Things You Will Lose (And Gain) On A J1

What to expect of the J1…

It has provided a base for all the daydreaming and procrastination in the last few months, it has been the light at the end of the tunnel (in fact one of the most expensive lights ever to be found in a tunnel as it has taken away all your savings going back to the once forbidden confirmation funds), it is the summer you swear will be the best one yet, one where you also swear to live by the good aul YOLO phenomenon, it is in fact:  The J1. A summer every Irish student needs to experience in order to (a) truly appreciate home and learn valuable life skills, and (b) to go on a foreign adventure and create memories you never want to forget (along with the ones you never want to remember). Exams are now over (or at least you can smell freedom in the next 2 weeks), you’ve had the last HURRAH YEOW COPPERS night out with college peeps and home peeps, and it is finally time to get packing. But before putting one floral bikini or boardy short in that suitcase, sit back and mentally prepare yourself for the months that lie ahead, as while there is much to gain, there are also some losses to experience…

Loss of personal space.

More than likely there is a big group heading off together into the summer sun. 16 people in a 2 bed unfurnished apartment in Boston… “sure it’ll be mad craic us all there together”.. few naggings you say, be grand you say. Well, after a few naggings in that 2 bed apartment things may not be so “grand”. It’s going to get stuffy, sticky, sweaty, messy, and all the 4loco in the world won’t make you blind to the fact that your blow-up mattress now may aswel be nothing but flat pack cardboard, all on top the fact that the foetal position has become the only possible sleeping position due to the amount of bodies around you. Far from the cosy not-too-hot-not-too-cold spacious double bed at home you shall be, comfort will exist only in your memory.

It also must be warned that this lack of space will lead to lack of opportunity for ‘action’ in the bedroom (as whether you like it or not you must consider the sleeping arrangements of the other 7 people sharing your room). A certain amount of scheduling and luck will get you out of this, otherwise make sure ‘Britney’ or ‘Brad’ have a place of their own you can venture to…

Another key warning on the lack of space topic is that it will crossover to the fridge. On opening the fridge at home, a lovely Avonmore/Tesco value 2 litre milk carton awaits you. This will seem like nothing more than a fantasy throughout the J1 as when you splash out with your less than minimum wage and actually go the ‘grocery store’ for milk, it will disappear within an hour in your house. The culprit will not reveal themselves because they too understand the lack of satisfaction from a bowl of dry cereal.

Gain of gratitude.

The good aul Irish mammy, a species like no other. While at home she may seem like nothing more than a woman who constantly nags and moans at you for anything and everything…it is only after distance from this woman that we realise how much of a superwoman she actually is. All those piles of washing that mysteriously disappeared and reappeared all neatly folded… all those dinners…all the cups of tea that magically appeared beside the laptop during stressful assignments… were all the doings of the mammy. Those little things are key to how your day goes, so get yizzer detergent and saucepans out because you’re on your own now ducky. It may be a good idea to give the aul mother an odd text to let her know you’re alive, god knows she’s saying the rosary for you every night.

Gain of freedom.

The J1 provides the opportunity to officially let oneself go in every way possible. You are free to eat, drink, sleep, swim, shift, explore as much as you want, with no one there to remind you of the possible consequences of your behaviour (as they are safely far far away the other side of the world mwahaha!). The only responsibility that will haunt you for the trip is the responsibility of looking after yourself (which can prove surprisingly difficult at times…). For this summer you can act as young, wild and free as you wish. This is the time in life to learn from the mistakes you make in order to be old and wise and cool some day. For this summer you are invincible and you are infinite, congratulations and enjoy.

Loss of dignity.

Unfortunately even the best of us fall: Iron man once lost his iron suit, and Andy (the dope) did leave Buzz and Woody behind in Toy Story after a mad night in ‘Pizza Planet’. With this newfound extreme freedom, must come the acceptance that it is highly likely that you will have to sacrifice your dignity on more than one occasion. Nobody plans this, it won’t be pretty, and it will be the night everyone remembers all your movements while you woke up on the stairs with a shoe in one hand and a frying pan in the other with no recollection of the previous 12 hours. These nights provide great entertainment so it’s best to just thank the lord you’re still alive and have a sense of humour about it.

Gain of general cop-on.

Often after overcoming a night that stole your dignity, it can be tempting to lie down and live by #cantdeal for the day/week. However there will be situations (such as keeping a job in order to fund life..) where you will simply have to suck it up and #havetodeal. Fear not, in the wise words of Kelly Clarkson ‘What doesn’t kill you makes you stronger’, so have comfort in knowing that while you may genuinely feel like you’re dying and losing your soul every moment of that waitressing shift (hungover, sunburnt, starving, and daydreaming of your own bed and mother’s cooking…), know that you will survive, YES WE CAN.

