Since I was first brought to Farran Woods, entry was free. My father would have driven in, parked the car and we would have gone in one of many different directions.

That has all now changed.

We recently pulled up at Farran –first time for six or eight months – and noted the new entry fee and automatic barriers and yellow lines. We were disappointed at the entry fee but were disgusted at the amount.

I understand that it does cost to create and maintain trails in the park, car parking, toilets and other facilities. But they were provided free and one could well argue that this was a contribution to the public health and wellbeing so was part of the public service of a public company.

But the public service brief now appears to be secondary to maximising revenue – for possible sell-off or other reason.

Furthermore, these maintenance costs did not first arise as liabilities of Coillte within the last six to eight months. Upto then, Coillte absorbed the costs and did not pass them on to the public. How Coillte could think that now is the time for passing costs onto the public is baffling – maybe they think they will sneak it with the many other charges being applied by many others.

It may seem very petty - €2 might not buy a cup of coffee in some establishments. But the final piece of straw has landed on this camel’s back. I am now screaming ENOUGH IS ENOUGH. A thousand cuts have already been applied and now Coillte want another.

Fota charges €3 for use of car-park and this was €2 upto recently. This should be the standard/maximum.

If Farran had €3 entry fee, we would have gone in for our walk and would have been back since. But they have pitched it too high and have lost us – I am not sure that was not their objective.

I first came across Bookcrossing as part of World Book Night two years ago, when I received 48 copies of All Quiet on the Western Front to give away.

The principle of Bookcrossing is that a book gathering dust on your shelf is not doing much. If you have already read it, you are unlikely to read it again so Set it Free and you can follow its progress.

The setting it free is generally easy – ‘controlled’ by sending/giving to friends, or, ‘wild’ where it can be left somewhere (a pub, a coffee shop, etc). 

Last year, I received 24 copies of Misery to give away.

The vast majority of the recipients of the books did not register receipt on Bookcrossing. Of those who did, only one was registered as received by the next recipient.

The following its progress is where the Bookcrossing principle falls down as it is dependent upon humans. It supposes that the person who ‘catches’ the book that has been released will record that they caught it, give their opinion on the book, and state where they have released it on the rest of its journey.

That’s human ‘nature’ for you………

I recently saw in a book an old photograph of the foundation stone mentioned in Kieran McCarthy’s article. There was a large crowd. T priest blessing the stone had prime position.

Over the past twenty-five years, I have been at the opening or sod-turning on ten or more buildings, generally public buildings. I cannot recall any being blessed by a priest. The openings have generally been carried out by a politician – Lord Mayor or a Minister.

I wonder if:

-          The absence of blessings is due to increased secularisation of society or an increased desire not to be seen to be associated with religious

-          In future years, the politicians may follow the priests away from such openings and if the building owners/occupiers will not want to be seen associating with politicians also.

Earlier this week, I spotted this plaque on Noonan Road. I had not noticed it before but that could well have been due to my lack of observation rather than it being recently erected.

It did get me thinking though as to the erecting of plaques:

·         Many are undated as to the time of erection. I would have thought that that would have been beneficial as to further details of the person/event commemorated.

·         Are there or should there be controls for the erection of plaques. Taken to the extreme, is it an opportunity to invent or rewrite history.

·         But ,by introducing controls/permits, one is granting control of what is published/highlighted to another body

I am not sure that there is a perfect solution. I do believe that dating the erection/placing of the plaques would be beneficial.

While recently walking around St. Mary's Road, looking for Gray's Lane, I spotted this little plaque on a house on Wrixon's Lane.

I liked. I stopped and appreciated for a while.

I became even more convinced that I am in favour of plaques or art on buildings to educate, enlighten or merely pleasantly distract the passer-by. The uniformity and anonymity of standard construction details and finishes does need some breaking up.

While flicking through the book recently, I noted an old photograph where the Metropole Hotel was not as long as it currently is. One can often spot extensions to building with different coloured slate, brick or plaster; different details or features; or a slight difference in levels.

I had not spotted any difference in the Metropole and it took some looking to find it.

The person who may stare?

The person who may glance when their eye spots some movement?

The person who drew and put up the sign?




Omitting the apostrophe may just be poor punctuation - not rude.

I do not know when the ‘tied house’ practice died out.

I think The Oval and The Swan & Cygnet were Beamish houses. The Boole archive says that Murphy’s Brewery had c.200 tied houses.

I cannot recall seeing reference to ‘Beamish House’ or ‘Murphy House’ in a sign on any other pub. That may well be an incentive to visit more pubs.

With the building now for sale, the sign may soon disappear.  

The plaques are in City Hall – on the first floor outside balcony to main hall. I stopped when I saw them with a number of thoughts flying around.

When did Christianity begin?

So it is dangerous to hold a mobile phone when driving a car.

But it is not dangerous to having signs falshing and changing every 5 seconds at appoach to a junction.

I am afraid that I do not agree with that argument.

To me, these flashing signs fall into the category of 'too much'.