A 'lil HooHaa

Messing with the blogging world since 2005

Ireland

30-2 Days of Writing: That’s why I got langered (27/28)

Top o’ the mornin’ to ya!

See, a story about being langered isn’t always easy to write about on the blog. Do you want to share something like that with the world to see?

When I was a wee bit younger, several of us would get trollied during the weekend. It was all well and good because you could get pissed the night before, get up the next day and go like a champ.

As you get older, having that feeling isn’t so nice.

Early in the evening — experiencing the nightlife of Dublin!

Take us to 2010.

We went on a vacation to Dublin. There were five of us in total, all family. Me and my brother, who are great fans of Guinness, knew there would be several pints of the black stuff tossed back in the fair city.

Why wouldn’t there be?

However, to me, this wasn’t a trip where I’d just get intoxicated and stay that way (unlike some trips to Montreal in my youthful days). That being said, it seemed silly not to get lit up on night.

And this is how it happened…

Me and my two brothers signed up for a pub crawl. It was rather cheap and it looked like fun. They took you to several bars, fed you at one, allowed you to pour your own beers at one (tap system on the table, way too cool) and you got to see some interesting places. Me and my one brother figured we should get toasted at least one night on the trip and this was as good a time as any.

We met the crawl people at a brewpub. Turns out we were the only three on the tour. The owner actually debated canceling it, but decided to let it go on and we were with our tour guide, who was an absolute blast. We hit several bars. Eventually, my one brother left to head back to the hotel. But two of us carried on.

One Guinness turned into two. Then three. Then four.

You get the picture.

And I can tell you this — the Guinness in Ireland seems a lot stronger and it definitely tastes better than the Guinness in the U.S.

Five then six.

Yeah, no kidding, right?

I should also note that I had become more of a social guy when it comes to beers. Maybe one or two a night if I met some people out at the local watering hole.

Ahhh, the sweet nectar of Dublin!

So let’s say my body wasn’t in the shape to necessarily be able to process these pints as I would hoped.

Seven and eight…

All said, I figured a good dozen or so pints passed through my system that night. We saw some great pubs. Listened to some great music. Saw a World Cup soccer match at one pub. And as the night wore down, we bid our tour guide (who, at that point, was off the clock and have been boozing a bit with us) adieu and made our way to the door and the fresh night air.

That’s when my brother said — do you have any idea how to get back to the hotel?

In Dublin, there’s this massive sphere that goes way into the sky. It can be seen from all over. I was told it’s called the Stiffy by the Liffey. It’s honestly named the Spire of Dublin, and it’s a nearly 400-foot tall stainless steel structure.

I knew our hotel was right near the structure.

So, I pointed to it and said “Head toward the (phallic reference)!”

And off we went.

In the end, we were in Dublin. Two brothers with an affinity toward Guinness. And that is why I got trollied.

Feel free to leave a comment, or e-mail P.J. at hoohaablog@gmail.com. Also, please “Like” HooHaa Blog on Facebook!

30 Minus 2 Days of Writing: Music (16/28)

A trio performing some traditional Irish songs. This was at a pub in Ireland in 2010.

I’ve found as I’ve aged, my musical tastes have changed. Though I still like a lot of what I once did, I’ve really started to like other things.

There are certain types of music I don’t get into — hardcore rap, heavy metal, blues and a few others. Otherwise, I’m pretty diverse with my tastes. I like anything from classical, to pop 40, to country to 80s rock and more.

But in the past several years, I’ve gotten into folk music, and more specifically Irish folk and drinking music.

It truly is awesome stuff.

When I took a trip to Dublin in 2010, I had the chance to watch many bands play in pubs. I loved the sounds, the emotion and the way the bar patrons really got into it.

There’s actually some pretty solid Irish-style bands in the upstate New York area. One of them is the Dady Brothers, who I love to see any chance I get. They’ve performed in our area a few times and I’ve really gotten into them. I last saw them on New Year’s Eve and their website shows they’ll be in the area March 2 for a St. Patrick’s Day celebration (yes, a bit before the big day… but it’s all good!), so I hope to see them then as well.

Pretty much, though, if there’s a good Irish folk band, I’m into going. Even more modern ones, I’m all in for it.

