Let’s not forget the architects of creative Galway

Thu, Jul 11, 2019

I have a secret fetish for architecture (just not so secret any more). I have been known to fondle bridges; to lose my breath over mindblowing overhangs; to stare at the steel ceilings of stadiums rather than the pitch and wonder just what allows 50,000 people to hop up and down without it all collapsing.

A tussle to end someone’s summer

Thu, Jul 04, 2019

In tribal sport, it matters to matter. There is nothing worse than not mattering, being seen as harmless; being seen as not capable of inflicting any damage on anyone but yourself. It is good to be part of the banter, to be able to slag your rivals, to joke about your own shortcomings, to participate in partisan oneupsmanship.

Time to slow down time

Thu, Jun 27, 2019

This year I’ve noticed more than ever the impact of the short summer nights, the long summer days, that brightness that nudges you awake at 5am and says, “look at me. See the beauty of the world that you are missing out on by sleeping.” This year more than ever, the weeks and months have flown by; the landmarks by which we stake out the year come and go like town-name signs on a roadway at night, and fly by.

It has been a weird year. I have always valued time, and I suppose like anything you value, you have to be careful lest you allow others to take it from you. This year, it feels like someone has snuck up in the night, checked to see if I was asleep and stolen away a few hours of time, pushed the clock a few hours forward, saying ‘ arragh sure he’ll never miss it.”

THE 10th GALWAY GARDEN FESTIVAL WITH FOOD, CRAFT, MUSIC, STREET THEATRE AND A MEDIEVAL TOURNAMENT AT CLAREGALWAY CASTLE ON JULY 6-7TH

Mon, Jun 24, 2019

The 2019 Galway Garden Festival will take place on Saturday 6th and Sunday 7th of July, at Claregalway Castle. This will be the 10th year of this multi-faceted jewel in the Irish Gardening calendar. It will not only showcase the very best of rare and special plant traders from all over Ireland but also includes a wonderful programme of expert talks, the usual superb artisan Food and Craft arena and a host of musical entertainment and open-air performance.

All that is being left behind

Thu, Jun 20, 2019

I’m a news junkie. I would sit in the snow to hear a good yarn. As a kid, I used to place the big valve Pye radio beside my bed, wait until it warmed up and tune into Short Wave stations from across the world.

I’d scroll the dial from Hilversum to Albania to Radio Moscow to Luxembourg to the Voice of America. I would listen through the crackle at these voices coming at me from across the world, with their agendas and their accents. It is a fascination that has stuck with me, and I use every evolving technology to still allow myself this guilty pleasure. even if this means that we sign away a part of ourselves so that we are vulnerable to the latest news and influences.

The best karting tracks in the country

Fri, Jun 14, 2019

From go-karting to paintball campaigns courses, Pallas Karting Centre has everything to challenge the ultimate competitor of the family. Perfect for school outings, work parties, or stag and hen dos, a great day out is guaranteed for everyone at Pallas Karting.

Many’s a slip twixt the cup and the lip

Thu, Jun 06, 2019

During the local elections, I spoke to the partner of a politician, offering congratulations on the success and opining that at least now, everything would get back to normal in the political household; that the grass would be cut once again, the flowerbeds weeded, the hinges fixed on the ratchety door, and the kids getting to know the one parent who had been missing for three months or so.

And so the people have spoken...

Thu, May 30, 2019

Elections and election counts are like horror films or high-rides in a funfair. From a distance, they all seem like they might be good craic, but when you get into them, you kind of regret you ever did.

Enter the world of politics by voting

Thu, May 23, 2019

I remember leaving a polling station a few decades ago in my hometown and bumping into a friend who told me that he had just voted for the introduction of divorce on the basis that it would make “loads more wimmen available for the shift”. And boy, was he pleased with himself. Not really bothering to enlighten him to the fact that his vote would also free up more men to compete with his Lothario efforts, I let him off as happy as Larry, having voted for what was probably the most meaningful reason he had ever had.

The innocent joy of wonderment

Thu, May 16, 2019

It was around this time of year when we were kids that a vast array of nothingness spread ahead of us like a meadow with no walls. When schoolbags would be kicked into a corner for the summer, when evenings playing handball in the old ball alley would spread into days playing handball. When you would throw yourself back on the grass, stare at the heavens and wonder about things you had no notion of wondering about. Lying there watching the clouds move across the blue skies and wondering if it was the cloud that was moving or the earth beneath you.

