Senior Times August 2020

Issue 106 August 2020

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John McColgan Still a step ahead after 25 years

Alice Taylor’s ‘prison’ diary Tales from a West Cork lock-down

Breathtaking Bordeaux

Mozartthe myth and the magic

Secrets of The Secret Garden

Mary Kennedy hosts Senior Times podcast

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Issue 106- August 2020

Contents

32 2

Still one step ahead after 25 years: Profile of Riverdance co-creator John McColgan

5

Breath-taking Bordeaux: John Low visited what it is arguably France’s greatest riverside city

12

What is Diabetic Retinopathy? : 18 The Irish College of Ophthalmologists (ICO), the training and professional body for eye doctors in Ireland, explain diabetic retinopathy, the symptoms and treatment options.

60

Dublin Dossier: Pat Keenan on happenings in and around the capital

39

The majestic Shannon: Photographic profile of Ireland’s great river

44

Western Ways: George Keegan on happenings around the Western Seaboard

46

Creative writing:

52

Wine World: Mairead Robinson recommends some tipples for summer drinking

56

Northern Notes: Debbie Orme reports on happenings in The Province

59

The National Gallery open for business again: Upcoming events in Merrion Square

64

Meeting Place:

66

Positive thoughts from Innishannon: Colette Sheridan meet best-selling author Alice Taylor who has just published her journal of the lock-down

24

Gardens of delight: In the latest of her literature-inspired travels, Lorna Hogg visits some of the locations which inspired Frances Hodgson Burnett’s children’s classic The Secret Garden

29

Guess the year: Another teaser from Gerry Perkins

32

Delish from Donegal: Recipes from a best-selling cookery book

72

Mozart- the myth and the magic: John low traces the life of arguably the greatest mind in Western music

34

Crossword:

78

Crafts:

80

Publishing Directors: Brian McCabe, Des Duggan Editorial Director: John Low Advertising: Willie Fallon Design & Production: www.cornerhouse.ie Contributors: Lorna Hogg, Dermot Gilleece, Maretta Dillon, Peter Power, Matthew Hughes, Mairead Robinson, Eileen Casey, Debbie Orme, Connie McEvoy.

Published by S& L Promotions Ltd., Unit 1, 15 Oxford Lane, Ranelagh, Dublin 6 Tel: +353 (01) 4969028.

Fax: +353 (01) 4068229 Editorial: John@slp.ie Advertising: willie@slp.ie

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News Now Irish Heart Foundation welcomes Childhood Obesity Act The Irish Heart Foundation has welcomed provisions in the Programme for Government document to deliver a Public Health (Childhood Obesity) Act, including new restrictions on junk food marketing and the introduction of No-Fry Zones around schools.

on the agenda put forward by many of the country’s foremost experts in the Irish Heart Foundation’s recent Childhood Obesity Manifesto, this agreement between the parties involved in Government negotiations can transform the future health of our young people.’

Head of Advocacy with the Irish Heart Foundation, Chris Macey, said the plans provided the foundation to implement a programme that could cut the rate of childhood obesity in Ireland by 50% by 2030. ‘The State’s own research estimates that 85,000 of this generation of children in Ireland will die prematurely due to overweight and obesity. By delivering

He added however that the imposition of a new sugar tax to help pay the economic cost to the State of the COVID-19 emergency must not impact on investment in measures to fight obesity and that a portion of the levy should be ring-fenced to deliver a healthier food environment for our children.

Research company offers €80,000 funding for local communities Independent research company TRP Research has launched Media Opinions Ireland a new research project offering a total of €80,000 to fundraising groups across Ireland in return for their opinions about TV, radio, websites, and on-demand programmes.

Individuals are also able to take part and can choose rewards including shopping vouchers and charity donations. Rewards can be converted to iTunes, O’Neills or All4One shopping vouchers or they can be donated to one of seven nominated charities: Pieta House, Focus Ireland, Alone, The Irish Cancer Society, Team Hope and Laura Lynn.

For more information or to sign up visit www. mediaopinionsireland.ie or contact them at info@mediaopinionsireland.ie or 087 208 6703.

2 Senior Times l August 2020 l www.seniortimes.ie

Mandatory face masks on public transport ‘creates barriers for the deaf’ The new mandatory rules on face coverings on public transport a ‘creates significant communication barriers’ for over 300,000 people in Ireland who rely on lip reading, according to Chime, the National Charity for Deafness and Hearing Loss.

Brendan Lennon, Head of Advocacy at Chime, stated: ‘Chime fully recognises the value of face coverings to prevent the spread of Covid-19. However, the use of face masks in particular, creates significant communication challenges for people who are deaf and hard of hearing’.

Share a Smile fundraising campaign As part of their efforts to highlight the challenges created by face masks for people who are deaf and hard of hearing, Chime has launched a fundraising campaign. The ‘Share a Smile’ campaign encourages people to upload to social media a smiling selfie, ideally wearing a facemask, to demonstrate the challenge of seeing people’s emotions, facial expressions and lips while wearing a mask.

People who upload a selfie are asked to use the #ShareASmile hashtag and then text CHIME to 50300 and donate €4 (€3.60 will go to Chime) so that Chime can continue to provide advice, support and care to those impacted by deafness or hearing loss.

Chime are encouraging any person with hearing loss who needs support to reach out for assistance. Chime’s support line can be contacted on 1800 256 257, email: info@chime.ie, or text 087 922 1046.

For more information about Chime visit www.chime.ie.

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Almost a third of the Irish public are confused by Covid-19 information Share the Facts, is a new campaign featuring GP Dr. Sinead Beirne

News

Stena Line’ introduces measures ‘to ensure safe ferry travel this summer’ Stena Line has announced a set of safety measures ‘aimed at ensuring ferry travel is the safest form of public transport’. Social distancing, fog machines, fresh sea air inside the ships and the recommended wearing of face coverings, are all seen as key to reassuring customers about the future of ferry travel as countries reopen their borders in the coming weeks.

As part of Stena Line’s safety plan to prevent the spread of the Covid-19, an extensive risk assessment identified three key stages of the customer journey to focus on:

New research commissioned by Reckitt Benckiser reveals that some of the Irish public are feeling confused about information on Covid-19. According to the RB study of 1,044 adults, 45% of people say they feel overwhelmed by the amount of information on Covid-19 and a third (33%) are finding it difficult to determine what information is fact or fiction.

Over a quarter (28%) of the people polled found that the guidance and recommendations on what should and shouldn’t be taken to relieve any coronavirus-like symptoms, may have resulted in people putting up with pain.

Over a third (36%) claim to have largely ignored everyday pain symptoms such as headaches, toothaches and joint pain during the pandemic and worryingly around 1 in 5 (18%) have avoided treating pain altogether.

Some of the common non Covid-19 ailments that people have avoided taking pain relief for are: 1.

Back pain (40%) 2.

Joint pain (29%) 3.

Toothache (21%) The reluctance to treat pain during this time could stem from the confusion around what medicines can be used to treat symptoms of Covid-19.

Over a quarter (28%) are unsure whether ibuprofen can be taken to relieve some of the recognised symptoms of coronavirus such as fever or headache, of which 41% have read contradictory advice on the use of ibuprofen.

To help the public better understand the facts and dispel the myths surrounding effective pain management during the Covid-19 pandemic, RB has launched Share the Facts, is a new campaign featuring GP Dr. Sinead Beirne.

As part of this campaign, Dr Sinead Beirne will appear in a video where she will use her clinical expertise to share facts and dispel myths around effective pain and fever management during Covid-19.

4 Senior Times l August 2020 l www.seniortimes.ie

a) During check-in at the Terminal. b) While onboard the vessels. c) During embarkation and disembarkation

‘By providing the ability to social distance the whole journey, our big, bright and spacious ferries have plenty of fresh sea air, both inside and out, and offer the safest way to travel for people who want to take a break after the long lockdown’ says Niclas Mårtensson, CEO of Stena Line.

Love in the air for Coisceim/Age & Opportunity project Drawing inspiration from Gabriel Garcia Marquez’s tale Love in the Time of Cholera about two lovers who wrote to each other for many years, and from love letters either famously public or personally private, this project is inviting you to come together online to dance and share, to create choreography, to write a love letter – and to develop a series of short responses as films, sound recordings and writings.

Registration required After you register, you will be sent a confirmation email with a link to click to join in each zoom session. Register for each once – then you can pick and choose from the following sessions.

The Project started with the first Coffee Morning via ZOOM on 14 July.

Weekly dance practice via ZOOM: 22, 29 July, 5, 12, 19, 26 August, 2 September.

2pm until 3.30pm

Coffee mornings on ZOOM: 28 July and 11, 25 August 11am – 12 midday Send love letters: Send a letter to someone you love, whoever they are or wherever they may be – anytime.

Love letter is produced in association with Age & Opportunity / Bealtaine Festival For more info: https://coisceim.com/ love-letters-2020/

New group offers free advice on IT problems A new group 70 volunteers, Covid19 Tech, are offering free computer and smart phone technical support to older people. Commenting group leader Orlas Gibbons: ‘Our helpline was setup when Covid19 started with the objective of providing technical assistance to our self-isolating older community. ‘Covid19 may be starting to dissipate but this is not the case for many people in our older community.

Tech help is still need especially in situations where the person is very isolated and has no family to turn to for help. That is where we come in. We get calls about internet connectivity, video calling, printers, mobile phones and many others. ‘In recent days, We are getting many calls about the Covid Tracker app. We guide callers through the install and help with any issues or errors that may occur. All technical questions are welcome to our helpline. No question is too big or too small.

The group can be contacted by phone on 01-9633288 and line is open from 8-8 every day. They can be found on Twitter @Covid19_tech and Facebook https://www.facebook.com/Covid19TechHelp/ too.

The group id still looking for more volunteers who can sign up on their website at https://covid19tech.ie/volunteer/

Profile

Staying a step ahead after 25 years Aubrey Malone meets Riverdance co-creator John McColgan

Original cast of 25 years ago on the left and the current cast on the right hand side.

Silence is golden, they say, but musical impresario John McColgan may have spent some worrying moments as he sat in the audience during the intermission of The Eurovision Song Contest of 1994 when the original Riverdance, which was produced by his wife Moya Doherty and composed by Bill Whelan, was first staged. After the seven minute set finished, there was what he describes as ‘an audible gasp’ from the 4000-strong audience. Four seconds later they erupted into rapturous applause.

Riverdance: The Show, as we all know, went on appear in The Point Depot and its Eurovision debut came to be known as one of the most famous interval acts in the history of the of the Eurovision song contest.

Ireland won the contest again that year (with Charlie McGettigan and Paul Harrington’s Rock and Roll Kids) but the following day’s headlines were reserved for Riverdance. The Sunday Press hailed it as ‘Seven Minutes That Shook The World.’

The following year he and Moya mortgaged their house to turn the Eurovision interval act into a full-blown show. It was a bold move; the enthusiasm of the audience on the night gave them a feeling in their gut that it would be a success. Along with Bill Whelan Moya and John set about developing the show.

Success? That’s one of the biggest understatements in show business history. The show in the Point was the talk of the town for months if not years afterwards.

A video of the music went viral and Bill Whelan’s single went to number one in the charts. It also won him a Grammy Award. A quarter of a century on, the show still takes people’s breath away as a cavalcade of feet clicking in unison creates a kind of electric charge. It’s like a colossal army march.

John Mc Colgan with his Riverdance co-creators Moya Doherty and Bill Whelan reading ecstatic reviews after the show was premiered in New York 1996 not overly enamoured of it. Everything was taught through Irish so his grades were not as good as they had been in Wexford. The discipline was also much more rigid. He endured a particularly brutal beating inflicted by a lay teacher over his failure to decline a Latin verb successfully one day at the age of 14.

He didn’t cry, preferring to put on his ‘John Wayne’ persona, but his injuries were so bad he found he wasn’t even able to cycle home from school. ‘My hands swelled up like sausages,”’he says. That was the moment he decided he wasn’t going back – ever.

When he told his parents his mother was saddened but she accepted it. His father didn’t. He knew how important education was for anyone’s future. To placate him, John said he’d go to night school. He told him he wanted to be an actor. His father wasn’t interested in either suggestion.

He didn’t speak to him for a year afterwards.

The eldest of nine, John was born in Strabane, County Tyrone. His father had been in the army in World War II. He found it difficult to get work after the war ended but he eventually got a job as a manager in a leather factory in Ferns, Co Wexford. The factory was actually located in a castle.

John’s decision led to a plethora of the kinds of jobs that seem de rigueur for any self-made man. He started off as a telegram boy with the P&T and stayed there for two years. A raft of other jobs followed. He became a salesman in Best’s Menswear and Saxone in O’Connell Street, a lounge boy in The Yacht in Ringsend, a grocer’s assistant in Cabra.

The family moved to Wexford when John was four and subsequently to Dublin. He went to school in St. Josephs’ (‘Joeys’) in Fairview but was

A post was then offered to him in Unidare in Finglas. He thought he was going to be on the white collar staff there so he bought himself a brown Senior Times l August 2020 l www.seniortimes.ie 5

Profile

The big opening of the Green Lounge Disco on Stephens Green in 1963. L to R John McColgan, Maura McColgan, Tom Hickey, B P Fallon, Bridie McColgan and Larry Gogan John presented a pop show called Saturday Spin on RTE in 1968

John’s first time on radio, age 16, Chivers Top Ten Tips - On the left Presenter Niall Boden and on the far right 16 year old John McColgan

John directing an RTE Christmas Special, Joy to the World 1980

John on stage in Radio City Music Hall, NYC tweed jacket and a pair of corduroy trousers.

‘I thought I was the bee’s knees,’ he says, ‘until they told me I was going to be working on the factory floor. That was a bit of a shock.’ Dickie Rock was one of his co-workers and was moonlighting as a singer. He’d just supported Cliff Richard at the National Stadium and was bursting with confidence, telling people he was a better singer than him.

John got a job as a boy messenger in RTE Radio In 1960. He saw it as a gateway to television. Here he hoped to fine-tune his acting talent and also to learn about directing and producing. Delivering post to The Actor’s Studio in Henry Street he spent much of his time talking to the actors there. He was ticked off by his employer for fraternising with ‘play actors.’ When he was asked to appear in one of the rep’s plays he was delighted but it came to the attention of the employer and as a result he was fired.

Ironically, his next job was as a vision mixer in RTE. He was effectively getting what he’d always wanted in the very same week as he was being let go from the more subservient post. He took great delight in telling the man who fired him where he was going next. He 6 Senior Times l August 2020 l www.seniortimes.ie

was earning the princely sum of £12 a week but it was what he wanted to do. That was all that mattered.

He also produced shows for Mike Murphy like Murphy’s America, Murphy’s Australia and The Likes of Mike.

He stayed in RTE for over twenty years, spreading his talents over the roles of cameraman, floor manager, producer, director. During these years he acted in plays with an amateur dramatic society called the Young Dublin Players. These were directed by a man called Ivan Hanley, a member of the Radio Eireann Players. He appeared in plays like Night Must Fall, Shadow and Substance and The Plough and the Stars.

One of the shows he most enjoyed producing at this time was the candid camera one where Mike caught people out in various ruses by taking on different identities. The most famous was probably when he repeatedly interrupted a broadcast Gay Byrne was doing in TCD when he pretended to be a French tourist. It’s hilarious to watch Gay becoming more and more infuriated before he finally snaps with some very uncharacteristic expletives.

‘RTE was my university during those years,’ John says, ‘I worked with great people like Chloe Gibson, Sheila Richards, Lelia Doolin, Tony Barry and many others.’ He did documentaries, variety shows, you name it.

When Mike announced who he was, Gay proved to be a good sport about it all. John also got to know both of them well. He worked with Gay often and Mike recently interviewed John for a Senior Times podcast.

In the course of these years he married a

Profile

John with Costume Designer Joan Bergin John with Mike Murphy and the crew from The Likes Of Mike

First Lady Michelle Obama and her daughters with the Riverdance cast and executives at the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin in 2013 In 1968 John married Tolka Row actress, Virginia Cole, but the marriage broke down within a decade and he put divorce proceedings in motion. There were two children, Justin and Lucy.

A meeting with Moya Doherty in 1981 led to a new romance. He was Head of Entertainment in Network 2 at the time. Moya also worked in RTE but they both felt in need of a change.

Together they took the plunge and moved to London. There they got jobs in TV-AM. Moya worked as a reporter and John produced shows with Michael Parkinson and David Frost.

He interviewed people like Elton John, Van Morrison and George Best and also worked for a time with Chris Tarrant on a programme called By the Seaside.

The tax situation was more amenable to the couple in London than it had been in Ireland.

The city also had a more liberal zeitgeist. They were comfortable financially during these years and also had a thriving social life. They became friendly with Gabriel Byrne, who was then living with Aine O’Connor, and Liam Neeson, who was dating Helen Mirren. It was a time of great cultural ferment despite the fact that Margaret Thatcher was in power.

John and Moya got married in 1986 after John’s divorce came through. The following year they came back to Ireland. They had two children together, Mark and Danny. They now set up Tyrone Productions, a highly successful 8 Senior Times l August 2020 l www.seniortimes.ie

company that produced shows like The School Around the Corner, Who Wants to be a Millionaire? and Ros na Rún. In 1989 they bought a luxurious holiday home in Martha’s Vineyard.

A new phase of his life began when he cast Michael Flatley and Jean Butler in a show he was directing in the National Concert Hall that year. After casting them, what would become the Riverdance phenomenon began to take shape inside his head. Moya was just as much a part of this as he was. She pitched the idea of doing an interval dance act at the following year’s Eurovision, which she was producing.

After some initial reluctance by the top brass she got the green light for it.

The rest is history. The show stopped the world in its tracks and John and Moya became household names. Did he always believe he’d become famous? ‘I had a naïve self-belief in my ability,’ he tells me. It wasn’t quite naïve in view of what he achieved.

Creative differences with Michael Flatley followed. They went their separate ways afterwards but there were no hard feelings between them. Each carved an individual path without resentment about the parting. It was a win-win situation for them both.

It wasn’t roses all the way for John in the aftermath of Riverdance. He spread himself in many directions and it was perhaps inevitable some of his projects would falter.

Moya and John produced a 2007 Broadway show The Pirate Queen written by Alain Boublil and Claude-Michel Schönberg ( creators of Les Misérables ). Despite that talent and a stellar cast the show failed to ignite. A negative review from a man called Ben Brantley in The New York Times killed it. It ended up costing them over $10 million. He took this on the chin, describing the business he’s in as being as much a lottery as any other. ‘Failure is built into it,’ he says. ‘The secret is to get back up on your horse after a disappointment’. He cites Andrew Lloyd Webber as his role model in this respect. He points out that he had more flops than is generally recognised.

Working on extravagant budgets as he does, if something doesn’t succeed he takes a bigger hit than most people. It’s the nature of the business he’s in and it’s the chance he takes.

He likes gambling. He always feels there’s ‘a golden egg’ down the road.

Both he and Moya set great store by respecting their casts and audiences and ensuring that both sets of people get as much out of their shows as they do. ‘We treat every night as an opening night,’ he says.

In 1997 they built a house near the Baily lighthouse in Howth with spectacular views over Dublin Bay. Such acquisitions seemed to be less fraught with danger to them than investing their wealth on the stock market. They later revised that view. They enjoyed surveying

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Profile

John and Moya at NUI conferring

John McColgan and Moya Doherty

properties in various corners of the globe. ‘We were like children in a sweet shop,’ he says. As time went on they sold most of these, tax and maintenance headaches making them too cumbersome to hold onto.

In May 2003 both John and Moya were conferred with honorary Doctors of Law from NUI Galway in recognition for their contribution to Irish Culture.

John and Moya also won the Jacobs awards Moya for her documentary on sexual abuse The Silent Scream. John for the consistently high standard of his entertainment programming.

In 2011 he set up worldirish.com, a website that brought social media content from Facebook, Twitter and other websites together to create a global online Irish community. It attracted investors to Ireland’s cultural and business sectors. Two years later he devised a sequel to Riverdance called Heartbeat of Home. Working with composer Brian Byrne and writer Joe O’Connor. It proved to be another enormous success, being staged in London, Germany, China and North America as well as Dublin’s 3 Arena. A kind of Riverdance with diaspora, it expanded the musical range of the original show to embrace Spanish, African, Latin tango and Cuban elements.

Riverdance has now been performed over 12,000 times and seen by over 27 million people. Even so, he still wants to re-imagine it. He can’t sit still; his mind is always working overtime. Moya shares his determination to press on despite the Coronavirus and a recent brush with cancer.

What’s next for the hyperactive entrepreneur?

He’s just made a podcast for Senior Times 10 Senior Times l August 2020 l www.seniortimes.ie

Julian Erskine, Executive Producer Riverdance, with John and Bill called MyTunes ( a pun on iTunes). Listeners are in for a treat with this. It’s a series of eight 90 minute programmes in which he meanders through his life using music as the link. It will also feature people like Gabriel Byrne, Peter Sellers, Tommy Tiernan and Seamus Heaney.

Bill Whelan, Moya Doherty, John McColgan at the Riverdance 25th Anniversary special in the 3 Arena

My Tunes is inspired by his love of music he’s nurtured since the age of five when he looked into a radio and imagined the people in there.

‘I wanted to know where they were,’ he says, ‘what they looked like, everything about them.’

currently the chairperson of RTE - is producing the Riverdance Animated Feature with Cinesite, a UK/Canadian animation company, with a new score by Bill Whelan.

His musical tastes are, he describes as ‘eccentric and eclectic’ - rock, pop, classical, soul, country, indigenous. When I ask him who his favourite singers are he lists Elvis, Bob Dylan and Leonard Cohen. They happen to be mine as well.

He is very excited about the podcast series.

‘I wanted to go down the rabbit hole like Alice in Wonderland,’ he tells me, ‘It’s going to be a rambling, freewheeling journey through my life inside and outside music’.

On March 13th of this year John and Moya sold out two 25th anniversary tours of Riverdance, one in the UK and one in the US. After the third performance of eight scheduled shows in Radio City Music Hall the Coronavirus necessitated a shutdown and everyone was sent home.

When they’ll get back on stage again isn’t clear but it’s probably going to be the spring of next year at the earliest.

John is Irish Ambassador for TROCAIRE and he travels the world filming and taking photographs to support their mission.

Covid or no Covid, one thing is sure with this man: he doesn’t know the meaning of the word retirement. John sure does live to our Senior Times motto ! For people who don’t act their age...

Neither will he stop there. An animated film of Riverdance is also in the works. Moya – who’s

Possessed of a boundless energy, he refuses to let the grass grow under his feet.

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Senior Times l August 2020 l www.seniortimes.ie 11

Travel

Breathtaking Bordeaux

The Place de la Bourse reflected in Miror d’eau

John Low visits the city that has been described as ‘the very essence of elegance’ With the advent of affordable flights from Ireland, Bordeaux is another French jewel which, like, for example Nante, Aix, Lyon and Nice, is just the ticket for a short break or the base for surrounding excursions.

Even The Queen is a fan: ‘The very essence of elegance,’ she concluded after her last visit.

They say there’s a special atmosphere in Bordeaux and it’s easy to see why: After Paris it is probably France’s grandest -- some say grander -- riverside city with Unesco--recognised architecture and so much more space and light than the French capital to enjoy its attractions.

Many of these line the majestic Garonne. As you would expect there’s restaurants, bars (don’t forget the Dog and Duck pub –happy hour from 5!) and cafes aplenty, with quirky historic lanes and districts boasting artisan foods, retro fashions, art galleries, markets, craft shops and smart boutiques. (Not to forgetting Sainte Catherine, the longest pedestrianised street in France where you will find all the main fashion names and designer labels). Top-end shops gravitate around the Triangle d’Or, Bordeaux’s monumental heart, bounded by three fine boulevards (Cours Clemenceau, Cours de l’Intendance, Allées de Tourny). For those more interested in quirky, individual fashion try the boutiques in the Saint Paul and Saint Piert districts.

A noteworthy feature of the city is the promenade on the left bank of the Garonne which has become one of Bordeaux’s most popular spots, hosting many events and festivals during the summer. The 4.5 km promenade is also perfect for a walk or a bicycle tour. The most interesting part of it is between the two bridges of Bordeaux. The old town has some of the largest concentrations of 18th century buildings in Europe which will knock your socks off.

And if you are in to markets you have to visit Marches des Capucines, the biggest daily market in the city. Among the displays of fruit, vegetables and sweets are numerous cafes and restaurants. It gets very busy at weekends 12 Senior Times l August 2020 l www.seniortimes.ie

Interest-filled sidelanes abound in the city. Porte de Cailhau can be seen in the background

Miror d’eau But undoubtedly one of the new main attractions of the city is the remarkable riverside Miroir d’eau. Built in 2006 it is the world’s largest reflecting pool. The surface is made from blue granite covered in water, reflecting the 18th century Place de la Bourse. At regular intervals fountains dotted all over its surface spray water 30 metres into the air and the game for youngsters is to try to avoid getting drenched. It’s also a popular game for older youngsters on a hot, sunny day.

Another modern attraction, particularly for wine lovers is Cité du Vin, the wine museum housed in a shiny aluminum structure that looks like a giant foot. It has an enormous wine shop featuring well over a thousand wines from France and the rest of the world as well as numerous tasting opportunities amid the mesmerising inter-active displays.

Travel

The Grand Theatre

The Saint-Emilion wines are world famous thanks to the Jurade, a wine brotherhood that was yet created in 1199 by John, King of England. It was disbanded during the French Revolution but resurrected in 1948. It is now in charge of promoting Saint-Emilion wine around the world and of organising every year the Spring Feast and the Ban des Vendanges (administrative authorisation to start the grape harvest).

Medoc

Another modern attraction, particularly for wine lovers is Cité du Vin, the wine museum housed in a shiny aluminum structure that looks like a giant foot.

