Dia duit! Welcome to my blog! Today it snowed so much that it stuck to the ground, and still hasn't stopped. Before I could run outside and test my brand new coat and boots, Daid told me I should head over to the Southern MTTB. Apparently, Julie will be staying there as a boarder. I reluctantly agreed to help her go unpack.
I walked in to see Julie throwing clothes onto every free bit of floor space. It was so messy I had to walk on my tiptoes to keep from stepping on something!
I picked up one of her shirts and attempted to make a somewhat neat pile as I explained why I was there. The first thing I noticed was a pair of roller skates similar to mine. "You roller skate, too?" I asked.
"Yeah, I also love to ride my bike, but that's back in California." Julie responded briefly.
We stood there in an awkward silence until I managed to say, "I'm so glad it's snowing! Have you been outside yet?"
Julie looked at the floor uncomfortably. "No...and I don't really want to. We don't get snow in California. I don't even have a winter coat."
"YOU'VE NEVER SEEN SNOW?!" I exclaimed, dropping the shirt onto the floor. I grabbed Julie's hand and practically dragged her out the door. "WE CAN'T STAY IN HERE A MINUTE LONGER! I'LL EXPLODE INTO A BAJILLION PIECES IF YOU DON'T SEE THE SNOW THIS INSTANT."
After throwing on my coat and boots, I closed my eyes and fell backwards into the snow, letting my body slowly sink into it. I motioned for Julie to do the same, but she just stood in the doorway biting her fingernails.
"This is how you make a snow angel. See?" I shouted above the wind as I moved my arms up and down.
Julie walked in a little ways and then just sat down in the middle of the field behind the Southern MTTB. I could see her shivering but she didn't complain (for once).
Instead of playing or doing something FUN, Julie just sat there and felt the snow, like it was the weirdest thing she had ever seen. She squished it between her bare hands, drew hearts and faces in it, and tried to catch snowflakes on her fingertips. I'd grown up with snow my entire life. It was strange, watching someone touch snow for the first time.
"Why don't we do something? Like make a snowman or have a snowball fight?" I called.
Julie stood up and brushed the snow off her jeans. "YOU may have a coat and boots, but I don't. I'm freezing. I'm going inside."
I called after her to wait but she ignored me. I heard her slam the door behind her when she made it back to the Base.
I just stood there, feeling small and alone in the quiet field of snow. Julie wasn't in a bad mood at all. Why did she suddenly get so angry over nothing? The only explanation I could think of was that she's homesick, but that doesn't give her an excuse to treat me like I don't exist.
I'm going to get to the bottom of this.
~ Saoirse
Nollaig Shona! Merry Christmas to those who celebrate it! This Christmas, I woke up just as the sun was starting to rise over the pine trees in my backyard. It couldn't have been too early, though, because it took me forever to wake my parents up!
With Addy under my arm, I tiptoed down the stairs even though everyone, including a very excited Coconut and grumpy Licorice (they get presents on Christmas, too!), was already awake.
Look at all the presents!
As you may have noticed, my family has a funky looking Christmas tree. Since this is our first Christmas in Maine, Daid decided to start a new Christmas tradition. Instead of cutting down and killing a tree every year or buying a plastic tree, we could plant a tree and reuse it every Christmas! The only downside is that it needs a humongous, ugly pot.
My first present was from Mam and Daid. Isn't the bag pretty? Inside of it was...
A sparkly purple scarf! Go raibh maith agat Mam agus Daid!
The next gift came all the way from Ireland! I could tell it was from Seanmháthair right away. She never wraps her presents!
I got a purple polka dot sweater, a magenta hat, some jeggings, and purple shoes. Go raibh maith agat Seanmháthair!
The next present was obviously from Santa.
A pink winter coat! Thanks Santa!
This present was from my friend Dani!
It was a homemade pink t-shirt, green striped capris, and frilly skirt! Dani remembered my favorite colors! I can't wait to wear these once the weather gets warmer. Thanks Dani!
The last gift was from Rudolph.
