The Information about Ireland Site Newsletter
    February 2004


    The Newsletter for people interested in Ireland

    HOME - Click Here for free information from Ireland

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    Copyright (C) 2003
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    		IN THIS ISSUE
    ~~~ Foreword
    ~~~ News Snaps from Ireland 
    ~~~ New free resources at the site
    ~~~ The Measure of My Dreams  by Cindy Brandner
    ~~~ John Quinn: The amazing Irish-American
                           by Kathleen Dixon Donnelly
    ~~~ Power of the Ages        by Stephanie Hoffman
    ~~~ Golfing in Ireland             by Sean Downes
    ~~~ Gaelic Phrases of the Month
    ~~~ Shamrock Site of the Month: celticattic.com
    ~~~ Monthly free competition result
    
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    FOREWORD
    ~~~~~~~~
    
    Hello again from Ireland where Winter has hit 
    - and hard! It is difficult to believe that 
    another Saint Patrick's Day is almost upon us 
    - doesn't time fly!
    
    Many thanks to all who have submitted an article 
    for inclusion in the newsletter. This month we 
    have a wonderful tale from Famine Ireland by 
    Cindy Brandner, an exploration of a hitherto 
    unknown Irish art benefactor, an endorsement of 
    golfing in Ireland, and a poem  - all 
    contributed by readers of this newsletter.
    
    We want more!
    
    Until the Saint Patrick's Day edition...
    
    STAY OUT OF THE COLD!
    
    Michael
    
    
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    NEWS SNAPS FROM IRELAND
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    ELECTRONIC VOTING TO BE INTRODUCED THIS YEAR
    
    The Government is pressing ahead with the 
    roll-out of electronic voting to be used in the 
    upcoming local and EU elections in June. Despite 
    opposition concerns about the lack of a verifiable 
    'paper-trail' should the system fail, Bertie 
    Ahearn has insisted that the system is foolproof 
    and will make for more accurate tallying of votes.
    The new system does not allow any mechanism for 
    people to 'spoil' their votes as has been the case 
    up to now. Spoiling of votes has long been 
    acknowledged as a form of protest by some voters 
    but the new system does not allow for any such 
    protest. The new system has so far cost 40 
    Million Euro to install.
    
    WELFARE RESTRICTIONS TO BE IMPOSED ON IMMIGRANTS
    
    Restrictions on the allocation of welfare 
    payments are to be introduced prior to accession 
    of 10 countries to the European Union in May. 
    There are fears that immigrants from the new EU 
    members may travel to Ireland with the sole aim 
    of collecting welfare. 
    
    INFLUX OF ASYLUM SEEKERS HALTED IN 2003
    
    Applications for asylum in Europe fell by over 
    22% in 2003 but in Ireland the number of 
    applications fell by 33% with 8000 applications 
    made, of which over 3000 were of Nigerian origin. 
    In 1992 there were only 40 applications for 
    asylum. By 2002 this figure had increased to 
    over 11000. The rate of refusal is estimated at
    92%. The UK is the world's most popular 
    destination for asylum seekers with over 61,000 
    applications in 2003, compared with 60,700 in 
    the USA.
    
    IRISH MOTORISTS DRIVE MORE THAN DRIVERS IN US
    
    Car ownership in Ireland grew by a third in the 
    ten years up to 2002, reflecting the increased 
    prosperity following the economic boom. The poor 
    state of the national transport system is being 
    addressed with the completion of the M50 
    ring-road around Dublin, the Port Tunnel which 
    will remove trucks form Dublin City Centre and 
    the installation of the Luas light rail system. 
    Nevertheless Irish drivers still drive an 
    average of nearly 15,000 miles annually. This 
    compares with 5,000 miles in Spain, 10,00 in 
    Britain and 12,000 miles per annum in the US. 
    Urban sprawl has been cited as one of the main 
    contributing factors for the high Irish 
    driving rate.
    
