New Adventures In The West

Hyberpole...

2011-11-05T09:06:00.004Z

www.hyperboleandahalf.blogspot.com

Thank you Lisa for sending me this blog...love the way she writes!

Westport Radio FM

2011-10-12T10:39:00.002+01:00

WRFM 98.2

Westport Radio (WRFM) was formerly known as West Coast FM and as such was broadcasting on the Internet to countries as far apart as the West Coast of New Zealand and the West Coast of America with over 3,500 hits on the website in August 2011!

We are a Community Radio Station run by volunteers and broadcasting from the courtyard off James Street in Westport, County Mayo, Republic of Ireland.

We now have a new name and a new FM frequency of 98.2 which will widen our audience locally as well as maintaining our international presence across the world via the Internet.

Our programme schedule reflects the different aspects of life here on the west coast of Ireland with local characters, music and craic.

West Coast FM Radio

2011-05-15T14:31:00.012+01:00

We are getting a new community radio station in Westport!

We are scheduled to have internet start up the first week of June and I will update the blog then.

MyLifeMyStory

2011-04-15T18:12:00.005+01:00

This photography contest is open to folks in the UK and Ireland...

http://mylifemystory.co.uk/

...go on and add your story.

I added mine!

YouBloom Quarter Finals

2011-04-01T19:31:00.005+01:00

http://www.youbloom.com/

Song Contest - Please Vote

2011-03-21T11:48:00.004Z

Great singer from the West of Ireland...have a listen and please vote!

http://www.youbloom.com/ybsc/entry/2129/

Julie Feeney in Clifden, Co Galway

2010-09-28T10:23:00.003+01:00

Last week was the Clifden Arts Week in Clifden, Co Galway. We headed down on Tuesday, 21st of September to catch the Julie Feeney performance in town. It was my early birthday present from a friend and the show was incredible!

The show was held at Station House Theatre...great venue. http://www.stationhousetheatre.com/ Wish we could have stayed the night at the hotel beside the theater, but sadly, it was booked for the night. Fortunately for us (as the rain was lashing that evening) we found a B&B within a block of the theater. The Ben View House on Bridge Street was ideal for what we needed for the evening. http://www.benviewhouse.com/

Headed to Lowry's after the show for some pints and late night music. Group playing were Americans and they had their own unique folk/country sound. Nice way to end the evening.

Check out the link for Julie Feeny..
http://www.juliefeeney.com/wordpress/?page_id=445

She is an amazing Irish singer/performer!!

2010-07-27T12:21:00.011+01:00

Co Clare Weekend Get-Away

25&26 July 2010

Sunday was Reek Sunday http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reek_Sunday and Westport was filled with visitors heading to Croagh Patrick. 30,000 people were expected at the weekend and it made good sense for us to get away from the crowds.

We left about 1:30pm on Saturday and headed south on the N84. We had not made plans on where we were going, but I had an idea it would be somewhere past Co Galway and hopefully for me (as I was the only driver) it would be within my self-imposed 3 hour mark.

We stopped in Kinvara http://www.kinvara.com/ for a walk and a coffee at The Pier House Pub. 2 lattes were €7 - way too dear!! The town was nice and we enjoyed walking around after 2 hours in the car. Kept heading south on the N67…driving through The Burren was beautiful and we decided to try Doolin http://www.doolin-tourism.com/ for the night. All the hotels and B&B’s were booked. Had a cider in McGann's Pub http://www.mcgannspubdoolin.com/ and listened to some live music outside, before venturing back out in search of a place to stay.

Arrived in Liscannor about 6 and found a room at Vaughan’s B&B http://www.vaughans.ie/. Lovely, modern and clean room…and a quiet town…just what we wanted. It looked to be there were only 3 pubs in town and they were all beside each other.. My travel companion wanted to check out Lahinch http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lahinch to see if there was any live music on…but the 10 minute drive proved that not much was happening (other then drunks still watching sport on the telly). Back to Liscannor and visited McHugh’s, next to B&B for a light dinner and then over to Egan’s for a couple of pints.

Next day we headed south again towards Spanish Point and Milltown Mabry. Spanish Point was named after the unfortunate Spanish who died here in 1588, when many ships of the Spanish Armada were wrecked during stormy weather. We made a stop for coffee and shopping at the open air market in Kilkee http://www.kilkee.ie/ and then drove on down to Kilbaha, a small fishing village located on the Loop Head Peninsula.

