SIN Vol. 21 Issue 06

NUACHTÁN SAOR IN AISCE VOL. 21 Issue 06. 19 NOV 2019

Student Independent News

WINNER: BEST NEWSPAPER AT THE NATIONAL STUDENT MEDIA AWARDS 2019

Kaushik Narasimhan elected Gender and LGBT Rights Officer Paddy Henry

Turnout was exceptionally poor in the election with only 52 votes, 4 of which were spoiled cast on the day, out of an electorate of over 18,000. Nominations closed for the position last Thursday and the winner was announced on Friday morning.

Narasimhan spoke afterwards of his pride in being elected to the role, declaring; “I am extremely honoured to have been elected to such an important position as the Gender and LGBT+ Rights Officer in the NUIG Students’ Union. I am earnestly grateful for my victory, because I am very sure that the other competitor for this position was as capable as me of winning. I

acknowledge the service and the willingness of my opponent to Kaushik Narasimhan has been put himself forward as someone elected as NUI Galway Students’ ready to serve the people. This is Union’s new Gender and LGBT the time to be happy. I believe that rights officer. this victory is not an end, but a The 21-year-old Postgraduate signal to the beginning of the in Neuropharmacology emerged real work ahead. I acknowledge victorious over rival candidate, the fact that my actions will, in Engineering student, Sai Gujulla, some part have an effect on the in Thursday’s ballot. lives of students in this univerMr Narasimhan won out on sity. Winning this award would the day on the second count with not have been possible without just 25 votes. His closest competithe inspiration I have received tor was to reopen nominations, from my colleagues at the NUIG which received 5 votes on the Students’ Union, for whom I have second count. Sai Gujulla was the deepest respect. On a closing eliminated on the first count, note, I sincerely thank every indireceiving 6 votes. vidual who casted their vote and contributed towards my victory”. Narasimhan’s supporters were in a celebratory mood following the result.

The position is a part time role within the Students’ Union.

The Gender and LGBT Rights Officer represents students on gender and LGBT+ issues and develops Union policies in these areas. They liaise with societies and organise events to highlight gender and LGBT+ issues facing students.

Defeated candidate Sai Gujulla was magnanimous in defeat, as The NUI Galway Ultimate Frisbee club, known as The Panteras, sent two teams he spoke afterwards to to the Mixed Indoors Intervarsity tournament, held in DCU. MORE ON PAGE 28 SIN of his disappoint-

ment, but congratulated the victor, stating; “I adhere to the decision made by the student community and I wish him well as the new Gender and LGBT+ Rights Officer.

I would offer him support in the decisions that I believe would benefit the student community.

After this long and stressful campaign, his success alone deserves my respect for his perseverance and willingness to serve the student community. I would also like to commend him for winning the hearts of the student community and assuming this prestigious position in the Students’ Union.

I have always believed that the University offers opportunities for everyone to shine. Today was not my day but I would take this experience as a positive impact in my life. Congratulations to the new Gender and LGBT+ Officer and see you again in the next election!”

He will now assume office, taking over from the previous Gender and LGBT Rights Officer Morgan Queeney.

NUI Galway allocates €240,000 in 2018 Annual Report for gender discrimination payments

By Harry King A report from the Connacht Tribune revealed that NUI Galway had set aside a sum of €240,000 last year to settle the cost of covering “equality” related settlements.

It was reported that, during the summer of 2018, the University had reached an “amicable agreement” with four female lecturers. The process of reaching that agreement began in 2015, when the four lecturers claimed that they were discriminated against on the basis of their gender and family status in competitions for senior lecture posts in 2009.

Dr Sylvie Lannegrand, Dr Roisin Healy, Dr Margaret Hodgins and Dr Adrienne Gorman took their cases to a landmark equality tribunal in 2014, which found that another lecturer, Dr Micheline Sheehy Skeffington, was also discriminated against on the same grounds.

SIN sought comment from the University on the matter, who noted that; “The settlements referenced are all subject to confidentiality and data protection restrictions and as such the University is not in a position to comment.” SIN reached out to the lectures involved to try and find out a bit more about this story, but they were unavailable for comment due to conditions of their respective settlements. However, the women did draw attention to some of the positive reinforcements that have come about thanks to their case and that of Dr Skeffington’s.

NUI Galway and other universities in Ireland now have a

Vice President for Equality and Diversity, driving a number of actions and projects on diversity. Nationally, the HEA now publishes statistics on gender equality across all universities and institutes of technology and targets have been set for 2024, one of which is to have females make up at least 40% of the professoriate. All universities in Ireland now apply for Athena Swan accreditation and, at certain levels, having this accreditation is linked to securing funding for research.

These processes, in effect, maintain a watching brief on gender inequality, so that the current situation cannot continue.

These changes will impact students who aim to work in higher education.

The gender discrimination payment does not include legal fees, including the University’s and the four women’s legal fees, which, according to sources from the Connacht Tribune, could be as much as the settlement itself.

The University has since introduced gender quotas for promotion schemes and has also introduced training schemes for staff regarding areas of inclusivity and unconscious bias.

Unconscious bias training, according to the university’s website, was part of a series of recommendations made by the gender discrimination task force three years ago. It is now University policy that all members of the University Management Team (UMT), which includes the academic management team, attend training and that they refresh their training once a year.

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INSIDE

Students’ Union launch “Big Yellow Thing” socks for charity 4 Diwali 2019 at NUI Galway 5 Coldvember returns to NUI Galway 6 Siobhan McKenna archive opened to public 7 Santa Claus arrives in town for annual Christmas market 8 My experience at the Sustainable Innovation Summit 9 Dialann Gaeltachta 10 Nurture Africa’s overseas volunteer programme 11 Student Diaries 12 Is Tinder helping us to become resilient? 13 Masculinity and mental health: How can we bridge the gap? 14 Will cheating on your cheating partner make you feel better? 16 Why a WiFi detox should be on the menu at more cafes and restaurants 17 Times are a-changing, but NUI Galway remains the same 18 Caifé na Gaeilge’s closure serves as a reflection of the commitment to Irish on campus 19 The five-minute face: A beginner’s guide to clean beauty 20 Celebrity Halloween Costumes: The Good, the Bad and the Hilarious 21 Youtuber Makeup – made for passion or just for money? 22 Five practical tips for saving money as a college student 23 What’s on in Galway? 24 Gay Byrne – A legacy 25 The best feel-good Christmas movies 26 The perfect Christmas playlist 27 Are footballers’ autobiographies worth reading? 28 Sigerson Cup changes last in a long line of poor choices by the GAA 29 “Will Katie Taylor go down as one of the greatest Irish athletes ever?” 30 WIN €100 SU CARD CREDIT: Crossword Competition 31

SIN Vol. 21 Issue 06

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ello to all of you wonderful SIN readers, and welcome to Issue 6. This is our last of the semester and the last of the calendar year, but fear not, this issue has enough in it to keep you going right through the last week of semester, as well as study week, those couple of exam weeks and then the holiday period. Before you know it, we’ll all be back here in January and you’ll be digging into another fresh issue of SIN. For now, though, sit yourself down somewhere comfortable, if you haven’t already, and peruse through another jam-packed edition.

This time of year always has a very specific feel to it, both in the University and in the wider sphere of Galway. On campus, everyone’s schedules get a bit more hectic, while the corresponding energy levels seem to dwindle by the day.

The library becomes the central hub of stress levels, as the looming air of unprepared students seeps into the Bialann, into Smokey’s, circling the SU Shop. For some reason, this by-product of stress never makes it into Sult, which always retains its relaxed atmosphere all year round. The reason why is anyone’s guess.

That said, the last couple of weeks have carried with them a proud celebratory sense, with the winter conferrals. Having just graduated myself, I can tell you that the whole graduation process feels quite strange to be a part of.

The ceremony includes formalities and tradition, but it’s very easy to take yourself out of that moment and reflect on where you are. That reflection is made easier by the location, as it’s like you’re back where you started, in a way.

The Bailey Allen Hall is where you go on your first day of university, for the speech by the President.

While it was a different President that gave a speech last week to the one who gave us a speech 4 years ago, there was a comforting déjà vu about the whole event.

I n t o w n , a nyo n e w h o i s attempting to avoid the feeling of Christmas will be having a very difficult time of it. From Eyre Square right down to the end of Quay Street, the centre of Galway city takes on the very familiar feel that seems to be naturally exuded at this time of year. While it may be tempting to bring out our inner sceptic or pessimist, we must also remember that having

to begrudgingly look at Christmas decorations 5 weeks out from the actual day is not the worst problem in the world. The particularly nippy November weather makes those living on the streets even more vulnerable than usual, so spare a thought and a hot drink the next time you find yourself cursing Brown Thomas and the like.

Back to this issue, though, and to describe it as ‘full to the brim’ doesn’t do it justice. For all the happenings on and off campus that affect you, the students of NUI Galway, across news, features, opinion, lifestyle and fashion, arts and entertainment, and sport, sit back, relax and read on.

Prominent figures conferred with honorary degrees from University

By Paddy Henry

EDITOR: Mark Lynch editor.sin@gmail.com LAYOUT: Shannon Reeves An bhfuil rud éigin le rá agat?

Cur litir chuig an Eagarthóir chuig editor.sin@gmail.com

Find us online:

www.sin.ie

NUI Galway have announced the 11 recipients of honorary degrees from the University this year.

The recipients joined over 6,000 people in graduating from the University last week. Prominent figures in the fields of architecture, broadcasting, politics and public activism were awarded the distinguished accolade.

NUI Galway’s very own Seamus O’Grady was conferred with an honorary degree for his contribution to adult learning in the university. The Centre for Adult Learning and Professional Development spoke of their delight with the news, stating; “Over Seamus’ working life at the University he was committed to the principle of access and participation for all learners. He is known to generations of NUI Galway alumni in Ireland and around the world whose contact with the University was through Extra-Mural Studies, Adult and Continuing Education and, latterly, the Access Programme”.

Fergus Finlay, former CEO of children’s charity Barnardos , BBC Journalist Orla Guerin, directors of Grafton architects Shelly McNamara and Yvonne

Farrell, former Director General of RTÉ Cathal Goon, founding President of the Roots of Empathy Programme Mary Gordon, national manager for IBM, Paul Farrell, LGBT+ advocate Nuala Ward, Director of the Operational Division at the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, John Ging and former Head of Raidió na Gaeltachta, Breandán Feiritéar joined O’Grady in graduating with honorary degrees from the University.

NUI Galway President, Professor Ciarán Ó hÓgartaigh spoke of the contribution the recipients of honorary degrees have made to deserve the accolade, stating: “NUI Galway is fortunate to be associated with many outstanding honorary graduates throughout its history and those being honoured this year form a particularly distinguished group. Each one has made an excellent and distinctive contribution to the diverse fields of adult and continuing education; children’s rights, journalism and broadcasting; international social entrepreneurship; research, development and innovation; activism for social change; contribution to society, human rights and our defence forces”.

He continued, “NUI Galway is very pleased to be in a position to respect and recognise these exceptional individuals. Each of those we honour also have a special bond with our region drawing on the unique experiences, strengths and challenges with which we as a University also engage – our proud record of achievement in widening access to education, this year marking the 50th anniversary of the establishment of Adult and Continuing Education; our strong association with the Defence Forces since 1969; our profile on international human rights, and our emphasis on creativity and innovation. In honouring these exceptional individuals, we also signal what we value in areas that matter to us and to our society”.

Professor Ó hÓgartaigh also congratulated the 6,000 students graduating for the university, “We are delighted that our honorary graduands are being honoured at the same time as we celebrate the achievements of over 6,000 of our students across our four Colleges. On behalf of NUI Galway, I am delighted to honour all of our graduates and their achievements, a great occasion for everyone involved.” he said.

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NEWS EDITORIAL Hello again, readers, it’s hard to believe that issue 6 is here already! Our last issue of the year and indeed the last issue of the decade if you think about it. But not to worry we’re going to sign off on the 2010’s with a bang as we have a great variety of stories inside to keep you entertained right up into the New Year.

Inside we have some excellent pieces, as Blathnaid O’Dea speaks to one of just 61 members the Travelling community who enrolled in 3rd level education in 2017 according to a report from the Department of Education. Conor Brummell reports on the conclusion of a long running dispute between Sult and Corrib Rowing and Yachting club over the construction of a canopy at the back of the bar, I speak to the newly elected Gender and LGBT Rights Officer, Rachel Garvey writes about the launch of the iconic Christmas market, and staying in the festive spirit, Kuntal Samadder gives us the lowdown on the Diwali celebrations that took place recently in the Bailey Allen Hall, while Sadhbh Hendrick reports on NUI Galway’s successes at the SEAI Energy Awards recently.

If that isn’t enough, Caoimhe Killeen gives us all the info on NUI Galway’s ranking in the Sunday Times Good University Guide, and Harry King brings us the story on how NUI Galway had set aside almost a quarter of a million euro to settle the cost of ‘equality’ related settlements.

Also inside, Ilka Denker talks all things Coldvember, the SU sponsored charity fundraiser that gets participants to take the plunge into the icy waters at Blackrock in aid of mental health supports within the college and Tara Trevaskis Hoskin reports on the launch of the new Television studio in the University.

On top of that, there are articles on charity socks, honorary conferrals, an NUI Galway based initiative to get girls in second level more involved in science and P.E, and the opening of the Siobhan McKenna archive to the public where I spoke to President Michael. D. Higgins about the launch.

FEATURES EDITORIAL Hello lovely readers, Welcome to our last issue of SIN for 2019.

It’s crazy how quickly it came around, yet we’re going out with a bang, and ending semester one with some of our best submissions yet!

In her last ever Erasmus diary, Fiona Lee fills us in on her final days in Canada.

Meanwhile, Jody Moylan has a nostalgic top ten list that’s a must read for any movie buffs out there. And, as our first year columnist Aoife Burke finishes up her first ever semester of college, final year Sadhbh Hendrick prepares to start her last semester in the new year. It’s very emotional all around, and a compelling read!

Speaking of emotions, why are they still so taboo for men? In this issue, Shane Lynch takes a deeper look at the strained relationship between masculinity and mental health. Romantic relationships are

also a problem for many of us, as Rachel Garvey explains in her article on why Tinder can help you become more resilient.

Resilience is needed not only by daters, but also hospitality workers, as Siobhan Brew proves in her gripping article on the exploitation of students working within the sector. Somebody who loves their work, however, is Niamh Kelly, who shares her uplifting experience of her involvement with the college’s Literacy Lift Off campaign.

Meanwhile, if you’ve made any blunders this week, fear not! It can’t be as mortifying as Mc Donald’s unfortunate ‘Sundae Bloody Sundae’ advertisement, which received understandable backlash, as Conor Brummell highlights in his eye-opening piece on the mistreatment of Ireland by international media. Also on the receiving end of backlash recently was Paris Hilton, whose comments about child star Millie Bobby Brown raised a few eyebrows, including those of Siobhan Brew, as she explains on page 10. Still on the topic of celebrities, Sarah Molloy updates us on their latest obsession, the body neutrality movement.

With all this and more in the pages ahead, this issue will hopefully cheer you up during exam preparation blues!

OPINION EDITORIAL Hi, friends! Here we are at our final issue of the semester. How crazy is that? This week, our fabulous writers have worked hard to delivery to you the most interesting and juicy topics to choose from! Hopefully this issue will entertain you enough to keep you wanting more in January! I’d like to say thank you to all who have picked up and read the paper this year, it’s really flattering for us as a volunteer paper to have such overwhelming support from the students at NUI Galway. I’d also wish to thank my amazing writers who have taken articles consistently throughout the semester and helped us out with whatever they could.

You guys are awesome, and I hope to see you back at our meetings in the second semester!

Now, without further delay, yours truly will give you a sneak peek at what we have for you in our opinion section.

We start things off with an article on the significance of Caifé na Gaeilge and why it was closed. Are you passionate about the Irish language, and have strong feelings towards its closure? Then why not read our article and see if you find more useful information on the subject!

Is make-up a form of catfishing? Do you wonder if make-up makes people see you as different person? Or are you perhaps disgusted with the fact that people who use make-up to correct their appearance are being judged for doing so? Then we have something for you to read too! Is Disney just for kids or can it be enjoyed by all age groups? Find out in here in issue 6!

Has the Christmas market arrived too soon? Find out what one of our authors has to say on the matter! Did you know about RTÉ and their apparent inability to keep a straight financial record? Want to find out more about it? Flick over! Banning WIFI from cafes and restaurants to encourage

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face to face interaction, agree or disagree?

Should men still pay for dates in 2019?

The sexist view of the man having to pay the bill is extremely outdated and unfair!

Do you feel the same way? And are tattoos unprofessional and unacceptable at the workplace? Why should what we put on our skin matter to our employer?

Finally, cheating on a cheat. Does it bring the scale back to balance or does it completely tarnish the relationship further?

Have fun reading!

LIFESTYLE AND FASHION EDITORIAL

By Catherine Taylor Hello again, everyone! It’s hard to believe that this is the last issue of the semester, but time flies when you’re having fun. The fashion and lifestyle section has been my passion project over the past few months and I’m looking forward to making it even better in 2020! Thanks so much to all our brilliant writers for their hard work over the semester and, as always, you can email me at lifestyle.sined@gmail.com if you want to join our amazing team in the new year!

This issue is full to the brim with fabulous fashion, lifestyle, beauty and travel content. For starters, Varun Dua brings us the latest edition of Travel Junkie with a look at the beautiful location of Ladakh, India. With a look towards the new year, fellow SIN ed Anastasia Burton gives us the lowdown on how to spend less and save money as a college student, while Jonathan Browne looks at the perks of shopping vintage in a fast-fashion world.

Speaking of the F word, Amanda Leeson gives us a review of the good, the bad and the ugly in celebrity Halloween costumes.

From Kylie’s Playboy Bunny costume to sister Kim’s Legally Blonde tribute, we look at who got it right and who got it oh so wrong.

Elsewhere, Alice O’Donnell examines the success of Youtuber makeup lines following the release of the Jeffrey and Shane Conspiracy line.

Megan Frei takes us through her top clean beauty makeup products, as celebrities like Emma Watson embrace the power of the “Five-Minute Face.” With this essential guide to clean beauty, you’ll be saving time, money and the environment to boot!

Score.

Finally, in this week’s edition of The Foodie Diaries, our resident chef Isabel Dwyer gifts us with the greatest Christmas present of all – a cracking sandwich recipe!

Next time you’re craving a cheat meal, consider a heavenly halloumi sandwich. You’re welcome in advance!

ARTS AND ENTERTAINMENT EDITORIAL

By Sarah Gill I read a beautiful quote by Nathaniel Hawthorne during the week which said, “Time

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flies over us, but leaves its shadow behind” and I thought it was such a great way to describe our journey with SIN so far. While these past six issues have seemed to pass by in the blink of an eye, each and every publication will be there to look back on for years to come. Every contributor who has watched their by-line appear on these pages should be extremely proud of themselves, because I believe that the work we have seen this semester has been some of the very best.

Following in the footsteps of the past five issues, the Arts and Entertainment section is fit to burst. From top-class movie and music reviews to some Christmas recommendations to get you into the festive spirit, prepare to update your Spotify playlists. Rachel Garvey gives us the lowdown on what’s going on in Galway over the holiday season, as well as penning a great piece of this year’s MTV EMAs. Ewelina Szybinska is keeping us up to date on all of Instagram’s updates, while Ciara Brennan pays a beautiful tribute to the Irish broadcasting legend that is Gay Byrne, who we sadly lost earlier this month. Last but not least, Conor Brummell has spoken to the lovely LAOISE and it made for a seriously interesting read. Pour yourself a mug of tea and dive in, we’ll see you in the New Year!

SPORTS EDITORIAL

By Darren Casserly Hello again, everyone, for the last time this semester. It has been quite the semester.

Personally, for me, taking on the role of sports editor was quite daunting, but it has been something that I have enjoyed.

As always, we have a great sports section to distract you from the ever-looming exams.

From the world of football, Aaron Deering looks at how justified Derby’s sacking of captain Richard Keogh really was. Shane Lynch writes about how far fan support should go in the case of Granit Xhaka.

Elsewhere, Ian Casserly discusses if sports autobiographies are a worthwhile read.

Owen Kennedy deserves some praise for his contribution, with the club spotlight being put on the swimming club, he also writes about the triumphant Irish women’s hockey team who qualified for the Tokyo Olympics. Owen also gives us a review of the 2019 Rugby World Cup that Ireland would love to quickly forget.

Alice O’Donnell also gives us a report from the mixed indoors ultimate frisbee Intervarsity tournament, which is fast becoming one of NUI Galway’s most popular clubs.

I write about the changes to the Sigerson cup, which, unsurprisingly, is the latest in a long line of poor decision-making by the GAA. This also came as a double blow for many young footballers with the changes to the under 20 schedules.

Finally, I would like to thank all the writers that have written me pieces this semester and made my job a lot easier. I would also like to thank SIN editor, Mark Lynch, for giving me this opportunity. As always, if you want to write for the paper, or just have an idea that you think could go into the paper you can email me at sport. sined@gmail.com.

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SIN Vol. 21 Issue 06

Glasses raised as Sult granted planning permission for new canopy

By Conor Brummell An Bord Pleanála has upheld a decision to grant permission to Sult to build a canopy at the back of the college bar area, despite complaints that were lodged earlier this year.

SIN revealed in September that plans to build the structure were appealed by the Corrib Rowing and Yacht Club.

According to sources, the club felt that some of their “elderly members would feel intimidated by the drinkers who use the bar” and the fact that the canopy would “impede their right of access at the back of Sult bar”.

However, these complaints were not upheld, and the green light has been given to build the structure. An Bord Pleanála’s ruling came on the basis that the development of the canopy “would not seriously injure the visual amenities of the protected structure, the adjoining canal or any property in the vicinity”.

They also alluded to the fact that the right of access would not be restricted, seeing as there have been sturdy planters in place since 2013 to distinguish between the bar area and the access to the canal. Any further objection on this

basis, the report claims, would be a civil matter and An Bord Pleanála would not be able to judicate any further.

The development of the structure has been given revised conditions to adhere to, ensuring that the City Development Plan is followed. As the canal is a protected structure, the proposed canopy “must be supported on three standalone-columns” in order to stick to the conservation report. A conservation expert must also be present at time of building to monitor the site.

Gareth Williams, CEO of Students’ Union Commercial Services Ltd, spoke to SIN about the project moving forward.

“We’re delighted now, obviously, about moving forward and the fact that everything is done and dusted”.

“We had very little involvement in the whole thing, since the objection to the planning permission was sent to An Bord Pleanála. Our plans were already approved, and they (The Yacht and Rowing Club) were appealing somebody else’s decision. I think the grounds in which they appealed on were, to put it politely, tenuous or just not correct”.

“We are looking forward now to getting moving, and the University is

completely on board. We’re waiting for architectural suppliers and tendering to get sorted, but we’re not going to rush into anything just yet while people are around during term-time. We’re going to wait until we get a holiday period, and then we’ll finalise the date”.

Corrib Rowing and Yacht Club were contacted at the time of the article being written but did not provide comment on the matter.

According to the appeal report from An Bord Pleanála, however, the club wished that “the Applicant (Sult Bar) had notified the club of their intention to develop a site”.

The report also states that the club would be happy with the Planning Authority’s suggestion of a “semi-permanent low barrier to be placed beside the Canal” in the event of anyone falling in due to heightened popularity of the student bar.

According to Gareth Williams, he “would love if the structure could be built on Monday. However, there is one company doing the building, with architects and quantity surveyors still to come on board.”

“We are, however, looking forward to it coming to fruition”, he concluded.

Students’ Union launch “Big Yellow Thing” socks for charity

By Mark Lynch NUI Galway Students’ Union have launched fundraising socks featuring a tribute to the iconic “Galway Yellow” (AKA Big Yellow Thing) sculpture on campus. The socks, a collaboration

help the community-led organisation to respond to the issue of domestic abuse in the county of Galway.

The “Galway Yellow” sculpture outside the James Hardiman Library on the NUI Galway campus was created by artist Brian King in 1976 and has

with Galway company Irish Socksciety, are on sale now for €9 per pair, with all proceeds going to the SU charities.

The launch came just before conferral week, and the Students’ Union will be hoping that many graduates will donate through buying the socks out of nostalgic sentiment towards the NUI Galway campus. The SU says, “They’re an ideal present for anyone who has ever said “I’ll meet ya at the Big Yellow Thing” over the years!”

The designated Students’ Union charities for the academic year 2019/2020, as announced recently, are AIDS West and Domestic Violence Response. Through AIDS West, the socks will help to raise money for high quality care and support for those affected by HIV, AIDS or STIs, or those who are worried about their sexual health. The money raised for Domestic Violence Response will

been a landmark and meeting point for UCG/NUI Galway students since then. It goes by several nicknames, most commonly “The Big Yellow Thing”, but down through the years has also been referred to as, “The Squiggle”, and “Archimedes Balls”.

Students’ Union President, Clare Austick, said at the launch, “We are delighted to launch our socks just in time for the NUI Galway conferring ceremonies. They are a great gift and will support the work of two very worthy local charities AIDS West and Domestic Violence Response.

We hope past and present staff and students will love the socks as much as we do. We look forward to seeing them on cosy feet across campus!”

The socks are on sale now from the SU Office, upstairs in Áras na Mac Léinn, and the SU Shop, beside the Bialann, at NUI Galway.

New TV studio set to air on campus

By Tara Trevaskis Hoskin A state-of-the-art TV studio is set to open in NUI Galway by the new year.

The project, which began in July, is being backed by the new discipline of Journalism and Communication and has cost the University approximately a quarter of a million euro to complete.

Tom Felle, head of the discipline of Journalism and Communication believes that there was “a need for investment in new facilities”, in order to bring the discipline up to an international standard.

“There is no reason that a student study-

ing in NUI Galway should not have the same standard of facilities to that of a student in New York or London”, he said.

