English Paper I… No study required.
A phrase I frequently use, to the annoyance of my English teacher.
That said, I have it tomorrow and I’m a bit on the nervous side…

So. Here we are. The Mocks are upon us. Could somebody explain to me how it is time works at a faster rate in 6th year? Did I miss the memo?
It seems like only last week when the teachers were barking   “The mock examinations begin in 4 weeks so heads down” etc..
WHERE HAS THE TIME GONE?
This week I have finally started… You’ve guessed it… Studying.
The mocks are a lost cause.  But at least I’ve started. And ah sure.. Aren’t they only the mocks?

I seem to have developed some sort of writer’s block… Seeing as I intend to write the short story tomorrow, this could be a slight problem…
Anyone have any general plot ideas or a writing prompt they’d like to throw my way?

Who knows, I may actually post more from now on… Anything could happen right?

- Ash

“Remember to always be yourself. Unless you suck.”
Joss Whedon

So I just filled in my CAO.
By putting courses into a hat and picking them out.
And until I have a notion of what I want to do, they’re staying that way.
I don’t even know what course is my first choice as I didn’t pay attention.
Story with my lack of motivation?

An actual blog soon,
-Ash

And no…I’m really not joking.

My ability to update is truly amazing. I’m back again. Wahey.

This past month has been insane. Parent teacher meetings, Panic attacks in maths exams, study plans being sent home, procrastination, CriminalMindsTime, and a whole lot of homework.

In terms of study… I seem to lack the concentration and focus. So that 4 hour study a day thing they keep throwing at me is going swimmingly.

Organisation is where I fall down. And “organisation is key”.  Apparently.
My organisation has gone from really trying at the start of the year to pages flying all over the place now. As far as time management goes, the only time I appear to be managing is the slot between 11 and 12. CriminalMindsTime.
Everynight,  As if it’s a compulsion, I am in front of the television, watching Criminal Minds on Living tv. I’ve seem them all before…But I still watch everynight. At the first adbreak, I make tea and if I’m feeling a tad wild I break out the cookies.  Same for the third ad break.  CrimMindsTime is a silent activity. It shouldn’t be interupted. Unless that interuption is “Would you like a cup of tea and a biscuit?”. I actually think if I could follow a study timetable the way I do for this one slot, I would be a frickin’ genius.

Besides all that, recently I’ve been getting back into something I love. Quotes. I have a strange interest in quotes. I make lists of them and so on. Recently I’ve been looking up a lot of quotes to do with success, the future, life and so on. Because apparently, All that stuff is super important to think of in 6th year. No pressure on us though.
I’ve also been reading a fair amount. I tend to write out passages and quotes that I really like from books I read too.
So anyway…
I was wondering if anyone here had any favourite quotes they’d be willing to share in comments? I’m sure I’ve seen some bloggers use random quotes in their posts.

I think I shall write some of my recent favourites below .  Maybe someone other than myself at 4.53am will think them interesting.
(There will probably be a good few from a book called “Looking For Alaska”.  If you can get a copy, Read it. )

“If you don’t know where you are going, any road will get you there.”
- Lewis Carroll

“Success is going from failure to failure without losing enthusiasm.”
- Winston Churchill

“When adults say, “Teenagers think they are invincible” with that sly, stupid smile on their faces, they don’t know how right they are. We need never be hopeless, because we can never be irreparably broken. We think that we are invincible because we are. We cannot be born, and we cannot die. Like all energy, we can only change shapes and sizes and manifestations. They forget that when they get old. They get scared of losing and failing. But that part of us greater than the sum of our parts cannot begin and cannot end, and so it cannot fail”
- John Green (Looking For Alaska)

“So I walked back to my room and collapsed on the bottom bunk, thinking that if people were rain, I was drizzle and she was a hurricane.”
- John Green (Looking for Alaska)

I really am loving that last one
Quotes in comments? Now if only I could apply the same enthusiasm to the leaving cert.

