“I was an inadvertent immigrant to the Emerald Isle in the age of the Celtic Tiger, a time when great amounts of wealth were being generated, more money than this island had ever known. Since I’d arrived with my new husband, my 8-year-old daughter, and my business plan, the Irish had been busy covering their ancient green land with suburban track homes, shopping malls, and fast-food franchises. Local pubs were being replaced by multi-story dance clubs, and discount mortgage brokers were opening offices in every town and village across the land. “Ireland, like me, had a deep yearning for acknowledgement. She, like me, ached to compete in the global business arena. Over the seven years I lived in this country, I watched it race enthusiastically in the direction of its own demise, speeding toward an economic cliff.“But I’m getting ahead of my story.“How did I end up in Ireland in the first place? As is too often the case, the answer to that question had to do with a man…”Kathleen Peddicord was pulling herself up the corporate ladder when given the opportunity to chase a dream she’d had since girlhood. She’d been editor and publisher of a magazine focused on options for Americans interested in living and investing overseas and finally had the chance to take her own advice. Kathleen charged headlong into her move from Baltimore to Ireland only to run headfirst into the Irish way of life. Ireland forced her to dismantle and doubt every belief she’d held as she struggled to start a business and open herself up to new romance while restoring an Irish Georgian country ruin.