Bar Talk

FMM: 1 mi

Good day, everybody,

Still suffering from _Ballykissangel_ withdrawal, Bob and I inflicted ourselves upon O'Brien's Pub last night. It is a neat little place across the street that has an historical preservation order on it, so it can't be changed. The atmosphere is not contaminated by blaring big-screen televisions. In fact, a lot of conversation takes place there. Since there aren't many places to sit, you often find yourself standing or sitting by strangers. Bob always seems to make fast friends there. Last night we learned whose face graced the bank notes of the Republic of Ireland's for most of the 20th century. You mean you don't know? She was from none other than Illinois and it was stated that she was "the most beautiful girl in the Midwest." No, it wasn't me. Answer below...We also confirmed further than few Irish people know where Missouri is. If it's not Boston, New York, Orlando, Las Vegas, or Los Angeles, they haven't been there...Most on my mind has been my dear friend Mary Dierkes's brain surgery in Columbia yesterday. She is also a dear friend to many of you reading this. The good news is that she has been up walking and talking. We are all thankful for that and look forward to talking to her very soon..

Answer: Hazel Lavery (aka "Lady Lavery")

Boozing and schmoozing,

I remain
Tizzie/Tiz/Tizmom/Mom/Liz/Elizabeth

First Things First

FMM: 2 mi

Hello, Folks,

I would have blogged on time, but I have been out buying chocolate and wine for Teresa Foster's upcoming visit. You know how she is. I wouldn't indulge in such illicit commodities myself, but I had to go get some for her. And I did this in a sleeting downpour. In fact, we woke up to snow this morning....My second excuse is that Molly Skyped me from Indianapolis and I have been getting my first view of my new grand-nephew, Carson Clapper, for the past 30 minutes; I will probably call back for more when I get done...Last night I went to a classical piano concert sponsored by the American Women in Dublin Club. About 45 women and 5 husbands attended. Only 2 of the husbands were sound asleep throughout which I thought was pretty good...

Skyping and griping,
I remain
Tizzie/Tiz/Tizmom/Mom/Liz/Elizabeth

What are Friends For?

FMM: 9 miles

Dear friends, frenemies, & family,

Yes, the FFM (force march miles) is correct. Bob and I were scouting a seaside trail for our upcoming cycling visitors , Scott Foster & John Stegemann. The things we do for you guys! Our supposed scenic ocean view was actually a sandy expanse of soggy seaweed littered with unidentifiable and unmentionable items. We thought we saw at least one dead body. The tide was out. Bob, aware that he had me in his FMM grips as only he can and knowing that my ignorance precluded me knowing when the tide might come back in, marched me from Clontarf to Howth. I am still recovering. As always, I am doing these things for YOU, my friends...And for your edification, I have attached a picture of Bob on the walk. Look closely at the background. Notice the trees. I told you there were palm trees here. You didn't believe me...

Huffing and puffing,

I remain
Tizzie/Tiz/Tizmom/Mom/Liz/Elizabeth

Are my Duds Duds?

