Easter Parade

"In your Easter bonnet, with all your frills upon it, you'll be the grandest lady in the Easter Parade!"

YOWZA! Is it Easter already?!?!

If I were home right now, I would be up and searching for my Easter basket that the Easter Bunny/ Mom and Dad cleverly hid in some ridiculous place. Thats right- I am 22 years old and the Easter Bunny still comes to my house. I know you're jealous. Every year we watch Irving Berlin's "Easter Parade" which is one of my all time favorite movies, my Mom cooks an incredible feast, and the house just smells amazing all day long. Family and friends come over for dinner, Katie always comes over for dessert... it is a wonderful day. What a bummer not to be home.

Instead I woke up this morning at 6am after three hours of sleep in a state of panic over essays, etc... I went for a walk to try to chill out, came back to the flat for a shower, and painted my toes pink in honor of spring's arrival. This afternoon I'm heading out to the GPO for a parade and ceremony on the 90th Anniversary of the Easter Rising. Leave it to the Irish to not miss an opprotunity to tell the British to piss off. Ann and I are hosting our own Easter Dinner tonight and yours truly is doing most of the cooking. It wont even compare to my Mom's food... I'm just strivin for edible. And though I could not find a copy of Easter Parade anywhere in Dublin, I downloaded "Couple of Swells" to be performed at dinner tonight. KIDDING!!! Maybe...

So the sparknotes version of what I've been doing.. moving backwards, I've been attempting to lay off the bread this week to celebrate Passover with Jared. Its a pretty amazing holiday- symbolizing spring, independence, and new beginnings. New beginnings are always good- and something that everyone needs from time to time.

Last week Mr. Matt Lally came to visit which was SO much fun! We toured around Dublin, went to a comedy club, and confirmed that I am by far the best tour guide in this country. We had lots of laughs, saw the sites, drank some Guinness and Bulmers... it was good craic, great to catch up, and truly wonderful to see a face from home.

The week before THAT I went to London to see Ben and celebrate his birthday. Though I only caught a glimpse, London seems like an amazing city and I am anxious to go back. There is so much history there it is insane. Walking through Westminister Abbey and seeing the tombs of Charles Darwin, Jane Austin, Queen Elizabeth, and Cromwell (whose tomb I struggled not to deface) was surreal! Ofcourse the best part of the trip was the first day I saw Ben and we hung out in the hotel room and talked for hours, just like we used to. I realized how much I had missed him, and it broke my heart a little. So we vowed to do a better job of keeping in touch from now on!

So after today, Severe Essay Bootcamp begins. Nuggie and I have mapped out a comprehensive schedule for the next two weeks (yes, I'm a schedule loving nerd- shuudup about it) involving the gym at 8am every day and writing until absurb hours in the evening. I think there is a good chance my brain may explode May 2nd when I hand in all this work. Yikes... its going to be a long two weeks.

But today, today is for parades, bunnies, and candy. Work will have to wait!