Seeing you mentioned the late Tom Murphy, did you ever read his novel “The seduction of morality”. It’s bawdy, funny and tragic all rowled into one. A worthwhile read.
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You’ll be breaking in to a few bars of “many young men of twenty” tonight boxty
I haven’t but I will now.
And the truth finally comes out. Just like the wolves, Matty and Flatty.
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Their suitcase handles blackened with the sweat of exile.
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That’s doubtful but I’ve done the tour in the 60’s. Ballrooms like the Buffalo and the Galtymore were all the rage. Many’s the oul’ scuffle outside left you with a bloodied nose and a fair share of black eyes. Rite of passage stuff we called it. Heady days. Those ruddy cheeked Connies were hardy hoors, they loved nothing more than fighting.
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I’d absolutely love a look at that and a listen
@flattythehurdler you’re a decent man. It’s ok to offer people help, even if their pride/ways stop them from accepting.
Back when we were in Limerick, the Mrs got to know a man who was homeless. Was living in a tent set-up with a few pallets off the motorway with his dogs. She would see him in town regularly near where she worked.
We didn’t have much to our name (still don’t) but got chatting to the poor fella and started dropping some bits of food for him and the dogs. Water, tinned foods, various bits and pieces. We did this once a week for a few months. The Mrs was very determined to get him out of the tent as winter was coming and helped him with a bit of paperwork and he eventually got a place sorted where he could live with the dogs (albeit out in West Limerick). She didn’t take any real credit for it but your man was eternally grateful.
I’ve always been fascinated by the idea of true altruism, and if it actually exists, or do we do these good deeds because subconsciously it makes us feel better about ourselves?
This essay from Marcel Mauss called The Gift is very interesting: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Gift_(essay)
Sorry for hitting off on a tangent lads
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I’ve read this one as well and enjoyed it. In the very same vein as others mentioned. I was over in London about 1995/6 to bury an uncle. An oul’ skipper approached me outside the Church, grasped my hand to sympathise and said I was the spit of the deceased. He confirmed that my uncle had been very good to him (the odd few quid no doubt). I saw no reason to change his opinion and happily peeled what would give him a decent afternoon. He’d seen better days but there’s no pockets in your last suit.
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I haven’t seen that play. Theatre usually seems a bit contrived to me tbh, but I’ll look it up.
Rosanna Davison expecting twins.
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An incredible conversation on this thread- the painful truth about emigration, a forgotten generation, Ireland’s most under rated genius Tom Murphy, a meditation on altruism, stories from the streets, the old ballroom culture, street fighting, etc.
Then in piles the new generation “Loike Rosanna Davidson is preggers goys!”
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You have some wonderful phrases that should be remembered.
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Shes had 14 miscarriages. I think it’s an appropriate thread to log the good news in.
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I meant by to reply to this as I’ve been thinking about it. There’s an element of that in some charitable deeds, or an element of trying to sway fate to be kind, but that kind of deed, where you take someone’s burden on your back, that is utterly altruistic. Fair play to her. Even stopping to speak to someone like that carries a burden.
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I know a chap from Limerick and him and the wife had 12 miscarriages before they were given a gift of one. Must be horrific for the woman especially.
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Jesus, the poor girl, that is great news, hope it goes well for them
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Says the lad who wrote an opus about shitting himself in the street a few weeks ago
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