It was two My Little Ponies! Thanks so much Rudolph!
Just as I was about to run upstairs to try on all of my new clothes and play with my ponies, Mam and Daid brought out ANOTHER gift! I started jumping up and down when I realized that it was a...
...NEW CAMERA! Now I don't have to take pictures with Mam's phone anymore! Go raibh maith agat Mam agus Daid!
Soon after I finished opening all of my presents, Daid and I walked over to the Southern MTTB to invite some of his work friends over for Christmas dinner. When we got there, I suddenly had a strange sense of deja vu.
Standing almost exactly where Caroline had stood a week earlier was yet another girl I had never seen before! She looked slightly impatient, almost as if she were waiting for someone. Daid suggested that I check and see if she needed anything.
"Hi," I said suspiciously, "I'm Saoirse. Are you looking for somebody?"
"Yeah. I'm looking for Mr. Linch." Her words stung with annoyance.
I threw my arms up in surprise. "ANOTHER NEW STUDENT?!"
"I'm here to complain, actually." She rolled her eyes at my dramatic reaction. "My mom sent me here for a boarding school. Neither of us knew it would involve time travel! Based on your ridiculous...I mean interesting clothes, I'm guessing you're from 2012? I'm from 1974, and so far it looks like America has done anything but improve. Do you have any idea how many species have gone extinct in the past 38 years? Or how much the sea level has risen? I'm not impressed."
I was a bit hurt by the way she had spoken to me, but I tried to brush it off. Besides, Mam and Daid were alive in the 70s! I bet they would love to meet Julie, and maybe Julie would warm up a little if she met them?
To her disappointment, I ignored her complaining and invited her to come have Christmas dinner with me and the rest of the Southern MTTB students. She actually smiled and said that sounded "groovy."
After Julie and I got to my house, I changed into my fancy green polka dot dress. Only minutes later I heard a knock on the door.
It was Caroline!
"Dia duit Caroline! Merry Christmas!" I greeted her. Despite the frosty air biting at my arms and legs, I introduced her to Julie. Thankfully, Julie was much more polite to Caroline than she was to me. Caroline would've been much more offended!
Kaya and Josefina arrived soon after. Josefina timidly hid behind Kaya as I introduced them to Julie. The "hello"s and "nice to meet you"s seemed to take forever as I hopped up and down to keep warm!
When we got inside, Caroline, Kaya, and Josefina placed all the food they had brought on a little plastic table. Unfortunately, the five of us had to sit at the Kid Table. It was tiny--there was barely enough room!
We talked around that dinky table for hours. Through our ever-changing conversations I began to learn more and more about the two newbies. Despite her harsh outer shell, Julie is actually a lot of fun to be around. She also obviously has a huge thing for the environment and animals. Her and Kaya found something in common there!
Caroline seems a bit prim and proper to me (she scolded Kaya for eating with her hands, and me for not placing my napkin in my lap), yet somewhat free spirited. She went on and on about sailing on lake Ontario with her papa. Well, on and on until Julie bluntly told her to shut up. I can already tell that this is going to be a very...interesting year.
Merry Christmas from all of us!
~ Saoirse
Dia duit gach duine! Welcome to my blog! Last week, I was pleasantly surprised when standing in the Southern MTTB's lobby was a girl I'd never seen before.
She looked about my age, but definitely wasn't from the present. I vaguely remembered Josefina mentioned that we may be getting a new girl from the 1800s on our first day of school. Is this her?
I decided to take a chance and greet her. "Dia duit! I'm Saoirse. Are you here for the Southern MTTB School for Higher Learning?" I made sure to say the school's whole name so I would sound smart and professional.
"Yes, I am a new student. My name is Caroline. Are you from the current year?" She said with an accent that sounded slightly English, but that I couldn't quite place.
"Yep! Where are you from? How did you find out about time travel?"
