I wanted to share a new Newsletter I just subscribed to. It's from the IRISH CULTURE.
Ana

Welcome to the Irish Culture & Customs newsletter which is published every fortnight
or so and sent out to more than 4400 readers all over the world.
God Bless you!
If you'd like to read past issues, they are archived at:
https://www.ymlp27.com/pubarchive.php?Herself
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~


Here are some excerpts:

Beannachta� na F�ile P�draig ar chlann mh�r dhomhanda
�na nGael, sa bhaile agus ar fud na cruinne,
ar an l� n�isi�nta ceili�rtha seo.

Warmest St Patrick's Day greetings to every member
of our global Irish family and to our many friends around
�the world.
~~~~~~~

We loved a line fed to us by an elderly wit at our local supermarket
- it's not every week you get to look for leprechauns on the Monday and then the
Easter Bunny the following Sunday! In fact, you'd have to be at least 95 to have
Easter occur this early. The last time it was this early was 1913. And the last
time St. Patrick's Day fell in Holy Week was 1940. But,for all of you chagrined
by having to move parades and change other events, the next conflict with Holy Week
is not expected until 2160. God willing, we'll be long gone to our reward.

QUIPS, QUOTES, PROVERBS & TOASTS

We repeat a classic for the day that's in it:
St. Patrick was a gentleman who through strategy and stealth
Drove all the snakes from Ireland,Here's a toasting to his health;
Bit not too many toastings Lest you lose yourself and then
Forget the good St. Patrick and see all those snakes again.
__________________________________________________________________
A BIT OF THE WIT
Blarney, as defined by Bishop Fulton J. Sheen, is flattery so thin we like it, as
opposed to baloney which is flattery so thick it can't be true.

And back by popular demand in honour of the most important day in the Irish calendar:

St. Patrick's Birthday
On the eighth day of March it was, some people say,
That Saint Patrick at midnight first saw the day.
While others declare 'twas the ninth he was born,
And 'twas all a mistake between midnight and morn;
For mistakes will occur in a hurry and shock,
and some blam'd the babby and some blam'd the clock
Till with all their cross questions sure no one could know
If the child was too fast or the clock was too slow.
Now the first faction fight in old Ireland, they say,
Was all on account of Saint Patrick's birthday.
Some fought for the eighth for the ninth more would die,
And who wouldn't see right, sure they blacken'd his eye!
At last both the factions so positive grew,
That each kept a birthday, so Pat then had two.
Till Father Mulcahy, who confessed them their sins,
Said, "Ye can't have two birthdays, unless ye be twins."
Says he, "Don't be fightin' for eight or for nine,
Don't be always dividin'but sometimes combine;
Combine eight with nine, and seventeen is the mark,
So let that be his birthday." "Amen," says the clerk.
"If he wasn't a twins, sure our hist'ry will show
That, at least, he is worth any two saints that we know!"
Then they all drowned the shamrock�which completed their bliss,
And we keep up the practice from that day to this.
(Edited and adapted from Dick's Irish Dialect Recitations,


Wm. B. Dick, Editor,
New York, Dick & Fitzgerald, Publisher, 1879)
__________________________________________________________________

DID YOU KNOW
1. In Ireland, St. Patrick's Day was largely a religious holiday until 1903 when
it was made a national holiday in the Republic?
2. It wasn't until 1931 that the city of Dublin held its first parade?
3. In the old days, on Easter Sunday evening a pruthog or dance was often held
at the crossroads and a cake was awarded to the best dancer?


Supposedly, this is where the saying "That takes the cake!" comes from.
__________________________________________________________
KNOW YOUR IRISH WRITERS

Mothers: Memories from Famous Daughters and Sons
by Niamh Malone

Mother Ireland - A Memoir - by Edna O'Brien

A round of pints and applause to our latest literary sleuths:
Hartson Dowd
A good Irish web-site is Traditional Irish Tunes �
https://www.geocities.com/Heartland/Meadows/9969/miditable.html

Helen Dowd
Thank you for voting for my site. I'd also like to invite you to check out the new
Daily Bible Quiz on the front page.
https:// www.occupytillicome.com

John C. Laney (Lynaugh)
S/V Manannan
Rice Lake, Wisconsin

Mary Ruggiero
I'd like to nominate my site, Mary's Irish Pride Site. And I hope people
will sign my guestbook -- I love hearing from new friends!
https://members.tripod.com/ladyirish317-ivil/

Pauline Dewberry
Cats are angels sent by God Himself to grace your hearth and bless your
health.
https://www.thedailymews.com

Patricia Edwards
Another great Pilgrimage site that I used to visit annually with the school I attended
was Aylesford Friary:
https://www.thefriars.org.uk/

Want to see your name and favorite web site in our next newsletter?
