blanch informer april 2013

Blanch InformerApril/May 2013 • Unit 26, Western Parkway Business Centre, Ballymount, Dublin 12 • Tel: 01 813 8786 • Email: [email protected] • Web: www.informer.ie

Blanchardstown • castleknock • carpenterstown • ongar • littlepace • huntstown

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Cricket4Cancer aiming for hat-trick of success

By Paul O'Connell

For the third year running St Francis Hospice in Blanchardstown is set to receive the proceeds of the Cricket4Cancer fundraising event. To date the fundraiser has donated in almost €6,500 to St Francis Hospice, and this year organisers are hop-ing to raise at least another €4,000.

The event, which was first held in 2010, was organised by co-founders, and sisters Louise and Clodagh o'Farrell, who wanted to show their appreciation to St Francis Hospice, after their late father Frank o'Farrell passed away in the hospice after a short and brave battle with pancreatic can-cer.

Speaking to the Blanch-Informer, Louise o'Farrell explained the story behind Cricket4Cancer, “We wanted to give something back to St. Francis Hospice as a way of saying 'thank you' for the care and kindness they afforded our Dad and ourselves during the short time we had left with him. We have had previous experience with the hospice movement and find it is a wonderful organisation, and as they are run solely on the generosity of people we felt compelled to give something back.”

Louise also told the Informer that because cricket is in the family blood, choosing to sponsor a Memorial Cricket

Trophy in honour of her late father, was a no brainer.

“We decided to sponsor a Memorial Cricket Trophy for the recently formed Dublin Fire Brigade Cricket Team and turn it into an annual event between DFB and the Garda Cricket Team. The first ever match took place on the 18th August 2010 and was kindly hosted by the Civil Service Cricket Club in the Phoenix Park, where it will be held again this year thanks to the continued support from CSCC. It was a fantastic day with the Garda winning the first ever 'Frank o`Farrell Memorial Cup' match”

Paying tribute to the overwhelming support the event has received, Louise insists it would not be possible without the kind hearted support Cricket4Cancer has received from the public.

“We are wholly dependent on the

Local hospice to receive proceeds of eventgenerosity of people offering prizes for our raffle and giving us their time. We have been blown away with the prizes and donations we have received from complete strangers offering to help us out every year and hopefully we will be just a fortunate this year.”

Chicken Dance JohnstonFor the past two years Irish interna-

tional cricketer Trent Johnston has given up his time to bowl the first ball at the fundraiser and, schedule permit-ting Johnston will also be on hand this year to get proceedings underway. Louise explained: “Trent has just been amazing in his support and it is a won-derful opportunity for all the young budding cricketers to meet their hero and get a few tips from the great man.. he may even show them how to do his famous 'Chicken Dance'.”

This year's fundraiser will take place on the 6th July down in the Civil Service Cricket Club in the Phoenix Park, and will commence at 12pm. Speaking of the success to date Louise said: “I think it has been such a success

Local news is now on page 3

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see page 19

Ronnie Whelaninterview page 10

Walk On

win a pair of tickets

see page 2

our air quality is killing us

opinion: an taisce - page 2 all about dublin - page 12

Dublin's New urban Farm

green scene - page 4

hitler's dublin sister-in-law

Fix Your Metabolism Plans from 159

See 1

2 The Informer

The Drift

Dublin InformerEditor: Niall Gormley

Unit 38, Northwood Court, Santry, Dublin 901 813 8786 • [email protected] • www.informer.ie

Sales Director: Declan Keane • Mobile: 087 9145073

For Advertising Enquiries, please contact: [email protected]

Telephone: 01 813 8786

Dublin by

Numbers

Some 889,441 used cars changed hands in 2012 in the republic according to research carried out by carzone.ie. Some of the other findings are: The average age of a car in Ireland is now eight years old; The BMW 3 series was the most searched for model on Carzone.ie in 2012 and German manufacturers BMW, Volkswagen and Audi were the most popular; Diesel models most popular choice, with 80% of used car searches; Used car searches peak on the last Monday of every month; Motorists spend €3745 running their car per year.