FMM: 2.5 mi

Hi, Saturday Slackers,

I can hear the mice squeaking from here! Go release them, beat them over the head if you need to (Tim can tell you how to do this), and get those mousetraps reset. Then sweep your porch, clean out the garage, and continue staining the deck. All done? Now you can sit down and enjoy the Blog from the Bog...You might be wondering how my clothes are holding up. Admit it. That has crossed your mind. I'll share an incident from last night. Since our favorite show has been taken off the air, Bob and I had to leave home and inflict ourselves upon society last night. I met Bob at Sinnot's Bar off fashionable Grafton Street wearing a zip up sweatshirt - stylishly accented with gray stitching which brings out the gray of the Mizzou shirt I usually wear under it -- but nonetheless a sweatshirt - which I usually reserve for my walks at the seashore. Bob was most effusive in his praise of my appearance. Where did you get that sweatshirt? (JC Penney's in Columbia) I like the color. (Yes, I do look good in yellow, don't I?) Why don't you ever wear that? (I've been saving it for a special occasion). It started me thinking of what I usually look like. I have three pairs of jeans. All are, in fact, slightly too short for me. This is not my fault. My clothes dryer only works on high, so they have all shrunk or else I have gotten taller. When I hang them to dry, they stay wet for about a week. I have a few neutral-colored sweaters and exactly one fashionable scarf which often gets caught in the zipper of my coat, but that's another story. I also have one pair of black pants and a black and white jacket which my sister donated to me when she visited. I have a plain black dress which I've worn exactly twice and and a skirt and top which I've worn exactly once. I have a well-worn pair of dirty walking shoes, a pair of stained and worn Sperry Topsiders, a pair of black leather shoes I stole from Molly with the heels currently at a 45 degree angle, a pair of $9.00 fake Uggs, a pair of black ankle boots which are my only concession to high fashion, and a pair of black heels which I've worn exactly once. Upon reading this, my friend Pam Mandell has now keeled over and Floyd is running for the smelling salts. My plan is to dispose of most of my clothes before I return to the U.S. in June. However, I have developed a strange attachment to them kind of like a how a child feels about and his teddy bear. I'm not sure I'll be able to. They are part of me. This morning I have put on the yellow sweatshirt again and am awaiting any and all compliments. I also have on a cute pair of patterned socks; however, due to a laundry malfunction, they are slightly different shades. I am reassured by my mother's mantra "Nobody's looking at me." I only hope that's true.

Probably not Ireland's next top model,

I remain
Tizzie/Tiz/Tizmom/Mom/Liz/Elizabeth

Bog Hopping

FMM: 8 mi

Happy Friday, Blogatoids,

Since you've demanded it, I've added a few pictures. One shows me bog hopping in Connemara; the other shows us with the Juergensmeyers on an Aran Island...In other news, our favorite TV show, _Ballykissangel_, has mysteriously disappeared. We sat down to watch it during dinner and another show had taken its place. We are distraught and disoriented. What are we supposed to do now? Now I know how Mom feels when _The Lawrence Welk Show_ is preempted on Saturday nights..Off to conquer the world with my purple wheelie cart.

Reeling and wheeling,

I remain
Tizzie/Tiz/Tizmom/Mom/Liz/Elizabeth

Blogger Seeks Stories

FMM: 3 mi

Hi, you knackered old readers,

It's finally happened. After 145 blogs, I've run out of things to say. Yesterday I didn't interact with a soul except a librarian who charged me a euro for an overdue book and a husband who asked me what was for dinner. In between times, I read a bit and watched episodes of _St Elsewhere_ and _The Good Wife_ and _Ballykissangel_. Do you think I need to get a life? I'm off to walk at the seashore. Maybe the ocean will inspire me. You can help too. Write and tell me your tales and I'll post them here. I'll even change names if you want me to. Really. Tell me anything..

Telling no tales,
I remain
Tizzie/Tiz/Tizmom/Mom/Liz/Elizabeth

Nancy & Nothing

FMM: 1 mi

Hi, Friends & Fam,

One day of reality was enough. I’m looking for fun again. Got any ideas?
Spring is here. The birds are singing, the daffodils and crocuses are blooming, and the temperature should reach 55 today. Of course, there is a little issue with rain and not much sunshine, but, hey, you can’t have everything...Birthday shout outs to Nancy on her 19th birthday and Jody on her 39th. Nancy loves attention and adulation, so please give her some today. She loves poems written in her honor, so here goes…

A Poem for Nancy

Holy cow, you’re 19 now;
Your teens are nearly done.
Seems like only yesterday
I was powdering your bum.

You’re all grown up - or think you are
But don’t give me any flap
‘Cause when I get home, your
Seat is waiting: squarely on my lap!