Who wrote:
1. Essays on the Early Irish Kings
2. Welcoming the Stranger: Hospitality in Contemporary Ireland
3. Roddy Connolly and the Struggle for Socialism in Ireland
==========================================================


�

NEWS
What follows are news clips from around the counties and the world. Links for more
news stories can be found on our web site here
https://www.irishcultureandcustoms.com/01News/Home.html
And more county news can be found here:
https://www.emigrant.ie/summary.asp?iCategoryID=18


�


FROM AROUND THE WORLD
Wales: The small community of Banwen in Wales held a St Patrick's Day parade
yesterday to mark his alleged birthplace. The people there maintain that Ireland's
patron saint was born in Banwen and lived in the area before being captured at the
age of 16 and sold as a slave

GENERAL:
Potato Is Safest Food on Menu
A new British study has identified the lowly potato as the safest food on the menu,
saying it is the least likely food to cause fatigue, irritable bowel syndrome, eczema,
and migraine. Study spokesman Les Rowley says he believes the potato causes few
problems because it breaks down easily in the digestive system, and added that the
three foods which most often cause reactions are cow�s milk, yeast, and egg white.

FROM AROUND THE COUNTIES
Antrim: Plaques honour two Belfast men
The Ulster History Circle has put in place two plaques to honour Belfast men who
made their mark in two very different ways. At Lower Clonard Street in the Falls
Road a plaque was unveiled to artist Gerard Dillon, whose works are now fetching
six figure sums thirty-five years after his death. And at the Botanic Gardens a
plaque was placed honouring Charles McKimm who was head gardener at a time when
a number of new features were introduced. These included a fountain, an exhibition
hall and the Palm House, but he is most remembered for the Tropical Ravine which
opened in 1889.

Carlow: Leighlinbridge makes an appropriate choice
At a gala event held at the Lord Bagenal Hotel in Leighlinbridge last week the town
chose its representative to enter the Carlow Rose Festival, and it was an appropriate
choice. For the Leighlinbridge Rose for 2008 is herself a Rose, Rose Buggy. (Yes,
that is her real name!)

Carlow: Rath woods to be extended
A meeting was held recently in the hall in Ballyconnell to disseminate information
on the sixty-five acres of woods at Rath, on the main Tullow to Shillelagh road,
for which there are extension plans. Initially planted in the 1950s, the woods adjacent
to the Rathwood Home and Garden Centre have been used by local residents for walking
and cycling for a number of years. Last weekend the first two new walks, both wheelchair
and pram friendly, were officially opened by Junior Minister Dick Roche. Known as
the Molloy and the Lake walks, they are accessible through the Rathwood car park
or from the old forge building.

Clare: Rare wooden bowl goes on display at Clare Museum
A wooden bowl uncovered during excavations prior to the construction of the Ennis
Bypass and Western Relief Road has gone on display at Clare Museum. The partially
complete bowl, dating from the Iron Age, was found at Killow near Clarecastle and
it is accompanied in the exhibition by a replica of the entire bowl created by Mark
Zdepski, a woodturner from New Jersey. The two and a half thousand year old bowl
is unusual in that most artefacts from this period are made from alder, but the
bowl is made from ash. The original bowl will remain on display until the end of
April, when it will be moved to the National Museum in Dublin.

Cork: Well Day* in Tullylease
The annual Well Day took place recently in Tullylease where, before the celebration
of Mass, children from the local national school gave a presentation on the life
of the sixteenth century Saint Berehert.