880,000

Comment BoxBy An Taisce

Our air quality is killing usAir pollution remains a major environmental and health problem across the EU. High concentrations of particulate matter (PM) and ozone are most harmful to human health. in urban areas, between 80 and 97% of the population is exposed to levels of pollution which are above the World Health Organisation’s (WHO) guidelines for health protection. This results in 3,400 premature deaths in ireland and nearly half a million across the EU each year, increased hospital admissions, extra expenditure on medication, and millions of lost working days.

Air pollution has a major impact on Member States’ finances. in the year 2000 alone, the health damage from air pollution amounted to between €277 and €790 billion. This ‘only’ covers health costs, not all other damages, for instance to ecosystems, crops and materials. Air pol-lution damages nature and biodiversity with the deposition of acidifying and eutrophying substances still exceeding the critical loads of sensitive ecosystems over large areas in Europe.

in January 2013, the WHO concluded that since 2005 considerable amounts of new scientific evidence has been published that more than confirms the WHO Air Quality Guidelines. Worse, new evidence shows that damaging effects can occur at levels lower than the 2005 Guidelines. The range of health impacts also appears to be much broader than previ-ously thought, with new evidence of links with neurodevelopmental and cognitive function effects as well as with diabetes.

Despite the fact that evidence concerning the harmful impacts of air pollution has continued to pile up, the recent history of the EU’s air pol-lution policy has been characterized by several delays and missed oppor-tunities, including the introduction of time extensions into the Air Quality Directive in 2008 and repeated postponements of the revision of the National Emissions Ceilings (NEC) Directive.

During the 2013 “Year of Air”, the EU has a chance to make things right. A package of proposals is expected to be published by the European Commission around September. Below, we highlight three priority actions which, combined, could put the EU on the right track towards the achievement of “levels of air quality that do not give rise to significant negative impacts on and risks to human health and the environment”. 1. The adoption of ambitious emission reduction commitments in the

revised NEC Directive, both for existing and ‘new’ pollutants; 2. The adoption of sector legislation to cut emissions from all major

sources;3. The enforcement and strengthening of ambient air quality limit val-

ues.We call upon the three EU institutions to come up with an agreement

on all three priority actions and to start working towards this objective as early as possible in 2013.

The winners of the tickets for the Ella

Fitzgerald Songbook: Stephanie McGuinness

Swords

WIN A PAIR OF TICKETS THURSDAY MAY 9THIn advance of the 58th Eurovision Song Contest (14th–18th May, Malmö, Sweden), indulge your Eurovision fever with the RTÉ Concert Orchestra and RTÉ Radio 1's Derek Mooney. Starring past Eurovision stars including Niamh Kavanagh, Paul Harrington, Charlie McGettigan and more. Thursday May 9th, National Concert Hall.

A nostalgic celebration of the heady days of Ireland's past success in Eurovision and in anticipation of future glory! The programme will include, What's Another Year?, In Your Eyes, Volare, Rock'n'Roll Kids...and there may be a few surprises!

Here’s your chance to win a pair of tickets to Mooney’s Eurovision Melodies.

To be in with a chance to win, simply tell us::

Who will represent Ireland in the 2013 Eurovision Song Contest?

a) Ryan Adams

b) Ryan Dowling

c) Ryan Dolan

Answers by e-mail only to [email protected] Please include your contact number Closing date for entries Monday 6th May 2013.

Blanch in Brief... with Paul O'Connell

Criket4Cancer fundraiser>> Continued from Page 1to date is because of the support we have had from family and friends who knew and loved our dad too and mainly because so many people have been touched by St. Francis Hospice in some way. It is a fun family day out and last year we had face painters and a clown to entertain the younger supporters. We also arranged for a visit from a fire engine and the Mounted Garda Unit came along too, which was a huge success on the day.”

With Louise's sister Clodagh recently emigrating to Canada in search of employment, Louise is also appealing for anyone willing to help organise this year's event. “This year we really need all the help and support we can muster...it will be tougher to organise the event...anyone who is in a position to give us a dig out in some way.”

