Author Archives: azgilstrap

It’s a Long Way to Tipperary

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To view the photoremedy video slide show above in high definition, just click the play button. Hover over the video, then click on the sprocket icon to the left of the clock and select 1080p HD.

According to my sister, Julie, who traveled with my mother to Ireland more than a decade ago, my mom’s mother’s family was from County Limerick and her father’s was from County Donegal. I do not recall Mom singing about either of those areas, but I have fond memories of her waltzing through the house–often joyfully pantomiming a tuba player–belting out “It’s a Long Way to Tipperary.”

Click here to hear an a capella version of the song.

More than 40 years after I first heard Mom intoning the famous 1912 Jack Judge World War I song, I finally made it to Tipperary. Mary and I combined it with an enticing sample of neighboring County Kilkenny when we traveled to Ireland this summer. Our all-too-brief two-county tour featured incredible photoremedy in colorful cities like Kilkenny and Cashel.

Kilkenny City – County Kilkenny, Ireland

Rock of Cashel – County Tipperary, Ireland

There was photoremedy to be found among the castles…

Kilkenny Castle – Kilkenny City

great restaurants, taverns, food, and nightlife…

Kilkenny City

beautiful, historic churches…

St. John the Baptist Parish Church – Cashel

and, our favorite: St. Patrick’s Well near Clonmel. According to Holy Well, “As you approach it, the waters from the well flow into a large and shallow pond with an ancient Irish stone cross set upon a small island in the middle. It is thought that this cross dates to the fifth century. For such a large, holy well and surrounding site, it is amazing just how little is actually known about this area, but it is thought that Saint Patrick passed through here and may have used this place to bathe or to baptize.”

St. Patrick’s Well – County Tipperary

Mary and I found this nearly hidden gem–recommended to us by our friends the Murphys–to be one of the most peaceful places we have ever experienced. With the well bubbling up and feeding the lake, and the lake tumbling into a picturesque stream, we felt a silent whisper, “This is holy ground.”

Yes, it was a long way to Tipperary (and Kilkenny). But, it was more than worth the wait. I just hope it doesn’t take too long for us to make it back. 

Ireland’s Glorious Ring of Kerry

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As the video above illustrates, Ireland’s Ring of Kerry is a multifaceted cannot miss attraction for visitors to the Emerald Isle.

For the Irish people, it is a National Treasure.

Killarney National Park

And for those of us in need of a little photoremedy that takes us to a better place, there are few places that offer such a diverse menu of peaceful gems.

The video slide show at the top of this post, edited to Willie Nelson’s version of ‘Danny Boy,’ is designed to illustrate just how diverse the Ring of Kerry is and why the destination is much loved.The photos in the video take you on a tour that begins in the Old Killarney Village. It then offers the gorgeous vistas of the Irish coast, Killarney National Park, historic Muckross House and Gardens, and the spectacular Torc Waterfall.

We continue to appreciate the great feedback on our ‘Irish samples.’ If you missed one of our earlier video slide shows, just click below to take you to:

The Dingle Peninsula or The Balleyheigue Area 

First pitch video remedy

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By Andrew Gilstrap

It isn’t every day that somebody you know wins the lottery. Or throws the first pitch in an MLB game. Well, my dad and I can claim the latter now.

Our neighbor and good friend, John Perez, a.k.a. ‘JP,’ a.k.a. ‘Johnny,’ got selected to throw out the first pitch before a Chicago Cubs and Arizona Diamondbacks game here in Phoenix at Chase Field. It was a Friday night game and one of the last of the MLB’s regular season.

Unsure of whether the pitch would be televised for Johnny’s friends in the neighborhood, my dad and I, already planning to go to the game with Johnny and his family, brought along a Handycam and my semi-new, high-end Canon SLR camera. We were more than happy to do the visual production for the evening.

perez_waiting

Perez (center, green shirt) waits patiently with his family before the start of the game.

My dad shot the video for Johnny’s first pitch, and I had my first real opportunity to test out the shutter speed on my camera.

Once he was summoned to the mound, it all happened and was over quickly. My dad asked, “He threw a strike, huh?”

I couldn’t even verify. I was so caught up in capturing the moment that I didn’t really pay attention to the result.

strike

Perez’s pitch easily gets over the plate.

