Irish Week Poster

 
RECENT
PASSINGS

Pauline McDonald, 81, a native of Ballina, Co. Mayo, died in Spokane on February 13.

OBIT

 

Aileen Hooper Kane, 60, a native of Dublin, died February 4th in Gig Harbor.

OBIT

 

Shirley Friesen, 82, a native of Vancouver, BC, who grew up in Co. Armagh, died in Bellingham February 3.

OBIT

 

Anthony Neary, 89, a native of Ardee, Co. Louth, died January 29, in Corvallis, Or. He lived in Everett from 1954 until 2010.

OBIT

 

Katherine Patrica Kavanaugh Heath, 100, who died January 20 in Great Falls, Montana, was an aunt of Dan Kavanaugh of Yelm.

OBIT

 

Kevin Barrett, 55, the son of Bridget Barrett from Cork, died in Seattle on January 6.

OBIT

 

Ar dheis D� go raibh a n-anamacha d�lse 
 

May their faithful souls rest at God's right hand

 

 

The Celtic Connection
 Click the banner to read the Seattle News in last month's issue of the Celtic Connection, the voice of Celts around the Pacific Northwest. You can also pick up a copy each month at your local Seattle-area Irish Pub or Restaurant!

 

IRISH CONSULATE

San Francisco

Irish Harp

Click to visit the website of the

Irish Consulate in San Francisco

 

 

 

Irish Consul

Contact John Keane, the Honorary Consul of Ireland in Seattle, for help with Irish Passports (renewal, new,  or emergency travel document), for information on getting Irish citizenship, or for any other Irish consular service in Washington State.

 

Irish Passport

Are you eligible for Irish Citizenship or for an Irish Passport?

Seattle
 Area Irish Resources

 

Click the Photos below for listings and contact information

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Irish Dancing Schools

 

 Fiddle

Irish Musicians, Classes and Sessions

 

Irish Language

Irish Language Classes

 

Claddagh Ring

Irish Imports

 

Guinness Pint

Irish Pubs and Restaurants

 

Shamrock

Other Irish Links

  
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Seattle
Area Irish Resources

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Have you considered studying in Ireland?

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Green Card
Even though you have a Green Card, there are some mighty good reasons why you should become a US citizen!
  

Want to Live or Work in Ireland?

Images of Ireland
Learn what you need to know before you should consider moving to Ireland.

 

FAMILY VISAS 

Liberty
For information on some of the different ways to get a US Visa for family members, visit irishseattle.com.

 

 

IRISH EVENTS IN SEATTLE
THIS WEEKEND, MARCH 2-4

George Donaldson

"BIG GEORGE" - George Donaldson has been a member of the "Celtic Thunder" singing ensemble for the last four years and has enjoyed tremendous success on both sides of the Atlantic, including being a well-known folk singer around the Glasgow gig scene for over 20 years. Now on his way back from touring Australia, he will be in Seattle this evening, Friday, March 2, at 8:30pm at the Owl n' Thistle, 808 Post Avenue (at Columbia), Seattle. $10 cover after 7pm.

 

Solas Solas

FREE TICKETS - Solas (Gaelic for "light") is the quintessential Irish-American band, defining the path for the Celtic music world. This Saturday, they perform at Seattle's Triple Door (216 Union St) in support of their latest EP, Shamrock City, the name for Butte, Montana at the turn of the 20th century, when it was rich w/ copper and thousands of Irish immigrants worked there. TWO FREE TICKETS to Saturday's show are available based on random draw to anyone emailing their NAME to [email protected] before 10 am Saturday. The winner will be notified by email B4 Noon. Watch the Solas Shamrock City trailer video.

 

Irish Dancing

IRISH DANCING - This weekend, March 3-4, 9 am - 5 pm, the Pacific Northwest Irish Dance Championships Feis, sponsored by Celtic Arts NW and the Comerford School of Irish Dance, is being held at the Hilton Seattle Airport and Conference Center, 17620 International Blvd - across from the airport. Free admission both days.

 

MUSIC CONCERT/CLASSES - Irish Music Awards' 2009 "Top Traditional Group", Bua, is a quartet comprised of some of the most talented young musicians in the US, and they'll be in Seattle this weekend. Bua w/Cahalen Morrison & Eli Morrison on Friday, March 2 at 8 pm at the Fremont Abbey Art Center, and an Irish Music Workshop (fiddle, accompaniment, flute, whistle, song) on Saturday, March 3 at 10:30 am at the Dusty Strings Music School in Fremont.

