I am a Massage Therapist and Birth Doula who is back in school for a professional degree. I am passionate about the arts; having tried my hand (or done my time) at both stage and film acting. Before school ate my evenings, I was active with the Vortex Repertory Company, where I am still a company member. I met my partner while in Ireland on holiday; at the Old Ground in Ennis to be exact. (It’s a long story as to how my Donegal partner, who lived in Dublin, ended up in Ennis that night. Maybe I’ll tell you over pints some day.) I’m a mixed breed mutt, like most Americans, though I am particularly proud of my Irish and Native American heritage. I’m an only child who was reared on a family farm and the country life is truly the life for me!
In my spare time I enjoy jogging, hill walking, non-fiction reading, knitting, painting, and daydreaming. Other interests include megaliths, wine, chamber cairns, scrambling up mounds in the pissing rain, holy wells, the performing arts, meditation, taking wrong turns just to see where the road leads, eating local, organics, antique shopping, dancing all night under pulsing lights, opera, Bulmers, charity shop hunting, trad music, and riotous laughter.
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25 April, 2010 at 3:19 pm
magnumlady
The holy well in Sligo is a lovely place, not sure if you’ve been there. I love charity shop hunting too….last time I got my daughter a pair of converse for 3.50 🙂
25 April, 2010 at 6:21 pm
Traci
The one with the old mass rock, near the lake? Gorgeous Mary grotto. It was over run with smoking teens both times I’ve been.lol. Isn’t it the best feeling when you find that perfect something at the charity shop? More satisfying than department stores, for me anyway. 🙂
24 August, 2010 at 9:24 am
Erika
Hey fellow southerner (Georgia)! I’m in the process of doing the same thing, I guess. Feeling a bit overwhelmed. It seems that things should be cut and dry but my “de facto” relationship is with a non-EEA citizen who just started working in Ireland in March. So we are a bit stressed as to whether I will be able to get permission to remain: as we’ve only been dating for a bit over a year and trying to sustain such a relationship is very expensive and unrealistic (US Airways loves me). Crosses fingers!!!
24 August, 2010 at 3:00 pm
Traci
Hi Erika,
They are pretty firm on the 2 year rule. I spoke with a woman from Florida (http://thebohomama.livejournal.com/) who was living in the country with her partner. They met while she was in school there and had a baby together. The INIS still wouldn’t give her the stamp until they had reached the 2 year mark. BUT, you do have 90 days as a tourist. Maybe you can leave every 90 days and return?
I completely understand how difficult the distance is. Best of LUCK! When are you planning to go over?
25 August, 2010 at 11:59 am
Erika
Hi Traci! I’m already here, rapidly approaching the one month mark. The problem with the de facto relationship provision is that if the relationship is not with an Irish national you have to prove 4 years!!! 😦 Seriously since Ireland is making it rather difficult for us to be together he’s looking for other research positions outside of the country (I don’t even know how he allowed himself to be seduced to come here! I knew he’d hate before he arrived!)
There seems to be a lot of conflicting information out there, so we sought the advice of an immigration attorney. We have to go to immigration to see if they’ll allow what we want, otherwise it’s back to the attorney to bat for us. She seems confident that I will get the extension. The visa that I seek would not allow me to work just remain in the State during the length of his contract. The attorney advised strongly against re-entering the state every 90 days; it’s illegal and if caught will lead to deportation and a ban from re-entry.
25 August, 2010 at 2:22 pm
Traci
Hi Erika!
WOW!! 4 years??? I would go insane if I had to wait another 2 years. 😦
Thanks for letting me know about leaving and coming back, as a tourist. I had no idea that would get you into trouble. I hope you get a favorable result. :fingers crossed: Is your boyfriend at Trinity?
So, tell me how you like it otherwise? I know the work of processing through immigration is frustrating and can colour things, but I would love to hear how a fellow Southerner is liking the country! 🙂
27 August, 2010 at 4:28 pm
Erika
Traci!
