it's finally the end of January // #amcurrently

Can you believe that we've finally made it to the end of January?! It honestly feels like it lasted for at least 79 years, not 31 days! Crazy.

And it's been an... interesting month. I've had A LOT going on in my life, mostly revolving around job applications and interviews, but I'm happy to report that I was offered and have accepted a full-time position that I will be commencing very shortly! Yay!

In other news, my family celebrated my grandmother's 80th birthday at the beach earlier this month and I also went on a week-long trip to a conservation park up north to observe nesting turtles and hatchlings! I'm planning on writing a whole blog post about that experience, but for now, let me just tell you that it was truly amazing! 

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#amcurrently // reading...

Okay, I'm not going to lie, January was a TERRIBLE reading month for me. I actually only read four books this past month, as Lady's Guide was technically a 2018 read (it just didn't make it into my December wrap-up). To be fair, though, the average length of those four books is 612 pages, so in that respect, it's not too shabby.

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recently read:

(Covers link to my Goodreads review if it exists!)

                            

  ★★★★☆                            ★★★★★                             ★★★☆☆                             ★★★☆☆                             ★★★★★  

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new to the TBR pile:

After my extraordinarily large December book haul, I felt I had to limit my book-buying a little bit last month. I did and I only bought three books! Which I'm really proud of! The Disasters was included in The YA Chronicles December box and I am SO IN LOVE with the colour of the cover! I just don't think there are enough purple books in the world. 

              

I also reserved a copy of The Name of the Wind from my library in preparation for the February meet up of the book club I participate in, The Name of the Book. 

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#amcurrently // watching...

I really made an effort at the beginning of the year to catch up on a few of my favourite TV shows: I finally finished watching Chilling Adventures of Sabrina (love it!) and then I binged the final season of A Series of Unfortunate Events (so good!).

I also got completely sucked into the Tidying Up with Marie Kondo craze. 

I am unapologetically platonically in love with Marie and her show! It is quite possibly my new favourite thing since Queer Eye! It gives me those same feel-good vibes and was super motivational! I'm not at all ashamed to admit that I completely KonMari-ed my wardrobe after watching it and, oh my gosh, does it look good now! 

Would highly recommend if you're into tidying and organisation like I am! (Don't judge, I find it calming!) 

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#amcurrently // playing...

Although it was a pretty full-on month, I still managed to find a bit of time for gaming. My brother received the new Assassin's Creed game for Christmas so I've been playing this at every available opportunity!

Assassin's Creed: Odyssey is set in the Golden Age of Ancient Greece and places much more emphasis on role-playing elements than previous instalments. The player adopts the role of either Alexios or Kassandra, a misthios (mercenary) attempting to unite their family and uncover a malevolent cult during the Peloponnesian War between Athens and Sparta. 

The world is massive and the visuals are absolutely stunning – it's definitely my favourite in the series so far! 

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#amcurrently // thinking about...

Being an adult is terrifying and difficult. Hear me out:

• Being an adult means having a job but this is waaay easier said than done. 
• First of all, you have to find a position that is a) available, b) within your qualifications and skill set, and c) NOT AN ENTRY-LEVEL JOB NEEDING 5+ YEARS EXPERIENCE. 
• (YES, APPARENTLY THAT'S A THING.) 
• Nevermind whether this position is actually in the field that you're interested in. That's too much to hope for. 
• If by chance you manage to find a suitable position, YAY, it's time to apply! 
• But writing job applications takes SO LONG. 
• I don't know how anyone is ever able to get a job whilst already working/studying because a single application literally takes half a day. 
• Also, it is SO STRESSFUL. 
• (I cold-emailed a few people in my quest to find a job and it is probably the scariest thing I have ever done.) 
• But if you're not overshadowed by at least 15 other people who look better than you on paper, you might be fortunate enough to be offered an interview! 
• CUE EVEN MORE STRESS. 
• And after all this, chances are you won't be successful. Which SUCKS. 
• Aaand then you have to repeat the process all over again. 
• WHAT A NIGHTMARE. 

Having said all that, my job search experience was much smoother and nowhere near as long as I expected it to be based on what I had heard from others. For that, I am immensely grateful. But it was still super hard and nerve-wracking so I needed to have a little rant to get all that off my chest. I'm done now. Thanks for listening.

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Leave me a comment and tell me about what you've been up to (and what you've been reading!) in the month of January! Did you feel like last month lasted forever? What exciting things have been going on in your life? Do you have any horror job search experiences? 

Niamh, xo.