Day 265 - Thursday, September 22nd, 2011

Today was the most wonderful of all manufactured days - Arthur's Day - where everyone goes out, drinks Guinness, and drinks Guinness. It meant that Guinness at Doolan's was just €3 per pint all night at Thursday Night Darts Club, which attracted 10 thirsty athletes. After many weeks in the darting doldrums, Jimmy "The Peach" Leach easily won his 10th TNDC title with a wondrous scoring display that included a 180 and 5 140s. Gar von Milky Bar also scored a maximum, making it the first ever TNDC where more than one athlete scored 180s - great success!

Infused with elation and success, The Milky Bar Kid insisted on continuing the festivities and thus we moved into town for a few Mojitos in Lafayette followed by a number of Super Splits (Captain Morgan and orange) at Q Bar until the wee hours.

Emotional, but certainly not tired - Milky Bar, The Dark Destroyer and The Anto-Christ

Contentment : 15.5 / 25

Excitement :    3 / 10

Memorability : 4 / 15

Overall Score : 45% (78th out of 265)

Day 264 - Wednesday, September 21st, 2011

Today I had the pleasure of lunch with my Aunt Elizabeth who is back from South Africa for the first time in a few years and was on a day's visit to Dublin. The eldest of 13 children, Elizabeth became a nun aged 16 and has spent fifty years in South Africa, working as a school principal in a township there, and now with Saint Vincent de Paul - a strong, courageous and inspirational woman.

Saba was the lunch venue, as we had eaten in its predecessor called Rajdoot over 10 years ago. We both had the Thai salmon starter which was huge and deliciously zesty. For mains I had the Thai beef noodles which were well tasty whilst Elizabeth polished off her Vietnamese Chicken Salad with aplomb.



Contentment : 15 / 25
Excitement :    3 / 10
Memorability : 4 / 15

Overall Score : 44% (88th out of 264)

Day 263 - Tuesday, September 20th, 2011

Figuring that after several weeks on release that all the empty vessels making most noise would have seen it, I ventured to see The Inbetweeners (6.5 out of 10) at the cinema, and my theory thankfully proved correct, with 30 well-mannered chaps and chappesses in the cinematic house - huzzah!

The film was full of laughs, most of them highly inappropriate, whilst the continuity and believability factor was largely wafer-thin, but no-one cared.



Contentment : 12.5 / 25
Excitement :    1 / 10
Memorability : 1.5 / 15

Overall Score : 30% (152nd out of 263)

Day 262 - Monday, September 19th, 2011

Nothing beats the start-of-week blues better than a spot of home cookery and with Dunnes Stores better-value-beats-them-all just yards away from my place of work, a quick diversion there on the way home provided all the required ingredients for a monumental beef stir-fry - 650 grams of steak, jar of pasta sauce, 200g of mushrooms, 5 red and green peppers, 3 large onions, fresh basil, 2 cans of chopped tomatoes, 400 grams of fresh stir-fry mix, half a bottle of hot sauce, coriander, chilli powder, curry powder, black pepper - epic win! And here it is!

Outstanding, even if it be said oneself......

 Contentment : 13 / 25

Excitement :    1.5 / 10

Memorability : 1.5 / 15

Overall Score : 32% (158th out of 262)

Day 261 - Sunday, September 18th, 2011

Another wondrous day of sport, with Rangers beating Celtic 4-2 in the latest Old Firm Derby, and Dublin winning their first All-Ireland Senior Football title for 16 years with a thrilling 1-point win against Kerry. With cabin-fever in the Lighthouse well and truly setting in, I fled to the Woolshed - Dublin's epicentre of live NFL viewing action - to watch my recently-adopted San Diego Chargers succumb to the New England Patriots. Conquer was also on hand to see his San Franciscan 49ers suffer a similar, though narrower, demise. But the atmosphere was excellent with a packed house full of fans of various different teams, and quite a number of advancely-refreshed Dublin football fans in attendance too.


The All-Ireland winners....plus a chancer fan who got onto the pitch afterwards!

