How often do we think of our future? Or rather, dream about our future? Probably far too often. You more than likely spend a lot of time drifting off in Double Biology imagining holding a degree in French Law, how many children you’ll have, or maybe you just contemplate what you’ll be having for lunch that day? Whatever the case, how many of you actually spend your valuable time thinking of nothing, but just enjoying the present you’re living in?
This year will be the last year most of you will spend in a secondary school. Usually we are so caught up in the stress of exams, the worry of results, and the prospects of college that we lose sight of what is in front of our very eyes: the last time we will ever be in sixth year in a secondary school. If I could go back (and let me assure you that nothing would prevent me from going back if I could) I would tell all of those that have meant something to me over the past six years the significance of their role in my life. Where would I be now had I not known them? And more importantly, who would I be now? The majority of us become our friends, and they; us, so how would my life be different now had I not been friends with them then? Its really now that I ask this question that I realise the absolute importance to cherish the time we have with those around us. Far too often it becomes too late and we forget to remember those that are right before our eyes.
Exams will happen. College will happen. Friends such as the ones you know now may never happen again. So celebrate the friendship: laugh, cry, get ridiculously drunk, eat copius bags of chocolate, watch the latest weepie because you know only your best friends will watch it with you, laugh some more, spend a ferocious amount of money on THE DRESS (the one that only comes second to the one you will wear when you marry), spend a half an hour styling the short hair that you tell everybody you don’t straighten but know that they know you do, kiss girls, kiss boys, break girls’ hearts, break boys’ hearts, take comfort in your friends’ arms when you have your heart broken, sing even if you “cannot” sing, dance even though you know that we know you “cannot”, gossip, whisper, shout, be bold, be bad, be good, be helpful, be careful, be honest, be happy, help each other through the stress and strain of the Leaving Cert year, guide each other on the way to college, and tell them that you will never ever forget them even if you do lose touch because, above all, losing touch will happen.
Au revoir, mes amis,
Ian
P.S.: I hope you all did brilliantly (are doing brilliantly) in your mocks. I decided that I’d post a blog after most of them are over. Happy Valentine’s Day (I hate commercialism!) See you soon!
I hope you’re planning on being a writer..
Eimear
14 Feb 10 at 2:09 pm
Why is that Eimear? Lol Thank you, that is the dream, but its a very tough business!!!! Lol Maybe in another world lol!
Hope you liked it!!
Ian
14 Feb 10 at 2:14 pm
hi,
agree with Eimear because the way write really appeals to the reader,when i was reading the blog i was actually thinking of all those things.
did you hear that only 50000 leaving cert will go to college out of 71000! if you get 350 and another get 400 the will take the 400 student,this is not fair!
anyways ,hope that will be a writer in the future and good luck !
yesmena
14 Feb 10 at 4:46 pm
Aw, thanks yesmena. Yeh, a statistic like that comes out every year but they don’t ever really take into account those that won’t want to go on to college, or those that will repeat etc Some will also take a year travelling before college but some people will always lose out, particularly in medicine and high points etc
I wouldnt worry tho, you should do well. Just keep the work up!
Ian
14 Feb 10 at 4:56 pm
but its really worrying but as you said work well and acheve the best points you can!
have you decided on the course you want?
yesmena
14 Feb 10 at 8:28 pm
Defo Arts in UCD, so 400 Max – nt too much to worry bout if I put the work in! Now I just have to decide on the subjects- so much I wanna study!!!
haha Wat about you?
Ian
14 Feb 10 at 11:29 pm
hoping for food science ucd,385 points soo i have to get at least 400 points!
yesmena
15 Feb 10 at 4:40 pm
400 shouldn b too hard! I got 300 never goin t school and never doin any work so I mean if I can add 100 to dat wi a little work and effort U’ll gt way ova 400 yesmena! Food Science huh? Some of UCD’s Science courses look deadly!
Ian
15 Feb 10 at 6:08 pm
Very, very true Ian. Well said.
Sinéad
15 Feb 10 at 6:11 pm
Cheers Sinéad! Glad u liked it!
Ian
15 Feb 10 at 6:14 pm
great,great blog Ian!
always look forward to them ^__^ so is UCD defo 1st on the CAO? 
you honestly have an exceptional talent!! i agree with eimear,every blog you write surpasses the last one
Ally
16 Feb 10 at 12:47 am
OmgGg Ian banging blog (; Yaa could totally make it being a writer:)
I spent my whole time laughing reading that blog because twas so0 totally amazing:) Its like something you’d find in a magazine or something:)
Let me guess are you going for an A1 in english?:/
<3 it
Emma
16 Feb 10 at 5:24 pm
Ally: Ah cheers! U guys are all making me blush ahaha! Yup, UCD all the way! Really hope I get it cuz I hear they have a banging Creative Writing Masters Course (obviously years away but no harm thinking bout it
) Wbu?
