The most wonderful man.

This man can do no wrong. I have to say though, he's stalking me, everywhere I turn he's right there, beside me, in a magazine, an advertisement, a movie.

I think this means something. It's fate. We're meant to be.

Girl Crushing

For a long time I’ve truly admired Amy Huberman, she’s funny, smart, pursuing her dreams, talented, married to Ireland’s golden boy and of course, the most important factor, she’s Irish. 

Wearing green? She must be Irish

My obsession with Amy peaked initially when she was in The Clinic, an Irish television show about, surprisingly, a Health Clinic in Dublin. In The Clinic she was quirky, funny and of course, gorgeous, and therefore made a huge impression on a young girl such as myself. 

Daisy..

However, my obsession waned when I got a bit older and she stole my husband out from underneath me by marrying Golden Boy Brian O Driscoll. As a moody teenager I decided she “wasn’t all that great anyway” and stopped obsessing.

Amy with my husband.. it's so awkward.

Lately, however, my obsession (that sounds so creepy, we’ll use the word “interest” instead I think), my interest has reared it’s head again. I recently followed her on Twitter and I’m quite taken aback at just how entertaining she is, I follow a lot of people and I can honestly say she’s one of the people whose tweets I look forward to, she’s typically Irish, quirky, satirical, sarcastic and self deprecating and I find her hilarious.

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Then, after a continued interest the past few months I began to realise that she is actually living the life I want to live. She’s an actress, who gets to write in her spare time, is married to the lovely Brian O Driscoll thus gets tickets to all the games, all the time, all while being incredibly humble, down to earth and normal. I can’t say I wouldn’t go mad if I were her.

I challenge anyone to think of a more worthy girl crush.

Plus, she always looks great. Great!

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Retail Problems

Between the stress of being able to find the perfect present, the insane queues and the fellow grumpy shoppers I can safely say that anyone who went shopping over the last few months and remained sane and filled with festive joy must be a mutant of some sort.

this was me.

After a whole festive season working in retail and dealing with everything from stressed mothers, boyfriends and Grandmothers, people attempting to stealthily skip the queue and the real sneaky customer snaring you to do all of their Christmas shopping for them while they complain about being in “the busiest store in town” (I’m not sure if they ever fully grasped that we COULDN’T just leave when we’d found what we wanted) I can safely say that despite all of the complaints I hear about us retail staff being rude and uncooperative I think there are many a thing some customers could learn from our store-etiquette.

and this was the store!

As an avid reader of many magazines I quite frequently see many “letters to the editor” complaining about staff in various stores at various levels but after a year of working in the midst of the public I feel a response is well overdue.

Let’s start nice and simple; “HEY!! YOU!! You work here.” This is in no way an acceptable way to speak to ANYONE, not even the minions that are serving you in a shop. It’s rude and wouldn’t entice anyone to be courteous and helpful, despite their job description.

seriously

If you ask a member of staff to get you another size blazer, be patient, you’re more than likely the fourth in a long line of people they’re currently trying to source sizes for. The nicer you are the faster you’ll get it, trust me. If the employee comes back and unfortunately, there is no size the polite thing to do is thank them and walk away. If you turn around and demand one of their colleagues attempt to find it I can guarantee you said colleague will walk into the back of the store and not even attempt to look.

in the nicest way possible

I can tell you now that any frantic, rushing customers or long, winding queues are, in no way, the fault of the poor Retail Assistants and I can also tell you that aggressively complaining to them about how hectic the shop is will ensure you get a frosty encounter. No matter how busy it is always remember, you get to leave once you get through that queue. We don’t.

Now, to the pinnacle of my irritation, the bane of my life, sitting on registers watching other people spend money we don’t have on clothes we wouldn’t mind having in our wardrobes is not how we all imagined our Saturdays would be when we were younger, believe it or not, so when customers come up and are so irritatingly rude it could push you over the edge it breaks my heart and has been known to make one or two of my colleagues have to take a break.

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When you approach the till TAKE OFF YOUR SUNGLASSES!!! There’s no need. None. It’s rude. It gives the impression that you deem us so far below you that you don’t even need to take your glasses off to greet us.

We understand that sometimes you forget a size or pick the wrong one up and we’re more than happy to go and find the right one for you if you’re POLITE. If you come up and demand we find a size for you with no apology or humility in your voice I can, again, guarantee you will not be getting that size.

please

Finally, there’s no need to start a long conversation, although sometimes it’s nice and can be the only thing that keeps your day going, but say hello, goodbye and thank you, it’s common courtesy, and if you’re not gonna talk to us do not be surprised when we turn and talk to our neighbours to avoid the awkwardness.

