Glastonbury Special
Except I wasn't in Glastonbury, I was in Dublin for the weekend. It's an irresistible city and we like to go there at least once a year. I need some Irish air and some Irish atmosphere to replenish my soul. Three nights in a fancy hotel on St Stephen's Green, walked everywhere, didn't get round to the Natural History Museum, too many nice places to sit and eat and drink and read the papers and watch the world go by, even when it was raining heavily. Anyway, met two garrulous and entertaining Dubliners in a bar on Saturday night, Neil and Gareth, a forensic scientist and a jeweller. Because they were excellent company, we ended up drinking with them all night and not going out to eat, as planned, so Sunday was designated a take-it-easy day. That said, it was our last full day, so I fully intended to drink my hangover away, in the spirit of the city.
Which is where this handy, two-venue eating and drinking guide comes in: I'll be frank, by lunchtime, I fancied a beer. (There really is no point in going to Dublin and not drinking, as crass as that may sound.) We went into a bistro, just off Grafton Street, called The Bistro, a nice, family-run place. Ordered some lunch, a glass of wine, a bottle of still mineral water and I asked the pleasant waitress what beers they did.
"We don't sell beer," said the pleasant waitress. "Sorry," she added. Having built myself up to this beer, this mythic first beer of the day, drunk at a time when I wouldn't normally drink but this was us on holiday, I was somewhat crestfallen and was unable to hide this from the waitress. Rather than be petulant, I drank still mineral water until the moment passed. The food was nice (chicken Caesar) but the lack of beer couldn't have been timed any worse. I decided to hold off until the evening. Our last evening on holiday in Dublin, one of my favourite cities in the world, right up there with Paris and Madrid and Rome.
Because it is apparently the best wine bar restaurant in the St Stephen's Green area of Dublin, we'd actually booked Peploe's ahead. (I phoned on Thursday and found Friday and Saturday totally booked up, so I went for Sunday.) It's in a cellar and it's French food and the wine list is long, and there are murals on the walls (apparently featuring Pavarotti and Catherine Zeta-Jones and Tony Blair, although these people are unrecognisable), and it's packed, so it looked tremendously promising. (Beware their website, by the way: it plays jazz.) We ordered the food, and some wine, and a bottle of still mineral water, and I asked the humourless French waiter what beers they did.
"We don't sell beer," said the humourless French waiter, adding, "No beers, no liqueurs, no spirits."
Foiled again! But what I objected to was the lack of apology. It was a badge of honour that they didn't sell beer! This restaurant had decided that it was in some way more sophisticated not to sell beer or spirits or liqueurs (never encountered that particular alcoholic apartheid before) because these drinks are for riff raff. If this was an attempt to seem more French, it failed, as French people drink bottles of beer, in cafes and restaurants, lunchtime and evening. Anyway, I drank some wine, which was nice, although I wasn't in the mood for wine, and the food was nice, if rich, and the waiter even cheered up after he'd been tipped. But the damage had been done. Also, there were one too many Americans in there eating with one fork, which rather took away from the sophisticated aspect encouraged by the no-beer policy (perhaps a no-American policy would have been better, or at least no Americans who can't use a knife.) So, I didn't get my beer yesterday. I looked forward to a beer twice and was thwarted twice. Should have stayed in the pub again.
I hope this story doesn't make me sound like a beer hound. I don't always drink, and I am more likely to drink wine if I drink, but I was in Dublin, I was hungover from beer, and I wanted a beer, but was disallowed from having one by two establishments with ideas above their station.
Dublin emerged from this double faux pas intact as one of the nicest cities in the world.
posted by Andrew Collins @ 2:23 PM
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77 Comments:
No beer served with food in Dublin? Jayzus, how the auld country is changed. Go back twenty years and you couldn't find wine anywhere in Ireland outside of a sacristy. Now it's compulsory.
Hope you got an undersized lukewarm can of Carlsberg, a bargain at five euros, on the flight home anyway.
I have to say that I'm surprised that you couldn't get beer in those 2 restaurants in Dublin. You would expect that it would not have been a problem. Of course it is perhaps just a pseudo gentrification which I have seen happen in other places too. Sad though. I'm glad the rest of your holiday was enjoyable.
