T-7 Days til T-Day!

I can't believe that this time tomorrow, I'll be on a plane to the U.S.! The time is just flying by, but that's probably because the past month+ has been filled with wonderful things: one of the best surprises of my lifetime, great work opportunities, a fun trip to Bruges, and great days/nights out around Dublin.

So far, my 30's are pretty awesome. They began with a wake up to an amazing compilation of video messages from friends and family all over the world (message me if you'd like to see yourself in action). Then, I got the most amazing surprise ever: Everett, Christina, & Matt ringing the door

With Everett at Powerscourt
Waterfall (above) and Fitzpatrick's
 Halloween extravaganza (below)

bell. I screamed so loud, I made poor Everett cry! I knew Mom & Dad were coming, but it was a multi-family effort to keep the other 3 a secret and prepare for their arrival. Seaghan and  Mary (my bro & sis-in-law) let the Humphreys and Ferruccis basically take over their house. They also organized everything for Everett, from a pack-n-play to babysitters.



Surprise!

We had just the best few days, weather included, while they were here, which permitted lovely hikes, walks, and a few good nights out! And the surprises didn't end with Everett, though - Cathal threw me a surprise party at The Boar's Head, a pub; once again, had no idea. People from work, new friends, and family members all came to celebrate. Needless to say, I felt and continue to feel very blessed and fortunate.



Research at Fota House with one hundred
17-year-old girls!

After this amazing visit, things at Trinity got switched into high gear. In the past month, I've submitted applications for grant money; travelled to the beautiful, historical mansion, Fota House in Cork twice for research; and participated in conducting a few research projects in Dublin. I'm also working part-time as a supervisor for English student-teachers, and as an extension of this, I even gave my first lecture at the college level last week: "The Art of Reading and Teaching Strategies the Novel."  And some how, I also have become a member of the Executive Board of the Graduate Students' Union: I attend meetings with big wigs around campus and help organize pub nights for graduate students.  





Bruges. Markt Square. Top of Historium.
See the rest of our photos: Bruges Photos

Among the busyness of research, work, and campus life, Cathal and I managed to sneak in a trip to Bruges for the weekend. It's a short, cheap trip from Dublin, so we went for it. Good news -- it lives up to the hype: as you stroll the streets you are transported back to the middle ages and feel as though you're in a fairy tale.  Out weekend consisted of food (mussels, waffles, and chocolates, mainly), incredibly tasty beers (blondes and browns, we didn't discriminate), and even a few historical and cultural tours - well, one was a brewery, but the other was a legit museum. We highly recommend.


Dublin Marathon Finishers:
Kara, Cathal, & Kim!

Prior to Bruges, was the Dublin marathon, which Cathal ran and completed (yay!) but also brought another visitor: Kara (one of my best friend from Providence). She came with a few friends of hers, and it was so wonderful to have them here. We've been blessed with visitors in these first few months!!
And while the past two weekends, haven't been quite as glamorous, we've really enjoyed Dublin and the surrounding areas. Hiking new spots, strolling villages, attending the US-Ireland Soccer match, and a concert Pat (Cathal's dad) organized.


The Aviva Stadium. US vs Ireland.
Ireland wins 4-1. Yikes, USA.

 
 I am so excited to see many of you, catch up in person, and of course partake in some good old Thanksgiving Day overindulging!!


What's in your wallet?

Our living room &
the Royal Canal - just steps away. 

When I left Boston, I pretty much emptied my wallet, figuring my Charlie Card, expired Blue Cross card, and City Feed frequent flyer card (on which I was speedily working my way up to earning one free, giant delicious sandwich) wouldn't be useful in Dublin. When I emptied out my wallet the other day - and being honest, this was in a hasty panic after misplacing my AIB bank card for the second time - I briefly noted the contents of my wallet: my GNIB card; Trinity ID; PPS (social security) card; valued customer cards at Fixx coffee shop and Tolteca Burrito; Dublin city library card; Dublin bikes card; and some Euro. Essentially, a compilation of what I've been up to for the last few months - already 2.5 actually! [English teachers, please take note: this could be a very fruitful writing exercise: How do the contents of your wallet reflect you?].

Abby & Eugene at O'Neil's Pub.

