Messing with the blogging world since 2005
— Noel Kingston
A Guinness… poured correctly!
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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.
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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.
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As part of my Day Zero Project, I will be answering the 50 Questions That Free Your Mind. For each of these, I will blog an answer and then it will be linked here as well. Some of these will have longer responses, some will be extremely short. But by the end of the Day Zero Project, I will have answered all of these.
No. 19: If you had to move to a state or country besides the one you currently live in, where would you move and why?
Though this seems like it would be an easy question, it’s actually kind of hard. There are a lot of places I would like to live.
Montreal.
Ireland.
Maine.
So it comes down to this — is this a move for good or for a little while?
Because if it’s a little while, you could easily add places like Austin, Texas, Philadelphia, South Jersey and some other places. And it all depends on what the move is for. Work? Pleasure?
Again, this question sheet baffles me!
Let’s say this, considering friends and family, I’d want to move somewhere in the Northeast. If I was to stay in New York, Albany is a place I’ve always enjoyed. There’s enough there to give you ample things to do, yet small enough where it doesn’t feel like a major city.
A view from my last trip to Maine.
But if I’m going further away, I really love Maine. It’s a great state. Good photo opportunities. Great natural things. I could see myself fully becoming a transplanted Mainer (obviously, I’d never be a full Mainer!)
Maine has always been a surreal place for me. I’ve visited a few times and have enjoyed each spot I’ve been to. Especially when you can get some awesome “lobstah.”
I’d want to be on the coast, however. The water is soothing. The lighthouses are amazing. The photo chances are endless.
I haven’t played up there yet, but I also hear the disc golf is excellent.
And I know the geocaching is really good in Maine.
The travel back to see friends and family would be a little longer, but doable.
And in the end, it seems like a place that would be fantastic to become part of. I’d probably prefer to be in one of the smaller areas on the coast, but know I’m not far from a city atmosphere for other things. What a life it could be.
Anyone know of any solid job leads there?
But, if this was more of a daydream question, there’s no question Montreal would win out. Even over Ireland, a place where I had an incredible time.
Looking over Montreal at night from Mont Royal.
Montreal is a city that has had my heart since my first trip there in the late 1990s. Since then, I’ve visited more than a dozen times in different seasons. The city is everything I would want in a place to live. Culture. Music. Sports. Photo chances. Everything.
There’s great food and excellent beer.
The people have always been friendly. I love the laid-back feel, too. Though you have that “mad city” feel at times, it’s not as crazy as, say, New York City.
It’s a clean city, too.
The summers are unbelievable in Montreal. There are so many festivals, concerts and everything else. I’m convinced you could do something different every day during the summer in Montreal and never consider doing the same thing twice.
I’ve made friends there that I still keep in contact with. I know the parts of the city I really enjoy and there is so much more up there to explore. It’s been a couple of years since I made the trip, but the love for this city never dies. I hope to get back there and have a vacation soon. There are so many other parts of the city I want to see, explore and take photos.
In the dream world, Montreal wins. In a practical world, Maine would win. In a realist world, Albany. Hopefully one of these spots will be my home one day, maybe even soon. Who knows? I can only hope.
Feel free to leave a comment, or e-mail P.J. at hoohaablog [at] gmail.com. Also, please “Like” HooHaa Blog on Facebook by clicking the button on the right side of the page!
My external hard drive is starting to fill up. That pretty much means I need to start shifting some things and deleting, or I might not have room for a lot of photos.
I have three external hard drives, but two of them are full and the third, which is a terabyte, doesn’t have much left. I know there’s a lot of waste on all three of them. So, over the next few weeks, it’s my hope to really clear a lot of space. In the end, I’d like to have the TB drive be all photos only — so I can get an online backup service as well.
Anyway, as I do that, I got peeking at some older photos. And that got me interested in looking at some older photos on Flickr, too. So, in this post, I am going to share some of my favorite (or not so favorite) photos from the Flickr archives. Things are going to be random. I am going to hit a few random pages and snag a photo of those pages and share them here.
I’m hoping to head out and shoot some fireworks tonight, so if things come out as I hope, I’ll look to share what I did and such with the images next Friday.
Page 40
Ahhh, this past September. We got some unseasonably warm weather and this page was basically filled with sports photos — a softball tournament and some flag football. Here’s one of those shots.
Foul ball!
Page 67
I had been catching up on posting some images, including from my trip to Ireland in 2010. Those photos were on this page.
Good advice!
Page 94
From April of last year, my trip to the Washington DC area and Arlington National Cemetery.
The unknown plots are extremely moving. There are far too many.
Page 123
From November 2010. One of my favorite disc golf photos.
My faithful buzzz.
Page 149
Ahhh, the Ireland trip. This wasn’t long after getting back. This was a shot I took in Howth.
My mother and brothers at Howth Harbor.
Page 165
The Oneonta Outlaws. Love some of the shots on this page.
Pitch coming in.
Page 187
Out on a photo day with a former co-worker. Watershed property…
Stay off!
Page 204
This big snowstorm at the end of February 2010 shut down local schools and even the local college. A great day to be out taking photos!
Snow!
Page 235
Geno’s Steaks, at night. December, 2008.
All lit up!
Page 270 (last page for now)
Downtown Montreal at night. I took this photo from Mont Royal in August of 2007.
Montreal!
I hope you enjoyed a slight trip through the archives with me. I’m sure as I get going through these external drives, I’ll be sharing more — and uploading a lot more to Flickr. I want to get a lot more of my photos on Flickr and put them together as sets. That way, they are there for all to see!
Feel free to leave a comment, or e-mail P.J. at hoohaablog [at] gmail.com. Also, please “Like” HooHaa Blog on Facebook by clicking the button on the right side of the page!