Great news, we got our visas yesterday. So we are now officially Dubliners...which also means I have to find a place to live as the corporate housing days will soon be over. My shipment arrived from the states last weekend as well but I haven't had it delivered as I don't want to have to move everything again. I've already moved 4 times since leaving my apartment in Sherman Oaks, so 1 more time and that's it for at least a year I hope. My biggest dilemna with regards to the move is whether I want to live by the beach on the coast or stay in City Centre. The transportation system is much better from the city and there's a million things to do over here, but at the same time I've always wanted to live by the beach so this may be the perfect opportunity for that. This weekend I'm going to scour the websites and take a trip down to the coast and look at the different areas and see if anything catches my eye.
Next weekend is a 3 day weekend here, so Aaron, Chrsitine and I are going to take 2 day tours in Ireland. One will take us to Newgrange and the Hill of Tara and the other one will take us to the Cliffs of Moher, Bunratty Castle, The Burren, and Galway Bay...very touristy but it's a great way to get around when we don't have transportation and I love the history lessons so I actually can learn the significance of what I am seeing.
I also may visit Bobby in London on my birthday weekend which would be nice...and then go back again to have a birthday celebration for Aaron at the end of the month.
I booked my flight home for the holidays this week. I will be in LA from December 22nd - January 3rd. I am so excited, I can hardly wait. My mom wants to have an afternoon party on December 30th at around 1pm so keep your calendars clear.
I also talked to Caroline this week and she's coming to visit me hopefully the 1st week of February. I'm really looking forward to that.
Last weekend, Christine and I enrolled at the gym... I got my first real workout since I've been here and it felt great. Then we went to dinner and had a girls night out with Sarah and some of her friends. I loved the place we went, it's called The Village, and is a pub downstairs with very cool decor and a club upstairs. The music was different upstairs and downstairs and Christine, Sarah and I made our way upstairs and danced a bit. It was nice to be out with a group of girls, I don't know if I mentioned this before but the ratio of guys to girls here is about 10:1 at my work so I am truly appreciating female company. Not that the guys aren't fantastic, they are...but most of them are IT folks so they speak techie talk which is great and I learn alot but it can sometimes be a little too much testosterone for my taste. The last song of the night, was "Hey Jude", very appropriate and sentimental...and the entire bar was singing at the top of their lungs...Jude, you would have been very proud.
I wish I could say I was dedicated and went to the gym 3 more times this week, but I caught another Irish bug and was completely wiped out every day by the time I got home from work. It amazes me that I've been sick twice in 6 weeks here but I guess it happens when you have not built up any immunity to the bugs over here and the weather is much colder than I am typically used to as well. It's been in the 60's all week which is actually quite nice for here but the locals keep warning me that it's going to get much colder and much rainier so I better be prepared.
Christine and Aaron introduced me to "The Ted Talks" this week which was really quite interesting and I would really recommend to download and view. It's basically a group of 1000 successful or prestigious individuals, invite only, who apparently get together every other year and have speakers come and do presentations on various world topics. This year, they recorded it and have been releasing them on the internet, two a week.
The one I watched was a woman speaking about her travels to 3rd world countries, teaching communities, mostly women, how to support themselves and create businesses so that they could better sustain life. What was most interesting is that the tools she taught were giving them tools to be self-sufficient following the "give a man a fish, feed him for a day, Teach a man to fish, feed him for a lifetime" approach.
It was very moving...reminding me of all the community service activities I used to plan, organize and be involved in. I haven't done as much of that lately, but it was a reminder to me that I should stay actively involved in volunteer organizations that contribute to society. The Hathaway House was my favorite place to volunteer and we had some really great group activities there that hopefully inspired and motivated some of those children. For those of you who don't know, the Hathaway House is a home for teenagers (10-18 years of age) who have been taken out of their home for abuse, because their parents have died, some of whom may even be under secret service protection, etc. Some of them have behavioral disorders and such, but the more years we were involved with them, the more you could actually see them opening up and getting more excited about the activities we planned. I could never imagine how hard that must be to live there with other teenagers and never get visitors from your family.
As such, I think I will look and see if there are any places to volunteer around here. Even once or twice a month is a valuable contribution, and really in the scheme of things doesn't take up too much of our time, so I encourage everyone to consider doing the same. Find one you can be passion about it and join or volunteer. I know that Sandra has been volunteering at the animal shelter, Dad volunteers at the Children's Ministry at church...and Jude constantly has charity functions at the Hangar. I'm going to try and motivate to do the same. Let me know if you sign up for anything...I'd love to hear what you are getting involved with.
