The past few nights have seen a drop in temperature and the birds are feeling the pinch. This morning Paul Dowling found a small bird lying on the ground at his workplace. Judging by its size it looked to be a young bird but a phonecall to Kieran Guinan described the bird as a Gold Crest. He said they are a small bird with two distintive markings. This one had a stripe of yellow/ gold on top of his head. Kieran recommended keeping it in a warm place for about an hour and it would be all right. Joe Burke found out they are not migratorary and is giving it a new home with bird feeders and shelter in Ardnaglug.Must remember to hang out some fat for the birds today.
Shannonbridge barracks is having a facelift carried out at present and hopefully the village will have a new Garda living here soon.
Ollie Daly was telling that Bord Na Mona have commenced drawing ash from the new power plant which is part of their contract. To satisfy environmental regulations a special area of bog out from Templedew has been prepared and made ready for the ash. Special tipping trailers will carry the ash to the pit.
Good to see Tom Daly of Blackwater and Portlaoise and his family in the village last evening. Tom was naming various families that lived on the road opposite Gerry Greene's house in Blackwater and two families of Dalys lived there and are now buried in Clonmacnois in front of the Cathedral. Tom was in Clonmacnois and as usual trimmed the grass from around the marker stone that replaced the tombstone when Clonmacnois was declared a national monument years ago.
Friend going to New York next week and intending to return on December 20th was told that the only available seats using Aer Lingus would cost 1300 Euros. So he will now fly Aer Lingus to Heathrow and with Virgin to New York and returning the same way in December at a cost of 436 Euros.
An old photograph in front of me shows a donkey and cart driven by the late Tom Coleman passing Janey O'Mearas house which was later knocked and was where Mick Murray built his home.