First year down.

So for the past 6 months, I’ve been completely neglecting my poor little blog. When I was leaving for college last year I thought I would be blogging 24/7, because I didn’t have a whole lot of hours in comparison to some courses…(understatement of the century :P), but I never actually got down to it. The reason why I neglected it was, simply, I was just having too much fun living the college dream! So listen up folks, I’m gonna give you a little run down of my past year, and those of you who are about to enter this new chapter in your lives and start college this September, prepare yourselves for one of the greatest years of your life. (That’s all the cheesiness finished, I promise.)

What they don’t tell you about college: 

• You actually have to do work..?!

I know, I know! You’re just after finishing the Leaving Cert, ready to chill for the Summer and breeze into college come September. Life is easy sailing for here on out. Ehhhhhh….not so much. Surprisingly enough, we actually have to do work in college. It’s not all about drinking cans in the park on a sunny afternoon, skipping lectures to creep on the Freshers Footballers training and pulling in Coppers while absolutely hammered. (Now don’t get me wrong, there is plenty of time for that too!) But I’ll never forget in Week 2, when we were told we had to have an assignment about Irish left-wing politics completed by the following week, a little bit of me died inside. Don’t forget that we’re here to get an education, not just to go on this piss three times a week! Everything in moderation….two nights a week works just as well 😉

• Your lecturers didn’t come down the last rain shower

As smart as we may think we are, managing to get to college and even get the points to do as course, we can never out-smart our lecturers. They are strange creatures, all-knowing beings that lurk around corridors and actually notice when we don’t turn up for class. An email or note saying that we were ‘unable to attend class due to family problems’ is translated as ‘I just did the walk-of-shame and I was ridiculously hungover at 9am, there was no way I was getting up for that class.’ Don’t try fool them, it never works and you’re a cert to be in the bad books for the rest of semester!

• Your roommates are not always gonna be what you expected

Take it from someone who has had two different roommates this year, you definitely don’t know what you’re in for until your sharing half your home with them. Prepare yourself for them using your stuff, eating your food, leaving the bathroom untidy, staying up ridiculously late and getting up at the crack of dawn. Sometimes you can be lucky and get put in with the soundest lad/lass in Ireland, but chances are that’s pretty unlikely. Go in with an open mind and try not to kill them in their sleep!

• Just learn to cook

Don’t go to college only knowing how to cook pasta and noodles. You will die of carb-overload and no one wants to see you spitting chunks of pesto pasta at 3am after a hard night out! Just learn. Simple as.

What to be ridiculously, incredibly, supercalifragilisticexpialidociously excited for:

• Meeting a completely different crowd

One of the great things about college is meeting tons of new people. In first year, everyone is in the same boat, we all want to make friends, meet as many new people as possible and create a good group of people to be around. You’ll meet people from every walk of life, whether it is the absolutely minted ,Foxrock-native or the biggest bogger from the ‘Whest.’ (who includes a ‘h’ in every word they say!?) It really is a great opportunity to talk to people you would never even have considered speaking to before, and who knows, they could end up your best friend.

• General college banter

Between organised events, like balls, sports days, shows, gigs, trips and having the banter on campus, it’s one of the greatest times in college. Fresher’s and Rag week in particular were the highlights for me. Events on during the day, skipping lectures, heading into the clubs at night, there is such a good buzz around campus and it really rubs off on everyone around.

• On the beer!

Sure, I could hardly skip one of the most important aspects of college now could I?! Of course heading into nightclubs is a key aspect of every college student’s life. Possibly the greatest way to bond with your class or new friends! Not only will you find out all about their lives in a game of ‘Never have I ever,’ but nothing brings people closer together than belting out the chorus to C’est la vie in the back of a taxi!

Definitely one of the greatest years of my life, so for all you heading to college for the first time this year, get ready for a serious experience! 

I thought we weren’t hypocrites..I was mistaken.

