write next door

with columnist Colleen D’Angelo

Photo courtesy of Colleen D’Angelo

The Big 100

Writer celebrates years of covering Dublin

Happy Anniversary to me!

No, I am not 100 years old, but I have written over 100 columns and articles for Dublin Life Magazine. That means I have had dozens of opportunities to learn new facts, experience different activities and meet oodles of Dublin residents.

Some interviews and stories make me laugh in disbelief while others hit a jarring, emotional chord. The best part is the continuation of growth, learning and sharing with the reader that I hope endures for many years.

People always ask where I come up with my ideas and the answer is varied. Sometimes the editor will make suggestions, or I will have a lightbulb moment about a topic. Most of the time, ideas come from Dubliners who I meet while shopping at Kroger or enjoying a glass of merlot at Tucci’s. The Facebook group Dublin Moms in the Know is a tremendous source of information and regularly connects me to fascinating stories.

While the last eight years of columns are archived online, I only have physical copies of the earlier years and don’t revisit them often. Browsing through them recently gave me an amazing trip down memory lane.

The Dublin Irish Festival

I covered the 20th and the 30th anniversaries of the festival, including 30 things I love about the festival. The rock night on Friday, darts and whiskey tastings, and petting the Irish canines are some of my favorite events. I gave a behind-the-scenes look at Irish dance including the wigs, costumes, shoes and history. Through the years my daughter, Courtney, went from an 8-year-old beginner dancer to a professional touring the world with the show Riverdance. Sports and More Sports

In two years of health and fitness articles, I tried almost every sport and fitness craze around. I went from hiphop and water aerobics classes to sand volleyball and kickboxing. I also learned the tricks to shopping for nutritious food in the supermarket and got CPR certified. The number of folks who, after reading my column, decided to get their own CPR certification is a point of pride for me.

Food, Glorious Food

I am always ready to volunteer for a foodie article, so send your ideas any time! At one point, I had the joy of trying five food trucks in five days to report my favorites. The Korean Barbecue from Cupzilla was only topped by the pork belly sandwich with corn and jalapeno jam from En Place.

Progressive dinner parties, where guests travel to a different house for each course of the meal, were a lot of fun to cover as was the exploration of red wine and chocolate pairings that my family did during the pandemic. Many years ago I wrote a similarly delicious piece called “Sweet Street” and tasted desserts at all of the downtown Dublin restaurants. That’s hard to imagine today as all of the new options on both sides of the river would make it a week-long challenge.

Travel

If you know me, you know I love to travel all over the world. And if I can’t be the traveler, then I’m reading about the adventures of other lucky people. Over the years, I’ve written about Dubliners fulfilling fascinating adventures. Rebecca Hinze visited 40 countries before she turned 40. She and her husband, Todd, listed hiking the Inca Trail to 8,000 feet in Peru as one of their favorite parts. The Mangan family traveled to all seven continents before the kids graduated high school. Their high points were hiking Mount Kilimanjaro in Africa and riding elephants in Nepal’s Chitwan National Park.

Humorous and Quirky

Dubliners provided me with hilarious recollections of wedding woes, from dresses catching on fire to wind storms blowing all of their centerpieces away.