There’s something about the music. Even the sad songs seem like they can make you happy. Or at least want to drink a few more cordials! There’s truly nothing like sitting in an Irish pub with a pint of Guinness and singing along — with the rest of the bar patrons — and just having a good time.

It’s really a nice way to go about life.

I’ll leave you with a video of the band from Ireland — the ones pictured at the top of this post. The video quality is tough (it was dark), but I think it sounds OK.

If not, have a couple pints of the black stuff. It’ll sound just fine then.

Feel free to leave a comment, or e-mail P.J. at hoohaablog@gmail.com. Also, please “Like” HooHaa Blog on Facebook!

Ireland: the recap

It struck me that I hadn’t written about Ireland on here. I wanted to share some things with the trip and such with everyone, so I’ll do a shorter version of what I wrote as a Lifestyles feature for the paper.

In fact, I’m going to just number a few things that I did in Ireland to highlight.

One thing if for sure, if anyone ever gets the chance to visit Ireland, I would highly recommend doing it. I had an absolute blast and look forward to doing it again one day. Though I’d like to visit Dublin again, I’d also like to incorporate other spots in the country — such as Shannon, Cork, and the northwest part of the country, where speaking Gaelic is still common practice.

The flight

This was my first trans-Atlantic flight. Thankfully, it was direct. But I still didn’t sleep well. See, we left an hour after scheduled and it was about 11:30 p.m. New York time. By the time it was 2:30ish, we were in the middle of the ocean, the time was changing and the sun was coming up. Though it made for some beautiful views.

The flight wasn’t too bad.

It only lasted about 6 1/2 hours and we got two meals. I was a bit restless, however, with the changing of the light outside and not being able to doze off too much. I was probably a bit anxious, too, but that’s what happens on the first big flight.

Geocaching

Of course I geocached while in Ireland. Though I got a few here and there while out with the family, the bulk was done on a one-day trip with two local cachers — Windsockers and Hezekiah. This day proved to be a wonderful experience as the two took me down the countryside and to some small towns, capped with a trip through the Wicklow Mountains.

The day started rather gloomy with clouds and a bit of rain. We hiked to Europe’s First, where I made my 2,000th find. An excellent cache to do such a thing. The cache was a nice stroll along a good trail,  but the final 75 feet or so went up a rocky embankment with ferns and such. And being that it was raining, it was a little tougher than expected. Alas, I made it, found the cache and signed the log. I also snagged a geocoin to move on and left one of the pathtags I had made for the Ireland trip.

No. 2000!

It was definitely cool to get this milestone in Ireland. I had been slowly planning it, watching my caching at home and such to get this one there. I’ve done special caches for each 1,000 milestone and now I’ll have to start plotting which cache will be for No. 3,000, but I have time for that one! Maybe Mingo, the oldest active geocache? What a road trip that could be!

There’s plenty of time to plan that one, however.

Back on topic, the geocaching adventures continued down the coast. I was taken to some wonderful scenic areas and as the day went on, the rain halted and sun broke through, which was really nice. I saw the coast and the mountains and did many a cache.

How nice are the Wicklow Mountains though?

The geocaching day ended with an event, which Windsockers put on at the hotel where I was staying. I then went out with a couple of others cachers after the event to grab a few more to end the night. Good times!

I sprinkled around my pathtag, too, so I hope some will be logged at some point.

Touring around

Of course we did a lot of the tourist things. We visited a lot of popular places, such as the Guinness Storehouse, where we had the opportunity to pour our own pints.

It had to be done.

To pour the perfect pint wasn’t easy, but a fun time. I enjoyed learning it and tasting the finished product, too.

And yes, it tasted as good as it looks!

Other things we visited included Dublin Castle, the Chester Beatty Library, Jameson Whiskey, National Leprechaun Museum and a few other things.

We had good meals and the hotel we stayed at was excellent.

One of the days, we ventured to the coast and to the town of Howth. It’s a seaside town in the old-school meaning. Boats, lobster and crab boats, fishermen, lighthouses and scenic walks. It was beautiful there. Just sitting and looking out into the water was fantastic.

I also had the chance to meet with a couple others from Flickr and go on a night photo trip, which was a total blast. As of this writing, I haven’t finished processing all the photos from the trip, but I have a collection set up where you can see the photos.

