So get this:
Dubliners use water to remove frost from the windshields of their cars.
WATER!
A fellow employee was making casual conversation when she mentioned that she took water to her car this morning to clean off her windscreen. I stopped to confirm what I’d just heard.
“Sure, that’s right,” she said, and continued with her story.
I reeled. My world shook to its foundations. Water to remove ice? (more…)
I hope that your news source of choice has a piece on the 60th anniversary of adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. This statement is almost certainly the most important text of the 20th Century. (more…)
Okay, Farmer Billy’s slow killed bacon, Farmer Billy’s bacon fed bacon, Farmer Billy’s travel bacon. Mr Simpson if you really want to kill yourself I also sell hand guns. — Apu
I was about fifteen. I stood in front of the pantry, hanging from the door and staring into shelves devoid of anything that a teenage runner’s body needs. I just ran ten miles and what, I’m supposed to heat up some Cream of Mushroom soup?
My eyes scanned side to side, back and forth, looking for a genuine snack. Something processed, something salty and oddly, slightly, sweet, something crunchy and immediately satisfying.
Bac-Os. That would have to do. I upended the little bottle and bit down on a mouthful. The chemical taste wasn’t repulsive so much as off-putting. The texture of the bits was hard and gritty at first, and then broke down into a featureless mush.
I wasn’t going to do that again. Even my adolescent hunger wouldn’t drive me to chugging Bac-Os. I’d eat an apple or something, first.
The BB Procurement department recently returned from the supermarket with two products that attempt to improve on that formative experience. (more…)
I started listening to NPR’s Planet Money podcast to understand why The Reserve money market fund broke the buck. I’d read several recommendations for the Planet Money’s analysis, but the financial crisis didn’t shock me until a major money market fund failed to meet my lowest expectations.
My second shock came when I heard a collaborative investigation by NPR and the New York Times that focused entirely on one link in the world’s economic mesh: between Kenosha and Dublin. The story was compelling and illuminating, aside from its personal relevance. It was also riveting to hear how millions of dollars (on paper) moved in 2007, along with me, from the northernmost suburbs of Chicago to the city of Dublin. (more…)
There are many things that I love about living in Ireland. There are a few things that annoy or trouble me. But there is one thing that I clearly hate — the fact that butter comes in a single chunk of butter — 454 grams, to be precise. Why is it 454 grams, you ask? Because that is as close to one pound of butter as you can get in metric terms.
I could deal with a big block of butter if only there were measurements on the wrapping.
(more…)
Last week, Ireland’s Government presented its budget for 2009 with the theme, “solidarity and patriotic action in most difficult and uncertain times.” The prevailing response to the the Fianna Fail party, in particular its Finance Minister Brian Lenihan, was that they chose the right tune but played too many notes off-key. To put it in terms from the US election: Lenihan used a hatchet rather than a scalpel.
The proposal that generated the loudest outcry was the introduction of means-testing for medical cards for those over 70 years old. For the past several years, persons over 70 received a card that entitled them to free health care. With budget deficits looming, the Government chose to limit spending on health care for the growing number of Irish people living a longer time. The proposal was a means-test which would eliminate free care for those able to pay their own way, thereby introducing a tiered system of benefits.
The specific extent of means testing was more than a small step away from universal health care — according to the Irish Independent, more than 50% seniors would not qualify for full coverage. The response was immediate outrage. A protest was called for this past Wednesday, to bring that outrage to the door of the Dail on Kildare Street, just a few blocks from our home. (more…)
The Open House Dublin event last year was one of our best Dublin experiences. This weekend is the 2008 Open House event. We’re excited about it, and we’ll have lots of Dublin architecture to share next week!
In preparation, I had lunch at The Cake Café in the Daintree Building this week. It is a gorgeous oasis off my favorite busy street in Dublin, and an achievement in sustainable design, to boot. There were dozens of bicycles parked under an integrated shelter across from the restaurant part of the building, and young and old cyclists were continually coming and going — but not to the café. Maybe I’ll find out why on my next visit.
From the best word-a-day website, at wordsmith.org:
serein
PRONUNCIATION:
(suh-RAN [the second syllable is nasal])MEANING:
noun: Fine rain falling from an apparently cloudless sky, typically observed after sunset.ETYMOLOGY:
From French serein, from Old French serain (evening), from Latin serum (evening), from serus (late).USAGE:
“She must have caught a chill from the serein, that’s all!” Raphael Confiant; Mamzelle Dragonfly; Farrar, Straus and Giroux; 2000.
Here in Dublin, I’ve observed serein during the morning, afternoon, and evening as well. I don’t know of any uniquely Irish slang for this type of rain, although there are lots of words and colloquial phrases for heavier rain.
There must be a word for serein, given how common it is here (and how uncommon it is everywhere else I’ve lived).
We visited Kilkenny, about 90 minutes from Dublin by car, on a gorgeous Saturday in September. The main attractions are the city’s High Street and the large and well-kept Kilkenny Castle.
As usual, we have a set of photos for you, along with lots of words. Here’s the link to the photoset on Flickr:
We had a great day out, and we’re delighted to share it with you! (more…)
For our second day in Antrim, we decided to start our day with a dip in the ocean. Then we backtracked along the coastal route to see the Giant’s Causeway and to walk across the Carrick-a-Rede Rope Bridge. We toured the Old Bushmills Distillery at midday and enjoyed the sunny drive home. (more…)
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