Wanderings Through Dublin

So I got off college yesterday and the wonderful time of a quarter to eleven and as soon as I'd paid a quick visit to the college library, I headed into town with a friend. Of course, no visit to the library is complete without a glance at the books for sale for one euro, and of course I cannot resist buying books sometimes. I ended up buying a book about counselling children, just because I have an interest in psychology. I have no idea when I'll actually get around to reading that book. On top of that, I also got myself copies of Willingly to School by Paddy Devitt and The Experience of God by Dermot Lane, because the latter had been recommended for an exam, and copies of the Junior and Leaving Cert English syllabi, and the Junior Cert English Teacher's Guidelines.

We bused it into the city centre going to one of the most famous bookshops in Dublin, Chapters. I made sure to head straight to the Classics section, looking for a copy of A Sentimental Journey by Laurence Sterne. I did not find one, though I did pick up a copy of Tristram Shandy. Our lecturer mentioned it several times in the past, so I figured I'd give it a shot at some stage. Not content to leave without some sort of back-up plan in case I couldn't get a copy of Sterne's other book, I grabbed copies of Moll Flanders by Daniel Defoe and Gulliver's Travels by Jonathan Swift, which I was going to get anyway in work, except there was a Wordsworth Classics edition here, so it was much much cheaper. I made sure to flee the shop before I spent yet more money.

We got lunch before moving on to Eason, where I had gone to get one thing and one thing only: Writing Magazine. And why..?

 

 

 

Oh my God!

So yeah, my face is in a magazine. I'm also quoted quite a bit. That was fun! There's also the added benefit that I really like reading the magazine anyway, so I just had more incentive to buy it than usual.

Of course, I was thinking I might get Sterne's book in Eason... so I went downstairs only to find myself disappointed. However, I couldn't stop myself picking up a copy of Moby Dick by Herman Melville, because I think I need it at some stage for my course, and because I was trying to convince myself to be a good little reader and attempt more classics. I also couldn't stop myself picking up 50 literature ideas because we only ever had the physics and maths ones in work. Delighted. I'd paid for them when my friend pointed out Rory's Story Cubes at the till, and I'd been looking for them for a while. I bought them... I'm so weak sometimes.

We moved on swiftly, avoiding the rest of the shop lest our bank accounts suffer more, but not before stopping for a cup of tea in the cafe upstairs. We headed towards the South Side, stopping off in Forbidden Planet but not having the money to buy anything from it. We just nerded out for a bit. Following that, we went to Tower Records on Wicklow Street, the only shop in Dublin I have been able to find a selection of Mountain Goats albums. I bought one... I was quickly becoming poor.

We ended our journey through the city centre at St Stephen's Green Shopping Centre, where I managed to find a copy of Writers Forum magazine in Hughes and Hughes. With a heap load of stuff weighing me down at this point, I said my goodbye and headed for the bus.

The day was mostly boring after that, though I did have a short chat with a friend having discovered he had a phone again (long story, not mine to tell) and I began to write a short story in response to a call for submissions in Writing Magazine. I announced the details of my story on Facebook, and professional help has been advised. This is a good sign.

I'm off college for a few weeks, now, before the Dreaded Exams begin. At that point, I will turn from eccentric to downright insane, unless I learn to procrastinate a couple of times. That was always fun last year. After that, we're into the summer... I can't believe how little time, relatively speaking, there is before that.