More from Hollywood...

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Live from the Oscars!

Don't know if you know it... but I have made my way to the west coast of the USA. I've been out here for the past week working... and taking photos in my spare time! I have not had too much time for sightseeing... but I was able to get over to Hollywood yesterday. The place was crazy with preparations for the Oscars Sunday night! BUT... I did get a piece of THE Red Carpet!!!

I was collecting some dirt from the base of a palm tree (for my dirt collection - of course)... one of the workers saw me and came over to see what I was doing. He then asked if I would like a piece of the red carpet and handed me a section through the fence. How crazy is that??? I think that it is the perfect Hollywood souvenir!





















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A Follow Up Pic

Here is a picture of my amazing wife...








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Tradition!!!

(Warning: This post contains topless photos - of me)

;)

Christmas in Ireland wouldn't be Christmas in Ireland without a freezing dip in the ocean!!

I have to admit several things: It is a bit crazy and foolish... Stripping down to my shorts in front of my whole community isn't one of my favorite things to do... My toes will probably always be blue... and I will probably get sick (again)... But a memorable run into the freezing North Atlantic in the dead of winter with some friends is worth it!

I decided (for sure) to do it this year on Christmas Eve, while at a Christmas party. I don't know if it was male ego or party adrenaline that made me commit, but at the end of the evening myself and two of my friends had all publicly committed to run into the ocean. Now pride and self-respect were on the line... I couldn't back down. We all met at noon down at the beach - along with most of my neighbors and a good portion of the village. I was shocked, however, to discover that the tide was IN. Usually each Christmas swim falls when the tide is out, and we have a nice sandy beach to run across before we get to the water. This year, however, we only had the rocky top part of the beach and giant waves crashing into us as we entered the water!

There really is no way to describe the sheer pain of hitting freezing water in nothing but your swimsuit. The temps on land were just above freezing, and the water was a nice 11C (52F)... but the water didn't feel warmer (at all)! Once I entered into the surf there really wasn't enough time to do much of anything before I was pounded repeatedly by shoulder height waves. As the first wave hit, I decided to take the plunge and go under. The only problem was that I was so cold that I couldn't catch my breath. It was sheer panic washing over me as I took about a million small breaths just trying to fill my lungs. It was then that I realized that the wave hitting me had stolen my sandals (which I had foolishly worn into the water). So - as my friends ran for the shore - I was forced to endure a few extra moments as I dove for my shoes.

After I came out of the water there was about two minutes of pain and coldness which was followed by the strangest warm feeling that just swept over my whole body. As my body temperature fell the temperature outside began to feel warmer and warmer. For a few moments it actually felt like a summer's day, and I was content to be outside in just my wet swimsuit. Soon after this, Dee evacuated me to our home where a roaring fire, hot shower, and warm cup of tea were waiting on me.

I know that this does not sound like a lot of fun....... but standing on the beach with my friends... and being able to laugh together about it for the rest of the year makes the whole thing worth it!


Dee was kind enough to take pictures of the craziness. She said that it was so cold and windy out that her eyes were watering, and she couldn't really see what she was taking pictures of. I think that they turned out great! Here are just a few:



Me and the lads getting ready to go in!
( Notice that we were smiling BEFORE we got in...)




That is me on the right - about to get drowned by the big wave!




Still me on the right... Dee captured the moment that I jumped in...!






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St. Nick...

Just a fun quick pic of yours truly with my good friend St. Nick... I bumped into him while I was out Christmas shopping this weekend... I guess he was also out picking up a few last things!

I was sure to tell him just how good my nieces and nephews have been this year!






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For my mother in law

We have had a request for more pictures of ourselves... so this one is for my mother in law. It was taken yesterday during a brief but glorious sunny spell.







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More cottages...

Just a quick update with a few more old cottages.







Dee and our friend J





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Still Alive

I survived my little trip up Croagh Patrick. The jury, however, is still out on whether or not I will be able to walk tomorrow. The weather turned out to be spectacular... and I could hardly walk for taking pictures. Here are just a few that I took on the mountain...