 

POETRY READING - Galway poet and short story writer Geraldine Mills will read at 2pm Sunday, March 4, at Elliott Bay Book Company, 1521 Tenth Avenue, Seattle. The event is co-sponsored by Culture Ireland.

  

For the latest information on many more Irish or Celtic events in the Seattle area, visit Hoilands.com.

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Erin Go Bragh FlagIreland_National_flagShamrock Flag

Get your custom made Irish Flags for St. Patrick's Day from our Seattle partner, C. Anderson & Co Custom Flagmakers. For every Irish flag sold, they will make a donation to the Irish Heritage Club to support our Irish Week activities.

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Irish Week in Seattle

March 10-18, 2012

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CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD

THE 16-PAGE IRISH WEEK PROGRAM

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SATURDAY, MARCH 10


Soda Bread 

IRISH SODA BREAD CONTEST, 2 - 4 pm

At T S McHugh's Restaurant, 1st & Mercer, Seattle. Contest Admission is free and Judging starts at 2 PM. Entries should be delivered to the restaurant between 12:30 PM - 1:30 PM and contest winners will be announced at 3 PM. Three Adult categories and NEW IN 2012, an U-16 Category. For the Rules, sample recipes and other details, call Fionna Shriane-Travis at 206-354-7406 or Mary Shriane at 206-321-4576, or email [email protected].

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SUNDAY, MARCH 11

 

Ancestors

IRISH GENEALOGY CONFERENCE, 9 - 5 pm

An all-day Genealogy Conference at the Nordic Heritage Museum, 3014 NW 67th St, Seattle. Fintan Mullan, Director of The Ulster Historical Foundation, and Brian Trainor, former Director of Northern Ireland's Records Office, will present a full day seminar and workshop on Irish Genealogy. The Ulster Historical Foundation is a long-established genealogical research and publishing agency offering extensive knowledge on the sources available for tracing Irish and Scots-Irish ancestors in any part of Ireland. Services include online databases of over 2 million records, genealogy and history books, and personal ancestral research. The cost is $45 per person includes the seminar and a box lunch by Classic Catering. To make a reservation, visit irishclub.org/Genealogy.htm, email [email protected] or call Jean at 206-782-2629.

 

MATT TALBOT DINNER, 6 pm, F X McRory's 

This is a fund-raiser for the Matt Talbot Center, Seattle's downtown program for the homeless which operates 50 units of clean and sober transitional housing in addition to treatment programs for the addicted, homeless and mentally ill. The dinner is held annually at F X McRory's Restaurant near CenturyLink Field. For more information on the programs of Seattle's Matt Talbot Center, visit www.mtcenter.org, or call 206-256-9865. For reservations, email [email protected].

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FRIDAY, MARCH 16 

 

ST. PATRICK'S DAY MASS FOR PEACE, 10 am

PLYMOUTH CONGREGATIONAL CHURCH, 6th and University, Seattle. There is a tremendous symbolism in this annual gathering of Catholics and others on St. Patrick's Day in a Protestant Church, for a Catholic Mass for Peace in Ireland. Main celebrant is Seattle's Auxiliary Bishop Eusebio Elizondowhile the Guest Speaker is Fr. Brendan McBride, the Irish Community Chaplain in the San Francisco Bay area. For information, see www.irishclub.org, call 425-290-7839 or email [email protected]. See a Seattle P-I story on the 2006 Mass for Peace.

 

Proclamation

MAYOR'S IRISH WEEK PROCLAMATION LUNCHEON, and SENIORS LUNCHEON, F X McRory's, Noon.

Washington Governor Christine Gregoire, Seattle Mayor Mike McGinn, King County Executive Dow Constantine (or their representatives) will issue proclamations of Irish Week 2012. Among the special guests will be the St. Patrick's Day Parade Grand Marshal, the Honorary Grand Marshal and other dignitaries. This is also our annual St. Patrick's Day Irish Seniors Luncheon for Irish Seniors and their spouses or significant others who are invited to join our dignitaries from Ireland. Advance reservations are required. Tickets for the Salmon Lunch cost $30 and for reservations and more information, call 206-361-1713 or email [email protected].

