The sound of the alarm in the morning is a noise that appals me. It is so piercing, so insistent, so relentless. So inhumane. A clock to the left of my bed, my telephone to the right, they are programmed to start ringing five minutes apart. Just in case I unconsciously smash one against the wall in my sleep. It is wise to have a backup. Continue reading A shortcut through gangland
Category Archives: Return to Ireland
The strange, troubling world of the heterosexual
Imagine a bus journey to a suburban office park in the morning.
Imagine the passengers being transported to their dreary workplaces.
Imagine seeing the same faces day after day, wondering who they are. And what motivates them.
Then imagine that the portly gentleman with the tattooed lower leg , whom you have never acknowledged, is sitting right behind you chatting to one of his colleagues.
Imagine the conversation they have.
Actually don’t imagine that conversation – I’m going to tell you about it.
Continue reading The strange, troubling world of the heterosexual
Repeal the 8th
Today I attended a protest march for women’s reproductive rights, through the streets of the nation’s capital. More specifically it was a march to repeal the 8th Amendment to the Irish Constitution.
Continue reading Repeal the 8th
The Revolution will not be ropy
Visitors arrived from the hometown yesterday, so an itinerary was required. It was just a day-trip so this was not too taxing a proposition. With my explorations of Dublin to date this year, I had a bank of options to choose from. Continue reading The Revolution will not be ropy
Theatre review: ‘RIOT’
The show I attended at the Spiegeltent in Merrion Square, this evening was called ‘RIOT’. A headline show for the next week at the Dublin Fringe Festival. Continue reading Theatre review: ‘RIOT’
I want to ride my bicycle
Having lived for decades in Amsterdam, I considered myself a bit of a cycling connoisseur. The bike-path network in the Netherlands is vast. And hopping on your two wheeler is the fastest, cheapest and most efficient means of getting to pretty much any destination in the city (I once had a job where it took fifteen minutes to reach by bike, but thirty minutes by public transport). As a result everyone cycles – from the very young to the very old. Although the site of a baby strapped onto the handlebars as the parent whizzes by is still a sight that gives me shivers. Continue reading I want to ride my bicycle
Taken up the Áras
Now this is a blog title I can work with. Continue reading Taken up the Áras
My cheatin’ heart
Yesterday after work I alighted from the bus – as I always do – at the top of O’Connell Street. Instead of taking a left and heading home, I glanced surreptitiously over both shoulders and swung a right on Parnell Street. Continue reading My cheatin’ heart
Sometimes they come back…
I started this blog in the bowels of January, a few days after I had moved into my single occupancy city centre apartment. Little did I know back then, that a mere six months later, literally TENS of people would be reading my daily musings. It certainly gives one pause for thought and reflection – mainly about why I am not using this time more productively. That thought is dismissed, as I enjoy this process. Continue reading Sometimes they come back…
Things you learn after returning to the homeland after 15 years abroad
I moved to Amsterdam on a whim in November 2000. I was young, with itchy feet, and feeling stifled by my job – which involved shift work with a different work pattern each week. Living in Dublin at the time was pleasant – I had money in my pocket to spend; good friends and a social life which seemed to involve a lot of nightclubbing. A chance arose to live abroad and I grabbed it and held on for dear life. For fifteen years. Continue reading Things you learn after returning to the homeland after 15 years abroad
midnightmurphy 