Wednesday, August 20, 2025

Midweek: rummage pre-sale and placemats

 

Yesterday's forest preserve hike was close to home at Van Patten Woods.  79 degrees and partly cloudy made it comfortable. I've walked the same trail in 85 degrees with full sun.  

Tussock moth and monarch caterpillars both eat milkweed.  Their coloration is meant to deter predators; apparently milkweed-filled caterpillars don't taste very good.  (How do scientists figure that out?)


Husk cherries or ground cherries.  The ripe fruit is golden yellow and easy to spot in the fall when the husks have dried up.  The flower is about 1/2". 





On Monday afternoon I helped set up for this weekend's church rummage sale. Earlier in the summer I brought over boxes of stuff, including a lot of Stevens' clothes. It was a little weird/sad to see his things on the racks and tables, but I realized that I've donated a lot of clothes over the years.   Helpers get to purchase before the sale and I did.  

These bluework pillow shams were $1.00 each. 

No stains on these vintage table cloths.

 


And this wooden box because it's pretty as well as a handy size.

(Two weeks ago the sale chairman texted me and said, "We got a box of quilt fabric if you want to take a look."  I went over to the church (and took another box of stuff to contribute), sorted through the fabric, and took some (but not all). For free!)

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I made six placemats out of orphan blocks.   Added to the four I made last week, I've achieved the 10 placemats for my monthly goal. 


Linking up with Wednesday Wait Loss

Monday, August 18, 2025

Weekly update: festival and pillows

 


Two more forest preserves checked off the list: Rollins Savanna on Friday and Old School on Sunday. 

Top: compass plant, woodbine (also called virgin's bower and devil's darning needles!).  


Bottom:  wild petunia, great blue lobelia. 

No walk on Saturday. Zion Woman's Club helped at the welcome table on Saturday at the  Zinnia and Monarch Festival.  It's a celebration of community diversity and unity.   Zinnia seeds are given out every spring and at this time of year the colorful flowers are in home gardens and at businesses.   





There's a monarch release, too.  



After that shift ended I went to Pleasant Prairie (just over the state line) to join Rotarians at the Battle of the Border.  Our club partnered with the Antioch (IL) and Kenosha (WI) clubs in a tug-of-war.   I arrived after the competition (Antioch won) but enjoyed visiting.   


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The immediate family will gather in Vermont at the end of the week for Stevens' interment.  I planned to drive but changed my mind.  Before I bought the plane ticket I checked with the funeral home about shipping his ashes.  No problem!  They shipped the urn and its contents to the funeral home in St. Johnsbury for $159.50.  A small price to pay for peace of mind. Delivery confirmation came Friday.   (My friend who is retired from USPS said that postal workers always handle the 'remains' boxes with extra care.) 


Julie asked for one of her dad's flannel shirts.   


I bought a pattern on Etsy that preserves the collar.  Note the L.L. Bean label. 

I agonized over the project about five times longer than it took to sew the three pillows.  


I sewed the labels on (note he's wearing that particular shirt in each photo) before figuring out how to attach the suspenders.  I am not going to rip and resew.  

The plane ticket was pricey but it's worth it.  I'll fly to Burlington on Thursday and return the following Thursday. That will give me time to do some sightseeing.

Linking up with Design Wall Monday  Monday Musings (thanks for the shout out, Brenda) Oh Scrap!   Sew and Tell 

Friday, August 15, 2025

Friday check in: sunshine, a meet up, and placemat progress

 


Sunshine, heat, but low humidity make it good walking weather.  I added two more forest preserves to my 2025 Hike Lake County log.  

(They designate 14 trails.  Participants have to walk (run, bike, jog...) seven of them to get the little commemorative medallion.  I overachieve and do all 14.)


I picked as many black raspberries as I could reach and carried them in my cap. They were great with vanilla ice cream.


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Yesterday was a Magpie meet up.  Marie lives in Texas and came to visit her nephew Austin.  He lives in a Chicago suburb northeast of Anna and southwest of me.  We four met for lunch in Glen Ellyn and enjoyed a little retail therapy at A Different Box of Crayons.  The quilt shop is terrific but the company of longtime friends was even better.  

