One More Day Until Vacation . . .

. . . it must be time to get sick. All three of us are coming down with something. I think that RJ caught it first, then passed it to Beth and I. I'm hoping it goes away before we drive out to Connemara this weekend. I hate being sick on vacation!

Looks like we'll have good weather, too! (at least for the first weekend)

Sorry for the short post, but I don't want to barf on my keyboard.

The Gang's All Here

The HR reference group (executive team) is in town this week to approve all the work that we've done designing the software solution for our company. So I had dinner with them and a few drinks at the bar after dinner. We were joined by a few more team members from other workstreams.

Leaving the bar at midnight to get home, I'm still amazed at how many people I left at the bar with drinks in their hands.

Looks like our work has been signed off and we can progress to the build phase of our project. Sounds like a good reason for a drink to me.

Planning for Connemara

After months of hard work on the project, I'm finally getting a break. Next week (starting this Saturday), Beth, RJ and I will be spending a week in the Connemara area of County Galway. I did not take the picture on the right, but it's the kind of landscape that we expect to see while we're there.

We rented a cottage near Ballyconneely for the week which helps with the gluten free control. Instead of relying on our luck in finding gluten free restaurants, we have the ability to buy gluten free groceries before we go and cook for ourselves at the cottage.

The cottage is right across from a beach. Though, the weather here hasn't been beach weather. We're hoping that it's good enough to at least go out for walks on the beach in the morning before loading up the mini-van for more adventures in Connemara.

Here is the first official heads-up: the blog may be a little slow over that week, but I'm writing up a few pieces in advance for the times that I'm gone. I don't believe that we'll have internet access while we're in our remote cottage, so you may have to come to the blog site directly as I won't be able to re-post to facebook.

Happy Easter!

It's not easy to be away from family on holidays. I'm thankful that Beth and RJ were with me for Easter. Though, I did miss the usual get-together that my parents have every Easter. We made do and celebrated the holiday as best we could.

In the morning we headed out to the beach at Portrane. We didn't know it before we went there, but it became a seashell collecting expedition. We picked up a bunch of beautiful shells from the beach - though I have no idea what Beth will do with them. I suspect that they will adorn our home in McHenry in some fashion or another. The picture is Beth and RJ walking on the beach.

Later, we had a large Easter dinner that consisted of ham, potatoes, swede (rutabaga), carrots, asparagus, green beans, and biscuits. Beth did a good job with the meal and I am stuffed.

Happy Easter Everybody!

Daddy & Son Day

Today Mommy got a much needed break. RJ and I had a Daddy & Son day and Mommy got to stay at home and relax. I decided to take RJ to Airfield Farm and Antique Car Museum.

As you can see in the picture (or perhaps you can't) RJ got to see the Easter bunny hiding behind a chicken. He also got to see cows, sheep, pigs and ducks. Unfortunately, nothing interested him more than the buckle in his stroller.


His favorite animals were the chickens. He loved standing behind the fence and watching them run around. He was a little more timid around the larger animals but still liked petting the ponies.

He is not a big fan of sheep. I had him sitting on my knee next to one of the sheep pens and tried to get him to pet the sheep. The sheep bleated loudly right in his face; RJ began to cry. For the rest of the day we couldn't come within 10 feet of a sheep. Here's RJ's woolen nemesis:


We had a fun day and RJ slept all the way home. The End.

Dry Friday

Today is Good Friday. Traditionally, Ireland closes down it's pubs and prohibits the sale of liquor on this hallowed day. I witnessed it first-hand, noticing the liquor section of the local convenience store roped off today. No liquor is to be sold on Good Friday . . .

Unless you happen to be going to the big rugby match in Limerick. Muenster hosted Leinster today (the two Irish rugby powerhouses) and the city of Limerick was given an exemption from the prohibition since, I guess, it's impossible to enjoy rugby unless your drunk. I can also personally attest to this. The one rugby match that I attended was much more fun because I was sloshed.

The funny thing is the home team that the exception was made for (Muenster) lost the match. Could it be that the Good Lord took exception to the T-shirts that were being printed for the match that said things like: "Officially bigger than the Catholic Church - Muenster Rugby" or "Mass will now take place at Thomond Park."

I subscribe to the theory that it's not a good idea to throw sand in God's face.

On My Own

There's only one day to go before the Detail Design phase of our project is completed. That one day, however, is Good Friday. Most of our consultants are off on Good Friday and on Easter Monday. My company gets Easter Monday off work (at least the Irish do - I figured I'd commit myself to taking both Irish and American holidays while I'm living over here).

Most of the people, even from my company, are on the 3-4-5 schedule. That means that they stay in Dublin 3 nights and 4 days, then the 5th day is remote. So Fridays in the office are quite quiet because we don't technically have an office in Dublin. The halls get pretty quiet for those few of us who are resident in Dublin. Tomorrow it will be even moreso.

My two usual Friday companions from the HCM team will not be there: One is in Norway skiing, the other has been sick for the last few days. That leaves me as the only person on site for our team on the last day before a deadline. I don't like where this is headed . . .

Wish me luck.