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Welcome to the Irish Culture & Customs newsletter which is published every weekend and sent out to nearly 1200 readers all over the world. You are receiving this newsletter because you signed up for it - God Bless you! If you'd like to read past issues, they are archived at: http://www.yourmailinglistprovider.com/pubarchive.php?Herself
If, for any reason, you wish to unsubscribe, instructions are at the end - but we do hope you'll stay with us.
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Greetings & Blessings to Everyone,
Lovely to be back in what has become a truly blessed break from the usual chaos of the Haggerty household. It's Friday night. A warm, tranquil evening. We did a bit of weeding before dinner; the Clematis at the back door is loaded with buds, the always nameless blue flowers by the kitchen window are just as eager to make their debut; and the climbing rose on the trellis by the garage is bent with the weight of future flowers. All would seem well, except for the deer.
We do love watching them...without doubt, one of the most beautiful creatures in God's creation. They come at dusk - and at other times. What we don't love is what they leave behind. Hostas ravaged, tops of lilies taken, ornamental phlox lopped off in their prime; except that, when it comes to the phlox, where they did the lopping, new shoots spring up in their place. Mother Nature's version of 'pinching back.' We can't argue with that, but we are on the offensive with the Hostas and the lilies. We've tried everything, from human hair to vinegar/water sprays. Anyone have a better solution?
Enough of the garden. We surely hope the mams and moms enjoyed their special day this past Sunday. It was a bit unusual on this end. We didn't mention it in last week's newsletter but we already knew that our daughter had pneumonia. We weren't too worried about her - she's as healthy as a May gosling being fattened for Michaelmas. What she needed was rest. So, we spent the weekend and most of Monday with our granddaughter. Five year old Caity is a love - and a handful. We did our bit; her mother got the rest she needed, Caity was spoiled rotten, and we postponed the annual gathering with our own offspring for another Sunday. This didn't stop our boys from delivering the traditional trays of impatiens, (or busy lizzies as Bridget's mother called them). They grace our front porch - lots of them - four flats worth. Herself looks at what's already on the plate and sighs. Too much already. But, in taking a leaf out of Himself's book, the plan is to whittle away until they're all planted.
Well, it got to be way too late to finish the newsletter last night - so, here it is, Saturday afternoon and we're still not ready to send it out! Bridget's a bit apprehensive after what happened last time. Quite a few of you received an edition that wasn't properly formatted - everything ran together, making it impossible to read. We quickly dispatched another message to see if this had happened across the board; fortunately, we discovered that just a small percentage were messed up. Of course, we know that only from all of you who were kind enough to tell us whether or not yours was okay. Many, many thanks for letting us know and fingers crossed, this week's will be okay. And, please do tell us if it isn't. It's not a hardship for us to re-send it directly from the desk-top. By the way, we've heard of the formatting problem from other newsletter editors and apparently, it's common with aol addresses. One solution they recommend is to get one of those freebie email addresses from yahoo or netscape.
As usual, the mailbag was full and we have a few messages to share with you. One was from Jack Kennedy, a Vietnam vet who was in the USMC. If you're in the USA, you've probably heard about the 9th Circuit ruling which will block 9.6 million public school students in nine Western states from saying the Pledge of Allegiance each morning. There's a petition to try and get the Supreme Court to overthrow the ruling and if you'd like to sign it, please click here:
http://gfir.ws/14/pledge.asp?PID=395689
The other messages were about a clan reunion and polaroid cameras for sale. We've put these at the end with events (and now classifieds!)
With that, it's time to get a move on and quit the blathering! But not before we say we hope this week's edition finds you and yours healthy, happy and contented. We'd also like to say thank you to all the readers who signed up this past week - a warm welcome to each of you (and if you enjoy our musings and meanderings, please feel free to share them with your family and friends).
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Help keep us going - please visit one of our favorite sponsors, Lolly Smith:
For the dads, the grads and the lads in your life, how about a genuine Irish walking stick - the real Shillelagh - and not that cutesy, clumsy-looking cudgel often sold at airport gift shops. Now, if you have your heart set on one of those, we do have them - just ask; but, if it's an authentic "bata" you're after, then come take a look at what's on offer:
http://store.yahoo.com/cgi-bin/clink?lollysmith+wSpfhS+index.html+
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IN THIS ISSUE:
A Bit of The Wit
Joke of The Week
Did You Know?
Quotes & Quips
Know Your Irish Writers & Books?
New This Week
The Week Ahead
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A BIT O' THE WIT
Notice in a Co. Down field ....
