Global Express - St. Patrick's Day Edition

Welcome back to our Global Village and to this week's issue of Global Express! Our newsletter is published by the members of the World Wide Web Circle of Friends for the members of the World Wide Web Circle of Friends about the members of the World Wide Web Circle of Friends. We are everyday people doing extraordinary things on an International Scale on the web!
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St. Patrick's Day is celebrated on March 17, the saint's religious feast day and the anniversary of his death in the fifth century. The Irish have observed this day as a religious holiday for over 1,000 years. On St. Patrick's Day, which falls during the Christian season of Lent, Irish families would traditionally attend church in the morning and celebrate in the afternoon. Lenten prohibitions against the consumption of meat were waived and people would dance, drink and feast--on the traditional meal of Irish bacon and cabbage.  St. Patrick's Day is a holiday known for parades, shamrocks and all things Irish. From leprechauns to the color green,

 

Jan did some research on the web where she saw that in the 1830s about 25% of the Australian population was born in Ireland, and it is estimated that 33% of Australians have Irish heritage. 

The St  Paddys Parade in Sydney is second in size only to the one in New York. Many celebrations are held, from fundraising morning teas and lunches by local charities, exhibitions, concerts, etc and of course rowdy nights at the Irish pubs.

Jan & Barry will be attending an Irish-Australian Folk History Workshop from  6-7 pm followed by an Irish Music Session from 7-11 pm.   Participants are invited to bring along an instrument and join in.  One of those leading this section will be a local instrument maker who made her harp, however Jan is taking a ukulele which she has been playing lately.

Do enjoy the sausage sizzle, hot drinks and dessert that I understand will be available!

Jan also mentioned that she recently attended a a ukulele workshop at Bangalow with a Canadian.... Ralph Shaw.  She has added the details to FB Crumbs of Comfort. He has a great website with lots of videos and songs with chords, a great resource.

In my corner of the globe, according to history, the Irish were the first of Europe’s many impoverished peoples to seek economic advantages in the New World in large numbers in the 19th century, providing one of the great immigration streams toCanada.  Irish immigration however began early in the 17th century and continued for 300 years under a wide variety of circumstances, the Irish are now spread throughout Canada and have become an integral part of American and Canadian culture. Like Australia, tt is estimated that one in every three Canadians can trace some Irish ancestry.


Love to hear how you celebrated St. Patrick's Day ....

Jan & Barry have been busy putting in sliding glass doors from dining room to the deck and Jan made up some heavy curtains, and also singing etc .... and the week got away on her and Tilda was so sorry she missed out on the 'gone to the cats and dogs'...so allow me to share Tilda's story with you.

Says Tilda "I remember the day Mum and Dad came to the get me when I was a puppy.  When the breeder let us puppies out for them to see us, I ran straight up to Mum and won her over. I've done everything with them, going on many trips over the years.  

I'm slowing down a bit now, I will be twelve this year. I love people and send my love to all the readers".

Daphne from Argentina introduces Daisy

Daisy is  a German Shepherd pup going on 11 months. She is our first thorough bred dog, and the first we ever actually paid for. She was one of 4 pups and we met her a week before she was due to leave her mother, she instantly fell for Romina who had gone with us, so when we went back the next week, there was no doubt about which one was ours -- though they all looked the same to me!!

She still does greet Romina with much more enthusiasm than she does us or any one else in the family, but I don't mind. Daisy only once ever smothered my face in kisses and that was after the first time I bathed her - she had had other baths at the vets though -  and I am still not sure if she was thanking me or saying " now let's see how YOU like it!!" LOL

Why this choice of dog? well after we lost our last dog, a lame street dog called Skippy, I decided I wanted another for company and Leo wanted one as a guard dog. My first choice was a golden retriever, but we heard they make friends with just about anyone who comes near so would be no use as a guard dog. Daisy is proving to be a perfect companion dog for me, and stands watching attentively while the car is being driven in or out of the garage, and reacts accordingly if anyone rings the bell.

She is very energetic and we have been having a hard time to get her to walk beside us calmly without pulling. She is getting there, but still has a tendency to pull, especially if she sees other dogs. Out in the garden she loves to torment the tortoise - in fact, they both provoke each other mutually, if the tortoise isn't in sight, Daisy will dig it out of hiding even late at night. If it is around it will go straight for Daisy and try to nip her. Daisy reacts by going for its head and it's fun to see the battle they have until Daisy flips the tortoise over and I have to go and rescue it and tell Daisy it is NOT a toy. Daisy looks at me as if to say " well, SHE started it!" Sometimes we spend an afternoon at Romina's where Daisy loves to play with her two dogs.


Bea has something very special coming up ...she and JB will be flying to Portland all the way from the Catskills on the 24th of April and staying until May the 1st and while she is there she wants a family portrait photograph taken.  She has three great grandchildren now and one more on the way, he should be born  when she in in Oregon.  Wonderful and congratulations!

Bea would like us to meet Miss Brandy, the queen of their home.  She only drinks ice water (like Bea), she eats the same time that Bea and JB do and if anything is out of place at home, she will stand there until someone picks it up. She is 5 yrs old and weighs 20 pounds.  Miss Brandy is an inside cat and if you go near her toys, she will follow you, lol; oh yes, she loves to talk to you . and she will tell you off ,,, lol

Bea also sends along these Irish Inspired St. Patrick's Day Recipes .......... ENJOY! 

