A Moveable Féasta

Musical First Impressions Are Often Wrong -- Mastodon

2011-08-03T22:56:00.000+01:00

I have a bad habit of dismissing musical suggestions from friends and family. While I was a musically ignorant kid, due partially to lack of direction and my parents' vigilance against that damn "explicit lyrics" sticker, once released into college I was free to explore music on my own and found my way from ska-punk to punk to second-wave emo to melodic hardcore to hardcore punk to metal to everything aggressive, angry, and loduer than everything else. As a result of my long descent into more and more obscure musical sub-genres, I have significant overlap in taste with Frank Chow, my brother Tom in Colombian Necktie, and my brothers-in-law. Hell, my wife (a massive golden age of Hollywood and Brat Pack fan) and I can even agree on a playlist from time to time.

The point is that I am a fan of a lot of different types of music and I constantly have a "to listen" list on my iPod or my iTunes. With so much to get through I can be unnecessarily dismissive of suggestions from friends and family. Case in point: Arcade Fire. They're probably my favorite indie-type rock band and I love all three of their albums, but when when my brothers-in-law were raving about them the only thing I knew about them was the performance of Neighborhood #2 (Laika) on Letterman. This is still probably my least favorite track of theirs, but it turned me off at the time and no amount of pleading from my wife or the outlaws could make me give them a second try.... until I just decided to have a listen one day to something else on Funeral and ended up loving it.

Another more recent example of my musical close-mindedness is Bon Iver. Now, to be fair, all I had was a name and "have you heard of this guy?" from my brother-in-law (again), but I ignored it for months until Pitchfork was lavishing praise and Justin Vernon was appearing on late night talk shows to perform Flume or something. All the sudden For Emma, Forever Ago was everywhere and it was my new favorite album. I still think it's a near-perfect album.

Fast forward to 2009. Actually, rewind to 1998. In high school, the metalheads were jerks. So were the punk types. I had a hard time looking past the cover of the book and actually giving stuff a try (plus I was in the midst of discovering Led Zeppelin courtesy of my friend John and trying to learn every lyric of every Beatles song ever recorded). Long story short: I didn't have a great impression of heavy metal. This changed in college when my friend Greg started detailing all the overlap between hardcore and metal and the infinite cross-pollination that was going on in the metalcore sub-genre. Then, in 2001, heartbroken over a failed relationship and horribly angry about the September 11th terrorist attacks, I found Converge's Jane Doe and fell in love with music all over again. Refused's Shape of Punk to Come and American Nightmare's (or Give Up the Ghost's) Background Music were also hugely influential on my tastes at the time. Over the past decade I've been trying more and more metal, checking out artist recommendations and seeing where all the influences fit.

Despite my attempts to broaden my horizons into heavy metal, I still make mistakes.

Flash forward to 2009 (for real this time). I'm at the With Full Force festival near Leipzig in the former east Germany. Having woken up at 4am for a 6am flight to Berlin, rented a car, stocked up on beer, and driven to the festival, I was wrecked. On the bill for that evening, just after sunset, were Mastodon. These guys had already racked up some serious buzz in the US from Blood Mountain and had just released Crack The Skye. I'd been passed a burned copy of Blood Mountain and wasn't captivated instantly by it, but I wanted to give them a try live so my buddy Ross and I wandered into the main festival area, grabbed some food, and sauntered over to a good spot on the field where we could see the stage, the big screens, and could easily make runs to the bar for cheap and delicious beer. Mastodon were already on and after wolfing down my food, I sat down in a spot that I could still see.

I fell asleep. There really is no excuse other than sleep deprivation combined with a couple pints of beer consumed in central European summer heat, but -- damn -- it as a hardcore and metal festival! Seriously lame. After waking up from my nap I made some half-assed comment to Ross about how I didn't see what the big deal with Mastodon was and he agreed. He'd fallen asleep too. Seriously lame.

Flash forward again, this time to 2011. I was surfing Metal Sucks and Metal Injection and noticed a story about the new Mastodon album. I don't know what was different on that day, but I decided that I would download all four of their albums and give it a shot. Impulse buy. After reading up on them on Wikipedia, checking out some reviews, and watching the video below -- Letterman's not joking, they have been nominated for a Grammy -- I decided I'd been way too hasty in writing them off.

They're excellent. This is complex, interesting, harsh, and yet melodic metal from a bunch of guys who have managed to change their sound while maintaining their core identity as an aggressive heavy metal band. They experiment without being self-indulgent. They incorporate melody but not the throwaway "we should do some clean vocals here" melody insertion that is standard in -- and has ruined -- other bands. They're also progressive without descending into jam band bouts of musical masturbation. They're also quite intelligent. I mean, Leviathan is a concept about Herman Melville's Moby Dick! Blood Mountain is about the various dangers encountered while ascended aforementioned mountain.

Crack the Skye's concept is... well, it's this:

"There is a paraplegic and the only way that he can go anywhere is if he astral travels. He goes out of his body, into outer space and a bit like Icarus, he goes too close to the sun, burning off the golden umbilical cord that is attached to his solar plexus. So he is in outer space and he is lost, he gets sucked into a wormhole, he ends up in the spirit realm and he talks to spirits telling them that he is not really dead. So they send him to the Russian cult, they use him in a divination and they find out his problem. They decide they are going to help him. They put his soul inside Rasputin's body. Rasputin goes to usurp the czar and he is murdered. The two souls fly out of Rasputin's body through the crack in the sky(e) and Rasputin is the wise man that is trying to lead the child home to his body because his parents have discovered him by now and think that he is dead. Rasputin needs to get him back into his body before it's too late. But they end up running into the Devil along the way and the Devil tries to steal their souls and bring them down…there are some obstacles along the way." -- Brann Dailor, drummer

Oh and the title track is also about his sister's suicide at the age of 14. Yes, really. Whether you dig this kind of concept album stuff or not, these guys are putting tons of thought into these albums. You have the music, the lyrics, the artwork is phenomenal... now I see why these guys are one of the most important metal bands around today.

In short, there are only two explanations. My tastes have changed massively or I didn't give them a proper try when I first heard of them. While I'd like to take the easy way out and say I just "wasn't ready for them at the time" or something else while I gaze at my navel, given my track record I was probably just being a massive douche, tired, and slightly drunk in a field in Germany.

Mastodon, I apologize. You rule.

PS Their new album The Hunter comes out on September 26th.

Their first album was Remission (2002):

Next was Leviathan (2004):

Then came Blood Mountain (2006) and Crack the Skye (2009).

We're Done

2011-07-28T20:12:00.000+01:00

I can't write about it now, but we're leaving Ireland in early September and heading back to the Washington DC area. Despite all that I've enjoyed in Ireland, you can only tread water and build up so much debt before you realize that it's best to cut your losses. Actually, if you're building up debt you're moving backwards, not treading water, so that's even worse. I've submitted my notice at work, we've moved in with my sister-in-law in the north city suburb of Sutton, and as of September we'll be flying back to stay with my parents and start over.

I'll explain more when I can. An almighty rant awaits...

Like heffeweizen from Hell: Experiments in beer drinking

2011-06-28T21:20:00.001+01:00

I mean "from hell" as a compliment, like a badass heffe. Allow me to explain. Last week Frank Chow and I got back to recording our podcast, the Trans-Atlantic Throwdown, which we hope to make a bi-weekly event. Blogging is something of a ranting and/or venting of opinions thing for me, and the TAT has helped me get that kind of stuff out of my system and I haven't had much need to write. Until now.

As part of Episode 8 of TAT, Frank brought up a GQ article that instructed readers to mix their favorite beers with some distilled spirits or liqueurs. Now, growing up in the United States -- and more recently working in an office that works hard and DEFINITELY plays hard -- this recommendation to mix my beer and liquor instantly brings to mind an image of a young man slamming back a quickly curdling concoction and then high-fiving his buddies. You may have heard of the terms "bomb shot" or "depth charge", terms that invoke combat or high explosives and not thoughtful tasting and appreciation of the art of brewing and distilling. Not so with these recipes. It turns out the guy who wrote the article in GQ has his own blog and has not only recommended mixing beer with liquor, but mixing different beers together for endless tasty results. There's more to this than Jägerbombs and Black & Tans.

[Another popular beer-liquor mix is, of course, the drink known as the Irish Car Bomb in the United States. This, like the Black & Tan, has a somewhat touchy history attached to the name due to the most recent Troubles in Northern Ireland.]

Last weekend I ventured into town with my brother-in-law to test out two of the recommended recipes that Frank discussed on the show. First up, dropping espresso into an IPA. The set up:

We had to deviate from the recipe slightly. The only thing approaching an IPA in strength and flavor on tap was the Sierra Nevada Pale Ale. Had we gone to Against The Grain, we may have had a chance at getting Sierra Nevada's Torpedo IPA, but I digress... the bartender did not look at me like a badass when I ordered two beers and two espressos. In fact, the server on his dinner break sitting next to us at the bar began eyeing us up with a very confused look on his face. I think I overheard one bartender saying to the other, "... not the weirdest thing ordered... " My brother-in-law was first up to test it out.

Not a man to do things by half measure, Rob pretty much THREW his espresso into the pint, resulting in a Guiness-like "alive inside" show in the pint glass, but one that quickly erupted like a primary school volcano-replica science project and resulted in much mopping up of beer/espresso mix with beer mats and napkins. Lesson learned. I was a bit gentler with the poor and the results were a huge head and two pints that looked like they contained heffeweizen brewed by Beelzebub himself. Or a root beer float. I can't decide.

It was, in fact, very tasty. In one of those combinations that I never thought would work, the hops, the citrus flavor, and of course the overwhelming coffee taste totally worked together. Also, a caffeine and alcohol buzz feels nice. So, 1 for 1 on the concoctions. I can recommend dropping espresso into a hoppy ale, but I would like to try this again with a really strong IPA.

Next up, the more alcoholic option: limoncello in a heffeweizen. For this, we ended up going with Erdinger Weissbier, which was also on tap as Porterhouse has not brewed up an unfiltered wheat beer lately. First, the set up:

Note the lovely 125th anniversary glasses! We tested two methods here. First, I gently poured my limoncello into the Erdinger. No volcano, just some added bubbles as the liquids mixed. Rob decided to for more of a bomb shot approach. As he held his shot glass of limoncello over the Erdinger, the server who had been sitting next to us said, "It's going to explode!"
Rob: Oh, sorry, I'll pour i--
Server: No, you should DO IT!!!
With that encouragement, Rob dropped the entire shot into the Erdinger. The shot lodged itself in the narrow neck of the glass -- should have anticipated that -- and the beer separated. Wheaty and unfiltered Erdinger stayed above the shot glass while a clear version stayed below.

If you don't mind, I'll lapse into cheesiness and just say that the limoncello-Erdinger mix was like a sunny, summer's day. An alcoholic sunny summer's day -- limoncello is about 35% ABV -- but delicious in any case. Very refreshing, very smooth and very easy to drink. 2 for 2 on the GQ drink recipes!

All told, this experiment was a great success and I think one that should be replicated, especially the espresso concoction, at the mid-way point of a long night out with friends. Instead of Red Bull and vodka, I'd much rather enjoy a hoppy IPA with a coffee kicker. And if you have friends over for a summer BBQ, throwing limoncello into some bottled heffeweizen (poured out into glasses of course).

Comments? Recipes? Reactions?

The Irish Prospect or When The Employed Start Emigrating, Something Is Terribly Wrong

2011-02-15T16:06:00.000Z

My company has a policy whereby if you are involved in winning business for another department you are entitled to claim some portion of the fee the company earns. They call it a cross-sell commission. About eighteen months ago I was involved in one of these transactions but had heard nothing of it in so long that I assumed that the fee hadn’t been big enough to qualify. You can understand my excitement when I got the email from our head of Finance:

Dear XXX,
Please add €200 to Paddy’s pay packet this month for a cross-sell commission.
Signed,
Chief Financial Dude

This came right in the middle of January.

Of course, we have to remember that in December the Irish government announced that almost everyone’s taxes were going up, so I knew my monthly pay would be going down in January. For the record, my pay-check has gone down twice in two Januaries. In the intervening two years I’ve had a child and we’ve taken on all the costs associated with raising a little one: tons of gear, clothes, equipment and a bigger place. In simple language, my costs have gone up while my income has gone down, squeezing our fun money in the middle. So a bumper of €200 to make the end of January that much easier was greatly appreciated.

The new taxes wiped it out. I guess it could have been worse. Unlike most of my colleagues, my January pay was on par with my December pay, not lower than, but it was hard to suppress my gasp as I tore open my payslip to see that my cross-sell had vanished into the Irish Exchequer.

This, along with some other experiences in recent weeks that I can’t discuss here, has started my wife and me on a bout of soul-searching and real serious discussions about the future. What do we want? Should we stay here? Are there opportunities for advancement for us here? While we haven’t arrived at any hard answers, it’s really given me a chance to finally look around and take stock of what’s going on here.

I’ve been really optimistic about Ireland. Sure, it hasn’t been easy to watch the Government dump money into the banks and then saddle the average taxpayer with more taxes, but overall I’ve been very upbeat on Ireland. The weather’s not great, but pub culture is a lot of fun. In the first two weeks of January my parents were in town and I saw two Leinster matches with Dad – I loved it! My wife and I have made a real effort to get out and see as much of Dublin as possible, even the lesser-known parks where our daughter can really stretch her legs. And, finally – and one of the major reasons I wanted to move to Ireland – we’re on Europe’s doorstep. An entire continent – at least one entire continent -- of history, sites and tastes to experience!

…Except it doesn’t do much good to be on Europe’s doorstep if you can’t even afford the plane tickets to get there. A couple of weeks ago my wife and I tried to plan a long weekend in some European city. We had to scrap it; it’s just not doable on our monthly budget any more.

I don’t write this to whine about my finances. Unlike 13.4% of the Irish labour market, I’ve got a job and I can pay my bills. I live in a nice place in a great part of town and can live without a car. I’ve managed to get out and see Paris, Venice, Budapest and part of southern France. And, like most people, I could do without so much drinking and dinners out on the town (which now cost more due to babysitters). And Dublin is still a great place to live, I think. There’s plenty to do here and I have friends with whom I can share the good times.

The issue is that every single member of the Irish middle class now has their financial future tied to the economic/banking crisis in a way that I couldn’t have imagined a couple of short years ago. Business is slow to recover. The economy is growing again, but most of the growth is coming from the exports sector – a sector that will not deliver job growth to the thousands of young, (mostly) male workers who were in construction and industry before the crash. Growth is also not fast enough to ensure a raise or promotions for people like me who have worked through the recession. In my office, the only people getting raises and promotions are those who are jumping ship and moving on to a new company or industry.

This has helped me to reconsider my view of the Irish emigrant. Back when the recession was first starting – and well before the vast majority of people had any idea of the black hole in the baking system -- the ever-pessimistic Irish media was quick to resurrect that old Irish bogeyman: mass emigration. My opinion just two years ago was that emigrants were too quick to abandon Ireland. Maybe that was my American optimism, but now I can see that they were right. The Government has put no real effort into jobs programs, instead relying on a magical link between fixing the banking system, getting lending going again and job creation.

So, to those who can afford the ticket to UK, Australia, Canada or the US, I say, “Best of luck.”

The real problem is that it’s not just the unemployed who are contemplating emigrating. It’s not just new graduates from Irish universities who are finding it difficult to get work at home. It’s those who feel they are at risk of stagnating here by staying. When your gross salary has been the same for three years, you haven’t had a bonus and as a result of tax increase and welfare reductions your take-home pay seems to drop every January… why would you want to stay if you have an offer elsewhere?

I realize this is easy for me to say. I’m the son of a US Army officer with plenty of experience picking up and leaving places and settling somewhere else. My family is pretty well accustomed to long distances and infrequent visits. There is no way for me to comprehend the anguish that some families – some of whom feel deeply tied to the county and country from which they hail -- must be feeling at seeing their child, brother or husband effectively forced out of Ireland due to the lack of employment prospects.

But I’m starting to understand the reasons why they’re leaving. At first it was just a trickle of non-Irish nationals who had worked in industries hardest-hit by the recession. Then there were rumours of real Irish emigration. Then there were articles in the sports pages about the GAA having trouble fielding teams in some counties and towns because of the drain of young men and women looking for work. Now people like me are looking at their situation and wondering: how long do I have to muddle through this? Where is my life headed?

For me, it’s come down to this: it is unsurprising, albeit unfortunate, when the unemployed go abroad to find work. People have always moved to find work and support themselves. But when the relatively stable and employed residents of a country start looking around and asking aloud what they’re doing here, it must become obvious to the leaders of this country that something is horribly wrong and something has to be done quick.

When Irish Eyes Are Crying... nailed it.

2011-02-15T16:02:00.000Z

For anyone who hasn't yet read it, I highly recommend Michael Lewis' summary of the Irish economic situation entitled When Irish Eyes Are Crying, printed in the latest issue of Vanity Fair. Lewis gets most things right, especially his brief profiles of Irish politicians and economists. There are a couple odd editing misses, however, like when he writes that the banks are older than Ireland itself. Ireland is an island; he obviously means the independent Irish state, which came into existence in the early 1920's and was, before that, a part of the United Kingdom. But for the most part its an excellent piece that, despite its length, flies by.

When Irish Eyes Are Crying by Michael Lewis

This says it all

2010-12-24T21:46:00.000Z

Nollaig Shona Daoibh or Y'all have a merry Christmas.

2010-12-23T12:11:00.000Z

I used up all my vacation days this year -- two weddings in the US for me and one for my wife to attend plus a week in the US for Thanksgiving -- so here I am showing my face in the office on the 23rd of December. The workload is light in late for my team in December, so I've done my best to stretch out my few tasks over the past three days and even done a couple of things I normally wouldn't. The second deep-freeze in a month has dropped another several inches of snow and ice on Ireland, just as people were scraping the last of the ice from the previous freeze off the sidewalks. The bad weather combined with the Christmas weekend coming up means that more people than usual just packed it in and headed for the family home to begin Christmas early. Walks home have been through a very quiet south Dublin. My wife and daughter are out in Galway and I should be joining them tonight when I drive across from Dublin with my sister-in-law, brother-in-law and his girlfriend tonight.

This Christmas should be one of mixed feelings. The lovely Sue, who began as a nanny to the four "kids" of my wife's family but became so much more to the whole family, is no longer with us and this first Christmas will no doubt be tough in many ways due to her absence. She took care of so much of the Christmas preparations out in Galway that I'm sure there will be some adjusting to be done as we all try to pick up the slack and make it a nice Christmas for each other.

On the upside, my daughter has just turned one year old, so it'll be a joy to see her experience Christmas in her own new way. She doesn't yet know about Santa Claus, but she'll be dazzled by the lights, the tree, the wrapping paper, the couple of new gifts we've gotten her and all the attention that will be lavished on her by her grandparents, aunt and uncles. I'm looking forward to creating new traditions with her as she gets older and starts figuring out what's going on around her. I'm sure that the traditions in my family evolved over time, but in my head there was always some sort of pattern: early morning wake-up, an endless wait for Mom and Dad to get out of bed and get their coffee, opening of presents, small-scale warfare over what movie to watch, a big early dinner.

Later, to the list of Christmas traditions we added the Christmas Eve soup (usually cream of curried chicken from the Silver Palate cookbook), the Christmas Eve party and a convoy of guests, Catholic or not (all were welcome), to Midnight Mass at St. Mary of Sorrows Catholic Church. The family has also embraced The Pogues' classic Fairytale of New York, which must of course be sung in swaggering, slightly off-key style. Now I have Christmas in rural Co. Galway with paper hats at dinner, plenty of Christmas movies, Scrabble, Scattegories, and a visit from my parents around New Year. Some people lament the loss of that childhood Christmas feeling, but I think I'm enjoying my adult Christmasses just as much.

The last few Christmases have been eventful to say the least. Just five years ago, my first Christmas as a married man was a tough one. Due to a mix-up with my paycheck from the Army, I got a big payment of $0 right before Christmas. This left me and my new bride with no money to travel with -- although we debated getting on a military "Space A" flight -- and no money for gifts. A generous Christmas loan from the bank of Dad kept us flush enough to get by and although the first Christmas away from her family was tough, I can't help smiling remembering our first Christmas as husband and wife. With money extremely tight due to the pay mix-up, I only gave her "Gift of the Magi" by O'Henry, a story she'd never read. I drove onto Fort Bragg and invited some of the lower-ranking soldiers who were stuck on post for Christmas to join us for dinner. The only one took us up on the offer: Specialist Benissan, originally from Togo, west Africa. He bowed to my wife when we opened our door to him, he was cheerful and happy throughout dinner and he insisted on cleaning all of the dishes for his hosts. We ended the day by taking a walk, a tradition in my wife's family for Christmas Day, and we dropped a plate of food off with the apartment's security guard.

On my last Christmas before moving to Ireland (two days before moving to Ireland to be exact), things didn't go as planned either. My grandfather, up from Florida with Grandma for the week, had bleeding in his brain and was rushed to Fairfax hospital a couple days before Christmas; a few hours later he had a drainage tube emerging from his skull and so we did multiple trips to the hospital that week. Meanwhile, Dad and my wife began coming down with colds and/or flus and were quickly sent to bed to recover. This left me, my mother, my two brothers and my sister to "do Christmas." We did exchange gifts but I can't remember much more than Dad, half-dazed from his flu and propped up in bed, pulling unwrapped gifts out of a giant plastic bag for us like a hacking, coughing and beardless (well, five o'clock shadow) Santa. Those of us healthy enough to go to mass were piled into the car. Mom didn't even care what we wore so long as we went; plans had been blown to pieces at this point. Once in mass we got a seat right up front on the side of the altar. Then the procession started and my mother realized that her least-favorite priest at the parish, a bit of an awkard guy, was saying mass that Christmas morning. We kept it together until his homily descended into the theological importance of "Twinkle Twinkle, Little Star". He then led the congregation in a sing along a capella. My sister and mother cried. We three boys did the only thing we could -- laugh. We're still laughing about it now, but that Christmas has since entered the family mythology as "Fizzbitch", so named by my brother Tom.

Even the "bad" Christmases -- really just Christmasses that didn't go to plan -- are good Christmases when I look back at them. I know this isn't the case for some people, so I'm thankful that Christmas has remained a positive and happy time of year for me as I've grown up and I'm looking forward to sharing it with my daughter in the coming winters.

The snow just keeps coming down now. The trip out to Galway should be an interesting one this evening. We'll get there eventually.

Nollaig Shona agus Athbhliain faoi mhaise duit.
Happy Christmas and a prosperous New Year to you.

Is this a trap?