Meanwhile another section allow you to engage your senses of smell and taste as you identify typical notes in wines, from citrus and deep berry to leather and chocolate. Your visit can conclude with a glass of wine upstairs, in the tasting room featuring a variety of wines from France and around the world.

This is another ‘wine town’ 40 km northwest of Bordeaux, to the south of the estuary. Médoc is home to the most prestigious of the Bordeaux estates. Its Grands Crus, such as Château Margaux, are among the most expensive wines in the world.

Arcachon Arcachon is Bordeaux's nearest -- Less than an hour by train -- seaside resort, on the Côte d’Argent, Atlantic coast. and is celebrated for its seafood restaurants featuring oysters from Cap Ferret. It is full of

Some suggested day trips from Bordeaux Saint Emilion Of all the excursions convenient from Bordeaux Saint-Emilion is undoubtedly the most popular and is only about an hour by train. But be warned: it is a tourist honey-pot with prices noticeably higher than Bordeaux and many of its up-and-down side lanes, while delightful, are a challenge for the less mobile. That said it is a charming medieval village boasting world-famous wineries (many open to tour) and some excellent, if rather expensive restaurants, and beautiful architecture.

Saint-Emilion is of course celebrated for its wine, the quality of which is said to be due to both a complex geology (sand, clay, limestone) and a micro-climate that is perfectly suitable for winemaking.

Senior Times l August 2020 l www.seniortimes.ie 13

Some Bordeaux recommendations

The gothic St Michel church, whose free-standing spire is the tallest building in Bordeaux with outstanding views at the top. One Sunday mornings a flea market fills the surrounding square.

St Emilion is easily reached from Bordeaux.

It is a most asttractive town, but beware of the hilly sidelanes!

As one of France’s celebrated gastronomic cities -- it holds the record for the number of restaurants per inhabitant in France -- Bordeaux can boast an extensive choice of restaurants, serving French classics, modern and regional fayre, Italian, Spanish and ethnic offerings. On the whole prices are more reasonable than Ireland and in many cases considerably less expensive, and you will definitely notice the lower-priced wine lists. As ever you need to walk around and window-shop the menus until you see something that appeals to you on the food and value front. My rough rule of thumb whenever I am going to stay in one place for three or four days is to take notes of places I fancy during my day-time wanderings, and after a light lunch, try them in the evening.

These are two restaurants I can recommend ( It’s entirely coincidental that they are close to each other on the same street): La Brasserie Bordelaise Specialises in steak and beef dishes but also serve some fine fish, chicken and duck 50 rue Saint-Rémi 33000 Bordeaux Tél. 05 57 87 11 91 Email: contact@brasserie-bordelaise.fr www.brasserie-bordelaise.fr Nearest tram stop: Grand Théâtre, Place de la Bourse Le Chaudron Modern French with set menus from around 14 Euro up to 30-odd with an extensive a la carte. Favoured by the young-uns but don’t let that intimate you -the natives are friendly. Student waiters and waitresses – you know the story. Reasonably priced wine list.

41-43 Rue Saint Rem, 33000, Bordeaux.

Tel: 055681 7430 www.le-chaudron.fr/ River cruises I would heartily recommend a river cruise with lunch. These are offered all over and it’s just a question of how much you want to spend. For around 70 Euro you can get a decent three-course lunch and a thoroughly enjoyable trip.

You can get information on hotels from the websites below but one I can recommend is: Hôtel Regina. Situated directly opposite the Gare St Jean mainline railway station and the coach stop to and from the airport. Reasonable rates. A 15 minute tram ride into the city centre 34 Rue Charles Domercq, 33800 Bordeaux.

Tél: +33 (0)5 56 91 66 07 Email: contact@hotelreginabordeaux.com www.hotelreginabordeaux.com 14 Senior Times l August 2020 l www.seniortimes.ie

One of Bordeaux’s most distinctive sites is Maison Gobineau, the triangular-shaped building at the southern tip of Allées de Tourny that many compare with New York’s famous Flatiron Building. The ground floor is now a wine bar but it used to be a cinema.

The BioXtra range of mouth care products offers a complete solution to dry mouth that works throughout the day and night.

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I hope that,

one day,

my grandchildren will ask

“What WAS cancer?”

You can help make cancer a thing of the past by leaving a gift to the Irish Cancer Society in your Will.

To get a free legacy booklet with more information, call 1850 60 60 60 email amcdarby@irishcancer.ie or visit www.cancer.ie/legacy

Travel

Oyster beds at Cap Ferret

charming Victorian buildings boasting stained glass and wrought iron edifices, many now private apartments, shops and fine restaurants catering for all tastes and pockets. Seafood restaurants abound and if you are partial to oysters it would be sacrilege not to enjoy a leisurely lunch starring these molluscs with perhaps a tasty sole accompanied by one of the numerous splendid white wines from the region. These stylish restaurants are not cheap but infinitely more reasonable than ‘fine dining ‘in Ireland

Of all the excursions convenient from Bordeaux Saint-Emilion is undoubtedly the most popular and is only about an hour by train.

The town has an elegant pier with grand hotels and is stylish without being intimidating. A great place for a stroll along its promenades.

Cap Ferret A ferry operates from Arcachon to Cap Ferret which is an up-market resorts at the tip of the headland, full of smart people, smart restaurants, smart cars, and smart clothes. Its smart streets are peppered with oh-so-painfully trendy art galleries and craft shops and boutiques with minimalist displays. I’m sure it’s a lovely place to live and is certainly worth visiting and might interest those who aspire to take up residence there.

It’s worth taking a trip on the Tramway du Cap-Ferret, a diesel operated narrow-gauge railway which links the ferry landing on the shores of Arcachon Bay with the beaches on the Atlantic coast.

One travel writer summed it up well: ‘There are no museums, and no attractions apart from (obviously) the beaches, and the chance to live the French life .. Cap Ferret is akin to the Côte d'Azur - but without the bling and the desperate exhibitionism. You might say it is a kind of European Martha's Vineyard: exclusive, isolated, rather fine’.

Sainte Catherine, the longest pedestrianised street in France where you will find all the main fashion names and designer labels

Getting around A cheap and efficient tram service takes you all over the city and gets you back from the places you want to see.

Getting there Ryanair flies from Dublin and Cork to Bordeaux

Further information Bordeaux-tourisme.co.uk

Aer Lingus flies from Dublin to Bordeaux

Atout France, Lincoln House, 296-302 High Holborn, London WC1 V7JH. Tel: 0044 207 611 9656. www.rendezvousenfrance.com

The Bordeaux airport coach service takes you to the city’s mainline railway station (Gare St Jean). From there you can get a tram, bus or taxi to your destination.

16 Senior Times l August 2020 l www.seniortimes.ie

Walk the centuries old Pilgrim Path at Lough Derg The Ancient Pilgrim Path at Lough Derg has been newly refurbished and is now open to the public.

While the path is not part of the modern pilgrimage it has a long association with pilgrims and it is a route pilgrims followed for hundreds of years before the 1800s. To walk the pilgrim path at Lough Derg is to walk in the footsteps of the medieval pilgrims.

Author Alice Curtayne in 1944 wrote, “Until 1877 pilgrims had to pick their way as best they could over a mere track…” today this mere track has had

a new lease of life to appeal to the modern pilgrim walker.

The Pilgrim Path has many echoes of our Christian past as well as a diverse habitat. The lake, its islands and the shoreline, which follows a considerable section of the pilgrim path, are within a designated Special Protection Area (SPA) for bird life and National Heritage Area (NHA).

Walkers with a keen eye for nature and its beauty will enjoy the lakeside vegetation including goldenrod, bent grass and wood rush and much more.

❙ The Path is designed for pilgrims on foot. A moderate walk on gentle terrain. 12km loop and includes a shorter loop of approx. 7km.

For detailed information on the Pilgrim Path during Summer 2020 visit www.loughderg.org or email info@loughderg.org

Welcome, Céad míle fáilte, Willkommen, Bienvenido, Witaj, Bienvenue This path follows the footsteps of the medieval Lough Derg pilgrim - not to Station Island where pilgrims normally go today, but to the shore nearest the larger Saints Island, where pilgrims were received several hundred years ago.

Beginning in the twelfth century, the cave known as St Patrick’s Purgatory on Station Island became famous across Europe as a place of pilgrimage. Pilgrims received hospitality and made spiritual preparation in the Augustinian Monastery on Saints Island.

The present approach road to the shore (R233) dates only to 1860. The old pilgrimage road or tóchar was marked on Ordnance Survey maps of the nineteenth century.

From the ruined church of Templecarne, between Pettigo and Lough Derg, it went first by a circuitous upland route and then followed the shore to a point opposite Saints Island.

For practical reasons of car parking and underfoot conditions this present day route begins at the Visitor Centre. However there are considerable stretches where the present day route corresponds exactly to the ancient pilgrimage road. While traces of the actual medieval road surface were still visible in living memory, unfortunately none of them have survived. Today’s walk is on surfaces that have been generously created

by Coillte (Irish State Forestry Department) which owns most of the land it crosses.

The route is 12km long and allows attractive views of the lake.

There are a number of features of interest to look out for, such as St Brigid’s Chair & Well, St Davog’s Seat, as well as plenty of wildlife and native Irish wildflowers.

Seat

From Templecarn

Main Road Minor Road Dirt/Gravel Road Footpath The route of the Lough Derg Pilgrim Path is shown in RED. Distances are marked by a red dot every one kilometre, going anti-clockwise around the walk.

The complete looped walk is circa 12km.

Building, Ruin Site of Interest, Tomb Contour Lines (20m) Spot Height, Cairn Lake, Stream

Forest - Coniferous Forest - Deciduous Felled/New Plantation Use the approved Pilgrim Path route and keep as closely as possible to it.

Always keep children closely supervised while on the Pilgrim Path walk.

Take all litter home. Leave all gates as you find them.

Respect all wildlife, plants and trees.

Keep dogs under close control.

Guard against all risks of fire, especially near the forest. Leave no trace.

Emergency Services: Telephone 999 or 112 Lough Derg Office, Telephone +353 71 986 1518

Templecarn Churchyard.

The walk offers stunning views of Station Island from a number of vantage points. One of the vantage points is also a distinctive highlight for walkers; St Davog’s Seat, named for the Saint remembered as the founding Abbott of the first monastery on Saints Island. The seat is a natural rocky outcrop and offers St. Davog’s Seat spectacular views.

Sitting in this ‘seat’ facing southward the view in front embraces Lough Erne. Standing up and looking northward no better viewpoint can be found for a comprehensive survey of Lough Derg, the sanctuary and all its surroundings.

For more detailed information

Eye Health

What is Diabetic Retinopathy?

The Irish College of Ophthalmologists (ICO), the training and professional body for eye doctors in Ireland, explain diabetic retinopathy, the symptoms and treatment options.

Diabetic retinopathy is a common complication of diabetes that affects the small blood vessels in the lining at the back of the eye. It is estimated that there are approx. 225,000 people living with diabetes in Ireland and 10% of those are at risk of developing sight threatening retinopathy.

The condition causes damage to the blood vessels in the retina, the tissue lining the back of the eye that allows us to see, and affects up to eight out of 10 patients who have had diabetes for 10 years or more.

The retina helps to change what you see into messages that travel along the sight nerve to the brain. A healthy retina is necessary for good eyesight. Diabetic retinopathy can cause the blood vessels in the retina to leak or become blocked and damage your sight.

In the early stages, diabetic retinopathy will not affect the sight, but if the changes get worse, eventually the sight will be affected. When the condition is caught early, treatment is effective at reducing or preventing damage to sight.

18 Senior Times l August 2020 l www.seniortimes.ie

Diabetic retinopathy is one of the five main causes of sight loss in Ireland and the leading cause of blindness among the working age population. This is despite the fact that 70-75% of blindness is preventable with early diagnosis and treatment.

Anybody with diabetes, either Type 1 or Type 2, is at risk of developing diabetic retinopathy.

The longer you have diabetes, the more likely

you are to develop diabetic retinopathy.

What causes Diabetic Retinopathy?

Diabetes is a condition where the body can’t use and store sugar properly and this can cause many health problems. Too much sugar in the blood can cause damage to blood vessels throughout the body, including the blood vessels in the eye. When someone has diabetes, over time the blood vessels in the

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Location: 5km south of Mullingar on N52 1hour from Dublin, M4/N4 Exit 15

Location: 5km south of Mullingar on N52 1hour from Dublin, M4/N4 Exit 15 Sat Nav: Latitude/Longitude 53.4761, - 7.3552

dere House, Gardens & Park Sat Nav: Latitude/Longitude 53.4761, - 7.3552

A Fascinating Estate to Visit

Opening Times 7days a week all year round from 9.30am Seasonal closing times apply

Location: 5km south of Mullingar on N52 1hour from Dublin, M4/N4 Exit 15

‘see you there’

Sat Nav: Latitude/Longitude 53.4761, - 7.3552

Admission Rates Adult €8. Student/Senior €6. Child €4.

Opening Times 7days a week all year round from 9.30am Contact: Seasonal closing times apply Seasonal closing times apply Belvedere House Gardens & Park, Mullingar, Co. WestThe estate has a fascinating Victorian Walled Garden, with one of Ireland's finest collections of Catoca Fine Food and Giftware are and special plants. The naturalistic designed 18th century parkland, punctuated with meath.

Great food, great service, great location. Catering for all Admission Rates Romantic Follies includes the largest in Ireland; “The Jealous Wall”.Rates Admission your special occasions and corporate events.

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Lord Belvedere.

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Belvedere House & Gardens & Park, Mullingar, Co. Westinfo@belvedere-house.ie Belvedere House Gardens Park, Mullingar, Co. West-7days a week all year round from 9.30am Tel: 044-9349060 Contact: & Park, Mullingar, Co. West- Contact: meath. www.belvedere-house.ie ullingar, Co. Westmeath. info@belvedere-house.ie Belvedere House Gardens & Park, Mullingar, Co. West-Seasonal closing times apply Belvedere House Gardens & Park, Mullingar, Co. WestContact: Contact: Contact: Contact: Tel: 044-9349060 www.facebook.com/Belvedere-House-Gardens-Park Tel: 044-9349060 044 9338960 www.belvedere-house.ie meath. meath.

Belvedere House Belvedere Gardens House Belvedere & Belvedere Park, Gardens Mullingar, House House & Park, Gardens Co. Gardens Mullingar, West& Park, &Rates Park, Co.Mullingar, WestMullingar, Co.Co. WestWestinfo@belvedere-house.ie info@belvedere-house.ie Admission www.facebook.com/Belvedere-House-Gardens-Park Tel: 044-9349060 Tel: 044-9349060 meath. meath. meath. meath. www.belvedere-house.ie www.belvedere-house.ie Adult €8. Student/Senior €6.

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If you are apart from friends and family, the smartphone is the best way to say hello. But sometimes you can’t work the apps that let you stay in touch.

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Eye Health retina become thicker and the blood flowing in the blood vessels slows down. These eye changes are called diabetic retinopathy.

Diabetic retinopathy is the name for two different changes in the retina which can affect the sight: Diabetic macular oedema is where leaky blood vessels affect the part of the retina called the macula. If fluid leaks from these vessels and affects the centre of the macula, the sight will be affected. This is the more common eye change Proliferative diabetic retinopathy is where fragile new blood vessels form on the surface of the retina over time. These abnormal vessels can bleed or develop scar tissue causing severe loss of sight.

Both diabetic macular oedema and proliferative diabetic retinopathy can be treated and managed if they are detected early enough. If they are left untreated, sight problems will develop.

What are the risk factors for diabetic retinopathy?

• Poor blood glucose control • High blood pressure • Raised fats (triglycerides) in the blood • Pregnancy (not gestational diabetes). During pregnancy, diabetes can worsen diabetic retinopathy.

What can I do to take care of my eye health if I have diabetes?

The best protection against the progression of Diabetic Retinopathy is good diabetic control, awareness of the risks of developing sight disturbances and participating in the National Diabetic Retina Screening Programme or having regular eye examinations by an eye doctor. If left untreated a person with diabetic retinopathy could lose vision or find they develop other eye complications including cataracts or glaucoma so regular monitoring of your eyes is crucial if you are diabetic.

The following measures can help prevent or slow the development of diabetic retinopathy: • taking your prescribed medication • sticking to your recommended diet as best you can • exercising regularly and sensibly • controlling high blood pressure – this keeps your eye’s blood vessels healthy.

• limiting your alcohol intake • avoiding smoking • Having regular eye examinations Diabetic RetinaScreen - The National Diabetic Retinal Screening Programme Diabetic RetinaScreen is the National Diabetic Retinal Screening Programme which was introduced in 2013. It is a government-funded screening programme that offers free, regular diabetic retinopathy screening to people with diabetes aged 12 years and older.

Diabetic RetinaScreen uses specialised digital photography to look for changes that could affect sight. All people in this country who have been diagnosed with diabetes should be on the register for screening.

If a patient is diabetic, they need to check if they are on the national diabetic register. If not, they can self-register on the website www. diabeticretinascreen.ie or by calling 1800 454 555 or they can ask their GP or diabetic nurse to register them. This is very important as it is the people who are on the register who will receive the invitation to be screened for free in this national HSE service.

Diabetic retinopathy may not have any symptoms or may not affect sight in the early stages. The national screening programme will reduce sight loss among people with diabetes as a result of early detection and effective treatment. Eye doctors urge people to make the follow up call when they receive their letter of invitation so an appointment for screening can be arranged.

20 Senior Times l August 2020 l www.seniortimes.ie

Treatment for Diabetic Retinopathy Medical control Controlling blood sugar and blood pressure can help prevent vision loss.

Carefully follow the diet your doctor or nutritionist has recommended.

Take the medicine your diabetes doctor prescribed for you. Sometimes, good sugar control can even bring some of your vision back. Controlling your blood pressure keeps your eye’s blood vessels healthy.

Anti-VEGF Injections Anti-VEGF injections help to reduce swelling of the macula, slowing vision loss and perhaps improving vision. This drug is given by injections (shots) in the eye by an Ophthalmologist. Steroid medicine is another option to reduce macular swelling. This is also given as injections in the eye. Your ophthalmologist will recommend how many medication injections you will need over time.

Laser Surgery Laser surgery might be used to help seal off leaking blood vessels. This can reduce swelling of the retina. Laser surgery can also help shrink blood vessels and prevent them from growing again. Sometimes more than one treatment is needed.

Vitrectomy If you have advanced Proliferative Diabetic Retinopathy (PDR) your ophthalmologist may recommend surgery called vitrectomy. This is where the eye doctor removes vitreous gel and blood from leaking vessels in the back of your eye. This allows light rays to focus properly on the retina again. Scar tissue also might be removed from the retina.

How to make an appointment with an eye doctor For an appointment to see any medical specialist working in the HSE, including eye doctors, you need to get a referral from your General Practitioner (GP). A GP has knowledge of the specialists in his/her area and can ensure that any important information relating to your medical history is passed to the eye doctor.

Can I make an appointment directly with an eye doctor?

While it is advisable to seek a referral from your GP many eye doctors working in the community will give you an appointment directly - you can find contact details for eye doctors on the ICO website at www. eyedoctors.ie How to take care of your eye health The ICO places a priority on raising the public’s awareness of eye health and the significance of eye health as an indicator of general health and wellbeing.

The eye is not an isolated unit and has complicated relationships with numerous other bodily functions including that of the brain and nervous system. Often when an eye problem presents, it can be an indicator of another underlying medical condition. Many eye diseases are associated with general medical conditions and many general systemic conditions affect eye health (diabetes, sleep apnoea, various tumour’s,

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21 Senior Times July - August 2020 l www.seniortimes.ie

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Eye Health hypertension, sickle cell disease, lupus, and many others can affect the eyes and threaten vision).

It is important for people to be aware of the positive impact of a healthy lifestyle on eye health and the importance of reacting to any change they notice to their sight.

After ageing, smoking is the biggest risk factor for developing Age related-Macular Degeneration and also increases your risk of developing cataracts.

Simple lifestyle changes can have a big impact and help to slow the progression or onset of eye conditions, like giving up smoking, eating a healthy diet rich in leafy greens, exercise, sensible use of sunglasses and having regular eye exams.

It is important to make an appointment to see an eye doctor or a health care professional if you notice a change, however slight in your vision.

For more helpful advice and information on eye health, visit the ICO website at www.eyedoctors.ie

The importance of keeping eye appointments ICO President and Consultant Ophthalmologist, Dr Patricia Quinlan advises These are very challenging times for patients and we understand patients may be reluctant to attend their doctor or hospital at the present moment to both avoid contracting the coronavirus, but also not to put added pressure on the health service at this time.

However, the ICO wants to stress to patients the importance of attending their ophthalmology appointments as directed by their eye doctor or health care professional as non-COVID services resume in hospitals and the community. Many ophthalmology treatments are time sensitive, such as wet macular degeneration and glaucoma. Early diagnosis and ongoing treatment is crucial to preserve and protect vision.”

Patients with emergencies are and will continue to be cared for. Measures are in place in ophthalmology hospital departments to ensure that urgent ophthalmic care patients can be seen. Community ophthalmology services are also available to offer advice and triage patients, and are liaising with GPs and the eye care team in primary care.

If you or any of your family members experience sudden vision loss or significant pain in your eye, it is important that you contact your eye doctor, GP or A&E and seek medical advice.

The ICO is also reminding the public of the significance lifestyle factors can have on our eye health - a good diet rich in antioxidants, regular exercise and avoiding smoking all have a positive impact on our eye health.

Among the recommendations from eye doctors for healthy vision are: Consider eye health as part of overall good health - Understand the impact of other diseases on the eyes. The eyes are extraordinarily complex. Many systemic diseases such as diabetes, various tumours, hypertension, sickle cell disease, lupus, and many others can affect the eyes and threaten vision. Anyone with concerns should visit their GP who can refer you to an eye doctor for medical examination.

Diet - yat the right foods - Studies show that what we eat can affect our vision. Certain foods are particularly high in antioxidants which can help to prevent retinal damage and certain eye conditions like cataracts and age-related Macular Degeneration (AMD). An anti-oxidant which hugely beneficial is lutein, found in many fruit and vegetables. Foods recommended for eye health include: 22 Senior Times l August 2020 l www.seniortimes.ie

• Broad leaf greens such as kale and spinach • Brightly coloured fruit and veg such as corn, carrots, orange sweet peppers and oranges • Oily fish like salmon, tuna and mackerel • Broccoli • Eggs Exercise – Our eyes need good blood circulation and oxygen intake, and both are stimulated by regular exercise. Lack of exercise contributes significantly to several eye conditions, particularly amongst people aged 60 and over. Being physically active also helps in maintaining weight in a normal range, which reduces the risk of diabetes and diabetic retinopathy, which is a serious eye complication related to that disease.

Don’t smoke – Avoiding smoking or quitting altogether is one of the best investments a person can make in their long-term health. Smoking increases the risks of a variety of diseases, including those that affect the eye such as cataracts and diabetic-related conditions. After ageing, smoking is the biggest factor for developing Age-related macular degeneration (AMD).

Know your family eye health history – Certain eye conditions can be hereditary, such as glaucoma. When detected early, it can be treated and controlled and therefore it would be very beneficial to know if this condition has been in your family so you can be tested.

Protect protect your eyes at aork and at play – One of the best investments in eye health is to be sure to protect them with proper eye wear, whether it’s enjoying a day in the sun, playing sports or in your profession, be safe with your eyes at all times.

Get regular eye exams – Healthy adults who do not notice anything obviously wrong with their eyes should still have their eyes tested every two years. Eye Doctors recommend that adults with no signs or risk factors for eye disease get a baseline eye disease screening at age 40, which is typically the approximate time when early signs of disease and changes in vision may start to occur. Individuals at any age with symptoms or who are at risk for eye disease, such as those with a family history of eye disease, diabetes or high blood pressure should see an eye health care professional to determine how frequently their eyes should be examined.

Further advice and updates are available on the ICO website www.eyedoctors.ie

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Life

Alice’s cocooning experience was quite positive. ‘How can I complain? I have plenty of space and a big garden.

Positive thoughts from Innishannon

Colette Sheridan met best-selling author Alice Taylor who has just published her journal of the lock-down

Gardening, writing, painting and having long conversations on the phone with friends and family kept the County Cork writer, Alice Taylor, sane during the over-70s’ cocooning phase of the Covid-19 lockdown. Living in the small village of Innishannon - the gateway to scenic West Cork - Alice (82) is very much a glass half-full person. The author of To School Through the Fields, the 1988 bestseller, is not one for self -pity. Her husband died in 2005. She lives alone, but Alice knows the importance of family (she has five children and six grandchildren) and community. She makes it sound as if she has a rich satisfying life. Her latest book, A Cocoon with a View is her twenty-seventh book and is full of astute observations.

Alice’s cocooning experience was quite positive. ‘How can I complain? I have plenty of space and a big garden. I love gardening.

I write. And I’m a bit of a home bird anyway which is a big plus. I had plenty of time for myself. Maybe that’s a selfish streak in me. I did a lot of poderawling. That’s from an Irish word for kind of meandering around and doing nothing 24 Senior Times l August 2020 l www.seniortimes.ie

in particular until you come across something that you want to do.’

Having a book out so soon on the topic of cocooning, among other material, suggests that Alice had to write it in a rush so that it could be published for the summer market. But it was no bother to her as she journals every day.

When O’Brien Press approached her about a book, she had the bones of it written. There is, she says, nothing like recording events as they happen.

Poetry quotes While Alice is one of life’s enthusiasts, whose animated conversation is peppered with quotes from the poetry of Padraig Pearse and W B Yeats among others, she admits that during lockdown, she had the odd day when she’d wake up and think ‘mother of God, how will I get out of this bloody bed’? But you have to get yourself out of it.; And just as importantly, you have to find something to do.

‘There’s therapy in doing. You learn that the

hard way. When you’re bereaved, after burying someone very close to you, you find you have to engage in doing something you enjoy. I found the garden saved my sanity when I was grieving. You mightn’t want to do anything, but once you start gardening, it takes on a life of its own. You get drawn into it and two hours later, you realise you feel better. It happens without you being aware of it.’

