General Chat

Pauline, draw them a map and send them on their way, lol.

Going to have dinner now, they're moaning at me for sitting here instead of putting the dinner out. Wonder why I'm the only person who knows where the kitchen is.

Cath, people in this country were like that when I was young, not any more though - times change.

It's nice to know that it's still like that in some places.

Dermot, fabulous.
I had my first experience of an Irish funeral last June when my father in law died. I was stunned by the generosity of my mother in laws neighbours who found beds for all family arriving for funeral, fed and watered us liberally and organised the after funeral feed. People were so kind, even at the graveside they held umbrellas over us whilst getting drenched themselves. (Lovely Irish weather, lol).
I was worried about how my mother in law would cope on her own after we left as shes not in the best of health herself but I needn't have worried at all as neighbours and friends pop in to help her out daily and she wants for nothing. Can't wait to get back there in April and see them all.

Cath xx

Rita, I've sent you another PM, hope it's of some help.

Dermot, I'm loving this, I feel like I'm watching it on the telly............ brilliant.

Thank you Pauline I sent you and emailed back.

Dermot . I could hear that chalk squeaking when Miss Fox was writting on the blackboard what memories the squeak of the chalk and the dust flying off the duster when it had been used to wipe the blackboard clean and given a good shake .made many of us sneeze.
sometimes she would press so hard on the chalk it would snap with a loud sound making us jump.

Thanks for the memories Dermot.

Marilyn I thought that was you who had washed your Ipod it had little patterns between the name.

Rita

School Days - as I remember them, warts & all (Part 2).

As I hinted previously, our school building was a very plain & simple structure. However, as with books, we should not go by the cover but the quality inside.

Apart from a few school books & copies to write on, there were very few additional teaching aids. Blackboards (it was ok to use this term then!) & chalk were just a few extras. I even remember using different coloured chalks when drawing the outline of some scientific gadget or other - a Bunsen Burner perhaps.

There was always a mist in the room caused by the extensive use of chalk & its ever present dust. Depending on which direction the sun rays entered the room via the large windows, you could almost make out the beginning of a rainbow caused by the meandering chalk dust. We never did find the pot of gold at the end of our own rainbow!

The school was not big enough for the number of scholars attending. So, we had to take it in turns with lessons. We would spend one hour sitting doing written work using our posh nib pens that needed to be dipped regularly into inkwells which were sunk into our wooden desks - Charles Dickens comes to mind here!

Following that, we would spend another hour standing around the blackboard or the world maps hanging from the walls. It would seem that many of the countries on these maps were coloured pink - I suppose nobody reading this piece of nonsense would have any idea why this should be so. Explanations from Miss Fox did the trick.

Apparently, she had a few trips abroad by ship to France & Denmark at a time when doing so from our backwater area was unheard of. She was a single lady with no family & a regular teacher’s pay - so, she could budget. The poor farmers’ income was spasmodic depending on the season plus the ups & downs of the price of animals at the periodic cattle markets.

As I said before, the Catholic Priest was also the school manager & selected teachers for his school. It wouldn’t surprise me if ‘brown envelopes’ were exchanged on such occasions. He also dispatched teachers if they were not of the right calibre. Tough times to be sacked or made redundant. No financial recompense.

When the Parish Priest, Fr Mangan, decided to pay the school an unannounced visit, Miss Fox was promptly informed by her spies. The taller children who could see out the window would keep a watch on all passing traffic. It was important that Miss Fox would have everything in order for his arrival to include the hiding of the ever present cane. He was easy to spot on his approach in his black ‘Sandyman’ coat & bowler hat. No local farmer would be seen dead wearing such headgear.

Fr Mangan, a genial gentleman, would test our knowledge on several subjects & we would shivering in our skins in case we gave incorrect answers. As well as that, it would show-up Miss Fox if the priest’s perception of our educational ability was a bit lacking.

But, generally, all was well. For a half-hour we would be asked to play outside so that Miss Fox could prepare tea for his reverence which would include a few dainty biscuits - none of us country lads had ever seen such delicious eatables. Off he would go then with a cheery wave to us.

It wasn’t too long after one such visit that he died. Old age no doubt - something we will all suffer in due course, if we are lucky. He was given a good send-off as only the Irish know how to do and, what‘s more, we were allowed the day off school to attend the funeral.

He was replaced in due course & the process of getting to know the new priest began. Apparently, Fr Joyce came from a wealthy family in the next county & it would seem that money supply was not a problem. No matter which county you were born in, it always seemed there were much more prosperous residents in the neighbouring county - don’t know why!

