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

Tag: Chris Grayson

Instant messaging, wild flowers and John McCormack in Killarney in 1947

By

On April 12, 2017

In Uncategorized

Listowel Town Square, March 2017

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Wild Garlic and Buttercups


The park and Garden of Europe is “alive with all the urgency of spring”. If you are lucky enough to be near enough to walk here, you will enjoy the changing landscape day by day as new flowers appear.  Remember a weed is just a flower in the wrong place.

 Wild garlic

 Narcissi

Tulips


Primroses

Buttercups


Daisies


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Communication Technology




Regular readers will know that I have a fascination with old phone boxes and postboxes. They are reminders of a time when the pace of life was slower and “friends” were people we met regularly or to whom we wrote letters or talked to on the phone.

I grew up in a house with no telephone and when we got one we shared it with the neighbours who came regularly to make or receive calls. People who had no phones rang people by appointment or had their family ring them by appointment. There was such a thing as a “person to person call” and that meant you didn’t have to pay for the call if the person you wanted to speak to wasn’t available. Of course there was no caller display so when the phone rang, there was always that moment of anticipation while you guessed who the caller might be.

In the days of the dial up phone, you had to ring the operator first and ask her (it was usually her) to put you through to the number you required. If the number didn’t answer she told you so.

A phone that you could carry around with you and could receive calls while not attached to a land line was as remote and fascinating to us as the carrier pigeons our forefathers used.

Future generations will see our smart phones in a museum and will wonder what we thought was so smart about them.

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Killarney 1947


From the archive of the Capuchin Annuals, John MacCormack and his brother in Killarney.

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Lovely Day for a Run; April 8 2017

I was enjoying an interesting stroll in the park with my weekend visitors when I spotted some activity around the Dandy Lodge. David Twomey who is usually developing the absolutely lovely 1916 commemorative garden was moving a table into position, not far from what was obviously a finishing line. David is also a marathon runner so I was putting two and two together when I saw Chris Grayson. As blog followers well know Chris is a super photographer whose images often grace these pages. He is also a marathon runner. I had never actually met Chris in person until Saturday April 8 2017 and the meeting was as pleasant as it was unexpected. Here is the story in pictures.

Mary Cogan and Chris Grayson

David Twomey with the winners of the half marathon

Supporters patiently waiting for the first finishers of the marathon.

Vincent O’Leary finishing another great race on home turf.

St. John’s Ballybunion, beggars and daffodils in bud

By

On February 15, 2017

In Uncategorized

Hippopotamus at Fota Wildlife Park


His name means water horse but he has little in common with the horses we know. A hippo is highly dangerous due to his aggressive and unpredictable nature. He can run at 19 miles an hour for short stretches. Chris  Grayson, who photographed him, can run much faster.

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St. John’s Ballybunion




St. John’s Church in Ballybunion is an absolutely beautiful edifice. The renovation work carried out on it in recent years has further enhanced it. I’d recommend a visit.

This magnificent window is behind the main altar.

Because, in response to Vatican 11 we got rid of so many statues from our churches, I find it strange when I visit churches like St. John’s and find so many still  in place.

I like statues because they take me back to my childhood when we had statues everywhere, in our homes, in schools and hospitals and in grottos on main roads and at holy wells. Statues were part of the landscape of my childhood.



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Beggars, the unemployed and refugees in 19th Century London

No Change There Then……….

It’s absolutely true that there is nothing new under the
sun. Read this account of the treatment of beggars in London in 1819 and see if
you don’t hear echoes of rhetoric we are hearing so often today.

The Sydney
Gazette and New South Wales Advertiser;       
Sat 29 May 1819

The charitable
Institution for the discouragement of mendicity, and the relief of poor
travellers, approaches very neatly in principle to one which has been eminently
successful at Bath, and which forms a branch of the Pierre Point-street
Institution in that city.

