Filed under: Dublin
Dun Laoghaire is a port town and 15 miles south of Dublin. When we lived near here when the girls were young; we lived closer to Dun Laoghaire to Dublin City Center. So, in many ways, visiting Dun Laoghaire is more like a trip back to my second home that going to Dublin. Aine and I went to walk down the pier. It was a terrible day for a walk down the pier. There was a on-and-off heavy mist and the wind could have set a small dog flying. But that strong wind will clear the cobwebs right out of your brain. I kind of loved it. Then while Aine had a moment of peace I checked out the Maritime Museum. They have an amazing window/light from a lighthouse that is fairly amazing!
We took the DART there, walked the pier and then came home. Initially we had plans to visit other hot spots, such as the People’s Park but we decided to kowtow to the weather. We strolled in the rain and I realized, I could live here again.
At night I took a stroll by myself. I saw some prescient street art and went into Whelan’s for a pint. Now we’re waiting for a 4am uber for the next adventure…
Filed under: Dublin
Today was like a mom dream vacation. Spent the morning with Kate while Aine slept. Spent the afternoon with Aine while Kate met up with a friend. Weather was spectacular until it wasn’t. We all went to the Sinead O’Connor at the Phoenix Park and quickly ended up at a pub with Irish music. Now if only I had my Lily to hit the nightlife with me to hit the late-night bars! We miss her for more than that – but she has things to do in Montreal. I can only download the day in snapshots and not in order – no transitions today.
Sinead O’Connor Memorial turns into Irish Pub Music
We went to Phoenix Park with high expectations for the Sinead O’Connor memorial after 7pm. We weren’t there long. Clearly folks had put some work into it. We saw two poets who were good but we didn’t understand the connection to Sinead, which clearly was at least half our problem but because we remember when Prince died in Minneapolis, we expect the same reception. It’s early days so it may happen and in the meantime the ground level adoration is admirable but we weren’t feeling it. (Also speaks volumes to the messages Sinead tried to relay!) So. two tired girls and I ended up at a bar on the quays playing very loud Irish music but serving food. Loud Irish music was exactly what one girl wanted – apparently. The band played Weela Weela Wayla and both girls were over the moon. Kate went so far to request a song (Ragland Road) in part I think to spite the New Jersey folks who requested Danny Boy. By the time we left it was pouring rain. I offered to call the Uber but we walked. I’m soaking wet typing this – but basking the glow of a good day.
Bog Bodies
Kate and I visited the bog bodies of Ireland; the girls and I have always enjoyed the creepy and cool on our adventures. It’s funny to see how creepy impacts a 20-something versus an 8-year-old, but I still got Kate to compare bog hand to her hand. A bog body is human remains that have mummified in a bog. The remains in Ireland date back to 400 BC to 400 AD – or I here up to 2000 years ago! They are still being found today – well by today I mean 2003, but in the scope of history, that is a blip. Going by the stories, it seems like some people may have fallen into the bogs, while bog dumping was also the last part of a sacrificial murder of some sort. It is amazing to see the detail that is preserved. (Years ago, we went to the Bog of Allen. Another creepy but cool and very messy. It’s the closest thing to quicksand I ever want to experience.
Trinity, Art and Animals
Aine and I had a leisurely vacation day after she tromped all over town yesterday. We walked through Trinity College, a well-worn route to the bus stop back in the day. We tried to sneak into the library, no luck. But we walked through the cricket fields, which brought back memories. We popped out by the National Gallery, which gave us an excuse to go through for a second visit. (We spent a lot of time there when they were kids.) Next we went to the “dead animal zoon” aka Natural History Museum. A highlight for me was the basking shark. I have been obsessed with basking sharks since I saw a TEDx talk about them in 2010.
Buskers and Street Art
We spent a lot of time walking today. Saw some super fun street art, including a mural of Sinead O’Connor being painted. Very touching.
Finally, we saw some great busking on Grafton Street. Just another day in Dublin.