Cathal and I moved into a 2-bed apartment a couple of weeks ago, right near the canal, in the heart of the city, and a short walk/run to Dublin bay. The apartments in Dublin come furnished, so we didn't have to buy beds, a table, or couch, but we did need things like a coffee maker - we decided to go European and get a French press - and pillows, so we made the obligatory, yet soul-sucking, IKEA trip, after which we promptly rewarded ourselves with an ice cream cone. Cathal and I both walk to work in about 15 minutes, which is amazing. Sometimes we are even lazy and cycle in, using the Dublin bikes system - similar to NYC or Boston, where you pick up a bike in one location and drop it off in another. We also love being able to walk to pretty much everything - from museums to parks to restaurants. We even had our first visitors, Abby & Eugene, from Boston in our new place! We had a great time showing them around...well, maybe it was mostly showing them the pubs around.

Dublin Bay via a run. 

Things at Trinity are generally great; the summer holidays are over and like the rest of the
educational world, September is crazy. I've been attending many general graduate student orientation sessions, but I also feel already in the thick of the PhD work. I've been working with other members of my research group and teachers to help them set up projects with their students; attending various workshops and presentations; volunteering as a mentor at Bridge21, where I'll also be conducting my research; applying for funding; and reading, reading, reading. My research group is friendly, active, and optimistic, but also straightforward and constructively critical. I'm also considering getting involved on campus with the Graduate Students Union and maybe even taking some of the free Irish Language classes offered at here. And I'm beginning to start some classes this week, which I suppose I'll have to fit in somewhere in all this!

Alongside the exiting things happening, my mother-in-law, Bernie, has been suffering from an infection that came from a bite from unknown insect she got while sleeping a couple of weeks ago. She was in the hospital for a week and has been out of work for what's going on 5 weeks - pretty much the whole time Cathal and I have been in our new apartment. She's on the mend now, but of course this has been extremely difficult for her. This serious infection, however, did not stop the hostess with the mostess from having a feast for Abby & Eugene when they were over!

Homemade veggie burgers.

People keep asking, and yes, of course I miss home: mostly I miss my nephew Everett. He's just so darn cute. See below. But I try not to dwell on other things too much - like the fact that the veggie burgers just aren't standard practice or that good here. In my best moments, I make efforts to see things like this as an opportunity and I made my own veggie burgers. Must be healthier than the frozen kind, right? This is not always easy, and yes of course, I'm dying for Formosa's all-you-can-eat sushi for $20.

The cutest baby ever.

So, if you made it this far down this post, and if you were curious, yes, I located my AIB bank card; I am actually a Capital One costumer; and it's still in my wallet. No foreign exchange fees. Totally worth it.

At the Gaelic Football Semi-Final Game.
Dublin vs Donegal. Not the results we'd hoped for,
but we ended up at the Kerry v Donegal
All-Ireland Final after winning tickets in a raffle!
Kerry won!

Run out to Poolbeg light house.

C̄hạn mị̀ farang ting tong

Trinity's Reading Room
(attached to the WWI memorial).
Used to film parliament in
the Michael Collins movie.

While I aim to find pleasure in learning new things (and laugh at the inevitable mistakes which come with that process), it's not always easy -- especially when I already know how to do those things in the U.S. Sometimes, I want to walk around with a sign around my neck that says, "I swear! I'm a real adult in America!" In Ireland, however, I can't drive (never mind own a car), I live with my mom and dad(-in-law), I'm still really unclear how things like dental/medical insurance work (so, I'm praying I don't need a root canal until I figure that one out), and oh, yea, I'm technically a student again. I've also been looking into buying a used bike so I have more 'freedom.'

Maynooth's campus, where I attended
the Letters 1916 Project Workshop
for teachers and educators.

Naturally, I've been questioning the concept of adulthood and the markers Americans, maybe mid-upper-class westerners, use to distinguish adulthood, as well as the idea of shame. While reflecting upon these subjects as a swam laps in the pool at Trinity, I began violently choking on some water and shamefully had to cling onto the rope as I coughed and caught my breath (and this was after only shortly before entering the gym by stumbling into a locked turn-style gate, rather than the wide open passageway I was directed through, to the amusement of the people working the front desk). Thus, with God/fate/karma's sign, I took this exposing moment to remind myself to laugh and to give myself a break. So what if it took me a half-an-hour to deposit cash in an ATM machine at the bank the other day? I ended up meeting and having a lovely conversation with a Irish guy moving to Washington, D.C.  And even though I'm not well-versed in Irish history, Gaelic football, or the questions and point system of the Leaving Cert, I am slowly learning.

