Only in Dublin - walking a swan back to it's home

On Thursday evening Enid and I passed a little group of people (3) with a swan - walking along on a not too busy Dublin road.

So we decided to get out to see what was the story and if we could help (and to get some photographs also!!).

We walked along with the group - it was so funny, it was a bit like the film Forest Gump - where Forest is running and there are different people joining and running with him for a while and then leaving and being replaced by other people joining.

And seeing a swan in the middle of an old Georgian Dublin street was just so cute and funny!!!



The swan himself was "okay". He was not distressed and did not seem phased by all the attention or the traffic.  He was a little tired it seemed and sat down for a rest every now again.  He was a young swan because he still had some of his grey feathers mixed in with his white feathers.  Sometimes he seemed unsure of walking e.g. getting up on the kerb but I think was just because he was tired.  He also didn't walk in a straight line(!) and was walking on the path and then in the middle of the road at times(!)

He was very docile and placid which was helpful...sometimes you hear of swans being very aggressive.



How did he get on the road?

The guy in the hi-viz jacket was  leading the "escort".  Apparently two of his friends found the swan on Pembroke street during the day so they took him into the guy's basement.  He rang the guards/police (Gardai Siochana) but they didn't want anything to do with it.  He then rang some bird/animal rescue places etc but they earliest they would be able to help was the next day.  So he figured he would wait for the evening and try escort him back to the canal.  Which is where we all came in the story.  Fair play to him, plus the hi-viz jacket was great but really I don't think he could have done it without other people's support - alerting traffic/standing behind/beside the swan pointing him in the right direction.



Anyhoo final outcome was we got the swan to the Grand Canal!  But he decided he just wanted to sit on the waters edge and eat grass instead of getting into the water.  We all kind of wanted to see him in the water but after 10 minutes with him at the canal we agreed there was nothing more we could do so we left him there.



It was a really nice "community"type of adhoc thing to be part of :-)

Viva Forever - Spice Girls (Ukulele Cover)

My sister Katie on the ukulele. Enjoy!

#nomakeupselfie

Have you heard about the #nomakeupselfie trend which is currently viral on facebook?

It seems to be in reaction to (in my opinion, the very silly) online drinking game neknominate.  The concept is that you upload a selfie of yourself with no makeup in order to increase Breast Cancer awareness.

Well! At least that was the original concept.  It subsequently has turned into a trend of uploading a "no makeup selfie" PLUS making a donation to a cancer charity.  

This I think is brilliant!  Being completely honest when I saw the first few selfies going around (with no donation) I didn't see the point of this trend at all.  I really don't see how a picture of your friend on facebook is "raising Breast Cancer awareness".....

So how much money has been raised?!

Well currently this viral trend has raised nearly €500k and it is still rising!

So! Here is my selfie:

Plus here is a copy of my donation:

And finally here is my tip for making sure you carry out regular breast checks/for increasing awareness of Breast Cancer:

Most hair conditioners work better if you leave them in for 2/3 minutes before rinsing.

Why not use this time to carry out your breast check?

I got this idea from a really cool funky hair condition that had instuctions to leave in for 4/5 minutes and they suggested "shave your legs in that time".  

Well I think all hair conditioners should carry the suggestion to do a breast check in that time :-)

Are you on facebook?

Why not start this viral trend in your country?!

Book - Ben by Kerry Needham

Ben is the true (heartbreakingly true) story about the disappearance of 21 month old Ben Needham on the island of Kos.

Although a tough subject it is a quick and easy read.  Throughout the book the pain of Ben's mother, grandparents and uncles is palpable and brought tears to my eyes - in particular the incidences when a child has been spotted who may be Ben and they travel to see him and find out it is not.  The disappointment and sadness they feel is heartbreaking.

It is frustrating to read about the investigations and what was done (and not done) to find Ben - at the time of initial disappearance and over the years.  The Greek police seem to be reluctant to acknowledge that something bad may have happened to the child and that it occurred on their island of Kos.

Location, time and technology also went against the Needham family.  Nowadays with facebook and twitter it is very easy to mobilise a campaign to find a missing child.  Even before facebok and twitter the newspapers and tv would be great for raising awareness.  The Needham family were living in Kos in 1991 and these things did just not apply to them.

In the book Kerry Needham does explore the case of another missing child Madeleine McCann and how the McCann family got so much exposure so quickly, and raised (a huge amount of) money to fund their campaign, so quickly.  She does acknowledge that it is a different time and the technology certainly helped but she also feels that the media got behind a perceived "upper class family/two doctors", whereas they were a family who had moved to Kos and were living in a caravan.

I wasn't sure about that when I read it first but the more I think about it I think she might be kind of right.  I didn't think so because I had read all about how her mother and father were hard workers and how they had moved to Kos for a better life.  Yes, they were living in a caravan (what is wrong with that anyway!) but they had already got jobs and were working away.

But! I guess if you did not know this background...I guess it just "didn't look great".

So ultimately there is no good ending to this book.  Ben Needham is still missing.  And this is the important message from the book:

This is what Ben Needham might look like today (picture is from book published May 2013). 

If you ever see someone who looks like him (blonde blue eyed) in amongst a country or group of people who all look different (i.e. dark olive skinned) then report it on the Help Find Ben website or to Yorkshire Police (phone numbers and emails for reporting are on the Help find Ben website)

Photo credits:

All photos are from the book Ben by Kerry Needham

Western Union

My sister sent me money from the Middle East where she is based (cabin crew) via Western Union.  I had awful problems finding a WU where I could collect.  There are a couple of branches near me in work but all had only sending facilities, but no receiving money facilities.

But then I located a Western Union near my house.  I rang them and they confirmed I could collect and send.

So down I went this evening.  It is a funny little shop...full of food from different countries, internet access, photocopier, fax services etc and Western Union!

It was quick and easy.  Filled in a form, gave a copy of my id to the shop assistant, and after he keyed the details into the computer we were all done!

Happy St Patrick's day!

I had a lovely St Patrick's day today with my family around for dinner.

I spent the morning prepping veg!  I did roast carrots, parsnips, peppers, red onion, garlic and cherry tomatoes.

Enid & Ciaran brought Bones over with them and we had fun dressing him up in an Irish wig.


He also modelled his stylish green hoodie :-)

How smart does our President Michael D Higgins look with his traditional shamrock in his lapel. Our first lady Sabina Higgins looks even more smart with her stylish hat and shamrock festooned scarf.

A really lovely day!  And now just 4 days left in work until the weekend.

Time to put my green jacket away until next year!

You might see the "green" in my jacket better in this pic.  It doesn't photograph well for some reason.

Yes, I have chopped my head off on purpose.  I was having a bad hair day and also did not have any time to put a scrap of makeup.

Celebrity spotting in Meribel!

Look who was in Meribel.  

Yes it is none other than famous actor and human rights activist Sean Penn!*

*This is not actually the real Sean Penn and is a looky-likey :-)  

Do you see any similarity?