First job for me was in 2019, made €23k at a multinational bank.

So I have a 16 year old daughter who for the last few years has been struggling to foster and maintain friendships. She is truly a wonderful, honest and kind soul, but she is also shy timid and lacking in confidence.

Throughout primary school her class all got along as one big group, but with moving to secondary school you could see the first splintering of friends into groups as you would expect. At this time she played Gaelic with some of the girls in her class but strong groups started to form and she was on the periphery. she was struggling with the physical aspects of football and camogie so was getting left out of matches and this was where we started to see her confidence start to drain. her friends who were better at sports stuck together more and more, especially when some of them were getting moved to the older age groups.

In school in first and second year she was on good terms with one or two long term friends from primary school but this started to wane as well. She made some new friends initially, but this ended in disaster as the new friend was really leading them astray and there was a shoplifting incident that put an end to that.

In second and third year she became close friends with a sister of our youngest daughters friend. this seemed to be going really well, they were both a little timid and shy and they clicked. We done as much as we could to foster this as she lived in another town, but as there were two sisters as friends, it seemed to click nicely overall. This soured in third year and really we’re at a loss on it. The younger of the sisters took a dislike to our youngest and then the elder sister was visibly bitchy with our eldest. In my mind what happened was she saw our daughter as a crutch in school and at some point once her confidence was up saw it as easy to disregard her - at pone point messaging her to have a cruel dig about our daughter not having any other friends.

In TY we thought things had started to change, she was hanging around with a mixed group of boys and girls and they seem like a lovely bunch overall. Towards the end of the year however we started to see some red flags. driving through the town one day we seen the group hanging out and our daughter went red instantly when she saw them. Casually asking her why she hadn’t asked to go hang out we found out she was being left out again and that there was a new WhatsApp group and she was not included on it. We tried to push her to be vocal and say to one of the friends to add her, but she continually avoided the conversation. It turns out the group had been extended to almost the full TY class, with only some (but not all) of the foreign kids who kept to themselves and the few kids with autism that are part of the group.

After she was left out of a party invite, we convinced her to say it to one of her friends about adding her and it ended horribly in that the friend openly laughed at her to her face and just said ‘as if’.

At her TY graduation we sat in pure agony for her as she looked like she wanted the ground to swallow her up. Not one of her previous long term friends were engaging with her, snd she was totally ignored by all of the more recent ones. I even have a knot in my stomach thinking back on it to see how pained she was trying to put on smile and act like there was nothing amiss with it. As other kids were jumping into group photos with each other, standing on stage with teachers and enjoying themselves, she raced over to us and just asked to leave. She sat in the car on the way home and kept the facade up until we got home and then she was a flood of tears.

Fast forward to 5th year now and we are two days in and I can’t see how she is going to make it through school at all. She is not sleeping and is a ball of anxiety. Any attempt to talk to her is met with ‘I don’t want to talk about it right now’. I can see she is trying to put up barriers to insulate or protect herself but she is going to turn her self inside out.

this isn’t about me, but I just feel so helpless and unable to help her. It took me until later in my thirties to realise I had crippling social anxiety and lack of confidence, and how much it affected me (and still does). I managed to have friend groups in school and after with playing sports, but realised quickly that if I wasn’t chasing people or including myself, people were not bothered to stay in touch with me. I feel ill-equipped to guide her when I merely winged it and was a ‘hanger-on’ of sorts.

I always knew my daughter was quiet and timid, but always hoped that confidence would come as she got older. I think we are at a critical point with her now as the pressure of school and study and not wanting to be in that environment. Her confidence and trust is totally shot.

If this sounds familiar to you I would greatly appreciate your stories, experiences or advice.

Would you support it being more widely taught as it is a native language of the country and actually quite interesting. Krish gyukera hav múni Sheldrú.

Edit : Lads can we curb the racism a small bit. Ye're only shaming yourselves.

How bad is it right now for any one here ? Interested to hear all angles from all walks of life.