"I come from Sackets Harbor in the year 1812. My papa is a ship builder, and I would love to be the captain of a ship someday! At the moment, my country is plagued with a war against the British. My parents were worried about my safety, and were searching for a safe place I could go to during the day, at least until the war ends. When a man approached them and mentioned education and safety through time travel, they were both amazed and horrified! At first, they refused to allow their 10-year-old daughter anywhere near such magic! But, when Sackets Harbor was attacked, the strange man finally won them over. And, well, here I am!"
I thought it was amazing how positively fearless Caroline seemed even though she had just time traveled for the first time, and was surrounded by things she had likely never thought possible! I can't wait to hear more about her life in 1812!
In other news, it's almost Christmas! My family invited Kaya, Caroline, and Josefina to come have Christmas dinner with us! Kaya doesn't celebrate Christmas, but she'll go to anything that has free food!
~ Saoirse
Dia duit! Happy Thanksgiving, Americans! I've never celebrated American Thanksgiving before, but this year Daid's friends invited us to come stay with them in Connecticut for a few days and have Thanksgiving there. I'm really excited!
At first, Mam and Daid planned to take me to the American Girl Place on Saturday, but they thought it would make more sense if we went on our way to Connecticut, so I got to go yesterday! The car ride was super long, but it was worth it once we got there!
While I was there, I met a girl named Joy who looked just like me! She was super nice, and even agreed when I asked if we could take a picture together for my blog. Thanks, Joy!
I loved the sweater Joy was wearing, so that was the first thing I bought! Isn't it pretty?
Next, I found a toy boat in the store's play area. Another girl joined me, and we played in the boat for nearly half an hour! We pretended that we were lost in a really big, deep ocean. Suddenly, a bad-guy-ninja popped out of the water! The girl and I fought him with the oars of the boat. Just before I pushed him back into the water, I ripped off his mask. Turns out he was actually the girl's dad! Oops!
I looked around for a long time, playing in toy cars, pretend kitchens, and a bunch of other stuff. I wish I could've bought everything! I finally found an AGP Boston t-shirt that I decided to add to my collection. Now I have one from New York AND Boston!
I had so much fun at the American Girl Place! I really hope I can go back sometime soon!
Happy Thanksgiving!
~Saoirse
Shona Dé Sathairn! Happy Saturday! This weekend, I got a surprise visit from Jess! I don't get to see her very often because she lives all the way in Michigan, so I was super excited! She's friends with Charlotte and Zoe and Dani too, so we all decided to meet up at a craft fair. It was a lot of fun, and they even had a special stand with every flavor of fudge you could ever imagine! Charlotte and I split a quarter pound of m&m fudge. It was awesome! ;)
I didn't think I was going to see anything I liked at the craft fair (besides food...), and was amazed when I found a PINK AND GREEN scarf and PINK AND GREEN hair bows! I almost started squealing in the middle of the fair, I was so happy! Jess also found something--a really neat painting of some ravens. I honestly thought it was boring compared to the amazing accessories I got, but Jess told me that it's because I'm not mature. I was going to retaliate, but then I realized that she's kind of right...
Mam took this picture of Jess and I when we got home.
Here are my amazing hair bows! They even have little cherries on them!
And here's my scarf! Jess said it was very "sassy."
This is Jess' painting. I have to admit, it is pretty.
That's all for now! Slán from both Saoirse AND Jess!
~Saoirse
Dia duit! Hello, and welcome to my blog! This past week has been a lot of fun. It was Spirit Week! At our school, we celebrate Spirit Week by dressing up to match the theme of each day. Everyone dressed up--even Mr. Linch.
Since Monday was a teacher workshop day, we didn't have school, so Spirit Week didn't officially begin until Tuesday. Tuesday was the easiest of all the Spirit Days, because it was...
...Pajama Day! Pj day may have my favorite because I was so comfy all day!
Wednesday was probably the most interesting of all the Spirit Days. It was...