Love,
Mom

Wasting yet more of your time,
I remain
Tizzie/Tiz/Tizmom/Mom/Liz/Elizabeth

Back to Reality

FMM: 1 mi

Good day, Mates,

Bob and I are back to staring at one another. That's right. My cousin has left, and real life has wormed its way back into our existence. I am paying bills, washing sheets, and advising the girls on income tax filing. I even worked up the courage to talk to Molly about the piles of mail with my name on them in Columbia, MO. The _National Geographic_ will haunt me wherever I go. My hair needs a cut and a touch up. My coat needs washing and the pocket sewn. I've gained about 5 pounds, and I just discovered that the Mastercard bill is overdue. Furthermore, milk and apple juice have leaked all over my refrigerator and dust balls are attacking me. There. Now. Don't you feel good about yourself? You should! After all, what are friends for?

Messy and stressy,

I remain

Tizzie/Tiz/Tizmom/Mom/Liz/Elizabeth

Kerrying On & Un-CORKing a few

FMM: 5 mi (Forced March Miles)

Hi, Blogaholics,

I am making progress in my quest to visit every last inch of the motherland. Bob, my cousin Mike, and I used trains, buses, taxis, and FMMs to traipse around Cork City and Youghal in County Cork and Kenmare in County Kerry. We searched for Mansfield and McCarthy relatives. Our search was not exactly scientific; it would never pass Rosemary's genealogy guidelines. However, we found a Mansfield working in a hardware store who offered to be Mike's relative if Mike had any money. We also located a McCarthy gravedigger who volunteered to impersonate a blood connection and took a picture with all of us. We were well-pleased with our efforts and retired to the local pub. I FMM'd Bob and Mike up a steep hill in Cork to tour the Butter Museum. Both of them slept through a fascinating video on the history of exporting butter from Cork. If only my old roommate, food scientist Jan Harte, had been there; she would've been intrigued by the butter churns and would've yearned for her old days of making yogurt in the Pi Phi ice machine...You'll be happy to know that I did NOT make it back to Blarney Castle. Therefore, I won't be doing any unnecessary gabbing - only necessary gabbing - from now on. You're saved...I did allow Mike to view the NCAA 16 teams this morning online and copy them down. Now it's back to business! Bob called on his way to work and insists Mike needs to walk through St. Stephen's Green one more time. The sun appears to actually be out, and we don't want to miss that. So we are off to follow orders. Wouldn't want Mike to miss any FMMs. Bob wouldn't like it.

Giving and following orders,
I remain

Tizzie/Tiz/Tizmom/Mom/Liz/Elizabeth

The Morning After

FMM: 2.5 mi

Slainte, Leprechauns,

How was the green beer?

Are you still seeing visions of guys running around wearing green top hats asking "Who's your Paddy?"? Masses of people with green hair? Kids with fake butts inscribed with "Pog ma thon"? Weirdos on stilts accosting you? Men with moustaches striped in green, white, and orange (colors of the Irish flag)?

My advice? Have a hearty cup of Irish coffee. Or maybe 2 or three.

We saw all of the above and more as we wandered downtown Dublin awaiting the parade. It was a gorgeous day. St. Pat's Day is a national holiday here, so the streets were teeming with people. Mike chatted up a garda who revealed that Mary McAleese, the president of Ireland, would be passing shortly. We waved to her.

We cheered on our new favorite teams at a hurling match and an Irish football game at Croke Park.

We are off to County Cork shortly. I am not sure I'll have the internet, so don't worry if I don't blog for a few days; I just off cavorting around Cork and Kerry.

Dazed and amazed,
I remain
Tizzie/Tiz/Tizmom/Mom/Liz/Elizabeth

Going Green

FMM: 3 mi

Top O' the Morning, Blogophiles,

Happy St. Patrick's Day! Yesterday was a life-changing day for my cousin Mike. All of his long-held beliefs were shattered. We took a WALKING tour (I must spread the torture around) about St. Patrick. We learned that Patrick was Scottish, not Irish, and that his real name wasn't even Patrick. Then we learned that there never were any snakes in Ireland. Finally, we learned that the official color of Ireland is blue, not green! Well, none of this set well with Mike, and he may need psychological counseling upon his return to the U.S. That wouldn't be the first time that has happened to my visitors...Nonetheless, we all plan to go green, not blue, today and continue with our American boorishness. One article claims that "St. Patrick's Day is the day all the Americans march in parades and all the Irish sit in pubs and laugh at them." I'm sure they're laughing with us, not at us, aren't you?..So, we're off..