Alice says that when everyone else was panic-buying toilet rolls, she was stocking up on sweet pea seeds. Fragrant sweet peas are essential to her spring/summer garden and her wellbeing. She has planted them all over her garden where she eats when the weather allows, and where she watches the returning swallows. Nature is her balm. She says that her garden ‘is more of a jungle really, a kind of woodland full of trees, attracting birds. In the garden, things are constantly evolving. It’s full of miracles. Even this morning, as I walked around the yard, I noticed a pinkish red full-headed rose that had come out. Don’t ask me the name of it. I’m not a good botanical garden but I vaguely know what I’m doing.’

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Senior Times l January/February 2020 l www.seniortimes.ie 63

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Animals and nature can stoically absorb our tumultuous emotions and erratic upheavals, and help to centre ...and calm us.

While being confined to her house and garden, Alice missed her grandchildren. Three of them, Ellie (7), Tim (3) and baby Conor “live up the hill. We would be in and out of each other’s houses constantly. Then of course, there was a screech of brakes and that was the end of that. I’d see them outside the window. Ellie got it but Tim didn’t understand. Then, when we were allowed out, I went up the hill to see them all. Tim looked at me in amazement and said: ‘Nana, who left you out?’

This interview was conducted in mid June during the easing of restrictions imposed because of the pandemic. Alice thinks Leo Varadkar did a good job, leading the country and asking for co-operation. But what about the nursing homes where a disproportionate large number of residents died from Covid-19?

Worst nightmare ‘Oh, the poor nursing homes. But in a way, problems were there before the pandemic came at all. I’d say it’s everyone’s worst nightmare is to finish up in a nursing home. I learned that many years ago. An old man here in the village lived in dire conditions. I was very young at the time. We all thought we knew best. We decided this man would be better off inside with The Little Sisters of the Poor. At that time in Cork, they were there for people who had no one to care for them. We took Jim there, we cleaned and dressed him in lovely new clothes.

But I went to see him a week later. I learned a lesson. He was alive, but he was dead really.

His eyes were dead inside his head. I thought then that he was better off in the shed where he was dirty and everything. He loved it and was happy. I realised that if you could die at home, you’re better off. All this hygiene, sure the old people prefer their own little corner.’

Reflecting on being elderly and particularly vulnerable during the height of the pandemic, Alice says it was only right to stop people from visiting their loved ones in nursing homes.

‘There was no choice. In my age group, we’re like old cars. The engine is after going down a bit. We don’t have the petrol to keep going.’

Has Alice slowed down? ‘I suppose I have but your head thinks you haven’t. If I go and do a job in the garden, I can tell you that when 26 Senior Times l August 2020 l www.seniortimes.ie

I’m kneeling in the yard and decide to get up, it’s a slow process. Your body is telling you something.’

Being a self-contained person, Alice says she didn’t really experience loneliness during lockdown. ‘I find reading invaluable. I read Where the Crawdads Sing. It was very sad. I cried a lot.

I’m a glutton for punishment. After that, I read The Beekeeper of Aleppo. My God, that put manners on me.’ (The book is about the flight of refugees from Aleppo in Syria to Europe during the Syrian civil war.)

Alice’s response to the book was to ask: ‘What the hell are we complaining about? What those people are going through, it was brutal. In our part of the world, we haven’t really got anything to complain about. I had a brother-in-law who used to say that ‘it’s a good thing to know when you’re well off.’ Sometimes, you can have a ‘poor me day’ which is a terrible blight.’

‘Wet day’ woman If there’s one type of person Alice strongly dislikes meeting, it’s ‘a wet day woman. My sister used to use that phrase and I wrote a poem about it. The funny thing was a lot of my friends said I had them in mind when I wrote it!

But there are some people who make you feel less well having met them. You go away and think the world isn’t so good after all. And there are wet day men as well.’

Wisely, Alice doesn’t allow too much negativity into her life. ‘I don’t read the economic forecast.

Sure I can do feck all about it anyway. You’re only depressing yourself. I listen to what I need to hear on the news. That’s very important because if you listen to what I call a waterfall of information of all the things that could happen, you wouldn’t get up at all.’

Asked if she thinks we’ll all be kinder and more respectful of each other when the pandemic is behind us, Alice says she hopes so. ‘I think people have slowed down. Isn’t it amazing?

We needed to slow down. We were almost on a conveyor belt and we couldn’t stop it. It had developed a life of its own. But by God, the conveyor belt crashed and we all fell off. We realised that people are important. In a way, for the first time, the Government put people

before money, which was great.’ Prior to the lockdown, ‘we thought we were God. I think we became aware that we need to love God and our neighbour. They are two principles that are basic to our survival.’

Does Alice describe herself as religious or spiritual? ‘I’d call myself the two.’ But does she ever think God isn’t listening, given terrible events like the pandemic? No, I don’t think that. He is letting us to our own devices to see will we learn anything. During the bad days of Covid-19, we got beautiful weather. I said to a friend who calls himself an atheist that God is looking after us with the weather. He just laughed.’ Alice, who keeps the sunny side up, is clearly fuelled by good humour and homespun wisdom.

Some Snippets from the book..

Before the virus ..I told Ailín about my experience and we discussed the situation, wondering if we Irish were losing our sense of connectedness and friendliness. Was it simply slipping away without us even noticing? She too had noticed the change and so she rang the main paper and asked if they would be interested on a feature about the matter. And they were! The editor felt that a lot of people were noticing what we were talking about.

So Ailín wrote her piece and on Wednesday I was the page-three girl, but with all my clothes on; perish the thought of the alternative! I was not aware that the article had appeared that morning, but on my way to Mass a friend greeted me with a big grin on her face: ‘Ryan Tubridy was talking about you this morning.’

‘Oh my God! What was he saying?’ I asked in alarm. ‘That we’re not saluting each other in Innishannon!’ she laughed.

But the feature rang a bell with a lot of people and many radio stations countrywide called

let it dissolve and evaporate. How trivial are old sores in this new order.

Life

Panic buying ..Now, I have to admit that I did my own share of panic buying. But for me it wasn’t toilet rolls but packets of sweet-pea seeds that were the object of my ‘have to have’ panic buying.

You might well wonder why sweet peas. Have I nothing else to be worried about? But an explanation is forthcoming! The more you cut sweet peas the more they flower! You cannot get a performer better than that. A summer without sweet peas is to me a drab prospect, but a cocooning summer without them would be unbearable.

I have to admit I did my own share of panic

buying

me to discuss the matter, and it became apparent that from all around the country people were noticing our fading friendliness .

Things change .. I came home on the evening of 12 March and after coming in my side door, which is the one we all use, I locked it! Locking that door was a strange feeling because when I am at home I never lock it. For the first time ever I was about to find out what life was like behind closed doors.

New times ..We have been parachuted into a scary new place and we are all endeavouring not to be overwhelmed. But if we over-think things, that is exactly what will happen. Our thoughts could so easily overwhelm us. The coronavirus may attack our bodies, but if we let it invade our minds too it could destroy our sense of wellbeing, which could well make us paranoid.

So we are involved in two battles: the physical and the mental.

Now is a very good time to be living on a farm, as out there is the calmness and healing of nature and the animal world. A few years ago a young farmer who was on the grief road after the death of his wonderful wife told me that the animals helped him to endure and survive those brutal first days, weeks and months of bereavement. Animals and nature can stoically absorb our tumultuous emotions and erratic upheavals, and help to centre and calm us.

One morning recently on RTE radio’s Sunday Miscellany there was a beautifully written and very wise item by a man about doing mindfulness with four donkeys. I laughed out loud listening to it. The storyteller, because that is what he was, had read Jon Kabat- Zinn, the top guru on mindfulness, so he knew what he was talking about. He told about standing with his four donkeys in a shed on a wet day looking out to sea, and how the absolute solidity and mindfulness of the donkeys was total. It was one of the most hilarious and riveting moment that I had ever listened to on radio. It made for mesmerising listening and was full of deep

Days like this! wisdom. Radio moments like that are golden, especially when you are cocooning. ..Some years ago we had a retired hospital matron working with us helping run our guest house, and whenever a crisis occurred she would simply stand back and calmly say, ‘Now, what’s to be done?’ And a plan of action came into play. She was accustomed to handling emergencies. ..Having ascertained the correct amount of necessary information, I feel that an overload of unnecessary news could damage our sense of wellbeing. So, maybe better not to immerse ourselves in a constant flow of coronavirus news. Best to keep ourselves occupied, doing selected projects, as there is therapy in doing. .. I was listening to Patricia Scanlan talking to Miriam O’Callaghan on Radio One Sunday morning, and she suggested making your bed each morning in the cocoon before leaving your bedroom. She was passing on a bit of helpful advice that had been given to her. It was a Sunday morning so I was relaxing in bed listening to the radio. But when I got out of bed I made it immediately and have done so every morning since. Thank you, Patricia, and Miriam! A very small thing in the bigger scheme of things, but we are living at a time when little things mean a lot. It is the little things that will keep us all sane and able to cope.

And people are doing amazing things. Every day we hear of kindness and goodness coming to the fore. How great is that! Families and friends are reaching out to each other and supporting each other. We can really be wonderful when we take the time, time to talk to each other on the phone, time to email each other and even taking the time to sit down and write letters. In these stressful times how lovely it is to get a letter. ..There are so many things that we plan to do ‘someday when we have the time’. Well, maybe the time is now. Kindness and generosity of spirit take thought and time, and now we have plenty of both. Maybe now is the time if there is a family rift or old grudge between people to

As soon as I open my eyes I sense a change.

My inner glow has faded and cabin fever is trying to break into my cocoon. Two weeks into cocooning and this is the first morning that this has happened. My mind is a light shade of grey – and going greyer by the minute, and the challenge is to stop the surge. Cocooning is beginning to feel like isolation.

I am missing everyone! Mostly my grandchildren, seven-year-old Ellie and three-year-old Tim, who live up the hill and whom I have not hugged for two weeks. They come to the window to wave and Ellie dances with delight to entertain me, but little Tim stares in at me with a slightly confused look on his face and you can see that he is thinking: ‘What is all this about?’

One wonders what memory he will have of his cocooning Nana. I had taken their energising and vibrant physical presence and stimulation so much for granted. Now that it is gone I realise how life-enhancing it has been.

There is something uplifting about the sight of white sheets spread out on bushes where the sun will do the drying. I have always loved the sight of clothes lines of washing blowing in the breeze, even in other people’s gardens. The warmth of nature dries the sheets, but the sight warms your heart in the process. The day is getting better by the minute.

Confusion in the Cocoon My laptop is having a melt-down. That scares the living daylights out of me, so when she has a melt-down I have an accompanying one. She controls my writing life and we both know that she is the smart one and I am the dopey one her timing is brutal. She is holding my manuscript and refuses point blank to allow me in.

I am scared witless that she will go thick and delete!

Let’s light a candle When we were young and trouble came, my mother would light a candle. The first time I remember this happening was when I was six years old and my brother Connie, aged four, died. It was a dark time in our home, and while he was sick and after he had died my mother lit Senior Times l August 2020 l www.seniortimes.ie 27

Life chance a cautionary glance. Not half bad! .. I thought of my old friend’s approach: stand back calmly and ask ‘What’s to be done?’ But I want to do nothing, only wallow in my misery.

Then I remember my mother’s positive comment whenever we tackled a challenging job; she would declare ‘Isn’t it great that we have the mind on us to do it.’ ..This morning I have the mind on me to do precisely nothing. Cabin fever has sneaked in under the door and is lapping around my mind.

I cannot indulge myself in complaining as I feel that there are so many other people in more difficult situations than mine.

Let’s light a candle

a candle every evening in the centre of the big table in the parlour. A light of comfort and hope.

It began a tradition in our family of: Let’s light a candle. Over the years, my mother’s children and grandchildren wrote to her from all over the world when they had a problem, asking her to light her candle. Even now when she is long gone, the practice continues and we light a candle in times of trouble. So on the eve of this Palm Sunday I decide to light a candle in my front south-facing window onto the main road into West Cork, and another one in a side window looking onto the hill up to the church, a symbol of hope until this darkness is gone.

I continue to light it every evening just before the six o’clock news on RTE, which gives us the latest figures on the spread of corona and the number who have died in the previous twenty-four hours. While listening to the grim news I see the glowing candle and pray that this too will pass. Our once-busy village, through which non-stop traffic usually flows, is now a quiet place, and as midnight approaches complete silence descends, except for an occasional car, delivery truck, ambulance, or Garda car. I look out at the now deserted village, which is as it was when I came here in 1961. We have gone back in time. .. Cocooning has changed everything. Now there is more appreciation of little things, and simple things previously taken for granted or even unseen – or unwanted – are now absorbed and savoured.

Cocooning conversations ..One of the greatest gifts in life is a listening friend and how much more true is that in cocooning. Someone who is there when the world gets too much for us. And locked into cocooning, that world can regularly get too much for us. So when you fall into the ‘poor me’ zone and the phone rings, you pick it up cautiously, wondering who is at the other end – and breathe a sigh of relief when you hear a voice that is going to brighten up your cocoon.

You find the nearest chair, collapse into it and soak up any crumbs of distraction that come your way.

28 Senior Times l August 2020 l www.seniortimes.ie

..every few days there are family gatherings via Skype or Zoom onto which I am guided like a sleep-walker in the dark. But eventually I get there, and it is good to see the faces of family from faraway places. In some ways we have never been so interlinked as now. The miracle of modern communications is a great blessing in the cocoon. .. A bad hair day. Definitely going to seed! You could go cuckoo in a cocoon if you lose the grip. Something just has to be done. Done right away. As I am a creature of impulse, immediate action is taken. The only scissors available, other than useless nail scissors, are my gardening scissors that substitute as a pruner when my roof garden needs a stop put to its gallop. Originally hefty dress-making scissors, they have gone through many reincarnations before finally finishing up as a gardening accessory. So I bring them in from their customary location in my weed-collecting bucket on the roof and return to the viewing mirror. Then I take a good look at the cutting possibility of the scissors – and discover, to my horror, that they are filthy. Probably laden with bugs too! Could one of them be corona? I give them a fast scalding under the hot tap while wishing myself happy birthday.

Then I study the wild-meadow woman in the mirror, take a deep breath and begin to mow around the headlands. First tentatively along the dangling growth under the right ear, being careful to avoid the ear, and then progress steadily around the back bend. There the scissors disappear from view, going into invisible territory along the base of the pole, where they have to be guided by neck contours.

Then, gaining confidence and momentum, they gather speed. Swathes of grey begin to cascade onto the floor. Then around to left-ear territory, and steering around to the back with instinct as the guide. The fall-out is alarming as widespread showers of grey snow float to the bathroom floor. Have to keep going now, cannot chicken out with a half-shorn head.

Eventually all the headlands around the head are mown. And how does the head in the mirror look? Almost afraid to look. But then, slowly,

..That evening, while Mary was still finding her feet in the garden, Leo appeared on the steps of Leinster House to tell us that the outdoor human run was being extended and that the likes of me could emerge out of lockdown on 5 May! Might we cocooners, like the calves, be at first dazzled by daylight, then kick our heels in the air, make a leap of exuberance and take off in a flight for freedom across the fields?

The great escape!

A Cocoon with a View is published by O’Brien Press at E8.99.

Five copies of Alice Taylor’s book to be won!

Senior Times, in association with the publishers O’Brien Press is offering five copies of Alice Taylor’s latest book as prizes in this competition. To enter simply answer this question: What is the name of the West Cork village where Alice lives?

Send your entries to Alice Taylor Competition, Senior Times, Unit 1, 15 Oxford Lane, Ranelagh, Dublin 6.

Or email: john@slp.ie The first five correct entries drawn are the winners. Deadline for receipt of entries is 5th September 2020.

Five more copies to be won in crossword competition!

Five more copies of Alice Taylor’s book can be won in our crossword competition at the end of the magazine

Literature

Gardens of delight...

Part of ‘The Secret Garden’ at Great Maytham Hall

In the latest of her literature-inspired travels Lorna Hogg visits some of the locations which inspired Frances Hodgson Burnett’s children’s classic The Secret Garden The latest film adaption of The Secret Garden by Anglo American author Frances Hodgson Burnett, will introduce the Victorian classic to a new generation, with a new twist. This version is set in 1947, the time of Indian Independence, yet the essence is timeless. It tells the story of an orphaned little girl, moving to a new home in England, and learning, through restoring an overgrown garden, a sense of belonging and hope.

However, the story of that girl, Mary Lennox, pales beside that of its author – who overcame poverty, parental and home loss, to support her family and create a full and successful life.

Frances Hodgson Burnett was born on November 24th, 1848, the third of five children, into ‘impoverished gentility’ in Manchester’s Cheetham area. Her father worked in the metal business, and Frances’s first three years were spent in some comfort. However, his death left a pregnant wife, who somehow managed to carry on the family business, and educate the children. Frances attended a dame school, and later, a ‘select seminary’. Her grandmother instilled a love of reading in her, and she also loved flowers and gardens. One of her homes overlooked small holdings owned by the Earl of Derby. Frances described the place as the ‘back garden of Eden’ Fresh disaster struck, however, when the family business failed – it was the time of the American Civil War, and the ‘cotton famine’. An invitation to move came from her uncle, who had settled in Knoxville, Tennessee,

Frances Hodgson Burnett: at the height of her fame, and it has been claimed she was then the highest paid woman writer in the world.

so the family emigrated there. Ironically, the young Frances was told to burn her early writings, as they left their home to move to a country in the last stages of the Civil War. They had no better luck there, at one stage living in a log cabin.

Senior Times l August 2020 l www.seniortimes.ie 29

Literature

A contemporary view of Cheetham Hill Road, Manchester. Frances Hodgson Burnett was born in ‘genteel poverty’ in the area in 1848

The young Frances read in a magazine that ‘ladies’ could earn money writing, and swiftly sent off a story to a magazine, Godey’s Lady’s Book.

She was first published at fifteen, and by nineteen was helping to support the family. However, tragedy again struck when her mother died in 1870. Frances then took over responsibility for the remaining family, and provided for them from her writing. She befriended Swan Burnett, whom she later married. He then qualified as a doctor, and Frances’s income allowed them the finances to travel and spend time in Europe, with their two sons, Lionel and Vivian.

Vivian’s birth brought a return to the United States, and some debt. However, Frances’s novel, That Lass o’ Lowrie’s, her first venture into fiction, proved successful. The family moved to Washington, where through hard work, she increased her popularity and fame as a writer, and even established a literary salon. On a visit to Boston, Burnett met Louise May Alcott, author of Little Women and that may have influenced her move to children’s fiction. One of her most famous creations, Little Lord Fauntleroy, was inspired by her son Vivian, and published in 1885. To economise, Frances made some of the family clothes, including velvet suits and lace collars for Vivian – it is said that she had wanted a daughter. Her young 3030Senior 2020 l www.seniortimes.ie SeniorTimes Timesl August l July - August 2020 l www.seniortimes.ie

fictional hero’s royalist long curls and lace collars created a fashion.

Public interest was similar to that of Harry Potter to-day, and firmly established Burnett. However, the pressure of work, plus running her household proved difficult, and depression followed.

Her marriage was affected, and Frances started to travel alone, to England and Europe, or with her sons. She also continued writing books, and started to write plays for the stage. Tragedy hit yet again in 1890, with the news that her elder son, Lionel, had died from tuberculosis in Paris. She suffered deep depression, and around this time, became a Christian Scientist. Around this time she also met a young English actor Stephen Townsend, for whom she wrote a starring role to help his career.

Her marriage gradually failed, and in 1898, she divorced Burnett. She was criticised in the press, as having ‘advanced Ideas’ and being a ‘new woman’.. This was intensified when she married Stephen Townsend, ten years her junior, in 1900. There has been considerable speculation about the relationship. He moved into her home before they married, which created a scandal, and financial motives were suggested. The couple

Literature

The Arts and Craft style Great Maytham Hall, near Rolvenden, in Kent designed by the celebrated architect Sir Edward Lutyens and thought to have been the inspirations for The Secret Garden

and this becomes symbol of hope for both. At this stage, Burnett had considerable fame and money. Her income allowed her to spend time in Europe, and winter in Bermuda, with plenty of socialising. She provided for her son, and enjoyed her success and fame. She had also earned the gratitude of writers and dramatists the world over, by taking a case against a theatrical producer who ‘pirated’ her material in a play of Little Lord Fauntleroy, using legal loopholes. When this happened again, Burnet’s response had been to re-write her own play, and put it on stage – which proved highly successful for her.

In all, she wrote fifty three novels, and her influence can be seen by the fact that inside the conservatory in New York’s Central Park, is a statue of a garden with Mary and Dickon. After her permanent return from England, in 1907, Burnett built a splendid Long Island home, with a cottage for her son. She lived there, and wintered in Bermuda, until her death on 29th October 1924.

The ‘hot garden’ at Helmsley, Yorkshire one of the locations for the film of The Secret Garden due for release next month

divorced in 1902 – she later called the marriage ‘the biggest mistake of my life.’ By then Burnett was at the height of her fame, and it has been claimed she was the then the highest paid woman writer in the world.

In England, she had rented the beautiful Great Maytham Hall, in Kent, where she lived, entertaining many house guests, until 1907. It was here that she wrote The Secret Garden. Great Maytham had its own secret garden - Burnett managed to open the gate, and found an uncared for walled garden, which she lovingly and painstakingly restored. She wrote in the summerhouse, in the company of a tame robin, a storyline she included in the book. Its 10 year old heroine, the spoiled and ill-tempered Mary Lennox has moved to Yorkshire, after her parents death in India, to a bleak future. She discovers a locked overgrown walled garden, and tells her cousin Colin, the wheelchair -bound invalid of her own age.

With the help of gardener’s son Dickon, the children restore the garden,

‘As long as you have a garden, you have a future and as long as you have a future you are alive..’

A garden filled with secrets The book’s main influence is thought to be Great Maytham Hall, near Rolvenden, in Kent. The famous architect Lutyens later re-created the walled garden – but left the summerhouse, where Burnett wrote the book. It is open a few days a year, through The National Gardens Scheme.

If Great Maytham Hall provided the physical influence, her Manchester home provided part of the psychological inspiration. ‘It was our rose garden – as it would been, locked up for years’ she wrote in one letter.

Buile Hill Park, now a Manchester public park, is another possible influence, and where during visits, she wrote parts of The Secret Garden.

The new film of The Secret Garden opens in August. It was filmed in Yorkshire, with locations including Helmsley Walled Garden, Duncombe Park Manor and Allerton Castle. Scenes were also filmed at Studley Royal Water Gardens and Fountains Hall.

August 2020 l www.seniortimes.ie 31 SeniorSenior TimesTimes l July - lAugust

?

Looking back in time

Guess the year

Another teaser from Jerry Perkins In WORLD affairs this year is notable for Fidel Castro gaining power and becoming leader in Cuba, and the US growing to 50 states, with the inclusion of Alaska and Hawaii. Cyprus became independent from Britain and notable debuts included the first appearance of the Asterix the Gaul cartoon and the launch of the Barbie doll, and the first Mini car. Television debuts include The Twilight Zone and Bonanza. The first stretch of the M1 in Britain is opened, starting a major overhaul of the UK’s motorway network.

In the US, the Clutter family murder case occurs in Kansas, the inspiration for Truman Capote’s famous non-fiction novel In Cold Blood. Charles de Gaulle becomes French president and the European Court of Human Rights is established. Music legend Buddy Holly died in a plane crash along with fellow musicians Ritchie Valens and The Big Bopper and pilot Roger Peterson.

In IRELAND Eamon de Valera succeeds Sean T O’Kelly as president and Sean Lemass takes over from de Valera as Taoiseach. James Dillon becomes Fine Gael leader, succeeding Richard Mulcahy. The Irish Congress of Trade Unions – or ICTU – is established. The Government first considers PAYE as a form of income tax. Actor Peter O’Toole marries Welsh actress Sian Phillips in Dublin. John B Keane’s play Sive is premiered in the writer’s native Listowel.

32 Senior Times l August 2020 l www.seniortimes.ie

In SPORT Real Madrid win the European Cup and Nottingham Forest win the FA Cup. Here, St Patrick’s Athletic win the FAI Cup, Shamrock Rovers win the League of Ireland and Waterford win the Hurling All-Ireland, while Kerry win the football.

In FILM the big titles included Ben Hur, Pillow Talk, Some Like It Hot and North by Northwest.

In MUSIC, legendary jazz musician Miles Davis releases his standout Kind of Blue album. Berry Gordy Jr forms Tamla Records, soon to be known as Motown, in Detroit. Diana Ross’ band The Supremes are formed, but as a quartet called The Primettes. The Netherlands wins the fourth Eurovision Song Contest. Spanish opera singer Placido Domingo makes his stage debut in Mexico, where he grew up despite being born in Madrid.

Jimi Hendrix is reported to have bought his first electric guitar in this year and Joan Baez becomes an underground star after appearing at the first Newport Folk Festival in Newport, Rhode Island.

Answer on page 70

Urgent Covid-19 Appeal

The Irish Blue Cross was founded in Ireland in 1945 and is largely responsible for assisting over half a million disadvantaged pet owners keep their pets healthy throughout the decades. Our team of dedicated vets and nurses promote the importance of responsible ownership and educate owners on the benefits of regular vaccinations of pets, neutering and microchipping. In 2019, The Irish Blue Cross carried out over 20,000 treatments and procedures through their Inchicore small animal clinic, and 10 mobile veterinary outreach clinics operating in the heart of various Dublin Communities.s.

The charity also operates a horse ambulance service that attends all Irish racecourses, working closely with racecourse veterinary surgeons to assist and save injured racehorses.

Pets need our help. Now, more than ever, we need yours too.

All donations towards The Irish Blue Cross’ on-going work are always welcome. To find out how you can support, call 01-4163032 or email paul.halpin@bluecross.ie

This year has proved very challenging for the Charity. However, The Irish Blue Cross continued to operate and deliver essential veterinary services throughout Covid-19, helping countless sick and injured pets.

