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 July 2008 Donegal! Focus Ireland! Fuji! Dobar dan, mes amigos, it's going to be a very speedy missive this month, I'm afraid. It's all go. Young Dylan continues to thrive and we are still in hand to hand combat over who gets to spend time with him when. Last month I did an ad for Fuji about all the fabulous things you can get done with your photos - so I did a Dylan special. I got a mousepad with Dylan's face on it, some coasters with his face on it, and the best of all, a mug with his face on it, which is so lovely that my Dad begged for it and because he never asks for anything I let him have it so he has ferried it off and put it next to his nodding Buster from the Paul O'Grady show on his 'Pride and Joy Shelf.' It has been the wettest bloody July I can ever remember and in the middle of it Himself and myself decided to go to Donegal for a few days, in a strange 'if you can't beat them, join them' mentality. Apparently it always rains in Donegal, so if it was going to be wet anywhere, we might as well be there. Now, I'd never been to Donegal before (neither had Himself, but you wouldn't expect that what with him being English) and I'd always thought of it as this mad, wild, beautiful almost mystical place, sort of lawless and like a separate country. When I told people I was going I got two very different reactions. 1) People warned us that it was the worst county in Ireland for 'bungalowitis' and that as soon as you cross the border into Donegal, there are loudspeakers placed every 4 yards, blaring out Daniel O'Donnell songs, 24 hours a day, like the way they do with the teachings of Kim Mad Kim in North Korea. OR 2) people said it was really really beautiful. Well, I'm happy to report that although there is a good bit of bungalowitis in some areas, in other areas (the national park) it is utterly stunning and wild and uninhabited and amazing and not once, no not once, did I heard the bould Daniel. The people are so LOVELY, so friendly and kind and that accent! Aye! Och! We got a puncture outside Letterkenny and loads of people came to help and we met some very kindly people in Ulster Tyres who toned down their accent so we could have half a clue what they were saying. I would recommend it heartily mes amies, like I say not every part is beautiful and free of bungalows but those that are, are amazing. It was so funny, we were on our way to Sliabh Liag and (as always with me) nature called, so we stopped at a tea-house/craft shop called Ti Linn in the middle of nowhere and as it transpired they had the most beautiful crafts and yokes and I got the itch, the itch I always get on holidays to buy things I'd never buy at home like cushions and table-cloths and the funny thing is that as I was browsing, I noticed the place was VERY FULL for a place in the middle of nowhere, also that at the far end of the room was a table buckling under the weight of cocktail sausages and magnificent looking cake and such-like. Because there were men in suits eating the cocktail sausages, Himself concluded it was the 'afters' of a funeral, whereas I thought it was corporate bonding yoke, that they were about to have their sangers, before climbing Sliabh Liag, highest marine cliffs in Europe. Well, it transpired to be neither! It transpired that we had gate-crashed the official opening of Ti Linn (even though it has in fact been open for 4 years) and we fell into a chat with a beautiful woman called Laoise Kelly who only happens to be one of the best harpists in Ireland and her fella Stephen Cooney, also a well-known musician. Himself was all starstruck because he is a big fan of traditional music. I explained to them that I only ever listen to George Michael and they were not offended by this and introduced us to Siobhan, the owner of Ti Linn and before we knew it we were right in the gang and eating cocktail sausages for all we were worth and generally having a great time. I've enclosed a photo of me at Sliabh Liag and look it, I just want to apologise for my jacket. It's not the sort of thing I'd normally wear but with half the country under water, I thought it might be wise to prepare for inclement conditions.  Now, can I tell you about Focus Ireland. They are a charity who do great work for the homeless and on Sunday August 17, I'm doing a reading in The Sugar Club, Leeson Street Dublin to raise funds. Its 20 Euro in but it's in a great cause and I'll do a great show, I promise. I'll read and tell stories and answer questions and there will be chocolate and spot prizes and a prize for nicest handbag, so will you come? It'll be a right laugh and we'll all feel good for having done an altruistic act. How about it? I'd LOVE if you'd come. The details are here Now on that note, I'm afraid I have to leg it. The juggernaut that is Caitríona's wedding trundles relentlessly forward. The hen night is my responsibility. I am now going on the internet to look for glasses with willies instead of noses. Also the writing of the new book is going v well and I'm afraid to lose momentum on that. I hope all is well with you and that your July was not as wet as mine. Again, my apologies for the brief missive this month. Oh before I go, I got sent this great little yoke, it's called The Bag Hook and you put it on your table when you're out on the piss and hang your bag on it, instead of leaving it on the floor to be robbed. This is a small, neat, very pretty and effective device, something every women needs in these sadly lawless times. www.thebaghook.ie has everything you need to know. Again apologies for it all being so brief, I feel insanely guilty, but I do most of the time anyway, so not much change there. Listen thank you again to all of you who read This Charming Man and wrote to tell me about it, I am so so happy so many of you enjoyed it and I really appreciate you making the effort to let me know. Thank you again and here's to an Indian Summer! It's not all over yet! Lots of love Marian xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx |
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Photo © Neil Cooper