Anyone willing to donate or volouteer can contact Louise on the Cricket4Cancer Facebook page or fol-low them on twitter at @Cricket4Cancer.

FaceBook: The Frank o`Farrell Memorial Cup "Cricket4Cancer"

Twitter: @Cricket4CancerWebsite: www.Cricket4Cancer.com

Half of septic tank owners in Fingal ignore rulesALMoST half of septic tank owners in Fingal have ignored the new rules on registering their tanks leav-ing the county.

out of 5,500 properties in the county with septic tanks, only 2,927 registered the tank by March 1, a month after the initial deadline of February 1, and only marginally up from the 2,808 that had registered

by that original date.The Fingal Independent reports that those who

remain unregistered now face higher fees and have lost their opportunity to apply for grants to upgrade their tanks.

The report asserts that 47% of Fingal's septic tanks remain unregistered which the county manager has said poses a risk to public health.

Launch of leaflet on theft of smart phones in Dublin DUBLIn City Joint Policing Committee recently launched a leaflet addressing the current problem of thefts of smart phones in Dublin city. The theft of smart phones has increased significantly, and statis-tics from An Garda Síochána shows that nearly 8,000 were reported stolen in the first six months of 2012.

The Dublin City Joint Policing Committee is a forum consisting of councillors, TDs, Senators, Gardaí, council officials and representatives from the community/business sector, with its focus to try and develop an integrated approach to policing and safety in the city.

Part of the committee's work is providing informa-tion on how people can prevent crime, and four issues have been selected for attention. These include burglaries in the home, theft of mobile phones, night time economy issues and public disorder issues.

Commenting at the launch, Chief Superintendent Michael o'Sullivan from Pearse Street said: “analysis of crime trends in 2012 indicates that a mere 15% of mobile phone owners had their IMEI number avail-able when reporting the theft incident. operation Aughrim was initiated in the Dublin Metropolitan region in an effort to prevent and detect the commis-sion of mobile phone related offences and in an effort

to restore recovered mobile phones to their rightful owners.

"I would like to take this opportunity to highlight and improve awareness around the need for personal safety when using your mobile phone in public, the importance of recording your IMEI number and alerting your service provider to block the handset if lost or stolen".

Robbery investigation arrests GArDAI in Blanchardstown have made three arrests following a planned operation into recent robberies

in the Blanchardstwon area.Gardai investigating the robbery of three shops in

the Blanchardstown area over the past weeks, during which knives were produced, have arrested one male and two females as part of a planned operation.

A car was stopped by Gardai on the Grange road, Dublin 15 and the three occupants, a male in his 20’s and two females, one in her 20’s and the second in her late 30’s, were arrested.

All three were detained under the provisions of Section 4 of the Criminal Justice Act 1984 at Blanchardstown Garda Station.

3The Informer

n Young people PJ Maguire (16) from Drumcondra and Clara Barry (16) from Killester joined Minister Frances Fitzgerald and Peter Power from UNICEF Ireland at the launch of Report Card 11. Ireland is the tenth best place in the world to be a child. Photo: Mark Stedman/Photocall Ireland.

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4 The Informer

By Kathy Marsh, SonairteGreen SceneDublin's new urban farmi’vE been hearing rumours for quite a while that a new green space was being developed in Dublin’s north inner city and i’d wondered where on earth it could be.

So many of the old derelict plots were built over in the tiger days that it has become harder and harder for birds and insects to find a toe hold, let alone a feeding and nesting site, anywhere inside the canals. Even where a space has been scheduled for development as a park or play space either on the streets or within the perimeter of apartment blocks lack of finance, and even fear of plants and wild-life, has often meant that those spaces are laid out mostly or entirely in concrete, stone and metal.

But some people don’t let the fact that every inch has been built over stop them farming and gardening and Andrew Douglas is one of those people. in the unlikely setting of the upper floor and roof of

the old Williams and Woods jam factory, right beside the Parnell Centre, he is creating, from the waste products of the city, a little bit of heaven.