Filed under: Dublin
It was a leisurely day today. Aine and I took a long walk-through town. We stopped in Project Art Centre, which has long been one of my favorites, small experimental art. We saw Culchie Boy, I Love You by Kian Benson Bailes. It’s interesting with sort of an animal-predatory undercurrent with Irish roots.
We walked down the Liffey toward the bay. We stopped in at St Mary’s and found some very modern and imploring ways to get donations.
Then we walked and talked and saw great street art, felt the wind in our faces, got rained on intermittently. We stopped at the Grand Canal Docks.
Poor Aine walked so much more than she wanted to – and she was a great sport. But it was really nice to spend time together. At night I met up with an old friend Karina. It’s always fun to catch up with my friend who knows more about books than anyone I’ve ever known. I tried Korean food for the first time, which I really liked and we enjoyed a few pints. Kate went to Dun Laoghaire on her own, which was great given she’ll soon be living in Ireland. And both Kate and Aine met with their Uncle Fearghal for dinner. A good time was had by all.
Filed under: Dublin
Everyday a new adventure! I’ll lead with the headline for a change and say our big event today was a memorial for Sinead O’Connor. The hosts (ROSA Socialist Feminist Movement) did a nice job lifting up the issues that were important to Sinead O’Connor – autonomy and respect for people and disdain who hold back those rights. (I wrote more about it for my music blog – including a full video of the singalong.) For family purposes, part of the thrill was the presence of local media. Lots of photos taken, especially of Kate who was early, and lots of questions for all of us. It was a moving event. It ended in a singalong to Nothing Compares 2 U, which of course reminded us the days after Prince’s death. Very moving.
Before that, the girls and I went our separate ways for a while. I started off for the Dublin Castle and found the Ireland Glass Biennale 2023, an exhibition of work from some of the world’s most innovative glass artists, designers and craft practitioners. It was freaking amazing. Sadhbh Mowlds did an amazing sculpture of a woman shaving her legs in front of the mirror. It was scarily realistic in an uncanny valley way. Pearla Segovia did a similarly realist sculpture of two women looking at each other with no faces. And my cutest favorite my Krista Israel. Even without a face, it seems so cheerful.
I did a walk through Trinity College just to make sure that my favorite place of happy memory really closed. Sad to report that the Science Gallery is cleaned out. But I did see a lot of awesome street art on my walk.
Then I decided to listen to church bells from St Patrick’s, Christchurch and St Audoen’s, which led to a fantastic new rabbit hole. First, many years ago, I lived behind the church. It’s an old area – we didn’t have a toilet in the house. We had a modern toilet in a room outside the backdoor. Turns out St Audoen’s was a happening place in medieval times; it was where papal bulls were pronounced and public penances carried out. Also, they have amazing bells, 6 from 1423 that were renovated in the 1980s. Today they rang a special sound to celebrate their 600th anniversary and to remember Sinead O’Connor. It’s free and absolutely worth a visit if you’re in the area.
Post memorial, the girls and I checked out Christchurch, which is just a stone’s throw from St Audoen’s. It is almost 1000 years old and has also served as hub for the community, albeit the Protestant community. The building is amazing but it’s the catacombs that we came for. It used to be like a public square where vendors would sell their wares and life would happen … such as putting people in the stockade. We heard all about it from a (recording of) 90 year old Catholic who talked about sneaking into the church only to get a firsthand demonstration of the stockage from a church leader. Very funny in retrospect and a story that would get someone in serious trouble today! Another highlight is the petrified cat and rat that were found in the organ pipes. Assumption was that they were in a chase, jumped in and got stuck.
Filed under: Dublin
Another glorious day in Dublin. OK, we got caught in one little rain burst but otherwise – sunny, warm, breezy – amazing. I started my day at the Phoenix Park. We’re not too far from it so it was an easy hike. My goal was to find the wild deer. Apparently, there are 600 of them, so it sounds easy. But the park is almost 3 square miles – not so easy. I was about to give up when I saw them. I see a lot of deer in Minnesota but these deer are different. Their antlers are spectacular. I got pretty close, actually much closer than I probably should have – but I live to tell the tale.