Contentment : 13.5 / 25
Excitement :    2.5 / 10
Memorability : 4.5 / 10

Overall Score : 41% (110th out of 261)

Day 260 - Saturday, September 17th, 2011

The Ireland Australia Rugby World Cup game kicked off at 9.30am and was viewed from the comfort of my Lighthouse bed - for the first 15 minutes or so at least, until I burst into the front room to place a wager on Ireland at 10/3 whilst they led 6-3, so convinced was I of their victory. The convinction proved well founded, with the Boys In Green recording an historic maiden World Cup victory against the Aussies - huzzah!

Sports viewing and wagering proved to be the theme of the day, with a wager on Arsenal at 4/1 to score 3 goals or more against Blackburn - they did, but lost 4-3, and a bet on QPR at 5/1 to beat Wolves by 2 goals or more - they did so by 3! I don't think I have ever had such a run of success, so will embrace and enjoy it while it happens!


Victory!

Contentment : 15.5 / 25
Excitement :    3 / 10
Memorability : 5 / 15

Overall Score : 47% (56th out of 260)

Day 259 - Friday, September 16th, 2011

Although it was on Tuesday, today was decreed to be the official birthday of Signorina Lara Della Volpe - that's Miss Laura Of The Wolf for those of you who don't speak Italian. The Birthday Girl anointed the Sub Lounge to be the venue, with its bustling beer garden, DART trains roaring overhead, and most importantly of all, its €3.40 pints.

Beforehand, I met Johnny D in the nearby Dark Horse Inn for a couple of pints of plain, which were retailing at an incredible €3 each - expensive Dublin, my eye! Particularly enjoying the inexpensive alcoholic fare was a 6 foot 6 American, who kept coming up to the bar every 3 minutes to buy a pint, and by his last visit, he was swaying from side to side like a tall building after an earthquake.

Onto the Sub Lounge, and a large crowd as present, with many of them here to pay tribute to the birthday lady herself. Neil "Dutchy" Holland was in the house, as was Lady Zara McMullin, Danny The Swede, Terence O'Flaherty in a triumphant leopard-skin ensemble, Al Carroll, Baroness Ann-marie Ferguson and Trevmeister Underwood - a glittering array of starlets, I'm sure you'll agree.

Shinners and Damiano encircle the birthday girl

A Damiano escort from Signorina Lara!

Contentment : 15 / 25

Excitement :    3 / 10

Memorability : 4.5 / 15

Overall Score : 45% (76th out of 259)

Day 258 - Thursday, September 15th, 2011

'Twas the 99th edition of Thursday Night Darts Club tonight, when only the 10th ever champion was crowned, in the guise of Anto "The Anto-Christ" Macken who deservedly won, throwing solid splendid arrows all night. There was a magnificent turn-out of no less than 13 athletes. I scored one of three 140 scores, whilst an ever-recovering Jimmy "The Peach" Leach registered the high finish of the night with a 116.

Proving immensely popular was the newly-installed Tuborg tap, offering pints of cold frothy Danish lager for just €3.30 - bargain! And the pizzas delivered from next door's Italian restaurant proved as delicious as ever - mine with chicken, peppers and lashings and lashings of chilli flakes proved to be utterly divine.

  The Peach and The Anto-Christ - a deliciously Satanic combination!
Contentment : 15 / 25
Excitement :    2.5 / 10
Memorability : 3.5 / 15

Overall Score : 42% (95th out of 258)

Day 257 - Wednesday, September 14th, 2011

Interesting shenanigans afoot on the River Liffey these days, with the addition of a desert island near the Sean O'Casey Bridge, on a temporary basis apparently, and all in the name of art. Jolly amusing it looks though, and it has done well to survive Monday's near-hurricane! Apparently the artist is living on it for a week - hopefully Sealey the Squealy Seal comes a-calling before he departs.



Contentment : 12 / 25
Excitement :    0 / 10
Memorability : 0 / 15

Overall Score : 24% (227th out of 257)

Day 256 - Tuesday, September 13th, 2011

This evening saw the third major of the year take place at Tuesday Night Golf Club, with Oakland Hills the virtual venue. Yours truly played more appallingly than he or anyone else at TNGC had played that year, despite EAGLING the first hole. Showing his uncanny ability to rise to the big occasions, the trophy was lifted by Daniel "Son of Hoon" Sjunnesson, edging out Neil "Dutchy" Holland by a single point.

For me personally, the occasion's level of splendour increased significantly with a faithful pilgrimage to the nearby Oarsmen, where many a pint of plain was sunk and an impromptu Best Actor Oscar Nominees quiz was roaringly enjoyed.