So service is no better over there than it is over here? They consider good service to be beneath them? Ask for an explanation and get a look that will turn you to stone?
It's the common way of thinking. It's all very depressing. Things can only get worse.
As me Mammy would have said,"Tis far from Chateauneuf-du-Pape THEY were raised, for all the grandeur of them." And she knew a thing or two.
Were these Americans eating with their fork only, or doing that fork action that involves vertical stabbing, sawing with the knife then some kind of swapping hands stuff? Never understood all that.
Glad you had a good break. Just back from mine during which I consumed a certain "That's me in the corner". A good read and I have to say in the nicest possible way what a jammy git you are to have been able to work in domains that you love so much. (Still not sure whether I believe that you didnt know who Jerry Bruckheimer was though).
A minor quibble - the book is subtitled "Adventures of an Ordinary Boy in a celebrity world" yet not a single mention of Preston and Chantelle to be found.
Glad you had a nice time, despite the rude waiters and lack of beer (I'm not surprised by that, by the way, it's increasingly common in restaurants here in Dublin now) but I have to admit I didn't recognise my native city in this description: "too many nice places to sit and eat and drink and read the papers and watch the world go by."
Seriously, where are all those places? We locals think almost all the laid-back, spend-an-afternoon-there cafés have disappeared! Of course, I have the typical Dubliner tendency to whinge about how nearly all the quirky old individual cafes and shops in Dublin don't exist anymore, and while we do exaggerate, there's a bit of truth in it - for example, virtually all the city centre's second-hand bookshops have closed in the last five years thanks to rising rents. So if you discovered some lovely lazy cafes, tell all!
Glad you had a good trip. We're off to Dublin this weekend and I haven't been there for a few years so recommendations for places to sit and have a drink while watching the world go by would be much appreciated. One of my favourite cities too - I'm glad to be going back, even for a short visit.
Perhaps having a wife in the early stages of pregnancy and hence not drinking and very morning sick was the reason I didn't really enjoy Dublin when we went. Maybe we should give it another try.
What are you like Andrew ? If you'd dropped me a note I'd have made sure you got some fine beer on Sunday.
Of course I did spend Saturday nursing my own hangover from a party on Friday where I drank.........wine.
Next time you're here go visit Airfield Estate, it's on the LUAS line which goes by St.Stephen's Green. (Staying on the Green eh ? now there's posh !)
although it's a bit crap, maybe there is an ulterior motive, to whit: keeping the stag braying party animals away (not of course your good self). Unfortuntately a lot of these cities suffer from stag/hen/ any excuse for 20 inebriated w*nkers to take over places.
Thing is, we're talking restaurants here. I doubt it would make much difference to the drunken sots in a Stag party what they were drinking anyway....Wine? Beer? Whatever...........
I get the feeling that some places in Dublin are trying a wee bit too hard. Surely even a few over priced bottled beers on offer wouldn't be too big an ask?
Fantastic city but it does seem to be changing. Sad and occasional visitor that I am, the thing I miss most of all is the Bewleys (not sure if spelt right) cafes/eateries. They, to me, were the essence of Dublin, large rooms where you spent ages chilling over a paper. A sad loss but Dublin is still a great palce to visit.
AnonoNick
Stella, as a local, you're bound to have a different view. We always think the place we live is going downhill, and I daresay Dublin is like any big city: less independent outlets, more chains. You have to bear in mind, I don't live there, I just turn up for a few days every year and I'm just so happy to be in Ireland full stop I'm kind of enchanted by everything. You'll probably say they're touristy but it seems that every street off Grafton St has a cafe or bar with tables outside. I'll admit that Bailey's, where we met the forensic scientist and the jeweller and forgot to go and eat, was enormously expensive for a round, but for a slow lunchtime/afternoon session, you can make the drinks last with a paper. Gemma, I'd say - as a visitor - wander off Grafton St and you'll find somewhere to sit and drink beer/coffee. It's all pedestrianised anyway, so no fumes. Didn't get up to Temple Bar this time around, but the coffee seems cheaper up there. Our taxi driver pointed out the Oldest Pub In Ireland on the way to the airport, but I suspect you might not find many Dubliners in it. (Am I right, Stella?)
