Pharmaceuticals
In northern England I have a friend who went to Grimsby in 1983 where he then contracted a cold he has never been able to […]

Read: USA & Ireland Little Differences #11 »

Turkeyed Out
Okay the Turkey is an American bird, but it was in Europe that it got its name we know it by.
Europeans sailed to […]

Read: Ireland & USA: Little Differences #10 »

Coin Take Up
The U.S. Mint is trying again. New One Dollar coins are being introduced starting in February 2007.
These new coins will bear the […]

Read: Ireland & USA: Little Differences #9 »

Temperatures
I’m not referring to Fahrenheit versus Centigrade or Celsius - or as AccuWeather bizarrely calls those options, ‘English’ versus ‘Metric’, presumably on the basis that […]

Read: Ireland & USA: Little Differences #8 »

Irish Fests
There aren’t Irish Fests in Ireland.
Ah you’re just being semantic; it’s like saying we don’t have Irish Stew in Ireland, we just have Stew, […]

Read: Ireland & USA Little Differences #7 »

Forget what Johnson County is sending me, and get a load of what the city of Kansas City - where I actually live - sent […]

Read: They’re On It - But What Does It All Mean? »

From Euros to Dollars: Banking in the MidWest
-Hello, xyz-commerical-bank head office. How may I help you?
-Yeah, howaya, I’m an xyz-commerical-bank customer and I just wanted […]

Read: From Euros to Dollars: Banking in the MidWest »

Umbrellas
In an American metro area of two million people, I’m the only person I’ve ever seen with an umbrella.
And people look at you funny. […]

Read: Ireland & USA: Little Differences #6 »

God it’s hot. Wasn’t it meant to be cold? A book. Shouldn’t take long to get a book. I could get the bus. Only losers […]

Read: An Irish Odyssey in Kansas City »

Car Bombs
I love Irish car bombs, is a phrase I never heard before moving to America.
In America, a car bomb is a drink with […]

Read: USA & Ireland: Little Differences #5 »

Dead Animals
Most every day I walk in Kansas City, and my dog rolls in a dead snake. Thanks to Saint Patrick and his very thorough […]

Read: Ireland & USA: Little Differences #4 »

So I’m back in Kansas City a couple of days, enough to know again that the days have names. And all things being equal I […]

Read: Flying to Ireland from Kansas City »

1. Erin Go Braugh
2. Christmas in Killarney
3. Would You Like Some Corned Beef & Cabbage?
4. Notre Dame Fightin’ Irish
5. Happy Father’s Day
6. We’re so proud […]

Read: 10 Things I Never Heard Before Moving to America »

Walking the streets of Dublin always brings back memories of the early days in Kansas City. I bought a pair of socks today, and it […]

Read: Purple Haze: 119th Street Town Center »

Speaking of Irish cliches, I did enjoy watching American reactions to the Aer Lingus hostess who, when you chose your Coke, or Sprite, or whatever, […]

Read: Irish Cliches »

Maybe it’s Kansas City, but I’ll never get used to American news.
If you look at the online Kansas City Star, a typical American newspaper, […]

Read: American News: Kitten Dies »

A couple of days back I read this article in the Houston Chronicle on the language difficulties between Irish people and Americans.
The article is provoked […]

Read: Irish to Americans: When Negative is Positive »

I know you’ve had a nice Irish summer - sunny, muggy, hot even - but right now in Kansas City, at just after four in […]

Read: Dear Ireland, Kansas City is hot »

You’ve probably already noticed how your favourite Irish band, whatever kind of music they play, has an account on MySpace - well with the increase […]

Read: USA & Ireland: MySpace & Bebo »

If you’re in America you should not be reading this today - you should be with your family and pretending you have friends. If you’re […]

Read: Community »