Yesterday as I was writing about International Women's Day I remembered that I'd interviewed Carmel O'Keeffe of Dress for Success Cork for the Sunday Business Post Magazine's This Life slot a few years ago. Carmel's story is pretty inspiring so I've reproduced it here, for a bit of motivation on IWD2016! Carmel O'Keeffe of Dress [...]
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NiFD6EFVsTg] There’s a song in the puppet musical Avenue Q, which recently toured Ireland, called ‘The internet is for porn’. They should’ve adapted it for Ireland, because it seems our national obsession - no, not drink - has returned with a vengeance, in the vanguard of ‘The Recovery’™. The internet is for property porn. It’s back. [...]
There was a TV ad for instant soup a couple of years ago that struck a nerve with me. You might remember it – a yuppie type, carrying a cup of soup, rushing around an office as though his feet were on fire, and frantically shouting at people to get out of his way. The very [...]
Unmarried mothers, and children with no mothers. Children whose mothers weren't deemed suitable and women who weren't deemed suitable to be mothers. Girls whose fathers weren't working, or girls whose children were their father's. Little girls whose crime was to give cheek to a nun or be from the wrong family. Latter day prisoners [...]
Edit: please leave a comment below if you'd like to volunteer! I’ve always considered Cork to be Ireland’s friendliest city, and given the week that’s in it, it’s good to be mindful of the impression we give to visitors. Initiatives like the Lonely Planet iPhone app, the postering campaign, and twinning with various cities [...]
This is my editorial from 28 October. What must WT Cosgrave think now of his errant grandson? Allegedly backhanding a few bob to pollute the state his grandfather helped create, and shamed, almost twenty years later, with the ignominy of a corruption charge. What must deValera think of his grandson the minister? Éamon Ó [...]
*Burgers*Chips*Curry*Salad*Cans*Chicken* ... Ponies... ... Toys... ... Carpets... ... Liquid Viagra (Free! Today only!)... ... Chickens... ... Work boots... Welcome to the Mart. A Bank Holiday Monday Mart. Only on Bank Holidays does the Mart - what Orla Kiely fans would call a farmers' market, until they experience it in all its tacky, mucky, jumble sale glory - [...]
Monthly recommendations for books,
podcasts and TV along with event updates
and a selection of my writing plus an exclusive
monthly prize!