Hallowe'en '89

My lil sister and I around Halloween 1989 I think...San Angelo, Texas, USA

Congratulations Ireland!

Congratulations to the Irish Football team on their qualification for the Euro 2012 Tournament! Bring on Poland/Ukraine!

President Michael D, Keith Duffy and Family at Terryland Park

A young fan, Keith Duffy and President Elect Michael D. Higgins

Neen, Tuna, and Ant with President Elect Michael D. Higgins

Cast of Big Maggie  - Druid Theater Galway with President Elect Michael D. Higgins.

President Elect Michael D. Higgins. and dedicated United Supporter.

Neen, Keith Duffy and Tuna

Dad, Neen Ant and Tuna at Terryland Park

  President Elect Michael D. Higgins at Fridays Galway United Match

   President Elect Michael D Higgins and Galway United Terry the Tiger.

Photos from last night special Michael D Higgins Celebration/Premier Division Play-Off match. I was as per usual taking shot before and during the match. The game didnt go our way, and Galway United will be relegated to the Second Division necxt year but we are all staying possitive...

I brought Neen, Ant, Tuna and Dad into meet President Michael D. Higgins during the half time interval. Neen wanted to have a photo taken to send to her grandfather so she was thrilled...

Neen and Shauna also got a shot with Actor/Singer Keith Duffy...they were both thrilled - and Keith was a really sound guy...

I Heart deviantART!

I love deviantART. I've been on it for over 7 years and am always encouraging fellow artists, especially those setting out on their professional careers to set up an account. I have a website, blog, flickr...all of that stuff, but deviant has garnered more business, interest and good will for me than any other online art forum.

I love the sense of community - and love buying bits and bobs from the shop.  All the revenue from the sale of my own deviantART prints goes straight back into the deviantART community...I've been saving up my deviantART dollars for ages to by a new tshirt... (My green deviantArt T is a bit worn from wear at this stage...)

Finally the last day a print sold and I was able to order the high decibal t-shirt I've had my eye on...

Well, I couldn't believe it when my FedEX package arrived, Maria, in the deviantART office had included in the parcel a free tshirt and a buttload of awesome deviant stickers too...

It doesnt matter how old I get free things always makes me happy. The ones that are delivered via snail-mail are even better. I love 'em guys! Thanks devianART!

Dare You to Stay Awake Watching This

Presenting Michael D. Higgins a Cake!

Photos courtesy Michael D' Higgins Presidential Campaign

I mentioned in an earlier post I had the opportunity to present Presidential candidate Michael D. Higgins and his wife Sabina a 'Good Luck cake on behalf of Galway United last week...

Well the Presidential Election was held yesterday and it's official! Michael D. Higgins will be announced President of Ireland shortly! : ) Congrats President Higgins, myself and Neen wish you the best of luck! Hope you make it to Galway United match Friday! : )

Strange Strange Day

Leaky ceiling, giving cake to the homeless and presents to presidents...


Leaky Ceiling

I woke up this morning to Neen screaming "there's a leak in the attic! Waters dripping through the ceiling.... " We were due to have the ball cock changed in the secondary water tank in the attic today. Landlord had a look at it last night and determined quite rightly the entire unit needed to be changed and urgently. Well up to that point I had managed to implement a make shift fix to prevent the tank overflowing. (Styrofoam wedge holding the floating cock up and the valve closed) With all his messing the delicate balance was disrupted and when we went to bed the valve wasn't working what so ever. As long as the water was able to flow out of the over flow faster than it was coming in we'd be OK until the following day...

By this morning the tank was nearly at over flow point and small drips of water started to seep through the ceiling justifiably freaking Neen out. We called the landlord asap and he arrived up, new part in hand to fix the problem. Generally for a job like this you have to turn off the water for the house at the mains usually located near the road. He didn't have a clue were the valve was so he just jumped in... Needless to say there was water everywhere. He did it as quickly as possible but a lot of water overflowed and was dripping heavily into the sitting room below. We managed to move the TV, Wii, Blue Ray player etc in time as well as a few family photos that lined the mantel but the place was soaked... Alls well now. I soaked up the pool of water in the attic, and turned the heat on full blast to dry out the house.

Cake for Presidential Candidate Michael D. Higgins

I received an email last night from the Galway United Secretary saying the manager would be presenting a cake to Michael D. Higgins the following day and that all support from the Management committee would be appreciated. I was feeling pretty crappy (I've been sick for the past few days) but I decided to go and fill out the crowd a bit and use the opportunity to wish presidential candidate Michael D. well in the rest of his race. Lo' and behold come 3 o'clock no body but myself had turned up. I didn't have the new managers number yet and the rest of the Committee were out of reach or unavailable. As Michael D and his caravan of volunteers and reporters approached we decided I would have to do. So I grabbed the cake, and while posing for photos presented Michael D. with it. There were half a dozen photographers and a crew from RTE the national television station who filmed the presentation and did an interview with Michael D. and myself. I was very briefly on the 6 o'clock main evening news today with Michael D. quite mortifying as I looked really out of place and awkward but it was good exposure for the club.

Giving Cake to the Masses

The cake itself was a token gift more than anything. For photo purpose only really. After the presentation Michael D's caravan walked off leaving the cake behind. I was on my bike so couldn't take it with me and naturally didn't want it to go to waste so I asked the bakery it was made in to slice it with the intention of catching up with the Michael D supporters and passing out the cake. By the time it was sliced and ready to go the crowd were long gone so myself and a friend went around town and offered free cake to the passers buy. We gave cake to buskers, homeless people...everyone! We brought the last dozen slices up to the 'Occupy Protesters' located in Eyre Square. They were delighted with the free treat until they found out the cakes origin - of all things they were eating a cake created in honour of a "Politician" Their disdain was fleeting and they put politics aside and happily polished off the rest of the cake with gusto. Really really nice people, - the Galway Occupy Protesters. I whole heartily applaud their dedication to the cause and wish them the best of luck in their journey for justice. If you are passing through or living in Galway I urge you to drop by for a chat with them or to donate much needed food and supplies.  Better yet if you are so politically inclined and have the free time pitch a tent and join them...

Present for the President (to be) Michael D.

A cake wasn't the only thing I was able to present to presidential candidate Michael D. Higgins today. In a separate presentation I also gave him one of my original watercolours, featuring a quote by W. B. Yeats. Just a small token to wish him good luck and thank him for his dedication to the Arts in Ireland. I hope he liked it!

The watercolour I presented to Michael D.

Lazy Days...

Playing...The Legend of Zelda: Spirit Tracks

Another Game I picked up recently is The Legend of Zelda: Spirit Tracks...My purchase is proof good advertising really works. You might remember recently I posted a couple of Robin Williams/Zelda videos...the one's produced by Nintendo that feature Robin and his daughter (also called) Zelda. Well ya that totally got me in the mood to play a Zelda game, I'm a huge Robin Williams fan so well done Nintendo for a great marketing campaign! I haven't played too much of this game yet, I usually play the DS at night for a bit before I fall asleep so I'll be tackling it with gusto tomorrow night...

Playing...Kirby's Epic Yarn

I traded in a couple of old games the last day and picked this up, 'Kirby's Epic Yarn' on Nintendo Wii. This game rocks. It's truly beautiful looking and the gameplay is wholly unique. Everything about this gem of a game is charming. If you are a crafty person you should definitely check it out. 5 Stars!