’til next time (whenever that will be),

- Ash

“There’s always time for a nice cup of tea. Sure, didn’t the Lord himself pause for a nice cup of tea before giving himself up for the world.”  - Mrs Doyle (Father Ted)

I strongly believe that the more stressed one becomes, the more tea one needs. Now I’ve always had a bit of an adoration for the beverage, but this week has been ridiculous. I find myself craving tea throughout the day. Half way through after school study all I can think of is going home to a nice cup of tea.  I’ll do 30 minutes of homework then its off I go to the kitchen for a tea break and a biscuit. Even tonight I craved tea the whole journey home. I came home to find an empty house and freddos on the kitchen table. Party over here. So I’m writing this eating a freddo and drinking even more tea. 4th cup of the day infact.
Random thought: Whatever happened to Taz bars? Hm…

I reckon all this tea drinking is related to the stress of my week.  This week was just tiring. We only had a four day week and I’m still wrecked. I also helped out for my last ever open night. Weird feeling in a way.
This week just dragged in. And left a weekend of assignments in its wake. I got most of my biology homework done on Thursday. But I still have so much homework due Monday and at least 2 tests every day til Thursday. I think… Really should check that out..

I spent a fair amount of Friday evening going through all the information I got at Higher Options last week. The future looks scary. Eeny meeny miny mo may not cut it for this decision in life… Too many variables.
Is anyone else a little terrified anytime they even look at their CAO booklet? Maybe thats just me…
And another question, Anyone going to the open day in NUI Galway at the weekend?  I’m wondering if I should…

And finally, a little story about something that made my week this week.  On Tuesday, We had our open night. I was a guide and was showing people around the school. We got to the language room. I was talking to my German teacher when I spotted a box of Harry Potter books behind her. I asked if they were the books in German.  She checked and said that they were in French which was a shame because she’d have loaned me the German ones. Next day in school, She was asking around for me. Found me at the end of the day and handed me the first Harry Potter book in German. She had gone home and looked for it to loan to me.  I just thought that was so thoughtful and kind. I’m really quite excited about it. I’ve been translating it using the English version for a few days. I now actually enjoy German :)

Today, I had a really good day with my favourite person , and I barely thought of all the assignments and study (and tea) that awaits me tomorrow. Thats what Sundays are for right?  Tea powered cramming?

Speaking of tea, I need another cup.
- Ash

13.40 on a Monday afternoon. Careers class. Sitting in the computer room and “looking up college courses”.

This translates as playing games online, listening to music, or in my case writing up a blog.
I started by trying to look up courses or careers or anything I might be interested in, only to discover that I have no idea what I want to do with my life or for the next four years of it.
I then moved on to firing a kitten out of a cannon.  (Google Kitten Cannon. Now.)

Hello, my name is Ash. I’m seventeen, a sixth year student, every time think of the CAO or College etc. I consider running away and joining the circus,
And today, at ten minutes to one,I finally grasped the concept of balancing a redox equation in chemistry.

Now, Some of you will think that is really no big deal, But if you could see me in chemistry class,You’d applaud. Really, You would.

The above was all written yesterday. Our year had a study day as half the students were off on a geography trip. This left the rest of us sitting in a too cold classroom, ploughing through homework assignments, attempting to study, or highlighting and colour coding timetables.
I was quite content. Flicking through a history book, listening to my ipod, relaxing after the weekend.
But then, I learned we had a revision chemistry class. I grumbled and complained the entire walk down four flights of stairs and outside in the cold to the lab.
I hate chemistry. Or rather, I’m absolutely terrible at chemistry. But during that class, finally, after I dont know how long, something clicked.
I’m actually quite proud.

Today, after yesterday’s study day and after struggling through questions on Wordsworth in after school study, I wake up sick.
So, I’m not even in school to hand my answers up. I am, however, in my warm bed with a laptop and my 4th mug of tea.
So here, have an overly long introduction.

Yes. So…The Leaving Cert 2011. Oh, the excitement.
The subjects I’m taking are:
- English (H)
- Irish (O)
- Maths (H)
- Biology (H)

- Chemistry (H)
- History (H)
- German (H)

I have a few vague ideas of what I want to do after all of this leaving cert business. Well…sort of. But hey, Its graaand. And if all fails I’ll simply revert to using “Eeny, meeny, miny, moe” to make my decisions.
It worked when we were ten right?
Where am I going? Nowhere fast.

Til next time,
- Ash