Hugs and Kisses to you all! Can't wait to get home for Christmas:)
Saturday, October 21, 2006
Sunday, October 8, 2006
Cooking and Cars
Things We Take For Granted:::
ok, it's a little later in the afternoon and my frustration is peaking so excuse me while I vent for a minute...I just looked out the window and it's raining. I am hungry, I had cereal for breakfast but I only have milk, cereal, a bowl of soup, cheese and crackers in my fridge...in some countries, this would be a blessing...However, I am a spoiled girl who usually has a full fridge and isn't used to having to walk to the grocery store and only buy as much food as I can carry so I basically have to grocery shop every other day. Today would normally be the day since I picked some stuff up on my way home from work on Friday night.
In LA, stores are open all day and all night and I have a car so I can grocery shop once a week and or even every other week, load my car with groceries and be done with it for a while....and if you don't feel like cooking there is a million cheap restaurants and even drive through fast food. I'm sure you have all experienced this and can relate even if you've never really thought about it.
The Dilemna:
It is Sunday here so all the stores near me are closed...the closest grocery store is two long blocks away and I do not feel like walking two very long blocks in the rain to buy only enough food to last me until tomorrow. I could go to a restaurant but it usually costs 30 - 40 euro which I don't feel like spending on a meal that I am eating by myself and then have the same problem in a few hours since I still will not have actually bought groceries.
So here I sit, very upset...my solution...melting cheese on the crackers in the microwave(there is no oven here) and sitting here complaining on my blog which again proves how spoiled I am... because if I had my car I would jump in it and go find a good place to eat, maybe even drive through if I didn't feel like dressing up or being in public. Here I have to dress for the rain and walk with groceries (can't carry umbrella and groceries at the same time) getting wet in order to eat. Very frustrating!!!!
Note to self on lessons learned...
1. don't take drive through or sunshine or having a car for granted and don't be so spoiled.
2. Cheese and crackers taste good. (I'm eating them now and feel better since I'm not starving anymore)
3. Convenience stores in the US have spoiled me.
4. Stop being a baby and go get wet:) Otherwise, I will be very hungry in a few hours again.
5. In the future try and get groceries when it's not raining so I can carry two bags instead of one...then I won't have to juggle the groceries and the umbrella.
6. Don't vent to your friends about being hungry or they may stop reading my blog;)
And....that's enough of that...Happy Days!!!!!
ok, it's a little later in the afternoon and my frustration is peaking so excuse me while I vent for a minute...I just looked out the window and it's raining. I am hungry, I had cereal for breakfast but I only have milk, cereal, a bowl of soup, cheese and crackers in my fridge...in some countries, this would be a blessing...However, I am a spoiled girl who usually has a full fridge and isn't used to having to walk to the grocery store and only buy as much food as I can carry so I basically have to grocery shop every other day. Today would normally be the day since I picked some stuff up on my way home from work on Friday night.
In LA, stores are open all day and all night and I have a car so I can grocery shop once a week and or even every other week, load my car with groceries and be done with it for a while....and if you don't feel like cooking there is a million cheap restaurants and even drive through fast food. I'm sure you have all experienced this and can relate even if you've never really thought about it.
The Dilemna:
It is Sunday here so all the stores near me are closed...the closest grocery store is two long blocks away and I do not feel like walking two very long blocks in the rain to buy only enough food to last me until tomorrow. I could go to a restaurant but it usually costs 30 - 40 euro which I don't feel like spending on a meal that I am eating by myself and then have the same problem in a few hours since I still will not have actually bought groceries.
So here I sit, very upset...my solution...melting cheese on the crackers in the microwave(there is no oven here) and sitting here complaining on my blog which again proves how spoiled I am... because if I had my car I would jump in it and go find a good place to eat, maybe even drive through if I didn't feel like dressing up or being in public. Here I have to dress for the rain and walk with groceries (can't carry umbrella and groceries at the same time) getting wet in order to eat. Very frustrating!!!!
Note to self on lessons learned...
1. don't take drive through or sunshine or having a car for granted and don't be so spoiled.
2. Cheese and crackers taste good. (I'm eating them now and feel better since I'm not starving anymore)
3. Convenience stores in the US have spoiled me.
4. Stop being a baby and go get wet:) Otherwise, I will be very hungry in a few hours again.
5. In the future try and get groceries when it's not raining so I can carry two bags instead of one...then I won't have to juggle the groceries and the umbrella.
6. Don't vent to your friends about being hungry or they may stop reading my blog;)
And....that's enough of that...Happy Days!!!!!
Sunday Afternoon - 10/8/06
It's been another crazy week...don't know if y'all heard but there was a major disaster in the poker world last week...We'll call it "Black Monday" of the poker world...legislation was passed in the US to stop American's from using American based forms of payment for online gambling...it's really sad because they put the legislation in the port security bill which no one can vote against and they snuck it in with that...so it will be interesting to see how this plays out...you can get more info at www.pokernews.com if you want to hear more about it.
