How to Spot a Leprechaun

While in Ireland this last week, I was amazed by the hospitality and friendliness of every Irishman and woman I encountered. From cab drivers to B&B owners to complete strangers, it was an absolute joy to navigate the country. With only ten days under my belt, I may be overstating my expertise, but I’m going to go ahead and give you some pointers on how to spot a leprechaun. In my own short experience, I believe I encountered a total of four.

7 Points on How to Spot a Leprechaun

1. You won’t spot them, they’ll spot you. Only after you’ve engaged in conversation will they really show their true (green) colors.
2. Chances are, they speak native Irish (Gaelic). If not, they will still have a strong Irish brogue that is downright charming.
3. Vocabulary and phrasing will be straight out of storybooks. They will be quick to compliment you with a “good on ye” or a brilliant, contagious smile and a crystal clear laugh.
4. They are inherently tiny folk. Or, I’m just a tall American. I’ll also note that although the ones I met were older in age, they were not world-weary, but positively full of life.
5. A history lesson is an addendum to any conversation. Leprechauns are well versed in the history of the world, their country and their people. The best part is their willingness to share this with you. They are never condescending or better than you, they just want you to be informed.
6. Are you lost? Tired? Need a suggestion? Have a question? Help is on the way. Leprechauns employ a divine radar that tunes them in to exactly your problem, whether you voice it or not.
7. Like a true fairytale character, they are quick to appear and disappear. Often, leaving you wondering if they ever existed at all.

For my own leprechaun encounters – one was famous, two were nameless and one presented a business card so I can prove his existence. The famous one is known affectionately by locals as Michael D., and officially as Michael Daniel Higgins, President of Ireland. He and his wife Sabina joined the Forum on Education Abroad conference last week, and he shared some beautiful thoughts on the future of education, and the Irish language. He walked through the crowd (at just under shoulder-height) and shook hands with everyone. When I mentioned him to locals, everyone knew his personal history from grade school to lecture at NUIG. Damn sure, Michael D. is a leprechaun.

The business card is from a gentleman in Belfast who revealed to me one of the latest secrets of Queen’s University. The recently appointed McClay Library boasts a C.S. Lewis Reading Room, including a replica of the wardrobe door to Narnia, and a map on the table within. My bookishness was made more obvious by the copy of the Cloud Atlas in my lap, but it did take a bit of leprechaun’s intuition to point me in the right direction. Thank you, Alan!

The two nameless leprechauns were both tied to transportation: one waiting for me at a bus stop, another waiting for me on a bus itself.
- The first, a soft-spoken woman with a lilting accent and an affection for travelers. En route from Donnybrook to the outskirts of Dublin, she pointed out buildings and recited local history just above the roar of the engine. Before I knew it, she was off the bus and I pressed myself to the window like a child – trying to find her on the sidewalk (failed).
- The second, at the 8 o’clock hour en route from Galway to Dublin. A quiet old man with a taste for storytelling and a patience for my questions. How do I prove his existence? He wrote out Irish phrases for me, at my request. His smile stayed with me as I boarded the plane, and remains in strong cursive on a notebook page.

Go raibh maith agat to my Irish friends .. mythical and otherwise.

Madison: Round Two

Without question, Madison is way out in front of some other Midwestern cities I’ve encountered. That being said, I tend to disassociate cities and their surroundings areas. Manhattan? Not like the rest of New York. Austin? A liberal swath of green in the great stretch of Texas. So too, Madison.

On my last visit North, and my first time in the city, it was papered with Recall Walker signs and Wisconsin Badger red. It hums like a college town and holds all sorts of ethnic restaurants, indy bookshops, trendy shops and the like. It breathes youth in bicycles, cupcakeries and loud t-shirts. Needless to say, it’s nothing like the flatlands preceding it.

This time a trip to Madison on business, with a regional conference. Take a 5 hour drive (hundreds of miles, then turn left), a good audiobook and an additional weekend with friends to follow = I am a happy girl. Not to mention it’s dairy central and I’m headed straight for cheese. Move over hipsters, I’m starving for culture.

And that’s TWO – count ‘em – TWO weekends in October that were dedicated to cities.

Hallelujah, holy shit, pass the ice cream.

Rainy day Chicago

There I was: Friday afternoon motoring along in my car on a two-lane highway through the cornfields. Then suddenly – what’s this? Another lane? More cars? A toll booth!? Oh heyyyy, big city!

You know I’ve reached an all time low in my Midwestern experience if I get this much joy from a toll booth. But to be fair, there was more than one (3 tolls total) AND I got to slip back into the traffic dance, complete with aggressive driving and ill timed lane switching. Add this to my anticipation of a weekend in Chicago, and there you find true bliss.