Ireland needs to stop mollycoddling businesses - Cormac MacGowan

Thu, May 16, 2019

Ireland ought to, of course, provide a welcoming environment for business and for employees generally. However, we ought not to be so accommodating that we reduce our people back to the conditions we suffered 100 years ago. A democratic republic is intended to shelter its citizens from the harshness of the world, and to provide a share of the benefits of the upside of the society and economy that we create, together. These are the primary purposes of democracy. Ireland is failing, miserably, in this respect. Instead - our governments have done precisely the opposite. They have, gradually, since the 1970s, transferred business risks onto ordinary people and onto the public purse.

The invisible strings that hold community together

Thu, May 09, 2019

Back in the summer of ‘82, when Paolo Rossi was setting the stones alight with his scorching display in the heat of football pitches at the Spanish World Cup, I spent the days picking cold stones from a wet football pitch in Mayo. In those days, when the offer of a job was as fickle as the tumbleweed that blew across our horizon, the Community Employment Scheme was all we knew.

And while I’ll never know if we ever made any difference with the stones we picked from what seemed like a field of stones, we felt like we had the impossible task of digging just half a hole. It was invisible work, probably invented by someone to keep us busy, to bend our backs, to get us used to the real world.

Exciting ways people can get involved with Macnas this summer!

Thu, May 09, 2019

Macnas is beginning advanced Stilt Performance workshops with an emphasis on Stilt performance using a mask, stilt-performance in acrobatics and in physical performance indoors and outdoors!

Fantasy Football round 38 preview

Tue, May 07, 2019

After nearly nine months and 37 rounds of action, the Premier League season reaches its crescendo this Sunday; Man City or Liverpool? Who will be the champions of England?

Away trips give a glimpse of home and community

Thu, May 02, 2019

It has been a horrible few weeks. At home and abroad, the news headlines are filled with tales of unwavering cruelty, of acts of violence, of terror, of domestic killing, of communities living in fear.

We see brazen acts of defiance against our policing forces, of daring raids that care little for the proximity of officers, or for the disruption to local communities. And when we hear of these things, we look deep into ourselves to try to find a piece of hope, a glimmer of light to give us belief in the capacity of the human spirit to overcome such darkness.

Fantasy Football round 37 preview

Thu, May 02, 2019

It was another special week of European football as Ajax continued their wonderful form in the competition with 1-0 victory over Spurs in London and Lionel Messi staked another claim as the greatest player to grace a football pitch with another brilliant brace against Liverpool on Wednesday night at the Camp Nou.

Veil of silence must be broken

Thu, Apr 25, 2019

It is hard to believe several years have passed since local Tuam historian Catherine Corless uncovered the heartbreaking scandal of undocumented burials at the Tuam Mothers and Baby home - one which is sadly still ongoing.

For the families of the 798 children who died, and then were buried in the grounds of the institution, there can be no peace when still so many questions need answers.

Fantasy Football round 36 preview

Thu, Apr 25, 2019

It is all becoming a little clearer now that all sides have played 35 matches. Champions Man City are still keeping challengers Liverpool at arms length in the title race, Spurs and Chelsea are in pole position for the Champions League, and it is between Brighton and Cardiff who will be the final side to tumble out of the division and into the Championship.

Local Market Makes Long Awaited Comeback After Series Of Setbacks

Tue, Apr 23, 2019

The much talked about the return of the Tiny Traders Village finally became a reality last weekend as the much loved local market relaunched in a brand new location after almost a year of setbacks and delays.

Our city benefits from the spirit of volunteerism

Thu, Apr 18, 2019

Galway city was at its best this week when it celebrated the selfless in our society - the volunteers who engage with communities, groups, and individuals, not just giving time, but also themselves to help others.

Truly inspiring is the breadth of volunteers who are now an integral part of Galway's culture and spirit. Whether providing a voice for those with special needs, or risking their lives on a search and rescue mission, the number of volunteers who maintain an unwavering dedication is truly uplifting.

E-paper

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