    GEORGE BUSH TO VISIT IRELAND THIS YEAR
    
    A massive security operation is to be launched 
    ahead of the visit of US President George Bush 
    later this year. The venue for the summit 
    between the EU and US leaders has yet to be 
    confirmed but it is expected that the meeting 
    will be held outside of Dublin as there is a 
    strong likelihood of protests by various groups.
    
    IRISH OBESITY TO BE TACKLED
    
    A recent survey of obesity in children placed 
    Ireland as fifth out of fifteen countries. The 
    US fared worst in the survey with 15% of girls 
    and 14% of boys being diagnosed as clinically 
    obese. Only the USA, Greece, Portugal and 
    Israel fared worse than Ireland in the Danish 
    survey. 5% of Irish boys and 3% of girls are 
    now regarded as obese. 13% of the overall 
    population is obese and this compares with a 
    10% statistic in 1998. Half of the entire 
    population of the country are regarded as 
    overweight.
    
    The International Obesity Task Force (IOTF) is 
    urging Ireland to use its presidency of the EU 
    to implement its recommendations to reduce 
    obesity levels.
    
    IRELAND TO JOIN THE EUROPEAN SUPER LOTTERY
    
    Irish Draw players could hit a jackpot of up to 
    50 Million Euro later this year as Ireland looks 
    set to join the EuroMillions super lottery. 
    Participants in the new lottery include France, 
    Spain and Britain. The addition of Ireland a 
    clutch of other countries will bring the 
    participating population base up to 200 Million 
    people.
    
    
    Voice your opinion on these news issues here:
    
    https://www.ireland-information.com/cgi-bin/newsletterboardindex.cgi
    
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    NEW FREE RESOURCES AT THE SITE
    ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
    
    SAINT PATRICKS DAY SCREENSAVERS
    
    Get 2 Saint Patricks Day screensavers absolutely 
    free! Go Here:
    
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    KIDS GAMES
    
    Looking for some simple pictures and games to 
    print out and let your kids color and have fun 
    with? Go here:
    
    https://www.ireland-information.com/freegames.htm 
    
    NEW COATS OF ARMS ADDED TO THE GALLERY:
    
    The following 7 coats of arms images and family
    history details have been added to the Gallery:
    
    B: Bolger
    C: Canty
    G: Graver
    H: Hession, Hopkins
    M: Martell
    P: Perry
    
    View the Gallery here:
    
    http://www.irishsurnames.com/coatsofarms/gm.htm
    
    We now have over 100,000 worldwide names available.
    Get the Coat of Arms Print, Claddagh Ring,
    Screensaver, Watch, T-Shirt Transfer or Clock for
    your name at:
    
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    'The Measure of My Dreams'     by Cindy Brandner 
    
    It was the whole breadth of my experience. Fifteen 
    square miles of soil and wee cottages. The 
    townland, the baile of my youth became the expanse 
    of all my years. You will think I was an ignorant 
    peasant who knew not how to want more. You will 
    smile at my simplicity, spare me a moment's sorrow 
    and forget. 
    
    But I tell you, the measure of my dreams was the 
    span of a world entire.  
    
    I'd like to tell you my story, but first you must 
    understand my landscape. Will you come? Will you 
    look through history's kaleidoscope, knowing that 
    the passage of time distorts vision and makes the 
    dead seem small, even toylike. As though we 
    existed in dioramas, the sort found in folk
     museums.
    
    I will not bother with the name of my village, for 
    it no longer exists on any map or even as a ripple 
    caught in the traces of living memory. Its roots 
    are there in overgrown stone foundations and 
    depressions in deep grass that were once cart 
    tracks and paths made for feet to fly along. 
    
    There were twenty-one homes contained on three 
    hundred acres, but that is merely a note for the 
    historians. You couldn't see the baile until you 
    were almost upon it, it merged with the 
    countryside in an organic manner, a small huddle 
    that contained a wealth of tangled relations, 
    loves, hates- in short all the salt of life. Even 
    our memories were scarcely personal, they were 
    communal, shared, transformed through the 
    tellings and re-tellings.   
    
