Day by Day

This feels like a very different trip to Dublin. I've been to many of the touristy places over several trips, and I sort of feel like I'm just going about my day to day here for now. I'm definitely excited to be going to the scoil eigse next week to take whistle lessons and check out the fleadh cheoil, which was one of the main reasons for coming this time of year. It's nice just to wander around the city without much of an agenda, trying new eateries, people watching, dodging the touristas, and meeting new people, if only for a moment while we share space on a bench.

For two mornings so far I've gone to the Irish Traditional Music Archive, which is an amazing resource. They have hundreds of books of traditional Irish songs in English (and Irish as well). Just being able to walk over and grab a few off the shelves and delve into them, page by page, has been a treat. I will most likely go there several more times while I'm here, as I try to discover new/old songs for my repertoire.

Who knew K-tel had Irish songs compilations?

The weather has been amazing in my estimation. In the upper 60s and low 70s during the day, requiring only a light jacket occasionally, and in the 50s at night. Reminds me of autumn in the DC area, and I'm loving it.

Got to do my first load of laundry yesterday (it's the little things in life, isn't it?). My room here is small, my needs are few, and this is confirming what I've felt for a while: my townhouse is too big for one person. This is motivation to finally get my act together when I return and rent something closer to a one-bedroom apartment, and let someone with more space needs rent my townhouse.

Off to tea with a friend.