So 2013 is to be the year of the gathering. Nice idea, but if it is really successful the island might sink under the weight of those with Irish blood. Here at home we have a sentimental attachment to those who have left our shores. It is a sort of romantic entanglement with the Flight of the Earls or the Wild Geese of folklore and history.
Ireland has been exporting people for hundreds and thousands of years, we did it before the Norman Invasions and we will continue to do it for millennia to come. Some fled the country in fear of their lives, some left to better themselves and some were transported for their crimes. I'm sure if I gave it a few more minutes, I could think of many more.
Fortunately, these days few leave to save their lives. The days of foreign occupation have passed. It has also been a while since we had a famine worth talking about. Since the foundation of the state almost 100 years ago we have had, suffered from, been blessed with, economic migration. You can take your pick as to how you view it. I believe it to be a blessing.
In the country with perhaps the most generous Social Welfare system in Europe, if not the world, people do not have to leave to live. People leave for a better life. We cannot begrudge them that. Given how few of them return, I suspect that the majority find a better life overseas and so it would seem, do their children and their children's children. So why do we consider emigration today to be such a tragedy?
The Irish love their history. I see myself as a bit of an exception, my interest in history lies in pre Christian Ireland. The stuff we weren't taught in school. The history we learned in school is largely written by those with an opinion and an agenda, archeology tends to have that objectivity that comes with extreme time scales. I try to read as widely as possible on the subject of modern history, or not at all. However, I see plenty of evidence of our cultural hang ups with emigration around me.
I did the leaving cert in 1976 and by the mid 80's I reckon half of those I knew who left school around that time had left the country. Even during the more prosperous 90's and 00's people emigrated in their droves. If we were anything special in the area of emigration the Americas and Oceania would be populated entirely by Irish descendants. People emigrate from everywhere. If it were any different we would all live in Africa, or Ireland would be totally overpopulated.
Embrace emigration, talent migrates to opportunity, or sinks into the obscurity of the Welfare Trap. Those who suffer from economic migration are those who are left behind. It is a kind of mini bereavement, but thanks to Michael O'Leary and Ryanair, the travel restrictions imposed by state owned airlines has been broken and it is increasingly easy to visit loved ones abroad.
It is funny how we Irish travel to find a new life, yet how we think a trip to visit family in Australia might result in death. It just goes to show how deeply rooted in antiquity our views on travel are. It is almost as if air travel, GPS and safety is only for emigrants. Family who follow to visit are still required to travel in leaky tall ships and run the risks associated with skippers who are he'll bent on a watery grave.
The other downside is the constant drain of talent from our own economy. This is the real tragedy because it represents a loss of potential. The potential of the emigrant, their skills, knowledge and the potential of their descendants to contribute to our economy. If we can't tap into this potential and keep it here, then we must embrace emigration and rejoice in the fact that Irish people are still valued overseas.
To maintain the cultural stigma and ignorance around emigration does nothing for our émigrés, we need to support them better and ensure that they settle into their new life. I used to say that emigrants were just people who couldn't hack it in their own country, but that was really in jest. The US of A didn't become the most powerful economy in the world because it was populated by the detritus of Europe and Africa.
Can you imagine what this country would be like if several hundred thousand people didn't leave our shores in the last five or six years? We would have boiled over into revolt like Greece and would be even deeper in debt than we are now. We would be unable to pay our public servants, welfare recipients and pensioners without drastic cuts. Our healthcare and education spending would be at a fraction of our current level. We would have genuine poverty and starvation.
Emigration is good for Ireland, but does this pressure valve not let our Public Servants off the hook on solving the underlying economic woes of the nation? I believe that we must make Ireland a better place to start a business. The majority of Irish taxpayers work in Irish owned businesses. Some figures suggest that less than 20% of Irish workers work for foreign owned businesses.
We need a positive intervention by government into public sector efforts to build our domestic economy. We need to make it easier to start a business and employ Irish people. We need to eliminate the red tape that tangles startup businesses. We need to do much more enterprise and much less bureaucracy.
Someone I mentioned this to said that lowering bureaucracy in banking didn't work. My view on this is that bureaucracy had nothing to do with it. The banks knew they would be protected and indemnified against wrong doing. With no penalty for getting it wrong, why would you bother doing it right? Lack of regulation was not the cause of the financial collapse, it was lack of accountability and consequence.
More to follow
Sunday 30 December 2012
Saturday 29 December 2012
Haven't blogged in a few days.
Just that one line, I haven't blogged in a few days, triggers a whole raft of ideas. Blogged! It sounds like a bodily function.
"I had too much to drink and ended up blogging all over the bathroom last night!"
"I'm so stuffed after that meal I could just blog out here on the couch all afternoon!"
"My legs are completely blogged after that last sprint!"
Well, I was so full of snot last night that I just kept coughing and the Sinutab just seemed to make it worse. I had pains in my neck and stomach muscles from trying to keep the noise down and not wake her beside me in the bed.
By about 2.30am I was completely blogged and I knew she was awake, so I headed out for the couch in the living room. There was still a warm glow from the stove, so I threw another log on. Here I could cough to my hearts content, knowing that there were two closed doors between me and anyone else.
It is easier to sleep sitting upright when your sinuses are in full flow. Gravity takes over and the muck just flows freely down your neck and doesn't tickle your cough reflex as much. When you lie down everything accumulates in the back of your throat and makes you cough.