Now, as the fleet of mobile clinics are getting back on the road, The Irish Blue Cross needs the publics support more than ever, to meet a big surge in demand for its charitable work.

Head of Veterinary Services, Úna O’Toole reported; “Our receptionists have noticed a much greater level of phone calls from concerned pet owners. A large number of calls are from owners who have taken on a new pet during the pandemic. It seems that the pandemic replaced Christmas as the ideal time to take on a new pet. Pets have a hugely positive impact on human health and wellbeing, however, it is important to remember that a pet is for life and that anyone considering taking on a new pet also takes into account the financial implications involved in owning a pet.”

CEO, Christina Conneely; “This is the charity’s 75th anniversary year and we were planning a year of fundraising events and celebrations. Like other charities, our fundraising income this year will be significantly diminished. During this emergency our services are already stretched and we envisage an extremely busy time ahead for our vets and nurses because of the impact of COVID-19. Public support is exactly what we need right now to help fund services for pets of owners in disadvantaged circumstances throughout Dublin” During the Covid-19 Emergency, many vulnerable people are in self-isolation, cocooning or living alone. Some are lucky enough to have pets to keep them company. Pets can reduce stress, anxiety, and depression, ease loneliness, encourage exercise and playfulness, and even improve your cardiovascular health. Pets also provide valuable companionship for older adults. During Covid-19 this is more important than ever.

The Irish Blue Cross must continue to play its important role in providing care for sick pets where it is most needed. Pet owners are heavily reliant on the charity’s services and without them they would have no alternative support. It is crucial that The Irish Blue Cross’ work is supported in helping all those worst impacted by Covid-19.

‘To the small animals in need, I leave..’

Remembering a charity in your will is a kind and generous gesture that costs you nothing in your lifetime. But your kindness will make a difference forever. Once loved ones are looked after in your will, consider how else you can help.

Create your legacy and make your love for pets live on.

For more information on how you can make a lasting difference, contact us today.

15A Goldenbridge Industrial Estate, Inchicore, Dublin 8 Tel: +353 1 4163032 www.bluecross.ie

Classical Music

The Mozart family. Mozart is sitting next to his sister Nannerl, with his father on the right. His deceased mother is show in a portait on the wall.

Mozart

The Mozarts’ house in Salzburg

the myth and the magic

John Low traces the life and work of arguably the greatest mind in Western music Infant prodigy, genius composer, virtuoso musician, linguist, mason, wit, dandy, billiard hustler, sometime drunkard, gambler, Johannes Chrysostomus Wolfgangus Theophilus Mozart’s life was short, highly eventful and far from sweet.

A large part of his adult life was spent begging from friends and chasing payment from his many benefactors and employers in a mainly unsuccessful attempt to maintain his and his spouse’s chaotic and profligate lifestyle.

There were periods during his Vienna years- he moved there in 1781 aged 25-when he was earning an exceptionally high salary as a freelance composer/ musician, and his subscription concerts were a roaring success. But the cash was often frittered away. He had a penchant for fine clothes and hand-made shoes: he even bought a carriage and a horse and installed a billiards table in one of the many expensive apartments they rented in Vienna. They were, to put it mildly, bad managers.

Mozart’s easy- come- easy- go attitude may well be explained by the fact that he could - and , more likely had to - work at astonishing speeds and produce compositions in a fraction of the time taken by his contemporaries; and, of course of infinitely higher quality. It was not unusual for him to work through the night or operate on three hours sleep: today’s 24/ 7 ‘high flyers’, would, in comparison, be a country mile behind him. In a letter to his father he wrote, “This morning is lost in lessons, lunch is eaten at 2 pm, the afternoon is dedicated to various preparations and in the evening I finally have time to compose- as long as I have no concert to perform”.

Apart from the mental and physical strain of his composing, teaching and performing, he was his own agent, manager and general dogsbody, doing everything from booking venues, arranging advertising, printing posters and commissioning orchestras, to selling tickets.

Mozart’s life is well documented largely through the reminiscences of his father, wife, sister, acquaintances, letters and biographies. He was born on January 27th 1756 in Salzburg, Austria (At the time Salzburg was a German state an did not became part of Austrian empire until 1816) His father Leopold was a composer and violinist and held an official post at the Archbishop’s court in the city. His mother was Anna Maria Pertl,

and he had a sister four years older called Nannerl. They were the only two of the couple’s seven children to survive infancy.

From an early age they both demonstrated remarkable musical abilities.

Wolfgang would watch as his sister was given keyboard lessons. He was improvising himself for the age of three. His father began giving him lessons, and famously told a visitor to their house: “Wolfgang learnt this minuet when he was four. This minuet and trio were learnt by Wolfgang in half an hour, at half past nine at night on January 26 1761, one day before his fifth year” Leopold, like any astute impresario, quickly realised he had a great act on his hands and paraded Wolfgang and Nannerl around Europe, almost as if they were freaks - which in some way they were freaks they wereto the adulation of Royalty , Princes of the church and the nobility. His aims were mercenary – to make money. But “The Travelling Mozarts’ enterprise was largely a financial failure.

After returning from one ‘tour’ Leopold observed sourly: “We have swords, lace, mantillas, snuff- boxes, gold cases, sufficient to furnish a shop but as for money, it is a scarce article and I am positively poor” There were occasions when their travels produced some profit, such as when King George 111 of England paid the wunderkind the huge sum of 50 guineas to compose six sonatas for his Queen Charlotte. But like a modern touring company, putting the show on the road was an expensive business, with travel and accommodation, staff and advertising expenses. These tours, often involving traveling on poor ‘ roads’ in cold and wet carriages for weeks, with the constant fear of being held up by highwaymen, took a toll on everyone’s health and this period in Mozart’s life is often cited as a contributory factor for his later ills and early death.

Their firs important trip involved them being away from home for nearly three and a half years. And from early childhood to adolescence Mozart visited Germany, Holland, Switzerland, Slovakia, The Czech Republic, Belgium, France, Italy, and England. The travelling continued relentlessly in his adult years when he was planning, rehearsing or directing performances of his operas, or performing as a soloist.

The last trip of his life was to Prague in the late summer of 1791 to the

NOTE This article was recently published in a digital edition of senior Times and posted on the senior Times website seniortimes.ie - It is being re-published for the benefit of those who do not have access to the Internet 34 Senior Times l August 2020 l www.seniortimes.ie

Classical Music He married Constanze on August 4, 1782 at St Stephen´s Cathedral. He was 26, his bride 18. He wrote to his father, who disapproved of the marriage: ‘We are married now. We are man and wife! And we love each other enormously. We feel that we are made for one and other’.

Mozart was composing at age five

coronation of Leopold II as the King of Bohemia. In all his 35 years it has been estimated he was travelling for a period of ten years.

Now a married man with responsibilities - Constanza quickly became pregnant- Mozart was working flat out: and with fruits of his labours, they were gradually becoming accepted into the Viennese social elite, moving to bigger and more lavish apartments and entertaining on a scale to which they were certainly not accustomed. But it was only money and there was plenty more where that came from.

The period from around 1782 onwards was undoubtMozart spent most of his early adult life in Saledly the most lucrative for Mozart and it has been zburg composing and performing as part of his estimated that in one year he may have earned the duties for the Prince Archbishop Colloredo. During equivalent in today´s money of more than half a million this period Mozart wrote most of his liturgical works euro, if not more. It´s therefore reasonable to speculate that Constanze Mozart , 1840 we know today; he also wrote and performed symphohad he saved or invested only a modest amount of his earnings nies and concerts, including one of his earliest landmark works, during this time, his later slide into financial ruination could have been the Sinfonia Concertante for violin and viola. avoided or comfortably cushioned, not to mention his early death.

But he hated his job. He did not get on with the Archbishop and court musicians, who he found uncouth and largely incompetent. He was also becoming increasingly disillusioned with the narrow-minded, provincial attitudes of Salzburg and at every opportunity he escaped, either to seek more meaningful employment, supervise performances of his operas or perform in the more enlightened environment of cities such as Munich, Mannheim and Vienna.

It was on one or these trips to Mannheim in 1777 that he met and fell in love with talented singer Aloysia Weber, but was dissuaded by his father from pursuing the relationship until he had got himself a decent job.

Evidently Mozart had not exactly made a big impression on the young lady: he returned to Mannheim only to find that she neither remembered or recognised him! Ironically they subsequently became great friends some suggested they may have been more than friends - when Mozart cast her in many of his operatic roles, as well as specifically composing works to display her vocal talents.

There was one consolation; shortly afterwards he was appointed Court Organist by the Prince Archbishop, with a reasonable salary. Typically this did not prevent him continuing his travels, and he was soon off to Munich. But in January 1781, he was ordered to Vienna by Colloredo who had temporarily moved his court to the Austrian capital. Mozart finally arrived in March. He was in his element, performing and socialising with the cream of Viennese aristocracy; ´For my profession this is the best place in the world’, he wrote to his father.

The Prince Archbishop ordered his court to return to Salzburg in the early summer of 1781. Not surprisingly Mozart wasn´t budging. He was having the time and success of his life, and the thought of returning to the cultural backwater that was Salzburg was inconceivable. Colloredo exploded and labelled Mozart ´ a scoundrel, an oath and a good – for – nothing´ . Mozart was dismissed by a court official. ‘I was literally kicked up the arse off the premises!’he later recalled.

And so Mozart threw himself into consolidating his rapidly growing reputation in Vienna. He was giving numerous concerts and received important commissions from private benefactors as well as the Emperor himself, Joseph II. He was also making good money by giving private music lessons to the sons and daughters of Viennese society and nobility.

Coincidentally at this time the Webers had moved to Vienna and despite his rejection by Aloysius, he had remained friendly with the family. He soon moved in as a lodger and it wasn´t long before he was courting Aloysia´s younger sister Constanze.

His elevation into the highest echelons of Viennese society was now unstoppable. He was mixing not only with the city´s aristocracy, Austrian and European royalty but more important, with its influential and prosperous merchant classes. He met all the leading composers of the day; including Haydn with whom he became great friends. He became a mason in 1784. He had arrived.

It was also a highly productive period in which he composed many of his finest, mature works, including, piano concertos, piano sonatas, string quarters and string quintets. And of course operas, notably. The Marriage of Figaro (1786) Don Giovanni (1787), Cosi fan tutte (1790) and The Magic Flute (1791). His last three great symphonies, Nos 39, 40 and 41 (The Jupiter) – were composed in the space of six weeks in 1788. Many musicologists cite The Jupiter, with its masterly originality, invention and orchestration as his towering achievement. And considering his canon of work, that´s saying something.

And so, ostensibly, life for the Mozarts in Vienna in the mid 1780´s was pretty good. Wolfgang´s earnings were huge but so were his debts.

Apart from the couple´s increasingly extravagant lifestyle there were the on-going medical expenses relating to Constanze´s many pregnancies (in all she has six children). There were, too, her routine, costly convalescence stays in the nearby fashionable spa town of Baden. Mozart was also a gambler, and although there is no firm evidence, it´s conceivableas with all gamblers- he was heavily into chasing his losses.

The begging letters start and became more frequent from 1787. He was now seriously in debt and to make matters worse he was no longer flavour of the month with the fickle Viennese bourgeoisie. And when it seemed it could not get any worse, it did: a war with the Turkish Ottoman Empire brought a halt to all artistic activity in the city as officialdom concentrated on the war effort.

Even in the depths of despair, Mozart did not stop working, composing, among other works, the aforementioned last three symphonies the following year. Remarkably these works were not commissioned for a fee, and could have only been produced by a mind driven to transcend the musical conventions of the day.

The next two years did not bring any noticeable improvement in his financial health. He had travelled to Berlin in 1789 to try to secure a post from the King of Prussia. But without success. He had no better luck when he returned to Germany a year later for the coronation of the new German Emperor Leopold II in Frankfurt, hoping to receive serious commissions and perform at the numerous celabratory concerts.

The last year of Mozart´s life was also one of his most productive. His compositions included the operas The Magic Flute, La Clemanza di Tito, Senior Times l August 2020 l www.seniortimes.ie 35

Live-in care means exceptional peace of mind

Patricia Lucy, the eldest of seven children, grew up with three nannies; the first for morning, the second for afternoon and the last for night time. Last year, when the Jersey-born 89-year-old was discussing her evolving care needs with her daughter, she joked that she wanted a nanny to come and live with her again. In some ways that prospect came true, and for Patricia, the timing couldn’t have been better.

Patricia came out of hospital in February this year, just before the Covid-19 crisis hit Ireland.

She arrived home into the care of Joanna Jewasińska, her caregiver from Home Instead.

Joanna helped Patricia cocoon during the worst of the crisis, as part of a new live-in care model from the home care company.

That same month, Joanna, from Poland, said goodbye to her husband and family, to come and work in Ireland, providing live-in care for Patricia, for what was meant to be an eightweek period. But because of the pandemic, she’s still here.

“Joanna has really helped me in the past couple of months, by staying with me and looking after everything I need. She keeps on top of my healthcare needs, my personal care, and she cooks me delicious meals, her soups are particularly good,” says Patricia.

36 Senior Times l August 2020 l www.seniortimes.ie

“I live alone, and whilst being alone never bothered me, having the security of Joanna here looking after my needs is what I need to help me remain living at home. Yes, she makes my favourite meals, but at dinner times we also have long conversations about the past including my childhood in Jersey under German occupation during World War 2.

And how interesting those conversations must be. Like every older person, Patricia has lived a long and eventful life, and like every Home Instead CAREGiver, Joanna’s work is enriched by listening to them.

Patricia was born in Jersey, to a Jersey mother and an Irish father who was a doctor on the island. She proudly recalls that he was the GP nominated during the war to report weekly on the food, health and welfare needs of the Jersey population.

She went to boarding school in England after the war for two years before coming to Ireland to pursue an Arts degree in UCC, where she met her husband Sean Lucy. They lived in England for eight years before returning to Cork.

Patricia now has five grown up children, who she raised in Cork, where she lives today. Her first great grandchild Grace was born in March during the lockdown, and she was delighted recently to hold her for the first time after a long wait.

“I love to hear her talk about the past,” says her CAREGiver Joanna.

“Patricia is very intelligent, and has had a great life experience. I love hearing about her family and times gone past. I have worked in care for a long time, but this is the first time I have really gotten to know about the person I am caring for. This is very special,” Joanna adds.

She loves doing daily morning exercises with Patricia, which help her get into better condition and put them both in a good team mood for the day.

“Although I’m living with Patricia, this doesn’t mean we’re together all the time. Like everyone, she has highs and lows. You need to adjust your care, taking into account how she is feeling. I like that when, she wants time by herself, she will say ‘bye-bye’ – that is my cue to leave her be,” Joanne laughs.

Home Instead Senior Care’s Cork South office have been looking after Patricia since 2011, but this is the first time she’s had a live-in CAREGiver. Back then, Home Instead helped with simple housework tasks and helped with some personal care, like washing her hair which she found hard to do by herself.

Later, Patricia would have CAREGivers call every morning and evening, to help with other

daily living needs, such as meals and personal care. Patricia’s grandson John had been living with her for two years while he was studying in UCC, but when he graduated at the end of last summer, he moved abroad. That’s when Patricia joked about a need for a new nanny!

Her daughter, Frances, asked the office about the live-in care option, and she felt it was perfect for Patricia’s situation. But they had to wait until February to find out, as Patricia took ill and spent some time in hospital. And when they finally did get to meet Joanna, the timing was perfect.

“Having Joanna stay with Mum as the Covid-19 crisis developed gave my siblings and me significant peace of mind,” says Frances.

“We could rest assured, knowing that Mum was safe, her care needs would be met, and she would be very well looked after. When it comes to care, Joanna’s finger is on the pulse, she is very mindful and empathic, however, she is not intrusive.

“Whilst Mum is quite independent and comfortable with her own company we worried about her coming out of hospital. To be independent is one thing but it is very easy when you are on your own to self-neglect,” explains Frances.

“Covid-19 has required the three of us to cocoon, rattling around comfortably in the house,” laughs Frances. However, with live-in care, we have a structure to our day. I can do my work all day upstairs and choose when to pop down rather than feeling like I’m on call. We have good chats after dinner each evening.

Joanne is very responsive to Mum’s needs and my needs, but she is not intrusive. She is very

self-reliant and Mum says she’s great to share the house with,” she adds.

Now that the lockdown restrictions are easing, Patricia is looking forward to getting back to some of her favourite outdoor activities. “The last few months have been fun in some ways, particularly with Joanna here to keep me company. But I’ve missed going out to meet my friends too. It would be great to be able to get out for lunch, and with the help of Joanna this might be possible. The park is also nearby, and if the weather is fine, Joanna could accompany me in my wheelchair,” says Patricia.

As for how long will Joanna be around to go on those lovely trips – while she obviously misses her husband and her children deeply, right now she’d find it difficult to leave.

“There are no direct flights home at the moment, so I’m staying in Cork with Patricia for a few extra weeks. I’ll go home in the end of July or August maybe. It’s going to depend on what happens with the pandemic. I might not be able to come back, so I’d like to stay here as long as possible,” she says.

“I think about home of course and I miss my husband and my family but I talk to them regu larly on the phone and with video calls. It makes it easier. But what really helps is the job, and the

Tel: 1890 930 847 Homeinstead.ie people I’m working with. I’ve worked as a carer in other environments and countries, but there is no comparison to this job,” says Joanna.

While they spend their last few weeks together, Patricia and Joanna are taking every opportunity to spend time in the garden, and the recent spell of warm weather has certainly helped. “Mum hadn’t really been in the garden for around two years, but using the wheelchair and accompanied by Joanna, she’s had the confidence to sit out in the sunshine and sunbathe,” says Frances.

Over the past weeks and months, Joanna has really gotten to know Patricia, her life story and a sense of life in Ireland, albeit in very strange times. And though it will soon be time to say ‘bye-bye’ for the last time, everyone’s looking forward to a few more weeks in the garden, taking in the fresh Cork air.

Senior Times l August 2020 l www.seniortimes.ie 37

Classical Music his piano concerto No. 27 a horn concerto, the sublime clarinet concerto, the Ave Verum Corpus, quintets, minuets and dances. Not to mention most of his Requiem.

His finances, too, were improving: there were offers from various European bodies to buy compositions, he had received a lucrative offer to go to London to perform and produce operas, and royalties were beginning to roll in from The Magic Flute which was a smash hit.

The legend surrounding the commissioning of his last great work, The Requiem, in the summer of 1791 is both melodramatic and fanciful; a mysterious messenger wearing a long cloak, a mask hiding his face, is said to have knocked on Mozart´s door offering part up-front payment for the work and the remainder on completion. The truth is probably more prosaic. The messenger had been sent by his master Count Franz Walsegg commissioning Mozart to write the work in memory of his wife.

Walsegg was an enthusiastic amateur composer and was known to pass off plagiarized compositions as his own. It´s likely he would do the same with Mozart’s and had probably instructed his messenger not to unduly expose himself should a connection be made.

Possibly the first signs of Mozart’s terminal illness appeared late in August during a visit to Prague when he was reported to be ‘pale’ and his expression ‘sad’. By October, according to Constanz’s recollections, he seemed to be depressed and introspective. It’s reasonable to speculate that he was physically unwell and was trying to keep it to himself- a common male trait.

By around the third week of November he took to his bed with fever and swollen joints; he was also vomiting. At this stage he had completed almost half of the Requiem and in spite of his condition he continued to compose. Towards the end he summoned his pupil Sussmayor – who completed the work – to notate his verbal instructions. It is generally accepted that he expired close to midnight on December 5th 1791 while attempting to mouth the sound and rhythm of the timpani (drum) passage. He was six weeks short of his 36th birthday.

The cause of death – theories range from poisoning to syphilis – has also given rise to speculation and legend, but the common consensus among Mozart scholars points towards kidney failure brought on by the complications of rheumatic fever.

In discussing Mozart’s burial we once again have to negotiate and sidestep the nineteenth century myth-makers. He was, we are asked to believe, buried in a pauper’s grave, with no mourners at his funeral. He was in fact ‘taken to the church’ – St Stephens Cathedral – on December 6th before his ‘economy’ funeral at St Marx Cemetery in the Viennese suburbs. The image of a neglected genius being hurriedly dumped into a

A serious and introspective Mozart in the unfinished portrait by Joseph Lange, painted two years before his death. Of all the portraits Constanze said this one had best captured Mozart’s likeness.

common grave on a rain-lashed day, with no followers, no doubt proved irresistible to contemporary historians. But the truth is different. Mozart died in the age of The Enlightenment which challenged traditional religious values, with their emphasis on the ceremonial, and influenced the thinking of Emperor Joseph 11 who even issued a decree enforcing a ‘new simplicity’. So Mozart was not buried in a pauper’s grave, but it has to be said, only one notch above. It was also common practice at that time for mourners to accompany the corpse to the city gates and for the carriage to proceed to the cemetery where the burial was carried out by the lone gravediggers.

At the time of Mozart’s death he and Constanze had been together for ten years and in spite of their ups and downs they adored each other and were publicly demonstrative in their affections, often to the irritation of their friends. Certainly during their relationship they both had numer ous opportunities to be unfaithful: Mozart spent long periods away from Vienna and Constanze on his various operatic and concerts projects where he would inevitably come into contact with female instrumental and singer soloists; Constanze, for her part, would have made many male friends and acquaintances during her stays in Baden as well when Mozart was out of town.

Speculation has continued over the years regarding the possibility of infidelity by one or both; but in my researches I could find no convincing evidence but concede that it might exist. A tantalising hypothesis concerns the actor and artist Joseph Lange who painted what Constanze described as the most convincing likeness in his portrait of Mozart. The work was unfinished; one theory being that the artist discovered that his wife was having an affair with Mozart and abandoned it in disgust. His wife? Aloysia Weber.

Four three-CD set of Mozart’s music from Naxos to be won Senior Times, in association with Naxos Music, the world’s largest producer of classical music recordings, are offering four three-CD sets of Mozart’s music in this competition.

Lasting two and a half hours the three CDs comprise some of Mozart’s most popular music, including concertos, symphonies, operas, piano work, chamber music, sacred works etc. This is a magnificent collection of the works of music’s greatest musical genius who started composing at the age of five.

To enter the competition simply answer this question: How old was Mozart when he first started composing?

Send your entries to: Mozart Competition, Senior Times, Unit 1, 15 Oxford Lane, Ranelagh, Dublin 6. Or email to: john@slp.ie The first four correct winners drawn are the winners.

Deadline for receipt of entries is August 31st 2020.

Dublin Dossier Pat Keenan on happenings in and around the capital

A tale of love and sausages..

Hafners advertised on an old Dublin tram

When my Aunt Kathleen went visiting relations in England and Scotland she would never leave Dublin without a few pound of sausages.

Not sure if the sausages over there were somehow inferior or that the exiled Keenans preferred a taste of home. Odd thing was, those Dublin sausages most likely had German names - Olhausen (Olnhausen), Reinhardts, Hafners, Youkstetters (Jauchstetter), Mogerleys (Mögerle) Seezer or Speidel.

Today your average Dubliner will still love their Irish sausages but nowadays will most likely return from the supermarket with Spanish Chorizo, German Bratwurst or Frankfurter, Polish Cabanossi or put my poor departed aunty into a grave spin, with a English Cumberland or a Lincolnshire. And whatever happened to Dublin coddle? Most Dubs probable never tasted coddle, let alone know what it is, an anemic looking concocted stew of boiled salty bacon, sausages, potatoes and sometimes a carrot or onion - in fairness it tastes better than it looks.

Something else has changed, that Cumberland and nearly all British 'bangers', Wall's, Bowyers, Richmond and Porkinson are now owned by an Irish company - Kerry Foods.

All in all it still comes down to local tastes. The sausages Aunt Kathleen took with her used Irish ingredients and recipes. During the latter part of the 19th century there was an influx into Ireland of people from Central Europe, Many were pork butchers, mostly from southern Germany's Hohenlohe region and they set up butcher shops across Dublin. Take young William Olhausen, a Bavarian master butcher, he arrived in Dublin in pursuit of the love of his life, young Margaret Hafner, daughter of one of Dublin’s already established German butchers. What with his fine German sausage-making skills and her pork parentage it was a perfect match. Soon the young couple marry and make beautiful sausages together. One of the wedding presents was a shop at 72 Talbot Street. It opened as Olhausens in 1896 making sausages, brawns and

The number 31 Howth Tram with 'Olhausen' advertised on the the front

puddings by hand behind the shop. A second shop followed in South Great Georges Street. They even get a mention in James Joyces Ulysses when Leopold Bloom ‘disappears into Olhausen’s, the porkbutcher’s, under the downcoming rollshutter’. A few moments later he emerges from under the shutter, ‘puffng Poldy, blowing Bloohoom. In each hand he holds a parcel.’ For William brand recognition was key, 'Olhausen' was advertised on the the front and sides of Dublin trams and Olhausen was the first ever to advertise on Radio Eireann, paying five pounds for five minutes.

There were native Dublin brands too, John Kearns made sausages in 1905 in Parnell Street. Terence Gormley had ten shops in Dublin, the sausages were made at the Dorset Street shop. Granby Sausages started in 1933 by John Kavanagh in Granby Place, off Parnell Square.

There was also Byrnes, Donnelly, and Superquinn - Fergal Quinn got the idea on a trip to Nuremberg when he saw a supermarket that had its own sausage factory next door.

Senior Times l August 2020 l www.seniortimes.ie 39

Dublin Dossier

When Whistler came to Sutton

'Craige' was here on the Howth Road, Sutton (opposite SuperValu entrance) Whistler stayed here in 1900

Whistler’s Howth Head oil on board painted in 1900 -fetched $245,000 in auction at Christies

A long, long time ago when I had just left school, I was told of a strange man who once lived nearby at Sutton Cross. Locals called called him ‘the whistler’. The house was called Craige and this newcomer caused a local stir when he partially covered the front north facing windows with brown paper. Turns out he was the American artist James Abbott McNeill Whistler most famously known for that much parodied painting Whistler's Mother.