In light of the recent “KPMG Girl scandal” a few things have been brought to my attention, about just how strong social media can impact our lives. If you haven’t already heard, a teenage girl was filmed one night, in a kebab shop, absolutely hammered and rotting the head off a bunch of randomers she never met before. Sound familiar yet? Well she also went on to discuss the fact that her father was “one of the biggest earners in KPMG” and how she lives in the lap of luxury. Now don’t get me wrong, she did sound pretty stuck up about the whole thing and some comments probably didn’t sit too well with the other 3am kebab shop customers. The group of people she was talking to, recorded her and decided to upload the video onto YouTube, where it received a huge feedback and sending the video viral. Video links were then posted to her page, tagging her name for the Facebook world to see, and for her to wallow in embarrassment. Seem fair? No, no definitely not.

What the girl did, was pretty silly, but come on, who hasn’t said equally ass-clenching, cringing shite on a night out? We all have! Beer fear is bad enough the next morning without having to deal with thousands of people reliving the not-so-proud moments too. The real question is not “Who is her father, and how much is he earning?” but, who would intentionally want to publicly humiliate a young girl, who had a little too much to drink?

As a country, we look at suicide and mental health incredibly seriously, more than ever now after multiple tragic deaths in the past few months. Have we not learned that the internet is a dangerous area, that needs to be treated with caution? Cyber bullying is not a joke, and while that group thought it would be a right laugh to embarrass that young girl and humiliate her on YouTube, they have potentially harassed, bullied and mocked that girl for the world to see. Right now, we can only guess that the poor girl is feeling miserable, after reading comments on the video such as “Well, I’m pro abortion anyway” or “Your father should have spent his money on an abortion.” These “keyboard warriors” may feel high and might for writing these comments and receiving 15 likes, but abuse is abuse, and what these people are doing is a crime in itself. 

The country was darkened with a cloud of despair, after reading the tragic story of Erin Gallagher, a young girl who took her life because of cyber bullying. People were moved, they grieved and felt pain within their hearts for such a young life to be taken away so early. Yet, on the other hand, these people are uploading these dreadful videos, that inflict the same amount as pain, as a victim of cyber bullying has experienced. I just don’t understand how people can be this hypocritical, how they can be this blunt and cruel about something that is not a joke. Bullying is bullying, whether it is verbal or physical. It’s not a joke, when are people going to realise this? 

And so it begins….

Hey guys, I know I’ve been AWOL the past few weeks, between getting my results, CAO offers and grad chaos, my life has been thrown into overdrive! Not to mention, I’m working nearly every waking moment of the day! So anywaaaaaaay, let me fill you in! I’m happy to inform all of yee, that I am now a JOURNALISM student in DCU! I actually couldn’t be more happier with my offer, that I received yesterday morning! I was so anxious to find out if all my complaining and whining had actually paid off, and well it did! 😀 I was thrilled with my leaving cert results as well, so much higher than I had ever even imagined, but oh dear god, it was possibly the most nerve wrecking experience of my life!

Let’s back track to last week. The 15th of August to be precise. The day students all across the country dreaded, anticipated and waited for. LC results. I woke up at 8am, I’m a little surprised myself really, I thought I would have been up since 5! Hopped into the shower and blared Beat, to drown out the nerves in the pit of my stomach. Although once I came downstairs and tucked into my usual bowl of Cornflakes, I felt somewhat calmer. A moment of realisation. I thought to myself, there is no point being worried. It’s done now, nothing more I can do. However, this feeling was short lived once I got into the car and heard past students telling their stories about how they were so upset with the points they received and missed out on their courses. (Like seriously? Why in God’s name would you interview these people right before results were issued?!?!) I arrived at the school around 8.30, thinking that results were out at half 9. Nuh uh, the minute I set foot into that school, my principal handed me that envelope!

Well thats when it all became real. I ran into one of the nearest classrooms, and ripped the results open, (well not literally, I gently pealed it open if I’m gonna tell the truth! I was too scared I’d rip the results in half ) I started shaking like crazy once I had seen the results before me. I was over the moon. I knew I had more than enough points for my course and that was it.