Still love it there. Next time, a longer trip, and a cross-country drive to Galway, which to me is heaven on earth - although this year the water's poisoned, so we gave it a wide berth.
Incidentally, only the French waiter was rude, not the Irish waitress in The Bistro. It's still a hugely friendly place. And we had breakfast in Bewley's on Grafton St on Monday and it was like going back to the 1950s. A little oasis of olden times. Albeit they make you pay a Euro to use the toilets. Luckily, I didn't know and just walked out. Bollocks to that.
Oh, and Dakota on South William Street (parallel to Grafton) is nice. A big, airy, American-looking bar that does good sandwiches and coffees. And beer. I heard accents from all around the world in there (inc. local), but that's a cosmopolitan city in the summer time.
My wife is American and when she first arrived in the UK she could only eat that way and didn't know how to use a fork & knife together properly. This made her feel very self-conscious during meals with my friends and family.
However during the time she was not allowed to work due to UK immigration laws one of my friends' girlfriend helped her with her cutlery handling technique.
When we're alone she still eats with just her fork though.
Our taxi driver pointed out the Oldest Pub In Ireland on the way to the airport, but I suspect you might not find many Dubliners in it.
Heh, probably not, although there are so many "oldest pubs in Ireland" that I'm not sure which one he means! If you went to the airport via the most direct route (right at the end of O'Connell Street/Parnell Square and then a straight line for the rest of the journey) the pub in question may have been the Big Tree, about half a mile from the city centre.
If so, it actually is full of Dubliners, and indeed is a slightly scary place, but the date of its foundation has mysteriously moved backwards in time over the years - I grew up just a couple of miles down that road to the airport, and so passed that pub on the bus whenever I went into town. Back in the early '90s I think the Big Tree had been founded in the 16th century, but I think it's about 13something now. In a few years it'll probably have been founded by Fionn MacCumhaill...
And you're right, of course, about locals always complaining about change and the demise of little businesses. It's not like the good old days here were so good - Dublin in the '80s, when I was a kid, was hardly a glorious place, what with the staggeringly high unemployment that meant my friends and I grew up assuming that if we wanted a decent job that wasn't teaching or the civil service, we would have to emigrate. The boom literally kicked off the year I graduated, so I've been a full-time and decently paid journalist ever since, and if I'm being honest I can't say I'd swap that for the continued existence of the original Bewleys, much as I genuinely miss the place. I'd have to think twice about the Alpha, though, one of the last greasy spoons (there are none at all in the city centre now) and a great favourite of both very old people (who seemed to enjoy its very traditional fare, including jelly and ice cream for dessert) and Trinity students (of which I was one). There's no room in Dublin anymore for places like that, and that makes me sad. I think Dublin has lost more than some other cities because it isn't really so big; there aren't many places left to go when the chains move in.
BTW, I just realised that this might look as if I'm giving out to you for enjoying Dublin, which I'm definitely not - it's always lovely to hear about someone enjoying themselves here!
Hi. This is an important message, please read and pass it along. God has made contact. The message is about Revelation. The message is from God, Jesus and the Holy Ghost respectively. It was sent in the Spring of 2006. It is about the meaning of First is Last and Last is First as written in Revelation. The message is this: In the morning I go to Heaven. In the afternoon I live my life. In the evening I die, death. What does this mean? In other words this means Birth is Last and Last is Birth. To understand this don't think from point A to point B. Think of this as a continous circle of life. Birth, Life, Death, Birth. God also said that Judgment will be before Birth in Heaven. AS birth on Earth is painful so will birth in Heaven. It is possible that this message was delivered by one of God's Angels in the Spring of 2006. Yes, God has made contact and he sent a messenger. Spread this message along, just like a chain letter. Tell two people. Melanie Stephan
Melanie Stephen is a bit of a cunt for ruining what was a very good set of comments on a great place.
Melanie, fuck off.
And I mean that very sincerely.
By the way, I love Dublin, my Wife is from Dublin, her family still live there and every time I visit it's just great.
And I can see the genuine Irish comments too, like 'give out to ya' and all that.
I get that a lot here at home..
Nath
Although I may express things differently to Nath, I agree in full.