 

Seattle St. Patrick's Laying Green Stripe 2011
Laying the Green Stripe 2011

JOHN DOYLE BISHOP GREEN STRIPEon 4th Ave, 7 pm

This is a mini-Parade to mark the route of the St. Patrick's Day Parade down the center of 4th Ave, starting from Jefferson St at 7 pm. A large crowd participates by riding the flat-bed Truck and the Hales Ales Double Decker bus. Children are welcome and there is no charge to participate. All are welcome aboard at F X McRory's at 6:30 pm! For information, call 206-548-9859, email [email protected], or visit IrishClub.org.

 

Friends of St. Patrick

FRIENDS OF ST PATRICK BANQUET, Seattle, 7 pm

A Black-tie Optional dinner and dance, the 71st Annual Dinner of the Society of the Friends of St. Patrick, is being held at The Harbour Club, 801 2nd Ave, Seattle. Tickets are $120 per person and include parking. The Friends have been an institution in Seattle since 1941. For more information, call 425-290-7839 or email [email protected].  

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ST PATRICK'S DAY

SATURDAY, MARCH 17

 

ST PATRICK'S DAY DASH, 8:30 am

This is a nearly four-mile run that starts from T S McHugh's near the Space Needle! Over 15,000 runners participated in 2011, the largest field ever in the race's history. There is no race-day registration. For more information and to register, visit www.stpatsdash.com.

 

Seattle Irish Festival Short 2011
Irish Festival 2011

IRISH FESTIVAL, Seattle Center's Exhibition Hall, 10 am - 6 pm (8 hours) - PERFORMANCE SCHEDULE.

The weekend Irish Festival kicks off at 10 am at the Seattle Center's Exhibition Hall, with booths selling Irish and Celtic products, Irish food and libations, Irish music, singing, dancing, an Irish Reels Film Festival, workshops, lectures, cultural displays, the Fallen Heroes Portrait exhibit, children's contests and activities, a De Lorean display, etc. On Sunday afternoon, there's a drawing for Free Round-Trip tickets to Ireland, courtesy of Delta Airlines and Tangerine Travel in Redmond. For detailed information, call 206-223-3608 or email [email protected].

 

ST PATRICK'S DAY PARADE

PRE-PARADE IRISH FLAG-RAISING

  Fr. Tony Haycock

Click on the photo for more information on the Parade Grand Marshals, Michael Reaga(L) and Honorary Grand Marshal Fr. Tony Haycock (R).

At 12:20 pm, the Grand Marshals will lead other dignitaries in raising the Irish Tricolor in front of the King-County Administration Building at 4th Ave and Jefferson, followed by the playing of the Irish and US National Anthems.

2011 St. Patrick's Day Parade
2011 St. Patrick's Day Parade

ST PATRICK'S DAY PARADE, on 4th Ave, 12:30 pm

At 12:30 pm, the St. Patrick's Day Parade Grand Marshal and the Honorary Parade Grand Marshal lead Seattle's 41st Annual St. Patrick's Day Parade up 4th Avenue. The Parade travels north from Jefferson, past the reviewing stand at Westlake. The Monorail will then be FREE from 1:30 pm to 2:30 pm to bring people to the Seattle Center for Parade Closing Ceremonies at the Irish festival in the Exhibition Hall at 2:30 pm. For more information, call 206-412-2960 or email [email protected].

 

IRISH NETWORK PARTY 9pm

Irish Network Seattle hosts a St. Patrick's Night Party starting at 9pm, at the Edd Cox Art Gallery in Pioneer Square. For details, visit IrishNetworkSeattle.

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SUNDAY, MARCH 18

 

Irish Week 2009 Dancer

IRISH FESTIVAL, Seattle Center's Exhibition Hall, Noon - 6 pm (6 hours) - PERFORMANCE SCHEDULE

The weekend Festival continues on Sunday at the Seattle Center's Exhibition Hall, with booths selling Irish and Celtic products, Irish food and libations, Irish music, singing, dancing, the Irish Reels Film Festival (at the SIFF Film Center Theater), workshops, lectures, cultural displays, an Irish art exhibit, children's contests and activities, a De Lorean display, etc. On Sunday afternoon, there's a drawing for Free Round-Trip tickets to Ireland, courtesy of Delta Airlines and Tangerine Travel in Redmond. For more detailed information, call 206-223-3608 or email [email protected].

