Quote of The Week #48

We declare the right of the people of Ireland to the ownership of Ireland, and to the unfettered control of Irish destinies, to be sovereign and indefeasible.  The long usurpation of that right by a foreign people and government has not extinguished the right, nor can it every be extinguished except by the destruction of the Irish people.  

The Proclamation of Poblacht na hEireann - Thomas J. Clarke, Sean Mac Diarmada, Thomas MacDonagh, P.H. Pearse, Eamonn Ceannt, James Connolly, Joseph Plunkett.

Let's Talk About Our Feelings

Let's have a chat over a nice cup of tea. Well, you can have coffee if you want. I've never liked coffee, but I'll be having some of that rainbow sugar if you don't mind. With my tea. I take milk.

Hi there.

Sorry about my absence. I feel like we never chat anymore, you and me. We should do that now! OK, I'll start. This is my blog after all.

1. So a few days ago at rehearsals, we were having a short break and I was playing with one of the juggling balls and trying to keep it up with my hands and moving around and eventually I found myself standing in the middle of the room and facing the back door and outside John and Ross were talking and on my left Alan and Geoff were talking about playing the guitar and someone was rattling around with mugs in the kitchen and behind me Angela was doing something and on my left down the ramp Jess was playing the guitar and singing with Connie and I was just standing there and staring at the ball, tapping it with the palms of my hands and humming the song DFTBA by Hank Green in my head and under my breath, and while I was standing there I realised how utterly amazing my brain was to take all of that in and think about all of those people at the same time and what they were doing and why and reprimanding myself at the same time because it was really none of my business what they were doing, and also thinking about things I needed to get in Educational Supplies for school and then thinking about school on Monday and if I needed to do any homework and thinking about
what I was going to eat later and also thinking about the ball I was trying to keep up with my hands and how amazing my brain was for being able to think all of those things at the same time and trying to decide if my brain was simply a brilliant organ or if I was too scatterbrained and flighty to concentrate on one thing at a time. And then I dropped the ball.

2. WAIT A SECOND!!! I haven't told you anything about any rehearsals yet! Um... Can you wait, just for a few days? Before I tell you, I'd like to have something to tell you. Know what I mean? Oh, never mind.

3. This year, both Barack Obama and the Queen of England will be visiting Ireland, within fourteen hours of each other! That's nice of them. Apparently Obama's oldest living relative lives somewhere near where I live, so he might pop over. Princess Margaret, the Queen's sister, once visited the town where my mother grew up when she was a little girl, and I still have one of the dresses Lady de Vesci used to wear. It's gorgeous. Anyway, the visits will be great for the economy. That's good.

4. Bo Burnham will be coming to Kilkenny in June, as part of the Cat Laughs festival. I'm not really a big fan, but I'm glad people on YouTube and the Internet are being seen by IRL people as real entertainers, not just teenage crushes. Not that I'll be able to go, the Cat Laughs is strictly over eighteens. Still, it brings €8 million into Kilkenny!



5. I read an amazing book recently, called The Queen Must Die by K.A.S. Quinn. I think I'll write y'all a review! But not in this post. You might have noticed the new Reading List over at the left there. Thing is, I keep buying books, but I never have the time for reading them anymore. So I've decided to be very strict with  myself and I am not allowed to buy anymore books (sob) until all the books in this list have been read. Every single one of them. I've just finished To Miss With Love by Katharine Birbalsingh, which is a MUST if you go to, or have ever gone to, secondary school. No matter where you live. Go read it.

Goodbye...

Oh, and thank you all for your kind, supreme patience.

Eleanor Roscuro...

Quote of The Week #47

'Right.' Mr Goodheart reclaims everyone's attention. 'I'd like to remind everyone on our push on independent learning. Remember that this is what Ofsted will be looking for, when they finally get here.' He smiles in a way that suggests he doesn't really believe what he is saying. 'We simply cannot have a situation where teachers are teaching and children are listening.' 

Katherine Birbalsingh - To Miss With Love

Running Out

"This was a moment I knew I would remember for the rest of my life."


Great. So what do I write now? I wish my fingers would stop shaking, I can't hold the pen properly.  I shouldn't be this afraid, not for the Junior Cert! Oh no. No no no no no no no no no

I can't do this.

I can't do this.

I can't.

Ok, let's just be reasonable here, right? What exam did you have yesterday? History, that's right, history. Your person in history was on a person in ancient Ireland, yeah? Write about that. Easy!

No. I can't, I don't know how... I hate exams. it's just so wrong, in my head, it hurts...

Oh quit being such a a baby "Oh, my head hurts, poor little me!" Pathetic. You're pathetic. Pathetic!

Pathetic. I am pathetic, aren't I?

I'm pathetic.

Yesterday, my parents sat down while I was in the middle of studying.  It was late. It was my mother who started.

'You are working, aren't you Rose?'

I must have been too nonchalant in my rely.

'Rose, you must try your best - '
'For all our sakes-'
'You want to go to Trinity, don't you pet?'

