Secret Eurovision Shame

#1 - I watched the semi final of Eurovision on Thursday night. All of it.

#2 - I cheered when Ireland qualified. Loudly.

#3 - I really like Finland's entry.




Anyone who makes this sort of an effort deserves fame and fortune or at the very least to win Eurovision!!

#4 - I will be watching it again tonight.

Stat Counting

I've seen Red Mum do it, Blank Paige recently composed poetry about it, and now I feel myself perplexed by it.

You see one of the biggest searches that I get coming to visit me here is for some bird called Emily Fleeshman! Who the hell is she? I'm very confused about this one!

On a more promising note other searches directed this way in recent times included
Eating the most McVities Digestive Biscuits
Lovely Bottoms
Bossoms
PFO letters
and of course the FE1's or Blackhall Place exams.

I think they all just about sum me up!

Blogging

**Warning! This is yet another post about blogging and the reasons for doing it!

It seems that every once in a couple of weeks at this stage I consider this blogging thing with new eyes! I think it's the nature of the beast to be honest so I'm just going to go with it!

I've been coming here for a year now as I recently mentioned and my approach has changed a little but not a lot! I think I've finally settled into a pattern of blogging I've found my own voice and am comfortable with what I produce here. There was a point just after Christmas where I was beginning to feel a bit pressurised and stressed about blogging! Mad isn't it! But I was. I felt that I had to be interesting, or a bit funny but at all costs I had to post. I've managed to leave that urge behind and not having access to the blog on a daily basis has definately helped me calm down about the whole thing and made it a more enjoyable experience for me as well!

My dad recently commented (in person) to me about my post about my little sis< after a little hmming and tutting he told me that he thought it was very well written! I was thrilled! Over the moon in fact and I felt very proud of myself.

It dawned on me then what I really want to do with this site, I want to write well, make people smile a little with my observations on life, not feel the need to comment on everything and anything that is occuring in the world (there are enough people doing that) and not feel pressure from within or without to do anything more than that!

Wayne Rooney's Foot

What was your first thoughts when you saw/heard/read that Rooney had broken his foot?



Did you laugh?

Did you cry?

Did you shake your head in sympathy with the lad?

Or did you spare a thought for Sven Gormless and wonder what he's going to do now without his golden young striker?

I have to say my initial reaction surprised me. I genuinely felt sorry for him. Genuinely.

I'm not a supporter of the English team for various reasons, and as much as it sounds like begrudgery I would really hate to see them win the World Cup, cause we'd never ever hear the end of it again, ever, and that's not something to look forward to. And it has to be acknowledged that despite his youth, his resemblance to Shrek and his ability to run up large debts even though he earns far too much money, Wayne Rooney is a very good footballer. Without him Englands hopes of winning WC are somewhat damaged, but not completely dashed it must also be said, but I can't take any comfort from that.

What's wrong with me? Everyone else I know is grinning in glee!

Evil Fish

It was a weekend dominated by fish.

We saw pretty ones!







Floated beside famous ones.


(This is robbed from somewhere as I wasn't quick enough to picture him myself! It's Funghi in case you don't recognise him!)

Ate dodgy ones.



There was much vomiting and illness and as a result we gave up and retired to the bossom of our family early.

However the early part of the weekend was lovely, the sun shone, the phat-mobile was in tip top motoring form and we had a lovely time. Tis a pity that the fish got us in the end!

Culture Vulture

I've spent the last two nights immersing myself in very different and highly entertaining cultural art forms and the thought struck me that the Midlands probably won't offer me such wonders, and I felt sad. But on further consideration although I will more than likely miss opportunities like seeing Glen Hansard play in Christ Church Cathedral in the future the point is that I've done it now and have been doing cool stuff like that for 10 years now so maybe it's time to move on! Besides I have secret plans to stay in hotels and have wild and decedent weekends gorging myself on theatre and gigs and fine dining, not to mention the company of friends! And really and truly that could be fun too!

So as I mentioned we were at the gig in Christchurch on Monday night, and it was brilliant. The setting was as you would expect, very atmospheric. There was beautiful use of light in the church, like this!...



and the acoustics were amazing!
I really enjoyed the music which was really beautiful and felt very relaxed and happy leaving which is a good thing!

And then tonight we buggied on down in the phat-mobile to the Opera! It was cool! Faust rocks as far as I'm concerned even if the subtitles did break down and I had to make the story up in my head! I loved it anyway! Great production by the way if you fancy going I don't think you'd be disappointed.

As for this weekend Me the boy and the Phat-mobile are heading to the Kingdom! I just hope the weather is nice as we have 5 days in which to entertain ourselves while there! It'll be great to have a break and lie about drinking Guiness! Now that's real culture!

Ooo I almost forgot!

Me and my blog have been together a whole year (plus some) already.

I was just looking back on my first few posts and it only seems like yesterday in a very surreal way, as we're only seeing the fruition of plans laid then now!

This time last year I was between exams and waiting for results, that really doesn't feel like a whole year ago believe me! We had also made the decision to travel but hadn't gotten as far as laying plans for upping sticks and leaving Dublin altogether, that came later. I'd forgotten that the initial plan had been made so early on isn't that strange? Such a big decision and I'd forgotten when we'd made it! Ah it's not that odd if you knew just how ditzy I really am!

Well it's been a good year, a positive year and I'm really glad that I have this record of it so at least I can have some appreciation of all that I've done and achieved in the recent past.

Next step is to get me a lap top so I won't have the boy peering over my shoulder giving out about my spelling or moaning about cyber stalkers! Ah well it can't be perfect I suppose!

"Wheeling" and "Dealing"

We've sold a house.


We've bought a house.


We've been vaccinated.

It's been a crazy humdinger of a week!

Go On! I Challenge...

Red Mum

Elke and Steve

Gingerpixel

and

Blank Paige

to have a go at naming their favouite things! It'll be good for you! Honest.

Thanks RM for the suggestion!

Here are a few of my favourite things!

When the dogs bite and the bee's sting I often find it a useful exercise to count my blessings and take pleasure where I can!

I'm not saying it's all doom and gloom at the moment or anything but there are times when sustenance must be taken from the simpe pleasures in life!



So here's my list!

1. My new car!
A bit of a no brainer there I guess but I am really enjoying the fabulous freedom of being able to leave whenever I want!

2. McVities Digestive Biccies
A simple pleasure I grant you but lurvely none the less, especially when dipped in very hot tea until they are soggy but not mushy. Yum!

3. Deal or No Deal
I have become addicted to this TV show, I watch it on More 4 in the evenings while cooking dinner. I got fierce excited this week when one of the contestants (I think it was Emily) nearly won £250,000! She only got £100,000 in the end! Hah I'd take it and be glad! It's a cool show based on nothing more than luck and Noel Edmund's personality! I'm glad he's back on the telly!

4. Planning my trip.
When all else fails I close my eyes and try to imagine I'm in China!

5. Working out.
I didn't think I would ever say this but I love going to Curves in the evenings. I've lost 6 inches so far and can really see my body beginning to tone up, it also brings the reality of leaving closer to home as well as I'm only really going there so I can be big and strong enough to lug a back pack around the world!

6. Cuddling the Boy.
Ah yes he's great at the oul cuddles alright and they always make me feel 100% better. What would I do without him?