2010-12-10T12:24:00.007Z

A couple weeks ago my wife, daughter and I returned from our Thanksgiving trip to the DC area and upstate New York, where we had the annual meal with family friends in a house overlooking the Hudson River at West Point. The trip from Virginia to New York was done by car, with my sister's vehicle going by way of Harrisburg, PA while my drive took in the "lovely" scenery of northern New Jersey on the traditional I-95 route. Having done most of my travel to and from Ireland by air, of course, this was my first road trip in a long time and I relished the opportunity to work with a map and navigate our way around the Thanksgiving traffic congestion. Traffic in parts of Ireland can be bad, especially in Galway, but Irish motorways don't count for much in terms of road-trips. You can do Dublin to Galway in less than 3 hours and you could do Cork to Derry in around 4 hours if there was a straight-shot motorway. Unless you're doing something like the Four Peaks challenge, there aren't many long trips possible in Ireland.

I posted a few months ago about the feeling of returning to Ireland from my "home" country. This time the feeling was far less gloomy. As we descended into Dublin airport, we were informed by the pilot of our plane that there had been significant snowfall and a freeze over most of the island, so we went from the US -- where Thanksgiving kicks off the winter holiday season -- to real winter wonderland (pardon the cliché). I've never been anti-Christmas, but I'd be lying if I said that in recent years the whole lead-up to Christmas hadn't lost some of its excitement for me. I think coming back to a Dublin that looks like a Christmas card helped a bit. I even dug out the Christmas DVD's back at the apartment and I've done my best not to gripe about Christmas music being on in our apartment so much.

So maybe all the Christmas spirit helped me with my post-vacation adjustment back to "real life" or maybe this vacation was just the right length, a week. Enough time with family and old friends enjoying one of my favorite American holidays to feel refreshed, but not so long that I begin to delude myself into thinking that the vacation is a lifestyle.
While my Advent season mood is not as gloomy as I expected, the mood in Ireland is certainly gloomy given the economic developments.

I did my best to ignore Irish news while I was in the US, but everyone kept asking me about the IMF, the EU and everywhere I turned there was Ireland on the front page of US broadsheets. Not only did wife, daughter and I return to a Dublin somewhat trapped under ice, but we returned to an Ireland now in the process of working within the constraints (some self-imposed, others not) of an EU/IMF bail-out and austerity plan. There are three pieces to understanding the direction Ireland is headed in over the next few years.

First, there is the National Recovery Plan (a.k.a. the four-year plan), which lays out the framework for budgets to be announced over the next few years. The most notable aspect of the plan, in my opinion, is the fact that to get back to within Maastricht Treaty provisions, a deficit no higher than 3% of GDP, the Government is engaging in a €15bn correction over four years with "the pain" front-loaded in 2011.

Second, there are the EU/IMF Programme of Financial Support for Ireland Programme Documents, which contain requests for aid and an outline of the standards that the Irish government have to meet on a quarterly basis to stay in good standing. The package, as requested, totals €85bn in the following split:

€45bn from the European Financial Stability Mechanism/Facility and bilateral loans from Sweden, United Kingdom and Denmark
€22.5bn from the IMF
€17.5bn from Irish resources such as the National Pension Reserve Fund (as much as raiding this fund has been discussed over the past two years, I'm surprised there's anything left in there).

The package is coming in at an average annual interest rate of 5.8%.
Finally, we have Budget 2011, which was just announced the other night. This is the Budget which supposedly delivers the front-loaded fiscal correction of €6bn as part of the four-year plan through a combination of tax increases, welfare reductions and the elimination of credits and exemptions in various forms. Not only has the tax-base been widened to include more low-income earners, but pretty much everyone's take-home pay has been reduced by some degree.
I have a few thoughts on the whole economic situation we're in at the moment:

While Ireland was probably cruising for a recession anyway, given that nearly 17% of economic output was in construction (mostly house-building) directly and a great degree of the economy was overly-reliant on residential construction indirectly, the source of Ireland's ongoing solvency and liquidity issues have to do with the banking crisis (also driven by property-related activities). So while I understand the need for some austerity measures to correct the public finances in a small, open economy, as a taxpayer now taking ANOTHER hit on my take-home pay I want to see the plan for the banking sector.... where is it? With all the plan-writing and Budget-debating going on, we still can't get a straight answer on what is going to happen in the very part of the economy that is now tying the millstone of an IMF "rescue" package around the State's collective neck. Mergers? Acquisitions by foreign banks? Closing down of banks that are now nationalised and will never again operate as proper financial institutions? Tell us something! Stephen Kinsella, University of Limerick, has more on this in a Thanksgiving Day post at The Guardian's (UK) new Ireland blog.
While there is some talk online in the blogs and in the op-ed pages of a lot newspapers suggesting that Ireland should default on its debts, I don't think this will happen. What I do think will happen, however, is that it will become obvious in the next year or 18 months that the cost of financing the sovereign debt -- both the EU/IMF funds and the previously auctioned bonds -- is unsustainable and there will have to be some adjusting of the terms of the agreement. Ireland is juggling several balls at the moment: restore growth to the economy, restore the deficit to within EU rules, and pay off its debts accrued to finance the deficit. The annual tax take is around €30bn; the cost of the EU and IMF funds will be somewhere around €4bn per annum. Then you factor in the costs of paying back bonds auctioned off previously and Barry Eichengreen's assertion that 10% of national income is going to go to paying off debts is not inconceivable. Of course, it would be far less a burden if the tax take was higher, which could happen if there's economic growth...
...but I don't think economic growth is going to accelerate as a result of these budgetary changes. As Karl Whelan (UCD) points out, the rationale behind the front-loading of the budgetary correction into Year 1 of 4 was to reassure international bond markets so that when Ireland ran out of cash sometime in 2011, it could borrow on international markets at more reasonable rate. Now that the EU/IMF package is in place, there's no need to reassure bond markets, because we won't be borrowing from them. So, with the economy still weak -- core retail sales are skipping along the bottom and the long-term unemployment is now at 6.5% -- the extraction of €6bn from the economy is probably going to depress the economy further and make deficit-GDP targets all the more difficult to attain.
Where is the blood in the streets with regards to the overpaid politicians? I previously wrote here that I thought the IMF would be far more ruthless in cost-cutting than the Government could be due to vested interests, but so far there's no sign in any of the documents that this is going to happen aside from the usual platitudes and vague language about efficiencies and waste reduction. Yes, the Taoiseach and his ministers are taking pay cuts in the deal, but they're still some of the highest-paid politicians in the world. Brian Cowen (or his successor) will still make more than Barack Obama or David Cameron even after taking a €14K paycut. On this issue, I would welcome more ruthless cutting from the new EU/IMF overlords but like the bank restructuring, the exposing of how well the Irish political class has been paying itself has received little attention.

In my humble opinion (and there are plenty out there on this topic to choose from), both the self-inflicted policies and those foisted upon Ireland by its European neighbors are actually counter-productive to the expressed goals of these measures. That leads me to ask, is this a trap? I'm not implying a conspiracy here, but I do think we've laid an elaborate trap for ourselves and we're walking straight into it. We need growth to help pay down the debt, but as a condition of the debt we're now taking measures that will stifle growth. The EU, for its part, doesn't want to see a domino of sovereign defaults or the possible disintegration of the Eurozone, so they're happy to leave certain vested interests untouched.
Don't even get me started on bondholders and the EU. European Commission über alles.
I leave you with the best music for cold weather I've ever heard:

I'm About to Have a Brain Aneurysm - a comment on the Irish media's response to IMF aid

2010-11-19T12:13:00.003Z

For what died the sons of Róisín?

Was it greed?

Was it greed that drove Wolfe Tone to a paupers death in a cell of cold wet stone?

Will German, French or Dutch inscribe the epitaph of Emmet?

When we have sold enough of Ireland to be but strangers in it,

For What Died the Sons of Róisín, was it greed?

To whom do we owe our allegiance today?

To those brave men who fought and died that Róisín live again with pride,

Her sons at home to work and sing,

Her youth to dance and make her valleys ring,

Or the faceless men who for Mark and Dollar, betray her to the highest bidder?

To whom do we owe our allegiance today?

-- Luke Kelly, The Dubliners

Based on the front pages of the Irish newspapers today, you'd think that the impending IMF/EU aid package made the past eight decades of an independent Irish state irrelevant. The Irish Times today expanded its Letters to the Editor section to two full pages, and focussed the contents on letters responding to their editorial entitled Was it for this? In an opening paragraph lacking entirely in editorial self-awareness, the editorial board ponders:

"IT MAY seem strange to some that The Irish Times would ask whether this is what the men of 1916 died for: a bailout from the German chancellor with a few shillings of sympathy from the British chancellor on the side. There is the shame of it all. Having obtained our political independence from Britain to be the masters of our own affairs, we have now surrendered our sovereignty to the European Commission, the European Central Bank, and the International Monetary Fund. Their representatives ride into Merrion Street today."

I guess they sort of mitigate the outrageousness of this opener by mentioning (two paragraphs later) that Ireland never had complete sovereignty due to its "enhancement" as a member of the EU. They probably know they have to walk a fine line on this, given the Irish Times' support of the Lisbon Treaty, including the second vote that took place just over a year ago. Apparently supporting the further integration of the EU through a treaty that was a repackaged Constitution of Europe was a fantastic idea; accepting an aid package to rescue to economy and set it back on a sound fiscal path is tantamount to a betrayal of the legions of Irish patriots in their graves. Give me a break.

I'm willing to admit that minds can change and that opinions shift. If I am giving the IT the benefit of the doubt, it could be that now that the crisis has reached fever pitch, the independence of Ireland has a new value. You don't know what you have until you've lost it (even though I don't think they've really lost it).

The Irish Times conflation of IMF aid with a loss of independence looks downright reasonable next to the front page of the Irish Examiner (formerly the Cork Examiner). In a downright embarassing display, Shaun Connolly and the Irish Examiner take the 1916 Proclamation of the Irish Republic and make a mockery of it with their "Declaration of Dependence":

"IRISHMEN AND IRISHWOMEN: In the name of God how have we come to this? And in the name of the dead generations from which she received her old tradition of nationhood, Ireland, through our new masters at the European Central Bank summons her children to her financial sovereign funeral."

Let's assume for a second that we accept the signers of the 1916 Proclamation as sainted heroes who died for Irish independence. (Note that while this is the majority opinion, other opinions on Easter 1916 are available.) What is a greater disrespect to their memory, the capitulation of the Fianna Fáil government in the face of the worst recession in Irish history or the blatant disrespect shown to one of the modern Irish state's founding documents?

Don't misunderstand me, I'm no fan of the Irish government's policies over the last couple of years. It now appears that after more than two years of being misled by the banks -- please, sir, can I have some more billions? -- that the State is in the position of letting the IMF do what it wouldn't, couldn't or just didn't do: nationalise and restructure the majority of the banking industry. But the decisions of the Government come from the fact that they are, in fact, THE GOVERNMENT and despite my misgivings about the Irish political system as it now operates, they were elected to their positions legally. The old adage about getting the government we deserve still applies. As such, the fact that these folks were elected and are now in the government is a fulfillment of the aims of Irish patriots of the past. I'm sure the "glorious dead" of past Irish independence struggles, both political and by force, would have hoped for a more noble and stable outcome for their nation 80 years after independence and nearly 100 years since the Easter Rising, but a free and democratic society precludes getting to choose your outcomes.

All of which brings me back to the subject of this post: I'm about to have a brain aneurysm. The negativity and self-loathing is now at an all-time high ("all-time" referring to my three years living in Ireland) and I don't think I can take it any more. Yes, your politicans betrayed you and dragged this economy to the edge. Yes, there are a lot of problems to deal with in the economy and in the political system. Yes, we are now "cap in hand" to the IMF and the EU looking for assistance with our problems. Strange days, harsh times.

But, in my humble Irish-American immigrant opinion, this is not the time to begin self-flagellation, dressing in sackcloths or setting ourselves on fire out of sheer embarassment. Now that everything done in print media is online and (mostly) free, everything written in this vein is subject to being picked up and re-reported around the world. You can not complain about the depiction of Ireland as a priest-ridden European backwater on the one hand and feed the international media stereotype monster on the other. So what's the alternative?

Show some self-respect. State the facts. Drop this preposterous obsession with "putting a positive spin on things" and its ugly cousin that I like to call "only in Ireland" negativity. How about some realism? The banking sector and the political classes' enabling of the banking-fueled property bubble has brought the country to this point. Time to pick ourselves up, dust ourselves off, face up to our problems and take the help needed to get the country back on track.

In a few more generations, what will have been the greater gift? Accepting IMF aid, rolling up our sleeves and getting Ireland back on track OR becoming so obsessed with our own misfortunes so as to establish a financial Great Famine for our grand-children to point to as the source of Ireland's misery? The Irish Economy 2.0 or "Black 2010"? I prefer the former.

What the hell is going on in Ireland?

2010-11-17T09:46:00.005Z

I've been remiss in my blogging lately (although I've been keeping up with my Trans-Atlantic Throwdown podcasting with Frank Chow), but I've been getting lots of messages through other online channels on the whole IMF/EU bail-out things that's going on these days. A lot of the news reports seem to contradict each other, but what I can say is that there are IMF and EU people in Dublin right now in talks with the Government. The Government is yet to request a bail-out, but is likely to do so over the next few days. The issue with accepting a bail-out is, of course, the loss of sovereignty (IMF bail-outs come with conditions) and this is a thorny issue for Irish people, given the history.

I have a couple of thoughts on the issue:

If I were running the Government, I would have already figured that I'm out of power in the next election anyway, so why not try to get the austerity budget started and make a go of fixing things in the country? If it doesn't work, THEN I can still request IMF/EU aid.
As a taxpayer, I'm thinking the IMF/EU conditions might actually be better than letting the Government do things themselves. While we're expecting a €6 billion correction in the Budget in December anyway, the IMF will be far more ruthless in their cuts. A lot of the exorbitant pay, pensions and benefits of the Irish political class will be exposed and subject to severe cutting, one hopes. The little guy gets screwed either way, so at least under the IMF there is hope that the politicians and bankers will take some pain too.

There are a lot of people smarter than me having a go at the current situation, so for those interested in the ongoing debate and negotiations, I have included the following links:

The Economist's new piece, Threadbare.
Central Bank governor Patrick Honohan gave his take on Morning Ireland today.
Corporate tax rate under threat? FT says there will be a showdown.
Prof. Kevin O'Rourke (Trinity) wonders a) what's more palatable to the Irish public? and b) Is there some logical inconsistency amongst the Irish economic optimists?
UK paper The Guardian has put together an entire blog devoted to the Irish situation. Several Irish academics are contributors.
Okay, now the Minister for Finance says they may accept the aid package.

If I can keep up with it, more to come.

The Trans-Atlantic Throwdown

2010-10-13T16:52:00.005+01:00

After fifteen years of friendship and endless hours spent ranting at each other over any subject worth discussing, Frank Chow and I have decided to start a (hopefully) weekly podcast called The Trans-Atlantic Throwdown. We'll be discussing, mostly, politics, craft beer/liquor and rock music of the underground variety. The podcast will be distributed via a dedicated blog of the same name and on iTunes in the near future. The first episode is up and running and we welcome comments, suggestions, criticism and healthy debate, so let us know what you think!

UPDATE: The Trans-Atlantic Throwdown is now available on iTunes!

Website: http://trans-atlanticthrowdown.blogspot.com/
Twitter: TATPodcast
Email: tatpodcast@gmail.com
iTunes: http://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/trans-atlantic-throwdown-podcast/id398106201

Summary information and link to audio below:

Four Peaks Challenge!

2010-10-12T16:36:00.003+01:00

Well, it was several weeks ago now -- I can't believe it's been a month since I did the Four Peaks Challenge! It was a great time, to say the least, but I was wrecked for nearly a week (the picture above is a very wet, tired and cold Paddy K finishing the event). As the leader of our team (and Four Peaks Challenge veteran) remarked, "It was a weekend on the piss with a few hill walks in between." And that would be an accurate assessment. I don't know what wiped me out more, drinking every night till the early hours or hiking for three to four hours every day and six hours on Sunday! We raised €7,000 for Focus Ireland's counseling services and it's something I would definitely do again. A brief rundown of the event is below.

Thursday: leave work at 3 pm. Drive to Killarney, Co Kerry. Driver (Four Peaks veteran) is driving like a maniac. We make it in one piece and stay in a lovely guest house owned by a former colleague's family in Fossa, near Killarney. We go out for a huge dinner and night on the town in Killarney.

Friday: Driver is up early making us a breakfast at 8 am despite not getting home from drinks until 4 am. We pile into the van and head for Carrauntoohil. The weather is glorious. The climb is tough, but the views are spectacular. Four hours later we're back down in the van. Back to house, shower and change, re-load van, head to Connemara, Co Galway. Driver still driving like maniac, despite windy roads. We arrive in Leenane, Co Galway where Driver's family has B&B and pub. We drop bags and resume eating and drinking. I don't remember going back to bed.

Saturday: Another early morning has us up for a full Irish breakfast AND porridge. Gotta carb-load. We load vans and head for Mweelrea, which is over the harbour in Co Mayo. We're paying for the beautiful weather on Day 1 now, and the climb is minimal visibility and lashing rain and wind. We basically get to the top (after a slight detour off track), snap a photo and make our way down, missing a checkpoint due to fog. We all make it down in one piece in about three hours, though, and we head to the local GAA club to shower and dry off. Van starts to smell of feet. We drive 5 hours across the island to Newcastle, Co Down, where we crash at a B&B owned by two of the stingiest people I've ever met. Chinese dinner. Drinks at hotel next door. Collapse into bed.

Sunday: The big one. We assault Slieve Donard in the Mourne Mountains at 6 am, heading up in the dark. The UK's National Trust has laid a path most of the way, so navigating is no issue, but it's steep on the first part. The second part is just a matter of following the Wall of Mourne (26 mile demarcating line surrounding the Belfast reservoir), but it's steep. Snap picture with tower at the top and head back down. Strip naked and change in parking lot at base. Load vans and head to Wicklow. Lunch in Avoca in Dublin. Get to Lugnaquilla but assaulting from different side. Tons of false crests, what a mind-f#ck. Get to the top in the midst of GAA All-Ireland Football. Call for updates. Down loses by one point, driver loses €80. Finally make it to bottom where we find out we were the second fastest team. Showers, couple of pints, get into van and head back to Dublin. Home around 10 pm and work in the morning!

Focus Ireland has a summary of the event here.
Tons of photos from the event are here.

Sneak Preview: The Four Peaks Challenge - Lugnaquilla

2010-09-08T15:26:00.010+01:00

A few weeks ago an email was circulated around the office by one of our higher-level directors. The content was fairly straight-forward: who wants to help raise money for the homeless and as your reward climb four mountains in three days and drive nearly 1,000 kilometres? Maybe it was the time I spent in the Boy Scouts at hiking camp or perhaps it was the concept of hiking up mountains WITHOUT an M-4 and what feels like 100 lbs on my back -- I never thought I'd want to camp again -- but I volunteered almost instinctively. Somehow I found myself as a "team leader", although my duties have been fairly minimal. Not only do we have a somewhat organized woman on our team, but the guy organizing the entire expedition did it last year so there's really little for me to do but name the team. So I named us Black Ops -- modest, I know -- and got fundraising.

Fundraising hasn't been so bad. An email to friends and family a couple times, combined with donations from clients and business connections through my team members and we've reached our goal of €4,500 and surpassed it. A bake sale at the office raised more than €700 which will be split between our office's two teams and a table quiz held up north by that very organized woman on our team raised another €800. It's never fun to beg for money, but we've reached our goal and it's going to a good cause, so it was worth it.

Now comes the hard part. When I started my master's degree (which is all done now, thankfully) I pretty much gave up on exercising. Since finishing exams and turning in the thesis, I've been making an attempt at getting out to run a few mornings a week. Afraid that we were over-confident, however, and to get a sneak peek at the kind of conditions we could face up on the mountains, my friends Bryan and Robert and I headed down to Wicklow National Park on a Sunday morning to scale Lugnaquilla, the highest peak in the province of Leinster and the final peak that we'll climb in the Four Peaks Challenge.

Like I mentioned before, this is the first time I've been out doing "outdoorsy" activities in a while and it's been an even longer while since I got out to do "outdoorsy" things in a non-military setting, so there were some up-front costs. Had to get the waterproof jacket, had to get the thermal layer, had to get the boots. Luckily I have socks and some Under Armor-type base layers so that saves me a bit. But, with all my gear collected, the three of us piled into Bryan's tiny Euro-car and headed south into the Wicklow mountains. Less than an hour later we were in the beautiful mountain scenery and the fog.

Holy crap, the fog. Conditions were not the best for climbing. From an area of Wicklow called Glenmalure, south of the village of Laragh, we parked the car and threw on our boots and headed to the base of the trail, just down the one-lane asphalt road in the glen. The initial ridge we had to get up was capped by what appeared to be a fairly thick cloud. Between the fog on the mountain-top, the eerie light and the pine trees, I couldn't help thinking about Wolves In The Throne Room's Diadem of Twelve Stars album (I've been listening to a lot of US black metal lately). The video below displays the album art, not a picture of Wicklow, although we started our climb at a waterfall and there were plenty of mist-covered pines to provide a similarly spooky atmosphere.

We started on a part of the trail marked on the map as The Zig-Zag and it didn't take us long to ascend the first ridge or for visibility to start dropping. We couldn't appreciate the view below because of a cloud obscuring our vision and we couldn't see the peak we were trying to ascend because fog up there had dropped to hide the peak as well. So we just kept climbing. There were a lot of sheep. And their droppings. About two hours later, just one or two water breaks and additional layers of clothing having been applied we reached the top ridge of the mountain that leads to the summit.

Visibility dropped to less than 20 feet. The wind picked up. Instead of just damp fog, rain started coming down hard. The compass and the water resistant map came in really handy at this point. Although we really couldn't see the trail ahead of us, aside from the puddles created by previous hikers' boots and the exposed rocks surrounding the trail, we made it to the summit just a few minutes later and had a quick snack.

The climb down was far less eventful, although despite our best efforts to go down the way we came up, we managed to hit The Zig-Zag from a different angle. It was muddier, so we had to watch our steps, but we hit the car fairly quickly and proceeded to the nearest pub at a hotel in Laragh, where the two of us not driving hammered back a couple of belly-warming shots of whiskey and a pint of the black stuff to reward ourselves.

Lessons learned:
- Waterproof pants, if available in your size, are good to have. I climbed in shorts and although I was warm, I was very wet from the mist and rain. The water ran down my legs into my socks and boots, which could have created problems on a longer hike.
- Put everything in zip-lock bags. This is so obvious, but somehow I'd forgotten this very basic rule from Rucksack Packing 101 in the Army.
- Hiking for fun, not for war, is fun! It's actually fun!

I'm really looking forward to the full Four Peaks Challenge now. It'll be a hard slog, especially when we revisit Lugnaquilla, Wicklow on the last day of the Challenge, but judging by Sunday there will be a lot of fun involved and plenty of laughs.