But as I sat there I thought it seemed very bright. The lights on the modem flickered away, bright blue. The red lights on the cooker at the far end of the room glowed out mad bright and street light flowed in over and around the curtains. Our living room has a big high window that goes right up to the apex of the roof but only the first 8 foot of it is curtained. It is almost pointless putting a curtain on only half the window, but like the bikini it does provide some sense of modesty.
Then it rained a bit last night and there was a bit of a breeze blowing. It seemed at times that the windows would soon give up and let it all in, just for the heck of it. The rain got so heavy that I had to pull back the curtain and look at it. It was so heavy at one time that it was really dimming the street light outside.
Some times it can be hard to believe in global warming, but the guys seem to be covering all their options. We won't be getting any of the warm in Ireland because apparently the warming makes the air carry more moisture. I read recently about atmospheric rivers. Yep, rivers in the sky. Well we in Ireland can really relate to that. Those South Westerly winds are so wet these days that you would be forgiven for believing that the chemical symbol for air was H2O.
Water, water, everywhere and not a drop to drink. We live in one of the wettest places in Europe and the government wants to charge us for water. Seems a bit of a joke. A bit Irish. But the truth of the matter is that our local authorities are so incompetent that providing safe drinking water is becoming just a bit more than they can handle. I just wish that they would privatise it properly, instead of giving it to the gas company to handle.
We have a pretty big roof on our house and it can catch a lot of rain. I've already tapped into one down pipe and keep a 1,000 litre tank full of the stuff just in case of emergencies, like a drought in the summer and I need to water the garden. Oh the thought of it, so dry in the summer that I need to water the lawn. The last time we had a summer in Ireland was 1995.
When the charges kick in I'm going to replumb the house to use roof water for the loos and for washing. I've figured out how to filter it and purify it, so I'll be ready when the time comes. So like giving up cigarettes as a way of telling the government to get stuffed, I'm going to do the same with the water. I might even stick up a few solar electric panels while I'm at it.
"I had too much to drink and ended up blogging all over the bathroom last night!"
"I'm so stuffed after that meal I could just blog out here on the couch all afternoon!"
"My legs are completely blogged after that last sprint!"
Well, I was so full of snot last night that I just kept coughing and the Sinutab just seemed to make it worse. I had pains in my neck and stomach muscles from trying to keep the noise down and not wake her beside me in the bed.
By about 2.30am I was completely blogged and I knew she was awake, so I headed out for the couch in the living room. There was still a warm glow from the stove, so I threw another log on. Here I could cough to my hearts content, knowing that there were two closed doors between me and anyone else.
It is easier to sleep sitting upright when your sinuses are in full flow. Gravity takes over and the muck just flows freely down your neck and doesn't tickle your cough reflex as much. When you lie down everything accumulates in the back of your throat and makes you cough.
But as I sat there I thought it seemed very bright. The lights on the modem flickered away, bright blue. The red lights on the cooker at the far end of the room glowed out mad bright and street light flowed in over and around the curtains. Our living room has a big high window that goes right up to the apex of the roof but only the first 8 foot of it is curtained. It is almost pointless putting a curtain on only half the window, but like the bikini it does provide some sense of modesty.
Then it rained a bit last night and there was a bit of a breeze blowing. It seemed at times that the windows would soon give up and let it all in, just for the heck of it. The rain got so heavy that I had to pull back the curtain and look at it. It was so heavy at one time that it was really dimming the street light outside.
Some times it can be hard to believe in global warming, but the guys seem to be covering all their options. We won't be getting any of the warm in Ireland because apparently the warming makes the air carry more moisture. I read recently about atmospheric rivers. Yep, rivers in the sky. Well we in Ireland can really relate to that. Those South Westerly winds are so wet these days that you would be forgiven for believing that the chemical symbol for air was H2O.
Water, water, everywhere and not a drop to drink. We live in one of the wettest places in Europe and the government wants to charge us for water. Seems a bit of a joke. A bit Irish. But the truth of the matter is that our local authorities are so incompetent that providing safe drinking water is becoming just a bit more than they can handle. I just wish that they would privatise it properly, instead of giving it to the gas company to handle.
We have a pretty big roof on our house and it can catch a lot of rain. I've already tapped into one down pipe and keep a 1,000 litre tank full of the stuff just in case of emergencies, like a drought in the summer and I need to water the garden. Oh the thought of it, so dry in the summer that I need to water the lawn. The last time we had a summer in Ireland was 1995.
When the charges kick in I'm going to replumb the house to use roof water for the loos and for washing. I've figured out how to filter it and purify it, so I'll be ready when the time comes. So like giving up cigarettes as a way of telling the government to get stuffed, I'm going to do the same with the water. I might even stick up a few solar electric panels while I'm at it.
Thursday 27 December 2012
The Sinus Snuffle
9.00am. Sitting in bed the day after St. Stephen's Boxing Day and wondering what to do with the next hour and then I suddenly remembers, No Milk. Time to forget about my hyper active sinuses, get dressed and get the milk for the porridge.
9.00pm. Just where did that day go? I'm on my way to bed. Don't wish to discuss sinuses, they have just deteriorated all day. I wonder if it has anything to do with giving up the fags? But I got sinus attacks when I smoked too. I wonder if it will clear up quickly? It's not turned green yet, oops is that too much detail? It's possibly an allergic reaction to the smoky mass on Christmas Eve. Well I'll know a bit more in the morning.