Emma: Hahaha Aw thanks Emma, really didn’t think it was THAT BRILL myself – its always the ones u dnt think ppl will love that they do, isn’t it? – but delighted u enjoyed it! I just hope people really enjoy their last yr in SEC SCHOOL! Yeh well an A wud b deadly but I really just want the points for UCD and I’ll b happy!
Ian
16 Feb 10 at 8:45 pm
Wow, i wonder what thatd be like,,savage i suppose!(UCD like!!)
totally illegal id say ^__^
UCD is second on the old CAO for me, RCSI first, wouldnt mind if i got into UCD instead though, it actually looks amazing, itd be great to meet other people from other courses,not just your own..:D sure we’ll see!
Id say youd get the A no bother, you sound like someone my english teacher would rob a paper off and photocopy it..she was telling us the other day that she photocopied a student’s composition (short story) they did, she loved it so much and wanted to keep it !! ha,,she’s hilarious
Ally
16 Feb 10 at 9:16 pm
Lol your teacher sounds deadly hahaha Cannot believe she did that (wonder if she got permission? Then she couldn’t be sued lol) RCSI- Wowza!!! Fair play- really hope u get it! Yeh UCD looks like the bomb for Arts students – so many subs t choose from (which is actually kind of a prob!) and all the societies! Even some of the Science and Medicinal Subs look really cool (Arts Ian, you’re going into Arts! – have to keep checking myself haha!)
Oh yeah – BEST OF LUCK in the rest of your mocks, and particularly with you HPAT!!!
Ian
16 Feb 10 at 9:28 pm
oh god no! ,that womans mad,hilarious and all as she is! omg i know:o, i spend ages on their A-Z directory, its brill,haha Thank youu !^_^
but it’ll be grand!
Hope all goes well for you too, totally deserve to get in:D GL choosing your subjects,imagine having all those to choose from:o you’ve got some hard decisions to make Ian!
Ally
16 Feb 10 at 9:39 pm
Yeh I kno lol UCD prospectus has become my fave book haha Well defo Eng, maybe Italian, French of Irish studies?….damn Sociology looks gd….oh damn! Lol
Ian
16 Feb 10 at 9:41 pm
haha,oh no!! god id hate to have to choose like that:(
or maybe thats just me:Pha,,
ha if you didnt do english,,,,man id be worried:D
italian? that’d be interesting,have you done any of it before? and French of irish studies? ive never heard of that one,,
haha my gawd ,, you know your gonna keep changing your mind
Ally
16 Feb 10 at 9:50 pm
English is a definite!!! Will seriously be doin that till I die (which cud b tomorrow so best not jinx myself!) Italian looks really interesting (as well as having some of the world’s greatest writers, painters, women etc on the module course list) French wud b gd cuz I’ve French connections and Irish Studies is the study of IRISHNESS lol (ranging from Irish language to Irish history, Irish Archeology to Irish Folklore) Looks like a really fascinating subject!!! Wbu? Decided on a specific discipline in medicine?
Ian
16 Feb 10 at 10:03 pm
oh god dont say that now:D lol
hmmm i was thinking that,,i mean,,history of art ,,,atleast european anyway,,gets its roots from Italy,,some amazing painters is right!:)
you really love languages dont you? irishness,haha,nice way to sum it up! all those honestly sound great, and i doubt you’d get bored of them,theyre so broad:D well,in the end whatever you DO choose it’ll be what you want the most obviously,,ha
well im hoping to specialise (have to get in first!) in pediatrics,dunno how this is going to sound but i love kids,ive got 3 brothers and a sister (yup im the eldest so its not always great) and ive always been working in the local childcare in summer since about 2nd year and i mean, i just love working with kids,be it any age, i can always talk to them and just…ha i dunno! its weird and totally a cliché thing to be saying but,,,yeah thats me:) Plus i love science and espesh biology,medicine just looks so perfect in my eyes. Its so mad tho,i was set on becoming a marine biologist when i was in about 5th class,i even wrote to UCC !(they have a MB centre there)..ha i ramble on a lot dont i?:D
yes pediatrics!! Lol !
Ally
16 Feb 10 at 10:14 pm
No totally understand cuz I wanna gt t college so bad its all I tk bout haha
Oh? So u have the gift? Wit children I mean loL! I think ppl in medicine are so brave, I wouldn b able t do dat lol but some ppl are made of certain mettles lol So ur family all supportive and all? How long will u b in college 4?