Every person
who has visited that town, where the number of beggars was once proverbial,
must be aware what a benefit has been conferred on the public by affording a
small but systematic relief to poor travellers.  It is computed that they have been assisted by
one fourth of the sum usually expended in street alms giving ; and it appears
altogether improbable that any ever visited Bath in quest of the small
allowance of a two-penny loaf and a pint of soup, which is all that is in
general bestowed. This could never induce

paupers to
deviate from their general route, much less to travel from a distance.

A full third of
the applicants at Bath have been discharged soldiers and sailors with their
families, returning home from Chatham, going to London for prize-money, or to
pass the Board at Greenwich, or to seek employment in sea-port towns. A full
sixth are discharged workmen, dismissed from parishes not their own, in
consequence of the desire felt by the parishioners to employ their own
increasing

stock of
paupers, in preference to giving them unearned subsistence. A full third of the
number may be referred to the class of workmen dismissed from decreasing
manufactories, dock-yards, and establishments which have ceased on the change
from war to peace; the rest are Irish labourers seeking employment, starving
negroes, who have wandered from different seaport towns, and perhaps a very few
regular mendicants, who may have deceived the vigilance of the attending
registrars.

But the
Institution has saved many donors from being deceived, and is in fact more advantageous
to the rich than even to the poor; while to the latter it affords relief in due
proportion to their immediate necessities, giving to all the benefit of a comfortable
meal, of advice, if necessary, and of that repose which the weary traveller can
best appreciate; and in some instances extending assistance a little farther,
though always within very narrow bounds.

* mendicity = begging

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Daffodils about to blossom




Writers’ Week fun prize, Sheehy’s Tea and a Gary MacMahon poem

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On December 20, 2016

In Uncategorized



This eagle owl was photographed by Chris Grayson. Superb photo you’ll agree.

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It’s That Time of Year




Saturday fun run in Ballincolllig Regional Park

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We have a Winner


At the recent BOI enterprise town expo the good folk at Listowel Writers’ Week set people scratching their heads and racking their brains to come up with the last line of a Limerick.


Here are some of the good sports who chanced their arms at a spot of poetry.

The librarian didn’t win it. The bankers didn’t win it. The solicitors didn’t win it. The boardgamers didn’t win it. The postmistress didn’t win it. Restauranteurs,  business executives and retailers all had a go.

The winner was a schoolboy. Here he is, Patrick Brosnan who might have got a little help from his sister and mother.


Here is his winning entry;

Finish the Limerick Competition

There was a young man from Listowel

Who wrote mainly prose on the whole

But a poem the right size

Won him a Writers’ Week Prize

And that sent him off on a roll.

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A Welcome Gift

Recently I called on a friend and she made me a lovely cup of tea. When I told her how much I was enjoying the tea, she reached into her press and presented me with this packet of tea.

As you can see from the lable, Sheehys, who pack the tea, have a few more strings to their bow.

My friend, Judy, as well as giving me the tea gave me an absolutely beautiful Christmas card. It was especially made a few years ago as a fundraiser for St. Gabriel’s in Dooradoyle in Limerick.

The image on the card is of Gallarus Oratory on Christmas Night and the verses inside are by the late great Garry MacMahon.

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Chris Grayson, Ballyduff Wall, some photos and a poem

By

On October 11, 2016

In Uncategorized

 Donal Glackin’s Lough Caragh

This is one of the most stunningly beautiful landscapes I have seen in a long time. The photo was taken by Donal Glackin for the Irish Runner magazine.

The October November issue has a two page spread on one of our own. Chris Grayson runs with Kerry Crusaders. He is the runner in Donal Glackin’s photo. Chris lives in Glenbeigh but he is well known through his work and his running to many people in Listowel. He is also a very handy photographer and his photos of Nature from Killarney National Park and Glenbeigh often feature on This is Kerry and TV 3.

So who is Chris Grayson?

This is how The Irish Runner sums him up. There is much more to Chris than this.

Chris is an Englishman who came to Ireland in 2011. He works as a care assistant for St. John of God’s Kerry.

He took up running only six years ago after a change to a healthier lifestyle which began with his giving up smoking. He sees it as exchanging one addiction for another. Chris runs every day, sometimes twice. He averages 80 miles per week.