I sincerely hope that Melanie is not the reason Andrew's Richard Dawkins thread has disappeared. There was some interesting debate going on and it would be shitty to think that a fundamentalist, or perhaps that's just "mentalist", should force him to take the sort of extreme action which has become all too common in recent months.
Melanie, I'm sorry - I was so excited about god contacting us and all, that I sent the message to 3 people - will he forgive me or am I going to hell?
It puzzles me that the way a person eats bothers anyone else - just as long as they've got clean hands and don't talk with their mouths full its live & let live around here...oh, but they'd better not try that 'can I just have a taste of yours?' trick either...
A fun day mentalist ? Now there's an idea.
The oldest pub might have been the Brazen Head which is near Christchurch.
Dublin has indeed changed. I used to busk on the streets of Dublin in the summer of 1983 because as a schoolkid there simply weren't any part time or full time jobs to be had in the summer (or any other time for that matter).
I did emigrate in 1990 despite having a job because I wanted to travel and live a little. I think it was made easier for me because it was just what everyone did. Apparently 80% of my degree year (1988) emigrated.
Has Dublin changed - of course it has. Has it changed for the worst ? That's debatable. I've started playing open-mics around the town and I remarked that in my younger days there simply weren't the venues available.
Whatever about the business life changing and the franchise invasion I would be sad to think that the people had really changed. We talk about different things and the tabloids tell us a different set of lies.
It's so great to have all the diversity in our little country. At least the gene pool is being diluted.
Galway. I like Galway primarily because I went to the Gaeltacht to immerse myself in the Irish language when I was a teenager. My first kiss.
That's simple enough reason to be in love with the place :-)
Yes, we'll moan about our own town. Sure if we didn't there'd be something wrong with us.
My day job brings me to a few countries on a regular basis (I spent today in London) and my travel reminds me that we really are a very very small place indeed and our troubles are indeed relatively not troubles at all... merely inconveniences.
Yes, and where DID the Richard Dawkins post go?
Bugger! I've just finished reading the bloody thing so that I could join in the debate!
Maybe if I was to finally get round to rading that Boris Johnson biography he'd disappear too.
"rading" is, of course a typo for "reading" and not an attempt at some sort of "Clockwork Orange" cool.
I have removed the Dawkins post. It seemed the most sensible thing to do. It was drawing a lot of bad vibes. I don't do this blog for bad vibes. (Sorry about the timing, Bill.) It dawned on me yesterday after a post that literally took my original review apart line by line and gave me a mark at the end that I wouldn't stand for somebody speaking to me like that, so why on earth would I put up with somebody writing to me like that? On my blog? (I tried removing some of the comments, including some of my own, but it looked woolly and mysterious, so I reasoned that taking down the whole thing, as I once had to do with my Celebrity Big Brother ones, was the best action. Let's move on. And since it's been made very clear to me that I am not qualified to write on matters relating to science, I won't. Apologies to all who posted comments on the Dawkins thread.
Incidentally, the strange post from Melanie, or something like it, has been cropping up quite a bit, seemingly on random entries. Since you've commented on it, I'll leave it up, but it's just spam. (I'm really resisting putting Comment Moderation back on as it slows down the dialogue, but my finger is always hovering above the button!)
You are qualified to comment on matters relating to science, as well as anything else which interests you. We all are. Your post about the book was an intelligent and interesting review. It saddens me that outspoken bullies who seem to feel it their god-given right to patrol boards and blogs, flaming others with their turgid self-righteousness, have removed a good post and discussion from your blog. I don't know if it is possible, but could just delete the comments and leave your post up, or close the comments at the point before it becomes unpleasant? I do agree that there is no good reason you should put up with small-minded cranks, but hopefully not at the expense of your posted thoughts and comments. Don't let a few idiots get to you!
Is reading someone's blog and leaving comments a little like going round their house for tea and having a chat. Well it is and it isn't, but in terms of general rules of politeness it is probably similar. If someone left comments on my website that I found disrespectful or abusive, I would probably remove them. If the original post was provoking more trouble than it was worth, then that might have to go too.
For what it's worth, I think it's a shame if Andrew feels he can't comment on science related matters. I don't necessarily agree with everything he has to say, but I understand where he's coming from, and agree with the general thrust, and I think it's good to have the discussion.