Weather your a post grad looking to land your first entry level role or weather your struggling to find something local in retail / hospitality.

I speak to people from all walks of life and let's just say the general consensus of the job market is grim.

We are consistently told we have full employment which I suppose in a way means the draw bridge has been really pulled up. It would make you wonder if we have more jobseekers than jobs available.

I won't get too much into my personal situation (IT) but let's just say it's.... challenging.

I also think the whole AI taking jobs is complete Bull****. Big tech massively overhired during the covid era with more money than they knew what to do with - and as soon as the inflation crisis hit in 22 and central banks had to hike rates - the gig was up. The whole AI taking jobs is a narrative aggressivley pushed by the hyperscalers in order to get venture capital to take them seriously.

You would be forgiven to looking back at the Pre Covid world (certainly the job market ) with Rose tinted glasses and thinking that was the last normal period before everything started to take a weird turn of events.

There’s a house on my road that I always knew was probably housing more people than it should. You can see plenty of people coming and going, but I never really thought too much about it.

Recently though, I came across the house advertised online and it looks much worse than I thought. From the photos/listing, there seem to be around 16–18 beds in a 4-bedroom house, with bunk beds squeezed into most rooms.

I’m not some nosey curtain-twitching neighbour looking to get people in trouble. To be honest, I couldn’t care less who lives there, where they’re from or what they're doing. What annoys me is the thought of some wanker landlord cramming as many people as possible into a house and making a fortune while potentially exploiting people who might not have many other options.

If someone comes out, inspects the place and everything is found to be completely above board, safe and in order, then brilliant. I’m not trying to cause problems for the tenants either, if anything, they're most likely be the ones being taken advantage of.

But who would actually be the right person to report something like this to?

Would the Fire Brigade deal with concerns around fire safety? Is it a planning enforcement issue for the council? Is it something the RTB would look into? And, considering the amount of rental income potentially involved, would Revenue have any interest?

Genuine question — who would be the best place to start?

Is this actually a thing? My kid said that if he took his jumper off yesterday he was going to get pocketed, basically his shirt pocket ripped off and saw this happen lots of boys. What kind of stupid initiation or rite of passage is this? I might sound OTT but like if someone did that as an adult you’d report them for assault. He’s asking me to cut out his shirt pockets. He’d a headache yesterday because he kept himself too hot all day wearing the heavy jumper.

Hey everybody! I'm currently in Kyrgyzstan at the World Nomad Games. Luckily, I got tickets to the opening ceremony in Bishkek last night and to my surprise there's an Irish team competing this year!

Just 2 lads and I have no idea what events they're taking part in. There's a few other Irish out here coming to the games that we've met so does anybody know the boys on the team and/or what events they are in? Would love to get to see them in action and cheer them on! (Pic is a bad screenshot from a zoomed video I took of their opening ceremony entrance)

Hello neighbours,

Time for a deeper, more existential question about a character trait of older Irish people. Sorry for being a fun sponge – I'll try and be brief.

I'm a Brit with 100% Irish heritage, as is my partner. I've met a lot of relatives and obviously have a lot of Irish family.

Among boomers and older, I notice a particularly recurrent character trait that I'm unsure is generalisable, or unique to my family – namely a fear of speaking up or rocking the boat. Older Irish people I know are all anxious about complaining, drawing attention or risking confrontation. Lots of secrets. They fear sticking their head above the parapet or saying no. Obviously there's a few bolshy ones too, but I wonder whether there is something deeper in Irish society for this age group shaped by experiences of exile and racism, and the looming presence of the Catholic Church in the formative part of their lives.

Do you recognise what I'm getting at, or am I talking bollocks?