In essence, if you maintain your common decency and respect for people when you enter a retail store I assure you that both you and the Retail Assistant will have a much nicer shopping experience and believe me, you’ll come out of the store with everything you requested if you smile and say please.

We’re not so hard to please!

Budapest

The place I have visited most recently is Budapest, Budapest is the capital and the largest city of Hungary, the largest in East-Central Europe and the seventh largest in the European Union.

Budapest is a fabulous city that had a surprisingly long lasting effect on me. My expectations were that of an old fashioned city living somewhat in the past with very Eastern European tendencies. I was dumbfounded when I arrived. Budapest is an amazing city, it's old fashioned, yet cosmopolitan, traditional, yet modern, refined, yet absolutely crazy!

My friend and I went over to visit one of my other friends who is living and studying there, with half of the Irish student population! Despite the questionable graffiti and designs on the wall all the way from the airport we were over whelmed when we reached her apartment. Everywhere in Budapest seems to have it's own little square that makes it feel like you're the only person in the city despite the fact that this could not be further from the truth. 

            

We initially strolled through the tree lined streets and visited the "Heroes Square", a must for anyone visiting. While it is quite a big city the streets are laid down in a way that would make it impossible to get lost. Most people in Budapest are very well put together and most of the time look like they're on a mission, this was extremely endearing for us, two green girls from Ireland!

If you're ever in Budapest, you simply cannot go and not go to the "baths" at least once, they are thermal healing baths, there's baths inside and outside, some are heated and some aren't and while there was a questionable smell coming from one of the baths (think your Sunday morning fry) it is a must see and my friends and I really enjoyed it. Another essential is, as cliché and touristy as it is, the bus tour, I know all the die hard travellers are hanging their heads in shame for me now but it was just the best thing we could have done, it brought us to both Buda and Pest and explained the history, you could hop on and off whenever you like and there's no way we would have seen as much without it.

The food, oh, the glorious food, if you're a foodie, a picky eater or you just love eating, you've come to the right place, from an Italian restaurant that cooks your meal right in front of you to the many Hummous Bars, you will find something you adore and want to return to again and again. For me, I discovered Sushi, after a long day being a tourist we ordered in Sushi, I was apprehensive, being a Sushi virgin but my God, it was heaven in my mouth, and that's pretty much the reaction we had to all the food we ate there. The café culture is huge over there, massive! Over the summer months there is always tables out front of the cafés and swarms of people surrounding them, it's soothing, in a way, and it's a beautiful way to break up the day!

From the amazing food to the crazy nightlife, chilling beside the amazing Danube and exploring the castle and Hungarian parliament, there's something in Budapest for everyone and I'd advise you go book your tickets RIGHT NOW!! 

Ps. With the currency exchange shopping is blissfully guilt free!

^ This was written on the back of a door in a club.. Imagine.

The Best Christmas Movies Ever*

Love Actually

This beautiful story about love being an ever present presence in our lives has warmed the hearts of everyone since it's release in 2003. With an array of characters all related, loosely related or not related at all merely settled in London it shows us that Love is all around, particularly at Christmas time :) How could anyone resist the emotional, heart wrenching moment when Mark reveals to Julie that he loves her!

yes.

"Whenever I get gloomy with the state of the world, I think about the arrivals gate at Heathrow Airport. General opinion's starting to make out that we live in a world of hatred and greed, but I don't see that. It seems to me that love is everywhere. Often, it's not particularly dignified or newsworthy, but it's always there - fathers and sons, mothers and daughters, husbands and wives, boyfriends, girlfriends, old friends. When the planes hit the Twin Towers, as far as I know, none of the phone calls from the people on board were messages of hate or revenge - they were all messages of love. If you look for it, I've got a sneaking suspicion... love actually is all around." 

The Santa Clause

THE CLASSIC MOVIE!! Everyone has to have seen this, at least, once a year since they were old enough to enjoy Christmas. The intertwining of the the serious issues involved in Scott Calvin's "non-elf" family combined with the problems created in the North Pole by a lack of belief and Christmas spirit is probably one of the most beautiful storylines that will immerse everyone in the belief that Santa truly does exist.

Not too hot. 

Extra chocolate. Shaken, not stirred.

