Hamburg(ers)

This past weekend we went to Hamburg, Germany. We were there from Saturday to Tuesday, so it was a short trip but definitely still fun. We basically walked around during the day, ate at really cheap places, took daily naps, drank until the sun came up (because I was with Irish people and the bars in Germany just don't close), and gawked at all of the prostitutes (there were so many haha). Hamburg is a really pretty city, filled with a lot of interesting things. For example, there was this hot air balloon that you can 'ride' in and see the city. It's attached to the ground by a long wire and costs €15 to ride it, so possibly not worth it seeing as it was pretty foggy and windy most days we were there. Oh and it was balls cold too (probably not as cold as it is back in Michigan but still).

I didn't take that many photos with my camera because it's such a dinosaur to carry around, but I did take a few.

The boys in the train station. We were bored because we got there about a half hour before the train.

On this street is one of the clubs the Beatles played at.

In one of the clubs, there were black lights everywhere. Killian looks like an angel, do you see it?

Mary, O'Grady, Happy, Elle, Rob and Killian at one of the pubs.

The town hall.

It's actually really great to be home. I forget how stressful it is while traveling, and it's always nice to have a place to come home to. Still haven't found a job though, but the prospects are looking better. Wish me luck.

Crayons Are For Coloring, Not For Eating

These past few days have been a bit random (not unlike the title of this blog post). A lot of things have been happening, and at the same time not much has happened. I've been applying for jobs up the wazoo, but haven't really heard back from anyone yet. Next week I plan on taking the DART into town and stopping at random places, getting off and finding the closest pubs to apply for jobs. I have confidence that I can get a job in the next week or two (and let's not lie, it's a necessity).

Over the past few nights, we've had people over every night. We stay up really late, and obviously since I'm in Ireland, we're drinking for the majority of that time. It's fun though. There's no pressure to drink if you don't want to either though which is definitely nice. We're all here to have a good time.

Last night Mary and I decided to book flights to Hamburg, Germany (a bunch of the crew were heading over already) and will be gone for next weekend. YAY! It's funny though, I really had not planned on going to mainland Europe this time. I wanted to travel all over the ROI and the UK. And now we're going to Germany with future plans to meet up with Roisin (pronounced Rosheen) who's studying in Sweden. The funniest part? My heritage lies in Ireland, Northern Ireland, Scotland, England, Wales, Germany and (you guessed it) Sweden. So in the next few months, I may go to each and every place where I have a genetic tie to... weird. And I didn't even plan it that way. The fates brought me here, and the fates apparently want me to learn about my history. Hah.

I also got some really good news yesterday. My cousin Jamie, whom I haven't seen in about 3 years, booked her flight to come visit me here. I'm really excited and hope that she is too (I mean who wouldn't be though. A trip to Ireland and a visit with me). I also spoke with my mom and I think they're going to be able to make it out as well (everyone cross their fingers for that one).

I'm ready for bed but there's still quite the raucous downstairs. I'm gonna either sleep or go back down to chat. For now, here's some photos for you.

Me and Elle... Uh, testing the strength of the mattress.

Then the mattress moved onto the stairs and turned into a sled.

Me, Elle and Roisin

The dysfunctional family photo: Danny, Meg, O'Grady, Mary, and Happy.

Love Vaccine?

There's this article in the New York Times today about the possible invention of a vaccine against love. This seems strange to me, it's like an anti-fairy tale written by a hermitic feminist. What is the world coming to?! Who would want a world without love?

Personally, I think love is a good thing.

Friends

YAY! See what Michael's up to in his new 'video blog'


I'm starting to miss friends back home so this is nice to see Michael like he's right there with me. Also you really should check out his blog because he has some awesome drawings/watercolors/graphic design works up http://wanderingartist.blogspot.com/

Still searching searching searching for a job. I'm editing my CV (resume) today because... well because I want to make it better. Then tomorrow I'm gonna go back out and try again to find a job. Wish me luck.

Now, back to my tea and crumpets... well no crumpets I guess, but I do have some tea.