So after a long night of bending the elbow and having a few sociable drinks, I was all set for CAO offers. (well once I recovered from the 3 day hangover that is!) Fast-forwarding to yesterday i.e Offers, I was so excited to see what was in store for me! Once again, I woke at a respectable 8am, although once I saw the text messages on my phone asking me what I had got, I sprang out of bed and lept for the laptop. Waiting patiently I waited for CAO to load, fingers sprawling across the keyboard to get my details in as quick as possible. And there it was. DC132 – Journalism. I stared at the screen in awe for a solid 5 minutes I’d say. I couldn’t believe it. I actually got my course. On the way to being a Journalist.

As if that wasn’t enough, then the excitement truly chimed in when Facers was mobbed by everyone posting their new colleges on their pages. Some disappointed, some ecstatic, but overall, the general buzz was incredible! But, the reality slapped me in the face once the whole accommodation aspect came into view. Shit. I had applied for campus but heard nothing back. I spent all last night prowling the internet for places to live that hadn’t been booked out…looking for roommates, a place near the college, a place that was affordable…sheesh. I never knew it was so much work. At 12 I gave up and hit the sack, a 9-6 work day was ahead of me and I could barely stay awake.

So the next day in work, I tried forgetting about it, hoping that’d somewhere would get back to me and I could secure a place. At around 3 I saw an email from DCU campus residences, praying to god this would be good news. Eventually I opened it, and it read:

Dear Ms. Orlaith Farrell we are delighted to inform you that you have been successful in securing a room on campus for the Academic year 2012/13.

I think I may have experienced a slight heart-attack once I saw the first 6 words of that email. I was sure I wasn’t going to get campus as all the students with 500+ points are guaranteed a place and after that it is a lottery system…and considering I didnt get 500+ or have ever won the lottery, I didnt think my chances were too high! Well there ya go, I must have been a saint in the past life, cos this Karma is incredible!

And now we’re up to today. The day before my grad, and I actually couldn’t wish for anything more. 🙂 I hope you guys are all happy with the points and course you got. Come on, we’re going to College! Roll on 17th of September! Hell yes!

-Orlaith 🙂

8 days…and counting.

I’m sure I’m not the only one who is beginning to toss and turn in their sleep, or maybe feeling that gut wrenching tug in the pit of my stomach. In just a little over a week, thousands of teenagers’ lives are going to change. Completely. The results of all-nighters, cramming sessions and hours upon hours of endless study is going to surface upon a white sheet of paper. This page is going to determine our future prospects, dreams and wishes. If you haven’t already guessed by now, and have been living under a rock the past 3 months, the Leaving Cert Results come out next week. Oh. Dear. God.

I’ve always been a worrier. I over-think, analyse and fret over just about everything; from where am I going to live next year, right down to trying to remember did I leave my hair straightener on this morning. I can’t help it, it’s just who I am. But after finishing the leaving, I thought to myself, “Wow, this is gonna be great. I don’t have to worry about having my homework in on time, quotes tests or quadratic equations, I can finally relax.” Famous. Last. Words. Sure at the start I completely let school leave my mind and concentrate on the “amazing summer” that was all ahead of me. Newsflash: Summer gets pretty damn boring after the first few weeks. So, as things dragged on in an endless routine of eat, work and sleep, unwelcome thoughts of the leaving began to spring back into my mind. Getting flashbacks of writing manically in my History exam, second guessing myself over my English essay and praying for the love of God, that I somehow managed to pass Maths! Since then, it’s always been there at the back of my mind, niggling away at my thoughts, not giving me a moments peace. What a spastic. (I could think of a better word to call it, but I’ll try to keep this PG.)

Okay, I know I’m beginning to sound like an absolute whinge-bag, and in fairness I’ve had a great summer with my friends. Between holidaying in Santa Ponsa and unforgettable nights throughout the past few months, I’ve had the time of my life. But I still can’t help think about what the outcome of my results will be in a matter of a week. I’ve dreamt about doing this course for so long, and to think in a weeks time I will know if I’ll be there or not is absolutely terrifying. Many of us try to put on a brave face and keep calm around our friends, but on the inside, this anticipation is nerve wrecking. Each one of us are more frightened than the next, but there seems to be nothing we can do or say to help one another.