...Decade Day! Kaya, Josefina, and I decided that we'd dress up as each other's decades. When Kaya first suggested that I do the 1760s, I refused...until I put on her dress. It was surprisingly soft and super comfortable! I think Josefina was the most uncomfortable, because at lunch she mumbled, "These zapatos, I-I mean shoes, are kind of pinching my toes...not that I don't like them or anything! They're actually a really pretty shade of purple!" That's about as close as Josefina gets to complaining.
Thursday was the most fun day of Spirit Week (in my opinion), because on Thursday we got to...
...dress up in our favorite colors! I honestly doubt Kaya's favorite color is brown, but she told me that, "As of today it's a tie between brown and light blue, and after waltzing around in Josefina's clothes all day yesterday I would really prefer some deerskin." She really gets on my nerves a lot sometimes.
Our final day of Spirit Week was none other than...
..School Color Day! Our school colors are red, white, and blue. I thought that was totally unoriginal, but of course nobody listens to my brilliant ideas. I think pink and green is much more unique than the colors of America's national flag. Besides, nobody who currently goes to the school is even originally from America!
I thought Spirit Week was a lot of fun! And guess what else? It's almost Thanksgiving Break! My parents told me that this Thanksgiving Break we can go to Boston and check out a view historical places. On our way home, we're even going to stop at on of my favorite clothing stores and boutiques--the American Girl Place! Hopefully I'll get some pictures to post on my blog!
~Saoirse
Dia duit! Happy Thursday! Sorry I haven't posted in a while. School has kept me really busy!
A few weeks ago, when I got home from school, Mam was standing in the living room with two tickets in her hand. She grinned ecstatically as she said, "The Marine Band is having a free concert here, in Maine!" I was surprised to hear her say this in English, since we were at home. Mam is usually very strict about "remaining as Irish as possible."
"Who?" I replied. I'd never heard of the "Marine Band" before.
"They're one of the best bands in the country! They perform for the president!"
"Um...who?" I asked again.
Mam was obviously getting impatient with me. "The Marine Band! They're a huge concert band that's been around for hundreds of years!"
I groaned. Of course it was a banna ceolchoirm leadránach. Mam plays the french horn in a community band, and is obsessed with classical music. "Can't I stay home with Daid?" I pleaded.
"No! This is a once and a life-time opportunity! We have to leave in 15 minutes if we want to get a good seat, so please throw on something nice and get in the car."
I sulked upstairs and changed into my favorite green and brown polka-dotted dress. When I climbed into the car, Mam gave me an apologetic smile before pushing the key into the ignition. We rode in silence for a while before Mam handed me her cell phone. "Ar mhaith leat cuireadh a thabhairt do chara?" she offered, tired of speaking in English.
I began to look through the contacts list. I could invite Dani, but she probably doesn't like classical music any more than I do. Then there's Jess, but she's all the way in Michigan. That left Charlotte and Zoe, my blogging friends who attended Jess, Dani and my Triple Birthday Party.
Charlotte picked up only seconds after the phone started ringing. "Hello?" she answered in a high-pitched, girly voice.
"Hey Charlotte! It's Saoirse--," I began before being interrupted by and enthusiastic scream.
"Oh Saoirse! I haven't talked to you in forever! Well, I talked to you on the phone last week, but it seems like forever ago! How have you been? Zoe and I are fine. Speaking of Zoe, did I ever tell you about the time she and I were raking leaves and--,"
"Yes Charlotte, you told me about that already." I heard Mam giggling in the driver's seat. Me and Charlotte's conversations almost always followed this same path. "Anyways," I continued, "I was wondering if you wanted to meet me at Bowdoin College. Some Marine Band is giving a free concert there. Zoe can come too if she wants."
Charlotte gasped dramatically. "The Marine Band? As in the president's Marine Band? Yes, yes, yes! They're only the best band in the whole wide world! Maybe they'll sign my flute for me? Omigosh, I'm so excited! I'll meet you there!" Charlotte hung up the phone without saying good-bye. I sighed as I handed the phone back to Mam. If my friends thought I was draining, they had obviously never met Charlotte.
