Blog Posts - Reading the Signs

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4, Hopefully 5, Brave (and Lucky) Pigeons

23/5/2020

Dowcha Boy, White Vision,

Paddy, The King of Rome

& IHU 15 67080

“Few people can claim that they owe their very existence to a pigeon”

This is the opening line of story that I heard last November on Sunday Miscellany. Gail Seekamp tells the story of White Vision after her heroic experiences during World War II, 60 miles in 9 hours. She was renamed White Saviour.

The Dickin Medal is the animal equivalent of the Victoria Cross. White Vision was one of the first three recipients in December 1943. Nine months later, Paddy was similarly honoured. I read of Paddy in Ireland’s Own. A plaque was erected in his honour at Carnlough, near Larne, and is on my To Visit list. It looks like there may be two plaques and a song - and another song, of sorts. In 2010, there was a flypast in commemoration.

A Bishop Lucey Park pigeon

This week I read of Cónal Creedon’s excellent book, Begotten Not Made, being selected for an Eric Hoffer Book Award in the U.S., and was reminded of Dowcha Boy whose exploits in World War I pre-dated the Dickin Medal. Feted on returning to Cork, the Legend of the Northside, a small but critical figure of the book, has not been forgotten by this reader.

Sunvalley Drive

The Northside

Fly, Dowcha-boy1 Fly like the wind

Paddy lived until he was 11. White Saviour lived for 10 years after her rescue night. Based in Rialto in Dublin, IHU 15 67080 was ringed in 2015, which I think may also be year of birth. I hope that she is now competing in races for pigeons with disabilities. On Thursday, a ringed leg was spotted in the grounds of St. Fin Barre’s Cathedral.

Dowcha Boy survived being shot. White Vision survived the stormy night flight that her fellow pigeon did not. Maybe IHU 15 67080 is flying, and hopping, about quite contentedly having evaded the peregrine around the golden trumpets mentioned in a tweet this morning.

“In the West End of Derby lives a working man
He says "I can't fly but me pigeons can
And when I set them free
It's just like part of me
Gets lifted up on shining wings"

"Come on down, Your Majesty
I knew you'd make it back to me
Come on down, my lovely one
You made me dream come true"

June Tabor

Orla Peach’s tweet and listening to The Unthanks earlier, was enough of a co-incidence about pigeons in one week to warrant this rambling blog.

For further distraction from Cónal Creedon, take a few minutes HERE

If it is good enough for Dowtcha Boy

Paddy Comerford on the Northside Pigeon

We are waves of the same sea…….

22/5/2020

‘We are waves of the same sea,
Leaves of the same tree,
Flowers of the same garden’

There is such a range of messages on premises with regard to the Covid lockdown but I think that this on Probys Quay must be near top of the pile.

I have not been to Tiramisu previously but expect to be there when they re-open.

Dog Poo Sign With A Difference

21/5/2020

We spotted this stencil art when up around.

Maybe the dogs are reclaiming the streets during this lockdown.

Thuesday

21/5/2020

Tuesday or Thursday – or Both

This was spotted when out for our walk today – Thursday.

I will have to check on Tuesday next if the sign is on display again. Maybe there is an effort from the Marketing Dept. to create a new word to mean both days.

Make Friends With Murphy

20/5/2020

I spotted this old advert this afternoon.

It is not my drink of choice, but I would dearly love an opportunity to make friends with Murphy.

Oh! For this lock-in to end………

Religious Pizza

19/5/2020

It is not often that I get my religion in a Supermarket. I have never before spotted it in the frozen food section of a Centra.

A pizza made by the Fellows of God – and a reduced price on last Sunday.

Remembering Mary Kate O’Leary

18/5/2020

From Old Kilcrumper Cemetery outside Fermoy.

I have seen many headstones with references to I.R.A., Old I.R.A. and Volunteers but I think I can only recall one with reference to Cumann na mBan.

I suspect there will be time spent checking photographs of other cemeteries as lockdown continues.

Lock, Stock & Barrel – A Variation

17/5/2020

It is not often that I nod in acknowledgement and appreciation at the work of any Marketing or Advertising Department.

Today passing the Lough Credit Union was an exception.

