Is it really the first post this year??? I must have been very busy :)) I guess I was..so, there we go...
I meant to write this post a good few weeks ago but somehow, I always had other stuff to do...sometimes the inspiration goes away when I don’t put it down to paper when it’s fresh but this one keeps coming back to me…the thoughts and feelings about are still there…and somehow I feel I cannot write anything else before I populate this one…of course, the last couple of weeks were busy enough to think about things like blogging but it’s a bit quieter now and I’d like to put down some other news so I had to finish this one first…:)
And what I actually mean?? The little things I didn’t really realise or appreciate enough when I was in Ireland…nothing crucial but sometimes essential…
1) The proximity of everything…or better said, the accessibility of getting to places…oh how I wish there was a LUAS line here…and even better a stop situated 10 minutes walk from my home as before…shopping and getting stuff would be so much easier..not only the buses here are sometimes very scary, their schedule is very funny…and not particularly regular…even travelling to the capitol would be a different story…although so far, that service is quite fine…and with a good train it only takes 35 minutes..but still...I got very lazy...or let’s say comfort-orientated..
2) Flat footpaths…one of those things you don’t really realise you need until it’s not there…so now, when I don’t have my yella fella waiting outside waiting to take me anywhere comfortably but I have to walk some distances, all the glamour gets away and no heels are allowed…they became dangerous with all those bumps and holes and uneven surface all over the place…so a pair of boots with nice flat soles is my new friend now…even though I still sometimes try to persuade myself ad take the ankle boots :)
3) Seafood chowder and a proper Irish breakfast…not really healthy diet things, I agree, but sometimes, you really have the nibbles for it…while the second one isn’t so difficult to prepare, it’s not the same, the sausages are different, the bacon is more bacon than meat, the cheese is rarely cheddar and the beans, well, I found some cans in groceries but still keep looking for the proper Heinz version… (in that endeavour I found Heinz Original Tomato Soup which I’m absolutely pleased with!! And always remember what Ken (KMcI for those who know) said – there’s something healing in that soup)..so god bless the globalisation and the fact that Tesco or M&S are here as well and at least with the Ulster fry, there might not be necessary the local supplements, but all the real stuff should be available :)))
4) Penneys…and the other cheap good fashion stuff I miss a lot…and even though the throw-away fashion isn’t the best option and I also prefer quality long lasting stuff, I still cannot afford it :)or at least all of the wardrobe…so the freedom of going shopping, find some really good pieces if you’re lucky and not spend a fortune is one of the things lacking here…around, I still have that feeling that the brand is the most important thing..and not the style or look…and uniformity is quite regular…all teenage girls have to wear the skinny jeans, over-knee boots, small jackets and look all exactly the same…
5) Understanding of customer service…and about this I could write for ages…me, as a nice customer and an understanding creature, can appreciate if there is stress and pressure on the sales people let’s say before Christmas and when the shop is full…but a lot of them are nasty all the time, with the look that could kill..and if you as a customer have to demand their help…the other day I was in a no-named telephone operator shop and was “served” by a man, who couldn’t be arsed…I had a problem and he wouldn’t give a s*?t about its solving or helping me as such. He just answered my questions while I tried to get somewhere towards solving it…he just made me absolutely sad…how this kind of people can work in services??? And if he only would be alone…but not a chance, the old clerks’ system from the years before here is sooo engraved in people that it is really sad and frustrating…
6) Non-smoking bars and pubs…really, I could run now to McSorley’s or Keoghs…to find a good place where they serve good pints or cocktails and it’s not filled with thumb thick cigarette smoke is quite a challenge…as the law is still not on my side and the people are still so stupid that they’ll rather stink like an ashtray when going out, it is putting me off to even go out and have fun…is it really sooo difficult to go for that fag outside, go back and have fun with all your friends regardless on their smoking habits and then go home and don’t stink horribly?? I only hope that the parliament people will be brave enough to support this by law, come on, when it was approved in Ireland (and it’s successful!), it cannot be so heartbreaking here!!!but sometimes the obvious things in life are the ones we cannot cope with…but that is not only about smoking now :)
7) And the last but not least – what comes to mind now – is English. Specifically thinking and creating in English….in my new job now, the use is minimal, I’m trying to find ways how I can use it more because it’s really something I miss…I didn’t even think so…but I became a part of me and doesn’t seem to be fading away….and that’s why this post is in English too…to not to forget..and to please….
I’m sure there would be more…but 7 is enough for now…and hopefully I will soon mention some of things I like here and they are worth to write about…
For now, I can only promise that the next post will be positive…about the two new things in my life – the job and the apartment…so write you soon….