Ian
16 Feb 10 at 10:33 pm
oh yeah i have ‘the gift’, sounds so prestigious, yeah right =)
really?:) oh yeah both my parents are all for it,not just because theyre doctors too, i know its like if your parents are a certain profession the offspring MUST follow in their footsteps( sometimes the case),but they dont mind what i do,and its hard enough, ive seen what you have to go through,i mean the actual AMOUNT of exams my dad had to do before he became a consultant phsyc. he’d fail some and have to repeat them,,intense out like!
ill be in college for 5 years:D mad isnt it?
Ally
16 Feb 10 at 10:45 pm
Wow that is a lot o time in college haha! But I suppose if I do an Erasmus year abroad I b in college 5 yrs too! Ha I’ll b an oul man before I get out haha! Gosh ur whole family must b so smart! Is that more pressure or less pressure?
Ian
17 Feb 10 at 10:59 am
ha yeah like ill be…24/25 when im out,,,and then itll take another 5 years to get where i want to be,,,gawd..sure,ill be in my 30s then! haa..jeez:o
well,,,i might be the exception to THAT presumption…ha i dunno,,i thought it was earlier on because i didnt want to let them down,but obviously weve had an ‘aul chat bout it and theres no pressure,if i get in grand, if not who knows whats in store! Wbu? someone in your family has to have amazing writing skills,,those genes had to come from somewhere;)
Ally
17 Feb 10 at 11:35 am
Lol Actually NO! My Mam is a compulsively bad writer putting full stops mid-way through sentences and capital letters on words that should not have them haha But yeh my bros write music as well as my sis and English was the top notch subject in our family…I’m the only one that wishes to pursue it lol! Yeh know wat u mean. My older bro is amazing- he is like a genius (too intelligent lol!) but my parents just want us all to get a degree, travel and have a ball before we settle down so I intend to follow Mammy and Daddy’s wishes (mainly because it means I’ll have a LOT OF FUN doin so!) ha
I’ll prob b 30 before getting a permanent job too lol Plenty of this world to see first! My mates have been travelling all ova the world (granted they haven’t gone to college yet, but still…) One step at a time, Ian, one step at a time!
Ian
17 Feb 10 at 12:25 pm
hmm yeah i get ya,sounds like a logical plan:D
*sigh* what a place:o
lol,ditto to that! Taking every day as it is:D
The Erasmus prog. sounds like a great way to travel,,my god imagine going to italy:o not only is it historically like,,AMAZING! but you know they have produced some pretty handsome exports aswel,:D
I hear its good though, i think i mentioned in a blog about a french student who came with his girlfriend to ireland with that programme last year and like,they’ve been to all the tourist sites lol,they came to glendalough with our gaisce tour and since then they visited the cliffs of moher, Galway and Dublin…their english (and my french) totally improved cos of it,i think itd be a great experience,although im determined to see china at SOME stage in my life
Ally
17 Feb 10 at 12:45 pm
Hey Ian,
You may not know me, but I know you seeing as you went to my school and I saw you the other day talking to the music teacher.
I must say, your style of writing is very appealing. I was particularly impressed with your ability to capture the true reality of life, that we should cherish our last years in school, that there’s more to life than the ole LC. I admit, you certainly have potential to go very far in the literature field. Lol. And here I was thinking that it would be near impossible for anyone to do that if they went to our school.
Hehe. Enjoy your studies!
Ben
18 Feb 10 at 11:20 pm
Hey Ben! I may know you if I saw you
Cheers, but I must tell you A.C.C is one of the best schools in the county (take it from me, I’ve friends from every other one and have experienced some first hand!. The teachers are the best laugh as well as the best support (they get easier on you when you become a senior 
) and the preparation put into developing your future is deadly! Glad you like the blog – maybe you could become a blogger yourself next year? Or this year? What year you in?
Ian
20 Feb 10 at 12:17 am
Lol. It is. Things have changed since you left. Trust me. lol Most of my teacher are teaching at a very slow pace for subjects which have broad courses. Lol. I’m in fifth year btw. I would love to be a blogger TBH. It would do wonders for my English and seeing as I’m relying on it for precious points, I’m gonna need every bit of help I can get.
For example, we’ve only read through Hamlet and almost finished reading our first piece for our comparitive this year. In Bio, which has like 42 chapters, we’ve only fone about 11 which include some of the shortest chapters. 
Just goes to show the teacher’s inability to get through everything on time. 
Ben
20 Feb 10 at 11:54 am
Yeh, some of the teachers can move more slowly than others, particularly in 5th yr but sometimes it is only because there may b slower learners than you or ur mates in the class and they have to make sure everyone understands everything before moving on…still it is heading for March…? How ya finding Hamlet? I thought it was deadly when I read it a few years ago! I’m sure you’ll be fine- English is a gd one t gt points in as lonag as u put the effort in!
Ian
20 Feb 10 at 4:14 pm