Change is a comin’

The boats outside the castle in Killarney National Park

It has been said that, in order for an artist to grow, they need to leave the comfort of familiar surroundings and head off somewhere new.  The whole design of an artist residency is to give artist’s that opportunity.  I think of Gaugin in Tahiti or Van Gogh moving around France.  You can see strides in their work that correlate with going to unfamiliar places.

I have never been one to do landscapes but there is something about the way the sky moves in Ireland…a constantly roiling stew of blues and greys…or the constant variation of light play that has made the landscape come alive for me.

I can see why there are so many incredible poets, writers, and artists here.  We went to John B’s tonight to simply show support for the loss of Mary Keane.  They continued on with Pub Theatre and it was absolutely incredible and included two soliloquies performed from plays by John B. Keane. One from The Field and one from Big Maggie.  I can’t truly explain what it is like to sit in this historic pub and see these actors become these characters in front of our eyes but I will be reading The Field and Big Maggie.  It was that compelling.

Is it any wonder that the landscape in this magical place has taken on a personality for me?  It’s a compelling character that needs to be captured. It’s no wonder Listowel is so full of creativity and art.  It is deep within the soil here and rooted within the people who have lived here for so long.

Many thanks to Billy Keane for opening the doors to his pub tonight after the loss of his mother and reminding we temporary Listowelites why we love it here so much.  And many thanks to Olive Stack for putting this opportunity out there for us to find!

Patrick, Emily and Kerry

A row of boats beside the castle in Killarney!

After waking from a restless slumber, I was startled to come down to the living room to find a wild haired women with 3 inches of mascara running down her face and a voice that sounded like she had smoked five packs for 20 years.   As I take off to the stairs to flee this obviously mentally deranged person, I barely hear the scratchy voice say “Diva Dog, I lost my voice.”   Now hold on a cotton picking minute!  I know you are thinking we are both horse and barely able to speak because we talk so much, but in THIS CASE it just is not true.  We realize that in most cases it WOULD be true….you all know we have the gift of gab.  However, this time our husky voices are due to the ick that is going around.  No worries, we are fighters with only two weeks left in Ireland and plenty of over the counter codine; we persevered.

As we finally were set to leave at noon, we were met down in the gallery by a strange man offering us candy.  It was chocolate so we were all in.  Actually, we were pleasantly surprised to learn the owner Armel, from the much acclaimed restaurant Allo’s Listowel, had heard of the two crazy Americans roaming the streets of Listowel and wanted to invite us for lunch.  Chocolate and yummy food, throw some cold water on me!  We are looking forward to our lunch next week and will report every delectable detail.

On the road again, we headed for Killarney.  Now that I am being expertly chauffered around by Emily or, as I call her now, Mario Andretti, I was able to soak up the stunning scenery.  Everywhere you look, just so much beauty.  Emily is so confident driving now, she can even enjoy quick glances here and there.  We were in Killarney in no time and ready to explore shop lined streets and winding side roads with hidden little treasures.

An hour after we arrived in town, we met Patrick.  He was a handsome and friendly stud muffin we just could not resist.  We told him we were eager to explore some of the other sights of the city and could he point us in the right direction.  Well he did better than that!  He offered to show us the sites himself!  So he whisked us off in his carriage and away we went to explore Killarney National Park and Killarney Castle.  He was a patient guide, never rushing us and always stopping to let us take plenty of pics. Killarney National Park is breathtaking and if you are a hiker and are fortunate to get over to the island, it is a must.  After the park, he showed us a bit more of the town and then sadly it was time for us to bid adieu to our new friend, we affectionately called Patty, and head back to Listowel.

Our New Best Friend Patrick!

We mentioned this before, but it is true again this evening, it is like returning home.  We walked to the grocery store, said hi to some of our new friends we passed on the street , then headed to our cozy headquarters to make veggie soup.  We are both on the road to recovery from these summer colds, so a night of pub hopping will have to wait a couple more days!