Flash mob !!

As part of the production of the musical all the TYs took time to learn a flash mob that we performed three times in school. The first time I was really excited for it and it went extremely well overall. We then performed it at the lighting of the Christmas lights in Celbridge village at 3 o'clock which was amazing to take part in. It was so much fun and I have so many memories from it overall. We will be performing it again some time in this month  in some secret locations over Celbridge. I can not wait !! :)Here is flash mob that is from Step Up 4 that I love !! :
 

Zumba !!

For the last few weeks our year have been doing zumba but I am sad to say that I only have one class left !! :(  .Its so much fun and our teacher is amazing at teaching us. At first it was slightly awkward but after a while everyone really got into it !! She said we would burn a lot of calories and would be so much fitter as the weeks go on !! Its really great that we have the opportunity to do things like this that gives you so many memories for the year !! Most of the songs are Spanish and she also plays some English ones also !Really looking forward to the next class!! :)

Zumba !! :)

Rathbeggan Lakes !!

As part of a  maths trip all the TYs were taken  to a lake/field where we applied maths literally to practical problems. We measured the height of a pole using a tape measurer and a triangle. This trip was so different to what we would do in school which was why I enjoyed it so much. Unfortunately our group did not win the free family pass but ahh well maybe another time !! There was also a few ducks that shuffled around the lake, one that bit my finger while I was trying to feed it popcorn out of kindness!! and a goose that ran around the place. It was really cold but at least it didn't rain ! it was a great trip and I hope we go again some time this year ! :0

                                                                         

The Evil Duck !!

Marshmallow Squares !!

Due to the terrible typhoon in the Phillipines, all our our TY year decided to take action and raise money for the organisation Trocaire to help deliver aid to those in the Phillipines. I made marshmallow cake sthe night before which were all sold out in the first 10 minutes! There was so many cakes brought in for the cake sale which looked so delicious !!!  and a herd of hungry people charging at the hall doors at lunch time!! It felt amazing to be a part of such an active action. We raised a whopper 1,800 euro which should hopefully make a difference and save some lives in the Phillipines. A cake sale is the best way to raise money because now everyone knows that people will do anything for cake !!

                                                          

Cupcakes!!!!

Cake Pops !!

Circle Of Friends

I have always wanted to read the book Circle Of Friends because I have heard so much feedback about the story which was extremely positive, and the fact that so many stars acted in the movie version, like Minnie Driver and Colin Firth. However I was always put off by the length of the book as it is over 700 pages. I always get a positive boost when I finish a book so I never read it as it would probably take me a month or so. But this was not the case. For the first while I was slightly uneasy as there was not that much going on, but after a few more pages I caught myself slyly reading it when I should be watching TV which I must say was such a surprise. A book that makes me do that should get an award because I must admit I am a TV addict. The pages just kept turning and turning and it was so addictive. Its a real down to earth novel with no zombies or whatever just a circle of friends that could be loyal or untrustworthy with a lot of drama.

Maeve Binchy has a great understanding of friendship and love which are the most relevant themes that are portrayed throughout the novel. We see the amazing friendship between Benny and Eve which darkens and brightens throughout the story. We also see the young love between Benny and Jack, Simon and Nan and many more. But we also see the obstacles that lie between these relationships for example Sean Walsh who  works in the shop that Benny's parents own which Benny’s parents hope will possibly marry due to convenience and not love. Then we see the obstacle between Nan and Simon , who both live in two different worlds divided by wealth and class.

The novel is set in Ireland in the 1960's. It begins with Benny Hogan and Eve Malone, growing up, inseparable, in the village of Knockglen. Benny, the only child, yearning to break free from her adoring parents...Eve, the orphaned offspring of a convent handyman and a rebellious blueblood, abandoned by her mother's wealthy family to be raised by nuns.
 They have always dreamed of attending University together. For Benny it was no problem with a few restrictions but Eve it was a different story it meant asking for money from people she totally despised The Westwards her family who neglected her.They both make it to University in Dublin where their true friendship is tested and as life progresses it brings on it's own complications for both of them.
They become friends with  Nan , beautiful but selfish and always seems to be able to handle any difficult situations that arise. She is excellent at lying and covering up stories She is confident and friendly but very determined . She may be as sly as a fox but can she really cover up heart breaking stories from the whole of her circle of friends or are secrets not meant to be told?
Eve and Benny, they know the sins and secrets behind every villager's lace curtains... but  are they too caught up in the joy of college life that they don't pay attention to the sins and secrets of their circle of friends ?