And what a productive little bit of heaven it will be. Already happy hens potter around on the roof, supple-menting their diet with worms that have wandered out from the bins where vegetable waste collected by bicycle trailer from city restau-rants is being composted by Paddy O’Kearney’s City Composting. The compost is used to fill planters made from recycled food grade plastic drums and very soon the first herbs and salads will be ready for delivery, again by bike, to those who were lucky enough to spot Andrew’s Fundit Ad for members of ireland’s first urban CSA.

...where's the spuds?...The herbs and salads aren’t the

only thing that will be grown in those recycled drums. With support from Gallagher’s Boxty House the Urban Farm is growing a hundred and sixty different kinds of potato from Dave Langford’s collection, and there will be an opportunity to taste them at a Gathering Harvest Event later in the year.

They will also support many dif-ferent varieties of heritage fruit which will help to form a wind break around the roof perimeter, shielding more tender crops. And what a range they are planning. in grow beds built from recycled pallets there will be a big range of vegetables provided as seeds and plug plants by sponsors Quick Crop from their Klaus Laitenberger vegetable Collection. The great thing about this range is that they are all known to do well in irish conditions. Quick Crop are also provid-ing the soil to grow them in and it should be quite a sight when a crane lifts several tons of potting mix up to the roof.

...using and reusing...Everything used in the garden – irrigation, crop protection systems

and plant supports – are made from recycled materials. At the moment quite a lot of it still looks like junk, but the beautiful little hen house, decking and other early structures show just how attrac-tive it will all be when the transformation is complete.

...an indoors, as well...The garden isn’t just on the

roof. Andrew has considerable expertise in hydroponics and the top floor space is being trans-formed with light reflecting paint, daylight lighting and irri-gation as a place to grow tender plants such as tomatoes, pep-pers and aubergines.

it is here that ireland’s first aquaponics system will be installed. Using a recirculating water system tilapia, a delicious tropical fish, will be farmed and the fish waste will be used to feed the plants, some of which will actually be grown with their roots down into the fish tanks.

Once again tanks and plumb-ing systems (as well as the lighting) will be almost entirely built from recycled materials.

...find out more about the Urban Farm...For those who want to know more about the project, which offi-

cially launches on May 18th, rTE are filming its development. Local schools are also getting involved – from the parapet one can look down into school playgrounds and the roof of Bolton Street college joins on to the farm. Full details of the farm and how to get involved are at http://www.urbanfarm.ie

...finally, is this a template for the city?it is hard to come away from a visit to Dublin Urban Farm without

a whole collection of ideas and projects fizzing around in one’s brain. An enormous amount of healthy food will be produced in this small unlikely place, and before long there will be birds and insects there too.

When one looks around from it on a clear day one can see many, many other places where a very little effort would help Dublin to become green and sustainable. The city is full of balconies and flat roofs where a pot of salad leaves and a few flowers would make a real difference to the health and happiness of all of us.

And Dublin Urban Farm demonstrates that it doesn’t cost money to make the difference. Maybe you know a rooftop that is crying out for its own community growing space. Meanwhile i’m told there are still allotments available from Fingal County Council at the new Balbriggan allotment site from €50 per year.

n Founder Andrew Douglas explains how waste products can green and feed the city.

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6 The Informer

Over the last several months Jupiter domi-nated the night sky and is still clearly visible towards the west as twilight sets in. However, as we move into late spring and early summer we will now be treated to views of what I consider probably the most spectacular sight in the sky: Saturn.

While the planet was known since ancient times, its rings weren't discovered until 1610 by Galileo, who originally thought they were moons. Christian Huygens dis-covered that they were actually rings, and both he and Giovanni Cassini discovered the planet's larger moons. One of these moons, rhea, may even have its own small ring system! To date, we know that Saturn has at least 62 moons.

Saturn is a gas giant made mostly of hydrogen, and its density is lower than that of water. This means that if you had a swimming pool big enough, Saturn would float! However, it is Saturn's rings that make the planet a stunning view, in my opinion.

While astronomical binoculars will show a 'bulge' around the planet, I enjoy great views from my own 4-inch telescope, which is considered a small-to-medium telescope. It's very easy to make out the rings, and the shadows that both the planet and rings cast upon each other. If you watch the planet over a number of hours, you will be

able to spot the motion of its moons around the disc of Saturn.