Then I stopped into the Museum of Decorative Arts and History. It was a quick trip but I’m a sucker for any kind of reenactment setup. And there’s a room full of “overflow” silver and art is amazing.
Next, I met up with the girls in Temple Bar. Sadly, the Market isn’t really what we remember from when they were kids. It’s much smaller now but always fun to walk around that area. We caught lunch and headed to the National Gallery, a big favorite from when they were kids. They’ve moved so many things around but they still have a nice mix of old and new art. Some of my favorites: Shield with Head of Medusa by an unkown artist (seen with Aine below), Late Late Show host Gay Byrne by John Kindness, Sinead O’Connor by Jane Brown and a mirror (featuring me and Aine below) in one of the majesty galleries.
Because we were back in the neighborhood we knew, we stopped by Merrion Park to see the statue of Oscar Wilde. Years ago, I heard they were going to add an audio component of him (or someone) reading his most quotable quotes. I hope that happens someday. Then we headed home. We stopped by the charity shops where I got two new dressed. (Score one for the usually bad shopper!) The next statue was musician Luke Kelly, posing with me below – later posed with Phil Lynott.
I took a long walk. Saw some amazing street art and then went to the Irish Museum of Modern Art, where I saw all of the awesome outside art the girls love when they were little and I saw the Irish Coast Guard land a helicopter. I watched for a minute, hoping it was an art installation. It wasn’t but I didn’t see much happen after the landing. The IMMA is built in the old Kilmainham Hospital. So some irony there.
At night we went to the Port House, our favorite tapas restaurant and then on search for the perfect pub. We went to a couple. It was heartening to see so many people at the pubs – post pandemic and really post Celtic Tiger. I haven’t seen the pubs fill so fast in a very long time. Also through the day saw some awes street art!
Filed under: Dublin
Aine, Kate and I do not bask in the joy of traveling. But we made it! We have landed in a really nice AirBnB in The Liberties, Dublin 8. This is a part of Dublin that we do not know well, although we toured the area once, 11 years ago on a memorably rainy day. It’s an historical area and I think of it as an inner city working class neighborhood. Back in the day it was where the weavers, tanners and market traders live. It still has a vibrant ethos of folks selling stuff on the sidewalk flea-market style. Very entrepreneurial and DIY vibes.
The Liberties are much farther west than areas we know. So, we’re getting our bearings. Being jetlagged is not helping. But we’ll get there. It is very close to the Guinness Storeroom. It’s not far from Christchurch where I lived long before the kids were around. It’s amazing to see how much is building up now.
It’s also fun to remember how much history has happened here and how much is celebrated. On one building I sawt a memorial saying it was where The Chieftains played their first gig and across the street Robert Emmet died in the cause of Irish Freedom (1803).
We all went on walks; ok mostly me alone. So I have random pictures of the area.
We all pulled it together to walk to the City Center for dinner. It was fun to see Temple Bar on a Friday night. It was fun not to feel obliged to duck into any of the pubs of Irish music and hen parties. We ran across a nice memorial for Sinead O’Connor.
We’re waiting for our favorite Guide of Dublin Free Events before we make any big plans. We are saving ourselves for a full Saturday!
Dad and I have a tour of the Midwest going this week. We start in Naperville to see a friend of his. (OK, only dad stopped in to see his favorite high school teacher Jack Lane.) I walked around the Naperville Century Walk, a downtown riverwalk peppered with artworks. I’ll share a few pictures. The highlight was the big statue of Dick Tracy; well-place because the creator of the comic book hero is from Naperville.
We also checked out the Morton Arboretum. We have been there before. Sadly, the summer sculptures were not out yet. But we did get to see some gorgeous flowers. Even better, we got to smell them! I’ve always said the best thing about coming from Minnesota is that anywhere you go has better weather and that is doubly true this year. It was warm and spring had sprung and I could almost be tempted to move this year.
I had a work meeting in Bloomington (at the Illinois Soybean Association). Quick nod to best refurbishing of a former Gold’s Gym and nicest hospitality. I heard heartwarming stories of rural counties on the path to getting better broadband. But I’ll save those notes for my work report.
