Category Archives: memories

February
Fair winds gust lowly
Evenings grow longer slowly
Brightness lifts the spirit
Random flowers deny winters merit
Unfrozen gloveless finger tips
Armed with holiday brochure glitz
Raising dreams of summer blitz
Yes, yes winter is finally losing its grip

Immigration Row –Katie Hopkins to the fore
Enjoying a drink with friends the topic turned to ‘that bitch.’ Everyone remembered her verbal attacks on everything from the benefit system to immigration. Let’s face it few people escape her judgemental attitude. The odd thing was nobody could remember her name.
That got me thinking. Is she ‘in character;’ when she plays to the camera? Talk Show presenters quickly realised having her as a guest boosted their ratings.
What about the stuff what spews out of her mouth? Should we be saying, engage your brain before you open your mouth, Katie. Or does it need to be said? Is it stream of consciousness – her spontaneous thoughts; or carefully choreographed venom to raise her profile? She has become famous without Big Brother or eating insects.
I thought her angry retort to a participant of the BBC 2 Immigration Row Programme audience was a cracker. “Don’t you call me names,” she demanded.
Nice one, Katie. Hold that thought the next time you open your mouth.

Salvo’s Story

He stood an object of adoration surrounded by a group of smoking admirers. Rain hissed around their heads but it made little different.   I am their salvation, their place of retreat from a cruel accusing world, he smiled.  Salvo( for that he had decided to call himself) preened as a beautiful young woman dressed in the latest fashion  sashayed  up to him and pushed the red glowing  tip of her cigarette into his open mouth. She was one of his adoring fans. The one he waited for on lonely nights when the bar was quiet. She smoked hurriedly, anxiously.

read more

He wished she’d spend more time with him. He knew she was keen to get back to his arch enemy – the bottle – Sometimes he was insanely jealous of her love affair with alcohol. Its beguiling ways kept her from coming back to him. He loved the sexy way she slipped her butt between his lips. He liked to savour the red tip of her cigarette before finally letting it slip down his narrow tube. He breathed deeply and accepted her love.  She hadn’t thrown him a kiss but he knew she’d be back. It was only her first cigarette of the night.  She’d be back.  He shrugged. More than one fish in the pub   he mused.

He knew he was being fickle.  But he had to take his thrills where he got them.  Another little addicted beauty would be along shortly to keep him company. The door from the crowded pub pushed open and a gaggle of bodies gathered around him. He rattled in anticipation and cleared his throat of the butt of the last admirer. This looked pretty promising, he mused. He liked a full can at the end of the night.  The smell of sulphurs and the flash of flickering tips warmed his insides.

Deep sighs of satisfaction filled the small smoking area.  Salvo waited for the secret telling. He was their confidante. He knew many things. Whose boyfriend was sleeping with their best friend; who had an overdraft and who had a row with his wife? He had them now. Inside was a “no go,” area for smokers like them. He was the object that allowed freedom of choice.

He frowned in consternation as a strange alien type of cigarette appeared. An electronic device smoked by a pretty blond! It’ll never catch on, he consoled himself. After all, he reasoned, inhaling the passive cigarette as it curled and swarmed around him and his admirers.  It’s a free country. I am but providing a service.  It’s not my fault if they wake in the morning with throats like razor blades or coughing up half their lungs. Me? I am but a humble servant providing a valued service.

He was overcome with a sudden surge of gratitude. As jobs went it had a lot of merit.  It would be a while before he had to think about being just a redundant piece of tin. I’m never lonely. I always have somebody to keep me company he mused as a satisfied customer sucked deeply on the last dregs of his cigarette. And then there’s the local Council.  In these times of recession I save them a lot of money. They don’t need as a many street cleaners. He gulped down the remaining butts; reluctant to think about hospital admissions or cancer scares.  It’s not my fault. People make choice, he sighed as his lovely special love returned for a second smoke.

One Billing Rising – Watch Your tongue

St Valentine made a lovely surprise visit to my house today.

The 14^th February has another side to it. Human trafficking will still go on, girl children, barely out of babyhood will be mutilated and married off. One in five women will be abused by their partner or old boyfriend.

Men are abused too. Ireland is synonymous with seeking justice for its people.

Band together. Stop gender violence.

Change starts with me and you.  Laws protects but take a long time to change attitudes and ingrained beliefs (don’t we know it)

Change one small thing. Watch your tongue. Don’t tell the tongue-in cheek jokes about being the boss in your house or the, ‘my woman’ tales. It’s a joke. Right? But it perpetuates the attitude that woman ‘belong’ to men.’ (A bit like the film ‘12 Years a Slave – where Blacks were just property) And no, I’m not a man-hater or a 1960s ‘libber.’

One Billion Rising is making a difference across the world.  Its message is simple. Recognise gender violence and take it seriously.

The jokes wouldn’t be so funny if it was your daughter, mother or sister. Or, if you thought as a result a woman would be beaten as an act of control or dominance

That’s my Friday social thought. Let me know what you think. (suitable feedback for social media please)

writeyouwriteme

He smiled a shy smile into the space between their seats

She  flicked her  hair and stared

A misspelt note fluttered at her feet

A red heart in a crumpled mess

Be my Valentine Be my friend

Guess who –  I love you

From Hugh – beside you

I remember Hughie. I think he was in love with my hair. I hated my hair – too blond- so I had to wear glasses – too long  – so my mother made me stand every morning while she combed it. Was it love at first sight (no pun intended) What is love at first sight anyway? Is it a chemical reaction, personality or body language. I don’t think we knew anything about those things in the small Donegal country school Hughie and me went to.

I wonder where he is tonight. (I think there’s a song called that.) Enough nostalgia for one day.

Follow me on writeyou writeme@outlook  and share with me if you had a Hughie in your  childhood.

Someone told me you should do something every day that pushed you out of your comfort zone.

I spent two hours today in the Verbal arts Centre in Derry/Londonderry with a group of people from diverse backgrounds as part of a worldwide reading and writing for peace in a project to mark the Peace Palace Centenary in the Hague. Catherine, our group facilitator, selected Seamus Heaney’s poem, ‘The Other Side.’ And Moyra Donaldson’s poem ‘Exile.’ It was amazing to hear the different range of views on what the poems said.
Thanks Catherine and group. I enjoyed your company and learned something new.

Oh, la, la do not fear your lovely jewels are safe with me, he smiled. Kiss me my chi ere, take away your fear. Oh, I forgot your bound and gagged. I will peck your cheek, leave my DNA, for the police.  (hope he gets jailed)

Did you know that kissing is good for you (but not for him)

Kissing releases stress
kissing fights tooth decay. (Really! And I thought it was my love of sweets)
Kissing tones your face muscles – makes you smile.
Kissing makes you feel good. No? You’re kissing the wrong girl/guy.
Kissing quietens the mind as good as meditation. No! not medication you fool!
Kissing burns calories. What? better than 5.2 fast diet (Or in my case slow diet)
Kissing stimulates your brain. Well, it has definitely stimulated  mine. I’m off to do some research –  kissing style.

Here we are  Anthony  and I setting up the blog – finally. It feels good

Several weeks have passed – We’re taking the scenic route – no panic. You know the story about the hare and the tortoise?  You don’t? Well, it goes something like this. No one told the tortoise he should hurry. So he didn’t.  Someone told the hare to run like the wind. It’s what expected in a race, so he did. In no time at all he was suffering from burnout. Having taken the race in his stride the tortoise crossed the finish line first.

But you can only  procrastinate for so  long enough – time to go public