Category Archives: Random

Eurovision – what’s your favourite song?

So I hear we’re not in the Eurovision this year & Johnny Logan was on Ray D’arcy singing the wonderful classic “Hold Me Now” live for our listening pleasure on Today FM this morning. Got me thinking. Is it the best Eurovision song of all time? I know they had a contest purely to decide this in 2005 where “Hold Me Now” came 3rd (“Waterloo” getting 1st). Love it or hate it, most people have a soft spot for it. 

Niamh Kavanagh’s winning performance of “In Your Eyes” in 1993 is my favourite Eurovision song of all time. It’s got everything – great lyric, builds to the chorus & middle 8, brass, strings, sparkles, the works. I am guilty of screaming this at my long-suffering hairbrush on occassion, it’s just awesome. 

So what’s your favourite Eurovision song? Your guilty Eurovision pleasure? Cast your votes please & yes, you can vote for your own country if you so wish :)

Update: The darling lovely Jen reminded me of this most awesome entry that we both fell in love with and voted for in 2007. I give you the brilliant Verka Serduchka with Dancing Lasha Tumbai. Robbed of a win.

What’s going on?

*Insert Caption*
*Insert Caption*

Chris just took this photo somewhere near Liffey St in Dublin. Seems there’s some hullabaloo stopping the Luas from running in the area. I love the photo – it’s got so many random people and things in it & it therefore leaves itself open to captioning.

So what’s it gona be? Or what in flippin’ flip is going on?

Edit – comments thus far from various Twitterers:

“Caption: Scenes from the first day of the Knackeraguan War”

“Strange angle of the image makes it look like she is hooking up the fuelpipe to top up your man in the wheelchair…”

“That’s almost a “where’s wally?” scene – great shot! :-)”

Tag – I’m 8it

So Lottie tagged me yesterday & sadly, I have a soft spot for these things – hopefully it’s a passing phase like those evil cup-a-soups.

Eight things I like

  1. A good coffee at a steady pace in the morning enjoyed
  2. Lying in bed on a wet night with the window open listening to rain pattering outside
  3. When a plan comes together
  4. Having an iPhone that works
  5. Pizza, red wine & feet up on Friday nights
  6. Days & nights when the time just doesn’t matter
  7. Singing
  8. The company of good people

Eight things I did yesterday

  1. Noted I really need to drink more water
  2. Took the 39 bus for the first time
  3. Revisited code I wrote nearly 2 years ago & realised I’ve learned a LOT since then
  4. Saw & heard the BYU Singers & fell more in love with singing
  5. Dreamed about running away with BYU Singers (both conciously & in sleep)
  6. Vowed to learn how to dance a set this year
  7. Received a shiny new replacement iPhone from Apple
  8. Had a filthy burger for dinner

Eight things I wish I could do

  1. Give my dad a holiday
  2. Give Nana 2 new hips
  3. Wake up tomorrow cured of IBS 
  4. Be more sociable
  5. Have more patience
  6. Make it so Ireland gets a minimum of 1 month of sunny weather each summer
  7. Teleport
  8. Sing with the rocking Gardiner Street Gospel Choir

Eight things I don’t like

  1. Hypocrisy
  2. Greed
  3. Bullshit
  4. Bitching
  5. Laziness
  6. Hair anywhere near my food
  7. Cigarettes & smokers
  8. The smell of petrol

I hereby tag Mr. Rick O’Shea.

Tuesday Tune: The Masons’ Apron from An Fleadh Nua 2008

The annual Fleadh Nua kicks off in my beloved Co. Clare this Sunday for a week of fantastic music, song, dance & fun so I decided to go trad for the Tuesday Tune today. This is the awesomely talented Darra Mulhearn from Ennis and the video is via Comhaltas, who have embraced YouTube with a great selection of videos from fleadhs and festivals all over the country.

Growing up in any part of Clare means you’re never far away from the trad stuff, be it music, singing or dancing. My grandfather was a button accordion player until arthritis made it impossible. It didn’t however have the same effect on his set dancing & he kept that up until close to his passing 3 years ago. He’s probably turning in his grave at the thought of none of his grandchildren being able to dance a step of a set! It’s something I’ve always wanted to learn. Myself and my siblings have brought it up in conversation from time to time at home & we always put the blame on our parents for never teaching us but considering we’re all scattered across the country now we should be sorting this one out for ourselves.

So there’s my next little project – I’m going to learn how to dance a set  & hopefully I’ll get to dance one with my dad before the year is out :)  Now where will I find lessons in Dublin…?

Tweetup, photowalk, Culch.ie, iPhone, Cork, renting & blight

Whatchyousayin buoy?
Whatchyousayin buoy?

Yeah, lot of small random things I need to throw out into the blogosphere.

First off, happy birthday to the little sister Niamh who enters the last year of her teens today. Bless. 

So yesterday Rick kindly inducted me into the wonderful fold of contributors on Culch.ie – I really enjoy reading it with the variety of subjects and voices that all come to mix there, here’s hoping I can bring something worthwhile to the place.

Stu sees the ‘Pea rapist’ in the latest Bulmers product push that’s happening at http://www.embracethepear.com. Incidentally, www.embracethepair.com is still available for purchase. Just sayin’.

I finally called up Apple Care yesterday afternoon to sort out the long-dragging dodgy iPhone situation. I was delighted by their politeness & pro-active vibes, right down to the “oh no, I’m so sorry to hear it’s not working for you – that’s really awful”. Genuine or not (hard to tell with the lovely American tones!) a box arrived this morning from Apple with all the lovely packaging you’d expect from Apple and an express UPS bag for me to send off my iPhone to the iPhone doctor. Now here’s hoping it’s fixable coz I am totally lost without it.

I’m going to attempt organising a Tweet-up of sorts in and around or for the Siege of Ennis world record attempt next Sunday May 17th – those of you on the western seaboard, your help & presence is required! If anyone from anywhere else wants to head down, I can investigate digs either chez moi or in me lovely Ballyvaughan. Best email me in this case.

There’s a photowalk happening on Sunday in Drogheda. Shane Murphy has the skinny. Not looking like I’ll make the photowalk sadly but I’m certainly hoping to make the afters. Details later when I have em from the ‘organisers’.

Scoozi’s in Cork is still one of my favourite places on earth to eat – I was once again blown away by the service in there last weekend, never mind the delicious food on offer. Well done guys, you’ve got an often overlooked yet essential element of catering down to an art. 

There’s 2 lovely apartments up for rent in the little complex where I live in Glasnevin, you could do a lot worse than rent one of these places. Number one and number two (sexier) on daft.ie, who seem to be allowing users to list their ‘broadband options’ on ads now.

Finally, if you’re going along to the Open Cinema event in Meeting House Square tomorrow evening courtesy of Mini, be prepared for possible nasty wet weather. And if you have potatoes, well I hope you’re spraying them for blight :)