Irish-isms

The quest for cultural knowledge continues!
Here I go...

What kinds of goodies can you get in those bakeries you mentioned?

I try to stay away to be honest...everything looks SO YUMMY! There are all sorts of fresh breads of course, including Naan bread which I'd never heard of before. Its like a flat chewy sort of bread with lots of herbs and stuff in it. Usually eaten with Italian food or something. Its good.
Cookies aren't so popular, but cupcakes and loaf cakes are, lots of cakes in general actually. Danishes, tarts (pies), and croissants, are a few more favorites.

Describe a typical church service in the church you attend.

Well the service starts at 10 AM, and no matter how hard I try I always just seem to get there at 9:59, even though I live the closest. I blame the traffic because I have to cross a busy street to get there.
Because we are officially "vacant" (that always makes me snicker) -meaning we don't have a minister- everyone sort of has their own area that they pitch in to help with. Usually Christine will start by coming up to the front to welcome our visiting minister, and make the announcements. Then Mark will open in prayer, then read from the Bible (to do with the worship), and then we will sing a hymn.
After that there is usually another reading (to do with the children's address) and another hymn. The minister will do the children's address, and we will sing ANOTHER HYMN.
Then we will have the collection, and then the children go to Sunday School, and then guess what...another Hymn! (Its known as the Hymn Sandwich service)
Finally the minister gets to speak, and when he is done we say the Benediction, which I have never read so at first I just kind of mouthed it, but now I know it goes something like this...
"May the Grace of God, the love of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with us all, forevermore, Amen." But don't quote me on that.
And after that there is tea and biscuits and visiting!

What does a 'typical' Irish person look like? Any distinguishing characteristics? Do you look like one? :)

That's a funny question because I could point out people that look really Irish, but I can't really say why they look Irish. So no, I can't really give any distinguishing characteristics. And I don't think I look like one. Maybe I should try the fake tan...

Are people as "busy" and "metro" as North Americans, or does it seem a little bit more laid back?

In the big cities like Belfast and Cork, I would say people definitely give off a city vibe. Having said that, I don't think its to the same extreme. The smaller towns are definitely more laid back.

How about "global issues"? From casual observance are the Irish freaked about global warming, healthy eating fads, and wars in Iraq too?

One of the first things I noticed arriving in Ireland was their fixation on global warming! Everything is about global warming looming overhead, and creating "sustainable" this and that, and lots of recycling! Apparently in the last few years Ireland has made big changes to lower their "energy emissions" or whatever. So ya, that is a huge thing here. I've probably recycled more in the last 6 months than ever before.
As far as eating goes, they're really beginning to emphasize the "5-a-day" thing (that's eating 5 servings of fruit and veg a day). Its all over the grocery stores, with labels on fruit juice like "Part of your 5-a-day!", and collectible coupons if you buy over $10 worth of fruit and veg...stuff like that. On tv there are tons of programs about the rise of obesity and how 'we' don't want to end up like Americans (!), and eating right, and getting exercise, and being happy about your body shape! Overall I think they have a fairly healthy and positive approach.
Iraq comes up pretty often, nobody likes Bush, and Americans I've met say they introduce themselves as Canadian to avoid awkward questions. News about American politics is definitely around, and I think most people are rooting for Barrack Obama.

Found any fellow Irish homeschoolers?

Interesting question. As far as I can tell, homeschooling in Ireland is illegal, but no one really seems to know for sure one way or the other. So no...I haven't!

Do you still "stick out like a sore thumb"...or have you pretty much gone native now?

I think I stick out, but I'm just used to sticking out now that I don't notice. It catches me by surprise when people ask where I'm from, because its not the first thing I say about myself anymore!

are you working on your Irish accent or are you patriotically maintaining your Canadian one?

I had a bit of a scare for the first few weeks arriving where I unconsciously mimicked the Northern accent, and then I really missed my Canadian one and I couldn't find it. Didn't like that so much, so after that I was pretty serious about maintaining my mother tongue. Also I moved down south where the accent is 100X harder to mimic without sounding East Indian. I know. Random. But its true.

If you think you can do it though, here are a few tips to achieving a Cork accent.

Turn your "o"s into "a"s. Cork becomes Cark.

"th" becomes "t" and sometimes a "d". Think becomes Tink, Thing becomes Ting. This becomes Dis and That becomes Dat!

'Tis replaces It is, and Ye is the quaint Olde version of "you" (plural)

And I don't know why but Jill becomes...Jeel.

Have fun with that!