"It's All About Popular"

[From the Discover Ireland FB page]

I recently got through to the final stages of a competition to win a trip to Ireland, which I was pretty excited about-until I discovered that the winner was going to be chosen by Facebook vote and then I was a lot less so. I knew pretty much right away that I wasn't going to win it simply because by making it open to Facebook, it becomes a popularity contest-and I have never been what you would call popular. There was a time that I did want to fit in, wanted to be cool and wanted all the popular kids to like me, accept me as one of them, but eventually I realised that this was never going to happen. I started embracing my uniqueness, trying to make a point of standing out, actively seeking to be different and not one of the crowd, to be anything but popular. I mean if it's going to happen anyway you might as well make it your own, right?

Also, I use Facebook as a convenient place to keep all my friends together for when I need to tell them something important, but most people seem to use it as a way of collecting as many "friends" as they possibly can-almost as a way of proving how popular they are. I know everyone on my friend list and regularly have culls to delete those people I no longer really speak to any more. Against someone who has 3x more virtual buddies than me, I was never going to be able to hold my own.

I also noticed that the "competition" was really bringing out the nasty side in people-right from the start there was a couple-let's call them Couple 1-that I had a particular dislike for just because they came across as pushy and unpleasant, like they knew they were going to win anyway so it didn't matter if the rest of us tried or not. Before the ballot had even been opened they put out a plea for votes from the site's fans in a manner that just got my back up-but also in a way that had I replied to it I would have either seemed unoriginal or catty. Suddenly I minded losing to them, would rather any other pair won just so they didn't.

About half way through another pair-let's call them Couple 2-got a sudden upsurge in votes, overtaking Couple 1 (who had been leading right from day 1) by a considerable amount. Couple 1 started accusing them of cheating-of buying votes and clamouring for the votes to be investigated by the site. It just reeked of being a sore loser and that they didn't think anyone else should win but them. It almost felt like if you weren't playing dirty in some way then you couldn't win-Couple 1 had amassed over 120 votes in the first day alone while the rest of us were somewhere around the 20-70 mark and I think we basically all knew we didn't stand a chance against them. Whatever tactics they were using obviously worked because (of course) they won with 571 votes-the next nearest couple had 415. We were third and had 154 votes so it's not even like we had a shot any way. Couple 1 seemed really ungracious and I just really didn't want them to win because they don't come across as very nice people. (Although I am judging this solely on the comments I saw on the poll from them, so what do I know?)

The whole "competition" caused a lot of nastiness and bitterness, and for what? 48 hours in Dublin. Yes, it would have been an amazing prize to win but I don't think it's worth crapping all over other people just because you can. To be honest, I sort of wish I wasn't involved with the whole thing because it left a decidedly nasty taste in my mouth. Some people will do anything to prove that they're more popular, more loved, better than someone else. And yes, there was a prize at the end of it, but it didn't really feel like it was the end goal at points, it felt more like a high school competition-'I've got more friends than you so I'm better than you and you're nothing'. I didn't want to participate in those whilst I was at school, let alone now, when I should have (happily) left it all behind me.

So I hope Couple 1 enjoy their holiday, but I'm kinda glad that I know nearly everyone who contributed to those 154 votes. I might not be popular enough to win Facebook contests but I have a good bunch of excellent friends. If you took the time to vote for me then THANKYOU. I'm so grateful to you all for that. And while this means that I won't be able to write excellent Irish blog posts for you, I'm sure I can find something to fill the time instead.

See you there!

-Jenni-

Title of Post taken from 'Popular'-Wicked The Musical

My Time With The Superbikes

From the Superbike website

I spent the past weekend "working" at Donington race track for the Superbikes World Championship weekend. My role has basically been to man an information point used mainly to give results out to riders and their teams. I was sat behind a table at the bottom of a flight of stairs, quite often with my nose in a book or scribbling down a new blog post in my notebook (Side note-I wrote this one while I was there too!). I actually rather enjoyed myself.

You know sometimes you get those really awful jobs, the ones where people don't even notice you or they do but they ignore you as if you weren't even there? The ones where you can feel a little bit of yourself being whittled away with each vacant stare until you feel as invisible as you must actually be for all these people to look through you as if you were nothing. Jobs like flyering, or those people who ask for money for charities in city centres (who everyone hates, lets face it) or the staff in fast food restaurants at 3 in the morning. Jobs that you do purely because you have to, not because you want to, where you can feel your spirit slowly dying with every passing minute?

This could have easily been one of those jobs. But this was not one of those jobs. Despite the fact that I was only there to give out bits of paper, despite the fact that I don't know anything about Superbikes, despite the fact people kept asking me questions I didn't have answers to-everyone said hello to me. Everyone who passed by my table on their way up/down the stairs smiled at me or greeted me in some way. I was literally the bottom most rung on the ladder in that place, and no-one there knew me at all, but everyone has been really nice to me.
I've had many conversations about the books I was reading-from joking remarks about how they hoped it wasn't Twilight or 50SoG to full on conversations asking whether they should read it themselves. People were constantly checking if I was warm enough (because my little patch of hallway was FREEZING), offered me wine gums or other sweets, or just a snippet of chit-chat as they passed by. I worked there for four days and already felt more valued than I had in some of my other places of work.
There was the odd occasion where people would sail right past me and my nicely stacked piles of results to ask the guy in the photocopy room for them directly, but most of the time he'd direct them back down to me anyway. I didn't really mind that-it could always be worse. At one point I saw two girls dressed in very very tight, very very white lycra body suits, decorated with a particular brand name and logo, wearing heels too high to actually walk in.
I mean really fellas, it's 2013, do we really still have to trick you into trying/buying something by putting it in the hands of scantily clad young ladies so you can ogle them for cheap kicks? She doesn't come with the free sample you know. If she was wearing clothes that meant you couldn't actually see her thong, would you shake your head in disgust and not be tempted?
"No, I wouldn't buy that product, she's wearing layers!"
"Euch, look how comfortable she looks! That's just not right."
I felt full of feminist ire (I had been reading Caitlin Moran in fairness) but at the same time I was rather relaxed and contented so couldn't get too outraged (I'll save that for another day!) because I'd had a weekend of people being really rather nice to me, reading good books and writing a large number of blog posts, (this one was my seventh, plus two half finished ones) so that I shouldn't struggle for content any time soon. Plus some of the bikers were rather easy on the eye so I was enjoying their visits too. (Hmm...does this make me as bad as the blokes gawping at the scantily clad ladies? I'll add it to the debate for another time.) I even got to see a race or two, too, which was obviously reallyfriggincool.

I won't miss the early starts though, and have been looking forward to my lie in this morning for days. Now I just have to find a way to keep myself amused this week whilst I've got the house to myself so I don't go either completely mad or completely nocturnal.

Goodbye Donington, you've been good to me (even if your icecreams are ridiculously expensive!)

-Jenni-

Dearest readers, if you enjoy what I do here please would you take a moment to go and vote for me and Rara (Jenni and Sarah) in this competition? We really want to win but we're lagging behind somewhat. Get your mum to vote, get your dad to vote, get your sisters, brothers, nan, dog, everyone you know to vote. If I win I promise you excellent blog posts about my trip (Blog posts may not be excellent) and cake (cake may not be possible) and undying gratitude and love (Virtually, nothing icky.) THAAAAAAAAAAAANKS.