Chris suffered a huge loss when his only brother, Rob, died suddenly last year. He credits running with helping him through the bad times.

With nine marathons to his credit, Chris is a very experienced runner and he now puts that experience into practice to help others, in his role as a pacer.

Through running Chris has found health, love, friendship, peace and enjoyment.

Next stop Dublin City Marathon.

One of the other great loves of Chris’ life is nature and photographing the flora and fauna of his beloved Kerry. Below are some of his images.

Cobh, Co. Cork

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They’re Lip Synching in Ballyduff



Lip synching has replaced Strictly Come Dancing  as the new fund raising craze. Young people pretend they are singing, dance a few moves and others pay to see them make a show of themselves.

It’s all great fun and helps raise money for a good cause in the process. 

The latest group to organise such a fundraiser are Ballyduff GAA. I took the above photos from their Ballyduff Wall page. Their aim is to raise money to build a wall; a kind of handball alley where the hurlers and footballers can practice their skills.

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Humans of Listowel




Tony Flavin and Dan Hartnett are two proud Limerick men who now reside in Listowel. They took a break from setting the world to rights to pose for me in Flavins of Church Street yesterday, October 10 2016.

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Dick Carmody shares a poem for you to enjoy



My secret
Love !………………………………………………(Listowel)

We always
meet just at the bridge, where Feale waters gently flow

I know it’s
there she’ll meet me as our secret no one must know.

I left her
many years ago, when as a youth I sought no ties

As I but
longed for distant lands yet with sadness and with sighs.

With
Ballygrennan Hill behind me I step lightly towards the Square

Where as a
child I walked and played and sometimes knelt in prayer.

‘Neath the
bell and spire of St. Mary’s Church, it’s where I was baptised

I pause
just for a moment here and my secret love’s not surprised.

As on and
on I walk with her, our love affair grows even stronger

And each street
recalls lost memories from my youth and even longer

Old faces
pause to greet me though unsure of whom they’re greeting

I am grateful
for their friendly words and much happier for our meeting.

I recall
those carefree sporting times when we played our native games

As so many
memories come flooding back alongside famous names.

With the
Boro’ boys I played my part against the Ashes and the Gleann

As we
strove to claim the bragging rights as champions of the town.

Though
those years and times are long since past, much remains unchanged

Like the
shop fronts and the names above, with so little re-arranged.

Flavin’s
Shop in Church Street and the Horse Shoe near Tae Lane

Retain
their craft and character a monument to the artist’s name.

Each footpath
and street corner echoes stories and tall tales

From racing
crowds to the Island bound or fair-day bids and sales.

When public
house noise and banter spilled out on to the streets

While as children
we might wait outside for a mineral or for sweets.

As on I
walk I realise this love affair must never ever end

With each
meeting and each parting must we still a lie pretend

There now
comes the time for both of us to face the truth, decide

What we’ve
shared ‘till now is much too good to deny or hide.

And now as I
take my leave of her I look forward to the day

When I can
spend more time with her and the hope that I might stay

With her my
heart beats in my breast, as she warms my very soul

My secret’s
out as I now dare shout, my secret love – Listowel!

Dick C.                                                                        June,
2014.                                                     

           


blackbird, The Rattoo Swan, Government difficulties in 1927 and a better photo of the Dan Keane Variety Show cast

By

On April 19, 2016

In Uncategorized

Photo: Chris Grayson

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Swans Return


This is Bridget O’Connor’s beautiful picture of Mammy swan with her brood of 2015. Earlier this month the same swan and her husband returned to the exact same spot to build their nest. 

Anyone who knows anything about swans knows that they value their privacy and independence so Bridget kept well back to take her first photo of the returned swans.

Then came the biblical deluge of April 10 2016 and all her friends were worried for Mammy swan as the water rose around her nest threatening to swamp it. Mammy swan became agitated, toing and froing from the nest. Two local friends of the swan staged a quick intervention while she was on one of her wanderings and, using pitchforks, raised the nest to a higher spot. Thankfully, the swans accepted the new higher location and they have now returned to hatch their eggs in their beloved nesting spot.

