Sunday, June 21, 2009

Tim’s Diary.
It has been a bumper time for sport of all codes since the last issue. Ruby Walsh was to the fore in both Cheltenham & Fairyhouse. What a surprise to see and ENLISH jockey ride the winners of both Grand Nationals. What is the racing world coming to? It all helps to build the excitement as we head into Punchestown week. The football has been racked up a notch or two as well with three English clubs in the Champions League semi finals. Arsenal, the dark horses, growing in confidence with each game. Even the Masters Golf resulted in an exciting play-off. Ireland is going along nicely in the World Cup qualifiers after performing a Houdini act against Italy.

All our finances were dealt a severe blow in the recent budget. Mike puts it far more eloquently than I ever could in his writings. I remain one of those guilty public servants riding on the gravy train of the voluntary health sector. For those of guilty of having a job, and that’s the way it’s getting in Ireland now, who have worked hard, never claimed any benefits, spent our few quid south of the border, will have to continue as best we can. It strikes me as unusual that people think, that given a couple of years that things are going to go back to normal. Not a chance, we will never see the same level of employment, construction activity or favourable credit terms again.

A lot of people have asked me do I know anything about the signs that are appearing at the start of the smaller roads around the village. They were wondering if it was council initiative, well today I can exclusively reveal that it is all to do the Community Alert Scheme. You see Percy Donnelly has being doing Trojan work for the scheme and he has managed to get Ballymore onto a pilot scheme using the new Community Alert Tracking Satellite or CATS for short. You see Percy’s cats can now pin point where you live on such a road and alert Eamonn or Tom directly to your aid. Let’s say someone is trying to steal Kevin Keenan’s bantams, well Percy can now direct the Bantam International Protection Society or BIPS officers directly to Mullaboden using his cats. Or say that I am worrying Alice Cullen’s two pet lambs, the way I usually worry them is to shout “Mint Sauce” as I walk past. Well Alice is getting rightly sick of this so she can report me directly to PD and he can send down Ian Coonan ( Good Cop) and Jim Nolan ( Bad Cop) to give me a good kick in the ar$€. I know that it sounds complicated but I’m telling you Percy Donnelly’s CATS are the business.




The photo above came to me by nefarious means complete with the caption
“Dressed as Madonna – Not!
At a recent charity do in Kilashee, can you spot Michael Murphy (Liffeydale), Anthony Callan, Pat Burke and Pat Hayes. Styled by our FASHIONISTA Gail Kinsella of Mountcashel. Who has the best legs?”
Well done Gail.
It was Ten Years ago this month….
Festival fever was at its height in the Bugle of 1999. To take our minds off the planning ructions the Committee had organized. Fishing Art, Sen. Citizens Quiz, Parade led by the Wolfe Tone Brass and Reed Band, Traditional Music Competition The Final Public Performance of the Band of the Curragh Command. Will we ever see the like again? Probably not. All six, yes six pubs had entertainment; Mick Slevin took “Rosie” to task. The Child of Ballymore wrote about Jack Lawlor. You could get a pound of sausages for 99 pence in Londis. A poem about Punchestown went:
There was Deegans all along the farm stone wall,
Hartigans, Murphys, Edgeworths,McDonalds, Kellys all,
And between races you were lucky if all your money wasn’t spent,
You might just get a mineral from Larry in Tutty’s tent. Real poetry! Sean Farrington gave us lots of Punchestown memories telling us of Dick Jeffers Da’s attempt to win the Tickell Cup five times on the trot. “Sharon’s Grave was performed by BEDs and reviewed by Rose. Eileen Conway won a prize in the Juve GAA’s raffle and Michael Wards quoted words that are still as relevant today.
The Ballymore Bugle.
This is a publishing office,
Cross roads of Civilization, Refuge of all the Arts against the ravages of time,
Armoury of Fearless Truth against Whispering Rumour,
Incessant Trumpet of trade, From this place Words may Fly Abroad,
Not to Parish as Waves of Sound but Fixed in Time,
Not Corrupted by the Hurrying Hand but Verified in Proof,
Friend, You Stand on Sacred Ground,
This is a Publishing Office.
Jeffers, Mike, Matt, Angie, Rose and of course Michael fulfill this tenet month after month. I am delighted that my work brings it to you, the reader, in good condition.
And Frances Clare, whom, if you substitute the word printing for publishing gives life to their labours.
TR April 2009.

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