I wondered if it may have been inspired by Vinnie Jones’ stag weekend

The Gun Runner, The Hermit of The Glen & The Priest’s Car

21/4/2020

Today, there were a number of tweets to remember that on this day in 1916, Roger Casement landed at Banna Strand in Co. Kerry having travelled on The Aud with arms for the planned rebellion of Easter 1916. He was arrested shortly after landing and became the last of the ’16 Men Dead’ when executed in Pentonville Prison in August.

This reminded me of the remnannts of an old and very small cottage that I spotted when travelling the roads around Ballymacelligott, a few years ago. I saw a fingerpost sign for the Captain Monteith 1916 Memorial and went searching.

The Wary Starling

16/4/2020

For a good few years now, starlings have made a home in our roof, in a gap at the end of the hip tile.

This lock-in period has resulted in my coffee breaks outside at home where I can watch the materials being brought in to refreshen the nest.

The starling was a good five minutes on the wire and the gutter with the nest material in his/her mouth watching all around to check if the coast was clear.

Having a good look around

A quick in-and-out

Numbers - Queens is the Clear Winner

2/4/2020

For some time, I have been photographing specially made house numbers. They are generally of tiles or moulded plaster. Some tile-types have been used at a number of developments but many of these developments have a numbering system that is bespoke and unique to them – a record of a time when it was nice to be different.

A while back, I spotted some buildings on College, generally owned by U.C.C. where the numbers were stuck to the glass fanlight which I had not previously spotted on my search.

But U.C.C.’s numbers paled into into total insignificance when I spotted the fanlights at University Square in Belfast – the gold standard in unique door numbers has been set.

Remembering A Private Census – Cobblers

1/4/2020

In Goreybridge in Wexford, between 1862 and 1867, the landlord’s agent kept detailed records of the occupants of the dwellings, names, ages, relationship to tenant, occupation – all of which are recorded on the modern census.

I learned of this from Dr. Rachel Murphy in January when I attended the Irish Modern Urban History Group Symposium in Limerick, when she spoke on ‘The Goreybridge Censuses, 1862-7’. A significant proportion of the houses were occupied by one trade, Cobblers (if I remember correctly). There were only a small number of houses – 13-15 from memory – but shoemaking/cobblers was the trade of quite a number of houses, making the percentage significant.

I was in Belfast a few weeks later and spotted this plaque on a modern building on North St. This is definitely my type of plaque – small history, local information. A visit to census information is calling out to me as to whether the Belfast shoe-makes on North St were shops or whether they lived there too. A 2m distant conversation with my father is also calling to discuss whether others who worked with his father in the Lee Boot Co lived near him growing up – whether there was, decades later, a tradition of living near you work/trade colleagues.

If I only took better notes on the Goreybridge talk, I might be better placed to join some dots ……

A Right To Protest

31/3/2020

Over the past couple of days, I have spotted a number of graffiti and stencil messages around the city suggesting disobeying the guidelines on Covid 19 – at least that is my reading of them.

If I had a choice of not entering a room and staying alive, or entering a room in which 6 of the 100 people would die, I am happy to avoid the room.

Just because it is the government doesn’t make it objectionable all of the time

Remembering Those Of This Community

30/3/2020

Last Summer, on a trip to The Maharees of the Dingle peninsula, I spotted a plaque the likes of which I had not seen before – a plaque listing and remembering those of the locality who left for farms elsewhere as part of the Irish Land Commission.

It might answer the question as to why the Shally family moved to Tulsk – an investigation for another day.

Fahamore, Maharees, Co. Kerry

Williamstown, Co. Galway

Behold - the Conjun Box

29/3/2020

I blogged some years back about the conjun-box which was a connection between my grandfather and each of his early crop of grandchildren – he being the guardian on our bank accounts and who would bring us to the Cork Savings Bank for our box to be opened and monies transferred into our account.

Last November, there was a box-lot at Woodwards auction. I was tempted but there were too many other things to drive the price up.

The remote for the car acted up over Christmas and I ended up at ADM Locksmiths on Tramore where a conjun-box is on display. The owner, Morgan, told me that the conjun-box was his and that his interest in locks and his career as locksmith started when trying to pick the conjun-box open – a feat successfully completed.

Oh! Where I might be now if I had preserved with my efforts.

Woodwards Auction - Lot 3 - Nov 2019