Don’t go near them. I’ll keep you updated.

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Deja Vu all over again



Back in 1927, Ireland was in a similar pickle to today’s shaky political situation.

The Irish general election of June 1927 was held on 9 June 1927. The newly elected members of the 5th Dáil assembled at Leinster House on 23 June when the new President of the Executive Council and Executive Council of theIrish Free State were appointed.

The election saw the establishment of Fianna Fáil as a participant in the Dáil, taking most of the support and many of the members of the abstentionist Anti-Treaty Sinn Féin. The impact of this shift was to remove Cumann na nGaedheal‘s working majority among TDs attending, making the Dáil short-lived. (Wikipedia)

Irish Independent Saturday, 27
August, 1927; Page: 10

PROSPECTS IN KERRY FIANNA FAIL
DIFFICULTIES

The news of the decisive dual
victory of the Government in the Dublin by-elections caused great jubilation
amongst all Government supporters in Tralee. The announcement of the Dail
dissolution and such an early General Election, while creating general surprise,
came as a veritable bombshell to the Opponents of the Government, says the ”
Irish Independent” correspondent. President Cosgrave’s decision has the
unanimous approval of all his supporters there as well as of merchants,
traders, farmers, and all others having a stake in the country. The lead given
by Dublin is taken as ominous, and the belief here is that it will be fairly
generally followed throughout the Saorstat at the General Election. The chances
of Fianna Fail are being freely canvassed, and while many of their supporters
are confident of doing better this time owing to the party having entered the
Dail, the extreme section of followers, confined mainly to the younger
idealists. are so disgusted with the taking of the oath that a big number of these
young voters who worked so hard for the party last June will take no part
whatever in the coming election.

VICTORY FOR GOVERNMENT.

Supporters of the Government are
convinced of a sweeping victory on this occasion. ” If the Government don’t
sweep the country this time,” said one prominent Tralee gentleman, ” God help
the country; but the people have got so sick of political wrangling now that
they will put an end to it for ever.”

An influential member of the
Farmers’ Union Party heartily welcomed the early General Election. His only
regret is that it will not give sufficient time to the farmers to meet and
throw in their lot with the Government party, which they so loyally stood by in
the recent crisis. Their duty, however, he said, was to stand by the Government
candidates.

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Picturesque streetscape on Bridge Road

Hill Top, Bridge Road, Listowel April 2016

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The Whole Picture



Betty Stack has sent us the full picture of that cast from the Dan Keane Show in the mid seventies.

Here is the list of names, all except one man,

From back;  Kieran Kelliher,Patrick Flaherty, Seán Ahern, Timmy Leahy, Seán Broderick, Liam Tarrant, P.J. Ryan, Jerry Nolan, …….  ……, Gerard Buckley, Michael Dowling Christy Stack, 

Muriel Dowling, Geraldine Dowling, Kathleen O’Connor, Betty Stack, Maureen Dowling, Honor O’Connor,  Mary RyanPaudie Keane, Timmy Brosnan, Peggy Sweeney, Philomena Dillon and Dan Keane

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What a week!



Last week started out for your blogger with a lovely family birthday.




Then was marred by the illness and hospitalization of a beloved grandchild.

The week ended with a feast of great things in North Kerry; Women in Media in Ballybunion, A Hen Night Epiphany in St. John’s, and a celebration to mark Brendan Kennelly’s 80th birthday.

If you are not interested in any of these things you are in for a lean few days on Listowel connection as I intend telling you all about my adventures, complete with pictures.

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The Ones to Watch




Padraig O’Connor of Ballyduff is on the far right. He is pictured here with his UCC team who were honoured in Cork for their participation in an international business competition in Canada.

Left to right; Brenda Nestor, JMUCC Coach with the 2016 Cork University Business School team: Jess Griffin, Julian Hoare, Klara Sarkovska and Padraig O’Connor being recognised for their participation in the John Molson University Case Study Competition 2016.

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