Since taking his new position only 14 months ago, Mr Felle has already began to achieve this goal with both the radio and the new TV studio. The completion of the studio brought together a wide range of professional staff from construction, IT, set designers and lighting specialists. Some key drivers behind the studio’s completion were Director of CELT (Centre for excellence in learning and teaching) Dr. Iain Mac Labhrainn, Anne Marie Forde and Naomh Cassidy from the Buildings and Estates Department, as well as Conor McMahon from Information Solutions and Services at the University.

The TV studio is one of the most advanced in Ireland. It uses a Tricaster TC1, a television operating system that is used professionally worldwide. The studio is fitted with 4K cameras and a DMX system which allows lighting control. This completely changes how the studio looks depending on the chosen color and lighting scheme.

The new studio is effectively divided in two, with one room dedicated to news

and current affairs, as the studio is fitted out to cater for news style presenting or panel discussions, while the other room features a green screen, which can be used for many different types of programming, making the studio extremely versatile for different training purposes.

There is set to be a new Masters in Broadcasting and, with the addition of the new TV studio, this programme will be extremely applicable to modern media. Journalism students both under and postgraduate will also utilize the studio as part of their course work. The studio will then ultimately be open to all students of NUI Galway, providing an essential asset on campus.

Adding to the appeal of the studio, the technology that has been used is extremely modern, with one of the fastest broadband connections in the west of Ireland. It has 10gb data speed, which is 10 times faster than fibre. Thanks to this, it can broadcast live to anywhere in the world, meaning that, if the University wishes to make a statement on national or international television, they can now do so directly from campus.

Students will also be able to broadcast to monitors on campus, which will give student media a new means of broadcasting, sharing and shaping the news. The official launch is set to take place in the new year.

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November 19 2019

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Diwali 2019 at NUI Galway

By Kuntal Samadder With lights, dance, Bollywood songs, and Indian cuisine, NUI Galway witnessed a spectacular Diwali night on Sunday the 27th of October, when more than 550 visitors turned out at the Bailey Allen Hall - the highest attendance in recent years.

Diwali is a celebration of the biggest Indian festival at a home far from home.

The event’s committee members had been extraordinarily active in the last few weeks promoting one of the most highly anticipated events of 2019.

The event kick-started with an introductory speech by the auditor of NUI Galway India Soc for this year, Hasan Farooqui, a first-year postgrad student in Enterprise Systems. In his speech,

Hasan introduced well-respected Professor Abhay Pandit to the newcomers. Dr Pandit is a prominent professor of Biomaterials here at NUI Galway and the Director of the Centre for Research in Medical Devices (CÚRAM). His achievements in biomaterials have earned him a place in the International Who’s Who of Professionals and is also listed in Who’s Who in American Universities. After his brief speech, Professor Pandit lit up a ceremonial lamp and formally inaugurated the event.

The entertainment started with a duet performance by two Business Analytics postgraduate students, Apurva and Shreya, followed by a solo singing performance by Prahalad.

Despite being away from India, the Indian students felt at home on the night. Many guests from

NUI Galway named 4th best third level institution in Ireland in Sunday Times rankings

By Caoimhe Killeen NUI Galway has moved up one place to fourth in the Sunday Times’ Irish Good University Guide for 2020. The guide assesses the quality of nineteen facilities around Ireland and NUI Galway ranked only behind University College Cork, University College Dublin and Trinity College Dublin.

Universities were tested across a range of categories, including Leaving Certificate points for entry, research, student-staff ratio, rate of firstclass honours and 2:1 degrees achieved, progression rate and money invested in facilities and services.

Other factors also taken into consideration were the numbers of mature or overseas students studying at the university, students from socio-economically disadvantages backgrounds, flexible learners and sports facilities.

The heaviest weighting was placed on student satisfaction, tested by means of the ISSE (Irish Survey of Student Engagement) carried out annually on students in Irish institutions in the spring of each year. The ISSE is designed to focus on student engagement - namely the amount of time and effort that students put into meaningful and purposeful educational activities and the extent to which institutions provide such opportunities and encourage students to engage with them.

This new marking criteria added in the 2018 survey used a sixty-point scale across nine areas of student experience.

These areas were effective teaching practices, higher order learning, reflective and integrative learning, student faculty interaction, overall quality of these interactions, a supportive academic environment, collaborative learning and quotative reasonings. An average was calculated to produce an overall score for each institution, with NUI Galway scoring 125 points in total, placing them in third place.

Despite achieving joint first position with UL in the Employment section, indicating the number of students who enter the workforce after graduation, a significant drop came in the form of the CAO median points, where NUI Galway dropped from third to sixth position on the league tables.

Claire Austick, President of the NUI Galway Students’ Union, said: “The University rankings are not always truly reflective of an Institution and the best way to measure student success. Having a focus on ISSE, in my opinion, is hugely beneficial. A university’s success, in terms of students, should be measured by the quality of courses offered, the engagement with students, student-staff ratios, extracurricular activities available (i.e sports and societies), support services they provide and by empowering students to reach their full potential academically and through personal growth”.

other countries were seen in vibrant Indian ethnic garments and took part in the celebrations with high spirit and enthusiasm.

Another duet performance by Stuti & Sudeshna brought the crowd to their feet. While the viewers were warming up, the highlight of the event was presented by Magalakshmi, Apurva, Apoorva, Shubham, and Bharat.

The crowd burst into cheers and the Bailey Allen Hall turned into a dance floor. The event was an artful impersonation of Bollywood movie celebrities, delivered by Saket Kumar, event manager of India Soc. An ice-breaker game hosted by Rajdeep and Shreya preceded the flavoursome dinner.

Among other important guests, Dr Denis Dennehy, the Programme Director of MSc. Business Analytics, stole the

show in his usual exuberant style and Indian ethnic Kurta.

Dr Michael Schukat, the former Head of the Department of Information Technology, witnessed the celebration with his

wife, while Dr Patricia McHugh, lecturer in Marketing & course director of Digital Marketing also joined in with the festivities.

The owner of the Santoor Indian Restaurant, Tariqul Islam,

was present at the event, and he catered with the help of other volunteers. From the snack-box given away upon arrival to the dinner, everyone seemed to enjoy the quintessential Indian cuisines offered.

The huge participation of members from different societies contributed to the success of the event and represented the diversity of NUI Galway. The event was a confluence of many nationalities, namely Irish, Spanish, Italian, Pakistani, Chinese, Nigerian, and more. Students from GMIT and Yeats College Galway also got involved in the celebration.

The event was a major success and entertained a huge audience.

The Halloween parade didn’t undermine the turnouts in any way, which was feared beforehand.

All those involved now look forward to 2020 for the next major event, Holi.

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SIN Vol. 21 Issue 06

Coldvember returns to NUI Galway

By Ilka Denker NUI Galway’s charity event, “Coldvember” has returned for a second year in succession to create awareness for mental health and raise funds for the University’s counselling services.

The initiative sees the six founding members of the event, and anyone brave enough to face the cold Atlantic Ocean, take the plunge and enter the chilly waters at Blackrock Diving Tower every morning during the month of November.

After successfully raising over €7,000 last year, “Coldvember” aims to raise €10,000 this year.

While the money raised through “Coldvember” was contributed towards the Movember foundation last year, this year, the organisers of the event wanted to focus on raising money for NUI Galway itself. The organisers thereby seek to give back directly to the community and “see the fruits of (their) fundraiser”.

It is about more than just the money, but also to get people talking. “We might be sit-

ting next to people in our lectures that have problems but might not want to talk about it.

Our big aim is to get people to be comfortable enough to talk about it,” says Karl Glynn, one of “Coldvember’s” founding members.

Through the money that is raised for NUI Galway’s counselling services, financial support will be provided for online counselling platforms such as Silvercloud, as well as providing pay-

ment for trained counsellors to monitor students’ progress on these platforms.

The money will also aim to enable more students and staff to take part in educational workshops on mental health.

Student Union’s Welfare and Equality Officer, Brandon Walsh, praised the fundraiser, telling SIN, “I think it is absolutely fantastic that there is a group of students that are taking this initiative to raise money for vital services here on campus and it’s really good as well to show the correlation between good mental health and physical activity”.

All the participants agree that they are supporting “Coldvember” primarily to raise awareness for mental health and believe it is a

great way to meet new people. Shane Mooney voices that it is good to come down to Salthill in the morning and that the dip in the sea “wakes you up for the day”.

If you are not up to taking the plunge on your own, convince a friend, a neighbour, your society or your club to come down with you. As Cian Lankford says: “It is a bit easier if you got two fellas going down and getting a freezing than one, you know?”

Swim times and updates are posted daily on “Coldvember’s” Instagram page @coldvember_nuig and more information can also be found on their Facebook page @coldvembernuig. For email enquiries, the fundraiser can be contacted at coldvembernuig@gmail. com.

Donation, big or small can be made at the fundraiser’s official JustGiving page.

At the end of the day, we all have to watch out for one another, and it is “Coldvember’s” biggest achievement yet to make us aware of that.

NUI Galway takes home top prize at SEAI Energy Awards

By Sadhbh Hendrick NUI Galway took home the top prize at the Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland’s (SEAI) 2019 awards, taking home the acclaimed Energy Team of the Year award.

Julie O’Neill, Chair of SEAI, said: “The SEAI Energy Awards celebrate the absolute best of Ireland’s sustainable energy achievements. They are a vivid demonstration of how Irish business, communities and public organisations are pushing the boundaries in energy efficiency and the switch to clean energy. The 134 plus entrants in this year’s Awards have made energy savings of €38 million.

The continued efforts and outstanding ambition of this year’s finalists is to be commended”.

NUI Galway has set its sights on its campus being one of the greenest in the world.

The University impressed judges with their inclusive and long-term approach to energy management. As part of its strategy, the Energy Team ran initiatives and campaigns which encourage and provide tools to students and staff on how they can reduce energy use on campus and in their homes.

As part of its sustainability strategy, NUI Galway has created a Green Campus Charter, encouraging and providing tools to students and staff on how to reduce energy use on site and at home.

The Galway team also gives ‘green’ recommendations on new technology being used on campus, to ensure alignment with their sustainability goals. Already at 36% energy reduction, NUI Galway continue to work towards their ambitious target of a 40% energy reduction by 2020.

NUI Galway are committed to reducing energy and carbon consumption in line with the Government Climate

Action Plan 2030. The Energy Management System, developed by NUI Galway Energy Team, allows for independent verification and monitoring by SEAI of our energy and carbon reduction on campus. The Energy Team will continue to lead by example by implementing best practices in energy efficiency to meet the highest energy management standards and being at the forefront of sustainable development. The University aims to deliver on this commitment by promoting the concept of energy efficiency at all levels in the organisation from students and academics to administration staff and contractors.

Earlier this year, the University was awarded the internationally recognised Green Flag by An Taisce’s Green-Campus programme on behalf of the Foundation for Environmental Education. The SEAI award further demonstrates the University’s commitment to sustainability and its achievements to date.

Assistant Director of Estates Operations, Noel O’Connor, spoke of his delight at scooping the prestigious accolade, stating: “We are absolutely delighted to receive this award, it validates the hard work and dedication that the Energy Team has been putting in for many years. We all have a role to play in helping to build a sustainable society, and universities, in particular, have a responsibility to promote sustainability through leadership, education, knowledge exchange, research and corporate social responsibility. A sustainable campus is one which maintains a green and healthy environment, promotes the use of resources efficiently and instils in graduates and staff the importance of urgently tackling environmental challenges”.

A total of nine awards were presented to businesses, communities and public sector organisations, recognising their commitment and dedication to

excellence in energy management and creating a cleaner energy future. The Outstanding Contribution to Sustainable Energy went to Marie Donnelly.

During a thirty-year career in the European Commission, Marie has been a leading advocate of policies and strategies to accelerate our energy transition.

Another winner, Victory Luke received the Emerging Sustainability Champion award. Victory’s school had benefited from an SEAI community energy grant and that acted as the impetus for her to take up the climate action mantle.

Congratulating all the finalists and award winners, Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment, Richard Bruton TD, said: “How we respond to the challenge of climate disruption will define us as a generation. These awards are a good opportunity to highlight those taking leadership and managing their energy use in a more sustainable way”.

CÚRAM aims to boost exercise and scientific interest in females

By Mark Lynch An NUI Galway-based medical device research centre is encouraging more secondary school girls to become interested in science, while also aiming to increase their participation in exercise.

CÚRAM, the Science Foundation Ireland (SFI) Research Centre for Medical Devices based at NUI Galway, is launching cross-curricular resources for secondary school teachers to increase teenage girls’ interest in both learning science and participating in exercise. The ‘Strength in Science’ project is funded by SFI’s Discover Programme, and is a collaboration of

researchers, science teachers, physical education (PE) teachers, and fitness instructors.

Just 8% of female secondary school students in Ireland receive 60 minutes of PE per week, which is the amount recommended by the Department of Education and Skills. The most common reason given for the shortage of PE time was time pressure due to schoolwork. By strongly linking PE lessons to the science curriculum through the launch of the cross-curricular resources, CÚRAM hopes that educators will not feel as if the time dedicated to PE is taking away from preparing for exams.

Four lesson plan kits are available for secondary school teachers, all of

which are linked to the Junior Cycle PE and Science curricula, but can also be used for Senior Cycle and later primary school students. The kits integrate the work of world-leading, Irish researchers with the scientific effects of exercise on different areas of the body to prevent vascular disease, osteoporosis, stroke, and neurodegenerative disorders. NUI Galway researchers featured include vascular surgeon Ms Niamh Hynes, biomedical engineer Professor Laoise McNamara, and neuroscientists Dr Karen Doyle, Dr Séan Fitzgerald, Dr Una FitzGerald, Dr Jill McMahon, and Enrico Bagnoli.

Each kit includes a lesson plan for teachers, a short video, and a flyer cov-

ering the topic for students to share with family members. Additionally, a booklet is available describing unique extra-curricular exercises available in Ireland such as cheerleading, Zumba, dance, circus performance, yoga, and CrossFit. Fitness professionals contributing to the project include Donna Larkin from CrossFit Galway/French Vanoli, Stuntworx Elite Gymnastics and Cheer, Classes Withmel, FITTSteps Training, Ashtanga Yoga Galway, 4M Dance Centre and Galway Community Circus.

Clair Hogan, a PE teacher at Salerno Secondary School, expressed her delight at the newly available resources, saying, “This is a wonderful pack for the class-

room. The lesson plans are fun and easy to implement. The videos are excellent and visually allow the students to link the scientific facts they learn in their science lessons to the benefits they get in their bodies when exercising”.

Professor Abhay Pandit, Scientific Director of CÚRAM at NUI Galway, outlined his optimism, stating, “We hope that students will be able to contextualise scientific concepts by understanding the effects of physical activity on their bodies and how it can prevent chronic illnesses. We want to make science more personal and relevant to teenagers by linking how the biology and physics involved in exercise affects their health”.

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Siobhan McKenna archive opened to public Paddy Henry NUI Galway officially launched the Siobhán ­McKenna archive in the James Hardiman last Friday, in a day of celebration dedicated of the life of the renouned actress and director.

The papers were initially donated to the James Hardiman Library in 2012 by her son Donnacha O’Dea and Siobhán’s former manager Margaret McCurtain. The collection was initially kept as a private collection within the university but will now be open to the public.

Highlights in the archive include material relating to over 77 different productions which Siobhán was involved in, including scripts, correspondence, photographs and press cuttings. Her television and film roles are also featured, along with material relating to her writing and political activism. Research notes and copies of a range of talks at festivals, book launches, and other events are also included in the archive.

President Michael D. Higgins attended the event as a guest of honour, along with members of the McKenna family and Margaret McCurtain.

Respected theatre figures Lian Bell and Garry Hynes were also in attendance.

Siobhán McKenna was born in Belfast, but moved to Galway as a child following the appoint-

ment of her father as a lecturer in University College Galway. McKenna herself attended the University, graduating with first class honours in 1943.

Her acting career had taken off in the early 40’s while still a student in the University, starring in leading roles at Taibhdhearc na Gaillimhe, the national Irish language theatre based in Middle Street in the city. Following her graduation, Siobhan went on to work at the Abbey Theatre company. Her career spanned decades and continents, performing in London, New York and Paris, and in 1956, she became the first Irish actor to win a Tony award.

Off the stage, McKenna was also an active director and was involved in 15 productions following her return to these shores in the 1960’s.

She was also a prominent political activist, vocal on issues surrounding Northern Ireland and the Anti-Apartheid movement.

A symposium on Siobhán McKenna’s life followed the official opening of the archive where discussions were held on the position of female

Following her graduation, Siobhan went on to work at the Abbey Theatre company. Her career spanned decades and continents, performing in London, New York and Paris, and in 1956, she became the first Irish actor to win a Tony award. theatre-makers in the industry. Margaret McCurtain spoke at the event about her relationship with Siobhán and her time spent working with the iconic actress.

A brand-new theatrical performance, inspired

by McKenna, was also conducted by BA students in performing arts at the event.

President Michael D Higgins spoke of McKenna’s deep personal connection with the city and the University, telling RTÉ News, “I think Siobhán McKenna’s own connection with Galway was something that was very deep, not only in a personal biographical sense, but also through her father, who was a lecturer on campus, and the connection that she had with the atmosphere of Galway at the Taibhdhearc”.

President of NUI Galway, Professor Ciarán Ó hÓgartaigh, echoed Uachtarán na hÉireann’s sentiments and spoke of the huge honour it is to have the archive on campus, stating; “Siobhán McKenna is one of Ireland’s great cultural icons. It is a huge honour for NUI Galway to hold such an extraordinary collection of her excellence and high standards. Siobhan’s archives are a significant resource now open to all of our students and staff to enjoy, and, of course, the wider public globally. It is especially fitting and respectful that her archives are held in our University given her close ties as a graduate of this University and that of her father, who was as a teaching professor here, which led to Siobhán’s long-term association with Galway’s rich cultural heritage and her extraordinary acting career”.

O hÓgartaigh also praised the University’s archival department for “not only releasing archives but treating them with pride”.

Archivist at NUI Galway, Dr Barry Houlihan, hailed the significance of opening the extensive archive to the public. “We thought it was really timely to open the archive to the public”, he said, “Siobhán from her outset was a trailblazer, a feminist, an Irish language activist and I think her traits are needed more so today in society and life than ever before”.

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SIN Vol. 21 Issue 06

The future of Travellers attending third level is set to improve at last – but “more needs to be done”

By Blaithnaid O’Dea The number of Travellers attending third level is slowly increasing, thanks, in part, to changing attitudes.

A report commissioned by the Department of Education found that just 41 members of the Travelling Community attended third level in 2016.

This figure increased slightly in 2017 when 61 members of the Travelling community attended third level. However, these figures are low when compared with attendance figures from the settled community.

According to students from the Travelling community, more needs to be done to encourage Travellers to go to third level. Access programmes that are designed as springboards for Travellers to further study are hugely beneficial in continuing to increase the number attending colleges, according to Joanna Corcoran from Galway Traveller Movement.

Ms. Corcoran has recently graduated from NUI Galway’s Access Diploma Programme, which provides students facing challenges to accessing higher education with tailormade supports to enable them to attend college and study further if they wish.

SIN spoke to Ms. Corcoran ahead of her graduation: “I think pilot courses specifically for Travellers can help generate interest in going to college and I know that some of my classmates who are from the Travelling community, about six or seven of them who are graduating tomorrow are going on to do further study in NUI Galway, “she said.

Martin Mongan, a second-year journalism student at University of Limerick, believes the figures are low because the Irish education system has not traditionally made much of an effort to incorporate its Traveller students.

He says that he is not surprised by the statistics from the Department of Education’s report, stating “You have to take into account the number of Travellers who go on to complete their Leaving Cert is very low”, but adds that “It’s positive to see that the numbers are slowly creeping up year on year.”

He feels that ignorance on the part of the settled community can play a part in Travellers not progressing well in the Irish education system: “I do believe that discrimination and ignorance plays a massive part of Travellers not attending

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college. It is a process. You need to finish primary school to start secondary school; you need to do relatively well to go into college from secondary school. If you feel isolated or unwanted in a school setting, you’ll lose interest. Then you’ll go into secondary school and the problem intensifies.

Students brains develop and they develop their own thoughts, own ideas and that leads to how they feel about different types of people. You’ll begin to think “what’s the point? Why am I here?

I’m surrounded by people who don’t believe I have what it takes to make something of myself.” It can be mentally draining”.

Mr Mongan says that Travellers starting out on their journey through the school system may benefit from a piece of legislation currently being debated in the Dáil, which will see all Irish schoolchildren learn about Traveller culture and history.

“I believe that the introduction of the Traveller Culture and History Bill that has been passed in

Santa Claus arrives in town for annual Christmas market

By Rachel Garvey

Seomra Cótaí SAOR IN AISCE Chomhaltas na Mac Léinn

the Seanad will help drastically towards encouraging Travellers to go into college. It will give Traveller students a sense of belonging in a school setting. They will get to learn about aspects of our culture that they wouldn’t have known before, along with educating non-Travellers on the ways of life that Travellers hold on to so dearly”.

Traveller students currently attending NUI Galway can benefit from the recent founding of Mincéir Whiden, a student society for Travellers.

As the number of Travellers going to third level keeps increasing, it is only a matter of time before similar Mincéir societies appear in other universities too. “I think it’s a great start!” says Martin. “It is great that there is a Minceirí club and society in NUI Galway. It could encourage Travellers to know they they’re not alone and if they are struggling with college related issues and that they know there’s a place they can go to attempt to rectify their problem!”

Galway is welcoming the 2019 Christmas market with open arms, as the market celebrates a decade of successfully entertaining local Galwegians and tourists alike that visit Galway for this special event.

Maria Moynihan Lee, manager of Milestone Inventive, the company charged with running the market, spoke of her company’s involvement in the iconic event. In a recent interview with the Connacht Tribune, she spoke of her involvement in the market and how the company has been in charge for all but one of the ten years.

Ms Moynihan Lee promised that there will be more artisan traders, as well as more intricate lights and decorations to augment the atmosphere for the public. The market is in operation until Sunday 22nd December and the organisers have posted their opening hours on their Facebook page. The market opens at 12pm from Monday to Wednesday, closing at 8, while, between Thursday and Sunday, it stays open until the later time of 10pm, opening at 10am.

The Christmas market returns with all its Christmas goodies, including 50 wooden stalls with a wide range of stock from hand-knitted woolly hats to Christmas décor for your household or garden.

Families can expect to see Santa’s Grotto, where they can visit the one and only Santa Claus and his elves. Of course, most importantly, the German Bier Keller returns, where students and locals can relax and enjoy their wide range of German beers, steins, apple cider and mulled wine.

The Market also plays host to various amusement rides too, such as, the 32 metre Big Wheel, the traditional Carousel and Santa’s Express Train, which journeys its way around the inner-city centre to give passengers a taste of Galway’s Christmas lights. Visitors can also expect live performances, choir singing, puppet shows and will be able to walk through the lit-up areas of Eyre Square, where giant lights will be set up, as well as the Gingerbread Man’s House display. The Christmas Market has also posted their exclusive VIP offer for the Big Wheel again this year, giving four people the chance to experience a luxurious twenty-five minute VIP experience on the wheel complete with

Prosecco, fluffy blanket and a box of chocolates, all for fifty euro.

Galway Tourism has estimated that 650,000 visitors were at last year’s market, with many getting to experience the taste of a wide variety of foods that ranged from German Bratwurst to French pastries, pretzels, crepes and waffles. There is simply something for everyone’s tastes.

The iconic market was officially launched on November 15th, with the Light up Galway festival also launching on the same evening with both events bringing Christmas cheer to Galway city.

Galway Tourism revealed that, “This year’s events will see a collection on the night for Rosabel’s Room to help raise awareness and support for those suffering the loss of a loved one”.

Locals can expect to enjoy the market for a longer period of time over the approaching Christmas season as well as more lighting and better décor this year. The locals of Galway and tourists from far and wide never leave the Christmas market disappointed and social media is already flooded with comments and posts about how individuals are looking forward to this year’s market.

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“Something needs to change”: NUI Galway lecturer calls for action over ill-treatment of hospitality workers

By Siobhan Brew With fees, rent and general cost of living, it is not uncommon for students to get part-time jobs in order to make ends meet. Often, they’re jobs they don’t particularly enjoy but persevere to continue their third level education and to enjoy the college experience to the fullest. Many are working in the hospitality sector.

A study being carried out by Dr Deirdre Curran, a lecturer in the Department of Management in the Business school in NUI Galway, has revealed the poor treatment of those working in the sector. Speaking with Dr Curran, she talks of how she began this study due to lack of research being carried out to investigate the problems in the hospitality sector; “I have known workers to be treated so badly that it effects their quality of life, but to date we had no research evidence”. In July of this year, Dr Curran created a 38-question survey and shared it through her social media connections. When she closed it a

month later, her survey had been filled out by 257 people, with overwhelmingly negative results.

Although it was not a student survey, the average age being 25 years old and over, Dr Curran is aware of the student contribution to her research.

It asked questions about simple things such as employment rights, rest breaks, tips as well as ill treatment in the workplace. The final question in the survey was the option to leave your contact details if the participant was interested in talking with the researcher. “I was hoping for about five or six, so I could do in-depth interviews with them,” Dr Curran says, “100 people left their details”. This gave an indication that there was an issue, despite the industry denying it.

I asked my own peers working in the hospitality sector whether they had dealt with any experience of harassment. One source told me how she deals with sexism in the workplace, and when she called them out on it, they “corrected” her, telling her it was “sexy, not sexist”. She is also expected to deal

My experience at the Sustainable Innovation Summit

By Karolina Kempa On the 30th of October, I made my way to Dublin’s Smock Alley Theatre for the annual Sustainable Innovation Summit. I was really excited about attending this event because of the wide range of speakers from different countries/backgrounds. It seemed promising, and *spoiler alert* it did not disappoint.