7. Having a little cry
This is an odd one but stay with me here! There are times in ones month when having a little cry, whether it's over Cornation Street or stubbing your toe, clears the air and makes it all a little bit easier!

8. Listening to my MP3 player.
Especially when it's on shuffle and I don't know what's going to appear next! It can be anything from Pearl Jam to Bluegrass and all sorts in between!

9. Cooking
Even when I'm shattered and miserable making yummy food and, even better, eating it never fails to make me happy!

10. Going for a long walk
This is a pursuit best attempted at home where the air is clean, the birds sing prettily and there's lots of things to look at, unfortunately it doesn't work so well for me here in the Big Smoke!

11. Blogging/Writing
Although I haven't been writing as much I used to here I find myself still jotting down my thoughts and ideas on scraps of paper in work and then eating them in case they are discovered! (I'm joking, kind of, it's just they don't like any form of self expression in the Bank, and I'd hate at this stage to be found out as an individual, I'd probably get the sack!)

So there you go that's my top 11 it's one better than 10 you know!

Freedom!

We bought a car a couple of weeks ago and it's just bliss!

I've wanted to own my very own car ever since I can remember but circumstances have always made it -well the best word to use is - unnecessary. And it's bothered me a little over the years, as I always saw myself as being a car owner first and foremost when I was little and tried to see what the future held for me! I was completely obsessed with driving when I was a kid as well to the point where I used to insist on sitting on the armrest in the back seat of the car and "pretending" to drive! This involved using my feet on imaginary pedals, shifting the imaginary gears whenever the parent did, holding an imaginary steering wheel (properly mind none of this random wheel turning for me!), checking mirrors the works! I reckon I knew the theory behind driving inside out by age 5!

And here I am 28 flippin years old and only now have I got my first car, little me would have been disgusted!


This is very like my car!


I love my car! It's a 99 Ford Focus 1.6 Ghia. It's got all the bells and whistles ya need including a cd player, air con, electric windows and it's got a wood finish dash! Very swank. It's currently parked up during the week but this weekend we decided on a whim to go to Cork, then we went to Athlone and back to Dublin this morning, it's great! Next weekend we're heading off again and I honestly don't know where it will end! But I'll keep you informed.

Oh yeah and yes we are still going away the car will be minded by Grandad when we go so don't worry all plans are still moving forward!

The Unluckiest Teenager

My little sister, Ró, is pretty cool. She's 15 going on 16, very grounded, funny, intelligent and unfortunately for her a bit unlucky, well recently she has been at least.

Unlike her more slutty friends, who have been serial snogging young greasy child-men for the last few years, she has taken a more discerning approach to boys. She has her standards and she's been sticking to her guns! I didn't show the same restraint myself I'm ashamed to admit but applaud her and her principles! Besides I've seen the crowd she hangs out with, and can see her point!

But anyhoo it was with delight that I received a text from lil sis in which she wanted to inform me that she was going on a date, that the boy was reallllly nice nice (which I take is a good thing) and she was very excited/happy.

Oh joy thought I she's off the mark!

But really there is very little justice in the world, the poor chicken is now laid up at home with an enlarge spleen and, wait for it....


The unluckiest teenager


Glandular fever.

All you can do is laugh! And bless her she does see the funny side of it too!

What a week eh?

Ok I have no doubt that this topic has been discussed ad nauseum in the blogosphere all week but I didn't get a chance to come here until tonight so now it's time for my thoughts on the Recalcitrant Rotweiler of Ranelagh!

It was a weird story wasn't it? I mean we're all used to Mr. McDowell doing his own thing and not really giving a damn for the consequences but here we had a situation where he not only lost his temper, his composure but also let's face it his dignity.

I'm not a big blue shirt fan, and while they may have had fascist leanings in the past (cue Eoin O'Duffy and his marching band) it was a strange and wild use of fantasy to claim that poor mild mannered Richard Bruton (or Brutal the younger if you will) was the next Joseph Goebels. But to wake up the following morning to hear our esteemed Minister for Justice apologising on Morning Ireland really confused my start to the day! I don' t think the presenters really knew what to do with him or his apology!

But then to top it all off he half heartedly apologised also for claiming Green Party supporters were responsible for trashing the PD's headquarters during the recent riots. But I actually don't think he did apologise for that one and it was just smoke and noise to cover the fact that he still things the muesli eating, sandal wearing anarchists were to blame.

He's a bit of an odd fish really isn't he? He appears to the type of man who would fight with his own toe nails if there wasn't anything better to do! And I suppose for a man in his position it does take a lot of courage to admit when you're wrong, we all know it stinks when you get caught out but I really don't think he had another option in this case!

What DOES it mean to be Irish?

With the coming and going of Paddy's weekend I, like many others in the media and in the country at large found myself pondering the big question as stated above. I found myself looking around at our country and scratching my head over the furore and drinking plans being made by so many over our national saints day.

I read in the newspapers how kids in primary schools have no idea who St. Patrick was, I heard from a priest I know that the only child called Patrick in a local national school recently visited by him was a little Jehova's witness boy, who really couldn't care less about the patron saint of this country.

And then I watched the parade in Dublin on Friday from the safety and comfort of my sofa, to see if I could glean some inspiration about why we feel need to celebrate our Irishness in such a loud and boisterous way. I was left feeling a bit bemused and even more confused by that experience I have to say. Apparantly Irishness is about dressing up in silly costumes and/or playing brass instruments, or as in one very memorable display, wearing a bikini in the freezing cold and pretending that your're Brazillian and it's Mardi Gras??? I'm very confused about that one.

And still I was left without an answer about what it means to be Irish.

Saturday however brought a whole new set of experiences for me to ponder and it also brought some results.

You see I now am firmly of the opinion that what it means to be Irish is simpy that we prove that we are better than the English.

Our wonderful, dogged and talented men in green showed me on Saturday that even when I had given up, there is still hope that we can win. I was so sure that it would be another gut wrenchingly disappointing day of rugby, with the English finding their courage and their mark and wiping the floor with us, as has happened so often in the past. But this weekend it didn't. That victory together with the fantastic record 10 wins at Cheltenham by Irish trainers showed me what it means to be Irish without a shadow of a doubt.

My faith in this small nation, and my pride in being part of it despite all of its failings and the aspects of our culture which I feel is not to be lauded, was in fact reinforced. So there you have it, it was a momentous weekend for me in many ways!

Running on Empty

Ever see that film - Running on Empty? It was one of my absoloute favourites as a teenager. It had River Phoenix in it, a James Taylor soundtrack and a teenage love story as well as radical political undertones and overtones! I loved it, I must have watched it at least 20 times! Ah memories.



Anyway it only came to mind cause I feel like I'm running on empty at the mo! But the James Taylor soundtrack in my head will keep me going I just know it will!

Time is ticking by for us. The house is being viewed is attracting some interest but no bloody offers yet, which is beyond frustrating. We have more people coming back for a second look this week and I hope to God somebody decides that they want to live here for definate. At least then we can relax a little knowing that we'll get a decent sum out of the place and can realise our dreams and aspirations! There's a lot riding on this for us you know!

On the other side we're off country bound for the second weekend in a row this Paddy's day, I hope to view the car of my dreams that Daddy dearest has sourced for me and also to do a lot of lying around shouting at rugby games. I can't wait! Wouldn't it be marvellous if we won not only the triple crown but also the Six Nations? I suppose I can dream eh?