"TRESPASSERS PROSECUTED - PLEASE SHUT THE GATE"
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OUR FAVORITE JOKE OF THE WEEK
(edited and adapted from one sent in by Hartson)
A young lad had just gotten his provisional license (learner's permit). He asked his father, who was a minister, if they could discuss his use of the car. His father said to him, "If you bring your marks up, study your bible, and get your hair cut, we'll talk about it." A month later the boy came back and again asked his father if they could now discuss his use of the car. His father said, "Well, son, I see that your marks have improved, you've studied your bible diligently, but you didn't get a hair cut!" The young man waited a moment and then replied, "You know dad, I've been thinking about that one. Didn't Samson have long hair, Moses have long hair, Noah have long hair, and even Jesus himself have long hair?" His father replied, "They did so, and they walked everywhere they went!"
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DID YOU KNOW...
1. A river called the Poddle runs under Dublin Castle?
2. The largest town in Offaly is Tullamore?
3. Fota in Co. Cork is a wildlife park?
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QUIPS, QUOTES & ANECDOTES - PROVERBS & TOASTS, TOO
Heard in a hardware shop in Limavady:
Farmer John: "Give us a lump o'rope."
Shopkeeper: "How much would you be wanting, John? We sell it by the metre or by the yard."
John: "Which is cheaper?"
Shopkeeper: "Well, it works out the same, a metre is a bit longer than a yard."
John: "Right then, I'll have me lump in metres."
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KNOW YOUR IRISH WRITERS & BOOKS?
The answers to last week's quiz:
1. All the Green Gold - An Irish Boyhood - Colm Luibheid
2. An Irish Country Childhood - Memories of Bygone Days - Marrie Walsh
3. The Magical Realm - An Irish Childhood - Kathleen Coyle
Please clap your feet for this week's Irish literary sleuths:
Hartson Dowd
Next time you visit Ireland, this is an ideal family run guest house featuring locally caught lobster, crab and other seafood cooked personally just for you.
http://homepage.tinet.ie/~inishturkisland/harbourlodge.htm
Helen Dowd
I have some new things on my website, if you wish to visit it: http://occupytillicome.online-ministries.com/ Push on "Literary Tab" for categories of reading.
Judit Flynn
The Celtic Attic: has everything you need to decorate your home and life with a Celtic Twist!
http://www.celticattic.com Phone orders 360-765-0186
NOTE: Please be sure to enter the code IC46 in the comment area of the order form so that they know you came from the Irish Culture and Customs newsletter.
Ellen Parodi
Namely Gifts at http://namelygifts.com Featuring Father's Day
http://namelygifts.com/Father's%20Day.htm Graduation Day
http://namelygifts.com/Graduation.htm and as always Our Everyday Heroes
http://namelygifts.com/OtherIdeas%20Heroes.htm
Deirdre McKiernan-Hetzler
Who has the longest continuously running tour from the States to Ireland? According to Terry Flynn Tours of Ireland it's the McKiernans of Irish Books & Media: http://www.irishbook.com/tours.htm
NOTE: Deidre heads for Ireland this coming Wednesday and we hope you will join with us in wishing her and the tour group a safe journey.
We were a bit disappointed in how few entries we received this week. We can always count on our regulars - and a tip of the hat to them...but, we'd love to see more of you take a few minutes out of your busy day to try and find the answers to our quiz. For while finding the answers is the goal, most of the fun is in discovering just how many Irish-related titles there are. So, why not pour yourself a pint, or sit back with a cup of tea, and then browse through the more than 600 books on the list you'll come to when you click through our "Hint Link" - see below. And, if you get side-tracked and want to find out more about a book that's not part of our quiz, in the end, that's what it's all about - exploring the incredibly rich realms of Irish authors, literature, and more.
This week's quiz - who wrote:
1. The Irish Spirit - Proverbs, Superstitions and Fairy Tales
2. Irish Tales and Sagas
3. The Lie of The Land - Irish Identities
Hint: All three titles can be found here:
http://www.powells.com/cgi-bin/partner?partner_id=25857&cgi=search/search/&searchtype=kw&searchfor=Ireland%2C%20Irish
Send us the correct answers to two out of three and the rewards are:
1. If you have a web site, send us your URL plus a short description and we'll publish it in the next newsletter. If you don't have a web site, please nominate a favorite. Also, please remember that we list our sleuths in the order of entries received.
2. Receive a correct entry into the current "So You Think You're Irish" trivia contest. (In fairness to those of you who go to the trouble of actually finding the answers to the trivia contest, you'll get a bonus entry!)