Green and mean,
I remain

Tizzie/Tiz/Tizmom/Mom/Liz/Elizabeth

Happy Hopping

FMM: 2 mi

Good Day, F/F/F/R (friends, foes, fans, relatives),

Begorra, the days go fast! My cousin Mike and I spent our day on a hop-on/hop-off tour. In between eating and drinking, we stopped at Dublin Castle and Kilmainham Jail. We then spent the evening crank calling our relatives before collapsing at 11. The suspense is building as St. Patrick's Day approaches. Will Mike really wear the foot high green top hat he showed me? Will Tizzie attempt to dance the jig at Stephen's Green? Will we discover that St. Patrick really isn't from Ireland at all? Will Bob get sloshed and sing "Danny Boy" in O'Brien's Pub? For the answers to these and other burning questions, tune in tomorrow.

Having your fun for you,
I remain
Tizzie/Tiz/Tizmom/Mom/Liz/Elizabeth

Marching Mike

FMM: 3 mi

Good morning, Friends, Foes, Fans, and Family,

My cousin Mike has been sleeping like a baby each night after his daily marches with me and Bob. We viewed the compulsory bog exhibit at the National Museum, dined at Kilkenny overlooking Nassau St., then paraded ourselves up and down Grafton St. with stops at at a cigar shop, Carrolls, and finally, mercifully, Sinnotts Bar. Bob is out of town today, so I'm giving Mike a break with a hop-on/hop-off bus tour.. He is begging me to get on cbssports.com and tell him who the NCAA teams are, but I won't allow that quite yet. He needs to do his background work the history of Dublin first. And after all, even though he is my guest, I must complete the blog first. Hopefully, his good nature will hold out...

Torturing my cousin,
I remain
Tizzie/Tiz/Tizmom/Mom/Liz/Elizabeth

Celebrity Sighting

FMM: 1/2 mi

Hi, Saturday Slackers,

Shouldn't you be staining the deck, moving piles of dirt, resetting your mousetraps, or perhaps spraying for camel crickets? Do you really have time to check out who I saw at the airport yesterday while picking up my cousin? Most of you aren't worldly enough to know who this man is even when I tell you. As your Fulbright wife stand-in I have to know these things, but you don't...I'll give you a clue: he has long hair nearly to his waist and he was born in Hong Kong...Back to other things. I have another willing victim in my Irish tourist lair: Mike Mansfield from Iowa. Yes, he is now at my mercy for 12 days of Irish indoctrination. My brother Tom warned him that I would try to take him on "cultural tours", but that he should just ignore me and play golf! Well, first of all, my brother wouldn't know a cultural tour if I took him on one. Secondly, they'll be no frivolous golf-playing on my watch! I will be marching him to the Book of Hells (oops, I mean Kells) as soon as he wakes up!..Well, have your scratched your head long enough wondering who the celebrity is? I'll bet Amy Foster knew right away who it was: fashion designer John Rocha. See, you you never heard of him, right? Well, I never did either, but, like Jedward, he is in the papers constantly here...So, now you're in the know once again, so pat yourself on the back and go sweep out the garage! Neighbors in Columbia, feel free to sweep mine out while you're at it. I doubt that Molly knows where the push broom is. And if you're not doing anything, my deck could use a good staining...

Sighting and writing,
I remain
Tizzie/Tiz/Tizmom/Mom/Liz/Elizabeth

Uh-oh!