Congratulations and Celebrations!

I have a sneaky suspicion that this blogging lark in general may not be destined for anonymity for much longer. It was with delight and excitement that I came across muchos media coverage of the Irish Blog awards which took place over the weekend.

Congratulations to one and all, especially Twenty Major for his THREE awards and to Sinead who is by far and away one of my favourite bloggers.

I came across coverage of the awards in high profile media areas such as the Last Word with Matt Cooper and in the Irish Times which can only be a good thing for the Irish Blogosphere!

But it did get me thinking, who would have thought the bould Twenty would become an Ambassador for us all!

Randomness and Ramblings

Well I haven't even dropped by here myself in recent days to see what's up and who's coming to visit, so if you are sticking with me thanks! I'm sorry for the crappiness and the not postingness but between scrubbing and painting (or watching the boy paint, to be strictly fair!) oh and crap broadband connections even checking my email has become a bit of a luxury recently.

I've had lots of thoughts over the last week and have even composed whole posts on scraps of paper but now that I'm finally sitting here I don't want to write about what happened a week ago! This blogging thing is a very current medium I find!

Anyway here are a few pics of our little garden coming to life. We planted hundreds of bulbs last year and it's just amazing to see them growing and blooming, despite the horrible weather.

Oh Lordy Lordy Lordy

My hands are red raw, my eyes sting, my back aches, but finally, finally our house is ready to sell.

We have painfully considered auctioneers' pitches and dealings, and made a choice based on random things at the end of the day, those poor folks fighting over our house like that, I almost feel sorry for them.

So now it's really happening. Viewings will be taking place, strangers will be invading our little haven, with beady eyes and greasy fingers.

It's time to sit back with digits crossed and hope that the market is as greedy for a pretty house as we've been told it is!

Spawning in Springtime!

NO! Not me!

Elke!

She's having Steve's baby!

She's the first of my college mates to get proactive and procreate! It's mad! We're all so old now and there's only one of us making more of us!

I'm soooo pleased for them and you can view the "Peanut" on their blog.
It's in the sidebar "Here is New York".

I can't be arsed doing the html thing as it's late and I'd have to dig around to find it!

Fear & Loathing in Dublin

It was disgusting and upsetting to listen to and watch the reports from Dublin yesterday concerning the riots which took place on O'Connell Street before the Love Ulster march was due to take place.

Why Ulster Unionists feel the need to march in the North is something I don't understand. I understand even less why they feel the need to march on the streets of the capital of the country that they don't want to be a part of, however if it is supposed to help the healing process well I'll stay away from it and ignore the fact that they are probably trying to taunt us. Lining up in front of them, throwing masonry at undermanned Gardai and burning out cars however is not the way to make these people not want to march on our streets.

Those thugs that took over our streets yesterday in the name of Republicanism have only succeeded in confirming Unionist hatredand disparity of our Nation and that is not going to help this island find a lasting a peace. It was a shameful display of thuggery and criminality and not something that I would want to associate myself with or condone in anyway.

Happiness is...

I was a bit of an old misery bag earlier today due to having an almighty tummy ache last night which left me feeling tired and emotional ( I have since found out that I have an infected stomach. Yuck.) But anyway as a result of the pain and the misery I had one of those mornings in which the slightest thing threatened at worst to shove me over the age into absoloute abject misery or at best make me cry. Not good.

So to cheer myself up I made a list of all the things taht were positive in my life, all the things I have to look forward to and all the reasons why everything wasn't s bad as it seemed just now, and that helped a little. I then went out in the rain to a local book shop and picked up a book which gives tips and advice to travellers which gave me a warmish feeling inside as I flicked through it and dreamed of places I want to go and see.

But the real restoration of my spirits came when I wandered into Butlers Chocolate Café and purchased happiness in a cup. A low fat Mocha. So much yumminess and happiness in one purchase! I need never feel blue again! I've found my salvation! Although I'm not too sure it was the best thing to have with an infected belly it sure did make me smile!

The art of the PFO

I sent off a bunch of letters and CV's last week to various high profile solicitors in the Midlands just to test the waters. To be honest I really didn't expect to get any acknowledgement from any of them or any indication at all that the application had been received as it was unsolicited. However I received my first PFO today! And I'm pleased! Well at least it means the application was received and they said they would keep me in mind should they start looking for apprentices which is a little ray of hope that I'm going to hold onto! I'm not ready to take up a position immediately anyway as we have the travelling planned first but at least my name is out there and maybe I'll be remembered in the future. Yah never know!

I'm about to post a review of Good Night and Good Luck on the other site now and am then going to watch the champions league! Better be quick as it's rapidly approaching 7.45!

But ugh speed and me are not good friends at the moment! I think the combination of the extra walking distance to and from work, the longer day, and curves is really draining my energy! Plus I seem to be eating more than I really need which is counteracting the point of exercising.... Feck it! I'm hungry!

Busy busy busy

I know I've been a little off with the blogging thing lately but believe me I am contributing here whenever I can it just doesn't seem to be happening very regularly at all. So I'm sorry.

Life has become very busy very suddenly for me and the lovely boy! The change of job has also had a huge impact on me not least for the fact that I don't have internet access anymore but also because unlike in my last job I'm busy and I'm learning stuff and it's good for me to experience that again as the last place I worked in was a far cry from the reality of life.

On the home front we are preparing our house for sale and next weekend we are heading out of Dublin to view houses in areas that we think we might like to live in. And I'm very excited about it all! Our current house needs very little work done but even the act of decluttering (I'm a hoarder I'm afraid!), refreshing paint work, weeding and cleaning takes time, effort and energy, which is leaving very little of anything for me to use to express myself here.

However saying that I am really missing my blog. I miss thinking about stuff and then putting those thoughts into words and commiting them to a medium. Today I've been working on the house all day and was feeling a little blue as it's sunday and I hate the thought of having another week of working and not moving to face into, but after spending a little time here I feel better already! So I am going to keep the blog up but it may only be a post once or maybe twice a week. But for me that will be better than nothing!

On Empty Vessels

It is only when you are forced to mix with people and have no choice as to who it is you are sitting next to or walking in front of that you truly realise just how dumb some people really are. My prime examples for this little rant will be taken from my recent experiences at the cinema.

I'm sure we've all had to suffer through the indignity of having our chairs kicked or popcorn crunched loudly in our ears while attending the cinema, and while annoying, these events come with the territory and just have to be endured. However we have recently come across a much more annoying and to me baffling form of aggravation at the cinema. Talking. Out loud and throughout the whole film.

What is the point of that? Surely you pay nearly nine quid in to see a movie because you want to see it not because you want to talk to your mate? Or am I missing something? The prime culprits seem mostly to be young women in groups of two between the ages of 18 and 25. My advice is to avoid at all costs or risk having to become obnoxious and slightly aggressive in a bid to get them to shut the hell up.

On a different note, on my way out of Good Night and Good Luck this weekend I happened to overhear a particulary vacuous but amusing conversation between two such empty vessels.

Girl One: That was shite.
Girl Two: Nah I liked it, but if me ma asks me what it was about I won't be able to tell her.
Girl One: Yeah I liked it too.
Girl Two: But it was confusing right?
Girl One. Oh yeah, definately.