Eircom is the Worst Thing About Ireland

2010-07-27T17:33:00.006+01:00

Below is the text from an email I wrote to the customer care centre at Eircom, after being informed by Niamh (poor Niamh who got an earful on why her company sucks) that the order for a phoneline in my new place had been entered incorrectly, and therefore I would have to wait an additional ten working days for a phone line.

Dear Sir or Madam,
I have been trying to get a phone line installed in my new apartment since late June. My first call to Eircom resulted in a phone number, account number and an appointment with the technician. In advance of the appointment, I received a confirmation call from a woman who checked the location of my apartment in the building. I confirmed that my apartment was on the top floor of LEPRECHAUN* House, TOORA-LOORA Road. On the of the appointment, however, the technician went to 43 TOOLA-LOORA Road. When I told him of his mistake, he informed me that I had to make the new call to Eircom to set up the new order.

This is ridiculous, as it was not I who messed up the order. I spelled out my address clearly to the woman who set up the order AND I received a confirmation call on teh location of my apartment. I am a native English speaker and was crystal clear about my need for a phone line in a prompt manner. The customer should not have to rectify Eircom's mistakes.

Upon calling to reorder, the address was fixed and double-checked and I was given a date of 12 July betwen 0900 and 1200 for installation. A technician failed to call or arrive. I called 1901 and was told that no such order existed for my name and/or address. Niamh (the phone operator) told me I would have to wait an additional 10 working days to get the phone line in, even though -- at this point -- I have already been forced to wait over a month for my phone line to be installed. However, nothing can be done, I'm told. I just have to wait AGAIN.

If I was a politician or a powerful businessman, I doubt this is the response I would receive. However, since I am just an average citizen, I have to sit tight WITHOUT A WORKING PHONE LINE and wait for Eircom to figure something out that I have had to explain three times now.

This is unacceptable. Eircom is the owner of the network and, as such, has a responsibility to serve the people residing in this country who wish to utilise its services. It is absolutely ridiculous that when Eircom makes a mistake it is the customer who has to rectify the errors. It is obvious to me (having lived in this country for more than two and a half years now) that Eircom takes its customer base for granted and that the words "customer service" are not in the company's vocabulary. It is not the customer's responsibility to navigate the labrynthine inner workings of Eircom or to educate Eircom's workers on how to properly serve customers.

Eircom, in addition to its financial and managerial issues, obviously needs a culture change from top to bottom. Recently I heard Eircom's CEO on RTE radio talking about cost-cutting. The gentleman obviously felt put-upon that he'd inherited a business in such a state and that he'd have to compete with other phone service providers while at the same time owning the network. I have no sympathy for him when the company he leads is so badly organized, compartmentalised and disconnected from the reality of the people they are supposed to provide services to.

Unless something changes radically -- or you can prove to me that Eircom is serious about keeping my business -- between now and my appointment on the 26th of July (0900 - 1200), I can tell you that I will be switching my services to another provider as soon as my line is active. This is not the first time that Eircom has failed to provide me -- a customer willing to pay for your goods and services -- with what I need in a timely manner.

Sincerely,

*Names have been changed to protect ME.

The technician failed to show up yesterday as scheduled. The guy who felt the wrath of Paddy K (mostly just my ranting about how they're the worst-run company in the world) this time said the line had a fault and requires a different technician. No one called to tell me this, I had to track it down. So much for customer service.

I can't believe these people won't just TAKE MY MONEY AND GIVE ME GOODS AND SERVICES.

Eircom is the worst thing about Ireland. Even the weather is better.

UPDATE: I arrived home today to find a note in the mail. Eircom would like me to either give them my direct debit details or a deposit of €100 to connect. That's right, even though I've used Eircom at all three of my apartments in Dublin, they lack the ability to simply transfer my account to a new address. I have to close and then re-open a new Eircom account each time I move. This means I have no way of building up credit to avoid having to pay a deposit or direct debit.

They can forget it.

I just called 1901 to cancel my account and my installation. Get this: the "cancellation department" only works 9 to 5. What a surprise! And, the first person I spoke with said she couldn't transfer me, I'd have to call back and tell the automated system that I wanted to speak with Service Department. The reason she couldn't just transfer my call? "Too busy". So I dialed 1901 again thinking I'd get the automated system (which I didn't get the first time) and I got the same woman again. This time she transferred me -- I guess it was less busy after a one minute wait. I finally got the privilege of leaving a message for the so-called "cancellation department" or whoever she transferred me to. When the automated voicemail asked for the reason I was calling, it went something like this:

I'm calling to cancel my account with Eircom. After six weeks of your company's screw-ups, I want nothing to do with Eircom. I want to be done with your company. Please cancel my account. My account number is XXXXXXX. There's no need to call me back if you can just cancel my account so I don't have to deal with Eircom ever again. Thanks.

I'd love to threaten violence and recommend certain acts of vandalism, but in this day and age that would just land me in court even though there's a chance that if the judge was an Eircom customer, they'd go easy on me since they know where I'm coming from. Suffice it to say, if you see this logo, spit on it and walk the other way.

Eircom, you suck.

Slow Dublin: A Book Review

2010-06-23T20:20:00.005+01:00

Last weekend was my first Father's Day as a father and my wife bought me a book called Slow Dublin by Anto Howard, which I would describe as a travel book for people who live in the city they're "traveling to" or, more accurately, within. Inspired by the slow food movement, it's a book for people who don't really need to see all the touristy stuff because, well, they live there. I'm pretty much devouring the book right now.

Last weekend was also moving week for my wife, daughter and I. We've relocated from the seaside inner suburb of Sandymount to the slightly more inland Ballsbridge. In terms of snob appeal, we've pretty much landed in the most well-known bastion of upper-class, southside Dublin. But it was an offer we couldn't refuse. Two bedrooms within a ten-minute walk from my workplace, down the street from Lansdowne Road, half the distance to the city centre from our old apartment -- even for a few hundred euros more a month, this place seemed worth it. And we were right. The place is full of light (huge windows) has plenty of space (our master bedroom is about the size of two of our old living rooms) and just seems to make city living easier. Plus, we're on the top floor so we get a decent view of the Pigeon House towers.

[This move actually links in well with Slow Dublin because it coincides with my decision to run every morning before work. Stay with me.]

Now, Dublin gets criticized by its own residents for not being the most pedestrian-friendly city. Despite having a small city centre, a river through the middle of it, two canals and two other rivers -- all with decent boardwalk and/or walking accoutrement -- the sidewalks (footpaths) in the city are of varying width and often uneven. So when you walk or run there's a lot of weaving and dodging involved.

Now, living in Sandymount, I was directing my early morning runs through what would seem to be an ideal setting: the rising sun over the bay, feet stomping on the firm sand left by the ebbing tide, and so on. But, to be honest, I hated it. I had no motivation to run. It seemed like I had the same route every day. Or I had to alternate the same two routes every day. This, I think, had to do with the fact that Sandymount, while being in the Dublin City territory, is quite isolated from the rest of the city. My runs were either two main routes or variations of these. I hate doing laps. I prefer to do one big loop with as few side u-turns (or wrong turns) as possible. I aim for 7 to 8 km or 4 to 5 miles.

My point is this: I'm reading Slow Dublin and it's basically about discovering the city you live in. I knew I enjoyed living here, but this book is telling me about all the small parks and corners of interesting architecture that you never hear about amongst all the touristy major attractions. So I'm heading out for my runs, usually about 6:30 am, and I'm just picking a direction. And, contrary to the previously held belief that I would love running on the beach, I think I prefer running through Dublin city centre before the city really gets moving. There's something really enjoyable about jogging down Grafton Street when it's almost entirely devoid of people and the only obstacle to really striding it out might be a loading or unloading van. The sun's already up, so if the clouds are sparse it's bright and the air is cool but not cold. And, even at a faster-than-walking pace of a jog, I can find all these interesting corners of the city that the book has discovered for me. From my new apartment -- closer to the city centre and at the covergence of several main routes in and out of the city -- my running options are endless.

Here's an article about Slow Dublin from the Irish Times.

You Can/Can't Go Home Again or Europe Versus The US (Revisited)

2010-06-03T17:18:00.005+01:00

I was just in the US for two weeks, having gone over primarily for my sister's wedding over the Memorial Day weekend. Last time I was in the US I was in Florida for my grandfather's funeral, July 2009, so it's been at least 18 months since I was back in my "hometown" of Fairfax, VA, part of the Washington, DC metropolitan area. It's been a great trip, especially with the wedding preparations. The day after my wife, baby daughter and I arrived into Washington National airport, I was at a Washington Nationals game as part of the bachelor party (which included a dangerously-high ABV beer tasting at the Black Squirrel, Adams Morgan). Just a couple days later we were singing karaoke in a Korean bar and restaurant in Annandale (Koreatown) and then it was on to rehearsal dinner, wedding and post-wedding barbecue. My sister looked beautiful, the party was great and it was a lot of fun to see so many people I hadn't seen in years. As is usual at these types of functions, I saw a lot of people but got to spend little time with anyone, but it's hard to complain. In addition to the festivities, I've been enjoying my parents' new patio and extension to the house, complete with new living room, big-screen TV and more channels than you could ever care to watch.

Anyway, having crammed all that in -- plus shopping for some things we can't get in Ireland and two trans-Atlantic flights with a six-month old infant -- it's been interesting to again compare and contrast my life and lifestyle in Ireland with life here in the DC area. A few weeks ago I would have said that nothing could make me doubt the permanence of my life in Ireland, but now, on the come-down from a great holiday with the family, the feelings are much more mixed and confused.

The first US vs IE issue that stands out is commuting. I enjoy long road-trips and I like driving fast like most people, but sitting in a car for an hour or more every day -- and it being necessary to make a living -- is not appealing to me. Mark one for Ireland. Actually, mark one for city centre Dublin, because on the European scale, Ireland actually doesn't score well for public transport. In fact, Dublin doesn't really score well but it's such a small city centre that you can manage on bus, bicyle and foot. Then again, with a new baby in the house and a wife who doesn't share my enthusiasm for hardcore and metal, listening to music would be a lot easier if I had "alone time" in the car.

A big plus to living in the US is convenience. Say what you want about the capitalist, materialist economy of the US, but if you need something you can get it. If you want something you can get it. You just get in your car and go... if you have a car (or live in a downtown area with a decent public transport system). While it's not a daily concern, shopping in Ireland is not easy for me. I'm 6'7" tall, so I need tall jeans and long-sleeve shirts. The only store in Dublin that I can rely on to size clothing for people like me (tall, generally slender) is -- wait for it -- American Apparel. Go figure. When my wife and I were preparing for the trip to the US, we went through our closets and figured out what we needed to replace. There were some clothing items -- basics -- that I hadn't replaced since moving to Ireland. The only clothing I buy from Irish retailers are t-shirts, and that's usually from Hairy Baby.

So my life in Ireland is more convenient in a lot of ways and a lot less convenient in some ways. I like my lifestyle in Dublin, but as I went to bed the night we returned to Dublin, I couldn't help feeling a real sadness at having to leave my family behind. My wife and I will always be in this situation: either her family will be far away or mine will. We have a great set-up in Dublin, though. I have a good job (even in a bad economy), great friends and the Irish life/work balance (and pub culture) really suits me. But you take the bad with the good and so my life here in Dublin has its downsides, primarily a recurring feeling of homesickness even though in reality if I went "home" it would be much less fun than the vacations and visit we now see my family on. Reality would be much more harsh than a two-week summer vacation with a family wedding in the middle.

...and we're back!

2010-05-19T15:52:00.005+01:00

(In sports news, Leinster continues to beat Munster. Despite four losses to Leinster in a row, Munster fans remain obnoxious.)

It's been a long break from blogging, but finally my exams are over and I have a bit of time to rant online about the things that matter most: beer, rock music and news stories that really piss me off. I just completed my second semester of two semesters in pursuit of an MA Econ at UCD. From about January on I was at a dead sprint. A new baby in the house, eight hours of lecture a week, and working when I wasn't at school all took their toll on my time (and my waistline -- no time for exercise). Hoping to keep my further education options open, I went for the "PhD track", meaning I studied the advanced modules (micro, macro and econometrics) in the second semester. If I've done well enough in those courses I qualify automatically for the PhD course at UCD. The problem is, as always, paying the bills so I probably won't get to accept any PhD position, but it's good to have that in my back pocket in case I somehow come into a ton of money and can become a professional nerd.

In the midst of all this scholarly business, my wife and I decided to move out of Sandymount. Sandymount isn't the problem, of course, it's the fact that our building -- once a quiet building of middle class professionals -- quickly descended into a dormitory. A lot of college students in Ireland don't live on-campus and I have a feeling that the property crash has made living in nicer areas a whole lot more affordable for gangs of college students. The rent for our two-bed in Sandymount dropped from €1600/month to €1200/month by the time we moved in -- two or three students could easily afford that. It only took a few weeks of loud parties, smoke-filled hallways and constant all-hours noise for us to realize we had to get out. We'll be moving into Ballsbridge, which on a reverse-snob scale makes me cringe, but it's less than ten minutes walk to my office and so we know the area well.

This weekend I head to the DC area to celebrate my sister's wedding. It should be a busy, but awesome, two weeks of American mayhem.

Currently drinking...
I had a walk (with daughter) from Sandymount to visit Redmonds of Ranelagh last weekend. While doing my usual browse of the greatest beer selection in Dublin, I found three new Irish microbrews by the Dungarvan Brewing Company, Waterford. There was a blonde, a red and a stout and none of them disappointed. All three were full-flavoured and a had a yeast sediment. The label on the side said to store upright and pour "carefully". I'm not sure if this means to avoid the sediment or to pour carefully so as to get as cloudy a beer as possible, but I opted for the latter and enjoyed the beers thoroughly. Maybe I'll try the less cloudy pour next time and compare. In any case, a welcome addition to the small microbrewing scene in Ireland.

Currently reading...
A Farewell to Alms by Gregory Clark. This was one of the recommended books in my History of Economic Development course (lecturers: Cormac Ó Gráda and Ann Carlos) and although I find the central thesis to be lacking, there are a lot of interesting facts and figures and historical nuggets in here.

Currently listening to...
- Dangers "Anger" and "Messy, Isn't It" -- What kind of musical maniac says "f#ck the Beatles?"
- As I Lay Dying "The Powerless Rise" -- another solid release. Looking forward to seeing them at With Full Force in Germany this July.
- BORIS "Japanese Heavy Rock Hits" -- I've barely scratched the surface of this Japanese trio's genre-bending and classification-defying catalog of drones, ambience and stoner/sludge rock.
- Triac "Dead House Dreaming" -- I saw a video of these guys performing at Maryland Deathfest 2009 and liked what I saw/heard. It'll take a couple of listens to see if their grindcore is built to last.

Currently angry about...
- volcanic ash-clouds. If this stupid Icelandic volcano ruins my trip to the US for my sister's wedding, I'll... remain angry because there's nothing you can do about volcanoes. Damn it.
- the Euro tanking this week. Just as I'm about to take my hard-earned (and strong) Euros to the US for two weeks and enjoy being a high-roller, the Euro drops compared to the Dollar. Thanks, Greece!

Europe vs. The United States

2010-01-14T16:03:00.005Z

This topic has been banging around the internet lately (mostly from American sources) so I thought I'd highlight it as it's an interesting topic. Piggy-backing on recent articles by Paul Krugman and others about the pros and cons of Euro-area and EU membership, David Brooks (in The Discussion column) of the NY Times writes about his preference for the American economic system over the European economic system:

I became convinced that our system was better not for the wealth-generating reasons the current bloggers are arguing about, but because it leads to more exciting lives.

And furthermore...

Here’s my point. The American model allows for disruptive change because it is easier for firms to hire new people when they start and shed people if they fail. That makes places like Silicon Valley possible, where you have highly flexible workforces chasing radical new ideas. The European model protects producers more and has greater social trust within companies. That makes steady, gradual innovation more likely — the kind you find at German metallurgic firms. I’m glad the world has both models, but I’d prefer to live in the more dynamic one.

The other big difference is that the American model encourages hard work at the cost of instability. I think that encourages people to maximize their capacities. The continental model encourages less work at the cost of boredom. I knew people in Brussels who went to work at an organization at 25 sitting in one desk, and they could tell you exactly what desk they will be sitting in and what job they will be doing when they retire at 60 or 65. Yawn.

As Brooks' counterpart in the discussion points out, I doubt the 10% of the American workforce that's currently unemployed would love a bit of boredom and job security these days. How do you quantify the benefits of job security? Also, Brooks seems to define excitement in terms of fulfillment in his job. While there certainly are a lot of people in Europe (the Irish public service comes to mind) who know what they'll be doing when they're 65 if they choose to, there are also a lot of people in the US who wish they had more than 14 days paid holidays, a few more national holidays, more lenient welfare policies and a work environment a bit more understanding of the fact that -- oh, I don't know -- people get married and have kids and a life outside of work (see: European parental benefits). Yes, the taxes, on average, are higher in Europe. But so is the percentage of the population that's been outside the borders of their hometown or country. How do you quantify the benefits of travel? It's not uncommon for people I work with to have taken a year off just to travel. If you did that in the US you'd probably be seen as hurting your career.

There may be great gains to be had from a dynamic/unstable labour market, but there are also catastrophic losses when it doesn't work out. High returns, but high risks.

Having lived in Ireland for more than two years now, I've realized the following:
a) I like my time off. I work to live, not the other way around.
b) I like to travel and I appreciate that my boss gives me the time (21 paid days a year) to do it.

From Dublin I can go most places in Europe (and beyond) at a relatively low price. So if I have to accept higher taxes and a bit more Government bureaucracy in my day-to-day life (which isn't very much), then I guess I'm okay with it. I don't feel stifled in my job. I'd be lying if I said that it's what I've always dreamed of doing, but I'm putting my education to good use and my employer is giving me the opportunity to explore more education and roles in the company outside of my job description. Not everyone's experience is the same as mine, but in Ireland I have some level of security and flexibility.

The Great Irish Freeze and Thaw-Out

2010-01-12T13:04:00.008Z

Since about Christmas Eve most of Ireland has either been under ice, under snow or simply freezing -- I'd never seen ice fog before. It's the coldest winter in Ireland in something like 30 or 40 years and lately there's plenty of hand-wringing and panic. It's another thing about Dublin that reminds me of Washington, DC: an inability to cope with the weather. In Ireland's defense, they're just not used to this. There was very little grit or rock salt to thaw the ice, so anecdotal evidence of people falling, banging various extremities (or going unconscious and not being found for hours) abound. There was supposed to be another blizzard on Sunday night, which we all thought would cancel any work in the city centre -- unfortunately, Met Eireann was wrong and here we are, back at work with no bank holiday in sight until St. Patrick's Day. So now it's back to your standard rainy winter in Ireland, which means more flooding for the west and south. Damn it.

The ol' GAA club is back up and running, literally. I can't make it out due to baby, but the Ranelagh Gaels have started pre-season training. This time of year, with football pitches scarce but matches looming, training takes the form of jogging along Sandymount Strand. In that respect, thank God the big thaw has arrived. In other sports news, the 6 Nations rugby tournament returns next month and Ireland -- if they can keep up their winning streak -- may win it again.

Here are a couple of news stories that I'm following lately:

- The leader of the DUP (the largest unionist political party in Northern Ireland) has stepped down temporarily due to some serious family scandals. We're talking cheating wives, teenage lovers, and funneling money from developers to said lovers. This is coming from a right-wing, conservative Christian (Protestant) political party. This story just gets better and better.

- Beer consolidation continues! Heineken just bought up the brewery in Mexico that makes the cerveza I enjoyed before moving to Dublin. The big brewers are getting bigger (and probably more bland). This follows last year's takeover of Anheuser-Beusch by InBev, which caused such an outcry in the US.

Next week I start back at UCD with the second semester of my Masters in Economics, so in the mean time I'm cramming in all the time with my daughter, reading and music I can. Hoping to reverse a personal trend over the last several years, I'm reading The Road by Cormac McCarthy BEFORE seeing the movie. As far as music goes, the playlist below involves some "best of" 2009 that I never got to, as well as recommendations from my brothers and friends. I'm not sure if it's the weather, the short days, or what else, but my tastes lately have become pretty gloomy. I got into a death metal and grindcore rut for a while, so I'm hoping to keep a bit more variety in my musical diet going forward, hence the return of hardcore punk to my headphones. Have a look at the list below. In terms of rock music, it's pretty eclectic, so don't judge the list by one artist:

- Touché Amoré: hardcore punk
- Fuck Buttons: electronica/drone
- Sunn O))): drone/doom metal
- Trapped Under Ice: hardcore punk
- Pissed Jeans: punk
- The XX: indie/electronic
- Phoenix: indie/pop rock
- Grizzly Bear: indie/pop rock
- Cobalt: black metal ("war metal")
- Krallice: black metal

Want to scare yourself? Read The Road while listening to Sunn O))). Doom metal is right. Also perfect for a dark, icy walk home from work.

A Big Year, Best Records

2009-12-31T12:11:00.007Z

I'm only averaging a post every four to six weeks these days, but not without good reason. My daughter Carys was born just three weeks ago, we just had the baptism yesterday and my wife and I have been back and forth to Galway and then busy with family visiting and adjusting to life with a newborn. I haven't posted as much about life in Ireland this year as I'd have liked to, but suffice it to say that it's been a rough year in this country, but one during which I have been able to stay employed and healthy. The Irish economy probably shrank by 6% to 8% over the past twelve months, and unemployment is hovering at 12.5%. The Government is about to invest about €54 billion into removing bad property assets from the banks' balance sheets, more to follow on that. Ireland ratified the Lisbon Treaty, allowing further integration of the EU. Irish rugby had an unbeaten season, finishing up just a month ago with a win over the Springboks (South Africa). The Dubs got hammered out of the running for the All-Ireland football championship by Kerry, who went on to win the whole thing. We had a white Christmas of a sort, with icy fog blanketing the west -- I was in Galway for Christmas -- with layer after layer of frost.

So much for all that news. Hopefully I'll be able to provide more commentary on current events and Irish goings-on in 2010, but with a new baby and 9 more months of graduate school to work through, we'll see how it develops.

Now, on a totally unrelated topic, here's my "Best Records of 2009" list, in no particular order.

1. Bon Iver -- Blood Bank EP
I assume this release was the leftovers from the album For Emma, Forever Ago, but just listening to the first track off the EP and you know this is a good one in its own right. A full-on opener (that may have been too GOOD for the album) and a multi-layered, electronically altered chanting/gospel closer with mellow sounds in-between, it's been on solid rotation along with the full-length from 2008.

2. The Decembrists -- The Hazards of Love
This release took a couple of listens to get used to, but I think I've come to really appreciate it. It's supposed to be a concept album or a rock opera, but you don't really get a feel for the narrative, just the motivations of the characters. There's folk-rock in here, some metal riffage, and plenty of cool lyrics to keep you occupied. Best heard in a single listen so the tracks can blend into each other. I can't decided if I like the closing track, The Hazards of Love 4, or The Rake's Song best.