 

For more details, visit

OTHER IRISH NEWS

IN SEATTLE

 

Fr. John Madigan

SEATTLE'S IRISH COMMUNITY CHAPLAIN

Fr. John Madigan, a native of Co. Limerick who is Pastor of Holy Rosary Church in West Seattle, has been appointed Chaplain to the Irish Immigrant Community of Seattle, an appointment jointly made by the Archdiocese of Seattle and the Irish Bishops Episcopal Commission for Emigrants. Immigrant Chaplains strive to serve all emigrants, of all faiths or of none, whether it's providing a sympathetic ear and a helping hand, trying to help with immigration matters, employment, accommodation or legal advice. They are there where possible when accidents, unexpected illnesses or deaths occur, and also to join in the various celebrations. Fr. John can be contacted via telephone at 206-937-1488 (Ext 205), through the church office at 206-935-8353, or by calling 425-244-5147, or at [email protected].

 

Wayne Quinn

WAYNE AWARD - Congratulations to Wayne Quinn who will receive the Fr. Joe Maguire Award at the annual Matt Talbot St. Patrick's Dinner on March 11 at F X McRory's. An Irish musician with Claypipe, Wayne has spent his life ministering to those less fortunate. That includes 23 years working on the streets of Seattle as a nurse with the Health Care for the Homeless Network. An Irishman from Lynn, Mass., Wayne was recently forced to give up his work with the homeless because of a recurring battle with cancer. The Seattle Times recently had a story about Wayne.

 

Galway

FREE GALWAY TRIP - The producers of a British Television Reality TV show called "Twin Towns" is looking for one or more families from Seattle, ideally families who have never been to Ireland, to do a home swap for one week with one or more families in Galway, with the experiences to be filmed for later viewing on Sky Atlantic TV. Families will swap homes, jobs and pets, children will spend a week in a Galway school, and all travel expenses are covered. There will be 5 days of actual filming sometime between 16th April - 31st June, 2012. If you're available at that time and interested, contact Isobel at [email protected].

 

PUPPETS AS GAEILIGE - Seattleite and Irish musician Michael Chang, who now lives in Galway, is involved in an Irish-language children's theatre company that has produced a puppet show of the ancient Irish tale, Clann Lir. He helped compose and performs the music live during the show which you can view here.

 

IMMIGRANT SUPPORT - Seattle's Irish Immigrant Support Group points to a report by the US Chamber of Commerce urging improvements to federal policies to create lawful status for immigrant entrepreneurs and permit foreign talent to work in the US. Immigrant entrepreneurs create jobs and strengthen the economy, and the immigrant founders of EBay and Google are prime examples of what happens when immigrant entrepreneurs are given opportunities. Similar science and technology businesses founded by immigrants have created almost half a million jobs for Americans and generated revenue of more than $50 billion.

 

IRISH GLASS ARTISTS - Engaging with Glass from April 21 to May 27 at the Traver Gallery, Tacoma, is the first comprehensive survey of Irish glass art in over a decade. The exhibition brings together a broad spectrum of work in glass, ranging from beautifully executed decorative objects to conceptual installation pieces incorporating video elements. The works of Irish artists resident in Ireland and abroad, including that of Seattle's Irish artist Paula Stokes, are included in the show. Irish artist, Dr. Caroline Madden, will also be the visiting artist in the hotshop at the Museum of Glass, Tacoma, from April18-20, 2012.

 

ALZHEIMER'S PETITION - Irish Seattleites affected by loved ones with Alzheimer's are asking people to consider signing this online petition to the US government to increase funding for Alzheimer's research. The economic cost of Alzheimer's in the US alone is $183 billion a year and this will skyrocket to $1 trillion by 2050 unless a cure is found.

 

BEST WISHES - The Galway Bay Irish Pub in Ocean Shores suffered extensive damage in a recent fire, but the restaurant and gift store were saved and the pub has now reopened for business. Good luck to owner Bill Gibbons!