I used to think we were a nation that was able to pride ourselves on our education and intelligence. Yet the more I look around the more depressingly obvious it is to me that most people just reflect exactly it is that Ed Murrow warned us about fifty years ago. And it would appear that it is unlikely to improve.

Isn't it pretty?

I really like this! I know I'm sad!

I'm on a roll tonight, with this blogging lark! I've also managed to pull together some letters begging for apprenticeships in 2007 as well and surfed some sites so it's been a good night!

It's just a pity google won't let me get into my gmail account tonight. It could have been a perfect day otherwise!

Have you noticed that spring is springing yet? The 100 million bulbs we planted in the Autumn are beginning to surface already and if the rain that I hear pelting down outside hasn't drowned them I'm going to start photographing their progress as a record of what we made!

Until next time folks au revoir and there are some reviews on the other site if you are interested!

Spit on Couples Day

http://www.flickr.com/photos/20156178@N00/99372241/" title="Photo Sharing">http://static.flickr.com/28/99372241_e66ec9a957_o.jpg" width="99" height="99" alt="cupid" />

When I was in college my friend Beefor used to abhor this day of love and affection, the Hallmark holiday of Valentine's day, and as a result he dubbed it "Spit on Couples" Day, if fact I'm almost sure that he did actually spit on couples on February 14th, but would have to corroborate that with my other bitches, before I could be absoloutley sure!

Anyway I have to say that I agree with the sentiment. I hate Valentine's day. I find it cynical, expensive, in poor taste, and oh yes pathetic. If the highlight of your romance is to squeeze yourself into an over booked over priced restaurant once a year, with some half dead unbelieveably expensive non smelling roses under your oxter then you really need to re-evaluate your relationship. I have done it and can say with some authority that I've never enjoyed the experience.

As a result tomorrow night I will be going to the gym, cooking bangers and mash and watching TV tomorrow night, as normal. And I'll be with the man of my dreams. I definatley don't need a stupid card or anything to make me feel romantic towards him!

Great News!

I passed my Irish Exam!

Tá athas an domhain ar mo chroí!

I can almost taste the relief! Roll on everything else!

The things you see

I had to share this picture before I sign off....



I passed this on my way home one night and it scared the bejayus out of me! Then I howled with laughter when I figured out that it wasn't a scary person coming to kill me, but maybe you can understand why I was scared????

On being a woman & being me

I'm pretty concientious about my health and well being and like to make sure the MOT is done at least once a year. I also make sure that I'm up to date with all relevant tests and procedures like the smear test. So I took myself off to the doctors this week to submit myself into the care of a medical practitioner in order to make that all is right in my world because I owe myself that much! And seeing it's a topic which has been in the news this week I thought I should give a brief account of why women don't go for smear tests very often.

I tend to forget or block out of my mind how horrible the procedure actually is, but add to that the bill of €70 the fact that I'll probably have to get it done again because it was messed up and the fact the nice people in the pharmaceutical companies (all of them) have taken the version of my prescription which works for me, off the market -(all of the versions), at the same time, it means that I will face another ordeal and another €70 bill in 3 months time. Sometimes having woman's bits really sucks. Saying that I will go back and do it again because having cancer cells would suck a lot more. But seriously the price is extortionate and the sooner they bring the cervical cancer screening programme on line the better.

On the other hand in order to get myself ready for our big adventure I have decided to get myself fit and healthy over the next few months. I know in my heart of hearts that gyms and me don't go together and that if I'm really serious about getting stronger and fitter a group situation is the way I should go, so I joined Curves!

Yep. Me. In an all woman, tesosterone free environment with bad dance music, a cd on repeat telling us when to change machine and, the piece de resistence, an hour and a half workout all squashed into 30 mins of sweating! All I say is that it can't do much harm!

Ok so it's more like gone fishin'

Ahem.

I had a bit of a blow out this week. Apologies. I'm grand honestly but the blog isn't and I had to change my url! I know! I KNOW! Just don't ask me how I did it 'cause I really have no idea!

Anyway this is my new home and this where I'm staying for a while I will also be leaving the template and everything else the very same way forever 'cause it wrecks my head when I get it wrong!

So there you go posts will be fewer and more select due to time constraints which I feel is a pity but it just has to be that way for the moment as there is just soooooo much to do!

On Sabbatical

The time has come to assess what is important and what is not. I need some space.

Last Day!!!!

last day last day last day last day last day last day last daaaaaaaaay. Add your own music and sing along!

New job monday folks! Will let you know if I surive the exit interview without venting my spleen and the leaving drinks without making a fool of myself and speaking my mind! Oh the temptation's there alright, believe me!


Will she make a reappearance???

Euro 2008

Thankfully we've avoided England in the draw I know some people were salivating at the prospect of playing them but personally I found the thought of God save the Queen being belted out at Croke Park really distasteful.

However it's not the worst draw out there though I don't fancy our chances much with both Germany and Czech Republic in our group. When did Germany and Italybecome a second bucket team and Sweden and Greece a first? 'Tis a crazy world!

The link should bring you to the full list!

The Heebie Jeebies

I was a bit bored last night as the boy was fixing the 'puter and we couldn't do stuff on it so I ended up watching crap TV with a blanket over me and a cup of tea. It was nice.

It was nice until Big Brother time and George Galloway's best bits and him being a cat. Jaysus.



Red Mum has the video on her site which I hadn't watched cause I don't have sound here and video stuff doesn't tend to work on my system, but you should check it out if you really want to know what this is about.

Jaysus. I'm still in shock. I thought I was going to cry last night watching it. No really. It was that disturbing. What the hell was he thinking? I don't think I'll ever be the same again.

Justice for Justice sake?

It's hard to escape the news from yesterday that Wayne O'Donoghue was sentenced to just 4 years in prison for the manslaughter of Robert Holohan. My own initial reaction was one of surprise and then horror and distress when I heard the reports of Mrs Holohan's victim impact statement in the court prior to sentencing. The questions raised by her on first impressions are shocking. But on further consideration and analysis as was provided last night the reasons why these questions weren't posed in court seems a little clearer.


Robert Holohan

The DPP have an obligation to argue the strongest case they can in any given case. That often means that while evidence is present it may not be arguably strong enough to lead to a conviction. It would appear that this is the case with at least some of the physical and forensic evidence referred to by Majella Holohan.

However I have to admit that I am still surprised that on the strength of the case presented to him as we heard reported via the media that the sentence is for only 4 years. I understand that as there was only minimal physical trauma inflicted on the body that this was a mitigating factor in the judges decision. But the fact, as alluded to by him before sentencing, that Wayne O'Donoghue actively misled the authorities in the search for Robert's body, that he did not admit to what happened until the body was found and generally behaved in a manner which succeeded in creating more pain and hardship for the families involved than was necessry, surely should have attracted a harsher sentence? If it was an unfortunate and tragic accident he would surely have been in a better condition if he had behaved rationally and looked for help at the time of the event.


Wayne O'Donoghue

That's the part that really puzzles me. The other puzzling factor for me is why the DPP initially sought to bring a Murder conviction but downgraded it to Manslaughter. Murder convictions are not sought lightly as they are incredibly difficult to prove beyond reasonable doubt and often a manslaughter conviction is easier to prove and therefore the preferred option. At no stage have I come across the reasons why the charge was changed. Has anyone else?