No Reservations

You know the show 'No Reservations with Anthony Bourdain'? Well there's this one where he comes to Ireland. Mary (one of the other girls from home living with us here) had seen it and said there was a bit about Howth in there. And there is. Apparently this is one of the best places in the world to get seafood. Partially because you get the seafood that has come right off the boat into the restaurant. There's even a bar connected to the 'Waterside' (a pub we've been going to to watch the football matches) called the 'Fisherman's Bar'. It's called that because it opens at half 7 for the fisherman to come in and drink. So it's filled with a bunch of old, smelly irishmen, and I'm not even over exaggerating. Anyways, to recap, Howth is good for seafood, there's a fresh fish market in the mornings which I plan to go to now knowing that it's really that great, and Anthony Bourdain agrees. Here's some of the show that features my new favorite irish town.





The part about Howth gets chopped up into two pieces, so watch them both.

Dublin?

Nothing all that exciting has been happening as of late. We still have to get to our orientation, then register with the garda, and only then can we start looking for work. Well, we've been looking, just couldn't do anything about it yet. We've been into Dublin a few times over the past couple of days, which has been fun. Mostly we've been going to do business, but yesterday after breakfast, Mary and I walked around St. Stephen's Green, which is right off Grafton Street and then went to the National Gallery. That tuckered us out rather quickly so we headed back to Howth just in time to catch the last of the daylight on the DART (Dublin Area Rapid Train, or something like that). Anywho, obviously I'll get on with something when it gets exciting around here, but for now, here's some more photos...

A building on Grafton Street

A view from St. Stephen's Green

A shamrocky street lamp

Grafton Street at night

O'Connell Street at night

The Christmas Tree of balls on O'Connell Street

S'all for now.

The Bloody Stream? Abrakebabra?

They have places here like 'The Bloody Stream' and 'Abrakebabra'. Here's a little history lesson for all you wondering why the f*ck it's called 'The Bloody Stream'

10th August 1177, during the 2nd Norman Invasion of Ireland, Sir John de Courcy's expedition arrived off Howth. Unable to leave his ship, the command was taken over by Sir Almeric Tristram, said to be a descendant of Sir Tristram, a knight of King Arthur's Round Table. A great battle ensued against the Danes, who were then in occupation on Evora Bridge, over a stream; afterwards known as the Bloody Stream. During the construction of this public house, we found that the Bloody Stream runs directly under these premises. Having fought a constant battle with the stream flooding the bar, we decided to make peace with it, hence the name, The Bloody Stream.


And I even found a Wikipedia page about 'Abrakebabra'

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abrakebabra


Tonight was the first night that we all went out. A bunch of Danny and Justy's friends (Justy also lives in the house with us) took us to 'The Bloody Stream' for drinks, then we all took a taxi out to Portmarnock for Danny's favorite treat, kebabs from 'Abrakebabra'. Basically it was like a night out back home, but much cooler.

Oh and we went into Dublin for a while today, which was fun as well. Didn't do that much, just some business. I think we might be heading back into the city centre tomorrow though.

Next Stop: Craic

Craic (pronounced 'crack'): meaning 'fun or enjoyment'

Today Mary and I walked around Howth to do some exploring. It's not that cold here, I only wore a down vest and was kind of hot after walking for a while. There were a lot of people out down by the water, and a surprising amount of tourists. That made me feel less awkward seeing as I was carrying around a giant camera taking pictures at every turn. It gets dark here pretty early and our schedules are still rather messed up so we weren't out for that long. Probably an hour and a half. We talked with one of the workers at the off license just down the street and so far, everyone has been rather friendly, which is comforting. I can't really wait until we get a chance to explore the towns around here too.

I think in the next few days we're going to go into Dublin, and I'm excited to finally get back there. I was there once last time, and it was only for 3 days, which was definitely not enough time. I may also take the bus out to the west coast soonish to meet up with Gwen and Joe for a fun reunion of sorts in the Burren. As of right now though, I think we're about to watch a movie and hit the hay. To hold you over, here's some photos from today's romp around the city.

The front door of our house

The Cock Tavern

St. Mary's church, the ruins down the way

The Irish Sea

Some of the shops up the street

Oh and Happy New Year! Or Hippo Gnu Deer if you're my brother.

Irish Address

Here's where you can send me the wonderful cards that I know all of you are dying to send:

2 St. Lawrences Rd.
Howth
Dublin 13
Ireland

And obviously you address it to me.

Irish Way of Life

I'm excited. In two days I'm heading back to Ireland. I promise to keep this updated with photos so everyone can see what I'm up to. I'll also put up my address when I get it so everyone can send me stuff...hint hint.