Katie and I posted up at the Four Point Sheraton* by the O’hare airport, both for convenience and price. I experienced some sticker shock while searching for a room, after several visits into the city with someone else footing the bill for my sweet South Loop digs. Thankfully, FPS was clean, comfortable and just right. It also gave us a chance to explore the nearby suburbs. We drove into Des Plaines, Illinois thanks to a recommendation from my new favorite book: A Food Lovers’ Guide to Chicago* (thx Holly!). The review promised delicious Vietnamese* food and we were not disappointed. It was Katie’s first time with the cuisine and I went straight for the pho. Little did I know I would also drink the best bubble tea of my life. I chose avocado and it turned out to be more of a creamy smoothie than a drink.

pho @ Dung Gia

Full & happy, we slept like the dead.. until the alarm clock in our room went off at 6 a.m. Who thinks to check that? I think I will start doing so in future hotels.

So, with a very early start, we headed out via the free hotel shuttle which deposited us at O’Hare airport. We hopped on the blue line and about 30 minutes later we found ourselves in Wicker Park. Our destination was The Bongo Room*, the first breakfast place I ever enjoyed in Chicago, and still one of my top choices. We beat the crowd and only had a 20 minute wait and walked around taking in the view (“oh look another hipster.”) As true foodie friends do, we each ordered different dish and agreed to split. Our savory dish was a chorizo, avocado, and potato omelet and the sweet dish was raspberry Oreo pancakes. The sweet dish took the cake, literally.

Bongo Room ftw

Once again full and happy, we waddled back out to the metro in the gathering rain, and headed to Michigan Avenue. While making use of a brand new TripAdvisor app on my Droid, we started to follow “the arrow.” The app has a feature called take me there and it will literally point an arrow in the direction you need to walk in order to get to your destination. When your GPS is on the fritz, this leads to much laughter and some frustration. Needless to say we accomplished a lot of walking before finally reaching our destination: 900 Shops @ Michigan Ave.*

And then my shoe broke. While walking through Bloomingdales I tripped over my own foot. My Timberland loafer had lost its elastic and literally split in two. Our MacGyver instincts kicked in and we went on a mission to find what we would need to fix this shoe. What can I say.. I would rather spend my money on food then a pair of new shoes. We ended up with a nylon footie from the Bloomingdale shoe department and a paper clip from a nearby intimates store. I was holding out for a safety pin, but this would have to do.

upscale shoe repair

By the time the shoe excitement was over, we needed a drink. We weaved our way to the Cafe des Architectes* and chose our afternoon itinerary: a movie. Again the damn arrow let us in the wrong direction. Or so we thought. There was Katie double checking with her GPS, “I swear GPS says we’re standing right on top of it.” One block down we encounter a Marriott Hotel valet and ask him if he can direct us to the movie theater. He laughs and motions for us to follow him, and when we got to the end of the block he gestured to the third floor movie theater with huge LOEWS sign on the side of the building. I can’t imagine how many times this guy has answered this exact question. Time for some signage on the ground level!

The movie Argo was incredible. If you haven’t seen it yet you need to bust a move and get to a theater immediately. After two and a half heart pounding hours with Ben Affleck, it was time for dinner. Following a recommendation from Nate, we headed out for Italian. As proof of my continued Midwest experience, I completely neglected to think about making a reservation for dinner on a Saturday night in the city. What am I, a novice?

The guy at the door laughed in our faces and said the restaurant was booked through 10 o’clock. At this point, an elderly gentleman turned to me and indicated that perhaps if I took off my hat, let my hair down, and smiled a bit more, we could be seated within an hour. Needless to say I was not in the mood to work for my meal with my broken shoe after a rainy day. We decamped to the hotel and were barely awake by the time our pasta entrees arrived.

With Katie on an early flight, I was out the door soon after. This time consulting the good old internet, I found Egg Harbor Cafe*, just south of the airport in Elmhurst. Apparently this place is a chain, but I’d never seen one before. Thanks to reviewers for pointing me toward a delicious and affordable breakfast. Hot apple cider with free refills, pumpkin pancakes, and a place to do my work uninterrupted. How soon can I get them to Charleston?

hot apple cider

The drive down state was full of wind, up to 20 mile an hour gusts – great for the gas tank and fun for the car. Pushed onward by a brewing storm, I was home by 3:30 and napping by 4.

Next weekend, back to beautiful Madison, Wisconsin for conference, cheese and friends. October is turning out to be a lovely endeavor.

