagination was running wild and not my real thoughts.


I woke around 1. This time i wasn't going back to sleep. I was beyond comfy, i was feeling the rough jumble of different blankets and now worn springed matress as the a big ball of cotton wool, it was great.

But in the pit of my stomach i ached for breakfast. So i took a few deep breaths swallowed my own saliva and hoped it would subside.

Finally i grabbed the book at my bed side. Not On The Road, as of yet unfinished, but instead that Little Secret record store purchase:

How I paid for College by Marc Acito.

The blurbs say it's a the greatest teen movie never made, worthy of Ferris Buller and other such great reviews. Several of them. Even "unputdownable".

This one proved right. 1980's New Jersey captured perfectly, or how i would imagine it.

And as the adventure started i was already on the fifth chapter by the time my hunger got the best of me and my mind was on fire with my own writing style and imagination.

What a way to wake up.




My Literary Hunger is a new seed in me. I have my stack of books. I have collected things i desperatly want to read, i've yet to however. Despite having the time. I also want to write so bad.

My blog posts have been sitting in my head since Wednesday and before.


On Wednesday evening, before a legendary film night With Ming and his friend Ché (for reference purpose's), I had a long chat with Ming about idea's for stories.

I sat in awe of his Philisophical deeper question idea's that were at the route of his stories. He claimed dialogue came easy when he wrote. He claimed he would splurge at the oddest of hours but never found the time to write.

I said that when i write it was to avoid doing other things. To force my distracted idea's out so that i could focus on what i should have been doing. But not with my blogs. No blogs are a relief. They're therapy, an extension of those weak lyrics and poems i wrote oh so long ago.




I won't chronicle all of Wednesday night and Thursday morning but i will mention the highlights.

Talking writing and philosophy and bigger questions with Ming.

Shopping for Salt at 1130pm for popcorn.

Pulp Fiction.

A Drinking game to Love actually where we drank Coke and Scotch to the words:
Feel/feeling
Christmas
British/English

We almost drank to the word Love, but we're not suicidal.



The following day i had little next to nothing to do. So i helped with the Society.

More lifting and bag packing. This time less people.

Wars of Witt over what music to play, and what constituted good music. Frankly this annoyed me a lot.

No one could reach a concencus, each ear individual, as i will always protest, but they didn't even except Popular songs, familiar singles. It was all about the arty/indie/meatloaf/electronica(mgmt)/folk and so on.

And yet despite such protests people LIKED Nirvana, they liked S Club Seven. The popular stuff would work as a collective, but people were spitful about several choice's and it was annoying. It's hard to be a DJ when it's not your music.




The Present is harder to predict than the Future.


Tomorrow i will be helping with the Society.

It's freshers week.


Also tomorrow i may be expecting my Exam results..... DUN DUN DUN....


I don't know how to feel. I'm far from sure how it will all turn out.

This week decide's it all. As did this time last year.


At the same time the banks were going to pot so was my life.

I had failed the supplementals. All due to lack of work and general malaise after a failed relationship.


I had selfish blinkers on and failed to work for my future.

Against my will, and lack there of, i was thrust on a rainy morning to repeat the year. The same day the Banks were being bailed out here in Ireland with a "Garuntee" i was being given a loan from my dads credit union to repeat the year.


It all seemed so bizarre and i didn't ever wake up to it.

I was down during my first placement that year, especially in the middle, all that Cleo shite.

I had no idea what i was doing, or where i was going with life.


And frankly i still don't. My life is nothing but Uncertainty, or at least in my head.

It's all far from over, and yet tomorrow and next week seem's so scary.


I should be having fun, enjoy the experiance. But i have my results tomorrow. And then a Driver Theory Test on Thursday.

Depending on my results i am either in placement the following week or not.

I also have to face my Blood resluts from my gp visits to learn about my unexplained rash.

And then to go to a private dermatology clinic the next week, on thursday, which will either be my Day off from placement, or yet another free day.....



It's all in the air. I have no idea what the rash is. Stress makes sense. But so do many other things. I hope it's not what the latest test were to rule out. Extra bloods on friday to rule out Addisons and Cushings. Endocrine disorders, rare one's at that. Frankly i hope i don't have either. It's a long shot but i don't want them.

After all i wanted to start working out and healthy living. I don't want to develop a hormone problem that includes bloating and so on. NO THANK YOU!

Or constant blood tests, no thank you.




Just like my life this country future is also uncertain.


Banama Republic indeed. As a hypocritical middle class socialist who's never really worked for anything and is full of lofty ignorant ideas i LOATH the idea of being indebt to the states mistakes until i die.

I never bought a house with no money.

I have all of one loan to pay back, and it was for education. I don't want to pay for mad cap development that was poorly managed and fueled by greed.

I'm a strong advocate of social amenities, transport and town planning. I believe in regulations and properly planned neighbourhoods and developments. I adore public transport.

Sure i love consumer goods, but i pirate music and watch shows online. I'm not perfect, i am far from a capitalist or a consumer.

I may buy softdrinks and other goods as a consumer on the go but i don't buy House's or car's i can't afford.

I didn't do this to the world. Why do i have to pay for it? Why do my children have to pay for other people's greed?

This is possibly my most conservative thought but the Government can get the fuck away from most of my hypothetical future income.

I will pay for normal social serivices and so on like a good citizen. I'll pay for taxes on my savings and insurance and so on, even a state pension(which i don't really like, since it's still taxed later on...), but i Won't pay for the Developers/speculators/bankers/wankers and consumer driven dick heads that ruined the world.

I admit i obviously played a minor role in all of this, but do i really have to pay for it?