 The thing that really annoys me, that really grinds my gears is hearing people say “Oh stop worrying, of course you’re going to get your course.” Now, I know they’re trying to be optimistic and trying to keep me calm, but for God’s sake, please stop!! It really doesn’t make this situation any better, if anything it makes us think about it more! At the moment, it just feels like I’m hanging in limbo. A steel fist is gripped tightly around my nerves and until next Wednesday morning at 9am, I’m going to have to live with this sickening feeling. I think we’re all trying to be positive as much as we can and believe and hope for the best. We’re trying to be there for one another and not get too bogged down in self doubt. Just try to keep positive guys, just 8 days left….. 

Irish Times Leaving Cert Review

Once again I am incredibly late putting my articles up here! I wrote a review for the Irish Times during my Leaving. I reviewed the infamous English Paper 2 aka THE GREATEST CURVEBALL IN HISTORY. Nonetheless, read, enjoy and bask in the happiness that the treacherous creature know as the Leaving Cert has left once and for all. (Well hopefully anyway!) -Orlaith http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/ireland/2012/0608/1224317501472.html

3…2….1….GO.

Can I get a get a drum roll please? Yes, it’s here ladies and gents. The big LC has reared its evil head for us 2012 students! Kicking off today with the nerve-eating paper 1, the exam itself received an overall positive reaction. No scary surprises, or sneaky tricks pulled by the SEC (not yet anyway), however, once I saw that there was a proposal for question B, I sat there with a dumb-founded expression on my face!

I opted for Text 2 on Question A. All about the great woman herself, Mary Robinson. The text was fairly standard, as we sifted through the points, techniques and images. Nothing that rocked or shocked us too much! I then went for Text 3 for my question B. A persuasive article for the school website. Being an avid article writer, I stuck to what I know. Though I took a quirky slant with it, keeping in mind it was for the school website , I kept it light hearted while being informative and persuasive!

For my composing section, I did the light hearted/entertaining composition centring around the phrase ‘all the time in the world”. I had fun with this one, taking a different approach and trying to inflict an element of humour. Lets all hope the examiner keeps an open mind, once they witness my Pinky and the Brain and Harry Potter references (oops!).

Overall, I gelled well with the paper, as many of my peers did. It was a great start to the leaving cert exams, although, I don’t think my positive attitude will remain much longer, with the dreaded paper 2 looming tomorrow! Here’s hoping the SEC go somewhat easy on us! If Plath doesn’t show up tomorrow, there will an explosive amount of Facebook likes, linking to head in the oven situations!

-Orlaith

Facebook and social networks – The Irish Times

Small piece I wrote about my usage on social networking sites, as well as other students across the country 🙂

http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/education/2012/0403/1224314290996.html

GOOD LUCK :)

Just want a to wish everyone the best of luck next week! Its been a long time coming, but we’re finally here!

Few last minute tips for stress heads:

1. CALM DOWN

Over the past few days, I have been ransacked with my friends calling me, stressing out, panicking and the whole lot. Now is NOT the time to panic. Focus on what you know, not what you don’t. Appeal to your strengths and make the most of the exam. Remember to keep level headed in your final few days of revision, trust in your abilities, believe in yourselves and you’ll surprise yourself.

2. SLEEP

This is a big one. Tons of people are beginning to worry about the impending deadline and try to cram enormous amounts of information, right into the wee hours of the morning. It’s not going to work. You’ll only stress your self and your body out. Not to mention, your poor body will be shattered, and you’ll end up crashing out. Do your body a favour and get some shut eye, you need to be in full spirits for the LC, cos by the end of it, the first place we’ll all be hitting is the leaba.

3. GET OUT OF THE HOUSE

Chaining yourself to your desk and only leaving for food and water is not a good idea. Take regular breaks to give your mind a chance to process the revised information. The weather is gorgeous (much to our dismay, typical), so try get out and sit in the sun for a half hour. Go for a walk or jog, sing, dance, run around the garden like a maniac! Do something that will release a bitta that pressure!

