Tag Archives: United States

Sep19

Mother’s Day in New England – Part 1 in Medway

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Mother’s Day in New England – Part 1 in Medway

Friday, 08-May-2026 through Wednesday, 13-May-2026

It’s been a bit since I’ve been out to New England – and what better reason to go back than to celebrate Mother’s Day? I’d been meaning to go back to visit my Mom and Grandma, and this was the perfect opportunity for not only a good family visit, but also for a bit of an escape from Ireland – a road trip, and catching up with friends…

It started in the dirt.

For years, when I lived in New England, I’d spend Mother’s Day arm deep in soil. I’d drive out to Medway, and I’d spend a day with my Mom caring for the garden – carving spreading lilies out, clearing space, or any other task that just felt a bit too big or annoying for her to tackle solo.

It’s been years since I’ve been able to do that. But now, with the tumult and chaos of Ireland in full swing, I found myself able to wrestle myself away from projects in Dublin, hop on a plane, and come out for some relaxation and good old manual labor.

I can’t quite express just how perfect it was.

I’ve missed gardening, so very much. I’ve missed digging in the dirt, I’ve missed growing things, and none of our houseplants have quite slacked that thirst. I adore the avocado trees, don’t get me wrong! But… they’re small and contained. They don’t quite give the same visceral, primal feel that wrenching infinitely-spreading plants from an outdoor garden gives.

…

Anyways. Yeah. We pulled some of those infinite lilies out, and repotted them for a garden club sale. We ate Chinese, had lovely breakfasts, and had a singularly lovely time.

Jun19

Thanksgiving in New England – The flights out

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Thanksgiving! Last year, Thanksgiving was a bit too busy for me to fly back to the United States… classes, and general insanity, conspired to keep me in Dublin. Which, frankly, was a perfectly lovely time with friends and classmates. 2025, however, had none of those challenges… and thus, saw Andrea and I winging our way to New England for a well-deserved holiday…

Sunday, 23-Nov-2025

Flying is one of those really fun things for me. I adore the calmness once you’re in the airport… it’s magical time, to me, where I can really focus in and get things done.

This time was no exception. Flying from Dublin to Boston is simple and easy, thanks to TSA being on this side of the pond (probably due to the sheer volume of Americans coming back here), so it’s clean, it’s simple, and it’s a beautifully quiet spot.

May19

Flying to Nuuk, Greenland

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Wednesday, 01-May-2024, and Thursday, 02-May-2024

I was on my way.

Flying out on an adventure is always an interesting one, to me. It’s so simple – you check any bags, you walk through security, and then you sit in a seat for a while. Then when you get up, you’re somewhere else – Maybe partway across the state, or maybe halfway around the world.


I hopped on the flight in Portland, stopped in Seattle and Reykjavik, and then I was in Greenland.

I sat by the window on each leg, making a point to focus on looking out and maintaining that sense of wonder that you have the first time you fly. The sense of scale, and speed, and movement… I mean, I’m pretty sure that 100 years ago there weren’t any planes flying at 37,000ft, or cruising at around 530 mph.

It was lovely; not too much else to say, except that the food in Seattle was horrible (don’t get the mac and cheese, it’s just poorly microwaved ziti), and the Icelandic Hotdogs were delicious (They had mustard and… a peanut butter flavored condiment?).