Wednesday, May 27, 2009

Running around fields, peeling spuds and doing maths

The more you do these things, the better you get at them. I'm still unremarkable at peeling spuds.

Leaving, however, is different. I've been doing it over and over again for the past week. I'm still a bit mediocre at it. It's got an unpleasant mix of awkwardess - because of the collective inability to find anything appropriately profound to say - and genuine sadness. The only really thought-provoking moment in all of this (it's almost over now - I can only think of one more goodbye that I'll need to do with an actual person (as apposed to abstractions ("Goodbye, mighty craic") and consumer products ("Goodbye, Mikados"))) was when Mam noted that it'd be approximately 72% worse if we were doing this in the 1950's and I'd probably never see Mammy, the ould sod or Taytos again. I can see why people in that position would be nostalgic and patriotic and lonely. I don't think I'll be tearfully yowling The Galway Girl into a pint of red diesel while I'm away, but I can see why, in slightly different circumstances, someone would want to.

Sorry for the excessive bracketing - I blame the maths. I think you'll be satisfied to find that I at least got all the closing brackets correct (which took quite a while).

2 comments:

  1. I'm so glad you're blogging!
    xSaoirse

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  2. 'No such thing as excessive bracketing.
    Or, at least, if there is, I need to enroll in some sort of self-help program.
    (And another for excessive use of commas, I think).

    I am also glad you're blogging! It'll lessen the pain of you being away from us! :)
    grace.

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