I was getting cranky, so we headed up to Ennis to stay. http://www.visit ennis.ie Ennis reminds me of a little Galway, in terms of the one-way systems in place and the vibes in the town. Found a room at The Queens Hotel http://www.queenshotelennis.com/ Stopped for a few pints at Cruises next door and then to the chipper for a filling dinner of curry chips. We got a fantastic rate of €50 inclusive for the night. I would recommend the hotel for a clean, comfortable room that is close to the nightlife, food and shopping in Ennis.

Overall...a great weekend away!

Green Starfish Session Pic's

2010-07-09T12:03:00.008+01:00

A pic of the lads in Matt Molloy's

and a session in JJ O'Malley's

The tourist season is in full swing now! The weather has been gorgeous, up until the start of July...but we still see the sun every day.

Green Starfish Music

2010-06-25T19:07:00.010+01:00

Finished the poster and postcard for a new music project in Westport. The idea behind the project is to have a trad music show, at a reasonable hour and geared toward American, German and French visitors. Tourists areas in Ireland tend to offer music after 9pm and this is a wonderful alternative.

This was a quick turn-around piece, but totally enjoyable! I am thrilled to be involved in something I can get excited about.

First Month in Mayo

2010-06-20T11:46:00.005+01:00

The weather has been stunningly beautiful since we arrived the 1st of June. I love the spring/summer season in Ireland. After 20+ years of dealing with the heat and humidity of Atlanta, Georgia..this place is paradise. The added benefit of living near the Atlantic is a nice plus too. Cavan summers were nice...but the ocean breeze really add's to the holiday feeling.

Tourist season has started and Westport is a nightmare to navigate through in the car. I honestly do not recall this much traffic last year!! And it is not just the added cars...seems people are getting a bit more aggressive in their driving. We did not have this problem in my little town in Co Cavan. The only issues we had were congestion through the town in the evenings...but we were on the N3 and that is understandable. The only time I enjoy driving here is mornings before 9 and evenings after 7-8.

I have not yet started looking for work...on the list of to do's :) I really do not expect to find anything until after the kids go back to school in September. I am working on another music project and that keeps me busy on the creative side.

Hoping to get Eircom broadband in this week, so I can have my own internet connection and not have to use my friends!!

Off to stroll around Westport House now...

Yet Another Move

2010-05-23T10:31:00.003+01:00

Leaving our little town of Virginia in Co Cavan to live in the lovely town of Westport, Co Mayo. I have made 4 moves since 2006 and this one is not any easier, though I have less stuff now, it still requires sorting through items and boxing things up. Yet again..piles of things to the charity shop, thrown out or kept.

Hoping to blog more then once a year once I get to my new home.

Hot Dogs, Churchtown Super Valu and Eddie Rockets

2009-01-19T10:54:00.013Z

If you saw my post about what foods my kid needed to eat during her Christmas holidays, then you can probably tell I really enjoy Hot Dogs. Back when I lived in the states, I ate them for dinner once a week at the VERY least. I really never thought I had an obsession with them until I could not get them anymore. I have tried the selection in a pack that is sold here. It is a mixture of crap in a casing...but I added so many condiments it did kind of taste like a HD.

Christmas was over and I felt the need to treat myself. I did an internet search and found a site for Kosher food in Dublin. On the Sunday afer Christmas, I filled up with petrol and headed out of Cavan for a 1 1/2 hour drive to Churchtown in search of the elusive Irish 100% beef wiener. Only got lost a few times. Enjoyed seeing parts of Dublin in the car, where before this wiener journey, was only seen while walking. After a few hours of driving I did find the Super Valu and a relatively big section of Kosher food. Bought 2 packs of 99% beef HD's and a jar of pickles.

I probably will not make the journey to Dublin again for Kosher food. My mouth was all excited for something that tasted like a Hebrew National Dog and a Ba-Tampte garlic dill pickle. It was fun looking, but honestly not worth drive.

Yesterday the kid and I went to Navan to see a film. Eddie Rockets is very close to the cinema and they have hot dogs right? After asking the sweet Polish waitress if the HD's were beef and getting the confused puppy - head to the side look, I rephrased and asked if the HD's were sausages. The answer was yes, so I ordered a burger. My only comment is - how can this place stay in business when they charge over €7 for just an average over-cooked burger?!

