Category Archives: Friends & Family

Everything Is Ireland’s Fault: Or Why I’m a Bad Immigrant

Hey, Ireland, I’ll let you in on a little secret. As much crap as you talk about the immigrants within your borders, we talk about you too. Even after nearly five years of living in Dublin, a town I’ve grown … Continue reading

Posted in Dublin Life, Emigrant/Immigrant Life, Expat Living, Friends & Family, Home & A Sense of Place | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

The Land Of All Things: For Expats There Is No “Perfect” Place

For those of us who like to travel, and have long wanted to live overseas, we often imagine that there’s some country/place out there, some golden, shining bastion of goodness that will cure everything, and be our “perfect” place. Sadly … Continue reading

Posted in Dublin Life, Emigrant/Immigrant Life, Expat Living, Friends & Family | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 7 Comments

The First Year

The first year living overseas is both an exciting and a challenging time.  Life is filled with almost daily “aha” and “aw shit” moments. Dealing with these moments is both the best and the worst thing about living in another … Continue reading

Posted in Friends & Family, Home & A Sense of Place, Immigration & Emigration, International Moving, Modern Life | Tagged , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

The Flavor Of Home

When you move overseas the “to be taken” list seems endless. But the list of things to be left behind is non-existent. It never gets made. In your frenzy to reduce the cost of shipping you jettison as much as … Continue reading

Posted in Dublin Life, Friends & Family, Home & A Sense of Place, Immigration & Emigration, International Moving | Tagged , , , , , , , | 17 Comments

Calling The Euro Home

In the lead up to this week when Ireland votes on the Austerity package, I’ve given a lot of thought to the things that hold the EU together, and it occurs to me that, as much as Ireland is in … Continue reading

Posted in Bureaucracy, Dublin Life, Friends & Family, Home & A Sense of Place, Irish Life & Society, Politics | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 5 Comments

A Christmas Story

With no trendy shoes left, and supplies of the Xbox 003 running low, Mary wailed, and Joseph, stoned to the gills on frankincense, bludgeoned the Magi with an urn full of Myrrh before storming the doors of the Bethlehem Wal-Mart. … Continue reading

Posted in Dublin Life, Friends & Family, Irish Life & Society, Modern Life | Tagged , , , , , , | 6 Comments

What We Left Behind – Phantom Pains of Friends and Family Back At Home

Living abroad has been a mixed bag of ups and downs on every front.  But I never realized how much family and friends mean to us, and how “distant” I could feel until disaster struck last week, and close family … Continue reading

Posted in Before We Go, Friends & Family, Home & A Sense of Place, Immigration & Emigration, Modern Life | Tagged , , , | 3 Comments

A Look at Dublin Expat Life After Three Months

After living in Dublin for only a month, I had the temerity to post a list of five things I hated about living in Dublin and Ireland.  Two months on, I have three times the perspective I had at that … Continue reading

Posted in Dublin Life, Friends & Family, Home & A Sense of Place, International Moving, Irish Life & Society | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 13 Comments

The Long Goodbye

The past few weeks, as we’ve gotten “serious” about packing, canceling subscriptions, disconnecting utilities, stopping direct deposits/payments, and the minutiae of moving overseas, we’ve been blessed to have friends and family ask to hang out with us one last time. … Continue reading

Posted in Before We Go, Friends & Family | Tagged , , , | 6 Comments