Well, let me tell you coming from Georgia when the highs were flirting with hell to here, my body had undergone some sort of shock. I didn’t get sick but god knows I felt like I was freezing. Not to mention that all my cute summer dresses and sandals have gone to waste here (though the locals are clad in such attire) it’s just too cold for them. Speaking of clothes, I hate the clothing here, apparently folks do not enjoy vibrant colors. It’s summer for goodness’ sake! The ever presence of greys, blacks, beige just put me in a state that I am trap in a void. Other than that, Dublin is pretty swell.
Though I’ve not met any irish folks. I kid you not. I’ve met a bunch of italians, a belgian, an american and a girl from japan! My american melting pot is global! So are dirty old men. I do find the irish people with whom I’ve interacted remind of people from home, nice, accommodating–who seem to go out of their way to help me. Though I had bus fare, the driver let me ride for free and refused to take my fare!
Anyway, I’ll fill you in on the details of my immigration status; next week we go to GNIB to seek permission to remain in the state. Oh the boyfriend is a researcher at UCD.
Erika
31 August, 2010 at 3:20 am
Traci
Hey Erika,
I am certainly looking forward to some cooler weather! Texas in August – ugh!! I had to laugh about the lack of color. I was speaking to my sweetie’s sister once about a dress I liked, which he didn’t. His main complaint was the summer color/cut of the dress. He felt I wouldn’t get much wear out of it there. His sister soundly chided me for even considering his fashion advice, as he “couldn’t handle a splash of color”. lol
It’s crazy that you haven’t met any of the native population. No doubt it just takes time. I have heard they are a tough group to break into, but once you do you are there for life. I’ve been poking around trying to find local groups I might join, for outings and such. I’m going to miss my friend group. Thank goodness for skype!
Best of luck this week on the immigration!! Let me know how you make out.
Traci
27 September, 2010 at 3:51 pm
Erika
Hello Traci!
I was just sending a note to update you on the move. We’ve gotten a letter from INIS saying that we have to demonstrate a de facto relationship of 4 years! It’s crappy but what can you do? It’s not like either one of us wants to stay here. So on to Plan B: Getting the hell out of dodge!
29 September, 2010 at 11:29 am
Traci
I’m so sorry to hear that, Erika! I understand how important being near your partner is. I wish it could have worked out. Will he have an easy time finding a research position elsewhere?
My advice. Don’t let it rain on your parade too much. Get out and enjoy what’s here while you can. At least now you guys have a course of action. 🙂
9 January, 2011 at 11:44 pm
chicagolady
Hi,
I came across your blog on the expat website. I was born and raised in Dallas. I met my Irish husband in Chicago. We moved to Ireland in July. We are living in Wexford. I love your blog! When you tell people you are from Texas do they ask you about JR? I have gotten that a few times. We are surrounded by family and friends but it is hard finding your own way. I am looking forward to following your blog.
Andrea
10 January, 2011 at 5:31 pm
Traci
Hi Andrea!
Glad to meet another Texan here! I haven’t been asked about JR (though I got that a lot when I visited Scotland as a teen). I’ve found a lot of people seem to assume I am republican and supported Bush. How are you liking Wexford? I checked out your blog and y’all have a fair bit of land down there! :envy: How are the kids adjusting?
Traci
16 January, 2011 at 11:23 am
chicagolady
Traci,
I get that a lot about being a republican and about Bush. It is like I elected him into office all by myself. Wexford is good. We are near town and only 1hr 30min to Dublin. We are near the beach which is beautiful but it is quiet. We got lucky with our rental but I do not think my husband is too excited about mowing 2 acres. I think a ride on mower is in our future. The kids are good. I think they are adjusting better than I am. We are going back to the states for our first visit in Feb. It will be interesting to see how we all react.
Andrea
23 January, 2011 at 3:49 am
Natalie
Hi Traci. I am in the same boat. I am also a Texas girl (from Houston) and am in the process of moving to Ireland to be with my boyfriend who is Irish. We’re going to apply for the de-facto visa and have been together well over 4 years. Anyway, I was just wondering on how easy or hard it is to get a de-facto visa? Any advice you could give me would be extremely helpful. I’ve checked some blogs and the INIS website but there isn’t much info about it. I have no idea where to start and we are planning on me moving over this March.
Thanks
23 January, 2011 at 2:35 pm
Traci
Hi Natalie!!
What part of Ireland are you moving to? I am very happy to share my experience of acquiring the stamp 4.