To outline but some of the reasons I found this event worth attending amidst the chaos of being a final year student; firstly, I loved the concept of experts from particular fields coming together with the aim of forming a plan for the future. Secondly, who doesn’t love innovation? I always look for new ideas and ways of approaching problems. In terms of the sustainability aspect of the event, I think the need for a cleaner environment is self-explanatory.

It’s difficult to piece everything from the summit together into one article eloquently, but I’ll start at the beginning. The event opened with Mary MacSweeney, Deputy Head of Enterprise and Economic Development with Dublin City Council, talking about the circle of influence within the different enterprises in Ireland and how they can take steps to affect change. Dublin being the heart of Ireland’s economy, is a smart city and “Smart Dublin” is an initiative of the four Dublin local authorities to engage with smart technology providers, researchers, and citizens, to take on challenges and improve city life. Local Enterprise Offices (LEOs) are an important aspect of this initiative. They aim to provide a range of financial support for the growth of enterprises, such as Feasibility Study Grants, Priming Grants and of course Brexit supports for your small business!

Panellist Norman Thompson mentioned “Fishing for Plastic”, an initiative which removes 3,500kg of rubbish from Amsterdam’s waterways each day. The tourism industry has been the bone of contention for taking globalisation a step too far and polluting beloved cities.

Locals have been driven out of Venice to accommodate tourists. They bring in money and herald economic prosperity, but at what cost? Should we draw the line somewhere? Or in James Bond’s spirit, simply “Live and Let Die”? Unique tourism initiatives such as the Dutch Fishing for plastic initiative demonstrates that, through innovation, we can take steps to make tourism smart and efficient, so let’s not “Live and Let Die” just yet!

Data from a survey carried out by Young Social Innovators showed that nine out of ten young people in Ireland believe that their life is more difficult than that of their parents (when they were young). This caught my attention because I could immediately imagine my own parents rolling their eyes at this statistic. Technology has made our lives much easier in certain ways, but it also brings about some unwanted dregs, including but not limited to increased levels of depression and anxiety, poor sleep quality, dissatisfaction with body image, and cyberbullying. This highlights that the youth today face much different problems than those of previous generations. This demonstrates the need for innovative approaches and highlights the importance of education programmes like Young Social Innovators!

You simply can’t have a daylong innovation summit without Einstein being brought up at some stage. Maurice Knightly, an entrepreneurial specialist at UCD’s Innovation Academy, quoted the prodigy; “If I had an hour to solve a problem, I’d spend 55 minutes thinking about the problem and five minutes thinking about solutions”. This was further emphasised by Knightly’s opinion that if you’re “moving too quickly to a solution you are simplifying it”. Food for thought.

To summarise, it’s important for students to make themselves aware of some of the opportunities and initiatives mentioned above. As George R.R. Martin wisely put it, “knowledge is power”, and with power, we can initiate change!

Sustainable, innovation, and summit, are three powerful words, but placing them together as in “Sustainable Innovation Summit” triples the impact. The summit gives those with vision, motivation, and passion, a platform to explore different ways to make positive change and pushes for a global mindset in the realm of innovation. Karolina was funded to attend by NUI Galway’s ALIVE programme – the focus of ALIVE is to provide students with opportunities to build civic skills and gain experiences that build civic literacy. ALIVE hopes NUI Galway students can be engaged in communities to create change and build social fabric.

For more information, check out nuigalway.ie/alive or visit ALIVE in Aras na Mac Leinn. #makewaves

with a group of young men of a similar age because they expect a “young pretty girl”. In another job, because of her uniform of a tight black dress and heels, she found people slapping her ass as she walked off, and men as old as her father shoving business cards down her top. She says, “They were completely taking advantage of the fact that I was clearly young and in a position where (at the time) felt like I didn’t have the right to complain”.

“Harassment is any act (verbal, non-verbal, physical) that makes you feel uncomfortable or that infringes on your right to dignity at work, and the person who has the right to decide that it is harassment is the individual”, says Dr Curran. “It is your individual right to feel uncomfortable, to declare that you feel uncomfortable, and to ask for it to stop.”

Through her findings, Dr Curran found that sexual harassment, harassment based on age, and harassment based on race were the most common kinds of harassment participants reported. For young people particularly, she feels there is a worrying level of tolerance and a fear that if they report it, they will receive less hours or no hours at all.

Because of the masses of students that arrive in Galway every year, finding a job is a very competitive venture, and losing it simply isn’t an option for many students. Students, however, often view

these jobs as part-time and will form strategies such as avoidance or ignorance rather than facing the issue. It is also important to declare that this is not a sweeping generalisation of the hospitality sector. It is recognised that hospitality is a highly competitive, pressurised and unique environment that makes it susceptible to these issues, especially because of the hierarchical nature of the business and the idea that staff are there to serve and please customers. Those in the industry may have the passion for food but lack the skills of managing people, merely because they were never taught.

Once the semester is over, Dr Curran plans to write a short report that will be available free to anyone who wishes to read it. Her next challenge is to persuade industry leaders and Minister Regina Doherty that this is a problem that needs to be dealt with. Talking to Dr Curran, it is very easy to see her passion and determination in changing the treatment of employees in hospitality, and she recognises students as part of that change: “We have a captive audience of students, many of whom work in the industry, this story needs to get out there”. She wants these problems to be exposed and will work with anyone to push for changes, using any platforms she is given, whether it is a newspaper, radio or the Oireachtas, to report the truth: ‘their truth’.

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10 N E WS & F E ATU R ES

SIN Vol. 21 Issue 06

Complimentary or creepy? Comment towards child celebrity receives reaction

By Siobhan Brew Media personality Paris Hilton has recently been criticised over leaving a comment on actress Millie Bobby Brown’s picture. Brown is best known for her role as ‘Eleven’ in the Netflix show Stranger Things and has a total of 30.3 million followers on Instagram. She is 15, but by no means the youngest on the platform, nor in the industry. She can easily be idolised for her talents and success and is a role model for any young actor with the dream of Hollywood lights. Not living the typical teenage life, the red-carpet photos and selfies in full glam, a person could easily get the expression that Brown is not as young as she is, which can be problematic. It brings into question the danger of putting such young people in the limelight.

Brown’s account is on public because of the industry she finds herself in, but it leaves her susceptible to unwelcomed comments.

The actress uploaded a photo that shows her in a thin strapped pink and

black dress with the caption “same dress but v different day”, which has over 6.6 million likes. Just as with any other post, the comments are filled with compliments from fans and alike towards the actress; model Elle MacPherson commented “Belle” while fan account @milliesmonster commented “you’re UNREAL”. Amongst the top comments is from Paris Hilton, commenting “That’s hot”, which people were quick to attack, including actress Evan Rachel Wood reminding Hilton that “she’s 15”.

Wood was not the only one with a n o p i n i o n . Pe o p l e expressed their disbelief at the comment and reminded her of Brown’s age before telling her to “calm down”. Another commenter warned Hilton about her compliment, explaining that Brown is “not one of your mature friends”. Others recognised the words to be Hilton’s catchphrase

Dialann Gaeltachta Le Conor Brummell Dia daoibh, a chairde! Beidh sé seo m’alt deireanach faoin Seimeastar Gaeltachta.

Tá an t-am ag druidim isteach orainn, gan dabht agus tá gach mic léinn in Éirinn faoi bhrú na scrúduithe faoi láthair! Níl leid ar bith agam conas go bhfuilimid beagnach críochnaithe sa Ghaeltacht. Ba ghaisce iontach maith é an Seimeastar gan dabht, agus ba rud nua é freisin ag bhaint trialach as trí mhí a bheith ag maireachtáil sa Ghaeltacht.

In ainneoin go bhfuil scrúdú i ndiaidh scrúdaithe ag teacht gan mhoill, aireoidh an áit seo uaim. Is cosúil an rud é gur chaith mé tréimhse i mo chónaí thar lear, seachas i gConamara í féin.

Tá an cúrsa ag druidim chun deiridh, agus tá gach rud ag athrú. Beidh mo chuid cairde nua imithe go háiteanna difriúla tar éis na Nollag, agus beidh mé ag obair i mo bhaile féin. Nílim réidh chun slán a rá do dhuine ar bith agus is leasc liom a bheith ag smaoineamh ar an todhchaí atá romham. Ar an lámh eile, áfach, tá sceitimíní orm go mbeidh mé ag déanamh socrúcháin oibre.

Chuir mé críoch leis an tsraith bheag podchraoladh a bhí á taifead agam le mo chara do Flirt.Fm agus ba bheag nár chaoin mé uisce os mo chinn nuair a mhúch muid na soilse sa stiúideo don uair dheireanach. Bhí sé ar intinn againn chun léargas a thabhairt isteach ar an saol atá againn sa Seimeastar go rialta, agus ceapaim go ndéarna muid sáriarracht chun é a dhéanamh. Tugadh a lán tacaíocht linn freisin ónár gchomhscoilairí agus léachtóirí araon, agus táim

fíorbhuíoch as an deis a bhí agam i rith an Seimeastar chun feabhas a chur ar mo chuid Gaeilge agus ar mo scileanna craoltóireachta freisin.

Is maith is cuimhin liom an chéad lá a tháinig mé anseo agus an faitíos a bhí orm chun a bheith ag tosú ollscoil in áit nua iasachta. Ní raibh mórán aithne agam ar na daoine a bhí ar an gcúrsa liom, nó na daoine a bheas mar léachtóirí anseo freisin. Caithfidh mé admháil go raibh drogall orm ag teacht mar gheall gur cheap gur bhotún a bheas ann dul go Conamara ar feadh trí mhí. Bhí mé chun a bheith scartha ón bpríomhchampas, agus bhí scanraithe i mo bheatha faoi. Ach, ón nóiméad a tháinig mé trí na doirse san Acadamh agus a bhuail mé le mo chairde a bhí agam roimh an gcúrsa, cuireadh ar shuaimhneas mé. Gan dabht, bhí fáilte mhór curtha romhainn.

Thaitin an cúrsa go mór liom, rud atáim fíorshásta faoi. Bhain mé triail as rudaí nua cosúil le damsha líne, damsha sean-nós agus neart eile. Thug mé cuairt ar an gceannceathrú TG4 agus Raidió na Gaeltachta, agus chuir mé aithne ar a lán daoine atá ag obair sna méain mar gheall. Rinne mé go leor cairde nua ó chian is ó chóngar. D’fhreastail mé ar an Oireachtas don chéad uair riamh i mo shaol, agus fuair mé mo chéad alt san Irish Times chomh maith. Gan dabht, tháinig feabhas ar mo chuid cainte agus sa deireadh thiar thall, ar an laghad tuigim na díochlaontaí ar fad anois! Ní bhíonn in aon rud ach seal, a deirtear, ach níl amhras faoi rud amháin: ní dhéanfaidh mé dearmad ar an am a chaith mé ar an gCeathrú Rua go deo.

from her reality star past, telling people to “chill”.

One comment in particular stood out: “now imagine a guy saying this”. In 2018, Lake Schatz at Consequence of Sound wrote about the friendship between Brown and rapper Drake. 14 at the time, Brown talked how they would text regularly and that she loved him, calling him “a great friend and a great role model”. However, people felt uncomfortable with the age gap and felt the friendship was inappropriate, especially because Drake has had a history with dating younger women.

Brown is not the only one to gain unwelcome attention. In 2017, her Stranger Things co-star Finn Wolfhard was the subject of American model Ali Michael’s Instagram story. According to Maya Oppenheim of Independent, the 27-yearold posted a picture of then 14-year-old Wolfhard with the caption “not to be weird but hit me up in four years”. The caption also received extreme backlash, including some addressing the age gap and asking what would happen if a man of Michael’s age had said that about a 14-year-old girl, and the model apologised, having understood the response.

Another case is 17-year-old Billie Eilish, who is easily identified for her wearing of oversized baggy clothes. In her Calvin Klein ad in 2019, Eilish says she wears baggy clothes so people cannot have an opinion on her body “because they haven’t seen what’s

underneath”, combating the sexualisation of people in the industry. When a picture of her in a tank top went viral, she talked about the unhealthy obsession towards the image and the idea of women’s bodies being objectified, telling Hannah Gold of The Cut that it makes her mad that she was being slut-shamed for her body, stating: “I’m gonna be a woman. I wanna show my body.”

While it is great to see young people living a dream life and support them in doing so, it is important to be respectful. Finding themselves in such industries forces them to grow up just a little quicker, but they are still young teenagers at the end of the day.

It is also important to remember it is not the fault of Brown for her choice in clothing or makeup, nor Eilish for her body. A comment like Hilton’s, though a compliment, could have easily been rephrased to hold less connotations, and with all the negativity she faces now, it is good to see that people are not willing to take these comments towards minors as ‘normal’.

BODY NEUTRALITY: what’s behind the latest celebrity philosophy?

By Sarah Molloy The body neutrality movement has gained a lot of attention lately for being the next progression in how we go about self-acceptance. With praise from many high-profile celebrities, such as Taylor Swift and Jameela Jamil, what actually is it? Is it truly a better alternative to body positivity, or is it just another passing craze? The idea behind body neutrality is for us to appreciate our bodies without any judgment, whether it’s positive or not.

Supporters of the movement want us to recognise that we need our bodies because they are our vehicles of existence, not because they feed into our vanity, insecurity or self-worth.

On Twitter, Jameela Jamil wrote, “It’s about liberating ourselves from this cultural obsession. It changed my life.

For people with body dysmorphia and ED, it’s like a vacation away from your mind. It involves almost no mirror time. It frees up your mind immensely.

Self-hatred is very time consuming #bodyliberation”.

Taylor Swift has supported Jamil’s activism for this movement. In an interview, she said, “We have amazing women out there like Jameela Jamil saying, ‘I’m not trying to spread body positivity. I’m trying to spread body neutrality where I can sit here and not think about what my body is looking like”. It is comforting to think that we

can bring our relationships with our bodies to a place where ridicule has been replaced with respect, or simply indifference, but what’s so bad about loving ourselves? Where does this leave body positivity?

When Anne Poirier coined the phrase in 2015, she did it with this thought in mind; sometimes, loving yourself is too difficult. For people who have serious issues with how they view themselves, body neutrality may be an easier alternative to body positivity. In fact, the body positivity movement has come under criticism in recent years for losing its core values. Encouraging someone to look in the mirror and expecting them to find things they love could just lead them to obsessing over their appearance even more. The movement has become overly commercialised and we are constantly bombarded with it, which means it is never out of our minds.

While body positivity encourages us to look at ourselves and love what we see because we are beautiful, body neutrality asks that we love ourselves because of who we are. Although, for some people, neutrality may be a useful stepping stone to loving the way you look. Neutrality doesn’t mean you shouldn’t like your appearance, it’s just freeing you from the pressure of it. It can allow you to focus on appreciating what your body does until you’re ready to focus on what it

looks like. In an interview with The Guardian, Rebekah Taussig said body neutrality “has the power to be really useful in particular to people with disabilities. Those people are pretty frustrated with the demand to love their bodies when they feel betrayed by them. Being neutral could feel like a relief”.

Body neutrality clearly can provide a lot of benefits for your mental health, but how do we implement this philosophy into our thoughts?

Ignoring something you’ve been conditioned to think about every day is easier said than done, so don’t be hard on yourself for finding it difficult. If you find your mind drifting to insecurities about your appearance, try to replace these thoughts by asking yourself how you feel. Are you happy? Are you looking after your needs? When you get dressed, value comfort above how clothes can show off or hide your body. Think of your body as a machine that needs to be looked after and filled. Are you giving yourself enough nourishment, rest and movement? You are more than a body; focus on your life and the joy you can get from it!

The body neutrality movement has appealed to some people as the middle between the two extremes of love and hate. While it won’t be the right path for everyone, if you think it might help you, it could be worth giving it a try!

N UAC HT

November 19 2019

Mature Student Column

By Jody Moylan It’s that time of year (the end of ) where every self-respecting culture vulture with a pen will be compiling a list of his or her Top Tens. I’ve decided to stick to what I’m good at: looking back through rose tinted glasses to a decade that probably wasn’t half as good as I think it was. So, being a bit of a film buff, here are my Top Ten films of the 1990s.

10. LEON: French director Luc Besson’s Manhattan-set film balances the feel of a hard-hitting American thriller with the slow pace of a European character drama. Jean Reno combines vulnerable immaturity with a ruthless killer instinct in the lead role, while Natalie Portman plays his young protégée in a brilliantly written part. It is the performance of Gary Oldman though, as the warped and drug-addled DEA agent Stansfield, that truly stands out. A minor masterpiece.

9. THE FIELD: It tells us a good deal about the Irish mentality that this film, by Jim Sheridan, remains popular. Occasional humour, mostly coming from John Hurt’s inimitable ‘Bird’ Flanagan, balances a dark film overall. As much the story of Ireland’s colonial past as it is a tale of rural tragedy, with the casting of Richard Harris as Bull McCabe, and the score of Elmar Bernstein elevating it to something Shakespearean.

8. TERMINATOR 2: JUDGEMENT DAY: A

sion, hero-worship, sex, isolation, boredom and violence. While Brad Pitt plays the cool cat Tyler Durden, it is Edward Norton who gives the acting masterclass as a lonely yuppie who believes he’d be better off dead. A witty and brilliant vision of hell.

5. THE BIG LEBOWSKI: For TBL, the Coen brothers gathered a cast of acting heavyweights, led by Jeff Bridges in his defining role. Like the detail in a great painting — only fully appreciated on repeated viewings — ‘Lebowski is full of glorious black humour, and minor characters that should have had their own spin-offs. The Jesus, Walter, and Philip Seymour Hoffman’s stooge are wonderful depictions of hilariously awful men. A cult classic.

4. MAGNOLIA: The great Paul Thomas Anderson uses Robert Altman’s device of bringing disparate lives together but with his own stamp; using elements of the supernatural and song to powerful effect. Music is as much a character as the actors, but a happy musical it ain’t. Though bit-parts in a giant ensemble cast, both Tom Cruise and Philip Seymour Hoffman have rarely, if ever, been better.

A unique epic.

3. FESTEN:

This unnerving Danish drama revolves around a family of adult siblings called together to celebrate their father’s 60th birthday, and was one of the first films produced according to the Dogme 95 manifesto of simple production values, strong acting, and high calibre storytelling.

A dark family secret lies at the heart of a pitchperfect farce of manners. Powerful.

gritty, standout science fiction action film by Titanic director James Cameron. Its four Oscars in 1991 (none, granted, for acting) is testament to the fact that it was ahead of its time in the early part of the decade. On a re-watch, it still stands up and, as much as any special effects, T2 is a gripping story from start to finish, full of heart, humour, brilliant set pieces, and high drama. Have popcorn at the ready.

2. HEAT: With this 1995 knockout from Michael

7. TRAINSPOTTING: The term ‘capturing the

1. THREE COLOURS RED: Definitely in the

zeitgeist’ must have been invented for Danny Boyle’s adaptation of Irvine Welsh’s novel, and, while ‘edgy’ Britpop melodies have often been lauded for their post-Thatcher optimism, they are used correctly here; the soundtrack for doomed youth attempting to claw their way out of a working-class trudge, with the help of humour, alcohol and (lots of) drugs. A sick and beautiful film.

‘European film’ bracket, the ‘red’ of the title signifies the French theme of fraternity, but Kieslowski’s final act of a trilogy is really a film about life’s predetermined patterns of fate and destiny. Full of odd reoccurring motifs it is a film that makes you think, long after the credits have ended. One for the film student, with one of the greatest finale’s in cinema history. It’s my favourite and number one film of the 1990s.

Until next time, January 2020, have a very happy Christmas and a peaceful new year!

6. FIGHT CLUB: The last great film of the 1990s was truly of its time; a story of materialist obses-

Mann, the comic book cliché of cops and robbers was at once transformed into a tale of very human foes playing a game of criminal cat-and-mouse.

Heat saw the high watermark in the career’s of Tom Sizemore, Val Kilmer and, in my opinion, Robert De Niro. Visually stunning, with a pitch-perfect score, it is the story, ultimately, that stands out.

A masterpiece.

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Nurture Africa’s overseas volunteer programme

By Donnachadh McCarthy Healthcare, education, child rights, sustainable livelihoods and gender equality built around a holistic family centred model are the main elements of Nurture Africa’s work in Uganda. On Wednesday 30th October, Michelle Hesso of Nurture Africa took part in an engaging information session to discuss the charity’s ongoing overseas volunteer programme. The charity has provided aid to children and vulnerable families in Uganda since 2003 when founded by Brian Iredale (who had been volunteering in Uganda since 1997) and has carried out a number of projects ranging from building a health centre, complete with a HIV treatment and testing unit as well as a maternity ward, to a thriving child sponsorship programme which saw 259 children receive financial aid in 2019.

Michelle provided information regarding the various activities which volunteers carry out over the duration of a three-week placement in Nansana in the Wakiso district in central Uganda. She

described the skill specific assistance that volunteers would provide across three disciplines; medical, education and general skills. Volunteers will build upon and enhance work carried out during previous placements. Michelle emphasised the importance of prior knowledge and experience being a necessity for potential volunteers looking to engage in the medical and teaching aspects of the programme, while all are welcome to take part in the general skills projects. Throughout the session, Michelle described the variety of cultural activities volunteers will take part in, as well as the timetable in place for the threeweek placement. Activities ranging from interactive storytelling, roadside HIV testing and community garden projects are just some of the work potential volunteers can take part in, all of which enable and empower vulnerable African families to become self-reliant.

Nurture Africa are currently seeking applicants for summer 2020 and should not hesitate to contact Michelle Hesso should they have an interest, who can be reached through michelle@­ nurtureafrica.ie.

12 NEWS & F E AT U R ES

Erasmus Diary

By Fiona Lee Hi, everyone! I hope Galway isn’t getting too bitter and wet as we’re getting into the winter months. I had been wondering was I even going to see a pinch of snow during my time here, considering how mild it was on Halloween. I didn’t have the usual issue of a big fluffy coat hiding my costume, but my umbrella tied in perfectly with my Mary Poppins outfit. Ottawa generally gets the typical Canadian winter from January onwards, so I was just expecting bad and uncomfortable weather in December. However, this week the temperature felt like it plummeted 10 degrees and I woke up to snow! Not too much, maybe a bit more than the best we’d get in Galway, but it was there all the same and it’s only early November! In this kind of weather, premature Christmas celebrations don’t feel as unjustified as they do in Ireland, I’m trying out all the festive drinks in Starbucks and Second Cup (Canadian equivalent of Starbucks), and wearing my woolly hat and scarf happily.

In the last 2 weeks, I’ve had my first trip up to Montreal and my first ice-hockey game. Montreal really felt like a proper city, which all of my friends loved, but I think I still prefer Quebec City. Maybe I needed more time to absorb the life of the place, but the European style of Quebec City, it’s small(er) ness, and how the odd street would remind me of Galway or Paris, really made me feel like I could live there. It might be a place where a young person would eventually get bored, and that’s why Montreal would be more exciting, but to me, it was just a nicer place to be. My favourite spots in Montreal were Mont Royal, where there is an excellent view of the entire city, the cute cafés around the Notre Dame cathedral, and a really cool looking board game bar (which had a 45-minute wait in the cold so we did not go in, but I really, really wanted to).

The mix of the old buildings and the new was both interesting and jarring, but it meant you were only sometimes caught in a completely grey-skyscraper street. I feel there were a lot of little gems that were easy to miss when I only had 3 days to see it, so I’ll hop on a bus again soon and try to absorb a bit more before I head back to Ireland.

Now, I didn’t expect to like ice-hockey as much as I do, but I really, really do. I played field hockey as a teenager so I have always had a blind love for the sport or anything related to it, and ice-hockey was no exception to this. It was fast-paced with an engaged crowd and the only dull moments were the frequent small breaks for adverts or for sweepers to come clear the ice (that happened way too often for my liking).

I’m trying to refrain from buying merchandise as it’s all incredibly expensive, but the jerseys look really cool, but they’re expensive, but cool… I’ll try.

It feels very odd to think that this will be my last diary entry of the year. My time in Canada has felt very quick, but I’ve liked being able to write these because they have forced me to reflect on what I’ve been doing instead of the fun events and moments whizzing by. There is, of course, a lot that I haven’t mentioned, drafts in notebooks of stories I’ll never tell in SIN, but at least I have little snippets for myself. Four months is not a long time to be away, so, for anyone considering going abroad, or who is already abroad, whether for a year or half, make the absolute most of your time and of the rare opportunity that it is. It’s the best decision I’ve made to date, and I can’t wait to come back to Canada once it’s all over, as well as visit new friends I have made all over Europe. Thank you all for reading!

SIN Vol. 21 Issue 06

First Year Diary

By Aoife Burke Hi, everybody, It is the last student diary here this side of Christmas (can you believe it’s nearly that time already?)! It seems like only yesterday I was being guided around campus by tour guides and being shown how to use the library. I have made some nice friends in the journalism programme when you consider we were initially a bunch of strangers thrown together! I have passed everything so far and I’m happy, as my attendance was excellent. I just remember how much I went through to get into university in the first place, so now, I appreciate every minute! I’m really enjoying the English lectures and doing essays. It’s a bit of a mish mash at the moment, with assignments being submit-

ted and receiving grades. Not to mention the winter exam timetable, which will be out by the time this paper is published!

I am really glad I chose law as it’s a foundation course in first year and so important for journalism! Today I received my National Union of Journalists press card for Irish students of journalism and it is blue. It is recognised by the gardai and the army in the UK and Ireland. I’m finding the constant attending of lectures is exhausting and physically demanding. I’m trying to gear myself up for writing essays in the Christmas exams and I have to say the support has been incredible.

There are easy ways to pick up extra marks, for example, attempting multiple choice questions. At the time of writing, I have a law MCQ the day after tomorrow, and also

I have decided to study English for the remainder of my degree, but dear God, people are quick to correct my grammar on social media and texts. I guess I have got to start somewhere.

tomorrow I am interviewing someone at Flirt FM for a feature writing assignment, with a draft due Thursday. My story “north star” is being published by woman’s way in January for anyone who fancies a read. I’m also reading the news at 5pm on a Tuesday and copresenting “Trivia matters” Friday from 2-3.