Whistler spent most of his life in Europe - Paris but mainly London. His short Sutton stay was in 1900, he would have been 66, he died three years later. He came to Ireland accompanied by sister in law Rosalind Birnie Philip. His wife Beatrice died in 1896 and Rosalind acted as his secretary and in time would be his sole beneficiary. We know where he stayed, in a letter dated Aug.23 1900 to Ernest Brown, at the Fine Art Society, London he gives his address as Craigie, Sutton, nr.Baldoyle.

Co.Dublin, The house was opposite the entrance to SuperValu. It was demolished to make way for the small triangular shopping area formed between the Howth Road and Greenfield Road.

Self portrait of James Abbott McNeill Whistler ( circa 1872)

Whistler did very little work during his stay. Apparently he claimed the house was on the wrong side of the bay and that the weather was wretched. During lockdown I found one of his paintings online titled Howth Head, near Dublin -a small oil on board. -there was a second listing, perhaps more accurate,'whereabouts unknown.' I would respectfully say sketch rather than painting. In his time, that observation might have landed me in court.

painting priced at 200 guineas— a huge sum at the time. In his review Ruskin said the gallery ought not to have admitted works in which the ill-educated conceit of the artist so nearly approached the aspect of wilful imposture...but never expected to hear a coxcomb (conceited man) ask two hundred guineas for flinging a pot of paint in the public's face’.

Whistler won the case and was awarded a farthing in nominal damages.

The court costs were split which added to his already existing debts and made him bankrupt.

By all accounts Whistler had a combative and litigious nature. He once sued the renowned art critic John Ruskin for remarks about one of his

The small Howth Head oil sketch belonged by bequest to sister-in-law Rosalind. In 1989 it fetched $245,000 in auction at Christies.

40 Senior Times l August 2020 l www.seniortimes.ie

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Dublin Dossier

Educating Rita in Dublin

Mchael Caine and Julie Walters in Educating Rita

Aughrim Street Church in Stoneybatter was also featurted

Cocooned with my television I watched Educating Rita again. It was a journey back in time to Dublin the early 1980s. It wasn't supposed to be Dublin, it was thinly dressed up to be an English city, possibly Liverpool.

They threw in a few red telephone boxes, blacked out Irish names and everyone spoke like scousers. For whatever reasons, probably financial, it was shot entirely in or close to Dublin. When Professor Frank Bryant (Michael Caine) sees Rita (Julie Walters) off to summer school at Pearse Station, the platform sign normally reading Ardán is simply covered black. Her summer school is Belfield Campus UCD. The main action takes place around Trinity College, the tutorial room where Michael Caine lectures is the University Philosophical Society rooms. The wall portraits are a bit of a give away - Douglas Hyde, Irelands first President and Isaac Butt, Irish Nationalist leader. In his office (the College Historical Society) there's a bust of Irish classicist John Mahaffy.

Class divides are on view too, Professor Frank's swanky house is on Burlington Road, Ballsbridge while Rita and husband Denny live a peg or three down at 8 Hogan Avenue, in Ringsend. We get glimpses of the old gas works and a bleak street actually called Misery Hill, still there it is adjacent to the elegant glass and steel of Facebook headquarters.

Later Rita bumps into her old husband Denny and his new wife in the same grim area, Penrose Street, Ringsend as it was then. Professor Frank didn't have far to go for his holidays in France, actually St Patrick's College, Maynooth and the L'Éperon D'Or restaurant is Castletown House, Celbridge.

Other places depicted include Aughrim Street Church in Stoneybatter where Rita's sister Sandra gets married. Frank goes to a lively lights flashing disco at Stillorgan Park Hotel. Who doesn't remember afternoon long lunches at Dobbin's Wine Bistro at 15 Stephens Lane, (sadly it closed after over 30 years in 2015. Seeing Rita working as a waitress here brought back many happy memories.

Rita shares a flat another waitress Trish in Crosthwaite Park. And when Trish takes an overdose she is taken to Sir Patrick Dun's Hospital, Grand Canal Street, The hospital closed three years after the film was released. Magically in one scene, Rita walks into The Dame Tavern, 18 Dame Court and joins her family in a sing-a-long in another pub across the street, The Stag's Head. Near the end of the film the airport scene is shot at Dublin Airport, a British Airways plane is seen through the windows, prominently positioned to give the impression of a British airport ..but notice the Aer Lingus aircraft behind it.

A digital Bloomsday The first Dublin Bloomsday Festival was celebrated in 1954 but this year it was different, our journey across the capital was a digital one.

On the plus side my Bloomsday breakfast was also digital. Unable to find 'nutty gizzards' and 'mutton kidneys' I decided to forgo that famous breakfast - the one with the ‘fine tang of faintly scented urine.’

Nor did I find the ingredients for the 'giblet soup'.

But I improvised, a Cashel Blue substitute for Gorgonzola and the Burgundy was real. To catch-up online there are many readings, songs and films of the day at www.bloomsdayfestival.ie/ and www.jamesjoyce.ie/ 42 Senior Times l July August - August 2020 2020 l www.seniortimes.ie l www.seniortimes.ie

Irish Bucket List Tours Have you ever said I am going to visit such a place when I have the time or you may have a Bucket List that you will start to work on someday?

Well now that we are told not to travel outside the Island, we have the perfect time to see this beautiful country and to do it without the hassle of driving or organising hotels. When I travel as a passenger on a coach, I see so much more, and we all get little gems of information from each other.

We are spoilt for choice when it comes to unique places to visit in Ireland and the many amazing places that are not as well known as those on the Bucket List Tour.

We at the Galway Tour Company Limited have been taking people to these top visitor sights for many years, collectively over sixty years of experience and we have shown thousands of International Clients the beauty of our Island.

In these strange times, we are looking for reasons to stay at home in Ireland; we have decided to give more of our attention/expertise to the local Irish Market. Thus we are offering two tours of Ireland which will take people to the many beautiful places of natural beauty, wonder and peace. Don’t worry we will also be visiting some of the very well known sites like Number one on the Bucket List, The Cliffs of Moher or Blarney Castle, The Giants Causeway, Dingle, Slieve League Cliffs, Boyne Valley, Carrick a Reed, and so much more. We see places that have grown in popularity since they appeared in films or television series like Game Of Thrones or Star Wars.

Over the years, we have listened to the guests that we care for and have gained a great insight into what they want and more importantly, don’t want. Some of us have also worked for other larger operators and gained valuable knowledge.

We have planned that our tours will have a gentle pace. We will stay mostly in 4 Star Hotels, which have a Leisure Centre. Also, we will not be moving to a new hotel every day, so less hassle with packing and unpacking and no worries about weight restriction. If like me you

pack for all weathers, porters at our hotels will bring and take you bags from and to the coach and no extra cost to you like the airlines .

One of the most important features is that we will have limited numbers on our coaches. The largest group we will carry will be twenty-six on a fifty-two seater coach, i.e two seats for every guest. The same ratio will apply to our smaller coaches.

So what do you get on your Bucket List Tour?

We have divided these tours up as a Northern Tour and a Southern Tour. Both tours are for seven days and six nights leaving Dublin on a Sunday morning from a central location. If we have a group from one area or club, we can arrange a meeting point to suit them.

The Northern Bucket List Tour On this journey around the north of our Island, we take in some of the most awe-inspiring natural and man-made sites that are known worldwide. On your Tour, we will visit the Titanic centre, the Giants Causeway, the Boyne valley, Ards Peninsula, Glenveigh National Park, Sliabh League, Drumcliff, Achill Island Croagh Patrick, Leenane, Cong. We also visit the large centres of population in the region Belfast, Derry, Galway with local guides taking us on a tour of these and giving a little more insight on the history, beauty and some of the local stories, the funny and the sad. We will see the set locations from the likes of The Game Of Thrones”, “The Field” and “The Quiet Man”.

We have a few hidden gems to show you on this adventure around the Northern Tour of this magnificent Island.

The Southern Bucket List Tour If you decide that this is the Tour for you may pick up the gift of the Gab, that’s assuming you don’t have it already or see how to sheer a sheep, even adopt a lamb or bump into a Leprechaun. This Tour takes in such places as Glendalough, Avoca, Browne’s Dolmen, Holy Cross Abbey, Rock Of Cashel, Cahir Castle, National Heritage Park, Blarney, Moll’s gap, Slea Head, Muckross, Cliffs of Moher. We will have a local guide on our city tour of Waterford and the Galway city tour, as well as exploring Kilkenny, Killarney, Dingle, Cobh, New Ross, Ennis.

You may now say that I want to see the entire Island and hopefully many of you will do this.

On our tours, we visit 16 out of the top 25 sites on the Irish Bucket List tour and maybe your special one is on the list?

What’s included in your Bucket List Tour?

• The services of a Fáilte Ireland approved Driver/Guide throughout your Tour • Local Guides at specific sites and city tours • Hotels on a Bed & Breakfast basis sharing.

Five dinners or four dinners and one lunch.

• Modern coach with air conditioning.

• All entrance fees to the sites that we visit.

• Hotel Porterage.

We look forward to meeting you and helping you to enjoy the Wonderful Natural Beauty, The Majestic Sites, The Traditions and above all the warmth and the craic that we are known for the world over.

For further details and departure dates contact us at: info@galwaytourcomapany.com or 091 566566 Tour cost €1075, P.P.S. Single supplement €180 For your safety and peace of mind, all staff have been upskilled in the use of the latest generation of equipment to keep our coaches safe and clean.

Senior Times l August 2020 l www.seniortimes.ie 43

Literature

The River Shannon:

Ireland’s majestic waterway

The River Shannon flows through the heart of Ireland for over 360km from its source at the Cavan-Fermanagh border to its mouth between Kerry Head and Loop Head. In this beautiful new photographic book, acclaimed photographer Carsten Krieger takes us on a journey through bustling towns, villages and tranquil countryside in a collection which truly captures the essence of this majestic waterway and surrounding landscape.

Upper Lough Erne, Co Fermanagh

Marvel in the otherworldiness of the Marble Arch caves, the lush green colours along the banks of the Erne, and the reflective stillness of calm waters at sunset on the Shannon Estuary. Read about the rich history and legends linked to magnificent ancient castles, abbeys and monasteries which stand tall throughout these heartlands, from Enniskillen to Clonmacnoise, Portumna and Carrigaholt.

Carsten captures both the energy and tranquility along the Shannon, and the magic of nature, from county to county, as the seasons change. From the people who use the mighty river for recreation – sailors, kayakers, paddleboarders and fishermen, to the wildlife that inhabit it - mallards, pheasants, mute and whooper swans and the flora too - waterlilies, dandelions and irises.

This stunning new hardback, from the Clarebased photographer, captures the beauty and splendour of Ireland’s majestic and mighty River Shannon.

44 Senior Times l August 2020 l www.seniortimes.ie

Carsten Kreiger is a professional photographer based in the west of Ireland. His unique images of the Irish landscape are highly acclaimed and he is the author of several books of landscape and wildlife photography, including Ireland’s Ancient East, Ireland: Glorious Landscapes, Beautiful Landscapes of Ireland, Ireland’s Coast, Ireland’s Beautiful North (with

Dominic Kearney) and the hugely popular Irish Book Award-nominated Ireland’s Wild Atlantic Way. His photographs have been published in magazines and calendars and he also exhibits in Ireland and abroad on a regular basis. Carsten has sold almost 50,000 books to date.

Clonmacnoise, Co Offaly

Lough Allen from the Arigna Mountains, Co Leitrim

Garrykennedy, Lough Derg, Co Tipperary

Lough Arrow, Co Sligo

Three copies of The River Shannon – Ireland’s Majestic Waterway to be won!

Battlebridge, Co Leitrim

Senior Times, in associaiton with publishers, O’Brien Press, are offering three copies of The River Shannon – Ireland’s Majectic Waterway in this competition. To enter simply answer this question; Where is the source of the River Shannon?

Send your entries to: River Shannon Competition, Senior Times, Unit 1, 15 Oxfordf Lane, Ranelagh, Dublin 6.

Or email: john@slp.ie The first three correct entries drawn are the winners. Deadline for receipt of entries is 5th September 2020

Western Ways George Keegan on happenings along the Western Seaboard in travel , the arts, food and entertainment

New brewer added to Limerick’s attractions

Stephen Cunneen, the owner, inside the ‘pub’ in the brewery . The Treaty Brewery will produce a number of beers, including two IPAs, a pale ale and a red ale.

In the brewing process there are no additives or preservatives used and the water comes from the river Shannon

Two new drink production outlets have opened in the past twelve months on the West Coast, one using ancient methods and recipes to produce quality whiskey, the other a microbrewery in the heart of Limerick’s Medieval Quarter.

In May 2019 a brand new micro-brewery opened to the public in Limerick. Named the Treaty City Brewery it is located in the city’s Medieval Quarter on Nicholas Street where two derelict buildings with previous links to an 18th century brewing industry lay idle for a number of years.

Historical records show that Number 25 was once home of Arthur Roche three times Mayor of the city who had his own brewery situated at the rear. This brewery operated until 1756. There are records the City Brewery ( also known as Newgate Brewery) in Newgate Lane was in fact one of the first breweries in the south of the country proving brewing was once a thriving industry from the 1700’s around this Medieval Quarter.

The new brewery was awarded the lease of numbers 24 and 25 as part of Limerick City and County Council’s strategy to revitalise this street.

The owner subsequently started to use the micro-brewery as an experimental and innovation hub to develop new beer recipes complimenting its large production facility. In the brewing process there are no additives or preservatives used and the water comes from the river Shannon.

Names of the beers include Harris Pale Ale, Thomond Red Ale and Shannon River IPA. 46 Senior Times l August 2020 l www.seniortimes.ie

Stephen Cunneen the owner who has a degree in engineering decided to sympathetically fit out the properties reflecting the period architecture, ‘we tried to be as true to the heritage of the area as possible and let the building speak to us. The original windows and surrounds were kept and all paint colours were mixed on site to match the colours of the plasterwork on the walls’. These were certainly important decisions as the brewery stands a very short distance from St. John’s Castle.

Speaking to Senior Times Stephen said ‘since opening in 2019 we developed a number of revenue streams in our new facility and during the summer period offered group tours and tastings which proved very popular with tourists and locals alike. This year we are planning on expanding this offering to coffees, plus adding some music and entertainment which we feel will enhance the already notable offering. Outside seating is being installed to allow summer afternoons enjoying a beer on the newly pedestrianised street’. Last December the brewery hosted its first wedding which Stephen says was a roaring success.

The Treaty City Brewery is normally open 6 days a week with tours operating several times a day. They also welcome corporate groups, private beer tastings, food and beer pairings and special events. A new on-line shop has recently been added. ‘Plans are being put in place to re-open when the time is right following the Covid-19 pandemic’, Stephen told me. www.treatycitybrewery.ie .

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Western Ways

Whiskey just the tipple for The Burren It is known that one of very first whiskey distilling operations started in the Banner County was by the Cistercian monks at Corcomroe Abbey beside Bell Harbour in the heart of the Burren. Now 400 or so years later a new enterprise has started close to the village of Ballyvaughan not only producing a good whiskey but using the same methods as the monks all those years ago.

Clare native Noel O’Lochlainn decided about 10 years ago to re-invent a distillery business in the area using the same methods and locally grown grain. Nearly 30 years previously he was involved as one of a team researching the Burren clans of old including the O’Lochlainns and the idea to open a distillery and produce premium whiskey was born. Noel has worked for close to 50 years in the wine and spirit business including a vineyard and wine making facility in France.

He sought planning permission for his project but was refused.

Eventually in 2014 it was given the green light by An Bord Pleannála and plans went ahead to construct the distillery, warehouse and small malting. In 2015 he gathered together a small group of investors for the project all from different walks of life. Work started in 2018 and production began last year.

The whiskey is made in the Sean Gael style which is pre-Norman and it’s the only floor malted barley matured in virgin Irish oak barrels anywhere in Ireland.

New book on River Shannon

Noel points out that the grain as in old times comes from Corcomroe, the whole operation is a 100% natural and includes a lot of re-cycling. “The residue of the malt processed is used to feed cattle in a nearby farm and spent pot ale is flushed into a large copper tank then used as fertiliser.

The copper component is very helpful for the Burren. Most of the water we require comes from our own well with added rain water”.

The whiskey is made in the Sean Gael style which is pre-Norman and it’s the only floor malted barley matured in virgin Irish oak barrels anywhere in Ireland. In the past year Jack O’Shea the noted distiller and whiskey consultant came on board in a consultancy role. Approximately four times a year samples are sent to Maynooth University for analysis to ensure everything conforms to set standards.

Noel plans to sell the whiskey to Whiskey Clubs which are increasing around the world, similar to wine societies. ‘We are small producers (up to 50,000 bottles a year maximum) so compared to medium sized operations producing 2-3 million bottles we will not be in a position to supply pubs or hotels . Marketing worldwide will begin in earnest towards the end of 2020’.

Bord Bia he says have been very helpful on the marketing front and some months ago brought a Russian group to the plant who were very impressed with what they saw. There are high hopes of exporting also to Japan and the Middle East.

For now work continues on the lay- out of the premises and Noel is training four young local people as distillers and the craft of malting. While the distillery will not be open to the public for the foreseeable future a time will come, he points out, when visitors will be able to source and taste the whiskey, but only around the local area of the Burren.

48 Senior Times l August 2020 l www.seniortimes.ie

Keep an eye out in your local bookshop for a new book by prolific travel writer Paul Clements called Shannon Country in the footsteps of Richard Hayward.

Just prior to WW2 Irish travel writer Richard Hayward set out on a road trip exploring the Shannon region. Now 80 years on and inspired by this book Paul has re-traced the journey of some 344km travelling by car, foot, bicycle and boat discovering how the riverscape has changed but is still powerful in symbolism.

The book includes stories told by anglers, sailors, lock keepers and bog artists among others and the writer gives an intimate portrait of the hidden countryside, its people, topography and wildlife. It is published by Lilliput Press and due to go on sale very soon.

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Depaul: looking after the homeless for over 100 years

The Alzheimer Society of Ireland expands National Helpline

For more than a century, Depaul’s Back Lane Hostel has been caring for the homeless. Since 2002 Depaul has kept the door open serving some of the most vulnerable in our society'

Depaul is a cross-border charity supporting people who are homeless or experiencing homelessness. In 2002 Depaul were invited by the Vincentian Family and the Irish Government of the time to create Back Lane in 1915 services for people who had found themselves on the margins of society. Depaul’s low threshold approach to service delivery meant that people could receive the support they so badly needed.

Along the way we have pioneered, creating services never imagined before. Like our Sundial House service in Dublin which was set up in 2008.

This service provides long term accommodation for people who previously had long spells of rough sleeping and who have entrenched alcohol addiction.

Over the years our specialised approach has remained. For example our Suaimhneas service is designed to support women who are transitioning from drug treatment programmes. In our distinctive Tus Nua service we provide support to women who are leaving Dochas prison and who were at risk of homelessness.

More recently we have been supporting families and individuals residing in Direct Provision Centres through our Cosán Nua or ‘New Path’ service, helping those who have been granted asylum to begin to integrate within communities across Ireland. Last year we worked across seven counties, helping to find accommodation for 328 people, including 168 adults and 160 children.

In the midst of the current Covid-19 pandemic Depaul has yet again been at the forefront. In partnership with other homeless charities, isolation units were set up and hundreds of the most vulnerable cocooned safely as we navigate through this unprecedented health crisis.

Depaul works under five key areas of service provision. These include; Health & Rehabilitation, High Support Accommodation, Families & Young People, Prevention and Housing. From our first service we have grown to now provide over 30 specialised services across the island of Ireland.

As we have grown we have taken with us our specialised approach, meeting people where they are at in life. Free from judgement and always with care and compassion. Last year Depaul helped over 4,500 men, women and children. We continue to deliver on our mission to end homelessness and change lives.

To find out more about Depaul visit ie.depaulcharity.org 50 Senior Times l August 2020 l www.seniortimes.ie

Since the COVID-19 emergency, the Alzheimer Society of Ireland’s, ASI, National Helpline, which celebrates its 20th anniversary this year, is experiencing increased calls from people with dementia and their family carers who are feeling increasingly isolated in their own communities. The issues on these calls include difficulties adapting the new routine and to new challenges connected to sleep disruption, increased confusion, frustration and lack of motivation and concerns about personal care and continence management to name but a few.

The National Helpline has expanded with a new free call-back service which offers people with dementia and family carers from anywhere in Ireland the opportunity to book a 1:1 session with a Dementia Nurse or a Dementia Adviser during the COVID-19 public health emergency.

This new service creates a space for people with dementia and their families to raise issues that may be arising for them during the cocooning phase of the COVID-19 Emergency including changes in behaviour, medication, continence management, issues regarding nutrition and hydration as well as carer stress and strategies to cope.

People with dementia and their family carers who want to avail of this new service can contact the National Helpline on 1800 341 341, email at helpline@alzheimer.ie or via Live Chat at www.alzheimer.ie to make an appointment. The Helpline is open Monday to Friday 10am to 5pm and on Saturdays 10am to 4pm.

The Alzheimer Society of Ireland has also developed some tip sheets and a number of factsheets to help support people with dementia and their families in a challenging and rapidly changing situation including information on activities, changes in behaviour as well as tip sheets for people with dementia and supporting people with dementia in the community for more information visit www.alzheimer.ie/ The health crisis has been a perfect storm for people with dementia and their carers with the closure of our day centres in particular, along with social clubs, Alzheimer cafés and face-to-face carer training.

However, throughout this public health emergency, The ASI has continued to support people with dementia and their families as our Home Care, Dementia Advisers, Alzheimer National Helpline and Online Family Carer Training have remained operational.

The ASI has also implemented new ways of providing ASI supports remotely to our clients and their families such as regular telephone calls and activity packages for people to use in their own homes, new Virtual Cafés and an Online Support Group for Family Carers.

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Creative Writing Eileen Casey

Life story in lockdown

My paternal grandfather and his people before him, built a lot of the still standing fine buildings in Birr, County Offaly, including the Post Office

Hi everyone, it’s good to be back and to be writing for Senior Times again. It’s some semblance of normality in these abnormal times. Just before the lockdown I received good news from a friend. Seven years ago, I attend my nephew’s wedding on Long Island. A glorious day, beautiful wedding and wonderful guests. Among them was one really interesting lady, the bride’s grandmother, Walstrout (Wally) Stanton.

Wally married an American after WW2 and had a very happy life with him. Indeed, her whole life to date is a life well lived. I featured Wally in Senior Times many years ago but I’d just like to say that yes, her memoir is published Do not be Afraid where she recounts growing up in Germany as a young girl and her transitioning to America when she eventually married her husband.

Memoir is a fascinating subject. We all have stories to tell. .I spent the lockdown researching my paternal grandparents. The Cordial name is associated with building in County Offaly. Stonemasons for generations, my paternal grandfather and his people before him, built a lot of the still standing fine buildings in Birr, County Offaly, including the Post Office.

The Cordial name and its association with stonemasonry is mentioned in Jackie Lynch’s My Hometown , a beautiful book of photographs featuring buildings of note in Birr. So because of my lockdown research, I thought it a good idea to encourage readers to explore their family history. Memoir is a wonderful way to pass down the legacy of family lore.

It’s fair to say that tracing the family tree, while being a specialised area, is also far more accessible nowadays. Genealogy, for example, is online 52 Senior Times l August 2020 l www.seniortimes.ie

James Joyce was always trawling through newspapers, especially The Courts’ Section. However, for mining family history, it definitely helps to be a hoarder

with lots of really strong websites and if you are going down that route, you will already know that these quests usually begin with documents (birth certificates etc.). Researching old newspaper archives can often yield a gem from a particular timeframe, a gem which will sparkle in your writing. For example: On one of my trips to the States, I came across a commemorative newspaper journal which gives the front page for all the inaugurations of American Presidents. Together with details of these events however, there’s also lovely references to the news of the day, including advertisements. I discovered that some years before the sinking of Titanic, The Duchess of Manchester refused to pay the excise on corsets she had brought in from France and that they were impounded and placed in a warehouse for public auction. Again, these details may be a case of one man’s meat, another man’s poison but there’s often enough ‘meat on the bone’ to feed the imaginative juices.

James Joyce was always trawling through newspapers, especially The Courts’ Section. However, for mining family history, it definitely helps to be a hoarder (not in ‘Hoarder next Door’ mode) but to be able to hold onto papers/objects that are definitely going to help you write your memoir. Letters are extremely important to keep. I purchased a box of ‘crap’ (my husband’s words) recently at a car boot sale. However, in the box I found a letter dated 12th August, 1914 from The Travellers’ Aid Society (a society set up to help vulnerable young women travelling on boats and trains in search of work). I’m chuffed by the idea of having a letter that’s one hundred years old. I may be able to use it in a ‘factional’ way in a memoir. Overall, I keep important things, at least they are important to

+ 44 117 927 2236 ST120

ST120

Creative Writing

Renoir’s Breakfast of the Rowers, is a particular favourite image of mine, I just adore its colours and vivacity.

me. Some of the ‘papers’ have not been written about yet, the Blasket Islands Ferry ticket from 25th June, 1996, for example, which itemises two adults and three children under 12.

a way of writing down the plan of a story/timeline etc. It can be rolled up and put away but it has the ‘mileage’ to allow for extensive, see at a glance, details.

Recording dreams can be very useful, especially when it comes to exploring recurring images/events. The dream symbol and the world of the surreal can often add exquisite atmosphere to the ‘real’ world of memoir. Neil Jordan’s novel The Dream of a Beast, (for this reader at any rate) is a superb introduction to this type of writing.