(I bought two FQs and that was it!)

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I'm not quite finished with a time-specific project -- photos and the story in my next post. 

Meanwhile, I've made four placemats out of the ten for my monthly goal.   The orange HSTs are the cutaways from this month's top-along. 

Linking up with Finished or Not Friday


Monday, August 11, 2025

Weekly update: what goes around + quilt exhibit

The guild hosts a monthly skill-builder workshop to teach a particular technique.  This Saturday it was machine-sewing pogaji.   Pogaji, sometimes spelled bogaji, are Korean patchwork wrapping cloths.  (See more here .)  Traditionally they are hand-sewn but quiltmaker Elisabeth Decroos of  Epida Studio has developed (perfected) pogaji style by machine.  

 Guild member Karen showed us the trick to this *reversible* patchwork:  flat-felled seams.  The second trick is to use batiks since they are reversible anyway. 

Top: Karen's class sample.   Bottom:  what I created. 


 A closeup. 



What goes around comes around:  Dawn brought a tote bag to the skill-builder class. It held some of her sewing supplies.  I recognized it -- because I made it!   That was back in 2017. I donated it to some worthy cause.  Dawn bought it at the Salvation Army store in McHenry for less than $10.00.  


Barbara (Stash Overflow) is visiting family in Illinois this week.  Yesterday she drove up from Chicago, picked me up, and we went to the Wisconsin Quilt Museum.   

Getting there posed a challenge. Neither of us had read the weather reports.  On Saturday night the Milwaukee area was hit with the heaviest rainfall on record -- 5.74" in the city and up to 10" in outlying areas.  (The final evening and day of the Wisconsin State Fair were cancelled.)   We found this out after we'd exited the interstate and found eastbound state roads were closed due to high water. 

We were able to drive through this, albeit very slowly. The flooding was much, much worse on other roads. 

After several detours we got to Cedarburg in time for lunch.  Fortunately the town streets were dry (though Cedar Creek was really, really high) and the museum is on a hill.   


Whit/Whim is an eclectic exhibit. 


 25,000 one-inch squares makes a BIG quilt! 








Wiggle Quilts by Luke Haynes.  It took us a while to figure out that the two cutouts are the same. The antique quilt is a beauty and it must have taken a lot of courage to cut into it. 



I really liked this collaborative quilt. It was made from 2020-2022 by the Maryland Institute College of Art Raffle group. 

We returned via I-43 through Milwaukee.  Higher and drier!   

It was a most pleasant day.


Linking up with  Design Wall Monday   Sew and Tell    Oh, Scrap!   Monday Musings


P.S.  More from the exhibit. 

Friday, August 8, 2025

Friday check in: the heat is on

 The cool front that brought wildfire smoke from the north has left us.  In its place is heat and humidity.  Not ideal conditions to begin this year's Hike Lake County!  I went out after supper yesterday to the closest of this year's routes.  Spring Bluff is near the lakefront so it is a few degrees cooler than inland.  Early this morning I contemplated going farther west for trail #2, but even at 7:00 it was muggy.   Hike Lake County goes until November so I have time.  

 Every year the Lake County Forest Preserves designates 14 trails for Hike Lake County. The challenge is to complete seven of them, record that on a log, and submit it to LCFPD by November 30 to get a commemorative patch.  We began doing HLC in 2000 -- with me on the trail and Stevens guarding the parking lot, as you've seen in so many photos. 

Top right: a dozen young rabbits hopped across the trail. Center: tansy. Bottom: there's a scenic overlook; mountain mint; end-of-day over the savanna. 

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Michael Nardi is one of the reasons our quilt guild has had a resurgence of enthusiasm and membership in recent years.  He told us his quilt journey at the meeting Wednesday.

  From sewing lessons at a Joann Fabrics in Chicago to huge fan and personal friend of Jenny Doan and Missouri Star Quilting to published designer (American P&Q, Fons & Porter) -- and his first fabric line will come out this fall from Andover.   

