The perks of college life :-)

Yes, that is me in the picture with 'The Man in the Hat'. Got the chance to go up to Dublin to cover a debate on assisted suicide in TCD and jumped at it! A fascinating evening with the bonus of getting a brief interview with Sir Terry and some of the other speakers. Full report should be available on sin.ie next week but the overall impression of the evening is that most of the speakers were excellent, the arguments persuasive and the moderate majority carrying the motion 'That This House Would Provide Assisted Suicide for all Adults' was reflective of the debate.

Now that this exciting event is over, it's time to get on with the serious business of essay writing and preparing for the one exam next month. Strangely enough, I don't feel too pressured because I know that I've worked steadily over the term and read constantly. It's just a matter of keeping calm, focussed and putting everything down on paper - well, screen in this technological era.

Once all this scrivening is behind me there's plenty to look forward to - my guy is coming for a visit from London and the lads have bought him tickets to a gig as his Christmas present, so that'll be my reward for hard work during the term; then it's home with the gang for a family Christmas, for which, I believe, the baking will be completed before I get there :-)

It's been a concentrated, concentrating semester. One final push and it'll be over. Hard to know whether I'll be glad to see the back of it as it's been so great. Half way to my degree already!

Time to quit procrastinating!

With the hiatus of Hallow'een over, the second half of the semester has begun with three out of five essay assignments handed out this week. How to choose between titles is the hardest part but have begun preparations by sorting out secondary sources and actually tidying my lecture notes. Was rightly accused this week of having 'too busy' a mind (thank you my wise friend) so need to get more focussed for the next month or so.

How on earth can one be focussed when so much reading is filling my mind with endless possibilities? The sunshine is another distraction and I'm missing the beaches of Mayo and the family - two and four-legged.

Was irrationally pissed at one of the grades I got for a mid-term assignment. After thinking that I'd be lucky to get a B, the B+ of 69% was irksome, to say the least. One mark off a First!!! How cruel is that? That magical glass ceiling of 70 appears to get more opaque in second year. Never mind - it gives me something to aim for.

Oh, the moral dilemma about what to do with last Friday afternoon sorted itself. Seeing as how the majority of my friends are in my Philosophy class, I joined them rather than go to the radio show on my own. We've got a trip planned that will more than make up for it - heading to Dublin on Nov 17th to TCD's debate on Assisted Suicide. One of the proposers is none other than 'The Man in the Hat' (Sir Terry Pratchett to the uninitiated) and as I'm going to be reporting the event for 'SIN', with a bit of luck I'll get to chat to him :-)

This will also make up for the fact that I'm not at IDWCon this weekend due to lack of funds. Am thinking of everyone down in Ennistymon and hope the craic is as good as in 2009. Cheerie is with you all in spirit!

Anyway, it's time to choose between Shakespeare (again) or Plato to be my companion for the day.`Or maybe I'll just spend a little time out in the fresh air first?

Procrastination, procrastination :-)