Back from Ireland

I predicted that I would love Ireland...I know myself. I was right.
Not Dublin- it was certainly not the most beautiful foreign city I have seen, and it reminded me of Upstate New York, with older buildings. Cold, rainy, gray. Not a place I want to return to- if given a choice :)

But the rural countryside, that was another matter entirely. I did not know this- but Ireland has no large predators- no large cats, bears, coyotes or wolves. This makes the island country the perfect place for raising livestock of any kind. Sheep and cows wander freely, and are gathered in for yearly shearing and check-ups with the help of dogs. So while you are out driving or hiking, you come across random animals. One sheep even came over to say hi. BAAAAA, really. Interestingly enough, the locals don't seem to be into overfarming and raising absurd amounts of anything (like in America, where the aim is always to maximize) so the cows and sheep appear very content and not overcrowded. The beef and lamb is incredible at restaurants and pubs, because it is all local, grassfed, happy animals that donate it :)

I spent 5 days in a Vagabond tour vehicle with my brother, sisters, spouses, and Dad. It was awesome. We visited mountain passes, we kayaked with harbour seals, we hiked amazing trails that we NEVER would have volunteered for here at home. 45 minutes, uphill at a 45 degree angle with no flat bits? Sure! Give me two, please! Have you ever seen an old movie, where the heroes are captured and driven to a castle on top of a mountain, in a carriage at alarming speeds at the edge of a cliff? We replicated that- take one LandRover, 12 passengers, one luggage trailer, and an old copper-mine road. Add in a couple of passengers who are afraid of heights, and you get one hell of a ride! We drove on another road where 200 meters of it had fallen into the sea 2 years ago, and had to be rebuilt. A very comforting story for our tour-driver to tell while we were driving on the new part of the road. The gents loved Jean on the first 2 days, and all the ladies secretly fell in love with Sam and his accent. We had to change drivers mid-tour, due to the laws for drivers. It was fine, as they are all knowledgeable and fun.

I'll write more about specific moments once I get my pictures ready!

Creative things that I did this week...

I just finished watching Julie & Julia- it's the movie about the blogger who made every recipe in Julia Child's cookbook, and blogged about it, for 365 days. How fun! And ambitious. I know I could never do that, because although I like to cook I simply can't imagine cooking all that food for just me and Rob (without gaining 30 pounds each, anyway.) Plus, it would have to be my only hobby and if you don't know me well, let me tell you- I already have too many. But what a delightful story and life-changing experience for Julia Powell.

As for blogging daily, that would be an adventure too! I still haven't got the gist of this, it's too personal for me to write every day about everything.

I have just discovered the joy of drawing! I decided that I wanted some designs to transfer onto clay and perhaps turn into stamps so I took out some white cardstock, got a folder and some Staedler pens, my stack of Dover reference books, and started to draw. I am now down to about 3 hours for a completed and acceptable drawing. I've done 4. I am enjoying it so much I don't know if I will ever stop. I just bought a new sketchbook and had to get a new purse that can properly hold it! And I'm thinking my blog background might have to change. We'll see.

Today is my Birthday! Celebrating with Whimsey...

A Fairy was born this morning on my desk. She is Orange, Pink and Purple (of course!) and she holds high a banner that states "Whimsey." I didn't even plan it that way, it's just how my favorite colors came together naturally once I sat down to create. I have been immersing myself in Intention for the past 3 weeks or so, as I face almost certain unemployment in just under 3 weeks.

My teaching career in public school will be a "flash in the pan" of my life. And that's ok, because I think that the public school system will never compensate or appreciate me the way I deserve. I have come to believe that teachers in general have collective low self-esteem. We allow ourselves to be used, mentally tortured, financially abused. We try to do our best- and the excuse for why we take the abuse is "It's for the good of the children." How come I have to do what's best for YOUR kids, when you don't even care enough to make sure I have a budget to buy supplies with? Why should I spend MY money on YOUR children's education? These are only a couple of the many questions I have about the public education system right now. I think it's broken from several points of view, and since I don't support having negativity in my life (saps the energy, ya know) I don't think I will mind if I lose my job. Of course, if a miracle occurs and I don't lose my job, I will go back and volunteer for the abuse all over again. I do love those kids, and they love me back. My friend Marsha says we don't have low self-esteem- she calls it a "Sense of the Higher Good." Well, they do say Kharma is a bitch- and she's coming for any of you parents who don't help your school systems find real solutions.

Anyway, I have been thinking that unemployment really just means "time to work for no one but me." So I've been planning and scheming. Add a dash of Whimsey to the mix, and maybe I'll even have fun figuring this all out.