I’m told I have a good voice for radio. I have heard myself the odd time and can’t believe it is me reading.

I am going to study hard for the next month and write the best essays I can muster. I have decided to study English for the remainder of my degree, but dear God, people are quick to correct my grammar on social media and texts. I guess I have got to start somewhere. I am reading a book about English theory and philosophy and there is some psychology thrown in there. My head is melted trying to absorb it all, but I am a third of the way there and still understand it. For my next essay, I am writing about the poem

by Robert Frost “Stopping by woods on a snowy evening” and I am going to discuss its literary merit. Already looking forward to it.

I’m trying to coax myself back into the gym, probably after Christmas. This time of year, I’m just happiest sat in the library absorbed in a good book! May I take this opportunity to wish you all best of luck in your exams.

Have a happy and peaceful Christmas and New Year.

See you on the other side of 2020!

Aoife X

Final Year Diary

By Sadhbh Hendrick

So this is Christmas And what have you done Another Semester over And a new one soon to come And so this is Final Year I hope you have fun (unlikely) The near and the dear ones The old and the young Dear Diary, So here we are, last issue of the semester (Eeeek). (The OG readers will understand the little song reference.) Well, at least we have all made it this far. What doesn’t kill you makes you stronger, hopefully?? Shout out to Kelly Clarkson for providing a solid number of ‘choons’ appropriate for a multitude of despairing times in our lives.

It’s been a tough semester with a very heavy workload and the added banter of trying to kick start the whole career path, but an enjoyable one nonetheless. Whilst it sometimes feels ever so like I’m drowning, at least it feels as though everyone is drowning together!! There

is a distinct sense of comradery that has been exclusive to this year. We are all in it together.

Might be a small pep talk at the water filter or the library gates but it’s a pep talk all the same.

All the coffee catchups and the Bialann visits, the treks to Tesco or the SU Shop for the caffeine fix; those are the little portions of the day that make final year, not only bearable, but also enjoyable. I know everyone is like, “omg the semester flew, omg it’s week 1235342, omg it’s exam season blah blah blah…”. The time does fly for sure but maybe that’s just because, despite the assignments and reading room stints, we are all still having fun.

I’m writing this in November, so Christmas should feel like a long way off, but it really isn’t.

Brown Thomas seem to have their windows fantastically decorated for a couple of weeks now, and just last Sunday the Christmas lights went up on Shop Street, so we all know what that’s leading to: THE CHRISTMAS MARKET. One of the most incredible facilities to spring up in Eyre Square annually, it is impossible not to smile walking through the markets. Even if you’re dashing for a bus or running back to college, the atmosphere in the market is like nothing else.

Catering for every age group, it’s very movie spec.

Since I seem to have gone all Fáílte Ireland on Galway Christmas attractions, let us not forget the ice-skating rink. You’ll either end up feeling like you should be on Dancing on Ice or with some curiously coloured bruises, but nonetheless, an excellent evening none the same.

We all know that with the Christmas Market comes the Beer Tent and again, this is craic like no other. It’s like all the best elements of the best pubs and clubs and festive music concentrated into one tent. If you’re a first year and this is your first visit to the Beer Tent, brace yourselves. I think it may indeed be impossible to have a bad night there. Since I seem to have gone all Fáílte Ireland on Galway Christmas attractions, let us not forget the ice-skating rink. You’ll either end up feeling like you should be on Dancing on Ice or with some curiously coloured bruises, but nonetheless, an excellent evening none the same.

So, I wish you all a fantastic Christmas full of festive cheer. May the exam timetables be ever in your favour. May your stockings be full and your Christmas Market/Beer tent visits be frequent. And now, before Mark goes all Brit Award on Adele’s thank you speech and cuts my diary short, thank you all for your kind comments throughout the semester. The size of the readership never fails to surprise me and the lovely words from you all have meant a lot. I’ll be back next semester if my Final Year Project hasn’t somehow suffocated me, so ciao for now!!!

GRMA, Sadhbh x

N UAC HT

November 19 2019

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Ice Cream, You Scream: Is Ireland’s history as trivial as a McDonald’s Halloween campaign?

By Conor Brummell McDonald’s in Portugal recently came under fire when they insensitively advertised a Halloween, two-for-one Sundae deal as ‘Sundae Bloody Sundae’. When the picture of the sign made its way to the internet, obvious uproar soon followed due to the unfortunate advertising that caused insult from across the water. McDonald’s responded to the incident, apologising, stating it was not meant to be a reference to the infamous event during the Troubles, where British Soldiers shot 28 unarmed protesters in Derry in 1972, but instead, a reference to Halloween as a promotional campaign. It is a valid excuse; they simply were not aware of the history involved with Bloody Sunday, but does that mean it should be excused so easily?

Irish history is often dismissed, not because people are ignorant, but because no one knows about it. Ireland is seen as a small country, hidden away on the edge of Great Britain, still a part of the United Kingdom, without her own complicated and tragic past. We’re seen as still being behind the

times, as being the only thing that has stopped the completion of Brexit, seen as being a part of the IRA. We’re forever told it’s not racist to associate us with the famine, leprechauns, potatoes, tea or alcohol. “It’s not racism because we’re Irish and Irishness is not a race,” is often the regular explanation for such passive stereotypes. More than often, we’ve had to close our mouths instead of explaining to someone that they have overstepped a boundary, because, no matter how hard we try, it’s impossible to help them understand how offensive and heart-breaking something as small as an advertising mishap can be to us.

I was in America during the summer and, within the first two weeks there, I heard a guy talking about an Irish car bomb. I was stunned, and frankly horrified that he would even be talking about such a thing. When I asked him to elaborate on his ramblings, I was informed that an Irish car bomb in America was a “half pint of Guinness, mixed with Baileys and a shot of Jameson Whiskey” because of the explosion of taste you get when you drink it. I had to stop myself from

Is Tinder helping us to become resilient?

By Rachel Garvey Our attention has been drawn to Tinder, the worldfamous dating app where our expectations are either exceeded or crushed. RTÉ’s input into the controversy about dating apps suggests that the majority of individuals that utilise the dating app are prone to their expectations or experiences being regretful ones. The broadcasting company thinks that dating apps are making young daters more resilient to romantic disappointment. The millioneuro question looms of whether students are only using Tinder to get used to rejection, or have some people found “The One” on the app?

There are some lucky people out there who are happy in their relationship with someone they have met through Tinder, but there are those who find that being on Tinder comes with this feeling of hopelessness. Chats tend to fizzle out relatively quickly or else someone is on the app for a completely different reason, a reason that is completely opposite to yours. To give a brief experience of my own time on the app, conversations do fizzle out quite a lot and not even 5 messages have been sent between you and your new match. RTÉ’s statement about being more resilient does indeed prove true, as individuals such as myself do become resistant to letting it make them feel sensitive.

RTÉ said, “many of us punish ourselves for disastrous break-ups or an unwanted single status, but we don’t put the time into learning about our own needs or behavioural patterns”. People will commit to a relationship without giving it a second thought and that is where the first mistake is made, people overestimate themselves into thinking that everything will be perfect and that the relationship will be long term, but the end result is quite the opposite. People need to be able to know themselves before they expect their partners to and that does include knowing what you want in life, in addition to knowing your own behavioural patterns so you can deal with them before anyone else.

RTÉ conducted an interview with Dating & Relationship coach, Annie Lavin, about the pros and cons of using the dating app. Annie shared with RTÉ that one pro was that resilience is built, trial and error as most people describe it, and it’s a great way to test your new relationship skills. However, the cons seemed to outweigh the positives on the Libra scales. “If the intention is to meet someone and if they fail at it, there’s a feeling of hopelessness”, Annie explained.

Another issue she highlighted on the con side of things was most people tend to overlook the very basic part of connecting with people in real life.

We are overlooking the fact that connecting with people in person seems to be gone down the path of “people don’t do that anymore, online is the path to take”. Online dating may broaden our horizons in the world of relationships, but talking to someone online doesn’t necessarily mean they will be the same in person – they might treat you completely different. We need to get out of the state of mind where online is the place to meet “The One”, because we could easily bump into our future significant other on a night out or be standing behind them in line when we wait for our morning coffee.

“It’s about realising I have my own needs. Do the people I meet understand my needs?” Annie also explains. People will have a better understanding of you in person than they will online. “I think that’s the best way to bring your healthy self to a relationship, by working with somebody to get really clear on what my wounds are so that when I’m in a relationship again and a certain topic comes up, I’ll be aware of where I’m extra sensitive”. In conclusion to this, Tinder can work in many ways, with people either pouring blood, sweat and tears into finding their other half only to end up becoming very disappointed with the end result, or there’s the people who get lucky and find someone who they are compatible with after the first few messages are sent. Rejection isn’t nice, but Tinder is helping us to become resilient to it.

the losing the plot, knowing that the guy was only eighteen years of age and had never heard of The Troubles. It was excruciatingly upsetting, how-

As Brenda Fricker once said, “When you’re lying drunk at an airport, you’re Irish. When you’ve won an Oscar, you’re British”.

No one abroad understands the hurt that still lingers from our long and challenged past with the British, and it is something that is quite difficult to explain if they’ve never heard of it.

Some people abroad still don’t know Northern Ireland and Ireland are two different countries, never mind the painful story behind partition and the difficulties associated with possible re-unification. People from around the world are still shocked when they hear that Irish people speak Irish, and that the language is alive and well. Ach is scéal eile sin.

Ireland is the country of saints and scholars, of myths and legends galore. We’ve a dotted and intriguing past with people and heroes alike who seem too good to be true, but we’re a nation that has a history of being neglected on the global stage, and a history that is ignored as a result. It would only take a Google search for one to educate themselves to avoid causing further offence, and in McDonald’s case, they maybe should have used that search. It’s easy to dismiss something because it doesn’t matter to you, but remember, it might just matter to someone else.

People from around the world are still shocked when they hear that Irish people speak Irish, and that the language is alive and well. Ach is scéal eile sin. ever, to see something so hurtful being discussed right in front of me when I couldn’t change it. I was also standing with two other Irish guys when we were waiting for food once, only to be told in passing that it “wasn’t a surprise that the Irish were absolutely famished”.

You also see it that the British take claim to Irish celebrities and things that come out of Ireland, such as Katie Taylor, Chris O’Dowd, Dara Ó Briain, Cillian Murphy and Conor McGregor. It doesn’t take long for the United Kingdom to forget they don’t like us when something good comes out of the Emerald Isle, and there’s nothing worse than when someone refers to you as being from the UK.

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14 NEWS & F E AT U R ES

SIN Vol. 21 Issue 06

Masculinity and mental health: How can we bridge the gap?

By Shane Lynch “Whoever said that big boys don’t cry You say you never shed a tear Well, listen that’s a lie We’re all defenceless When it comes to pain” These are the lyrics from the famous eighties band Extreme, from their song, which is ironically called “Big boys don’t cry”. Mental health is a rather tough subject to discuss, as each individual will express their own experience of it in their own unique way.

The great thing about mediums such as the spoken word is that a message can be spread about it through the way in which each person feels the most comfortable, whether it be through poetry, the medium of music, the beauty of an artistic embodiment of pain through colour or even anecdotal stories through an autobiography. One thing they all have in common, however, is that they are all unique and personal to the people who have experienced them.

The idea of masculinity being so very pronounced in the physical makeup of a man is one of the oldest typecasts. Through the society in which they grow up, there is a stereotypical stigma behind men that they should almost be superheroes, with, not only their physical shape, but in the way that they deal with problems, and most notably, and remarkably, their emotions. The archaic idea that being tough requires a physical suppression of how

you’re feeling has been questioned throughout the natural progression of society.

The most stereotypical masculine element of the male is the ability to prove that he is the alpha amongst others in the ability to fight. As the generations go by, some of the most famous images ever captured are photos of moustached men in black and white going toe-to-toe in bare knuckle brawling, and images of strong men lifting comically large weights in order to appease their testosterone filled thoughts of triumph, in which winning involved showing no weakness. This way of thinking led many men to believe that showing any form of weakness led you to be less than a man, and so would bring great shame to anybody who was associated with you.

Through these questionable origins, the most historically masculine sport of them all is boxing. Boxing is often universally accepted as being the ultimate measure of a man’s man. The ability to be able to outthink a man whilst at the same time punish him for thinking he was tougher than you was an attractive offer for men throughout the beginning of the twentieth century, as they could receive an easy payday should they have a particular dexterity for combat.

However, today’s world has evolved in a majorly drastic way since the days of the composition of the ideals and beliefs of masculinity. The current lineal heavyweight champion of the world, Tyson Fury, a man who is a shade under seven feet and close to eighteen stone in weight, has become a chief pioneer of men’s mental health and is help-

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ing to break the stigma surrounding masculinity becoming an overbearing element in a man’s decision to seek help for mental health problems. Fury spoke on how mental health had brought someone as physically big and imposing as he was, and the heavyweight champion of the world, to his knees.

It was humbling to see the proverbial “biggest boy” being the one who was metaphorically “crying”.

“I fight for those people: all the oppressed, depressed, alcoholics, drug addicts. I fight to give them hope every day so they can wake up in the morning and know there’s somebody out there banging for us.” Looking back at the career renaissance of Fury, it was a comeback story which Hollywood directors would snap your hand off to get the rights to. Over the course of just one year, Fury summoned the courage and strength to conquer his demons. Fury also lost a ridiculous amount of weight, almost nine stone, to return to the heavyweight division in the best shape of his career, both physically and, most importantly, mentally. Fury himself has since been praised by multiple media

outlets for bringing serious issues such as mental health to the mainstream, and his colourful personality and outlook has made the press christen him “The People’s Champion”.

Mental health difficulties are probably the greatest challenge that anybody could ever face, and when facing any problems, the first thing that you need to do is rip away all the clichés and typecasting and ignore the archaic and soon-to-be obsolete thinking of the past. Stubbornness is a trait which goes hand in hand with, not only mental health, but with the way men think also. Once men begin to realise that it is a universal problem, and that the ways of the past should be left in the past, men’s mental health can be looked at through new, comfortable surroundings, and be treated as an illness rather than a weakness. The idea that today’s society promotes masculinity as being someone who is gentle and understanding, rather than dominant through emotional expressions of anger, is a small step in breaking the stigma of masculinity through bringing awareness to mental health.

A novel idea propelling Galway kids to new levels of literacy learning

By Niamh Kelly In the age of digital media, there is a constant question put forward by parents and teachers alike – how do we encourage children to read rather than become absorbed by technology? One NUI Galway programme – ‘Literacy Lift Off!’ – is attempting to solve this dilemma through weekly reading sessions between local primary school pupils and second year English students over a 10-week period full of interactive games and quizzes that show how fun reading can be.

As a second-year NUI Galway student taking part in this programme, I am delighted to report on its evident success of service learning and to share my experience in the hopes that exposure amounts to further implementation of service learning within the college and university curriculum. I also wouldn’t mind answering that question in relation to overcoming technology – nothing can replace a good book and the excitement these children displayed over reading shows that!

The first morning of the 10-week programme was an almost hysterical sight to see – a group of barely-adult college students shaking with nervousness and anticipation as they waited outside a classroom for their reading group composed of children, who, by contrast, seemed perfectly at ease.

This was their territory after all, we were merely a form of substitute teacher they saw as ‘fair game’, and they would push our buttons as much as they could in the following weeks – but not just yet.

For now, my group were polite and attentive as we sat down in comically small chairs and began to learn a bit about each other, and I was already devising my theory on how the three children worked together as part of a group. This first interaction, we had been told, was a means of finding out who each child was and what their interests were, and perhaps we may find a way to relate their personal experiences to what they were reading.

My group were all too happy to relay every detail of their lives – they all took part in the same sport, they all had dogs (one was called Princess – a fact I found unbearably adorable!), and they were all 10 – and very soon I was discussing my interests, my pet dog and any other fun facts about my life (they loved that I spoke Spanish).

As we commenced our reading for the week, I quickly picked up on the reading abilities of my

little scholars – all were able to read out their sentences at a slow and steady pace, yet, upon questioning them on certain word meanings, it was clear that there was some slight confusion.

This method of one to one learning and questioning with pupils is encouraged by studies that have found evidence of a reading comprehension impairment. This particular impairment can often go unnoticed, as children may be able to sound out words and notice patterns which allow them to read aloud, yet the actual content of what they read may be lost on them.

In our weekly two-hour reflective class (set in the university and away from the children), we discovered the many and ranging challenges each child faced, whether it be a lack of confidence, hyperactivity, or a struggle with comprehension.

This reflective class placed all 14 students within the programme in the same room, and with such a small class size and a format where we shared experiences and suggestions with one another the comradery between us grew every week.

The further we progressed through the programme, the more I learned about these children – for instance, one of the girls told me all about how she and her granny read together on weekend visits and how much she enjoyed reading, and I even received a goodbye hug! Having been raised by foster parents and coming from a family that were not particularly interested in education or reading, I firmly hold the belief that the right teacher can turn any student into a capable, thoughtful reader.

The books we read with the primary school pupils were all donated to the school by our course director, and the excitement over books like ‘Mr. Stink’ and ‘Billionaire Boy’ brought a smile to my face, while simultaneously highlighting the need of access to books across the globe.

In doing this course, my expectation was solely to affect children and fuel their potential reading careers. What I never suspected was that I would be inspired by their willingness to learn and that my passion for reading would be enhanced by the experience.

I cannot recommend this programme enough – the cooperation of the school and its teachers, the invaluable teaching experience and encouragement from our course director made the journey a fun challenge that I will never forget.

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16 OPI NIO N

SIN Vol. 21 Issue 06

Take lessons from the Grinch

by Rachel Garvey It’s hard to believe that it’s November already! I suppose now it’s acceptable to blast Christmas songs from our headphones and write up our never-ending list of presents which we have to buy for people, or else they’ll be giving out about us saying “Oh, I never got a present from them”.

Oh, the joys of it all! Now, this is coming from the girl who adores Halloween and everything scary, but Christmas hits a weak spot for me. Seeing the Christmas lights and decorations everywhere just gets me so excited and it’s hard to contain the Christmas spirit. Now that it’s November, we all know what that means; the Christmas market has arrived.

For those who roll their eyes at the very thought of the Christmas market, then go take a class lecture with the Grinch himself, he will teach you how to get into the Christmas spirit. All we would hear coming from that

lecture hall would be, “Help! I’m feeling!”. People will think that maybe the Christmas market comes around too soon with its arrival due for mid-November, some even might argue that early December would be a more suitable time, but I say they are wrong. There is no better feeling than walking down Shop Street or the Latin Quarter and looking up to see the twinkling Christmas lights that hang overhead, or when you stand amongst the crowd of families in University Hospital Galway to see the lighting of the Christmas tree, or even the heart-warming feeling of helping your Mum decorate the Christmas tree while Christmas songs play on the television.

The Christmas market may bring back the same thing every year, but there’s no need to be so critical about it. We won’t be complaining when we are on top of the ferris wheel and we get to look down at all the wonderful lights in Eyre Square or when we stand in line to purchase one of those delicious Nutella crepes at the numerous crepe stands dotted around the Eyre Square area. MidNovember, believe it or not, is the time to prepare for Christmas, so the whole controversy around the Christmas market arriving too soon is an argument that’ll lose. It attracts thousands of tourists each year to our scenic compact city and generates a reasonably good income to the workers who sell their Christmas stock in the market, in addition to spreading word of mouth about Galway itself.

It is an event I look forward to each year because

Eyre Square is known as Galway’s central point, a place where the people of Galway converge. Having the Christmas fair set up will only generate a bigger crowd that will only add to Galway’s addictive atmosphere.

In the circumstances, the Christmas exams are fast approaching for Galway students and the stress is starting to build, with time put aside for study and finishing the last of their assignments.

The marketplace will be a pleasant distraction for those who want to take a break from the study. A slow walk through the market and a few peeps here and there in the variety of stalls will take away some of that stress and give you hope that you will get through this hectic period and be able to look forward to Christmas after exams conclude.

Christmas isn’t everyone’s favourite holiday, I respect that, we all should respect that. It can be a holiday that brings sadness to a lot of families and I know that even my own family will feel somewhat different this Christmas because we’ve lost 2 family members this year, but we need to remember that Christmas was adored by them too. They would want us to celebrate Christmas as we normally do, but to keep them in our thoughts at the same time.

Christmas is both a sad and a happy time for people which is why I think the Christmas market will bring us a sense of joy after its arrival. There’s no such thing as arriving too soon for something that brings us joy and excitement.

Will cheating on your cheating The (un)professionalism of tattoos partner make you feel better?

By Sadhbh Hendrick

By Fiach Mac Fhionnlaoich In one word? No. Cheating is often a death knell in a relationship.

It’s an act that greatly damages the ability of the person who was cheated on to trust the person who cheated on them, if it doesn’t destroy their trust altogether. You can have the greatest love in the world, but if you don’t have trust, your relationship might as well be held together by wet tissue paper.

Cheating is not only incredibly harmful to your partner on an emotional level, but if you’re having sexual contact with a third party without your partner’s knowledge or consent, you’re showing disregard for their physical wellbeing as well as their emotional needs. How would you feel if your partner exposed you to an STI, which could in some cases saddle you with a lifelong condition, with the reason for that being the fact that they refused to discuss their sexual and emotional needs with you or didn’t take stock of the danger that a drunken one night stand could put you in?

I imagine that a significant number of those who cheat do feel guilt over such actions. I know plenty of people who have been cheated on. I also know plenty of people who have cheated. Neither groups are saints or the devil incarnate, but too many of those who cheat couple their guilt with denial or justify their infidelity due to their dissatisfaction with their current romantic or sexual situation.

Your issues communicating your needs or your grievances to your partner(s) do not justify you cheating on them. If you believe that the relationship is salvageable, talk to them. If you believe the relationship has run its course, you owe it to your partner(s) to be honest about that fact. If you’re legitimately on the verge of cheating on your partner(s), you’ve probably emotionally checked out of the relationship as it is and that’s likely been the case for a while.

There is nuance here as well of course. A case of two or more people who are unhappy, but in a consenting relationship, is different from a case in which one of the parties involved is abusive, for example. Even in such cases, if you’re putting someone else’s health in danger in favour of your own pleasure, that isn’t something to be condoned.

Playing tit for tat isn’t going to help anyone either. In the case of partners who you feel are a lost cause, taking twisted revenge isn’t going to bring them back nor is it going to bring you any lasting satisfaction. If anything, it’s probably going to make you feel worse about your failed relationship. Why not just end your relationship with your unfaithful partner and then have all the fun you want? Even if you believe you stand a chance at reconciliation with your unfaithful partner, cheating on them, in turn, is likely to cut your now fragile romantic bond into ribbons.

Again, while not something to be condoned, the appeal of seeking solace by cheating on an unfaithful partner is understandable. Being cheated on can play havoc with your sense of self-esteem. You can struggle with feelings of worthlessness and lack of desirability, but seeking to put yourself and your errant partner on a level playing field in that regard is only going to make it harder for either of you to move forward to other healthier and more fulfilling relationships.

Your partner has already violated your trust and thrown any semblance of respect for you out the window. What good is it for you to pile more negativity onto an already toxic situation? By not responding to your partner’s actions in kind, you walk away with the blame for the failed relationship squarely on their shoulders and the freedom to pursue more fruitful and positive relationships elsewhere.

Well, according to Merriam Webster, unprofessional is defined as not exhibiting a courteous, conscientious, or generally business-like manner in the workplace. Now, how some ink on your skin could be equated to this seems a little ridiculous, but let’s see.

What makes a good employee? Someone that is innovative, motivated, hard-working, all those buzz words you have plastered over your CV. I struggle to present or consider an argument where any of those qualities are impacted by having a tattoo. Perhaps those opposed to tattoos are more opposed to the behaviour associated with inked skin. That, I can appreciate, may cause an issue for employers – an issue for them in the Labour Court because that is discrimination.

There is no doubt that candidates’ suitability and eligibility should remain a priority over artwork on the skin because how does a dolphin on your ankle prevent you from being the best worker in the firm? Similarly, it won’t stop you from being the worst worker either. In essence, your ability as an employee is totally independent of whether or not you have tattoos.

To consider the side of those strongly opposed to tattoos, I must mention tattoos that are offensive or distracting. Of course, a tattoo which causes offense is unacceptable. You wouldn’t wear a controversial slogan t-shirt to an interview and having inappropriate ink work on display is the same in principle. Similarly, tattoos which are distracting do, in fact, take away from your ability as an employee. Not for the purposes of intelligence or efficiency or learning ability but for the simple reason that if more attention is drawn to your tattoos than you, you simply will not succeed to the same extent as non-tattooed colleagues. This is not as outlandish as it may appear. It is most blatant in customer-facing situ-

ations. While colleagues we see every day will, of course, stop noticing tattoos, if you are dealing with new customers daily who have not been exposed to your tats before, the initial portion of your encounter with them will be overshadowed by them admiring/criticizing your ink. For better or worse, it is simply human nature and curiosity to be drawn to these things and, unfortunately, that may mean your initial impression may lack impact. I don’t think anyone really wants to be stamped as ‘the one with the tattoos’. Solution: If subtlety or keeping it to only a few tats aren’t your things, just keep them covered whenever it seems appropriate. With clothing and concealers, that’s not much of a task. You may argue, ‘well, I shouldn’t have to cover them, it’s my art and my body’. True, it is, but you wouldn’t wear crocs, sunglasses and a bucket hat in a professional environment either (at least I hope you wouldn’t), so reading your audience is key.

Tattoos and employers have a long-standing troubled relationship. In 2014 in Canada, CBC reported that ‘Three unionized employees at the Ottawa Convention Centre, or OCC, say they were locked out of the building on Thursday without pay after showing up to work with the tattoos on their arms uncovered.’ Up until 2014, Starbucks workers weren’t allowed to have their ink on display either. There is an actual website supporting workers with tattoos who claim, ‘A cotton blend doesn’t turn in paperwork on time or organize effectively and neither does a tattoo.

