Fellowship of the Hibernophiles

 

Today I worked from home, and Travalon and I walked on Governor's Island at lunchtime. I liked this little rock stacked on a big rock.

I also completed the monthly challenge on DuoLingo.

I left work a bit early to go see the rheumatologist again, since she had said to come back if I had more issues. On the way in, I passed a car with the Crane Foundation license plate, and I stopped to admire it and wish once again that I had gotten this beautiful plate. It was a personalized one that said: "Woooop." Then, as I was going into the clinic, I passed a very outdoorsy-looking young guy wearing a sweatshirt with whooping cranes on it, and I had to ask if that was his car. Of course it was. As far as my knee, the doctor said she didn't think it was that big an issue, but she could draw some liquid out of it to test, which I think was her way of saying, "This is not a flare-up! Don't come back again until you have something REAL going on!" I decided against the liquid withdrawal and said I'd just keep an eye on things. 

In the evening I went to Alt Brew to see the Currach, the Irish group that plays there once a month. They took time off in the summer, and Travalon and I were busy in September and October, so this was the first time I'd seen them in a while. I met the red-headed flute player there, and Famie my Irish teacher and her student who usually comes with her soon joined us, and then my Shamrock Club buddy joined us too. The flute player took a photo of all us Shamrock Club types with the band in the background.

Travalon joined us once he got off of work. Our Shamrock Club buddy is named Dee, and she had stopped by his work to drop off some donations, so when I said she was at Alt Brew, he said, "I guess it's Dee Day!" She is a huge supporter of the Shamrock Club and had brought little business cards to give to everyone there to encourage them to join. The local St. Andrews Club is having a ceili later this month, and she said she is going, and that she joined that club too. I am seriously thinking about doing both - that is the local Scottish interest club. 

The band had some guests, like the concertina player's two preteen sons playing the fiddle, including a tune the older one wrote when he was only six called "The Pouncing Cat," and the red-headed flute player, and an older couple who sang a Scottish drinking song. They were pretty good! The wife sang harmony. I sang a little harmony myself, on "The Wild Rover." Apparently there was a guy at the Irish bar that used to be in town who was a bit of a wild rover himself, speaking with a fake Irish accent and stealing from the till. Our Shamrock Club buddy was telling us how the local Irish restaurant said they would sponsor our ceili for $500, then changed it to $250, and they still haven't paid. She said they really haven't had much interest in working with the Shamrock Club. I wonder why? 

The Slainte Irish Dancers performed again tonight, and they asked people to join them for one dance. All the other ladies went up, but I stayed behind to keep Travalon company. The two young fiddlers danced too. What I'd really love to do is that Scottish Highland dancing so I could wear the knee-high argyle socks, but nobody would want to see my legs at my advanced age, even if they were covered in argyle. Plus there is no way I could be that energetic. I guess it's called the Highland Fling. Back when I was a teenager who bounced around all the time doing aerobics, I would have loved doing these moves, not to mention the sexy little tartan skirt. Now I'm just about the argyle socks.

Famous Hat