9.00pm. Just where did that day go? I'm on my way to bed. Don't wish to discuss sinuses, they have just deteriorated all day. I wonder if it has anything to do with giving up the fags? But I got sinus attacks when I smoked too. I wonder if it will clear up quickly? It's not turned green yet, oops is that too much detail? It's possibly an allergic reaction to the smoky mass on Christmas Eve. Well I'll know a bit more in the morning.
Tuesday 25 December 2012
Christmas Eve
I didn't go for a walk today, except down to midnight mass at 7.00pm and walked back as well. Actually we left the house about 6.20 just to be sure of getting a seat. A real Irish mammy thing that; "there is no point in going to mass if you can't get a seat". I was a bit startled coming into the church. I'd forgotten about the fire and had to spend the next hour inhaling the fumes of a burnt crib. My sinuses went mad for the next few hours.
It made this Christmas just that bit different. I kind of imagine that the original Christmas must have smelled a bit smokey too. I'd feel pretty sure that they had a fire in the shed to keep the baby warm. Only they would have had the added smell of animal dung, while for us in Wicklow in 2012, it was the smell of cheap aftershave and channel no 5.
Anyhow, it was good to see everyone there in their fine winter woollies. This time of the year is a pretty common time for celebrations. Mostly around the mid winter concept and the expectation of better and brighter days ahead. I think that concept is still pretty much around these days, only with less true community spirit.
You'll find pockets of Christmas spirit around, but in general it seems to be about spending. Even it these times of tough austerity, there is still a commercial pressure on people to spend and the more ostentatiously the better. The more kilowatts of lights on the house, the better. The more cards and presents the better, it's all about marketing and show, where the original winter or Christmas celebration was all about community coming together.
We spent a fair bit of the day connecting up with friends, so that made the day fly in. I hope to catch up with family over the next few days.
The Roman Catholics of Wicklow now smell like they were at a traditional mid winter celebration around the bonfire. The rest of Wicklow just smell of mulled wine and mince pies, how boring.
It made this Christmas just that bit different. I kind of imagine that the original Christmas must have smelled a bit smokey too. I'd feel pretty sure that they had a fire in the shed to keep the baby warm. Only they would have had the added smell of animal dung, while for us in Wicklow in 2012, it was the smell of cheap aftershave and channel no 5.
Anyhow, it was good to see everyone there in their fine winter woollies. This time of the year is a pretty common time for celebrations. Mostly around the mid winter concept and the expectation of better and brighter days ahead. I think that concept is still pretty much around these days, only with less true community spirit.
You'll find pockets of Christmas spirit around, but in general it seems to be about spending. Even it these times of tough austerity, there is still a commercial pressure on people to spend and the more ostentatiously the better. The more kilowatts of lights on the house, the better. The more cards and presents the better, it's all about marketing and show, where the original winter or Christmas celebration was all about community coming together.
We spent a fair bit of the day connecting up with friends, so that made the day fly in. I hope to catch up with family over the next few days.
The Roman Catholics of Wicklow now smell like they were at a traditional mid winter celebration around the bonfire. The rest of Wicklow just smell of mulled wine and mince pies, how boring.
Sunday 23 December 2012
Another great walk in the woods
Just for a change, I went for a walk in the woods. The difference was that I hadn't walked in these woods before. Today it was the Dúchas Nature Reserve at Clara, just off the road between Laragh and Rathdrum. A beautiful walk through a woodland made up of mostly native trees. I saw a lot of felled Larch, so there may be a bit of ethnic cleansing going on there.
The official blue route is 9.5km, but the small car parking space at the official start was full, so we parked down at the bridge beside the little white church and walked up along a section of the red route adding maybe an extra half km.
At all of the entrances there were signs saying no horses. That suited me fine, since I didn't have one with me and was highly unlikely to have had one with me since I don't own one. However, it got me to thinking, why would you ban horses from a National Park? I couldn't think of a reason, after all horses are organic and reasonably natural, why couldn't they come in? They are probably more environmentally friendly than people.
Ok, I'm not a fan of stepping in their manure and horsey types tend not to clean up after themselves. We brought our dog, but we clean up after her if we spot her making any deposits. But to be honest, horse manure despite its size is marginally less offensive than dog poo and has a more organic smell. Besides you can expect to come across such messes in the wild, or at least you should be able to cope with them.
However I did discover one significant difference between horses and dogs. Horses really chew up the softer footpaths in ways that humans and dogs don't. Unless we travel in much larger numbers. So I agree with the signs. Keep the horses out, or perhaps we could let them in but keep them off the pedestrian routes and that includes the roads.
So the walk was lovely, we even saw a few deer. Probably Sika Reds. I was behind Caroline and just got a glimpse as I came around a turn in the trail. Our beast Kerry didn't spot them, but moments later she picked up their scent and was off after them like a rocket. A small black rocket. Fortunately she does obey orders and like a truculent teen she slunk back to us.
The route we followed tracked the Avonmore river for about 3km or so and the sound of the river became our backing music for most of the route. That and the sounds of birds. The next three km was mostly uphill, not mad uphill, but a sustained gentle rise that got the heart pumping and the lungs going. It was grand. Really.
There was a kind of top section with a bit of up and down, nothing much, but there were some great views down to the river and further down the valley. At this time of the year, the woods were pretty bare, but I would imagine this walk is visually stunning in all seasons. Reminds me, the top section was a bit breezy and the wind was quite chilly. I had to put on a cap and zip up my shirt.
All in all, a walk well worth doing. There are two shorter routes for those with shorter legs.