    But I think, in the beginning at least, I was 
    different. I wanted all my thoughts for myself, 
    I clutched at memory like straws of salvation. 
    The fire that was to ruin me was burning in me 
    even then. 
    
    From the day I was born I could hear the grass 
    grow in the fields. It was I, after all, who first 
    heard the potatoes in their death cries. When 
    people spoke I saw the colors their words left 
    behind. Some said I was a changeling, child of 
    the fairyfolk, but they said it with fondness 
    and indulgence. Later they would mutter from the 
    corners of sunken mouths that my mother ought to 
    have left me on a hillside to die. I cannot 
    disagree that, in the end, it might have been 
    better for all concerned had my mother done just 
    that.  
    
    Can you define the moment that changed your life, 
    that put your feet on the path to heaven or to 
    hell? I can, though the moment was small and 
    consisted only of five words. 
    
    It was the hedgemaster who showed me The Word, 
    who stirred the embers in my chest into a 
    consuming blaze. It was myself who sacrificed 
    all to that fire. How was I, who thought hearts 
    were sexless, to know that words were not for 
    women? For words sang to me, ran their relentless 
    tunes and dirges through me like knives. I was 
    cursed with the desire to set them down, to carve 
    them with the perfume of ink into the flesh of 
    paper. 
    
    But paper was a feast, and ink unheard of. So I 
    set my words in soil and rock, cut them into tree 
    bones, wrote them with blood let free from my 
    wrists and ankles onto rock walls and wooden 
    tables. Later I would open those same wrists in 
    an effort to stave off death. I think those cuts 
    were cursed though, that the fire that burned in 
    my blood, poisoned others. 
    
    The Word was contained within a small blue-bound 
    book, frayed about the edges. It was the architect 
    of my disaster.
    			
    The hedgemaster was a fine strap of a man, with a 
    voice that could draw blood from the wind. Would 
    it have mattered had the Word first been spoken 
    by an ugly man with grated tin for a voice?  
    
    What words, you ask, could cause the downfall of 
    a life barely begun? Five of them, written by a 
    tuberculous Englishman. Ironic that it should be 
    an English poet that led an Irish girl down the 
    road to perdition.
    
    'And her eyes were wild' - Five words and I felt 
    a desire that left me without breath. I was 
    possessed, obsessed, filled with an unholy need 
    for those pages. The man who'd written those words 
    knew me, I felt it surely. 
    
    I slept with the hedgemaster for that book. Are 
    you shocked? Don't be, for who can measure the 
    madness of such a desire? Who can say how these 
    passions become twisted when invested in the body 
    of a woman?  He'd spoken Keats to me, and unlocked 
    the door of my cage, that was all the seduction I 
    required. He took me down amongst long grass and 
    dusty bluebells up by the old oak where the 
    townland couples courted. Behind closed eyes I 
    saw the rainbow of the words I would soon possess. 
    My terrible greed cost me dear though. For when 
    the hedgemaster moved on, he left more behind 
    than the Word.  
     				
    My son was born under a sickle moon, to a mother 
    bewitched by the Word and a father who did not 
    share his blood. I married the boy next door so 
    as not to bring greater disgrace upon my family 
    than was necessary. He was a good man, with a 
    broad back and a kind heart. 
    
    I never lied to him, I told him about the Word 
    and how it burned within me like a holy flame. 
    How to hold it back was to let poison free to 
    gnaw my insides. I thought, fool that a young 
    girl can be, he understood. Even when I realized 
    he did not, I thought I could have my words in 
    the dark of night, in the bones of trees, bits 
    of soil and spilled blood. 
    
    But God, it seemed, had other plans for me and 
    mine.
    
    I remember the night it began. A fog, the color 
    of iron, came rolling down over the hills. It 
    was a vapor, thick and creeping, pouring itself 
    into crevices and hollows. Into the cup of leaf 
    and vein of soil. It seemed as though Death had 
    breathed out over the land. In the morning there 
    was a fine white dust on the potato stalks, 
    their hardy necks bending already under the 
    lethal touch. 
    
