Tuesday, July 30, 2013

More eulogising and wafflin'.........

And so our pet Irish summer continues. It's been a bit teenagery the last few days but when that aul cyclin' Auntie settles down we'll be back to what has become normal for us this year - SUNNY!

I left the house this morning with full intentions of going directly to the library to write at least a thousand words. But it was such a nice fresh morning I decided to go for a walk first. I walked the promenade between Malahide and Portmarnock, drinking in the views and the smiles on people's faces, the kids messing about on the sand or in rock pools and yet again thanked my lucky stars that I could retire early. I am in a privileged position I know, and thousands upon thousands of people have been horribly hit by the recession. But we all have the sand and the sea and the sun. Most of us in this county have food to eat, clean drinking water good shelter, heat, light, a place to rest and above all people who love us and we love in return. Yes, many have money worries and are so stressed they feel they will crack up. Relax. Breathe. It's only effin' money. We don't NEED most of the STUFF we spend the bloody thing on - those of us lucky enough to have spare cash after our basic living costs have been met that is. So what if your credit rating is ruined by not paying back to the banks (now buttressed behind closed branch network doors) unrealistic amounts that you were enveigled into borrowing before 2008. Live your life without credit. I bet you'll find you can do it AND sleep better at night.

JC himself (not the Jemser the biblical JC) apparently turfed the money lenders out of the temple. I, you, we, us, all of us are the temple. The banks defiled us and almost turned us back into a third world country. Get rid of them, go back to a cash basis. Lots of people never left it and y'know they were the wise ones - living frugally and only spending what was in  the purse/pocket. Use whatever talent you have (and we all have different talents, different types of intelligence) to do something you like doing and maybe earn a crust at it too or get some non monetary reward that you'd like for it. Bartering I suppose. Will I start a revolution?

A friend of mine grabbed his unemployment situation by the horns and wrote a play with some friends , they acted, directed and formed a production comapny to hustle the finances - they pulled together doing something they loved. I don't know if they broke even on it but the point is they DID it, thus putting something new on a CV and, learning the business on the way.

'Nuff about the state of the nation - it'll ease up and the sky hasn't fallen in yet. Believe in that and stop your worrying. After all my ruminations my lovely walk I popped into the Vde P shop in Malahide and retail therapied myself for half an hour. Retail therapy is so guilt free in any of the charity shops! And so to Rush library - it's as quiet as a church here (it is an old church!) and the sun is streaming through the stained glass windows, the ambience so peaceful and suitable for reading or writing. I'll sit and write quite happily here for another few hours. ONE THOUSAND WORDS....no messin'!

Chat again soon...and remember - chattin' and flirtin' make the world go round so keep this great world spinnin'!

Tuesday, July 2, 2013

Son#2 and an electronic snakebite........

We had a brilliant day today. Jemser, myself and son#2 set off for Gowran in Co Kilkenny to visit the reptile village there  http://reptilevillage.net/. My men love snakes and lizards and scary things, I'm not as enamored but I must admit when the lovely keeper put a magnificent albino python around my neck I was impressed. I couldn't get over how soft and sensuous the skin was - and the weight of it!

Son #2 was in his element going from tank to tank and telling us all sorts of details about the creatures that he had picked up on the net or from the holy grail that is QI. He got to touch and hold snakes, lizards, tortoises and other yokes with four legs and scaly skin! There are even a few crocodiles - not for touching, natch!

 An enormous Barn Owl (my personal favourite, ye all know my obsession with wise old Owls) surveys all from a viewing gallery where there there is an area where smaller children can colour in pictures of the animals they have seen. There is an small equipped indoor play area for smaller children and an indoor picnic area. Tea, coffee and snacks from machines are available. The staff are incredible, kind and patient with both hysterical adults and curious kids; they are very well informed on what they do.

So we saw all there was to see and son#2 took loads and loads of photos. As we had our picnic he was checking them out deciding which ones he could post to Facebook when he got home. We had a row (mock) when he deleted one I took (apparently it wasn't good enough). It was nice y'know. We rarely do things as a family now - I would have loved to  have visited a place like the Reptile village during the holidays when both lads were small. It's a little over an hour from Dublin and it's a very reasonably priced day out. It's suitable for all ages. Great to see someone turning a hobby as a kid into a passion into a business. This place deserves all our support and encouragement, it is tiny businesses like it that bring life and commerce back into our towns and villages.

Anyway we got home and I asked son#2 to email me the photos.
     'Sure' sez he, whipping out the iPod, thumbs moving in a blur as he slid, clicked, double clicked across the screen. Then his face fell - I mean it actually FELL and his eyes filled with tears of rage and disappointment.
     'I don't believe it, I can't have....I effin' did!' . The poor bugger didn't R.T.F.M and accidentally deleted all his photos. He was devastated. That's what happens when a trigger happy kid tries to capture an electronic snake!

Sssh! Don't tell him, I'll bring him back to the village before the summer is out. Yeah, I know...I know...I'm a sap........