Saturn is placed just over the south-east-ern horizon at around midnight. The easi-est time to find the planet will be to use the Moon as a 'signpost' at midnight on April 25th (going into the morning of the 26th).

The Moon will be placed right beside the bright star Spica the night before, at around the same time, so be sure to take a look at that spectacular view, too!

You can get your equipment to scan the Dublin sky at nightskyoptics.com.

The sky over Dublinwith Conor Farrell, Astronomy Ireland

Saturn hovers into our view

n Saturn as photographed by the Cassini spacecraft (credit: NASA).

with Keith McDonnell

Angler's Angles

The river Liffey rises in the Liffey head Bog between Sally Gap and Kippure in the north-ern Wicklow Mountains, and, descends to the Poulaphouca Reservoir Co. Wicklow.

The river flows for much of its 125km length through Co. Kildare through the towns of Ballymore eustace, Newbridge, Clane, Celbridge and Leixlip and arrives in Co. Dublin at Lucan. The river supplies much of Dublin's water and there are dams for three eSB hydroelectric power stations along the river, at Poulaphouca, Golden Falls and Leixlip.

The Liffey has a reputation for being dirty and polluted but in the plains of Co Kildare it is a rich trout river as it flows over limestone. This insures a good trout population and the average size of trout is quite good and in certain areas the river is capable of producing up a real trophy fish. The river is a superb resource for anglers on the east coast some of the other species available are Salmon, Pike, Roach and Perch.

I spent a day recently guiding visiting Spanish angler Jose Ruesta Botella on the river Liffey near Dublin. We were faced with challenging conditions due to this unrelenting east wind.

The fish were reluctant to move to our flies

but we managed to get Jose into some better than average trout, even though a couple fell off!

Jose was very impressed by the quality of our brown trout and the variety and beauty of the water available to the fly fisherman so close to Dublin.

Keith McDonnell is a fly fishing guide and instructor and big trout nut based in Dublin.

www.fluffchucker.com

Fishing trout in the Liffey

n Visiting Spanish angler Jose Ruesta Botella with a beautiful wild River Liffey Brown Trout

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Finally folks, if you need any information on gardening or if you have any tips or sugges-tions which i can pass on, please send them to me at [email protected].

i would be delighted to quote for any/all of your garden requirements from set-up organ-ic vegetable plots to restoration of neglected gardens, design, planting and maintenance. No charge for initial visit and i will travel within reason.

i HAvE decided this year due to frost and cold ground not to put the potatoes, second earlys called ‘Orla’ in the ground until the first week of April. Saint Patrick’s Day would be the usual planting time, but this year i have left them happily chitting away until early April. Apart from some small digging to give a good ‘Tilt’ to the plot there isn’t a lot to do in the small veg plot for a few more weeks.

Lawns coming aliveLawns are starting to come

alive again and will need to be mowed regularly. Try to keep to a set pattern which obviously depends on what time you have. Every two weeks for the normal family size lawn is fine and if you have a bigger lawn alternate the cut direction to achieve the classic square cut like Croker in late September!.

Any bare patches on the lawn can be reseeded now and a good going over with a scarifying

First tasks of the spring season

Pond waking upThe small pond is starting to

wake up again as the fish start to come out of their winter semi hibernation. if you have a pond no

matter how small or large do not under any circumstances follow the instructions on the packaging of the fish food market leader, which advises feeding three times a day.

if you do this your fish will overeat and die. More pond fish die from over feeding than any-thing else. Give your fish a few sticks twice a week and no more.

rake will work wonders. Top dressing can wait for a month or so.

Beware Vine WeevalAt this time of year no matter

how small your garden is, wheth-er it’s a small balcony in an apart-ment or a bigger town house space, if you plan on any con-tainer growing be aware of the dreaded vine Weevil.

This chappie will gladly devour your plants, in particular those grown in containers. Make sure to inspect and wash out all your containers before you think about planting. You will probably not find the adult weevils but spot instead their larvae. These are very small whitish in colour with a red head.

if you discover that you have some weevils they can be elimi-nated organically with a biologi-cal control called ‘Nematodes’. These microscopic living crea-tures transit a fatal bacteria that will kill all the larvae in one dose.