First, you can’t apply until you are here. At the airport declare your intention to apply to remain under your relationship with an Irish national. That’s what I did (as the local Garda informed us to). You may only get 30 days, but don’t freak out. That just means you need to go down and present yourself to your local immigration official. Since we don’t live in county Dublin (thank all the gods…the lines in Dublin immigration are outrageous!) we just went down to our county Garda headquarters, where the immigration person is officed. He extended the amount of time I could stay, as we were waiting to hear back from INIS. He would have continued to extend my stay past the first 3 months because we were still “in process”. The only down side is that I couldn’t work or look for work during that time.
In the letter to INIS, requesting permission for me to remain due to my relationship with an Irish National, they required us to send:
copies of pay stubs and bank statements dating back 6 months
copies of bills, lease statement or mortgage, with our Irish address
proof that I have Irish health insurance
dated evidence proving that we were in relationship at least 2 years from the date (we sent copies of all our emails to each other)
photos of the two of us together
copies of both our passports – ALL Pages (even the blank ones) and make sure they are legible
Let me know if you have any other questions. I”m happy to share what we did. 🙂
24 January, 2011 at 6:45 am
Natalie
Thanks for that information. I am moving to Dublin so at least I know to expect long immigration lines. I am currently trying to get the documents together for the visa. Did you send in original photos, cards, etc., or were they copies? Also, how did you go about getting health insurance? I’ve been looking but there’s so much out there. Sorry about all these questions.
Thanks again for your help.
24 January, 2011 at 11:00 am
Traci
No problem, Natalie! Us Texans gotta stick together 🙂
Yea, I hear you have to arrive at Dublin immigration at like 6 in the morning to get in line before they open. They only give out so many numbers each day. We sent clear copies. The first time our copies were a little fuzzy so they requested cleaner images. I have my health insurance through VHI because that is the company he uses. There are several out there. You should check out the health insurance authority, they allow you to compare rates.
Don’t worry about asking questions. I know how freaked out I was, and He was already living here! How long has your boyfriend been in the states?
24 January, 2011 at 8:23 pm
Natalie
He was in the states for 7 years and spent 3 years in Houston. That’s where we met. He had to go back to Ireland a little over a year ago and we’ve been doing long distance ever since. He was hoping to stay in Texas but that didn’t work out as planned. We’ve been doing the back and forth visits and I was over there for 3 months during the summer. Since it looks like he can’t come back here anytime soon we figured we would try it over there for a while. Luckily, he found work when he returned home last year so he’s pretty settled in Dublin.
I’ll have to look into the health insurance thing. I was only going to get travel insurance but I guess that wouldn’t suffice.
Also, how is the job hunting going? I know the economy is so bad over there right now. I am a bit worried that I’ll have a hard time finding work. I do have a degree but it’s in sociology and I fear it might be useless over there. Perhaps I’l go to graduate school.
Anyway, thanks again for all your help.
25 January, 2011 at 12:31 pm
Traci
I forgot to mention, INIS also wanted a relationship narrative from both of us. We each sent a page long account of our meeting and subsequent building of relationship. Once I was here, and had made formal application, they requested, “Details of your partners future intentions in the State”. I wrote a paragraph explaining what I hoped to do for work, what my qualifications are, and general good citizenship stuff.
Since I just got the letter approving my stamp, and am waiting for my appointment (Feb 7) at my local immigration office to get my residence card, I haven’t officially started looking for work. I understand it’s difficult going. I’ll certainly post about my experiences when I start an active search. So, stay tuned. You can start surfing gumtree and jobs.ie to see what’s available. They are hiring for the census right now, and for 500 part-time jobs, they received 15,000 applications in two days!
27 January, 2011 at 4:58 pm
Jennifer
Hi Traci! I am a casting associate producer for the HGTV series “House Hunters International,” currently looking to cast ex-pats who have recently moved to Ireland. I came across your blog and thought you might make a great contributor for the show. If you would like to learn more about the casting process, please e-mail me at househunterscasting@leopardfilms.com. Thanks!
