Nothern Ireland + Peace Deal = Joke

Today is the deadline for the start of the devolution process in Northern Ireland. Now, for those of you who have no idea what Devolution means, basically it means that the Government of Northern Ireland would pass from the British Direct Rule system based in London to an Elected Government based in Northern Ireland. So in the end we would finally be able to have a say in our country and all the matters that affect our daily lives like Water Rates, Benefits, Education, Health, Paramilitary Issues and so on.

Of course we have had partially devolved government in NI before but it has lasted for only a minimum of time before the so-called politicians have ticked each other off and refused to be in the same room, therefore Direct Rule had to be reinstated again.

For many people in NI we are sick and tired of the circles that the politicians are taking us in and the farce that is convicted murderers and self confessed IRA members being voted into power. It is not all one sided and that was clear today as convicted murderer Michael Stone burst into the government buildings in Stormont with a gun, knife and incendiary device (turned out to be 8 bombs) and shouted "No Surrender". How the hell did he get through the door? Luckily he was apprehended and the place was evacuated.

Of course it seems as talks of Northern Ireland's future has been put on hold again! Surprise surprise. Not that they were getting anywhere anyway with Dr. Paisley making a farce of the situation.

Well, enough of my rant. If you are interested you can check out the link below. Will we have have devolved Government? Not until people get some education and stop listening to propaganda!!!!

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/northern_ireland/default.stm

JOBS!!!!!

Applying for jobs again is a very strange thing. Luckily some Tourism jobs have come up that don't usually appear when I'm job hunting. I'm taking it as a good sign. I am hoping to get a job with the Northern Ireland Tourist Board. This would be a great step through the door for me even though it is not my ideal job. But with it I could get some great connections and opportunities. There are a few others that are more hotel based jobs but have alot of room for movement and development. Keep your fingers crossed that I actually get an interview.

Wish me Luck!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Manners...Finally!!!!

So, I've been back home for a while now and it is a really refreshing change for me. I have been taking our dog Diesel out for walks by the river and it is so nice to hear other walkers say hello on the way past or excuse me or thanks or even to stop for a chat about dogs, weather and things like that. I have been deprieved of social etiquette and manners since living in Japan for so long. Even in the city centre on a saturday afternoon people say excuse me to get through a crowd or sorry if they bump into me. I tend to be in shock when I hear these things because i'm not used to it but I love it. It makes me smile.

Those of you who have lived in Japan will know what Im talking about but for those of you who have never had the displeasure to walk around Tokyo on a busy day then try to appreciate that even with all the problems we do have in our own country we are lucky to see some manners being used.

Manners...I wish I had better ones myself!!!!

Flavor Flav

Im feeling much better today. Why? I watched the Reunion episode of Flavor of Love 2 today. My god that was a funny show. Nothing like trashy, psycho women talking shit and trying to kick the life out of each other. Thank God for Big Rick!

If you don't know anything about this show then check it out online. An ageing, nutty Rapper (Flavor Flav) tries to find love...or a girl to 'kick it with'. Basically he just rides them all and has a great time. Funny Funny Funny. One girl even shit on his floor...seriously. There were some quality arguments and really weird women with all sorts of issues. I do recommend it to those of you who like reality TV or just like an easy laugh.

Check out the site. http://www.vh1.com/shows/dyn/flavor_of_love/series.jhtml

Heartbreak, Anger and Karma

God, I feel like my heart has been ripped out and trampled on by a stampede of elephants. I guess you could say I saw it coming. I always knew long distance relationships don't work but I was too lovesick and deluded to stop it from happening to me. Don't really know why I'm writing about it. I'm not ashamed, just feeing angry, betrayed, foolish, lonely, stupid and so many more things now.

All the tears have gone because I realise that the person that I loved so much wasn't the person I thought he was. He said that he would get "punished" in the future for treating me badly and I said I hoped he doesn't. I believe in Karma and what goes around usually comes back around with full vengance. I have been on the end of that vengance before and it isn't nice, so for his sake I hope he doesn't feel that. Although I have a sneaky suspicion that it will. He is still a good guy, if a little young. I realise that I just can't be that mean about him. My friends will do that for me.