4. FOCUS ON THE POSITIVE

I can’t stress this one enough. If you go into an exam, let’s take English Paper 2 for example, and you say to yourself, I’m crap at Hamlet, I don’t know how to write a comparative and don’t get me started on poetry, well don’t be surprised to see a big fat D on your results in August! Go in with a positive attitude. Forget about points and colleges and whatnot. Focus on the exam itself. Devout yourself fully and engage with it completely. If we all wake up on June 6th, focusing on our strengths, then there is no need to panic. You can only do your best. Be it an A1 or a D1, do the best that you can, give it your all and that should be an achievement in itself.

Guys, August is a long way off, don’t get bogged down with the idea of points now. Focus on your revision and give those exams your best shot!

Good luck to everyone, and hopefully I’ll be keeping you posted (If I have some spare time! 😀 ) Also, I’m writing one of the Leaving Cert Diaries for The Irish Times, on English Paper 2, so be sure to check it out!

Best of luck guys, talk soon,

-Orlaith

🙂

Spring Favourites

Heyy guys, well since Leaving Cert is looming its ugly head pretty shortly (I really should be studying :/) and my blog posts have come to an end, I was thinking I’d do something a little different on this site. I’ll still be writing about my usual rants and scattered thoughts, but I thought I might inject some glamour into my posts! I’m gonna start writing about clothes, make up, beauty products and the works. Before I jump into it, I’m no fashion/beauty guru, so please don’t go for my throat if I get something wrong! I simply just love to shop, and thought it might be of some interest to you guys 🙂 (Also, I’m not asked to recommend or review any of these items, they’re just my own opinions!)

First things first. Pastels. Yep, the fashion & beauty word is going bananas for everything pastel. Be it jeans or blazers or eye shadows and nail polishes. I can’t get enough. Pastels are so versatile this spring and they’re so easy to work into any outfit. I picked up some of these nail polishes at the weekend in Superdrug, ( who are doing a 3 for 2 sale on all their cosmetics atm!) The colours are so on trend and I love the little pop of colour!

These are Chanel in 551 Coco Blue, Barry M in Mint Green and Strawberry, and Rimmel in 280 Sunshine and 500 Disco Ball. I love the Barry M nail polishes, they’re sooo cheap,( I think they were €3.95 each) but their quality is gorgeous! 🙂

I also bought this jumper a few weeks ago, from Topshop. The colour caught my attention straight away and I absolutely love it! I know Topshop clothes are sometimes ridiculous with their prices, but I just think the quality and design of their clothes can’t be beaten. Btw, the picture does not do this justice The colour is much  nicer and lighter in real life..promise 😀

I also got these leggings in Topshop at the weekend as well. Leggings are becoming huge this season with crazy prints. H&M, Topshop, River Island and New Look have great collections. They’re super comfy and you can dress them casual or dressy.I really recommend investing in a good pair for spring/summer, because they’re so easy to wear! Especially in this bipolar weather we’ve been having…still putting on the fire in MAY? Come on Summer! 😛

Also a big fan of Aztec prints this season, yes yes, they are everywhere, and currently taking over every high street store in Ireland and the UK! I got this dress in River Island a couple months ago and I absolutely love it! It was €25, for River Island, that was pretty amazing! It’s just a typical skater dress, but I love the colours, I thought it was really different. I got this in the RI in Waterford, but I’m pretty sure its on the website too! Also another one to dress up or down! I put the blue pastel jumper over it and paired it was ballerina pumps, and it was perfect for just a lazy, Saturday afternoon, mooching through the shops! But it can totally be transformed into a night-time look with a pair of beige/ nude wedges and chunky, gold jewellery!