Elf

Considering Elf is only a recent release the fact that it has made it's way onto a lot of "Best of..." lists is a truly wonderful feat, nothing less though for a truly wonderful movie. Similar to The Santa Clause it intertwines relatable familial problems along with problems in the North Pole, all the while with Elf, played by Will Ferrel, keeping the momentum going and stopping the story lines getting too emotional and serious. A perfect accompianant to a wintery evening.

 Buddy the Elf, what's your favorite color?

Home Alone

Home Alone creates every tweens dream, being left alone, with no parent, endless movies and Christmas food. However, for Kevin, the dream is short lived when some local criminals try and get into his house and steal his golden possessions. This is, also, a Christmas classic, a must watch every year. Kevin's attempt at thwarting the criminals efforts makes for hilarious viewing and spreads joy and Christmas cheer!

Keevvvviiiinnn

It's a Wonderful Life

My absolute favourite movie to watch at Christmas Time.. It's full of Christmassy cheer and life affirming reiterations, after a bit of depression of course.The sentimental story about George Bailey brings George back from the brink of suicidal despair to discover how wonderful his life truly is, all with the help of the angel, Clarence. This movie, for me, is Christmas!

What is it you want, Mary? What do you want? You want the moon? Just say the word and I'll throw a lasso around it and pull it down. Hey. That's a pretty good idea. I'll give you the moon, Mary. 

*disclaimer: One hundred percent my opinion, no fancy surveys involved!

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Sometimes, when you're tired a good picture is all you need to keep yourself going.

Inspiration.

My friend has being persistently dogging me for a "personal post all about her". For ages I was trying to think  of something that wasn't too sentimental but would still satisfy her innate desire for me to love her (she's pretty needy)... It was a difficult task so, eventually, I decided to give up. Then, a few days ago I met her and she, again, asked me where it was, I attempted to fob her off but it was unsuccessful (she's also irritatingly persistent) so, I've decided, she deserves it. I've also decided that now is the perfect time to do it cause she's currently struggling to get through exams and I've never seen her quite this apprehensive!

So, in the name of cheering her up...

Reasons Rachel's Great.

I met Rachel about two years ago, the details are foggy, all we're fully aware of is that the reason we bonded quite fast was our intense hatred of pretty much everyone bar each other. This is one of the reasons I enjoy her presence quite a lot; there are very few people who can actually relate to my occasional hatred of everyone and everything. (when I say occasional I mean frequent).

                                         

I'm quite a funny person, I personally think I'm hilarious, not everyone agrees with me, however, when I've done good and been really funny Rach appreciates it more than anyone! She frequently gets tears in her eyes when she's laughing (surprisingly not always at me) and this always makes me, and everyone else, laugh even harder, thus making her one of the best people to be around.

She retweets my tweets quite a bit (again, because I'm hilarious) and when she knows I'm feeling rough or annoyed at something, or someone, she always gives me two x's at the end of our texts/tweets/whatsapps/vibers whatever. 

Despite the fact that I'm the funny one, sometimes, she makes me laugh so hard I nearly wet myself. Attractive, I know.

                                   

                 

Her life is a series of continuous disasters and she has no problem sharing it with everyone, everything from her family to study and her drunken antics. Nothing is a taboo topic and if she thinks you'll enjoy the story she'll make sure you hear about it, I appreciate that kinda stuff.

I text her the last day about very minimal advancements in a relationship I may or may not be having with a member of the opposite sex(seriously, no one knows if we're having it or not, not even us) and despite the fact that it was extremely minimal, not a big deal at all and her recent antics have been much more impressive, she got genuinely excited for me. She's nice like that. 

                                           

She's extremely intelligent and she works hard despite the fact that she doesn't really need to. If she wants something she'll stop at nothing to get it. Her determination is admirable. She's a really good friend and will always follow her own mind and go by what she thinks is right, not by what everyone else is telling her is right. She has her own mind, which these days is hard to come across. Even when she's having an extremely bad day she'll take time out of her day if you need her. Most of all, she truly believes in me and everyone else around her, she believes that I'll get where I want to be and be happy and at the end of the day, all you need is someone who believes in you and pushes you to go for what you want. (and is funny... and nice.. and caring)

All of this stuff put together equates to one of the most inspiring and motivational girls I know. She does what she wants, when she wants, how she wants. She follows her dreams and believes that everyone else should too.

Simple really?

                                       

(This post is extremely sentimental in the name of a friend, it will probably not happen again.)