The Day after the 5 Days before

So it's finally Friday and my Live Below the Line Attempt had been successful!

£240 raised!!! £40 over my target and an amazing target to reach!

I want to thank the following people who sponsored me: Dad, Barrie, Mark, Dan, Heather, Nicole, Julie, John, Martin Kyle, Andy, Suzanne, Stacey, Sandy, Marianne, Karen, Louise, Martin Kettle, Ruth, Ali, Jennifer, Craig, Jason, Pearse, Pat, Kirsty, Claire and Emma! You guys made this all the worth while!!!



Today I handed in my final piece of university work as well, although my sever loss of concentration over the last 5 days when I have been working on the piece of university work means that I actually have no idea what level of quality said piece of university work is actually in!

So a double celebration for me, and a chance to eat, drink and be merry and that is exactly what I did. Joining my friends in a 'dry-run' of end of university celebrations (some people haven't quite finished) we headed into town to one of my fav places to eat Beir Halle where I had 2 strawberry beers (sooo good to not have water!) and a goats cheese pizza all to myself :D

Afterward.... well students+end of university+me feeling totally neglected over the last 5 days = severely drunk and skint Sarah Conway leaving O'Neills with her friend at 3am....overindulged may be the understatement of the year!


Whilst lying on my bed struggling through the crippling hangover that at one point I thought was actually going to kill me (cheeky vimtos = the worst hangovers EVA!) I realised that the celebration was only possible because of who I am, of where I live, of the luck of birth... that for 1.4 BILLION people their live below the line experience is not an attempt, or a challenge, it's a way of life.

For people like the children opposite.. live below the line isn't a challenge, it isn't a fundraising opportunity, it's not a choice.....




This isn't over... not for all those people, not for me. I am going to continue to learn, fund raise and raise awareness of Global Poverty. Live Below the Line showed me just how hard it is, and it is still no where near the reality for others.... It's not over until people aren't forced to do this ------------------------------------------------------->


So if you donate occasionally that is great, because money certainly makes the world go around and charities need funds to continue to do the great work.

But for me... I am going to continue to be active... to learn, to educate others, to blog, to raise money, to raise awareness... maybe even get out there one day... but next year I will be doing live below the line again... and you lot are doing it with me :)

Extreme Poverty Can Be Eradicated in OUR GENERATION!!!!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Final Day

Sorry its took so long to get this up... Just been a whirlwind of activity.

The final day had a strange air around it, like I was expecting an epiphany of some sort telling me how all this worked. But I didn't, I just felt the same way I had felt all the other days... hungry and miserable...

I ate my usual, oats, banana, noodles and a macaroni pie. Water... so much water....

There was no fanfare, no celebration, just another night of going to bed hungry, with a sore head and irritated stomach.

But I did it, that's the point, I completed the charity event through till the end. The money I have raised has not been in vain and neither has this blog because it prompted two more people to donate. The money I have raised has been raised honestly and with great thanks. That's what important...that is the epiphany: I did it!

Day 4 - Difficulties and Strife

Due to an impending essay - this blog is a short one.

drinking a cocktail that prob cost more than my full weeks budget

Day 4 - well pretty much the same as the other days... I didn't eat very much at all today. Had 1/2 banana for my breakfast, then made a pot of mac n cheese and threw in the rest of my sausage... an estimated £1.50 to make, but I only ate half - which worked out at 75p, and is the best thing I've had all week.

Getting a bit fed up now, although the pasta was delicious I blew my budget, and retired to bed at an incredible 8.30pm with a film to try and take my mind off my gurgling, sore, confused belly.

Concentration levels are so low, I am really struggling to get this essay done. Imagine trying to stay awake and alert at school all day when you have ate so little....

Day 3 - Food List and Total Costs

Oats:    6p

1/2 Banana:    6p

Pasta (1/4 pack):     12p

Carrot:    7p

Onion:    10p

1/4 Sausage:    20p

2x Slices of Bread:   12p

1/2 Beans:   14p

5x Tea:   5p

Total Cost:   92p!!!!!

Day 3 - Half Way There!

Day 3 - fell asleep at 4pm on the couch and could only study in 20-30min slots at a time....

Had my oats again for breakfast, with my 1/2 banana and then for lunch I had pasta, a carrot, a onion and 1/4 pork sausage - I actually made quite a lot of past because it was so cheap to buy so I had quite a large lunch as you can see...

20mins later I threw it all back up again - obviously too much at the one time for my tender belly!

I held off on my dinner till about 7.30pm - because I needed energy to start writing my essay. So I had 2xslices of toast (no butter) and 1/2 can of beans... I haven't included a photo - well you guys know what beans on toast looks like don't ya??