Fascinating, no?

Contentment : 14 / 25
Excitement :    2.5 / 10
Memorability : 4 / 10

Overall Score : 41% (106th out of 256)

Day 255 - Monday, September 12th, 2011

I was sent a text a few weeks ago offering me 50% off my next Bombay Pantry order - 50%!!!! Alas, the offer expired yesterday but I called anyway to be told "Computer Sez No" by the kindly phone-attendant. I asked for Head Office's number, had a lovely chat with Madam Head-Office who duly promised to immediately instruct her drone to accept my 50% off request - great success!

Naturally, I grossly violated the deal by ordering a feast for 6, and brought the d'lish Indian booty over to Austin, Joanne and Adam, the latter of whom politely passed on the offer, being 7 weeks old and all. The other two, with me, dug in though, and 2 starter platters, fire house lamb, murgh (chicken) chutney and chicken chili masala were duly savaged with lashings of rice. (The other 3 courses were dispersed evenly for cold-storage and future devouring.)

Adam is in utterly splendid form, with his 3-week spell of windy-pops seemingly behind him - all part of trials and tribulations of babydom!


Viva Bombay Pantry!

Contentment : 15 / 25
Excitement :    2.5 / 10
Memorability : 3.5 / 15

Overall Score : 42% (94th out of 255)

Day 254 - Sunday, September 11th, 2011

Hard to believe that it is the 10th anniversary of the most famous date in recent times - September 11th, 2001. On that date I was in Copenhagen on a 3-week trip around Eastern Europe and Scandinavia, and popped into the pub after a failed attempt to visit the Carlsberg brewery, which was closed. In typically nonchalant Danish fashion, the few people in the bar weren't reacting outwardly to what was going on, making the sight of the collapsing buildings all the more surreal.

Back to the present, and despite early (ie ultra-late) morning retirements, I awoke virtually on time and hauled the others up to make it to the tee about 15 minutes tardy, but this caused the appropriate authorities no real dramas. Conditions were gale-force windy, although mercifully it managed to stay virtually dry during proceedings, where I deservedly registered the grand total of €0 in the Nuremorofen Skins Challenge. Unquestioned victor of the day was Conch-Shell, whose decision to leave his driver in Al The Almera's boot paid rich dividends, with total earnings of €44.

5 miles of walking in gale-force winds combined with ravenous thunder made the chicken curry and chips in the clubhouse taste utterly sensational, even though it would normally have been deemed ultra-bland. The trip back to Dublin was speedy and after dropping all athletes off, recuperation was enabled from 6pm onwards.


Action from the Nuremorofen 4Skins Challenge

Contentment : 14 / 25
Excitement :    2.5 / 10
Memorability : 4 / 15

Overall Score : 41% (94th out of 254)

Day 253 - Saturday, September 10th, 2011

An early start to this particular Saturday morning, with Al The Almera summonsed to go and collect the Three Swashbuckling Golfing Musketeers Danny Son-of-Hoon, Conch-Shell and English to make the hour-long journey to County Monaghan. A slight fly in the ointment presented itself in that the quays were cordoned off due to a fire, so the Musketeers had to make an arduous half-mile journey with their golf bags - utterly heroic!

The weather predictions had been quite horrific but thankfully didn't quite materialise, with cloudy but largely dry conditions at the Nuremore Hotel Golf Course, a very fine challenging affair. I played the most horrific golfing round of my match, which was no mean feat given recent form, and alas Conquer's decent form was not enough to prevent another victory by Team Ski.

Much more pleasing was a foray to the jacuzzi and sauna, which cleansed the body and also the palate for an assault on the hotel bar with its very delicious Guinness and very fine chicken pasta. After a number of convivial games of dominoes, we summonsed Patrick the Taximan to whisk us into Carrickmacross Town for the paltry sum of €2 each, where we sought out a pub with a dartboard for many splendid games, before adjoining to a late bar for banging choons and more refreshments.

The evening/morning was concluded back at the Nuremore Hotel with nightcaps in the residents bar that lasted until the wee hours.


