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Archive for July, 2010

Dublin meal deals

Posted in Miscellaneous, tagged , , , , , on July 13, 2010| 1 Comment »

There seems to loads going around at the moment. Have you heard of anymore?

Burdocks are offering fish goujons, chips and can for €4.95.

Milano’s latest online offer is a pizza for 15c (!) when you buy any other main course.

Gourmet Burgers are doing a online deal that you can get a burger for €5 when you purchase  any drink, side or starter.

Wagamana are offering a main meal and drink for €9.95 (Mon – Fri, 12pm – 5pm).

The Italian restaurant Mona Lisa are doing a buy one get one free on any pizza or pasta (Mon – Sun, 12pm – 7pm).

Thumbs up!

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The things you have to do to get your Dole.

Posted in Music, tagged , , on July 12, 2010| 1 Comment »

This is an excellent idea, and we’re 110% behind it. The Facebook group to get Scary Eire ‘On The Dole Quee’ to number 1 this Christmas is located here, join and invite your internet friends. I’d encourage other bloggers to give this a post too.

Firstly, I’m not on the Dole. Yet. These are grim times but, and enough of you are. No doubt someone is reading this from home, in their boxers at 4pm waiting for Maury to come on the box. If so, this one is for you.

I don’t like picking one Sony song over another on the back of a rebel chorus telling people you won’t ‘do what they tell you’. In fact, I don’t really like the idea of pushing for number ones in most cases. Love Will Tear Up Apart on the anniversary of Ian Curtis’ death would have been nice, but that Facebook group failed bad. THIS but, this might be the one.

With the year that’s in it, is there ANY song more fitting for Christmas number one? You might be saying “Jesus H. Christ Donal, I’ve not even gone on holidays yet” but to you people I say this…. it’ll take a lot of work, a lot of word of mouth, a lot of independent radio play and online pushing. When you turn on the radio Christmas Eve, and hear them announce this one, you’ll smile. Plus, it is a top tune. Handy.

C’MON! Get into that there Facebook group, make it happen.

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Orange Dublin

Posted in Dublin History, tagged , , on July 12, 2010| 2 Comments »

(Note: As an atheist and socialist, I have no time for the Orange Order but as a Dubliner and student of history, it is important to cover all parts of our city’s culture and past.)

Click to listen.

In case you missed it, RTE Radio 1 had a very interesting radio documentary on the Orange Order in Dublin. You can listen to it here. (It’s rare to hear self-described “working class” Dublin men talking about their allegiance to the British crown!)

In 1795, the Orange Order was founded in Dublin, where the Grand Lodge was first opened on Dawson Street in 1798. Today, the Dublin and Wicklow District LOL 1313 meets at their hall on the Northumberland Road. The lodge’s website has a number of fascinating bits of information, including this on the Civil War and 1930s period:

“Dublin was therefore, as the administrative Capital of the Island, the natural headquarters for the Orange Institution and remained such until the Headquarters Buildings, the Fowler Memorial Hall in Rutland Square, was severely damaged in the Civil War. The Headquarters, situated in what is now Parnell Square, at the top of O’Connell Street, had been seized by the IRA, and in conjunction with the Rotunda, used as their headquarters.

Following its evacuation by the IRA all the books and documents which had survived the siege were removed to Belfast where they were safely stored. The last public parade in Dublin was in 1936, when the Brethren were attacked as they walked from the Fowler Hall to Amiens St Station to travel by train to Belfast, for the annual 12th of July celebrations.”

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A Random Drop Inn: Kenny’s, Vesey Arms (Lucan Village, West Dublin)

Posted in Pubs, tagged , on July 10, 2010| 1 Comment »

Lucan in ye olde times.

I keep getting it wrong.

It’s Taiwan, not Thailand.Josef Fritzl went on holidays to Thailand, and Taiwan is an island that is an economic powerhouse and home to many multinational corporations and banks. A good friend is off there for a year or so soon, and he’s not the only one at the table tonight off on an adventure.