One note — the photo that is acting as my header now was taken during the night flickr walk while in Dublin. It’s a shot of the Ha’Penny Bridge, a foot bridge that got its name because it used to cost a half-penny to cross it.

Overall impressions

I loved it.

I want to go back to Ireland and discover other parts of the country such as Shannon and Cork. It was surprisingly affordable and I didn’t spend nearly as much as I thought I would. That’s a good thing because I have a three or four day trip to Maine coming up this fall — a relaxing solo trip that I am really looking forward to going on.

I’ll have to report on that trip as well. I have some other things coming up I need to share also.

More later!

A ‘lil HooHaa: Contest 1

Wanna win something? How about my new Ireland pathtag?

Here’s what it looks like:

Pretty sweet tag, eh?

This is a simple contest — and my first one! This will run just about a week, so you have a little time to come up with an educated guess as to the answer.

But wait! There’s more! You can win ANOTHER  pathtag! Actually, two people can win, depending on how good your guesses are. Because I don’t know how many responses I will get with my first contest, here’s a rule I am putting into place:

IF five (5) or fewer than people enter the contest (multiple entries, if earned, don’t count as new people), I’ll allow it where the same person can win both pathtags.

IF more than five (5) people enter, that means winners can only win one of the pathtags. Should one person sweep and get both correct, they’ll win the Ireland one and then the next two will go in the order of caches. You’ll see what you have to do below.

Nuts and bolts

Now for some quick normal things — this contest is simple and entrants will be able to see their answers. On my return from Dublin, I will look at everything, post the answers and winners and send out the prizes. Should you win, I’ll need a mailing address. This contest is open to anyone — in the USA or international. The winners will be notified on this blog and via my twitter account. The winner will then have to e-mail me an address.

Entrants are allowed ONE entry and please do not edit your entry once you have posted. The entry MUST be in the comments section. A correct entry will include your name and the answers to the contest questions. Please identify the answers for which question. (ie: Pub trips: xx).

You can EARN up to two more entries by tweeting this contest or posting an entry on your blog. If you do that, please let me know. HOWEVER, please wait a minimum of one hour from your last guess so as not to flood all the guesses. If you do either of these, please make sure you note that in your guess (ie: Second guess via tweeting your contest) so I can go check and verify. That means, also, making sure you have your blog address so I can check it out!

The contest

This contest is going to make you guess. You have to think about this a little. The winners will be whoever guesses the closest to the actual answer (you can go over).

It’s as simple as a guess.

You can guess once for each part of the contest, and note the above in the Nuts and bolts section to see how to do things.

Ready for the contest?

Some quick details on my trip so you can put it into perspective: I am arriving mid-morning on a Wednesday and leaving mid-morning the following Tuesday. So, basically I’ll be in Dublin and doing things for about 5 1/2 days. That’s the only thing I am releasing. If you want to investigate more, read past entries of the blog.

This contest will close at 10 p.m. EASTERN TIME on Tuesday, June 29. I get e-mails of all things posted and every comment is time-stamped, so if one comes after that deadline, it will be deleted and not counted.

FIRST PART — My Ireland Pathtag is the prize for this one.

I’m asking you this — how many pubs will I visit on my trip to Dublin? Remember, Dublin has more than 1,000 pubs! Pubs will include any bars, micro brews, traditional pubs etc. But I have to actually visit them, not just be in them.

Some things to note — I will be going on a few pub crawls. We might stop in one or two to eat during the day. I might go out after the night falls to investigate. Who knows?

SECOND PART: How many Geocaches will I find while in Ireland? I only am planning one full day of caching there, but I do hope to do some throughout the trip. Do your math and hope for the best. The winner will receive this pathtag:

Final things

Remember, one entry per person unless you do one of the following:

Twitter this contest — mention the contest and blog. Use the following to make it easy:

@softball29 is having a pathtag giveaway contest on his blog – www.hoohaablog.com. Enter soon as it ends June 29 at 10 p.m. EST!

BLOG about this contest on your blog, but mention the contest and link back to here as well! You must mention that you have done these in your second and/or third entries, but please make them different comment entries! Only one entry per comment and only three entries (if extras earned) maximum!

Have fun!

More later!


Countdown Clock Codes

Counting down …


Countdown Clock Codes

Some thoughts about my upcoming trip to Ireland and other random thoughts at this moment.

