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A Canadian in Ireland

Doesn't have the ring of "An American in Paris" (or even "An American at Opera") but what can you do?

Posts tagged with "family"

And there was much rejoicing

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The move finally got finished late last night. I can't believe we actually got it done, every time I thought it was finished there always seemed to be something else to go in the van.

The new house looks like our stuff was air dropped in. God knows how long before we get everything put away. And college is starting on Monday :faint:

Anyway, here's a few shots of the new house.

The front


The back


The yard

I did say it was a farm house. :wink:

Moving on

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Hey it's me :smile: hi

I know I haven't been around the OC much (work has me pretty busy, but that's another post)

I see that lots of people have moved, are moving, or may be moving sometime in the future. Well, you can add two more to the list. My brother and his wife are currently moving from Vancouver to Saskatchewan. And Mam and I will be moving at the end of the month.

We're going nowhere near as far, just the other end of the valley on the far side of the village. It's a nice farmhouse and I think we'll be quite happy there, but it's the move itself that has me concerned. I'm only going to have this weekend and the next and I'm not sure if it's enough time. :worried: Plus I'll have to get ready for the start of college straight after.

Oh, it will all work out in the end. It always does. :wink: But for now I just need a bit of time with my neuroses.

And I may disappear again until we get settled. :whistle:

Photos of a Spanish holiday

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Mine by coincidence.

Now that I was able to retrieve them from the dead laptop and I'm in Kilkenny blatantly stealing my aunts broadband I finally managed to upload some of the photos I took in Spain.



























More in the album and more will be uploaded when I have the time.

Quick Update from Spain

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Hola! :D

Just a quick post (now that I have mostly figured out these Spanish keyboards :faint: ) to let you know that enjoying myself here in Nerja The sun is "splitting the stones" but there´s a nice breeze off the Med and plenty of cold cervesa :cheers: We even managed to figure out how to get an ice coffee after a few failed experiments. :yuck:

We´ve been taking it easy for the most part, though yesterday we did a little road trip to see the Alhambra. Amazing place, I took lots of photos which will be coming.

Only a couple of days left here, which is nowhere near long enough, but I´ll make the best of it.

:spock:

Fiesta time is coming

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Holidaying in Spain next week with the family. :yes: :hat:

Lots to do to get ready, and I'm not sure if I'll be able to get on-line while I'm away, but here's something I've been playing to get me in the mood.



Phone surfers click here.

The Irish have a way with words

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The latest in what's turning into a continuing series

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St Patrick's Day at the Seaside

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I hoped that I would be able to post this yesterday, but the server monkeys weren't having it. I spent most of the evening uploading my photos. :irked: By the time I had that finished it was bedtime. :zzz:

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Hunting the Wren

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The wren, the wren, the king of all birds,
St. Stephen's Day was caught in the furze,
Although he was little his honour was great,
Jump up me lads and give us a treat.
Up with the kettle and down with the pan,
And give us a penny to bury the wren.



The 26th is St. Stephen's Day in Ireland. Traditionally a day to go hunt the Wren.

Our family tradition is to do the charity walk in Gattabawn.



It was a good day for it, dry and quite mild. Though with all the wet weather some parts of the trail were very boggy. As I learned when I ended up to my knees in a bog.



Not the end of the world, I was practically dried out by the time we got back.

On the route we passed by this ruin which apparently was an old hotel. Back at the turn of the last century there was a mineral spa here.



So after three hours and roughly 9 miles we made it back for a cup of hot soup. I don't' know much about this car beyond that it was parked up in the yard of the pub.



And on the way home we passed by this old castle - note the rather precarious looking piece of wall wedged at the top.



Oh and there was no sign of the wren. :wink:

Obligatory Christmas post

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Thanks for passing this on to me Leazz :smile:

I hope you were all good little boys and girls and Santa brought you what you wanted. He did for me. :wink:

A bit surprising that he came at all. We were a bit naughty and only got our decorating done yesterday. Still, I think it turned out rather well.





Last year I posted some seasonal songs which people seemed to enjoy. Again, I'm late, but better late than never.



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QsUxCrS92tw



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ojkWTseLkq0



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0L6_wmwQ4Wg

So enjoy the rest of the day. I'm looking forward to a quiet evening in with a couple of Christmas specials.


Le gach dea-ghui i gcomhair na nollag agus na h-ath bhliana!

With Best Wishes for Christmas and the New Year!

In Comedy, Timing is Everything

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The other night I was sitting with Mom watching Monty Python. Normally she doesn't mind, but this was one of the more surreal episodes and she wasn't really in the humor. So we started having a discussion about changing the channel. The central debate being whether what we were watching was comedy or just silly. (You can probably guess which side I was on :wink: )

So there I was trying to argue for the sophistication of Python when they came back from the ads straight to The Colonel.

It has come to my attention that this show is getting far too silly!


:eyes: You couldn't make this stuff up. :lol:

Not the exact scene, but the closest I can find on YouTube.


2008 edition of "getting to know your friends" survey

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My new sister sent me this in an email. She thought I'd be the first to reply so I got right at my answers. While I was filling it in I decided I'd post it all up here.

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Why my new laptop is savage

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... deadly, gift, massive, brilliant. *

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One last hurrah

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Almost last minute post before I fly out later today.

What a trip :faint: Love Vancouver, wedding was unforgettable, saw loads of family and friends. :yes:

And now it's over :no: :cry:

Que sera, it has to be. (No matter how much I protest. :irked: )

Next post will be from Ireland :wait:

Watch this space

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:confused: Oh dear, what do I have planned? :devil:

UPDATE: Please read the comments and vote for you favourite guess in my new poll. Or make your own suggestion and I'll add it to the list.