I only spent about five minutes thinking about cigarettes and that was a conscious decision to review the situation. Most of the urges seem to have faded. Confrontation doesn't happen that often and so far there have been no murders. Irritations come as often as they ever do, that comes mostly from living, listening and observing. I have no immediate plans to become a hermit. Boredom is the other big trigger and I've found myself being a bit more proactive on that score.
So now that I am into week three I can say it is getting easier.
The official blue route is 9.5km, but the small car parking space at the official start was full, so we parked down at the bridge beside the little white church and walked up along a section of the red route adding maybe an extra half km.
At all of the entrances there were signs saying no horses. That suited me fine, since I didn't have one with me and was highly unlikely to have had one with me since I don't own one. However, it got me to thinking, why would you ban horses from a National Park? I couldn't think of a reason, after all horses are organic and reasonably natural, why couldn't they come in? They are probably more environmentally friendly than people.
Ok, I'm not a fan of stepping in their manure and horsey types tend not to clean up after themselves. We brought our dog, but we clean up after her if we spot her making any deposits. But to be honest, horse manure despite its size is marginally less offensive than dog poo and has a more organic smell. Besides you can expect to come across such messes in the wild, or at least you should be able to cope with them.
However I did discover one significant difference between horses and dogs. Horses really chew up the softer footpaths in ways that humans and dogs don't. Unless we travel in much larger numbers. So I agree with the signs. Keep the horses out, or perhaps we could let them in but keep them off the pedestrian routes and that includes the roads.
So the walk was lovely, we even saw a few deer. Probably Sika Reds. I was behind Caroline and just got a glimpse as I came around a turn in the trail. Our beast Kerry didn't spot them, but moments later she picked up their scent and was off after them like a rocket. A small black rocket. Fortunately she does obey orders and like a truculent teen she slunk back to us.
The route we followed tracked the Avonmore river for about 3km or so and the sound of the river became our backing music for most of the route. That and the sounds of birds. The next three km was mostly uphill, not mad uphill, but a sustained gentle rise that got the heart pumping and the lungs going. It was grand. Really.
There was a kind of top section with a bit of up and down, nothing much, but there were some great views down to the river and further down the valley. At this time of the year, the woods were pretty bare, but I would imagine this walk is visually stunning in all seasons. Reminds me, the top section was a bit breezy and the wind was quite chilly. I had to put on a cap and zip up my shirt.
All in all, a walk well worth doing. There are two shorter routes for those with shorter legs.
I only spent about five minutes thinking about cigarettes and that was a conscious decision to review the situation. Most of the urges seem to have faded. Confrontation doesn't happen that often and so far there have been no murders. Irritations come as often as they ever do, that comes mostly from living, listening and observing. I have no immediate plans to become a hermit. Boredom is the other big trigger and I've found myself being a bit more proactive on that score.
So now that I am into week three I can say it is getting easier.
Saturday 22 December 2012
Walk in the woods
Ok, I was out for a walk yesterday, but I had to go out again today for the Festive Family Walk in Avondale. Five families turned up for a little ramble through the woods. The photos are courtesy of Angie. Yes, the woods were magical. It was raining in the morning, but magically it stopped for our walk. It is always great to get a group of old friends together for a walk it creates a magic all of its own.
There were these funny mists that swirled in every now and then. You expected monsters or fairies to emerge at any moment. Of course there were monsters in the mist, but we had brought them with us. I'm not saying who they were, but those on the walk will know and some will think they were monsters when they were in fact fairies.
I was just a monster. Slightly short of temper and overflowing with angst. But that was cigarette anxiety. From time to time, little things irritate me. Things that I would normally have covered over with a nicotine fix. Not that I would have smoked straight away, but the thought of a smoke in the near future would sooth the mood. Now the angst just sits there, brooding away. How do non addicts deal with this?
My normally calm and unruffled exterior has been exposed as a sham. Now I am going to have to learn a new way of coping with life's little dramas. Does anyone have any ideas? Or do they just go away if you learn to ignore them? But actually, the walking helped a lot, as did the company.
The group photo at the table is missing two families, one had to leave early, while the other had spent the entire walk lost. Their story is a long one. I don't plan on telling it, but they arrived late after an interesting discovery. Suffice to say, Hugh discovered that a four wheel drive vehicle is pretty useless if none of the four wheels are in contact with the ground.
There were these funny mists that swirled in every now and then. You expected monsters or fairies to emerge at any moment. Of course there were monsters in the mist, but we had brought them with us. I'm not saying who they were, but those on the walk will know and some will think they were monsters when they were in fact fairies.
I was just a monster. Slightly short of temper and overflowing with angst. But that was cigarette anxiety. From time to time, little things irritate me. Things that I would normally have covered over with a nicotine fix. Not that I would have smoked straight away, but the thought of a smoke in the near future would sooth the mood. Now the angst just sits there, brooding away. How do non addicts deal with this?
My normally calm and unruffled exterior has been exposed as a sham. Now I am going to have to learn a new way of coping with life's little dramas. Does anyone have any ideas? Or do they just go away if you learn to ignore them? But actually, the walking helped a lot, as did the company.
The group photo at the table is missing two families, one had to leave early, while the other had spent the entire walk lost. Their story is a long one. I don't plan on telling it, but they arrived late after an interesting discovery. Suffice to say, Hugh discovered that a four wheel drive vehicle is pretty useless if none of the four wheels are in contact with the ground.
Friday 21 December 2012
Walking and not thinking of smoking
I went out for a walk today with Caroline. Mid afternoon. Lovely fresh afternoon, shortest afternoon of the year on the day that was supposed to be the last day ever. So it looks like I survived the end of the world again.
