The life of Smurphy

I have 4 aunts.  Well technically I have 5; one passed away when she was little.  But in my life, I have 4 aunts.  To be honest, aunts are the best.  They spoil you like no other.  When Mom said no, for example “No, you are not wearing my shoes” (I was in the 4-12 age range at this point), aunts didn’t seem to mind.  I mean I must’ve ruined the heels of my Auntie C’s high heels, trudging around…

How life sometimes goes…..

So, life.  Sometimes things happen and it takes another turn that wasn’t expected.  My year in LA was cut short by the quick and way too soon passing of my beautiful, funny, kind aunt in January.  I am so glad that I got home soon enough to spend time with her and tell her that I loved her.  My heart is somewhat broken still and will take time to heal.  So LA will have to wait for another time. I…

Bus Life in LA – I miss my Hyundai

I honestly did not think I would get so little time to write in this blog.  But life in LA is busy with a little part-time gig going and also the whole getting to and from everywhere when you don’t have a car.  Which I don’t.  Seriously, when you tell anyone in LA that you don’t have a car, they look at you as if you have told them you have an infectious disease.  It’s a cross between disgust and…

So my first proper post is going to be about going to see the movie Brooklyn today; I’m here 3 weeks now, and lots of different things have happened and I guess life has taken over and prevented me from having the time to write anything.  But today/tonight I feel compelled to write and start it all off. So Brooklyn made me cry, for pretty much the duration of the film.  Cry cos I miss my family…

So in 2 days time I finish in my job.  Been full time here since May, but have volunteered and interned in this project for 3 years.  It is going to be a bitter sweet ending; off to pastures new, but leaving so many young people who have become a huge part of my life now – have to be honest, they have become like my own children. And that’s the thing about leaving, even though it is often for the…

As today is Back to the Future Day, I felt it was an appropriate day to write this post.  When I was 11, one of the most joyous moments of my young life occurred – the day Dad brought home a VCR!!! This was rural Ireland, 1987, so basically 2 telly channels land!! Now, all of a sudden, we had this machine on which we could watch movies and cartoons.  Current movies and cartoons.  But living in…

Last night when driving back to the city from my parents place, I took a route that was once a fortnightly drive for me.  From the age of 12 to 15, I went to boarding school, a time that I do think shaped a lot of how I am as an adult.  I was lucky, the school where I boarded was only 15 miles from home, so on Friday evenings it only took about 20/25 minutes to get home and the same on the return…

Autumn Walks in real time, wishing it was the 90s again!!!

So last night I went for a walk round my hood, which incidentally was my hood when I was in college in UCC.  And while I was walking around, spotting houses where friends used to live and remembering random parties and shifting boys you really shouldn’t, it suddenly dawned on me that it was 20 years ago when I was in UCC. 20 years ago? WTF? How has time gone by that fast? I still feel like the…

So my favourite band of right now are War on Drugs.  Going through a little bit of a crapster time at the mo’ so this music is helping me out with that :)

I love love love this band; so easy to listen to and they just soothe my soul

So I’ve ALWAYS loved music.  Mom said when I was younger, and by younger I mean about 3 years old, I would entertain people in my grandparents bar, singing songs I made up myself!! Even tho she also said, that after a certain period of time, they would be like “Please take her away!” I guess they didn’t appreciate my songs, one of which I think was called Green Glasses – think it may have been a…