The Royal Antiquaries Society of Ireland,
outside and in. Field trip was a part of
History Week at Bridge21 

I then channeled 21-year-old-Sharon, recalling one key Thai phrase I learned while living and working abroad: "C̄hạn mị̀ farang ting tong" - "I am not a stupid foreigner." My personal and professional experiences led me here and are not wiped clean by a relocation; moreover, there's something valuable in having an outsider's perspective. And in the past two weeks, I've had the opportunity to attend workshops and conferences with teachers, academics, and other professionals working in education, which have been reinvigorating, exciting, and reassuring that I'm in the right professional field, and I do have a lot to offer to it, as well as gain by being here. That whole, inside looking out, outside looking in thing...




While I'd love to end this reflection with a prophetic insight onto the meaning of adulthood, does anyone really have one? Yet, I think it must not mean being settled or having it all figured out, for if it does, then that means I've stopped trying new things, and I'll miss so many good things in life that I've yet to discover. And lucky for me, I have my buddy to help me through it all and enjoy the process of discovery with:

View on the walk from Bray to Greystones.

St. Stephen's Green

Delicious food and drinks at Ely's.
Hanover Quay, Dublin.

Fáilte go hÉirinn

Dublin Street Fair Petting Zoo.
you can take the girl out of North Branford....

Top of Sugarloaf Mountain.
 Just outside Dublin.
Great day and challenging hike -
careful going back down! 

After being in Dublin a week now, I'm reminded of the joys and challenges of beginning somewhere new. In this short time, I've indulged at new restaurants, hiked new mountains, run new routes, made new work colleagues and friends, tasted new beers, attended new theaters, street festivals, and plays...and I'm slowly beginning to orient myself in a city that feels both familiar and brand new. While doing this, I'm also attempting to be patient with myself: like a child, and really people of all ages, I'm learning from my mistakes and taking a long time to do some of the most ordinary tasks because things are just slightly different. It took me an hour to walk to the local library, usually a ten minute jaunt, because I took a wrong turn and ended up in the dodgy part of town, but I came out of it unscathed, heading back home with a library card and two books in tow. Grocery shopping at a new store, Tesco, was overwhelming yet exciting: while I was disappointed Ciobani isn't available, it gave me a chance to sample Muller. I also found pleasure in comparing and contrasting prices of produce (bell peppers and smoked salmon are cheaper, yet granola bars are pricey!).

I'm lucky to have Cathal and his family here, as they've been incredibly gracious and welcoming toward me. Cathal and I are beginning to search for a new apartments and unashamedly are enjoying the rush of the real estate market yet again (I'm beginning to think I may have gone into the wrong field). Cathal and I completed the immigration process as well - not too difficult, just a lot of long lines, finger printing, and waiting around, but after three hours, I was given my (blueish)-Green card, my GNIB, which permits me to stay in Ireland for a year. I've also set up a bank account and completed other mundane, tedious bureaucratic tasks; and after months of that in the States, I'm ready to move on with actually living life and not just filling out paperwork.

My new set-up at Trinity

The completion of these tasks is happening simultaneously with starting the PhD at Trinity College. While I'm still not sure what exactly I'm doing, I do have a key, desk, and computer in my new office area, and I'm fortunate to be surrounded by a very welcoming group of people, who greeted me with coffee, tea, and homemade baked goods on my first day. I'm still experiencing a sense of awe as I walk around the home of the Book of Kells and disbelief that this historical institution of great beauty is my new everyday.

So, while I look forward to the point in which I know the city a bit better and can actually show some visitors around and feel like I know what I'm doing in my workplace, I'm trying to enjoy the process of learning and be grateful for the slowing down of life that it forces upon me.

View from Howth, just outside Dublin.

The tea room in the Phoenix Park.
Love running through the park;
always want to stop for a cup!