    We didn't understand at first. No one ever 
    understands when they are face to face with 
    disaster. It had come so quietly after all. On 
    hands and knees we scrabbled in the dirt, only 
    to find despair. We didn't know that was to be 
    the season God abandoned Ireland. He didn't 
    show his face again for many a year. He left us 
    with four mouths to feed, and no food with which 
    to do it. I hated Him, and yet understood the 
    impulse to run away from such need. 
    
    I cannot explain the weight of hunger to one that 
    has never known more than a moment's growl in the 
    belly. Hunger consumes, it eats you alive. It 
    crushes you when it is not merely a question of 
    where to find your next meal, but a matter of 
    knowing there will never be a next meal. 
     
    When the British came to burn it down there were 
    holes in the thatch of our cottage, for my husband 
    no longer had the strength to patch them. The 
    soot-soaked rain streamed in brown ribbons upon 
    us all, but we no longer had the means to care 
    for such small discomforts. 
    
    I know it sounds wretched to you, but I could see 
    the stars through those holes. Do you understand? 
    I could still see the stars.
    
    The landlord offered us one passage on a ship. 
    Redemption for one, damnation for the rest. We 
    sent the hedgemaster's son. 
    
    What price redemption? The landlord only wanted 
    the Word, some pages with ink you may say, a 
    small price to pay for the lives of your family. 
    He might as well have asked for my soul. 
    
    Did I give it to him? Of course I did, but after 
    I saw my son safe on the road that would take him 
    away forever and always, I stole it back. It was 
    my soul after all and who can count the cost of 
    such a thing? For my sins my husband took the 
    blame. My husband died, tied to a flogging pole 
    in the village square. Back stripped down to the 
    bones. He ended hating me. Do not blame him. How 
    was he to know he'd married a woman who contained 
    within her the madness of congealed quartos and 
    stifled sonnets? 
     							
    Our first daughter was carted off to the foundling 
    home.  I never did find her, though I tried, 
    please understand that I tried. I walked two weeks 
    amongst the lice and dirt and small throated cries 
    to an absent God, that infested that small corner 
    of hell. The flux took my youngest boy while I 
    was gone. 
    
    The baby was the last to die. I count upon the 
    clicking of my unfleshed fingers how long since 
    she departed and find I cannot separate the days, 
    they swarm together now in a mass of unending 
    misery. I remember how she looked though, like 
    an odd fever dream, a translucent angel. Her 
    bones laying against folds of blue skin like 
    long shafts of pearl. Small mouth rimmed in green 
    from the grass I'd fed her. 
    
    From my son there is no word. I pretend not to 
    know his fate. I write long fanciful letters in 
    my head from him. I imagine him drinking milk and 
    honey, walking on streets paved with gold, in a 
    new world.
    
    And so here tonight under a sharp-faced moon, I 
    remain. 
    
    I do not know why I cannot die. The cuts from 
    which I nursed my children on blood do not heal 
    well anymore. I pray to a God I no longer believe 
    in that I'll take infection and die. I pray for 
    the fever to come for me. I have not been so lucky 
    as others for I am still alive. Perhaps I am cursed 
    to walk this earth forever, cursed to live when the 
    very grass in the fields withers black with sorrow.
    
    Do not look for me in the history books, you will 
    not find me, there I will merely be one of an 
    impossible number. Don't search amongst the 
    rollcall of poets. Unlike Keats all my words were 
    writ in water. I will tell you where to find me. 
    
    Follow me up the hill, the one that stretched its 
    toes down to the edge of the townland. Up through 
    the long grass to the twisted oak, where couples 
    once courted and young girls lost their innocence 
    amongst long grass and dusty bluebells.
    
    Dig beside the stone that looks like a folded 
    child. A foot down it's waiting for you to find, 
    shrouded in the homespun I took from my husband's 
    back, before they tied him to the post. 
    
    Has it survived the years well? Is it moldy? Have 
    the dead poet's words bled across the pages, can 
    you smell the copper tang of the blood of those 
    who died for it? Handle it carefully as you turn 
    the pages, give it some small respect before you 
    move on. For it is all the measure of my dreams. 
    
