At the weekend Eileen and Chuck Gunn from Ohio stopped by with their daughter Barbara Killeen from Cleveland Ohio. They were on a tour of Ireland by car and had found Killeen’s Bar mentioned in their Frommer Guide Book 2006 and decided to stop by. When I heard of Killeen from Ohio I thought that they might be connected to Sheila Killeen from Avon Ohio who came to Shannonbridge many years ago tracing family tree. They were not related and never heard of Clonmacnois. So we headed for Saint Ciaran’s City fair and hopefully they enjoyed the visit.

The normal Castledaly Manor group of American visitors usually live in Wisconsin, where the organiser of the trips Rip Dwayne has a few hotels. This Sunday I was a bit surprised when they all started saying San Diego when I asked them where they were from. One of them told me that they were a group of fifty on a Pilgrimage to Ireland. They had been to Knock and were on their way to Clonmacnois. When I asked if they knew Father Sheehan in San Diego nobody knew him so they are a doubtful lot of pilgrims. This week they were staying in the Radisson Hotel in Athlone instead of Castledaly Manor.

Gerry Lyons was home for a visit from Los Angeles this week and was down in Shannonbridge for a few days after visiting his mother Mary Anne.

Father Frank has been having a bit of bother getting the Parish Newsletter on this website but he is going to keep trying so look out for it.

I missed the programme on RTE radio one on Friday night at 11.00 PM which featured extracts from Flann O Brian’s At Swim Two Birds. This fable was based on happenings at Devenish Island between Shannonbridge and Clonmacnois. It is probably in the archives of www.rte.ie

Finally For Sale 2 male pure bred border pups. Three months old. Telephone them at 090-9674197. Not yet named.