Well hello there!

This is my brand new goddaughter Caitlin. I think it's safe to say that she is the most beautiful little thing ever. This is just a close-up, in real life she is extremely teensy. She was born last Tuesday, weighing in at 6 pounds 2 ounces, and finally giving her mama a break after six hours in labour. I just get to do all the fun stuff like play with her and buy her snuggly things and the like!

Do you think she looks like her big brother, way back when?

The Greatest Love of All

Sunday morning, back on the ranch. Having a cuppa and watching Pride and Prejudice on the box. Sib 2 finally emerges from his slumber, plods up the hall, falls onto the couch, and changes the channel. I roar at him to change it back. He watchs the film for a few minutes, and then starts whining about it…

Him: Why, why do you want to watch this? It’s boring and crap.

Me: It’s Jane Austen, it’s one of the greatest love stories of all time!

Him: No, me and my hair is the greatest love story of all time.


Couldn’t argue with that…

Turned up to 11

Went home for the weekend (first thing my mother said – “oh, you got a haircut”). I knew I’d be at nothing down there, so I brought the guitar and spent a day getting back into it. I have a lovely big amp that was dying of neglect, so I brought it up to the living room, waited ‘til everyone was out of the house, and just cranked it. I think it might have been in shock for a few seconds because it started to buzz and make worrying sounds, but once it warmed up, it sounded as good as ever. My dad came in later and shouted that you could hear it all the way down in the fields. But he was smiling when he said it...



How to make a grumpy brother smile - play Sunshine of Your Love, 20th Century Boy and Whole Lotta Love in a row. All this time, I was wasting time trying to tickle him...

Been thinkin'

I’ve been having one of those contemplative days. Which is strange, because it’s Monday, and usually all I try to do is get through the day. I suppose it’s because lately I’ve been taking stock of a lot of what’s going on in my life. I hate doing that. Anyone that knows me knows that I hate change, I hate disruption, and I hate having to face the not-so-nice things that come along every now and then. I’ve been thinking a lot about the year that’s just passed, it was this time 12 months ago that the health scare with Patch happened, and after that I found myself making a lot of changes in my life, mainly small, but some significant. It took something that big and potentially devastating for me to reassess and (I hope) improve.

Changes are coming again, not least with the job, and I’ve had my head in the sand about it for a while now. The news came in the middle of a really bad time for me, so I think part of my brain just filed it away so as not to become overwhelmed by all the shit that was happening right then. But I’ve since realised that you have to keep on keepin’ on even when crap is starting to pile up. It would be far too easy for me to sit down and mope about all my little mini disasters right now, and on bad days I almost fall into the mire, but mostly I’m able to stay if not upbeat, then on an even keel of coping. That feeling that I just need to get away from everything isn’t as predominant as before, but I’ve been having a lot of dreams lately about being far away, so I guess it’s still on my mind.

I want to go to Canada, I want to stay here, I want to go to Canada, I want to stay here…

But I keep coming back to this time last year. No matter what happens, it’s all really small potatoes compared to the possibility of losing someone you love. I bitch about my family sometimes, but know that I’m blessed with them. Sometimes my friends can wreck my head, but I always remember that I’m lucky to have so many, and I hope they know how much they mean to me. As much as the job is like a job, a really bad day is rare, and I find myself laughing with people around me all the time. And most importantly, I have somebody that I can talk to about anything, anytime, no matter what.

Everything will work out. It all happens for a reason. We’re going to be ok.

Happy Birthday Patch

Happy Birthday little brother!

Yeah, I know you’re taller than me, but I can remember when you were born, so you’ll always be little to me!

(How frightening is it that I can remember 25 years ago?!)

Mmm...more snooze...

Ah, the bank holiday weekend! So many possibilities! So what am I going to do?! Sleep!

And! We get an extra hour’s sleep! Thank you, clocks going backwards!

Sib 2 found out yesterday that he’s getting laid off, just a few weeks before he is away on holiday. Timing, eh? Apparently the crowd he works for are about to go belly-up, so he probably won’t get holiday pay, or the expenses he’s owed, or anything like that. Mofos. He’s better off in the long run, they were quite the cowboy outfit, but it’s shite that he only has one week’s notice. So if anyone out there is looking for an ace electrician, he’s yer man. He has a van too. So if you don’t want an electrician but are thinking of maybe forming a crime fighting team that needs a van, he might also be your man.

