Dough Mamma, October 2024
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Older Drivers
Kerry County Council held an Age Friendly Conference for older drivers in The Rose Hotel on Tuesday October 8 2024.
If you are wondering at what age you become an “older’ driver: 55, apparently. You may have noticed since Covid the term Age Friendly appearing in parking spaces. It’s a kind of euphemism for “Reserved for Old People”. It’s a misleading term as it’s certainly not friendly to twenty somethings.
Now this seminar was free for us oldies but you had to reserve your place through the booking site, Eventbrite. It doesn’t really take a genius to know that that alone is off-putting for many older people. Next time you, Kerry County Council, organise a seminar for older people make it ring to book your place or even send a text message. Eventbrite is fine for concerts and shows.
90 year old Anna May McHugh was the guest of honour. Anna May is seated beside the Cathaoirleach of Kerry County Council, Breandán Fitzgerald. Breandán welcomed us and told us that Kerry is an Age Friendly County. The newly appointed chair of the Older People’s Council, Kerry, Catherine Lenihan, addressed us as well.
Then followed some excellent speakers. I’m not going to go through it all but here are a few facts:
Environmental factors are usually weather related, e.g. icy roads or sun glare.
Even if you are old and one of the above is an issue for you, you may still be able to get a restricted driving licence, e.g restricted to driving in daylight or to a radius of 30 kms from your home.
Having listened to all the really good speakers we then got tea and a scone or two and we were free to find our inner child and visit the stands gathering a bag of swag to take home. I felt like a child at the summer show with my free pen and my trolley token, my air freshener and my hi viz jacket.
It was a really worthwhile event, well worth repeating.
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From the Swap Box
In Listowel Library there is this marvellous resource. It’s a swap box, where you can leave a book and collect a book. You don’t have to donate to collect. Sometimes it’s oversubscribed, and you have to take home your “donation”. I love it and I have found many treasures there. Last week I took three old Ballydonoghue Magazines from the box. Look what I found:
Two very promising footballers receiving an award from a former footballer who too fulfilled his young promise.
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From Jer’s Archive Trawl
May 1936
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A Few More from Listowel Races 2024
Mostly local people, friends and neighbours today
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A Corner in Abbeyfeale
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A Fact
In 1737, a cyclone in Calcutta, India is believed to have killed 300,000 people and caused 40 foot waves.
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