NEWS FROM IRELAND

  

CHINA VISIT - After spending five days in the US last month, China's Vice-President Xi Jinping visited Ireland for three days during which new economic links covering trade and investment were signed. Ireland was the only EU member state that the Chinese leader visited on his international tour. While in Ireland, Xi tried his hand at hurling during a tour of Croke Park and kicked a Gaelic football. Xi is expected to become China's leader in the near future.

 

IRISH BUSINESS - Former president Bill Clinton hosted an 'Invest in Ireland' round table in New York on February 9 attended by Irish Prime Minister Enda Kenny and Foreign Minister Eamon Gilmore. Co-Chair of the meeting was Maryland Governor Martin O'Malley. Held at New York University, the Invest in Ireland meeting is one of a series of engagements with key business and economic leaders to encourage investment by US firms in Ireland. Over 100 investors took part in the forum.

 

E3 VISAS - US Senate Bill S. 1983 would create an Irish E3 visa to allow 10,500 non-immigrant work visas for qualified Irish people to legally migrate to the US. The bill is part of a wider proposal, H.R. 3012, that has already passed the House of Representatives with bipartisan support on a vote of 389-15. US immigration law currently has nationality specific E3 Visa type provisions for many countries, and this bill underscores the economic benefits of trade and immigration between Ireland and the US. It also acknowledges that Irish companies already employ over 90,000 US citizens in the United States, including in Washington State where over a dozen Irish companies employ at least hundreds of workers. Seattle's Irish Immigrant Support group urges support for the bill.

 

ANOTHER STEP - Northern Ireland's First Minister Peter Robinson recently broke new political ground when he attended his first Gaelic Football game in Armagh where he received a warm welcome from fans. The GAA has been keen to build bridges with the Protestant community in Northern Ireland since 11 years ago lifting the ban on members of the security forces playing football and hurling.

 

Niagara

GREEN NIAGARA - Niagara Falls will turn green this year on March 17, joining many other famous landmarks around the world being lit up in green in honor of Ireland's patron saint. Among the attractions which will go green are The London Eye; the Burj Al Arab hotel in Dubai; Table Mountain in South Africa; the Empire State Building in New York; the Sky Tower in Auckland; the TV tower in Berlin's Alexanderplatz, five skyscrapers in Stockholm, and the fountains at the White House.

 

TOP HOTELS - Three Irish hotels have been named in the world's top fifteen hotels. Tripadvisor.com, one of the world's most read travel sites, rates Castlewood House as the 6th best hotel in the world. Castlewood House is a small guest house in Dingle, Co. Kerry with 12 bedrooms and three staff, that opened in 2005. At # 8 on the list is Loch Lein Country House, located on Lough Leane, one of the Lakes of Killarney, Co. Kerry. At # 13 is Strandhill Lodge and Suites in Sligo, which only opened in March 2011.

 

Hal Roach

HAL ROACH - Irish Comedian Hal Roach has died aged 84. The Waterford -born entertainer was a fixture in Irish America for over 30 years and performed in Seattle numerous times in the 1980s as the comedian with the Paddy Noonan Show. For 26 years he was part of Jurys Cabaret in Dublin during the summer months where he was tremendously popular with millions of tourists. That 26 year residency at Jury's was a Guinness world record for the longest running engagement of a comic. To help you remember Hal, here's a YouTube video.

 

GAELIC FACEBOOK - A new social network site designed to encourage the online use of the Irish language, is aimed both at learners and speakers of Irish. Abair Leat! allows users to create a personal profile, add friends and exchange messages in Irish. At least 70% of posts and comments must be in Irish and it automatically calculates the percentage of Irish in each post and then invites the user to amend the submission if required.

 

GENEALOGY RECORDS - Irish court records from 1850-1910 are now online at findmypast Ireland which also makes available 1.2 million Irish Petty Sessions records. Most records provide the name of the complainant, the name of the defendant, the names of witnesses, the cause of complaint, and details of the judgment, including the fine or sentence handed down. The court records are in addition to the 3.5 million prison records already available.

 

EUCHARISTIC CONGRESS - The 50th International Eucharistic Congress will be held in Dublin from June 10-17, 2012, and 25,000 pilgrims are expected to participate each day. The Congress is an international gathering to promote an awareness of the central place of the Eucharist in the life and mission of the Catholic Church. From the first one in 1881, the only other time the Congress was held in Ireland was in 1932 which was also the 1500th anniversary of Saint Patrick's arrival in Ireland in 432.