Speaking of chunky, gold jewellery 😉 Absolute favourite! This necessarily doesn’t just apply to spring, I’m a gold jewellery fiend all year round! I usually find my staple bits and pieces in Pennys. The good aul reliable. I love Topshops and River Island’s, but I always question whether buying a bracelet for €12.50 is right. Nonetheless, I still think its fab! Pennys are doing a great collection lately, bringing in Cleopatra/ Egyptian style pieces. Of course, they’ve jumped on the band wagon and started doing gorgeous aztec pieces too. Oh Pennys…You do know what we love!

All pieces above are from Pennys, accumulated over the past weeks/months/years 🙂

So, that’s pretty much my fav buys for spring at the moment! Not sure if I’m gonna keep going with this type of blogging, but I said I’d give it a go! Feedback most welcome, just try be nice guys, I’m only learning 😀

-Orlaith 🙂

Final hurdle

Heeeey LC-ers (soon to be non-LC-ers! :D), apologies for my laxy-daziness with the LC blog. As you all might have guessed, it’s slowly taking over my life! I’m beginning to forget what a night out in The Stores is any more! Well we’re coming into the final stretch, the final hurdle. Who actually thought that we would eventually get here eh? Not me anyway! Strange to believe in a few short weeks we will close the lockers, pack our bags and leave the big entrance we stumbled across in 1st year.

I don’t know what to feel. Here I am, making my final study plan in the run up to the Leaving and it hit me, this is the last time I’ll be making one of these out. In just 3 weeks time, I will no longer be a secondary school student. Crazy. Since 1st year, my school has been my second home. Where the people I love are (excuse the cheese :D), where we shared the laughter, the tears, the joy and the anger. We entered as kids, unsure and frightened. Some of us putting on acts, trying to be cool (mine didn’t last too long!) and trying to fit in. As the years progressed, we changed. The barriers came down and people’s true colours shone through. There was no longer a need to fit in or a false appearance to be put on, people allowed themselves to be their true self. I love school, I really do and as much as it makes me a nerd, I don’t really care. Sure we complain about the early mornings and the hours of never ending homework, but it’s a place where we each care about. The silent laughter in supervised study and thrill of persuading your teacher to bring you for tea in the canteen. For me anyway, I think of the school as the safety net that I relied on, so much, when I was growing up.

Then again, I think I’m ready to leave. Like most of my friends and my classmates. We’ve finished our 6 years, some of us 5, some of us 7! (those lucky repeats ;)) Now it’s time for a change of scenery. A new chapter. And in like all great books, the new chapter brings about anticipation, excitement, yet there is that lingering feeling of the unknown. “Will it be as good as the last chapter?” “What if it changes TOO much and it’s not what I expected?” None of us know how things in August will turn out. Some of us may be completely ecstatic and others may not. Whatever the result may be, don’t let it get in the way of making the next chapter amazing. Of course there will be some disappointment, it’s inevitable! But don’t let that shape the next section of your life. “Each player must accept the cards life deals him or her. But once they are in hand, he or she alone must decide how to play the cards in order to win the game.” – Voltaire

With just a few short weeks to go until “The big one”, remember not to let yourself lose your focus now. C’mon, we’ve pulled through this long, we can’t let it all slip through the cracks. In just a few weeks, we’ll be finished. Finished with the pressures of parents, the pressures of CAO and the pressures of those dreaded points. For 3 months, let yourself forget everything. Keep locked up at the back of your mind and don’t crack it open until August comes about. It’s just a few weeks guys, we have the ability, we know our stuff, now it’s just a matter of keeping your cool and showing the SEC we’re not a bunch slackers, as some of them may think!

Best of luck to everybody in the coming weeks. Between LCVP (good luck to my girls tomorrow, Ush, Ciara and Michelle 🙂 ) construction practicals, art practicals and whatever else is coming up! And if unfortunately I don’t get to post before June because those evil books won’t release me from their grip, Good luck to everyone doing the Leaving Cert. Thank you all for reading my blog posts and hopefully I’ve been helpful or entertaining or something in the past few months! Here’s hoping everything turns up that we want and the exams go well for us. I’ll keep you guys posted if I can!

Much love,

Orlaith 🙂 x

LC blogger