DREAMING OF SUMMER

The porch swing was the first thing I went to at the end of a long day at work. With a glass of red wine in one hand and my iPhone in the other, I chatted with my boyfriend on Skype. Since I have yet not configured Internet access, I am unable to use the iPad. Moving the piles of boxes in the family room will take a while in order to locate the cable outlet to plug in the modem. Until now, the iPhone will do as will my having to park on the parking lot of Starbucks a few minutes before midnight to use their Wi-Fi in order to post my words and photo to my blog.

We talked for quite a while tonight though he had to get back to work after his one day off from work. The day was cold in Ireland. I check the weather there on occasion to see how it compares to here. It was 6 degrees Celsius and raining for most of the day. Here in Austin we had a high of 28 degrees Celsius. The sun was out throughout the day but I spent the majority of it indoors. It was quite the contrast from the weather in Ennis, but I would have preferred the rainy day indoors if it meant we could spend it together.

The lady at work sitting across from me mentioned Google Flights today. The other lady across from her was thinking of visiting a cousin in England this summer with her children and so the conversation began about finding flights. I was curious, so I looked up flights from Austin to Shannon, Ireland. Flights were expensive during the summer months, which is to be expected. What was not expected is that flying during the weekend was less expensive than during the week. For the most part, this is not the case. I happened to find the flight leaving July 4th to be reasonably priced and my mind started thinking.

What if we could meet this summer, I wondered. Christmastime is too long a time to wait to be together again. Then I remembered reading an article about how spending money on experiences rather than on ‘things’ was something we should be doing more. My children will be leaving on July 3rd to stay with their father for five weeks. What they will be doing during this time, I do not know. My turn with them will come next summer.

This summer I do not wish to be alone. I dream of returning to Inistioge with my boyfriend. The village is small and quaint with its beautiful 10-span bridge on the river Nore. The Woodstock Arms B&B was a charming place to stay. Last summer there was but one restaurant open besides the pub in the B&B. I remember the pizza at Circle of Friends as being exceptional. The long walk up to the Woodstock Gardens was well worth the view as was the drive to Kilkenny to see the castle. For now, I will enjoy the porch swing in the back yard and dream of summer.