 

CONSTITUTIONAL CONVENTION - The Irish government has agreed "in principle" to establish a constitutional convention although the date, details and agenda have still be agreed after consultation with opposition parties. The convention may be asked to consider a reduction in the voting age, approval of same-sex marriage and a shorter presidential term. But other major political, administrative, electoral and structural changes are also possible.

 

RIVITING TALK - Ted.com aims to seek out "the most interesting people on Earth" and give them an opportunity to speak on what they are passionate about untainted by corporate influence. One of those currently featured is an Irishman describing the basking shark, the "Great Fish of the Sun" in Irish, and the world's second largest living fish after the whale shark.

 

GOODBYE RIVERDANCE - 17 years after Michael Flatley and Jean Butler first wowed the world with their unique take on Irish dancing, the show's US performances will end in June. "Riverdance" has been touring the world continuously since 1996, often with two shows on the road.

 

CARDINAL'S NUN - New York Cardinal Timothy Dolan's Irish second grade teacher was front and center at his installment as Cardinal in Rome last month. Sr. Bosco Daly, a Mercy nun now based in Drogheda, Co Louth, has known the new Cardinal since he made his First Communion, and has attended his Confirmation, and his ordination as a priest in 1976. The Drogheda nun taught Dolan in grade school in Baldwin, Missouri.

 

Ireland_National_flag

TRICOLOR CELEBRATIONS - Gov. Brian Schweitzer of Montana will visit Waterford to participate in this year's 1848 Tricolor Celebrations. Thomas Francis Meagher, one of Waterford's most famous sons, first displayed the green, white and orange Tricolor flag in 1848 at a meeting in Waterford, stating that the green color would represent the older Gaelic tradition in Ireland, the orange would represent the supporters of William of Orange, and the white in the center would signify a lasting truce between the 'Orange' and the 'Green'. After leading the Irish Brigade in the US Civil War, Meagher served as acting Governor of Montana Territory before drowning in 1867.

 

NEW STADIUM - Casement Park in Belfast is being developed into a major stadium for the Gaelic games of Hurling and Gaelic Football, second in Ireland only to Dublin's Croke Park. Northern Ireland's government has approved a grant for $98 million to develop the existing grounds located in the heart of west Belfast. The new stadium will 40,000 fans and is part of a GAA plan for each Irish province to have a state-of-the-art facility.

 

GARDA STATIONS - There are 702 Garda (Police) stations in the Irish Republic. The government has tried to close many of the stations but has backed off after local protests. Because of anticipated closures, many of the smaller stations are in a poor state of repair, operate limited opening hours, and do not even have internet or email access.

 

TOTAL ABSTINENCE - Ireland's Pioneer Total Abstinence Association is proposing to change its familiar Pioneer pin and logo in an attempt to open the movement up to people of other faiths. The image of the Sacred Heart on the pin and logo would be replaced by a crossed-out wine glass. The Pioneer Association was founded in 1898 to encourage people to forgo alcohol and has more than 100,000 members in Ireland.

 

$1.85 BILLION HOME - An Irish artist has built a three-room apartment in Dublin using bricks made from $1.85 billion of shredded Euro notes obtained from Ireland's Central Bank. The house contains a living room, bedroom and bathroom, and is his way of paying homage to Ireland's ill-fated construction boom.

 

DERRY FLEADH - Derry has been selected to host the annual All-Ireland Fleadh (National Traditional Irish music festival) in 2013, the first time the event will take place in Northern Ireland. The event annually attracts up to 300,000 visitors and is worth €40 million to the host venue. Derry will also be the UK City of Culture 2013.

 

GOOGLE PARKING - Internet giant Google, which offers views of nearly every street and road in Ireland on Street-View Ireland, was recently before Castleisland District Court in Co. Kerry, charged with having their streetview car with the roof-mounted camera, parked illegally on the town's Main Street. The company avoided a conviction by agreeing to make a $600 charitable contribution to the court's poor box.

 

RELICS RECOVERY - Garda� (Police) have recovered three relics that were stolen from Holy Cross Abbey in Co. Tipperary last October. The relics, believed to be parts of the cross on which Christ was crucified, were taken by three men who used an angle grinder to break open the reinforced display case in which the items were kept.