He designed and made these quilts.  You can find him on Etsy at Bryn Mawr quilts.

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In my studio:   

Phyllis is this month's pattern in the Running Doe Top-along.  

I'm calling my version Peace, Love, and Phyllis because of the focus print.











I've sewn and trimmed all 96 of the cutaway triangles. 



 I put them aside for the time being because I'm working on the next round of the guild round robin. 

M.D. provided an array of Tilda prints to complement her center block.  I made nine-patches and now have to set them.


My to-do list today is to catch up on estate affairs (getting there), work on the Woman's Club yearbook, and stay cool.  

Linking up with Finished or Not Friday




P.S.  Tomatoes from my garden.  More to come.

Wednesday, August 6, 2025

Midweek: three finishes!

 On Monday I drove to Beaver Dam, Wisconsin, to deliver my three Wisconsin Quilt Show entries to the Nancy Zieman store.   

The store is a full-line quilt shop and, yay me!, I did not buy anything.  There is an exhibit about Nancy and her career.   

A year ago we made the same trip. It was Stevens' last day trip. Just 110 miles but logistics were getting difficult then.

# # # # # 

In the studio:  


My RSC project this year is making 20 9" Ohio Star blocks in the monthly color for a wheelchair-sized quilt. 

The July purple is quilted and bound.




 The August RSC color is aqua.  I expanded that to include teal and turquoise.  I paired those with dark blue.  The striped border fabric was a serendipitous find in my stash.  


And it's finished, too!


The insert strip  was so that I didn't have to match the small checkered pattern of the backing.  









I wrote that I picked up Old Town, the Quiltville mystery, from Barb-the-quilter.  Yesterday I sewed the binding.  

Closeup: the two fabrics on the back and the serpentine stitched binding. 


Though I'm going to donate the quilt (AAUW raffle next year), for now it looks nice in Stevens' room with its robin's-egg blue walls. (He didn't think twice before choosing the color.) 


Linking up with Wednesday Wait Loss 

Monday, August 4, 2025

Weekly update: a hug, quilt show entries, stash report, and August goals


 I've enjoyed walks nearly every day.

Top: swamp milkweed, purple coneflower, blue lobelia. Center: vervain, liatris (blazing star), red lobelia. Bottom: nodding onion, pinnate coneflower (Mexican hat), Culver's root. 



Milkweed nourishes monarch caterpillars and tussock moth caterpillars.


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On to quilting!

My dear Magpie friends made a two-sided hug quilt for me. It was in the mail held for me during my trip.  It began as two hugs, one for Stevens and one for me, but it turned into one.  The blocks are from the U.S., Canada, England, and Australia.  


My side was assembled by Terri and Gilly in Australia. 

The photo was taken at the orchid show earlier this year. 


Stevens' side was assembled by Katie in Nebraska, and quilted there.

Many of the Magpies had met him at our meetups in Australia (2014) and Maine (2018). 

I cherish it!




I entered three quilts in the Wisconsin quilt show. All three were accepted!

Left: Round Robin Medallion. Right: Grayscale. Bottom: Red Tie Log Cabin.

 

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Stash report, July:  

Fabric IN:  28-1/2 yards, $10. (Estate sale bargain.)  Average:  .35 per yard.   

Fabric OUT: 29-1/8.   

YTD fabric in: 788 yards, $285, average .37 per yard.   YTD fabric out:  637 yards. 

I've already added to the stash this month with more bargains.  I picked up a quilt from Barb-the-quilter.   She gets scraps and destashes from her other customers and gave me several bags.  By weight, 112 yards -- for free!   I went to an estate sale on Friday. Lots of fabric, but I waited and returned in the closing hour on Saturday. I made a deal.  $30 for 82 yards (by weight).  I also went to a church rummage sale and got 11 cotton shirts for $4.00  

I will report quilting progress in Wednesday's post.

My goal for August:   get back to the placemat project (can I make 10?) and set the guild BOM blocks.