    Fifteen square miles, the span of a world entire.  
    
    By Cindy Brandner
    Author 'Exit Unicorns'
    Available at www.amazon.com or www.amazon.ca
    
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    much more.
    
    Timothy Meade got some family crest watches as 
    gifts for his wedding groomsmen:
    
     Michael,
    
     The watches are amazing.  They arrived at just the 
     right time.  I really appreciate that you didn't 
     bill me for the extra shipping. It warms the 
     cockles of me heart.
    
     Thanks for making my wedding day just that much 
     more beautiful.
    
     Tim
    
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    Visit https://www.irishnation.com/familycrestgifts.htm
    
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    JOHN QUINN:  THE AMAZING IRISH-AMERICAN
                           by Kathleen Dixon Donnelly
    
    I want to tell you about an amazing man.
    
    While doing my academic research on early 20th 
    century writers, an interesting fringe character 
    kept popping up. Like Woody Allen's Zelig he 
    appeared in biographies, letters and group photos 
    with Matisse, Picasso, Ezra Pound, James Joyce.
    
    Who was this guy?
    
    Recently I researched the 1913 New York Armory 
    Show for my book about the writers, Such Friends. 
    There was John Quinn again, buying art in Paris, 
    organizing the first exhibition of international 
    modern art in America, writing to Joseph Conrad 
    and other struggling writers.
    
    Curious, I read B. L. Reid's 'The Man from New 
    York: John Quinn & His Friends' and discovered it 
    is really awful—poorly written, badly organized. 
    Worst of all, it makes this fascinating man 
    boring.
    
    Here is the Quinn I discovered:
    Born in 1870, he was the son of an Irish immigrant 
    baker. He grew up in middle-class Fostoria, OH, 
    and attended the University of Michigan. When a 
    family friend was appointed US Treasury Secretary, 
    Quinn went to work for him in Washington. Holding 
    down a full-time government job, he attended 
    Georgetown University law school at night.
    
    After earning an advanced degree in international 
    relations from Harvard (not bad for a shanty-Irish 
    baker's son), Quinn moved to New York City, his 
    home for the rest of his life. He predictably 
    worked on high-profile corporate cases for a large 
    firm. Just after 1900, his mother and two sisters 
    died within a few months of each other. He began 
    to explore his Irish roots. On his first trip to 
    Ireland, at a Galway feis, he met Lady Gregory and 
    other friends of Yeats. While helping this group 
    establish the Abbey Theatre, he started his own 
    New York law firm in 1906.
    
    His practice was supported by lucrative corporate 
    retainers, and he became associated with Tammany 
    Hall. When his candidate didn't get the 1912 
    Democratic Party nomination, he became disgusted 
    with politics. He turned his energies to the arts.
    During the first decades of the 20th century Quinn 
    managed to help organize the Armory Show. He fought 
    to eliminate tariffs on contemporary art. He to 
    bailed out the Abbey players. He was arrested for 
    performing The Playboy of the Western World in 
    Philadelphia. He had many affairs, including one 
    with Lady Gregory. He supported Yeats' father in 
    New York by buying his paintings and supported 
    Joyce in Paris by buying his manuscripts. He 
    argued the original obscenity case against 
    the banning of Ulysses excerpts. He carried on 
    detailed correspondences with most of the cultural 
    luminaries of the time and amassed an incredible 
    collection of modern art. 
    
    All before his death from cancer at the age of 54.
    
    The only other book about him is a catalogue from 
    the Hirshorn Museum's memorial exhibit in 1978. 
    The most fascinating tidbits are found in the 
    footnotes. Quinn's 'assistant', 'companion' and 
    'devoted friend' was Mrs. Jeanne Robert Foster, 
    who, for the last six years of his life helped him 
    on his European collecting trips, while remaining 
    married to the wealthy Matlock Foster. 
    