FMM: 3 mi

Hi, F & F,

I have been working on my cousin Mike's itinerary and have discovered some bad news for all of you. Next week I will be kissing the Blarney Stone for the 3rd time! That's right. I probably wouldn't be blogging today if it weren't for that fateful kiss in 1974 and then the refresher in 2004. Of course, Pam Mandell accuses me of having "made out" with the Blarney Stone, but that just isn't true. As my old friend Lynnie would say, "That wouldn't be ladylike." So, when I return from Cork, I will probably have an uncontrollable blogathon. I'm just warning you...

Blarning away,
I remain
Tizzie/Tiz/Tizmom/Mom/Liz/Elizabeth

Long Lost Cousins

FMM: 4 mi

Hi, Friends & Relatives,

When we are at home in Ho-humbia* (oops, I mean Columbia), our relatives rarely visit us willingly. However, now that we live here, our stock has risen. Last night we met Bob's second cousin Rob Lega from Colorado who was in town for business. We had met him once thirty years ago when he was 6. He was delightful and charming, as all of our relatives are. We had the usual pints of Guinness, pub grub, and a bit of craic. We had fun getting the scoop on several other long lost cousins. We also got an e-mail that another second cousin and his wife - Joe Harten - and his wife are visiting next week. We will get to meet them for the first time. In between, my cousin Mike M is arriving tomorrow for a much-anticipated stay with us...So, come on over! You can say you're our cousin even if you're not. We will give you céad míle fáilte. And a load of craic.

*I must credit my friend Pam McAllister with this clever term. I have been dying to use it for a few weeks, and now I have.

Meeting, greeting, and eating,

I remain
Tizzie/Tiz/Tizmom/Mom/Liz/Elizabeth

Our Luck Runs Out

FMM: 2 mi

Hi, Folks,


Bob's birthday began with him breaking a gold crown and ended with Marianne losing her Visa debit card and running over here at midnight in her PJ's to frantically cancel the card. The Burlington Hotel will no doubt ban my future guests from staying there. It's always nice when your friends do dumber things than you. Why, it makes me look downright organized! Bob wanted to try out the Irish dental system anyway; why should I get to have all the fun?..In between catastrophes, we had another load of craic yesterday. An unnamed source has asked me to define that term. Okay, if you're too lazy to look it up or can't figure it out from context, Wikipedia says craic" is a term for fun, entertainment, and enjoyable conversation, particularly prominent in Ireland. Marianne and I had a successful day of shopping and eating out. We then had a birthday dinner for Bob and went to an Irish music show. Sadly, our fun is ending this morning as Marianne and Crusher are flying home in a few hours...As for the special request for a photo of me bouncing on a bog...such a photo exists and I plan to get my IT people working on it right away. Stay tuned...For your reading pleasure, may I present 2 more limericks submitted by my old friend Donna Y in honor of Bob? Donna admits that she has too much time on her hands, but I like to humor and honor such people:

There was an ol' prof they called Bob,
Who searched Celtic hills for his mob.
He made it quite clear,
It was just for a year,
And then he'd be back on the job.

----- OR -----

There was a prof Yank engineer,
Who left ol' MIZZOU for a year.
In a waterless spot,
He learned quite a lot,
Especially to bathe in the beer.


A big birthday shout out to my firstborn son, Tim, who has been subjected to me and my ways for 29 years now.


Craicing myself up,
I remain

Tizzie/Tiz/Tizmom/Mom/Liz/Elizabeth

Bog Blogging

FMM: 1.5 mi

Top O' the Morning, Leprechauns and Fairies,

We are back from the bog. That's right. The Blog from the Bog is now authentic. Yesterday I realized one of my lifelong ambitions: I bounced on a bog. Perhaps you want to go to Mecca or Yankee Stadium. Me? I just wanted to jump up and down on a bog, and now I have. A bog is just like its eponymous blog: muddy, squishy, rough, desolate, windy, and covered in sheep dung... Our tours of Connemara, the Cliffs of Moher, and the Aran Islands were great, except that Marianne misbehaved and got in trouble with the tour guide. She was nearly put in timeout and not allowed to talk. You can imagine how this went over. She was devastated. And, once again, Bob, Crusher, and I came to her aid and offered our unwavering support...Today is Marianne and Crusher's last day :(. We will be sorry to lose our friends, our fun, and our drinking buddies... A big shout out to Bob on his birthday today. Maybe he would comment, but then I would know that he has indeed read the blog, something he insists he has never done..