Although I love having a new, powerful camera in my hands, the real joy out of all this was getting to produce a couple short videos of Johnny’s moment. If you haven’t already, watch the video at the top of this post. The second video can be found here. Be sure to watch ’em both in HD.

wind up

Perez winds up.

One video utilizes all the still photos I took. The other consists of the video from the Handycam my dad shot, which was obviously easier to edit. I gave each a different flavor, adding transitions and music to both.

For me, working to make videos was like therapy. Amid a chaotic final semester while working on my master’s degree, it was nice to get my mind off school and make something that our neighborhood friends would appreciate. It was great seeing the feedback the videos got on Facebook and seeing comments like, “Thanks for documenting it for the rest of us.”

Prior to the game, Johnny with his two daughters and CenturyLink co-worker, Alex.

I know it was a special moment for Johnny, his family, and his company (CenturyLink), and I hope at least one of my videos is worthy of commemorating the moment for years to come. Because, although I don’t know anyone who has won the lottery, I now know someone who has done something close on the scale of luck. Johnny was called to the big stage, and he delivered.

The Most Beautiful Place on Earth?

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Ireland’s breathtaking Dingle Peninsula was reportedly once cited by National Geographic as being “the most beautiful place on earth” and has been voted among the top 100 destinations in the world by Trip Advisor. After visiting there myself, I would like to add additional praise. I have never been to a place that offered greater photoremedy.

Dingle Village – County Kerry, Ireland

By the time Mary and I pulled into the enchanting town of Killarney, we were having a hard time rising to the challenge of driving both the Ring of Kerry and the Dingle Peninsula. As it turned out, we weren’t.

Instead, we did something we didn’t think we would be willing to do until one or both of us were unable to drive. We booked day trips on motor coaches operated out of Killarney by Deros Tours. We thought we were twenty years ahead of our time–at least Mary’s–for this means of travel. But, thankfully, we were wrong. It was the way to go in County Kerry, and we are now open to touring this way elsewhere.

Both tours offered extremely comfortable seating, we stopped frequently (which is an absolute necessity for me), we let a more experienced driver navigate the winding roads, our tour guides were incredibly informative with considerable Irish wit and charm, and I was able to enjoy photoremedy while we were both on and out of the coach.

Looking out the window on the Dingle Peninsula

Hopefully, our video slide show does the Dingle Peninsula a tiny bit of justice. If you haven’t seen it yet, sit back, treasure the incredible scenery, turn up the volume, and admire the music of Noriana Kennedy. We met Noriana when she sung at our friends’ unforgettable wedding  near Cork at the start of our trip; we all fell in love with her smiling demeanor and considerable musical gifts. If you would like to read more about Noriana, or buy her music, you can visit her website at http://norianakennedy.com/home.cfm.

Note: Photoremedy.me is published as a labor of love. Please feel free to share the site, or any of our posts, with others. Our Home Page always features an option for our readers to sign up to immediately receive new material as an email. We hope you will become a part of our photoremedy network. 

On Irish Soil

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I had never stood on Irish soil, sand, or rock prior to this summer.  Although, I have dumped a small Ziplock Bag filled with Irish soil on the spec of land I own in America (thanks to John Triggs who snuck home a bit of the Emerald Isle in his suit case and shared it with me at my Mom’s funeral).

Dingle Penninsula – Co. Kerry, Ireland

Technically speaking, I am a lot like America. I am a bit of a melting pot. I have German, English, and Irish blood. There are likely other ‘ingredients’ mixed in, but that’s what I can best conclude from my somewhat difficult to determine genealogy.

Despite all of that, I must say I have always felt like I was an Irish-American. I guess that’s because I have always identified with the deeply passionate love for Ireland that was so proudly displayed by my Mom and her many relatives that were no more than a generation or two removed from ‘the land of saints and scholars.’

Kilkenny City – Co. Kilkenny, Ireland

Mary and I returned from our Ireland pilgrimage earlier this month. So how can I best sum up our journey? Well, when we were about to depart Ireland after a leisurely two week tour, I emailed my kids and said, “I am having a hard time determining if we are leaving, or coming, home.”