    After his death, his art collection of 2000 pieces
    was sold off among museums and collectors. His 
    voluminous correspondence was donated to the New 
    York Public Library, including the manuscript of 
    T. S. Eliot's 'The Wasteland'.
    
    When I gave my presentation about the Armory Show 
    to the group of art collectors, I tried to 
    communicate to them Quinn's enthusiasm for 
    supporting artists as well as art.
    
    Eventually I would like to give him the decent 
    biography he deserves.
    
    Kathleen Dixon Donnelly
    
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    POWER OF THE AGES            by Stephanie Hoffman
    
    Blood in my veins
    Beats to an ancient Irish drum
    Primal music of the Celts
    A lust for life
    A will to fight
    A heart to love
    These I have inherited from ghosts
    Mere whispers in the darkness?
    Blurry visions in slumber?
      No
    They emerge from the past in 
    Every part of me
    Living through my thoughts
    Speech and actions
    Reminding me of what once was
    Celtic ghosts of old run forever 
    Within me and my children
    As I am forever in them
    
    Stephanie Hoffman 
    USA
    
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    YOU CAN HELP TO KEEP THIS FREE NEWSLETTER ALIVE!
    
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    where you can get great Irish gifts, prints, 
    claddagh jewellery, engraved glassware and 
    much more.
    
    Anne MacDonald ordered a family crest plaque:
    
     Hello, Michael,
    
     Received my plaque, carefully wrapped, 
     in good order.  It is splendid!  I am 
     thrilled, and I know that my dad, for whose 
     81st birthday this was ordered, will love 
     it.  I would like to order another one! 
    
     Everyone who has seen the plaque has been 
     really impressed, even those who, as my 
     daughter says are 'not into ancestor 
     worship!'
    
     Again, my hearty thanks for this 
     first-class product.
    
     Best wishes for happy holiday season.
    
     Sincerely, Anne MacDonald
    
    View family crest plaques here:
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    GOLFING IN IRELAND                 by Sean Downes
    
    If you are itching to hit the little white ball 
    around somewhere new this year, then take yourself 
    to the home of golf and leprechauns. Rolling green 
    hills, ocean views, and beautiful scenery are only 
    a plane ride away. Did I mention the fresh 
    Guinness? Ireland is easily accessible from most 
    major cities on the east coast of the US. Golf 
    packages can be put together for you by a 
    reputable travel agent. Golfing in Ireland is a 
    must for all avid golfers. If golf is one of your 
    passions, go to Ireland and play the best courses 
    in the world while experiencing beautiful scenery 
    and an amazing culture.
    
    Ireland's golf courses are consistently ranked 
    among the top courses in the world year after 
    year. Courses such as Old Head, Lahinch, Connemara, 
    to name a few, have all won the course of the year 
    award within the last decade. Golf courses in 
    Ireland are traditional courses or Links courses. 
    These courses are known for their wide open 
    fairways and those tough, almost impossible to hit 
    out of, pot hole bunkers. While playing a round, 
    you have your choice of a motorized buggy or a 
    caddie to carry your clubs. Be sure to bring plenty 
    of balls with you because the rough next to the 
    fairways is sometimes two feet deep. Most courses 
    have very fast greens due to the strong winds that 
    blow off the ocean. If a challenge is what you're 
    after and you love playing the best the Ireland 
    is for you.
    
    When your round of golf is over, you will have the 
    ability to see the most beautiful landscape a 
    country has to offer. Why not take a walk down by 
    the ocean. Go hiking up a mountain to a 16th 
    century castle. Or look for a rainbow and find the 
    pot of gold that is waiting for you. Ireland has 
    so many different activities for the young and the 
    old. You can go to the mountain country and go 
    horseback riding through the fields down to the 
    beach. Or try your luck at salmon fishing in the 
    west. A golf trip to Ireland let's one experience 
    one of the most unique, rugged and absolutely 
    beautiful places on earth.
    