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NEW OR REPUBLISHED FROM OUR INDEX THIS PAST WEEK:
1. Article: St. Brendan the Navigator - in honor of his feast day on May 16
http://www.irishcultureandcustoms.com/ASaints/BrendanNav.html
2. Article: A Bit of the Blather - if you're heading for Ireland, read this first:
http://www.irishcultureandcustoms.com/AMisc/Blather.html
3. Article: St. Columcille of Iona - in honor of the founding of his monastery on May 12 in 563
http://www.irishcultureandcustoms.com/ASaints/Columcille.html
4. The Irish Kitchen - Curach, to celebrate the return of rhubarb to the table!
http://www.irishcultureandcustoms.com/2Kitch/1Home.html
5. Circle of Prayer - Novena #3 in this cycle began on May 14 and will continue through May 22. We are still praying for the intentions of little Sam in California who is just 5 and battling cancer; Gayla's brother-in-law whose cancer has returned; and Steve in New York who was critically injured in an accident. If you would like to join us in prayer or meditation, please click
http://www.irishcultureandcustoms.com/Blessings/CirclePrayer.html
6. Library: A section that has been sorely neglected; Russ has been busy gathering all the stray bits and pieces together and has created special libraries for the kitchen, children, poetry, films, music and so on. The objective is to make it easier for you to find titles you may be looking for - or, if you're just in the mood to browse, discovering something you'd like to add to your own library. As himself points out though, everything about this site is like the proverbial sardine can where you can't quite get at everything in the corners...so, please be patient if you see any globs or glitches!
7. News & Headlines
http://www.irishcultureandcustoms.com/01News/Home.html
8. Today in Irish History
http://www.irishcultureandcustoms.com/02Hist/Home.html
NEXT WEEK, GOD WILLING:
In addition to the daily headlines & history, a new lesson, recipe, blessing and quote, Bridget is very excited about meeting and interviewing Joseph O'Connor, the highly--acclaimed Dublin author; he's on a US tour and will be doing a reading from his newest novel, "The Star of The Sea" at Joseph-Beth book store in Norwood, on Tuesday, (May 20). The reading starts at 7:00 pm and he will do signings afterwards. Our time with him starts at 6:15. So, if you live in the Cincinnati area, this would be a wonderful opportunity for you to meet a great Irish author - and we're not talking about either Himself or Herself!
As for new content on the site - we have been remiss and we're sure the old-timers have given up on us. But, please don't. At the very least, Bridget will be doing a review of O'Connor's book as well as anecdotes from the interview.
So, until next time, we pray that the coming week will bring you and yours an abundance of blessings and that God will keep you from all harm.
All the best,
Bridget & Russ
Get down on your knees and thank God you're still on your feet
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Help keep us going - please visit The Old Irish Print Company:
See Ireland as your ancestors did! The Old Irish Print Company provides quality framed prints of Ireland from 1829-1910. Where is your family from? We can show you the hills they walked, the bridges they crossed, the roads they traveled to see family and friends. If we don't have a particular town or village in stock, we will find it. Remember, Father's Day is 4 weeks away! Go to http://www.oldirishprints.net. Use the code 333 and get free shipping inside the US (50% off shipping outside the US)
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Events/Classifieds
NOTE: To avoid duplication, we list only those events not mentioned in the comprehensive listing put together by The Wild Geese. To check their Events Page, please click: http://www.thewildgeese.com/pages/events.html
Mariemont, Ohio
The New Gate Celtic Theatre Co. is presenting "The Playboy of the Western World" by J.M. Synge at the Walton Creek Theatre on June 6 at 8 p.m., and June 7 & 8 at 2 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. For more information, please click http://www.geocities.com/NewGateCelticTheatre, or by e-mail: new.gate@fuse.net.
NOTE: One of our subscribers has a small walk-on part and another is the producer.
Voyage of the Jeanie Johnston
Charleston South Carolina: the Jeanie Johnston has arrived! She'll be there just until this Monday and then it's on to Washington DC
For dates and details of all ports, please click
http://www.jeaniejohnston.ie/voyage.asp?id=3
Irish Writer's Centre, 19 Parnell Square, Dublin 1, Ireland
The culmination of a three month workshop with poet Enda Wyley takes place with a public lunchtime reading by the group on Tuesday May 20 between 1pm and 2pm. For more information, please contact Bernadette Larkin at: bernadette@writerscentre.ie
6th Int'l McManus Clan Association Gathering May 25th through May 31st, 2004
For full details please visit our website at:
http://members.aol.com/manusclan/mcm2004.htm or contact Phil McManus at Manus@aol.com
7th Clann McKenna Rally - June 25th through Sunday June 27th 2004
For details, please write plunkettmckenna@eircom.net
or click on the following link:
www.omagh.gov.uk/historypark.htm
For Sale
One of our readers - John Sweeney has several personally-owned Polaroid instamatic cameras for sale. If you're interested, you can email him at SWEENEYnSWEENEY@webtv.net
NOTE: If you mention us when you write and purchase one or more, John will give us a small commission. You can also support our effors by mailing a donation to The Haggertys, 5670 Meryton Place, Cincinnati, OH 45224.
Like to write? Our Cincinnati Celtic Music and Cultural Festival is calling for entries to a brand new writing competition. If you're interested, you can get the rules and other details here: http://home.fuse.net/cfl/writers-contest.html
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