Co. Kerry, Ireland

Ireland just felt right – except for the unfamiliarity of driving on the unconventional side of the street on the wrong side of the car when we were frequently on roads that were no bigger than a Texas sidewalk. But, on the whole, I would have to say it was the trip of a lifetime.

I went into our expedition believing it was beautiful beyond belief – it exceeded my expectations. I went into our voyage believing it would be enormous fun exploring Ireland with friends – it exceeded my expectations. I went into our jaunt believing I could get substantial photoremedy – again, it exceeded my expectations.

Torc Waterfall – Killarney Ntnl Park

And, how did my aching body hold up to all of this? It exceeded expectations, too, for the first few days and when I was getting ‘endorphin rushes’ from the thrill of digitally capturing Ireland’s explosive combination of color and history.

Now that I am home, the recovery has been slow and we have determined we will likely be proceeding with more surgery in somewhat of a last ditch effort to fight what I’m now being told is Failed Back Surgery Syndrome or FBSS. I know it sounds a bit strange to treat FBSS with more surgery, but I have the best collection of doctors I have had to date. Mary and I have weighed the options, and we believe it is worth the effort.

My photography will likely be limited during a possible 6 -12 week recovery period. Since photoremedy is primarily aimed at helping others fight similar or related health challenges, I will blog more about the procedures and details at a future date.

The good news is that while I will have to limit my activity and photography, I took so many stinking pictures in Ireland that I have plenty of material to take me a long ways down the future blogging road.

River Shannon (at sunrise) in Limerick City – Co. Limerick, Ireland

I hope the first series of pictures we offered in the video at the top of this post was worth the wait and the snail’s pace I had to take in putting it together. The photos feature Ballyheigue and its surrounding area. Ballyheigue is a  modest, breathtaking seaside village overlooking the Atlantic Ocean. It is near the spot where the famous River Shannon gloriously ends its freshwater journey and feeds the mighty Atlantic.

We traveled there primarily to meet up with our buddy Father Pat (Paddy as the Irish locals call him) Godley, who is featured in the photo-video. Fr. Godley–yes, that’s really his name–is a retired priest who serves our Arizona parish. Fortunately, for him, he returns to his native Ireland each year to visit his family and to make sure he remains ‘sufficiently Irish.’ He is 84 years old, but he would be a great tour guide if he decided to change professions. We hope that doesn’t occur. He still gives a great homily – filled with Irish humor and wise advice.

Note: The Photo-remedy mission is to encourage those fighting chronic pain and other afflictions to consider using photography as a powerful tool to move their focus away from the pain. In the process, we strive to enhance readers’ ability to see beauty and experience elevated joy in their lives. There are many gifts that can accompany health challenges; one of the greatest offerings is it frequently forces sufferers to set better priorities for their lives and assists them in seeing the world in new and more meaningful ways. 

All That Is Blooming In Our Lives

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A few of my male friends have recently poked good natured fun at me about my interest in growing and photographing flowers. I admit that I have to smile with them.

Five years ago I would have told them they were crazy if they said, “You know someday you are going to really enjoy planting a garden and spending prolonged periods of time assessing the beauty of buds and blooms.” That just wasn’t me. At least that wasn’t the old me.

The new me? I have no problem admitting that I find flowers absolutely captivating. I completely enjoy making them the frequent focus of my photoremedy. The more I zoom in, the more I find myself completely in awe of the fascinating details we so often miss. This revelation is a splendid reminder that the same is true with almost everything in our lives – from people and places to our faith and our future

Flowers bring much more than greatly needed color to our world. And, apparently, I’m not the only one who feels that way (see the quotes below).  As the dog days of summer march on, may we all take a moment to better appreciate all that is blooming in our lives.   – Greg

We need to find God, and he cannot be found in noise and restlessness. God is the friend of silence. See how nature – trees, flowers, grass- grows in silence; see the stars, the moon and the sun, how they move in silence… We need silence to be able to touch souls. – Mother Teresa

Earth laughs in flowers. – Ralph Waldo Emerson

Flowers are the sweetest things God ever made and forgot to put a soul into. – Henry Ward Beecher

Flowers don’t worry about how the’re going to bloom.  They just open up and turn toward the light and that makes them beautiful.  – Jim Carrey