Consequences of Cold

Even though a seventy-degree fall (ahem, SLO friends) sounds fabulous right about now, I am enjoying soaking up the cold weather. Or at least what it brings along with it. As my mom says, I have been "nesting," making comfort foods and bundling up. A few nights ago Colleen and I made homemade macaroni and cheese (which my Irish roommate promptly declared "so American") and last night I made some delcious, buttery shortbread. Perfect for dunking in tea! Which reminds me: I now have a new favorite blog. Check out www.smittenkitchen.com. She tries out delicous recipes and let's you know how they turn out. Besides giving you great recipe ideas, she is really funny and puts up great pictures. Trust me, you'll be addicted too if you like to cook or bake!

Only in Ireland

One reason I love Ireland is because it is so endearing. For the most part, the culture here is very similar. But, like the story of the builders constructing the wrong university building on the NUIG campus, sometimes Ireland is very different than the US. Last weekend I came upon another story like this that reminded me why I love this place. We were on our awesome land/water tour in Dublin and boated past an old ferry. The ferry was docked with one side facing the an apartment building, and the other side facing the opposite side of the river, where there was another, more distant, apartment complex. The side facing the river, and that we saw, was completely run down. It looked like a boat that had (barely) survived the Perfect Storm. The funny part was that the other side was newly painted and in great shape. This was because the people in one apartment complex complained about the boat, while the people on the other side did not. So what did they do? They painted the side that faced those who complained, and left the side that faced those who didn't. It was yet another "only in Ireland" experience.

Senior Project Woes

So, devoted readers, I need your input. The time is coming when I have to make a decision on what to do for my senior project. For those of you who have not had the benefit of hearing me complain about this yet, every History major has to write a forty page paper during their last two quarters at Cal Poly. I am having major problems coming up with/committing to a topic. So...that's where you come in. Here are my ideas so far:
1. The Salem witch trials (and how the role of children in the trials escalated the witch hunt).
2. Joseph Kony and child soldiers in Uganda (pretty much what Invisible Children is dealing with).
4. The Easter Rising in Ireland (the beginning of their independence).
5. The "Troubles" between Northern and Southern Ireland.
Does any of these stand out? Or anyone have any interesting ideas? I know it really comes down to what I am most interested in, but I would love some input anyway. Thanks!

Good News: I was productive today! Considering these days are few and far between, this is exciting.

Bad News: All of the New Moon midnight showings in Galway are sold out. Already!!! No one here quite understands my pain.

Dublin

I LOVED Dublin. It is such a good mix between a typical big city and a typical Irish town with colorful buildings and charming pubs. I think I will just start in the beginning and walk you through the highlights of the weekend. When we first got to the city we checked into our hostel (let's just say a hostel is quite different than a hotel, but this one was mercifully clean and quiet) and then made our way to the "Viking Splash Tour." I know - so exciting! On our way there we walked past stores already decked out with Christmas decorations, saw an aspiring rock band, and stopped in a cafe for coffee (the majority of the group) and cookies (me). Despite this delightful walk through downtown Dublin, I was excited to start our tour, which reminded me of a Disneyland ride. We sat in a "duck" boat (they were from WWII and can go on both land and water...I'm sure you know what I'm talking about Grandpa) with about 25 thirteen year old girls from Spain. Which was interesting. Our crazy (and cute, I should add) tour guide made up for this though, for as we drove through Dublin on our tour he would have us all yell, Viking-style, at unsuspecting passerby. Although this was probably geared towards the hoard of preteens on our tour, it was nonetheless very entertaining.
After this unorthodox tour we headed to Dublin Castle. It no longer looks much like a castle, besides a stone courtyard and a big tower. It was cool to see inside though, because this is the building the government still uses for a lot of their state events. After this we went to the Guinness factory (you can imagine how interesting this was for me) where I got a free pint that I promptly gave away (I haven't warmed to Guinness yet) and wasn't able to visit the only part that interested me: the gift shop. Luckily for me, there is no shortage of gift shops in Ireland. We ended the night at the Temple Bar, which is apparently a famous Dublin pub. It was the Ireland v. France game, playing to compete in the world cup, so it was absolutely packed. I mentioned to one of the girls that it reminded me of the Quidditch World Cup in Harry Potter, and she looked at me like I was insane. Apparently she's not a big HP fan. Oops!
Today we slept in (fantastic) before we headed off to finish our tour of Dublin. We started out at Kil-----? Jail (I don't remember how to spell it) which is the jail that, along with other things, held the leaders of the Easter Rebellion of 1916. The history geek in me was in heaven. I could rave about it forever on here, but I will spare you all. My group finally peeled me away from the jail, and we headed off to Trinity College. We were given a tour by the most "posh" professor ever, and then went to their library, which is the most famous part of the college. It is absolutely gorgeous. It is everything a library should be, and reminded me of the one in Beauty and the Beast, but even better. I even snapped a forbidden picture, despite the guard lurking in the corner. I know, I am quite the daredevil.
So now I am back in my apartment, cozy and ready for bed. I hope you all had a great weekend as well!

Holidays? I think yes.

Is it the start of the holiday season yet? Although some of you might think it is too early to start celebrating, I have decided to give in. It's just so much more fun that way! Take today for example. Even though I walked all the way to the grocery store only to discover that I had forgotten my wallet, and even though it is once again cloudy and gray out, I am still having a great day. Why? Because I have decided to start my holiday season. So I turned on the Beach Boys Christmas album (because in the Hitch house, this is classic Christmas music) and spent the afternoon baking a favorite holiday (or for that matter, anytime) treat: Oatmeal Carmelitas. For those of you who are interested, the recipe is below (all credit to Sue and Sarah Rich). I highly encourage you to try it!

Oatmeal bottom and topping:
2 cups flour
2 cups oatmeal
3 cubes butter
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 1/2 cups brown sugar

Middle:
3/4 cup caramel
3 tablespoons flour
chocolate chips

Heat the oven to 350 degrees, and grease a 7x11 pan. Make the oatmeal mixture and split it in half. Put the first half in the greased pan and bake for 10 minutes. While it is baking combine the caramel and the flour. Top the oatmeal bottom with chocolate chips (to taste) and caramel. Crumble the rest of the oatmeal mixture on top, and bake for another 15 minutes. Cool and enjoy!!

Scotland

What should I say about my trip to Scotland? Well, to start with, it was cold. Although the first few days were about the same temperature as Ireland (and not quite as wet) by the third day it was so cold we could see our breath, even in the middle of the afternoon. When we first got there Colleen and I were met at the airport by Gloria, my "host mom" from this summer. It was so good to see her and her husband! Not only did they pump us full of scalding hot tea and give us cozy beds to sleep in, but it was a great chance to catch up and have great conversations. The next day Caitlin met us in Glasgow where we met up with some friends from the summer for lunch. Once again, it was so good to catch up with these people, especially because I was never guaranteed to see them after this summer. What a blessing! This was followed by a speedy tour of Glasgow given by one of Caitlin's Stirling friends, and then we headed off to Stirling. Stirling is just what a little Scottish town should be. It is "chockablock" (aka stuffed full) with brown brick buildings and houses and topped off with a beautiful castle above the town. We got to meet her friends (who are sooo nice), go to her bible study, and explore both Stirling and Edinburgh. Now that I'm back I have school work and laundry to catch up on before the next adventure: Dublin!