Apart from discovering that the world didn't end, I also discovered that Big Bang Theory has canned laughter. I didn't notice it last night, but I do now watching more episodes. Fortunately the programme justifies the discomfort. Now back to the end of the world.
Just out of curiosity I googled "end of world predictions" and came up with lots of weird stuff. I'm not going to bore you with it all some of it is quite wacky. It seems that religious types are prone to predicting the end of the world. So far they appear to have all been wrong, if anyone knows of anyone who got it right, let me know. But I reckon there are enough people out there willing to believe in the apocalypse that it is worth getting it wrong, just so scare up another few prayers.
http://www.bible.ca/pre-date-setters.htm is the address of a great big list of predictions from the past. As you can imagine from the bible.ca bit, it is a Usaian site and just a bit oddball from a conservative Irish perspective. But it seems that Christians get a real kick out of having the fear of godly wrath thrust upon them.
My own god would never do anything like that, even to frighten me. My god knows that it wouldn't particularly bother me. If it is inevitable and nothing I can do will change what is going to happen, then I couldn't be bothered worrying about it.
So anyhow, we made it through and to celebrate we went for a walk on the lovely Carrick Mountain overlooking Glenealy. I've always had a fondness for this hill. I worked on it and in the forest nursery that was once at the Ballymanus entrance. That was a long time ago, but the mountain is still there and so are most of the gum trees that were and still are so fascinating. Trees with deciduous bark and non shed leaves. Only the Aussies could get something so mixed up.
If the Usaians are paranoid and pretty simple, the Aussies are just totally absurd. The early settlers did weird things to their animal breeding programmes. These early geneticists actually managed to cross breed an otter and a duck. This is GMO gone mad.
Carrick is also the only other place where I have seen a Jay in the wild. They are a beautiful sight to behold. The other place was in my parents front garden, where a neighbour's dog had managed to trap one under a thick bush. I had to rescue the bird and managed to get a really good look at it. It looks a lot like a magpie, only the magpie is monochrome. The Jay is like a card carrying member of gay pride, it is beautiful and magnificently coloured. Maybe it wasn't a Jay, maybe it was a gay magpie. But it just goes to show how diversity enhances our lives. I let the bird go later.
We brought our four legged wannabe aardvark with us. Kerry is a cross between a springer spaniel and a labrador. She is what might be described as a malteezer, dark on the outside and blonde on the inside. This dog is a bit stupid. Half blind and relies on her sense of smell or at least enjoys smelling things. She runs around with her nose stuck to the ground sniffing.
Its really funny when she comes to an interesting smell. Her brain is so badly damaged from what ever it is she sniffed in the past, that her nose stops immediately it comes into contact with a new smell, but the legs keep going forward. I've seen her fall over and somersault before her legs stop. I'm sure if she was running, she would turn herself inside out.
Anyhow, Carrick had a host of new smells for her. Caroline and I walked about 6.5km, but I guess the dog did at least twice that as she picked up the trails of various bits of wildlife that had crossed our path. She was forever disappearing into the woods either side of the track and thrashing about. I wonder if she caught anything?
I mentioned her being half blind, it is not that she can't see, it is just that she doesn't see. I took her for a walk one evening some years back and watched as she picked up the scent trail of a cat. She ran along, nose glued to the ground right up to a thick fencepost. She sniffed all around the post and ran off on little trips to one side or the other. Finally, she shook herself and trotted on up the road, looking for another scent.
It never struck her tiny little mind that the reason she lost the cat scent trail was because the cat had only gone as far as the post and had been sitting on the top of the post looking down on her the whole time. A malteezer dog to the core. If the cat had been bothered, she could have leaned down and smacked the dog across the head, she was only about three feet above the ground. After the dog ran off, I went over to the cat and gave her a good rub around the ears and nose and she purred happily at me for not giving the game away.
When I caught up with the dog, I gave her a good sniff of my cat flavoured hand to freak her out a bit.
Oh, yeah, the walk! It was a grand walk, clear sky and good views until a bank of fog rolled in off the sea and filled in all the low lying bits of the scenery and turned the hill tops into islands. By the time we came back to the car, it had turned pretty dark.
As for the cigarettes - never thought about them until I was back in the kitchen having a cup of tea. Normally I would have had a smoke or two to help me recover from the effects of exercise. But today, I had some arabica beans smothered in dark chocolate. Now that is an addiction I could get to like.
Apart from discovering that the world didn't end, I also discovered that Big Bang Theory has canned laughter. I didn't notice it last night, but I do now watching more episodes. Fortunately the programme justifies the discomfort. Now back to the end of the world.
Just out of curiosity I googled "end of world predictions" and came up with lots of weird stuff. I'm not going to bore you with it all some of it is quite wacky. It seems that religious types are prone to predicting the end of the world. So far they appear to have all been wrong, if anyone knows of anyone who got it right, let me know. But I reckon there are enough people out there willing to believe in the apocalypse that it is worth getting it wrong, just so scare up another few prayers.
http://www.bible.ca/pre-date-setters.htm is the address of a great big list of predictions from the past. As you can imagine from the bible.ca bit, it is a Usaian site and just a bit oddball from a conservative Irish perspective. But it seems that Christians get a real kick out of having the fear of godly wrath thrust upon them.
My own god would never do anything like that, even to frighten me. My god knows that it wouldn't particularly bother me. If it is inevitable and nothing I can do will change what is going to happen, then I couldn't be bothered worrying about it.