 

PAPIST - Despite winning the 1762 election for the Tipperary seat in the Irish House of Commons, Thomas Mathew's election was disqualified because "he had professed the Popish religion many years after his age of Twelve and had not conformed to the Protestant religion or educated his children as required by the several acts of Parliament".

 

STOWE MISSAL - An Austrian-born professor claims to have comprehensively translated one of the first written passages of old Irish, which has defied previous translations. The passage is the third of three charms, or spells, in the ninth century Stowe Missal, an illuminated Mass book dating from 750 written mostly in Latin, but which also has a single page at the back written in old Irish. The Stowe Missal is housed in the Royal Irish Academy and is one of the first surviving examples of written old Irish.

 

A LONG WAY - During the First World War, the Irish regiment the Connaught Rangers sung It's a Long Way to Tipperary as they marched through Boulogne on 13 August 1914. The Daily Mail reported the event and the song was then picked up by other units of the British Army. In November 1914 the song was recorded by the well-known Irish tenor John McCormack , which helped contribute to its worldwide popularity.

 

CONSTITUTION ANNIVERSARY - 2012 is the 75th anniversary of Ireland's Constitution and also the 90th anniversary of the constitution of the Irish Free State adopted following the signing of the Anglo-Irish Treaty in 1921. That 1922 constitution, the First Constitution of an independent Ireland, was approved on October 25th, 1922.

 

TREATY ONLINE - The original Anglo Irish Treaty document of 1921 has been made available to the public for the first time in an online exhibition marking 90 years to the day since its signing. The treaty was signed in the aftermath of the truce which ended the 1919-1921 War of Independence. The split over the treaty and its subsequent narrow ratification by the D�il in January 1922 led ultimately to the Irish Civil War of 1922-23.

 

TOM�S MacCURTAIN - The Sinn F�in Lord Mayor of Cork during the Anglo-Irish War, Tom�s MacCurtain, was shot dead by members of the Royal Irish Constabulary, the British-aligned police force,on March 20, 1920, MacCurtain's 36th birthday and just two months after he had been elected Mayor. A grand-niece of MacCurtain, Sheila Morrison, currently lives in Seattle.

 

PARIS OLYMPICS - Art competitions were held as part of the Paris Olympiad of 1924. Ireland's cultural team claimed silver at sports-themed painting for Jack Yeats's The Liffey Swim, and bronze in literature for Oliver St John Gogarty's Ode to the Tailteann Games. Ireland won two of the 14 medals awarded, enough for joint-fourth place in the cultural medals table.

 

BERLIN PIPER - At the World Dance and Music Festival during the 1936 Olympics in Berlin, the famous uilleann piper Sean Dempsey was ordered to play for Hitler. After pointing out that he needed a chair, the organizers having assumed he would be performing standing up, Hitler promptly ordered a hapless storm trooper to get down on his hands and knees so Dempsey could perform while seated on the man's back. Afterwards, Dempsey reportedly refused Hitler's request to let him have the pipes! A nephew of Dempsey, Nico Hinman, currently lives on Bainbridge Island.