It’s the person who does the job, not the tattoo, piercing or suit’. I would be more than inclined to agree.

On a short concluding note, while it may be considered unprofessional to have tattoos on show, it is certainly more unprofessional of an employer to judge ability on inked skin. I firmly believe that tattooed skin has no correlation with employee ability, productivity or capability.

TUAIRIM

November 19 2019

Fairytales aren’t just for children

By Rachel Garvey I remember being in my best friend’s car one day during the summer of 2018 and we would always duet to the Frozen song “Love is an Open Door”. Consider that we are terrible singers and when we were singing this Disney duet with the windows rolled down, we did turn a lot of heads of the people in the cars beside us and people walking on pathways. Plenty of dirty and confused looks were cast our way, but we returned their stares. Where was their Disney spirit? It’s Disney, it’s supposed to be magical and fun. Okay, now I’m starting to sound like an overexcited child, but you must agree with me to some extent about what I’m saying. Disney isn’t just for children, it’s meant to be shared amongst everyone, young or old.

I’ll gladly share an example with you; I was in Orlando’s Disneyworld back in 2014 and I visited Magic Kingdom, Universal Studios, Legoland and so much more, but let’s focus on the Magic Kingdom where Disney princesses and their handsome princes are solely focused on. Children were everywhere beaming with excitement over getting to see their favourite Disney characters and getting pictures and autographs with them. However, it wasn’t just children that caught my eye, but couples too that were visiting the enchanted theme park just to experience it in addition to couples being there on their honeymoon. Now, if my future husband was to take me to such a destination, I’d have him tied to my side for the rest of my life and he had better be excited as much as me when we are there, I don’t want to seem like the only overexcited one there, I expect us to act like two children together. Okay, get back on topic!

Whoever said that Disney is only for kids clearly doesn’t know the magic feeling you get when you watch Disney.

Perhaps those people are secretly the Disney villains who gain pleasure over wreaking havoc among the pure souls trying to find love and do justice in the world. Take into account that a lot of Disney movies nowadays have been made into live-action reboots like The Lion King, Aladdin, Beauty and the Beast, Lady and the Tramp and Christopher Robin. A fun fact I’d like to share today is that, upon seeing Christopher Robin, the cinema audience was a mix of couples young and old as well as children with their families. I know I’m an adult, but I shed way too many tears to count during that movie. The magic I felt as a child when watching Winnie the Pooh being brought to life in front of me and between hearing Pooh’s voice and laughing at Tigger’s song, I was in my element and couldn’t even finish my popcorn because of the overwhelming feeling of excitement in my stomach. That is the true feeling you are supposed to experience when you watch Disney, no matter what age.

I’m currently listening to “When will my life begin?” from Disney’s Tangled, the story about Rapunzel and all I can think is that your life will begin when you watch Disney. At a young age, we were infatuated with the beautiful Disney princess escaping the villain and finding true love and when we grow up, some of us stop believing that. We get into this negative mindset that we never will find true love like them, but, as previously mentioned, we can’t expect to find true love like them straightaway. Believe me, learn from Anna in Frozen and don’t marry a stranger you just met. Elsa knew what she was talking about there.

Personally, I think that Disney is trying to teach us a lesson about life. We are all Disney princesses or princes and there are times we will have a huge forest of thorns blocking our path, but there are ways to get through it, to make things better again. Even in our darkest moments, there is always a light at the end of that spiralling staircase which leads to the top of the tower. I know we don’t live in a world where our stepmothers poison us with apples or we collapse into a coma over pricking our finger on a spinning wheel, but we live in a world where there are villains, but we learn from Disney that villains will never win.

17

Why a WiFi detox should be on the menu at more cafes and restaurants

By Shauna Mc Hugh

There is nothing more disheartening than seeing people eating or drinking “together”, when they may as well have just come alone because they spend more time looking at a screen than at the person across the table from them.

Have you ever been telling your friend a story, and you’re not pulling out your full comedic chops, yet your audience gives that little quiet chuckle anyway?

Emboldened by how funny you are, even when you weren’t trying, you continue the bit. “I know, hilarious, isn’t it??” you implore. Then, the friend looks up from their phone, bewildered. “Sorry, what were you talking about, I just saw this really funny video/meme/gif on my phone”, they say, and just like that, the illusion is shattered. You could be the funniest person alive, but your friend doesn’t care, because you’ll never be as interesting as their Insta feed…

There is nothing more disheartening than seeing people eating or drinking “together”, when they may as well have just come alone because they spend more time looking at a screen than at the person across the table from them. It’s almost a rarity now to catch up with someone without one of us reaching for our phones throughout the conversation. Many establishments these days use their WiFi connection to entice people through the front door, and free WiFi seems to get people’s mouths watering more than anything else on the specials board. From my years of waitressing experience, the one question that still rings through my nightmares is from the daily customers who would ask “What’s your WiFi code?” before you could even get their order. I understand though, really. After all, was your fancy dinner even worth it if you don’t

post the perfect picture of your dish on Instagram? Does the artwork carefully embellished on your coffee count for anything if you can’t immediately display it on your story? And aren’t all dining experiences improved upon with fine conversation? And now we can converse with dozens of people at the touch of a button. We just don’t want, apparently, to converse with the person we went out to dinner with.

Coffee shops used to be the perfect place for people-watching. You could sit back with a cup of something hot and be warmed up by all the goings-on around you. Listen in on awkward dates at a nearby table. Hold back snickers at the stories you can hear from the group of oversharing mothers nearby, bemoaning the less than glamorous life of childrearing. Nowadays, though, if you looked around a coffee shop, people are all doing exactly the same thing - staring, scrolling and swiping at their smartphones.

And we’re killing off meet-cutes! How many couples once locked eyes across a little café, before one approached the other and that was the start of something special? Probably not many, to be fair, but Joey in Friends met so

many gorgeous girls in the show’s Central Perk café, and he always got their number before the scene was over. Nobody flirts and gets numbers in cafes anymore. Nobody notices if there’s somebody really hot that just walked in, because they’re busy looking at someone hotter (and heavily filtered) on their phone.

Perhaps having no WiFi in restaurants and cafés will help us start interacting with other humans again. Maybe people will finish a meal and leave feeling like something genuine has been shared. Maybe people will really look at their friend’s face when they ask, “How have you been?” Maybe, once the distraction of a phone is put away, we’ll notice that a family member’s smile isn’t quite meeting their eyes, and we’ll actually get around to having that chat about what’s wrong. Maybe we’ll become amazing pickup artists, putting away Tinder and finding plenty of romantic connections in the real world, falling for people and not pictures.

It will all be very quaint, like how our parents and grandparents used to navigate the dating scene. Maybe. Or maybe people will just give out to their waitress about the lack of Wifi, and then turn on their 3G and carry on as they were.

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18 OPI NIO N

SIN Vol. 21 Issue 06

TIMES ARE A-CHANGING, but NUI Galway remains the same

By Conor Brummell I’m in my third year of college at NUI Galway, and currently out on placement in the Gaeltacht doing Erasmus through Irish. I consider Galway to be like a second home to me at this stage, and NUI Galway the hearty fire in the middle of that home.

I’ve made friends for life there; I’ve joined the SIN writing team; I’ve had two different shows on Flirt FM, and I’ve learned so much about both myself and others throughout the last three years whilst attending the University. It’s a beautiful place to be - it’s scenic, lively and full of passion. I’ve been on campus at most three times this year, due to being on placement. They say distance makes the heart grow fonder, and that I can confirm is true.

However, something I’ve realized from these three short trips is this: although a lot has changed since I was in first year, NUI Galway has very much stayed the same.

You see, the same problems that were in the University when I was in first year are still there today. It only takes a brief walk down campus to see where the improvements that have been talked about for years haven’t been made around campus.

The Concourse is still barren of seating as people Parking on campus is also a bane of many stuYet, when I walked through campus, I realized eat lunch on the cold orange tiles, as others push dents’ and I’m sure staff members’ lives. There is many things. The Arts Millennium Building has and crowd around whilst trying to go into lecture such a lack of parking that most people decide to been given a brand-new television studio, for halls. The green area in the Bialann still closes early park at Dangan and walk into college instead of journalism and cumarsáid courses to make use for clean-up, meaning there is even less seating driving around for an age to get a space. There of. This is a brilliant asset and I’m delighted, but on campus. Lockers remain dented and broken are broken seats in lecture halls, too, so even if the taste is bittersweet. Not near as bittersweet on the way down to the IT building; some without you were lucky enough to get a parking space first as the fact that instead of making much-needed doors, others without locks and some that are full time around, you mightn’t get a seat in a lecture improvements around college, the college has of stuff that looks like it has never been used nor seat either if it’s too full. The library was also prioritized the Quadrangle’s structural integrity never will be. granted money for improvements last year, and and has spent nearly four months on refurThe bathrooms downstairs near the read- they installed plugs, but not much else seems to bishing the stone walls. I’ve never been in the ing room have been out of order for as long as I have been done. I recently saw at a tweet to the Quadrangle’s actual building, and the fact that can remember, despite being some of the nicest Library asking them to turn off the air condi- my fees are going towards its upkeep is outralooking bathrooms on campus. Other bathrooms, tioning (at the end of September) and turn on geous when I can’t even find a seat on campus to such as the ones in the Library remain bleak and the heat. I’ve heard reports since the library is sit on. The bottom line, unfortunately, is that you downtrodden, floors and ceilings stained as if they actually too warm nowadays, bringing forth the wouldn’t place a furniture suite that costs four haven’t seen a lick of paint in years. The bathrooms question of simple moderation. Membership for grand into your sitting room at home without AN CHOMHALTAIS in the Arts Millennium Building are worse than I the Kingfisher Sports Centre for NUI Galway stu- TAISCEADÁIN painting the walls, so why are we building up a remember with graffiti on the condom machine and dents remains at €250, despite much discussion structure that is not of use to our students whilst SU LOCKERS sinks that are crusted and dirty looking. Caifé na throughout the years about fighting to lower it. we disregard the basics?

Gaeilge was also shut down, limiting, once again, SU SEOMRA CÓTAÍ the social spaces on campus forSUstudents, CLOAKROOM especially AN CHOMHALTAIS Irish students who have no place to comfortably DIANCHEACHTANNA REGISTER AN CHOMHALTAIS speak the language and receive services through SU that language around the college.

clár

Put your purse away, sweetheart, I got this!

grinds

Life Skills

NUI Galway Students’ Union Ents Presents/Cuireann Comhaltas na Mac Léinn Students’ Union

ENTS

NEIL DELAMERE

End of Watch

8pm Monday 27th of January 2020 in the O’Flaherty Theatre 8 i.n., Dé Luain, An 27 Eanáir 2020 i dtéatar Uí Fhlaithearta

Tick ets €5 avail able ONLINE at w w w.s u .n u igalway.ie

ALL PROCEEDS GO TO THE SU CHARITIES www.su.nuigalway.ie

facebook.com/NUIGalwayStudentsUnion

twitter.com/NUIGSU

www.su.nuigalway.ie

facebook.com/NUIGalwayStudentsUnion

twitter.com/NUIGSU

Clár Scileanna Saoil Chomhaltas na Mac Léinn

by Rachel Garvey

Second Hand

BOOKSTORE

Siamsaíocht an Chomhaltais

to happen in the future. However, there was response that really caught my attention and that was, “I know society definitely pressures men to pay for dates, but like other people have said it’s definitely all about the situation and who you’re with. Starting off, I don’t mind paying, but when a relationship develops it’s usually 50/50”. Having a man pay for a first date is quite a nice gesture, we all like to be treated like a lady now and then, but it shouldn’t be a constant occurrence where only men pay for the dates. It’s the sad truth nowadays, where we live in a society where there is this pressure put on men because of the whole social hierarchy. Personally, I don’t listen to any of those theories, I’m all for equality and balance.

There’s one very humorous anecdote I’d like to share with you that’s in relation to this topic. My good friend recently went on a date with a guy from Tinder and I decided to tag along and hide in the background, acting natural with my cup of tea. I had been joking around with her beforehand saying that “If he pays for your food, that will tick a lot of boxes, he will get the seal of approval”. I had honestly no intention of that joke coming true because of how I believed paying on dates should be 50/50. However, to my surprise and the near loss of my cup of tea ending up on the floor, he pulled out €50 and gave it to her so she could buy chicken nuggets. Nuggets are the way to a girl’s heart, don’t argue with that fact.

The topic is up for debate and a lot of arguments will arise from the question, but we are all entitled to our own opinion. While most people are okay with paying, it should get to a certain stage where the scales stop being weighed down on one side and a compromise has to be reached where they take it in turns to pay or the bill is halved. If men want to be gentlemen and pay, then let them, but don’t make it a recurring thing. One thing for sure, if your date gives you money for chicken nuggets, marry him!

SIOPA LEABHAR ATHLÁIMH E anonymous one an Chomhaltais

I’m sure we have all been in this awkward situation, the one where we are on a date and it’s nearing the end of the dinner and you and your date reach for your wallets at the same time with the intention of paying for the meal. Has that happened to anyone else, or is it just me? Of course, it’s not just me, it happens to all of us and there’s no stopping it. Trust me, there really is no stopping it. There seems to be this whole controversy over how men should pay for dates and, while most people agree, there is also a healthy portion of those who don’t agree. As someone who studied law for nearly 2 years, I believe in hearing both sides of the argument from a male and female perspective.

Firstly, to give my opinion on the topic, I believe that, although it is a lovely gesture for a man to pay for a first date, I wouldn’t let him. I believe in the whole 50/50 thing, where she pays for half the bill and he pays the other half. It seems fair and, as a fellow Libra, it means that the scales are peacefully balanced and knowing that makes me sleep better at night. Secondly, I decided to conduct a little experiment just for this article and that experiment led me to the app, Yolo, an anonymous question app where anyone can ask you anything through the Snapchat app. Surprisingly enough, my phone nearly exploded with the number of replies that were rolling in when I asked my Snapchat audience, “Should men pay for dates?”. One person replied that it should be 50/50 if the male sets up the date, but if you both planned it previously then both of you should pay, which only seems fair.

Another anonymous person argued that if the date goes well and both parties decide that there will be another date then the man should offer to pay. However, if they aren’t going to continue on to a second date, then the bill should be split, which also seems very fair considering the circumstances if a second date isn’t going

TUAIRIM

November 19 2019

19

Caifé na Gaeilge’s closure serves as a reflection of the commitment to Irish on campus

by Fiach Mac Fhionnlaoich It’s safe to say that Caifé na Gaeilge’s failure to open this year caused a stir. Confusion amidst staff and students as to whether its opening was merely delayed, or if the closure was something more permanent. A PR nightmare for University management, as it quickly became clear that neither they nor NUI Galway Students’ Union were happy to take the brunt of the responsibility for the Caifé’s closure, and protesting students drew the attention of national television and newspaper outlets.

Members of the Students’ Union Executive may be happy to question University management’s commitment to its bilingual campus policy, but why were students and staff not informed of the issues relating to the Caifé’s funding back when the University first reneged on its agreement to cover losses incurred? Had the university’s community been mobilised then, when the problem was far smaller, there’s a chance the Caifé’s closure this year wouldn’t have come about. With all the hullabaloo that our Students’ Union makes about the lack of funding for student services on campus, it’s hard to believe they weren’t aware of the ticking timebomb of the Caifé’s closure, nine years in the making, according to their own official statement.

The dearth of Irish language signage in Students’ Union-run and University outlets paradoxically named An Bialann and Sult, as well as in Smokey’s Café and other outlets on campus, reinforces the notion that these are not spaces in which the use of Irish is encouraged.

Can I say that our Union or our University champions the use of Irish when I don’t know if I could order a sandwich in Irish at one of their outlets? The Union’s support for the movement to reopen the Caifé is to be commended, but it would be wise to consider its own failings regarding its support of the use of Irish on campus and its role in the failure to open the Caifé this year.

For those that would argue that nothing stops people from speaking Irish in other social spaces on campus, consider this. If this article was written in Irish, how many of you reading it wouldn’t have bothered? Irish language speakers are already adept at navigating conversations in which we are told that our language is “worthless” and “should die out” or where we are asked to “give our names in English”. Other minority groups are familiar with the notion of ‘passing’. If an LGBT+ student was unsure of whether they were in an environment unwelcome to them, they’d be more likely not to bring up their orientation so that they don’t have to deal with derogatory comments, as, in that way, they can ‘pass’ as straight and/or cisgender. Irish language speakers employ similar tactics to avoid being belittled for using the language in public.

If such statements were made regarding another language or culture, it would be seen as xenophobic, and rightly so. An unwritten rule of Irish society is that these sorts of statements people can be made about Irish without thought to any damage caused and that those who speak the language must grin and bear it.

We don’t even deserve the dignity of being addressed by our names without being cross-examined. This behaviour occurs in hospitals, on public transport, at concerts and in all manner of public spaces in Ireland.

It’s been my experience as an Irish speaker since I was a child. English speakers have no qualms with having me accommodate them and engage with them in what

is my second language. I haven’t encountered as many who have extended me the same privilege.

So, in my own humble opinion, if people believe that the closure of the Caifé, the lone social space on campus where Gaeilge is the dominant language, won’t affect the use of the language on campus, they need to take their heads out of the sand. If these issues are to be resolved, it will require will and effort not only from students, faculty and University staff who are already actively engaged with Irish on campus, but also those who have, until now, been content to passively cheer on from the sidelines. Apathy and inaction are what got us here and they are luxuries we can no longer afford.

AIDS West World AIDS Day Concert – St Nicholas’ Collegiate Church SUNDAY 1 DECEMBER 2019 AT 8:00PM Continued rise in new diagnosis of HIV in Ireland ahead of World AIDS Day 2019 Figures from the HSE Health Protection Surveillance Centre indicate that there has been an 8% increase in the number of people in Ireland being newly diagnosed with HIV so far in 2019.

In Ireland, on average, 10 people per week are diagnosed with the condition, however, this figure is set to rise. 10% of people living with HIV in Ireland are undiagnosed. Manager of AIDS West, Joe McDonagh, states “We offer free Rapid

HIV Testing on the last Tuesday of each month in the Teach Solais Resource Centre at the top of Merchants Road in Galway”. “To help raise awareness around HIV and to help challenge the stigma and discrimination that still exists, AIDS West are holding their annual World AIDS Day Concert at St Nicholas’ Collegiate Church on Sunday 1st December 2019 at 8:00pm.

We are delighted that our friends Cois Cladaigh and Bel Canto will once again be performing at the concert. The concert is open to all and admission is free”.

It’s time RTÉ got a reality check and learned basic economics

By Aaron Deering On Thursday the 7th of November, RTÉ announced its plans to introduce numerous cost-cutting measures in order to solve the financial crisis it finds itself in. Some of the cost-cutting measures included reducing its workforce by 200, closing its Lyric FM studio in Limerick and moving it to Cork and Dublin, shutting down its Aertel service and its digital radio network and reducing the fees it pays to its top stars by 15% and reducing its executive board pay by 10%. It’s hoped that these cost-cutting measures will reduce projected costs by €60 million over the next three years. Anyone listening to Ivan Yates’s comments on the issue would fully agree with what he was arguing for. He argued that RTÉ’s director-general Dee Forbes should be fired, since she hasn’t got to grips with the financial crisis at RTÉ and all she’s done for the last few years is complain to the government that they should increase the TV license fee. Ivan went further and posed the question why does RTÉ have 2FM at all? I couldn’t agree more with Ivan’s comments. It’s embarrassing to think that, after three years in the job as director-general of RTÉ, all Dee Forbes can come up with is to continuously ask for politicians to increase the TV license fee to solve the problem RTÉ created itself by paying extraordinary amounts to its top presenters.

We don’t need RTÉ 2FM either, as Today FM and iRadio offer similar alternatives. RTÉ needs to have a reality check and needs to stop paying its so-called on-air presenters excessive amount of money. Figures released in 2016 show that Ryan Tubridy was RTÉ’s top earner, on an annual salary of €495,000, Ray D’Arcy is second on the list, on an annual salary of €450,000, Joe Duffy is in third place, on an annual salary of €416,893, and coming in fourth position is Sean O’Rourke, on an annual sum of €308,964. RTÉ’s top female earner is Mariam O’Callaghan and is in fifth place on €299,000 annually, and finally, Marian Finucane is in sixth place on €295,000 annually. All you must do is look at those figures to realize how

RTÉ got into such a financial crisis. Their presenters simply earn an excessive amount of money and it is completely disproportionate to the little work some of them do. I don’t want to single anybody out, but Marian Finucane is the perfect example of this. She only has two shows on RTÉ Radio 1 and they’re only on a Saturday and Sunday from 11am-1pm and yet, she earns €295,000 a year. Even with the proposed 15% wage cut, she will still be earning €250,000 annually.

RTÉ has always claimed that it must pay high wages to its stars in order to keep them from leaving or joining competitors in the UK, but nobody seriously buys this argument. The fact is, if Ryan Tubridy left RTÉ tomorrow I can’t see the BBC coming in for him, when they already have talk show hosts such as Graham Norton. All RTÉ presenters’ salaries should be capped at €100,000 annually and even this is being quite generous. Ms. Forbes’s comment that ‘RTÉ stars are worth as much as the Taoiseach’ just sums up the problem at RTÉ. No one in the public sector should be earning more than the Taoiseach, who holds the highest office in the country. Ms. Forbes herself is on an annual salary of €338,000, which, again, is an excessive amount regardless of her title of director-general.

Management such as Ms. Forbes will take a 10% wage cut under the cost-cutting proposals, but, again, like the on-air presenter’s salaries, they’re still on far too much. It’s time RTÉ and its management went back to basic economics and started making more money than it spends. They’ve done nothing to increase its revenue and, unless they do, the financial crisis is only going to get worse. The time is right to cut all their high earners down to a sustainable salary and those that decide to leave can always be replaced.

None of the big earners, from what I can see, offer anything different or exclusive to RTÉ that no one else could do. If RTÉ doesn’t get a reality check soon and goes back to the basic economics of how to run a business, then I’m afraid it’s not just the big stars that they could potentially lose, it could also be RTÉ itself.

1·2019· st.

DECEMBER

20 FA SH IO N & L I F EST Y L E

SIN Vol. 21 Issue 06

THE FIVE-MINUTE FACE: A beginner’s guide to clean beauty

By Megan Frei With freezing winter days and finals fast approaching, rising early to eat breakfast, get dressed, and get out the door in a timely manner is a challenge. Whether we’re in a rush or not, most of us don’t enjoy spending a lot of time in the mirror getting ready. Celebrities like Emma Watson and Olivia Wilde have been singing the praises of multi-tasking clean beauty products and the power of the “five-minute face”. Here’s a roundup of the best beginner products in clean beauty, with a list of five products which will help give you a boost when you only have a few minutes to spare.

Ere Perez Oat Milk Foundation (£32.00, available at Content Beauty UK) Ere Perez is an Australian-based, Mexican-made beauty brand which prides itself on clean ingredients. Recently promoted by popular UK plant-based Deliciously Ella blogger, Ella Woodward, Ere Perez’s foundation has surged in popularity. Both vegan and cruelty-free, it’s formulated with balancing, anti-inflammatory oat milk and restorative, protective peach fruit extract.

This foundation is incredibly flattering for a wide variety of skin textures and is ideal for those with sensitive skin. Ere Perez’s formula works best with oily skin, given the oat milk creates a whipped consistency that doesn’t look greasy. For dry or combination skin, applying a lightweight moisturiser or SPF before application will help this foundation not cling to dry patches. In winter, makeup is all about a subtle, dewy finish and this clean foundation does not disappoint.

RMS Un Cover-Up Concealer (£34.00, available at Space.

NK Apothecary) Cult beauty hit RMS is not new to the beauty scene and the brand is a household name for a good reason. With a recently extended shade range, RMS finally expanded their UnCover Up concealers to meet the needs and skin tones of all consumers. Formulated with moisturizing coconut oil, jojoba oil, and vitamin E, this product sits beautifully on both dry and oily skin; the longer you wear it, the better it looks. Providing skin with a dewy effect when used as either a foundation or concealer, this product actually covers redness and discoloration while creating a hydrating, lightweight finish. Un Cover-Up

NUI Galway Students’ Union Presents The Ultimate Study Break: Cuireann Comhaltas na Mac Léinn, OÉ Gaillimh, An Briseadh Staidéar Iontach i Láthair:

le & Pe

t

C ha • t r i s

Sa

a ke C y it

m Far Vi

12pm-3pm Wednesday 4th December 2019 in Áras na Mac Léinn 12i.n.-3i.n. Dé Céadaoin an 4 Nollaig 2019 í Áras na Mac Léinn

There will be llamas, goats, lambs, rabbits, sheep, chickens, ducks, guinea pigs, chicks, cake, tea, a raffle and tunes from Flirt FM. All proceeds go to the SU Charities www.su.nuigalway.ie

faceboo acebook.com/NUIGalwayS wa tudent wayS tude sUnion

twitter.com/NUIGSU

is proudly free from sulfates, parabens, phthalates, and formaldehydes, in addition to being cruelty-free.

This product creates the perfect base for someone who prefers a natural everyday look. Seriously. Try it. You’ll never need another concealer again.

Tata Harper Lip and Cheek Tint (€40.00, available at Arnott’s) In its recyclable glass packaging, this formula works better if you warm if up in the pot with your finger. Functioning as a cream blush and lip tint, Tata Harper offers four shades that are so pigmented, you only need a small swipe of colour to create an effortlessly flushed complexion. A blend of olive oil and calendula extract, among other clean ingredients, makes for a creamy balm that will protect you from the elements. A winter makeup capsule must-have, Tata Harper’s Lip and Cheek Tint will have you kissing chapped lips and wind-burnt cheeks goodbye (and this little pot of magic is so pigmented that it will last you for the entire year).