It's certainly good to have a discussion but the problem is that the relative anonymity of blogs seems to encourage some people to become more abusive than they would if they came round to your house for tea. I can have very controversial discussions with friends in my house or in the pub, but they don't usually descend into abuse. If I started the same discussions on my blog I could be opening myself up to anonymous abuse - so I keep well away from any such things on my blog. However I commend anyone who is prepared to touch on controversial issues and just wish that other people could discuss them in a more grown up manner.
Of course the other thing about the written word compared to chatting with someone, is that you can read certain emotions into some text which are not there. So some people read too much into some sentences.
I get this problem a lot in my e-mails. I am usually very sarcastic and wouldn't dream of insulting someone on purpose. This is something that is very difficult to get across in text.
Clare
Bullying you into silence in areas where the bully professes greater knowledge is their triumph.
Andrew - don't let others proscribe your writing in this way. I know nothing about most things but that doesn't stop me having and discussing a view about everything. Its one of the things that makes discourse interesting and takes knowledge forward.
I actually agree with most of the conclusions reached by the hectoring scientists in the Dawkins thread but am not happy that their tone and style was aggressive, patronising and leaden. In my view, the best response is to continue the debate in a lively, respectful and light-hearted fashion, leave the pious stuff without comment and expose it for the dull and sniping crap that it is.
Blimey, I think you're being a bit thin skinned about this Andrew.
So writing a critical book review ok, discussing/critisising the ideas in that review = bullying.
Disagreeing with someone is not the same as bullying them. Or if it is maybe you should stop critisising films/books/telly. Or is ok when you are geting paid for it?
Anyway I'm going to Dublin next month so hope you don't delete the pub/restaurant chat which has been useful, ta.
(I'm sorry if this has been witheringly sarcastic, aggressive, patronising or leaden.)
Why express your ideas on a blog and invite debate if you don't want to have those ideas challenged?
Since then, it's grown into quite the little forum, with a comments form at the end of each blog entry, where "folks" can get a dialogue going about anything from The Wire to homeopathy. Follow the red sticker in the navigation panel to get stuck in. Now . . .
I didn't make any ad hominem attacks on you Andrew. You made the "patronising & supercilious" comments and the sandpit / schoolboy / tutor analogy. I responded to your ideas and criticisms in the same idiom.
If debate isn't really welcome then say so.
hmm.
yes. now I can see why it went.
went to Dublin and Cork a few years ago (a couple of months apart), and I have to say I preferred Cork - less commercial, although the Guiness Museum in Dublin was more enjoyable and more to do than the Beamish Museum in Cork. And what has happened to Irish alcoholic exports? 10 years ago most english pubs stocked Caffreys, Kilkenny, and Murphys, and whilst you can get most in an off-licence in cans, Bulmers (Magners) seems to be the order of the day over here - not to be confused with the english bulmers.
Someone in Dublin recommended Galway to me, will have to try that at some point.
Gosh Beth, me too. After all, somebody making a perfectly reasonable point (after having been described variously as patronising, supercilious, leaden, hectoring, a self-righteous idiot, a bully, a small-minded crank etc etc) is really beyind the pale.
(Apologies for the sarcasm but I feel it's kind of warranted since making ad hominem attacks rather than engaging with the opposing point of view seems to be the order of the day).
Isn't Seany tedious?
I'm interested in your refusal to pay one euro to go to the toilet. Did you swiftly move on somewhere else, or just hold it in to spite them??!
Bernice Woodall? Yeah right and I'm Pauline Campbell-Jones.
Jon, I find ad hominem attacks to be quite tedious, they are rarely funny and don't further the 'debate'. (Oh how people like the idea of a 'debate' until it actually comes down to debating.)
Apart from finding the criticism of ideas (and the backing up of criticism with evidence) tedious, do you have anything constructive to say? It's not like you even went to the trouble of coming up with some interesting insults. Why don't you say what you think? I imagine it is something along these lines: 'Although I profes to be open-minded I really don't want my fluffy world view to be challenged and I certainly don't want to have to examine (objectively) the views and opinions I hold in the face of informed opinion so I'll stick my fingers in my ears and hope that the nasty people all go away'.