TID BITS 
  • President Obama has issued a Presidential Proclamation of Irish-American Heritage Month, 2012
  • Irish Taoiseach (PM) Enda Kenny and his wife will spend the nights of March 19 and 20 in Blair House, the official guest residence across the street from the White House, following an invite from President Obama's during his visit to Ireland last May.
  • Ireland assumes the EU presidency in the first six months of 2013.
  • The Smart Futures -- Made in Ireland video promotes Ireland's engineering profession
  • The issue of Irish visas is causing problems for some politicians
  • The New York Times interviews Paddy Maloney, the uilleann piper and bandleader who founded The Chieftains traditional Irish music group 60 years ago.
  • The official Irish team song for the European Soccer Championship in Poland this summer
  • The emergency phone number across the EU is 112, and is reachable from fixed and mobile phones, free of charge.
  • City officials in Savannah, Georgia, has officially banned snakes from the city's St. Patrick's Day Parade which expects up to 500,000 spectators on March17.
  • John Jeremiah Sullivan writes in the New York Times about My Debt to Ireland
  • The Irish punt ceased to be legal tender 10 years ago on February 10.
  • homelink.org, intervac-homeexchange.com, lovehomeswap.com are websites promoting house swapping with homeowners in Ireland and elsewhere.
  • The New York Times wonders if Ireland's economic implosion would have been avoided if more women had been in power?
  • A business delegation representing over 2,000 companies from western Canada was recently in Ireland saying that up to 80,000 jobs in British Columbia could be filled by Irish construction workers.
  • Effective April 2013, shoppers in Northern Ireland will pay 5p (8�) for plastic bags.
  • The average alcohol consumption per person in Ireland fell to 12 liters per year, down 17% from the 2001 peak.
  • One in five people in Ireland do not drink alcohol.
  • Everyone over the age of 66 residing in Ireland is entitled to travel, without charge, on all the trains and buses of the state transport companies outside rush hour times and during specific hours.
  • After more than 40 years, San Antonio's St. Patrick's Day parade has been cancelled because of fees charged by the city.
  • The highest fertility rate in the EU in 2010 was in Ireland at 2.07, well above the EU average of 1.59.
  • It could be any town in Ireland, but it's a Friday Night in downtown Ennis, Co. Clare
  • There are seven places in the US with the word Shamrock in their names, towns in West Virginia, Texas, Indiana, Oklahoma, and Townships in Nebraska, Missouri and Minnesota.
  • There are 16 places in the US named Dublin. The most populous of them is Dublin, California, with a population of 46,036.
  • Irishman John Coghlan recently broke the 4 minute mile barrier at a track meet in Boston, and with his father, Eamonn, became the first Irish father-son combination to crack the magical barrier.
  • New technology is being used in Ireland to try to prevent fish poaching. Concealed CCTV cameras are being installed at a number of rivers and lakes to catch poachers in the act.
  • Gaelic Girls is a web video series about men, music, fashion, nightlife and much more around Ireland. They went to Galway city to talk to fellow Americans about what makes Galway so great.
  • Ireland is home to 620 millionaires while almost 2,500 people earn between €500,000 and €1 million, and almost 10,000 have incomes ranging between €250,000 and €500,000.
  • Income in Ireland is taxed at the standard rate of 20% and, after the first $56,000, at 41%. However, many high earners are also able to avail of sizable tax deductions.
  • Irish actor David Kelly, who motorcycled naked in "Waking Ned Devine," and who played Grandpa Joe in "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory", has died in Ireland aged 82.
  • Clarevirtually.ie is a website that enables the prospective visitor to Clare, to tour the accommodation, restaurant, pub, or tourist attraction of their choice.
  • The main span of the Foyle Bridge in Derry at 767 ft is the longest single bridge span in Ireland.
  • An Irish professor of biochemistry in Edinburgh has devised an alternative use for whiskey that promises to revolutionize our fuel use - biofuel. The by-products of whiskey production, draff and pot ale, can be harnessed before being converted into energy.
  • The world-famous winding scenic route on the Dingle peninsula overlooking the Atlantic Ocean along by Inch Strand is to be straightened although some tour operators are raising concerns that the character of the traditional road into the west Kerry Gaeltacht will be lost under the project.
  • The Irish government is to pardon the thousands of soldiers who deserted the Irish army to join the British army during the Second World War. 4,983 people deserted and those who returned to Ireland were refused military pensions and were debarred from a range of State employment for many years.
  • The Northern Lights were witnessed by thousands of people along the north Donegal coast and in parts of Northern Ireland on several nights recently.
  • Sinn F�in's Martin McGuinness has said that the Queen's visit to Ireland last May made an impression on him and that he would now be open to meeting her.
  • In the mid-1890s, Dublin's horse-drawn trams were carrying some 10 million passengers a year at an average fare of 1.6 pence.
  • Ireland's National Monuments Service gives online access to its database via www.archaeology.ie, where you can search for particular types of monument by county, town and townland.
  • Anglo-Irish actor Daniel Day-Lewis, who bears an uncanny resemblance to Abraham Lincoln, will be playing Lincoln in Steven Spielberg's latest film slotted for release in 2012.
Seanfhocal - Proverb
 

 Ag duine f�in is fear a fhios c� lu�onn an bhr�g

The wearer best knows where the shoe pinches

 

Sl�n go f�ill�n, Goodbye for now!
 
John Keane 
 
2012 John Keane. Items may be copied if
[email protected]� is credited
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