Both my parents studied at Trinity in Dublin. That was where they first met. They still gave regular donations, and I'd met most of the professors several times.

'So you can get a nice house-'
'And live in comfort-'
'Provide for us when we're old and sick-'

That was the clincher. Whenever they said anything about providing for them, when they were too old and feeble to work, that's what made me feel most guilty. They knew this all too well. We'd seen the reports on Prime Time about the old people who were abused in those nursing homes, and Mum and Dad never made me forget that.

'As your parents-'
'You surely owe us that much-'
'Some comfort in our final days-'
'I'm doing my best -'
'I'm sure you think that, honey-'
'But we need -'
'More!'
'Surely it's not too much to ask?'
'Of... of course not.'
'Good girl. What did you have today? History, wasn't it?'
'Yeah. It was OK.'
'OK? Why?'
'It was fine! Fine fine fine. Easy peasy. Nothing to worry about.'
'That's good, pet. Tea?'
'Um, no thanks.'
Lately, I'd started making and buying all my own drinks. I could never be sure what would be added when I wasn't looking.

Half an hour left for this essay, and I haven't written anything yet. Brilliant.

What?! Stop dawdling and write something, you stupid girl! You've wasted enough time already with your silly sob stories! Come ON!

My head doesn't feel like a functioning object anymore. Just something I have to hold up. I slowly, slowly turn my head and stare at my hand. The biro has rubbed my finger red. I try and write something, anything, but my blue pen has run out of ink. Never mind. There's plenty of blue ink there, below my wrist. I can use that instead, can't I?

Oh dear. The blue ink has turned red. Such a mess on the page, tut tut. Strange, I feel even dizzier now. The supervisor seems to be staring. I should wave and be friendly. Oops, I waved with my ink hand. She'll see all the mess I'm making. I hope I won't get into trouble.

I really, really hope I won't get into trouble.

Quote of The Week #46

My goal is not to wake up at 40 with the bitter realization that I've wasted my life in a job I hate, because I was forced to decide on a career in my teens.  

Daria


(Funnily enough, I had to decide my career three months ago...)

Quote of The Week #45

Pauline kept a scrapbook into which she pasted important articles that she had cut out of the newspapers. These were about the courageous deeds that had been done by people even if they only had one leg or couldn't see or had been dropped on their heads when they were babies.
'It's to make me brave,' she'd explained to Annika.

Eva Ibbotson - The Star of Kazan

Between The Barlines - The Beatles, Morrissey, Treefight for Sunlight, Gypsy & The Cat, Sleigh Bells

Hello, and welcome to Music at Musings... No, that isn't right, is it?

Hello, and welcome to...

BETWEEN THE BARLINES!

I actually didn't come up with this myself, I hasten to add. xXLadyBugXx suggested it back at the end of December, thank you so much! I simply cannot believe that I have left you all without a Music at Musings Between The Barlines for three entire months, so this is going to be a good one! Shall we get started? Yep! Yahoo!

The Beatles - You've Got To Hide Your Love Away



So I was going to include Eleanor Rigby, but I want to keep this first Between The Barlines a fairly cheerful one, so that's for next time. What? This song isn't cheerful at all? But there's a flute! And a tambourine! Oh, never mind. It's still a brilliant song. Great lyrics too.

Morrissey - In The Future When All's Well



So, this song has been rattling around in my head in the past while. Rattling? That sounds unpleasant. Let me do that again.
So, this song has been floating around in my head in the past while, and I daresay it'll be there for a long time yet. (AAAAAAAAAH EXCITEMENT) In my opinion, In The Future When All's Well sounds very sad, as it doesn't feel that Morrissey thinks he's going to get his lovely future. But he's still hopeful enough to sing about it, which is nice. (Eleanor, you've outdone yourself. That is the most meaningful thing you've probably written in a Music at Musings Between the Barlines. Well done.) Oh, thank you! You're so nice.

Treefight for Sunlight - Facing the Sun



What a lovely video. First there's a lot of twenty-somethings running around, and fair play to them, they don't seem to get tired at all. Ah, they look so happy. Then they run into a forest and then there's a caravan and OH MY GOD THE CARAVAN IS FLYING AND THIS IS A FANTASTIC SONG AND WOW WOW WOW

Gypsy & The Cat - The Piper's Song



This song makes me feel very happy and relaxed, and is really great now we're in spring, and conjures up images of dancing in fields in long swishy dresses under a warm sun and a blue sky. While a piper pipes. Come on. Don't tell me you're foot's not tapping or your head's not bopping listening to this. I dare you.

Sleigh Bells - Riot Rhythm




This is the new single from Sleigh Bells' album Treats (brilliant, by the way) and I am awfully glad they decided to release it, as I think it is very good. And that is all I am going to say on the matter. I am going to leave you to form your own opinions on the matter, as I never let you do that, and here I am, doing it now. You're welcome.

Well, that's all we've got time for this week! Lock the doors, turn off the lights, and sleep tight. (Heh heh heh)

Eleanor Roscuro