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Story Time
I use the phrase “story time” a lot in my life. When I was a kid, every night there was story time where one of my parents read to me and my brother. We even had a system of whose room to read in each night so it was fair. Now, when I finally see my friends after a few days and we have to catch up I start my monologues with “story time.” I even start texting conversations by sending “story time” with no context until paragraphs of the long story follow. via GIPHY Stories are my favorite thing in the world and they are all around us. They’re…
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LDOC and By Lines
It’s Fall LDOC (last day of class) here in Chapel Hill and that means a lot of things are coming to an end. (With the exception of exams, those of course are starting.) The great thing about my classes at Carolina as a senior in the journalism school is that most of my classes are very hands on, real world, experience based. This year I had the opportunity to be a part of two particularly amazing classes: UNC Media Hub and New Media Technology and its Impact on the Future of Advertising, Marketing and PR. These classes had two very different premises. Media Hub focuses on journalism students at UNC…
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Saturdays in Kenan
It’s been a bit of a rollercoaster as a Carolina fan in Kenan Stadium these past four years, but I wouldn’t trade the experience for the world. My earliest memory of Chapel Hill is going to a Carolina football game at the stadium in the woods. I remember walking through a crowded area…probably Tar Heel Town on the quad or maybe Franklin Street (I don’t have great memory, I was really little). But I do remember getting a Tar Heel shaped sticker to put on my cheek for the game. Little did I know I would one day live in the dorm with balconies actually overlooking the field and later…
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Homegrown Halloween
In college it’s actually referred to as “Halloweek” or “Halloweekend” and it’s one of my favorite times of the year. On Halloween in the Hill, Franklin Street gets closed down (much like it does when we beat dook) and thousands of people walk right down the road admiring each others costumes before they head of to their own parties. It’s amazing. Between the strut down the street, the Little Frat Court concert, and various parties or shows, college Halloween is one of the most fun parts of the year. I’ve had some really great “Halloweeks” in my four years. As I watched the rain come down this past Halloween, already…
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Born and Bred.
Family and friends, most of you all know that I just started my senior year at UNC Chapel Hill. Most of you also might know it’s the same school my mom attended 30 years before me and my brother currently attends with me. Needless to say, the Rademakers were born and bred Tar Heels. As I embark on my last year of education a lot is going through my mind. A lot of thoughts on how I grew up and how much growing up I still have to do. I love to write and thought I would revive the occasional blog post this year to reflect on where I’ve been…
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Slí Amach
There once was a house, covered in ivy…where thirty three American college students spent two months living the Irish life. I never imagined that I could become so attached to a place and group of people the way I fell in love with Dublin and made life long friends. I’ve been home for about a week and move back to Chapel Hill in a few days. I’m excited to start my second half of college and see all my friends, but at the same time a small part of me is still yearning for Dublin. The two months I spent there were long enough to make the city feel like…
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The One With the Food
I am, no doubt, very predictably, that 20 year old girl who takes a picture of every meal she orders or cooks, so you (my devoted readers) had to know this post was coming. Here we are: food from Ireland. Ireland isn’t exactly a country of traditionally and famously good food the way Italy or France or Spain are known for amazing dishes. That being said, the European city cafe and restaurant scenes are alive and well in Dublin and we found a few gem locations to satisfy our cravings. Let’s start with dessert because why not. Within a few days we found our favorite gelato shop, Gelato di Natura, conveniently…
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Working Hard or Hardly Working
Welcome to my nine to five blog update! So first off, it’s more like a ten-ish to four-ish routine…depending on the day…except the one night shoot which lasted from nine at night until two am. Then there’s some days we might not come in until eleven. Interning at a production and creative agency is not exactly your conventional desk job. My first impression from bigO came from their website. Go ahead and read this “about” blurb and try to tell me this isn’t the coolest company. I might be a little biased, but working at bigO has been incredible. The 15 person team is full of unique and diverse people from…
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The Gift of Gab
If you’re reading this you must know me and you probably also know that the last thing I need to do is to participate in a tourist activity that apparently makes you talk more. But I went to Blarney Castle in Cork to lean over the edge of the top of the castle and kiss the Blarney Stone in hopes of receiving “the gift of gab” anyway. So there are a few different legends about the famed Blarney Stone. According to the website, some say it was Jacob’s pillow and the prophet Jeremiah brought it to Ireland. Others will say it’s part of the “Stone of Ezel” that David hid…
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Gone to Galway for Moher Fun
You guessed it: the Cliffs of Moher. Located mostly along the West Coast of Ireland and part of the natural wonder the Wild Atlantic Way, the cliffs are breathtaking. A group of us Americans in Dublin decided to spend a quick one day and one night in Galway to experience the cliffs, and to live out our dreams of being “Galway Girls” for our beloved Ed Sheeran. I’ve never traveled to the West Coast of America because of how far and expensive it would be, but in just two and a half hours on a train, we were able to speed across all of Ireland from Dublin to Galway. After…