DAY 250

May 9

1) Today has been back to the books, after yesterday's somewhat premature celebration. Apparently, quite a number of students in the previous years have taken the HBPS (Health Behaviour and Patient Safety) Module for granted, and as a result, some of them had to resit the paper, having failed to meet the 55% requirement for MCQ. I am trying my level best not to make the same mistake.

2) My strategy for tackling all 38 modules is simple: finish ten modules a day, and for the penultimate day, dedicate that to full-on revision. That should give me some confidence, as the questions are only multiple choice, unlike past years when there were Short Notes Questions as well. Of course, I may underestimate the content and end up having no safety net to do revision, in which case I just might emulate my friend and pull an all-nighter. After all, it's the last paper and I have nothing to lose haha.

3) When exams are over, I will have much to prepare for. Starting with our planned trip, I will have to gradually pack my stuff to shift houses, in addition to resuming training for the Dublin Marathon which I'm participating in. By the way, I'm still in the process of raising funds in support of the Irish Cancer Society, so if you're feeling generous... And if not, it's all good. Anyway, I will be hitting the books soon. Have a great day, cheers!

https://sse-airtricity-dublin-marathon-2017.everydayhero.com/ie/irish-cancer-society-fundraiser

P.S. Just follow the link above to donate for a good cause :D

Dundrum stop at the LUAS Station yesterday

That's my lunch ^^

DAY 241

Apr 30

1) Today has been another full day in the library. At this point, I'm seeing all my friends at the library at one point or the other; most of them are there with me throughout the day. Even the Mercer Cafe has become a place for discussion of exam questions... As for me, lunch and dinner is when I completely disengage from my studies, and I'm not about to change that.

2) Today's focus was primarily on FUN2, as we only have till tomorrow to finish study. Granted, the earlier lectures were easier to revise because we used many of them in our Principal Seminars presentations. But still, that doesn't make it any easier to memorise the litany of drug names, mechanism of action, and side effects.

3) Anyway, I continued pushing- stopping for short breaks and naps. At least I managed to finish cooking yesterday night, so I have food for the week. It would be too much of a hassle to cook smack in the middle of the exam period, so it's better I get it over with. After our paper on Tuesday, followed by REGUB on Thursday, we'll be left with only GIHEP and HBPS. All of this can't come soon enough, as I have other things planned during the holidays... But for now, it's back to studying. I'll end on this note, and thanks for reading as always. Have a nice day, cheers!

RCSI

My lunch today ^^

DAY 159

Feb 7

1) Today has been an easy day for me. We had only had three lectures in total, although I still had an additional tutorial on referencing skills. After all is said and done, I still need a lot of practice on referencing, as it was not something I picked up during my A-Levels.

2) Our lectures started at 8.00am, which is always a pain to wake up for, especially in the cold weather. Anyway, our first lecture was HBPS, followed by Anatomy and the subsequent practicals until 1.00pm. Had a quick lunch at the Coffee Doc, before attending the lecture on how to reference at 2.00pm.

3) An hour later, and we were done for today. So as always, I packed my stuff and headed to the library, where I had a quick nap. Then I read up on tomorrow's lectures, before having my dinner. Two more lectures to go after this, and I shall be done for tonight. The good thing is classes start at 10am tomorrow, which means I can afford to go home late tonight. That is the end of my day, short but sweet, and I hope you enjoyed reading. Have a great day, cheers!

Coffee Doc, where I usually have my lunch :)

Breakfast as usual ^^

Pizza at the Coffee Doc

Dinner at Mercer Cafe

DAY 157

Feb 5

1) Today has been a typical Sunday for me. We stayed up late last night celebrating our housemate, Charmi's birthday, so I woke up a bit later than usual. Had my breakfast, before walking to the library. Speaking of the library, I can't fathom why the library has to close at 10pm on Saturdays and Sundays! I mean, most students (I assume) would spend most of the weekend studying at the library, so closing an hour earlier compared to weekdays just doesn't seem rational. Anyway, once the new academic building is done (should be somewhere in March), hopefully the library opens longer there haha.