St. Patrick greeting pilgrims at the base of the mountain





A better view of the mountain





Passing a pilgrim on the way down





A self-portrait





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Today's Random Pic... (By Dee)

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More from Achill Island...

Our time on Achill island with my parents was great. We had a month's worth of adventure in a single day. It really seemed like every turn of the road brought us a new and beautiful sight, a mountain to be climbed, or some historic sight that we needed to explore.


Here is just one of the little hidden beaches we went to.

















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Dad - the photographer

Sorry that things have not been updated much this week. We have just been having too much fun... and have had very little internet access. We took my parents to a beautiful spot for a few days of beach walking and hill climbing. Achill Island is Ireland's largest island. It is a dramatic mix of mountains and large white sand beaches. Mom enjoyed the beaches, and dad enjoyed the mountains. It was especially fun... because my dad has a new camera and a new video camera! Here are a few of the pictures he took over last couple of days...


















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Behind the Camera...

This is another little entry in a series of posts that I write from time to time called - 'Behind the Camera'. There is a saying that a photo is worth 1,000 words. Unfortunately, however, a photo never really tells the full story. You never see what else is going on around me when I take the picture.



What you see: Cute little ducks...





What you don't see: Dee behind me reading... She gets comfortable because she knows that I am going to be a while...






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Bruges…. (That is in Belgium….)

Have you ever seen the movie “In Bruges”? Well… we watched the movie and it inspired us to go there. In the movie, one of the main characters says about Bruges “it’s like a (explicative) fairytale”. It was SO true. Amsterdam is nice, but Bruges was amazing (5,000 times better)! This quiet medieval town does not have the traffic, noise, or bustle like the bigger cities of Europe...... and it has retained a charm and untouched beauty that is often masked in the bigger cities. I could not help saying ‘it is like a fairytale’ over and over…... and truly it was.

The town was busy and bustling from about 11am to 4pm, but then slowed down to a crawl... and we felt as if we had all of the sights and romantic squares to ourselves. We walked all over the city… road in canal boats... tasted homemade chocolates in shops that we passed… ate waffles for lunch… stayed in an old monastery… spit sunflower seeds from 700 year old bridges…. and shopped (and bought) in antique markets! It was a great place to spend our anniversary and Dee’s birthday.


















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Back Online...

Yes! We are still here! Sorry for the silence over the last few days... we traveled from Amsterdam to Belgium for a few days, and we didn't have internet access while we were there! I have to admit that part of me was frustrated not being able to update the site... but part of me was happy to be away from the computer for a few days! We are back now and have internet again... but it is VERY slow and spotty... So - I'll tell you more about Belgium tomorrow!



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10!

It is hard to believe... but this week Dee and I are celebrating our 10th wedding anniversary! Wow... where did a decade go? We are usually very busy with work during our anniversary (and Dee's birthday), but this year we declared that it was going to be different! We marked out some time that we were going to get away and celebrate... stay tuned for some pics from The Netherlands!


Us on June 19, 1999





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Bank Holiday

This weekend is a bank holiday weekend in Ireland. This basically is a holiday for the sole purpose of celebrating the first Monday of June. These bank holidays are sprinkled around the year, and are a great break in the normal routine. This bank holiday weekend is especially nice because summer decided to show up! The last few days have been amazing.... a scorching 75 degree temperatures... sunshine... and a few days of no work....... does it get any better than this? I spent most of Saturday afternoon 'working' in the garden. Little did I know that Dee was checking up on me... I should have known better than to leave the camera in the house...







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Some more pics...

Sorry for the lack of writing in this post and in the previous one... we have been on the go so much that I really have not had time to sit down and catch up on what all we have been doing. We head back to Ireland on Tuesday, and I really hope to tell a few fun stories about our time here. Until then... here are a few more fun pics of us here...


















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Today's Random Pics...

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