Linking up with Design Wall Monday Sew and Tell Monday Musings Oh Scrap!

Stories from the Sewing Room

Saturday, August 2, 2025

Road Scholar: Enchanting Ireland: Town and Country


 A trip to Ireland was just the right way to celebrate my 50th Road Scholar program!  Click on the tab to see the entire list.  We've met several RS 'centenarians' over the years and one man who'd been on 150+.  My parents went on a dozen Elderhostels (as it was then known) so I am second-generation.  Of all the Ireland tours offered I chose this one because, at the time, I didn't want to leave Stevens (with a caregiver) for too long.  I'm happy with all that I saw and did. 

on the approach

Friday, July 18:   Overnight flight from O'Hare to Shannon. 

Saturday, July 19:   Ten of our Road Scholar group were on the same flight.  As we waited in the airport hotel lounge for later flights to arrive, I realized: it’s time for Wordle! And three other people pulled out their phones to log in. 

Everyone accounted for, our bags were loaded on the 26-passenger  bus. We drove 32m (51km) northwest to the village of Ennistymon in Co. Clare.  We checked into the Falls Hotel, our base for three nights.     

The Falls of the River Inagh as seen from the hotel

After lunch I took a walk around the town.  It was a market center for the local dairy business.  "Butter from Ennistymon reached tables all over Ireland and England. A firkin of high quality butter cost about L7 in 1918 and a toll of 3p was due on every firkin than came to market."  (text from a marker)


The Ennistymon leabharlann—library—wasn’t open but looked through the window. The signage and the book titles I could see were in English.  It is a branch of the Co. Clare library system. 

 


July 20    Sunday part 1: to Galway. A port and trading center for centuries. The tour guide was very good, incorporating a little humor and audience participation along with dates and facts. There was free time to continue to explore. Dale (one of the other singles in our group) and I went to the Galway Museum, then joined others from our group for fish and chips lunch.  
These families dominated Galway



Top: Lynch's Castle (medieval fortified house with additions; now a boutique hotel); Nora Barnacle's birthplace (James Joyce's sweetheart).  Bottom: the claddagh (heart/hand motif) was invented in Galway; a pub dating back to King Charles II. 

Sunday, part 2: coach from Galway to Coole-Garryland Nature Reserve. Coole Park was the home of Lady Augusta Gregory. She became interested in Irish language and culture and, with W.B. Yeats, founded the Abbey Theatre in Dublin. In addition to encouraging dramatic productions by GB Shaw, JM Synge, Sean O’Casey and others, she wrote 19 plays herself and acted in some of them. Coole Park, the house, was in great disrepair and was torn down. The grounds are now a 1,000-acre national park. 

Lady Gregory's autograph tree with initials carved by the literati who came to visit.



There's a herd of red deer at Coole Park. The gardens, both cultivated and wild, are beautiful.



At Coole Park: George Bernard Shaw visited and wrote postcards to Lady Gregory’s granddaughters. They have been reproduced in stone.






Sunday, part 3: after dinner. Irish music by the Custy family. (Ennistymon locals.)  Fiddle, harp, concertina.




July 21    Monday , part 1. The Burren is a region of glaciated karst/limestone. Today the 1800 hectare park abuts working farms (beef cattle and sheep). Kevin, our guide, led us on a nature walk snd explained the geology, human history (6000 years), and botany.

Top: guide (why the FBI cap? we'll never know); dry stone wall (single width is easier to repair if a cow kicks it); the Poulanbourne Dolmen (neolithic tomb? temple?).   Center: fragrant orchid (that's the name); Carline thistle about to bloom; the limestone is at the surface.  Bottom: hart's tongue fern; another fragrant orchid; more limestone.

Hair in the air at the Cliffs of Moher


Monday, part 2: after lunch (Irish stew at a restaurant in Kilfenora) we went to the Cliffs of Moher. Not cold but SO windy! The cliffs are shale and sandstone, exposed to the ocean and constantly eroding. More than a million people visit annually. 