Agog at the blog,
I remain

Tizzie/Tiz/Tizmom/Mom/Liz/Elizabeth

Blogging Under Duress

FMM:??

Hi, Everybody,

I was all set to blog this morning at the hotel restaurant when in walked Bob, Marianne, and Crusher. Now had I not followed my morning ritual of checking Fox, CNN, The Columbia Tribune, The Paris Beacon-News, The Columbia Missourian, my blog for comments (yes, I'm an eternal optimist, you infuriating non-commenters!), and TMZ (I needed to see which of my friends wore the wrong dress to the Oscars), I probably could have completed my blog. As it is, Bob will walk in here in a second and have my head as we are all set for another bus tour in less than 30 minutes and I'm supposed to be packing and looking under the beds. You won't tell, will you?

So, you'll just have to wait another day or two for an honest-to-goodness blog. That's assuming I'll be able to remember anything I've done the past few days.

Off to traipse about Tipperary (actually, Mayo, but none of you will know the difference) and mosey around Mayo and gawk about Galway,

I remain
Tizzie/Tiz/Tizmom/Mom/Liz/Elizabeth

He's returned, and I AM in trouble!! Story of my life.

Off to Another Island

FMM: 1 mi

Hi, Lads & Lassies,

We are off on a ferry boat to the Aran Islands shortly. Sorry, no time to blog. It's Saturday, remember? Go clean your garage, reset your mousetraps, pick up sticks in the yard, and tune up the lawnmower!

Tarrying before ferrying,
I remain
Tizzie/Tiz/Tizmom/Mom/Liz/Elizabeth

A Load of Craic

FMM: 3 mi

Hi, Bloggies,

I‘ve definitely had my share of craic today with Marianne and Crusher. We toured the Guinness Brewhouse, the Jameson Distillery, and visited the Book of Kells (renamed the Book of Hells by my sister who deemed it the most boring tourist attraction in Ireland). In between we ate, drank, then ate and drank some more. Marianne was devastated by a bathroom problem. Okay, since you insist, I’ll tell you what happened. Crusher and I were cruising the book store while she ran off to go to the bathroom at the train station. She came back frantic and out of breath as she didn’t have the 30 cents to pay the bathroom monitor. She ran back to the bathroom which now had 10 people in line and a broken money machine. She nearly keeled over - or worse – before a man FINALLY took his time walking over and let the poor souls in one by one. Ultimately, she prevailed, but it was a most harrowing experience. Of course, her husband and I were more sympathetic - and Bob was, too , when he heard about it. Don’t worry. I won’t tell the world YOUR bathroom problems if you come visit me. You can count on me. ..We ended the evening at the Quay Inn with Irish music and Guinness Irish stew..Today we are all off to Galway for a few days. If I don't blog for a few days, don't worry I'm just having fun.

Telling about pell-melling,

I remain

Tizzie/Tiz/Tizmom/Mom/Liz/Elizabeth

The Grand Tour

FMM: 2.5 mi

Top O' the Morning, Celtophiles,

If our habits from yesterday continue, Marianne, Crusher, Bob, and I will need to increase our FMMs greatly to offset our caloric and alcoholic intake. Since we are having quiche and croissants for breakfast, I fear that deficit reduction - like the federal government's - is unattainable. Oh, well...Once Marianne and I completed our 3 hour gab and foodfest at the kitchen table while Crusher snored away on the couch with his leg hanging off the end (funny, I fit perfectly on that couch), I marched them down to St. Stephen's Green, Grafton Street, and a tour of 3 grocery stores. Crusher is in the grocery business. I learned that the Marks and Spencer Food Hall is boutique grocery since it stocks such items as ready-to-eat fancy wedding cakes for 80 euros and chocolate mousse desserts already in their own glass bowls. Some bunco hostess must have thought that up in a frantic last-minute frenzy...We then enjoyed lasagna, wine, and a lot of laughs before heading to O'Brien's Pub for a nightcap. Our adventures continue today..and yes, I did help Mr. Hungry get Mr. Breakfast yesterday. After all, I don't want to become Mrs. Hungry.

