So here is 2008!
January: Ended 2007/started 2008 out right with the club up in Letterfrack, started up my second semester of classes and loved my new professor Cindy, also got to go to a lecture by one of my favourite historians - JJ Lee, a few super wet hikes, had a few crazy Thursday nights out with Kara followed by slightly hungover Friday mornings at work and abseiled off the science building on campus for charity with the club.
February: started the month out with the Sex and the City Wine night..., counted out thousands of euros because it was Ball season at work, had a completely epic hike with the club on the Reeks with 2' of snow and Curve Gully, our slight obsession with Pat Fitz (Irish singer), had the hilarious good idea/bad idea Wicklow weekend and the cloud inversion on Lugnaquilla, went to Wales to see my sister and enjoyed seeing Swansea and I also made out with the Welsh guy, the post Birthday Ball phone call with my crew loves, finally reading my fav book of 2008 - Eat, Pray, Love.
March: started out the month with a friend from college visiting for a night, then Kara's friend from home was also over so that was a crazy few days, then a great hike up my favourite Irish mountain - Mt. Brandon, the hilariousness of the post-grad ball and law boy, my twin cousins being born, a super long but awesome Cloon Lake hike, the rediculousness of clubs&socs - quadruple double fisting, wayy too much wine, lots of dancing and laughing with the club, the totally hardcore Reeks Ridge hike, celebrating St. Patrick's Day in Ireland, Easter and our yummy dinner, and ending the month in Donegal with the club where it was a fabulous 5 days and had some incredible hikes on the Blue Stacks, Slieve League (with the most gorgeous cliffs and a swim in the N.Atlantic) and Errigal.
April: Started out the month meeting up with my sister and heading off to Greece! I had an AMAZING week in Athens and Santorini. Turning the corner in Athens and seeing the Acropolis, words can't even describe, the 9 hour ferry ride to Santorini was to totally worth it with the view of the cliffs and spending 3 days on the pants island. from the cliffs, the view of the caldera, black beaches, and the most gorgous sunset i've ever seen, I loved Santorini, back to Athens where we continued to take in the sites before heading back to Ireland, working on my term paper and really missing rowing, finally getting to meet Jenna (the other girl from the whole M. saga from my study abroad) and it was great! Megan coming over for another visit, being done with classes for the first time since I was 4, my ZTA weekend in London touring Parliament and Cambridge and seeing the bonds of sisterhood really are amazing.
May: I booked my flight home for my vacation in July, started seriously working on thesis, enjoyed a few days of good weather, bbq's, a great night climbing at Kinsale, realizing I've done a lot more work on the thesis than I though after seeing I read 105 books and notes on 62, going to the gym again, finally moving out of the house from hell, celebrating a year post-wac and my rowers getting a NCAA bid, cheering on Munster as they won the Heinekin Cup, the fabulousness of seeing Sex and the City opening night (2 days before the US)!
June: I was in quite a funk in June, I blame it on the lack of summer weather, being disappointed when it looked like Hillary lost the primaries, summer housemate Brenda and I being crazy, being excited that I actually had 5,000 words of thesis written by the 13th, a few fun 21st parties, a fun rainy afternoon shopping with the girls, ending the month with 12,500 words on thesis, getting really excited about my trip home and a great hike in the Eastern Reeks.
July: soooo much rain, seriously even for Ireland, pub quiz fun, thank god for 3 weeks of real summer weather in the States! 3 absolutely crazy weeks with my DC trip, seeing my Worch girls, Coop's wedding and seeing some of my crew loves, meeting up with little, a relaxing week at the shore with the fam, the most incredible camping weekend on the Cape with my lovers, who I missed soo much, my 23rd birthday, the silly lionkitty breaking his leg, seeing jerz, becca and twin and getting back in touch with holly.
August: Back to wet Ireland, where I started working full time at the office, and getting serious on the thesis, so it wasn't a very fun month. by the middle of the month having the 4 chapters in draft, the OLYMPICS and watching my women's 8 win gold!!! the boys winning bronze, Michael Phelps, more fun with lawboy, work hitting the busy season but having a lot of laughs with the girls and not being soo stressed about the thesis.
September: I moved again, handed in a rough draft of thesis to my adviser, lots and lots of hours at work, the whole Sarah Palin rediculousness, deciding to stay in Ireland until March, a fabulous day in Youghal, and computer breaking, 1 year in Ireland, spent lots of time editing the thesis, finished the thesis, had her bound and handed her in 1 week early!! She came in at 106 pages and 20,995 words, and a gorgeous hike in sunshine to brough na binne, the financial mess and the first official hike of the year with the club.
October: uggggh sick, voted by absentee ballot for Obama, the hilarious night out lots of free beer, a fun hike in Gougane Barra, being a film festival volunteer, the wettest hike possible on Coumsaharan, a fabulous weekend in N. Ireland going to Belfast and the Antrim Coast, getting a postcard from Mary Whipple (my coxing idol), booking my flight home for Christmas, and a funny Halloween as Sarah Palin!
November: Was sooooooo ready for November 4th and the election. I stayed up until 5.30am to watch the coverage and was sooo excited and overjoyed at Obama being elected President, a fun but super wet Dingle weekend, my baking obsession started, the amazing Munster-All Blacks rugby match, finding out I was graduating with and thesis recieved 1st class honours!!, two very yummy Thanksgivings and a great snowy hike in the Reeks.
December: A fun night out with the girls from work and the socs Christmas party, meeting my parents in London! and showing them all around one of my favourite cities, stepping over the Prime Meridian, lots of pictures with Big Ben and Parliament, a few crazy days traveling around Ireland - the Ring of Kerry, Killarney, Blarney, and all around Cork, my MA graduation and back to the states for a few weeks, where it has snowed way too much for me, a great few days in CT seeing my roomie, some crazy family times, getting to see Chelsea, the wonderfulness of NYC at Christmas, a great reunion with Holly in NYC, and yet again working on New Year's Eve.
So some goals for 2009
-be happy
-work on a more healthy lifestyle
-enjoy my last 3 months in Ireland
-travel as much as possible
-find a teaching job for September
-find a fun summer job
-start my 'big girl' life
- keep in better touch with family and friends
- become more crafty (knitting, scrapbooking)
- continue reading history books
- edit thesis for journal publication
- save money
2008 was pretty fabulous, 2009 is a year of endings and beginings. I'm getting a few more months in a country I love and then I'm starting my job search for both a fun summer and a teaching job starting in September, so who knows where I'll be next year? I'm ready for the adventure and crazyness that 2009 is about to bring!
2 comments:
wow! i can barely remember what i did yesterday! :)
holy crap koster! Your resolutions are so much better than mine.
that's okay, i love you anyways. still can't believe you have been in Ireland for as long as you have!
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