Listowel Connection

This blog is a personal take on Listowel, Co. Kerry. I am writing for anyone anywhere with a Listowel connection but especially for sons and daughters of Listowel who find themselves far from home. Contact me at listowelconnection@gmail.com

Green Green Gate of Home

By

On July 15, 2022

In Ballybunion, Listowel

Tidy Town seat in Listowel Town Square in summer 2022

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Coming into Cork

My friend took these as the ferry came up the Lee estuary.

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In the Ballybunion Market

I was in the Ballybunion outdoor market on Saturday July 9 2022. I met the lovely entrepreneur, Sarah Fitzgerald of The Green Green Gate.

Sarah was being helped in her enterprise by her lovely Mammy, Peggy Fitzgerald.

I bought elderflower cordial. Delicious!

“Where did she get the name for her business?” you ask.

Here is the answer in Sarah’s words:

The Green, Green Gate was a half way meeting point between my house and the local sports field on my family land.!!! We didn’t have phones to keep in touch back then so my friend, cousins and I would arrange to meet there in the evening or weekends.

The Green Green Gate simply marked the start of many adventures and fun times for us all. It was our Gateway to Fun !!!! The fields, the forest, the bogland, the stream, the trees and the wide open spaces were our computers and phones of today’s children.

How lucky were we !!!!!

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A Few More Irishisms

from this book…

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Church of the Immaculate Conception, Blarney

Blarney is one of those churches where, if you gave a generous donation to the cause you got a plaque on the wall. Other churches put names on windows or pews.

I’m presuming this is the man who set up Blarney Woollen Mills. It used to be known as Mahony’s Mill.

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Town this Week

Flags, bunting, green and gold everywhere and I expect to see much more of the Kerry colours flying in the next few weeks as we near the All Ireland.

Thank you Seán OShea, the Cliffords, Spillanes et al for lifting all our spirits.

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In Blarney

By

On July 14, 2022

In Listowel, Personal

In The Garden of Europe, Listowel in July 2022

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Churches in Blarney

When I was in Blarney recently I visited their churches. For me visiting a new church is like visiting a gallery or a museum.

The Church Of Ireland church was closed when I was there but the churchyard was particularly well kept and, given its central location in the town, it was great to see it obviously appreciated.

The Catholic Church is at the top of a hill too. On the way up to the entrance there is this lovely Lourdes grotto.

Lots of stained glass here.

There was much mosaic work in the sanctuary.

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A Few More Irishisms or Mammyisms

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I’m a Proud Nana

Tennis doubles partners, Killian Cogan and his Papa, Bobby, won the first round of their tennis tournament on their first outing as a team.

I’m dead proud of these men.

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Perfect Weather for a Wedding

Summer wedding in Ballydonoghue. Photo: Barbara Kissane

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I was at Mike the Pies

By

On July 13, 2022

In Listowel, Personal

By the River Feale, July 2022

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I was in Mike the Pies

A lovely lady gave me a present of a ticket to see Bernard Casey. So I went to Listowel’s, and maybe even Ireland’s, most famous Comedy and Music venue on Friday last, July 8 2022, for the first time.

Radio Kerry’s Brendan Fuller was our MC for the night.

I thought he was older. He said he gets that all the time. He was in top form and he told us that he is looking forward to being a dad very soon.

Then we had Gossip and The Nephew and mentions of Foley although no reference to McCarthy, the Low Road.

Bernard Casey is very good at what he does. Considering that I have only ever seen him on the internet I didn’t know how his type of stuff would transfer to the live audience. He was even better in person. He involved his audience (Thank God I escaped that.) and he found comedy where we saw none. One table had Paula, Paula, and Paul. He loved that and teased them good humouredly throughout the set.

Three lads in “short pants” were sitting near the stage. They were in from their holiday in Ballybunion and up for the craic. He teased them about hurling and football and young guys’ stuff in general. At another table were a couple who met on Tinder and another table had a couple who were going out for a long time. Then there were the people from Duagh and Tarbert, the fellow who went to St. Michael’s, a man who cycled the Ring of Kerry last weekend, and of course Niall, the dog (You had to be there!).

It was a great night. I’d go again.

Mary, Catherine, Helen and Mary

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We have a Winner

Story from Radio Kerry

The manager of Value Centre Listowel has been named Cash and Carry Manager of the Year.

Gary Moriarty took the title at the prestigious annual ShelfLife Grocery Management Awards.

The awards recognise and honour management excellence in local and convenience stores, wholesalers, and supermarkets.

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The Way we Are

This book is a great one to dip into. You’ll hear yourself, or your Mammy in a few of these.

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Forgive me While I boast

This is Aisling Darby, my eldest granddaughter. She is here receiving an award for “Gymnast of the Year” in her club, Douglas Gymnastics Club. People who have my book, A Minute of Your Time, can see the same Aisling, aged 9, on page 51.

I used her picture to illustrate a reflection about learning to lose.

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Blarney Visit

By

On July 12, 2022

In Listowel

New shopfront on Church Street, June 2022

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They’re Going Bats in Blarney

Last week I spent a very pleasant afternoon in Blarney, Co. Cork.

They have a lovely town square here surrounded by shops and some older dwelling houses.

The Muskerry Arms dominates one side of the square.

It’s this side of the square that has been in the news lately.

The sign on the door does not give the reason for the closure. But it’s this. A colony of bats got into the bank attic and took up residence. Bats are a protected species.

There were 250 mother bats of the species soprano pipistrelle in the attic space of the bank and each mother had several babies. The presence of the bats was noticed by the bank staff when some of the babies (they are tiny) fell through a chink in the ceiling. Experts were called in and the tiny pups removed to a bat hospital and placed in incubators. They have all now been reunited with their mothers.

The bank remains closed while a decision is made as to the best way forward for the bats.

Bats 1: Bank Customers 0

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Pro Am in Adare

It looked like half of North Kerry had decamped to Adare for two days last week. Every golfer in the region was more than a little star struck.

John Keane shared this photo on the internet.

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Flat Stanley’s Visit

From Presentation School Yearbook 2005/06

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World Champion Again

Skibereen’s Paul O’Donovan is certainly Ireland’s best rower ever. Surely he is also up there for the title of Ireland’s best sportsman as well.

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Football and Street Names

By

On July 11, 2022

In Listowel, Uncategorized

Market Street in July 2022

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Remember these?

These are Clarks sandals, first introduced to the children’s footwear market in 1933. The ones I wore every summer were Robin sandals . They were very similar to these.

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New Kingdom, Church St./ Sr. an Ághasaigh

We have some really lovely shopfronts and signs in Listowel. Unfortunately we have recently acquired some ugly ones too.

In my opinion, New Kingdom Bar highlights the best of Martin Chute’s signwriting. I love it.

Church Street or Sráid and Ághasaigh, take your pick.

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Édaein, Kerry Rose

Édaein O’Connell is surely leading her best life since she was selected to represent Kerry in the Rose of Tralee Contest. Here she is taking a well earned spa break in Sneem to recharge the batteries.

She met up with her uncle in Roscommon.

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Tarrant’s Tralee

Photo and text shared on Facebook by Bailey’s Corner

Tarrant’s Garage, formerly in the Mart Car Park. The photo was taken during the Kingdom County Fair in 1956! Radio Kerry’s HQ occupies the site today.

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Kerry Football back to Winning Ways

John Kelliher’s photo of William Street Listowel on All Ireland semi final Sunday, July 10 2022

Picture of Croke Park was shared by Barbara Kissane, a frequent American Irish visitor experiencing her first live Kerry big match. Didn’t she pick a good one?

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