Garden Growing With Gerry Norton

8 The Informer

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10 The Informer

Very few Irishmen have accomplished and achieved as much in their footballing career as this man from the Northside of Dublin. A key part of the great Liverpool FC and Irish squad of the 80’s and 90’s you can still hear and see him commentating on football matches even today.

Next month he will undertake a walk to raise money for his charity Myasthenia Gravis. In this month’s Dublin Informer interview, Kevin O’Brien chats to one of Liverpool FC and Ireland’s true footballing legends, Ronnie Whelan who talks about his footballing career and how much his charity means to him.

Where did you grow up?Finglas West, North Dublin.

Fondest childhood memory?i have too many of them to be honest. Growing up in Finglas was great as a child and i was surround-ing by good friends and my family.

We would be out playing for hours in the local fields, kicking a ball which i loved. Finglas has changed slightly nowadays but still full of great, decent people.

How did you get the gig at playing for Liverpool?Football was always in my family as my dad and brother played, and like most young boy's dreams back then, i wanted to play for the Liverpool’s or Manchester United’s of this world.

i did trials with Coventry and Manchester United, who i supported as a boy, but i was signed for Liverpool FC on my 18th birthday which was a very proud moment for me joining one of the true 'great clubs' of Europe.

What’s your most memorable moment of play-ing with Liverpool? For me personally it was captaining Liverpool dur-ing the FA Cup final against Everton. Obviously there are other moments like winning the European Cup and other medals with Liverpool. Great times at a great club.

Funniest thing to happen to you as a player?We were playing a match in Spain while i was with Liverpool and fans from the opposing team started throwing fruit onto the pitch and especially at our goalkeeper Bruce Grobbelaar.

i turned around and saw him throwing the fruit back into the crowd which was probably not the right thing to do but was funny at them time.

The Informer Interview

Ronnie Whelan

Walk On

You are patron of Myasthenia Gravis. What is your involvement and what does the charity do? i’m patron but did not set this wonderful charity up. i got involved because my daughter Elizabeth had this unique condition which is an autoimmune dis-ease in which a child’s body produces antibodies that attack the acetylcholine receptor and some-times other proteins at the neuromuscular junction. Acetylcholine is a neurotransmitter that plays a key role in muscle contractions.

Not having enough receptor sites for acetylcho-line causes a child’s muscles to weaken over time. intervention and having treatment on hand is key which is why i dedicate as much of my time as pos-sible in helping raise funds and awareness for the charity.

it's run in ireland by a great women called Karen Clancy and her volunteers whose dedication and commitment is unbelievable and they deserves great credit for her work.

Does the charity have any events coming up where people can get involved?Yes, and we are always looking for help. We have two events coming up and the first one is myself and a group of volunteers are walking from Cork to Galway from the 31st May to 4th June to raise funds. it’s 126 miles so i’m in training for this at the moment.

The second is my golf classic at the Carton House on the 6th June 2013. it’s a game of golf with my friends and an evening gala dinner which is going to be great craic but more importantly, it’s going to raise vital funds for Myasthenia Gravis.

It’s fair to say, Liverpool have been undera-chieving in the past two decades. Where do you think its all gone wrong ?Mmm. A few things really. The squads over the years have not been strong enough to contend with

the likes of the Manchester United and Chelsea. Liverpool over the recent years have had some

great players and some average players that would have never got into the great teams of old. Do these players have the same desire and will to win at the top level? i don’t know.

Money is a big issue and their current manager, Brendan rodgers is making all the right sounds and the next two to three seasons will tell a story if he is to compete with the big guns of the premiership.

Players have to be proud when they put on the Liverpool shirt and give it their all, otherwise Liverpool will only ever be a mid-table team and the fans and the history of the club deserve better than that.

If you could have played alongside any football-er in the world, past or present, who would it be and why?i played alongside some of the greats at Liverpool but i suppose i would have always liked to have played alongside George Best as he was a genius and my boyhood football hero.

