If you were to believe the media reports, the whole country came to a halt for the Munster/Leinster match in Croke Park.
Would anyone bother going to a gig taking place at the same time? Yes, was the answer, with the big match having little or no effect on attendances at this year’s Rhythm and Roots Festival. It was the same on Sunday afternoon, with the Kilkenny/Tipperary game in Thurles having no effect on the numbers enjoying the various free and ticketed shows.
Sunday is the busiest day of the festival each year, with over 30 shows taking place. As usual there are a few small hiccups, but nothing major and already some performers have finished and are heading back to Dublin airport to continue their tours.
Jim White is due to be driven to Dublin on Sunday afternoon, where he's making preparations for his exhibition in The Douglas Hyde Gallery in July and August. He rings me to tell me he's met a couple in the lobby of the Ormonde Hotel and he's going to travel back with them, another little saving for our funds.
Making sure all the performers are paid is always a priority. There's some confusion as to whether Jim White is to be paid directly or through his agent in Sweden.
I e-mail Jim after the festival to clarify this and admit to him that the financial arrangements are not my strongest point and has he now been fully paid. He replies:
“John, you're my kind of businessman! Thanks for a good time. As for payment, somebody resembling you slipped somebody resembling me an envelope with something resembling the fee in it. Shall we just agree that that was you, me and the show fee?
“The payment is much appreciated, and will be put to good use covering child-rearing expenses here in Georgia.
“By all means drop by the Dublin show. The gallery curator is surprisingly engaging - not at all what you'd expect from a fru fru art gallery in a big city.”
The exhibition is called “Deep Fried Ephemera (Jim White's collection of southern marginalia ). Anyone who saw his two shows at The Ormonde will know what to expect.
Where love stories begin...
The festival came to a blistering conclusion with the Reverend Peyton/Hillbilly Casino double bill on the Monday night. The Hillbilly boys were the last to leave town and headed back to Nashville early on Tuesday morning. We said our goodbyes at the Kilkenny Inn and that was it for another year.
I've had dozens of emails from people who enjoyed the weekend. Among them was one that I originally thought was one of those spam emails offering a Russian bride, but maybe not. If you were, or know, this particular character, let me know:
“Hello fest!
My name is Olja and I'm not from Ireland, I'm from Ukraine.
I'm looking for a original guy..
I was on your big party at first in this year.
I was on after-party in Kilkenny Inn Hotel at night from 4 to 5 May. I meet one guy, who stay like a stone at the centre of Inn Hotel's bar with Guinness and Magner Sidr, and somethimes look at me...I see him, but I know English so bad that's why I didn't come to the guy. My friends desided to go away and when I wear my trenchcoat he came to me and kessed me whithout any words. I was in eiphoria..I feel this men is the "One and Only". My heart tell me that he is! But I must go with my friends. I said to him that bad news and that I am not from Ireland, I'm from Ukraine and said "bay". It is stupid situation, but I'll try to find this men.
I'm in Dublin now, because I am bridesmaid at my friend's Marriage.
Please, I beggin, help me. Tell me how can I find, what can I do?
May be you can send to different people from the Rhythm and Roots Festival mailing list this letter and different people can send to other and I am sure someone answer to my SOS. I ask my frends from Kilkenny about that guy, but they don't know him.
I hope for your help.”
The Rhythm and Roots matchmaking section would like to help the poor girl. So if you kissed, or know anyone who kissed, a Ukrainian girl wearing a trenchcoat in the Kilkenny Inn let me know.
Back to reality
I hadn't seen much television over the last few weeks, in fact it had been barely turned on. I switched on the Late Late Show last Friday and for a minute I thought there was something wrong with the set. The colour was all wrong, so I decided to give it a while to see would it correct itself. I fiddled with the colour adjustment button, but then noticed that Pat Kenny was his usual pale skinned self, so the television was not to blame.
Bill Cullen was on and he seemed to have turned a peculiar of orange. The woman beside him, who, it turned out, was his wife was the same peculiar shade of orange, although she probably would call it tangerine. His theory on success in business is to get up twenty minutes earlier each day, so now he sleeps for four hours and then works twenty hours a day. At this rate he's going to be getting up before he goes to bed, but then it must take at least a couple of those hours to get the skin and hair colour right for the day.
The orange/tangerine couple had me seeing red with their suggestions for getting us out of the financial crisis.
Their plan is to get all the unemployed building workers to take to the roads and clear up all the weeds.
“The country is full of weeds, Pat, and I'm just wondering why with so many people on the dole,” said Mrs Orange.
“It's not a lowly job to pick weeds. I'd do it myself. You'd feel like getting out of the car and doing it yourself.”
So that's it, send everybody out pulling weeds and our troubles will be over. It's a wonder George Lee didn't think of that.