I am done with my search. Actually, too much flavour could add excitement to my taste buds and might get me in trouble.

Meat,dry potatoes with gravy granules and the fluorescent green coloured round mushy veg things should keep me from the temptation to explore....

Eat This For Me Kid

2008-12-26T09:06:00.014Z

Retail therapy? No thanks, a little food therapy please!

I never thought Atlanta had decent food til I moved away. I might not care for grits...NO NO NO....but some BBQ would sure be nice! Pulled Pork...yummy. What the hell - give me some nana puddin too.

List is for City of Decatur and Atlanta.

Hot Dog’s
YES 100% Beef
NO NO NO Mixtures of meat/poultry
Pickles
YES Kosher/Dill
NO NO NO Sweet or Polish***
Hamburgers
YES 100% Beef
NO NO NO on Anything with a lamb mix
Egg Nog
YES COLD - In a carton
NO NO NO Warm?? - In a tin
Deli Stuff
YES Pastrami, Corn Beef
NO NO NO Probably will have no shortage of Ham
Sushi**
YES Eat-in or take-away
NO NO NO Still plenty of Salmon on the shelves
Mexican
YES Love your neighbour
NO NO NO Crap like here
Italian
YES Pasta is King
NO NO NO Ditto above
Taco Mac
YES Big-Ass Burger
NO NO NO to a Chipper Burger
Little Azio
YES As much as possible
NO NO NO to skipping this gem
Chick-Fil-A, McDonald's, Burger King, Sonic, Subway, Taco Bell
YES to Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner
NO NO NO Walking in – use the drive-thru*
Taqueria del Sol
YES to Anything
NO NO NO to expensive pretend Mexican
Sweet Melissa's
YES to Breakfast
NO NO NO to a fry-up
Pastries A-Go-Go
YES to Breakfast
NO NO NO to a scone
Noodle
YES to Noodles
NO NO NO Potatoes R Us will wait for you
Mellow Mushroom
YES to Pizza
NO NO NO to a whole pie…eat a slice..cause you can
Starbucks or any other coffee house
YES to Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner
NO NO NO If it ain’t tea..drink it
* Always opt for a drive through – you do enough walking to places to eat over here!! Waddle all the excess off once you return to this healthy living lifestyle we maintain in Ireland.
** Be wild and buy some Sushi at Kroger – cause you can!!! Super-Valu will not be adding this to their store selection any time in the next few years.
*** Who the fuck said the Polish knew how to make a good pickle??

Hey little Georgia peach...don't forget to eat here:

If 40 is the new 30

2008-09-16T01:51:00.006+01:00

Then would 20 be the new 10?

A damn good marketing slogan and we Americans bought it.

I can only say that this message about aging has not yet made it to Ireland. If we are even remotely close to the end of our breeding period, then we are screwed. Well, that part would be fine if it was in the literal sense, but I am not feeling all warm and satisfied, so I must have missed something. People friggin' age faster here. Why? We rarely see the sun - skin here should be perfect. We don't eat fast food. We walk more. We eat healthy* food. What the fuck is it then?

Any ideas would be appreciated.

Notes: We is in bold because I live here, so I must be a 'we'. I am also a 'we' when speaking about Americans, in relation to politics, in this fair land. I'll take the blame.

*Healthy eating means adding a varied veg to your tea/dinner. I will list green vs starch veg in another rant.

Week in the Sun

2008-08-25T09:52:00.065+01:00

The kid and I headed out of the dampness of Ireland for a stay in our favourite city in England - London!

We had to kill a few hours at Dublin Airport as the Ryanair flight was running late. No problems..we are on holiday...we found a couple of Bulmers made the wait better. Left Dublin on Monday afternoon and arrived at Stansted in the late afternoon. We got a coach Stansted to Victoria Station and headed over to celebrate our warm, dry arrival with a Magners at The Prince of Wales. www.reallondonpubs.com/princeofwales/Princeofwales.html We picked up a red curry chicken dish from one of the Indian take-aways and walked the few blocks to my friends flat.

It was a great start to our holiday.