Renoir’s Breakfast of the Rowers, is a particular favourite image of mine, I just adore its colours and vivacity. It was the first item to be taped to my storyboard. I remembered a poem called Quoof by Paul Muldoon which demonstrates how each family have their own intimate relationship with language ( the quoof in question standing for hot water bottle in the poem). One of the contributors to Flavours of Home mentioned a ‘yark’ of butter, a word unique to that family but very memorable nonetheless.

And triggered by Muldoon’s poem.

In 2008, I devised and edited a memoir publication for South Dublin County Social Inclusion Unit, Flavours of Home, (Fiery Arrow Press).

The memoir collection is structured around food. Each contributor was invited to submit a family recipe and a memory associated with that recipe. The collection features over thirty contributors from all over the world. Irish writers who contributed include Colm Keegan, Louise Phillips, David Mohan, Thom Moore (‘Carolina Rua,’/Planxty), Declan Collinge among others. At the time, I facilitated a number of workshops based around the theme of the publication, workshops which set the ball rolling as it were and helped the participants to research family history in ways which would produce a good solid piece of writing.

The first piece of advice I gave was that the rose coloured spectacles were to be left off, advice that the writers, to a man, heeded. The gathering of personal history from a family perspective, connected to the sharing of food, proved memorable indeed. After all, food in literature, film art has universal resonance. I bought a roll of wallpaper and used it as my portable storyboard. Incidentally, wallpaper is very useful as 54 Senior Times l August 2020 l www.seniortimes.ie

Babette’s Feast (Isak Dinesen) was important to my research. It brought to mind that food has nurturing elements and how eating well in convivial company can erase the ‘greyness’ which envelopes us at times. Food is both evocative and sensual. No mention of literature in relation to food would be complete without Joanne Harris’s ‘Chocolat,’ or James Joyce’s ‘The Dead,’ from Dubliners. I have already mentioned the section from Brian Keenan’s ‘An Evil Cradling,’ which describes his sighting of the colour orange. All of these elements provided vital opening discussion, a general introduction to the personal while also providing themes.

Opening the storehouse of memory required certain triggers, best meal, worst meal, ‘three telling things about family life,’ (snapshots) ‘a ritual or a celebration,’ (ritual is an extremely interesting process to bear in mind when any family activity is being remembered). Family photo-

Creative Writing graphs/documents (food receipts in this case) were all taped to the storyboard. It’s absolutely incredible how one avenue leads to another when memory is being mind. The world of radio, what music played while in the kitchen and of course, the weather (steamed up windows or clear blue skies). On the subject of music, it’s good to research the music from a particular memory timeframe. In my case, Horslips and Thin Lizzy were my favourites and of course I would mention those.

Because I gave each writer a word limitation, it was essential to know what to leave in and what to leave out. The resulting memory pieces were all excellent. The best advice was the removal of the rose coloured spectacles. One of the themes which emerges in Flavours of Home,’is how food can be used as a political tool. Consider this small excerpt from Brian Kirk’s A Small Tyranny: How did I live back then? All week I scoffed the thickly buttered heels of homemade wheaten bread or snacked on stolen biscuits while my mother was diverted by her never ending chores. I am a bloody fool.

How did I live with myself? All week I acted like a spoiled brat, a boy who cared nothing for his poor mother’s feelings. I sat before her with creased lips firmly shut, arms folded, unbreakable, unflinching. For a while she scolded, then she begged, next she screamed. Eventually, she cried. I remained aloof however. Little by little I ground her down, and so began the small tyranny of mince and gravy.

Colm Keegan’s French Toast, has a wonderful opening which broadens the personal into the universal: For best results, your first experience of French toast should be when watching the film Kramer vs. Kramer, the old movie that depicts the break-up of family. Ideally, you should be about five years of age or so, with your own parents already split up. When Dustin Hoffman tries to make everything alright for his small son by cooking French toast and it ends in tears, you should feel bad for them both, and somehow for yourself.

Leave the memory to steep in your subconscious, along with things like your first kiss, or the first time you felt grass tickle the soles of your feet. Let it sit until you don’t even know it’s there. Then, when a friend cooks French toast with maple syrup for you in his beautiful new country home, you should get impressed by the woody surroundings and the glorious conservatory instead of making connections. When you take the recipe home, you should hardly recognise its worth.

Weather is an opening detail from Long Hallways in Wroclaw, by Anna Sudol: When I was maybe ten years old, I remember a freezing winter’s day.

My mum let me go out to play to a nearby hill with my best friend and her younger brother. My dad gave me the sled and mum dressed me up warm to go out. With my friend Julia and her brother we were told we should go to a really close by little hill (man-made), which was beside our apartments in a street called Sliczna (which means ‘beautiful’ in translation). Instead we went to a forbidden high hill, far away from home. So we had to walk a long while and when we got to it, we enjoyed ourselves one hundred per cent. There was lots of snow around us and sleds on which we slid down the hill for hours. But after a long while had gone by, our parents started looking for us and we started to freeze. When our parents found us, we were in big trouble. However, Mum saw how cold we were and set about preparing our favourite, pierogi.

Beckett said that the ballast of the ordinary is what keeps us going

Having a healthy, investigative curiosity Wherever I go, I always make sure to bring away a map, whether mental or physical. I actually like the ‘look’ of maps, tracing pathways through landscape, giving me place names. The last country I visited (in May, 2014) was Malta and taking a leaf out of Anna Sudol’s curiosity, I found out that the meaning of Malta is ‘honey-sweet.’ As it happened, I didn’t much like Malta at all so, if I ever come to write about my experience I will invert ‘honey-sweet,’ to ‘bitter-sweet.’ Yet, I still went on all the tours and visited exhibitions etc. My curiosity will always come to my rescue and even if my interest is diminished, I will always want to know the whys and wherefore’s. Travel is very good for curiosity BUT, and it only occurred to me recently, I’ve never taken a city tour bus of my home city, Dublin. It’s on the next to do list. On that note; explore a part of your neighbourhood/ town/city that you’ve never been to before.

Being curious has many guises. Healthy curiosity of course. Take people. I love to learn about peoples’ lives, how they get through the day. Beckett said that the ballast of the ordinary is what keeps us going.

Yet, there is always a spark of something different in other peoples’ circumstances that makes us want to read the memoir genre in the first place. And you must be alert to what makes the characters in your story tick. You must be curious enough about them to observe and listen, to dredge from the subconscious a piece of unusual flotsam that washes up on your shore. A good listener is always rewarded, I’m of the opinion.

Also, in keeping with ‘Flavours of Home,’ eat something you’ve never tried before it’s a taste sensation that may enter your memoir in ways you can’t even imagine.

Prompts: Tell about a document you have in your possession, of interest for some reason.

Or Using a map, retrace your ‘memoir footsteps’ through a place where something wonderful happened to you. This can be a real experience or a dream sequence.

Or Construct a sensual memoir around a family meal.

Senior Times l August 2020 l www.seniortimes.ie 55

Wine World

Wine to make you smile this summer Mairead Robinson suggests some great French wines to brighten the summer days.

Always on the lookout for something new and different, I was delighted to come across a range of wines called Lou Gat recently from a family producer in the Gascogne region. Landowner-wine merchant, Maison Marcellin is part of the evolution of a family estate, whose winemaking know-how has been enriched by the work of three generations.

Located in Condom in the heart of Gascony, Maison Marcellin continues the tradition by producing and marketing wines from CĂ´tes de Gascogne, exceptional Armagnacs and French brandy.

Both the story behind the name, and the label are particularly interesting. First of all the name Lou Gat means the cat in the local dialect Occitanie. A legend dating back to the 13th century tells that after a decade of disastrous climate, crops were scarce and famine settled.

In the village, they decided to eat cats by cooking them, leading to cat's extinction and a proliferation of rats who ate the vines. Thanks to Angeline, who kept a couple of cats hidden in her attic preserving their lives, 20 kittens were born. She then decided to drop them in the village and they decimated the rats, thus saving the viticulture. A Pied Piper story with a happy ending!

The labels are simple yet striking – quite a novelty in French wine. They are all screwcap closures and each of the three wines are named simply by colour. Yellow, blue and purple.

56 Senior Times l August 2020 l www.seniortimes.ie

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Lou Gat is a mosaic representation of the long area of Gascony, which includes different types of soils and climates. While in the north area the calcareous bedrock suits perfectly black grapes (Lou Gat Purple) and some of white like Sauvignon (Lou Gat Blue), the clayish tawny sand soils from the west and the south of the region favours aromatic white grapes as the Colombard and Gros Manseng (Lou Gat Yellow) The winemaker intends the wines to be ‘straight, fresh and fruity’. The purpose of the design is to simplify the wine in order to catch a large audience with a friendly animal easy to recognize. The rainbow of colours expresses the dominant fruit / profile of each wine: ‘Yellow: lemon, citrus fruits. Blue: blue-grey limestone, blue flowers (lavender, lilac). Purple: Black fruit.’

The yellow wine is an aromatic white, perfect as a summertime aperitif and with light fish and pasta dishes. It would also accompany spicy Eastern dishes nicely. The blue wine is made up of 100per cent Sauvignon, and is a pleasantly dry white wine perfect with seafood or fish dishes and also as an aperitif. Both wines should be served nicely chilled. My 58 Senior Times l August 2020 l www.seniortimes.ie

favourite is the purple wine, a gorgeous blend of Tannat, Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot. A beautiful summer red wine, this easy drinking wine matches well with cheeses and grilled meats and is sure to be a people pleaser if you bring it out for a summer meal. Friendly and approachable wines, the French cat purrs

perfectly for the season – keep an eye out for those intense French cat eyes!

Lou Gatt can be found in Baggot Street Wines, Dublin 4 and La Touche Wines For You, Dublin 6. RRP for such wine is between €16 and €18

Northern

By Debbie Orme

Notes

Bernie Allen, an inspiration to all The lockdown caused by COVID-19 may have forced many of us to step back and take some time out, but two Northern Ireland ladies certainly haven’t taken their foot off the accelerator!

Just before the lockdown began, I had the privilege and pleasure to meet these outstanding women who, I have to say, really made an impression on me.

First of all, I met with Belfast woman, Bernie Allen.

Bernie really is an inspiration. Not only has she risen from the ashes of collapsed businesses and personal devastation, she’s now revealed some of the secrets of her journey back to success in her new book, How To Succeed in Business and Life: What’s Holding You Back?

There’s no doubt that, over the past two decades, Bernie has overcome a lot of adversity, including difficulties in family and business, and relationship breakups.

Two businesses also collapsed, leading to debts of £78,000, and she then, perhaps unsurprisingly, suffered significant health issues.

‘I owned a restaurant in a mall that didn’t live up to the promises I was made,’ Bernie told Northern Notes, ‘and I also had a newsagent that failed because a big garage opened next door. I truly didn’t know where to turn; I used to tell people my duvet became my best friend because I didn’t want to get out of bed and face reality.

Bernie Allen at the launch of her book

‘I didn’t know where my next source of income was coming from, but I was then introduced to the world of network marketing and set up a home-based business opportunity with no overheads. Needless to say, I grabbed it with both hands and ran with it.

that they shouldn’t let anyone tell you that you can build a successful business without having to make sacrifices.’

‘I set myself a five-year business plan and my top priority was to pay off my debts, but I actually managed to achieve that in four-and-a-half years and I became debt-free and financially secure.’

Armed with her new self-knowledge, Bernie decided to put her own experiences and subsequent success into print after a talk she gave at a convention called ‘Camp Someday’.

Spurred on by her own experience, Bernie decided to try and help others who had experienced the difficulties that she had encountered. She began by interviewing hundreds of entrepreneurs, business owners and thought leaders to find out what had either held them back or what was continuing to hold them back, ‘In my experience,’ she continued, ‘all those who succeed are the people who are prepared to do what they need to do to get what they want to get, don’t make excuses, are always prepared to learn more of the how-to and are genuinely interested in helping others achieve and get out of the money versus happiness trap,

‘During that talk, I spoke about the difficulties and challenges I came up against both in my personal and business life, and how I identified and overcame them,’ she says. ‘The audience response was overwhelming and after every event, it was the same response. I decided to put it into this book to help others overcome some issues that might be holding them back.’

‘To get to the top it’s all about what is going on between your two ears, so self-development is even more important than learning.

‘I have travelled the world in search of empowerment knowledge and have spent hundreds of thousands of pounds on seminars, books, webinars, CDs, booking trainers and attending conventions globally.

‘While I was growing my self-confidence and motivation I had to make sacrifices, to succeed, but, it was all worth it. I tell everyone I come across

Since achieving her success, Bernie has been working to support charities, including Puppies for the Blind and fundraisers for schools and children in Uganda.

Bernie says she wrote the book to help readers identify where they have been and why they have been there, or where they are now and how they got there. She also wants to help them get to where they want to go.

‘I hope that people will enjoy the book and that they find some golden nuggets for the growth of their own success,’ she says.

Senior Times l August 2020 l www.seniortimes.ie 59

Patience Bradley with her husband Ivor

Patience in her modelling days

From Superstars stars to Superman Not long after I met Bernie, I was invited to Holywood in County Down to spend a day with a former Vogue model! Try as I might, I can’t really think of an adjective to describe my meeting with Patience Bradley. From her pink wig, to her leather-look leggings, to her ’diva’ Chihuahua, Mary Rose – an actress and a model – my day with Patience is one that I will never forget.

This unique, absolutely fabulous woman has led a life that many would only dream of but she’s now enjoying her retirement in the seaside town with the ‘love of her life’, husband Ivor.

Whisked away from her Northern Ireland home at fourteen to appear on the front-page of international fashion magazines, Patience Bradley certainly experienced the glamorous lifestyle. From photoshoots in Milan, to becoming a brief stand-in dancer for Legs and Co on Top of the Pops, it was a lifestyle that saw her on everything from television to billboards.

But it all came at a price.

A few years ago, Patience published a heartfelt account of her battle with bulimia a she pursued her modelling career. My Secret Is Out was an honest, gripping and at times humbling diary of her struggle against this terrible condition that afflicts so many. As always, Patience laid her soul on the line. ‘No matter what I’ve done in life since I’ve had bulimia,’ she says, ‘I have never been able to get away from the haunting thought of food. That’s why I wrote the book in diary form. It’s my diary and how I feel about things. I wanted it to be a help and a comfort.’

Now, however, Patience has turned her attention to a more enjoyable subject: her fascinating life! ‘Where do you go to my lovely?’ is a frank and honest romp through her life at the top of photographic modelling, and Patience draws on a bank of amusing anecdotes about her time in front of the camera.

Arriving in London in the late 70s, the teenager, then known as Patti Lawrence, had been invited to model by Vogue magazine. By her 60 Senior Times l August 2020 l www.seniortimes.ie

mid-late teens she was rubbing shoulders and partying with the biggest names in showbiz.

She recounts, for example, how she became friends with ‘Superman’, aka Christopher Reeve, during her modelling heyday.

Patience hit it off with superstar Reeve over their mutual love of horse riding. ‘Many years ago,’ she writes in her book, ‘I had a chance encounter at a party with a very handsome young American actor called Christopher Reeve. He was charming and oh so handsome. He was also in London making a film where he played the lead role - Superman.

‘We had a mutual love of and interest in horses and when, over the years, we were at the same events, he would always make a point of coming over to chat with me.’

Christopher Reeve certainly made an impact on the young model. ‘During that time I would have encountered a lot of people who were incredibly false,’ she says. ‘Everything to them was about image, looking for the next big break. You could see as they were talking to you that their eyes were scanning the room looking to see who could help them in their career and, as soon as one was spotted, you were dropped like a hot potato. ‘This wasn’t the case with Christopher. He was a genuinely charming man. The charm was not an act, it was simply who he was. Good looks in men can work in one of two ways. Some good-looking men feel entitled. They are gorgeous and you should be grateful that you are breathing the same air as them. Christopher was genuinely uninterested in his looks. He was simply a very nice person. But why shouldn’t he be? He had a beautiful wife, a great career and three beautiful children.’

Patience even remembers fondly the moment she met the Hollywood superstar after his widely publicised accident that left him paralysed. ‘After he fell from the horse during a show-jumping competition, everything changed. He was left paralysed from the neck down, unable to breathe without the aid of a

Patience got to know Superman (Christopher Reeve)

ventilator. No-one would have blamed him if he had just given up,’ she says. ‘What we all learnt was that he didn’t just act like Superman, he really was a super man. Instead of retreating from society, he embraced it.

‘It was a few years after the accident that I found out I was going to be at the same event as him. I’ll be honest, I was nervous about how I would cope with meeting him again. His young son was there and I watched from across the room as his son held a drink up for his father, wiped his mouth and then lifted his father’s hand to his own cheek.

‘I took a deep breath and walked over to see my old friend. We chatted and he introduced me to his young son, Will. The same charm was there, the blue eyes still held you mesmerised and suddenly all pity was gone. In its place was an overwhelming sense of admiration and pride for such a wonderful individual.

‘When I decided to write this memoir,’ says Patience, ‘I imagined that it was a chat with a friend over a coffee. These are the tales and stories from back stage and the limelight.’

As someone, who spent a day that I will never forget, I can assure you that Patience Bradley’s life is one unlike any other. Brave, unique and yet totally humble, she really is a special lady.

Northern Notes

Creative Writing

Community pharmacies throughout Ireland – north and south – really stepped up to the plate during the height COVID-19 pandemic.

Many communities would have been left in dire straits had it not been for the amazing contribution that pharmacists and their teams made to their patients and their welfare.

Now, the Mayor of Mid and East Antrim Borough Council, Councillor Peter Johnston, has awarded Kells & Connor Pharmacy with certificates of recognition for their tireless work throughout the coronavirus pandemic.

Councillor Johnston’s sincere thanks and congratulations were offered to the local volunteers, who had come forward to offer support to the local community pharmacy by way of completing mass deliveries of prescription medication to those shielding.

‘It was great to have the opportunity to go out and deliver some of the medication for the pharmacy,’ Councillor Johnston said. ‘I have been very encouraged to see the work of MEAAP right across the borough as they have stepped up to serve the community when we needed it most.

‘I am excited to be touring across Mid & East Antrim to personally offer my thanks and that of the Council to over 500 volunteers, who

Mayor praises work of pharmacy throughout pandemic have been nominated for their efforts during this difficult time.’

Needless to say, William McCaughey, Manager of Kells & Connor Pharmacy, said he was very proud of how the local community had handled the crisis.

had access to food as well as medication.’

Local teacher, Marcus Morrow, has been volunteering alongside Kells & Connor Pharmacy for several weeks now and said he was delighted to have been able to go out and about this rural community to deliver the prescriptions.

‘The offers of support have been warmly welcomed by our team,’ he said, ‘and they came in abundance, so much so that I was able to encourage volunteers to also support our local grocery store to help ensure people shielding

‘Finding some of the homes in this rural area has been fun,’ he said, ‘with many very remote but for some we are the only face they will see all day and so the chance to have a chat at a safe distance is welcomed by many.’

Council to highlight city’s historic entries

Battle of the Somme commemoration at Portstewart War Memorial

Seven of Belfast’s historic entries are getting a makeover as part of Belfast City Council’s regeneration plans, with ambitions to upgrade more in the future.

Work is underway to transform Castle Arcade, Crown Entry, Wilson’s Court, Joy’s Entry, Pottinger’s Entry, Cole’s Alley and Winecellar Entry. Along with general repair works and repainting, there are also plans for enhanced lighting and bespoke artwork.

The £870,000 project is scheduled for completion this autumn and has been part funded

by Department for Communities.

‘Our entries are an important part of our city’s history,’ said Belfast Lord Mayor, Alderman Frank McCoubrey, ‘but in recent times, some have become forgotten and are not used by people because they have seen better days and there is a perception that they are unsafe or unwelcoming.

‘This project aims to breathe new life into the entries, to make them more attractive, and also to inspire people to explore their heritage and find out more about their connections to the past.’ The aim of the project is to transform the entries into more welcoming and vibrant thoroughfares to better connect the city and improve wayfinding, as well as celebrating and enhancing the unique heritage of each individual entry.

During the research phase of the Belfast Entries project, people were asked to share their ideas for the lighting aspect of the project. People asked that the lighting be playful, interactive, and distinct to the city. Under the plans, previously dark and overlooked entries will become well lit, immersive spaces, with feature lighting using innovative technologies and sustainable materials.

‘My department is delighted to be working alongside Belfast City Council to help transform some of Belfast’s most historic entries,’ added Communities Minister, Carál Ní Chuilín.

‘The entries play a vital part in linking streets and contributing to the vibrancy of the city centre. As the city centre continues to recover from the COVID-19 crisis, these entries will provide a key means of moving around our city centre and will contribute to its recovery.’

Mayor, Alderman Mark Fielding, lays his wreath on behalf of the Council

The Mayor of Causeway Coast and Glens Borough Council took part in a commemoration to mark the Battle of the Somme in Portstewart on Wednesday 1st July.

During the service organised by Portstewart Royal British Legion, Alderman Mark Fielding laid a wreath at the War Memorial on the Promenade.

Senior Times l August 2020 l www.seniortimes.ie 61

Profile

Pat Henry

Corporate Fitness & Wellness Expert

For the past fifty years Pat has worked with people of all fitness and ages helping them overcome many obstacles in their lives. From weight issues, anorexia, bulimia and paralysis from surgery or from stroke, helping clients fulfil their true potential and being the best they can be. Pat says sometimes we all need a little help to keep the flame burning or reignited when things look bad. This is achieved by a very realistic approach with exercise, yoga, meditation, visualisation and working out a blueprint to help the client keep moving forward with their lives. Weight issues is only a small part of the success, being comfortable with who you are no matter what weight or shape you are in, Pat feels this is more important. You have to love yourself before you can love someone else.

To be comfortable within yourself and your own company is also important especially in the times we are going through with this virus but Pat says it gives us time to reflect and plan for the future or escape from your own mental lockdown and be mentally free from fear of the future. It is now time to plan.

Pat has lectured on health, work/life balance and stress management in Ireland, the U.K. and the US, where he has acquired a reputation as an effective and knowledgeable fitness consultant and a compelling motivational speaker.

He has worked with leading companies and individuals world-wide as a personal coach and is the author of best-selling books and videos on fitness and health.

62 Senior Times l August 2020 l www.seniortimes.ie

He has appeared regularly on television where his health and fitness instruction has reached an audience of over 6 million people in Ireland and England. He has participated in radio programmes and has written numerous articles on wellness related issues for many leading magazines and newspapers. He has also developed a comprehensive system of anti-ageing strategies.

His background is in fitness, wellness and yoga, developed during his years in California, working with Hollywood’s top fitness expert Vince Gironda, top trainer in the world. Pat was awarded Master Trainer of the American Academy of Body Sculpting and President of the Irish Academy of Body Sculpting, Pat advocates a wholly natural approach to fitness including mental fitness, based on fifty years of helping clients achieve their maximum potential.

He has had David Bowie, Bruce Springsteen, Gabriel Byrne, Helen Mirren, Matt Dillon, Christina Ricci, Ellen Barkin, Julie Ormond, Dolores O’Riordan, Michael Flatley, Fionnuala Sherry, Carol King, Emily Watson, Keith Duffy, Def Leppard, Damien Lewis, Joseph Feinnes, Katherine Winnick and many more through his gym in Dublin and at his West Cork retreat.

Pat is the originator of the hugely successful Anti-ageing Programme, which is now the future of health and fitness worldwide, using simple techniques combining nutritional and exercise strategies to overcome the pitfalls of feeling old, looking old. It is designed to have you feeling stronger and healthier, having energy, avoiding injury.

He has also created the Company Wellness Programme, helping many companies unlock the potential of their people. Clients in this area include Aer Rianta, Deloitte, ILAM, Scottish Provident, IBEC, AABS, Network Business Associates, Mainstream Energy, Bank of Ireland, London, Birmingham, Bristol, Manchester, Belfast, Cookstown, FBD Insurance, William Fry, Maples and Calder, Mercer, Eugene F Collins solicitors, Brendan Read Pension Group, The Accountants Society of Ireland, Microsoft Copenhagen, Insurance Institute of Ireland and Europe, Garda Siochana, Dail Eireann and various Government Bodies.

Finance

The Different Roles a Financial Consultant Plays

What do people expect when they seek out the services of a financial broker/consultant? What are the key roles of a financial consultant and what aspects of this relationship, add value?

The real answers to these questions may surprise you!

2. A teacher - Many people’s sense of what drives returns comes from the day-to-day noise in financial media. It is normally all about product and short-term returns. A good financial consultant shows the client what drives long-term returns and educates them along the journey.

Typically, financial consultants will tell you they provide advice on cash flow analysis, asset allocation, investment, retirement planning, protection, wealth preservation, estate planning and so on.

3. A coach - It is easy to make financial resolutions- to save more, to spend less, to grow wealth and to leave a legacy. It is not easy keeping them. A financial consultant at their best will ensure goal accountability, keep the client on their desired path and talk to them when they are anxious in uncertain times.

But are these the real benefits they provide? You might want to think about this differently. For example, when you seek out the services of a mechanic, what are you paying for? Brake pads? Filters? Oil? Full Service? Repairs?

What most people want from a mechanic is a car that gets them from A to B. They want it serviced in good time, they want a fair estimate of what it will cost, an itemised invoice and a guarantee for parts and repairs.

Likewise, the value of a good financial consultant, will often be different to the services advertised. Sure enough, asset allocation and portfolio advice are important components but these are just means to desired ends.

What individuals and companies should be getting in the final analysis, is guidance to a goal, peace of mind, a sense of security, a feeling that someone has their back and an assurance that they will be okay whatever this world throws at them. Furthermore, people value a sense of structure about their financial lives and an understanding of the recommendations and choices at their disposal.

The technical tools a financial consultant employs such as, an understanding of what drives returns, the role of diversification and a knowledge of the tax system, are without doubt critical components in delivering these desired outcomes. But these are only part of what different roles financial consultants play.

In fact, a good financial consultant will play several pivotal roles for their clients, none of which are set out in a typical job description.

