Wednesday, May 5, 2010

HAVIN' A LAFF

My blog has been a bit serious of late and need some light relief. My daughter, Carla is a great source of such relief, particularly recently.

For the information of my readers from outside Ireland, the GPO (General Post Office) is an imposing building on Dublin’s ‘main street’ which was the scene of a lot of the fighting during the 1916 Rising and from where the Proclamation of the Irish Republic was read. It is a building with iconic status for that reason… so much so, that you may already know all this.


Anyway Carla is my eldest. She is a bright girl, who received a good education and now has a successful career as a Travel Agent. However until last week, her work was always based in our local town, Dun Laoghaire which is a suburb of Dublin City. She is a creature of habit and a home bird and I am only now realising how little she has ventured into the city in her 23 years!

So last week she began a new job and had to find her way into the city centre, to Liffey Street (which, you guessed it, is off the quays on the River Liffey). On her first day she phoned me at lunch time to report that all was great. Her new work colleagues were nice and all was well. Then the conversation went like this:

Carla : “Oh but the only problem was that I got lost this morning.”
Me: “You got lost? How did you get lost?”
Note to reader – she really is a successful Travel Agent.
Carla: “Well I got the DART and got off at Tara Street Station and wasn’t watching just followed the crowd and ended up on some random street and couldn’t find the river”

Note to reader – the DART is the rapid rail system in Dublin. Tara Street is the only station on the quays. You could fall into the river, exiting the station.

Me: “So what did you do?”
Carla: “Oh I called Paddy and he directed me back”
Me, (thinking) I must congratulate Paddy, her boyfriend on his patience.

This morning, my mobile rang at about ten am, Carla Calling. The conversation went as follows:

Me: ‘Hiya, Wassup?’
Carla: ‘Oh my God, I have to go and post a letter at the GPO’
Me: “Yeah, so”
Carla “Where’s the f**kin’ GPO?”
Me: “You’re joking, right?”
Carla “Ah… no. Where is it?”
Me: “It’s the very large building half way up O’Connell Street. It was the scene of much fighting during the rising. Surely you saw pictures of it in your History books?”
Carla: “No. And what do I do there… I was told to post a letter. Do they do that?”
Me: “Carla – it is the General Post Office – yeah they will help you to post the letter”
Carla: “Oh right. Is that what it stands for?”
Me: “Yeah”
Carla: “OK, so I am just here. What door do I go in?”
Me: “Any door. Its just a large post office”
Carla “Oh, OK. Oh my God – it’s just like the bank in Harry Potter”
Me: “I am hanging up now Carla before I wet myself. Bye!”

I am shortly going to prepare dinner. I hope she gets home OK.

P.S. She has approved this copy before I posted it! She also has a sense of humour! She is a great girl altogether…. As long as you are not relying on her for directions!

20 comments:

  1. So I'm guessing she won't be working as a Dublin Tour Guide any time soon! Hee hee - how could she have missed the Liffey?? Lovely post as usual. Just what I needed to cheer myself up! Maria x

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  2. Remind me not to ask her to post my letters, or drive into Dublin...and a lesson in Irish History wouldn't go amiss - even me as a 'Brit' knows about the GPO !
    - perhaps a DVD of the Michael Collins film for her birthday...????

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  3. Very funny Barbara. Still laughing. A Travel Agent ahhh sure God help us! Oh by the way, I just noticed my comment on your Gerry Ryan post has disappeared. I did leave a comment!

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  4. Haha! I have a son 21 yo like that. He doesn't like to drive on highways at all, then I have my oldest, who was driving from Chicago to Valdosta, Georgia all by himself at 20. (the trip is close to a thousand miles.) For the record, I'm more like my 21 yo. lol (although I don't mind highways anymore.)

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  5. Oh how cute! Carla sounds delightful! I'm visualizing a film of this ditzy but adorable travel agent in Dublin and her well-grounded but cleverly funny mom, and the boyfriend named Paddy, and how with everyone's help and her own charming resourcefulness, Carla rises to the top of her field thus taking over the travel agency from the villainous owner who's trying to sell it to Walmart which would cause all the wonderful Dubliners to lose their jobs.

    I want to go see this movie!

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  6. As one of the Dublin readers who could skip the exposition - oh dear!

    Carla isn't alone though, I know lots of people who are the same. And in her defence, I work in Dun Laoghaire and it is really well-serviced - I can see why someone wouldn't need to leave it very much!

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  7. LMAO! Just like the bank in Harry Potter! I love it!

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  8. Hi Carla,

    I am probably the only one who knows that Barbara made all that up for a laugh!! I'm quite sure I saw you at the Easter Rising Commemorative Ceremony this year at the G.P.O - you with such strong Republican roots!

    Good luck in the new job heard you are breaking sales records already

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  9. Hi Barbara, your posts are always a pleasure to read, but this one was especially fun.

    I've tagged you in my blog post today. If you can stop by (http://patriciastoltey.blogspot.com) you'll see what you need to do if you want to play. :)

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  10. That is sooooo funny and fair play to Carla that she didn't mind you informing the nation that she doesn't know about the GPO. And she's right. It is a bit like the bank in Harry Potter!! I do hope her boss sends her on more errands. We could do with a few more laughs. Carla: I hope you never change.

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  11. Apparently in an 'awareness' survey of men and women ... men were more likely to notice big things like trees and buildings and women were more likely to notice the smaller things like leaves and fine detail. So it is no surprise to read that the massive GPO building didn't register with Carla at all. Barbara and Carla ... take heart, when I, aged 57, was in Paris with my sister and daughter recently ... we flagged down a taxi to take us to the Eiffel Tower. You can imagine how silly we felt when we discovered that one of the Eiffel Tower legs was anchored six feet behind us hidden behind a bush!!!!! :) The taxi driver just shook his head and pointed straight up! :)

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  12. Hi Barbara,
    I'm a first-time visitor. I discovered your blog via Patricia Stoltey's blog. Love your sense of humor; I will be sure to visit again.
    Best,
    Donna V.
    http://donnasbookpub.blogspot.com

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  13. Thank you all for your comments and I am so glad you were tickled by my dearest eldest child's antics. She does keep us all amused. Like my husband she provides me a rich vein of comedy. I am sure there will be more of same!!!! Thanks again.

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  14. Sounds like me! I get disoriented from time to time, especially when I'm in a new place. Thanks for the laugh.

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  15. You have to love daughters. You must have a great relationship with her. Thanks for the chuckle.

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  16. Brilliant story Barbara!...knowing Carla, she was probably sitting down, having a coffee, and winding you up!!! x.

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  17. That's hilarious Barbara! And I'm impressed that your daughter didn't mind you posting about her GPO episode.

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  18. Lovely story Barbara and very conincedental, as i was only at the GPO yesterday, was showing my son the GPO with a history lecture, being a boy he'll probably remember exactly where it is next time he goes into Dublin.

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  19. Siobhan - she actually revels in her ditzyness.. and she manages to use it to great effect. Brigid - might get you to drop into her in work and give her the history lesson during her lunch hour!!!!

    Thanks again to you all for leaving comments...

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  20. So funny! I hope she managed to post her letter! Maybe you should get her a GPS for her next birthday:)

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