Wakes  I was recently proofreading an academic essay for a university student, and the theme was Caoineadh Airt Uí Laoghaire. I have read about this before both in school and in adult life. I was fascinated with the topic and its historical context in Cork. The mná caointe or keeners were professional mourners who wailed and screamed at wakes and funerals in Ireland. This ritual was a throwback to pagan Ireland when women at wakes wailed in mournful tones for the dead, often

Radio Times We were setting up an Amazon Echo  recently so that we can have ready access to our super intelligent house guest Alexa. When the system was operational, I asked her to play The Wests Awake for me and she duly obliged. At the end of the song, I wanted to find out when Marconi invented the first radio signal and immediately, she informed me that Guglielmo Marconi invented it in 1895 and patented it. When I heard this bit of news I thought about the development of r

There are times in our lives when we want to be on our own to rebalance our inner selves and emotions. I had a stressful personal time recently and needed some space. To destress I decided to head for the peace and calm of Courtown beach and woods. The drive down was uneventful. I parked up, changed into walking boots and began my unwinding stroll. As I started, I heard a familiar voice asking if he could join me.  Being an ex-neighbour and friend, I agreed and off we went at

Changing financial times During a recent woodland walk I chatted with fellow strollers about money in our youth. We recalled the penny bars, the penny worth of sweets. We were familiar with the shilling, the florin and the half crowns. And you were very wealthy if you possessed a ten-shilling or paper pound note.   We all recalled the post office savings books and how we bought savings stamps in school and how the man from the post office came on a regular basis. When we fill

Changing Times My parents lived in London during the second world war. They were married there in 1939 and came back to Kerry to settle...

The remains of my granny's ancestral home built in pre famine times A friend of mine told the following story recently, ‘Many years ago...

I remember, I remember I remember the good old days when my father bought the Irish Independent first thing in the morning to read...

Sweet things I was in a supermarket recently and having procured my shopping items I made my way to the till. As I was standing in the...

New Potatoes There is something very special about new potatoes in Ireland. They just jog up some great memories from my youth for me....

With a Shillelagh under me arm The walking stick has been around for thousands of years since the time of the Pharaohs. When the grave of...

Ireland was a very different place in the forties and fifties compared with today, particularly regarding waste management and...

Making sense of it all.   Perhaps man had 100 senses and when he died only the 5 senses, we know of perish with him and the others...

When you go down to the woods today,   When I walk in Courtown woods I am constantly experiencing the unexpected as I amble along the...

Gorey Cars & Coffee Bank holiday event It was Bank holiday Monday on June 2nd, 2025.We had a busy weekend with visitors and so this...

The Horse Chestnut in May   It was Tuesday May 20th, 2025. We were after a sustained period of dry weather and the ground was very dry....

Leaves in our lives Don’t you just love early Spring when we see the first green leaves of the little snowdrops and crocus appearing....

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My Culinary Delights In retirement I have more time to discover and develop my inner self and talents. I had kept up my reading,writing...

A Spring Stroll in Courtown Woods "Anois teacht an earraigh" – "Now with the coming of spring"; "Beidh an lá ag dul chun síneadh" – "The...