I walked to the end of the north path, maybe a mile each way. The visitor center is built into a hill. It was so crowded I didn’t stop to see the displays, and I wanted to walk as much as time allowed.  


Monday, part 3. Free time. The bus stopped at the seaside town of Lahinch. Anyone in our group who wanted to get off to spend more time there could. Five of us, including me, did. The rest went back to the hotel. 

I went to the beach! But where was it? All I saw were big rocks for stabilization. Ah! It’s the Atlantic Ocean—and high tide! I walked farther and got a chance to put my feet in the water. (I dried them with the sweater stowed in my tote.) Then I walked around the shopping area and did a little retail therapy.

 Lahinch is 2 miles from Ennistymon.  There were three ways to get back: walking, the bus, or a cab.  I wasn't up to walking at that point and the group leader said bus service was erratic so I decided on a cab.  I went to the reception desk at a nice hotel and asked for help. She gave me a number and I called.  I waited and waited.  I asked the clerk for help again and she called: "How are you, Matt? I have a guest here waiting for you. Oh? I heard his father had died."     It turned out there was a really big funeral in Ennistymon this afternoon that backed up traffic in town and on the main road. When the driver finally picked me up he took me on the back road—one of those 1-1/2 lane roads where cars pull over to let oncoming cars pass. Once back at the hotel I went to a restaurant in Ennistymon for fish and chips.    I didn't see the other four from our group in Lahinch. Two of them took the bus back and two walked.


July 22     Tuesday morning Bunratty Castle. (Bun = bottom or end, so “mouth of the Ratty River.”).   
The original castle was built in 1425 by the McNamaras. It was home to the O’Briens from 1518 to 1645. The English Stoddards acquired it in 1720, built a country house, and let the castle fall into disrepair. In 1954 Standish Vereker, the Viscount Gort, bought it and restored it in order to house his collections of 15th-16th century furniture. 

Center: 10,000 yr old elk antlers preserved in a bog.  Bottom:  several tapestries from Gort's collection.

The castle, house, and grounds are now a “folk park” with cottages and shop buildings brought in (like Greenfield Village, Sturbridge, or Shelburne). The grounds are extensive and flower-filled.

We had a guided tour of the castle, then walked around the village on our own, then met at the tea room for lunch.

The "snapshot in time" is circa 1900. The quilt at lower right is tied. 

Bunratty castle fauna. White peacock and peahen and a regular peacock. Chickens beg for handouts outside the tea room.  (White peacocks are leucistic, a genetic anomaly. They are not albino.) 

From Bunratty to Adare, our base for the next three nights.  

 The Dunraven Arms opened in 1792. Fortunately it has been remodeled.  Adare is the site of the 2027 Ryder Cup so the town will become familiar to golf fans. The golf course is very exclusive and visitors are not allowed.

July 23:   Wednesday.  We left after breakfast to drive through the beautiful green (emerald!) countryside with stone walls marking off fields with sheep (mostly) and cattle. Destination: Dingle, 131 km/82 miles. Dingle is in County Kerry, an Irish-first county so many official signs are in Irish only. However, commercial establishments had English signage and it seemed only Irish-centric craft shops (jewelers, weavers, etc.) had Irish signage.

Dingle was an Anglo-Norman settlement and a port town for trade with France and Spain. Many emigrant ships sailed from Dingle. Now it’s tourism and holiday homes. Movies, too: Ryan’s Daughter was filmed here.  

We had free time until 1:30 to explore the town and have lunch.  I went to the aquarium which focused on global oceans rather than local, but that was okay because who doesn’t like penguins, sea turtles, and rays?   

 


Still in Dingle: the library was open so I went in.  Most of the collection was in English, though the shelf indicators were in Irish. There was a section with Ukrainian books.   Many Ukrainians have come to Ireland, a boon for employment especially in rural areas. 

I had lunch at John Benny's Pub because it reminded me of Waukegan's Benny Kubelsky, better known as Jack Benny.  


