There was an Irish language conference in Ballyvaughan this weekend, and I was fortunate enough to have been included in the festivities this afternoon and into the better part of the night. I had some fascinating conversations with various Irish speaking people concerning language preservation, folklore, Northern Irish politics, my own last name, and Eamon de Valera's ass. It was an unforgettable day filled with passionate debate, mournful songs, ancient poems, and contagious laughter. There is no way I could do justice to the experience, so I won't try. Instead, I'll upload a short video taken during the latter part of the evening (more videos may follow, depending on the wifi's cooperation). Although I've had my suspicions before, I can now definitely see where the "Ironbound song" tradition in my own family can be traced back to.