3. mewithoutYou -- It's All Crazy! It's All False! It's All A Dream! It's Alright!
Here's one from much earlier in the year and one I think has been sorely overlooked in a lot of year-end lists. Nothing revolutionary here, the lyrics are still shouted/spoken and the arrangements are designed to provide moody undercurrents for the tone of the songs, but it's another solid release and one that bears repeated listens.

4. William Elliott Whitmore -- Animals In The Dark
Hat tip to my friend, Ross, who brought a CD of WEW on our road trip from Berlin to Leipzig for the With Full Force festival back in July. While I've been spinning most of this guy's discography this year, this album should get WEW some serious mainstream attention. It's blues and banjo and gravelly baritone vocals to rival Tom Waits. Excellent folk/country that rock fans can enjoy. Best tracks: Old Devils and A Good Day to Die.

5. Reign Supreme -- Testing The Limits of Infinite
I don't know much about these guys, other than that they're on the do-no-wrong hardcore label Deathwish Inc and that this is an album of straight-ahead hardcore. It's a solid album that I really enjoyed.

6. Brand New -- Daisy
Continuing in the direction they started on with their previous album, Daisy goes a bit more off-the-wall, with old scratchy-vinyl intros, screamed vocals (and not just at the screamo breakdowns you'd expect) and plenty of angular and angsty indie rock guitar work. While I'm annoyed with all their media dodging and seeming annoyance at their success, I really like this album.

7. Rise And Fall -- Our Circle Is Vicious
Not at all what I expected from these Belgian hardcore guys. Their previous album was sludgy, metallic and a sustained roar. OCIV is dynamic and diverse, with my favorite track, In Circles, developing into a full mosh-pit chant while the closing track takes the form of funeral dirge.

8. Doomriders -- Darkness Come Alive
Talk about raising the bar... a side project of Nate Newton (Converge), Doomriders have really elevated their game on their second album. The lyrics are more serious, the songs are more structured, and although it's still as much fun as their other recordings, there's an intensity behind this one that was lacking before. Good, old-fashioned rock and roll with a hardcore edge.

9. The Red Chord -- Fed Through The Teeth Machine
I'd pretty much written these guys off after Prey For Eyes, but Fed Through The Teeth Machine is much more tight and intense than their last two albums, bringing it back to the psychotic fun that first slammed me in the face when I was introduced to them about 8 or 9 years ago. Some review somewhere called these guys "godfathers of deathcore" but I don't really see how that's possible, as there isn't a formulaic breakdown in sight.

10. Converge -- Axe to Fall
My most anticipated album of the year and it did not disappoint. They changed up their recording formula a bit on this one, bringing in tons of collaborators, but the ferocity and intensity that they peaked with Jane Doe is still here on half the tracks. The other half of the album involved mid-tempo dirges, low-tempo mood pieces, and even a guest vocalist who sounds like he's doing a Johnny Cash impression. Bears repeated listens much better than No Heroes and a more unified quality to it (like You Fail Me), despite the varied tempos and content.

Bands Everyone Raved About But I Can't Get Excited Over
1. Baroness -- Blue Record
This is all over the top-ten lists this year. I just don't get it. The songs are too long and it seems like "look how talented we are". I prefer their EP's before the Red Album

2. Mastodon
These guys are touring with Converge and everyone in "the scene" and in the mainstream is raving about them. I got to see them live in Germany, if by "see them live" you count lying down on the grass, listening to one song and then falling asleep. It just doesn't grab me the way I've been told it would.

3. Job For A Cowboy
Deathcore? Death metal? Who cares? The most loved and hated band in metal, but I can't seem to tell where one song starts or ends because it just seems like a bunch of cool guitar parts tossed together.

Disappointments
1. Darkest Hour -- The Eternal Return
Very monotonous to my ear. A solid album and there are some great riffs and tracks in here, but not what I've come to expect from them.

2. Thrice -- Beggars
Some good tracks, but I guess I just really miss the Illusion of Safety too much.

3. Poison The Well -- The Tropic Rot
Scream, guitar part, scream, slow-down, singing... repeat.

4. Every Time I Die -- New Junk Aesthetic
Okay, we get it. Southern-fried rock'n'roll done by metalcore heroes... it's just not that exciting after the third album of it.

5. Gallows -- Grey Britain
Wah wah wah...

6. Franz Ferdinand -- Tonight: Franz Ferdinand
The live show at Electric Picnic was excellent last year... the recording is lacking the live excitement.

7. Cursive -- Mama, I'm Swollen
Like others on this list, there are some good tracks, but it's just not enough to carry the weaker parts. It seems like Tim Kasher's The Good Life work is bleeding more and more into his work with Cursive. I liked it better when they were really distinct projects.

Other enjoyables not necessarily musical:
- Mad Men
- Dexter
- Guillermo Del Toro films
- Rockabye Baby albums, saving my sanity
- Budweiser Budvar (from the Czech Republic)
- my new Leinster jersey
- my new Washington DC Gaels GAA jersey which took 18 months to finally arrive
- iPhone

A Lonely Dispatch From Ireland

2009-11-13T20:42:00.006Z

I'm not lonely. This blog is. A friend from college told me that it's not a real blog until you've neglected it. I've neglected this one twice in the past year. Congratulations, blog, you're a real boy!

Life is pretty busy and about to get busier. Grace is only a month away from her due date, my first semester as a graduate student concludes in just over five weeks, and at work they've decided that despite my busy schedule, I'm the best candidate to take over 50% of the work my colleague is leaving behind while she takes a year-long sabbatical to travel. I cycle to work in the morning, do my daily administrative things -- press clippings from the papers, check emails, etc. -- then I get back on the bicycle at about mid-morning and cycle down the UCD Belfield where I go to lecture.

For my American friends:
- course = major
- lecture = class.
- A = 75%... I'm not joking. You can get 1/4 answers wrong on an Irish exam and still have an A in the class, which they call first class honors. It's all very confusing for me, but I'm getting the hang of it. What's cool is that my professors in this course are in the news quite often: small country. My macroeconomics professor is Morgan Kelly, who recently got into the news by telling the former chief economist Ulster Bank to go to hell (in so many words) at an economic conference. The head of my course, Karl Whelan, is the main ringleader of the anti-NAMA academics. Speaking of which, the NAMA legislation got passed today. We, the Irish taxpayers, are now on the hook for about €54 billion in bonds we're giving to the banks in exchange for (at maximum) €47 million in property loans. More on this later.

I then cycle back up to work where I wrap up any business that I've neglected while at the university. Then I go home and do homework or read or study. I thought I would have matured enough to actually do my reading, but just like in undergrad I just use the class notes and the text books only come in as a reference when I'm stuck on something. Somewhere in this Grace and I have managed to get out and enjoy our weekends most of the time.

Meanwhile, preparations for Baby K continue. We've got the cot (crib) and the pram (stroller) and a changing table. There's still a bit of painting and curtain-hanging and other "nesting" to be done, but last weekend a friend of mine helped me strip and sand the paint off a dresser and I enjoyed it a lot more than I expected. I'm not a handyman by any means, but it was cool to have a few beers and do something useful that didn't involve sitting at a desk for a change.

The weather -- sorry to talk about it -- has come crashing down on us here. What was a mild, dry autumn has swiftly turned into the dreaded cold and rainy Irish winter. I was waiting for a bus to Galway tonight -- I'm on the bus now -- and for the first time since moving here I finally agreed with my Irish friends: this sideways, cold and hard rain really sucks. I've been getting regularly soaked on my cycles down to UCD; a serious rain gear purchase is in order as my current jacket has lost any and all water-resistance. I now wear it as a delay for the water. If there's one more layer it'll take longer for the water to reach my skin.

More to follow...

Listening to:
Converge "Axe to Fall"
Doomriders "Darkness Come Alive"
Rise & Fall "Our Circle Is Vicious"
William Elliott Whitmore's entire discography

Watching:
Dexter Season 4 (took me weeks to catch up)
Mad Men (Season 3 finale was excellent)

What Other European Leaders Say About The Treaty Of Lisbon

2009-10-01T20:14:00.001+01:00

“Public opinion will be led to adopt, without knowing it, the proposals that we dare not present to them directly … All the earlier proposals will be in the new text, but will be hidden and disguised in some way.”
- Former French President V.Giscard D’Estaing, who helped to draw up the EU Constitution which the French and Dutch rejected in their 2005 referendums and which is now being implemented through the Lisbon Treaty, Le Monde, 14 June 2007
_______

“France was just ahead of all the other countries in voting No. It would happen in all Member States if they have a referendum. There is a cleavage between people and governments … There will be no Treaty if we had a referendum in France, which would again be followed by a referendum in the UK.”
- French President Nicolas Sarkozy,at meeting of senior MEPs, EUobserver, 14 November 2007
_______

“The difference between the original Constitution and the present Lisbon Treaty is one of approach, rather than content … The proposals in the original constitutional treaty are practically unchanged. They have simply been dispersed through the old treaties in the form of amendments. Why this subtle change? Above all, to head off any threat of referenda by avoiding any form of constitutional vocabulary … But lift the lid and look in the toolbox: all the same innovative and effective tools are there, just as they were carefully crafted by the European Convention.”
- V.Giscard D’Estaing, former French President and Chairman of the Convention which drew up the EU Constitution, The Independent, London, 30 October 2007
______

“They decided that the document should be unreadable. If it is unreadable, it is not constitutional, that was the sort of perception. Where they got this perception from is a mystery to me. In order to make our citizens happy, to produce a document that they will never understand! But, there is some truth [in it]. Because if this is the kind of document that the IGC will produce, any Prime Minister - imagine the UK Prime Minister - can go to the Commons and say ‘Look, you see, it’s absolutely unreadable, it’s the typical Brussels treaty, nothing new, no need for a referendum.’ Should you succeed in understanding it at first sight there might be some reason for a referendum, because it would mean that there is something new.”
- Giuliano Amato, former Italian Prime Minister and Vice-Chairman of the Convention which drew up the EU Constitution, recorded by Open Europe, The Centre for European Reform, London, 12 July 2007
_____

“Sometimes I like to compare the EU as a creation to the organisation of empires. We have the dimension of Empire but there is a great difference. Empires were usually made with force with a centre imposing diktat, a will on the others. Now what we have is the first non-imperial empire.”
- Commission President J-M Barroso, The Brussels Journal, 11 July 2007
_______

“The aim of the Constitutional Treaty was to be more readable; the aim of this treaty is to be unreadable … The Constitution aimed to be clear, whereas this treaty had to be unclear. It is a success.
- Karel de Gucht, Belgian Foreign Minister, Flandreinfo, 23 June 2007
_______

“The good thing about not calling it a Constltution is that no one can ask for a referendum on it.
- Giuliano Amato, speech at London School of Econmics, 21 February 2007

Lisbon II: The Fear Is Legitimate, But It Is Manipulated

2009-10-01T18:55:00.004+01:00

Tomorrow the Irish people go back to the polls for the second time to vote on the Treaty of Lisbon. That's right, I said "again". Last June, the Irish people rejected the Treaty of Lisbon -- 53% of the vote was NO, with 53% of the electorate turning up on referendum day -- but now they're being asked to vote again. Ireland is the only country holding such a referendum. If you can trust polling data, it looks like this time the Lisbon Treaty (THE SEQUEL) will pass, unfortunately.

I can't vote in this referendum, but if I could I'd vote NO. I wouldn't pull that lever or push that button hard enough. Do I object to the Treaty's contents? Not really. The Treaty is supposed to make the operations of the EU more efficient. Therefore, in theory, the common market -- the basis for peace and prosperity on (most of) the continent since 1945 -- is a good thing and I'm all for it.

However, there is a political structure being built up around the common market and the means that the political classes have employed to obtain their goals are dishonest and undemocratic. The Irish people voted NO last year and the vote should be respected. As it says on the Referendum Commission's Lisbon Treaty 2009 website, clear as day, "The Lisbon Treaty itself has not been changed."

This is the kernel of what really bothers me: the Irish Government -- and the EU -- is using fear and guilt to win votes. Yes, I know, the No campaign has not been entirely honest either. Claims about lowering the minimum wage to less than €2 and overblown claims about the introduction of legalized abortion dishonest and unhelpful. However, the Government (Fianna Fáil and the Greens) as well as the main opposition parties (Labour and Fine Gael) have brought this treaty to be voted upon again. They were defeated in the Referendum last year and insist on running it again, so say what you want about the No camp -- the impetus is upon the Yes side to explain their case and win in a fair and honorable manner. But they won't. They won't even explain what the Treaty does. They just want to flog fear and guilt.

FEAR
"We need to be at the heart of Europe": Nice slogan, but what the hell does that mean? Even before the Lisbon Treaty referendum, Ireland wasn't at the heart of Europe. (The Republic of) Ireland is a nation of around 4 million in a European Union of 500 million. Two of the world's largest economies founded the Union and Ireland has yet to be a net contributor the EU. The past year has shown that peripheral -- and I mean no offense -- states in the EU come second to the overall needs of the union.

"YES for recovery": Read the papers, the EU is already recovering. Germany and France have technically pulled out of recession. The world recession is ending and most forecasters now expect Ireland's economy to resume growth in the first few months of 2010.

"YES for jobs": Jobs are mentioned nowhere in the Lisbon Treaty. As the Libertas poster says, the only jobs saved by the Treaty's ratification are the Irish Government's, as they can be assured that for "delivering Ireland" they'll get cushy jobs in Brussels.

GUILT
"We owe it to Europe": Sorry, you don't owe them anything. Has the EU helped Ireland? Certainly. Ireland's economic miracle had a lot to do with membership in the EU, but that doesn't mean Ireland has to lay down and be a doormat for every treaty proposed. If it's bad for the EU and bad for Ireland, the people of Ireland have every responsibility to STOP the direction that the union is moving in.

"Europe's done so much for us": More guilt. Sorry, Ireland is a member of the EU. All the countries of the EU have reaped benefits, some more than others. It's part of being in a UNION.

All the while we're forgetting WHY the Lisbon Treaty exists in the first place. Because the powers-that-be in the European Union learned their lesson about referendums back in 2005 when the voters of France and the Netherlands both said NO to a European Constitution. Voter turnout in both referendums was 63%. In France the NO won 55% of the vote and in the Netherlands the NO won 61.5% of the vote. So how did the EU respond? Did they respect the will of the people? No way.

They moved around the wording of the Constitution, called it a Treaty and had the majority of member states ratify it quickly (without going to referendum) before their people could really do anything about it. So now we have the Treaty of Lisbon.

French Constitutional Referendum: FAIL
Netherlands Constitutional Referendum: FAIL
Lisbon Treaty Referendum (Ireland): FAIL

Take the hint, EU! The people of Europe don't want a Constitution. They don't want a constitution called a Treaty. They DO want a European Union that respects the will of the people. But that's just too much to ask.

The EU wags its finger and says, "Ireland, vote as you're told. Don't make us run a third referendum."

Rant over.

Non-Emo And Emo Just Before It Started Sucking... BAD

2009-09-14T20:42:00.008+01:00

One of my favorite bands, Planes Mistaken For Stars, check the video!

Pardon me, but I'm a rabid rock music fan and a bit of a geek when it comes to these things, so I'm going to talk about a genre of rock'n'roll as if it's a matter of life and death for a bit.

I love lists, especially when these lists' titles include the words "Top" "Ever" or the phrase "of all time." I was always a sucker for the marathon list shows on VH1 when I was living in the US. Perfect hangover TV. Last week Paste magazine posted a great addition to music geekdom, 10 Bands That Prove Emo Wasn't Always For The Hot Topic Tween Set, a list that is, in my opinion, long overdue. I feel this way probably because "emo" -- or what used to be emo -- was sort of my gateway drug into underground rock. It was the non-radio music that friends in high school passed my way that opened my eyes to the fact that a) most music on the radio was crap and b) there were endless genres and styles of rock music to be heard if only you put in the effort to look.

Due to what emo has come to represent -- the latest commercialization and commodification of a trend in the rock underground -- it's a bit embarrassing to admit you like any anything in this genre, but the bands and the music from this period (late 1990's) were great, so screw it. I was an emo kid. For the record, I never wore skinny jeans or died my hair black or got a reinvented Flock Of Seagulls haircut. But the music, for a few years, was great.

Reading through this list is essentially flipping through the bands that provided the soundtrack to my life between 1998 to 2001. The categories of underground music, especially indie, punk and emo, get really blurred in those years, so for the sake of simplicity I'm just referring to it all as emo. Of the ten emo artists/albums on the , I've only ever avoided listening to one band, Texas Is The Reason, and I really don't know how I did that considering that at college I had free internet, access to Napster and plenty of free time to investigate, which was most important. As much as I enjoyed listening to new music, I enjoy finding new bands to listen to. Finding about about emo led me to investigate other types of punk, those bands led to hardcore, those bands have led me to heavy metal.

But I guess I could consider myself lucky to have moved away from emo at about the time it became a parody of itself. At about the time I discovered Converge and more aggressive styles of rock, emo was getting tons of media coverage and the bands that had really introduced me to underground rock were making some questionable albums. Alkaline Trio -- never even really emo, but more pop-punk -- have never quite recovered from From Here To Infirmary, although there have been songs like "Sadie" that have been excellent. Saves the Day -- another pop-punk band lumped into the emo category due to their overly confessional lyrics -- nose-dived with In Reverie and have reverted to a more snotty punk style with their last two albums but the tunes aren't quite as catchy. After being bored to tears with the "new direction" of The Get Up Kids (this was back in 2002), I haven't listened to anything they've done since. A lot of the others (Mineral, Braid, Penfold) broke up and the bands that replaced them brought with them a cartoon-ish aesthetic that would make enjoyment of the music difficult even if it wasn't over-produced corporate pop in the guise of punk rock.

But at some point you have to cut the chord. I had bought a studded belt when I decided that I was REALLY into underground music. I wasn't just listening to emo at this point, I was listening to hardcore, punk and trying anything else that came my way. Anyway, I wore that belt all the time. I wore the uniform. Black band t-shirt. Dark jeans. Studded belt. Converse All-Star sneakers (which I've always worn anyway). Then one day I saw a 12-year old girl come out of a Hot Topic in a mall in Virginia wearing the same belt I was wearing. Except it was hot pink. It doesn't change the fact that I enjoyed the albums (and still do) but it drove home, once and for all, all the misgivings I had about where the genre was headed and that "emo" had become very quickly: the music industry's latest victim in taking a good thing and selling it to death.

I can recommend every artist and album on the Paste magazine list, plus I'll recommend a few others that I enjoyed when I was an emo kid:
- Mineral (emo)
- At The Drive-In (not emo)
- Planes Mistaken For Stars (neither were PMFS, but they were really great and toured with some emo bands)
- Penfold (definitely emo)
- Fairweather (in the same vein as Alk3 and Saves the Day, went to my high school)
- Hot Rod Circuit (emo/punk)

Ch ch ch changes! For Me and For NAMA?

2009-08-26T19:39:00.005+01:00

Back at work this week and my wife is back from a three-week trip to the US. She brought back three pairs of jeans for me and about a billion things for baby, several I didn't know existed. More to follow on this. My wife's former nanny says my life is over as I know it when the baby arrives. I'd like to think it's just changing, and for the better.

Meanwhile, it's only two weeks to go before I start my Master's degree at UCD. Despite the short timeline, I still do not have a course schedule or a textbooks list. I also don't have my GI Bill in order -- they lost my paperwork and it'll now be mid-November before I see a cent from Veterans Affairs in the US -- so I'm going with a Stafford Loan to pay for things up front. This isn't unusual. My brother-in-law starts his new course in two weeks and doesn't know if he's staying in Galway or moving to Dun Laoghaire! Slightly stressed about this whole working, studying and -- oh yeah -- baby on the way in December.

In Irish news, there is quite a bit of coverage of Sen. Ted Kennedy's death in the US. He was quite active in the northern peace process and supposedly persuaded President Clinton to give Gerry Adams a visa to the US during the peace process. While I wouldn't be a fan of all of his politics in the States, the guy was in public service for a long time, came from an illustrious family and was influential in Irish politics as well as American politics, so rest in peace, sir.

The other big stink is that yet another group of economists have published their opposition to the proposed National Assets Management Agency (note: the headline has nothing to do with the content of the op-ed). Basically the Government is establishing a "bad bank" to take some €90 billion (book value) in loans off the Irish banks' books, in exchange for bonds. Each loan will be valued in accordance with its "long-term economic value", a term lifted from an EU ruling a few months ago; this is supposedly neither the peak price (at which most of the loans were made to property) nor the current market price (commercial property values and development land values are down at least 50% from peak).

Nationalization of the banks is inevitable, in my opinion. The loans will be written down to such an extent that the Government has no choices other than to re-capitalize or take significant equity shares. It might not be total nationalization of the banking sector, but it'll be close. The Government seems to be sticking to the original NAMA plan, but we'll see what shape the legislation actually takes in September when it's debated in the Dáil.

A rebuttal to the op-ed by Alan Ahearne, economic advisor to the Department of Finance, is here.
You can read up on some debate about NAMA from academic economists at www.irisheconomy.ie.

The Bridge Collapsed But It Didn't Ruin My Weekend

2009-08-26T18:19:00.009+01:00

Picture: Belfast Telegraph

Last weekend I had another weekend trip to see family of the in-laws. Having gone west to Galway previously, this time I headed north on the train towards Belfast, getting off at Newry, County Down. Well, I would have taken the train to Newry, except there was a minor disaster on the Dublin-Belfast rail line, in that a viaduct over the Malahide estuary collapsed around 6 p.m. on Friday. Luckily, no trains were running on that track and a fast-thinking train operator going the other way alerted Iarnród Éireann. As it turns out, the railway company was warned about the erosion by a leader in the Malahide Sea Scouts. The repairs were supposed to take 3 months, but now reports are that it will take much longer. You can't just patch up a downed bridge...

Well, I arrived at Connolly Station at 8:30 for my 8:45 train and found out that I'd be bussed to Drogheda with all the other passengers. There we'd pick up the train and keep on going. I ended up getting into Newry about an hour later than planned, but it sure is better than ending up in the Malahide estuary. It could be worse, I could be living up north and commuting to Dublin, in which case the traffic is now awful due to all the former rail commuters clogging the roads. Thank God for my bicycle and small apartment in the city centre.

Newry, as I've written before, is a border town nestled into the foothills of the Mourne Mountains just up the canal from Carlingford Lough. On Saturday night I enjoyed a delicious steak dinner at Whistledown Inn, which is in nearby Warrenpoint. The restaurant looks out over the lough and the mountains on either side that dive into the Irish Sea. Dinner was delicious -- I recommend the steak with Jameson whiskey sauce. After dinner myself and my buddies headed to a hole-in-the-wall pub which my friends referred to as "Molly's" but I think it was the Duke Bar. But a friend was bar-tending so the service was quick, even if the taxi home was not. Took an hour to get a taxi. If you like a dark pub where you have to get friendly with the people around you because there's not much space, this is the place for you.

