The deathstar canteen;

Elephants on skiies:

Late night shopping for your bread gun:

Supermarkets and trollies:

Today was the university’s Open Day, during which secondary school students come to see first hand what the college has to offer to it’s potential new students. Technically, the Open Day is two days cause it runs on the Friday and the Saturday. The clubs and societies have a marquee in which we can show off what we do and try and get some new recruits for Clubs and Socs Day. So in the marquee it was us (Amnesty Soc), Epic Soc (the trilogy of comedy, film and drama) and a few of the GAA clubs. The day seemed to be going pretty well, our stall was getting a good few interested people, then the guy who was on the stall with me got a text telling him that the canteen was on fire. We thought this was a joke at first, but upon looking out the door of the marquee we could see a long plume of white and grey smoke coming from the direction of the canteen.

Infront of the canteen not long after word spread about the fire

Within an hour the clear winter’s day blue sky above us was half clouded with black filthy smoke and we could see black shards of debree or something caught floating in the air above the canteen. Standing outside of the marquee it sounded like Halloween night, with the continuous pops and bangs of a fireworks display. These weren’t fireworks though, one of the guys told me that it was the slates on the roof exploding off the roof with the heat of the fire. No long after we could see the flames rising up with the smoke into the air, before that it was only the smoke. The flames didn’t get any higher in the air and couldnt be seen for much longer. Black smoke

More smoke

The thing about the slates possibly explains the black debre in the the air. Aside from the pictures I have a video taken from outside the marquee watching the smoke, you can hear the poping of the slates, but towards the end of it, there’s a more shattering bang, which I think might’ve been the windows. After the fire had been brought under control and we’d finished for the day we went to see the firemen were walking around the smouldering remains and the extent of the damage. The canteen has been completely gutted, and the new extension onto it had only just been completed. The extension itself seems relatively unscathed, perhaps a little damage to the roof where it’s connected to orginal part. Where the kitchen was and the main body of the canteen have suffered the most. The windows were gone, the roof has completely collapsed, with the bare exposed beams pointing out like the bones of a charred carcass.

In the spirit of the Maynooth Experience, those of us involved in Clubs and Socs continued on with the show, going out into the stationary crowds, who’d been moved back to the John Hume building to stay a safe distance away from the fire, to encourage them to come into the marquee to see the performances. It was a bit difficult getting people to turn their attention back to what the college had to offer, people can’t help but watch a disaster. Like the saying about the train wreck goes, you just can’t take your eyes off it, but eventually the crowds started to filter down. The rest of the day went on without a hitch. From what’s been said on campus, everyone got out of the canteen safe and sound. No one knows yet what caused the fire, but the presumption is that it was a kitchen fire that got out of hand. This is possibly going to have so many more knock on effects than just putting the canteen out of action. The sports complex shares the same building with it, so there might be damage done to the sports halls and the storage room with all the clubs gear and equipment. We won’t know for awhile yet.

At least there weren’t any casualties.

Now here’s a question for you. I know it’s possible to convert european dvds to us, but is it possible to convert us ps2 games to european?

Will write about the event later, am currently trying to finish an essay about interventions for developmental disabilities, which would totally be up Uncle J’s street. Will send him a copy for feedback when I’m done.

So this weekend is looking nice and hectic. I’ve got to work on my Alice in Wonderland costume (I’m going to be Alice), have an essay on interventions for developmental disabilities due the day after the tea party and i’m meant to be going to a Japanese film festival thing tomorrow with Sinead. Plus I’m intending to make flyers for the tea party.
On the plus side mom is going out to lunch with friends tomorrow in the new hotel in Clane. Dad has another chest infection though. He was coughing a good bit when we were out to lunch yesterday.

Other than that, it’s getting dark and miserable, but the leaves were dry on the ground today, so I got to stomp through them on the way down to the campus to put up the posters for the tea party. Oh, yeah, as part of our mental health campaign month we’re having Mad Pride the Madhatter’s tea party as our big event. Should be fun, we’ll be going around campus promoting it in costumes on Monday.

Halloween!
My costume
Mom and Aoife
heads and pumpkin
Blood!
Halloween
Halloween something
Some other picture?Sitting room window
House front2
House front Continue reading →

Looking up pumpkin carving patterns and this struck me as a little bit peculiar.
http://www.spookmaster.com/pumpkin-carving-patterns-fighting-irish.htm

Since when has being Irish become a Halloween costume in itself?

Two days ’til

Hallow’een and it’s snowing outside. The cat can now be camouflage cat 🙂
Heading to Drogheda soon for Seana’s bday. Will be back tomorrow.

An article by Grim.T.Reaper

My Halloween article for the college magazine.

When I’m not busy driving my hackney cab ‘round London, doing a little reaping, or failing miserably to be the face of SH! Week (Apparently the sight of my grim mug accompanied by “Always use a condom!” would be too ominous and scare the pretty burlesque ladies away)…I like to dress in women’s clothing and hang around in bars. So I’m taking time out from my busy schedule to share with you the wonders of DIY Halloween costumes.

Have you ever wondered what it would be like to be a sock puppet for the day, child? No? Well tough! It’s the only costume I’m telling you how to make. Don’t like it? Go buy one in Aldi!
What you need: (aside from the obvious things like thread and sewing needles)
• One white single bed sheet. (Possibly a double if you’re a bigg’un)
• 2 large circles of cardboard, preferably tray or dinner plate sized.
• Black paint
• A friend with a sewing machine, or who can sew in general
• A pillow

Step one: Fold the bed sheet in half (lengthways) and sew it up to make it a sheath.

Step two: Stitch up the top, then fold it over and insert a pillow to weigh down the flap.

Step three: Cut some arm holes (they’re always handy and use where your shoulders are to guide you and careful not to lop off an arm, a lopsided sock puppet is a little sad). Then, add two cardboard circles for eyes.

Step four: Once happy with size of eyes, remove ‘um, paint ‘um and add rim round ‘um with rolled up newspaper stuck to the edges with masking tape. Then re-attach.

Step five: Accessorise and Party time!

If you want to personalise it you can try adding the following twists to your now completed sock puppet; zombie, Pope, chef (like the Swedish chef), Klu Klux Klan puppet, Jesus, the French maid and of course Death sock.
Have fun sewing; I’m off to eat a chicken curry.

-Grim

We got the parcel today. Thank you, I’m about to head to bed with the comics. Also tell the kids thanks for the sweets and the pictures and letters. I will write back to them!
Mom said the boys called her earlier but they got cut off for some reason.

Love you loads, I’m off to bed.