What we are left with now in this case, is the confusion and questions concerning Majella Holohan's statement, the fact that O'Donoghue will probably be out next year with good behaviour, and the media circus which is bound to pursue this one for the next few days. The question of whether justice has been done is a mute point. How can there really be justice when the sad fact is that 2 families have been destroyed by these events and while I hope that the Holohan and O'Donoghue family will one day find peace, life will never be as simple as it once was for them, or the community they come from.

Crazy crazy people

On the news this morning on the way to work I heard a story about how in England a reality TV story was pitched on the basis that strangers would be put in a house together with the purpose that the remaining 2 strangers would conceive a baby on the show.... I think the Observer explains it a bit better:

I think the scientists call this process desensitisation,

and it works alarmingly quickly. For example,

in a matter of days BBC3 will broadcast Mischief:

Let's Make a Baby, a programme which is clearly

meant to be a response to Greg Dyke' question:

'How low can reality TV go?' which he posed at

last summer's Edinburgh TV Festival. The

show's premise is to set up an independent

TV production company and hire a

comedian-turned-MD to pitch a format entitled

'Let's Make A Baby! (The Race To Conceive

Britain's First Reality TV Baby)' to a bunch of

executives at Europe's biggest TV sales fair.

Presumably this idea felt fresh, funny

and suitably envelope-pushing way back in,

say, September; but if I read this week

that it is to run on Saturday nights throughout

February, hosted by Davina, I'd not only be unsurprised,

I'd probably not even bother tuning in. Though

obviously, 'Let's Make A Superbaby! (The Race To

Conceive Britain's First Celebrity Reality TV Baby)'

would be a different matter entirely and you'd have

to peel me from the screen. And surely it's time

Vernon Kay and Tess Daly had another one?

But according to the news this morning it was all a big joke and the people involved just wanted to see how many suckers would turn up for the auditions. 200 hundred people turned up. 200 people thought it would be a great idea to get on a Reality TV show by offering to make a baby with a complete stranger on live television, their choice of partner being controlled by the whims of teenagers with too much time and money on their hands. I think there is an argument for sterilisation in this story. Does that make me a conservative, eugeniscist? I know that's strong but stories like this make me feel very cross and worried about the society that we have created. What would happen to the child? Would the £15,000 prize money go towards its upkeep or would the TV company take it away to make a Truman World type show for real? The mind boggles.

Or is anyone else gob smacked by just how low people will go to get their faces and other bits on the telly?

P.S. rambles on stuff I've seen lately have been put up on my other site if you have an interest.

Mounting the insurmountable!

Yes I did! I climbed my first hill type mountain in about 10 years this weekend.



It's true I thought I was going to die from some sort of altitude sickness that robs your breath and hits you with the worst dizziness I've ever experience, but that just turned out to be exertion on my part according to my more experienced companions! I felt a bit pathetic at that stage but soon rallied when I reached the top lay on my back panting loudly and moaning for a while and then realised that I'd made it!


View from the top!

Going down was much easier and my tip to anyone who wants to try this mad sort of exercise activity is that on the way down utilise your bottom as much as possible! I did and it was very effective!


This is the path we took, it's steeper and more difficult than it looks and this was very near the top so don't scorn!

I got gmail!

Finally! I feel special now!

Affairs of the Heart

I've been pfaffing around all morning, working, laughing, chatting, you know the usual stuff, with half a thought on what I could blog about today as I didn't wake up with an idea or become inspired by anything on the way to work this morning. I was beginning to wonder if I was developing Bloggers Block because absoloutely nothing was occuring to me, which is very unusual for me. But one of the more positive aspects of this blogging business for me has been that I am beginning to get to know myself better. When I am concerned or worried about something I ignore it and leave it to float around in the back of my mind while I get on with stuff and try not to think about it. However this means I prevent myself from thinking about anything and thus the block.

Today it occurred to me that I was blocked because there was something that I wasn't addressing and that this time it's the uncomfortable topic of heart disease.

You see over christmas a close family member that I am extremely fond of and close to ended up in hospital for the second time in 2 years with heart trouble. Not a heart attack but they're getting there if you know what I mean.

Recently another very important person in my life also recently told me that they are high on the possibility list for developing heart disease, and medication is nearly a certainty at this stage.

Today another person who is important to me is having an angiogram performed on them to look for potential blockages. Thankfully I've just heard, in the course of writing this post, that all is well and there will be no need for surgery, but there will be need for medication more than likely.

All of these people are about the same age. They are active and love life and I love them. Nothing bad has happend, which I thank God for, but it's made me realise that that is not always going to be the case. I don't like this thought.

Beautiful and Talented

I am hereby admitting to having been completely and totally hooked on Soapstar Superstar on TV3 and ITV for the last 10 days or so. I watched it religiously every night and even voted to keep people in. I think the extra time on my hands is going to my head a little! I just thought it was the most entertaining of the celebrity type shows I've ever seen. Not to mention the really astounding talent of the majority of the people who performed. I think Andy Whyment was the overall biggest shock to me. Alright so he's no oil painting but his voice was really impressive and his efforts to dance and entertain must have won him many supporters. The first night I watched it and realised that Kirky was on the show my reaction was to hide behind my hands in order to observe the carnage. I like when I'm wrong like that!


Andy or Kirky take your pick

Other impressive performers for me were Roxanne Pallett and Lee Otway. But Roxy definately impressed me with her voice and if I was a bloke or into girls she'd definately be my type!



However, the winner of the competition deserves a special mention. Not only is he flippin' drop dead gorgeous, plays the piano and guitar, he also sings like an angel and moonwalks! Richard Fleeshman, or Craig the Goth in Corrie. The only problem I have with him is that he's only 16! Why is he still so young?? It feels so wrong to drool over one so young.... It doesn't stop me though!


Moody, interesting and oh so very young.

Persistent Pedestrians

On my little trot to work this morning I was plugged into Today FM as per usual and was pondering my options for posts today and my life in general, as you do on a Monday morning, until I reached the Sean O'Casey bridge, which (for the uninitiated) is a brand new pedestrian only access bridge across the River Liffey in Dublin and which links the IFSC to the south side. It's dead handy for me and I use it all the time. So I was a little put out this morning when I reached the bridge and found that the gates were closed, but mysteriously there were people on it. As I approached I noticed that some very brave and resilient characters were scaling the closed gates and hoping onto the bridge and continuing to cross as if this was the way it always is. I declined this option and took the long way round, cause I'm not that brave! Besides knowing my luck it would be actually broken and I would be the won to fall into the murky depths of the Liffey if I had tried to hop the gate.

This is the picture I took at the south side end of the bridge, I just managed to catch the last of the gymnists before the "men" closed the barricades properly!



I think this came out a lot better than I intended although it looks better on the bigger size so click through to enlarge!

Tá sé críochnaithe

I sat my final written exam this morning, in and out in 45 minutes I was! Couldn't get out of there fast enough! The exam is really not even a test and even though the translation piece from Gaeilge to English was one I had never seen beforefrom Fiche Blian ag Fás, I made a stab at it anyway! All I know is the kid was dead excited about going mackeral fishing!



So now I guess I am finally finished, excepting the 3 minute agallamh (interview) tomorrow that is, and I'm laughing!

