Tuesday, June 30, 2015

Martin Kelly is a star///Tell him

From: Brian Lynch <lynch84@icloud.com>
Date: 29 June 2015 09:46:35 IST
Subject: Please help

When one of your 12 mates who has travelled over to Dublin on Friday evening to help you celebrate 50 years on this crazy planet, loses his entire Curragh racing money within one taxi ride of arrival in the capital, and then goes into brief meltdown because he can blame no one but himself, you start to think that this could be a long weekend.
So we all chip in to recover half of his losses, and the self confined lockdown comes to an end, the rumour that he might be on the next flight back to Brum dissipates and although he refuses to hit the big city Friday night, the rest of us head off for a few, with our trip to the Irish Derby still in tact.
Plenty of chat, with one subject dominant. How at 52 years old ?
Why so much cash ?
Where had he left it ?
Who had it now ? Etc Etc..  You won't see that again we all knew.

Except re-enter the story Mr Martin Kelly , the jovial old cab driver who had picked us up at Terminal 1 earlier on. We had chatted for the entire trip to the Central Hotel about this and that, saying we were off racing in Ireland for my 50th.

So anyway, Mr Kelly, or his next passenger found the clear plastic wallet and at sometime during Friday night the wallet found its way into the Central Hotel safe.

You have got to be kidding ? But no, it was true, and the weekend was saved.

I don't know how to thank Martin personally but maybe you could forward this on to someone who may know him. It wasn't the best taxi I've ever been in but the driver was solid gold.
Also the wonderful staff at the Central Hotel for doing their bit.

Thanks  Brian Lynch from Rugby.

Sunday, June 28, 2015

Rickshaw race

Yesterday I picked up a guy who was all biz.
He had a very bad back and this was his story.

He went to see the Who at the 3 arena and after the show they got into 2 rickshaws to bring them back into town.
The the guy in the other rickshaw shouted "€100 to the first one to to reach Libertey  Hall !!!!!"
So they went for it !
And like the chariot race in Ben Hur but his rickshaw somersaulted and he landed on his back on the road and he was knocked out!
He came to with an ambulance man looking down at him.
He didn't go with them as he was having such a great time.

So lets hope things don't get any worse for him as it would be very hard to sue a rickshaw driver for damages who carried no license or insurance.

He might have been killed, you should have seen the blood on the back of his jacket, he is in the music business, but not a pop star..
He has a recording studio and a few other businesses.

This is my lad the drummer, what do you think ?



There was 3 big concerts on in Dublin last weekend it was mad.Summer is the season for festivals.

What a festival there was this weekend, GAY PRIDE roads closed. As we were the first to make full legal rights for homosexual couples it has become a big event.

Over the last few days it has been very busy and yesterday I pulled over to the Westbury hotel taxi rank to get coffee. There was a troubled soul sitting on the footpath, alcohol or drugs or both. He was in a bad state, sitting there with his head hung down 4 cans of cider beside him.
You could see his wrists covered in red spots, his legs above his socks were the same.
He was very thin and I thought we need a few outreach workers.
Then a young guy carrying around 6 paper shopping bags who was passing gave him a big kick on the leg.
"Get up you useless fucker!"

 There must be karma.. But
Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter..
I would have loved to have floored the rich kid !


 

Tuesday, June 23, 2015

New York Times ????????????///

The New York Times wrote an article about the young Irish in the USA on J1 visas.
The drunken, wild youths wrecking apartments etc.

At a time when we are collectively suffering from the deaths of our brothers and sisters.

Well folks we do have a weapon at our disposal to deal with such trash journalism.

It is one thing that makes everyone take notice.

Boycott...Cancel all advertising with them, cancel the paper.
Don' even use it to wrap up your rubbish.

Big people sometimes only pay attention when you hit them in the nuts.

Go for it !



 A little bit of Irish/Jewish history on Bloomfield Avenue.


 Don't forget the vintage car show in Terenure collage next bank holiday, live the dream!


Here we go! Wetherspoons are in Blackrock. He called his company after a teacher named Mr.Wetherspoon who told him that he would never be a success.


Did you ever see anything like this?
This is what happens when corruption gets into a group of people and remains unchecked.



Sadly it has come to pass that a boy killed his mother in Ireland at a time when he should have been in prison, incompetence by the Garda allowed it to happen.

