I am a bit past “mid-life” at this point, so it is a slightly different crisis this time.

The first mid-life crisis trip was Ireland in 2006 for my 40th birthday. Shannon found Ballyhannon Castle, Margaret and Liam Moore made it magical for us, and the late, great Bruce O’Neill gave one of his finest toasts and sang a song on the lawn in front of the Coach House. Pepper the 700-pound Shetland Pony became our friend.; Blarney stones were smooched.

In 2016 Shannon found Palazzo Mannochi in Petritoli, Italy to celebrate my 50th birthday. One hundred of you wonderful family and friends made the journey with us and experienced the wonder of a gorgeous hill town in the Le Marche region. Every day was perfect, every night even better. The polenta board at Osteria de le Cornacchie still lives on in my dreams. The 2006 Petritoli soccer team jersey lives in my office (thanks to Super Dave Thompson’s shrewd deal-making and box building).

For my 60th, we are returning to the ancestral homeland of Ireland. As it turns out, we O’Neills are descended from a series of David Roches, the 7th, 8th and 9th Viscounts of Fermoy, who resided at Blackwater Castle. And so, 12+ generations later, we will be popping in for a visit with any friends that can make it.

The rooms are on us, though be warned - many are bunks in old service buildings. It will be madness, but the best kind of madness. Blackwater Castle has its own bar, which we will stock and run. I will have my own Guinness tap, at Matt O’s Pub; dreams do come true.