Cheers

So, for context, my parents are in the early and late 70s. mum is early 70s, dad late 70s. Dad had a subdural haemotoma 5 years ago and hast been the same since- impaired cognative ability and the likes.

hes been in and out of hospital weekly for the lst few years, Always claiming hes gonna die etc. Anyway, recently ive been made aware hes been spending a lot of time with a young nigeran woman who claims to be a carer, maybe she is, i dont know. But hes been out a lot recently which is not like him, this was a man who spent 80% of his days in bed until recently,

Now, the folks have a house thats worth just north of a million, maybe 1.3 on a good day. hes now talking about selling the house (him and mum split about 20 years ago but moved back into current home around 8 years ago as they got back together and own it 5050).

Dad needs help and cant manage on his own all the time but hes now suggesting they split again and sell the house as ''they just aren't getting along''. My mums been very upset recently and ive not known why until now. shes aware this has been happening but dad claims they are just friends and theres nothing untoward here.

What are peoples thoughts on this? any advice on what to do? Is this a scam and my dads been potentially lined up here to be fleeced?

my sister and i plan to speak with him as a family next week and give him an ultimatum that if he doesnt cut this off now, whatever it is, we will have to cut him out of our lives and our kids lives.

I'm autistic and really struggle with new situations and I often need extremely detailed instructions when I try something for the first time.

I am wanting to push myself out of my comfort zone and plan a solo trip to London in the next few months but the only thing that is stressing me out about it is trying to get through the aiport alone. I've been to Dublin Airport plenty of times before but that was always with either family or friends so I could rely on them to help get through it.

If possible I'm looking for detailed step by step instructions from checking in up to getting on the plane. I am only bringing in a backpack so no suitcases to worry about.

Thank you :D

*edit* thank you so much for all the responses already! i feel so much more at ease now and it looks much easier that i was worried it was. i really appreciate everyones kind responses. thank you <3

Very random question...Does anyone have a swage block (The thing in the picture) knocking about gathering dust? I'm a blacksmith based in West Cork and I need one but they're rarer than hens teeth. I'd be happy to fork out a few quid for one in decent nick and I know there's some laying around forgotten in a workshop somewhere.

And to satisty the curious among you, it can be used on the high side to drive hot steel into the various curves around the edges, or on the flat as support if you're driving one piece of steel through another.

Any and all information greatly appreciated,

Been thinking that If I could go back what would I say to my younger self. Young me didn't have a clue what I wanted to do or go in life, but it all ended working out.

Hello,

Like many other young adults right now, I'm searching for a part-time job to help support my studies in Dublin. It's difficult and frustrating, but it is what it is. What I'm confused about is who these companies are looking for. Many "student" jobs have requirements such as:

- "must be flexible any time of the week"

- "must be able to work monday through sunday with full flexibility"

- "must be fully flexible with no other commitments"

Or just straight up:

- "not suitable for students"

All of these are on part-time positions with hours as low as 8. Who's the intended candidate for these positions? I would imagine there's practically no one who is doing absolutely nothing in their life (no other job/ studies/ family responsibilities) except showing up to a retail store twice a week.

I'm not trying to complain about the job market, it's been talked about enough. I'm just genuinely confused how are these companies finding anyone who fulfills these requirements? Or am I missing something?

We bought our house two years ago - it’s in a terrace. The house next to us was being renovated when we moved in - big enough job and an extension.

Another neighbour told us it’s a landlord with a few houses, he lives nearby half the year and half the year abroad with his wife.

The house has been empty since the renovation, easily 18 months.

What on earth could be the motive behind leaving it empty? Surely enough time has passed to put up rent or sell it saying it’s eligible for vacant property grant??

The curiosity is killing me!

Ideally for the following

● Indian

● Chinese

● Steak

● Bakery

● Pizza

● Mexican

● Sushi

● Quirky restaurants/food choices.

Hi everyone,

My husband and I are currently looking for accommodation in Dublin and we have found what seems like a really great house share. A married couple currently rents the entire house and one of them is named on the main tenancy agreement with the landlord. The house has two separate bedrooms with their own en-suite bathrooms, and they are looking for another couple to move into the second bedroom. We would basically pay half of the monthly rent and share the house with them. We really like the couple and the house, but as we are new to Ireland, we are unsure about the legal side of this arrangement.