I have been busy, I needed a plumber and my wife rang a guy who was recommended.
He said he would ring back in the morning with a time..
So in the morning he rang me to say that 2 pals from Dynorod would be contacting me shortly.
I told him to back up a bit.
If I wanted someone else to do the job I would have called them myself.
So you can tell your palls that I will do it myself.....
What do you mean ?
I will do the job myself.
If you could do the job yourself why did you call me?
Because I was told you were a good reliable honest plumber.

If you don't want business say so at the time, and don't waste mine.

3 hours of my skill and it was done, it would have taken less time if I had all my tools ready.

Most people I spoke to feel the same about it.
Imagine booking a class act and getting less than you asked for.

God I met some great people yesterday, more of that some other time.

Saturday, June 20, 2015

Cynthia Lennon RIP

I just heard that Cynthia Lennon the first wife of John Lennon has died.Click here

You start to feel a bit shakey when your peer group start to pop off.
Through life she was often handed the dirty end of the stick in this life.

There was a concert a few years ago (Bruice Springstein I think) and I had a few elegant lady's going to the Dylan Hotel.
The conversation was about fashion, one girl spoke about what an anti climax it was for her when she aspired to owning a top of the line dress and shoes that pinched all with top name labels.
The unease that you feel when you wear a Rolex watch far outweighs the benefits.

"Thats why God keeps me poor" I said after a while.
The conversation went back to normal things and near the end I twigged that these lady's were big show biz brides. 
But the only one I recognized was Cynthia Lennon.
Though no one had mentioned her name I asked her when she was getting out if I was right.

"How did you know?" she said.
"It was all part of my childhood" I said and she gently put her hand on my shoulder.

Still you wish that things would have gone better for her.

C'est la vie.


I guess whether you are unknown or famous, rich or poor.

You would like to be remembered with love.

Thursday, June 18, 2015

When furniture becomes art









Here is a small selection of highly crafted furniture on display in the Solomon gallery beside the Westbury hotel just off Grafton St.

Sometimes something which is functional becomes an entire work of art.

It is free to look and well worth a goo!

Don't tell me you didn't know the young Luke Kelly from the Dubliners below.

Monday, June 15, 2015

Tipping point

   Inside the Irish Film Center
                A photo of a photo  Guess who?
                     A house looking great in Portabello
                        An outreach worker talks to a homeless girl on O'Connell bridge

There are times when you think with a big bang that society is absolutely fucked !

Today on the duel carriageway I saw a car broken down, so I stopped as normal people do.
The lady had a small baby on the side of the road so I offered a hand with the flat wheel.
Her husband was on the way. but I said that I could make a start until he came.
The nuts were very tight and she finished up jumping on one side of my wheel brace while I pulled on the other side.
Wheel off. spare on, jack out, nuts tightened up.
Flat wheel in the boot, her jack, wheel brace and buggy into the boot.
I got wipes out of the car and cleaned my hands.

Then I got into my car and drove away without a word of thanks !

It would have cost her nothing to say it ...But she turned a positive action into a very negative experience.

But then Bing! Bing! the HailO system sent me a man from Syria going to the training center in Ballyfermot.
The guy was told to attend the FAS training center but there was no street name given on his phone, we asked and found.
"The people who work in this place don't care about anyone, how could they ask you to go someplace and not tell you a street address I asked them twice."
He was a great person. I said that the only thing I know about Syria is that the capital city is Damascus ( It is between Turkey, Israel, Iraq and Jordan) Damascus was the first city in the world he told me, and It is written in the Koran that when war comes to Damascus the end of civilization is nigh. .

He was totally amazed by my story about how the woman had not even said thank you, but this is a sign that people are not right in the head.

Perhaps it is just me !

But I had just had a €30 journey out to Finnstown house so I won't hold a grudge today.

Wednesday, June 10, 2015

First drug run this year ?



 A lion escaped in Fairview in 1952 a documentry is on show in the IFC It has been extended by popular demand





 What a mistake the panel was lifted up to make way for luggage but not moved forwards
Ireland V England trophies on display
 Here is a guy worth Googling Patrick O'Connell  Click here



Today as far as I can remember was my first drug run of this year.