Emotions Running High: Beware

So, today I think is the first day that I've realized that I'm going to be leaving soon. The reason that I think this is because I felt like crying about 4 times today over stupid sh*t. At work I did end up crying, but because the guy on the other end did. I've been calling the old folks at work (1958 grads) and today I finally got one that had recently passed away. So recently that it was within the past week. Boy did that make me feel like crap. All of the emotions of everything going on in my life boiled over and I just broke out with tears. I think that may happen rather frequently over the next few weeks. (Hence the 'beware')

I've also been thinking about the fact that when I come back things are going to be extremely different for me and for Ann Arbor. The majority of my friends are going to be moving on with their lives soon after I return and the small hope that this town would be the same as the past four years will fall to pieces. I'm not saying that I won't like Ann Arbor, it's just going to be different, and as most of you know, I don't deal with change at all well. I adapt pretty quickly, but it's a rough stretch in between. I'm going to have to get a new job, what I don't know. I might want to work at a random place, or maybe I'll finally have the drive to do something with my life. I've felt a little useless since I've graduated, I don't really feel as if I'm doing anything. I've been busy hanging out with friends, which is definitely great, I love doing that, but at the end of the day I feel...well, pointless. Goal-less. Jobless. Career-less. I just don't know how I'm ever going to do anything good for the world. I don't have the drive, nor the experience to do anything worthwhile. People are telling me that going abroad is 'something' but to me it doesn't really feel like anything. I kind of wish I was working somewhere making a difference in someone's life...through art. Basically I kind of want my career to start, and this whole going to Ireland thing is kind of getting in my way. I think that it's going to be a great experience, but why am I doing it. I guess I feel like everything I do from now on has to have a point. There has to be reason behind it more than just 'well, I really want to do it,' because that's how I feel about Ireland.

I hate leaving things behind and that's what I feel like I'm doing right now. I'm going to miss all of my friends dearly and I really hope that they don't forget about me. It's always a fear, and a possibility. Change sucks, but is necessary and I know this. But it's hard...

Ireland (Part 2)

The countdown begins now. It's less than a month until I leave for Ireland again, and I'm extremely excited. I know it's going to be very different from last time, in more ways than one.

1. I will be working as opposed to going to a small art school.

2. I will be living in Dublin as opposed to a small small village on the west coast of the country.

3. I will have more time to travel.

4. I already know quite a few people that live there so the whole transition will take less time.

5. It's been two years, I've changed, they've changed...I have to keep reminding myself of that.

Also, I feel like I've become a lot closer to many people living in Ann Arbor than I was before so I think it's going to be harder to leave, but easier to come back. And yes, I am coming back. Everyone keeps asking if I'm actually coming back. The answer is yes and there's no real need to worry about it. I love Ann Arbor/Michigan/the USA, it's just that every once in a while I like to get out. The last time I went to Ireland it changed my life. How could I not want to go back to a place like that?

Ok, so here's a visual comparison of what my life in Ireland was like before and what it may be like soon.

This is where I lived before:

This is where I may be living in a month:

This is where I went to school before:

And this may be where I'll be working soon:


There's quite a few things I have to do/find before I go though, like I need to find my old cell phone that I had when I was there before. So much to do, and a surprisingly short amount of time to do it in. But at least I don't have any thing else to do really.

List of things I'm going to miss:
*Snow (good thing there's been quite a lot of it this year so far)
*Family
*Friends
*Movies
*Ann Arbor
*Samdog
*And surprisingly enough, I'm going to miss Telefund...I never in my wildest dreams thought that that would happen.

Our New President

Barack Obama, the new president of the United States of America.

I've heard all over the place people are finally proud to be an American. I've always had faith that this is a great country, because of the potential we have to make a difference, but can't deny that in recent years that faith has been tested. 

We are finally going to be able to change the things that need to be changed, and prove that we live in a new world.

I can't even express how happy and excited I am.

Pooped

I would say that today is the first day in a long time that I'm actually, honest to god tired. I've gotten about 5 hours of sleep over the past few nights, due to fun movie making. I always forget how much I like something until I do it again. I'm even willing to sacrifice my free time/sleep to help out on these projects. 

Yesterday we went to Cedar Point to shoot some scenes from one of the movies that I'm production designer for. The park was closed and we were pretty much the only people there. We got to drive through the park to the Mantis (the ride we were shooting on). It was odd being there when nobody else was. It was also weird playing around on a park ride where we had full control of when the ride went out. I wasn't feeling so well but I still rode it once, which was enough for me. Some of the extras that made it out rode it 8 times...which is the direct cause of their recent loathing of the Mantis.