I agree with 'Anonymous'. Cork City IS nicer than Dublin.
I can't agree. My mother-in-law is from Cork. She's barking. Very. Barking.
I started taking down some of my music that I put on youtube because of the idiotic comments that were being left. I know I should ignore them but they *do* hurt when you read them even though you know the writer probably has no joy in their pathetic little anonymous internet life.
peter
Dublin
aka shortwave
http://myspace.com/imadethebbc
Andrew - please keep reading about science (and please consider the Feynman book).
seany - your put down of Jon shows you are clearly a master debater. Perhaps you should consider trolling elsewhere.
david - is 'master debater' a faux amusing way of calling me a wanker?
Andrew - Never thought I'd say this but perhaps pressing the Comment Moderation button isnt such a bad idea after all. I'll refrain from posting anything else on this thread as I don't want to incite anything that might add to your irritation.
Andrew, it comes with the territory. If you take a strong position on anything, you'll always get people disagreeing with you. I find a wee bit of confrontation does no harm, especially if yr dealing with bores or po-faced militants of any stripe. Jesus, I could come out in favour of slavery on my blog and nobody would bat an eyelid..........
Going back to your point Seany, and this is my last word on the matter, I did say what I really thought and it was a proper insult.
You can't debate with someone like you.
Peter From Dublin, I'm sure you've got your mother-in-law all wrong. Why not take her out to a nice restaurant in Patrick Street and really get to know her? You could take in a show at the Opera House afterwards. Discover the delights of the Beautiful City.
I think we are missing anumber of points and opportunities here and are wrong to diss poor old Melanie. If God has risena nd been in touch - who better to ask for the best place to get a cofee and bun in Dublin? I hope He posts here quick.
AnonoNick
Seany, I understand the points your making but I don't think a comments area of a personal Blog is the right place for this kind of debate.
Andrew is showing much more courage as we all know who he is. You have complete anonymity. For all we know you could just be a troll.
I think we should just all head over to Dublin for a coffee and a bun, make up and be friends. If we meet God on the way we could ask Him to join us as long as He doesn't start a discussion on Himself or Homeopathy.
If God were in Ireland, though, he'd be heading for Cork not Dublin. I think we need to get that straight.
In that case let's have coffee and a bun in Dublin and Cork. Both are lovely cities and any excuse for more buns makes sense to me.
I hope Melanie is going to come, and fund the whole bun scenario. It was (almost) her idea. Perhaps she could be this site's social secretary? (God willling etc etc)
AnonoNick
Kilkenny is nice too, not to add too many buns on to this amazing trip, but it's worth a visit.
It has a castle, a river and lots of other stuff I can't remember too.
And I'm guessing that's where Kilkenny (the beer) comes from, so it would be tea and cakes and a local pint. No one in Kilkenny would refuse you a beer with your dinner, of that I'm sure.
Or with your cake. In fact if your town is named after a beer (that's the way it works isn't it?) then I'm sure beer is compulsory with any food, including penny sweets.
I wonder if Seany is actually Sean Hughes who hosted Seany's Show?
Maybe he's angry and picking a fight because it's just dawned on him that the show was cancelled a long long time ago (although Seany, be proud, I still sing the theme tune sometimes and even add my own words - you DID touch someone's life)
That's all I have to say. Sorry I swore at Melanie a while ago (bad swears as well) I just thought it was a bit silly etc, and I saw red about the religion thing.
As you can tell I am a moran anyway, so the swearing was obligatory. I have an image to uphold. Sorry though.
Nath
Cork has the nicest buns in Ireland. and i'll take on ayone smaller than me who says otherwise.
Ah, I have just remembered that Kilkenny had an awesome place called the Kilkenny Design Centre, it had an amazing restaurant / cake / BUN shop upstairs, and they were the best damn buns in the whole world.
Yes, even better than Cork's buns.
It's ON!
Come on then Cork lover, let's have a massive blog comment fight about the best buns in Ireland.
It'll blow this whole 'Dawkins/Religion/Should we be allowed to debate/boo hoo my show was cancelled' silliness into the water!
It's a new war on Bun Terror that will take over the blog!