4. A filter - The problem with the world right now is not a lack of information. We are overloaded with the stuff. The challenge is finding the right information, in a form that can be understood. The right financial consultant becomes a trusted source and an information filter.

5. A sentinel - Good financial consultants are not only looking at your circumstances as they are today, but what might be coming over the horizon to change all that. They are mindful of your legacy- the welfare of future generations and how your wealth can keep working beyond your lifetime.

These five roles are not exhaustive by any means. There are many others, but this gives you an idea of the depth and breadth of services a good financial consultant will provide.

Again, to use the mechanic metaphor, a financial consultant is not simply trying to fix your car but is looking to ensure you and your family reach your desired destination safely and reliably while enjoying the journey along the way.

That is where the value lies.

If you have any financial planning requirements, please contact me, John Miller, at any time on 087 629 1863 or email at jmiller@campion.com https://issuu.com/campion-insurance/docs/newsletter-fs

Here are just five of them: 1. A guide - Most people know what they want, or at least, know what they don’t want in life. What is often missing is a sense of how they can get there. A financial consultant provides a plan with recommendations, showing possible pathways and the trade-offs involved within each.

Campion Insurances Ltd trading as Campion Insurance, Bestquote.ie, ISME Insurance Services is regulated by the Central Bank of Ireland.

Senior Times l August 2020 l www.seniortimes.ie 63

Culture

National Gallery of Ireland about to complete phased reopening

Daniel Maclise (1806-1870), 'The Marriage of Strongbow and Aoife', c.1854. ©National Gallery of Ireland.

The National Gallery aims to reopen all remaining galleries on 29th July 2020.

Portrait Gallery from the end of July. This display features a selection of photographs that were due to be included in Irish Horse.

From 29 June 2020, visitors were abe able to once again see iconic works such as Monet’s Argenteuil Basin with a Single Sailboat and Picasso’s Still Life with a Mandolin in Rooms 1-5 of the Millennium Wing which feature European Art, 1850-1950.

Explore the place of the horse in Irish life and art from the eighteenth century to the present day. Discover the relationship between artists and their equine subjects, and the heroism of jockeys including Ruby Walsh and A.P. McCoy. This landmark exhibition was originally set to open in the Gallery in April 2020. This exhibition is now available on-line.

Find out more at www.nationalgallery.ie.

Photography exhibition Moment in Time: A Legacy of Photographs | Works from the Bank of America Collection reopened on 6 July 2020 in Rooms 6-10. The exhibition was set to close in March, but its run has been extended to allow the public to explore an impressive selection of works spanning the history of photography for a little longer.

The Merrion Square entrance of the Gallery reopened on 13 July 2020, providing an opportunity to visit many of the rooms in the Milltown Wing.

Beloved works by artists such as Jack B. Yeats and Mainie Jellett feature in the Gallery’s rooms of Irish art.

Extended exhibitions at the National Gallery of Ireland include Drawn from Nature: Irish Botanical Art, an exhibition which opened just days before the Gallery closure in mid-March and will now run until the end of August. Featuring six remarkable paintings by one of the most celebrated painters of the Spanish Golden Age, Murillo: The Prodigal Son Restored, will also be extended.

The Gallery’s Spring schedule had included Irish Horse, a new exhibition exploring the place of the horse in Irish life and art from the eighteenth century to the present day. Unfortunately the exhibition was cancelled, but a virtual tour set in the Beit Wing of the Gallery is available online.

A new display, Reined In: Photographs from Irish Horse will open in the 64 Senior Times l August 2020 l www.seniortimes.ie

Gallery opening hours (from 29 June 2020): Mon: 11am – 5.30pm | Tues to Sat: 9.45am – 5.30pm | Sun: 11.30am – 5.30pm Until 12 July 2020: entry via Millennium Wing entrance From 13 July: entry via Merrion Square entrance Visitor information: No advanced booking required. Sanitising facilities at all entry points and throughout Gallery. Tours and audio guides will not be available but online versions of Gallery initiatives will be online. Lifts will be available but for single use or disability access only. Cloakrooms will be closed.

National Gallery at Home: For those who are unable to visit the National Gallery of Ireland upon its reopening, there are many ways to engage with the national collection online. ‘National Gallery at Home’ includes videos, Works of the Day, Mindfulness and Art, and at-home activities connected to the national collection. Virtual tours of iconic spaces such as the Shaw Room and the Grand Gallery, as well as exhibitions Irish Horse and Murillo: The Prodigal Son Restored, can also be explored from home. Find out more at www.nationalgallery.ie/national-gallery-ireland-at-home

Culture Upcoming exhibitions at the National Gallery of Ireland: Moment in Time: A Legacy of Photographs | Until 13 September 2020 Rooms 6-10 E5 This exhibition is made possible through the Bank of America Art in our Communities® program.

Murillo: The Prodigal Son Restored | Until 10 January 2021 Room 31 | Free admission Generously supported by the Blavatnik Family Foundation.

Drawn from Nature: Irish Botanical Art | Until 30 August 2021 Print Gallery | Free admission Shaw and the Gallery: A Priceless Education | Opening Summer 2020 Room 11 | Free admission Part of a series of annual exhibitions by the National Gallery of Ireland’s ESB Centre for the Study of Irish Art (ESB CSIA).

Reined In: Photographs from Irish Horse | Opening July 2020 Portrait Gallery | Free admission George Wallace: Reflections on Life | 11 September – 13 December 2020 Print Gallery | Free admission Mondrian | 4 November 2020 – 14 February 2021 Beit Wing | Ticketed Frederic William Burton (1816-1900), 'Hellelil and Hildebrand, the Meeting on the Turret Stairs', 1864. © National Gallery of Ireland.

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Zurich Portrait Prize & Zurich Young Portrait Prize | 21 November 2020 - 21 March 2021 Free admission

Meeting Place DUBLIN BASED GALWAY GIRL, attractive retired schoolteacher, mid-60s WLTM genuine NS male with GSOH for friendship, socialising and outdoor activities. Interests include golf, hill-walking, travel and a lot of joie de vivre REPLY TO BOX NUMBER B1 DUBLIN WIDOWER, 70, looks younger. Tall, active, NS, SD, GSOH. Likes walking, driving, cinema, theatre, listening to music, dining out, holidays at home and way. WLTM lady with similar interests for long term friendship/relationship would be ideal with lots of good conversation.

REPLY TO BOX NUMBER B2 FEMALE NORTH DUBLIN WOMAN WLTM other ladies to socialise in Dublin and surrounding areas. Interests include nature, music. Let’s meet up for coffee.

REPLY TO BOX NUMBER B3 STILLORGAN, DUBLIN LADY, retired nurse, mid-60s, sincere, caring, romantic. Love the outdoor, cycling, walking, travel Ireland and abroad.

WLTM a refined gent of similar age.

REPLY TO BOX NUMBER B4 SOUTH EAST GENT MID 60s slim and of youthful appearance. Interests include current affairs, reading, walking, travel, concerts, dining out. WLTM lady from Dublin, Wicklow, Wexford areas. REPLY TO BOX NUMBER B5 MIDLANDS LADY 70s WIDOW. WLTM caring, warm gentleman for friendship. Enjoy walking, reading, dancing, holidays in the sun and winter breaks at home. NS SD. REPLY TO BOX NUMBER B6 DUBLIN MALE 70, long time separated, happy caring with positive outlook. Interests include music, theatre, WLTM lady for friendship/relationship. REPLY TO BOX NUMBER B7 SINGLE LEINSTER GENT 60s, honest, cheerful, positive with a relaxed outlook on life. WLTM a warm-hearted lady 60s 70s who likes to enjoy laugher which is the best medicine. Wide range of interest and always open to new ideas.

REPLY TO BOX NUMBER B8 RESPECTFUL DUBLIN MALE 60 (looks younger) single, WLTM a nice lady 45-70 to join a naturist club and to travel abroad on naturists holidays. REPLY TO BOX NUMBER B9 SINCERE, CARING TRUSTWORTHY LADY from Leinster, widow, retired from a profession.

Young at heart WLTM educated, personable gent, preferably a widower for friendship and chats. Ideal age range 80-85.

REPLY TO BOX NUMBER B10 EAST COAST FEMALE WLTM aspiring Fred Astaire for ballroom, Latin and social dancing.

Let’s give it a whirl!

REPLY TO BOX NUMBER B11 66 Senior Times l August 2020 l www.seniortimes.ie

FED UP WITH AIRPORTS? Dublin semi-retired businessman, NS, divorced, good appearance, medium build. Solvent, kind, considerate, respectful, private, good fun. Interest include cinema, the arts. Would like to invite into my life a warm, kind, interesting, affectionate, tactile, warm woman 60-70 for companionship, chats, laughs and short breaks in in Ireland.

REPLY TO BOX NUMBER B12 ROMANTIC GENTLEMAN, 39, DUBLIN, never married, country origin. House, car, walker, DIY, artistic. Seeks female soulmate, share joy of living, kindness of giving. Daily celebrate with romance, caring, support, laughter, fun, woodland walks, inspirational talks, lake water lapping, herons flapping, sunny lands holding hands, happy days, Atlantic bays, scenic drives, for your high fives. REPLY TO BOX NUMBER B13 CARING DUBLIN GENT, 67, SINCERE, KIND, WLTM lady for relationship. Interests include travel, music, writing.

REPLY TO BOX NUMBER B14 DUBLIN GENT, LATE 60s, NEVER MARRIED. Seeks female soulmate to share joyful living, romantic surprises and the wonderful adventure of a loving relationship.

REPLY TO BOX NUMBER B15 QUIET GALWAY GENT NS ND. Interests include sport and keep fit, all types of music.

WLTM lady 50-75 for friendship and perhaps more. REPLY TO BOX NUMBER B16 KIND, SINCERE CLARE LADY, NS. Varied interests. WLTM gent 60-70 with good values, NS medium build into social dancing, music, particularly C&W, walking, animals, gardening.

Interested in gents from Co Clare and Galway.

REPLY TO BOX NUMBER B17

possible relationship.

REPLY TO BOX NUMBER B20 RESPECTED DUBLIN MALE NATURIST 60 (looks younger) single, WLTM nice lady 45-70 to join naturist club and to travel abroad on naturists holidays. REPLY TO BOX NUMBER B21 ATTRACTIVE MIDLANDS LADY 60s, outgoing, positive attitude to life. Interests include theatre and travel. WLTM a tall man 55-70 to enjoy outings, holidays, etc.

REPLY TO BOX NUMBER B22 NORTH WEST LADY honest and sincere. Interests include social dancing and C&W music.

WLTM 65-76 for companionship.

REPLY TO BOX NUMBER B23 OFFALY MALE, 70, GSOH, SD. Interests include travel for a few months in the winter months, reading. WLTM kind woman to enjoy life and have a bit of fun REPLY TO BOX NUMBER B24 CO TIPP WIDOWER SEEKS ELEGANT LADY 70s PLUS for a life of happiness and romance. REPLY TO BOX NUMBER B25 MEATH WOMAN 58, GSOH, NS, SD, varied interests, grown up family. WLTM other single women and men (50-65) for friendship, companion, dining out, visits to concerts, theatre, cinema, short beaks. Open to pen pals. Don’t waste both our time if you are only interested in a relationship. REPLY TO BOX NUMBER B26 LATE 50s LEITRIM LADY, originally from Dublin, would like to meet someone for company and to socialise with. Interests include concerts, cinema, walking, and cooking.

REPLY TO BOX NUMBER B27

RETIRED FRIENDS GROUP. Are you retired but not tired? Still got a zest for living? Group forming in Midlands but open to all regions.

Replies invited from those with broad range of interests, including travel, films, theatre, sports etc. All suggestions welcome. Replies to include email/mobile. Whatsapp where possible.

REPLY TO BOX NUMBER B18

RETIRED MEATH PROFESSIONAL WIDOW MID 60s WLTM a kind, generous man with GSOH. NS, SD. Interests include walking, reading, theatre, travel, dancing, golf.

REPLY TO BOX NUMBER B28

LADY BOOKWORK MUNSTER, 52 into art/literature, cooking, gardening, animals, country life and walking. If you’re done with being lonesome and would like to find someone special, I would love to hear from you. WLTM a sincere and honest man with zest for life. Waiting for your reply. REPLY TO BOX NUMBER B19

DUBLIN-BASED country man, 70s, single, WLTM romantic, single lady for outings, travel etc. REPLY TO BOX NUMBER A2

DUBLIN PROFESSIONAL FEMALE EARLY 60s. RC, No children, never married. Main interests are ballroom dancing, theatre, GAA, concerts, classical music, charity work and travelling. WLTM Irish professional RC, NS, gentleman 65-75 with similar interests, especially dancing and travelling for friendship and

NORTH WEST LADY WLTM gent 68-75 for companionship. Interests include C/W music and dancing. REPLY TO BOX NUMBER A1

FOREVER YOUNG LADY, 60s, North Co Dublin, with outgoing personality, NS, SD, WLTM kind, respectful gent with no ties for initial friendship/companionship. Age group 60-70.

Interests include cinema, theatre, concerts, all types of music, eating out, conversation, travel and healthy lifestyle.

REPLY TO BOX NUMBER A3 SOUTH WEST IRELAND GENT late 60s, ex teacher, enjoys dancing, walking, eating out,

cinema, all types of sport. GSOH, kind and sincere. Separated for many years. WLTM lady with similar or other interests. Positive outlook on life very important.

REPLY TO BOX NUMBER A4 TIPP LADY, 60s, NS, SD, GSOH, WLTM kind gentleman who likes walking, dancing and travel.

REPLY TO BOX NUMBER A5 OFFALY MAN 60, slim and single, usual interests WLTM a reasonably slim lady 50-70 with a relaxed outlook who is not afraid to show her feelings. Let’s chat and see whether there is some common ground.

REPLY TO BOX NUMBER A6 DUBLIN SOUTHSIDE WIDOW late 60s, sincere, young at heart, good appearance, fit and active, GSOH. Interests include theatre, concerts, golf and country breaks. WLTM sincere, well-presented, refined, educated, outgoing gent. Age range preferably early to mid-70s to share interests and enjoy life with.

REPLY TO BOX NUMBER A7 NORTH DUBLIN GENT, late 60s, retired, never married. Walker, artistic. Seeks relationship full of romance, respect, high regard and support.

Where every day is an adventure in friendship to share the joy of living. High fives!

REPLY TO BOX NUMBER A8 TIPP GENT 63, self-employed, unattached, athletic build NS, SD, loves nature, short breaks, walking, dining out, cinema, concerts, reading.

WLTM attractive, pleasant lady Irish or foreign for friendship and relationship, preferably North Munster and Galway.

REPLY TO BOX NUMBER A9 MEATH LADY 70s NS, SD, retired professional.

Lives spiritually and mindfully. Family grown up.

WLTM personable, educated gent preferably a widower, for friendship.

REPLY TO BOX NUMBER A10 MID 70s KERRY MALE, enjoys walking, dining out, current affairs, sport and many other interests. WLTM lady of similar age to share friendship, conversation and a good laugh, preferably from Munster area.

REPLY TO BOX NUMBER A11 ATTRACTIVE EDUCATED MIDLANDS LADY, many interests including travel, theatre, bridge and music. WLTM that special man to share life with, chats, laughs holidays etc. Preferable in age range 55-70.

REPLY TO BOX NUMBER Z1.

ATTRACTIVE NORTH WEST LADY 70s, WIDOW slim build, outgoing personality, NS/ SD WLTM gent similar age, genuine, GSOH to dancing, etc. Ideally Connacht/Ulster for convenience of meeting but not exclusively so.

Interests include social dancing, music, travelling, walking etc. REPLY TO BOX NUMBER Z2.

SOUTH MUNSTER MALE, looking for companionship with sincere lady to share interests, particularly walking, weekends away, travel,

dining out etc. am 70s, love a good laugh and conversation. Looking forward to hearing from you. REPLY TO BOX NUMBER Z3

walking, cycling, golf, gardening, travel, music and eating out etc.

REPLY TO BOX NUMBER J6.

OFFALY WIDOW LATE 60s, GSOH, classy and loves rock and roll.WLTM male companion for chats, dinners or listening to music. Would also be interested in meeting a female for friendship with same interests.

REPLY TO BOX NUMBER Z4

SINGLE MIDLANDS GENT, 61, 6ft 4in, slim, athletic build, NS, ND, loves nature, driving, walking, eating out, outings, current affairs.

WLTM a pleasant, attractive Irish or foreign lady for friendship/relationship.

REPLY TO BOX NUMBER J7

RETIRED, RETURNED IRISH EXILE WOMAN, attractive, cheerful, unpretentious, NS. WLTM independent male with positive attitude to share travel, socials, walks etc. Ideally from Limerick/ Killarney, Kerry, Kilkenny areas.

REPLY TO BOX NUMBER Z5.

ATTRACTIVE NORTH MIDLANDS LADY, early 60s but looks much younger, slim, fit, GSOH. Enjoys walking, nature, travel, concerts and theatre. WLTM gentleman with similar interests.

REPLY TO BOX NUMBER J8

TIPP LADY 60's NS, SD, GSOH, WLTM kind gentleman. Likes walking, dancing and travel.

REPLY TO BOX NUMBER Z6

NORTH COUNTY DUBLIN LADY WLTM, genuine, romantic, caring gent aged 60s-70s.

Interests include nature, music, animals, romantic meetings etc.

REPLY TO BOX NUMBER J9

SOUTHSIDE DUBLIN WIDOWER, EARLY 70s WLTM a nice romantic lady 50s-60s for visits to cinema, theatre, and meets for coffee.

Only romantics need reply.

REPLY TO BOX NUMBER Z7 DUBLIN PROFESSIONAL LADY, EARLY 60S, RC, no children, never married. Inter-ests include ballroom dancing, theatre, GAA and other sports, classical music, charity work and cultural travels. WLTM tall, Irish professional RC, NS gentleman 65-75 with similar interests, especially dancing and travelling, for friendship and possible relationship.

REPLY TO BOX NUMBER Z8

TO PLACE AN ADVERTISEMENT If you are interested in meeting someone of the opposite or same sex, send your advertisement, with four stamps (which is the average reply rate) enclosed in the envelope, to: Meeting Place, Senior Times, Unit 1, 15 Oxford Lane, Ranelagh, Dublin 6.

Or email: john@slp.ie

IMPORTANT

FRANK FROM DONNYCARNEY would like Ken from Artane, who gave him a lift to Santry, to contact him. REPLY TO BOX NUMBER Z9

Ensure you give your approximate age and the area you live, noting your interests. The advertisement should not be more than 60 words.

DELIGHTFUL LADY, MEATH AREA, late 60s cheerful disposition, caring, dignified, widow, family grown up, no ties, NS ND, WLTM refined gentleman of mature years 75/85, preferably a widower, for chats and friendship from Dublin and surrounding areas.

REPLY TO BOX NUMBER J1

If you are replying to the advertisement via Senior Time’s email, ensure you include your postal address for those not on the Net. (Only Senior Times will have these details). Deadline for receipt of advertisements for the next issue is 31st August 2020.

GENT MID-70s, living alone in Dublin, with wife in care, but still very involved in his creative career, WLTM a younger, educated and lively woman for coffee and conversations at a location to suit in south Dublin, but close to city centre. REPLY TO BOX NUMBER J2

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SOUTH DUBLIN LADY 60s enjoys history, art, travelling, cinema, reading, history, WLTM respectable gentleman with similar interests for friendship/relationship.

REPLY TO BOX NUMBER J3 CORK LADY, MID 60s, honest and considerate, SD, NS, GSOH, loves chats, travel, music, cinema, reading, WLTM kind gentleman 60s to 70s for friendship. REPLY TO BOX NUMER J5 MIDLANDS LADY MID SIXTIES, retired, professional, young in outlook, genuine, kind and caring gent (Preferably midlands, Galway, Dublin). Good Health essential. Interests include

Each reply to an advertisement should be enclosed in a plain, stamped envelope, with the box number marked in pencil so that it can be erased before being forwarded to the advertiser. Send these envelopes in a covering envelope to the address , above, so that we can forward them to the advertiser. There is no limit to the amount of advertisements to which you can reply, provided each one is contained in a plain, stamped envelope. Ensure you give your approximate age and the area you live.

For those submitting their advertisements by email ensure that you also supply Senior Times with your postal address so that we can post replies from those who have replied by post. (Only Senior Times will have your postal address).

Senior Times l August 2020 l www.seniortimes.ie 67

Cosmetics and Beauty

Bring some colour back into your life!

Mairead Robinson offers some suggestions to brighten our spirits – and appearance - post lockdown.

It has been a difficult few months, and for some the isolation of ‘cocooning’ has been particularly hard to bear. Who would have thought that something like a regular trip to the hairdressers would be so badly missed? Although for many of us it is as important to our mental health as it is to our appearance.

I was astonished when I went to my local pharmacy some time ago to get a hair colour treatment to cover the roots, to be told that they could hardly keep the hair dye shelves stocked. It seems that both women and men of all ages were busy colouring their hair at home! But what did not surprise me was the popularity of a tinted dry shampoo, as this would do the job without all the mess of a 68 Senior Times l August 2020 l www.seniortimes.ie

liquid treatment. During April and May, sales of Batiste Hint of Colour Brilliant Blonde were up 126% on the same period last year.

2. Beautiful Brunette (shades on the brown and red hair spectrum — colour treated or natural.)

The Hint of Colour range from dry shampoo brand Batiste is designed to refresh hair, while pigments help to blend root re-growth of coloured, greying or bleached hair. The Brilliant Blonde version proved most popular during this time, followed by Beautiful Brown, as we sought to cover greys while banishing oily roots and boosting body. And while being so easy to use, Batiste Hint of Colour is also easy on the purse. It is available in three shades and priced at €5.49 (200ml)

3. Brilliant Blonde (shades of hair on the blonde spectrum — dyed or natural.

1. Divine Dark (shades on the dark hair spectrum — colour treated or natural)

Batiste is available from Penneys, Dunnes Stores and pharmacies nationwide.

Online stockists McCauleys and McCabes Looking after your hair this summer requires the right shampoo for your hair type. For those of us with dry hair, Klorane’s Mango Butter Shampoo for dry hair 400ml - €15 is the answer. It is specifically formulated for dry hair.

Gently cleansing, nourishing and restoring lost hydration, your hair is left feeling and looking

Cosmetics and Beauty

soft, silky and shiny. The kernel of the mango is known for its high fatty acid content and is scientifically proven to nourish and repair the hair’s coating.

Dry skin is an issue for many of us, and with all the hand-washing during the past few months, our hands have never been more in need of serious moisturising. Eucerina Ure Repair hand cream is non-greasy and fast absorbing and provides immediate and long-lasting relief for dry and rough hands. Developed with urea, it helps to strengthen the skin’s natural lipid barrier and increases the skin’s moisture level, preventing further moisture loss. The other products in the range, including lip balm, hair shampoo and face cream and Euceina Urea Repair body wash is a gentle yet effective cleansing body wash that replenishes the skin’s moisture without drying out the skin. Finally for atopic eczema and very dry, itchy and flaky skin, Eucerin Intensive Lotion is suitable for daily all over body use.

Throughout the summer months, our skin needs extra moisture and it is important to keep hydrated by drinking lots of water and also to apply moisture retaining products.

Avene’s Hydrance Iintense Serum, has gained a cult following since its launch in 2018 and for good reason. The fresh and light serum provides long-lasting effective hydration, replenishes the skin barrier and helps to smooth dehydration lines leaving skin plump and soft.

Use every morning and prepare your skin for the day ahead. Avène’s hero product of 2019, the Hydrance Aqua Gel, is the all-in-one wonder pot for all your hydration needs. This unique gel formula combines 75 per cent Avène Thermal Spring Water, patented active ingredient Cohederm as well as Dextran Sulfate to intensely hydrate, soothe and detoxify the skin.

The delicate blend offers immediate comfort and a soothing feeling upon application and

can be used as a moisturiser, a mask and an eye cream.

And finally having come through the dark days of lockdown, it is certainly time to treat ourselves. How about a new perfume to lift the senses? Libre from YSL is designed to make us feel liberated, which is exactly what we should be feeling now. Or give our cheeks a seasonal glow with bronze drops from Lancome? Our favourite colour stylists, Urban Decay have just launched their new colour palette and purple is the eye shade for this summer.

Find it at Arnotts and work it in with what you’re wearing to a wedding, or any special event this year. Check out your local pharmacy or cosmetic counter and treat yourself to a luxury beauty product to lift the spirits this summer.

Senior Times l August 2020 l www.seniortimes.ie 69

Soak up the sights and sounds of Ireland’s oldest city Armagh City Hotel has created a new milestone in award winning hospitality. Not only does its international sophistication blend beautifully with its ancient setting, the hotel is making its own unique history offering a mix of luxury accommodation, excellent conference facilities, spectacular leisure* facilities and dynamic combination of professionalism and friendly service.

The hotel is centrally located for guests travelling from all areas of Ireland; both North and South. Situated on an elevated position, with panoramic views over a historic landscape, it is the ideal place to soak up the sights and sounds of Ireland’s oldest city, and is only a short walk from an array of cafes, restaurants and shops.

With a choice of dining options within the hotel; the Friary Restaurant offers an intimate atmosphere and plenty of food for thought; open Friday and Saturday evenings and Sunday lunchtime, whilst the hotel’s Callan Bar offers secluded corners, and a relaxing atmosphere; offering a Grill bar menu daily, and the very popular Deli open daily offering snacks and light lunches. So whatever the occasion you will find the perfect place to sit back and enjoy your own company or to mingle with friends, family or colleagues. Using the finest local produce and the latest international techniques the hotel’s Chefs have designed mouth-watering menus to suit all tastes.

So take advantage of one of our great offers to come along to experience the hotel for yourself. www.armaghcityhotel.com

* Health & Fitness Club currently not in use due to Covid-19 restrictions but subject to change; see Government guidelines.

