75th Birthday

The Ninth of the First is my birthdate and this year it was my seventy-fifth birthday. The celebrations started early on Sunday 7th with a long awaited visit from a friend of longstanding. We met each other in Newtownards in Co. Down in the 80's and little did we know then of how are lives would intertwine over the coming years, or the respect that we have for each from our own perspectives.

Photo taken at 07.10 on 9/1/2018

I thought it only right to circulate this to the majority of my friends and relations

just to let them know that I am a Happy Man !

After breakfasting on a banana each, Mrs H and I set off for points west to Gort in Co. Galway. There we visited our friends who live in a small townsland in a very alternative home. So alternative that they sit next to an unlit fireplace and feel the warmth... !

as do the two small dogs.

Our next port of call was to Kinvara, where we dined on a light lunch in the Gentian Cafe, situated very close to the harbour and which serves great food at reasonable prices.

Then our eyes fell upon a small Gallery and Gift Shop and so being of good cheer and inquisitiveness

we entered. We had fun looking around, admiring the numerous products made by the local crafts people.

We are a Happy Pair

One of my main reasons in visiting Kinvara was to have a paddle in the sea. 

Strangely however, I only ever remember that when I arrive back home. Ah well... may be next time I will remember to do so.

So here I am stood at the harbour side welcoming you all

to one of my favourite haunts

A unique Kinvara Fairy !

On our journey home I received a missed call from an unknown number, which I called back, wondering who it was. "This is Yvonne the florist are you Mel ? " asked a voice.

I said "Yes, but we are on the road, in the middle of a torrential rain storm so won't be home until

a few minutes after five pm."

On our arrival there was the delivery vehicle parked outside and as I stepped towards it out popped this very cheery lady who said "Happy Birthday Mel, I have flowers for you." And then she was gone into the dark rainy night.

Flowers from my friends in Co. Wexford,

the perfect end to a perfect birthday.

BIRTHDAY SURPRISE

I heard a noise, the clink of the post box lid. In fact it awakened me from my slumber and I thought “There ought not to be any postal delivery it being a Saturday" even though it is my 73rd birthday.

So I quickly threw on my dressing gown went outside and opened the box and this is what I found.

Not our correct address by any means. It is though our Otherworld address known by the good-people

I turned over the envelope to see who the sender was and sure enough it was from my friends in the otherworld.

Look they even have their own postal 

service too 

The front cover of the card.

 Inside is Hazel holding a heart

On the back he is waving goodbye.

This is one of the joys of having friends in

the otherworld.

A Double Celebration

Only our friends are aware of Lady H's annual double celebration and of the joy that warms her heart as soon as she sees the shops selling their Halloween Witchy wares.

Lady H on Hallowe'en at her scary best!

I used to believe that it was an insult to call a woman a witch. I have though since learnt

over the years, that there are some who are proud of the term and know well their Craft.

November the 1st Her Birthday

Lady H sits beneath her painting WISE WOMAN 

with a glass of her favourite tipple

namely Bailey's Irish Cream.

My birthday Jan 9th

A birthday cake

January 9th is my birthday. I was going to write up something about me and then, well we all know what occurred in Paris on that day. 
So I gave over my day and published something quite different to what I had planned. A reasonable amount of time has now passed and so I shall rekindle my thoughts.


On this birthday I became 72 years of age, although to be quite honest I am not convinced, of whether I am 27 or 72 because I actually feel like 35 and sometimes a bit younger. 


When I look in the mirror, which is not very often as I gave up shaving long ago, I wonder to which of my ancestors do I resemble. There is no answer and no photographs of either my father or his father at seventy-two for both died in their mid fifties. 
Their age of passing influenced me greatly, leading me to decide  in my early forties, to plan a life style change which would remove stress and give me the experience of total freedom. I chose this path in case I too had an early demise and so I retired early, in my forty-eighth year.


Life always throws up challenges and ironically within a few weeks of moving to my rural retreat, along came a entrepreneur who asked me to design an a piece of equipment for him - I stuck to my plan however and denied him, as did others and to my knowledge his idea never came to fruition. 


I did though make a return to employment - though not as a design engineer as I was previously, this time it was in Development Education as a Facilitator, a position that I greatly enjoyed and brought me into contact with some very interesting people. Folk who actually care and work towards improving the social and living conditions of people in our impoverished and mutilated world.


The above paragraph above brings me back as to why I published a comment from a former editor Philippe Val of Charlie Hebdo and why from time to time this blog highlights issues that disturb me greatly.

Please view

http://www.developmenteducation.ie

A Photographic Model

A Photographer's Model !

Today is my birthday. I am 67 years young and the photo depicts me at my first job, even though I wasn't aware of that at the time :-)

Being no expert at guessing the age of a baby, I can only estimate that perhaps the photo was taken when 7 months old ? You my readers or at least some of you will have a greater knowledge or experience of babies and be able to tell me whether my estimate is right or wrong ?

There is an earlier photo of me lying on a settee next to a large china doll, it is in a leather case up in the loft, a place that I am loathe to visit during the cold weather.

The temperature in these parts has not climbed above - 4C for over three weeks and today it snowed. We received about an inch or 2.5cm which is now sitting nicely on top of compacted ice and minor dustings of previous snow.

Today I will not be driving as I am now on my second glass of pear flavoured brandy and clutched between the fingers of my left paw is large Havana cigar, a gift from my widely travelled daughter when she recently visited Cuba.

We text each other occasionally you know as family do, we are a small family the consequence being is that we are somewhat independent.

So during Helen & Marks' (her better half!) visit to Havana I received a text saying

'We are lost'. I replied 'Give me a few minutes to think' and later said 'Take three turns to the left, cross over the main road & look to your right'. They did this and were back at the place they started from, however it was just a simple deduction on my part.