Up ahead on the path, I see a huge dog - a golden retriever but zoomed in, you know, with a tail like a hair-care advertisement and that typically benign retriever smile. The owner is big too, and pushing a double pram which uses up most of the footpath. I put puppy's leash on (a … Continue reading A little boast..
a white butterfly with delicate black patterning flits busily around the lavender bush. i sit and watch, at first just enjoying the spectacle, but then beginning to ponder. i learned about silkworms in my son's preschool class-how, once they transform into moths they have only days to find a partner and lay eggs before they … Continue reading a thought
I never dreamed, as a child, that being a parent dealing with a school would be stressful. I guess you think your parents are all powerful and know how to cope with everything. But really, I never dreamed that my parents had any emotion about the organisation at all except that it was imperative that … Continue reading Schools, lawyers, accountants and other non-service areas…
(I wrote this for a competition in which there was a 1000 word limit. It didn't win so, several months later, I think I will publish it here.) It turns out that waiting is the hard part. You decide that waiting needs to be redefined to mean “empty space; opportunity for useless worry.” As the … Continue reading Waiting..
It's a nosebag.Excuse me?It's a digital nosebag.What are you talking about?News feed. Google feed. Facebook feed... that thing you're holding is a modern nosebag.I believe normal people call it a device or a phone.Well some people call a spade a blooming shovel. What difference does it make? It's a nosebag.You are so annoying. Can you … Continue reading On the bus…
At 5:30am when the puppy scratches at the hall door and wakes me up, I feel frustrated and a little ripped off. But later in the day, when the gluggy memory of sleep and pillow and warm blankets has shed itself from my skin, I find reasons to be glad. You don't get photos like … Continue reading Early Mornings
Having run out of my regular podcast listening this morning, I discovered a "search" function on the "Conversations" webpage. I hummed and hahed wondering who I might like to hear interviewed. Then a flash of inspiration came and I typed in "Paul Keating". I found an interview with our ex-Prime Minister from back in 2012. … Continue reading Turn up the Microphone!
We went back to our block of land again this weekend, chasing snow. Turned out we left the snow behind us but we still enjoyed cooking damper on sticks over a campfire. Snow was minimal but the cold was there and we crouched down, hugging the fire, eyes watering from the smoke, and all our … Continue reading Simple things
I follow a blog called "Diary of a Dublin Housewife". The author has an unusual knack for recording conversations. I will never know how much they are fictionalised but they can be hilarious, whimsical, sad or thoughtful. And I love the Irishisms in them. I am going to imitate this idea and record a conversation. … Continue reading Controlled by Algorithms
Today I read about how Barack Obama really let rip at Trump. He said all the things a lot of us are saying. How Trump doesn’t respect the constitution. How he doesn’t use his power constructively. How he is treating the presidency like another reality TV show to get the attention he craves. I agree … Continue reading The Dangers of Passionate Views