He began to have a new priest’s house built not far from the school. To us, it looked like a mansion with its carefully landscaped gardens & orchard. Ah, that orchard matured nicely over the years & so did the idea of the occasional night time expeditions there by subsequent generations of pupils. Didn't Adam & Eve do something similar.

Big double iron gates were installed at the roadside opening on to a wide drive which led to the front door. Fr Joyce, was a youngish man as far as we could tell with sharp features, tall & lean. Apparently, he was a useful Gaelic Football player at school & college before he decided to change course.

He regularly wore a black trilby hat. He rarely smiled & was not respected as much as his predecessor. Somehow, he lacked the usual Irish ability to communicate with his congregation. He gave the impression of being unapproachable - not good in his occupation.

He used to read his breviary at about the same time every day while he walked slowly from his front door to the big gates and back again - weather permitting. At intervals, he would partake of some substance from a small flask which he kept in his inside pocket. In our innocence, we thought he was drinking some holy water. Years later, we found out that the liquid in the flask was of a strong gold nature - good to keep out the cold no doubt. And why not!

After he was moved to another area about ten years later, a rumour put it about that Fr Joyce was related to William Joyce of World War II infamy, better known to radio listeners as ‘Lord Haw-Haw’. I suspect that this was just a bit of mischief. Who knows & does it matter now?

Rita, I've sent you a PM.

Stephen, that was a bit of a dilemma for you with that book. It must have been hard to lose it but even harder to ask for it back.

Dermot, there's a few copies of your book you've sold already and you haven't even written it yet. Cath, Pat, Stephen and myself have all said we'd buy it. Haven't read back to look at the other posts yet but I think everyone on here would buy it.

Rita, I'll go and have a look at Ancestry to see if they've moved it, I'll get back to you.

LOL at Stephen.

I'd buy Dermot's book as well!

Marilyn,

The Tattooed lady is my Mum.

I thought that photo had been destroyed in a fire years ago.

Don't you see how much I look like her. Most everything I have droops as well

ROFL x 2 plus a wee backflip and a cartwheel.

Stephen,
I've just been speaking to my sister. She's thinking of getting an e reader!
First editons! I like paperbacks!
It seems to have stopped raining here.

Stephen I think 'Dermots book' would be a best seller. Hes got a real talent for making words come to life. I would definitely buy it.

Pauline how do I go back to Ancestrys old version of census ? this new one is driving me up the wall.
I dont want to end up like Humpty Dumpty and have a great fall.

Rita

Pauline,

I have read ALL my books some of them three or four times. My collection is extensive and covers many areas of interests I have. A few are rather valuable. Many are first editions. As a total collection they will be passed to my daughter who is a keen book lover like me. Better than money in the Bank
I 'lost' one really valuable book by lending it to a friend who then died. I couldn't ask his widow if she still had it months after Jims death. Probably went to a Charity shop and would be bought by someone who didn't know it's value.

I do know a couple of folk who have bought books 'by the yard' so to speak just to fill a bookcase and to make it look good.

It's time Dermot wrote a book. I'd love that in my collection.

Linda, the flower chain sounds nice.
i think that according to the staff manual at my place of work Tattoos are a no no.
I've just startrd reading A Week In December. the westher is a bit grotty here. I've got to go out later to count the church collection. I wouldn't mind but I got wet this morning!
I like the idea of a library Stephen but my house isn't big enough!

Just to re-assure you all
I have no ear piercings or tatoos either !! It wasn't my picture, I'm so glad to say. Heaven forbid.
Youngest has a flower chain near her waist, no other close family members have tatoos that I know of. Some of the nieces might have but I've never seen them.
Both daughters have their ears pierced more than once.

Just not something I ever wanted.

But have been advised you can have your eye brows tatooed on, maybe just maybe?

Weather miserable very wet now.

Ironing done, thank goodness

Linda :o) XxXX

Hi all, the weather's horrible here, cold, dark and wet. It was lovely yesterday, we worked in the garden most of the day.

Dermot, I love your tales of your childhood, you really make it all come to life........... so talented.

I don't have my ears pierced, never liked the look of holes in ears, don't have any tattoos either........... apart from the ones on my face.

My dad was in the Royal Navy and he had tattoos on both arms, both hands and both sides of his neck.

I used to think his tattoos were pretty, he had bluebirds and hearts, and my mother's name.

Stephen, have you read all those books?

Marilyn, that tattooed lady was lovely, wish I'd had my dinner before I'd seen her, it's put me off my food a bit.

Lovely email Linda, thank you.

Going to do the dinner now.

R4 - Womans' Hour to be co-hosted on 1st April by Andy Gray & Richard Keys to include an interview with Silvio Berlusconi.