I Picked him up on Cork St. and did a U turn back down to "Maryland" where he did his first drop.
Then over to "Fatima"where we finished and he paid me €10
But not before I found out through his phone calls that he had a "Grand" on him and would have another one by tomorrow.
After paying me as I was driving away. He got out and then he looked like he had been shot, his face turned ashen and he shouted STOP !..ME FECKIN MONEY !
I did stop and he came running over and started looking down the sides of the seats.
Then he felt the back pocket of his jacket..."Jesus mate, sorry about that"
Just as I was thinking of beating him up and taking that €1,000 from him and putting it out of criminal circulation.
It happens.
Who is he going to tell ?

Since then there has been a massive operation against heroin dealers, 60 raids 30 detained.
If I was in charge I could multiply that by 10 easily !

So there I was at the ferry, 2 old dears giving out about the scarcity of taxis.
Sandymount and Ballsbridge.
Over the East link bridge and off we went.
On arrival at Sandymount the first lady got out I will pay she said.
So there is €15  on the meter so your half will be €7.50..
No I want to pay it all.So she gave me €15 and I went over to the "Sweepstakes apartments"in Ballsbridge.
Right there is €18 on the meter now so you owe me €3
She has paid you and I am not going to give you any more !
The other lady only paid to where she got off.
Its €3 more now.
I have no money and I won't pay.

Her bag was out of the car so I bit my tongue and went away.

 I have been furious for days that I didn't take her to Ringsend garda station.

Then after settling the score there you just pop her bag on the ground and tell her to get another taxi home and to behave herself in future.

No my dear I did bring you home and you wouldn't pay me remember?

It is the rich people that give you the most trouble for sure.

A customer had a good word for it "Toxic entitlement"
She saw you as her servant and that is the way toxic wealthy people treat the help. 

I have  been plagued by my fridge for years, the door opens the wrong way.

I need it to open from the other side.
So I got out the tools and set to work.
After 20 minutes I broke the hinge!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

New fridge,,,It is not easy to reverse the opening on a fridge for sure.
But I am in business now,

Friday, June 05, 2015

What if thngs were different ?

Here is something which passed me by, until I read about it on a blog called "Junk boat travels"

What if Jesus was a homeless man on the street?

There is a statue at Christchurch given to us by an anonymous doner Click here


 Makes you think ?

Wednesday, June 03, 2015

Out of line


                                          The offending screw
                       The opposite tyre, it looked like someone had gone at it with an angle grinder
                      Everyone should have one of these to PLUG screw or nail holes in minutes.

I saw a screw in my tyre and as I was far from home I headed for a tyre place.
The guy brought the car into the workshop and I waited, while I waited I listened to the office guy talking on the phone.
"Bad news on that exhaust system, the end box is gone but if I try to join a new end on to it it will break off. You can't join new metal to old. It would be a much better job to replace the whole system
I had a look at those tyres and you need to replace the 2 front ones they will never pass the NCT.
OK I will pop them on and your car will be ready at 3.pm"

Every time it was for a few extra bucks.
Then my man came from the workshop.
"Your tyre is badly worn on one side, the tracking is off.
I can't fix the puncture the tyre is unsafe"

I said put it back on so (In French)

The head the ball on the phone said that as he took off the wheel and didn'nt fix the puncture he would only charge me €5 !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
His door I will never darken again for sure,

Still it could have been worse, a customer told me he had bought a BMW with "Run flat tyres"
the sales pitch was great, your wife will never have to change a flat wheel..Until they got a nail in a tyre, she drove home and the next day the husband went to the garage, to his dismay he was told that the tyre would have to be replaced at a cost of £200 stg.
OK put on 4 ordinary tyres for me, slight problem? there was no spare wheel, nor was there space for one!!!



I went to Ana Motors in the Butterly business park Artaine where 2 new tyres were fitted and the steering realigned.
You have to wonder how much scamming goes on in garages, "You will have to have a new doofer fitted next time" (The lovely lady says to herself he is a great mechanic the way he looks after me )

In Britain the dept.of industry send in decoy cars and then assess the work done.
Then they can fine or close offending garages.

Trust is what business depends on.
You ask me for a service or a product both parties expect, that what they are paying for is at the right price and what they are getting is what they expect.

We were on Grafton street and he told me this.

There is a jeweler close to where we are and he will buy Gold for cash no questions asked.
He sells fake diamonds such as zirconia, zircon and moissanite.
Hundreds of couples have paid thousands of euro for fake stone worth a fraction of their cost.

So take care out there or they will take away all your pocket money !

Man and dog

Once in a while something comes along which makes you think.
This was sent to me all the way from Argentina.
Is it good?

No it's great.



It takes a minute to sink in