I will also turn 28 tomorrow which is no laughing matter. I wouldn't mind but I have an application in with the powers that be to allow me to stay 24 forever. But d'ya think they've got round to processing it yet? Nah, can't be bothered was the explanation I got, when I queried the delay, the cheek of them, you'd know time meant nothing to that lot wouldn't you?!

Ah well I guess I'll just have to keep pretending that age doesn't matter, keep focusing on the 5 year plan I made when I was 25 and life began to get serious, and keep ignoring those grey hairs that wave at me when I'm in the bathroom in work where there is just far too much of that harsh natural light, that is until one of my friends kindly take me aside and tell me truth, and I know they will, some day, soon...

On the upside I have the rest of the day off and tomorrow and will be heading homewards bound to see the Rents again and to celebrate my oldness with them, who are lets be fair still much older than me! I will then return to Dublin at some stage next week get horribly drunk with my friends, and all will be as it should be once more!

Oh Mary, Why can't you have some sense?

At this stage I guess everyone is aware of the public gaff made by Senator Mary O'Rourke on sunday night where she announced that her winning of the Fianna Fail nomination for the next election was down to her staff "working like blacks". Naturally there was general shock and upset expressed by people and I have to say that when I first heard there was an involuntary, shocked hand to mouth action from me. It's not a phrase that is commonly used in this country anymore, well at least not in the public arena, and luckily for Maryo, it has been widely accepted that it was not an intentional racial slur, but an unfortunate slip of the tongue...



As a consequence, I was considering language last night and how what is acceptable to say, and what is not, is such a transitory thing. I remember very clearly my Grandmother using that phrase to me as a small child to compliment me on working hard to clean my room. To her it was acceptable and a form of praise. Clearly it's roots are not though, as I presume it refers to how hard slaves were made to work by others in a less enlightened time. I also know my Granny was aware of this because she's the one who explained it to me when I asked her. The other thing that she taught myself and my brother was the bad version of Eeney meeney miny mo, but being a child I thought the word was "knicker" as in a pair of pants and found the concept of a pair of pants being chased and caught by the toe absoloutely delightful (I think I've mentioned my fertile imagination before!). But when my mother discovered what we were saying, it was gently explained to us how this version of the rhyme shouldn't be used anymore and "tiger" was a much better alternative, and that's the version that my little sister has always used, thankfully! There are other phrases and references which I can think off which just wouldn't be acceptable today either, but were commonly in use up to 15 or 20 years ago, which is a very short time really.

There have been times when these phrases have come to mind during the course of a conversation but, the edit button in my head does it's job and I don't use them, in fact I even feel bad that they are even still there in my repertoire of friendly phrases at all. If I feel this way and judging by the general reaction yesterday from people on hearing of Maryo's comment, others also feel this way, why then does Mary O'Rourke feel it's ok to use that kind of language? Is her edit button not working?

Trixiblue

The Post New Year/Christmas, January, Monday Morning, Back to work blues have arrived folks. Yes I had 2 lovely weeks off and yes Christmas was lovely and I don't have an ounce of tiredness left in my body! But why does it have to end and why does everything land on top of me at the same time? Christ it was soooooooo hard to raise myself from the pit I call my bed this morning, oh and the pitiless frost and trek to work weren't the most appealing incentive either while I'm at it! Ah well I'm here now, normalcy has returned and I have a pile of work I have no intention of doing on my desk to greet me this morning!

As you would expect I read some books and watched some movies and will probably wax lyrical about some of them on my review site in the next while, so keep an eye on it if you're interested.

On other matters I'm happy to report that I am actually enjoying revising for my Irish exam, which is due to take place later on this week. It's not a very difficult exam and I have discovered that my grasp of the language isn't as appalling as I had originally feared. In fact I'm enjoying it so much that I'm seriously considering trying my hand at improving my knowledge of our native tongue once the dust has settled! Who would have thought eh?

Enough for now, the word is out that I'm leaving here and people keep dropping by to talk to me and I don't want my secret blogging life to be revealed prematurely!

Welcome to 2006

Well here I am supposedly studying extracts from An fiche blian ag fás so that I can reproduce them next week in both Irish and English when I discover that the computer in the office that I'm using is a) on and b) attached to the internet. Bingo! Of course I had to stop by and have a little look at my pride and joy and sure while I'm at it write a little post as well!

Christmas has been brilliant. I was at home with my folks for 8 lovely days, lying around in front of the fire, ignoring the world and watching dvd's and reading books it was glorious. I am presently in the south west of the country with the lovely boy's lovely family doing much the same as I did with my own lot, except I now have to break the reverie to start thinking about the blasted Irish exam! Ah well having now studied the papers and notes that I have I realise that it's not that bad and with a bit of effort and my super recall powers all should be well!

I'm glad that 2005 is now behind us and the new year is finally here. I feel that it promises to be a really memorable and positive one for me and the boy and I am more excited about the possibilities that are open to us now than I have been for a very very long time. I think we may be about to turn a corner and we shall reap the rewards of our hard work. Well here's hoping anyway, we're certainly going to try! If all goes to plan things will be very different for us from now on. Leaving home on New year's eve I was struck with a sad feeling that Christmas may well be a different experience for me from now on, but there's no harm in that everything can't stay the same forever and change is good, most of the time! It's just a bit weird and scary when I think about it, but I think we all dread change even if it is for the better.

Well that's it for now if I wander back this way I'll drop in again! In the meantime Happy New year and new beginnings to one and all!

So this is Christmas...

Well I'm off on the piss tonight after our department lunch so blogging may not be top of my agenda tomorrow morning! And then I'm off home about midday so I'm going to create the last post of 2005 now.

I have absoloutely no intention of visiting here again for about 2 weeks as I'm taking an extra long Christmas break to allow myself some head space and recovery time after what has been, with hindsight, a difficult and very busy year!

In the meantime, thank you for taking the time to visit me here and for reading my ramblings during the last 7 months.

Have a wonderful peaceful christmas and if you get bored drop by and play this:

http://www.elfmovie.com/swf/snowball_fight/index.html

It's fun!

Merry Christmas Everyone!

On this the shortest day of the year...

They say there's magic in the air on the solstice.

I don't know about that but I do know that there's hope!


I handed my notice in today.

I'm off back to evil bank land.

Don't fret though it's a short term move to gain experience and bide my time hopefully in an environment where I won't fade away due to boredom! Extra money is also an advantage.



The major problem with the move is whether I will have internet access. If not the blogging will have to wait til the evening times when the boy and I will do battle for ownership of the PC. Ah well I'd still rather not be bored! Don't worry though I want to keep this site up cause I really enjoy venting here!

P.S Photo's are robbed! But they illustrate my point nicely I think!

Christmassy Nonsense

Your Christmas Song Is

Joy to the world, the Lord is come!Let earth receive her King;Let every heart prepare Him room,And heaven and nature sing, It's not about what you get under the treeBut sharing love with family, friends, and strangers

What Christmas Carol Are You?

You Christmas Stocking Will Be Filled with Money

You've either been really really good this year...Or Santa is trying to pay you off!

What Will Be In Your Christmas Stocking?

You Were Nice This Year!

You're an uber-perfect person who is on the top of Santa's list.You probably didn't even *think* any naughty thoughts this year.Unless you're a Mormon, you've probably been a little too good.Is that extra candy cane worth being a sweetheart for 365 days straight?