A character that I found interesting was Benny because she is always positive and extremely determined through tough times. She is the group clown but is very self conscious about her body as she is bigger than the rest in her circle and they often joke about her for a laugh. She is very independent and we can see this when her father dies and she must pull herself together to prove Sean guilty of stealing from the shop so that he will not inherit the business. We also see her strength and kindness when Nan betrays her, yet she still smiles at her showing a sign of forgiveness which she repeats to Jack at the end of the novel. This I found odd but I admired this as very few people would have the strength to forgive such terrible acts.

The book is set in Knockglen and Dublin which is interesting to see the contrast between the two places and how Benny and Eve adapt to their new life. It's very clear to see how the social classes differ. Simon Westward was in a completely different class to Nan who tries to be accepted into this life but fails. I was also intrigued into how Benny was expected to marry Sean Walsh out of convenience rather than true love. We also see the position of women in society in the novel which is different to today. Nans father is very disrespectful to his wife and women's roles are restricted to washing and cooking. He sees no reason her to get employed but she insists this so she works in a hotel. She describes how she has wasted her life marrying a disrespectful and alcoholic man and so she pushes for Nan to have a better legacy. Money also seems a big issue back then. It was a big deal to actually to go to college where as today this would probably be taken for granted. Benny and Eve were grateful for the chance of going to college. Freedom of expression was also put down forcefully in Knockglen and we can see this when two young people wearing extremely bright clothes were refused entry to a bar. I would not like to live in Knockglen because I feel there are too many restrictions but I would not mind  living in Dublin at this time because there would  still be a future which could lead to a good legacy.

I feel that the overall viewpoint of the author is a positive one and that the message portrayed is that you will always have a large circle of friends but there will always be that one person who will always stick with you through the rough and the cold. But which friend will stick by Benny is the question?


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The Cup Song !!

In music I have learnt a song that is really addictive and involves fiddling around with a cup.......it looks extremely easy but is very hard to learn !! I love this song also and I must say I am really enjoying TY music classes because it involves a lot of practical work and not a lot of theory which can be a bore. We are also coming up with a TY Christmas melody which is extremely fun. Its great to try new things ! I hope you enjoy this clip as gaeilge !!!

                                                               The Cup Song !!!

                                                            

                        A Christmas Melody!!                                   

The Launch Of the Musical

The launch for our school musical "Calamity Jane" took place last Friday in the most beautiful hotel I have ever seen the Celbridge Manor Hotel. Over a hundred students took part and sang the song "I Just Blew in From the Windy City. A lot of tickets were sold a and I can not wait for the musical to begin. Rehearsal are going extremely well and I dedicate my time every Saturday morning to help with the production of the musical. Here are some clips that you should expect to here on the night of the show in Celbridge Gaa.

                                                               Deadwood Stage!!!

                   


                                                            Secret Love



                      

Singing Our Hearts Out :)

For the last week I have been singing the same song over and over again that we always sing in music class. Its called " The Winter Song" and reminds me so much of Christmas so I thought I might share it with everyone. Today all of the choir sang it at Castletown House at the annual Christmas fair which was so enjoyable even though it was freezing.......who knew carol singing could be so fun !!!

 

 

The Winter Song

 

Popping Bubbles !!!!

Junk Kouture is a class that I always look forward to every week. Our junk kouture dress is so enjoyable to make and we have made so much progress over the last few weeks.



 Our dress is princess themed and is mostly made of bubble wrap which I must admit is probably half popped!!!! Here is some pictures that we got inspiration from and when we are finished the dress I will pop it up with our gorgeous model Emma. Lady Gaga's fashion really helped us in this project. :)




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The Green Light.............

For a very long time I have been longing to read the book The Great Gatsby, especially when the movie starring Leonardo di Caprio was released.  So as part of my English class I have chosen to do my book review on The Great Gatsby by F.Scott Fitzgerald.

I chose to read this book because it is a classic and I love the era of luxurious parties and the gossiping of society. I expected for this book to be overwhelming because it is a classic, but also because the ratings of the movie review was excellent, and many people have come to the conclusion that the book is always better than the movie. I was expecting a lot of drama and conspiracies that would leave me gripping to read on and this is exactly what happened.

F. Scott has a clear understanding of the lives and corruption of society in this era. This book has a theme of unrequited love that effects many of the characters and the greed and wealth of society also. He created a vivid story about the loneliness behind wealthy curtains . It is about the unfulfilled  lives of those who are lonely. This is a beautiful book that contains endless images of the wealth in America .

 This book is narrated by Nick Carraway who rents a house next door to the mansion of an eccentric millionaire Jay Gatsby. Gatsby throws a party at his mansion and all the young fashionable world come to marvel and dine at his extravagance. The guests gossip about how neither of them know how he became wealthy and if he was spy in the past. They talk about his murky past and how no one really knows who Gatsby really is.