Springfield
After the meeting we set out to St Louis, but not without a stop to see historical sites in Springfield. We checked out Lincoln’s family home – by that I mean with Mary Todd and their kids. Here we were given a fantastic free map that pointed out just about anything and everything you might want to see in the areas related to Lincoln.
Based on new info from the new map, we also checked out Lincoln’s Tomb. It was cook. It is a big tomb, where he and his immediate family are buried. Apparently, someone tried to snatch his body in 1876, resulting in a bunch of new laws, an onsite groundskeeper and his body moving 10 feet below ground. There’s a bronze casting of Lincoln’s face. Apparently, it’s lucky to run his nose. (I’ll report back if good luck comes my way!) Fun to see the impact of a nose rub on the statue.
St Louis
We spent a couple days in St Louis and the whole family joined. We’re all here to see my niece, Betsy, do her senior dance at St Louis University. She has completed four years of her six-year program in Physical Therapy. But with the fourth-year completion, comes the end to her Dance Minor. So we all came to watch her. You can see why below; this is the dance she choregraphed. We’ll never forget the touching note that Grandma left on Emily’s dance poster – thinking it was Betsy’s. But it was very funny.
We also got to see a few of the sites, such as Forest Park, You can see the video Katie and I made in honor of the Kentucky Derby.
We checked out some nightlife and ate a ton!
… last minute addition: Dad and I stopped in Cedar Lake, Iowa. Dad was a huge Buddy Holly fan back in the day, and remembers the day the music died. Originally we weren’t going to go this way but fates intervened and once you’re getting on 35 near Mason City, you might as well stop by the sites!
Filed under: Illinois
The band is back together. I’m on the road in rural Illinois with Bill, one of my favorite work-road-trip buddies. It’s always a good mix of productive work chat, small town sight seeing, catching up and good advice. We saw a few highlights.
The tourism portion of our trip began with the Black Hawk Statue in Oregon IL. It’s quite impressive at 50 feet and is a memorial to Chief Black Hawk, Sauk leader in what is known as the Black Hawk war 1832. We also did drive-bys for the birthplace of John Deere and childhood home of Ronald Regan.
For work, I got to tour a hog farm with 60,000 hogs as well as soybean fields and processing facilities. (Thankfully, we couldn’t see the hogs because of bio-security issues. Whew!) I’ve toured hog farms before. What’s amazing is that success is made in pennies per pound. So every penny you can save in the nurturing, butchering or process of making the bacon helps and precision ag makes a big difference. Also I got to sit on big tractor. Woo!
Because we were in Carthage, we visited death place of Joseph Smith, founder of Latter Day Saints. We went to the jail where he was shot and we met by tour guides who may or may not have been dressed in period piece attire. They are clearly devotees; super informative but also a little unsettling. Here’s the abridged story (thanks to Wikipedia)…
Carthage Jail is best known as the location of the 1844 killing of Joseph Smith, founder of the Latter Day Saint movement, and his brother Hyrum, by a mob of approximately 150 men.
We spent time in the jail. Creepy! And saw the door through which Joseph was shot and the window through which he thrust himself to save the followers who were with him (in front of the mob) in the small room. Word is, the Smiths knew they were going to die in Carthage but were peaceful that day anticipating the murder.
Our biggest stop was the Abraham Lincoln Museum in Springfield. It is worth av visit! The multimedia makes it feel interactive. The segment on the emancipation was particularly interesting. Even on his own team, some think he goes too far, and some think he doesn’t go far enough. There’s a hallway set up that reminds me of walking the MN Capitol when contentious topics are being discussed. No one listens; everyone shouts. It emphasizes the need to vote for people you think you will actually do the right thing when the time comes.
A striking exhibit is a bronze cast or Lincoln’s face as he started he’s presidency and five years into it. The aging is palpable. Then there are “rooms” that focus on segments of Lincoln’s life that help us see how that fast aging happened. Lincoln not only led the nation during an extremely tumultuous time but he had a lot of person tragedy happening at the same time. Hearing about his plans to focus on the positive on the day of his assassination is heartbreaking.