Were You Naughty or Nice This Year?

How embarrassing...

Tag! I'm it!

Mish has tagged me with a very thought proving meme which I feel obliged to answer. It has to do with weird habits and took some careful consideration by me before I decided to answer it. I would also like to point out that I haven't looked at anyone else's answers yet so these answers are entirely my own!

The first player of this game starts with the topic “five weird habits of yourself,” and people who get tagged need to write an entry about their five weird habits as well as state this rule clearly. In the end, you need to choose the next five people to be tagged and link to their web journals. Don’t forget to leave a comment in their blog or journal that says “You are tagged” (assuming they take comments) and tell them to read yours.

No.1 I need to have a choice of shampoos with which to wash my hair with at all times. My theory is that if you swop around the brand every wash my hair remains shiny and soft otherwise the product builds up and makes it dull and sticky. I don't know if its true or not but it has become one of my compulsions!

No.2 I try to avoid killing spiders and small creatures as I have a fear that karma really does exist and I would prefer to err on the side of caution. Generally I make a half hearted attempt to drown the spider in the bath, fail, and then release him into the wild when the fear of karmic retribution hits me!

No.3 Whenever I use my hair straightners I spend the rest of the day obsessing about whether I've plugged them out or not, even if I have checked that they were in fact plugged out about 40 times before I left the house.

No.4 I used to play a game with my food when I was little which involved building a kingdom in my tummy of kings and queens, princes, princesses and subjects. The game involved piling a little of every type of food on my plate onto my fork to create the king and queen and then varions combinations of the types of food to create the other characters. As a result I still do this however subconsciously, and, yes I realise how ridiculous it is.

No.5 I cannot sleep in a room where the bed is between a window and a door. This again stems from my childhood where my overactive imagination reasoned that if monsters were to attack me and came through the door then I could battle them with my back to the wall, however if they also could come through the window and get me from behind, then I was screwed! I also think that it comes from time I spent in hospital when I was very small. I was in isolation in a room with 2 windows which were opposite each other and a door on the same wall as the internal window, it made me feel very insecure and vulnerable, as people were constantly observing me, yet I couldn't move.

So there you go, I should probably be under observation for mental instability but I keep it well covered up most of the time!

I now tag

Red Mum
Maca
Kaz
Steve and Elke

Which is my quota of 5!

The Great Light Off

Every year from the beginning of October to the middle of January the houses in our area are bedecked and adorned with all manner of crazy decorations, from pumpkins and witches to santies and reindeers.

There are 2 houses in particular on my street that seem to outdo each other every year. The fact that they are directly opposite each other adds extra fun to the proceedings, which I like to refer to as the Great Light Off.



Last year house no. 1 put up a sizeable amount of tacky lights and ornaments all over the facade of the house. House no.2 then waded in with twice as much crap and so it continued in a tit for tat fashion until finally there wasn't an inch of space on either house and santa was even parachuting off the telephone wire. I think my favourite pieces of tack had to be the giant 6 foot blow up snowmen in the front of house no.2, I don't honestly know how the inhabitants got past them to enter by the front door!



This year we are once again witnessing the Great Light Off, the snowmen haven' t been produced yet, but I live in hope.

Kong made me cry

I'm talking "Fiona get a grip, you can't sob in the cinema" crying.

I'm such a freak sometimes that I even amaze myself!

Review to follow on my review page cause that's what it's for!

Life and Near Death

I gave blood yesterday. Which was good.

I nearly got run over by a kid on a tricycle this morning. Which was funny.


Tike on a trike

I came very close to being wiped off the road by a driver taking a right hand turn against the lights. Which pissed me off.

In The News # 2

I was musing in the linked post previously about the story surrounding Michael McDowell v Frank Connolly. Last night the tale took another turn with McDowells address to the Dáil and Ahern's defence of McDowells position and his assertion that McDowell has been acting with the full consent of the cabinet in relation to this matter.

McDowell is still asserting that Connolly is/was involved in subversive activity including travelling to Columbia on a false passport, the application for which he was able to produce, and being associated on that trip with a known IRA man.

The other side of the coin is that Connolly's Centre for Public Inquiry have recently being investigating the purchase of land in North County Dublin for the location of a new prison site. The coverage on that story indicates that the land may have been bought over value, but McDowell denies this.

So it appears that McDowell is concerned that a public body with funding like the Centre for Public Inquiry and the subsequent powers of investigation that it has access to should not fall into the control of subversives who could use it to undermine the authority of the state. That sounds like a fair argument to me. What is really strange about this story, however, is Frank Connolly's unavailability for comment.

He has denied the accusations previously but since the story hit the headlines again he has consistently refused to provide evidence of whereabouts in April 2001 or offer any defence apart from denial. Surely at this stage it's time for him, if he has been the subject of a witch hunt, to stand up and address the issue. The longer he fails to do this the worse it looks for him.

Hard Lessons Learned

1. Budweiser and Budvar are not the same drink.

The girlies and I hit the town last night with a vengenance. I am alive this morning but in great need of more sleep and antiacids! We ate in the Dandelion Café and the food was lovely but the waiting staff were a bit weird. I was discussing this with a colleague in work this morning and she said that she had heard something similar so at I don't feel too bad about saying it here.
The waitress was very bubbly and friendly but seriously didn't have a word of English. Trying to order the beer turned into a bit of a pantomime, us going 4 Budvar please, her reply 4 vodka? No, Budvar please, etc etc. In the end Bex resorted to Budweiser which was understood, but we had to dispatch her off to correct the order after a very ernest discussion about how they were definately not the same drink! We got the right ones in the end, but what an effort!




2. Computer programmers are very hospitable.
We completed our night in a private members club after being begged by one of the girls, boy to please come and double the female to male ratio at the party. There was free booze so of course we went! It was Margarita's for me all night.



3. Margarita's taste lovely on the way down but repeat on you all the next day.
Uuuurrrrrgggghhhh. I feel yucky.

As a classic dame I would be....

Katharine Hepburn You scored 19% grit, 23% wit, 42% flair, and 23% class!

You are the fabulously quirky and independent woman of character. You go your own way, follow your own drummer, take your own lead. You stand head and shoulders next to your partner, but you are perfectly willing and able to stand alone. Others might be more classically beautiful or conventionally woman-like, but you possess a more fundamental common sense and off-kilter charm, making interesting men fall at your feet. You can pick them up or leave them there as you see fit. You share the screen with the likes of Spencer Tracy and Cary Grant, thinking men who like strong women. Find out what kind of classic leading man you'd make by taking the Classic Leading Man Test.

Still Grinning!

Well I survived the wait for the results, receiving them, and the Christmas party and I'm still grinning like the Chesire cat!


Me!

It feels like the weight of a thousand worlds has been lifted from shoulders, I feel younger, lighter and oh so so happy. The relief of knowing that I will never have to sit those horrendous de-humanising and horrific exams ever again is the best Christmas present I could ever have received!

I comfortable passed Equity and Property, I had a fair idea that they had gone ok at the time, but my real worry was Tort. And I just got it! There was no room for error there it seems but, boy oh boy, I don't care!

As per my previous post I had a ball celebrating on friday, lay on the sofa all day saturday, grinning! And went to see March of the Penguins last night. All in all a very good weekend.

