BON VOYAGE!

In March 2013 I read ‘Dublin Architectural Development – 1800-1925’ by Michael J. McDermott.  It was in the library of the Royal Dublin Society.  I was very impressed by the description of Dublin’s history, its development over the many centuries and its great attraction, not only to its own people but to the many visitors who visit this city and its countryside.  I was prompted to write an essay describing the material in the book and this I had completed by mid March 2013. 

Later in the same month, I had read a history of Lloyd George, ‘Tempestuous Journey – Lloyd George: His Life and Times’ by Frank Own.   He was born in Wales and joined the legal profession.  He was very supportive of Home Rule in Ireland when he was a young man and he was totally opposed to the war in South Africa at the turn of the century.

From Travels with my girls blog - Jan 16th 2015

It was this book which stimulated my idea of writing regular abstracts about books which I am likely to read and to recall other circumstances in my life which might be of interest to myself and to my family and others. 

Since the month of April 2013 I have regularly written a short essay and published it on my blog. (For those interested, the word blog is not contained in my Random House dictionary of English language, published in 1967.) 

Up to this date in December 2015 I have written 140 blogs.  My youngest daughter Lisa has been acting as my editor.  She arranges the sending of each abstract to those who are on my ‘Blog list’, as I call it.  The number of those receiving the essays on their emails now number about 200 but I believe that I have over 15,000 ‘hits’.  Lisa is an important component of my blog.  She keeps the language in order and is careful about grammar and other aspects of correct communication!  She is sometimes helped by her assistant, another daughter Barbara, who is now doing all my secretarial work because of my inability to cope with the computer because of my current age of 93 year and loss of sight. 

Initially my blogs were based on books I had read but they were soon used for the purpose in dealing with factors raised by other matters that came to my mind.  I continue to publish weekly and regularly. It has been very interesting and stimulating for me to keep my mind on current events and to retain an active memory of previous events which are worth recording and which I may easily have forgotten.

Much of the subjects dealt with have of course dealt with Ireland but there is a broad interest in all world events.  I have enjoyed the process with varying degrees of satisfaction.  It occurs to me that it is a habit which might become a family one and which might be continued permanently by families where one has access to many members of the different generations, for example, my own, my children and their children too.  It should be possible to appoint some member of the extended family who would be responsible for the editorial job and continuation of the blog process.  Who knows, a blog of this sort might provide a family history which could be of great long-term interest to following generations?

Who needs clothes when you have shoes and maps?

I have now decided to cease my regular weekly blog for the next eight weeks whilst eleven of my extended family will be away in South America and the islands of the Pacific and in the south island of New Zealand.  They will be away during the months of December and January.  The members of the family will undertake the process of producing a weekly blog which will be sent to Lisa and which will keep us all informed of the joys and possible tribulations of their trip.  In the meantime, I shall be completing my book – Survival of Humanity and hopefully I will publish it shortly after my family have returned.  I will watch and read their stories with interest and hopefully they will have my high standards!