Mascara Lily Lolo (£12.50, available at Content Beauty) Fragrance, silicone and alcohol-free, this UK-based brand has produced one of the most popular clean mascaras on the

market. Mascara is one of the hardest products for clean brands to effectively replicate using safe ingredients, but Lily Lolo has cracked the code with their long-lasting, smudge-proof formula. Unlike conventional mascaras, you don’t have to scrub it off after use and it won’t irritate the eyes.

Ilia Essential Brow Gel (£24.00, available at Content Beauty) A clean dupe for Glossier’s Boy Brow, Ilia’s gentle bristle wand makes the product easy to use for even the busiest mornings. This tinted gel sculpts without drying or flaking and creates a natural look without the harsh lines of pencil brow products. Ilia’s Brow Gel combines maximum impact with minimal effort, making it an ideal on-the-go product for lazy days when all you have the time or energy for is brushing your brows and, hopefully, your teeth.

Swapping from a conventional beauty collection to a cleaner one takes time and is a gradual process. Although these products are pricey, their multiple-use application makes them a worthy investment (and a little product goes a long way). The next time you feel like making an impulsive online purchase, consider trying out a few clean, multi-tasking products and you might find yourself saving money (and time) in the long-run.

The Perks of Shopping Vintage

By Jonathan Browne Vintage clothing is a very popular scene across Europe at the moment, as the nostalgia for 90s style clothing is thriving amongst millennials. Cities like Berlin and Amsterdam are an epicentre for vintage shops, where great finds are commonplace. It’s also very popular here in Ireland, with shops in Dublin like Tola Vintage thriving and even have celebrities like Ariana Grande wanting to go to them. A good thing that Tola do for students is the ‘kilo sale’, where you can 1 kilogram of clothes for just €20, which is easily a few nice tracksuits tops or t-shirts, very good value. The sale is coming to Galway on the 24th November in the Galmont hotel near the train station.

That said, Galway has some shops of its own to brag about, like Public Romance on Abbeygate Street, where there is a plethora of great branded tracksuits and denim jackets, from Adidas to Calvin Klein and there’s student-friendly staff. I, myself, actually got a nice white Adidas tracksuit top for a good price a couple of weeks back and would very much recommend this spot. There’s a myriad of charity shops dotted around town, giving students opportunities for great steals like the Levi’s denim jacket my friend bought for €5 a couple months ago.

One such place is the Irish Cancer Society charity shop, which occasionally has good vintage clothes.

Another popular vintage spot is Planet Retro on Merchant’s Road, where the knowledgeable staff are very helpful and there’s plenty of potential for steals in there.

I would encourage students to go to vintage shops because brands that would regularly retail sweatshirts at around €80-100 can often be found for less than €50. I have found a few steals in my time, like a grey Napapijri sweatshirt for €30 and a silver New York Yankees bomber jacket for €35, both of which I believe would’ve retailed for well over €90, so it’s well worth giving vintage stores a try. Shopping in vintage stores also helps the local economy, as mainstream clothes stores are depriving these local-owned businesses of customers, because they can sell poorer quality clothes for a cheap price.

Shopping vintage is also very sustainable, as the fashion industry is a major contributor to global warming, with their workshops continuously pumping out the same clothes using the same fossil fuels to power their machines and unsustainable materials to make the clothes. These workshops are also a major violation of human rights laws, as the working conditions are appalling, with staff made to work like slaves. If we buy less and less of these workshop’s clothes, they’ll use less fuels and won’t be working their staff as hard, so buying vintage could really help the environment and society at large.

I also always enjoyed the potential of having something unique, a one of a kind item that everyone wants but can’t have. Nowadays, everyone is wearing the same looking clothes from the same shops like Topman, Bershka and Zara, and if we still act like that, we might as well be wearing a uniform, because we’ll all look the same.

FAIS EAN

November 19 2019

7

NÓS MAIRE ACHTÁLA

21

CELEBRITY HALLOWEEN COSTUMES: The Good, the Bad and the Hilarious

By Amanda Leeson Halloween 2019 may be over, but we are all still talking about the costumes that celeb land graced us with. This spooky occasion is all about what you wear and celebrities take things to the next level.

The stars stepped out to attend their fancy Halloween parties donning some very interesting outfits, but who got it right and who got it oh so wrong?

Here are our top picks of the best and worst celebrity Halloween outfits in 2019:

Kevin “The Rock” Hart

Comedic actor Kevin Hart decided to poke fun at fellow celeb friend, Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson.

Hart dressed at The Rock in his younger years, transforming himself into a real-life version of the iconic 90’s Johnson picture.

Hart trolled the WWE superstar at his own Halloween party, with enough dedication to costume to commit to the black turtleneck jumper, mid wash blue jeans, gold necklace and black bum bag. This is friendship at its best.

Couple of “NSYNC” costumes

In a similar fashion to Hart’s troll attack on The Rock, husband and wife duo Jessica Biel and Justin Timberlake (yes, they are married and yes, it also shocked us) poked fun at Justin’s days in the band NYSNC. Jessica Biel mimicked her husband’s boyband look as the couple donned a themed costume on the 31st of October. Biel wore a green metallic jumpsuit, complete with super noodle styled hair, while Justin accompanied his wife and stood by her side as her microphone.

This outfit choice could have turned very tacky, very quickly, but the couple managed to pull it off.

ACTUAL. COUPLE. GOALS. Not all the stars got it right and unfortunately, the ones that went wrong, went very wrong.

Legally Kardashian

Kim Kardashian shocked the world last year when she announced she is pursuing a career in law. The Kardashian sister took a comical stance regarding her new career path this Halloween. Kim paid homage to no other than Legally Blonde’s Elle Woods, the LA socialite who swapped shopping and spa days for a legal career.

The most famous member of the Kardashian clan clearly used the character to her advantage and even sported a blonde wig to channel Elle. Could we be seeing a Legally Blonde remake following the stars very own law journey very soon? Someone get Kris on the phone ASAP. The Kardashian-West family debuted an adorable family outfit as they dressed as the Rubble Family from The Flintstones. Kim wore Betty’s blue dress and Kanye rocked the purple dinosaur’s suit as the lovable character Dino.

Playboy Overdone

Unlike half-sister Kim, Kylie got it very wrong with her Playboy Bunny outfit. One half of the Jenner sisters sported multiple costumes with year, including an adult version of Ariel from the Little Mermaid, a recreation of Marilyn Monroe’s Vogue cover shoot and we can’t forget the amazing Barbie costume she debuted last year.

However, this costume choice is so dated. Come on Kylie, you can come up with something a little more original.

Sorry, Why-lish?

The Good Place actress and activist, Jamila Jamil, got it very wrong with her costume choice. Singer Billie Eilish is at the top of her game this year, making her

a very popular costume choice. However, Jamil took the risk of creating a more light-hearted approach to the songstresses’ look, stepping out as what she called “Silly Eilish”.

This risk did not pay off. The costume sound good in theory but Jamil’s execution of the costume was poor. We will just stop at that.

Not so Sonny and definitely not Cher

Another car crash of a costume came from singer Halsey and her American Horror Story star boyfriend, Evan Peters. The new couple graced the red carpet at the AHS party with a couple’s costume intended to be Sonny and Cher.

Unfortunately, the getup just didn’t work and it’s hard to know who they were styled as without being told.

Halsey also channel her inner Marilyn Manson this Halloween and she absolutely nailed it. The singer copied Manson’s 1998 album cover and the effort she put in was incredible.

Celeb land at Halloween will always be filled with incredible costume most of us can only imagine being able to pull off. It is comforting to know that sometimes they do get outfits wrong too. The planning stages have already begun for next year’s costumes.

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22 FA SH I O N & L I F EST Y L E

SIN Vol. 21 Issue 06

Travel Junkie: Ladakh (India)

By Varun Dua

Ladakh is the northernmost part of India, bordering Tibet and Kashmir. Famous for its arid mountains, whitewashed stupas and gompas, fluttering prayer flags and prayer wheels, red-robed monks and golden Buddhas, Ladakh is a destination unlike any other in the world.

Here’s a list of some of the places you should keep note of while visiting: Leh – Leh is a town in the Leh district of the Ladakh region. It is one of the oldest towns in Ladakh and has multitudes of visitors throughout the year.

The town has a unique and ancient market, full of restaurants offering local cuisines. The local cuisine offers a fusion of elements derived from Tibetan and continental dishes. Some of the famous dishes you could relish here include Thenkthuk, Thukpa, Tigmo, and Mokthuk. A few restaurants, like Lamayuru, are found in the crowded tiny market lanes of the hilly town, while a few, like Bon Appetit, are on the outskirts of the market, with a magnificent view of the Himalayan ranges behind.

Leh is famous for several Tibetan Monasteries, the most famous of which are Hemis and Thiksey.

Hemis, the largest monastery in Ladakh, is located a few kilometers from the town, sandwiched between brown and green, barren Mountains. The Thiksey Monastery is much closer to the town and boasts one of the largest statues of Buddha in Ladakh, rising to 49 feet. These are good places for meditation and self-discovery.

Another famous attraction in Leh is the confluence of the two rivers which run through the region, Zanskar and Indus. The colours and hues of the rivers change every season. The brown mountains in the background of the deep emerald green and bright blue waters are a sight to behold. The Leh Palace, built by Sengge Namgyal in 1600 AD, was once the seat of power in the Himalayan kingdom of Ladakh. It is now a museum and gallery for visitors to peek into the history and culture of the region.

Highest Motorable Pass – Khardung-la and Chang-la pass are some of the highest motorable passes in the world, flocked by enthusiastic, experienced and adventurous bikers from around the world.

The confluence of Zanskar and Indus rivers in the Ladakh region of Jammu and Kashmir, India. Photo: Incomposition via Wikimedia Commons.

Nubra Valley – Famous for the Bactrian Double hump Camels, this cold desert offers diverse views to behold. From cold sand dunes on one hand to oases and colourful trees on the other. All of this has a background of mountains that changes colours throughout the day, from blue to green to purple. Famous places to visit in this area include the Diskit Gompa, a monastery perched on a hill. While here, you could also spend your evening relaxing to the tunes of some traditional music and dance events in the Hunder Village.

Pangong Lake – Situated at a height of 14,270 ft above ground level is a 134 km long lake. More

than half of the lake is in China, and around 40% is in Ladakh, India. The eastern part of the lake is fresh, while the western part is brackish. In summer, the water in the lake appears to take on different hues during different times of the day.

You will not find any hotels or homestays in this region as it is almost uninhabitable for most of the year, during which the lake is frozen. In warmer seasons, however, you could stay in temporary camps that crop up on the shores of the lake. Don’t forget to carry some extra warm clothes as it gets extremely cold in this part of the world.

Youtuber Makeup – made for passion or just for money?

By Alice O’Donnell It seems that, for as long as YouTube has been around, beauty gurus have been too. For as long as that beauty community has existed, there have been YouTuber makeup releases. It might be fair to say that in this long, brightly pigmented and, dare we say it, not vitally important history, nothing’s been as quite as big as the newly released Jeffree Starr x Shane Dawson Conspiracy line. Literally crashing its seller’s site, the demand on this eyeshadow palette is through the roof. With this exemplifying the appeal of YouTubers’ own makeup brands, we have to question whether all the products created and released by these ‘influencers’ really are the result of months of passion and hard work, or is there a far more pessimistic reality, that these YouTubers are simply in it for the money?

Starting off on the topic of money, some YouTuber beauty products are clearly leaning on the more expensive side. The Morphe x

Jaclyn Hill The Master brush collection is valued at a staggering €317, and sold for €185, while The James Charles Palette is being sold for €43.

Kylie Jenner’s Blush Bundle, which includes 5 blush powders, weighing a total of less than 40 grams, costs €96. While one could argue that these makeup products are the influencers’ livelihoods, other YouTubers, such as Zoella, with her Zoella x Colourpop Brunch Date collection, and MannyMUA’s Fall-themed palette costing €27, less than two thirds the price of James Charles’ palette, show that it is possible to create and sell cosmetics which won’t break the bank of their customers.

However, with so many products running off the shelves, it’s clear that customers are willing to pay both low and high prices for their favourite Youtuber’s products. But is it worth it? Well, that question is not as easy to answer. Earlier this year, Jaclyn Hill made headlines when her own brand of makeup, Jaclyn Cosmetics, was found to be contami-

nated. Customers from across the globe were posting photos on social media of her lipstick, showing the actual pigment to be lumpy, scratched or with hair-like fabric in it. Costing $18, Hill initially defended the lipstick, but was forced to recall her cosmetics when customers began complaining of swelling and sickness after wearing her lipstick. While Hill later apologised and gave complete refunds, the whole situation led beauty buffs to beg the question, how involved are Youtubers in the production of their products? Do they simply stamp their name on the packaging and take revenue from each sale?

With this bleak view to take on the industry, it’s equally important to look at the influencers who clearly put a lot of time and effort into their products. For the first time ever, Shane Dawson’s most recent web series on Jeffree Star allowed the general public to see the process of the creation of a product, from conception to planning to release. Even after just a glance

at his videos, you can see how important the Conspiracy line is to both Shane and Jeffree. Although money must be a motivation at some level, the makeup line is a way in which the two men, especially Shane, who struggled with self-image his whole life, can to express and represent themselves. Other YouTubers’ products, such as the cosmetics of Huda Kattan and Manny MUA, also have been released to wide public acclaim.

No matter whether you’re a sworn enthusiast of a selection of different YouTubers’ makeup brands or a firm believer that these influencers are money grabbing in exchange for cheaply made cosmetics, from the popularity of the Shane and Jefree Conspiracy line, it seems that YouTube makeup brands are here to stay.

FAIS EAN

November 19 2019

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NÓ S MAIRE ACHTÁLA

23

The Foodie Diaries – Halloumi Sandwich

By Isabel Dwyer I used to be anti-halloumi. I thought it was too salty and too chewy. I think the problem was that I was using it in the wrong ways, ways that didn’t do the poor cheese any justice. I stopped buying it in protest, deciding that it wasn’t for me, but I noticed that our fridge was still full of it. Packets upon packets of Tesco halloumi were falling from the door compartment and were jumping out at me from the vegetable drawers, attacking me every time I simply wanted to make myself some lunch. Each time I went to put something in the bin, the empty packets would stare up at me, taunting me.

One morning, I finally caught the culprits cooking it. It was two of my housemates, one brunette with a fringe and one redhead, both vegetarian. They stood over the hob plating up a midnight snack (although it was probably actually before 11pm, because we’re all disgustingly tame). In between two pieces of toasted sliced pan, they planted some fried halloumi and ketchup. The redhead, not knowing about my existing hatred, offered me a bite. I accepted, eager for an opportunity to diss the cheese, but the insults never came out of my mouth.

I was enjoying the creation too much. It was then that I realised that something else is salty

and chewy… Bacon! My friends had come up with the ultimate vegetarian version of a bacon butty (or a ‘rasher sandwich’, if you’re from Tipperary or somewhere like that), a version so strong, so delicious, that it even surpasses the meaty original.

So, to cut to the chase, this issue’s recipe is the underdog that is the halloumi sandwich. This takes so little time to make that when I made one earlier this evening, I clicked on the kettle right before I got started and the water had only just boiled as I took my first bite. Start by slicing up your halloumi. I get mine in Tesco for cheap enough. When it’s still unopened, it lasts for ages, so you can pick up a few packs without having to worry about them going off before you get a chance to use them. That won’t happen anyway once you become addicted, like I have. You can make the pieces as thick or thin as you like. I like thick. Now add a generous dollop of oil to a frying pan and turn the heat on high. Then toast your bread. I like to put the two slices into the same toaster compartment. That way, the outsides get nice and crunchy while the insides stay doughy and warm. It’s a perfect hybrid. As for the halloumi, add the pieces to the hot oil and leave until really golden. Make sure to flip them to get both sides nice and fried. Grab your toast, spread some ketchup on the soft sides, pop in

your halloumi slices and close her up. Cut the sandwich in half - diagonally if you’re a normal human being, or directly across the middle if you’re a sociopath.

This ‘meal’ is ideal for when you’re craving something fast-food-ish, but it doesn’t break the bank and it takes no time to put together. Essen-

tial study break food, or hungover breakfast food.

I don’t even have a picture to show you, because I instantly demolished the one I made for myself this evening before I got the chance to take one.

I’m sure you can visualise it yourself anyway.

It’s bread, ketchup, and fried excellence. Like a butty, but better.

New Loyalty Scheme for Students Making Postgraduate Applications Final year undergraduate students at NUI Galway can make a FREE postgraduate application (to NUI Galway) up until 31 December (saving of €35). Eligible students have been emailed detail of this scheme by Postgraduate Admissions (including how to access your personalised discount code). You can make up to two free postgraduate applications with your discount code. Email postgradadmissions@ nuigalway.ie for information on this new Loyalty Scheme.

Make your postgrad application now at: www.nuigalway.ie/postgraduateapplications Information on courses and why to choose postgraduate studies is online at www.nuigalway.ie/choose-postgrad

Five practical tips for saving money as a college student

By Anastasia Burton It’s beginning to smell a lot like Christmas and crippling poverty, can you relate? With the festivities approaching us quicker than death by climate change, one can’t help but panic about finance. We are all students here and we all know the temptations of “treating” ourselves for almost completing the first semester, only to have our bank accounts look as though we just went and got a mortgage we can’t afford to pay off.

Christmas presents, new year outfits, holidays, the weird people who have their birthdays terribly close to Christmas, are all expenses in the eyes of us students. You want to get your mom a nice holiday to Milan but all you can afford is Penneys socks for €1. If that’s the case, then do not fear, for Anastasia, your fairy godmother accountant, is here!

I have compiled five easy and doable ways in which you can save money and welcome the new year with a little money to spare!

1. Cut down on takeaways.

Although it is tempting to stay in and order food, try to limit your takeaway consumption to once a week or once every two weeks. I would recommend buying groceries that are on offer, or frozen food (which is usually cheap) to prepare delicious meals that would cost about the same as a one-time take away meal.

Why spend the money you could have spent on a weeks’ worth of groceries on a single day’s snack?

2. Hold off on buying the presents!

With Black Friday and seasonal sales just a few weeks away, why would you pay the full price for an item which will cost half as much in less than a month? If you really want to stack up on presents for the family a tad early, while also saving money, shop at the reduction aisles at stores and try to hold out until the sales kick in. Trust me – it’s better to be patient than pay €20 for an item which will be €10 next week!

3. Set some money aside!

Not to be a party pooper, but stop spending all your money! Living paycheck to paycheck brings along a lot more problems than pleasure. You could spend all your money in one go and have the best day ever, but then you will be surviving off 15c noodles and buying your friends and family a packet each for Christmas! Be smart with your finances and spread them out equally, spend only what you need and if you have a fiver left over after the week is up, give yourself a pat on the back! Set that fiver aside towards the Christmas fund.

4. Avoid bringing your debit card out with you.

This might seem outrageous, due to us never knowing when we might want to buy something nice, however, that is exactly the reason why you shouldn’t bring it! If you leave your card at home, you will have more time to rethink the purchase and maybe even be grateful that you hadn’t bought it. Our goal is to eliminate the spending temptation until we get out of the danger zone, also known as the “festive season”.

5. Create a weekly/ monthly budget This might tie in with suggestion number three, however, creating a budget for yourself will make you feel more organized and aware of the money that is yours to spend on leisure or a present for a family member. Your budget does not have to be all fancy and perfect. A rough idea of your income and expenses will make you feel in control of your finances. Prioritise expenses such as rent, food and bills above presents and personal allowance. Once you subtract that from your current balance, you will be free to play around with the remainder in whichever way you wish!

I hope my suggestions helped you out a bit!

Money is there to be spent but that does not mean you have to spend it all at once!

NEW

LOYALTY SCHEME FREE APPLICATION FEE

If you’re a current NUI Galway final year undergraduate student, you can make a FREE postgraduate application to NUI Galway, if you apply before 31 December 2019.

Any queries on the Loyalty Scheme, please email Admissions:

postgradadmissions@ nuigalway.ie

175

Thinking about postgrad:

www.nuigalway.ie/choose-postgrad

24 A RT S & E N T E RTAIN M EN T

SIN Vol. 21 Issue 06

WHAT’S ON IN GALWAY?

By Rachel Garvey

Galway Christmas Market 2019

The Annual Christmas Fair has returned to Galway from last Friday, 15 November 2019 until Sunday, 22 December. The wellknown Christmas event has returned with a 32 metre Big Wheel and the traditional Carousel, also including Santa’s Grotto, the German Bier Keller, 50 wooden

stalls with a variety of Christmas stock to choose from, live music and performances. The market will also offer the public a chance to taste their mulled wine, apple cider, waffles and crepes.

Light up Festival Galway

Galway’s most loved Christmas attraction returned once again this year on Friday, 15 November at 5:30pm. Mickey and Minnie Mouse, the Giant Elf & Snowman

will assist the Galway Council in turning on the lights in Eyre Square and all the way down Shop Street and the Latin Quarter.

Galway on Ice

Get your skates on because the ice rink is returning to Leisureland, Salthill. The ice rink will officially open on Saturday, 16 November until Sunday, 5 January. A great activity for students to take the stress off from studying for exams.

Annual Christmas Day Swim

COPE is hosting this year’s Christmas Day Swim commencing on Wednesday, 25 December between 10am – 1pm. The event will take place in Blackrock, Salthill with anyone being encouraged to participate.

Galway Food, Craft & Gift Fair

A great opportunity to buy your loved one the present you won’t

get anywhere else. The two-day event begins on Saturday, 30 November and ends Sunday, 31 November and will include artisan food, jewellery and unique gifts.

Connacht Rugby v Gloucester

Connacht Rugby v Gloucester Game will take place in Galway’s Sportsground in the Heineken Champions Cup on Saturday, 14 December, kicking off at 12:45pm.

Review - Kanye West’s Galway native LAOISE speaks Jesus is King about supporting the Coronas, her Lost Lane headline gig and her favourite thing to do at Christmas

By Jonny Browne

The wait is finally over, we have a new Kanye West album after almost a year of waiting. Jesus is King is finally here. The project was originally set to be called Yandhi and was set to be released in Autumn 2018, but it never came. There wasn’t much word coming out of the Kanye camp on why the album wasn’t going to be released, but as we can hear in the song ‘Selah’, the project was cancelled because “Jesus Christ did the laundry” - or in other words, Kanye found God and felt it wasn’t right to his faith to release Yandhi, so reworked the album to be a gospel album.

What we have now is an album fully focused on God and Christianity, that has caused lots of controversy with the Kanye fanbase, as some feel this is a far cry from the original Kanye we saw in previous classics like The College Dropout and My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy and, in my opinion, I don’t disagree with them. Songs like ‘Water’, ‘God is’ and ‘Hands on’ follow a monotonous script of God and Jesus to such an extent that it sounds like Kanye may have joined a cult and is brainwashed. He has made his faith his whole life by the looks of it, to the detriment of his music.

One thing this album does has going for it, though, is that the beats and music behind the lyrics are brilliant as always, leaving me thinking that if Kanye had this album at the start of the 2010’s, what would he think of it?

There’s even almost laughable tracks, like ‘Closed on Sundays’ where he uses a weak simile of fast food chain Chickfil-A being closed on Sunday, the day of the sabbath according to the bible. It’s comical how far Kanye has fallen lyri-

cally. He is rapping about chicken like a young teenager would on his Soundcloud page. Another laughable song is ‘On God’, where Kanye claims he has to charge so much for his ‘Yeezy’ shoes and clothing because “I cannot let my family starve”, even though he has a net worth estimated to be over $240 million and his wife Kim, the matriarch of the Kardashian clan, is worth $370 million. It doesn’t really look like they’ll be short for Chick-fil-A money anytime soon.

There are a couple highlights to the album that I believe really highlight Kanye’s fantasy of ‘maximum minimalism’, where he doesn’t overload the track with production. My personal favourite track is ‘Follow God’, as it has a contagious flow and rhythm that stay stuck in your head while the brilliant sample ‘Father, I stretch my hands to you’ - which we also saw in The Life of Pablo in ‘Father Stretch My Hands, Pt.1’ - has been the highest charting song so far, reaching number 7 on the Billboard Hot 100.

Another song I really enjoy is ‘Use this Gospel’, where we see the reunion of Hip-Hop duo Clipse, made up of brothers Pusha T and No Malice. The brothers rap about their drug-dealing past and how now they both have God like Kanye, while Kanye’s attempted singing goes down well in this track.

I don’t believe this is a bad album, but it is a bad Kanye album. He has risen our expectations with amazing album after amazing album and now, with this album and 2018’s Ye, it feels like we may have seen peak Kanye and that’s a sad thought for me, as a Kanye fan. I, along with many other fans, hope this is just another phase for Kanye and soon we’ll be seeing his best once again.

By Conor Brummell LAOISE is an Electro-Pop singer from Galway, Ireland. Having migrated to Dublin for college over the past few years, she has hit the Irish music scene running with hit Spotify singles such as “Again”, “Mad” and her latest release, “Seriously?”. From the start of the interview, it came as no surprise as to why she chose a life of music, seeing as she was exposed to it from an early age.

“I always had it in my house… My dad played guitar and he would always sing folk tunes. My aunt also always sang, and she played traditional music too, so it was everywhere when I was younger.

My older sister then introduced me to a lot of pop music, and a bit more of alternative stuff such as Imogen Heap. It was always around, and I suppose it would have been a bit weird had I not gotten involved.”

Being from Galway, which is a city so full of culture and diversity, Laoise explained where her inspirations came from growing up. “I got so much from Galway while growing up. It’s mad, I was only talking about this the other day when I was on the way back to play in the Róisín Dubh for the RTÉ 2FM gig. Obviously, I’m living in Dublin now, but you never fully appreciate what you have until you leave it.”

“I loved Galway, especially in the summer, when the Arts Festival would come about. However, I never fully appreciated it at the time, and I think it inspires me much more nowadays, which is a bit wild! Even when you’re walking down Quays Street, it’s just so colourful. When I’m writing or singing or listening to music, I hear colour in that music. That inspired me a lot in that sense; when I’m writing I would love to

be able to create a song that sounded like Quay Street or like Salthill. I’d love to be able to catch that feeling in a song”.

