Going quietly mad

I was in the garden today when I asked myself, “How long have I been looking at this onion for?” I have never planted onions before and I am intrigued by how they grow. I am also a little concerned because they are not as big as my Dad’s onions. I may have onion-envy. I …

Let’s get (serious about) NI moving again

This week the DUP published a twelve-point plan to ‘get NI moving’. It was an upbeat document, focussing on the NHS, the economy, education, protecting the vulnerable, the environment, reducing crime, even protecting animals got a mention; in many respects they’ve come a long way from ‘Ulster Says No’. There was no mention of Brexit, …

Wouldn’t it be great if…

Let me say from the outset, I am not a diehard golf fan. I usually watch the British Open, I will always watch the Ryder Cup, I might get sucked in to some late night final round if Rory is involved. That’s about it. But I couldn’t turn down the opportunity to spend the day at …

The cycle isn’t going to break itself

In the wake of Lyra McKee’s death, there were immediate calls for an end to violence; Arlene Foster and Michelle O’Neill were both quick to condemn the taking of life. But I am fearful we are in a similar cycle to the US gun debate: A massacre takes place. There is national mourning. There is impassioned debate, …

The paradox of grief

Wendell Berry’s exquisitely written novel, ‘Jayber Crow’ could reasonably give way to a series of ten or twenty blog posts. I’m going to let it be at two, however, with the central character’s reflection on grief. Returning to the small town of Port William, where he was born and where his parents died, Jayber comments, …

We prefer to hear what we have heard before.

I’ve only discovered Wendell Berry lately; I asked the Facebook hive mind where I should start, and ‘Jayber Crow’ was the recommended beginning. Berry describes his novel as the ‘life story of Jayber Crow, barber, of the Port William membership, as written by himself.’ I don’t want to summarise the story, but a little background …

The things that get left behind.

One video that caught my attention recently is this one, Trump getting onto a plane and abandoning his umbrella at the door. He makes no effort to fold it up, (he may not know how), he recognises it is too wide to get through the aeroplane door, so he simply drops it at the top …

A change in flow

It’s been more than two months since the fire broke out in Primark, in the heart of Belfast city centre. Royal Avenue remains closed off, with a number of local businesses still closed. Other nearby businesses have been affected; once positioned on a main thoroughfare, they’re now at the end of a cul-de-sac. Many are …

Remembrance in every direction

Belfast Cenotaph (at the side of the City Hall) is currently hosting an art installation of 3775 shrouded figures; the number of servicemen from the Ulster and Irish regiments who died in the Somme and have no known grave. This is the work of artist Rob Heard, who individually cut and stitched each shroud, to …

I missed my anniversary. (Freelance anniversary).

I left teaching at the end of June 2017, but my salary stopped at the end of August, so I see 1st September as a key date; last year I was sitting in Dobbie’s coffee shop thinking, ‘this is what the world looks like when you’re not in class…’ I’m going to blog this in two parts; …