Two are heading Stateside. In true Irish fashion, they’re in the pub the night before flying out. There’s a sort of ‘last supper’ feeling to all this, as by the time those two return from America, my other friend will be settling into life in Thailand. Sorry, Taiwan. He’ll be settling into life in Taiwan. Another friend is determined to go one better than that, and is off to Ghana. I’ve no plans of leaving west Dublin for the forseeable future, so this is a surreal night.

We’ve had a few here but. In fact, Kenny’s has almost been adopted as our ‘meet up place’, a group of close secondary school comrades too stubborn to move on and talk to anyone in college. Why would you? We know and trust each other enough. Lucan village boasts several pubs, but we fell for this one.

The pints, it could be them. A table of seasoned Guinness drinkers, all here are more familiar with city centre classic spots like Mulligan’s for a good pint. These are near unfaultable however, and consistent. A few of the more neutral Guinness drinkers tend to follow us here onto the black stuff, which is always a good sign.

(more…)

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Strollin’ round Dublin town…

Posted in Miscellaneous, Uncategorized, tagged , , , on July 8, 2010| Leave a Comment »

Anyone who’s been following the Blog for a while might remember this post from JayCarax about a great piece of street art done just off the Luas tracks. I’m actually suprised it stayed there that long, but eventually someone realised it’s existence and did a hack job in covering it up…

Controversial Elephant replaced by existential nothingness...

And a couple more snaps of some Dublin graffiti taken on the same day…..

Brings to mind a certain Scary Éire track..!

Located around the back of the historic Smithfield Fruit and Vegetable Markets  is this piece:

This is not a photo oppurtunity...

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Penguin Kidnapping

Posted in Miscellaneous, tagged , , , , on July 8, 2010| 2 Comments »

A man drives to a gas station and has his tank filled up. While doing this
the clerk spots two penguins sitting on the back seat of the car. He asks
the driver, “What’s up with the penguins in the back seat?”

The man in the car says, “I found them. I asked myself what to do with
them but, I haven’t a clue.”

The clerk ponders a bit then says, “You should take them to the zoo.”

“Yeah, that’s a good idea,” says the man in the car and drives away.

The next day the man with the car is back at the same gas station. The
clerk sees the penguins are still in the back seat of the car.

“Hey, they’re still here! I thought you were going to take them to the zoo!”

“Oh, I did,” says the driver, “and we had a great time. Today I’m taking
them to the beach.”

Kelli, a 10-year-old female penguin, was kidnapped from Dublin Zoo this morning by three men. She was found several hours later on Rutland Street and was taken back to the Zoo by gardaí from Store Street. Gardaí are now hunting for the men involved.

Motive? Off – season college prankers? Criminals hoping to hold her for ransom? North Dublin brigade of the Animal Liberation Front (ALF)?

Media reports: BBC, RTE and Irish Independent.

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In The Garden with the Green Party.

Posted in Miscellaneous, Politics, tagged , , on July 7, 2010| Leave a Comment »

A real gem this, spotted on the wonderful Irish Election Literature Blog. It’s Trevor Sargent. Of course, one of the only Green TD’s who might still have a job after the next election following a Grade A piece of theatre that made sure he came away looking like the last Green who hadn’t turned yellow. Here he is performing ‘The Garden Song’ for an audience of children.

Of my local TD’s, it’s either Mary Harney or No-Go Gogarty I’d pay the most to see whip out the guitar.

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Where’s the jacks?

Posted in Uncategorized on July 6, 2010| 5 Comments »

What’s he yelling about?

Oh, he’s yelling at me. It’s the McDonald’s security man. I’m to come down those steps right away, and so is the old man behind me, and the young lad in front of me. We’ve not bought a €1 burger between us, and the blue-shirted man is a wise one, with eyes in the back of his head. ‘Buy something or get out’

So, I get out.

It dawns on me then that Dublin, a major capital city, has pretty much no public toilet facilities.

A quick look online reveals this problem is a longstanding one, with a number of issues present even when Dublin had a number of public toilets available to the public. In 1956 The Irish Times reported that the Irish Housewives Association complained that, even in light of the outbreak of polio, one had to pay 2d to clean their hands in one of the capitals public toilets. How very Irish. Still, at least they had public toilets.

