Our Amazing Week in Ireland, Part One

We toured with a band in Ireland last week.  We first saw The John Byrne Band at a house concert hosted by friends.  The band is fabulous, and we decided that same night that we wanted to go with them on their Ireland tour.  John Byrne grew up in Dublin and now lives in Philadelphia.

We rode along with them as they toured through western Ireland, playing sessions in pubs along the way.  It was so much fun, just a great experience.

The weather in Ireland was perfect, warm and sunny.  We visited Dingle, Killarney, Bantry Bay, the Ring of Kerry, Kenmare, Kinsale and Dublin.  Here are some of my photos from our first day, when we toured the Dingle Peninsula:

The Dingle Peninsula is magical.  Sweeping views of the Atlantic Ocean, rolling hills and farms.

We visited a sheep farmer, who showed us how his dogs herd the sheep:

It was a beautiful day to be in the Irish countryside.

Our first night, we stayed in a charming hotel in a charming town, Benner's Hotel in Dingle:

We went to our first session at O'Flaherty's pub.

After we left Dingle we made the drive along the Ring of Kerry, which was full of beautiful views.

We continued on around County Kerry, visiting sites along the way.

The beach at Inch:

Colorful buildings in little towns:

Large, impressive buildings on grand estates:

We passed a few ruined castles, too:

While visiting this castle we visited with some very friendly little dogs.  Their owners were with them, and told us the dogs are drawn to American voices.

This little one played "fetch" with anyone who would throw the stick at him.

And, of course, there were the pubs.  We were traveling fans, following our band and enjoying their music as they played "sessions" in different pubs.  We were joined by many locals who became new fans.

I have much more to show and tell about this trip.  I have so many photos to sort though.  You will see them in Part Two.

A Long Time Coming

It's been five months since we moved from our home in Kentucky to our new condo near Philadelphia. It has taken me this long to put my thoughts together and to sort out my emotions.

I really loved this house, where we lived for ten years.  I found so much beauty there.

Cats in every window:

In April we moved to our new condo, returning to the Philadelphia area after ten years in our Kentucky home.  We decided to live closer to our friends, with whom we have enjoyed many trips and celebrations over the years.  Here we are on a Viking cruise in Eastern Europe.  We have also traveled with them to France, Italy, Mexico and Israel.  

Here they are, welcoming us in our new condo:

At that time the condo was empty, except for that little table and four plastic chairs!  Here it is before we moved in:

Gradually, we moved in… very gradually.  It took us three months!

First we got a bed.  You can see it here in the master bedroom.

Then we got a rug, as you can see above.

Then we got a loveseat to go with the rug…

This is Mike, sitting on the loveseat.  It's the only furniture in the room at this point.

Finally, we began moving our furniture from the house to the condo.

This was our dining room with only a few pieces in it.

Then we brought our china hutch and bought a new rug.  It's still a work in progress; it has just been painted and we have mirrors to put on the wall.

The living room has been painted and more furniture added.  It's a work in progress too.

The kitchen is a livelier place now, with more color and some bar stools.

The bar has been prettified with some of the things I brought.

My sitting room with some of my books.

My favorite old clock is here too.

We even have a TV now!

These few months, I must admit I've had moments of grieving for the house in Kentucky.  It was difficult giving it up and thinking of someone else living in it.  I loved many things about it.  At first I had a difficult time adjusting to condo life, too.  When I open my front door I am in a hallway instead of outdoors.  I have no yard.  There are other people in the building so it's not completely private as I was used to.  Instead of a large deck, I have a small balcony.

There are good things though.  Everything we need is within walking distance.  The best grocery store in the country, the bank, many stores and restaurants; and friends are here, too.  With winter coming up we know we won't have to worry about shoveling snow and dealing with ice.  I am determined to make this place feel at home, too.  Even the cats are getting used to it.

Here are some things I have come to appreciate here:

I Used to Belong Here

I think I should have lived in a previous generation, when a person was born in a house then lived there for the rest of her life.  I have a hard time leaving houses.  It seems I put down strong roots.  Home is important to me.

Let me go back 26 years here to begin my story.  In 1989 we moved to a house in Pennsylvania that I loved.  I loved everything about it, fireplaces, sky lights, bay windows, trees in the back yard.  We lived in that house for sixteen years, then decided to move back to the midwest for family reasons.  I mourned for that house for a time after we moved to Kentucky.

Our house in Kentucky was very nice but at first I couldn't help comparing it to the one we had left.  We were close to family though, and it quickly began to feel like home.  We lived there for ten years and I came to love the second house as I did the first.  Eventually we decided to move again, back to Pennsylvania.  We had good friends there and missed what had been a busy social life.

Leaving the house in Kentucky was much harder than I thought it would be.  As I was packing, removing things out of closets and cupboards, I felt like I was dismantling my home, destroying the life we had built.  It was hard and it was sad.  I couldn't imagine not living there anymore.  When the house finally sold I cried.  Someone else was in my home.  I didn't belong there anymore.

We have a new life in a new condo now.  We are back in Pennsylvania and enjoying being close to the friends we made there.  I'm still adjusting to condo life.  When I open my door I step into a hallway instead of outdoors.  I am beginning to accept that someone else is living in what was my home.  I still would not be able to drive by it though, knowing I don't belong there.  I used to belong there.

Yesterday I drove by our original house in Pennsylvania, the one I mourned when we moved to Kentucky.  When we came back to visit not long after the move, I refused to drive by that house.  I cried when we drove past our old exit on the turnpike.  I still felt like I belonged there.  This time, however, when I drove down our old street and saw the house I once loved, I felt okay.  I could say to myself "I used to belong here".

My Little Life

Writer's block.  Lack of inspiration.  Ennui.  Flat affect.  This is my little life at the moment.  The world is moving ahead and leaving me behind.

I'm sure this is a temporary lull.  I have recently begun taking a new medicine for depression.  Stay tuned… I'll be back.