Tuesday, August 31, 2010

wedding love.

so this post is a bit delayed and as i get into the swing of school again. i promise i will start posting more art and design goodies because i'm sure i will be glued to my computer even more then ever this year!

if anyone knows much about me at all they know i am absolutely in love with weddings. last night i got the chance to see all of the photos from an awesome wedding i attended the day i came home from ireland. my two friends marie and jeremy got married and their photos are as wonderful as they are! such a fun couple that is just so in love and their photographer did some amazing work.
(check out his blog here)


congrats you two!



love.

Sunday, August 22, 2010

summer fun

this is how i spent my sunday afternoon :)

slip n' sliding with the awesome people i work with complete with a plethora of good food and a few strawberry blonde ales. it was the perfect summer day and even though i'll miss this season when its over, i'm excited for the fall.

now im spending the rest of the evening with a new cookie recipe and movies with some of my favorite boys. (here's the recipe, i'll post pictures tomorrow if they turn out!)

Saturday, August 21, 2010

ambitions

in the spirit of finally unpacking my new apartment. a list of a few ambitions for this upcoming year...

1. don't stress over things out of my control. (this is a big one!)
2. try not to lose/break all my technological items so often
3. take more photographs
3 1/2.^ that includes film! and get it developed!
4. learn to cook! i'm talking oodles and oodles of recipes. this website will probably become my best friend.
5. keep making more and more art every day.
6. share that art with friends.
7. cross one thing off the "101 small pleasures list" daily!
8. make rhubarb jam
9. start pen-paling with my host moms and my oregon friends.
10. save up for the ultimate summer roadtrip
11. enter at least one show.
12. do wonderful things with the AIGA group
13. get an internship
14. enjoy my last year as a college student! (it's been almost 4 years? really?)
...and the list goes on and on...


on a side note: i had breakfast with pat and my our joanne today, who spent the summer in china! we compared lovely stories of our abroad experiences and it was so nice to catch up. she also gave me this beautiful scarf which i absolutely adore! thanks jojo you're the best.


i'm off to get some work done. then later drinks and appetizers with pat's parents who are visiting for the weekend! have a great saturday night everyone.

pomplamoose

i have to thank my roommate pat for introducing me to this duet. i love their covers and today they're getting me through my to-do list and finally unpacking the rest of my apartment!

ps. i'm sorry for not posting much lately, i have been crazy busy working every day. i promise to bring you a few more goodies soon!

Monday, August 16, 2010

dresses and boots

i love creative wedding outfits. especially brides with the same boots as me.

photos like this are just so wonderful.
http://whimsicalwonderlandweddings.blogspot.com/2010/08/red-purple-cowboy-boots-wedding-in.html

michigan love


loving on my state (or any other state for that matter!) with these adorable pillows!
i saw them on one of my favorite blogs today poppytalk and now i can't stop looking through all of love, california's etsy products.

check out her other stuff here!
http://www.etsy.com/shop/lovecalifornia?ref=top_trail

Friday, August 13, 2010

its the 13th.

happy 23rd birthday boyfriend.i hope you get everything you wished for.

Friday, August 6, 2010

something corporate

i get to see these boys tonight. their first tour in years! cannot wait, this picture used to plaster my computer background haha.



ps. if they play this song i will freak out.

Thursday, August 5, 2010

goodbye ireland

for those who say we never take pics in the classroom during study abroad ;)

at long last, 5 weeks later it was time for us "studious americans" to say goodbye to the country we loved. it was an amazing trip, filled with insightful movies, lots of history and mythology lessons, field trips, sight-seeing, weekend tours, and so much more. we learned together, learned from each other, and from the country we called home this past month. i can truly say this was one of the best experiences of my life. between the busyness of the city and the magical countryside, i would go back in a heartbeat. so as our journey came to a close we parted ways for the last time.

we had drinks on the pier for the last time.
we had our last big night out.
we danced in the middle of the street.we ate mystery candy.



we sang, we laughed, we cried.

for some of the best people i have ever met, you will always have a place in my heart.

we embraced a few group hugs.
we shared our last walk home.and around 5 am i walked to the bus stop for the last time.
goodbye foxrock bridge. goodbye dun laoghaire.
goodbye ireland, i will never forget you.

kilmainham gaol

our final excursion as one big class was a visit to the Kilmainham Gaol, an old prison used to house over the years a number of theives during the great potato famine and later the main prison for those who took part in war for independence. this included all of the leaders of the 1916 Easter Rising. fifteen were executed between may 3rd and may 12th. we got to see the majority of their holding cells while they spent time here.