After we were done shooting yesterday I drove back by myself so I could surprise a friend at his 21st birthday partay. I stayed out for a long time even though I was extremely tired. I only got a few hours of sleep last night because I had to get up early to head off to work on some last minute Art House shoots. It was pretty relaxing, but still, didn't get much sleep and now I'm starting to doze off. Oops, probably should have taken a nap today, but, I'm not very logical sometimes.

Recaping this weekend so far:

-Movie Making

-Cedar Point Adventuring

-Driving...Lots of Driving

-Halloweening

-Surprising Friends

-More Movie Making

-Sleeping in Espresso Royale

AND the weekend's not even over yet. I'm back in town to go to another friend's birthday dinner, and then off to Wiard's Orchard to go to some haunted houses. I don't normally like haunted houses but I thought, hey why not?! Mmm, I'll probably pee my pants, but hey, that's why mother nature invented laundry detergent, am I right?

Sunny Fall Days

I love love love the weather, and I love love love the colors. Suddenly when I woke up this morning a bunch of leaves were on the ground and it looked amazing. Amazing enough that I decided to take a walk with my camera. I ended up walking around for about and hour and a half.

Some shelf mushrooms on a dead log

Deer skulls galore

Trees

Swirly twig...or something like that

I randomly found a patch of the woods where all of the trees oddly bent into the ground. If anyone knows why that would happen, can you tell me?

I found a leaf stuck to the side of the tree

Then I started seeing faces in the trees

I call this one "Whistling Cyclops"...haha

You see the old man face?

I should take more walks like this. Maybe I'll find more old men in the trees.

We're family, of course we have that special connection...

So in completely separate incidences, both me and my brother made posts on our blogs about voting. Hurrah, finally a confirmation that we're related...we have ESP. If that doesn't confirm it I don't know what does.

This is what Zac posted:

Get Out and Vote

It frustrates me to hear people saying that they broke down and registered to vote, but they're still not going to vote. Why not? It takes little time, and your vote does matter no matter how much you think it doesn't. Think of it this way, if everyone who had this mentality (which is probably a good chunk of the population) didn't vote, their votes combined could sway the entire election. The way to make sure that doesn't happen is by getting everyone out of their houses/apartments/dorms on November 4th.


http://slackeruprising.com/

Slacker Uprising is Michael Moore's newest addition to a long line of politically charged films. However, it's not like his other movies. For one thing, he's released it free to the public as a downloadable film. Secondly, he's given away all of his rights to the film, which means anyone can show it, and anyone can make money off of it. Thirdly, this film is not like his other films. He doesn't constantly spew skewed facts, but shows the audience what his Slacker Uprising tour in 2004 (before the election) went through. All he wanted was to inspire people to vote, and promoted the not-so-radical idea that a single vote does matter.

Watch it if you love Michael Moore, watch it if you hate Michael Moore, watch it if you have doubts about whether your vote counts or not. Michigan has a record breaking 95% of it's potential voters registered this year. That's huge if you think about it, but only if all of them go out and vote on November 4th.

Happy Birthday Sputnik!

51 years ago today the Soviet Union launched Sputnik into orbit. As a result the space race began.

So I just would like to say Happy Birthday to Sputnik. I guess maybe I should say Happy Launchday, but whatever. Semantics.

Bruises

Can't help it, I love this song.

Elephants and Cuddle Fish

Over the past month(ish) I've been staring at the stars every time I come home. It's so dark out here that I can see more than I've been able to see for a long time now. This reminds me of all of the things that I wish I could be doing...like working as an astronomer. I can't figure out why I chose the path that I did. No matter what I do, I always wish I was doing something else. I don't feel like movies are for me, no matter how much I love working on them. I just feel like I'm not that good at it. The problem is that I don't feel like I am good at art either. I do, however, miss art, now more than ever. I miss making art, I miss talking about art, I miss going to shows, I miss going to museums, I miss so much about it. But I'm starting to question how I am going to live. Do I work on movies? Do I paint? Do I go to get a completely different degree? Well for now, I'm just lost.

The only good thing about this? It's finally fall. I love that I can wear a sweater and not sweat my a** off. It feels nice outside, it smells nice outside, and I can't wait for the colors to finally change. It's my favorite time of year.

I like orange, and I like berries, and I like fall.


Oh, and recently I've decided that Elephants are my favorite land animal. Cuddle Fish are my favorite water animal.