Strangest six days in the whole year…

This man is a genius – and he puts it perfectly.

So my Reverb10 postings didn’t exactly go according to plan. They got lost somewhere between the nights of Christmas dancing, the snowpocalypse and working the Breakfast shift. When you get up at 4:30 am, nothing in you wants to be reflective.

So I thought instead of trying to catch up post by post, I might just answer a few prompts briefly here!

December 30 – Gift Prompt: Gift. This month, gifts and gift-giving can seem inescapable. What’s the most memorable gift, tangible or emotional, you received this year? (Author: Holly Root)

I was a very fortunate girl this year and have been given lots of amazing gifts, both tangible and emotional. The best gift however came from someone who knows me very well indeed – my Boyf. I’ve been harking on for a year or more about getting back into creative writing (haven’t we all!) and for my 24th birthday, he gave me a stack of Jane Austen books and a writers workshop. It was the most perfect present ever. It showed that he really knows who I am and wants to support my crazy creative endeavours. Aren’t boyfriends just lovely sometimes?

December 27 – Ordinary Joy – Our most profound joy is often experienced during ordinary moments. What was one of your most joyful ordinary moments this year? (Author: Brené Brown)

My parents provide me with some of the most hilarious and ordinary moments. My mum is especially funny. She’s small, maybe 5’1 at most and she has this little step stool in the kitchen to reach the tall shelves! Every time she pulls it out, we crack up. She’s also a comedian – if only she knew! Her best joke this year?

“What did the horse say to the legless jockey?”

…”How’re ya gettin’ on?”

It still makes me laugh!

December 25 – Photo – a present to yourself - Sift through all the photos of you from the past year. Choose one that best captures you; either who you are, or who you strive to be. Find the shot of you that is worth a thousand words. Share the image, who shot it, where, and what it best reveals about you. (Author: Tracey Clark)

Ok so this isn’t the most attractive photo of me – but it definitely speaks a thousand words, and LOUDLY. The picture was taken last Easter when my sister was home from the US. The family were all staying the night in Dublin to see her off to the airport the next morning and following a fantastic dinner, we decided to go to a pub in Temple Bar. The man in the picture is my Dad. We were debating some news story when the shot was taken by my sister. I’m smiling for two reasons: 1. Because I know I’m right and 2. I know that no amount of arguing will ever convince him!

So why did I pick this photo? It may have been an argument, but it’s something we LOVE to do. Think of it as informed debate rather than a fight. He says I dont have enough life experience to know and I put across the point that just because I don’t have life experience, doesn’t mean I’m not entitled to an opinion. That’s the way it always goes! But during this particular conversation, he conceded that I’m a worthy opponent. Maybe not right but worthy. That’s important to me.

Well, since I will be working all day and past midnight tomorrow (New Years Eve!) I will bid you Happy New Year! May good things come your way in 2011 x

11 Things

Continuing on with my slightly slack Reverb10 posts:

December 11 –What are 11 things your life doesn’t need in 2011? How will you go about eliminating them? How will getting rid of these 11 things change your life? (Author: Sam Davidson)

1. Stress over little, stupid and inconsequential things…

Solution: I really need to find a way of getting out all my frustration. In College, I used to use drama and theatre – but now with work I have so few spare hours for stuff like that. Running helped for the three weeks I did it. I used to go to a great dance class as well – but work has screwed that up too! Bingo! I need to find TIME to de-stress.

2. Worry about the future

Solution: Things have worked out well so far, so I need to stop living in the future and enjoy the present.

3. All those magazines I’ve been saving

Solution: Just throw them out. They sit in the corner, not even looking that pretty. I feel like I might need them someday…but that’s kind of unrealistic.

4. Any sort of paranoia about my weight

Solution: Exercise more. And come to the realisation that yes, I love food. And yes, I am unwilling to sacrifice what I love. So therefore, I must get off my arse more often.