Daniels, English and Damo size up their respective putts


Fine scenery surrounding the 17th fairway

Contentment : 15 / 25
Excitement :    4 / 10
Memorability : 5.5 / 15

Overall Score : 49% (41st out of 253)

Day 252 - Friday, September 9th, 2011

The Friday lunch venue this week was Sinnott's, where one avails of a 10% discount by answering "Yes" to the cash register lady's question, "Do you have a loyalty card?" No production of said loyalty card is required, which was a relief, as I didn't have one, although there were 20 of them on a table nearby. And before you rush to accuse me of outrageous and deceptive freeloading, the discount merely brings the price of Lasagne mash carrots peas and chips to €9.50, which isn't exactly giving it away, tasty as it was.

And that was the height of the day's excitement, as a rare rest-evening was self-declared, featuring nothing crazier than watching Leinster win comfortably in their Pro 12 match on the telly-box.


The downstairs dungeon that is Sinnott's

Contentment : 14 / 25
Excitement :    0.5 / 15
Memorability : 0.5 / 15

Overall Score : 30% (152nd out of 252)

Day 251 - Thursday, September 8th, 2011

"Free" and "bar" - the two greatest words in the English language, nicht? In bold defiance of our recessiveness and in a nostalgic trip down Celtic Tiger lane, the wonderful overlords and ladies of Maples Fund Services treated us to such an exquisite delight, from the hours of 6pm to 10.30pm (or so) in nearby salubrious hip-salon Dakota, replete with deep fried treats such as chicken wings, samosas, spring rolls and wedges which provided ample soakage. The attendance rate was over 80%, exemplifying the uber-high levels of camaraderie in the company, and the banter flowed freely.

Even when the card was finally withdrawn, the socialising continued, and indeed it was after the hour of 1am when we exited - some onwards to the vile Copper Faced Jack emporium, whilst most like me sagely chose the summoning of a homeward taxi instead.


Dakota. When it's empty. Not this evening.

Contentment : 16 / 25
Excitement :    4 / 10
Memorability : 5.5 / 15

Overall Score : 51%  (27th out of 251)

Day 250 - Wednesday, September 7th, 2011

Another blogging milestone - 250 days - and after flagging somewhat in the past couple of months I sense that I may be getting a 2nd (or 3rd/4th/5th) wind to bring me to the finish line that is a mere 115 days away! I have already decided that next year's blog will be a leaner, more direct affair - no harm, sez you.

Lunch was taken at the Clarendon for the first time in a while, and its soup and pepper chicken offering for a tenner (including tip) went down a treat.

Thursday Night Darts Club took place a day early this week, in its regular Doolan's haunt, but its taking place looked in danger until 7.15pm when the necessary 4th athlete arrived. Everyone is obviously saving themselves for the double-ranking event next Thursday, but all present tonight profited well, with Lara "Tryples" Della Volpe making a triumphant return to soar up the World Rankings from 15th to the crucial 12th position, which offers the final berth for the World Championships in December. After a slow start, Conch-Shell "The Conqueror" O'Keeffe ironically slowed his throw to reap his highest points dividend since April, whilst I pipped John "The Equaliser" Delaney by 2 points to lift my first title since May - great success!

Contentment : 16 / 25
Excitement :    3 / 10
Memorability : 3.5 / 15

Overall Score : 45% (74th out of 250)

Day 249 - Tuesday, September 6th, 2011

After work, I dashed back to The Lighthouse to grab Al The Almera and make the 68 minute drive to Behey, Lavey to see my newly born niece Rihanna, and what a gorgeous lil' doll she is. Mum Dad Grandmum and Grandad were all present, and there was also a visit from Mr. and Mrs. Damo Fitzsimons, the latter of whom will be imminently with child.

As is appropriate for such occasions, I bore gifts - flowers for the Mammy, vino for the Daddy and Minnie Mouse for Lil' Rihanna. Possibly even more precious than this was an entire wok full of my sensational Roast Chilli Chicken Stir-fry, which got nicely demolished.

All too soon, the niece cuddling had to come to an end in order to renegotiate the M3 back to The Lighthouse, but it was well worth the trip.