Deartháir agus Deirfiúr mo Croí

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Brother and Sister of my heart

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Three days to the flight - Six days to the wedding

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Pardon me while I freak out slightly

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Busy busy

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Just thought I'd take a minute now that lectures have finished and before my final exams start in two weeks to check in and see how you all are.

It was a bit mad coming up to the end. All the lecturers trying to make sure they have all the material covered and the assignments assigned. Three tests and two papers in the last two weeks. Overall my marks are ok. I'll still want to do well on the exams, but I'm not panicking... yet. :wink:

Otherwise we've been trying to get all the arrangements for the trip to Vancouver organised - accommodation, car rental, etc. Though the brother has been a big help with local knowledge.

I was going to surprise him with a pair of Guinness cufflinks for his tux, but I wanted to make sure that he would need them. So, trying to be sneaky, I asked the maid of honor if she could try and find out.

Turned out he was going to ask me to get him a pair. :lol: Great minds think alike (and something about fools :whistle: )

I'll be popping in and out, but don't expect to see too much of me 'til the end of May. :spock:

It just hit me

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The other day I was talking to someone about my brother's fiance, and I referred to her as

My future sister-in-law.


After I'd said it, the full meaning of that phrase suddenly dawned on me. :love: :heart: :happy:

WELCOME TO SASKATCHEWAN

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Hi, remember me?

Still busy with school, not helped by the fact that my cousin from BC (the one who hosted the reunion) and her husband were visiting. It was short, only four days, but very sweet. Everyone had a marvelous time together.

In an attempt to get a bit of content up, I'm gong to cheat a bit and do a quick copy and paste from an email that I got from one of my aunts.

WELCOME TO SASKATCHEWAN



Thank you for visiting our beautiful province.
Here are a few things you ought to know to make your stay more pleasant:


1> That slope-shouldered farm boy you are snickering at did more work before breakfast than you will do all week at the gym.

2> It's called a "gravel road." No matter how slow you drive, you're going to get dust on your BMW. I have a 4-wheel drive because I need it. Now drive or get it the hell out of the way.

3> We all started hunting and fishing when we were nine-years-old. Yeah, we saw Bambi die. We got over it.

4> Any references to "grain fed" when talking about our women will get your butt kicked...by our women.

5> Pull your pants up, and turn your hat around. You look like an idiot.

6> If that cell phone rings while a bunch of mallards are making their final approach, we will shoot it. You might hope you don't have it up to your ear at the time.

7> No, there's no "Vegetarian Special" on the menu. Order steak. Order it rare. Or, you can order the Chef's Salad and pick off the two pounds of ham and turkey.

8> Yeah, we have sweetened ice tea. It comes sweetened, you don't need a glass with two packets of sugar and a long spoon.

9> You bring Coke into my house you should bring rye along, and ice.

10> So you have a sixty-thousand-dollar car. We're real impressed. We have quarter-million-dollar combines that we use two weeks a year.

11> Let's get this straight. We may have one stoplight in town, but we stop when it's red. We may even stop when it's yellow.

12> Our women hunt, fish, and drive trucks - because they want to. So, you're a feminist. Isn't that cute.

13> Yeah, we eat trout, northern pike, walleye and perch, too. If you really want sushi and caviar, it's available at the bait shop.

14> They are pigs and cows. That's what they smell like. Get over it.

15> So what if every person in every pick-up waves? It's called being friendly. Understand the concept?

16> Yeah, we have golf courses, more per person than anywhere else on earth. Don't hit into the water hazards. It spooks the fish. And stay out of the woods, that spooks the deer.

17> Don't like it? Highways #1 and #16 go two ways - get on one of them. The more people that leave, the better the hunting & fishing.

Read on if you dare!

Once upon a time in the Kingdom of Heaven, God was missing for six days. Eventually, Michael the Archangel found Him, resting on the seventh day. He inquired of God, "Where have You been?"

God sighed a deep sigh of satisfaction and proudly pointed downwards through the clouds, "Look Michael, look what I've made!"

Archangel Michael looked puzzled and asked, "What is it?"

"It's a planet," replied God, and I've put life on it. I'm going to call it Earth, and it's going to be a great place of balance.

"Balance?" inquired Michael, still confused.

God explained, pointing to different parts of Earth, "For example, Northern Europe will be a place of great opportunity and wealth, while southern Europe is going to be poor; the Middle East over there will be a hot spot. And over there I've placed a continent of white people, while over here is a continent of black people." God continued, pointing to different countries. "This one will be extremely hot and arid while this one will be very cold and covered in ice."

The Archangel, impressed by God's work, then pointed to a large land mass and said, "What's that one?"

"Ah," said God. "That's Saskatchewan, the most glorious place on earth. There are beautiful lakes, rivers, sunsets and rolling hills. The people from Saskatchewan are going to be modest, intelligent and humorous and they are going to be found traveling the world. They will be extremely sociable, hardworking and high achieving, and they will be known throughout the world as diplomats and carriers of peace."

Michael gasped in wonder and admiration but then proclaimed, "What about balance, God? You said there would be balance!"

God replied wisely, "Wait until you see the "Ding Bats" I'm putting around them in North Dakota, Manitoba, Alberta, and North West Territories."

EDIT: The server monkeys were having another strop over uploading photos this morning, but I finally got the two above added. My brother brought me the shirt last X-mas and the photos are from the family's New Year's Eve party. I just haven't had a good post to use them with before now.

EDIT 2: For some reason the list tags stopped working so I had to re-do that part by hand. :frown: Hopefully nobody missed it.

The Saskatchewan Song

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14 - Todd Butler - The Saskatchewan Song.m4a

You have to listen to this.

My cousin Alan and his family, visiting from BC, introduced me to this song by Todd Butler

:eyes: :lol: :faint:

I laughed so hard I didn't know if I'd shit or go blind.
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