2) Had a lot of catch up to do, as I wasn't studying the latest lectures prior to the quiz. So study I did, and by evening I still had one more anatomy lecture to go. Decided that I was desperately in need of a break, so took a short nap. Had dinner at Mercer Cafe, surfing the Internet and listening to some nice songs. Came back to finish what I had left off, as well as take a glance of the coming lectures.

3) Next Thursday and Friday is Charter Day for RCSI, and while I am not quite sure exactly what it is, I know exactly what it means: HOLIDAY. Right now, that is something that can't come soon enough. Anyway, that's the gist of my day, and hope you enjoyed reading. Thanks as always, and have a great day. Cheers!

St. Stephen's Green

(I like how the grass in the foreground is covered with what looks like very fine ice <3)

Breakfast as always

My spaghetti bolognese for dinner :^)

DAY 156

Feb 4

1) Today has been a really enjoyable day. I woke up quite late today, as I was up cooking the previous night. Finally cooked 8 meals to last me at least a week. Anyway, a quick breakfast later, and I was in the library as per usual. A little internet browsing later, and it was soon time for lunch.

2) Had an early lunch today as I was going for badminton at 2.00pm, and I didn't want to get a stomachache. For lunch, I reheated the spaghetti bolognese with sausage, that I cooked yesterday. It tasted really quite delicious, and I was pleasantly surprised. In the afternoon, I headed over to the Archbishop Bryne Hall, where badminton session was on from 2-5pm. I only stayed two hours, but it was sooooooo enjoyable after a long hiatus from badminton.

3) Thankfully there weren't too many people here today, so we got a chance to play more frequently. It's worth noting there are only 3 courts there, so more often than not we can only play doubles matches. I'm itching for the new academic building to open, which (supposedly) should have a proper badminton court. Wouldn't that be great XD

4) Came back to the library, and time to get things cracking. Stopped by at Dunnes to restock on bread and some cookies, before returning here to study. I have not touched the latest module yet, which is REGUB. I will get round to doing that during the weekend, and hopefully get some work done on the team project and individual project. That rounds up my day today, and it was great fun to play badminton and relax for a change. I appreciate your time reading, and have a great weekend, cheers!

Audi R8, spotted on my way back from badminton ^^

My batch-cooking yielded 8 meals of spaghetti bolognese

Morning toast

A lovely day for a walk...

Archbishop Byrne Hall, where the badminton session is held

Dinner

DAY 139

Jan 18

1) Today has been a really long day for me. Woke up with a sore throat, which I absolutely dread because it usually comes with bouts of flu and fits of cough for days afterward. Still, I don't have a choice but to continue enduring... Gargled lots of saltwater after breakfast, before going to the library.

2) The upside was that I have two days off, which should give me enough time to sort things out. I studied for pretty much the entire morning, and my friends Nee Kee and Stephanie came to study too. I had my usual rice with sausages and mixed veggies for lunch; that being the last of my cooked meals. That means I have to cook again tonight.

3) In the afternoon, I continued studying for a while, before taking a short nap and then surfing the Internet. Later, I went to Dunnes to buy the groceries I needed to cook for the next couple of days. Came back to the library and had my dinner - just some sandwiches I made for myself in the morning. I really don't feel like eating whenever my throat hurts haha.

4) For the rest of the night, I tried to study but just couldn't find the strength to do so. Instead, I spent some time typing out this blog post, while listening to some relaxing music. I will probably leave the library earlier tonight, so I can cook afterwards and also because I want to get a good rest before lectures starts again. That's all for today, and thanks as always for reading. Cheers!

Two slices of bread for breakfast today

My usual lunch :)

More bread for dinner, followed by an orange XD

DAY 137

Jan 16

1) Today is the start of the next semester! Most of us were excited to get back to our studies, myself included. Woke up in time to make for the 9.00am class. It's the first day of lectures and we already had our first 9-5 class, with no gaps... what a way to begin! One by one, the lecturers introduced us to the new modules we will be undertaking this semester; seven in total.