Don't Ever Drink The Banana Bread Beer

2009-08-11T20:22:00.005+01:00

The wife is out of town on business (and on vacation with 'rents) so I thought I'd head to Galway for some beer-drinking with the bro-in-law. Rather than hit the Quay Street-to-Eyre Square route (where I seem to run into more Americans than I would in downtown DC), we stayed on the west side of the River Corrib and hit up a few great places to try new beer, starting with Bierhaus. Bierhaus, despite the German name, is a pretty typical Irish pub but with a bit of an indie twist. There's a live DJ spinning records (it was classic soul on Saturday night) and as expected behind the bar there are numerous craft beers and imports to try. I started with a Galway Hooker but then we moved on to a REAL Budweiser, the Budvar.

Next stop was Salt House, just off the river. Here's where me made a huge mistake. We tried a nice German pilsener to start, then we had something else and then my brother-in-law says to me, "Have you ever seen this?" and he points to Banana Bread Beer. Now, I like trying new things, so on our next round we ordered one 500ml bottle of the BBB and split it between two pint glasses.

One of the biggest drinking mistakes of my life.

It was disgusting. The description on the Salt House website says: "Tropically fruity; its ripe banana flavour, emphasised by a hint of bitterness, comes from the addition of real fair trade bananas and finishes with an emphatic, steely dryness." Proof that fair trade doesn't mean better taste -- and that no matter what craft brewers say, some fruits just don't belong in beer -- it was revoltingly sweet and strange from the beginning. I swigged it as fast I could because I couldn't bare to let €6 of alcohol on a night out go to waste... another big mistake. The BBB ruined my stomach for a night.

Not even the lovely flavor of an Affligem Blond could save me. I had to take it slow for the rest of the night. However, we managed to have quite a little session. At Massimo's (a bit more lounge than pub) we had some Carlsberg and Paulaner, and finally we made our way to Roisin Dubh (a Galway music venue of note) for the late bar. I've never been to a gig at Roisin Dubh, but it's a great atmosphere and as the bars in Galway close, Roisin Dubh keeps going to 2 a.m. so it gets a bit crowded.

But all was not lost. Despite Banana Bread Beer tearing a hole in my stomach, I had a nice young lady approach me who I had to politely inform I was married. I then texted my brother and got her info for him. Long-distance wing-man, WHAT'S UP?!?!?? I then talked extreme music with some metalheads. A good night all around.

Galway is a great night for a few drinks out... or a lot of drinks out. While I'm not a fan of the lack of planning that went into the suburbs, Galway city centre is a really great place to party. Oh, and the Salt House is a great pub, I just picked the wrong beer.

For my melancholy weeks without my lovely wife, here's some William Elliott Whitmore:

Beer And Buy American!

2009-07-31T07:53:00.002+01:00

I did a guest post over at Frank Chow's blog about this garbage Beer Summit controversy. Apparently American beer makers are upset that no American-owned beers were consumed when President Obama met Professor Gates (Harvard) and Sergeant Crowley (Cambridge Police).

U2 sucks even more

2009-07-28T19:50:00.003+01:00

I've blogged before about Croke Park. It's located in a northside residential neighborhood. Well, after three nights of U2 concerts, the residents then had to put up with about 48 hours of clanking, screwing, hammering and trucks roaring past their homes as THE CLAW was dismantled.

There was a residents' protest in the morning. U2's crew missed the ferry. The afternoon protest was called off.

Part of the charm of Croke Park is its location. Now, you can say all you want about people choosing where they live and such, but the GAA and U2 did not think of the residents when they planned this out. Croke Park residents are accustomed to a few hours, on game days and event nights, of crowds and they can plan accordingly for several hours of such disruption. They can NOT, however, plan for an almost week-long disruption such as the one they had this week.

I was going to write that I hope U2 misses one of their tour dates, but I just found out that there are actually three "claw" stages in circulation for this tour... WHAT!?!!?!?

Stage facts: the 360˚ tour

U2 have three custom-built “claw” stages for their tour.
While one is in use, another is being dismantled and a third is being constructed for the next concert venue.
The stage designer is Willie Williams, who has been with U2 since 1982. Mark Fisher serves as architect.
A total of 189 trucks transport the stages around. There are 380 drivers and 12 buses.
The U2 entourage constitutes 550 people.
The video screens weigh 56 tonnes.
The claw-like edifice can take 165 tonnes of equipment freeing up more pitchside space for fans. -- Source: Irish Times

U2 Sucks... get over it.

2009-07-25T22:14:00.006+01:00

A tale of my teenage years...

My father is the second of eight children. The youngest of the eight, Julia, was "Aunt Julie" for most of my childhood. Being only 13 years older than me, she was much cooler than any of my other close relatives and she lived with Grandma and Grandpa K, so when we were back on the East coast, she was in contact. I remember discussing the death of Kurt Cobain with her and rolling quarters and dimes with her in Grandma's attic while watching Soylent Green. Anyway, she married a Navy pilot and moved to Florida.

One birthday -- I think I was 13 -- she sent me two CD's that she had: U2's Achtung Baby and Morrissey's Bona Drag. While at the time I didn't care for Morrissey (big mistake), I really liked U2's Achtung Baby. I still do. I think it had been all over the radio the summer before, but I have to give credit where credit's due: Achtung Baby was one of the first ALBUMS I listened to as a single piece of pop art. In the age of iTunes, I still believe in THE ALBUM as art. Achtung Baby had cool lyrics, great riffs, a lot of melody... it just rocked.

MID-RANT, REAL ROCK INTERLUDE: THIS rocks, by the way.

RESUME ANTI-U2 PROPAGANDA: Too bad U2 haven't made an album that good since Achtung Baby. However, the PR and hype machine have made them "THE BIGGEST BAND IN THE WORLD" ever since.

What brings up all this hate, you ask? So this week U2, who are Irish and from Dublin, bring their 360 tour and "the claw" to Croke Park and everyone in Dublin is talking about it.
- Whaddaya up ta dis weekend?
- I'm going to de U2 concert.
What amazes me is that I haven't yet met someone who won't admit that they hate Bono. They'll still go to the show.

It's everywhere. Tickets cost around €100 to €150, but I've heard rumors of tickets for €40. In Paris. I can't believe anyone would pay so much for a concert, much less for a concert where the lead singer is as likely to preach to you about world poverty and social justice as he is to sing a flippin' tune. They just announced they'd be donating €5 million for music education, but maybe they could have lowered their ticket prices. Then there's Bono prancing around the world preaching about world hunger. Then there's -- and this might be petty -- the fact that Bono can't count and the rest of the band doesn't seem to mind: "Uno, dos, tres, catorse."

OH, and every time some famous rock musician dies, there's Bono talking about how they were such an influence on U2. Just recently it was Ronnie Drew of the Dubliners, but I've heard Bono pipe up quicker than Al Sharpton to claim connection with rock acts such as The Ramones, The Stooges and Joy Division. How the Ramones and the Stooges could influence the most radio-ready, Mom-friendly pop-rock in history is beyond me, but hey, Bono knows best.... I paraphrase, but Henry Rollins got it right when he said that U2 were a band that has "lost the will to rock." Here's a band that hasn't: Architects.

PS Before you say that I hate U2 just because Bono is a twat, The Edge has been playing the same riff (or the same echo-effect on a riff) for twenty years. He's cooler than Bono because he doesn't pull all the political preaching, but he's still part of the machine. Yeah.

UPDATE: I just saw the Claw on a friend's Facebook page. Think of all the starving children U2 could have fed if they'd ditched the Claw...

RIP Frank McCourt, 78

2009-07-21T18:56:00.002+01:00

Frank McCourt died this week. Author of Angela's Ashes, 'Tis, Teacher Man and Angela and the Baby Jesus, McCourt was something of an overnight success at the age of 60, having been born in New York, raised in Limerick, having lived in New York again, served in Germany during the Korean War, and having taught in New York schools for many years. I read Angela's Ashes and 'Tis, both books I found very sad but very hopeful and enjoyable (in an odd way). If you haven't read them yet, check them out. If you are more into movies than books, the adaptation of Angela's Ashes stars Emily Watson.

From the Irish Times, The Death of Frank McCourt.

While I Was Away: Snip, Snip, Snip

2009-07-21T07:32:00.001+01:00

Source: Irish Times

Following my trip to Germany for some serious hardcore and metal action, I headed to the United States – Florida to be exact. Not for a holiday, unfortunately, but for a funeral. My grandfather passed away while I was over the Atlantic on my way to see him. He and I were pretty close and he will be sorely missed.

On a lighter note… Good lord, I don’t think I stopped sweating for a week. One thing I’ve become acclimated to while living in Ireland is the nearly zero humidity and the relatively year-round mild temperatures. Germany was hot, but not humid (I developed an awesome farmer’s tan due to my inability to find 100ml bottles of lotion to take on the plane). Florida was hot, humid and sticky. So while I enjoyed some cheap beer and some quality time with the family, I pretty much sweated my way through everything when I wasn’t in air-conditioning. Even in air conditioning, at night, I managed to keep a layer of sweat on the brow.

While I was away, of course, life continued in the Irish Great Recession. Inflation continued its descent into negative territory and May (Provisional) retail sales figures revealed that sales volumes continue to decline… and the data’s not even showing what happened after the tax hikes yet. Ouch.

However, most painful and garnering the most attention was the release of the so-called “An Bord Snip Nua report.” A half-joking amalgamation of English and Irish, the unofficial title translates to “The New Snip Board”, but the official title of the group is The Special Group On Public Service Numbers and Expenditure Programmes… there’s not even a good acronym in there. SGOPSNEP doesn’t have the same ring to it as An Bord Snip. Anyway, headed up by economist Colm McCarthy, An Bord recommended cuts totaling €5 billion, mostly through welfare rates reduction and huge cuts to the public service in health and education. There's really no area of the public service that wouldn't be affected, and a few departments would be shut down entirely. The unions say they'd love to help, but don't touch our pay or pensions... which, by the way, are estimated at more than 25% more than equivalent private sector pay levels.

True Irish Beers, The EU's Democratic Deficit, and July HarDCore/Metal

2009-06-28T17:06:00.011+01:00

Last Thursday I organized a beer-tasting for the office. Twenty-five of my co-workers joined me for the event. We tasted 14 beers from all over the world and then managed to cook burgers, hot dogs, and chicken (marinated in Old Bay seasonings) without burning down the building. Yesterday I headed into town for a few errands and finally made my way into Bull & Castle, which bills itself as "Ireland's Only Beer Hall." While they have the standard beers on tap, they also have beers from Irish micro-breweries and I sampled a few. It's really a shame that there aren't more places serving this kind of product, because Heineken and Carlsberg and Guinness do get a bit old after a while. I'd much rather try new things like:
- Galway Hooker
- Rebel Lager and Blarney Blonde
- and everything from the Carlow Brewing Co.

Last year, the Irish people voted -- pretty strongly -- against the Lisbon Treaty. All the politicians were of course shocked that the people didn't trust them enough to vote YES to a treaty which no one really understood... Because the EU just can't take NO for an answer (they had the Irish vote twice on the Nice Treaty as well), the Irish will be voting on the Lisbon Treaty again in October. Charlie McCreevy explains that the outrage against the Irish NO vote is absolutely ridiculous, because the rest of the EU population would vote it down, too, if they were given the chance.

But, I mean, why let the people vote on their form of government when you (the politicians) can just decide what's best for them? Ridiculous.

Here's Today FM and Gift Grub's "Keith Duffy" (of the boy band Boyzone) explaining the Lisbon Treaty. Flippin' hilarious, even if you don't know who Keith Duffy is.

Next weekend, I'm headed to Germany this weekend for the With Full Force festival. We (me, Ross, Troy) will be flying to Berlin with Ryanair at 0Dark30 in the morning, then picking up our rental car and driving down to Roitzchjora, an old abandoned airfield, where we'll enjoy three days of punk, hardcore and metal music. Last year ruled. I expect the same this year.

Currently listening to:
- The Chariot Wars and Rumors of Wars
- mewithoutYou It's All Crazy! It's All False! It's All A Dream! It's Alright!
- Darkest Hour Eternal Return
- Narrows New Distances

Currently watching: the nation of my birth's soccer team whoop Brazil in the Confederations Cup. I don't even like soccer much, but THIS is great. USA 2 - 0 Brazil. UPDATE: Brazil just scored. USA 2 - 1 Brazil, what an exciting match!

A Happy (Belated) Bloomsday

2009-06-24T19:36:00.004+01:00

David Norris -- Senator, gay-rights activist and James Joyce scholar -- on a rant beginning with Joyce's GAA connection, ending with a comment about rugby being played at Croke Park, and with a whole lot of interesting trivia in-between.

Well, this is about a week-plus out of date, but a date of some importance passed last week and I made no mention of it at all. The date was the 16th of June, which is better known to literature nerds as Bloomsday and it was celebrated in a cultish manner by a hardcore group of James Joyce enthusiasts. Why? The 16th of June is the date on which the action of the book Ulysses takes place. The 16th of June also happens to be the date that James Joyce and Nora Barnacle (his lifelong partner, mother of his children and eventual wife) first began courting. Wikipedia says their first “outing” happened in Ringsend, Dublin, but I had in my head that they’d met in Galway, where Nora was from originally. I’m probably wrong, but there is a Nora Barnacle bridge along the River Corrib in Galway city centre. Just thought I’d mention. It’s called Bloomsday because the protagonist of Ulysses is one Leopold Bloom. Like the majority of wannabe writers and literary snobs, I own a copy of Ulysses but haven’t quite got around to reading it.

According to the James Joyce Centre, located on Upper Great Georges Street:

One of the earliest Bloomsday celebrations was a Ulysses lunch, organised by Sylvia Beach, publisher of Ulysses, and her partner Adrienne Monnier in France in June 1929. The first Bloomsday celebrated in Ireland was in 1954, the fiftieth anniversary of the first Bloomsday when the writers Patrick Kavanagh and Flann O’Brien visited locations like the Martello Tower at Sandycove, Davy Byrne’s pub, and 7 Eccles Street, reading parts of Ulysses and drinking a great deal as they went!

Now THAT is literature appreciation! I really wish I’d been able to do something around Bloomsday. Maybe if I actually read the book sometime this year I’ll get to some events next year and know what the hell is going on.

Still on a James Joyce kick, the IFI is showing The Dead this week. The Dead (1987) is based on the final chapter of Dubliners and stars Anjelica Huston. The story is quite sad, but I’m interested to see what the film is like. The setting is a New Year’s party out in the western end of the city, but contains flashbacks and meandering conversations, which I’m sure could fill a feature film.

Morning Hardcore, Election Fall-Out and UP THE DUBS!!!!

2009-06-08T08:07:00.004+01:00

MUSIC: Demented Promotions are bringing Have Heart, Shipwreck A.D. and Rise & Fall to Dublin on July 8th. I saw Shipwreck last year when they toured with Blacklisted but I'm REALLY psyched to see Belgian badasses Rise & Fall.

NEWS: I'm not pretending to have wrapped my head around the workings of Irish/EU government, but one thing is for certain: Fianna Fáil just got their arses handed to them by the electorate this week. I just heard on the Ian Dempsey show that Joe Higgins, head of the Socialist Party, beat out Sinn Féin and Fianna Fáil for a seat in Dublin (whatever that means). This is Fianna Fáil's worst election in the history of the Irish state.

Record low turnout. Disaffection with the centre-left establishment. Right-wingers and Euro-skeptics reap the benefits.

It wasn't the prettiest of matches, but the boys in blue defeated old rivals Meath yesterday. Dublin 0-14 to 0-12 Meath. Meath put on one hell of a fight in the second half, however, and it looked like they were on the brink of a game-winning goal on several occasions. The Dubs had 17 wide kicks. Even if half of them had hit the mark the match would have been over by mid-second half.

UPDATE and AMENDMENTS

2009-06-05T18:37:00.004+01:00

So we found out today that Irish unemployment (based upon the CSO's latest Live Register) is now 11.8%. Job losses keep mounting and men make up the majority of Live "Registrants", but the pace of job losses is slowing from the Dec-Jan peak. It's still bad news, but it's just not AS bad as it was. Everyone's so battered from the past year of negativity, but it's irresponsible to take a look at a few indices and say, "Well, recession's over!" It's not. It's just not getting AS bad AS quickly.

Paul Krugman thinks it will take 5 years for Ireland to get out of this. I am now formally announcing that I scooped a Nobel Prize winner, because I said this to a colleague a few months ago. Granted, I have only a BA Econ and had done no analysis to back up my claim, but I still beat Krugman to the punch, so shut up and pay me. I can't believe I didn't even know he was in town.

The kids are not happy. I'm still trying to wrap my I-had-five-majors-in-college brain around this, but apparently in Ireland during high school you take what's called the Leaving Cert, which is an exam the results of which will determine a) what kind of degree you can study for in university, which will determine b) what kind of job/career you'll be having later in life. The annual Leaving Cert results are a big deal here and they get major national newspaper space. Well, this week there has been all sorts of mayhem because somebody leaked the English test and now the kids have to re-sit the exam on a Saturday. It seems a bit ridiculous to me that an exam you take when you're 16 or 17 determines your career trajectory for the rest of your life... As Laura, the woman who cut my hair this week, said: "Basically you have to score 580 out of 600 to become a doctor. So if you're bad at French but good at everything else, you can't be a doctor. Your bad language score could limit your career choices in Ireland."

---------------------------

I can't believe I forgot to mention, but Leinster won the Heineken Cup last week. Listening to French commentators try to pronounce the phonetic difference between "Leinster" and "Leicester" was hilarious. And the game was really exciting.

My friend Yvonne says Terminator Salvation was not very good. To quote the star of the film, "WE'RE F---ING DONE PROFESSIONALLY, MAN!!!!" Had I known James Cameron's thoughts on the project, I mightn't have been so excited. FURTHERMORE, had I known McG was the director, I wouldn't have been surprised. I'm still going to see it, but the expectations have been lowered. AND FURTHERMORE, I saw Terminator 3 and it sucked royally.

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Currently listening to the soundtrack to the apocalypse, otherwise known as:
Amenra "Mass IIII"
Architects "Ruin"

Paris is a shithole...

2009-06-01T19:14:00.004+01:00

... but not really.

I say that in the spirit of one of my favorite movies, In Bruges -- which you need to rent NOW if you haven't seen it -- because I just spent a week in France and had a great time despite some misgivings. NOTE: Yes, I know Bruges in Belgium. Just a joke, kids. Watch the movie and you'll get it.

Now, this being my first trip to the land of "Liberté, Egalité, Fraternité" AND being an Iraq War veteran, I was somewhat apprehensive. I'm no "freedom-fry" guy, but you hear so many horror stories about rude Parisians that I was a bit on guard and I'm pleased to say that there was no need to be. Plus, my wife is an avid Paris-lover, so there were expectations and "one time, in Paris..." to live up to. We (my wife and I and my parents) spent four days there and didn't even get to see a museum because we were walking our asses off seeing things like, oh, I don't know, the Eiffel Tower and the Place de la Concorde and the Arc de Triomphe and the Champs Elysées and Latin Quarter, etc.

Speaking of the Latin Quarter, this blog is named after Ernest Hemingway's A Moveable Feast, published (posthumously) in the 1960's as a long-overdue memoir of his experiences amongst the expat literary set in Paris in the 1920's with Ezra Pound, F. Scott Fitzgerald, Ford Maddox Ford, Gertrude Stein and others... who he's not always so nice to in the book. You have to read it. Anyway, the Latin Quarter is now a gentrified and expensive place to live and eat in, but I enjoyed seeing the cafés and restaurants where Hemingway wrote "The Sun Also Rises" and "A Farewell to Arms" as well as a bunch of his early short stories.

However, as they say, there's no place like home and this is a blog about Dublin. So, I must say Paris is beautiful and full of amazing history, but there were two things I would have preferred to be more Dublin-y. DISCLAIMER: These are extremely minor gripes and I had a great time in France.

- Beer prices. I will never complain about paying my €5 per pint in Dublin ever again. For 50 ml of beer -- of which there was a nice variety of Belgian and French brews -- the price was usually €8.50 to €10, which is absolutely ridiculous. Any time someone says, "(INSERT ENGLISH-SPEAKING NATIONALITY HERE)s just drink to get drunk," remind them that at least in France they can't AFFORD to get drunk.

- Corner stores. You can find a croissant in the morning, you can have your pain au chocolat -- and I did many times -- but finding a bottle of water or a convenience store to grab a Coke was a bit more difficult than I liked. Cafés and restaurants everwhere... but I found myself thinking, "Where's the Spar or Centra?" Didn't realize how often I popped into one of those places until there were none around.

I had little time to think about this things, however, because most of the time I was looking for more movie posters featuring Sophie Marceau (Braveheart) and Monica Bellucci (Malena) in a new movie, Ne Te Retourne Pas.

Also, Terminator Salvation just came out today. I can't wait.

Bad News and Then Some Good News

2009-05-22T18:42:00.003+01:00

First, the bad news: endemic physical, emotional, and sexual abuse (and neglect) in Ireland's state-sponsored (and Catholic Church-administered) youth institutions in the past century. Absolutely disgraceful. You can read the commission's executive summary here.

And the good news: The Heineken Cup is on tomorrow, COME ON LEINSTER!!!!

My personal bad news/good news: I'm heading to France to meet a long-lost great-uncle and see Paris with my wife. I'll be gone a week and at some point I'll be drunkenly canoeing down some river near Bordeaux. So... I'll miss the match. But if missing the match means drinking great wine, eating great cheese, and seeing one of the greatest cities in the world... I guess I'll do it.

Some Irish News

2009-05-14T18:57:00.003+01:00

The PhD's over at The Irish Economy found this in Rathmines. Apparently the owner is SO over the recession and now fears the ramifications of an IMF bail-out.

--------------------------

I was in Belfast today for business. Up early and on the Dart by 7, I was in Belfast before 10 and then in meetings until just before the return journey to Dublin at 2 p.m., leaving me no time to:
- look at sectarian murals
- drink beer
- or eat fish'n'chips.
In summation: fail.

------------------------

Apparently there's an election coming up, but no one outside of the main political parties seems to give a s---. A far cry from the ridiculously drawn-out American election cycle. Remember the good ol' days when American elections were only a YEAR long? Try the EU model. Campaign = 6 weeks and done.

How low can you go? When it comes to the Irish CPI, pretty damn low -- inflation is now NEGATIVE 3.5% -- especially when the private sector is engaged in aggressive cost-cutting, the central bank (ECB) has slashed rates, and the bottom has fallen out of the residential property market driving rents down. Leading prices downwards from April of last year are housing and fuel (-19.1%), clothing and footwear (-11.9%) and transportation (-4.8%).

After being delayed due to weather, the Samuel Beckett bridge arrived this week, making north-south access in the Dublin docklands a bit easier when it finally opens. It's a cool Calatrava design, too.