Gain of weight.

We are all aware how America is known to be the fattest nation, little do we know how easy it is to become one of them when we’re there. Sure it would be a sin and rude to say no and not to try all the extra flavours they have. We thought Mr Tayto was great putting a few crisps into a chocolate bar, well Mr. Ben and Mr. Jerry have put crisps in ice cream (see:‘Late Night Snack’) and have succeeded in awesomeness of flavour and taste (unlike our own Mr.Tayto…). Another reason for a chocolate-crisps-donuts-fast-food diet is for financial purposes, fruit and veg=more dolla dolla bills, and ain’t no one got time fo’dat.

Loss of nutrition

Naturally while on a diet of pure sugar, your body will hate you and by the end of the summer you will in turn hate yourself for it. Carrots, broccoli and dare I say even cabbage will be a welcome sight come September.

Gain of friends.

Providing you make the effort to stem slightly away from the group you came with, you can make some truly great friends on your travels. While in a different country, you really come to experience and know the culture by connecting with its people, so make at least one American friend. They’ll say you drink too much, you’ll say they spend too much time getting high and don’t drink enough… they’ll say ‘awesome’ and ‘waddup man’ while you say ‘brilliant’ and ‘what’s the craic’...together sure won’t ye LOL and it will be a beautiful friendship.

Loss of friends…

Now, while no one would ever intend to lose a friend it can be a natural occurrence in certain circumstances unfortunately. You may think you know some of your friends but not until living with them for a few months in close quarters do you truly know them. For the majority it will be grand, but there may be that friend whose true demonic/Regina George side will be unveiled this summer. Whatever you do, do not become that friend, a lot can be said for generally being sound and mindful of others.

Gain of translation and language skills. 

In general, Irish people have a problem being understood by pretty much every other nationality. We are a very unique group of people in our accents and sayings in general. This can be very useful when it comes to trying to get tips from wealthy Americans, and by all means add in all the ‘ah sure’s and ‘grand’s when you speak and it will pay off. We are also a very humorous lot and take no shame in our abuse of eachother, in fact abuse can sometimes come across as almost endearing and a sign of closeness (‘ya lucky bastard’, ‘I love ya…ya little fecker’). But be warned this does not always translate as you may intend it to, so be wary of the other nationalities in your company

Prepare yourself to constantly explain that your version of ‘the craic’ is not their version of ‘the crack’. Another interesting term that is difficult to directly translate is ‘grand’ (pronounced ‘grey-and’ by Americans). It is a very universal word, and can take the place of any emotion or situation (fine/not bad=grand, good=grand, great=grand, feck off I don’t want to talk=grand, etc…). Other words/phrases that may require explanation:

‘Sure look and sure listen’

Replacements of words ‘him’ and ‘her’ with ‘your one’ and ‘your man’

‘Thanks a million’

Use of ‘you’re gas’ instead of ‘you’re funny’

‘Janey Mac!’

Some American words that may sneak into your vocabulary are: awesome, trash can, garbage, trunk, yard, grocery store, chaser, the cops, freeway, gasoline, etc…

(Sudden) Gain of experience in every area of employment.

If you are more than the average J1er and already have a job lined up then I take my hat off to you sir. However, more than likely you are heading over with 60 CVs printed in your bag, or at least the shapings of a CV to print out when you arrive. The search for employment can be a tricky ruthless experience so in order to be first in line for that job (no matter what job that is), and to have the best chance, you need to present yourself as exactly what they need. Looking for a gardener? You are the man!-you have seen the lawn mower and hedge cutters in the shed at home… you’re a tank, how hard can it be? Looking for a brick layer? No problemo!-bitta bricks, bitta cement, be grand, it’s advanced lego really…). Looking for a dance instructor? Yes absolutely!-going out at least 2 nights a week for the last year is bound to have improved your dancing skills… so basically you’ve attended at least 80 large group ‘dance classes’.

Gain of self-discovery/wisdom/enlightenment.

You will be no tap on Yoda now, but by the end of the summer you will have had no choice but to grow up a bit and overall grow as person. Being so far away from home, traveling, exploring, meeting new people, and dealing with different situations, will open your eyes to more possibilities for the future. Despite feeling like your living conditions were a bit blaaaaa, constantly looking down at a sugar food baby belly, having a blackout, and a difficult customer or two at work, for every one low there shall be 10 highs so prepare yourself for an unreal adventure this summer because whatever ‘loss’ is experienced, trust that you will probably feel the greatest loss of the summer in the moment you step on that return flight teary eyed at the end of august, turning your back on the ‘YOLO FOR SUMMER’ chapter of your life and entering the next chapter and reality once more… all the bronzer/frecklier and wiser. Bon Voyage!