Our Planet Kryzys Editor In Chief, Daphne would like to pass along a few comments, questions, etc. regarding Alternative Energies and is looking for some feedback from all of us..  My sister Sylvia recently had installed  eight solar panels in the house she is sharing with her boyfriend. This is supposed to supply them with heating and hot water, and sell back to the state any surplus electricity. The system is supposed to pay for itself within 8 years, and has a 25 year guarantee. I do not know how it is going for them, but she did send me a leaflet all about it. For a long time I have wanted something like this if only for hot water. Leo says it is not worth our while, as for one thing we don't get all that much sun ( don't we?????) and for another the inversion price is prohibitive. I think that if it works for the south of England, it must surely work for us here. What I would like to know is, do any of our friends have such installations? If so for how long? Are they satisfied, or are there any drawbacks .... further on than the initial cost? I have heard wind turbines are supposed to be noisy and also in danger of setting themselves on fire. I would love to know what poeple think, or if they use any other kind of alternative energy, or have vehicles that run on new fuels. Bio fuels are supposed to be coming the in- thing here, but I have my doubts about the effectiveness or economy of those, as the land they take up means you either feed your car or you feed the people.

On a personal note Daphne reports that the weather has cooled down to a more tolerable 25ish. The family is all well. Ruben is preparing his new house for their move, instaling heaters, lighting etc. It's a nice little house, a duplex which here is two identical mirror version houses on the same plot, of which they have one.

Jan says that it is Seniors Week in Australia from Sunday and we are entertaining at one of the functions next Monday..  I am not certain but I believe that Australia may be the only country that does this.  I found this to be most fascinating as we here in Canada have been known to have Seniors' Day but never, to the best of my knowledge, a Seniors' Week and I think it is a fabulous idea.  Let's start one in our communities okay?  What do you think?

Deanna was kind enough to send in a comment about last week's issue that I would love to share with you.

Sharon, you did a really good job with this newsletter. I will have something sent to you about my birthday flowers Monday. Very busy getting the garden beds ready and taking the dogs to the dog park. Can't help taking them with the highs in the 70's.

Keeping true to her word the floral story follows:

My son , who is 44, surprised me with a lovely bouquet of flowers for my birthday. I turned 63, March 6. He also sent a card with two gift cards for my favorite restaurant, Applebees. I was totally shocked. Our relationship has been very strained for many years. But, I do credit his future wife with changing his outlook and way of thinking about life. She hasn't walked since she was 15 due to a ATV accident. She believes in GOD and a strong family. They have been together four years and are getting married in October which I plan on attending. The wedding will be in Conway, Arkansa. I will meet her and my grandson for the first time this summer. They are coming here for a few days. My grandson is eleven and I can't wait to meet him. My prayers have been answered.

(I am so happy for you Deanna - this email is very special -- made me cry -- is one of those stories that makes a person reflect on their lives and I am so happy that Deanna has shared this with us.)

Maxine says hello and thank you for all the birthday wishes and wants us to know that she had a great day ...... Maxine says her daughter, Mary Jo who wasn't sopposed to see me till Thurs came in singing with her daughter Erica lol and took me out for a great breakkfst Then for supper my daughter Michele took me out for supper -- there was 11 of us with her family and everyone the rest of family phoned me wishing me happy birthday.  Thank you.

Florida Marie also kindly emailed me to say thanks for the last issue that she said she really enjoyed reading.  I love the emails I get from our friends.

  

Brit Pat had time to drop a quick note too and just in case you did not know please allow me to share her interesting and humourous little message!

 Hi Sharon thanks again for a great Global express, I look forward to reading them, I cant remember if I told you but I got my permanent residency on the 24th January 2012, so now here to stay. I found this little poem thought it was funny... have a great week 

It's winter in Canada
And the gentle breezes blow
Seventy miles an hour At thirty-five below.
Oh, how I love Canada
When the snow's up to your butt
You take a breath of winter
And your nose gets frozen shut.
Yes, the weather here is wonderful
So I guess I'll hang around
I could never leave Canada
I'm frozen to the ground!

A very warm (no pun intended dear Pat) welcome to Canada!!!!!!!!!!!!!

In addition to it almost being St. Patrick's Day and Spring is just around the corner in the Northern Hemisphere and Autumn looms in the Southern Hemisphere; March is also National Sauce Month.  You will find some most enjoyable sauce recipes at the Mom's Menu site and I look forward to publishing your favourite sauce recipes (actually any recipe) in upcoming issues of Global Express.

My son-in-law was at the right place at the right time a couple of days ago and was fortunate to have had his picture taken with the Grey Cup and Andrew Harris.  This could very well be one of those once in a lifetime events so I had to share it with each of you!

For those of us in North America

 

I hope this email finds you well and my wish for you is to be happy and healthy.  I always look forward to hearing news from all corners of the globe so I hope you will take a moment to share a little story or picture with us for publication in next week's Global Express.  Thanks to everyone who contributed this week.

Each of us are unique and there is no one else like us in the entire universe. We have different life experiences, different cultures, different ideas and some of us even speak different languages but "we are family" and we care and love to share! We acknowledge and embrace those special qualities that make each of us the person that we are!