Since we would not be named on the main tenancy agreement with the landlord, what would be the best way to formally arrange this so that both sides are protected? For example, we would like to have written proof that we are legally allowed to live there and are paying rent, and some protection against a situation where we could suddenly be locked out or asked to leave without notice.

Would a written house-sharing agreement or licence agreement between us and the main tenant be the normal solution? What should such an agreement included?

Any advice from people who have been in a similar situation would be really appreciated!

Thank you 😊

Was a Planner/Scheduler for a construction company, got on great, was good at it I was progressing quickly.
Arguably too quickly, senior guy left and I was left to take over.
I just worked and tried to manage without asking for support and burnt myself out.

Left and went into a trade, been on site for a year now currently an apprentice Plumber.
It’s going grand but it’s hard going and I knew that, but I didn’t realise just how taxing it was on your back and knees, stuff that just gets worse and isn’t just physical tiredness.

Debating going back to Planning/Scheduling as a better long term career plan vs Plumbing.
Had notions of learning a trade to work for myself/grow a Business but reality is I’ll be at this a long time before I’m able to go out on my own let alone have enough lads working for me to get off the tools.

Am I mad?
Lot to be said for learning a trade and all that.

I usually either buy fajita spice powder mix or make it myself, same with the fajita sauce. I find the flour tortilla wrap tho can make or break a fajita.

Some may disagree but I find the flour tortilla wrap from Lidl is like eating rubbery cardboard, I haven't tried any of the rest apart from Old El Paso ages ago which is pricey. Anyone know if any of the other grocers Aldi, Tesco, Dunnes, S Valu, M & S do a tasty flour tortilla wrap?

I’m in my early 20s and potentially choosing between two permanent full-time opportunities in completely different areas. I’m curious what people with more career experience would do.

Job A is an account/operations coordination role.
It pays roughly €7–10k more, is predominantly remote and has a very good benefits package. The work involves coordinating accounts, keeping processes moving, dealing with issues, tracking progress and communicating between different internal teams.There’s also potential progression into things like account management, operations, customer success, service delivery or project-based roles.The major downside is that the working hours are later than a normal office job, so I’d sacrifice most of my weekday evenings.

Job B is an entry-level Recruitment Consultant position. It pays less initially but has normal office hours and a hybrid working arrangement. I’d be managing candidates through the recruitment process, interviewing/screening people, following up with them and getting them ready to start work. It’s also performance-based with individual/team targets.

This is where I’m struggling with the decision:
I’ve actually been thinking about getting into recruitment/HR for a while.
I enjoy talking to people and I think the relationship-building side would suit me. However, I don’t have an HR/recruitment degree or direct recruitment experience, and I’ve found that a lot of jobs in the area want previous experience. So part of me feels like being offered an opportunity to enter recruitment without already having that background is something I shouldn’t dismiss, because once I have experience I could potentially progress into senior recruitment, talent acquisition, HR-related roles etc.

On the other hand, Job A is objectively the stronger offer financially. It pays considerably more from day one, has better benefits and is more flexible. The operations/account-management route also seems to have plenty of progression, so I’m wondering whether I’m overvaluing recruitment simply because I’ve previously considered getting into it.

I’m not particularly attached to either job title. I’m mainly trying to make the decision that gives me the best combination of earning potential, career progression, job security and quality of life over the next 3–5 years.

If you were starting out in your career, would you:
A) take the significantly better-paying operations/account role and build a career from there
or
B) accept less money to get your foot in the door of recruitment/HR because it’s an area you’ve already been interested in?

I’d especially love to hear from anyone who’s worked in recruitment/HR or account management/operations. What does progression and earning potential actually look like a few years in?

I'm an EU student able to go on exchange for the spring semester and am considering these unis:

Dublin City

Limerick

UC Cork

Galway

Which of these would you guys consider is the best for an exchange taking into consideration social life, rankings, aesthetics etc?