*ED. NOTE : A Well Day in Ireland has nothing to do with health! See our article
on Holy Wells for more details:
https://www.irishcultureandcustoms.com/ALandmks/HolyWells.html



Cork: Old village discovered during roadwork
During work being carried out by the county council on the road between Twopothouse
and Doneraile part of a mediaeval village has been uncovered. When test trenches
were dug by archaeologists at Caherduggan a number of artefacts were uncovered including
corn-drying kilns, weapons and pottery. According to local folklore a large village
once occupied the site, remaining in use until the twelfth or thirteenth century,
and the archaeologists believe they have revealed only a fraction of what the site
contains. In addition to houses, they will also be searching for evidence of a church
and a fort in the immediate vicinity.

Derry: Perusal of map reveals Derry citadel
While examining a seventeenth century map of Derry in the British Library, archaeologist
Dr Brian Scott discovered the existence of a citadel in the Cathedral area of Derry
city. The annotation on the map described the area as "The Church formerly
a Cittidell" and it is believed to have been destroyed in the middle years
of the seventeenth century on foot of a warrant issued by the Lord Lieutenant, since
it was becoming a nuisance to the church. Citadels were not only put in place as
a means of defence against outside insurgents, they also served as a protection
for a garrison against the inhabitants of the town.

Donegal: Oyster first for Donegal shellfish farmer
Edward Gallagher, a shellfish farmer whose beds are in Traigh Eanna Bay, Lettermacaward,
is about to become the first to provide the Japanese market with oysters. It takes
less than forty-eight hours for the oysters to reach the dining tables of Japan
from the Donegal oysterbeds, and in a sense the shellfish are returning to their
roots - some of the seed oysters are imported from France, where they are known
as Japanese oysters since they have been developed from a strain brought from Japan
some forty years ago.

Dublin: Dublin venues become attractions for film fans
A number of places in the city and county have been attracting visits over the past
few months from fans of the film "Once", which was shot on location here.
A particular attraction has been the Hoover Centre in Harold's Cross, owned
by Fergus Doyle, which was used for filming after a request from a friend of Fergus'
nephew Rory. American, Swedish and Japanese fans of the film have also been visiting
Walton's music shop on Grafton Street and some have travelled out as far as
Howth to the north and Killiney Hill to the south, both used as locations for the
film.

Fermanagh: Derrygonnelly post office to open once again
After sixty years serving the community the facility closed at the end of July of
last year when the subpostmaster resigned, and a group of local residents began
campaigning for a replacement. Among those leading the campaign was Molly Cassidy,
who has welcomed the opening of the new branch at the Costcutter Supermarket in
the village.

Kerry: Listowel residents oppose Clare developers
The residents of Charles Road and Library Road in Listowel are unhappy at the proposal
by a developer from Clare to demolish a house near the old library and to replace
it with a mixture of sixteen apartments and retail and office space. The listed
building was formerly the Kennedy Nursing Home and spokesperson for local residents
Eamon Dillon is hoping the council will not allow the development to go ahead.

Kildare: Choice award for Newbridge band
A band from Newbridge was named as the winner of the Choice Music Prize for Irish
Album of the Year. Super Extra Bonus Party was selected from a shortlist of ten.

Kildare: Athy students exploit double festival
With St Patrick's Day and Easter Sunday falling within the same week this year,
a group of fifth year students in Ardscoil na Troinoide in Athy decided to exploit
the coincidence with special greetings cards. According to their teacher John Watchorn
the students came up with the idea themselves of combining an Easter card with a
St Patrick's Day card and selling them as a fundraising venture for St Vincent's
Hospital in Athy. The bilingual card, produced with the support of local Irish language
group Glor Atha I, has been on sale for the past ten days and is selling well.

Kilkenny: Come back St Patrick, all is forgiven
Last year the city of Kilkenny held a street festival to mark St Patrick's Day
on the grounds that the traditional parade had become somewhat jaded. However the
venture was less than a resounding success, due to some of the acts not turning
up, poor organisation and too few stewards. Now the deputy mayor of the city, Se�n
� hArg�in, has called on the citizens to offer their support to the reinstated St
Patrick's Day Parade which will take place this year.

Laois: Sadness on all sides as trees are felled
The owner of the land along the old coach lane off the Stradbally Road in Portlaoise
has expressed regret, and those whose houses back onto the lane are also saddened
at the felling last week of a number of trees. Mary Fingleton, daughter of the owner
James Tyrell, confirmed that the family had sought the advice of tree surgeons before
felling more than one hundred trees, some of them over two hundred years old. They
are to be replaced by five thousand beech trees. (?)