Speaking about her experience supporting The Coronas in both Wexford and Sligo in October, she reminisced on how much it meant to her. “The Coronas have always been there while I was growing up. I’m only twenty-two, but their music has always been around for as long as I can remember. It was such an honour to go and play with them on tour, and magical just to even get to meet the guys.”

“They were all so lovely, and each of them were such pros. I learned so much just by even getting to see them do their sound-check, and the crowds that came were so much fun. The lads were good craic, and they got everyone pizza- it was the dream!”

Unapologetic, Laoise tries to lay things bare through her song-writing.

“My first couple of releases sound like a completely different person wrote them.

I rarely listen to them anymore, and it’s almost as if I avoid them. I was definitely a lot vaguer in my song-writing and I feel like it was like I was hiding behind a metaphor and not really singing what I wanted to say.”

“I feel like as I’ve gotten older and now that I’m going through college and finding new people who I could be friends with has helped a lot. I think all the music I’ve ever loved has had a story and expressed what I couldn’t. I’m just trying to make something that’ll make me feel better and in doing so, it could resonate with someone else. That is why I’m doing this.”

What’s her favourite song to sing live?

“It’s probably either Again or Seriously?

Seriously? is good because the crowd absolutely love screaming and that is good one to get it all out in,” she laughed.

Laoise is playing Lost Lane Dublin on the 12th of November, a week before this interview comes out. She detailed her excitement for the headliner, saying, “I’m buzzing. I’m baking! I’m going to make brownies for everyone! This is the most work I’ve put into a headline gig ever before; I have a whiteboard downstairs with about a thousand boxes to check.”

“Lost Lane is a beautiful venue and it’s nice to come off a festival run with a more intimate gig to look forward to. I love festivals, and I get to meet fans the whole time through that, but there’s something very emotional playing a headline show because people are coming just to see you because they know who you are.”

She also revealed plans for new releases in the upcoming year. “I have a few things planned. I wanted to take a little step back from releasing because I was playing live so much, and I didn’t have time to write as much. I’ve started writing different stuff again; I feel like every year I shape-shift into something new which is good because otherwise I would get bored.”

“During 2020, I want to release a lot, but I want to make sure it’s right.

There was a time there for a while I was panicking because I didn’t feel like I was releasing enough. Maggie Rodgers once said herself that there is so much pressure on output and not enough respect for the process and I think that resonated with me a lot.

I’m taking my time to find my new feet, and I think this is definitely the best song-writing I’ve ever done as a result.”

Finally, with Christmas coming up, Laoise told SIN what her go-to thing to do on Christmas Eve. “Sit around and drink Baileys, obviously!”

C U LT ÚR

November 19 2019

7

SIAMSAÍO CHT

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Gay Byrne – A legacy

By Ciara Brennan It is difficult to put such a legacy into words. Gay Byrne was an icon in every sense of the word. From his incredible career to his effortless, witty humor and his ability to never be mean. He was a true gentleman from the day he stepped out on our television screens until the day he died. The finest broadcaster the country has ever seen, paving the way for young journalists, like ourselves, to dream of someday becoming a mere fraction of what Gay managed to create.

Every Friday night, he would grace the screen with dignity and poise, ready to deal with whatever live television had to throw his way.

‘A source of oxygen to the life of the community’ — Bob Collins.

In 1958, he began his broadcasting career on the radio, taking a 15-minute slot on Radio Éireann. With his biggest break yet to come, at the age of 28, television came knocking on Ireland’s door and Gay Byrne answered. The Late Late Show was born and brought to life by Gay. On Friday, 6 July 1962, he appeared sharply dressed and beautifully spoken, soon to capture the nation’s heart. With his finger firmly on the pulse of Irish society, he launched into a career that was to last over 50 years.

‘He was the handmaiden to contemporary Ireland’ - Bob Geldof.

Every chapter of Irish life was captured by Gay Byrne. He shone a light in the darkest corners of Ireland. He opened doors and tackled issues no one in this Catholic country had ever dreamed of hearing on a Friday night.

Topics such as abortion, gay marriage, sex, abuse and homelessness, to name

but a few, he made Ireland sit up and listen even when it didn’t want to. A man ahead of his time, he allowed the country to see every side, and that truly changed the nation. He was a guide and companion on the journey to a modern Ireland.

‘He could see around societal corners. He didn’t just produce television, he produced futures’ - Moya Doherty.

He had an incredible ability to listen. With respect, understanding and patience, he listened and allowed the most ordinary of folk to be heard. He wasn’t just the voice of the people, but he allowed the people to have a voice. His bravery, courage and reckless nature was a natural gift that Gay knew never to take for granted. His support of women was profound, he understood and celebrated the importance of the Irish housewife in society. He was courageous, kind, balanced, honest but most importantly encouraging. He greatly enjoyed other people’s success and willfully passed down his knowledge to anyone who sought it. He provided a platform for young artists and witnessed the beginnings of legendary artists, such as U2.

‘We enjoyed his familiarity.

We respect and love people who are not afraid to stand up to power. There is just a huge swell of love’ - Tommy Tiernan.

During a career rich with laughter and debate, he interviewed some of the most influential and controversial people the country has ever seen. Guests included names such as Mother Teresa, Spike Milligan, Jerry Adams, Annie Murphy and Peter Ustinov, and the list goes on. One of his most admired ventures saw a series of Late Late tribute specials

to honor the greatest talents Ireland had to offer, the most popular including The Dubliners and the great Maureen Potter.

A long and fruitful career saw Gay turn his hand to just about anything. He held a variety of different shows under his belt both onscreen and on air, including The Meaning of Life, Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?, The Rose of Tralee, Housewife of the Year, For One Night Only, The Gay Byrne Show and the Sunday slot on Lyric FM, to name but a few. Gay worked tirelessly with many charities, the most notable being the RTÉ People in Need Telethon and his more recent role as Chairperson of the Road Safety Authority. The nation’s love for him was never ending, culminating in a bid to make Gaybo our next President back in 2011.

‘Gay didn’t need to be president; he was president of Ireland anyway’ - Mary McAleese.

I remember sitting at home watching old videos of The Late Late Toy Show that my father had recorded, as I was too little to remember Gay in his many years as presenter. I instantly knew he was magic. Video after video I would sit and laugh and admire Gay’s utter delight interacting with everyone who came on screen. Everybody was somebody in his eyes and I admired him dearly for that.

Although I was only 5 at the time, I knew there was nobody else I’d rather see on my television screen, showing me the latest Barbies I was going to ask Santa for that Christmas.

My most fond memory of Gay Byrne will always be that infamous clip outside Trinity College Dublin back in 1982. Under the scheme of comedian and friend Mike Murphy, Gay fell victim to one of his legendary pranks. “Does he understand the expression ‘kick in the you-know-whats’”, is still one of my favourite lines from Gay.

‘If you’re not getting in trouble, you are not doing your job properly’ – Gay Byrne.

Gay Byrne passed away in the loving company of his family on November 4. His funeral took place four days later under clear blue skies

in Pro-Cathedral Dublin. Streets were lined with people in a bid to pay a final farewell to Uncle Gay. The outpouring of grief leaves me with the worry of what will Ireland be without Gay Byrne? A broadcasting legend loved by many and missed by all.

To whom it may concern, Gay Byrne.

Instagram has been making a few changes

By Ewelina Szybinska Instagram, one of our favourite social platforms, has recently undergone a couple of changes and there are split opinions regarding this. Have you noticed the disappearance of likes underneath posts? Well, Instagram has been trying out this new feature in Australia, Brazil, Canada, Ireland, Italy, Japan, and New Zealand. Likes represented the posts’ performances, and people often worried whether they would reach a desired amount. The opinion splits in two; the influencers and other members of the platform.

The influencers have seen a significant drop in engagement from the public. The idea that, “if you can’t see the likes then what is the point of liking?” is going around, which makes sense to many. It makes it difficult for influencers to decide whether the content they post is good enough, or whether they should

they stay away from a certain idea. It used to be a motivational feature, now some feel like it really doesn’t matter what you decide to publish.

On the other hand, those who were anxious about the striking number underneath their picture are really enjoying this change. They feel free to post something and still feel good about themselves no matter how many people show their support. There was a noticeable change, with accounts posting more, with no real judgement there is no pressure to overthink. It could be better for our mentality to leave these likes out, or it should possibly make a comeback because it’s not that deep?

If you like to know what’s going on around Instagram, who liked what and who followed who, you were definitely aware of the following tab. The removal of this next feature confused a few. Is Instagram trying to increase users’ privacy? I have a strong opinion on this; our

‘privacy’ on the internet has always been small and some would even argue there’s no such thing. No more stalking others’ activity! After talking to many people about this change, I noticed that more were in favour of this - maybe you don’t want everyone to know you are a big fan of cute kittens! The minority were in a relationship and they were quite interested in their partners activity. I suppose everyone will have something else to say regarding the following tab, but the discussion wasn’t near as big as the concern about the likes.

So, what’s next? Well, it doesn’t look like Instagram is done quite yet. They’re preparing to remove the plastic surgeryesque filters. They believe it’s important for people to start loving their natural state. It’s known that nowadays many young people are looking up to plastic surgery. It hopes to start conversation and end Insta-dysmorphia. Is Instadysmorphia a real thing? Social media

platforms seem to set impossible to reach standards regarding looks. The constant advertisement of beauty enhancers including plastic surgery - applies some type of pressure on people to change.

It’s not a secret but many are unaware of the photoshop editing that is behind the scenes of many posts. Not everything we see is real and Instagram worries how negatively it affects a great deal of individuals. So, is this a way to counter it?

A recent rumour which needs to be addressed is banning self-harm related memes. The social media platform appears to be looking into a way to ban any posts which are directly aimed at self-harm. The sensitive topic is often joked about, without thinking through the possible consequences the post might have on people is a serious issue. Memes are there to make us laugh or share relatable posts with our friends. These aren’t usually related to triggering topics which makes it acceptable for publication. The

conversations around self-harm are delicate and the think before you post process really applies here.

Our next question is whether these slowly appearing changes mark Instagram as one of the most forward thinking, safe social media platforms? Without any doubt, Instagram is trying its best to challenge features which people have complained about in the past. If the idea of removing likes will make one more comfortable and will get rid of the idea of not being good enough, maybe it is a good thing after all. The disappearance of the following tab might make some feel that bit more secure and safe. I mean, what was the point of following someone’s activity?

One good argument to be debated is in the event of a criminal case, where the following was to be of significant use by the authorities. Controlling online safety and positivity has to start somewhere - keep an eye out for more changes and see for yourself what it means to you.

26 A RT S & E N T E RTAIN M EN T

The best feel-good Christmas movies

By Harshita Srivastava The best time of the year is here! While Christmas is all about festivities and togetherness, it is also about curling up in a blanket, enjoying your hot chocolate with marshmallows on top and watching your favourite Christmassy movie.

We’ve put together a list of the very best Christmas classics that bring with them the spirit of the festive season and the joy of holidays.

It’s a Wonderful Life (1946) There’s no denying that It’s a Wonderful Life is one holiday classic that you just can’t get away from. The bittersweet drama, set in the small town of Bedford Falls, opens with George (James Stewart) planning on taking his own life because of his umpteen failures and let-downs during Christmas. That’s when an angel - Clarence Oddbody (Henry Travers) - came down to show him the true meaning of life. Interestingly, the movie didn’t do well when it first released, however, it became a household holiday classic in the US during the ‘70s.

Home Alone (1990) Who doesn’t love watching the cute Kevin (Macaulay Culkin) put up a good fight against the burglars in his house when he’s home alone? Loved by all age groups, this adventurous comedy is just the perfect recipe for a fun-filled evening with the family during the holidays.

It was a phenomenal success at the box office and went on to bring three more movies in the series. The crew is already working on a reboot of the movie for Disney+ and we couldn’t be more excited!

How the Grinch Stole Christmas (2000) There are two sets of people – one who like the ’67 version and the others who like 2000 Jim Carrey’s version. Honestly, we love both and this movie would have been a regular old Christmas movie if Jim Carrey hadn’t been a part of it. The movie is all about the striking performance of Carrey and how he becomes one with the character of the Grinch. Also, did you know it took Jim 2 hours every morning to get into the Grinch makeup, and one hour to get out of it?

Love Actually (2003) When you have a delectable cast featuring the likes of Liam Neeson, Hugh Grant, Colin Firth and Alan Rickman running on your TV at Christmas, would you ever have the courage to stand up and turn it off? Pictured in the ever beautiful and charming London city, decorated with the spirit of Christmas, this romantic comedy has made everyone go weak at the knees at least once - including us.

The Holiday (2006) What could be more shattering than getting your heartbroken during Christmas? So, Iris (Kate Winslet) and Amanda (Cameron Diaz) decide to exchange homes and spend their holidays alone in a different country, without any hope of finding love, but guess what? Love finds them in the strangest of ways, showing them that they’re not jinxed after all. The exceptionally handsome Jude Law and the cute Jack Black make the movie complete. While the movie received mixed reviews when it was released, it went on to become one of our most loved holiday movies, especially for us lovelorn folks.

Bonus Entry: Elf (2003) We couldn’t leave Elf behind! Elf, Santa’s biggest helper played by Will Ferrell - makes for a lovely family comedy with some great performances from the crew. A normalsized man, Buddy is raised as an Elf by Santa. When he finally comes to know the truth, he goes to New York City in search of his biological family. Elf is fresh and humorous holiday film that beautifully teaches us that nothing matters in the world apart from how big your heart is.

SIN Vol. 21 Issue 06

MTV EMAs 2019

By Rachel Garvey

MTV’s EMAs took place on Sunday, November 3 in Seville, Spain. This year’s award show displayed many stand-out moments through performances and nominee awards. The award show itself was hosted by singer, songwriter and actress Becky G. Not only was Becky G the host, but she made numerous wardrobe changes, served as a translator for the show and pulled off, not only one, but two brilliant performances of her singles ‘Sin Pijama’ and ‘Majores’.

The 2019 MTV EMAs was off to a rather great start, with Dua Lipa opening the show with her brand new recent single ‘Don’t Start Now’. She had the crowd ecstatic with her eye-catching dance moves as well as singing her lyrics tall and proud, it was a performance that proved to be a successful start to the evening’s awards. Other top-notch performances included Mabel, wearing her glitzy pink and white two-piece as she stood on top of a fashionable blue corded telephone as the audience sang along with her to ‘Don’t Call Me Up’. Then we had our favourite ‘Sweet But Psycho’ singer, Ava Max, dressed beautifully in a red dress as she sang a collaboration of

‘Sweet But Psycho’ and her new single ‘Torn’. Rock icons Green Day sang a collaboration of ‘Father of All…’ and ‘Basket Case’. They sang their hearts out to an ecstatic audience who were all on their feet with their hands in the air as the band’s members belted out their best vocals and played their instruments as if it was their last performance. Closing the show, Liam Gallagher took to the stage for a performance of ‘Wonderwall’. With the crowd in awe of his singing voice, the performance itself proving to be an unforgettable one.

‘7 Rings’ singer, Ariana Grande was known to be one of the top contenders of the night as a nominee for several awards, but unfortunately, she wasn’t crowned the winner of any of them.

However, here are some of the award winners from the different categories: Best U.S Act went to the one and only Taylor Swift, in addition to her winning Best Video for her song ‘Me’ featuring Brendon Urie. Best Artist went to the music industry’s biggest sweetheart Shawn Mendes, Billie Eilish’s song ‘Bad Guy’ won Best Song, Best Pop was won

by Halsey, Best Hip-Hop by the beautiful Nicki Minaj and Best U.K and Ireland Act was taken home by the four dolls

from Little Mix. Other awards went to Pabllo Vittar, who was the first ever drag artist to win an MTV award, Green Day winning Best Rock with Liam Gallagher taking home the first ever MTV EMA Rock Icon Award.

The show proved to be a success and to briefly visit some of its stand-out moments is a must, as they were ones that have blown up social media. We witnessed Green Day’s excitement over winning their Best Rock Award as they popped open a bottle of champagne (which went everywhere). We couldn’t help but share a laugh with the audience through Liam Gallagher’s performance of ‘Wonderwall’, as he said in the middle of his song lyrics: “There are many things I want to say to you, but I don’t know how to speak Spanish”, leave it up to Liam to perform such a great song and still add a bit of humour to it. Lastly, we saw Halsey’s outstanding performance of her song ‘Graveyard’ as she sat on top of a unicorn (yes, you heard me right) and was surrounded by a stage full of beautiful flowers which, to the amazement of the audience, blew up in flames as Halsey lit the stage on fire as she sang her heart out. It was an award show that shouldn’t have been missed.

MOVIE REVIEW: Extra Ordinary

By Tara Trevaskis Hoskin Extra Ordinary, the new Irish film directed by Mike Ahern and Enda Loughman, is a hybrid between a quirky rom-com and a dark comedy, but it is sure to leave you feeling full of light.

The story is centered around that of Rose Dooley (Maeve Higgins), a lonely driving instructor based in rural Ireland with supernatural powers. Higgins brings this character to life and you can’t help but love her in the opening scenes, as she eats her ready-meal dinner, bouncing on an exercise ball in her underwear. Rose has not used her supernatural powers since childhood, when, in a horrible accident, she killed her late father Vincent (Risteárd Cooper).

However, this comes into question when recording artist Christian Winters (Will Forte) and his girlfriend Claudia (Claudia O’Doherty) enlist their own satanic rituals in order to get rid of his curse of being a one hit wonder. Christian lives in a castle on the outskirts of the town. His character is a brilliant mixture of creepy and zany that keeps the viewers intrigued. The supernatural element here, mixed with the old Irish castle ruins, is a nod to traditional Ireland in a contemporary culture and one of the best elements within the film.

Winters needs the soul of a virgin in order to write a new hit. He finds this soul in local schoolgirl Sarah (Emma Coleman), who lives alone with her father Martin Martin (Barry Ward), as her mother has passed away. Sarah and Martin are having supernatural problems of their own. As Sarah’s late mother continues to plague Martin, acting as a poltergeist throwing out any food he shouldn’t be eating and making sure to injure him if he gets cheeky! There is a typical sense of dark Irish humour here, as Martin’s deceased wife slags him day and night. In my opinion this is one of the best things about Irish comedy; there really is a sense of humour particular to Irish culture that just isn’t captured by international films and it’s a beautiful thing to see on the big screen.

Under the false pretense of needing driving lessons, Martin gets to know Rose in the hopes of getting her to help him get rid of his wife’s spirit. At first, Rose refuses but falls instantly in love with him. The plot thickens when Christian’s spell on Sarah is successful and she is made to unconsciously float. His plan is to have her float to the castle and sacrifice her to Satan. All the while, he has his

girlfriend Claudia scolding him and nagging him to finish the single. Their relationship adds another layer of comic relief to the plot as they idiotically bicker amid their Satanic rituals, which makes their relationship feel authentic and the fantasy world of Satanism collide with this.

When Rose finds out about Sarah, she promises to help Martin. Rose’s heavily pregnant sister must watch over Sarah while the pair hunt for a way to save her.

Unaware of the supernatural goings on, her sister believes she is finally going on a date with Martin, adding to the romantic tension between Rose and Martin.

In order to really impress Martin, Rose is forced to accept a part of herself she has tried to suppress - her supernatural powers. This is an original premise in a romcom; traditionally the woman must try her best to change or better herself in order to win the guy. Extra Ordinary rejects this idea and Rose Dooley is only really open to finding true love when she finally accepts all of herself, even the parts that were not always accepted by society. This is reflective of the real world, where most of us don’t have supernatural powers but have something we would probably like to change, that we believe we would be more lovable without. This movie shows us that by being completely, authentically ourselves - as sappy as it sounds - true love is out there!

There is something within this film that everyone can relate to, from Martin’s unfaltering love for his daughter to Rose’s journey of self-acceptance and even Christian’s desire to be once again in his prime. This movie is much more than an Irish romcom; it tells the tale of love, loss and - most importantly - self-acceptance. It is a movie for the ages.

C U LT ÚR

November 19 2019

Disciples Review

By Maeve Charles

Theatre is an immersive experience, which can provoke feelings and thoughts more vividly than any other form of media. It places the audience in such an intimate setting that no detail can escape their eyes. This can make the arena both a new director’s dream and their worst nightmare. Despite this, Emily White, writer and director of Disciples, made a worthy attempt at bringing her first play to life last week in the Bank of Ireland theatre.

Disciples was inspired by a Rugrats episode, called ‘The Santa Experience’. The episode revolves around a nifty Angelica who manages to trick Phil and Lil to sacrifice their favourite toys in order to have a present for the other twin. Phil swaps his favourite dinosaur toy for a packet of crayons to give to Lil for Christmas.

Similarly, Lil, gives up her favourite colouring book to get a space helmet for Phil’s dinosaur.

On Christmas morning, both have presents for each other, but no longer have the corresponding toys to use them with. Though a seemingly innocent plot to a cartoon show, it highlights the lengths to which people will go to for someone they love. This theme is the main driving force of the play Disciples, where a mysterious umbrella man pushes a young married couple to their wits’ end to see what they are willing to sacrifice in order to make the other one happy.

The show took place in between the audience, who were seated at either side of the stage. The director made an incredible and unique use of the space, catching the interest of each theatre-goer from the moment they set step in the room. An exercise mat lay centre stage, which was the focal point for most scenes, transforming from a bed to a hallway to a dance floor.

The unique set-up, however, was not the only attention-grabbing detail of the show.

As described in the show’s blurb, the plot included “a chain of malevolent forces conspiring to keep them apart [the couple]: an eerily lifelike robot, a blood-hungry cult, and an elusive black hole threatening to destroy everything they know.” The interference of these forces was confusing at times. While I believe the purpose of this may have been to leave the audience at the edge of their seats, desperate to find out what will happen next, I think it occasionally did the opposite - making the audience wonder how long it was until the interval or curtain call.

My main critique to do with the show revolves around this element. While I commend the writer/director for being bold and pushing new boundaries in terms of the theatre experience, I think it could have been done in less than 2 hours and 50 minutes.

University students, myself included, can

struggle to pay attention to a lecture that is 50 minutes long on topics that we love. As soon as we start to feel a bit confused though, we tend to drift off. While this play made an excellent use of different mediums such as dance, music, and excellent acting (to name but a few) to keep the audience engaged, I felt that the mysterious forces were more distracting than engaging. If this show were to be done again, I think it could have excellent potential if some of these scenes were cleared up.

If this play is done again, I would highly recommend students to see it, as it deals with many topics and themes that we often are too scared to speak about, such as mental health, love and when to end a relationship that isn’t working. As a postgraduate student, the underlying questions of what to do next in one’s life were extremely relatable and I definitely left the theatre with a sense that I will try to avoid following in the footsteps of May and Henry - but comforted by the idea that, even if I do end up desperately poor and living in an old converted corridor on the 63rd floor of an apartment complex, things will end up alright in the end.

All in all, I think this was a great first attempt of a play which has the potential to provoke thought about the challenges of life after leaving college.

ALBUM REVIEW: Junior Brother’s Pull the Right Rope

By Luke Power Blindboy Boatclub of the Rubberbandits commented on Junior Brother’s style, stating that “he literally sounds like if you gave a peat bog viagra.” Eoghan McDermott of 2FM called him a genius. Cillian Murphy is a big fan. All of these takes are good; Junior Brother has come from the Kingdom to bring us his art, and we are fools if we do not listen.

Ronan Kealy made waves in 2016 with his irreverent, tonally spot-on tune ‘Hungover at Mass’. His songs are soaked in drink and religion, tackling masculinity, pretension, love and loss. His instruments are an acoustic guitar and a tambourine, which he thumps using his right foot, giving his rhythmically complex songs a strong percussive element.

All of this is a backdrop to his voice, which is rough and rich, precise and subtle, totally and distinctly Kerry. There’s no mistaking it.

His latest release, Pull the Right Rope, is a very fine album indeed. It runs for fortyseven minutes over nine songs, each varying widely in length and dynamics. The songs were written over the course of five years. It is thematically rich, and, despite frequently recalling traditional tunes and folk themes, it is melodically fresh: a modern but truly Irish sound. It was nominated for the RTÉ Radio One Folk Awards 2019, a huge achievement made more impressive given Kealy’s young age.

‘Coping’ opens the album; a bouncy, staccato vocal line that expands into a lovely held note for the chorus, all of which culminates in

a satisfying instrumental break. Kealy is unafraid of leaving long sections without vocals all through the album, including in the flute and bodhrán accompanied “Big House”. All the while, the tambourine is pounded. Junior Brother’s poetic depth is phenomenal and grows more evident as the album goes on.

‘The Back of Her’ is a standout track. Birds tweet as it opens, drawing the listener out into the fields of the song. The harmonies are strong, showcasing Kealy’s strong vocal control and large range. The lyrics are clever and beautiful: “Sure nobody can take a fella’s company from himself,” he croons. ‘Full of Wine’ and ‘Girth and Plain’ are other highlights, incorporating huge amounts of traditional sounds, led by whistles and mandolins. The energy and dynamics are straight out of a session.

The record becomes unsettling with the excellent and intriguing ‘Purple Circle’, made truly eerie by the uilleann pipes, played by the superb Fiachra Meek in a live setting. “It could make a fella leave himself behind / It could make a man pure lose the plot.” ‘I Will Keep An Eye On You And Win You Back When You Are Free’ closes the album, an entrancing song that displays Kealy’s rhythmic prowess in that it is almost impossible to tap your foot to; how he plays and sings this at the same time is anyone’s guess. It ends the album on a thoughtful note, and there’s so little going on instrumentally that it is incredible that Kealy can achieve such a full sound. “Today I came unstuck / by the thought of the next few months / Pinned like paint to the ceiling / By a strange sort of feeling.”

