Dia is Mhuire díobh go léir a chairde, and welcome to my report.
Time marches on and Covid19 continues to be the main topic of discussion everywhere you go. It continues to call the shots and we must all adhere to it’s every demand. Ever so slowly life is inching forward with nobody quite sure if they are doing the right thing but the need to get back to some form of normal life drives them on to at least try. Food and drink providers are the most affected and it’s interesting to see the many changes they have to make in order to start up again. Some of course will never come back again but for those who will the challenges are immense. I went to the Wallis Arms Hotel for my dinner on Monday. I booked at one thirty and dined at two. As I was the only one there at that particular time I asked Nigel, the manager to show me around, show me the new changes and the ways that they have adopted to run their business. Needless to say they have sanatisers at the entrance and inside they have ample room to seat groups of up to eight guests in the dining lounge, while out in the function room at the back they can seat many more with ample social distancing . The days of copies of the menu on your table are gone. Gone also are the jars of sachets of mayonnaise,ketchup, pepper/salt and so on. Now they bring a selection of them to your table in a small dish and reminded that if you want more of any you are welcome to ask. The customary glass of water remains the same. The days menu is displayed on a notice board at the entrance and if you miss it like I did, the friendly waitress will read it for you. If you’re on your own, like I was, you can get a table for one. All the staff were wearing masks. I didn’t. The name of every customer is entered in their book as is the norm everywhere you go now. I enjoyed my meal, it was superb. By then other customers came in and sat at tables to suit their numbers. Now that I have made the break I’ll be more relaxed the next time and there will be a next time. The only other ‘eatery’ that I have been in, is the Lovely Aroma Cafe in Minor Row, where they have Perspex dividers and their customers can enjoy their cuppa or full meal happy in the knowledge that they are safe in their own space. At the West End, the Lovely Cinnamon Cafe provides takeaway meals for the moment. Their beautiful homemade brown bread is just one of the delicious items that they have to offer. Our pubs are still waiting to get the go ahead from the powers that be. In the meantime they’re looking at how they can extend their space in order to comply with the you-know-what. Looking at ways that they can move up or out so that they can make a decent living in spite of all the odds that are stacked against them. We wish the all every success and again appeal to everyone to support them. Please shop at home. Leave your money with your own people so that they can be there for use in to the future. Many congratulations to entrepreneurs Danny and Eileen Buckley,CloverHill on the launching of their new food products and on winning a weeks advertising on Virgin Media. It was great seeing them on the box at teatime every evening. No better man than Danny to drive the message home.
Some members of Our Lotto Committee held a meeting at the weekend, with the view to starting up our 25 year old fundraiser again. A full meeting of all the lotto committee members will be held in the near future. Like everything else it will take a great deal of planning but the main thing is that they’re making a start. The caption on my daily calendar today says, ‘There is no such thing as can’t, only an unwillingness to try’ The Lotto is the life line of our Town Park, Millstreet GAA Club and The Youth Centre. The money raised goes into keeping these vital services in tip top condition year in year out. Since Covid19 struck, our Town Park has been the haven that our people thronged to every day to get an all important escape from the confines of the lockdown. Some going twice a day. The beautiful well-kept games pitches and tarmac surround was enough to lift anybody out of the doldrums. These services don’t come cheap and without the support of all the wonderful people who contribute to the Lotto every week they wouldn’t be there. Great care and thinking will go into restarting it again and we will keep you informed . Our state of the Art Astro Turf Pitch got a brand new face lift recently .It has to be treated every so often and it’s as good as new again.
The Astro Turf Pitch will reopen on Monday July 13.
For details contact 0873361666
The Adult Gym at the Youth Centre is open
Ring Michelle for details. 0871184043.
Pat Breen is very pleased to say that the Pitch ‘n Putt course was never so busy. Lots of young people going there to play in the fine open air.
I shouldn’t be with you at all this week, the first week in July ‘when all roads lead to Milltown Malbay. It’s not easy to break from the annual trip that went on for over thirty years. I can see it all so clearly now, the driving the straight road from Shinnagh Cross in Rathmore and scarcely turning the wheel before reaching Listowel and on to the Ferry at Tarbert. A fast cup of tea and a bun and a trip the little room, on board and I’m ready for the next leg of my journey that landed me into that “Heaven in West Clare ,Milltown Malbay”. Meet the friends that I’ve known since day one,and lots that I met along the way. Again big changes come to mind. When I went there first with the Sliabh Luachra people like Johnnie O’Leary, Dan O Connell etc. You couldn’t get a cup of tea or a place to stay, in the town. But the people built a music Festival around local man, Willy Clancy, who was a great musician and it put that one street town on the world map. Alas in 2020 ,they are victims of Covid 19 . The Late Anne Keane was part of the scene there, ochón, ochón . By the way there will be Mass for Anne in our Church on July 19th .
A lot of hair hit the ground this week as our wonderful hairdressers got back to work. They were under fierce pressure because everybody wanted to get in first. Like everybody else they had to stick to safety rules and laws and it’s not easy for them to work with the care of themselves and the customer a priority but it was great to be back in the chair. It’s only when you go back that you realise how much you missed it.
Of Course our hearts went out to Dr, Tony Holohan, when we heard about his wife’s serious illness . He was with us from the start of the Pandemic. We looked up to him as a father figure. He gave us new words, Pandemic, Cocoon, Covid19, Care, Keep safe, We are all in this together, Your efforts count and all the time his own beloved wife was mortally ill, the mother of their two teenage children. In his honour I feel that we should take every warning that he gave us on board and let him see that all his great efforts were not in vain. Please pray for that Family.
There is no end of praise for our Wonderful Care Centre and their Meals on Wheels Service. For €6 they deliver fresh cooked dinners five days a week and dinner for Saturday which can be heated up . They have a great team of volunteers who deliver right to your door. Their contact numbers are 02970926. And 02930998.
We must be prepared to support a local lady who is about to climb no less than ten peaks to raise funds for ‘Alone Ireland’, a deserving cause which help the elderly. Anna O’Sullivan daughter of James, Killarney Rd will end by climbing our own Clara Mountain and she has invited others to join her . The contact number, 086 6695436.
Our Community Singers brought great joy to the patients and staff at Kanturk Hospital on Sunday. Their recital was held out of doors for obvious reasons and many of the patients joined in the singing. The songs bringing back happy thoughts of days long gone.
Our daily Mass arrangements are going very well in our church. The team of ushers see to it that everybody knows what to do. On Sunday there were some children with parents also couples attending. There is a hope that more people will be allowed into the church as time goes on. Like everything else the rules change and we have to keep in touch with the powers that be to stay informed. Sean Radley continues to bring the Mass to those who listen to Cork Music Station and each morning when Mass is over Sean continues for about half an hour with some lovely music and songs plus some snippets of news. Always enjoyable. In many cases people are happy to get mass from any of the many churches around the world on television and as I said it before I loved it myself. The main thing is that we keep on praying that the Good Lord will see us safely through this historic time of the world. I was handed a page that was copied from some newspaper giving the list of no less than 31 towns and city districts in County Cork showing the population of each and the number of Covid19 outbreaks that have been happening there Mallow, Kanturk, Macroom are mentioned, some with as many as 45. In all there have been 1,535 cases in County Cork. But no new cases in recent days. What a delight it is the see that Millstreet is not mentioned. (buíochas le Dia ) giving proof that our people are sticking to the rules. Please let us keep it that way.
The choppy winds over the weekend did little for the garden, but the strong survived and we can still enjoy their beautiful colours and lush greenery, and the many fruits that are ready to eat . We can always find something to be happy about and help others to see it too.
Slán agus beannacht