Do any of us?

I expect to do my duty, pay normal taxes and live my life.

I don't want to be made poor to pay off a mistake i never made and shouldn't have to pay for.

If and when i start earning money i don't want any of it going towards NAMA or to prop up the banks.

If i earn money i will pay for what are the essential's of a civilised Country, but i will not pay for Greed. I won't support such blantant exploitation of the middle and lower classes while the bankers stay rich.

NO, FUCK THEM.

I'll vote for any sensible opposition to this. I will make sure as much as is democratically possible that i don't have to pay too much for this insane concept. I DO NOT WANT TO BE RIPPED OFF.


So far in life i have recieved a lot for nothing. When i start paying back with my income i want it shared equally. I don't want a large chunk going towards greed that i was not apart of.

I would be happy with social housing and so on. I don't really care about making my own home just yet. I will do so in due course, even eventually by whatever residence i have on my own, but not with an insane loan.

Anything above 50% is insulting to what looks like a Measly future income of mine.

Being a Nurse is or not is not really going to pay that much. Neither will the dream of Writing or other ventures.

So the idea of loosing my money to this Scheme sickens me. I can't stand it. I can't even articulate it because i am only an ignorant citizen, and they want to keep it that way.

I'm also apposed to Student fee's, but not in a militant way, more in an ideology sort of way.

I don't have a soloution to it's great expense but i know it's a worthy investment we can't loose.

We are already loosing it as many can't find work. The product of our affluent time and we could loose ALL of the people our parents and grandparents payed to educate.

I may not actually be here to complain in the future.....






That future may also need The Lisbon Treaty.

I have several reasons to vote yes.

And a few here and there to vote No.

I voted No the last time as a form of Ignorant Protest. I was against the principle of a coplicated document forced upon us when we were never informed properly and senisibly about it's contents.

No one knew a thing so we all said FUCK YOU to the government.

This time it won't have the same effect.

The country is in an awful state.

We may want the Government out.

After all we're in Debt to the banks for billions, the health care is weak, unemployment is sky rocketing, the economy is awful, consumer confidence is gone, and they can't even maintain a vital viaduct for commuters.

Even if we hate FF we have to agree with them.

We're fucked without Europe.

Europe is to big for it's own ideals. Too many members and not enough executive power, or faster democracy and so on and so forth.

Each of the 27 countries and future members need a voice. Under the current system they don't get much of one.

If we don't say yes to this we won't get the voice we actually want. If the Irish don't say yes we won't be listened to. Our own government doesn't as it is.

If we vote for confidence in the EU they will continue to support, direct and insitute laws for our benefit and co-operative involvement in Europe. Without it we will suffer. It's that simple.

I'm not well educated on the matter, but i can understand that.

From another point of view i loath the idea that the French and Spanish Steal our fish, and that our farmers can't compete on a Europe or World footing, but i conceede that we need European support for any of that.

We Need the European economy for Imports and Exports. We rely on them.

We also need their law's and protections. We need cheaper roaming charges on mobile phones. We need cheaper holidays close to home. We need Garunteed medical Insurrance and freedom of movement. We need the fact that we can work in any European country, and they here.


WE NEED EUROPE.

However i also have another reason to vote Yes.

Peer Pressure. Certain Accaintance's are absoloute dicks when it comes to the Lisbon Treaty. They scoff at the "ignorance" of the Irish people. They openly spew support for europe and the free market economy alsmost like brain washed people or basic twats. I can't stand it. Of course Europe is good, but people resent the Choice presented to them. They don't understand it and frankly don't want to have to deal with the problem.

Basically in theory democracy is great, the only real problem in some instance's, is the People.

The People will rarely reach a concessus worthy of the real general opinion. Right Now IRELAND HATE'S POLOTICS.

We Fear NAMA. We HATE FF. We haven't a clue about Lisbon. We the people of Ireland don't want to deal with it. But we have to.

And what we have to do is Vote yes. Vote Against FF and Hope that our Children can follow our footsteps and make things better again. We can't rely on the current crop to make everything better overnight. But with the right choice's we can get ourselves back on path.

A path where NAMA doesn't take too long to be payed back. A path where the people of Ireland our looked after and safe. A Path where they have money to spare, but not to overspend. A path where we have everything we diseverve and a path where we don't become overwhelmed by the greed that plagued recent years.


It may be a dream but we must achieve it.

There are many issue's that the youth of Ireland differ from their parents on.

The question of the North can't truely be decided but others are a bit more liberal.

We would freely Allow Gay Marraige.

And in a heartbeat we would allow Abortion for Emergency situations, with slightly better powers than currently exist. A full free service for a Womans choice is harder to agree on, but a lot of today's youth have no problem and feel the choice should be decided upon again and again until choice and equality is represented.

The Youth of today want job security, and a stable economy with consumer goods.

They want to be involved in the world and their local area's.

They have a fever for activism, liberlism and change. But little outlet and little hope for the large changes they would hope for right now.

In truth many of them will become bitter and hardned by the hardships ahead of us. It is unlikely that this positive demand for change will actually last much longer. And it's quite possible that we could loose reach with the youth of tomorrow as well as today.

The future is uncertain. The Present is Uncertain. But it doesn't mean we can't work, educate and prepare for what will be a difficult Century for humanity.


Will technology plateu or will we continue to grow?

Will we reach other planets in our star system or kill ourselves over energy and resources?

Or will we sit in mediocrity still arguing about exploitation, inequalities, and the future?


I know i will be. Unless i do something with my life. And so should the rest of the world. A lofty idea. But we can't help but try....