Limerick: Limerick proving too lucky for bookmakers
Spokesman for bookmakers William Hill Tony Kenny has suggested the chain might decide
to close its Limerick outlets since Limerick people are proving too lucky. One local
man in his fifties, a regular in the Parnell Street office, placed a thirty-five
cent bet on the Euromillions lottery numbers last week and walked away with $10,500.
In January the Limerick branch paid out two sets of winnings, $300,000 on a Euromillions
bet and a further $27,000 on the numbers coming up in the Irish Lottery.

Mayo: Vatican invitation for Mayo grandmother
Catherine Wiley, who organised the inaugural National Grandparents' Pilgrimage
to the shrine at Knock last year, has received an invitation from the Vatican Council.
The grandmother of ten from Castlebar has been invited to take part in a plenary
session of the Pontifical Council for the Family. The theme of the session is to
be Grandparents: Presence and Testimony in the Family, and Catherine's invitation
was prompted by the success of her venture. The pilgrimage is now to become an annual
event and this year it will take place on September 14.

Mayo: Young Achill writer makes his mark
A fifteen-year-old student of Scoil Damhnait in Achill is one of twelve young writers,
and the only one from Ireland, to have his work included in a publication to mark
World Book Day. "Times Two" by Gareth McNamara was one of three thousand
short stories entered into the competition, which was open to school students in
Britain and Ireland. Gareth's story for the competition is also reflected in
a novel he has been working on for the past couple of months and which he hopes
to complete by the end of this year. He writes mostly at weekends using an old manual
typewriter given to him by his grandmother.
====================
SPONSOR: Please help us keep your newsletter coming - visit our good friends at
Lollysmith:
Happy St. Patrick's Day! And once the parades and parties are over, it's time to
think about Easter - just a week away!

LEAVE �EM LAUGHING

As always, it�s the kids that make us laugh the longest and heartiest. Here are
some great lines out of the mouths of babes:

Five year old old Caitlyn was asked to say Grace before the Easter dinner. Here�s
what she said: Bless us Oh Lord for these thy gifts from thy bunny.�

Four year old Lynsi told her grandmother, "You smell so good! Is that Oil of
Old Lady?"

On the way to preschool, the doctor had left her stethoscope on the car seat, and
her little girl picked it up and began playing with it. Be still, my heart, thought
the doctor, my daughter wants to follow in my footsteps! Then the child spoke into
the instrument: "Welcome to McDonald's. May I take you order?"

A woman was trying hard to get the lid off a jar of pickles. During her struggle
the phone rang, so she asked her four-year old daughter to answer it. "It's
the minister, Mommy," the child said to her mother. Then she added, "Mommy
can't come to the phone to talk to you right now. She's hitting the bottle."
�
Every evening, a mother and her young son, knelt down beside his bed so he could
say his prayers. One night, obviously bored with the same old prayer, the little
boy said this: "Now I lay me down to sleep, I pray the Lord my soul to keep,
if I should die before I wake......can I have breakfast with you in the morning?"

A little girl had just finished her first week of school. "I'm wasting
my time," she says to her mother. I can't read, I can't write-and they
won't let me talk!"

little girl was watching her parents dress for a party. When she saw her dad donning
his tuxedo, she warned, "Daddy, you shouldn't wear that suit." "And
why not, darling?" "You know that it always gives you a headache next
morning."

At the beginning of a children's sermon, one girl came up to the altar wearing
a beautiful dress. As the children are sitting down around the pastor, the pastor
leans over and says to the girl, "That is a very pretty dress. Is it your Easter
dress?"� The girl replies almost directly into the pastor's clip-on mike,
"Yes.... and my Mom says it's a b*tch to iron."

A Sunday school teacher: was discussing the Ten Commandments with her five and six
year olds. After explaining the commandment to "honor" thy Father and
thy Mother, she asked, "Is there a commandment that teaches us how to treat
our brothers and sisters?" Without missing a beat one little boy answered,
"Thou shall not kill."

Did you enjoy this edition of our newsletter? Fingers crossed you did and you�d
like to keep it coming. A tangible way to do that is with a small voluntary donation.
Any amount is welcome. And go raibh maith agat in advance for your kindness!

Bridget & Russ
5814 Blue Spruce
Cincinnati, OH 45224
USA