Anyway, life goes on and there are plenty of fish in the sea. I just don't like fish...lol. Wish me luck!

Diesel

He looks soooo cute right? So innocent? Well tonight he is the stinkiest, smelliest dog in the world. He is so vile that I had to share it with the world. UUURRRGGGHHH

Blogger

Still getting used to blogger and it isn't being nice to me at the moment. The layout is a bit messy but ill try to sort it out over the next few days. Will post again soon.

Home

Back at Home

I've been home for about a month now and I've done........absolutely nothing! Well, apart from replying to emails, start this blog, eat and sleep. I dont know why it has been so hard but I feel like I am just really confused about starting my life all over again.
Ahhhhhh....a new life! What am I going to do? I have lots of ideas but will they pan out or will I be stuck on the dole doing nothing? I don't want to be stuck doing a crappy job for the rest of my life...I want to be my own boss and make my own money. I'm trying to think positive but the weight of people asking me what i'm going to do and making me question myself. You know what? I don't care about them! Im going to give it a go! Wish me luck and keep your fingers crossed.

Insomnia and Thoughts

God...this is rough! My sleep patterns are totally all over the place. I can't seem to fix it either. One day I wake up early but that night I can't get to sleep and the next day I wake up late. Its a vicious cycle. Although to be honest my mind is on overdrive tonight. This is all because of a few blogs I have just seen that made me think.....



I am somewhat of a walking talking stereotype of what an Irish Woman should be and I usually embrace it. Fiery, Temperamental, Fiesty, Agressive, Passionate, Loyal...and drinks too much tea....lol. My worst trait though is that I tend to be the kind of person who holds grudges...can't help it...it must be in my genes or as I always think, my culture. Sometimes though, like tonight, I rethink the past and dwell on things that have gone before. 



I am a very loyal person. Well, I like to think that! But......some things that I've done and things that have happened to me over the last few years have really made me wonder wether my loyalty to friends is deserving on their part and justified and real on my part. The thing about me is, I expect loyalty in return! Is that such a bad thing? With my long term friends that I have known for years I don't even have to question that but I have had to question loyalty to "so-called friends" I have met over the last few years. 



One friend in particular who I gave alot of time and effort to and stood up for, especially at a few bad times in her life, wasn't there for me when it came down to the time when I needed a friend. I think about this quite a lot when its quiet, not that my busy brain gives me much time. I wonder why I bothered! I wonder why she didn't feel that same sense of loyalty. I always try to be nice about it but it comes out all wrong...I always end up thinking...she just used me, she just wanted to be popular, she only cared about herself...blah blah blah. I wonder if she would ever tell me why? 



Is that it? Is it all her fault or were my expectations too high? I have received two views on this...my friends in Japan think I expected too much and my Irish friends think I was right to expect what I did. Is it a cultural thing? (Most of my friends in Japan were American or Australian) So what should I think? To be honest I think I will have to just go with my gut. 



Black and White are the colours I see the world in. I try not to sit on the fence and I do take sides. If someone treats me badly I do not take it. Why should I be ridiculed for that? Just because I have views that are deemed too much for others. I do feel though that because I take this stance I am always seen as the baddie in the scene. Shouting my mouth off and telling people what I think of them isn't doing much good. I will never change though. I figure that I would rather go through life with a few loyal friends than with a big group of friends who don't give a damn about me and are only trying to get themselves ahead.



I do realise that the way I deal with things might be a bit drastic. I tend to completely stop contact with anyone who is nasty to me. Again, is this so bad? Is it not better to do without people like that? 



It is a very lonely path and one that made my life pretty shitty for a while. It was my own choice to do that but never once did my "friend" try to reach out to me and fix things. So does that justify my actions? I wish things had happened differently because we were good friends for a time. 



Ah well, these things happen and life goes on. I have so many stories like this and I worry if it's all my fault! I try not to regret anything I do but I do realise that maybe this is a time in my life where maybe I could make a few adjustments.