We got back in the bus and went down the peninsula. We stopped at a farm that has medieval “beehive” buildings. Even the roofs are stone. Remarkable construction. In the newer stone barn we got to hold the lambs 


Onward to the Gallarus Oratory, another example of a preserved stone building (called “dry rubble”) 







 Photos of the landscape because it is beautiful.

Wrapping up Wednesday:  excellent dinner in Tralee (where there is a Rose of Tralee contest every August). Back at the hotel in Adare I went for a walk along the river walk to enjoy the mild evening and stretch my legs. There were swans and another bird I didn’t know.



July 24  Thursday, part 1:   S
unshine and 70F.  We went to Coorevin Farm in Borrisokane, Co. Tipperary. Second-generation owner Padraig Moran gave us a tour and told us about modern Irish agribusiness. The original farm was carved out of an English-owned estate in 1837. After several owners Padraig’s father bought it. Now Padraig’s son Owen is co-owner. 120 acres owned, 300 leased. They have 90 beef cows, no dairy. (Dairy is a mega-business—we passed the Kerry HQ (Kerrygold butter, etc.).) Until recently they had sheep but the market wasn’t as good. All the cows are bred, born, and finished on the farm. The bulls are Charolais and Limousin. The cows are crossbred. No steers — there is a European market for bull beef.

EU agriculture regulations are tough with many levels of inspection, requirements and restrictions on hormones etc. A lot of hoops to jump through. Farm labor is nil — Padraig helps Owen; neighbors help out, but no hired help. Not only have human food prices skyrocketed in recent years (Ukraine can’t export readily), so have animal feed prices.  


Today’s (literal) field trip was one of the things that I enjoy about Road Scholar. I’d never have found this on my own and I learned so much.

Our group in front of the old barn.




Thursday, part 2: “Afternoon at leisure.” Seven of us opted to be dropped off in Limerick. I was one of them. Eliza and I had lunch at a place overlooking the Shannon, then toured King John’s Castle.  (He was the Magna Carta King John.)  


We thought we could get to the cathedral but it had closed just as we walked up the steps so we went to the Hunt Museum instead.


The Hunts were art collectors and connoisseurs who curated their acquisitions for design, craftsmanship, and artistic merit. Objects ranged from neolithic (the bronze shield in the photo) to contemporary (1930's). 

We met our fellow adventurers at the bus stop (interurban bus, not the 26-passenger bus that’s taken us out each day) for the 15km ride back to Adare.  

Inventive names for these champions



July 25.  Friday, part 1:   99 miles from Adare to Kildare.  We toured the Irish National Stud and Gardens. The stud farm was begun in 1900 by racing enthusiast Col. William Hall Walker. It’s a maternity hospital for mares — those brought in and their own — with their stallions, all champions. 250 foals are born there every year. They are all thoroughbreds, the genetics carefully watched and all aspects duly registered.  



Not only are there horses but there are also gardens. The Japanese Garden was created from 1906-1910.

There’s also a cafeteria, where we had lunch, and of course, a gift shop.


 


Friday, part 2: 37 miles from Kildare to Dublin. We checked into the hotel about 3:00 and had free time until dinner at 7:00. (The Grand Canal Hotel is conveniently located in the older part of Dublin.) 

I decided to explore and found the National Gallery of Art which, fortunately, was open until 5:30.

All Irish, British, and European paintings, very little sculpture or other media. Admission is free though 2 euros for a gallery map.




I walked back through Merrion Square (a park, actually) and got a picture with a statue of Oscar Wilde.  He grew up in a house facing the square.


 




July 26     Saturday, part 1: The group had a 90-minute bus tour of Dublin. We were dropped off at Dublin Castle. The original structure dates to 1209 to defend the city and later as the administrative center. Georgian architecture coexists with medieval stone towers. Over the centuries it became the seat of the English government. In 1922 when the Irish Free State was established the complex became government offices. All the presidents of Ireland are inaugurated here.

Top: the now-decomissioned chapel, the medieval tower. Bottom: the Georgian-era courtyard, the ballroom (inaugural setting).