Oh hang on, I just remembered I had a cake, not a bun in the Kilkenny Design Centre, so I am probably not qualified to have this fight.
Delete the Link! Before she blows!!
And sure, i was just coming for yiz. 'Twas a lucky escape for you alright.
This is the whole reason that I asked Melanie to let you know I had been in touch. My first phase of my Irish plan took place years ago when I commissioned the removal of snakes. My next phase is the introduction of a more bun based culture.
Thank you for your ongoing support.
GOD
Jayzus, a miracle!
This blog will now become a holy shrine for pilgrims. I can hang up my crutches and walk...(falls over)
My Dad is bang on here and I intend to fully support His Irish initiative. Some while ago I did this great thing with loaves and fish which went down really well. I was thinking of a new version involving buns and Guinness.
Jesus
I was a big fan of your "Water into Wine" thing, Jesus. I don't suppose you could do the same thing with "Wine into Beer" as there appears to be some sort of problem with a lack of beer in some eating establishments in Dublin. Of course I'm sure that there is no such problem in Cork (Phew...)
Good point Gwen. I'll have a word with Melanie (who acts as a PA on behalf of myself and my Dad) and see what we can do. We've also published a self help book for those of you who are seeking enlightenment - been on the best seller list for ages dispite some poor reviews from some guy called Dorkins. Having said that, we went for lifestyle advice supported by live examples, was using it set things up for this great thriller we had planned - then some guy called Brown stole that one. We were livid, just wait until he pegs it and we can make sure he gets what he deserves - he's going 'downstairs'!!!
Jesus
Comment Moderation on. I'm really sorry about this, but I don't like all this sniping.
Now Sniper, there was a good film.
I'm not sure what we are allowed to write now comment moderation is on, but I'll make sure I steer well clear of all controversial comments from now.
But what if someone doesn't like the film 'Sniper'
I hope the man from Cork likes the film Sniper, he sounds a little dangerous and probably bigger than me. And he should also be at work all the time he writes comments on this blog - talk about wild!
Who knows what his limits are if he doesn't like a film I like...
OK, I don't like Sniper.
I take it all back.
I wonder if this will make it into the comments...?
I wonder if Cork is currently hunting me down???
Andrew, apologies if anything I added came across as 'sniping'. I'll admit to a bit of flippancy, but nothing else was intended. Honest.
Actually, forget that. I've switched Comment Moderation off, as I don't have access to broadband at home at the moment, only in my office, so queues are likely to develop if comments have to be moderated, especially at weekends.
Anyway, my blog's gone wrong. I can't post new entries. I've just tried. And I can see it in my "dashboard" but it's not showing up on the website. This happened before. I'll look into it.
Either way, a couple of days' cooling off wouldn't hurt. I do this blog for pleasure. When it stops being pleasurable, I question why I do it in the first place.
This post has been removed by a blog administrator.
This post has been removed by a blog administrator.
In the same vein I apologise if anything I wrote was offensive. No offence was intended I promise.
The blog is fun and actually I think the recent comments have genrally been quite funny. From your initial comments about getting a drink in Dublin to us ending up with comments from the Almighty had me having a chuckle more then once.
Appreciate you have to be cautious, but your style does kinda invite comments that are off the wall and that are slightly non PC. And long may it continue!!
AnonoNick
Nothing you wrote was offensive, Gwen.
I was also just enjoying the humour, I didn't mean to be too offensive but I note I am the only one who really swore it up when the spam god thing was posted by Melanie, so I am sorry.
I feel naughty for just being me.
Damn.
And I watched the film 'The Wind that shakes the Barley' with my Irish Brother in Law last night and also now feel very guilty about being from England.
How we were/are B@5tards to just about every other country there is.
See, I'm bringing it all back to what the original Blog was all about, how amazing Dublin is (and Cork, Cork is very nice too, very very nice, with great buns).
Anyway, sorry Andrew Collings for all of the hassles, it wasn't meant to make your life harder, I'm just a glory hound who likes to think he's funny.
I'm hanging my head in shame at the dawning realisation that I am not.
Sob.
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So it was my comment about the crutches,then.
I'll be off.
So which comment was it so we may learn from our mistakes?
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