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* Four Points Sheraton – 10249 West Irving Park Road, Schiller Park
* Food Lovers Guide to Chicago by Jennifer Olvera
* Dung Gia Annam - 1436 Miner Street, Des Plaines
* The Bongo Room – 1470 N. Milwaukee Ave., Wicker Park
* 900 Shops at Michigan Ave – 900 North Michigan Avenue
* Cafe des Architectes (Sofitel Water Tower) – 20 East Chestnut Street, Downtown
* AMC Loews Theater, 600 N. Michigan (Rush & Ohio)
* Egg Harbor Cafe, 140 North Robert Palmer Drive, Elmhurst

Bright lights, big city

Call it small town detox. Call it Midwestern rehabilitation. Call it the great urban escape. Whatever you wanna call it I’m getting the hell out of Dodge for the weekend!

I’m on the road this weekend heading for Chicago. Its my first time driving north to the city, rather than taking the train. At this point, in an effort to preserve my sanity, I’m pretty sure I would ride a donkey North to Chicago.

This wasn’t a random point and shoot. My dear friend Katie is in the city for a conference so it makes good sense to drive up to spend the weekend with her. Yes, it is Homecoming weekend here in town.. but the lure of friendship, food, and humanity is far too much for me to ignore.

If anything, my time in the Midwest has shown me that there is really no distance  too great for me to drive to get out of the cornfield. I recently wrote about the issues of trying to shop in a small town. While I may not always be willing to make a two hour round trip for a box store, I think nothing of it when there are friends, and food, involved.

Some things I’ve learned about making a road trip.
1. You really have to love your car and love spending time in it.
2. You need a good audio book, a rocking iPod or a talkative companion.
3. You will probably benefit from having a cell phone charger in your car.
4. Towns with a population of 200 really do exist.
5. There are way less rest stops than there ought to be.
6. Don’t underestimate how much corn can change a landscape.
7. Those straight flat roads were meant for speedng. Cops know this, too.
8. A curve comes along once every 100 miles. Don’t miss it, stay alert!
9. Roads without lights are very, very dark at night. Don’t take your well lit roads for granted.
10. Nine times out of ten, roads are numbered, not named. Tricky..

Is it weird I was excited to see a 3 lane highway? Whatever, I’m ready.

Small Town Shopping

Preparing for Homecoming has really brought to light the issue of what is impossible to find in this town. My staff and I have agreed to participate in the Deck the Halls competition where offices compete for the most spirited decorations. I’ve simultaneously discovered how fiercely competitive my students are. When a random person falls into one of our intense conversations about streamers, I usually try to loop them in with an explanation, “We’re participating in the Deck the Halls competition…..” This is consistently punctuated by, “We’re going to WIN” by any one of my students in the room at the time. Look out!

School spirit aside, and not revealing any of our epic decoration plans, I have to say .. this town is a pain in the ass when it comes to shopping. As a rule, I hate to shop. I have to be in the right mood, on the right day, with all the stars aligned in order to come up with a destination that involves spending money. Well, god help me if I ever make that decision in Charleston, because it will involve a long drive and more money than I intended.

I make jokes about heading out to “civilization” and finding some “humanity,” but I’m not kidding. Here in Charleston we have a Walmart, and that’s it. That’s not an exaggeration. Sure, you can go to the Dollar Store, or the County Market. I have not set foot in Rural King and don’t plan to (I don’t need live chickens). When I first moved out here I’d be on the phone with my mom talking about what I needed for the apartment, and she’d suggest “Bed Bath and Beyond?” An hour away. “Target?” An hour away. “Kohls?” 45 minutes or an hour away.

photo courtesy of stouttraveladventure.blogspot.com

Now that I’m trying to shop for decorations, I realize that we’re going to have to get pretty damn crafty because I’m simply not making a 2 hour round trip to get to a Michaels, or a party goods store. Growing up in suburban Pennsylvania, I was so close to everything. We still had to drive, but you could get what you needed within 15 to 20 minutes from the house. Don’t even get me started on proximity to what I needed while living in Spain. Even working against siesta and Sundays, I was still able to get there and back - without a car.

Here, I find myself planning a day in Champaign (100 mile r/t) or a long weekend with Holly in Springfield (200 mile r/t) so I can a) get my hair cut, b) dine out, c) visit a museum, d) hit up a bookstore, e) buy craft supplies, f) buy clothing, g) soak up some humanity. This is not only a time commitment, but a drain on the wallet. Figure in the time it takes to get there and back, and then the gas money .. and that’s my monthly excursion out of town.

Let’s not overlook Mattoon, which holds the wonders of Home Depot, Staples, three more dollar stores, Wendy’s, a used bookstore, Big Lots and the original Burger King (really). It’s a mere 10 miles from here, and also has another Walmart if I’m feeling adventurous. Sometimes I head over to Tuscola (25 minutes out) for a trip to the outlets, or swing by the Amish (20 minutes out) for some homemade cinnamon buns and a change of scenery. Maybe this is why I no longer think anything of driving 3 hours to get to Chicago?

If you need us, the students and I will be in the office making paper chains all week… the Dollar Tree had a sale on construction paper.