30 degrees, religion, and rum

Some text messages received from Sib 2 over the past few days, he was on pilgrimage in Medj with the parentals, then they went to Croatia for a few days to shake off all the religion. He’s been looking for mojitos for the past while, but refused to go to any bar in Dublin that might serve them, for “fear of the gay homosexuals.” He finally managed to get one in Dubrovnik...

Him: Havin a mojito, fuckin’ lovely

Me: Just the one?!

Him: Well I’ve finished that one, quite delightful, so I might just have another


One day later…


Him: Had a few more mojitos today, started Ma and Da on them, ma wants you to get the recipe for them…

Lovely Girls Bum Touching

It’s one of those two times every year when I throw caution to the wind and throw away my money on the horsies. So far the Cheltenham festival has not been kind to me, I got one winner on Tuesday, but at odds of 2/1, I’m not going to be buying that gold-plated Bentley any time soon. Yesterday was a complete bust, my first fella had a chance until his reins broke (sabotage, anyone?) and the other one came a close second. Not close enough! Anyway, bet on a few today, will of course bet on the big one tomorrow, and then I will be a good girl again. At least until Punchestown rolls around.

In other bad luck news, my crack squad of quiz kids failed to set the world alight last night, but we were glad all the same to support a very worthy cause in the form of the KAL Case (read all about it). We came out around mid-table in the end, but those questions were HARD! We also scooped up some lovely consolation prizes, courtesy of Herc’s quick thinking of an alternative explanation for the LGBT acronym (see title above). So, in conclusion, Yay Team!

For all who were asking, Sib 2 is doing well, still having tests, but we’re all relieved that it’s not what we feared it might be. That was probably the worst two weeks of my life, waiting for that news. So he’s quit smoking and is aiming for a full recovery, and a return to his acting career. He says hi to all wellwishers.

Ding Dong, the Sniffling's Gone!

Recovered from the dose, but I seem to have passed it on to a few people at work, carrier monkey that I am. Oh well. I just pass on the same advice that my sympathetic brother gave me – Soak it up, Sicko!

The Too-Early-For-Christmas panic attacks only get worse now, and I’m not the only one who’s freaking out. While looking around the shops on Sunday afternoon, I was almost trampled on by a stampede of consumers, pushing at tills, grimacing like they’ve got hot coals in their undies, buying all around them. ‘Tis the Season to be awful, it would seem. I still regard this time of year as Autumn, in that if there isn’t frost on my nose when I wake up in the morning, then winter hasn’t really set in.

Mam called last night to pass on trouser size info (that’s what she told me to get Dad for Christmas), but only realised that she had failed to check the size after she had dialled my number. She threw the phone at Sib 2 so he could chat while she went to check out the trews. When she came back, my Dad had come into the hall, and stood beside her waiting to talk to me. She came back on the phone and in her best secret agent voice said “it’s 31 degrees in South Africa today, remember you asked me about that? 31.” I wasn’t exactly sure what she was talking about for a minute, but then finally copped on (I would be a pretty crappy agent). She left the phone to a very confused Dad, who probably now thinks someone’s bringing him to South Africa for Christmas.

Going to a cocktails and poker party tonight. Because I don’t have enough vices already.

Oy oy oy

Ack, need to update this more often. The Autumn feeling about the place is making my brain think of hibernation, I reckon. Mmm, hibernation…. Wake me up for Christmas…

Sib 2 is recovering after being beaten up last Friday night, not too much damage done, thank God. A gash on the head, a fat lip, and a bruised ego, mainly. I’m not sure which is more disturbing, that this is happening pretty much every night on the streets of Dublin, or that a lot of the time, it happens for no reason at all. He wasn’t mugged, he didn’t provoke them, all they wanted to do was beat somebody up. Scumbags. And once again, my opinion of the Gardaí takes a plunge – two of them walked past him, saw the blood on his face, and turned away. Just add them to the list of cops that shrug their shoulders, steal evidence, intimidate people and take their number off their shoulder before they beat the crap out of someone in a holding cell. Modern Ireland, eh?