5. Microwaveable Meals

Solution: I’m often working late at night and in an office without a real kitchen. So, I run to Dunnes and grab something to stick in the microwave. Not only are those meals terrible for you – but they taste pretty mediocre and are expensive. I need to start cooking more stuff I can bring in with me!

6. Selfishness

Solution: This is really an attitude change. Being a bit of a drama queen – I tend to think the world revolves around whatever stressful situation I find myself in. So, I need to think of others more often. I also want to undertake some charity work in 2011 – I’m not sure what yet – but I’m looking to help in some way!

7. Being too serious

Solution: They say the best medicine is laughter and I really agree! Sometimes I go a whole week without a proper belly laugh – and that’s just wrong. So I need to make more time to see those people that make me laugh uncontrollably!

8. The reliance on my iPhone and laptop

Solution: I love, love, love to read. But since I started relying on my laptop and iPhone on the bus, in bed, on the train etc – my book list has gone out the window. I need to make more time to pick up a physical book and read instead of facebooking, tweeting and watching episodes of the West Wing.

9. Writing procrastination

Solution: I had this big plan over the summer to start a new writing project. I knew it would take a really long time – but I was really excited about it. I even made the first moves towards my ultimate goal. Those moves have now fallen by the wayside. I need to set more writing goals and work towards this new project. It’s a dream of mine – and I will see it happen!

10. Wreckless spending

Solution: In fairness, I worry a lot about money and I don’t really need to. I save, I don’t spend all the time and if I ever needed help, it’s there for me. But…when I do spend money, I often feel guilty about it. Realistically, I need to plan everything in advance, watch what I’m spending money on and keep it in check. My lateness for instance, results in me getting taxis instead of buses. That’s an overspend of about €9 per trip. Ridiculous. No more taxis!

11. My fear of new things

Solution: I’m lucky enough to have a boyfriend who loves trying new things. Before I met him, I had never tried so many different types of food that normal people think are just part of everyday eating. I had never hiked. I had never joined a public speaking club. I had never gone for a run. I had never been to a jazz club. All these things were brilliant experiences and in order to get over my fear of new things – I need to put my trust in others to recommend things!

How will eliminating these things change my life?

Well for starters, I’d have more time for getting my head in order. More time to get out the frustrations and stress of work. I wouldn’t worry as much, and that’s good for your overall health. I’d probably be fitter and healthier – minus the microwave meals and plus the exercise. I’d be one step closer to achieving my goals as well. I’d have more money and therefore more security – which in turn would lead me to worry less. I’d also laugh much more and help others.

Getting rid of these 11 things would make me happier and healthier. Overall, a much more well rounded person.

Party

Ha! Three days into Reverb10 and I’m already falling behind….typical eh?

Here’s yesterday’s prompt from author Shauna Reid:

Party. What social gathering rocked your socks off in 2010? Describe the people, music, food, drink, clothes, shenanigans.

Love this prompt! There’s no better way to remember a year than to reflect on the social gatherings that made it special. My only regret is that I wasn’t asked to blog about this in college! The parties I went to while studying in DCU were some of the best, most hilarious events of my life. For instance, I once went to a “hospital party”. The entire house was decorated like a hospital, with stereos blasting fake doctor announcements, Dr. Watson to the ICU, Paging Dr. Watson to the ICU. There was even an “X RAY Room” covered wall to wall with tin foil and a microwave in the middle. I think the idea was for all the girls to show up dressed as slutty nurses…but I fooled them! Oh how I fooled them! I decided to go as a Janitor – boiler suit, mop, name tag and a spray bottle of my drink of choice! Good times.

 

Now back to 2010. The social gathering that stood out for me this year was definitely my birthday – which was a weekend long bonanza. I always try to organise something special for my birthday because it gives me an excuse to gather everyone I love in the one place! This year’s celebrations were especially awesome. Let me break them down for you:

Friday Night (Day One)

This night involved an intimate gathering of close friends in Dublin. My housemate Roisin, her boyfriend Kevin, two friends from Wexford Hannah and Charlotte and my best guy friend James all accompanied me to dinner at an Indian restaurant about two doors down from my house. Everyone got all dolled up and the photos from early in the night are lovely!