Tuesday morning. Sun is out and it is warm!! Well...70f feels warm to us right now. A slight breeze...also on the warm side. My friend heads out to work late (we kept him up til after 2am drinking and talking) and I try to rouse the kid out of bed with coffee. We finally left the flat around 11 and started our search for charity shops. The area has 3 in close proximity, but we only found 2 and proceeded to have a wonderful time shopping. Had a light lunch and went back to the flat www.dolphinsquare.co.uk/square/apartments/ for a cup of tea. Dragged kid off Bebo to go back out for a walk along the Thames. Walked over to the Millbank Millennium Pier and took some pictures. Text the friend to let him know we found a restaurant we wanted to try and then headed back to the flat to change for dinner.

FOOD - we love to eat in London, so we always try different places while there. Our list of foodie type wants for the trip were: Italian, Mexican and Indian. My only real desire was clotted cream, which I finally got on the last day there. The kid was up for whatever did not have potatoes as a side dish.

Dinner at an Italian restaurant. Good starters. Pasta was a bit over-cooked, but I loved the pesto. Veal was tasty. Wine was great.

Wednesday morning. Walked over to Victoria coach station to buy tickets to Norwich. We arrived in Norwich around 2, picked up the hired car and we were on our way to Burnham Market by 3. I enjoyed the drive over. With the exception of my lack of ability to read signs while driving, we made it to our desired location by 4.

Burnham Market is a lovely little town in East Anglia. www.burnhammarket.co.uk/ Our room was not yet ready, so we wandered around the village until 5 , had a glass of wine in front of the Hoste Arms and finally... got the keys at 6. Not the best of timing as we had dinner reservations back at the Hoste for 6:30. Room is located at the Railway Inn www.railwayinnburnhammarket.co.uk/index.html, a few blocks away from the Hoste Arms. The owners are still in the midst of remodelling, but they have done a great job with what has been completed.

Dinner at the Hoste was wonderful. We had the Szechuan pepper cured tuna for a starter. I had the Norfolk pork tender loin and Emily had the Pad Thai chicken stir fry. We shared a bottle of French Chardonnay. Afters...cheese and biscuits and we shared a glass of port.

Waddled back to room.

Thursday. Woke to the sun (again)...we are getting so spoiled. Breakfast at the Hoste. Shopping in the village and then we got in car and headed to the ocean. Cromer was our destination. www.thisiscromer.co.uk/index.php It took us about an hour to get to the coast. Hard to get any speed going above the posted 50mph. Though flat, the road over was very curvy. Upon arriving in Cromer..the sky started to look like rain. No problems..we had a shower which lasted 5 minutes and then the sun came out again. We started looking for more charity shops. We found 3, but not as good as the ones in London. We still managed to find a top for 3.50 gbp and Emily found a pair of shoes at a church sale for 8 gbp. We also forgot the adapter for Em's camera, so we bought one there. Back in the car...10 min of rain and heading back to the hotel. I messed up somewhere on the road and took a wrong turn. This is typical for me!! We spent an extra hour driving, but made it back in time to make reservations at another restaurant in town.

Dinner tonight was at Fishes. www.fishesrestaurant.co.uk/Starters of prawn cocktail (E) and I had oysters. E had a curry something and I had baked prawns. We decided against desert after our feast last night. We walked a bit faster on the return to the room.

Hard to sleep it is so quiet! I was up at 4am and read in the seating area next to our room. Roosters started making their noise and I went back to sleep for a couple of hours.

Friday. Yes..Sun again. Packed our bags and went over for breakfast at the Hoste. We are creatures of habit with food. The kid had scrambled eggs and salmon and I had a full English breakfast. Paid our bill and then headed out of the village. Destination - Cawston. Amazingly...found the place with little effort. And for those of you that know about the English guy with one leg - I found his house and even knocked on the door! He does not live there anymore, but I feel better to have made the trip over. The American post box I had sent over was there...hmmm. After that, we were on our way back to Norwich to return car and get the coach back to Victoria.

The journey should have taken 3 hours, but a girl on the bus had tummy problems and we all got to enjoy that until the driver dropped her at a station. We arrived at Victoria an hour late and smelly. Headed straight over to meet Bill for Mexican. Ordered a mojito and sent it back..explained how to make one that is drinkable or at least authentic. They had added both dark and white rum..which did not make the drink refreshing at all. The second one was lovely. Had the normal Mexican fare...it passes for OK when you want the fix :). Back to flat and a early night.

