Ireland, Part 6; Dingle
We were warned by Mark, the man who owned our house in Ennis, that Dingle was a long drive, but we had to go there. Dingle is supposed to be one of the best towns on the west coast. The day started out a bit off pace, so I would definitely need coffee for the road. No problem you would think; just stop at the local convenience store on your way out of town. But Jamie turned left at the wrong goat path when he should have turned right, and since we were being followed by friends in a different car behind us, he would not go back the way I asked him. Jamie likes to accommodate people, whereas I like to follow my plan. Jamie thought that for some reason my personality would change because our friends were in a car behind us. When I protested, he replied, "Oh, we will just stop somewhere else that we see." I reminded him that Ireland's rural roads don't have convenience stores and that we should really turn around. He refused, and I knew he would regret his decision because at that moment, I could not think of anything beyond my desire for coffee.
After a tense discussion, and him being flustered about not wanting to turn around, I stared at him with my stare that silently asks, "after 20 years you don't know you need to follow my plan..." Because of that wrong turn, our road trip to Dingle quickly became my personal quest for coffee. I sent a text to the other car's occupants explaining that I was hoping to stop somewhere for coffee. As we were driving for ten minutes, then fifteen, then twenty, with no sign of a coffee place (which did not surprise me at all), Jamie would say cheerily, "Aaaany minute now, we'll find coffee..." It is always fun for him to watch me not get my own way. I just sat there annoyed, dwelling on the fact that he did not turn right at that fork in the road near our house. So, after about an hour on the road, I saw a McDonald's sign at Shannon Airport! Only about a twenty-minute detour. Of course everyone took their turns laughing at me for my coffee quest, but at least my mission was complete. With hot java in hand, onward to Dingle!