So anyhow, we made it through and to celebrate we went for a walk on the lovely Carrick Mountain overlooking Glenealy. I've always had a fondness for this hill. I worked on it and in the forest nursery that was once at the Ballymanus entrance. That was a long time ago, but the mountain is still there and so are most of the gum trees that were and still are so fascinating. Trees with deciduous bark and non shed leaves. Only the Aussies could get something so mixed up.
If the Usaians are paranoid and pretty simple, the Aussies are just totally absurd. The early settlers did weird things to their animal breeding programmes. These early geneticists actually managed to cross breed an otter and a duck. This is GMO gone mad.
Carrick is also the only other place where I have seen a Jay in the wild. They are a beautiful sight to behold. The other place was in my parents front garden, where a neighbour's dog had managed to trap one under a thick bush. I had to rescue the bird and managed to get a really good look at it. It looks a lot like a magpie, only the magpie is monochrome. The Jay is like a card carrying member of gay pride, it is beautiful and magnificently coloured. Maybe it wasn't a Jay, maybe it was a gay magpie. But it just goes to show how diversity enhances our lives. I let the bird go later.
We brought our four legged wannabe aardvark with us. Kerry is a cross between a springer spaniel and a labrador. She is what might be described as a malteezer, dark on the outside and blonde on the inside. This dog is a bit stupid. Half blind and relies on her sense of smell or at least enjoys smelling things. She runs around with her nose stuck to the ground sniffing.
Its really funny when she comes to an interesting smell. Her brain is so badly damaged from what ever it is she sniffed in the past, that her nose stops immediately it comes into contact with a new smell, but the legs keep going forward. I've seen her fall over and somersault before her legs stop. I'm sure if she was running, she would turn herself inside out.
Anyhow, Carrick had a host of new smells for her. Caroline and I walked about 6.5km, but I guess the dog did at least twice that as she picked up the trails of various bits of wildlife that had crossed our path. She was forever disappearing into the woods either side of the track and thrashing about. I wonder if she caught anything?
I mentioned her being half blind, it is not that she can't see, it is just that she doesn't see. I took her for a walk one evening some years back and watched as she picked up the scent trail of a cat. She ran along, nose glued to the ground right up to a thick fencepost. She sniffed all around the post and ran off on little trips to one side or the other. Finally, she shook herself and trotted on up the road, looking for another scent.
It never struck her tiny little mind that the reason she lost the cat scent trail was because the cat had only gone as far as the post and had been sitting on the top of the post looking down on her the whole time. A malteezer dog to the core. If the cat had been bothered, she could have leaned down and smacked the dog across the head, she was only about three feet above the ground. After the dog ran off, I went over to the cat and gave her a good rub around the ears and nose and she purred happily at me for not giving the game away.
When I caught up with the dog, I gave her a good sniff of my cat flavoured hand to freak her out a bit.
Oh, yeah, the walk! It was a grand walk, clear sky and good views until a bank of fog rolled in off the sea and filled in all the low lying bits of the scenery and turned the hill tops into islands. By the time we came back to the car, it had turned pretty dark.
As for the cigarettes - never thought about them until I was back in the kitchen having a cup of tea. Normally I would have had a smoke or two to help me recover from the effects of exercise. But today, I had some arabica beans smothered in dark chocolate. Now that is an addiction I could get to like.
Thursday 20 December 2012
Americans?
I get confused by Americans. What are they? I tend to think of them as being from America. I know that there are two American Continents, North America and South America. So in my book an American is someone who comes from either of these continents. A bit like a European. American is a collective term for a lot of different nationalities.
The population is somewhere just short of a billion, Spanish is the most common language. Most of them are of native or african descent. So why do we so often think of Americans as being White, Anglo Saxon, English Speaking people from the United States of America? Canadians, Mexicans, Columbians etc. are also Americans. Is it just being white and english speaking myself that makes me think like that? Would I be better adjusted if I was born in Spain?
What should we really call someone from the USA? Usaians? Almost sounds right, but where does the emphasis go? is it pronounced something like U-say-an or OO-say-y
an? Anyhow, that has nothing to do with this "Letter from Wicklow". I want to explore the mind of the Usaian. Though based on watching their TV, this might be a fruitless exercise. But then I am thinking that they are a fruit and nut lot anyway.
They invented canned laughter! It is like some exec somewhere decided that Usaians are too thick to know where the funny bits are in a comedy. Its a comedy for gods sake, let the consumer figure out where the funny bits are. I loved MASH 4077 when it came out first. It was cleaver, quirky and very thought provoking. After several years I came across it again, with canned laughter! I couldn't watch it, the laughter was too distracting.
Actually that reminds me of something else I heard about the Usaians, a huge proportion of them live alone. Is canned laughter supposed to make them feel that they are not alone? Is is better to laugh in company? Do they plan on adding canned crying to the weepies? Anyone for canned screaming at the horror films?
More recent comedies are becoming a bit distressing. I love Bart Simpson, but the me toos' like, well I can't think of any of them, since I don't actively watch TV, it tends to just rumble away in the background with the kids glued to it. Ah, family guy comes to mind, wow, I hope the pictures are good, because the sound is pretty gross. I keep thinking that I should get rid of the box, because it is doing serious damage to my kids.
What is it about Usaians that makes them hate their fellow citizens so much? Does the TV drive them to it? It fairly makes me feel homicidal. Fortunately we don't have ready access to guns in this country, like the Usaians do. Since Columbine they seem to have become almost as bad at killing large numbers of their fellow countrymen, women and children as a middle eastern suicide bomber.
