What if…The World Real Did End Today?

Sure people have been predicting the end of the world for 1000s of years, and no one has got it right.  Each time when the predicted time draws near the reaction by the majority of the population is the same:  disbelief, doubt, mocking humor and completely warranted skepticism…after all everyone who has ever made that prediction has been wrong.  But deep down, and I mean deep deep, down in all of us isn’t there a little bit of fear…fear of the unknown and of the answer to the question we all secretly ask ourselves “what if it’s true?”

And pretend for a moment that it wasn't just the ramblings of some crack pot, Bible thumbing, crazy, attention seeking preacher…and it was true…that the world was going to end.  Now ask yourself what would you do.  Some undoubtedly would pray, while others lived it up in unprecedented fashion.  Others would just go about the same routine as they always would, their lives unchanged.  But most people…most would go out and spend their last moments with the ones they loved, with their mothers and fathers, their daughters and sons…their husbands and wives…their friends.  People would live their last day doing what they loved and being surrounded by the ones they loved…because in the end they would realize nothing else matters.

Now as I sit here and think about the answer to the rhetorical question “what if the world was coming to an end”...in finding the answer I am left with, and will leave you with, another question: “Why don’t we live each day like the world was ending?”

Yes, What You're Eating is Made of Blood - Reflecting on My Trip to Ireland

Inishtooskert - An island off the West Coast of Ireland - also known as "The Dead Man"

In 2007 I decided one day to go to Ireland.  So I bought a plane ticket...yes I did this first and that makes no sense...sold most of what I had, pooled up all my money, got a passport and spent 5 weeks in Ireland roaming around the country by myself...loving every minute of it!

Well this week a some friends of mine will be headed for the Emerald Isle for a vacation...so I thought that I'd share a few things with that I took note of during my trek around the country...

• Irish breakfasts are amazing!  The "pudding" isn't pudding, it's a type of sausage...and the black pudding...it's black because its main ingredient is pig's blood...one word...DELICIOUS!
• Everywhere you want to go...is "just a 15 minute walk" from where you are...no matter what!
• People in Ireland are very friendly!
• People in Ireland are not as fat as people in the US!
• The best music, traditional Irish music known as "trad", is played in the County Clare...namely in the town of Doolin (trad sessions usually break out in the pubs after 9:30pm I believe).
• When a pub closes...that doesn't really mean they are closed...they will usually serve people long after "closing time"...hell I stayed in a pub in Dingle till 7:30am the next morning drinking!
• A biscuit isn't a biscuit in Ireland, it's a cookie...there is no such thing as what we call a biscuit.
• The small plastic bags, like the ones you get when you check out at Wal-Mart, will cost you 10-20cents to get in Ireland...this is to cut down on pollution...can you imagine Wal-Mart charging that per bag here!
• You can't smoke in bars (this has also taken off here in West Texas since my visit to Ireland), however you can smoke outside them...and take your drink out on the street as well.
• Dogs are allowed in Pubs...even in the kitchens of ones that serve food.
• Dogs are very well trained.  People tend to walk their dogs without a leash...but they do crap on the sidewalk a lot...the dogs not the people.
• Some of the brands of products that are popular here in the US aren't as popular in Ireland, or can be found at all, and the products that can be found there usually have different packaging and advertising.  Tay-To chips are the popular brand of chips, and the most popular flavor of Doritos in Ireland is "Chilli" style...not "Nacho Cheese" like in the US.
• What constitutes "spicy" in Ireland IS NOT SPICY AT ALL!  The same goes for "mexican food" (I ate at a "Tex-Mex" place in Galway and the "burrito" cost 30euros and was not good).  If they say something is "spicy" they mean it has an Indian kind of curry spice or flavor to it...or it is a kind of chilli flavor...hot/spicy = mild...at best.
• Soccer is really the only sport on TV (or at least when I was there).  Sometimes there are rugby games or Irish/Gaelic games like hurling.
• I use to think the wind blew hard in West Texas...not true...the wind blows really hard in Ireland!  Be careful standing on a cliff on the coast you can get blown off!
• There are a lot of people from all over Europe touring Ireland...I encountered a lot of German, Italian and French tourists everywhere I went.
• A lot of Eastern Europeans work in Ireland...mainly Polish people.  It reminded me of how a lot of Hispanics work in the US.
• Coke is a big soft drink brand (7up too)...GOOD LUCK finding Dr. Pepper...but some places do have it.
• Soft drinks in pubs are all in 8oz. glass bottles.
• Ireland sells beer in packs of 10...not 12.
• McDonald's food taste just the same in Ireland as it does in the US, but the menu is a little different...they have a 9 piece Chicken McNugget not a 10 piece...and there are a lot less options for dipping sauce...no buffalo sauce.
• I don't thin Buffalo Sauce exists in Ireland.
• Cadbury is the main candy brand/company in Ireland.
• TV commercials in Ireland are more graphic.  Anti-speeding, Littering ads for example...and Ads often have stronger sexual overtones to them than what we have in the US.
• There seems to be less restrictions for TV and Radio in Ireland...unlike what our FCC enforces here in the US.
• "Central heating" in Ireland isn't what we call central heating.  In Ireland they have space heaters in every room of the house that are all connected...that's central heating...but the bedding/blankets are MUCH WARMER in Ireland.
• I didn't see a lot of pick up trucks in Ireland, NO Chevy's and very few Fords.  The trucks they do have are small and Japaneses brands.
• Roads in Ireland are EXTREMELY NARROW compared to roads here...they have no bar-ditch and each side of the road is lined with stone walls...and to that point...
• When you are riding on a bus and your bus meets another bus...YOU WILL THINK THAT YOU ARE ABOUT TO DIE...but you won't.
• When crossing the street/road you better look right FIRST...remember traffic is on the opposite side of the road from what we are use too.

Well those are a few of the things I picked up from my visit to Ireland!  I loved every minute of it and can't wait to make a trip back!