Saturday, part 2: After Dublin Castle we were free for lunch and early afternoon. Dale and I went to the National Museum of Ireland and the National Library of Ireland which are adjacent to one another. Free admission. The library has a public building (museum); the administrative offices were next door (and closed on Saturday). 

NMI is remodeling so the only wing open is about Irish history and archaeology. (Animals and geology, etc., are not on view now.). It reminded of the ROM (Royal Ontario Museum) in Toronto. 

Top: Irish gold; a bog-preserved body (there was a video of the forensics--they could tell that his hair pomade came from Spain!), amber (Stevens loved amber and bought me a pendant and necklace that I don't wear often enough).  Center: a dress found in a bog (the white part is recreated); samples of Irish manuscripts. Bottom:  a sabot found in a bog (original LL Bean boot!), trousers (note the plaid matches at the seams).



NLI has a permanent exhibit about W. B. Yeats.

Center: Lady Gregory, the playwright from Coole Park and associate of Yeats in the Irish literary revival.



Saturday, part 3:    The group reconvened at Trinity College at 2:45.  ("Do not be late!")

Major bucket list check-off: The Book of Kells!  Timed entry strictly observed. There is an extensive exhibit explaining Irish manuscripts (a nice follow up to what I’d just seen at the National Museum).


The actual Book of Kells is in a showcase, no photographs allowed. They turn the pages every six weeks. It’s like the Mona Lisa in that it’s very small in proportion to its reputation. But still wonderful to behold.




And then — the Trinity College Library! They are in the midst of a major cleaning and re-inventory. There are flat-screen monitors in the bays of the stacks showing restoration methods.


There are 200,000 volumes in this collection. The contemporary Trinity College libraries have 7 million volumes.

"First range, third shelf, brown leather binding." 
The contemporary Gaia globe hangs over the reading room.




There was a protest Saturday afternoon. (Advocating for fair treatment of immigrants.)



Saturday, part 4:  evening.  We went to the Gaiety Theatre to see Lord of the Dance at the Gaiety Theatre.  This is the 30th anniversary.   It was grand!    

I remember seeing Riverdance at the Auditorium Theater in Chicago about 1999 and later Lord of the Dance at the Genessee in Waukegan.

 


July 27.   Sunday: “Explore Dublin on your own.”  
 I walked 1-1/4 miles from the hotel to St. Stephen’s Green, and across the street from that to the Dublin Unitarian Church.   My ALA friend Catharine moved from Oklahoma to Dublin when she retired and this is her church.   We've known one another 30+ years and it was so good to see her again!    Catharine was assigned to the greeter's table and I helped greet. Everyone was very welcoming.  Afterward Catharine, four others from church, and I had lunch at the cafe of MoLI, the Museum of Literature Ireland. Great conversation. 
 

Exhibits at MoLI 


Catharine and I then did a tour of MoLI and enjoyed chatting while sitting on a park bench on St. Stephen’s Green.

 Our timing was just off to see St. Patrick’s Cathedral so we went to Christ Church instead. Both are Church of Ireland (Irish Anglicans), very, very old, and very high church.   


We got in at the tail end of evensong at Christ Church. Then Catharine took the bus back home and I walked back to the hotel.

Such a lovely, lovely day.

 


Sunday evening: farewell dinner with Irish dancing. They have toured with Riverdance (he was in the company for 15 years). Nine performances a week. There are no understudies. The cast alternate as principals and in the chorus. Yes, it is physically taxing!

Monday, July 28:    nonstop flight from DUB-ORD.  Uneventful but long.  I walked in the door at 3:30. I had time to pick up the mail, get milk and lettuce, and do the laundry. I stayed up until 7:45 (1:45 Dublin time), woke up at 2:30, 3:30, and got up at 4:30.  Back to everyday life but with great memories.


I exercised restraint in gift/souvenir purchases. 






Quilters take pictures of floors. 

 

 




Clockwise:  Black-backed gull, swan, magpies, European robin, hooded crow.

European robins are flycatchers. North American robins are thrushes.



So many doorways!