Irish News Round-Up: 7 May, 2009

2009-05-07T16:52:00.002+01:00

The European Central Bank cut rates to 1% today, meaning further falls in mortgage interest repayments. Considering the Government is phasing out mortgage interest relief, this is a welcome development... then again, the Government just raised taxes again recently, so it's cold comfort. But hey, at least, the ECB is catching up to the rest of the world's central banks...

Don't (always) blame it on Limerick.

It's the first recession Ireland's seen in 20-plus years AND Ireland has experienced its first wave of net immigration in the past decade, so it's no surprise that racism and protectionism are making an unfortunate comeback. These damn immigrants TOOK OUR JOBS!!!

And Kevin Myers does NOT like the blasphemy law.

A Walk Into Dublin Bay and Only In America

2009-05-06T20:41:00.006+01:00

View Larger Map

My sister and I went for a run/walk out to the Great South Wall, by way of Seán Moore Park and Irishtown Nature Preserve. Other than almost being blown off the Great South Wall by winds that picked up on our return from near the lighthouse, it's a beautiful but odd walk through Ireland's port and industrial history. Most of the walk is through the nature preserve, but the Poolbeg power station towers loom over you for most of the way, reminding you that the industrial center of Dublin is just over the hill. Within sight, just over the hill from where the nature trail meets Pigeon House Road, is an old mansion (which I think is THE Pigeon House) and 19th century factory (which I think is the original power station)... which look like they should have dropped into the sea like in an old Edgar Allen Poe work. And there they are, surrounded by modern industrial towers, pavement... and then the gorgeous Dublin Bay. Further on, as you come around the final corner of the peninsula towards the Wall (watching the ships come in) there's a Traveller camp and sand dunes have crept up onto the single road. The Great South Wall, built starting in the late 18th century, is really something, though, but due to its remote and isolated location I'd say it's quite forgotten about.
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My buddy Frank Chow back in the US alerted me to this:

Porn Star Seriously Considering Senate Run

Enjoy.

Irish News Round-Up

2009-05-06T10:16:00.003+01:00

Apparently the declining threat of being blown to bits by a sectarian bomb in the North has an unintended consequence: people in Northern Ireland are boozing it up more than any other region of the UK.

A British guy won the opportunity to live on a beach and doing nothing but blog... half a million Californians just said, "Is someone moving here?"

RTE's Economics editor, George Lee, has announced he'll stand for local election as a member of Fine Gael. Econ nerds begin debating if he can make a difference in the Dáil...

He might have an ancestor from Moneygall, but if you don't pay your taxes -- or help companies who do -- President Obama's gonna GETCHA!!! Commence Irish hand-wringing and the "we're-doomed" calls. At issue are corporations who re-invest and recycle their profits, effectively NEVER paying taxes on their gains.

I. Won. Money.

2009-05-03T17:30:00.002+01:00

Granted, I put down only €10 (€5 each way on the match) and got back €17, but other than a lotto ticket here and there all I've ever gambled on was a poker game in Afghanistan... which didn't go well. So, to win a few bucks on a rugby match that almost EVERYONE thought would go Munster's way was brilliant! If I'd trusted my instincts and put it all on Leinster, think how much I'd be up!!! Ahhhhh...

Leinster won in almost every aspect of the match with a final score of Munster 6 - 25 Leinster. Grace and I caught the match in what we thought was a quiet pub attached to a hotel across from Leinster House, called Buswell's. We had beers and chips and settled into leather armchairs. A few guys who were either en route to/from a wedding -- or maybe there was a really annoyed Irish bride at the church across St. Stephen's Green -- were on the other side of this previously quiet place, and even though it wasn't a packed establishment, between the noisy American (me) and the wedding party, we had a great time whooping it up for Leinster as they triumphed.

Here's misty-eyed and overly dramatic montage of yesterday's match:

Gwan de lads!!!! and Burn 'em at the stake!!!

2009-05-01T19:31:00.006+01:00

I'm taking a week off work. I'm not going anywhere, just taking the time off. My sister (who runs the blogs Far(ang) And Away and Capricious Scrawl) is back from Thailand I'm going to enjoy some down time with her and the wife. Tomorrow is the big Heineken Cup (rugby union) semi-final and as things go, it'll be a showdown between Munster and Leinster up on the northside at Croke Park.

A bit of background: very generally speaking, Leinster rugby is supposedly supported by what are known as "D4-heads", the stereotypical rich kids who speak with lisps and pronounce Dart as "dort" and right as "roysh" and say things like, "traffic is a total 'mare today, roysh." For more on this South Dublin stereotype, I recommend Ross O'Carroll Kelly.

Meanwhile, Munster rugby is (generally) supported by a more salt-of-the-earth, common-man, "real" Ireland type of person from the proud counties of Clare, Limerick, Kerry, Cork and Tipperary. From what I've seen, you've got Munster fans who have a great time antagonizing the rich, sissy Leinster supporters while there is a large segment of the Leinster crowd who DON'T fit into the D4 stereotype who are just like, "What are you so worked up about? Go back to Limerick and leave me alone." It's very entertaining.

Munster won the Heineken Cup last year, their B-team almost beat the New Zealand All Blacks back in the autumn, and they're generally considered the best team in Europe. Meanwhile, Leinster (who play their home games just down the street at the RDS stadium) are led by Brian O'Driscoll, captain of the Irish national team which just won the Grand Slam in the 6 Nations tournament a few weeks ago. I'll be belly up to the bar and I hope it's a good match. I live in Dublin and love an underdog, so COME ON LEINSTER!!!!

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This week, Minister for Justice Dermot Ahern announced an amendment to the Defamation Bill, which makes it a crime to engage in "blasphemous libel" for a penalty of €100,000. From the Irish Independent:

Speaking after an Oireachtas committee meeting, Mr Ahern yesterday defended a fine of up to €100,000 that will be imposed on blasphemers.

The Government moved to revive the crime by placing it onto a fresh statutory footing following advice from the office of the Attorney General.

Gardai will now have the power to seize blasphemous material from the home or any other premises used by a person convicted of blasphemy.

The proposed law flies in the face of a recommendation by the Law Reform Commission which said in 1991 that there was no place for such an offence in a society which respects freedom of speech.

There are fears that the new offence may be used by fundamentalists to crack down on publication of material perceived to be injurious to faith.

WHAT?!?!? Where did this come from? Even in countries that already have blasphemy laws, they're never enforced because, you know, most of the Western world has bought into this whole free speech thing. Also, the government of the Irish Republic -- despite the fact that the majority of people in the country are Roman Catholics and church attendance is pretty high by European standards -- haven't proven themselves to be defenders of the faith lately. So, forgive me if I'm a cynic here, but this new blasphemy law reminds of a certain flurry of protests and counter-protests that happened due to some cartoons that were printed back in 2005.

So, is this new law an attempt at preventing offense to all religions or is this part of the new PC push in Ireland? Whatever happens, I hope free speech comes first. I don't always like what people say about (or to) the Catholic Church, but they have the right to say it.

Whatever happens, I just hope the punishment is entertaining. I mean, why go half-ass? If we're going to punish blasphemy we need to bring back stonings, crucifixions and burning at the stake. Anything less would be uncivilized.

Erin Go Broke or Oh, Crap! They're Onto Us!!!

2009-04-22T20:23:00.005+01:00

I work in a commercial real estate office (insert recession joke here), so I've been watching the development of the Irish recession first-hand. What was just a couple years ago the driving engine of economic growth in the Republic collapsed right about the time I joined the company and I've been keeping up with depressing statistic after depressing statistic from the CSO over the past year. So far two rating agencies (S&P and Fitch) have both downgraded Ireland from AAA to AA+, and last week Nobel-winning economist Paul Krugman (above) published this article in the New York Times, entitled Erin Go Broke.

This column has been getting quite a bit of attention and it was e-mailed to me by numerous colleagues. It's a bit of the "oh, hell, now everyone knows we're in trouble" which I find funny because the US, UK and much of Europe is now in similar trouble, although Ireland's problems are made more difficult by
a) the fact that it's a small open economy
b) it's a member of the Eurozone so it can't control its own monetary policy
c) much of its tax revenue was built around one market (real estate)
which means that Ireland has to raise money to close its budget deficit but can't do this by altering monetary policy or by investing in a fiscal stimulus due to the fact that so much would bleed out to foreign companies with a presence in the State.

So, there remains the option of attracting foreign direct investment into the State... which is made much more difficult when rating agencies are downgrading you (even though many EU nations didn't reach the AAA rating) and a world-renowned economist says the worst thing for the US would be to suck money out of the economy in order to save the banks... like Ireland.

...And we're back! Life goes on in the new Irish recession.

2009-04-19T11:54:00.003+01:00

For anyone who still cares, it's been a long pause in the ol' American-expat-in-Dublin blog because of a number of things. First, Ireland shuts down for the two weeks around Christmas. Second, I returned to work for a month and half of presentations about the property market (FUN)! Third, my wife and I moved to a new neighborhood, Sandymount. So, while I think about where to re-start my blog topic-wise, you can read all about my new 'hood over at the Dubliner magazine blog. Enjoy.

Sandymount, Dublin 4

While it's not quite the same young, hip and exciting locale that Ranelagh was, it's quite, friendly and has more of an Irish village feel. Plus, the beach and parks are less than ten minutes walk away.

One benefit of the Irish recession: falling rents. We got two bedrooms (plus storage space) in Sandymount for the same monthly rent we paid in Ranelagh. One downside: it's a "posh" area, so public transport is a bit spotty, although I think I was a bit spoiled by the seemingly endless buses and trams near our Ranelagh apartment. To solve that problem, I bought a new bicycle using the Government's bike-to-work scheme. Basically my employer fronted me the money for a bicycle and I pay back the company over the course of a year. The bike was tax-free, too. So I'm cycling all over town now and Grace is scared to her wit's end.

A Slow Month -- "Kings" as Gaeilge

2008-10-19T13:58:00.005+01:00

Sorry I haven't been updating this much. For one thing, I've been having recurring problems with my hamstrings, so there hasn't been much Gaelic football going on. Then my wife had a death in her family and I didn't feel it was appropriate to write about the Irish wake in the way I wrote about the Irish wedding. In fact, there are only two things about Irish funerals I found to be unique (carrying the casket on shoulders and viewing the body in the home) but going into detail would have been odd, I think.

Anyway, my Irish cultural event in the past month was the All-Ireland football championship, which I attended a few weeks ago. The Tyrone Red-handers defeated the Kerrymen in a well-played exciting match. I was privileged enough to get tickets at face-value on game day in front of Croke Park and had a great time standing on Hill 16 with a (mostly) Tyrone crowd chanting, "Come on Tyrone!" I was told -- on penalty of death by my wife's northern Irish family -- to cheer loudly for Tyrone. I obeyed.

Other than that it's been work, work, work. I finally got a relaxing weekend and so I found a bootleg of last year's film "Kings" starring Colm Meaney (picture above). It's about seven friends from Connemara who went to London seeking work 25 years earlier. One of them's dead and the rest gather for a wake. It's almost entirely in Connemara Irish, so there are subtitles, but it's one of those movies with lots of subplots and past resentments... and whiskey. Lots of whiskey. I recommend it.

An Irish Wedding

2008-09-09T19:01:00.003+01:00

I was married out in Connemara, Co. Galway about three years ago. This weekend I got to attend another Irish wedding, because the word is now out that my wife is back in Ireland so we're back in the invite list. My wife's family (at least on her father's side) is huge even by Irish Catholic standards. Her dad is the youngest of 15 siblings -- let that sink in for a moment. Until I met my wife, I had gone around thinking we were big Catholic badasses with my Dad's seven brothers and sisters... not so much any more. Anyway, the huge paternal clan that belongs to my wife was gathering this weekend at University Church on Stephen's Green and then heading to the Shelbourne Hotel (very swanky) for the reception.

I had a great time. While Grace's (first) cousins range in age from late 50's to late teens at this point, we were luckily seated at a table with mostly other late-twentysomethings and had a great time drinking, eating and chatting away. A few notes on Irish weddings...

They are long, but awesome. While my experience with American weddings is limited, I do know they're usually over-planned and are over around midnight. I didn't leave the Shelbourne until 5 a.m. on Sunday. Mass had been at 2 p.m. the day before. There was mass, cocktail hour(s), a five-hour multi-plate dinner, speeches, a live band, a DJ and finally retiring to the hotel bar for singing along to old Irish songs. Epic.

The bride and groom party just as hard as the guests. While at American weddings the happy couple spend the reception wandering table to table greeting guests and seeing everyone, in Ireland the bride and groom create a receiving line and see everyone before the party begins, leaving them to enjoy the reception as they see fit. Grace's cousin ate his dinner and then later began drinking with the boys while the bride chatted with her girlfriends.

At least three people make speeches. The father of the bride, the groom and the best man all make speeches. The duty of the father is to talk about how great his daughter is and how much he likes his new son-in-law. The duty of the groom is to thank everyone and propose toasts to his new in-laws, the bridal party and his new wife. The duty of the best man is to slag the groom and bring up all sorts of embarrassing things about him. At this wedding we also had a Kerryman sing a humorous song he made up about the bride and groom and another family member lead a singalong. We also had plenty of trash talk back and forth. See, the groom's family is from Co. Tyrone and the bride's family is from Kerry and those are the exact two counties whose football teams are playing in the All-Ireland championship this month.

I can't wait to attend the next Irish wedding. Sorry I don't have pictures, we forgot our camera that night.

Electric Picnic Music and Arts Festival 2008

2008-09-01T20:32:00.003+01:00

Last weekend I was in Stradbally, Co. Laois for the fifth annual Electric Picnic Music & Arts Festival. Originally begun as a techno festival, I'm told, it's now a multiple-stage, multiple-genre, hippie/techno/rock/dance/spoken word/poetry mega-festival that went on from Friday afternoon to late Sunday night. It was a lot more of an experience than I had bargained on. Having been to Germany only a couple months before, I had assumed this would be similar: a couple of stages, a few food stalls, and lots of somewhat drunk people staggering around.

Actually, it was quite a weekend... There were at least seven stages and there was tons to do. I camped with my brother-in-law in the Jimi Hendrix camping area (one of three or four, named Wilde, Warhol, Chaplin and Hendrix). In addition to the headline bands, there was spoken word, poetry, gospel music, art, dance, burlesque, and circus performances. In the center of the main arena was "Body & Soul" which at first glance was hippie central, but it turned out to be a nice place to relax, with organic furniture and hammocks and plenty to distract one's self with when waiting for a band to go back on stage.

You can see the set list for the weekend here. There were good bands on every night, but I had a couple of favorites and/or discoveries.

- Jape: Irish electronic pop-rock. The band consisted of a couple guitars and a guy with keyboards, but the sound was huge and a bunch of the songs, even though I'd never heard them before, had my head bobbing pretty quickly. Best song: "Floating".

- Sigur Ros: Icelandic atmospheric rock. They played the main stage on Friday and the set consisted of suspended white balls at various sizes and heights above the stage. The band played well, but the music isn't really suited to festival time. If I'm going to be standing in a field watching rock music, I'd like to be a bit more energetic. Sigur Ros's music is great... but better on headphones or in the background in your apartment than at a festival.

- The Stunning: late-90's alt-rockers reformed. A great set by these Irish middle-aged post-grunge heroes. Again, like Jape, I didn't know a single song but it was an entertaining set nonetheless and really catchy.

- The Faint: techno punk rock. Problems with the sound system cut this band's set short, but they got out there and did a good mix of material from Dance Macabre and their new album Fascination. They all danced up a storm while rocking out as well, so it was really great. I liked the Dance Macabre a lot, and their set sold me on the idea of buying the new one.

- Duffy: retro soul from a Welsh beauty. Tiny Welsh chick sings with a big voice. I know it's the latest trend to have British chicks sing neo-soul songs like black gospel ladies, but this girl's pretty good. And she seems to be a good entertainer, too, even if the set list was really short. She needs to work some covers into her set. Having only one album kept things pretty limited.

- Franz Ferdinand: Scottish dance-rockers. Probably one of the best acts of the weekend. I'd never seen these Glaswegians before, but they rocked out like nobody's business. A great set that mixed in songs from their upcoming third album. If the set was any indication, the new album is going to be just as good as the first two.

- George Clinton: creator of funk. Actually, a huge disappointment. I didn't actually see George Clinton until half an hour into the set, because the first five songs were all played by P-Funk. Really long songs and I'd been on my feet all day... so I watched George conduct the band for a song and then left.

- Grinderman: Bad Seeds alter-ego. I was really excited to see Nick Cave and Warren Ellis rock out and they did not disappoint. Nick Cave roamed all over the stage, played the keyboards, and conducted the crowd, while Warren Ellis shredded violins and mandolins while the rhythm sections solidly kept up with their fireball energy. The set was over an hour long but it felt like ten minutes, as Nick Cave yowled out all their tracks. I'm a converted fan.

- My Bloody Valentine: more 90's alt-rock reformers. Noise, grunge and atmospheric pioneers My Bloody Valentine aren't much to look at on stage, but this was one of the loudest and most intense sets I've ever seen. The only difficult part was standing through the 15 minute noise segue in the last song. While the two front-people do nothing but "shoegaze", the rhythm section acted like more typical rock stars. The bass player thrashed about and the drummer looked like he could leap up from his stool at any moment and kick over his kit. All the while a huge video played in the background mixing driving scenes, flying, and general flashes of God-knows-what. Odd, but perfect for the music. A great set and a great performance.

The Electric Picnic was so much more than a music festival. It really lived up to its name and the people who were there really were great. We never had a problem with people being rude and never felt suspicious of the people camping around us. While I wish they'd been a bit more liberal with their "outside beer" policy -- we had to smuggle our cans in or pay €5 a beer -- the whole experience was great. I'll be there next year if at all possible.

Irish Sport Wisdom Courtesy of Ross

2008-08-14T08:15:00.003+01:00

Patrick:...and so practice sucked because the pitch was flooded.
Ross: That Gah* shit is for farmers.
Patrick: [Pause] You know, Ross, Dublin has a GAA team.
Ross: [with great sarcasm] Thank you, Patrick, I wasn't aware. No, dude, that's just what we say. Gah is for farmers.
Patrick: What about Galway and Cork boys who live in the city?
Ross: Doesn't matter; everything outside of Dublin is farmers. It's just a joke, dude.
Patrick: So, what? Let me guess. Gah is for farmers and rugby is for D4 pricks.
Ross: And soccer is for scumbags.

*the slang term for the GAA is "gah" as if you were pronouncing the GAA initials as one word. This term can be used to refer to both hurling and Gaelic football. In this case, Ross is giving me hassle for playing "that farmer shit."

To summarize:
- GAA is for farmers
- Rugby is for D4 pricks
- Soccer is for scumbags

I guess you just have to decide who you'd rather be...

I finally got to see a match in Croke Park and let me tell you, even at half capacity the roar of the crowd (39,000 people) was amazing. The Galway vs. Kerry football match was really exciting with several comebacks on both side. Unfortunately for my friends out in Co. Galway, Kerry pulled away with a strong finish in the last few minutes.

Non-Irish side note of the week: Go to Venice. It's expensive but amazing.

Jim Fitzpatrick - An Irish Artist

2008-07-19T20:58:00.005+01:00

So, you know those kids you've seen walking around trying to look badass with their Che Guevara t-shirt? Yeah, they annoy me, too, but what you might not know is that the image on their t-shirt was created originally as a poster in 1968 by Irish artist Jim Fitzpatrick, who now lives north of Dublin city AND who, not-so-coincidentally, was at my wedding three years ago. You see, he met my sister-in-law (a part-time model) a few years ago and did several pictures of her and my wife (he's preparing a book of photos and art called "Mostly Women") and so we invited him to the wedding. Jim is a great guy with a great wealth of knowledge about Irish history and left-wing political movements, especially the Cuban revolution.

[Click on the image to see a bigger, higher-quality version]

Anyway, personal connections aside, Jim Fitzpatrick is an artist who deserves some serious attention if you want to understand modern Ireland. Aside from his Che poster, Jim's a huge Irish mythology and history scholar, and a large portion of his work is dedicated to re-imaginings of ancient Irish history and mythology. Most of his work is, in a word, stunning. His work stands in direct contrast to those in Irish society who feel they have nothing to learn or gain from the study of Irish heritage.

Here's Jim's website: www.jimfitzpatrick.ie

and here's his Flickr page with photos of what he's up to lately:
Jimfitzpic

I Feel Like I Barely Live In Dublin Sometimes...

2008-07-10T18:29:00.001+01:00

Just after my last post two of my old buddies from the Army came over to Ireland. They were on a couple weeks tour of Europe, planning on hitting Dublin, Prague, Berlin AND Valencia, so I was thrilled to show them my new city. Favorite WTF moment: being one of three Americans in an Irish pub cheering on Germany to victory over Portugal in the Euro Cup. Why cheer for Germany? A) People here love British football, so a lot of people were cheering for Ronaldo (Portugal) just because he plays for Man Utd. It's fun to be obnoxious when you've got back-up. B) One of my friends visiting is half-German and was always reminding us apathetic Americans of German successes on the pitch, so I figured I owed him my beer-fueled enthusiasm. I was sorry to see those guys go.

I headed to London on business the day they left. I was only there just over 36 hours (red-eye morning flights are no fun), but London is quite a place. I've come to the realization that I am definitely a Dublin/DC type of person -- low-lying, big enough but not huge -- rather than a New York/London person -- so big and so crowded I don't even know who I am. There are definite romantic aspects of London and New York as international centres that make them attractive, but as far as my life, I'm glad I grew up in the DC area and now live in Dublin City.

Not back for long, though, as last weekend I headed to the middle of nowhere, Germany, to take in the experience of With Full Force XV, a three-day hardcore punk and heavy metal festival. Some thoughts:
- Even the worst German beer is better than what most Americans drink. Sorry, it's true.
- German trains run like American subways. You can get ANYWHERE and you can set your watch by the trains.
- Germans take metal very seriously. In the States I've always felt that the whole "metal is evil" thing was a bit of a joke, like vaudeville, but in Germany I got the distinct impression that people were serious.
- The Confederate flag simply means "rebel" in Germany. Much like the Cork rebels in Ireland, the Confederate flag, stripped of all the slavery vs. state rights civil war debate, just means: EFF YOU!
- German festival food is cheap and good. I think I ate stir-fry three meals a day and then had a bratwurst for dessert.
- Not all Germans speak English. The next time some anti-American says that all "continentals" speak English so you should learn French/Spanish/German, tell them to shut up. I think languages are cool, but the myth that all Europeans are multi-lingual is garbage.
- Always use the buddy system. My "buddy" for the weekend got lost coming back from the toilets two out of three nights and had to sleep outside. Great for me, I had a tent; horrible for him, he was freezing.

My brother and his friend are here for the month of July, or most of it. I'm psyched to show MORE Americans Dublin, especially my brother.

The rest of my photos are on Picasa.