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Green Angels Hamper Shevan McNally, Blackrock Co Dublin Barry O’Regan, Tooreen, Skibbereen, Co Cork Grainne Maloney, Nenagh, Co Tipperary Tara Scully, Cullen, Mallow, Co Cork May digital issue Mozart two-CD set J O’Neill , Dublin 14 Tom Barry, Banagher, Co Offaly Emer Ryan, Limerick Nuala Casey, Portlaoise

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March issue Crossword competition Four copies of Blooming Marvelous – A Wildlife Hunters Year Marie Fox, Ballinagh, Co Cavan Rita Kelly, Belfast M Kinnane, Bray, Co Wicklow Conor Tobin, Dublin 11

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Guess The Year: 1959 Crossword number 104 solution

Senior Line, providing guidance and support in returning safely to normal life The American comedian Groucho Marx famously said ‘I wouldn’t want to belong to any club that would have me’, an attitude that resonated with many older people in the early days of Covid-19 when they suddenly found themselves consigned to a separate group.

People who had never defined themselves by age, woke up to discover they were part of a frail and vulnerable cohort. Everyone understood the medical reasons - septuagenarians who contract the virus face greater risk due to physiological changes in ageing. However, there was still hurt and indignation at the way the message was conveyed. Thousands of over 70s were expected to fade out of the picture, without, it seemed, any understanding of the effect this would have on their sense of self, and no debate on the loss to family, community and society at this banishing.

SeniorLine, Ireland’s dedicated peer-to-peer national telephone service for older people learnt at first-hand how they felt about it. We had c10, 000 calls in 2019, and in spring 2020, call volumes rose by 200%+. People were scared as well as angry. We provided factual information, guidance on self-protection, and updates on the increasing range of helpful community services springing up in response.

How have older people fared since? Having family and friends, an inner resilience and a garden have emerged as major assets at this time. SeniorLine analysed data over the first phase of the pandemic, and concluded that social, personal and environmental factors combine to play a crucial role in mental and emotional health. This is not news, but a particularly relevant finding for these days.

Second, the virus has revealed a paternalistic attitude, however unconscious, held towards older people, and many felt resentment at their representation to the general population. ‘We were all lumped together as one. I did not recognise myself in the headlines’ said Elizabeth.

Others agreed, objecting to the homogenous nature of the message characterising all septuagenarians as weak and needing protection.

Much of the preparation for societal ageing concentrates on its costs, and Covid-19 highlighted this. We need to prepare for an ageing Ireland in a more positive way, to realise the contribution that older people make, and to implement policies to facilitate this. Older people are an asset. We make a significant economic and social contribution to families, communities and society. Depriving us of this opportunity means that we all lose out.

Covid has been the catalyst for the good and the bad. The long pause in commercial life has

been good for the environment, global demand for energy is set to fall by 6%, global warming has been slowed, though we don’t know for how long. Locally, the world has been quieter, butterflies have made a return, the voice of the cuckoo has been heard this spring. Adversity has also brought out the best in many. There have been heart-warming examples of kindness and altruism all over the world.

Finally, the pandemic has coincided with the rise of the Black Lives Matter movement, begun in America, currently receiving much global support. Fifty-five years ago, a young black singer, Sam Cooke wrote a song that became the anthem of the civil rights movement. I’ve been listening to it a lot these days and find it extremely moving. The repeated refrain is ‘It’s been a long time coming. But I know that change is gonna come’. Let us all hope this is true.

SeniorLine Freefone 1800 80 45 91, open every day of the year 10am-10pm www.thirdageireland.ie

We identified two worrying aspects that need attention. First, are the potential negative long-term effects in being isolated home alone for so long. If told repeatedly that the only safe place is home, it is understandable that you now feel it’s dangerous to venture out. Many callers needed guidance and support in returning safety to normal life. It is not good for older people to be shut away, and the not helpful for the community to be deprived of our contribution and our voice.

However, freedom must be tempered with prudence. While the virus infection rate has decreased in the general population, it has not gone away. We must learn to live in a new considered and careful way for the foreseeable future, while hoping a vaccination will be discovered soon.

Senior Times l August 2020 l www.seniortimes.ie 71

Delish from Donegal

Cooking

Five recipes from Brian McDermott’s best-selling Donegal Table Mammy’s Irish Stew

I don’t think there is a person in Ireland who hasn’t enjoyed an Irish mammy’s Irish stew at some point in their lives. For me, Irish stew didn’t just taste amazing – it also provided security and comfort as I sat at the table with my mammy. I used to run home from school to beat my brothers in the door and ensure I got a decent portion before them.

Serves 6 1 kg diced Irish lamb (preferably shoulder cut) 2 bay leaves Drizzle of rapeseed oil 2 cloves of garlic, crushed 1 onion, peeled and diced 1 carrot, peeled and diced, 1/2 leek, diced 1 parsnip, peeled and diced 2 sprigs of fresh thyme Freshly ground black pepper 4 potatoes, peeled and diced 2 litres warm chicken stock Handful of young cabbage leaves, chopped 1. Cover the lamb pieces in water and simmer with one of the bay leaves for about 20 minutes.

2. Heat a casserole pot, add the oil and sweat the vegetables, starting with the garlic and onion and followed by the carrot, leek and parsnip.

3. Add the sprigs of thyme and the remaining bay leaf. Season with black pepper. Sweat for roughly 5 minutes, stirring all the time, then add the diced potato.

4. Drain the lamb and immediately add the meat to the vegetables.

Cover with the warm stock. Put on the lid and simmer for about 1 hour, stirring occasionally.

5. After an hour, add the chopped cabbage and check if the lamb is tender. If not, cook for a further 20 minutes.

6. Serve this hearty dish in a bowl and enjoy with family and friends.

Brian’s Tip Scoop out the inside of a round sourdough bap, leaving just the crust, and serve the stew inside the bread.

72 Senior Times l August 2020 l www.seniortimes.ie

Fifteen-Minute Orzo Pasta With Bacon And Cabbage

I’ve fallen in love with orzo pasta. It’s easy to cook, looks like rice and allows me to cheat and make a poor man’s risotto. This recipe is designed to enable you to cook a tasty dish in fifteen minutes.

Serves 4 300 g orzo pasta 6 rashers dry-cured bacon Rapeseed oil 4 cloves of garlic, sliced 2 sprigs of fresh thyme Freshly ground black pepper 3 leaves cabbage/kale 40 g butter 80 ml cream 80 g Parmesan cheese, grated To serve 10 g Parmesan cheese, grated Handful of fresh basil 1. Add the orzo pasta to a pot of boiling water and cook for 8 minutes.

2. While the pasta is cooking, slice the bacon into strips.

3. Heat a drizzle of rapeseed oil in a frying pan then add the garlic followed by the bacon. Cook for a few minutes then drop in the thyme and a sprinkle of black pepper.

4. Roll the washed cabbage or kale leaves and shred. Add to the pan and cook for 2 minutes, then add the butter and cream and simmer for 3 minutes.

5. Drain the pasta and add another drizzle of rapeseed oil. Combine the pasta with the bacon and cabbage or kale in the pot. Add the grated Parmesan and lightly stir.

6. Serve in pasta bowls with more Parmesan and some basil leaves sprinkled on top.

Brian’s Tip For a slightly spicier dish, replace the bacon with chorizo or try adding some diced red peppers and chopped basil.

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Cooking Lemon Drizzle Cake With Irish Summer Berries Who doesn’t love lemon drizzle cake? Well, believe it or not, it’s actually easier than you might think to create this wonderful treat. During one of my demos I taught a guy who had never baked in his life how to make this cake live on stage at the Taste of Donegal festival. He went home one very happy man! So what are you waiting for, folks?

Have a go! Makes one 25 cm round cake 225 g unsalted butter, softened 225 g caster sugar 4 eggs 225 g self-raising flour, sieved Drizzle of vanilla essence Zest of 1 lemon, finely grated

For the drizzle topping Juice of 1 lemon 120 g icing sugar To garnish 18 raspberries 10 strawberries 20 redcurrants

1. Preheat the oven to 180 ˚ C/350 ˚ F/Gas Mark 4. Line a 25 cm round tin with parchment paper.

2. In a bowl, beat the butter and caster sugar using an electric mixer until creamy and light in colour.

3. Add the eggs one at a time, mixing between each addition, followed by the sieved flour. Then add the vanilla and lemon zest.

Mix well.

4. Spoon the mixture into the tin and bake in the oven for 40–45 minutes.

5. Prepare the drizzle by adding the lemon juice to the icing sugar.

6. Remove the cake from the tin and allow to cool on a wire rack, then drizzle with the icing. Arrange the berries on top.

Brian’s Tip Enjoy with a dollop of freshly whipped cream.

Easy Meatballs Please, please, don’t buy pre-made meatballs – honestly, they only take minutes to make at home and it can be lots of fun if you involve everyone in the process. And don’t even think about buying readymade sauce either! This recipe has everything you need to make your own incredible meatballs.

Serves 4 For the sauce Drizzle of rapeseed oil 1 onion, diced 2 cloves of garlic, chopped 1 tsp dried oregano 400 g tinned, chopped tomatoes 50 g tomato puree 500 ml beef stock To serve 400 g spaghetti 80 g Parmesan cheese, for grating

For the meatballs Drizzle of rapeseed oil 1 onion, diced 1 clove of garlic, chopped 250 g minced beef 250 g minced pork 1 egg 40 g breadcrumbs 1/2 tsp ground nutmeg Freshly ground black pepper 5 fresh sage leaves, chopped

1. To make the sauce, heat a drizzle of oil in a saucepan and sweat the onion with the garlic for 3 minutes. Add the oregano, tomatoes and tomato puree. Add the stock and simmer for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.

2. For the meatballs, fry the diced onion and garlic in the oil in a heated frying pan. Add these to a bowl with the minced beef and pork. Combine using your hands and then add the egg and breadcrumbs and season with nutmeg and pepper. Mix well, then add the 74 Senior Times l August 2020 l www.seniortimes.ie

chopped sage leaves and shape into desired meatball size.

3. In the same frying pan you cooked the onions in, brown the meatballs then transfer them into the sauce. Simmer together for 12 minutes, stirring gently to ensure the meatballs don’t break.

4. Cook the spaghetti in boiling water according to the packet instructions and then drain. Serve in a bowl with meatballs and sauce on top and some grated Parmesan cheese.

Pork Chops with Toffee Apple Pork is one of the most underrated meats available. For years it’s been served overcooked and, unsurprisingly, that’s given it a bad name. When you cook pork properly, you’ll find it’s succulent and tasty. Trust me: served with toffee apple, it’s a treat of a meal in fifteen minutes.

Serves 4 4 pork chops Drizzle of rapeseed oil Freshly ground black pepper 4 sprigs of fresh thyme 1 red apple 40 g butter 50 g brown sugar 50 ml water 1. Preheat the oven to 150 ˚ C/300 ˚ F/Gas Mark 2.

2. Brush the pork chops on both sides with oil and season with the black pepper. Add the sprigs of fresh thyme.

3. Heat a frying pan and fry the chops for 3 minutes on each side until they are golden. Transfer them to a tray and place in the warm oven for 4 minutes.

4. Core the apple, leaving the skin on, and cut into 4 slices.

5. Place the pan you fried the chops in over a medium heat and add the butter. Place the apple slices in the pan and sprinkle with half the brown sugar. Cook for 2 minutes, then turn over and sprinkle the other side with the rest of the sugar. Cook for a further 2 minutes.

The sugar will turn a sticky, syrupy consistency. Add the water to the pan and allow the sugar to caramelise.

6. Serve a toffee apple slice on top of each pork chop.

Win three copies of Brian McDermott’s best-selling Donegal Table!

Senior Times, in association with The O’Brien Press are offering three readers copies of Brian McDermott’s best-selling book in this competition. Simply answer this question: How many does Mammy’s Irish Stew serve?

Send your entry to: Senior Times Cookery Competition, Unit 1, 15 Oxford Lane, Ranelagh, Dublin 6.

Or email to john@slp.ie the first three correct entries drawn are the winners. Deadline for receipt of entries is September 5th 2020.

Recipes by Brian McDermott from Brian McDermott’s Donegal Table, published by The O’Brien Press.

for every child, a dream Do you dream of a world where every child has clean water, nutritious food, healthcare, an education and a safe environment to grow up in?

You can make your dream come true.

Did you know you can leave the gift of a better future to a child in your Will?

It is really easy and inexpensive to do and you don’t have to be wealthy to make a difference that will last a lifetime.

Please consider this very special way of ensuring your love for children lives on.

For more information, please call Justin on 01 878 3000 or go to www.unicef.ie Thank you.

Credit: UNICEF/ Bangladesh 2017/ Bindra

Finance

Gold’s Value as a Safe Haven Seen in Global Pandemic Gold Has Outperformed All Assets In 2020 as Deep Recessions Loom In Ireland and Globally “The possession of gold has ruined fewer men than the lack of it” wrote American writer and poet Thomas Bailey Aldrich at the start of the 20th Century. His sentiments were recently echoed by one of the most respected investors in the world, Ray Dalio who said that in the world of today “it’s not sensible not to own gold.”

Gold is the top performing investment in a volatile 2020 year to date. As the pandemic and lockdown of entire economies tip debt laden economies into financial and economic crises, gold rose 17% in dollar terms and more importantly for Irish buyers 18.6% in euro terms in the first half of this year.

Gold rose by even more in other currencies as investors become concerned that the scale of the coming economic crisis will likely lead to currency devaluations. In the last 6 months alone, the British pound has fallen 25% against gold as the UK economy had the worst contraction since 1979.

The best performing currency and commodity in the world was gold and it also outperformed other assets including stock, bond and property markets. Most stock markets saw very sharp falls prior to some recovery in recent weeks but most stock markets were down in the first half, some significantly.

Gold also outperformed “safe haven” U.S. government bonds as the U.S. National Debt surged another $4.5 trillion in less than 4 months from $22 trillion in February to $26.5 trillion today, leading to deepening concerns about America’s creaking economy, it’s bonds and the dollar.

Property markets went into stasis or have fallen due to a lack of transactions. In Ireland, KBC estimates that Irish house prices could fall 12% to 20% in 2020 alone.

76 Senior Times l August 2020 l www.seniortimes.ie

Many property funds have suspended redemptions showing the very significant liquidity risk in property funds. Most analysts are concerned that we are likely to see both residential and commercial property fall in value the coming months due to falling incomes leading to less first time and other buyers and falling rents impacting buy to let investment. Bank shares have fallen too due to concerns about the outlook for banks, their loan books and the financial system.

What Are the Fundamentals of the Gold Market In Terms of Supply and Demand?

There has been a surge in demand for gold by investors in Ireland and globally. Brokers, refineries and government mints were already struggling to fulfil strong demand prior to the government lockdowns which forced most major gold refineries, mints and even mines to shut down.

The physical gold market is relatively small when compared to stock, bond and indeed currency markets. All of the refined, investment grade (0.999 pure) gold in the world is 22 metres cubed and would fit on the centre court of Wimbledon. All it takes is a small amount of extra investment demand to push prices higher. Today there are very few sellers and a level of safe haven investment demand not seen since the financial crisis.

What Is the Difference Between Paper and Electronic Gold and Physical Gold?

It is important to understand the difference between real physical gold and synthetic forms of gold in the form of various gold products and vehicles to get price exposure including crypto gold, digital gold via gold bullion trading platforms, gold exchange traded funds (ETFs), gold futures and gold CFDs.

Finance

and is not an unsecured creditor of a highly indemnified product provider.

Collector coins are for collectors and should not be confused with gold bullion coins and bars.

The Outlook for Gold in a World of Massive Euro, Pound and Dollar Creation It is important to think of gold in local currency terms. Our exposures as investors and savers is currently to the euro. The outlook for the euro is uncertain to say the least given Brexit and the likelihood of ‘Italexit ’ given the very poor state of the Italian economy and banks.

If you are bullish on the price of gold and fancy a short term punt on gold, these are good ways to get exposure to the price. All are forms of digital gold, whereby you are trading gold in a digital manner and have the cyber, counter party and systemic risk that goes with this.

Strong safe haven demand for gold continues due to concerns about the outlook for the UK, EU and global economy, the unprecedented monetary response of the ECB, the Fed, the BoE and the other central banks and growing concerns that all currencies will be devalued in the coming months and years.

What is gold bullion?

Well bullion is simply a precious metal - gold, silver or platinum - in pure investment grade format which means it is at least 99.9% pure or 24 carat. Each coin or bar is not “plated” or “layered” but pure solid investment grade gold which ensures liquidity and an ability to sell at competitive global market prices.

The safest way to invest in gold, either as a lump sum investment or in a pension, is to own physical gold in the form of gold bullion coins and bars where the investor has outright legal ownership of the actual asset

Win a two night break for two with one dinner at the fabulous Falls Hotel & Spa, Ennistymon!

Senior Times, in association with the Falls Hotel & Spa, Ennistymon are offering two lucky people the chance to win a two night say with one dinner at this fabulous hotel in Co Clare.

The hotel is famed for its facilities and great food.

To be in with a chance of winning this prize just answer this question: In which county is the Falls Hotel & Spa situated?

Send your entries to: Spa Hotel Competition, Senior Times, Unit 1, 15 Oxford Lane Ranelagh, Dublin 6. The first correct entry drawn is the winner. Deadline for receipt of entries is 5th September 2020.

Tel: 065 7071004.

Or email: reservations@fallshotel.ie www.fallshotel.ie

Gold will protect and grow Irish people’s savings and wealth in the coming years. In the very uncertain world of today, it is simply not sensible not to own some physical gold bullion coins and bars as a hedge and a safe haven.

Mark O’Byrne is the Research Director of GoldCore, Ireland’s leading gold broker and storage specialist (established 2003) who help Irish and international clients own physical gold in the safest ways possible. As seen on RTE, CNBC, CNN, Bloomberg etc. Visit www.gold.ie for more information

Tips for supporting someone who is bereaved

· Ask, how you can help · Ask the person what kind of support would be helpful · Keep including them in activities · Even if they refuse many times. Keep asking · Offer practical help (for example: going for walk, doing the shopping, getting a coffee Remember grief is a process and takes time Everyone’s grief is different www.bereaved.ie

Five copies of Alice Taylor's A Cocoon With A View to be won!

Senior Times, in association with the publishers O’Brien Press, is offering five copies of Alice Taylor’s latest book A Cocoon With A View as prizes in this crossword competition.

Her latest book is her twenty-seventh and is full of astute observations from her journal penned during the lockdown days..

Name: ...................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................

Address: ........................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................ ...................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................

Phone: ................................................................................................................................................................................................

If you wish to receive further information from us please tick this box

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78 Senior Times l August 2020 l www.seniortimes.ie

Send your entry to: Crossword Competition, Senior Times magazine, Unit 1, 15 Oxford Lane Dublin 6 Deadline for recept of entries is 5th September. The first five correct entries drawn are the winners.

Crossword Crossword Number 106 by Zoë Devlin

ACROSS

DOWN 1

Northern Europe Monarchy, country of 15 Across. (6)

1

We yearn for the next one, 2021 (3,4)

2

Film actor, Bob or German composer, Richard (6)

5

Calamity or state of extreme misfortune (8)

3

Hand over to another country’s authorities for trial (9)

9

Freshwater mammals with webbed & clawed feet (6)

4

What is necessary, essential or demanded (11)

13

Irritate or small piece of cloth (3)

5

Two singers performing together (4)

14

I quote .. tall chef’s hat (5)

6

He bears this fencing sword (5)

15

Port city in southwestern Norway (6)

7

Small fatty fish, usually smoked & canned (5)

16

Fang or one of four pointed teeth (6)

8

Peak, meridian or distance above sea level (9)

18

Schubert & Gounod both composed these salutations (3,5)

10

Conduct business (8)

19

Regular route for Garda (4)

11

Would Hazel bite Dublin-born writer, ___ Bowen (9)

20

One of 4 playing cards with single pip on face (3)

12

One who talks (7)

21

Carnivorous fish, subject of ‘Jaws’ (5)

17

Pause or hold back temporarily (8)

23

Health resort near a spring (3)

22

A loan to buy a property (8)

24

Type of craft used by the RNLI (8)

25

Can a voter find where treasure is hidden (5)

26

Hot pepper used in ___con carne (5)

26

Ascend or go upward (5)

27

Cry or shout of approval (5)

28

Actor & star of ‘My Left Foot’, Daniel ___-___ (3-5)

30

The maze meant astonishment or stupefaction! (9)

29

Young woman - often in distress (6)

31

Denoting eastern countries of Asia (8)

33

Put together or meet (8)

32

Let’s hear this flightless bird! (4)

34

In short they’re unidentified flying objects! (4)

35

Hungarian composer & piano virtuoso (5)

36

Squabble or little quarrel (4)

37

Cater, react, crate or just a tiny amount! (5)

39

They commit treason (8)

38

Insects with coloured wings & fluttering flight (11)

40

Located within a building (6)

41

Plants that drive fowlers wild! (4,7)

42

Can a rook love to look past or fail to notice? (8)

44

Raise a glass or make bread crisp (5)

43

Ludicrous, foolish or featherbrained (5)

46

New testament cities, ___ & Gomorrah (5)

44

They wear coats to this Puccini opera (5)

47

Amounts of money or totals (4)

45

So thin as to transmit light, see through (11)

49

Mythological hero noted for his strength (8)

48

Small cakes made of egg whites & sugar (9)

51

Inedible mushroom seen where an alto stood (9)

50

Beautiful West of Ireland area known for ruggedness (9)

54

Egg-laying vertebrates such as Robin or Thrush (5)

52

Watcher or viewer (9)

55

Tall, skinny, gangling (5)

53

Carefree adventure or risky undertaking (8)

56

Taken into custody (8)

54

State of equilibrium or harmonious arrangement (7)

57

Sound made by a pigeon (3)

58

Red of ripe cherries (6)

60

Mario ___, tenor & Hollywood film star (5)

59

Rise or upward movement (6)

61

Lyric poem (3)

62

Clean one’s body by immersion into water (5)

62

Sharp remark or point (4)

63

Irish dramatist, writer of ‘The Commitments’ ___ Doyle (5)

64

Large, thick pad used as smartest part of bed (8)

65

Small island such as ‘The Lake ___ of Inisfree’ (4)

66

Confection made from sugar & nuts (6)

67

Needed or desired (6)

68

Perfume - for a few cents? (5)

69

Frozen water (3)

70

Moveable Christian celebration ___ Sunday (6)

71

Charlotte Bronte’s 19th century heroine (4,4)

72

Torture or treat cruelly (7)

Senior Times l August 2020 l www.seniortimes.ie 79

Crafts

Connie McEvoy transforms a special stone found on a beach

Hitting the right note..

This little white stone/pebble caught my attention as I was stepping out of a car on the evening of May- day 2019 just after a shower of hailstones, most of the pebbles on the drive were shining black, brown or grey because of the recent shower but this one was white with black /grey markings and clearly visible in spite of some lingering hailstones.

Sadly a bereavement had occurred in a neighbouring family and I went to the wake and to pay my respect and offer my condolences but before approaching the house I couldn’t resist picking the stone up and putting it in my coat pocket. A few days later I had occasion to wear the coat again and was surprised to find the stone still in my pocket as the coat had been draped over a chair during the interim and forgotten about.

On being re-acquainted with it my first impression was confirmed- it was clearly a crotchet and right away my mind went into design mode, guided by my mind’s eye this stone had potential!

As it was found on May the first I remembered that I had heard Ronan Collins playing Canon Sydney Mac Ewan’s recording of Bring Flowers of the Rarest on his mid-day radio programme and later on that day a recording of Frank Patterson singing his version of the same lovely hymn was played on another station so I had started a very pleasant work journey until I found a copy of the sheet music for Bring Flowers of the Rarest.

Now I can sing and play the following instruments: harmonica, melodeon, piano, tin whistle and chromatic accordion since childhood but I cannot read music. Since having decided to work some of the notes of The May Hymn as my elders called it on a piece of white 14 count Aida measuring 9.5cms x 10.5cms using Anchor black stranded embroidery cotton and working in backstitch throughout + a single French knot for fillings -2 strands for the stave, 1 strand for the symbols and a fine tapestry needle.

Having worked the first few symbols to my satisfaction happy in the knowledge that all seemed to be going smoothly I was brought down to earth with a mighty jerk on realising that crotchets faced the other way round to the one on the stone but since I don’t know right from left this will not bother me too much. I finished this project by washing the embroidery in tepid suds and rolling it in a soft face cloth before pressing it.

Next a piece of iron-on vilene was cut to fit and fixed to the back of work using a hot iron, a piece of black satin ribbon measuring 24cms 80 Senior Times l August 2020 l www.seniortimes.ie

X 1cm was cut, folded in half and stitched to the centre of the project on the right side of work between the staves using black machine sewing thread. Be mindful that the ribbon will need to be positioned outside (above and below) the card aperture. It was then ready to be trimmed to fit in a three fold burgundy aperture card using Prittstick, making sure that it was stuck securely. The stone was washed in hot suds using a toothbrush then dried before fixed on the ribbon using fabric glue, the frame used to display this project was purchased in Dunnes price 2 Euro 50 cent (reduced from 4 Euro). As all other requirements were remnants sourced from various work baskets the cost of the frame was the only outlay, I couldn’t have been happier with my purchase as it can stand

on a shelf or hang on a wall and I am really pleased with my crotchet in reverse.

Covid-19: Born free, lived free, virus free?

What a difference in less than a year! Some very close friends have passed away during the past two weeks and sadly their funerals were strictly private. We must all abide by rules and regulations in the hope that this terrible battle can be won even if means that the over 70s must be marooned in their homes for weeks, be active and keep well. I started some spring cleaning today so that will take care of physical exercise and who knows I may be reunited with something that I thought was lost.

Keep well! (April 2020)

Hermitage Medical Clinic First Class Health Care

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The Hospital has particular expertise in Diagnostic and Interventional Cardiology Services.

The Hermitage Medical Clinic has first class consultant expertise in the areas of Medical, Surgical, Radiation Oncology and CyberKnife.

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