The house is clean. The pastures are mown, the fences are in place. The sheep are happy. The pigs have their long=term feeders and waterers installed. The grain is all bought and in the containers. The bags are packed. Farm sitters arrive tomorrow; and we leave for Logan Airport, via the Dartmouth Coach…and at 7 p.m., we take off for Shannon Airport, on good ol’ reliable Aer Lingus, and from there, to car rental place, and the big adventure of driving on the other side of the road, to Terryglass, in County Tipperary. Driving through Limerick ought to be fun…I’m glad John will be doing the driving. We will tour around for a few days; then, on Wednesday, take the Doolin Ferry to Inis Mor, spend the day and night there, hopefully visiting Mrs. O’Flaherty and getting more yarn from her, staying overnight at Kilmurvey House, then on to the middle island the next morning, to walk it for a few hours, returning to Doolin by 5, to meet Bert and Catherine, native Irish folk who belong to the “companion diocese” to ours (NH). We’ll have some dinner with them, then back to our little Rose Cottage for the rest of the week. Saturday morning, we drive to Dublin, drop off the car, fly to Manchester, pick up a car, and drive to our cottage in Knaresborough. We’ve set up days with some friends from the Lake District, Graham and Audrey, and their church friends, all of whom visited here several years ago, came to my church, and came for dinner to the farm. Also with Auntie Eve, Mike and Angela’s aunt, from York…with plans to visit the Sheepshop, and get some Wensleydale yarn, and also see some Wensleydale sheep. Bags are packed and sitting in the living room. Carry-ons still upstairs for final additions in the a.m. We are both excited. I won’t be bringing my computer along with everything else we need to bring, so I’ll take notes and photos and post when we get back. The farm is in good hands. Lizzie is going to her “godparents”, Dottie and Sonny. We’ll miss the peonies: they are about to burst into bloom, but we caught the lovely onandaga viburnum and some of the iris and a few of the lupines…the price you have to pay, the choices you make.
Have a great two weeks…be back before you know it, probably pining for home after a week or so, as usual…For wherever we go, we both seem to love the scenery, and think it almost as beautiful as Vermont, our home.