Full Force XV

Des Bishop, Central Europe, Radiohead, Grad school

2008-06-16T19:25:00.002+01:00

For my birthday back in May, Grace gave me tickets to my new favorite comic -- excepting my best buddy Mike Lee -- Des Bishop, who I've written about before. The show was at Vicar Street, west of our neighborhood and closer to the river. It's near Christchurch. The show was, in a word, excellent. I wasn't sure how much of Des' act would be in Irish, and I had heard it can be a bit difficult to follow due to the bilingual-ness, but it seems like he's worked out all the kinks in the act. Any time we non-Irish speakers would get lost he would act it out or immediately translate in a way that no one was left out. Grace and I drank beer, found a great spot in the center of the balcony and I haven't laughed that hard in a long while. I even got to see "Leimigi Thart" done live! A great night!

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My job continues to amaze me with its perks. I've begun to play pool with the other guys at lunch time. I need guy time considering I live with a woman, work with six women and the nearest talkative male is like five cubicles away. Add to the lunchtime billiards the fact that:
- we get a free ice cream on Fridays in summer
- neckties are optional in summer (when not meeting clients)
- company-sponsored social events w/ booze.
It's a pretty sweet deal.

One of the best recent perks was a company trip to Budapest, Hungary for a pan-European research trip. Budapest is inefficient, casual, historic, and dirty all at the same time. It was quite a trip. They take the "work hard, play hard" ethos VERY seriously in this company. A full days work of conferences and presentations is pretty much followed, every night, by mandatory fun (read: drinking). Which is fine, I like a drink, but I don't like getting up four hours later hung over to sit through presentations on Moscow's sky-rocketing cost of living in a dark, hot conference room while I struggle to stay awake. Anway, Budapest was awesome and I think these photos speak for themselves.

Most surreal moment: standing at an outdoor nightclub on the Danube drinking beer with a Norwegian, a Czech, a Slovak, a Hungarian and a Russian girl... and I was the "Irish" guy. When I think about where I was a year ago, this is just nuts.

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The week after Budapest I went to see a band I had always listened to but never got around to seeing: Radiohead. They were awesome! They played a good mix of music and the venue was sweet, set on the grounds of a historic castle in Malahide village, north of Dublin city. The Radiohead set was great, a non-cheesy play on their latest album's title "In Rainbows."

More music is in store for this summer. I'm headed to Germany for the three-day hardcore/metal festival With Full Force north of Leipzig, and then in August I'm going down to Co. Laois for the Electric Picnic. A great summer in store!!! Oh, and I'll have a surprise in store for Grace...

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So in the past two weeks I've received letters from both of the schools I applied to for graduate studies in Economics -- and I was accepted to both! I'll have to defer and attend one of them next year, mostly because I just started my job and need to get myself settled. There's no way I could actually invest myself in learning a new career AND focus on a graduate degree.

The first letter I got was from the University of Dublin, better known as Trinity College. The naming is odd, considering to an American "college" and "university" are generally interchangeable terms, but a college over here is a subdivision of the most British universities. For example, Oxford University is broken up into many many colleges... but University of Dublin has only one, so most people call it Trinity College. It's located in the city centre at the "bottom" of Grafton Street. Dating back to the time of the English Tudor dynasty, Trinity was a bastion of the Anglo-Irish, Church of Ireland (Anglican/Episcopalian) ascendancy for several hundred years. It cuts an imposing figure in the south city centre. While it was, for most of its history, a predominantly Protestant university it has become, since the establishment of the Irish free state, a majority "Catholic" institution. The grounds are beautiful: after you enter the front gates of Trinity, cut into a massive gray wall, you come into a very green, very large courtyard with a tower in the center. Modern buildings are mixed in with the 400-year old original buildings, including the museum that holds the famous Book of Kells, a book of illuminated manuscripts that people come from all over the world to see.

The other school I was accepted to is University College Dublin, which used to be located on St. Stephen's Green, but now is down in the Dublin suburb of Belfield, Dublin 14. It was originally set up as The Catholic University of Ireland (with John Henry Newman, the famous convert to Catholicism and future cardinal of the Catholic Church) as the first rector to provide higher education to Catholic citizens of Ireland, but even after graduating students had to pass a certain number of exams to get a diploma recognized by the Crown. In contrast to Trinity, which has 400 years of Anglo-Irish and upper-class history to its name, the UCD campus is in a southside suburb with Irish translations of all the street signs and guideposts and very utilitarian buildings. They have great sports pitches and I train with my football club there once a week.

I'd be happy to go to either school, but I think Trinity would do more for my CV.

Long time no blog

2008-05-24T20:32:00.000+01:00

So it's been a busy month. It feels like a whole lot's gone on but I really couldn't tell you much past the last week now. Unfortunately a week ago my grandmother died, so I made a short-notice trip back to the ol' USA for the funeral. While it was sad occasion that took me back home so unexpectedly, I couldn't help feeling happy to see my family in any case. Mom seemed to be coping well and the funeral was beautiful, if not a bit surreal. I've never been to a funeral for someone in my family who was cremated, so when the priest turned to me and said, "Would you mind carrying your grandmother?" I froze up for a second but quickly recovered and carried the urn out with the procession.

One totally unexpected positive of the funeral trip was that I got to see my Army buddies again. It happened like this:

Me: Al, we'll be on the same continent for the first time in a couple of years.
Al: Really, why?
Me: My grandmother died, so I'm headed back for the funeral and a weekend in VA/DC.
Al: Well, I'm sorry to hear that... but on a happier note, all of us guys are headed up to DC for a weekend of boozing without the girlfriends and wives.

This led to me walking into a bar in Adams-Morgan, surprising about ten of my buddies from the Army, and having a great couple of nights drinking causing trouble. My brother Tom came along on both nights and we had a good time hanging out also.

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Back in Dublin, life is progressing as it should. We had a bit of a stressful week last week, though, when our things arrived from the US. A few trucks of nice Polish guys arrived and began bringing in boxes and when they left we had boxes from floor to ceiling. You don't realize how much stuff you DON'T need until you have to downsize apartments. We went from a large 2-bed in NC to a small 1-bed in Dublin and we've had to take out a storage place -- on top of selling a lot of our furniture back in December. But, it's nice to have some of our own things around.

I also got paid a full paycheck for the first time, so Grace and I are buying/renting/paying off all the things we've put off since we moved in. We're settling in well, I think.

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Had a few drinks with the guys from the Ranelagh Gaels today while we watched the Heineken Cup final (rugby) between Munster and Toulouse. It was a tense match, but really fun to watch and I'm happy to report that Munster was victorious!!! All of the people who went to Cardiff, Wales to watch the match are having a blast right now I'm sure.

So I've Been Busy

2008-04-27T20:33:00.000+01:00

The last couple weeks have been chock-full of important developments. The bottom line is that I'm finally settling into what can be called a "life" here in Dublin, although this means I have a job and responsibilities. On the upside, I can make a living now.

About three weeks ago I joined up with the Ranelagh Gaels, the local GAA club. In the vein of my "when in Rome" attitude, I've bought new football boots, put on the short-shorts and gone out there to give it my best shot. I'm the only American out there, but all the guys seems really cool about trying to teach me a new game and are (usually) really helpful and don't give me too much trouble when I'm just downright awful on the pitch. We practice twice a week, with most matches on Saturdays, and the team has claimed Smyth's of Ranelagh as the team pub. I haven't been able to make it yet, but I guess every weekend they go in there and take over a corner and drink to their hearts' content -- my kind of guys. I knew I'd like it here. My first match was played in Phoenix Park, on the northwest corner of the city and it really couldn't have been any better. I mean, I was terrible, but I was playing in a massive park -- the biggest in Europe -- next to where Pope John Paul II landed for his visit to Ireland, and in the distance I can see the Dublin skyline fading off into Dublin Bay. It was just great. The manager of the team is this auld fella named Liam and he's lived in and around Ranelagh his whole life, so when I catch a ride from him to and from practice I get a history lesson. He's a real salt of the earth, honest-to-goodness Dub and I'm getting a lot out of chatting with him.

On the work front, it really couldn't be much better. While I've kept my head buried in economic reports and bulletins on the real estate market for most of the time, everyone at the office is great and the benefits just keep piling up:
- an in-house Starbucks
- five-minute walk from my apartment
- health and pension benefits
- 20 days vacation a year (automatic)
- great salary
- company sponsored social events
- etc.
I work with five women, which is a huge change from my military existence before, but I'm getting used to it and it helps there's not one savage bitch on the team. Just two days ago the company paid for us to hold our annual research department strategy day in a resort in Co. Wicklow, so in addition to getting out of Dublin for a day to see Ireland's garden county, I got a spa treatment the next day -- again, all paid for. It's insane.

In the States I'd be busting my ass for a year just to earn two weeks and I'd be scrambling to cover my health insurance. It seems like the saying "there's more to life than work" is really believed in over here. These Europeans get a few things right, you know?

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Today I went to Croke Park and took the tour. The tour guide, John, called me "another Des Bishop" and was a really cool tour guide on top of being a nice guy. We got to go pitch-side, up on all levels of the stands, and we even went into the dressing rooms to see all the facilities. It's pretty amazing that in a small nation of under 6 million people, an amateur sports and culture organization like the GAA could put together the funds and resources to build an 80,000 seat stadium. And the facilities keep getting improved over time. There's a lot of history and atmosphere in that stadium and I intend to make it over for a huge match sometime soon.

Two Big Developments... more at 11.

2008-04-18T18:42:00.000+01:00

1) I started my job this week and the benefits just keep piling up.
2) I joined a Gaelic football club in the neighborhood and it's a blast.

More to follow...

No Longer An Immigrant Wage Slave (and a free plug for Des Bishop)

2008-04-03T20:55:00.001+01:00

Well, I have a job. Finally. After much agonizing and a bit of panicking I finally stumbled upon a position with a property services corporation (Americans, that means real estate). It couldn't be a better deal: the office is a five minute walk from my apartment, the salary is excellent, the people are nice, the benefits are great AND I get to indulge my math/econ nerd side and pursue economic research, all in the same job. Beat that.

The short story goes like this: I was working part-time in merchandising and sales, going around to supermarkets stacking dog food and re-arranging pet displays. Not glamorous, but a bit of extra cash to help out with rent. A friend of a friend of Grace's calls and says she does a weekly column in the Sunday Tribune on immigrants to Ireland -- would I like to be interviewed? It may help you find work, she says, a lot of people read the Sunday papers. Sure, I say. So we do the interview -- I do an embarrassing "photo shoot" at Trinity College -- and on Easter Sunday, the article is printed HERE in the Sunday Tribune Magazine. Tuesday or Wednesday I get a call from the company. We saw your article, they say, we'd like to do an exploratory interview. I put on my best -- and only -- suit and go over to meet the head of research. The HoR is a very nice woman who explains, to my surprise, that I would be the Property Economist for the research division and oh, by the way, here's what you'll be paid, and oh, by the way, you'll travel a lot -- are you interested? ARE YOU KIDDING?

So I did the second interview just yesterday, which consisted of meeting with the Managing Director, then the HR director and my soon-to-be boss, and despite the fact that I haven't been so nervous since I last jumped from an airplane, I get offered a six-month, probationary contract, with a look to go permanent if I do well. Not the full package they would have offered someone who fit the full bill they were looking for, but they're willing to take a "leap of faith" with me, because they think I can make this work. Thank GOD!

Now, of course, I'm trying to figure out things like taxes. I filed a tax form several weeks ago when I was doing the part-time job, so I wonder if I'll have to get a P45 (certificate of employment termination) from the part-time job or if I just file a new 12A (tax credit form) or what, blah blah blah. I'll figure it out. What's important is that in the mean time I can breathe a bit easier knowing that I am now employed and stable in my new hometown.

Now I just have to convince my bosses they made the right decision hiring me...

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I've started, slowly, to learn Irish. I have my little children's book, Buntús, to read from, as well as the CD so I can read along and try to mimic the sounds and so far I'm at least learning to pronounce Irish words properly -- my vocab, as in all languages, will be the hardest part.

Driving this desire to learn the language of my distant ancestors is my latest Irish pop culture interest, Des Bishop's show, "In the Name of the Fada" on RTE 1. Des is a New York native whose parents picked up and moved him to Ireland in his teens, so he's got a funky NYC/Dub accent and has taken up the profession of stand-up comedian. His latest project was started last year when he decided to live in Co. Galway's Gaeltacht (Irish-speaking communities) for an entire year with the goal of being the first Irish language stand-up comedian -- all within a year. I think it's really interesting stuff and if you watch the clips online it'll be obvious why... for example, Des does a bit on how Irish (Gaeilge) has three different ways of saying the number three, depending on the situation. "A language designed to f--- with people," he says.

One of the pleasant surprises of the show was when Des had a friend translate House of Pain's "Jump Around" as Gaeilge. It's called "Léim Thart" (pronounced "lame hart"). Next time you're out for a pint you can impress someone with that... In middle school I loved this song, and then by the time I got to college I heard it every. single. time. I. went. out. for. a. drink. Somehow, Des has made it fun again, although I haven't a clue what he's saying half the time and I'm yet to find a lyrics sheet so I can follow along. If you click here you can go to Des' website and download a free MP3 of his version of the white-rap, one-hit wonder classic, or you can just watch this video.

Theresa's Whirlwind Visit or The Search for the Red Hand of Ulster

2008-03-20T12:55:00.000Z

My sister Theresa came to visit us with her friend Aneliz for almost two weeks. Last time Theresa was here it was for my wedding, so she really only got to see Co Galway and Co Clare and about five minutes of Dublin airport, so this time we decided to head up north so she could see Belfast, Derry, and the Giant's Causeway. Theresa is a big fan of Irish history and the history of "the Troubles" so the running joke for the trip was finding all the Red Hands we could -- on flags, on buildings, everywhere. Then Theresa would shout "RED HAND" and throw up a fascist-style salute... you had to be there.

Even though Theresa and Aneliz were jet-lagged, we rented a car in Dublin and headed up to Newry, where we stayed with Grace's uncle again. First thing the next morning, after the girls had their rest, we drove straight up from Newry to Bushmills, Co Antrim and the Giant's Causeway. The causeway is 36,000 hexagonal rock shafts created by volcanic rock spilling into the ocean... it's wild. Cliffs, weird rocks (used on the cover of Led Zeppelin's "Houses of the Holy" album) and intense weather conditions make it one of the most interesting spots I've ever been to. You're basically standing at the ocean looking at the results of the hand of God -- oddly shaped rocks, sweeping winds, crashing waves and immense cliffs give it a real primeval feeling. Amazingly, we had beautiful weather and the girls were thrilled to climb all over the rocks with me. It's overwhelming to think that the rocks we stand on go all the way underwater to Scotland.

After that we headed through Bushmills, home of the famous whiskey, and then on to Derry. I've written about Derry before, but this time the three of us walked the walls of the old city and took a look at all the old remnants of the war between the Catholic king James and the Protestant king William. Derry is where the 13 Apprentice Boys closed the gates in the siege of 1689, helping keep the Catholic armies out. This siege and the resulting defeat of King James has been a symbol of Protestant and Loyalist resistance ever since. In addition to that, Wolfe Tone, the father of Irish republicanism was held in the prison in the walled city after being arrested for leading the 1798 United Irishmen uprising. Derry's full of history. We even asked directions at the Bogside Inn (just down from the Free Derry square) after looking at the civil rights murals and found the people to be really friendly... even if we couldn't understand a word they were saying. The Derry accent is pretty thick to American ears.
The next day we did a trip to Belfast. It was a full day -- we watched a fashion show in the huge new mall in the city centre and took a look at the City Hall, which looks more like a memorial to Queen Victoria. Being in the northern six counties, the Union Jack flag flies high on the City Hall, right behind Victoria. Belfast is the capital of Northern Ireland and although it is an old Irish city, it's a new-looking one, due to all the problems it's had over the years: the Anglo-Irish War, IRA bombings, sectarian strife and air raids in World War II, etc. The big landmarks, however, are really beautiful and full of history.

We headed off on a walking tour of the wall murals in the Catholic and Protestant neighborhoods. On our way to the Falls Road neighborhood we stopped into St. Peter's Cathedral, a huge church situated right next to row homes a short walk from the city centre. On our walk we experienced all four seasons. It rained, sleeted, snowed and the sun broke out all in the matter of two or three hours. First stop after the cathedral was the Falls Road, full of left-wing and republican murals, and a memorial garden to all the IRA men who have died since the Anglo-Irish War fighting for a united Ireland. The murals were primarily dedicated to the famous Bobby Sands and the Hunger Strikers. In protest against being classified as criminals -- as opposed to political prisoners -- by the Thatcher government, ten IRA and INLA prisoners went on a hunger strike in the Maze prison, Co. Down, and died of their self-imposed starvation. They refused to wear prison uniforms and many of them went so far as to refuse to exit their cells, where they conducted "dirty" protests, smearing excrement on the walls to bring attention to their plight. They're revered within the hard-line republican community as martyrs for the cause.

Heading for the other side of the Troubles divide, we found our way to the Shankill Road, where we found many more murals in the Protestant neighborhood. The murals were incredible, mostly involving all the Protestand militias and their leaders over the years. It reads like a sight chart: UDA, UVF, UFF. Then you have the murals to the fallen militia-men, the Ulster Covenant of 1912 and the Ulster Brigade in World War I. We wandered and wandered and took a break in a fish & chips shop on the Shankill Road, where we had the best chips I've ever tasted, wrapped in newsprint. The people were really friendly, but I wouldn't cross the ol' battle axe I bought chips from. Right before she smiled and took my order she ripped the kid in front of me a new one because he asked for more ketchup twice. Yikes.

The last couple of stops on our self-guided tour of Belfast took us to the Grand Opera House, back in city centre. There wasn't a tour and we weren't sure how to get in, so we just walked in the front doors, past the bartenders and into the big hall, where we sat on the balcony and just looked around. It's an incredible big theater and it reminds me of the opera houses you see in movies like "Amadeus." After catching dirty looks from the bartenders as we left the Opera House, we hopped across the street into the Crown Liquor Saloon, which is a carved and decorated old Victorian joint, complete with private booths with doors so you can have a drink and chat in peace. The only things that is NOT out of the Victorian period are the computerized cash register and the big-screen TV's for watching football.

Finally, we headed back to Newry, where the next day we had a big brunch and then drove back down to Dublin. I was working a part-time temp job the first part of the week, so Theresa and Aneliz just did their sight-seeing while we worked, then we'd meet up for dinner and drinks. On my days off, we mostly just wandered around the River Liffey, had some drinks in really old Dublin pubs and took a look at the National Gallery near Merrion Square. We got some good news on Wednesday as well -- Grace got a permanent job! She'll be starting as a trainee recruiting agent the week after Easter. We're both really excited about it.

Theresa left for the States on St. Patrick's Day, and Grace and I went to check out a music and dance festival they were having just off St. Stephen's Green. I'd heard a lot of bad things about St. Paddy's in Dublin, but I didn't see any of the mayhem that is supposed to be so widespread. That probably had to do with the fact that we headed home just before dark... when things get out of hand. Now we're back in Galway for the long Easter weekend, enjoying some down time. I got a call from a recruiter who said they'd seen my CV on Monster.com and they had a job in mind. We'll see if this works out...

If you'd like to see more pictures of Belfast and our mural walking tour, go HERE

Theresa's Visit to Ireland

My Job is Getting a Job

2008-02-27T20:50:00.001Z

Yesterday I went up to the north side of the river and after walking up O'Connell Street (which Grace aptly called the "Times Square of Dublin") I came to the James Joyce Center of Dublin. Some background: when I was in high school, my 11th grade class was required to read Hemingway's "A Farewell to Arms" and Fitzgerald's "The Great Gatsby." While I couldn't be bothered to read the Hemingway in school, that summer I picked it up and read it and then quickly devoured almost all of Hemingway's major novels and started reading articles and online info on the "lost generation" writers, most of them living in Paris in-between the world wars. This, of course, eventually brought me to find the name of James Joyce. While back at home my literary attention had been focused on the true American man's man, Hemingway, when I started looking at moving to Ireland I found my thoughts drifting to Joyce, who'd written four (more or less) novels on living in Dublin... but he wrote them all while living in self-imposed exile on the Continent.

Anyway, when I came over to Ireland I was reading "A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man" and I had heard so much about "Ulysses" and "Finnegan's Wake", I decided to go take a look at the James Joyce Center. It's small by museum standards, but it's pretty much devoted entirely to a concise biography of Joyce and then dissecting "Ulysses" and the life in Dublin that the book depicts. I bought "Ulysses" and a fridge magnet and I hope I can get through "Ulysses" in good time -- it's supposedly the book that everyone owns but no one reads.

Something about the writers that came out of the Lost Generation just fascinates me, and I love that I can read Joyce's books and walk the same streets and see the same buildings that haunted him all his life.
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So it looks like getting work over here is not as easy as I'd expected. I've been seriously looking for work for about a month now and I haven't even had an interview. I think maybe my military experience is actually detracting from my search for a couple of reasons.

First, I think it has to do with the lack of a military culture in Ireland. While the Irish soldier has a great place in world military history, when the 26 "southern" counties got their independence the government declared neutrality. There is an Irish Defence Force, but it's very small and very few Irish even have a real knowledge of their national military systems. Second, the Irish job market seems to be very vocational and qualifications-driven. While in the States a lot of employers are willing to give someone with a college education and good references a chance at a new career path, in Ireland things seem to be determined by a very strict path of THIS degree, THIS first job, THESE references and certificates. So, even though I've got an Economics degree from a good school in the US and four and a half years of service in the military... I'm just not really qualified for much here.

At least I've got a temp job for March. Hopefully I can make some contacts and I'll at least get that first "Irish" bullet on my CV/resume, so that'll give me a leg up. Meanwhile, I have several agencies trying to get me an interview. I hope something comes through.

By the way, the picture above is James Larkin, an early twentieth century labour leader in Ireland. A statue of him in the pose above is now in front of the GPO on O'Connell Street. I put him in here in honor of my own "labor" search.

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Theresa, my sister, comes to visit in a week and we're pretty excited to have her here. Looks like we'll focus on the North and the Dublin area, because her time is limited to 12 days here. I can't wait.

A Day of Touristy Stuff

2008-02-17T16:43:00.000Z

I decided to take a tourism day yesterday and I walked from Ranelagh all the way up to Smithfield, north of the river, to the National Museum of Ireland. The museum is built in the Collins Barracks, which used to be the British military base in Dublin, on a hill overlooking the river. Inside they've set up exhibits in the halls and rooms of what I assume used to be the housing and workspace of several thousand soldiers at a time. In the center of the square a big mock-up of a Viking ship was on display and kids were climbing all over it. Much like when I wandered into Trinity College a few days ago, the inside courtyard of the barracks is a very quiet spot in the middle of a somewhat loud, bustling city.