On a happier note, I turn one year older this week. Oh wait, that’s not happy, that’s more crap!

Look at this. Makes me think about each minute, instead of counting the years.

http://www.humanclock.com/clock.php

The highs and lows of this roller coaster we call life. Or whatever.

Well, I'm back. Goddammit to mofo-ing hell, those two weeks sure did fly. I was down in Sunny Kildare for most of it, but ventured up now and again for the music. Pixies were completely amazing, but I knew that they would be. Scissor Sisters were pretty good, they didn't rock my socks off like before, but that's ok. Sleater-Kinney were SO GOOD, I was just blown away. For sure, the most fun you could have on a Tuesday night.

Other events included...

My cousin's daughter's 21st birthday. Since when am I so old?! And where are all these babies coming from?! Have you people no self control??!!

Maeve and Stephen's wedding last Friday, it all went off without a hitch, in that they actually did get hitched, and nobody bitched. Mr and Mrs Miley are currently honeymooning in Thailand, hopefully chillaxing after many months of wedding prep craziness. Huzzah!

Amanda (Mandolin!) finally got the hell out of here, Dublin being a bit of a nightmare for her. It couldn't have been the weather or the cost of living, so I'm going to take it very personally and assume it was US! Grrr!

Only messing, I think it was my dancing that made her run away in the end. And who could blame her?

The Three Miss-kateers (Emma, Nellie and Lin) head off around the world next Tuesday, so this week will be all about the sad farewells. They will be back in a year's time, which is far too long for me to wait, I will miss them tons. All I can say is, you kids better write! 'Cos if you don't...well...I'll come after you!

If any more people go away or make big life changes or just freak me out in general, I...well I...just don't know what I'll do. Complain, I suppose.

Counting down...

Hot damn! Yee haw! Etc! Just one and a bit more days of work, and then it's sweet, sweet holiday time! Two weeks of chilin' out back home, down on Rancho Relaxo (as Kel calls it), and maybe a little bit of skipping around town. Over two weeks there will be three concerts (Pixies! Scissor Sisters! Sleater-Kinney!), a wedding, a 21st, and the christening of baby Cathal. And so much sleep, it's almost indecent! I love sleep! I know very few people that gain more pleasure from buying sheets and duvet covers and pillowcases than I. Mmm...pillow...

Yeah, it probably will be indecent.

Oh, and the soiree was a great success. In that nobody gatecrashed, nobody was injured, nobody was sick, but everybody got a little bit merry! And who knew that we could party until 4.30 am? Amazing! Even more astonishing was the fact that I wasn't absolutely dying the next day. Such an anomaly is most welcome!

Happy, happy, happy...

The parentals celebrated 30 years of wedded bliss yesterday (and yes, that's 30 years total!). Now traditionally, 30 years is marked as the Pearl Anniversary, so I was wondering, does their present have to be pearls, or pearl-related? So I hit the old in-tro-net, and discovered this heah. Traditional gift = pearls, Modern gift = DIAMONDS??!! Stupid modernity!

In the end we got them a barbecue (between the three of us). A gas one, not pearl-encrusted. Despite all their best hopes and ambitions, neither myself, Sib 1, nor Sib 2 are yet millionaires. But we sure do love that BBQ. The least we can do for our Traditional Irish Mammy is abstain from vegetarianism.

Holding Hands

So small!

So baby Cathal came to visit me at home last Friday (his mom drove). I'll take it easy with all the baby talk and photos and whatnot, because I know it can be boring for some (??!!), so for the time being I'm just going to post this one, which I think kinda sums up the whole miracle of life thing without being too corny. Or have I just corned it all up?

Anyway, this is his itty bitty hand, holding on to mine. * sigh *

(normal ranting will resume soon)

New arrival

Baby Cathal

Presenting Cathal James Nicholas Forde, my cousin Caithriona's newborn. He arrived last Friday, and should be heading home to sunny Kildare today. I have no other information about him yet, as I've yet to see him in person. All that Cate told me was that he was tiny but long, and very quiet, so she's not sure if he belongs to her (she's chatty!). I'll have more detail like weight, eye colour, etc, after I see him at the weekend. And probably about a million photos too.