Wednesday, August 30, 2006

Late post...this is from 8/27/06

I'm 26 now. Seems like a boring age. I had an exciting weekend though. Friday, Ryan and I went to Lafayette. We took Baxter to the dog park. Mom and her crew of dogs came too. It's pretty funny to watch all the dogs romp around together. After that we celebrated together at Krispy Kreme! There's not much better than fresh donuts from Krispy Kreme! Ryan and I got enough to have them again for breakfast in the morning. Mmmmm.

On Saturday, Ryan and I had a wonderful day with his sister and her family. His niece is adorable! We all went to the Children's Museum in Indianapolis. There is a new glass fireworks exhibit there that is being advertised a lot. The exhibit was a little disappointing. The permanent sculpture in the middle of the museum is pretty spectacular though! My favorite exhibit was Sesame Street. Some days, I think I could listen to Sesame Street songs forever! Ha! I was reminded of all the records we had as kids. I'll have to dig those out someday.

Yesterday, my whole family got together at the river. Annie and Martin, AnnLaura and Juan, Mom and John and of course me and Ryan. Ryan already had given me a gorgeous necklace earlier. He picked the most elegant, white gold necklace. It's so special! Martin and Annie made a great cake. They put 4 numbers on the cake that all added up to 26. Isn't that clever? I think we're all looking forward to spending more time up at the river together.

This week is a packing week. I get distracted easily though. Now it's time to get moving! Take care!

Thursday, August 24, 2006

What a send-off!


Today is my second to last day of work. What a year! I've made so many friends at the hospital and it's not easy to say good-bye. We had a great party today though. The cake was great. I'm not sure who all was involved, but I know Mike helped with the green frosting! Perfect for the occasion! I'm glad to have had the chance to visit with everyone today.

It's hard to believe that a small hospital can have so much to offer to the community, but this hospital does. That's my favorite part about the hospital...always looking for a way to meet the needs of the community. I'm proud to have been a part of that.

There are pictures from the party up on a web page.
http://www.msnusers.com/WhereintheworldisTusaRebecca

These are mostly candid shots. You'll see that I spent a fair amount of time stuffing my face with cake! I'll use this webpage to post large groups of pictures on occasion.

Keep in touch!

Monday, August 21, 2006

Rathgar

I have a place to live in Dublin. I'll live in Rathgar. The name Rathgar derives from the Irish RĂ¡th Gharbh, meaning "Rough Ringfort". Rathgar is a well-to-do suburb of Dublin, Ireland, lying about 4 km south of the city centre. My school is on the outskirts of city centre. Basically I'll have to walk about 20-25 minutes to class each day. That's not too bad.

I found a tid-bit of information about the area online...

The housing stock largely comprises red-brick Victorian terraces. Much of the area lies within a historic conservation zone. Rathgar is largely a quiet suburb, with a higher than average number of retired citizenry. I guess I won't have to worry about loud neighbors!

I've been told that there will be shopping in the neighborhood. I don't know exactly what that means. Surely there will be a grocery store!

Rathgar has a rich history. Fine architectural features include the Presbyterian Church at the junction in the village centre and a Catholic church . The Roman Catholic Church of The Three Patrons on Rathgar Road is known as "The Servants' Church" because in the late 19th and early 20th century it was the place of worship for the large number of servants who worked and lived in the large houses in the area.

Famous people include author James Joyce, who was born in Brighton Square. Mr. Jack Lynch, who was Taoiseach (Prime Minister) of Ireland intermittently from 1966 to 1979 had his home at Garville Avenue, Rathgar. And also Bram Stoker, author of Dracula, lived in Rathgar on Orwell Park in the later part of his life.

I'll be living in a house with 3 other people who are about my age. There is another student from Purdue who I will share a bedroom with. The other two residents are strangers to me. One is a musician; the other an accountant. In Ireland this is considered apartment living. Apartments that we have here are called "flats" in Europe. It's all going to be a crazy adventure.

Keep in touch!