I'll be out on the town again tonight with the women for food and laughs, and will undoubtedly feel some pain tomorrow but I can nearly guarantee that I'll still have that smile on my face!

P.S. My opinion of March of the Penguins has just been published on the other page if you're interested!

Celebrate! This party's over...

I had four lines by the end of the night in response to all questions posed to me.

1. I passed my exams!



2. I'm being a good girl!

3. I won a teddy.

4. I have a balloon.

I was a very drunken Trixibell!

Catfights & Handbags

I'm like a cat on the proverbial hot tin roof today and consequentially am not that interested in doing any actual work, as such I have only today become aware of the level of interest and excitement in the "blogosphere" (I won't apologise for using the term as I quite like it) concerning women and blogging and feminism.

From what I can see Sinead kicked off the discussion with a post , which then developed into a debate about Feminism and who is and who isn't a feminist and why. I won't list everyone who has entertained this topic as I would undoubtedly mess up the links so I've linked to Sinead and you can do your worst from there!

For my two cents, I was quite amused by the debate on feminism as it has always been my opinion that however much a woman denies being a feminist, by the mere fact that she has received a certain level of education, has chosen to work, choses to use contraception, drive a car, vote etc. she supports feminism. Without the hard work of generations of women none of these things would be options to us modern day women, and in my opinion they should not be taken for granted but celebrated and built on by all of us today.

I think it is also important to note that with these freedoms we have encountered other problems as women which were not immediately apparant when the fight for equality began. And that is children. Biologically we have to bear to children because men can't. This makes us different to men in a very fundamental way. However in today's society, where equality has been the key phrase this difference hasn't been fully acknowledged. Because we have so many more opportunities available to us we are now faced with the obligation of having a career that is fulfilling and also bearing the next generation. This leaves many women in a situation where they either have to make a choice or they engage in the most phenomenal balancing act in history.

As for myself, I am currently working towards hopefully one day qualifying as a solicitor, that means that if I chose to have children I will one day have to decide to either juggle both and become superwoman or chose between just having a career or just being a mother. It's not something I'm relishing having to consider.

As for women in blogging, I think my blog roll is dominated by female bloggers, but that wasn't by choice! It just happened that way! There quite a few male bloggers I enjoy reading and I think its important to be able to appreciate all aspects of interpretation and opinion. But I don't think I would have bothered getting into this lark if I hadn't seen women like Sinead so comfortable and at ease in what I would have previously considered a male dominant arena. I learnt by participating on discussion boards and reading Sigla's blog that there was nothing to be afraid of and could actually be very rewarding.

So thank you Sinead for showing me the way and opening up new possibilities for me!

Feck it anyway

I have been informed by my mafia network that the FE1 results are out today.

Feck.

I also have to go to my Christmas party tonight....




Methinks there will be one drunken Trixibell loose in Dublin tonight one way or the other...

The long slow decline

It was painful to watch United play Benfica in the Champions League last night, really painful.

They are now out of European football for the first time in 10 years. I can only imagine that it will also now herald the end of Sir Alex Ferguson's tenure as manager of the team, though when he goes and how will be up to the powers that be, unless he decides to cut his losses himself.



Listening to Dunphy and Giles last night on RTE, they were recounting how they were able to trace the decline of the team to gave against Porto 2 years ago. Others would argue that selling Beckham was the beginning of the end. Regardless of when it began there can be no doubt that losing the game last night is a huge blow to United and whatever and whoever comes next will as Dunphy put it "Have a dog of a job".

A stitch up? A frame? A conspiracy???

So Tom Parlon reckons Ivor Callely has been the subject of a conspiracy. It's very unfair the way he's been targeted you know? I mean anyone could let painters into their home and not pay them, couldn't they? Anyone could offer their PA a car in order to keep them in their job. Anyone could be Ivor Callely...

Except we're not are we? We pay our bills and treat people with respect.



I have no sympathy for this man. Pride comes before a fall they say. It looks like this guy is falling fast.

The update on the Frank Connolly last night is that the funding has been withdrawn for the Centre for Public Inquiry... Curiouser curiouser and curiouser.

In the news

I opened my eyes this morning to the dulcet tones of Cathal Mac Coille delivering the news as is my routine every morning. I find it is a good way to introduce myself to the day and only really backfires when the alarm comes on in the middle of a Morning Ireland screaming special between Aine Lawlor and some other individual who doesn't like the cut of her gip!

However this morning I found the news especially intriguing. It would appear the Michael McDowell our esteemed Minister for Justice, published a written response to a parliamentary question on the eve of the budget announcement. As a result, in my opinion anyway, today is turning out to be a very interesting news day.

The gist of it is that McDowell has accussed Frank Connolly, brother of Niall Connolly one of the
Columbia Three of travelling under a false passport with known IRA men to Columbia to engage in dirty dealings with Farc rebels. Curious, thought me, who is Frank Connolly when he's at home?

Frank Connolly is the CEO of a group calling themselves the Centre for Public Inquiry, a privately funded body who is charged with keeping an eye on governement accountability and ethics. It rang a bell somewhere in the back of my mind but nothing concrete and besides where do they get their money from?

They have been funded by Chuck Feeney, reknowned Irish American philanthropist who also liked to support the IRA.

McDowell doen't like Connolly. He doesn't like IRA men, and he really doesn't like being questioned about his ethics. This is a very interesting story and I hope we hear more about it.

I have linked to some stories I found online which I think are very informative about who we are dealing with here. I hope the links work!

In my opinion

I feel I've been a little off my game recently, which is due to various different reasons, some discussed here and others pointedly ignored!

This blogging game can be a little exhausting after a while. You feel obliged to be funny and interesting and readable on a regular if not a daily basis, and there have been plenty of days recently when none of that has appealed to me. It has occurred to me that it might be easier to have a blog with a dedicated theme like United Irelander at least there he knows what his boundaries are! Here, because this site is dedicated to my inane ramblings I get to throw a bit of everything at it, with no real structure to anything that I'm doing. It's probably a good indication of how I approach life. And I find that pretty frustrating at times as well!

I would love to say that I have now come up with a theme or a structure for this blog, but I haven't. Instead I have decided to tackle the stuff in my life that is frustrating me. The wheels are now in motion and I hope, all fingers and toes crossed, that I will soon be more fulfilled.

Also the exam results should be out in the next 2 weeks and with a bit of luck that chapter will also be closed as well. Oh how I long for closure on that one!

Small Girls, Big Bags...

I'm realtively small compared to most people these days, which makes buying trousers a pain in the posterior and has meant that I have learned how to hem to save myself a small fortune on tailors!

However there is one thing in particular I really just have to grin and bear, and work around as best as possible and that's rucksacks.



Today I carried a huge one in from home, in the rain. It's full of christmas gifts for the family that I have decided to transfer back to the parent's house now rather than having to lugg them onto a packed train 2 days before Christmas. Clever me eh? However the trek nearly killed me this morning, I had to use the biggest bag I had today to fit everything into it properly. It's at least 2/3 the height of me! Ah well at least I'll have that job done!

Redemption and Rain

I have been reinstated onto the hallowed list of contributors to Irish Blogs! Three Cheers for the banishing of gremlins!

On the other hand, Weather Pixie says:



I don't know what she's looking so cheerful about it's one of the most miserable days in months and months.

That's all I have to say today.