My birthday in Ireland...

I had one of my best birthdays ever today -- I got to spend it with my dear husband in Ireland. Even though yesterday he said he didn't want to do any driving today, guess what, we did. We went to Dromoland Castle and Hotel for lunch. On the way, we passed Quin Abbey, which is the photograph of the ruins that you hopefully can see here. The other photo is the hotel. It is a beautifully restored castle that is now an upscale hotel. Lunch was served in a small room that at one time (about 500 years ago) was a reading room. Lunch was lovely, very relaxing and one of the better meals we've had in a while. The view was spectacular. We had fun conversations with our waiter and with the sales manager that we met after lunch. The subjects of the economy and politics came up, as usual. On one hand, most of the folks here think that Obama is going to win the election, but on the other hand, they don't think that the United States is ready for a president of color. I guess they're covering all the bases.

Oh, I forgot to mention my birthday present: Besides a beautiful necklace, I received a new tire. Yes, we hit a mean pothole and wound up with a tire bubble. It was making me so nervous to drive with that (I kept envisioning us having a blowout, swerving out of control, winding up in the middle of a herd of Irish cows or worse) so Tom decided to calm my nerves and get a new tire. I was able to enjoy the rest of the day.

On the way home from lunch, we stopped at a local pub and had a birthday drink. One of my favorite things to do here has been to talk with the local residents. And there is no better place to do that than in the pubs. The annual budget came out today so that was a big topic of conversation. There was a lot of fear beforehand about what taxes would be raised and how it would affect individuals. I still don't understand much of it, but I did learn that petro, alcohol and cigarette prices are going to go up. This morning they feared that cigarettes would go up by two or more euros a pack and they were relieved to find out that it would only be half a euro. That means that one pack will cost 8.05 euros (almost $10 a pack). Tomorrow there will be a 34 page supplement in the Irish Times explaining in detail how the new budget will affect everyone. It is certainly an interesting time to be here.

When we got back to the cottage, I received a Skype call from both of my kids, actually at the same time and we were all able to talk together. That was a great treat and it was so sweet of them to call on the big day. Tom then made a delicious dinner and here we are, relaxing in front of a roaring fire, sipping some dessert wine.

Thank you to everyone who sent me b-day wishes. I appreciate them all. If you know me, you know that I love birthdays and this one has been no exception. I feel so lucky to be here, with Tom, to have another birthday, and to be able to communicate with all of you. Enjoy every day -- it doesn't make any sense not to.