Today starts as usual. I roll out of bed, make breakfast and skim over the news online. I play the PBS NewsHour episode from yesterday on YouTube, listening to coverage of the final push of election rallies and the confirmation of Amy Coney Barrett to the Supreme Court. I’m washing dishes when the intercom buzzes. It’s a courier with a delivery that turns out to be a Dyson Air Me air purifier / circulator that I had been expecting. It’s not quite a full-blown fan but should work perfectly to keep the bedroom from becoming stuffy. During my first year of college in Maine, one of my dorm roommates insisted on keeping a window open and fan blowing throughout the winter, and since then I’ve preferred sleeping in a cool room (with plenty of covers to stay warm, of course).
I meet up with a new friend CJ for a walk this afternoon. CJ is in his 40s, a few years younger than me, and moved back to Ireland a couple of years ago after living as an expat in other European counties and also Australia. His professional background seems to cover a broad array of technology applications such as websites, business systems, data security, and cloud computing. Like me, he’s not currently employed so we chat some about our strategies for finding work.
It’s another relatively nice day out, blue skies with some clouds. We head southward from Temple Bar to the Portobello neighborhood, along South Great George’s Street, which inconspicuously becomes Aungier Street, then Redmond’s Hill, then Camden Street Lower, then Richmond Street South, until we reach the Grand Canal. I had walked along the same corridor when returning from the U.S. Embassy a couple of weeks ago, although now CJ points out some of his favourite spots so I get a better lay of the land.
Another gay-friendly storefront draped with rainbow flags:
Another Halloween window display:
CJ and I part ways, both expressing an interest in meeting up again for another walk soon. Back at the apartment, I heat up the last of my homemade soup for lunch with some buttered soda bread on the side. I retire to a couch and end up taking a long nap. I’m listening now to the evening news on RTÉ Radio covering COVID (of course), the U.S. election, and a recent murder-suicide involving a father and his two 20-something year old sons down in County Cork. The weather forecast for the next few days is “blustery” with rain, so I’m glad I got out today.