With Grand-mamma

And with Grand-Papa

Contentment : 18 / 25
Excitement :     5 / 10
Memorability : 7 / 15

Overall Score : 60% (4th out of 249)

Day 248 - Monday, September 5th, 2011

When one doesn't bring an umbrella to work in the morning, one should not be surprised when the heavens proceed to open with deluginous torrents in the evening time. Luckily a 128 bus was on hand relatively quickly to transport me 4/5ths of the way home. Self-comfort was very much required after such trauma, and this came in the guise of a ten-portion cooking of Chicken Stir-Fry, containing the entire contents of a roast chicken, 2 large onions, 2 tins of chopped tomatoes, a jar of pasta sauce, coriander, fresh basil, curry powder, half a bottle of hot sauce, red and green peppers, mushrooms, a pack of stir-fry vegetables, with a saucepan of rice bunged in on top at the end. Fearsomely delicious, instantly curing the meteorologically-inspired ills of the world!


Similar to this, only 40 times more delicious

Contentment : 13 / 25
Excitement :    1.5 / 10
Memorability : 2.5 / 15

Overall Score : 34% (139th out of 248)

Day 247 - Sunday, September 4th, 2011

Again Debbie kindly provided the reveille, Cheerios, tea and lift to the Moorways, where marker numbers had miraculously plummetted from 30 yesterday to 17 today. (Chris was initially left on the sidelines, but was introduced as a rolling substitute before long, so everyone was suitably employed.)

Board 14 was to be my officious realm for the day, and the following matches :

Round 1

Reece Robinson 6 Stephen Hardy 2 : I hadn't marked Reece before yesterday, so naturally a similar pleasure would befall me 2 days in a row. On both days, Reece was quiet, calm and courteous, and this comfortable win shows that he is "one to look out for."

Co Stompe 6 Peter Hudson 4 : Co was in quirky form as ever, and his chair-breaking banter with Peter was taken in the good spirit that it was intended. Frustration at poor scoring nearly caused intervention though when he stood onto the oche when throwing his 3rd dart - thankfully it just failed to register on the board, as it wouldn't have counted. Peter missed his next 3 darts at a double and Co finished the 60 that he had remaining.

Dave Smith 6 Joe Cullen 4 : Joe seemed to be in somewhat lacklustre form and Dave capitalised with a narrow but well-merited victory.

Round 2

Justin Pipe 6 Reece Robinson 5 : Reece was 5-0 up in this match - up to this point Justin had been throwing really poor darts (mostly 40-something scores), but the threat of suffering a whitewash brought out barrages of 140s and despite being 5-0 up, Reece didn't have any darts to win the match. Evidence of a new calmness from Reece as he took defeat on the chin and exited gracefully after shaking the hands of opponent and marker.

Co Stompe 6 Dave Smith 2 : An easy win here for Co.

Round 3

Justin Pipe 6 Co Stompe 5 : Marking two 6-5 Justin wins in a row requires supreme concentration, but in truth it was easy to do, as this match was exciting and high scoring, with Justin edging it in the deciding leg.

Quarter Final

John Part 6 Nigel Heydon 4 : John has been in superb form of late and he needed to maintain it to see off the challenge of Nigel, who is rising rapidly through the ranks. Both are gentlemen of the game, so it was great to see both do well today.

John went on to lose in the semi-final to eventual winner Gary Anderson, and with that, another PDC weekend was at an end. Before being left to the airport, I had dinner at the local with Debbie Liam and Scott, and got unlucky with a mixed grill of leathered-beefsteak, gammon fat, pork sausage and cremated chips, although the tomato was delicious. The meal failed to leave a sour taste in the mouth though of a weekend that was fantastic fun, and I can't thank Scott enough for his hospitality, which I look forward to reciprocating in Dublin in October.

I met up with those Krazy Kilkenny Katz Dave and Paddy in the queue at the gate for a flight that landed 30 minutes ahead of its scheduled hour-long length, and the Ryanair crew forgot to press the Punctuality Bugle button - double-huzzah! All of this meant that I was home for 10pm and in bed for 11pm to get the first regulation-length sleep since Wednesday!


Gary Anderson - to today's victor the £6,000 spoils

Contentment : 15.5 / 25
Excitement :    3.5 / 10
Memorability : 4 / 15

Overall Score : 46% (66th out of 247)

Day 246 - Saturday, September 3rd, 2011

Debbie kindly awoke me and after a good natter over Cheerios-'n-tea breakfast, sped me to the Moorways Leisure Centre in ample time for the commencement of the day's action-packed proceedings, which would feature a Players Championship, a Youth Championship and the PDC Officials Cup, and by mere coincidence with the staging of the latter competition, there were over 10 more markers present today than at any preceding event! As a result of the marker-glut, I was officially rested, but gave Gaz Hitman a rest from his board by marking 3 games - Mark Dudbridge's wins over Nicky Bache and Reece Robinson, and Alan Tabern beating Robert Thornton by 6 legs to 4.