The food was amazing and you could bring your own wine (score!) Charlotte even tried Indian for the first time and was pleasantly surprised.

We went back to my apartment, and played games while finishing off the wine. The main game involved me playing music off my laptop and the first one to guess the song won. It was pretty funny at first – but soon enough it was time to select a dancing destination. There was only one place to go….one place that lives in infamy here in Dublin. Copper. Face. Jacks. * The rest of the night is history really…there was dancing, sweaty, sweaty dancing. But Im pretty sure we were sober enough to realise when Riverdance came on. And that’s a good sign.

Saturday (Day Two)

Another pretty quite and intimate day! Saturday was dubbed “Conor Day” and he kindly collected me from town and drove down to my parents house in Wexford with me. We just relaxed for the day and then had an amazing Italian meal that night. Honestly, one of the best Italian restaurants I’ve ever been to (and anyone who knows me, knows I’m a real stickler for Italian food). I can still taste the succulent garlic tiger prawns to start, the tasty lasagne for my main and of course the light and fresh Tiramasu for dessert. All topped off with more wine. We finished the evening on the couch with my Mum watching The Sopranos! Perfect!

Sunday (Day Three) GOREY FEST ’10

Gorey Fest is another thing that lives in infamy amongst my group of college friends. I realise it sounds like a bad horror film marathon but its basically a party in the town where my parents live, called Gorey. I decided to throw the first one during my first year in college and have had three since then. Its a great excuse to get people out of Dublin and down to the sticks!

I used to throw the parties when my parents were away – but as I got older, they grew in coolness and decided it would be ok for me to have friends down. They’re actually amazing when it comes to this. My mum makes loads of dessert, my dad BBQs and they even keep the drinks cabinet stocked for us. That’s another thing I’m thankful for in 2010 (and always) very very sound parents.

Goreyfest ’10 was missing a few of the usual suspects (Lyndsay in New York, Gary in Japan etc) but it was still the highlight of my social calendar this year. There were probably about ten of us altogether, drinking, laughing, singing and playing games. It was the summer, so for the most part we sat outside on the patio with our beers.

 

We played a few drinking games – one of which included us counting out loud and doing various stupid things for random numbers. Number one was changed to the entire group singing Happy Birthday to me. At first this was great! After the fortieth time, it was STILL GREAT!!

After cake, the girls all went up to my room to get dolled up and then we went to Gorey’s premier nightclub (quite possibly the only nightclub?!) O2. I spent the night dancing my ass of with people that I absolutely adore.

The next morning, people were sleeping all over the place. The smell of the fry up my Mum was cooking definitely woke everyone up properly. It was the ideal ending to an amazing birthday.

If I’m very very lucky 2011 will bring parties of the same calibre!

*If you’re not from Dublin, Copper Face Jacks is a nightclub on Harcourt Street. It’s known for being the number one spot for Gards and Nurses on nights out. It’s also known to be filled with people from the country. The music is a crazy mix of Justin Timberlake and Whiskey in the Jar and it is probably the sweatiest, perviest place on the planet. On the right night, with the right group – it can be HILARIOUS.

Beautifully Different

Today’s Reverb 10 prompt is a toughie. It comes from author Karen Wolrond:

Think about what makes you different and what you do that lights people up. Reflect on all the things that make you different – you’ll find they’re what make you beautiful.

One thing that makes me different is that I am a complete morning person. Now there are loads of people who love mornings…but I am particularly enthusiastic when I first wake up. I rarely hit the snooze button and if I do – it’s because I’m completely exhausted. Normally the alarm goes off and no matter what time it is (I’ve had to get up at 1:20am for breakfast radio before…) I’m straight up out of bed. I’m chatty, happy and generally bubbly. Different? Yes. Annoying? OH YES. Does this make me beautiful? If by beautiful, you mean annoying, then yes. But it gives me a few extra hours in the day, and lends itself to productivity. Plus, it makes up for the fact that when it hits 11pm, I’m shattered and generally want to curl up with a DVD or a book.