Saturday. And the sun did not let us down. We were only 30 min late getting out. Not bad really when you are dealing with a teenager. Our plan was to walk as much as possible. Looked in shops and tried to find something for breakfast that both Em and I wanted to eat. Who would have thought it would be M&S? We were like little kids looking at all the wonderful food. I found my clotted cream & scone and Emily decided on a sushi plate. It was 11:30 by this point, so technically the meal was brunch...I wanted no part of the fish that early though.

With the tummy's all happy, we kept walking, with a slight detour over to St. Paul's Cathedral. A few blocks later we make it to Westminster Abby and then Parliament Square.

Watched a few demonstrations at the square. One was by Greenpeace and we were not sure about the other.

Hung around and watched people.

Took more pictures.

Wandered back to Prince of Wales, planted our asses on a bench outside and rested with...

Waited on Bill to stop by and then we searched for a new taste sensation to enjoy for the evening. Finally..after looking at a few places within our block...we found a new Japan fusion type of place. We shared a vegetable and a pork dim sum. Emily had a tofu dish. Mom - aren't you proud of our girl! I had a hot green curry dish and Bill had a sweet and sour dish. Back to the flat to pack. Bill gave us another small suitcase for all our new stuff. That will be another 20gbp given to Ryanair.

Sunday. It is cloudy and chilly. We really do not want to leave England. Back at Dublin airport, we find it is warm and sunny. That made the arrival so much better!!

Listening to the radio

2008-08-13T16:44:00.008+01:00

We have limited reception in this part of the country. There is only 1 radio station that we are able to pick up ALL the time. It is not the worst station really, though we can't be too choosy. I only listen to the radio while in that car and as I do not have a CD player, I am basically stuck with this station. On a good day (no wind and not raining) I can get a few other stations - if I am travelling in the right direction. The right direction would be toward Meath. Once I am in Navan...I have hit pay dirt...Dublin stations. Though the list of any available radio is limited, there is at least a choice.

Apparently, this radio station holds the fm monopoly in Cavan

http://www.northernsound.ie/index.php

There is a DJ on Fridays with my maiden name. How exciting is that. We must be related. You think he would like to hear from a long lost/never known Muldoon cousin? I can use the 'I'm 1/16th Irish on my Dad's side' line. The Irish feel a special bond with you upon hearing this statement. Really. Any percentage works for them.

Right..back to the radio theme.

Music can be great entertainment or can give you a massive headache. I enjoy most kinds of music with the exception of nasty worded and degrading Rap. Even though I am not a huge Country music fan - I can still find some songs and artists easy on the ears. When it comes to the radio station here at least they do refrain from Rap. There is the normal Pop stuff and also dotted with older stuff, though mostly middle of the road kind of music. Sunday nights there is an American (apologise in advance if she is actually Canadian) DJ that plays country. I like her style...it is just some of the requests she gets can be 60's/70's style Country. Patsy Kline/Johnny Cash stuff is OK, but there is some stuff on there that is right out of...

..the only thing missing is Minnie Pearl, bless her.

Sorry for offending any Buck Owens fans.

Cleaning Products

2008-08-09T09:31:00.015+01:00

I spend a very small fortune on cleaning products. Before I even moved over to Ireland, I would pack a bottle of what I then referred to as dish washing soap in my checked baggage. Some people bring food - I bring things for cleaning. Not to say I did not pack a few sweets, it was just I had/have this obsession with things that smell pretty.

I had a few items packed for the container shipment last June, but unfortunately all my lovely candles and room/sheet sprays (I know it is not cleaning...but they smell good) could not be sent because of the heat. I later figured out the non-aerosol sprays would have been fine...grrr.

One thing I find sorely lacking in the country where I now reside are decent cleaning products.

The bleach is ok, but for some reason is does not smell like the stuff I used to use. I can't find white vinegar in my area and I found that white malt vinegar is just plain nasty to clean with. I keep thinking I need to cook some chips to go with it. White wine vinegar, just because it is white, does not make it white vinegar. I have even been tempted to ask the local shop to carry it for me! The washing up soap here might get a bit creative with a name like lavender..but to let you know...it does not resemble it in any way! I now use the bottle I purchased a few months ago to clean the outside of the house.

Fav washing up soap has to be.. ...which can be found on-line at the link below. Unfortunatly at this time, they do not ship internationally, so I have to get care packages sent over every few months.

http://caldrea.com/

I miss Target and the method brand of cleaners too!
http://www.methodproducts.com/

The Good Home Store has a few nice scents and they will ship to Ireland.
http://www.goodhomestore.com/index.html