They have ready access to military grade weapons. What are they up to? They have the most powerful army in the world, they have one of the largest armed police forces in the world, the last people to invade the US were a bunch of crazed Europeans. Mind you, they almost wiped out the native Amerindians at the time. Oh and it wasn't the US at the time, it was known as the New World or the colonies.
They seem to love killing each other. All their movies and TV series are full of murders. Granted, they are entertaining, but somehow, Usaians don't seem to be able to differentiate between celluloid and reality. Does all the killing on telly make them immune to death and destruction? Does it take away their humanity?
The latest madness is that there are people now suggesting that teachers should be armed to protect the kids from crazed loners with powerful assault rifles, talk about escalating the problem. Woah buddy, your house is on fire, let me just chuck some more fuel onto it for you. Here have a gallon of gas???
Of course, some teacher is going to turn the gun on their class some day because he or she forgot to take their meds and then the gun lobby will be suggesting arming the kids so they can protect themselves. Then they will get a bit of sense when the playground turns into the OK Coral. Best not give guns to people on meds. Indeed, best not let people on meds drive either, lets lock them up. Actually, I've already seen people suggesting this. Scary isn't it?
Could I be deluded? Is it their news media that does the damage? Is it possible that knowing Usaians through their media creates the wrong impression of these people? Any of them that I meet over here are pretty nice people. Kind of normal actually. But I only meet the well educated ones with passports. What are ordinary Usaians like?
I'm still off the smokes, two weeks now. I remember the name of the movie my life is turning into. Fatal Attraction. I'm the guy who screwed around and the smokes are Glen Close. I can just imagine myself going into the newsagents and asking for 20 Glen Close!!! Actually that could also be an address. Imagine having to tell someone you lived in Glen Close.
The population is somewhere just short of a billion, Spanish is the most common language. Most of them are of native or african descent. So why do we so often think of Americans as being White, Anglo Saxon, English Speaking people from the United States of America? Canadians, Mexicans, Columbians etc. are also Americans. Is it just being white and english speaking myself that makes me think like that? Would I be better adjusted if I was born in Spain?
What should we really call someone from the USA? Usaians? Almost sounds right, but where does the emphasis go? is it pronounced something like U-say-an or OO-say-y
an? Anyhow, that has nothing to do with this "Letter from Wicklow". I want to explore the mind of the Usaian. Though based on watching their TV, this might be a fruitless exercise. But then I am thinking that they are a fruit and nut lot anyway.
They invented canned laughter! It is like some exec somewhere decided that Usaians are too thick to know where the funny bits are in a comedy. Its a comedy for gods sake, let the consumer figure out where the funny bits are. I loved MASH 4077 when it came out first. It was cleaver, quirky and very thought provoking. After several years I came across it again, with canned laughter! I couldn't watch it, the laughter was too distracting.
Actually that reminds me of something else I heard about the Usaians, a huge proportion of them live alone. Is canned laughter supposed to make them feel that they are not alone? Is is better to laugh in company? Do they plan on adding canned crying to the weepies? Anyone for canned screaming at the horror films?
More recent comedies are becoming a bit distressing. I love Bart Simpson, but the me toos' like, well I can't think of any of them, since I don't actively watch TV, it tends to just rumble away in the background with the kids glued to it. Ah, family guy comes to mind, wow, I hope the pictures are good, because the sound is pretty gross. I keep thinking that I should get rid of the box, because it is doing serious damage to my kids.
What is it about Usaians that makes them hate their fellow citizens so much? Does the TV drive them to it? It fairly makes me feel homicidal. Fortunately we don't have ready access to guns in this country, like the Usaians do. Since Columbine they seem to have become almost as bad at killing large numbers of their fellow countrymen, women and children as a middle eastern suicide bomber.
They have ready access to military grade weapons. What are they up to? They have the most powerful army in the world, they have one of the largest armed police forces in the world, the last people to invade the US were a bunch of crazed Europeans. Mind you, they almost wiped out the native Amerindians at the time. Oh and it wasn't the US at the time, it was known as the New World or the colonies.
They seem to love killing each other. All their movies and TV series are full of murders. Granted, they are entertaining, but somehow, Usaians don't seem to be able to differentiate between celluloid and reality. Does all the killing on telly make them immune to death and destruction? Does it take away their humanity?
The latest madness is that there are people now suggesting that teachers should be armed to protect the kids from crazed loners with powerful assault rifles, talk about escalating the problem. Woah buddy, your house is on fire, let me just chuck some more fuel onto it for you. Here have a gallon of gas???
Of course, some teacher is going to turn the gun on their class some day because he or she forgot to take their meds and then the gun lobby will be suggesting arming the kids so they can protect themselves. Then they will get a bit of sense when the playground turns into the OK Coral. Best not give guns to people on meds. Indeed, best not let people on meds drive either, lets lock them up. Actually, I've already seen people suggesting this. Scary isn't it?
Could I be deluded? Is it their news media that does the damage? Is it possible that knowing Usaians through their media creates the wrong impression of these people? Any of them that I meet over here are pretty nice people. Kind of normal actually. But I only meet the well educated ones with passports. What are ordinary Usaians like?
I'm still off the smokes, two weeks now. I remember the name of the movie my life is turning into. Fatal Attraction. I'm the guy who screwed around and the smokes are Glen Close. I can just imagine myself going into the newsagents and asking for 20 Glen Close!!! Actually that could also be an address. Imagine having to tell someone you lived in Glen Close.
