Congratulations, we made it! We’ve finally shaken off the 1,000 days of January. Whatever the meteorologists say, the pagan in me knows that Spring starts on the 1st of February, and I relish it every year. To celebrate it this year, myself and my pal Eimear decided to take ourselves off to Kildare, not to …
Some people have career paths, visions that take them from classroom to the top office. Focused, hard working people who know what they want, and won't rest until they get it. My CV is evidence of hard work too, but lacking the linear progression a graph maker might like to make a decent bar chart. …
I'm not a proper scout leader, more of a helper really. I've done sufficient training and paperwork to be able to don a neckerchief and roll up my sleeves. I'm just a parent who's grateful for how much my kids got from scouting that I can't see my local scout group stuck. Thankfully they are …
Being a bear of very little brain, there are many things I don't understand. I have no idea, for example, how any of the appliances I reply on every day work. I also don't have a great deal of curiosity in these matters. Many years ago, in an attempt to discover what my skills were …
It’s that time of year when my internal voices meet up for their Annual General Meeting and wreck my head. The head of the ‘good girl’ department tells me it’s time for purification, to repent and prepare. The mistress of slimness tells me it’s time to cop on and finally make this the year, I …
Being a huge fan of musical theatre, I have had to defend it many times over the years from those who see it as low-brow and cheesy. But, I put it to you, my learned friends, that there are a lot of life lessons to be taken from this art form. Let me take you …
Well, have you been watching Marie Kondo's Tidying Up show? I wasn't sure I was hearing right when a friend told me about a Netflix series dedicated to the art of clutter clearing. Really? It hardly sounds engaging viewing, but one episode in and I just had to give it a try myself. As I …
I’m a sucker for noticeboards. You could say I’m just being nosey but I like to call it curiosity. That and having a very low boredom threshold, I am constantly looking to see what exciting thing is coming next. A fair, new Zumba classes, an interesting talk on urban hen keeping, things you could be …
The Brother and I didn’t grow up with dogs. They were in a file in our Dad’s head entitled, Deadly Dangerous. This mental file that Dad carried with him included such no-go’s as, matches, bicycles, leaving the house, most forms of entertainment, and wearing jumpers that were too short and would give you a chill …
I do have other friends who will be horrified to hear that I consider Ryan to be my number one, best, best friend. They are wonderful women who, if memory serves me right, are great craic, but these days they go by the names of: Busy, Busy; Up To My Eyes; and I Think I’m …
Ordinary Plenty 