Irish Dispatch I

Two notes from day 1 in the Emerald Isle...
1) Pick up the rental car, fortunately at 7am on a Saturday so the roads were empty while we got used to driving on the left, and turn on the radio. First thing we hear... Tom Brady is expecting a baby with Giselle. I should note that we're even in the actual Beyond the Pale section of the country.

2) On Friday the 19th I woke up at 7am, got on a plane at 7pm, arrived in Ireland at 6am local time on the 20th (all the while not sleeping on the plane while confirming that the sun never set during our flight), drove around the country all day, and now it is 8:30 pm local time. But since I've also traveled north ~10 degrees of longitude, and it is the 2nd longest day of the year, 8:30 pm local looks like ~6pm -- i.e. the sun is still hours away from setting. In conclusion, I've been awake for about 33 consecutive hours, and probably won't fall asleep for another few. All things being equal, I actually feel pretty okay.

Oh, third note as well. Maggie, the only regrettable character from Caddyshack, asserts that Lacy Underalls has been plucked more times than the rose of Tralee. I was in Tralee today. First, they have a very nice rose garden. Second, The Rose of Tralee is a title bestowed upon a local girl in a beauty paegant each year. So I got that going for me...

Western Ireland is unbelievable, by the way. Gorgeous. And it was sunny all day!