Filed under: St Paul
It’s true! The Treacy ladies are making the ERA happen in Minnesota – although clearly we’re not doing it alone. But, for the family blog … Aine and I testified at a MN House Committee on a bill to get the Equal Rights Amendment on the ballot in 2024. So that voters can chime in on whether ERA should be added to the Minnesota constitution. It’s nervous work but we did it and the bill passed out of Committee to get one step closer to a vote on the House Floor. Today my mom and I testified to the companion bill in the Senate. The hope was to have me, Aine and my mom testify together but the agenda moved slowly and items were moved around so that eventually she had to go to work. But she gets a nice nod from Senator Latz for being there. And in the end mom and I were persuasive enough to make it happen.
You can see the full videos for the Senate and House committee meetings online or see our aspirational written testimony; we may or may not have stuck to script.
Again, we weren’t working alone – ERA Minnesota is a powerful group that has worked tirelessly for years – founded by former Representative Betty Folliard and led by Suzann Wilhite. And they aren’t working alone either – there’s a great group of folks – a sea of green you see all over town.
It is nervous work. Often there’s a push to hurry up. You know people are watching and the cameras are on. And by the nature of the topic, most of us have been taught to not believe in ourselves as much as we should. And that’s part of what makes the growing success taste sweeter. Big thanks to the legislators who are moving us forward but introducing bills and getting them heard – Rep Her, Rep Bahner, Sen Pappas and Sen Kunesh. It’s exciting to be so close – a mere 100 years after it was first raised!
One quick observation … civic engagement is hard because for most of us it means taking a day off work, maybe getting a babysitter, getting to St Paul – never mind you have to know who to contact, how and when. Lobbying is easier – you get paid, you’ve probably gone to school to learn what to do and you build relationships with the legislators so less scary and you have time to chat between meetings in case there’s something you’ve forgotten to say in testimony. Technology has helped because you can at least watch meetings remotely but it feels like sometimes the barriers to civic engagement give policymakers a skewed view of what “most people” think – because “most people” they see are lobbyists or people who can afford to take time out to speak up.
Filed under: Minneapolis
Grandma, Kate and I took a multigenerational trip to the Minneapolis Institute of Arts today to see the Botticelli and Renaissance Florence exhibit and more. It was fascinating to see how Sandro Botticelli reached back to classical Greek and Roman statues for inspiration he adapted to a humanistic approach more characteristic of his era in the last 1400s. It’s as if Botticelli breathed a color gust of life into the statues.
I was able to capture a picture of a statue in the foreground with Botticelli’s Pallas and the Centaur in the background. You can see the similarities in the silhouette of the statue and centaur. There’s a slouch that identical. The maiden in the painting is clearly in charge; always a plus in my mind.
There’s a balance of reverence and playfulness in the art. Sometimes that comes out in the action (he Banquet of Queen Vashti) and sometimes that comes out in the personalities and expressions in the faces of the models (Adoration of the Child with Angels). The personalities take a real turn when we look at Adoration of the Magi, which features Botticelli himself on the far right.
A boon to knowing people at the Mia, my friend Kevin was there and clued me into the fact that there was a painting where Mary steps on an angel. It took a minute for me to find – but definitely worth it. I’m not entirely sure what the meaning is. Maybe it’s a baby-like cherub archangel – maybe she’s just overwrought with too much of a good thing. But I’ll be spending time in the next few days wondering. Sign of good art.
Period Rooms
On the way out we couldn’t resist a quick stop in a few of the period rooms. My personal favorite is the Grand Salon, a 7-minute immersive piece where you can watch and hear the room go from day to night in the room.
Van Gogh’s Fingerprint
Kate knew about the discovery of Vincent Van Gogh’s fingerprint accidentally left on Mia’s Olive Trees. You can see where it must be below. It’s near the top right edge of the sun. Unfortunately the frame around the picture shades that area but that won’t stop us from pretending to see it.
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