SNOW!!!

---

So it snowed here last night! I know!!! it was all white and fuzzy everywhere this morning and apparently it was 5 below this morning. But thank goodness, when I woke up it wasn't bad at all and thanks to my new jacket I was all warm and toasty and get this... only had to wear 2 layers today under my jacket!! (a tank and a long sleeve) apparently the roads might be so bad that we might end up going to ardmore and Youghal instead of ardmore is lismore this weekend. But they will have to decide that tomorrow. I am so excited!!! it promisses to be really beautiful and overlooking cliffs- ill take pics and hopefully i might be able to be in some?

I signed up for their retreat next weekend which will be held in a beautiful area overlooking the sea in West Cork. Apparently we are staying in an old convent so we get to have single rooms that are no bigger than the bed but apparently it overlooks the sea and is the welcome retreat of the year! They are going to do little samplers of everything they do over the year. Like Taize prayer, which is just singing for a while, discussion groups and even cultural dinner (they said they are going to do a little bit of a lot of cultures for a dinner). So it should prove to be a hoot!! There is a silent retreat in february I believe to the same spot, I'll see if i can handle being silent for a whole weekend it might be interesting??

Oh last night was SO fun. They said they had about 160 people come when that was more than they had had all year last year at any event. They had to move to the other house and even then they had to have 60 people over in the chapel. People were lined in this little house and there was little room to settle, but it was a lot of fun! After eating brown bread, salad with black pudding and apples and yummy guinness stew and a sampling of irish drinks, many people left (of course US mentality, dine and dash). But for the ones that stayed, myself included, they broke us up into the different rooms. Upstairs they had a "sing song" which was basically everyone sitting around and belting irish songs (along with the extra shouted phrases) we were all hoarse at the end but it was so fun, we were laughing the whole time. there was one song that in the middle you have to shout "raise up your skirts" and we were all dying because the girl keeping us on track was wearing a skirt and she said "she wouldn't cause her skirt was to short it would be very dangerous!" so ya good times, you might have had to be there!! downstairs they had a irish session going. basically like 6 people brought their instruments and started playing, 2 people had a fiddle, 2 people had a flute, 2 had accordions and one with a bodhran (a hand drum). they played for a while and then some people joined in and sang. they were SOOO good and it was amazing to see how talented people are here and they just do it for fun! seriously it was insane!! they tried to get a group together for learning irish dancing but because of the lack of space, they were unable to do so.

on another note- it is amazing how dolled up girls get here to go out. while all the international's are bundled up and shivering, irish girls put on thier shortest skirts or dresses along with their lowest tops and high heels. and rarely a jacket. often times both skirts and tops are shinny and way over the top. their makeup is intense and WAY caked on. remember those girls from high school that had like a pound of makeup on and so much eyeliner on you could barely see their face, well add another pound and that is what they wear here. but it makes me laugh to see the guys, because while the girls try so hard the guys, like back home, don their sweatshirt and jeans and walk out the door. so i guess its exactly like back home but minus like 40 degrees.

oh i forgot to tell you guys, my roommates all chipped in and we got a brita filter a few days ago!! i am SO excited haha. now all i need to do is find a container to put it in. so ya im going to go take a nap and then make myself a bomb dinner!! then off to bed to rest up for tomorrow.

in traditional irish goodbye ill say "God Bless"

---