When we arrived at Bowdoin College, the crowd was huge! I didn't expect this band to be that famous, especially since they were giving a free concert. It took me a while to find Charlotte, but when she spotted me she gave me a huge, suffocating hug. "Let's go get a good seat!" she squealed as she grabbed my hand and pulled me along.
The band started playing soon after we were seated. They were huge, with nearly every kind of instrument imaginable. And, they actually kept me attention! The first few songs were exciting, but it wasn't until the end that I became really interested. When my eyes were starting to droop after sitting there for over an hour, I heard something really familiar. The band was playing a traditional Irish song!
The moment Mam and I recognized it, we proudly started singing along in Irish. Charlotte's cheeks immediately turned red, even though it was unlikely that anyone could hear us over the music!
Overall, I actually really enjoyed the concert! Not nearly as much as Charlotte or Mam, but much more than I thought I would! What concerts have you been to?
~Saoirse
Shona Domhnach agus fáilte go dtí mo bhlag! I was just awarded the Versatile Blog Award by Sayoko from http://truetomoko.blogspot.com/ . Thank you SO much Sayoko! It really means a lot to me!
So now for the requirements:
1. Must State Requirements
(no really?)
2. Thank the Person Who Awarded You
Go raibh míle maith agat an méid sin, Sayoko!
3. Pass the Award on to Five Other Bloggers
Congratulations to:
1. Charlotte and Zoe
2. Breá
3. Samantha
4. The Dolls of Happy Valley
5. Elizabeth
3 1/2. Notify the Awarded Bloggers by Commenting on Their Blogs
4. Share Seven Unusual Things About Yourself
Alrighty, here goes!
1. I know how to swear in four different languages.
2. Two years ago, I was a red panda-witch for Halloween.
3. My roller skates used to be Mam's, and are almost 40 years old.
4. 21 is my lucky number.
5. Even though I've been living in America for three years, I still have a really strong Irish accent.
6. Ever since what happened to me back in Ireland, I've had huge trust issues.
7. I screamed when I realized that I got this award!
That's about it for now! We're having Spirit Week at school soon, so I'll be sure to post about that!
Slán!
~Saoirse
Dia duit gach duine! Fáilte chuig mo bhlag! Yesterday, I started something I've been dreading for months--school.
The thing about school that was different this year, though, was that a part of me (a VERY small part of me) was actually excited. I would be going to school with people from the past, present, and possibly even future! I couldn't wait to meet other kids who time traveled or had parents who did, and was also beyond excited to time travel to important events in history. Actually experiencing something will be so much more fun than reading about it in a textbook!
That morning, I slipped on my blue summery dress, knowing that it may be the last time I wear it this year. I threw my matching shoes in my bag, and double-knotted my roller skates before heading for the door. Right before I left, Mam snapped a picture of me with her phone.
When I arrived, Kaya and Josefina were waiting right outside the MTTB's rusty steel door. "Hey!" I called as I came to a stop in front of them. "Have you been inside the classroom yet?"
Josefina glanced down at her feet. "Yes, and it's very nice, but..."
"But we're the only students!" Kaya interrupted. My heart sunk. We wouldn't be meeting kids from other time periods, or any new kids at all?
Josefina noticed my disappointed expression, and quickly started to explain, "But, there's one girl from the 19th century who's stuck in the middle of a war right now. Her parents have been looking for a way to keep her safe, and a few of the 1800s scientists are trying to convince them to let her come to school here. The teacher said that she may even be here by November!" Josefina's enthusiasm and genuine smile raised my hopes a little bit. November isn't THAT far away. It's already almost October!
"Well, I guess that isn't too bad..." I said reluctantly. "Have you met the teacher yet?"
Kaya rolled her eyes. "He's been WAITING for you to get here! Can we please go already?" She grabbed both my and Josefina's hands, and pulled us inside.
We passed the front desk and headed left towards the wing marked "Present". Down the hallway we went, until we finally reached the very last room.