Came across a great quote yesterday, from Kofi Annan, who was the 7th Secretary-General of the United Nations and was awarded the 2001 Noble Peace Prize. Kofi has advocated on behalf of gender equality in the third world, stating that: “Gender equality is more than a goal in itself. It is a precondition for meeting the challenge of reducing poverty, promoting sustainable development and building good governance.”

Gender Equality is one of the Millenium  Development Goals, arguable one of the most important ones! Below is a short clip which gives you a flavour of what women want, what the expect and how gender equality can help turn poverty around.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Znh7Dt08Reo&feature=player_embedded#at=102

 
 

Day 2 - Food List and Prices

Oats:    6p

1/2 Banana:     6p

Noodles:      19p

1/4 Sausage:      20p

Macaroni Pie:     25p

Green Beans:     13p

Custard (1/2 pack - thanks Dad!):    3p

1/4 Banana:     3p

Tea x4:     4p

Total Cost: 99p!!!!!

Day 2 - Head and Belly Aches

Eating a Pizza after 2 days of hardly eating because of travelers diarrhea in Egypt - lovin' it!

Day 1 was really tough - it was a strange feeling to go to bed feeling really unsatisfied: like a dull ache in the pit of my stomach....

But I learned from my mistakes and made sure that I spaced my meals out better today. My oats and 1/2 banana for breakfast - BEFORE WORK! Which actually kept me going till about 12 noon. Then I had a pack of noodles with 1/4 pork sausage and about 5.30 I had my tea: a macaroni pie with 1/3 of a tin of green beans!




Luckily I had enough change left over to whip up an instant custard from powder (of which I only had half because me father - who had a huge plate of lasagna and chips and green beans for tea - which is one of my favorite favorite favorites!! - decided he wanted share!) and I threw in 1/4 of a banana to add some.... well....flavour??

So day 2 went... well slightly better.... oh yeah except from the constant dull ache in the front of head - which apparently is withdrawal symptoms from things like sugar/diary/red meat/ caffeine - you know all the good things... and oh yeah the fact that my toilet routine is completely out the window - my stomach is literally not in control and wondering what the hell I am doing.

But the pain and the *whispers* bowel issues... they are not only the result of withdrawals, in fact that is the signals that the body gives to indicate that a) your not eating right b) your not eating enough and c) you are not functioning properly. I struggled to stay awake by 4pm and my concentration levels had taken a serious knock... I could have took medicine to combat the symptoms... but the people that this is for they live with these signals every day... they live in pain and unable to fully function simply because they are not getting enough to eat!

It's 2011 and people in this world - a world that I sometimes ashamed to think I live in - do not have enough to eat! It is these people and this thought that drives me through the pain and the misery of this challenge and onto day 3 with a smile on my face!

Day 1 - Food List and Total Cost

Oats:   6p

1/2 Banana:   6p

Apple:   18p

Burger:   45p

Roll:   6p

Milk (oats and tea):   16p

Tea bags (3):   3p

Total:  £1 exactly!!!!

Day 1 - Nightmare!

So today was day 1 of my live below the line! Horrific!

I didn't have breakfast because I was working. I'm not usually hungry until a couple of hours after I surface and usually I just take a cereal bar with me and eat it in the car on the move. However, cereal bars work out at about 30p each! Which I couldn't afford!

mmmm....oats

However things did begin well as I made up my flask of tea (instead of going to the wee shop for a cuppa which skins me the full £1!) and I took a bottle of tap water (FREE!)

When I got back I had 1/5 of my packet of oats (6p) with milk and 1/2 banana (6p).

Then by about 3.30pm I was really hungry so I had an apple (18p)


Then my family decided to have a BBQ - it was meant to be a bit of a thing for my brother because he turns 18 on Wednesday, but it ended up just the family. All I had had from the apple was water and 1 cup of tea. The smells.... the bread.... uch this is torture!!!










So I had a burger (45p) on a roll (6p) and that was it - no lettuce, no butter, no beer (just water). Today was definantly harder than I though and I realise now that breakfast is a must with a bigger, more sustainable lunch to keep me going because I very nearly binged I was so hungry!

The thing is there are days when I don't really eat that much - maybe 1 big binge at about 2pm and that's it. Today though all I could think about was food and how I couldn't have it. This made me think about the people I am doing this for - how much does food enter their thoughts during the day; I relaxed in the garden for most of the day - they have to go to work, usually hard labour like farming. My Mum and Dad supported me today - but they know that at the end of the day if I get too hungry there is food in the fridge and the cupboards.... what if your child was starving and you couldn't offer comfort or hope or something to eat...? That is certainly food for thought!

Me tucking into a burger at the BBQ!!