How do you spend your days now you are retired from Football? Well i love to play golf and at present am playing off 8. i do Tv pundit work which is great fun. This combined with my charity work keeps me occu-pied.

Best memory that stands out in your mind for playing for Ireland.For me personally, scoring against the USSr back in the 1998 European Championships.

Best Irish manager ever in your opinion?Has to be Jack Charlton. He brought us to two World Cup’s and was a hard but fair manager most of the time.

Who do you think is the best football manager of all time in the English football league?i’m going to be shot for saying this but it has to be Alex Ferguson. For a man like him who can keep reinventing teams over his career is incredible. He does not put up with nonsense from the players or media and does his own thing.

His records of accomplishments speak for them-selves. i’ve met him on a few occasions and despite what various people think of Fergie, he is a good decent guy.

Finally, do you think Ireland will qualify for the World Club?if i’m to be realistic about things, no. However

where there is a will there is a way and as a player you can never stop believing.

We have got tough games ahead of us like Germany and Sweden and it’s all about how much the team gel and get stuck in. Nothing is impossi-ble. Come on ireland!!

The Myasthenia Gravis are always looking for volunteers and help in their fundraising. To find

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12 The Informer

All about Dublin 1 Edited by ZozLesser Known DublinersA Place in the City

Bridget Hitler (nee Dowling)The Strawberry Beds

BOrN in Flemings Place, near Mespil road, in 1891, Bridget Dowling is remembered because of her brother-in-law, Nazi dicta-tor Adolf Hitler.

Aged 18 she met Alois Hitler Jr. at the Dublin Horse show. He claimed to be a wealthy hotel owner on holiday but was, in fact, a waiter at the Shelbourne Hotel.

A year later they eloped to London and married on 3 June 1910, against the wishes of her father.

Always the dreamer Alois returned to Germany at the start of WWi with plans for business ventures that never materialised. Bridget, who had borne him a son - William Patrick Hitler - stayed in Liverpool. Alois abandoned his family and remarried - he was charged with bigamy in 1924 but got off the hook when Bridget pleaded for clemency. They even-tually divorced.

William, however, visited his father and remained in Germany for some time, meeting uncle Adolf at a Nuremberg rally.

Adolf got William a job in a car factory but left Germany after the

death of a niece, Geli, with whom Adolf Hitler was alleged to have had an affair.

During WWii she toured the USA with her son who was lec-turing on his uncle Adolf, describ-ing him as a “madman surrounded by the worst types of men. Sexual perversion is rife amongst the ranks of his closest friends.” William later served in the U.S. Navy and received an honourable discharge at the end of the war.

Bridget wrote an unfinished and unpublished book "My Brother-in-Law Adolf" which claimed that she had introduced

him to astrology, advised him on trimming his moustache, and that he had visited Liverpool between1912 and 1913 to dodge conscription in Austria. it was, most likely, a complete work of fiction, as records show that Adolf Hitler was in vienna at the time. Oddly, it is possible (though not provable), that Adolf Hitler did visit the Dowling family in Dublin.

Bridget and her son settled in the USA after the war and the family changed their name to Stuart-Huston. She died in November 1969, he in July 1987.

THE road through the gorge on the north bank of the river Liffey passes through an area called The Strawberry Beds, where there are several pubs and pub-restaurants.

The name does in fact come from strawberry growing - the fruit thrived on the well-drained south-facing slopes of the valley between Lucan and Knockmaroon, though not any more.

in the nineteenth century an expedition from Dublin to this area on a Sunday seems to have been very popular, particularly among what were described as ‘the artisan class’.

in season strawberries were served at tables outside the cot-tages on cabbage leaves in place of plates and with a portion of cream. This cost one old penny. The Dublin Penny

Journal published a piece in 1833 that noted: " ... of the vari-ous pleasant drives about the metropolis, that through the Phoenix Park, by the side of the

Liffey, and the Strawberry Beds to Lucan, Leixlip and the Salmon Leap appears to be the most esteemed by the citizens."

