What I Do And Don't Miss About America

Cheers, everyone! 

It's been 40 days since we arrived in Ireland! We have been on a wild ride of learning how to live in this beautiful and mysterious country. Each morning, I look out at the mountains, hear the cows moo and the birds singing, and I'm astonished that we live here. Thomas teases me that this has become my new mantra: we live here!

We've experienced one seasonal change. Summer arrived last week. The pounding rains of April and May transformed to warm, sunny days that begin around 4:00 am and end around midnight. Very long days with lots of sunlight! I woke up at 5:30 am today and almost took a photo of our back yard to show how light it is that early. Once I'm asleep, burglars could come into our room and steal the bed from underneath me - I wouldn't notice. Thomas is the opposite. Even out here in the country, he needs a cold, dark room to sleep. He still gets up for second sleep almost nightly. We're adapting differently. 

While every day is a gift here, not everything is all rainbows and shamrocks. There are some aspects of Irish life that completely affirm our decision to move here and others that are...less fun. 

What I Miss About America

The DMV - I am not kidding. The #1 thing I need right now is a surly clerk at the DMV who acts as if he or she is doing me a favour and gives me a driver's license. The process of obtaining an Irish driving license involves a written test, a vision test, and a road test. If I pass all three, I will be given a Learner's Permit. I must hold this for two years before I can apply for a "full license". During my Learner's Permit phase, I may not drive without a fully licensed driver accompanying me. I'm sitting for my written test on August 9. Ouch. Fifty years of driving with a mostly clean record and I'm back to being 16. Our cars are sitting in the garage, undriven except for an occasional trip around the house. 

Hot dogs with pickle relish - these are two foods that I have not found anywhere here. Anything that is Irish and ends in "relish" is to be strictly avoided. I would love an Oscar Meyer all-beef dog with relish. Yum. 

Food delivery - this is not an Ireland thing. They have loads of food delivery services. But we live in the country. There is one Chinese restaurant that delivers and their food suuuuuuuucks. Plus, their driver called me to ask for directions. It was ridiculous. DoorDash, we hardly knew ye. 

Knowing where everything is and who to call for what - our Irish angels, Hugh and Eileen, have been consistently generous with their time and assistance. Our neighbours have stopped by to say welcome and to offer any assistance we might need. It's really been gratifying. Today, one or our bathroom sinks started to drip from the hose. I am completely clueless about whom to call AND it's a bank holiday weekend. In America, holidays mean longer store hours and lots of sales. Here, it means nobody is working - and I mean nobody. Even our painter is taking tomorrow off. 

What I Don't Miss About America

The helicopters - living in the DC area, there were helicopters swooping overhead morning, noon, and night. Crime choppers, Pentagon brass, other DC helo-worthy folks. It was obnoxious.

Lawn mowers and leaf blowers - it seemed as though every person in our neighborhood association knew when we headed to the deck with a glass of wine and grabbed their leaf blowers. Here, our neighbour across the road mowed his lawn today and we were surprised by how quickly he finished it. Our lawn guy, Mac, appears during the week when the weather is good, does his work, and is gone. The rest of our surroundings are mostly fields. Blissful silence!

Militarised police - we needed to register our presence with the local Garda (police) station. We stopped in the Shinrone office and spoke with an official there. She welcomed us to Ireland, talked about where we are living, and asked us to come back when we have an invitation from the State (part of our visa process). A lovely woman who bore no arms and gave us lots of reassurance and numbers to call in case we need help. 

Every customer care person I have ever spoken with - sometimes I felt like I was in a jousting match with any company's "Customer Care" team. Two weeks ago, we bought a chair from Ikea, returned it because it was defective, had another delivered, it was also defective, and we called Ikea. They apologised for our trouble, picked up the offending package at our convenience, and gave us a €15 gift card for our trouble. THAT is customer service. I'm going to apply those €15 to something for my project room. 

We moved here seeking a peaceful and quiet existence. We found it! We bought a house without ever seeing it because Hugh and Eileen told us it was perfect for us. When we arrived, bleary eyed and jet lagged, we were amazed by what we own. It is much more than we expected in so many ways. We still walk around the yard, each trip ending with my saying, "We live here!". 

Sláinte!