seeking clarity
Union Pacific Engine #4014 otherwise known as ‘Big Boy’, the largest steam locomotive ever built was in my town recently. I had the great opportunity to take my 84 year old Father to see it.
We weren’t allowed to get very close to the engine but could still understand the magnitude of the machine from our viewpoint. We didn’t get to see it in action but they did have it steaming and blew the very loud whistle several times.
Ai (Ah-ee) is Japanese for ‘Love’. One of my favorite Japanese ‘Kanji’ characters. Not just because of its meaning. I lived in Japan for 2 years as a young man and was fortunate enough to be in Japanese calligraphy classes a few times. Each time I wrote this character. I think I finally made it look decent. This character is not one of my calligraphy pieces however.
Warning! Epic post ahead. Lots of pics. If you make it through good for you!
First of all I should explain the reason for the trip. My father, who is now 82 years old, served as a Christian missionary in Ireland over 60 years ago. He has not been back and has yearned to do so. My siblings and I decided to make a journey with him and take him back. Yes, we went to Paris and London too but that was for my sister. “Can’t go all the way over there and not go to Paris!” She said.
I’ll let the pictures do most of the talking now. We were gone almost 3 weeks.
Here is our group -1. My son joined us later in Dublin. My pops is the old guy in the back 😉 Oh, we started our journey in Paris BTW.
I saw some art I’ve wanted to see for a very long time at the Musee d’Orsay. I’ve been to the Louvre before but did not get to see any impressionist paintings. So beautiful.
The hall of mirrors in Versailles Palace. What a place!
Shopping Center in Paris. What a cool place.
The pastries, and the food in general, were to die for in Paris.
We took the train through the ‘Chunnel’ and popped into London. Here is our group at Big Ben. Atsa big clock!
Fish & Chips! Of Course!
My daughter Shelby, a YUGE Harry Potter fan, had to get her pic at platform 9 3/4.
We took a cross England train to the port of Holyhead in Wales and took the Irish Ferry to Dublin. It was a lot of work transferring trains and getting all of our crap on the boat etc. but it was a great experience.
Our hotel in Dublin. Stauntons on the Green. Just off St. Stephens green and right near Grafton street and Trinity College. They gussied up the front of the hotel for St. Patricks Day.
The number one attraction in Dublin is the Guiness Brewery museum. We of course had to go and see what all the Guiness fuss was about.
I don’t drink alcohol so Guiness 0.0 was my choice at the Gravity Bar.
I have to say honestly even in Ireland beer tastes yucky. I don’t understand the draw.
How about a nice Irish stew? It was surprisingly good! Pub food for the win!
St. Paddy’s day parade in Cork. Crazy Irish!
Inch beach on the Dingle peninsula. The Atlantic Ocean. No, we did not see the Dingle Dolphin.
My Pops enjoying a rare sunny afternoon in Dingle.
Pops made some new friends at the Pub. Great guys!
View from the back of our 9 passenger van we drove all over the island. Sometimes I was in the front seat driving! Gulp!
Here is our group in the rain at The Rock of Cashel. Yes, it was raining. A common occurrence on our trip.
Blarney Castle. Home of the Blarney Stone.
Muah! Yes, I bent over in half (it felt like) to kiss the Blarney Stone. Now I supposedly will have the gift of gab!
Pretty accurate I think 😉
No, he didn’t actually knock. But, we thought he might.
At church in Limerick. We met some great people.
The Cliffs of Moher. Soooo beautiful and sooooo windy!
We lucked out and got a beautiful sunny day to visit on.
Another place Pops stayed at on his mission. He did knock on the door of this place and we got a guided tour of the 1st floor (floor zero in European parlance). Quite a bit has been changed in this building in the last 62 years.
A City Centre street in Galway. We shopped here for wool sweaters and such from the Aran sweater market.
Giants Causeway in Northern Ireland, UK. Fascinating natural phenomenon that formed these rocks in an almost perfect hexagonal shape. Another sunny day to visit this place. After all the rain we experienced we felt very blessed.
Just down the road from Giant’s Causeway is the ‘Dark Hedges’. Game of Thrones fans will recognize this shot.
Random store in Belfast, Northern Ireland. Not sure what they sell but it made me laugh.
St. Patricks grave in Northern Ireland. Dad really wanted to come back here for some reason. It was a short visit.
Sheep. Lots and lots of sheep. Saw more sheep than people I believe.
There you have it! It was a wonderful trip and will cherish the memories for a lifetime.
Time for a confession. I am addicted to Coca-Cola. There I said it forever to be recorded on the internet. So, to feed this addiction I visit a LOT of McDonald’s restaurants. I’m somewhat of a Coke snob and have determined the best fast food Coke is at McDonald’s. Period. In my travels I visit many many McD’s and have the chance to see how homogenous their service and products are. The Coke varies slightly by restaurant. Something to do with the particular mix of syrup and carbonated water. I can tell. Anyway, something I have noticed recently is what you see in the pic above. The “Be Back Soon” on the ice cream choices.
I feel the need to post about this because I can’t believe how often I am seeing this “Be Back Soon” label for the ice cream on the ordering screens. I know there is a popular meme out there in internet land about the squirelliness of McD’s ice cream machines. Here is proof positive it is really ‘a thing.’ My mind is blown however by how a corporation the size of McDonald’s would allow this to happen, never mind continue like this for years on end. It’s a big black mark and whoever decided to advertise the problem by marking the screen “Be Back Soon” has done McD’s a big disservice in my opinion. I think it’s a mistake even though I can see the thinking that notifying the customer is a good thing. It really sticks out. I don’t ever order the ice cream at McD’s and evenso it sticks out like a sore thumb to me.
Here’s hoping they can get this massive problem under control sooner than later.
Now if I see a “Be Back Soon” over the Coca-Cola on the ordering screen there’s gonna be a real problem!!!
“time is running out, so spend it like it’s gold”
One Republic Lyrics from ‘I Ain’t Worried.’
This lyric really struck me as I listened to this song recently. All of us have our ‘time’ running out. It’s part of life. Spending our minutes like they are gold was so profound to me in that moment. It keeps running through my mind even days after hearing it. I think it has changed the way I think.