It’s been two years since I arrived to Dublin — on 1st October 2020, I took up residence at Sprangers Yard in the apartment where I still live and wrote the first post for this blog. My once daily posts have become much more infrequent as life has become more routine. Life has settled into a new normal. The COVID-19 pandemic is seemingly over; just the other day I finally relegated my collection...
It’s been a busy past few weeks — a trip to Manchester UK a the end of August for Pride weekend there, multiple office social events, and various get-togethers with friends. It feels like today has been the first day I’ve been able to relax in awhile. The weather has turned rainy once again — a good excuse to stay in and write a blog post — after a stretch of dry days last week and...
Summer is in its final stretch. Work has been slow due to people being away on summer holidays. Weather is a perpetual conversation topic in Ireland. It’s been a mostly drab summer, with grey skies and rain. The August bank holiday was almost entirely a wash out. The forecast this week, however, is making amends for these past disappointments. St. Patrick Cathedral Park The Spire View of Dame...
This will be an short post mostly to share some photos from Dublin Pride last weekend. Dublin Pride is the second biggest festival in Ireland after St. Patrick’s Day, and the last officially organised Pride weekend was two years ago in 2019 due to COVID. My friend S. arrived into Dublin by train early Friday evening, then we met up with my friend CJ and a friend of S’s to go to an...
It’s been a warm but somewhat grey June in Dublin. Today has been one of the warmer days, with highs in the low 70s F / low 20s C, and humid – but nothing like the heatwaves that continental Europe or the U.S. have been having recently. There is no denying summer is here, now that we’re past the solstice. The sun doesn’t set until around 10:00pm these days. A well-timed photo...
The long Easter Weekend started off well. My neighbour Irene and I left Easter cards and treats for each other, and she dressed up the perennial skeleton that stands guard outside her “garden” gate in some seasonal attire. The weather continued to be warm during the day, but it’s still dipping into the 30s-40s / single digits C at night. My neighbour’s skeleton in Easter...
Spring has arrived right on cue for Easter. It’s been much warmer this week, with highs in the low 60s / upper 10s C. There have been some rainy days but today there are large patches of blue in the sky. I’m sitting in St. Stephens Green wearing a short sleeve shirt, the first time since autumn. I worked in the morning, although the firm was officially closed and left it up to employees as to...
Spring has not quite yet sprung in Ireland. There are only a few early buds beginning to emerge on otherwise bare tree branches. High temps continue to be in the single digits C / mid to upper 40s F. The weather has been alternating between bright chilly days and grey rainy days. Russia’s ongoing invasion of Ukraine continues to be at the forefront of the news here, along with concerns...
Today marks a year (365 days) since I started a simple, 5-minute daily meditation practise. I haven’t skipped a day, although I may have skimped a little when traveling. If nothing else, it’s been a good exercise in discipline. I do think it is helpful in starting my day off from a more centered mindet. The top headlines in Ireland over the past week have been dominated by the murder...
After a very long work week, my friend CJ invited me out in Friday evening for a Dublin Pride walking tour around Temple Bar. It was good to get out the apartment. The streets were busy as usual, and our tour group of 20 or so people had to navigate through the crowds on sidewalks and streets. It was interesting to hear more about the history of evolution of the Irish LGBT rights movement in the...