In the Service of the State

I am at heart a public servant. I haven’t always worked in the public service, and am currently seconded from it to a charity, but my values and ethics are in essence those that underpin everything that is good about the sector. Hard work, diligence, remembering what you’re here for (to provide a service to...

Lockdown Lushes

‘Hands up who’s drinking more than normal?’ Ping. Ping. Ping. The emojis come flooding into our what’s app group; various images of hands held high, some proudly, others more shamefaced, but universal in their arms in the air. ‘Define normal’ I demand before reluctantly posting two hands.  One simply...

The Tree Man

I take my now routine twice-daily stroll through our nearby green. What used to be merely the route to the local shops, is now the heart of local activity, and a very welcome respite from the loneliness of the house. It’s even busier than usual, today being Sunday, and the sun being out. The small...

University Tourists

Squelchy boots, tired thighs and sweaty t-shirts: some of the sorry results of a whistle-stop weekend of university tourism! My daughter has decided to stretch her horizons far and wide in the quest for the perfect undergraduate experience and so, despite UCD being a mere twenty-minute bus ride from home,...

Dingle Pubs

Dingle seems to have lost much of its charm since I last visited over twenty years ago. The throng of tourists, the number of shops selling Oirish produce, the overpriced food, and the diddly-ay blasting from every pub leaves me feeling somewhat nauseated.  However, two of the pubs on my list are here,...

The Tourist Trap

Out and about on the bike it’s not unusual for us to see tourists doing things that we consider to be mad, hilarious, ridiculous, bewildering, or all of the above. Take for example the 52-seater coach that purged all its passengers onto the edge of a field so that they could take photos of the sheep...