Despite his wealth, Gatsby is dissatisfied and lonely; and Nick finds out why. Long ago, Gatsby fell in love with a young girl, Daisy, they could not marry because Gatsby was not wealthy. Although she has always loved Gatsby, she is now married to Tom Buchanan. Gatsby asks Nick to help him meet Daisy once more, and Nick finally agrees, arranging tea for Daisy at his house. Gatsby is hoping that they will "accidentally " bump into each other at Nicks house. The two ex-lovers meet. Gatsby insists they take a tour of his mansion to impress his ex lover. Soon, Tom begins to suspect and challenges the two of them, also revealing something that the reader had already begun to suspect: that Gatsby's fortune was made through illegal gambling. Gatsby and Daisy drive back to New York. In the wake of the emotional conflict, Daisy hits and kills a woman. But who exactly is the woman? Will it really be suspected as an "accident"? and who will take the blame is the question?

A character I found interesting was Daisy. In my opinion she was a very peculiar character. Firstly she hears the gossip about her husbands affair and yet does not question this? After the accident she leaves town with Tom but does not inform Gatsby of this even though they were having a very close relationship, maybe even closer than her relationship with Tom, before the accident. Also after the tragic scene that concludes the novel she does not show her love or even appreciation of friendship to Gatsby. This I found very peculiar and rude. I found this very sad because Gatsby built up his wealth just to impress Daisy.

The world of The Great Gatsby is beautiful if you were to look at it from the glance of image and perspective. There is a lot of lavish parties with jazz music, women in long party dresses, tea, a lot of alcohol, gems, dollar notes , fireworks and the enjoyment of society and the fulfilment of life. There is no mention of the poor in society, they are on another planet. I would definitely love to live in that era. But there is also a lot of corruption, scandals, gossip, unfulfilled lives and unhappiness ."The Green Light" in the distance that Gatsby so fondly looks at is the metaphor for his American dream of the love of Daisy and hopefully happiness, but will he grip that light is the question.

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Calamity Jane

So the school musical we will be performing this year is calamity Jane and I am so excited to begin work as stage manager. This year is the perfect year to become involved in the musical and I cant wait until the rehearsals. I have been assigned the role of acting stage manager which was what I was hoping to become. Here is a clip that I love from Calamity Jane:

                 

keep you updated,
sita, :)

Carlingford !!!!

So it has been an extremely long time since I have posted but with all these projects its hard to keep track of time. Around a week ago I went to Carlingford adventure centre and had and amazing 2 days. The first day we played laser tag which was the most fun I have had in a while. Then at night we played hide and seek in the forest and walked blindfolded through the forest ( where we were attacked numerous times by the evil class Cornaro ). However the second day it was raining (a lot) so we went kayaking however since I can not follow straight lines it was hard for me to follow everybody, but luckily I was not the only one. Then we went zorbing where we rolled about in a large ball. We nearly stayed up all night and ate truckloads of sweets. The food was great and I had a lot of fun so it was overall an amazing school trip !!!! :)

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A BUSY WEEK

THIS WEEK HAS BEEN VERY BUSY AND IN CHOIR WE HAVE LEARNT A NEW SONG WHICH WE WILL BE SINGING IN A COMPETITION NEXT YEAR. I LOVE THIS SONG AND I HAVE NOT  GOTTEN IT OUT OF MY HEAD ALL WEEK...IT IS FROM PHANTOM OF THE OPERA BY ANDREW LLOYD WEBBER AND IT IS SO MUSICAL. I CAN'T WAIT TO COMPETE IN THE COMPETITION. HERE IS  A CLIP :

             
I HAVE BEEN SO NERVOUS ALL WEEK BECAUSE TOMORROW I WILL BE RECEIVING MY JUNIOR CERTIFICATE RESULTS. I HAVE WORKED HARD SO I HOPE IT ALL PAYS OFF. CAN'T WAIT TO CELEBRATE!!!!!

xxxx


This week has been great and on Wednesday we had 3 workshops. One of them was a  positive party where we danced and sang songs which were uplifting. The video above is one that I feel is uplifting.

In the 2nd workshop we massaged each other which was really relaxing. In the third workshop we learned about being confident which will help us in the future. Overall it was an amazing day.

The Start Of A New Beginning

Anxiously waiting in the mall for the reading out of the members of my class made me slightly nervous but very excited...this would be the class I would have for the rest of the year and I am so pleased with the outcome !!!!!!

 Most of the people were in my amazing base class Pegasus in third year but I am pleased to know that I will be interacting with new people.

It has been a week since the first day and I am loving ty... my class name is Tabei ... which was the first women ever to climb Mt Everest. The new subjects are very interesting and our class has so much fun together,,....especially when we drew a leaf without looking in art....there was lots of laughing.......

Everyones talking about Carlingford and I cant wait for the amazing adventure to begin!!!!!!