Another thing that makes me different (and probably more annoying than beautiful…) is my obsession with planning things. Christmas shopping will be planned by browsing online for prices and bargains and then going straight to the shops I need. Holidays have itineraries that are sent to my fellow holiday goers for changes and corrections (feel like this is a consequence of my past life in the travel industry..). And to-do lists are just a part of my everyday existence. Hey! Someone has to be organised!

But the question was, what do I do that lights people up? I’m not really sure if this is something that sets me apart, but I’d like to think that keeping in touch with old friends lights people up.

When you’ve moved around as much as I have, and at such a young age, there are bound to be casualties friends wise. I used to get really angry and blame my friends for not making an effort to stay in touch – but the more I grew up, the more I realised that people have their own lives too. I relaxed about the issue of keeping in touch and came to learn that even the odd email every once in awhile can be enough. If you’re really good friends, when you meet up it’ll be just as it was the last time you spoke! Sometimes friendship isn’t about the minor day-to-day details, or your shared memories – it’s just about a strong connection that’s always been there.

As a result of this realisation, I try my hardest to catch up with old friends as much as possible – whether by email, facebook or phone call. If they don’t reply as often as I contact them, I don’t hold a grudge – it’s part of life!

 

 

Moment

Wasn’t that into today’s Reverb 10 prompt, so I decided to pick another one that I missed out on!

This comes from author Ali Edwards:

Pick one moment during which you felt most alive this year. Describe it in vivid detail (texture, smells, voices, noises, colors).

I thought it would be hard to single out one particular moment in the last year, but it wasn’t. In fact, one popped to mind straight away. It took place last summer on my holiday to Croatia. I think that’s the summer baby in me – I always feel a little more alive when the sun is shining and the evenings are brighter.

Our holiday of choice was to the land of Croatia. It was an excellent decision and the entire trip was magical (see post here) but there was one moment in particular that stood out.

Conor is a very adventurous kind of guy – the type of man that has eaten guinea pig, walked the Inca Trail and ran the New York marathon and although I’m up for trying lots of new things – I take a bit of cajoling! But, when he said he wanted to try sea kayaking, you didn’t need to ask me twice! Neither of us had really kayaked before (unless you count my sixth year experience on a Galway lake in the freezing cold?) so we were both excited to get out onto the clear blue waters. We were placed two to a kayak, myself in the front and Conor behind me. Accompanying us was our guide Pavi and two other girls, one from the US and another from New Zealand.

Zaton Mali, the bay where we kayaked

Just as we had tightened our life jackets, the skies darkened. I’m not taking about one little rain cloud eclipsing the sun, I’m talking about big bad scary storm clouds covering the entire sky! The water became choppy and dark and the wind started to blow.

Now, anyone who knows anything about Croatian weather, can attest that this is an unusual occurrence in late June. The look on our guide’s face said it all. It was a mix between confusion and anger….and it scared the crap out of me! “I’m not sure we can sail today,” she said, “the weather is really unpredictable”. The scardey cat in me thought, Ok cool…back to the apartment we go. No scary kayaking for me, thank you very much. But the girls wouldn’t take no for an answer, “Couldn’t we just go out into the Bay for a bit, and not go all the way out to sea?” the American girl suggested. “Yea, surely it’ll clear up in awhile” the other pushed.

And so we went. My arms paddling as hard as they could through the choppy waves and Conor trying his best to coordinate his paddle strokes behind me. At first it was just the wind to contend with, but soon enough the rain started pelting down on us. It got to the point that I couldn’t see a foot in front of me with such heavy raindrops! I was saturated with water and my face hurt from the stinging drops. However, we continued on and we were going at quite a steady pace at this point. The guide shouted to us, “Are you ok? Do you want to go back?” and in unison we all shouted, “No no no!”. We pressed on probably for just over half an hour.

