Monday motherhood: the old sod, Happy St. Patrick’s Day

the girls moher

The earthquake this morning made me feel spry.  Getting out of bed is generally a slow process but today, I was up and running to the girls’ rooms like I was twenty-four.  Combined with coloring my hair just awhile ago, back to its former red, I feel almost like a leprechaun if leprechauns were women, living in the open, not making shoes or hording gold coins.  If I’m captured today while dancing a jig, I will certainly grant three wishes upon my release. We traveled to Ireland, the five of … [Read more...]

St. Patrick’s Day: proud to be Irish

I consider myself a redhead still, despite the gradual fade to blonde two weeks after the dye job, notwithstanding the natural gray that comes out of my follicles.  I was a towhead until I was seven or eight, then strawberry for five years after that, but for the next twenty-five years, whenever asked to put down hair color, I always scribbled in ‘red’.  Together with my last name – Egan – I was telling the world I was Irish and proud of it. May you always have walls for the winds, a roof … [Read more...]

Thursdays in the kitchen with Jo: Shepherd’s Pie for St. Patrick’s Day

I’m proud to be Irish but I’ve never really embraced the cuisine like I do Italy’s or Mexico’s.  There are specific items in Ireland’s culinary cupboard that I love – potatoes, for one – but not a lot of dishes that I regularly put together.  Despite a growing number of well-known Irish chefs – Rachel Allen among them – few of us ever say “Let’s go out for Irish tonight.”  On St. Patrick’s Day, however, it’s worth giving the Emerald Isle her due when it comes to answering the question, “What’s … [Read more...]

On being Irish: some thoughts

The utterly impractical, never predictable, Sometimes irascible, quite inexplicable, Irish. Strange blend of shyness, pride and conceit, And stubborn refusal to bow in defeat. He's spoiling and ready to argue and fight, Yet the smile of a child fills his soul with delight. His eyes are the quickest to well up with tears, Yet his strength is the strongest to banish your fears. His hate is as fierce as his devotion is grand, And there is no middle ground on which he will stand. He's wild and he's … [Read more...]

Today’s post: Japan needs a break as do Libyan rebels, NPR is on the chopping block and you should be wearing green

Depending on what you read and when you read it (I’m going with Bloomberg for now), Japanese officials at the Fukushima nuclear power plant are having some success pouring water on the compromised reactor #3 or they’re not.  Any way you look at it, no one wants to be within 100 miles of the radiation leaking into the air, yet hundreds of workers are risking their lives trying to prevent Japan from having the worst nuclear accident since Chernobyl.  Power outages are expected today throughout the … [Read more...]

Wednesdays with Wendy: top o’ the mornin’ to ya and marathon madness

I’m Irish.  I explained that all last week.  I was late meeting Wendy this morning because I was busy slicing three loaves of soda bread, one for each of my daughters’ classrooms.  They’re proud to be Irish today, though I’m not sure they know what it means other than wearing green and proudly explaining their first names to people.  If you don’t know me or my children, go ahead and guess what their names are.  Hint: all three suggest locations of the Emerald Isle.  (Duh.  Goldie, Bun Bun and … [Read more...]