September Round Up
The Cliffs of Moher
September was a memorable month for me, with plenty happening. The start of the month saw my brother and his wife back from Melbourne, followed by a long awaited family reunion, then a family trip down to Lahinch in County Clare to celebrate my parents 50th wedding anniversary. I also had a birthday at the same time and then managed to contract covid, thankfully when most of the family gatherings had passed.
West Clare is a beautiful part of the country, as well as the majestic Cliffs of Moher you have picturesque towns such as Ballyvaughan, music hubs like Doolin and the surfing/golf Mecca that is Lahinch. Great food and a terrific atmosphere in the pubs.
So lots of eating, drinking, singing, celebrating - just a great family get together, which is what it’s all about. Not a lot of time for reading/watching/listening but did manage to catch a few things worth sharing.
Books
Catching covid towards the end September I thought would mean getting a bit more reading done but in reality my concentration was pretty shot and I could only manage a couple of pages at a time. My covid book was a good one though - Rebecca by Daphne Du Maurier, an atmospheric classic that haunted my fever dreams with a lingering black clad Mrs Danvers amidst the wonderfully described Manderley. Just a wonderful psychological thriller.
Before that, I’d finished ‘Rogues’ by Patrick Radden Keefe. It’s a collection of 12 pieces previously published in The New Yorker covering a range of ‘grifters, killer, rebels and crooks.’ Impeccably researched and well written, some of my favourites pieces were on Anthony Bourdain, El Chapo and a notorious Dutch gangster. I learnt a lot about the world of international wine forgeries as well.
I also read ‘The Queen of Dirt Island’ by one of my favourite Irish writers, Donal Ryan. Featuring three generations of women living under one roof in rural Tipperary, it’s about love and family, grief and loss and as usual Ryan writes with great compassion for his characters.
Sunset at Lahinch
Podcast
A bit late to the party on this one, but I came across a great podcast called ‘The witness - in his words’, which is about Joseph O’Callaghan, the youngest ever person to enter the witness protection programme in Ireland after his testimony convicted two drug dealing gangsters for murder. Joseph speaks with such eloquence and honesty about his storyand the impact on him and his family. At times shocking, this is a riveting listen.
Television
I only heard of this show because two shelf stackers in Sainsburys were discussing it whilst I was in the bread section. They were talking about ‘Dahmer’ on Netflix, a series about the notorious serial killer. With lots of lingering shots of Dahmer sitting with his victims, I quickly became uneasy watching this and felt it was exploitative. Maybe it improves after the one and a half episodes I watched but it just left me feeling grimy and depressed. Not for me.
Much more enjoyable was ‘Mortimer and Whitehouse: Gone fishing’ which basically is what it says in the title. The two comedians travel to a variety of fishing locations around Britain, making each other laugh and occasionally talking about their health, specially their heart problems, and mortality. That’s it. The duo have great chemistry, and although it can be very funny, it’s also sometimes moving. The complete opposite to the grisly ‘Dahmer’ and when I watched an episode this week it felt like a much welcomed palette cleanser.
Music
Didn't get to any gigs this month and covid prevented me from attending my favourite weekend of the year in Armagh, the Seven Hills blues festival. I did go to a couple of the open air sessions, but nothing inside the pubs. More outings planned for October and November to make up for it.
No new albums purchased but I did listen to a lot of music, mostly jumping around Spotify which isn’t always ideal. Going to make an effort to listen to more albums from start to finish, which is what I normally do but seemed to have stopped doing the past while. Anyways, I always enjoy the weekly videos of Reina El Cid, I just love the warm tones of her voice. Until next time.