Chowing and kowtowing,
I remain

Tizzie/Tiz/Tizmom/Mom/Liz/Elizabeth

The Red Carpet is Out

FMM: 2 mi

Hi, Everybody,

The suspense is building... My guests will be touching down on the Emerald Isle in about an hour. The airline must have known who they were dealing with (Marianne J). Despite a delay taking off, the plane is due to land ONE minute AHEAD of schedule...The temperature is mild today, so I will have them out on their FMMs (Forced Mile Marches) in no time at all. I have lasagna and lemon squares ready for consumption. You would think that after all these years, I would have expanded my repertoire beyond the two recipes I was able to make at age 21, but like Mom's fudge and Verlin's bread, some things just need repeating. That's better than saying I'm a lazy incompetent slob. And I realize I have no right to put my cooking in the same sentence as Verlin's, but like everything else here in the Blog from the Bog -- who is going to stop me?? Bob told me to tell my friends that I need to get off to make Mr. Breakfast for Mr. Hungry. You'll have to tune in tomorrow to see if I did.

A birthday shout out to Coady Magers!!! Nancy claims if I add shout outs that I will get more comments. So far that has never happened, but I'll try again.

Slaving and raving,
I remain

Tizzie/Tiz/Tizmom/Mom/Liz/Elizabeth

Cleaning Up My Act

FMM: 3 mi

Good day, Desperados,

Guess you're desperate for something to read, or you wouldn't be here. Since you're here, I'll oblige....Isn't it great to have visitors? I always remember the old saying, "There's how we live, and there's how we want people to think we live." Since I don't want Marianne J to see how I really live, I am cleaning up my act. Really. I am even moving the filled water bucket out of the bathroom (if the water gets shut off, I'll figure something out). I've ironed two shirts, stacked Bob's books in neat piles, and bleached the light blueish towels back to their original white. Why, I may even spit shine and detail the purple wheelie cart! So, you see, I don't have time to blog further; I have a date with a bucket of warm, sudsy water; hottest date I've had in awhile...

Scrubbing and rubbing,
I remain
Tizzie/Tiz/Tizmom/Mom/Liz/Elizabeth

We're RUINed!

FMM: 10 mi

Good morning, Blogistas,

We had a busy weekend of sightseeing. We are in the "our time in Ireland is running out" mode. Saturday we went to Wicklow Town and walked along the sea to the Black Castle Ruins. Sunday we went to Athlone and toured the elusive sight that Bob has had on his screensaver for 3 years thanks to Nancy: Cloinmacnoise. He didn't even know what it was until an Irish person commented, "Oh, that's Cloinmacnoise on your computer." Thus, began his quest to see his screensaver sight with his own two eyes. I'm happy to report that the mission was accomplished. It is quite a scenic sight which includes a cemetery and the ruins of a monastery from the 6th century. Needless to say, these two days involved extensive FMM'ing (forced mile marching)... Today I am off to buy food and to clean up the joint for my first visitors of 2010: Marianne and Crusher!! They are coming Wednesday. My purple patent leather wheelie cart awaits me....I got a rather disturbing e-mail from Nancy. She signed it "insane in the membrane, i remain,

nancy, nanu, naynay,nan-daught, love bug, boo boo

What do you think all of this means? Do I need to refer her for evaluation?

Wandering and pondering,
I remain
Tizzie/Tiz/Tizmom/Mom/Liz/Elizabeth