Suddenly, the rain stopped. Within seconds, the big bad scary clouds drifted away to reveal a big, happy, gorgeous sun. I looked down and saw crystal blue waters and instantly my paddle became less heavy and glided through the current. We brought our kayaks up onto a stunning little pebble beach and lay there, looking at one of the most amazing scenes. We had kayaked right across the bay, and now that the rain had cleared, we could see the tree covered mountains, the little pebble beaches, and the bay front homes. We each got an ice cold glass bottle of Coke and took it all in. The sense of accomplishment, coupled with great company and an amazing view made that moment completely perfect.

Our group awhile later, after a hike

Reverb10

I was browsing Jon Beckett’s blog and came across this online initiative called Reverb 10. The idea is that you use your blog to reflect on the year that’s been and to send out reverberations for the year ahead. Each day in December, a different author posts a question or a prompt and as a participant, you reflect on it in writing. Some of the posts associated with it are amazing and my mind is already swimming with new, gorgeous blogs to visit and comment on! I think it’s a lovely way to get some inspiration and maybe inspire others too – plus, I always find it really hard to reflect on a year and this seems like a productive and creative way to do so! So here goes….

I realise I’m a little late off the mark – but here’s Dec. 6th’s prompt from author Gretchen Rubin:

What was the last thing you made? What materials did you use? Is there something you want to make, but you need to clear some time for it?

Technically the last thing I made was a bowl of porridge (which I’m eating while typing this..check me out multi-tasking!) but I have a feeling that the question is much more broad than that.

I love making things from scratch. It probably comes from my Dad, who’s really handy around the house. Since I was a little girl he’s been making book shelves, picture frames, desks and various other space saving creations. He’s the first person I’d go to with something that needs fixing as well. The man has fixed my GHD twice – including rewiring it and saving it with some super glue!

My love of making things is far less DIY and much more homemade cards. A few years ago, when I started going out with Conor, I thought it was really personal to make a handmade card for every occasion. Then I realised I had started a trend – and now I can’t stop! I’ve actually started a next to impossible task because as each occasion (birthdays, valentines day, Christmas) approaches, I need a new and more quirky idea for a card than the last! ….Sooner or later I will run out of cute things to do here!

The last card I made was slightly desperate. I had just moved into a new apartment and had very few materials – so much to the amusement of my housemates, I grabbed all the left over Goodfellas pizza boxes and set to work. I covered them with paper so they looked acceptable and wracked my brain for ways to make it personal. A poem? Sappy. A drawing? It would look like a stick figure. Hmmm..? Aha! I had an idea. I had a ton of ridiculous photos of us taken on my mac Photo Booth. I printed them off and there were so many I covered FOUR SIDES OF THE CARD! See exhibit A:

Exhibit A

Attractive eh?

Anywho, the card was a big success and he spent so much time laughing at the photos that he didn’t even notice the pizza boxes!

Something I want to make but need to clear time for it? Definitely. I’ve always wanted to make a Vision Board. The concept of a Vision Board has been around for years, but it became really popular recently through the book, The Secret (which I’ve never actually read! whoops!). The idea is that you create a board of visual goals for yourself. The goals include who you want to be, where you want to travel and what you want from life. It can be really specific or more general. It’s supposed to be placed in a prominent place, that way, when you see it, you remember the goals and they eventually become a reality. It’s all to do with the Law of Attraction or something like that…I just think its a good reminder of where you’re headed. Here’s an example of one I found online:

I’ve been toying with this idea for a while now and have started cutting out ideas from magazines. I even bought a lovely piece of cardboard to use (…but there was an incident with a bird that foiled that plan. More on that later!). I think I really need some more headspace and time to decide exactly what should go on the board…so for now, I’ll hoard all my ideas and hope that it comes to fruition. It could be a good project for the new year!

I really am a believer in making things. It’s so easy now to type something out and print it off, to send an email instead of an actual card and to look at photos on a screen instead of on a wall – why not get out the glue, scissors and some coloured paper for Christmas…even if it’s not the most artistic creation – it’ll give your friends a pretty good laugh!