Category Archives: Jolie

The Longroom Library

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One of my favorite sites I have seen thus far in Ireland was the Longroom Library on Trinity Campus. After making our way through the Book of Kells exhibit I found myself surrounded by dusty books and rows of numerous busts portraying some of the most famous literary icons. The library reminds me of Harry Potter, meets Disney’s Beauty and the Beast mixed in with my wildest library fantasy (yes I have an ideal library design mapped out in my brain). There was one downfall, however, to this picturesque library. Each bookcase shelf was labeled with letters that went chronologically through the alphabet and     Every shalf went from I to K completely skipping a row for J’s. I may be slightly biased to this indiscretion since my name is Jolie Jones, but I can’t imagine there was not a single book in that library that begin with a J. This did not damper by overall impression of this magnificent library, but it did make me curious as to why there would not be a J. I may never know the answer because I did not bother to ask, maybe there was a time in Irish history when J’s were considered lesser letters. The day followed with a viewing of Othello at The Abby theatre, where a man is driven mad with jealousy after a false idea is planted in his head by the conniving and manipulative Iago. While I will probably not be driven to this degree of jealousy by the lack of J’s recognized in the Longroom library it was a curious observation.

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Foghorn Howthorn

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It is astounding how different a place Howth was from when we arrived early afternoon and departed late evening. Our arrival was greeted by a fog that made everything past a few hundred feet nonexistent in our minds. Mist swept down from The Summit as we made our ascent to the top. The higher we climbed the more the fog seemed to clear as the sun attempted to make it’s way through the clouds. When we returned to the small town resting at the bottom of the cliff walk it had become a completely different place. You never would have thought a few hours ago the entire harbor was shrouded with a dense fog. I also could not believe how close we were to Ireland’s Eye, which before had been no where insight but now was only a couple hundred kilometers away. I have been extremely grateful for the fortunate weather that I know will not last much longer, but we were very lucky to see such a magnificent place under such unique circumstances. The patterns of nature, while unpredictable, greatly influence one’s perception of place. At first Howth seemed like a mysterious region of Dublin with a dangerous cliff made more perilous by the impeding fog. But after it cleared, the entire town seemed more cheery and a couple seals even poked their heads out in the harbor. While this was the same place regardless of whether or not the sun was shining, my perception and mood was altered by the drastic change in weather. I have to say I like Howth Harbor, rain or shine.

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The Irish Eye

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A Place at State

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Every time I pass the Art and Humanities steps it reminds me of my first semester at Georgia State University. When I first transferred to GSU I was frazzled by the immense size of this urban campus. One of the easiest, most central locations for me to find was the Art and Humanities building so my friend and I would constantly meet on those stairs after class. One of my first classes ever taken at Georgia State was also located within this building so I would walk up those steps each day I was on campus. Although I have not had a class within that building for a few semesters now, I still use it as a chief meeting place whenever I want to find someone on campus. The stairs are very prominent because of their immense size and close proximity to a majority of Georgia State buildings. Most people know exactly where you are talking about if you mention them no matter how long they have walked the streets of Georgia State’s campus. If am waiting between classes sometimes I will sit on the outside stairs to pass the time. I also often use the Arts and Humanities buildings as a point of reference to find other buildings on campus. For example, I had never been to Dahlberg Hall so I traced a route using the Art and Humanities as my starting place. My mother received her degree from the Georgia State College of Arts and Humanities, so this building also reminds me of her.

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Personal Place

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I consider myself lucky to have lived in the same house throughout my childhood into my young adulthood. I have many friends who were shuffled from place to place, whether to a different house within the city, or entirely different states or countries. This wall represents a map of my family’s growth over the years, not just in height but also time. Friends would come over and want to find a place amongst the notches on the wall. Pets were forced to stand on hind legs so we could see how they measured up from puppies to dogs. In the end, this wall has become a representation of the many loved one’s I’ve had in my life that have all come into my home and literally become a part of it.

The wall permanently captures places in time that would otherwise be forgotten. It portrays a time when I wanted to be taller than my best friend and we would constantly measure each other to find who was growing at a swifter rate. It marks the height of my older sister’s friends who always seemed so tall, but later in life I surpassed in the markings on the wall.

This wall is a very little physical part of my house, but it is a big part of my family and very nostalgic to all of us. A place becomes a home when it accumulates memories that mean something to you. For me, this wall emulates a place where I grew up from an innocent child into a young woman. There is no other space in the world that represents these stages of my life and I am very happy to have it.

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