the entire experience was very eerie. it was very cold and dark and you can just imagine the conditions both men, women, and children would have had to face while in here. i got such a vibe, especially out in the courtyard where you stood right where all of the leaders were shot and killed. these men died for the independence of their country and it is so crazy to me that their is still fighting, for the same reason these men fought so many years ago, going on today in northern ireland.

front entrance, used to be used as a courtyard for public hangings.

catholic chapel (there was a protestant one upstairs as well)

hole used to pass through food or odd job items to keep the prisoners busy.
inside a typical cell.
inside the main corridors.
Eamon D. Valera's cell. one of the few leaders of the rebellion that was not sentenced to death. he later became the first president of the new Republic of Ireland.
commemorating the leaders and the days they were killed.
the spot the leaders were executed.


inside the museum:
cartoons the prisoners drew.
"Its said for me, loved wife, my life is remembered by yours now darling. I am drawing nearer and nearer to god. that good god who died for us, you and I love, and our children, and our children's children. God and his beloved mother again and again. Bless and protect you oh Saviour of mine. If my dear ones could die and enter heaven with me how blessed and happy I would they would be away from the cares and trials of the world. Now, my little one, be a nun. and Joseph my little man, be a priest. If you can James and John to you the care of your mother, make yourselves good strong men for her sake and remember Ireland. Good bye my wife, my darling. Remember me, God again bless and protect yours and our children. I must now prepare the last few hours must be spent with God alone. Your loving husband, Michael Mallin Commander-Stephens Green Command."

inside the museum we got to see many different displays filled with a number of letters and items of the prisoners themselves. one of the leaders, michael mallin, wrote this, his last letter to his wife and children. of all of the things i saw that day this touched me the most, i have never read a more heart-wrenching letter in my life. there was a few more including a marriage proposal and a letter written by a 17 year old boy to his mother. the very last thing he wrote after his signature simply stated "I am to die for Ireland"

Wednesday, August 4, 2010

Ceile step dancing.

a huge part of irish culture is that of the traditional song and dance. as a social activity one night we decided to partake in an irish step dancing class, known as a ceile. despite not knowing anything about the various steps, we payed attention and in the end it started to catch on! my friend aaron was my faithful partner through the whole night and despite how sweaty and tired we were when it was finished it was so fun to learn!

circle dancing.
our awesome band for the evening.

because of how much fun we had, the group invited us back the next tuesday night to watch one of their performances! the musicians were amazing and the show was a perfect mix of fast, slow, dancing, and music. and once the show ended we had a little one on one session with the group complete with tea and scones afterwards.




the violinists were spectacular.
the hurling dance!


downstairs after the show
chosen to volunteer to dance :)

"every girl needs a little black drink"


well i made it back to the states. the land of red, white, and blue. i know there was a huge gap in entries due to final exams, papers, and making the most of my last few days in ireland. there was a few events that i never got the chance to blog about though so even though im home, i plan on wrapping up the trip with a few last pictures and thoughts. so enjoy!

first off...beer, beer, and more beer. we decided as a group that a little trip to the guinness factory while we were here was a necessity. i'm not the biggest fan of the stout but trust me, it is so much better here in ireland than back at home. this exhibit was amazing however! the exhibit design was one of the best i have ever seen. it was a walking tour so a lot of reading on your own but really informative and the storehouse itself was huge! with our ticket price we also recieved either a chance to learn to pour our own perfect pint or get a drink at the sky bar. the majority of us chose the pouring option but we snuck up to the sky bar for a peak around anyway.

tickets.


ingredients:

did you know guinness must be served in a special-shaped glass? there are also two different pours, the first with the tap flipped towards you pouring at a 90 degree angle. then once it has settled you top it off with the tap flipped away from you. it is also served at 6 degrees celsius, give or take a few.
practice makes perfect!

a round!
awesome view.

sticking with the alcoholic beverage theme...a few weeks later, as one of our group excursions, we took a guided tour of the jameson distillery. now i have never had whiskey so this was completely new to me! i must admit, they did a good job making it look quite appetizing. i learned that jameson is distilled 3 times, while most scotch whiskeys are done twice and american whiskeys, such as jack daniels, only once. this was truly a skill, usually kept within a family, to work in one of the jameson factories. we even got to see examples of the way the color changes over time and a few members of the group got to be taste-testers as well.

jameson irish whiskey barells!

in the end, just like with guinness, we all got a complimentary drink. i chose mine with ginger-ale but you could also mix with coke, cranberry juice, or if you were tough enough..straight up!
good friends and good whiskey.



slainte! (aka cheers!)