28 February, 2011 at 6:34 am
natalie
Hello again Traci,
I’ll be leaving for Ireland on March 25. I was just wondering if it you wouldn’t mind being my moving mentor? I think I am all set but just in case I have any more questions. This whole thing is a bit nerve racking, as you probably know. Thanks again for the advice. Also, feel free to email me if you’d like. It would be great to have a Texas connection in Ireland. Thanks!
4 March, 2011 at 11:11 am
Traci
Hi Natalie!
Absolutely! I’m happy to help if I can. YAY! March 25th is fast approaching.
25 April, 2011 at 4:40 pm
Visi
As a fellow American living in Ireland glad to come across your blog! Look forward getting the chance to read over it soon
2 May, 2011 at 3:37 pm
Traci
Hi Visi,
Glad to meet you here. How long have you been in Ireland and what part of the states do you hail from?
24 August, 2011 at 7:21 pm
Ingen
Thanks for the blog, Traci!
7 September, 2011 at 10:32 pm
Yvonne
Hi Traci, I am an Irish girl (from Dublin) who relocated to Dallas, Texas last year with my husband and little girl. I am in the process of compiling a blog also, but it still needs some work. Our lives have kind of switched i guess…… I can’t find any 2 ring binders !! LOL! Look forward to catching up with your blog and hearing how you “do and don’t” like Ireland.
What part of Texas are you from?
7 September, 2011 at 10:56 pm
Traci
Hi Yvonne!
How’d you survive the heat, and how is the fire situation up there? I’m from Austin and we’re really suffering down there.
haha – no 2 ring binders in Texas… No Siree! Let me know when you have your blog up. I’d love to hear how you are transitioning from one big “D” to the other! Do you have the big Dallas hair yet? 😉
22 September, 2011 at 1:47 pm
Justin Mcdaid
hey traci,
hope its ok that we pinched your review of the gig in crane lane there on mon night and pasted it on our page. http://www.facebook.com/thenortherndrones
thanks for that. not much of a demand for chocolate martinis in cork at that time of night but sounds like you had a good night anyway! cheers.
22 September, 2011 at 7:03 pm
Traci
Hi Justin,
Sure thing! We had a GREAT time!! and truth be told (ssshhhh), we liked you guys better 🙂
28 March, 2013 at 11:41 am
deepali
hi i love your blog! i’m an american moving to ireland and hoping also to apply for a de facto visa (in dublin currently). i’ve been scouring the internet looking for other people’s experiences, since there is no specific way to do this. it’s been quite a challenge doing this! since my boyfriend and i have been long-distance the whole time (him here, me in the US, for 3 years), i think we have a higher burden to prove, but am hoping something will work out. given that we don’t have housing documents, bank accounts (can you get a bank account without a PPS number?), or utility bills, we’ve only got photos, cards, letters, plane tickets, etc to prove the relationship. eek. trying to come up with other things we might include! look forward to browsing around your blog, and finally getting mine back on track. 🙂
28 March, 2013 at 12:42 pm
Me
Hi Deepali
Good luck on your journey! We didn’t have any of those shared things, either. All the utilities, etc were in his name, as he owned a home here. We had to get insurance for me, which had the address on it, and in our paperwork we included print outs of both our email inboxes, dating back for the 2 years required, which showed continually contact between the two of us. Of course, our passports showed that as well, because we made back and forth trips to visit each other about every 4 months. I’m happy to answer any questions, if I can!
30 April, 2013 at 3:22 pm
deepali
thanks Traci! We ended up sending a 200-page (it felt like!) folder of information, and now we wait! I am heading back to the US for a week in June, which is 92 days on my current entry visa, but hope it won’t be an issue. and then hopefully, we’ll get a positive response before my second 90 days is up!
24 May, 2013 at 10:04 am
Patti O'Leary
Hi Traci, I just stumbled upon your blog and was fascinated at how familiar your story is to me! I live in Co. Cork, having moved here from Texas in 2010 after getting married to my Irish husband. I’m also a thrift store fanatic ( I repurpose furniture) and love visiting historic spots, tombs and graveyards. I’d love to share stories with you!
24 May, 2013 at 12:34 pm
Me
Hi Patti !
Well, we do sound like peas in a pod! How are you settling in?
1 June, 2013 at 1:09 am
Patti O'Leary
Very well, thanks! I really love it here – the history and scenery is just amazing.