One side of the room was entirely made of glass, and the rest of the walls were an artificial white. Four rows of four desks took up most of the room, with black counters in the back and on the right side. In the front of the classroom was a large, messy desk and soft twirly chair, with a spotless whiteboard behind it. A balding man with a thin sole patch, no older than forty, was writing on it in big cursive letters. Wellcome! i'm Mr Linch.
The three of us noiselessly sat down in the first row. "So you must be Saoirse?" He asked in a pleasant voice. When I nodded, he pointed to the whiteboard. "Quick! Name something that's wrong with that sentence."
Surprised, I panicked and looked for the most complicated error I could find. "Umm...you need to put a dot after 'Mr'."
Mr. Linch turned back towards the whiteboard and corrected his sentence so that it said, Wellcome! i'm Mr. Linch.
Next, he turned to Josefina. Calmly, she said, "Welcome should only have one 'l'."
Mr Linch corrected the sentence again, and it now said, Welcome! i'm Mr. Linch.
"Kaya, your turn." He said in a tone that matched his smile. Kaya squinted at the board. "You spelled Linch wrong?" She offered.
Mr. Linch shook his head. "I think I know how to spell my own name right!" He exclaimed.
Kaya sighed. "Well I don't know, it looks like you didn't know how to spell 'welcome'..." She stared at the sentence for another few seconds before shouting, "Capitalize the 'i'!"
Mr. Linch gave her a high five and changed the sentence. Welcome! I'm Mr. Linch.
After school let out, Kaya, Josefina, and I discussed our first day in the parking lot. "So Kaya, is it possible that you may have actually enjoyed school today?" I teased.
Kaya shook her head stubbornly. "I'll admit that it's better than last year, but there's no way that I'll ever, EVER, like school. Ever."
"Well, you still have 10 more months to change your mind!" I taunted. Before she could react, I skated down the road at full speed, not looking back. Kaya may be fast, but no one's faster than I am on roller skates!
Slán!
~Saoirse
Dia duit gach duine! I finally have all the pictures from my fifth--and last--day at Rangeley!
Jess and I spent our last day at Rangeley swimming at Rangeley Lake. It was HUGE! There were also a lot of waves and creepy crayfish, so Jess and I didn't spend too long swimming. When we got out, we dried off on two forest green chairs overlooking the lake.
As I wrapped my 70s style towel around my shoulders, I thought of everything Jess and I had done here this past week. Sure, we had had some...erm...a lot of arguments, but overall I had a ton of fun! "I can't believe we're going back home tonight!" I complained. "It seems like we just got here."
Of course, Jess didn't have any interest in my nostalgia. She just rolled her eyes and whined, "Yeah, well, at least YOU don't have to fly all the way back to Michigan!"
I was about to retaliate when Jess jumped off her chair. She pointed to a thin path that led into the woods. "I wonder where this goes?"
She began jogging down it. "Come on Saoirse! Let's investigate like Nancy Drew!"
I began to mindlessly follow her, but stopped as I realized what I was doing. What if we ran into a coyote? Or a bear?! I suddenly became very reluctant to "investigate" this suspicious looking path.
"Wait Jess!" I called. "What if we get lost?"
Jess just laughed and continued walking. "We're not going to!" she shouted over her shoulder.
Not wanting to be alone, I hurried after Jess. The path twisted through the sparse forest and sometimes disappeared all together. I walked right on Jess' heels, occasionally stepping on them, until we came to a small clearing right at the edge of the lake.
I squealed with delight. "It's like a little beach! Omigosh, it's so CUTE!"
"Wow Saoirse, take a chill pill," Jess teased, sitting down on a large driftwood log. She patted the space next to her. "Come sit!"
We sat in silence for a while, until Jess finally spoke. "You know how earlier you said that you can't believe we already have to leave?"
I nodded, not knowing where this was going.
"Well, this past week was really a lot of fun. Maybe I'll come visit again next summer?"
I grinned. "That would be awesome!!!"
And that's the end of my Rangeley series! I hope everyone enjoyed seeing Jess' and I's adventures!
~Saoirse