The one people pass all the time (and don’t even realise they’re doing so in many cases), is the public toilet facility beside the Thomas Moore statue at College Green, opposite the Bank of Ireland. Still used as a jacks by many drunken Dubliners at the weekend (from the wrong side of a chained gate), it is one of the great ironies in the city that the man who wrote ‘The Meeting of the Waters’ would find a public toilet right next to his statue.

In Dublin, it seems we’re left with three options.

1) Museums. Of course, any visit will also involve a walk around.

2) Hotels. They say few toilets match The Weston.

3) That really, really horrible walk in the Jervis Street Shopping Centre to the jacks there. You know the walk. Feels a bit ‘Terminal 2.’

A recent visit to the Moore Street Mall revealed that the Stephen’s Green Shopping Centre mentality has crossed the Liffey, with a bloke employed to charge you 25c to use a substandard bathroom. In a city with no public toilets, can Dubliners really be expected to have to enter a commercial premises and fork out money for a product they don’t want to be allowed up the stairs to use the toilets? In fairness, it’s more than fair McDonald’s don’t want Joe Bloggs using their bathroom if he’s not a customer, but who can blame Joe for trying to sneak up the stairs past the ever vigilant security man?

For a capital city, it’s pretty shameful.

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The HSBC-ITGWU Branch Secretary.

Posted in Dublin History, Politics on July 5, 2010| 3 Comments »

One of the worst thought-out advertisements I’ve ever seen, I nearly choked on my Corn Flakes when I spotted this yesterday.

I’m sure Larkin would be delighted. Bankers are workers too.

Image and video hosting by TinyPic

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Joanna Newsom

Posted in Music on July 4, 2010| Leave a Comment »

I really should go to more gigs, as I remarked to a friend post Ted Leo at Whelan’s. Granted, I’ve a ticket to see Leonard Cohen in the back garden of a certain Countess’ Sligo home, but beyond that there isn’t much on the radar for me. Joanna Newsom in Dublin come September is now added to the list. The fact the gig is at the Grand Canal Theatre is just another incentive, owing to the fact I’ve not seen the place yet. All reviews of her sold out Olympia performance suggested I was a moron for spending the money on anything else at the time.

My main interest in the music of Joanna Newsom no doubt comes from the folk influences present, and the sound of the harp is something that one occasionally encounters in Irish traditional music, though nothing like here. I purchased The Milk Eyed Mender on a hunch a few years back, and completely fell for her music from there. Ys, a themed album of songs ranging from around 8 to 12 minutes,was mind-blowing, with the harpist joined by the sounds of an orchestra. The album was well received, even breaking into the Irish Top 50. We’ve great taste, we do.


Above: The Roots feat. Joanna Newsom, didn’t see that coming either.

Folkies like myself will no doubt mingle with the hipest of the hip for the night, and I’m personally hoping for a set that leans more towards her earlier material, though her latest effort is still most worthy of praise, an impressive triple album.

See you there.

Joanna Newsom at the Grand Canal Theatre, 14th September. Tickets from €33.60 including booking fee from Ticketmaster.ie

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Karma

Posted in Miscellaneous on July 3, 2010| 1 Comment »

Dame Street.A nice one to spot on the way to work.

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Save Wood Quay (1979)

Posted in Dublin History, Social History, tagged , , on July 3, 2010| 4 Comments »

I recently did a wonderful module in college which took in early Dublin life, and the walled viking town. After any degree of research into Viking Dublin, one can’t help but see the Civic Offces at Wood Quay as perhaps the greatest defeat of Irish historians and archaeologists.

Today, I stumbled across this gem on YouTube from 1979.

Excellent, and a YouTube gem providing interesting insight into long and hard fought political campaign.
For anyone interested in this period of history, you could do worse than to check out the Irish History Podcast homepage, where you’ll find a series of podcasts on the Vikings.

Outline of a viking plot today, beside Christchurch at Wood Quay.

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