After this there was time for cans of Carling (a relative pub bargain at £2 a pop) and banter aplenty with players, officials and markers including Conor, Chris, Nick, Mark, Daz, Chizzy, Hitman, Scott, Stu, Ann, Kirk and many others, as we warmed up for our tournament. Drinking buddy Liam was making his debut in the Youths tournament and after a fine 2nd Round win, there was no shame in defeat to Holland's Rick Veughelers.

Displeasingly, the Officials Cup draw pitted me against Mr. Scott Gibling, weekend host and one of the hot favourites for the tournament, although Tommy Cox took my £10 each-way bet on him at 8-1 yesterday. It was not going to lessen my attempts to beat him, despite public declarations to the contrary before and afterwards, but Scott was in excellent form, and occasional tonne scores from me did nothing to halt an easy 3-0 victory, refereed very finely by Ryan Harrington. Scott went on to the final against Kirk "The Kirkulator" Bevins, who had literally been practicing for three hours beforehand, and it deservedly paid off with victory by 3 legs to 1. It was fantastic to see the trophy being lifted by one of the regular markers, and the quality of his darts prompted talk of sponsoring him in the Qualifying School next year. There will be worse entrants, that's for sure!

By 9 o'clock we got back to the local where Debbie, Liam, Jon and a host of others awaited, and after attacking the quiz machine with eventual vengeance, there was more "winner holds on" doubles action at the oche. Alas, both the super-hot Indian and the "24-hour" Asda were closed upon departure from the pub, causing us to launch a callous attack on the bottle of Bailey's that I had brought Debbie and Scott in thanks for their hospitality. A double replenishment will be on the way for my part in such a horrifying crime! It did help to fuel banter and channel surfing until 5am though - huzzah!

                              PDC Officials Cup 2011 - D. McEvoy (Rep of Ire) v S. Gibling (Eng)

Contentment : 18 / 25
Excitement :    5.5 / 10
Memorability : 7 / 15

Overall Score : 61% (3rd out of 246)

Day 245 - Friday, September 2nd, 2011

I rose at 6am, before the alarm - weird, as I had just been in bed for a few hours. Drove to the Carlton Hotel who offer a park-and-shuttle facility for just €6 a day. The Ryanair flight at 8am was standard, with the dehumanizing punctuality bugle blaring triumphantly upon landing. Picking me up from the airport was Mr. Scott Gibling, PDC Official and Marker extraordinaire, and my generous host for the weekend.

After a quick Inspection of Works of his back-garden that is currently mid-transformation, we headed off to Westfield shopping mall in Derby city centre for a Sausage Egg McMuffin meal at McDonald's and a potter-around. The local Asda was then visited for dinner ingredients, and I acted as co-head-chef in the making of a very fine spaghetti bolognese made with mince, pasta sauce, onions, garlic mushrooms and peppers.

Pub-time!, and we picked up Messrs Tommy Cox and Gary Wood before heading to a very fine boozer, which was packed because of the England v Bulgaria match (which England won comfortably), but we managed to find a table in the beer garden, which also had a TV. Alas, there was no chance of seeing the Republic of Ireland v Solvakia match, as it was on at the same time, but perhaps no harm, as it was a 0-0 dirgefest. After many pints and much excellent banter, we left Tommy and Gary home and proceeded to Scott & Debbie's local boozer for more pints and plenty of games of darts. After close-down the local Indian take-away was paid a visit, where I pleaded with the proprietor for the hottest vindaloo imaginable, confirming that I would not sue them or anythng like that. He kindly brought out a sample of his vindaloo sauce, which did have a very nice kick, and he said that if I came back tomorrow, he would have the ingredients for the hottest dish ever.

Back at the ranch, Debbie's Liam had kindly done a run to 24-hour Asda for cans, enabling a channel-surfing and banter session to continue until 6.30am - yippee!!!