2) For lunch, I went to the Coffee Doc to microwave my rice. I was surprised to find that most of my friends did the same - previously I would go out, usually to Dicey's or to AK Henry's for lunch. The class after lunch is when most of us are most likely to fall sleepy, and today was no exception. I struggled to stay awake, and I'm sure some of them at the back rows were dozing off too XD

3) Finally, class ended at 5pm! Carried my stuff to the library, and proceeded to have dinner soon after. I'm typing this update out as I listen to some nice songs. A bit of relaxation, and it's back to studying for the rest of the night (fingers crossed haha) As usual, I'll have some supper and then pack my stuff to go home. That's all for today, and I hope you enjoyed reading it. Thanks very much for reading, and have a great day. Cheers!

Toast for breakfast ^^

Rice with mixed veggies and sausages

The Belbin Team Role- a personality test that everyone was required to take.

Apparently I'm a completer finisher (CF) :)

That's me, apparently XD

Dinner at the Mercer Cafe

DAY 136

Jan 15

1) Today is the last day of my holidays! Feels a bit daunting to start a whole new semester, but I'm equally excited to delve deeper into understanding the intricacies of the human body. And so I began the day by walking to the library. Unpacked all my stuff, before going to Tesco Express just five minutes' walk away, to do my groceries. I bought breakfast at the same time, since my bread had run out XD

2) Came back to the library, and finished another highly acclaimed animated film, Waltz with Bashir. This talks about the 1982 Lebanon War, as portrayed through the lens of Ari Folman. Anyway, it was soon time for lunch, so I reheated my rice with mixed veggies and sausages. Today's lunch was exceptionally good! Took my afternoon nap afterwards, and woke up rejuvenated. I spent the better part of the afternoon studying anatomy of the lower limbs, so that I would be ahead of the lectures (keeping my fingers crossed haha).

3) In the evening, I had penne pasta for dinner. Went to Dunnes Stores after that, to finish my groceries for the week. Returned to the library, where I intend to study a little bit more. I will have to pack up slightly earlier tonight, as I start lectures start early tomorrow. That's all for tonight, and I hope you enjoyed reading. Thanks very much as always, and have a great day. Cheers!

That's three servings of rice

That's two... XD

There's kale, onions and super secret sauce

These are some lovely sausages,

given by my good friend and housemate, George, from his mother

That's the five-meal batch that I did in the wee hours of the morning

My breakfast, from Tesco Express (cost me €1 for three)

That's lunch, which I made the night before ^^

Penne pasta for dinner :D

DAY 41

Oct 12

1) Today was a normal day. Went to RCSI for our first lecture, before heading to AK. Henry's to do revision, since the next lecture was in an hour. Bad idea, since the aroma of food was so enticing, I got myself a full Irish breakfast. Tasted absolutely fabulous though!

2) After the next lecture, it was time for lunch. Me and my mates went to Dicey's Garden for our €5.00 student meal. I tried the cajun salmon today, with all the sides. The fish was tender and flaky, while the sauce really seasoning just tied everything together. At the rate I'm going, I could start commenting on cooking shows haha.

3) Came back to the apartment, and lo and behold, I had a tummyache. I'm quite sure it was because I overate, but I have no regrets. It was a fine lunch. Idled about for a while at the computer, before the last lecture for today, which was a small group tutorial for biomedicine.

4) An hour later, and we were done! Returned once more back home, before cooking dinner. I had rice as well as a small curry pie. With no more stomach pangs, I came back to study and continue revising for my upcoming exams. That was how my day went, and hopefully all of you reading this had a lovely day as well. Goodnight!

 Full Irish Breakfast (Scrambled Eggs, Sauteed Mushrooms, Baked Beans, Two Sausages, Tomato, Hash Brown and Two Black Puddings)

€3.75

Cajun Salmon at Dicey's Garden (€5.00)

 Ran out of veggies, so a curry pie as substitute!