It’s getting closer and closer and I’m realizing how much of a pain it is to prepare for a trip like this. When I go to Montreal, I know the things I want to do and/or see. And if I don’ get to them this year, there’s always next year.

With Dublin, who knows when/if I’ll be back. I’d like to think I’ll return to Ireland again, but who knows?

We have set up several pub crawls — a traditional, a traditional music one and a literary one. Each lasts about 2-2 1/2 hours, so beyond that, we can create our own pub experiences.

We’re also going on a Ghost Tour of the city, which should be fun.

The days will be filled with a lot of different things, which should be interesting.

Reality is, however, it’s hard to plan this stuff. I don’t know how long things last, so I’m going to try and come up with “sample” days and post them over at Trip Advisor to get some feedback. The people are there are excellent and if you are traveling, check out their forums for your destination. There are usually great people willing to help.

You’ll note the countdown clock at the top.  For each post I have before I leave, I’ll likely include that. However, from here on out, it will be at the bottom of a post. It’s my way of getting through the next bunch of days without getting too anxious or forgetting I have things to do here before I leave!

We do have some cool things planned — from a day trip to Howth (the coast) to visiting the Guinness factory. I’m going on a full day of geocaching, as long as that all goes according to plan. The day I am caching, there’s been an event set up that night at the bar in my hotel, so I’m super excited about that and having the chance to meet Irish cachers!They’ll also have some trackables to pick up as I’ve collected 16 travel bugs and geocoins to bring to Ireland (not including a few I plan on bringing of my own to send out into the world there) and I plan on dropping all of them into the event so people can discover, take and move them along!

Speaking of geocaching, my goal is to be at about 1,990-1,995 finds before I leave for Dublin. The reason is so I can make Europe’s First — which was placed June 3, 2000!

I’ve also (thankfully) received my Pathtag I ordered for this trip. I’ll be dropping them some in caches and handing them to people I meet at the event in Dublin. After that, of course, I’ll be trading. Here’s what it looks like:

As most of you know, I’m also an avid photographer and I’ll be joining a Flickr Meet event, which I’m excited about as it will include night photography. I’m hoping the travel tripod I bought will work well that night.

One thing is for sure, I won’t have a shortage of items to be able to use for my Project 365, which is going well. I’ve not missed a day yet, and I’m confident I can get through the year. I’m not sure I will do this in 2011 again, but it might be an every other year sort of thing. Though it’s nice to do a challenge like this, it’s also nice to sometimes not have to worry about taking a photo. That being said, my camera phone isn’t too good, so that makes it hard if I don’t have my main gear with me. I’m upgrading soon to a new phone that has a better camera, so that might make me want to go right into 2011 doing it again. We’ll see.

The other challenges — the HooHaa 52 and the attempt to do each 12 of 12 for the year are going well. I’ve had a blast doing all three challenges and I think I’m getting my money’s worth out of the Canon 7D I purchased.

In other news…

Our softball season has been off to a solid start. Though the league is a little watered down this year (six teams because they doubled the entry fee), we’re off to a 7-0 start. We’re playing solid defense, hitting the ball well and doing everything right. Our main pitcher is gone for a few days, however, so I’ll be throwing the next few games. Hopefully I can get the knuckleball working or we could be in trouble. We’ll see what happens there.

Nothing new to report on the search for my future. One spot that seemed to be a positive turned out to be nothing more than a “finalist” sort of thing without a follow. It’s too bad as it seemed really sweet, but it is what it is. I have something else on the burner that I’ll look more into when I return from Ireland.

Before leaving for Ireland, I’m planning on taking my bike to a sports shop in Oneonta to get it tuned up and in top shape. When I get back, I want to start biking a lot more and hoping that will help my mental game of life for a while. I’ve lost a bit of weight (not a ton, but some and it’s holding) and I’d like to lose more. A friend and I have been discussing setting out many geocaches along this one scenic trail — about 12-19 miles, pending how far we go. We’re going to do them on bikes, so it should be fun.

I think I’ll be putting my “Cache Exchange” cache somewhere out there on that trail, so hopefully it will work out well. I’ll have more on the cache exchange in the future.

Now, it’s off to work. Until next time …

More later!