Westfield Derby

Contentment :  17.5 / 25
Excitement :     3.5 / 10
Memorability :  6 / 15

Overall Score : 54% (19th out of 245)

Day 244 - Thursday, September 1st, 2011

September 1st, and two-thirds of the year have elapsed already - amazing stuff. The event was celebrated with a Deal Lunch with Gillian Hugh and Ruaraidh from work, in nearby Bia Bar, where a starter, a burger and chips and a glass of vino set each of us back a mere tenner.

At Thursday Night Darts Club 97, six athletes went to post, where John "The Equaliser" Delaney won his 2nd title in succession, with a relatively comfortable win. Jimmy "The Dark Destroyer" Leach took 2nd and 30+ precious TNDC World Chanmpionship ranking points.

                                                  The Night's Silver and Gold Medallists

Contentment : 12 / 25
Excitement :    2 / 10
Memorability : 2.5 / 15

Overall Score : 33% (140th out of 244)

Day 243 - Wednesday, August 31st, 2011

Just after awakening at 7.20am, there came superb news from brother Shane that Suzetta had given birth to a healthy 7 pounds 9 ounce baby girl Rihanna at 2.01am. So after my first nephew 6 weeks ago, now comes my first niece. Congratulations Suzetta Shane and Rihanna!

Her good health was saluted at lunch with Rory "Razor Sharp" Wilson in the Cedar Tree, where the bill of fare consisted of zesty fatoush and a mildly disappointing chicken main. Rory's offerings were superior on both counts - stuffed vine leave salad, and the lamb meatballs that I had last time. Still cracking value for €8.95.

                                                    Rihanna McEvoy - just a couple of hours old

Contentment : 17 / 25
Excitement :    5 / 10
Memorability : 6 / 15

Overall Score :  56% (13th out of 243)

Day 242 - Tuesday, August 30th, 2011

Cineworld was re-visited this evening for the first time in months and the chosen cinematic offering was Super 8 (6.5 out of 10) which was an entertaining romp that was a cross between E.T. and Stand By Me. Well acted, good storyline, very far-fetched in places. As it is coming towards the end of its run, there was pleasingly only about 20 other people in attendance, and mercifully none of them were beastly guffawing urchins.Great success!

Providing wonderful entertainment on the LUAS ride home were two drunk or drugged-up ladies who were heading on the ferry to Holyhead to buy a bottle of vodka. Without exaggeration, they told each other every 20 seconds that they were starving and couldn't wait to go to the chipper, and bizarrely they got off at Spencer Dock which is 2 miles from the ferry port and a mile from the nearest chipper. Hilarious space cadets!


Super 6-and-a-half

Contentment : 13.5 / 25
Excitement :    1 / 10
Memorability : 1 / 15

Overall Score : 31% (143rd out of 242)

Day 241 - Monday, August 29th, 2011

Messing with all of our minds, Tuesday Night Golf Club decided that it would take place on Monday night on this occasion . Five athletes went to post at the virtual Banff Springs course and the runaway winner was Daniel "Son Of Hoon" Sjunnesson with debutant Gar "Milky Bar" Kiernan pipping me for 2nd. I put in a much improved performance, thanks in no small part to fine pre-tournament tutelage from tour professional Conch-Shell O'Keeffe.

The evening's proceedings were wound down with a very fine brace of stouts at The Oarsman before ambling back to The Lighthouse.


Banff Springs

Contentment : 15.5 / 25
Excitement :    2.5 / 10
Memorability : 3 / 15

Overall Score : 42% (94th out of 241)

Day 240 - Sunday, August 28th, 2011

The day got off to a great start in Behey with a delightful breakfast of croissants, fruit and tea before we headed over to Gallonbawn for Sunday Roast on the actual 40th anniversary of Mum and Dad's wedding. The Roast Du Jour was succulent lamb with lip-smacking trimmings a-plenty.

The 80 minute journey to Dublin was negotiated at 4pm, just in time to see the end of Manchester United's 8-2 humiliation of Arsenal - that's gotta smart!



Contentment : 15 / 25
Excitement :    2 / 10
Memorability : 3 / 15

Overall Score : 40% (106th out of 240)

Day 239 - Saturday, August 27th, 2011

After a relaxed morning and afternoon, including watching Ireland conclude their pre-World Cup Rugby campaign with a poor and sizeable defeat at home to England, I headed to Stoneybatter, to get a lift with Olivia and Joan to O'Dwyer's restaurant on the shores of Lough Ramor in County Cavan, where the whole family was gathering to celebrate Mum and Dad's 40th Wedding Anniversary - what a fantastic achievement!