I hope American's will stand up for their right to privacy. My opinion is that it's a violation of privacy to have the gov't dictating what you can and can't spend your money on, and the gov't is asking financial institutions to monitor everyone's US based bank accounts to monitor violations of the new legislation. It's seems that "Big Brother" may be a reality sooner than we think if this continues and has historically never been successful in the past...just look at what happened during prohibition.
I think a better solution would be for the US gov't to regulate poker(because it is a skilled based game vs. other forms of online gambling), which makes billions of dollars each year, tax it(to work on the huge US debt), and put some iniatives in place to inform and train people about responsible spending, ie. how to not be irresponsible gambling degenerates, which is a funny concept considering that people who want to be degenerate and wasteful of their money will be that way will be regardless of the law prohibiting it...and once again the masses suffer for the few.
So needless to say, it was a very busy work week as FTP (a private company) has announced it will continue to operate (at least in the near future until the legislation is actually enacted) and most of the public-based online poker companies pulled out of the US market immediately(answering to shareholders and lost billions of dollars..hence the Black Monday analogy). Who knows where this will lead...but it's very interesting to say the least.
I have been so busy, I haven't had a chance to really sit down and plan out my trips so I've dedicated today to some planning online...I'd like to book a few trips and sign up for French lessons...I think it would be so good to learn a foreign language while I'm here.
Other than that, just been fighting off the crazy drunk Irish boys and getting acquainted to the new city and lifestyle...it's definitely a learning experience.
BTW...everyone seems to be reading this but no one puts comments on my blog...does everyone know that a blog is a two-way form of communication where you (the reader) can post your thoughts and comments as well....so get to it, haha! I want feedback:)...and if you don't know how, then sit down and figure it out, mabye you'll learn something:) I'll help you if you like.
Have a good week:) Challenge yourself to do at least one thing difficult this week...step out of your comfort zone...and then tell me about it...challenge is the best way to grow...and why I've picked myself up and out of my world in LA and moved it to Ireland (to get out of my own way in my too comfortable zone in LA) so maybe that will motivate some of you to do the same. My experience here has been challenging at times, but I'm learning and I will come back better for the experience.
I miss you all very much! The homesickness (is that a word) is really kickin' in so send me some love...xoxo!
I hope American's will stand up for their right to privacy. My opinion is that it's a violation of privacy to have the gov't dictating what you can and can't spend your money on, and the gov't is asking financial institutions to monitor everyone's US based bank accounts to monitor violations of the new legislation. It's seems that "Big Brother" may be a reality sooner than we think if this continues and has historically never been successful in the past...just look at what happened during prohibition.
I think a better solution would be for the US gov't to regulate poker(because it is a skilled based game vs. other forms of online gambling), which makes billions of dollars each year, tax it(to work on the huge US debt), and put some iniatives in place to inform and train people about responsible spending, ie. how to not be irresponsible gambling degenerates, which is a funny concept considering that people who want to be degenerate and wasteful of their money will be that way will be regardless of the law prohibiting it...and once again the masses suffer for the few.
So needless to say, it was a very busy work week as FTP (a private company) has announced it will continue to operate (at least in the near future until the legislation is actually enacted) and most of the public-based online poker companies pulled out of the US market immediately(answering to shareholders and lost billions of dollars..hence the Black Monday analogy). Who knows where this will lead...but it's very interesting to say the least.
I have been so busy, I haven't had a chance to really sit down and plan out my trips so I've dedicated today to some planning online...I'd like to book a few trips and sign up for French lessons...I think it would be so good to learn a foreign language while I'm here.
Other than that, just been fighting off the crazy drunk Irish boys and getting acquainted to the new city and lifestyle...it's definitely a learning experience.
BTW...everyone seems to be reading this but no one puts comments on my blog...does everyone know that a blog is a two-way form of communication where you (the reader) can post your thoughts and comments as well....so get to it, haha! I want feedback:)...and if you don't know how, then sit down and figure it out, mabye you'll learn something:) I'll help you if you like.
Have a good week:) Challenge yourself to do at least one thing difficult this week...step out of your comfort zone...and then tell me about it...challenge is the best way to grow...and why I've picked myself up and out of my world in LA and moved it to Ireland (to get out of my own way in my too comfortable zone in LA) so maybe that will motivate some of you to do the same. My experience here has been challenging at times, but I'm learning and I will come back better for the experience.
I miss you all very much! The homesickness (is that a word) is really kickin' in so send me some love...xoxo!
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