Feeling like a "Normal Person".

 I headed over to Sligo to attend a seminar to help me decided on the next stage of my life!

It finished at mid-day on a glorious Saturday. So instead of heading home immediately, I decided to do a bit of sight-seeing.

I googled "Things to do in Sligo" and the first thing that popped up was to visit Streedagh Beach

...where many of the scenes between Marianne and Connell in "Normal People" were filmed. 

It was just down the road ( quite a narrow road, mind you) from the hotel so off I went.

One of my best decision ever. I know the weather helped, but it is definitely one of the most beautiful places I have ever visited.

Okay, I did not take this photo. You hardly thought they were still hanging around the beach two years later!!!

 I had to do a double-take too. They are very small horses, not very big dogs!

The backdrop of Ben Bulben was the icing on the cake..

Late, on my way home,  I saw a sign that pointed to Yeats' grave. I loved his poems which we did for the Leaving Cert, so I did a little detour.

Aedh Wishes for the Cloths of Heaven

W. B. Yeats - 1865-1939

• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 

Had I the heavens' embroidered cloths,
Enwrought with golden and silver light,
The blue and the dim and the dark cloths
Of night and light and the half light,
I would spread the cloths under your feet:
But I, being poor, have only my dreams;
I have spread my dreams under your feet;
Tread softly because you tread on my dreams

Eggcited, much?

 I am waaaay too excited about the new eggs cups I bought in Westport last weekend, coupled with the fact that a colleague of mine brought me in a half dozen of eggs from her free range hens. 

BEYOND EXCITED!

She reassured me that the reason they were all different colours....

There were two light brown ones, two white ones, a very dark brown one and a greenish-blue one....

was because she had hens of various breeds running around her back garden.

I have to admit each one was delicious, regardless of the colour of its shell.

So it just goes to show that eggs are like people....

It doesn't matter what colour they are on the outside, their yolk is the same!

Follow me for more philosophical gems of wisdom :)

RIP Ashling Murphy

 Like the rest of the country I am trying to come to terms with the utter senseless murder this week of Ashling Murphy.

Unfortunately Ashling is not the first in this country to die violently but hopefully this will really be a watershed in our attitude to gender based crimes.

The reason I have been so deeply affected by this atrocity is that I see so much of myself in her. Of course she was much younger, more beautiful, more talented than I could ever hope to be. However the number of times I have come home from school, my head "a wool-gathering" after the day, put on my gear and gone for a run or a walk along the canal. I have written many times on this blog about how the canal saved my sanity during lockdowns and restrictions.

It is always so peaceful and tranquil. When I'd get to the car park I'd be disappointed if I'd see it almost full. It meant that there were a lot of people on the route. If the car park was empty I was delighted as it meant that I had the place to myself and didn't have to worry about meeting people. It always felt so safe as there was no traffic.

It would be around 4pm when I'd get there. Still bright even during winter time. I know many people are not so lucky to be able to go that early in the evening.

So I was Aisling, the only difference was I came home.

It was so spiritual to be able to attend a vigil in her honour in our local GAA pitch. It just gave everyone a chance to show their support for and solidarity with her family in this awful time.

Ar dheis Dé go raibh a hanam

You need to get one of these TODAY!!!

 I have finished clearing out my old bedroom in the family home. It takes time to go through boxes of memories and keepsakes, deciding what to let go and what to keep.

I found this tucked away in one such box. I'm keeping this as I need it!

For those of you who can't find your glasses , it says....

This is a tuit

At long last we have sufficient quantity

for you to have one of your very own. Guard it 

with your life, as these tuits are very rare and hard to come 

by....especially the round ones.

This is an indispensable item. It will help you to become a much 

more efficient worker. For years people have been saying

"I'll do that as soon as I get a round tuit."

Now that you have a round tuit of your very own

Many things that have been needing to be 

done will be accomplished.

So I'm going to blame all the things that I didn't do in the intervening years on the fact that I didn't get my round tuit. Now that I've gotten it back there'll be no stopping me!

Make sure you get one for yourself!

My "IKEA" hat.

 I got this present for my birthday....

It was the wool, pompom and instructions to knit a hat. Hence it was soon christened the "IKEA hat", not because it was bought there (it wasn't) but because I had to bring it home and assemble it myself.

I love knitting and I find it very relaxing

except for that time I knit an Aran jumper, that was stressful!

So a couple of nights later, while watching de telly and knitting, I produced this!

And it keeps my head warm in this wintry weather. The gift that keeps on giving!

Happy New Year 2022

 We spend January 1st walking through our lives, room by room, drawing up a list of work to be done, cracks to be patched. 

Maybe this year, to balance the list, we ought to walk through the rooms of our lives - not looking for flaws, but for potential.

Ellen Goodman

Well I spent New Year's Day doing a little bit of both.

We had a final family meet up in our old family home to go through each room to check that we had all non essentials cleared out before it's put on the market.

I discovered a hidden box which contained my diaries dating back to 1979. Reading back over them is really like going through each room of my life. Having glanced through January 1st in most of them I realise that all the "rooms" are pretty much decorated the same.

"Lose weight."

Here's my 2022 diary.

The new year stands before us, like a chapter in a book, waiting to be written.

Melody Beattle

This year will definitely see one chapter of my life closing and a new one opening. I'm nervous and excited about it, but thankfully I have the first half of the year to prepare fully for it.

Here's to 2022, make it a good one!

How much does it cost to go to the cinema?

 I met up with Lorna who was home from France for the Christmas. We decided to go to the cinema to see West Side Story.

I know I've seen it before, but it's like your favourite album. You can listen to it over and over again.

When it finished, we spilled out into Blanchardstown Shopping Center. The sparkling lights were on, the Christmas music was playing and the shops were displaying those festive posters which screamed

SALE!

So of course we had to go in and see what was on offer.

Later, back in the house we realised that it had been a very expensive trip to the cinema... but well worth it!