Girls are crazy

I admit it, I'm all little bit nuts.  But I think we all are.  While me and Aaron were discussing yet another thing I was nitpicking about because I am just a pain in the arse, I decided to compile a list of things I do that probably annoy the heck out of my boyfriend.  But I'm hoping I'm not the only one and girls everywhere can relate.

1.) Pillows and cushions.  I dunno what it is, I love cushions.  Every morning our bed is made with literally 6 pillows and a mountain of cushions.  And every evening half of that is shoved on the floor in an attempt to make room for us to actually sleep.  And so the process continues.

2.) Hair. I shed hair everywhere. I apologise. How I'm not bald at this point is beyond me because I seem to lose a tonne of hair. Particularly in the shower. Sorry.

3.) Slowly filtering your hoodies from your side of the wardrobe to mine.  They're just so damn comfy.  But we live together so it's not like you'll never see them again so that's completely fine.

4.) Complaining about how deaf you are when you don't hear what I say when I'm in the kitchen, probably using a blender or some other loud piece of equipment and you're in a completely different room.  Woops.

5.) Saying I don't want food but then eating half of yours anyway.  On a related note, my tendency to eat in bed and get crumbs everywhere because I am like a toddler when it comes to food. And then we wake up feeling like chicken croutons, all rolled in crumbs.

6.) Saying "No, no I don't mind, go out with your friends" then bringing it up 2 months later cause I'm still slightly pissed about it. Also in relation to this, hating on your friends for encouraging your bad habits, but getting offended if you say one word against any of mine.  Like back up buddy, those are my girls.  Lay off.

7.) Taking an eternity to get ready to go out. My hair has a mind of its own, it takes time to tame it. But then I'll start complaining I have to wait for you to get ready when you don't have your shoes on the moment I'm finally ready to leave the house.

8.) Buying clothes that I wear once, or potentially not at all. Online shopping is an addiction. I spend obscene amounts of money on clothes and it really needs to stop.

9.) Saying I'm gonna start eating healthy, exercising, going to the gym, running, cycling, whatever. And it literally lasts two days before we're back at KFC.

10.) Getting sassy over Monopoly. I'm not competitive... unless I'm losing.

BUT IN MY DEFENCE, boys do some really strange and annoying things as well. I apologise for being a nuisance.  Sometimes I wonder why you even put up with me.

UL Campus

Week eleven of semester starts tomorrow! Where has this semester gone? While there was a break in the rain today (Sunday 15 November) I decided to walk around the campus here at UL and take some photos and videos so the people at home can see where I studied this semester.

There are some pretty unique looking buildings at UL, particularly some of the newer buildings on the other side of the pedestrian living bridge to the main campus.

This is where I live, Plassey Village.  Plassey is one of the on campus accommodation options here at UL, located across the road from the main entrance to campus.  My house has 8 residents who have access to 2 bathroom and one kitchen/living facility.  My housemates this semester come from France, America, Canada, Germany and Finland.

The UL flag poles located at the campus entry.

The Schuman Building where I have classes for Irish Politics and Human Resource Management.

One of the walking paths located near the campus.

The Pedestrian Living Bridge.  This is the longest pedestrian bridge in Ireland.

The Health Sciences Building

The Graduate Entry Medical School where I have lectures for Irish history.

Plassey House.

The walk back to Plassey Village.

As you can see UL is a large a beautiful campus which creates a really nice study environment.

Medieval Tour

Today (Saturday 7 November) I participated in another International Society trip, this time taking in some of the medieval sites nearby including Athassel Priory and the Rock of Cashel, Co.Tipperary and Kilkenny City, Co. Kilkenny.

Athassel Priory - Ireland's largest medieval priory dates back to the 12th century.

The medieval town of Cashel is overlooked by the Rock of Cashel.  Parts of the structure atop the rock including the round tower pictured date back to the 12th century.  Other parts of the structure including the cathedral and chapel were added in subsequent centuries.  The rock was the traditional seat of the Kings of Munster for hundreds of years.

We then left co. Tipperary and travelled to Kilkenny city.

Kilkenny Castle offers an interesting and informative tour of the building which I would recommend to anyone in the area.  The castle was originally built for William Marshall, 4th Earl of Pembroke in the first decade of the thirteenth century.  Later the Butler family resided in the castle as their primary Irish resident for almost 600 years.  The property was purchased by James, 3rd Earl of Ormond in c.1391.  In 1967 Arthur, 6th Marquess of Ormonde presented the castle to the people of Kilkenny for a token payment.  It has since been in the care of the Office of Public works with many programmes of archaeological excavation, conservation and restoration taking place.

Photography is prohibited inside the castle, but the exquisite interiors are truly beautiful. The formal dining room in particular is spectacular, as is the gallery which holds the portraits of the Butler family.  The gallery room is around 45 metres in length, has intricately painted ceilings and walls lined with massive paintings.  Many of the Butler family works were sold as the family encountered financial trouble, so you can only imagine how the room once looked when entirely full of portraits.

The medieval history of Ireland is really intriguing, particularly as I am a history student.  And even more so because I come from New Zealand, a country younger then the sites I visited today.