Muses, Taxes & Cigarettes
Where do I begin? Well, right now I'm writing this because Ben said I should and Ben often has good ideas and she said she would be my muse, whatever that might be. I rather think she just wants to be amused. So dedication over, what's on my mind?
Right now I'm thinking I should have a cup of coffee on the table beside me, instead of a cold cup of team, actually there is only about a mouthful left and its freezing. Also, I should be sitting in a warm climate instead of a damp island. But most of all, I should have a cigarette in my hand right now.
Just short over two weeks ago we had a budget, the most recent in a series of austerity budgets that makes Greece look positively attractive. The government as usual, took money from me. I don't really mind that much, a country needs money to function, but it does irritate me.
This time I decided to strike back and introduce my own budget. I figured out that if I could quit smoking, I would make up for the extra taxes and come out a few quid ahead. Also, the government would have to forego the taxes they would have collected on the ciggies.
I sometimes worry about depriving the government of income, they might decide to cut pensions for the elderly, reduce children's allowances or reduce carer's allowances. I especially hate when they do this and don't cut spending where they should. Which is on Public Service Pensions and Payroll. You only have to look at the state of the country to know that their wages were never justly earned.
We hear enough about the pain suffered by them, bugger them.
So that is the impact of cigarette withdrawal symptoms . . . not exactly. But giving up smoking does funny things to you. All the books and articles on giving up talk or write about how your breathing will return to normal, your heart will get younger, you will become irresistibly attractive to nubile young women and you will develop the physique of a greek god. All well and good if it were true. But right now, I'd chew the right arm off a nubile young woman for a smoke.
The reality is that smoking gets you in so many ways. I only got breathless when I tried to run, which I hardly ever did, what do I have a car for? My heart works well enough and I could get hit by lightening in the morning, so why worry about the future?
I might have quit smoking, but smoking hasn't quit me. It grabs me round the troth and squeezes until my ears pop. It grabs my heart and makes it flutter like a butterfly. Then it massages it and makes it thump. Every now and again it makes me stop breathing, then I need to take a big deep breath and that triggers a fit of yawning.
So I've quit smoking and smoking is getting back at me like a jilted girlfriend. Right, so I've got to fight back? But you don't hit girls and my relationship with smoking was like a boy girl relationship? Nope, that's not how it was. I never chucked a girl out the window of a speeding car, or ground one into the pavement. it is different.
What do non smokers do when they are bored?
What do non smokers do when they want time to think?
What do non smokers do to delay an uncomfortable decision?
These were the three most common triggers of smoking for me when I really thought about when I smoked. I also smoked after rows with my wife, but that might account for one in a thousand cigarettes, but boy did I really suck on those cigarettes, I might even need a second one to regain control of myself.
Yeuck! That tea is well past its sell by date. Must make a fresh cup of my new coffee.
Right now I'm thinking I should have a cup of coffee on the table beside me, instead of a cold cup of team, actually there is only about a mouthful left and its freezing. Also, I should be sitting in a warm climate instead of a damp island. But most of all, I should have a cigarette in my hand right now.
Just short over two weeks ago we had a budget, the most recent in a series of austerity budgets that makes Greece look positively attractive. The government as usual, took money from me. I don't really mind that much, a country needs money to function, but it does irritate me.
This time I decided to strike back and introduce my own budget. I figured out that if I could quit smoking, I would make up for the extra taxes and come out a few quid ahead. Also, the government would have to forego the taxes they would have collected on the ciggies.
I sometimes worry about depriving the government of income, they might decide to cut pensions for the elderly, reduce children's allowances or reduce carer's allowances. I especially hate when they do this and don't cut spending where they should. Which is on Public Service Pensions and Payroll. You only have to look at the state of the country to know that their wages were never justly earned.
We hear enough about the pain suffered by them, bugger them.
So that is the impact of cigarette withdrawal symptoms . . . not exactly. But giving up smoking does funny things to you. All the books and articles on giving up talk or write about how your breathing will return to normal, your heart will get younger, you will become irresistibly attractive to nubile young women and you will develop the physique of a greek god. All well and good if it were true. But right now, I'd chew the right arm off a nubile young woman for a smoke.
The reality is that smoking gets you in so many ways. I only got breathless when I tried to run, which I hardly ever did, what do I have a car for? My heart works well enough and I could get hit by lightening in the morning, so why worry about the future?
I might have quit smoking, but smoking hasn't quit me. It grabs me round the troth and squeezes until my ears pop. It grabs my heart and makes it flutter like a butterfly. Then it massages it and makes it thump. Every now and again it makes me stop breathing, then I need to take a big deep breath and that triggers a fit of yawning.
So I've quit smoking and smoking is getting back at me like a jilted girlfriend. Right, so I've got to fight back? But you don't hit girls and my relationship with smoking was like a boy girl relationship? Nope, that's not how it was. I never chucked a girl out the window of a speeding car, or ground one into the pavement. it is different.
What do non smokers do when they are bored?
What do non smokers do when they want time to think?
What do non smokers do to delay an uncomfortable decision?
These were the three most common triggers of smoking for me when I really thought about when I smoked. I also smoked after rows with my wife, but that might account for one in a thousand cigarettes, but boy did I really suck on those cigarettes, I might even need a second one to regain control of myself.
Yeuck! That tea is well past its sell by date. Must make a fresh cup of my new coffee.
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