After taking a look at the exhibits on the 1916 Rising and the history of the Irish soldier, I followed the Luas tracks down to the Old Jameson Distillery, where I took a tour of the original distillery. Jameson's now made in Midleton, Co Cork, but Mr. Jameson started making his whiskey here in Dublin in 1780. I had a drink before the tour, and then after the tour I volunteered to take a whiskey-tasting class. For my efforts I was rewarded with:
- a small shot of Paddy
- a small shot of Jameson
- a small shot of Powers
- a small shot of scotch
- and a small shot of American whiskey.
I sniffed and sipped with a couple on holiday from southern England, and we had a good time talking about the differences between the whiskeys. I then bought myself a souvenir fridge magnet and then started walking home.

Later I walked Grace home from work and finished up the evening by watching "This is England" which I think is up for an Oscar. Good movie.

Co Down, Co Louth, Co Galway pictures

2008-02-15T21:32:00.001Z

Pictures from the previous post on our trip north:
Taken from Co Down. Across the water is the Republic.

At Carlingford castle, Co. Louth.

With Uncle Gerald.

Your typical Irish sign post.

The lovely wife, Grace.

Old-time sweets shoppe in Carlingford.

Back in Galway, last week.
Our friend Richard Murray, playing the flute, in O'Riardain's pub in Oranmore, Co Galway.

Me, Grace, Robert

Hoping to have pictures of our place in Ranelagh soon.

An Apartment!

2008-02-14T14:39:00.000Z

After a week of relative relaxation out in Co Galway, Grace and I came on back to Dublin three nights ago and went straight to see an apartment we'd found online. The owners were nice and seemed to like us, and we really like the place, so in 24 hours we were making the initial deposit on an apartment in Ranelagh... which reminded me even more forcefully that I still don't have a job -- haven't even had an interview yet. I got out the next day and starting walking around just doing some thinking. I came to realization that no matter how many agencies I have working for me, it's all going to come down to me in the end, so I dropped my resume with Kelly Services and even start investigating going back to school for a masters. Hell, I'll even work in a library at a school here to get some money coming in.

Last night Grace and I moved into our new place and had Grace's sister and her boyfriend over. It was a very late dinner, later than we realized, which made getting up this morning a bit difficult. Even worse than the wake-up, however, was discovering that the power shower we have seems to only alternate between scalding hot and freezing cold -- ouch. Talk about putting me in a bad mood... I still made it to my interview with a sales and marketing placement firm, however, so I might have some temp work coming up.

Today, after Grace left for work I got myself over to the Ranelagh cyber-cafe and did some e-mailing to get our house-hold goods shipped over to us and started putting together applications for grad school at University College Dublin and Trinity College. I've made the decision that if none of the agencies I've made contact with have any progress for me by next week, I'm taking a job tending bar or waiting tables. Rent's due again in a month and I've got to get some money coming in... stay tuned.

A Trip to Northern Ireland and We're Closer to Jobs

2008-02-02T22:03:00.000Z

Last Tuesday night I grabbed a bus from Galway to Dublin and in three hours I was on the quays of Dublin, just off O’Connell Street. I went on my own because the Grace had things to do in Galway, and after stepping off the bus on the quays I took off in the direction of Parliament Street to meet my sister-in-law and her friends for a drink. At the table at the Italian restaurant they were dining in there were: a German, a Pole, an Indian (born in Dublin and raised in India), and one Irish girl other than my sister-in-law. Seems like there are barely any Irish people in Dublin sometimes.

Wednesday: went out for a run, taking the footpaths along the Grand Canal towards the sea to the east. There are two canals in Dublin, the Royal – made famous in the song “The Auld Triangle” -- and the Grand, which is on the south side of the River Liffey. Dublin doesn’t seem to be an easy town to run in, because almost everything is paved and the parks are too small to cover any real distance. My knees and shins could pay the price eventually. After showering, my sister-in-law and I headed out to find the American embassy and see about making some contacts amongst other ex-pats in Dublin. Once there, however, I found out that you need a passport to get in the front door, so I decided to get there early the next day.

I met with Grace quickly on Grafton Street to hand off a house-key and then I was off to see a hardcore show in Temple Bar, near the river. The show was opened by two Irish bands, but the headliners were American, Shipwreck A.D. and Blacklisted, two of my favorites. It was in the basement of a bar called Eamonn Doran’s and it was like a subterranean version of The Ottobar in Baltimore, MD – there were only about fifty people in there, it was dark, and very intimate. The music was loud, the Irish punks were really into it, and I even made friends with a guy who works at University College Dublin who is, coincidentally, almost as big a fan of Converge as I am… go figure. After grabbing a t-shirt and linking up with Grace at the end of the show, I crashed on my sister-in-law’s floor, entirely content.

Thursday: up relatively early, meeting a friend of a friend who happens to be a fellow American AND a very successful financial advisor for Deutsche Bank. This was after having my time wasted at the American embassy. After gaining admission to the compound – which required giving up my cell phone and putting on a nifty badge – I sat in a waiting room for twenty minutes and nothing happened. Late for my other appointment I ended up just quitting and leaving, because apparently the customer service desk for Americans is only open for three hours in the morning during the week, unless it’s an emergency. Whatever. Not that I have a lot of experience being a citizen of another country, but none of the other embassies here have the kind of security – at least not obviously – that the Americans do.

Friday: I got my first meeting with an agency, meeting a girl who happened to be from New Jersey, but who sounded just as Irish as anyone else on the island. She had an odd name, but was very helpful and said she could probably get me some prospects soon, just send over my CV (resume) and we’ll get going. I sent it over once back at the apartment and just a few hours later had an e-mail back with ten job types in funds accountancy to look at. The Jersey girl tells me the funds accountancy jobs are a bit low-energy, at a desk all day, but that there are other people around and it’s math-heavy, so I’ll be doing what I studied in college. The bad news: I could take a huge pay cut to start. The good news: I’ll probably advance very quickly due to my five years of experience ahead of other entry-level employees. More bad news: getting work here is not so straight forward and it's a bit of a catch 22. To pay taxes you have to have a tax number, but to have a tax number you must have proof of residence like a utility bill, but to get a place you have to have proof of employment and to get employment... you get the idea. So a trip back to Galway is in the works to get our tax number using the in-law's address.

Grace and I caught a bus that night and headed to her home-county, County Down. While Grace has been in the States for almost fifteen years, she was born in Dublin and spent almost half of the first ten years of her life in this county, one of the six constituent counties of Northern Ireland, referred to by most of the Irish here as “the North.” Partitioned off from the rest of the island by the British following the Irish war of independence, Northern Ireland is comprised of six of the nine counties of the province of Ulster (flag of Ulster pictured above) and is still politically a member of the United Kingdom, despite the attempts of various forms and off-shoots of the IRA and other republican groups to force the North into joining Republic. Just this past year, the leaders of the most extreme political parties on both sides, Rev. Ian Paisley of the Democratic Unionist Party and Martin McGuinness of Sinn Fein (political wing of the IRA), joined together in forming a devolved Northern Ireland government, finally ending the last period of “The Troubles” with a ceasefire and a coalition government in Belfast.

So, as Grace and I bussed up from Dublin to County Down, only a 90-minute bus ride, I didn’t even realize I’d crossed into UK territory, because the checkpoints and roadblocks of old have been dismantled and people are free to move across the border as they see fit. There are still several things separating the Republic from the North of course; most notably, the currency, as the Republic has taken up the Euro and the UK maintains its Pounds Sterling. Because of its disputed history and political status, people born in the North are entitled to a passport from the Irish republic as well as their British passport. Some Northern Irish never claim their British passport, content to identify themselves as Irish and live in the northern counties.

Grace and I were picked up by Grace’s uncle Gerald in a town called Newry, literally a stone’s throw across the Newry Canal from the Republic. We spent the weekend there in Newry and the surrounding area, visiting family and friends from Grace’s father’s side of the family. Some say that the counties of the North have the most beautiful scenery on the whole island and looking out from Grace’s aunt’s house in Newry onto the surrounding hills I was inclined to agree. Grace, Gerald and I even ventured back down into the Republic to have a look at the old castle town of Carlingford, where we had dinner and wandered through the old streets.

Monday night: Grace’s mother picked us up in Newry at Gerald’s and we headed off even farther north to the town of Derry, in County Derry. Derry, literally on the opposite side of Northern Ireland from Belfast and Newry, just on the border with County Donegal, is another of the walled cities of Ireland and a town historically disputed by the nationalist/republican community and the loyalist/unionist community – even the name is disputed. According to the Republic and the nationalist community it’s Derry; to the British and the unionists, it’s Londonderry. Some of the most important moments of the most recent Troubles occurred here: the Battle of the Bogside, the establishment of “Free Derry” in the Bogside, and the notorious Bloody Sunday of 1972. It’s a rough town with a lot of disputed history and I think it’s absolutely fascinating. We stayed with Grace’s granny on the east side of the River Foyle and had a relaxing few of days visiting with the other side of Grace’s family. I saw Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street while there; it’s too bloody, even for me, but the music’s great. Grace’s brother and I managed to find a bowling alley where we drank beer, bowled badly and played pool even worse for three hours on our last night. It was a good time.

Thursday: caught an early bus out of Derry back to Dublin. Grace has got a temporary job working as a receptionist at a B&B on the same block as her sister's apartment, so at least some money is coming in. Life in Dublin is expensive even when you don't have to pay utilities. Got word from my employment agency that I might have a temp job with JP Morgan, so I hope that pans out.

Friday: Grace works, I go to the gym as a guest and get the full pitch from the salesperson. Gym is great, great neighborhood, and I get a good workout, but it's 350 Euro just to sign up, and THEN it's at least 55 Euro a month to stay a member. Ridiculous.

Saturday: woke up late, around noon, and went out to watch the 6 Nations Rugby tournament on TV. Obviously, 6 countries compete in this rugby union competition and they are: Ireland, England, Scotland, Wales, Italy, France. Today's matches were Ireland v. Italy and England v. Wales. The Ireland/Italy match was pretty poor, neither side did well, but Ireland pulled off the win, so GO ON IRELAND! England was man-handling Wales for most of their game but then in the second half Wales came back with two tries to win it. I watched the games in a bar called The Bleeding Horse on Camden Street. The pub's been operating since at least 1690 and a plaque on the wall listed all the historic landmarks on that street.

Sunday: woke up relatively early and took a meandering run through the city centre. Up O'Connell Street, down O'Connell Street, Dame Street, Grafton Street, around Trinity College. The city's just crammed with old buildings and classical architecture and it's beautiful. Now off to do laundry!

From Galway by train, Dublin on foot, Connemara by car

2008-01-21T19:45:00.000Z

Last week began Grace's and my first attempt at getting out in Dublin and looking for jobs. We started our trip on a Tuesday, catching a train from Galway to Dublin. The Irish train system is called Iarnród Éireann, and it's pronounced something like "Ih-arn-rode Erin." This is about a three hour trip, but it could be shorter if there weren't stops all along the way. It's almost a direct east-west route and you cut through all the rural areas of central Ireland on your way east. Athenry (of the famous song "Fields of Athenry" of which my favorite version is by Dropkick Murphys) is the first stop after leaving downtown Galway, and along the way I got to take part in my latest nerdy activity: look at the Irish versions of town and village names and attempt to pronounce them -- trickier than it sounds. For example, Athenry (ath-en-rye, not AT-HENRY) becomes Baile Átha an Rí (ball-yuh ahn-ree). Some of them make total sense, like when the Irish name begins with Baile, meaning "town", and the Anglicized name is Bally-something, then other Irish to English translations are literal, and then you have towns like Dun Laoghaire (pron. Dun Leary) that go by their Irish names... so you just sort of figure it out as you go and try not to say a name you don't know unless you have to.

So we took the train over to Dublin (Irish: Baile Átha Cliath), biggest city on the island and capital of the Republic. We got to Dublin's Heuston Station around 6 p.m. and hopped onto the Dublin public transit tram, called Luas (Irish for "speed"). Dublin is split down the middle, east to west, by the River Liffey, and Grace and I meandered from the Luas station south towards St. Stephen's Green, the neighborhood Grace's sister lives in. Along the way we passed through Temple Bar, a popular pub hangout neighborhood, and took part of our walk up Grafton Street, the famous shopping thoroughfare that ends on Stephen's Green. There's a lot of history in Dublin, but what I've noticed most about Dublin is how international a city it is. For some reason I never imagined Dublin to be a place to find people other than white Irish, but Grace and I were walking down the street with head-covered Muslim women, black Africans and we heard about three or four different languages in a twenty minute walk. The Irish economic boom of the last fifteen years has made Dublin a real European metropolis and it now attracts people from all over the world.

The next couple of days Grace and I had meetings with friends of the family who might be able to give us some guidance on job-hunting in Dublin. What I really took away from the meetings, other than the opportunity to get my resume out there, is that I'm going to have to learn to be less formal in some ways and more formal in others. Specifically, the typical American straight-forward way of speaking can be construed as rude over here -- being overly polite is a virtue in business in Ireland. However, when I called anyone "sir", I was told to just use first names. You can't go wrong starting with a sir, so I'm going to keep that up, but I have a feeling holding my tongue could be difficult.

We didn't get any solid leads on jobs, but we did get a feel for the neighborhood around Stephen's Green and I really feel I could live in Dublin. Just walking around it feels comfortable, probably because the buildings and the bustle of it remind me a lot of Washington, DC, the nearest city to my hometown. We also got some good news from Grace's sister's landlady; she may give Grace a temporary job in her B&B and give us a place to stay in while we look for a new apartment and permanent jobs. So we could be living in Dublin a lot quicker than we expected.

Back in Galway by Friday night and hanging around for a couple of days, I decided to get out and see some more of the country, so a family friend and I headed into Co Galway, an area called Connemara, to take a look at the countryside, final destination: Clifden. I got married in a part of Connemara called Spiddal, so I'm familiar with some of the terrain, at least the parts on Galway Bay, but we headed through the center of the county westward. At Maam Cross, nearby the bridge seen in the John Wayne classic, "The Quiet Man," we took a turn to the north and ended up in some of the most beautiful - but desolate and barren - land I've ever seen. Steep and rocky mountain sides, including rock walls that went up several hundred meters and even OVER the mountains, dwarfed us on both sides and there were inlets from the Atlantic and lakes everywhere. Most of the villages were just B&B's and pubs with a few houses off in the country. I presume they just herd sheep and fish, because there really isn't much else they could make a living at out there.

This desolation is at the core of the phrase, "To Hell or Connacht." Ireland is comprised of four traditional provinces: Ulster, Leinster, Munster and Connacht. Back when Cromwell re-conquered Ireland for the English, he gave all the good lands, mostly in Leinster, Ulster and Munster, to the English lords and loyal Protestant Irish. In reply to the question, "Where will all the Catholics go?" rumor has it Cromwell said, "to hell or Connacht" because Connacht is just as barren and fruitless as anywhere you can imagine, and just about as far from the English as possible on the island. Co Galway is just one of the counties that make up Connacht, but the Connemara region makes it easy to imagine why Cromwell wanted the Catholic trouble-makers relocated there.

First stop for us was the Kylemore Abbey, a huge manor house in Connemara built by a wealthy Ulsterman starting in 1867. The house-building project, in such a remote area, provided a huge source of employment and income for the people of Connemara, some of them walking 30 miles to apply for work on the house. They even built shanty towns for the workers to stay in while they worked, and the owner of the house helped plow the fields and even paid the people in the area for improving their little plots of land. When the owner's wife died, after a trip to Egypt, he decided to build a neo-Gothic cathedral in her honor, Taj Mahal style. It's basically a miniature cathedral and it's absolutely beautiful. I wish all churches were this nice. At some point, Benedictine nuns took over the house and turned it into an abbey and now it's school. If you look at the mountain behind the abbey, you can see a statue of Jesus a few hundred meters up -- 15 nuns dragged that statue up there one day, the lady at the visitor center told me. I have this image of Sister Battle-Ax getting up at 5 a.m., splashing water on her wrinkly face and then just lugging that thing up the mountain.

From Kylemore Abbey we continued west on to Clifden. Clifden is renowned as a picturesque Irish town, with tons of sweater shops, pubs and scenic walks. We parked and had a meal in the E.J. King pub, full of stone walls and dark wood, and of course, Guinness on tap, of which I had two pints. Egged on by my traveling buddy for the day, I also had a half dozen oysters, which, if you're wondering, are salty and fishy... but I don't know what the fuss is about. Anyway, one of us recalled that the first wireless radio transmission was made near Clifden, so we got directions from the waitress and headed out to the site of the wireless transmission. After a five-minute drive, we saw a sign for the Alcock & Brown monument and landing site, so I turned the car up a one-lane road and we came upon a black stone monument to the first non-stop trans-Atlantic flight, which landed on a rocky field nearby the monument!

So, Clifden, as it turns out, was even more historic a location than I'd known. Deciding we wanted to see the field where they'd landed, we drove back down the hill and across the road onto another one-lane road, this one almost dirt and gravel and came to a fenced off area crawling with sheep. Not one to let a little issue of trespassing bother her, Sue hopped out of the car and opened the gate and we rolled on through, doing our best to stay on the dirt road that got narrower as we went on. Finally, the road just ended, with a one wall and a foundation to our left and sheep-shearing pens to our left. We got out to read the plaque on the wall, and it turned out we were standing on the site of the Marconi Wireless Station, where Alcock & Brown had transmitted the news of their success to London after landing about 500 meters away.

Guglielmo Marconi, whose mother was a member of the Jameson family hence the Irish connection, was a pioneer of radio technology. He wasn't much of a scientist but through trial and error and playing with lots of wire he figured out how to send radio signals on "the wireless" and he succeeded in sending a signal from his base near Clifden, Co Galway across to his other station in Massachusetts. You can read all about his development of the wireless in "Thunderstruck" by Erik Larson, which is great -- by the way, you should also read his book, "Devil in the White City" about Chicago. Back to Marconi, his Clifden Wireless Station employed over three hundred people (in a desolate, damp nasty -- yet somehow beautiful -- site) and had it's own miniature railroad to bring in supplies. There were homes for the workers, huge towers holding the wires up that created the signal, a tennis court and, of course, a pub for the locals.

This historic site of modern technology, that was open from 1907 to 1922 when the Irish Civil War forced it be closed, is now fenced in by a local farmer and sheep and goats wander all over it. I'm not even sure if I was supposed to be there -- I had to open one fence and hop another to get to the foundations of the main structure. If it wasn't for the single sign on the main road or the plaques placed on the remaining structures, no one would even know it was there. In fact, unless you've heard the name Marconi you don't even know to turn off the main road in your curiosity. PIECES OF THE MACHINERY THAT MADE UP THE WIRELESS MACHINES ARE LYING AROUND LIKE SCRAP. Did I mention that it's now sheep-grazing land?

In the States, we'd have dropped a massive museum, a parking lot, and about five t-shirt shops on it. Part of me hated that such an important site for human technological history (wireless radio and non-stop trans-Atlantic flight) was just sitting out there as pasture for sheep, but another part of me is wondering what else there is to find out here...

Here are some more pictures:

At the remaining wall of the Marconi station.

On the hill overlooking the landing site and Marconi station. The little white dot in the upper right hand is the marker for where the plane landed.

The mini-cathedral at Kylemore Abbey.

A not-so-friendly-looking goat in Connemara.

Irish sports... oh, sorry, it's SPORT

2008-01-12T16:42:00.000Z

I'm sitting down to watch Dublin play Westmeath in the GAA's (Gaelic Athletic Association) O'Byrne Cup quarter-final match. They're just about to start in pouring rain and having gone for a run this morning, I can tell you it's a cold, nasty day to be playing any sport in.

One of the coolest things I have learned about Ireland since my first trip over here is that, despite the political separation of the Republic from 6 Northern Ireland counties, there is an island-wide sporting association focused entirely on the Gaelic games, primarily gaelic football and hurling. The organization's been around since 1884 and is a real community-run, grass-roots organization of people enthusiastic about their Irish heritage. The organization's headquarters and official stadium is Croke Park (Páirc an Chrócaigh) in Dublin -- an historic site, considering the original Irish Bloody Sunday occurred here in 1920. After the IRA's Dublin teams, led by Michael Collins, killed 14 British agents and informants in the city, the British army responded by opening fire on the crowd in Croke Park watching a Gaelic football match. Later that night, the British killed two IRA men in Dublin castle under suspicious circumstances. To many on this island, Croke Park is considered sacred ground. The GAA is really impressive when you think that every village, parish, major city and even some schools have teams in hurling and gaelic football. Irish is the official language and the GAA sees itself as promoting not only gaelic games, but traditional Irish culture as well.

Gaelic football, which pre-dates both soccer and rugby, looks a lot like soccer if you could use your hands. You can score two ways: by drop-kicking the ball between (football) uprights, or by kicking the ball into a (soccer) goal placed under the uprights.

Hurling (shown at the top of this post) looks a lot like field hockey, except they bat the ball around like in baseball and can run all over the field while balancing the ball on the stick. The skill involved in this game just baffles me. There are several other gaelic games, camogie (girls hurling), handball and rounders, which is one of the games that American baseball developed from in the American civil war.

Rugby and soccer are both really popular here as well. Ireland has rugby union teams for all four of its traditional provinces as well as their international teams and a lot of people here follow the British Premier Leagues over in the UK.

One of the big differences between Irish sport and American sports is in advertising. While we Americans have commercial breaks and innumerable time-outs and substitutions, games over here are continuous, with very few interruptions (if any). Instead, the games seem to rely financially on sponsorship, and you can see what company sponsors what team by just looking at their jerseys. Also, as I'm watching this match on Setanta Ireland, I'm noticing that every space available to be leased out to advertisers in the stadium is being utilized, with ads for Guinness right next to ads for the local electrician running along the field.

I do miss watching American football, but I'll tell you, it's really nice to watch a game without being bombarded with commercials every five minutes.

So here we go...

2008-01-11T14:44:00.001Z

I'm a 26-year old citizen of the United States who just moved to Ireland with his dual-citizen (Irish-American) wife. I'm hoping this blog will be sort of a journal of our experiences as we adjust to living in a new country (my wife has been living in the United States for almost 15 years and is just as American as I am) and get ourselves sorted out over here. We're staying in County Galway, on the extreme west side of the island, where Grace's parents have settled, but we're looking to move east to Dublin as soon as we get work.

Last week I had to go register with the Garda Siochana (pronounced: guard-uh show-hah-nah), which is the Irish name for the police of the Republic of Ireland. Because Grace is an Irish citizen, all I really have to do is prove that we're married and that she's a citizen and I can stay here as long as I like and avoid a lot of immigration red tape. Grace and I went to the Garda immigration office with our paperwork and less than a couple hours later I walked out with my registration card certifying that I am allowed to be here. I have to renew it every year, but that should be no problem.

The title of this blog is lifted from a Hemingway book called "A Moveable Feast." It's a great memoir of this time living in Paris as a young husband and father trying to make ends meet on $5 a day. Somehow he hunts, skis, and drinks plenty of wine on this budget as well.

While Grace and I will be in a very different European capital city, Dublin, I think the title fits.