    My personal favorite part of an Ireland golf trip 
    is interacting with the people of this great 
    country and experiencing all of its great 
    traditions. The first thing you realize about 
    Ireland is that most everything revolves around 
    public houses or pubs. People meet in pubs to 
    discuss everything from business deals to recipes. 
    The pub is the heart of most small towns. If you 
    want to hear some of the latest gossip, go to the 
    pub. If you are interested in hearing some of the 
    best musicians anywhere, go to the pub. By the 
    way, did I mention the Guinness? The Irish are 
    great story tellers and after a few pints, will 
    gladly sing you a song or two. Religion in Ireland 
    is very important as well and touring through some 
    of the old churches is a must. Experiencing 
    Ireland's traditions alone makes for a great 
    vacation and will keep you coming back for more.
    
    Golfing in Ireland is truly a must for all 
    aficionados of the game. Magnificent courses are 
    located throughout this golfer's paradise. Ireland 
    was rated the number one golf destination five of 
    the last seven years. Experiencing the vast 
    topography of this country is a trip of a lifetime 
    in itself. Spending an afternoon in the village pub 
    talking to the natives is priceless, not only for 
    their wit and charm but for the pub's libations as 
    well. After experiencing all of the wonderful 
    things this country has to offer it its easy to 
    see why it is the premier golf vacation 
    destination in the world.
    
    Sean Downes
    
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    You can help to keep this FREE newsletter alive!
    
    Visit https://www.irishnation.com
    
    where you can get great Irish gifts, prints, 
    claddagh jewellery, engraved glassware and 
    much more.
    
    Claire Latevola ordered an engraved ring:
    
     Dear Michael,
    
     I did want to let you know the watch I ordered 
     for my Sister's birthday, with the Nugent crest,
     was lovely.  
    
     She received it in short order and was delighted.  
     I recently saw it and was very happy with it.  
     Sometimes you feel you are taking a chance placing 
     such an order, but I would not hesitate to place an 
     order again thru your system.
    
     Again, thank you.
    
     Claire Latevola
    
    Get your Family Crest ring here:
     https://www.irishnation.com/familycrestrings.htm
    
    ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
    
    
    GAELIC PHRASES OF THE MONTH
    ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
    
    PHRASE:		Aibrean/Bealtaine/Meitheamh
    PRONOUNCED:	ibb-ronn/be-owll-tinnih/meh-ivh
    MEANING:		April/May/June
    
    PHRASE:		Deardaoin/De haoine/Sathairn/De Domhnaigh
    PRONOUNCED:	dare-deen/day-heena/day-dow-nig
    MEANING:		Thursday/Friday/Saturday/Sunday
    
    PHRASE:		Ceathair/Cuig/Se
    PRONOUNCED:	cah-irr/coo-igg/shay
    MEANING:		Four/Five/Six
    
    View the archive of phrases here:
    
    https://www.ireland-information.com/irishphrases.htm
    
    ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
    
    
    SHAMROCK SITE OF THE MONTH:	CELTICATTIC.COM
    
    Shop online for everything you need to decorate 
    your home and life with a Celtic Twist: Art, 
    Crafts, Irish & Scottish Baskets, Suncatchers,
    Wind-Chimes, Music and Celtic Gifts. We offer a 
    delightful variety of Celtic Jewelry: Pendants, 
    Crosses, Rings, Hair Ties & more. All your 
    Irish Bath, Beauty and Herbal needs are in one 
    convenient location! The Majority of our products 
    are Irish, Scottish, Welsh made.
    
    http://www.celticattic.com
    
    Phone orders 360-765-0186
    ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
    
    FEBRUARY COMPETITION RESULT
    ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
    
    The winner was: dfowler@crosscountybank.com
    who will receive the following: 
    
    A Single Family Crest Print (decorative) 
    (US$19.99 value)
    
    Send us an email to claim your prize, and well 
    done! Remember that all subscribers to this 
    newsletter are automatically entered into the 
    competition every time. 
    
    ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
    
    I hope that you have enjoyed this issue.
    
    Until next time,
    
    ROLL ON SPRING!
    
    Michael Green,
    Editor,
    The Information about Ireland Site.
    
    https://www.ireland-information.com
    Click here to contact us
    


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