7

SIAMSAÍO CHT

27

The perfect Christmas playlist

By Conor Brummell November is upon us. With it awakens Mariah Carey, Michael Bublé, silly season festivities and the dreaded Christmas commercialism. It is an annual event that we must endure, whether we want to or not and, despite it being one day a year, the runup to the actual event seems to get longer and longer each time. Dark nights see houses decorated with ornate Christmas trees in the corner; heartwarming movies and toasty fires keep the cold at bay. However, Christmas music is arguably the best thing about the holiday season. Love it or hate it, it will get you in a hollyjolly mood that not even Scrooge himself could ruin. As long as it is near the end of November, I absolutely love the constant Christmas music, be it on the radio, my own Spotify or the music channels. Here are my picks for the perfect Christmas playlist:

Ryan Sheridan’s ‘Walking in the Air’ ‘Walking in the Air’ is a tune that everyone will be familiar with. From the Christmas short The Snowman, it is a beautifully orchestral piece of music. Ryan Sheridan put his own spin on the song in 2011, making it more upbeat, using a piano, drums and a guitar. It has an indie-pop feel to it which makes me love it, and it’s a bonus as well that Ryan himself is an Irish musician.

Mariah Carey’s ‘All I want for Christmas Is You’ No Christmas playlist would be complete without this absolute banger. Every year without fail it makes me want to dance and shout. It’s a feel-good, happy classic that you want every night out during the season to finish up with.

Not to mention it is immortalised in the movie ‘Love, actually’ which is probably the best Christmas movie of all time.

The two go together like chocolate and Christmas morning.

Picture This ‘This Christmas’ I remember when this song came on the airwaves and I heard it for the first time. Picture This were new to the scene, and it’s mad to see how they’ve grown over the past two years.

This song has been a staple for me every Christmas since its release back in 2017 (two years can still mean it’s a staple, right?) because of its steady, acoustic and heartfelt nature that embodies all the sincerity and loveliness of Christmas.

The album is a must-listen for anyone with an interest in Irish musicians and their music, and a must-listen for everyone else, too. He beats and thumps the guitar, he hits the strings, he goes between soft and loud with ease thanks to his use of a thumb pick, but you really have to hear the man himself deliver the lyrics in a live setting to fully appreciate them. It’s that bog-rough voice heard in the flesh which makes these beautiful words and melodies so engaging, and it’s his two lieutenants McLaughlin and Meek on mandolin and bodhrán who allow him to truly shine. His following is, at present, relatively small. But I am confident this will change; as he himself says on the poignant and gorgeous ‘I Told You I Would Leave’: “I always knew it would happen / I just did not know when.”

Junior Brother plays the R ­ oisin Dubh on November 30.

Band Aid, ‘Do they know it’s Christmas?’

Released in 1984 for the first time, this was a charity single released by a mixture of Irish and British artists in aid of anti-famine efforts in Ethiopia. Bob Geldof was at the helm, and the song has stood the test of time with it being re-released in 2004 and 2014 respectively for charity. It’s song that represents the generosity and lovingness of Christmas and reminds people of those messages each year when it’s easy to lose the run of ourselves.

Slade, ‘Merry Xmas Everybody’ A rock classic, Slade’s “Merry Xmas Everybody” is a fun and upbeat Christmas song. It’s a song you put on whilst decorating the house with your family, and one you can have blasting out loud all season long too. It’s one that has stood the test of time as well, and one that you will still be listening for many years to come.

28 SPORT

SIN Vol. 21 Issue 06

Are footballers’ autobiographies worth reading?

by Ian Casserly Walking down through Shop Street on any given day, you’ll be bound to meet different characters and people all looking for a chat in some capacity or another. Whether that be the Jehovah’s witnesses preaching the word of God, or even the foreign man who plays the guitar down Mainguard street that talks day and night. You can hear these people talk about anything from politics to their pasts to even just life in general with everyone and anyone.

Naturally enough, we all put our head down and speed walk when we pass them by just to avoid being dragged into a conversation with them.

One man who certainly loves, or should I say loved, chatting was Harry Arter on his now deleted Twitter account. The Ireland and Fulham midfielder always loved to share his opinion and talk openly on his Twitter account, most famously with his now catastrophic political discussion he had, that certainly raised a few eyebrows.

“Just one if the guys above about Corbyn. Hard to take anything he says seriously, when his whole campaign was on the back of a certain amount of new funding for the NHS to then literally the next day admitting it was a lie. That’s all...”

While his political takes were certainly unique and different to conventional political opinions, his remarks were par for the course for footballers, who, with any chance they get, seem to express their “different”

views of the world compared to most.

Consequently, after this debate, Arter’s Twitter account was deleted and Arter has yet to make a return to the platform.

More recently, and more ironically, another of these “opinions” came to light with one Declan Rice becoming the figurehead of considerable scrutiny on the eve of his England debut after switching international allegiances from the Republic of Ireland. On Rice’s Instagram account he posted comments like “UP THE RA” followed by a shamrock and a green heart and “wait till we draw England” with a devil face emoji posted under pictures of him playing for Ireland. These comments certainly gave the impression of a diehard Irish republican, with Guinness running through his veins sustained by a diet of Taytos and Purple snack bars, who hangs pictures of Gerry Adams up on his bedroom walls. Yet, ironically, in his declaration statement issued when declaring for England, he described himself as a “proud English man”.

Oliver Cromwell is shaking in his grave.

My point here is that footballers, in general, are not the most intelligent bunch and, more generally, people are stupid and have always been stupid and always will be stupid and will do stupid things. The only difference between footballers years ago and today is that there’s photo and video evidence of everything to today to ensure that if you do a stupid thing it will not be forgotten. The only thing that survives from the past are the stories of such stupidity.

Yet, with the ever-growing popularity of the premier league and football in general, a clean image is coveted more and more in the search of profits. Such is the extent that there are now lawyers employed specifically to help footballers sanitise their online profiles and remove any potentially incriminating tweets or posts. Now, only the most severe stories of stupidity get out, such as the disgraceful Derby County players who were drink driving, crashed into a pole and who left their captain unconscious with his knee obliterated. Any other stories are covered up and not let seen the light of day, or, if posted, deleted hastily and apologizing for offence.

Regarding these footballers producing autobiographies, do you really think in this sanitized world of PR interviews and protected players that their PR officers will allow any footballers to have any incriminating stories that could hurt their image published in their book. Similarly, in rugby when Paul Kimmage and Brian O’Driscoll fell out during the writing of BOD’S autobiography, Kimmage famously stated that “I just know the bits that were left out and the bits that were left out were very interesting”.

Likewise, Wayne Rooney’s agreed five-book deal with HarperCollins in 2006 worth £5million signed when he was in the fledgling stages of his career really begged the questions, what could a footballer write about for 5 books in this sanitised world and, more importantly, why would you buy it?

Frisbee Mixed Indoors Tournament

By Alice O’Donnell The NUI Galway Ultimate Frisbee club, known as The Panteras, sent two teams to the Mixed Indoors Intervarsity tournament on the 26th / 27th of October. The Mixed Indoors, also known as the Mixed IVs, is an annual event, and the only sole mixed indoors championship between Irish colleges, making it one of the most hyped tournaments of the year. The tournament changes location each year, meaning that each participating university is given the optionality to host the tournament every few years, with this year’s event held in Dublin City University.

The tournament was a great success and was enjoyed by all. A total of 21 NUI Galway students left for Dublin bright and early Saturday morning, and arrived a little bit stiff, but otherwise excited and ready for some matches. Team 1 was composed of mainly experienced players, whereas Team 2 were almost entirely beginners, who, for many, were enjoying their first tournament. Both teams did exceptionally well, and every team member played some great frisbee.

On Saturday, Team 1 played against Maynooth 1, Dublin City University 1 and University College Cork 2. They won again Maynooth (12 points to 8), University College Cork (9 points to 3) but lost their last match to Dublin City University (13 points to 4). NUI Galway Team 2 played two matches on the first day against Dublin City University 3 and Technology University Dublin 2.

Their first match against Technology University Dublin 2 was extremely close, however they unfortunately lost out on that win by 2 points (9 points to 7). They also lost their other match that day against Dublin City University 3 (12 points to 2). While Saturday, for the NUI Galway teams, was a blend of

losses and wins, it was a hugely enjoyable day, with all players having a blast. Fortunately, the NUI Galway teams didn’t have to stay in hostels as students from Maynooth and Trinity were able to host the two teams, so great fun was also had that night.

Sunday started off bright and early for Team 2, with their first match against Dublin City University 2 at 10am. They then went on to play their second match against University City Dublin at 11.45, followed by their final game of the tournament, against Trinity College Dublin at 2.15. Unfortunately, all three matches ended in losses. Team 1 were able to have a bit more of a lie in, with their first match at 11.45 against University College Cork 1.

Their last two matches were against Trinity University Dublin 1 and Maynooth 1, and, sadly, also ended in losses.

NUI Galway Ultimate Frisbee Club are hugely proud of the two teams send to Mixed IVs. In the final results, Team 1 seeded eighth overall, accomplishing their target set at the beginning of the year. While Team 2 were seeded twentieth, they won spirit of the tournament, a great achievement. Spirit is awarded to the team which showed the greatest fair mindedness, willingness to learn, and positive attitude. Each team rank their opponents on spirit, and each spirit score is added together to work out who will win overall spirit. Winning spirit is a fabulous accomplishment and shows what a great future the team have. Captain Joey Coleman summarises this, saying “Delighted with the performance of our new players coming through, it was great to see their progression from the first game to the last.

Can’t wait to see their future potential.”

The tournament was a massive success and huge fun, and the club are looking forward to hosting Women’s IVs later this month.

NUI Galway Swimming, Water polo and Lifesaving – Diving in on college life

By Owen Kennedy The college’s swimming, water polo and lifesaving club has been a prominent force on the college campus for several years. With former captain Padraic Toomey now the Club’s Captain for the Students’ Union. I interviewed Isobel Roche, who has taken the reins of the club and hopes to bring the club to higher highs than ever before.

What got you interested in the club in the first place?

I’ve been swimming all my life and I didn’t think it’d be any different when I came to college. I originally started

as just another means of keeping fit, but now, after becoming so close and so friendly with everyone on the team, I don’t even see it as a pain when I have to go training at like 7am in the morning.

What has made you stick with the club for so long?

I think swimming is different from other sports because of the sense of community that comes with it. Even though you compete individually 90% of the time, I still consider every one of my teammates family. Because we train so often, we know each other so well and I think it’s great to have

friends outside of your course so you’re free from thinking academically all the time. I love training with the team and our club nights out and competitions make me feel even closer to them. Also, the memes we have amongst ourselves are fantastic.

What is the funniest thing to have happened to you whilst in the club?

Hands down, the memes, but if I was to give another answer, one of our best swimmers couldn’t handle her drink last year at inter-varsities and had to be brought home and put to bed before we even got our dinner served. But she swam

amazingly during the competition so I can forgive her.

What’s the worst part of the sport, if any?

The early morning sessions but only getting up and getting to the pool is the challenging part. When you get into the pool you kind of forget the difficulty that was coming to training and you get used to them over time, to a point where I see them as the best part of training.

What are your recommendations for people who want to get into

swimming with the club?

We have so many parts to the club.

While we do have our racing squad, for competitive or ex-competitive swimmers, we also have our fitness squad, which is for people who enjoy swimming and want to keep their fitness up but without the competitiveness that comes with the sport. We cater for total beginners though our Learn to Swim programme. We also have our own water polo team which trains weekly.

Finally, we have our pool lifeguard course which is really popular as having the pool lifeguard qualification helps when applying for jobs or a J1 and is just a really good skill to have

SPÓIRT

November 19 2019

29

Should fans always be behind their team or did they have the right to boo Grant Xhaka?

By Shane Lynch

“Without fans who pay at the turnstile, football is nothing.

Sometimes we are inclined to forget that. The only chance of bringing them into stadiums is if they are entertained by what happens on the football field.” — Jock Stein Fans are a major undeniable factor in the success and longevity of a team, franchise or squad. The fans themselves provide, not only a crowd in which players can perform and entertain, but also provide a source of income for players, as a majority of tickets and the money generated from the gates go towards playing the players wages. Fans, hence, are the lifeblood of a club, and so have every right to cheer, boo and complain to their hearts’ content. The majority of

grassroots football’s composition is situated around fans’ contribution towards the funding of a club.

This, along with the principles of footballing fans being etched in working class backgrounds, shows their dedication to their respective clubs by spending their hard-earned money, working nine to five for minimum wage in order to fund their love of football.

Success is a major factor by which people dictate whether or not their club is being run in the correct manner. This success can be measured in multiple ways, such as the success of a big money signing, success in domestic cups or financial success through multinational sponsorships, which help with the running of a club. Success in a fan’s eyes, though, has to be instant. With the world we live in, having instant gratification from being able to watch what we want on demand, eat exactly what we want, and have it delivered on our doorstep, this generation of fans are only content as long as there are instant results in front of their very eyes. Clubs such as Man-

chester United and Arsenal, who are going through major rebuilds, have fans who took their clubs’ successes for granted due to it being a normal occurrence.

Now, fast forward to the present day, and frustration grows, with players and management getting a constant badgering for not living up to the glory years.

Through the influx of technology throughout football, i.e. VAR, many football fans have used the gradual increase of technology to voice their anger towards players via social media and YouTube.

Influencers such as True Geordie became famous for posting a video which verbally castrated Newcastle United striker Nile Ranger for having a go at the fans for not supporting the team enough during games. This led to the True Geordie going viral and starting a successful career on YouTube. With this came the rise of YouTube fan reaction channels, such as Arsenal Fan TV and United Stand, which interview fans almost immediately after a game.

Because of this, they are highly emotional on both

ends, whether they win or lose, and so speak very strongly and say things on the spur of the moment.

Fans should always be allowed to voice their opinion on everything surrounding the club that they follow. However, it doesn’t always mean that they are right, and the idea that ‘since it is on YouTube it must be correct’ leads some fans into thinking that they must be correct due to all of the views they get per video. Fan support and opinion, when harnessed correctly, can greatly help a club in a massive way. A great example of this is Portsmouth, who ten years ago won the F.A. Cup, but gradually fell apart and went down to League Two in the years that followed.

Through the mismanagement of the club and owners with shady pasts, the club seemed to be heading for extinction fast. This was until the Pompey Supporters Trust signed a conditional agreement with PFK to buy the club and thus has begun the rebuilding of their club under their vision, which may be the greatest way in which fans have let their voice be heard.

Sigerson Cup changes Women’s hockey 2020 last in a long line of poor – will Olympic dreams choices by the GAA become reality?

By Darren Casserly The GAA are at it again, seeing the problems in the Sigerson cup and somehow making it worse.

The GAA, however, say that this was done in an attempt to solve the clashes with the start of the inter-county season.

Squeezing the Sigerson cup into a two-and-ahalf-week window, concluding in January, gives off an impression as though the GAA does not care about a competition that, for so long, was one of the most important cups in the GAA calendar.

On the positive side, it will be good for some of the elite players, such as Kieran Molloy, who, last year, had to play two games in one day and required a Garda escort to make it to both of them. However, the majority of Sigerson players are not elite-level and do not play county or even top-level club football.

This announcement also revealed that the U-20 county championship will be moved from the summer to spring, which has come as a real double blow for many young footballers. The message that the GAA is coming out with is clear: we do not care about young players.

It now looks as though unless you’re David Clifford or Sean O’Shea, the likelihood is that you won’t be playing much inter-county football. On top of all of this, the GAA have moved the pressure from third level students to second level, with the new U-20 schedule coinciding with the Leaving Cert.

Unsurprisingly, these changes have not been met with much enthusiasm, with many people questioning the GAA decision making. In an inter-

view with The Irish Examiner, Cork U-20 manager, Keith Ricken has come out strongly against both of the major changes.

He said that players are now going to be playing a huge amount of games during the worst period of the year weather-wise, while hardly kicking a ball during the summer. These changes have also meant that there will be no break between the 2019 and 2020 championship for many players.

These changes have not fixed any of the problems they were supposed to. Instead, we have everything starting in January, with most of the competitions being concluded by the start of summer. It is mind-boggling how the idea of a hectic football schedule in January was embraced and thought of as a solution to clashes in the schedule.

One of the more unusual aspects of this story is that the Fitzgibbon Cup, the hurling equivalent of the Sigerson, was given a longer window with the competition not concluding until the 12th of February. There also does not seem to be the same scheduling problems in hurling that we see in Gaelic football. This could be down to the popularity of each sport, but it is still confusing how the two sides of the same coin are completely opposed in nearly every aspect of the running of the game.

The GAA showed that their only focus is on the elite few, as opposed to the large majority of players, once again showing their lack of care whether or not the game is developed in smaller counties.

The GAA has, yet again, proved that they can turn any mole hill into a mountain with all the foresight of a blind man stumbling around in the dark.

By Owen Kennedy Following their immense success in the 2018 World Cup, the Irish women’s hockey team has proven themselves a force to be reckoned with on the hockey world stage, coming second after their defeat to Holland. This has clearly not been a once off for Ireland, with qualification for the Olympics achieved following victory over Canada. Ireland face considerable competition now that they are to play in the Tokyo 2020 Olympics. So, what can we expect from the girls in green next summer?

Ireland have now proven to the world that they have the potential to keep up with the big dogs by showing that they are capable of reaching the World Cup final. Carrying over the same squad from the World Cup will be beneficial to the team, as they have shared the same type of experiences that each of them gained from the previous tournament, as well as having a better understanding into how they each play. With this level of experience among them, the team should have very little difficulty getting out of the group stages and into the knock-out stages of the tournament.

The biggest difference that will show how good of a team Ireland are is how much fulltime training the team can put in and how professional their preparations are going to be.

This will be one of the biggest hurdles for the team, with only three players on the Irish team playing professionally. Every other player on

the squad is balancing full time careers or student studies alongside playing international hockey. Whilst we’re a World Cup finalist team, we’re still a little fish in a very big pond. Our pool is a good example of this. We’ll be facing Holland, Great Britain, Armenia, India and South Africa, with Great Britain and Holland being serious threats to us. Great Britain are a particularly formidable opponent, due to the conglomeration of the English, Welsh and Scottish teams.

Speaking from personal experience, former Irish hockey international Sinéad Kennedy was enthusiastic about the opportunity the women’s team have been given and the promotion that this will give the squad, saying: “This a huge achievement for women’s sport not just Irish sport. This is the first women’s team sport to make it to Olympics which is monumental. Speaking from experience, the girls themselves are such ambassadors and are an excellent bunch thanks to their shining personalities”.

The success of this team has showed that there is a lot of opportunity for women’s teams in Ireland to gain a following if they are good enough. The players have previously spoken about going from playing in front of only their friends and family to over six thousand people attending both Olympic play-off legs against Canada in Donnybrook and this transformation will give any team encouragement for the future.

30 SPORT

SIN Vol. 21 Issue 06

Rugby World Cup 2019 in review

By Owen Kennedy It goes without saying that the 2019 Rugby World Cup was a very eventful and eye-opening tournament. We saw the unexpected occurred throughout the tournament. Despite some elemental setbacks that were posed, the tournament was a huge success, with 17.8 million people tuning in for the final alone, but what can we learn from this World Cup and does it provide us with information we can use four years or even four months from now?

Ireland Ireland’s performance this World Cup will stand alongside The Iliad and Romeo and Juliet as one of the greatest tragedies we will ever know. We had the most promising start out of any other team, other than maybe England and Wales, going in ranked number one in the world rankings. And we showed that off to full effect with our opening game against Scotland, but that’s where we hit our peak. From the start of the next game, our performance dipped for the rest of the pool. Whilst we did win our games against Russia and Samoa, our performances during these games weren’t anything to write home about.

We should have dominated Russia during the entire game and not just the first twenty mins,

and we made very amateur mistakes during the Samoa game. We didn’t stand a chance against New Zealand, with them having the beating of us from the first whistle, but we could have softened the blow that was dealt. Schmidt himself stated after the match: “A number of times we could’ve scored, if not for simple errors. Frustration affected us a lot today.”

South Africa Before we delve into the performance of the tournament winners, let me just say I totally called it, back in SIN Issue 1 Volume 21. Joking aside, South Africa were the favourites to win it in my eyes for a number of reasons. Number one, out of every team in the tournament, South Africa were one of the most confident teams in the competition in their play. Secondly, South Africa were the most physical team, with a better level of stamina than any other team. Their exceptional physicality made all the difference between them and England in the final. Speaking of England, South Africa did their homework on them and studied well for the final match, outplaying them in every aspect of the game. Special mention has to go to winger Cheslin Kolbe, my pick for player of the tournament, with his pace causing England a huge amount of problems.

NUI Galway StUdeNtS’ UNIoN wIth CIty dIreCt BUS CompaNy

Japan I want to quickly go over Japan as I feel they’re the team most deserving of praise this tournament.

Four years ago, everyone labelled Japan’s victory over South Africa as nothing more than a fluke.

Here we are now, with Japan on the verge of being moved into Tier 1 nation status. Out of every team bar

South Africa, Japan are the team that put in the most amount of work and preparation for this competition.

Their success on reaching the quarter finals leaves England as still the worst performing host nation in the history of the World Cup, which is something I think even Scottish fans can live with. The future for the Japanese rugby team now looks very bright.

Will Katie Taylor go down as one of the greatest Irish athletes ever?

By Shane Lynch Being a world champion is one of the greatest achievements that an athlete can achieve. A world championship is the pinnacle of years of training and hard work as well as long hours of social sacrifice, in order to become the best. World champions are few and far between, with Irish athletes rarely getting recognition for the countless hours of work they put in.

Some of Ireland’s greatest exports in terms of athletes are boxers. As a country, Ireland’s medals in the Olympic games come primarily in the discipline of boxing. Irish boxing has received a mini renaissance with the rise of Michael Conlon through the professional ranks, but the person who has undoubtedly left the biggest impact on Irish boxing is the twoweight world champion and gold medallist from the 2012 Olympic Games in London, Katie Taylor.

There is no argument that she will go down as one of the greatest Irish athletes ever, the only question is: where does she line up with the best? Outside of the sports of boxing and football, Irish athletes generally do not compete at the highest levels and even if they do, they do not leave any notable impression on the sport.

Katie Taylor, unknown to most people, was a two-sport athlete, previously playing for the Irish women’s soccer team in the mid-2000s. This is extremely rare in the modern day and shows just how good she is, not just as a boxer, but as an allround athlete. Even though she is now in one of the final chapters of her career, her talent has remained.

One of the gripes that people may have about her career, is that she turned pro too late at the age of 30, which has limited her time at the top of the professional game. However, she has, without a doubt, made up for lost time. She is now a two-weight champion with a record of 16 fights and 16 victories.

Unlike one of the other greatest Irish athletes ever, Conor McGregor, she has remained in the Irish public’s good books, which will definitely help her legacy in the long run. She will undoubtably inspire the Irish public for generations to come.

In terms of greatest female Irish athlete ever, she will undoubtedly go down as the greatest, with her longevity and overall achievement leaving all her competitors in the dust. She will have to go into at least the top 10 greatest Irish athletes with very few people as decorated in their sport as Katie and she’s not even finished yet.

Richard Keogh sacking a financial decision rather than a moral one

By Aaron Deering

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Irish International Richard Keogh has recently been sacked by his club Derby County. This sacking comes a month after the now former club captain was involved in a car crash along with former teammates Tom Lawrence and Mason Bennett. Keogh was out with teammates and the club’s management for a team bonding dinner, when he and some of his fellow teammates refused to go home after the meal was concluded and opted to stay out instead. The three players mentioned left a local pub to go back to one of the player’s houses when the crash occurred. The players travelled in two separate vehicles, with Keogh travelling with Lawrence, and Bennett travelling on his own. It’s reported that Keogh was sitting on top of gear bags since there was no room on any of the back seats in Lawrence’s Range Rover. Lawrence’s Range Rover rear ended Bennett’s car and continued into a lamppost. Keogh was left unconscious in the back of the car and was later discovered by paramedics.

Keogh suffered a potential career ending ACL injury as a result of being in the collision, while Lawrence and Bennett escaped unscathed. Keogh has been ruled out for 15 months as a result of his ACL injury and, at 33 years of age, it’s hard to see how he’ll recover from such a serious injury at this late stage of his career. Lawrence and Bennett have both been banned from driving for 2 years because of drink driving and must serve 12-month community orders. Derby County fined both Lawrence and

Bennett six weeks wages but controversially sacked club captain Keogh. This is where the problem of this situation lies because the club chose to punish Keogh much more harshly than Lawrence and Bennett. Yes, Keogh’s actions were wrong, especially as he was club captain and is supposed to be a role model for younger players, but, surely, the more serious violations were carried out by Lawrence and Bennett, since they were both driving under the influence and this sets a worse example. The Times have reported that Keogh was sacked for not wearing a seat belt and this seems like a cop out, since it seems to be the lesser of the misconduct which took place on the night of the crash.

There’s also the factor that Keogh had refused to renegotiate his wages with the club as they were hoping to reduce them, especially since his deal was due to run until 2021. This, to me, looks like Derby County have only sacked Keogh for financial reasons rather than for moral reasons, like the issue of not wearing a seat belt, and the club are using it as a cop out excuse. In recent developments, the Professional Footballer’s Association have claimed that they will ‘robustly defend’ Richard Keogh as they feel he was unfairly treated by Derby County.

Keogh has appealed the decision by the club and we now wait to see what the result of his appeal will be. I believe that Keogh will win his appeal, as he has been treated unfairly compared to Lawrence and Bennett but, as for his playing days, they may be over, as I doubt he will ever make a recovery from the serious injury he sustained in the crash.

CO MÓ RTAS

November 19 2019

31

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EXCLUSIVE DRINKS PROMOTIONS

NUIG is a proud member of the 20x20 campaign.

This is an all-inclusive movement to shift Ireland’s cultural perception of women’s sport.

The 20x20 campaign aims to have a 20% increase in female participation at all levels of sport by 2020