Making his social debut was nephew Adam McEvoy who behaved impeccably throughout the evening, clearly satisfied with the multi-directional attention being fawned upon him and the top-quality nourishment being provided by his mother Joanne. For the rest of us, the cuisine was equally superb. My starter was Confit of Duck with puy lentils, black pudding and walnuts, whilst main course was fillet of monkfish with skate wing and pork belly - an unconventional but fantastic combination. Dessert should not have been countenanced but the Lemon Tart was gleefully wolfed, together with a French Coffee (cognac being the additive). Superb food with outstanding service in a picturesque setting - foodies should check this place out tout-de-suite!

Lodgings for the night were provided by Shane & Suzetta in their amazing self-built 5-bedroom 3-storey castle, and were comfortable as ever.

A blurry family photo - will be replaced anon!

Contentment : 18 / 25

Excitement :    5 / 10

Memorability : 8 / 15

Overall Score : 62% (2nd out of 239)

Day 238 - Friday, August 26th, 2011

Belly laden with another gut-busting stack-it-high luncheon feed from the good chefs of Dicey Reilly's, it was time to make a once every-five-years trip to a domestic soccer match at Tolka Park, where non-league minnows Sheriff Youth Club were taking on Shelbourne of the First Division, which is really the Second Division.

My good friend Trev Moore is manager of the FAS (Irish Employment Agency) office in Sheriff Street, and he secured complimentary Directors Box seats and programmes for us - what a treat! Sharing the box with us was former World Champion boxer Bernard Dunne, TDs Aodhan O'Riordain and Joe Costello, former Irish kitbag man Charlie O'Leary and other truly A-list celebrities!

A pint of Guinness was enjoyed in the Stadium Bar before the game, helping to reduce the general dread of attendance of such games, which tend to be dire in terms of quality and excitement. Sheriff YC were two goals down at half-time, slightly unluckily so, but there then followed the most astonishing and pulsating 2nd half of football ever witnessed here in Ireland. Sheriff pulled a goal back by chipping the goalkeeper from near the centre circle. Then Shelbourne went up the field immediately and won themselves a penalty which they proceeded to miss. Soon after, Sheriff drew level with a sublimely taken free-kick, and to turn frenzy into pandemonium in the stands, they grabbed a third goal via a screaming pile-driver long-range rasper!

Cue a siege upon the Sheriff YC goal, but they held out for an incredible victory. Within two minutes of the final whistle, some idiot taxi-men were creating rumours that the game was fixed, as the odds of Shelbourne leading at half-time and Sheriff winning at full-time were 66/1, but any of the 1,500 who saw the game could vouch that acting of such calibre to simulate the events as they occurred was simply impossible.

We were instantly converted to being life-long Sheriff YC fans, and celebrated with more Guinness in the bar after the game, watching highlights of the European Super Cup between Barcelona and Porto, which seemed dull in comparison.

The view of the capacity crowd from the Directors Box

Contentment : 16 / 25

Excitement :    4 / 10

Memorability : 5 / 15

Overall Score : 50% (33rd out of 238)

Day 237 - Thursday, August 25th, 2011

The 97th - 97th!!! - staging of Thursday Night Darts Club took place at Doolan's this evening, and it was the most dramatic for quite some time, with John "The Equaliser" Delaney edging out reigning champion Gar "Milky Bay" Kiernan by a single point to win his 36th title. He scored a 180 in the process, only the 9th in the history of TNDC, which makes darts professionals and officials laugh whenever I tell them but hey!, everyone starts from somewhere! Nine athletes attended in all, including Sweden's very own Daniel "Son Of Hoon" Sjunnesson, who notched up the high finish of the night - a 101, in a game of 101. I came in 3rd of the 9 places available on the night, registering a very slight return to form. Pizza was forsaken in lieu of the pork stir-fry that awaited in the Lighthouse, and was wolfed down gleefully for the 4TH day in succession - a new personal culinary record!

Milky Bar & The Equaliser

                                              The Equaliser's 180 - the 9th in TNDC History!

Contentment : 14.5 / 25
Excitement :    3 / 10
Memorability : 3.5 / 15

Overall Score : 42% (94th out of 237)