There's a weir called 'The Wren's Nest' on this stretch of river. it's probably the most feared of all the obstacles on the Liffey Descent canoe race, and therefore a popular spot with

spectators and television camera crews hoping for spectacular capsizes.

An excerpt from 'The Liffey - Portrait of a river' with Paintings by rosemary Burns and Text by Dick Warner. It is published by Cottage Publications and costs around e22.





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14 The Informer


Taking LibertiesWHEN James Johnson M.D., Surgeon-Extraordinary to the King, visited Dublin in 1843 he was not in the best of moods. He didn't particu-larly like the place and he wasn't enjoying himself. He was, however, originally from Cork! After his book 'A Tour in ireland' was published the follow-ing year, it is unlikely that he gained many friends in the city, and particularly in the Liberties.

"A ten minutes trip on a jaunting-car, will trans-port you from Sackville Street (O'Connell Street) to the "Liberties." Liberties indeed! The winds and the rains have liberty to enter freely through the windows of half the houses in this locality - the roofs themselves take the liberty to descend under the shelter of the gables and side-walls - the pigs have liberty to ramble about without rings in their noses, there being nothing but stones and gravel to plough up.

"The tax-gatherer has liberty to enter the houses (half of them without doors) and take the bundle of straw or the empty potato-pot. The landlord has liberty to take possession of most of his tene-ments, without the process of a formal eviction - the dogs have liberty to eat potato skins - if they can find them.

"The silk-weaver himself has several kinds of liberty. He has the liberty to starve - to go into the workhouse, which he considers a worse measure,

being starvation and imprisonment combined - to go in search of work, which, itself, has travelled so far that he has no prospect of overtaking it! Lastly, he has liberty to beg -for there is no vagrant act - a profession so congenial to the irish character, that the silk-weaver and broken-down artisan generally embrace it when other trades fail.

"it is here, however, that the Tabinet (Poplin) Weavers still maintain the remnant of their empire. imitators have so spoiled the trade that there are not more than 150 looms at work in Dublin and its vicinity! The "Liberties" of Dublin might be pitted against worst slums in Britain for filth, poverty, and depravity!"

'Abominably dirty'The rev. Thomas Campbell, author of 'A Philosophical Survey of the South of Ireland' (pub-lished in Dublin in 1778), found much to criticise while travelling through the city. He also found beauty in a surprising area ...

"Upon the whole, Dublin is no contemptible city ... it must, however, be acknowledged, that except the new streets, which are paved and flagged like those of London, it is abominably dirty.

"i, cannot describe to you how much i was hurt by the nastiness of these streets, and by the squalid appearance of the canaille (the riff-raff). The vast inferiority of the lower ranks in Dublin, compared even with those of the country towns in England, is very striking. Seldom do they shave, and when they do, it is but to unmask the traces of meagreness and penury.

"in a morning, before the higher classes are up, you would imagine that half the prisons in Europe had been opened, and their contents emptied into this place. What must it have been then, even within three years, when near 2,000 wretches, much worse, of course, than any now to be seen, exercised the unrestrained trade of begging? i am told that the nuisance was risen to such a pitch, that you could scarcely get clear of any shop you entered, without the contamination of either ulcers or vermin, from the crowd of mendicants, who beset the door.

"Here, to be sure, you meet some splendid equi-

FIrSthaND hIStory

This feature was researched with the help of

pages, and a large suite of lackeys after a sedan chair; you see a fair range, or two, of houses, and some rich shops; but all these scarcely compensate for the pain-ful sensations produced by the general mass.

"Yesterday i went down the North Strand, catching the sea-breezes as i rode along. Summerhill, the sub-urb leading to it affords one of the most charming prospects in the world. Before you, is the sea, covered with ships; on the left of the bay, is a country beauti-fully varied; to the right, the conical mountains of Wicklow terminate your view. The river Liffey, and part of the, city compose the fore-ground of this exquisite piece. , . .

"Summerhill, as well for the beauty of the situation, as purity of the air, is become the residence of several persons of fortune. i was led to it a few days since, to see one of the most pleasing collections of pictures, i have almost any where observed; and you will be the more surprised when i tell you, that they are all cop-ies, but they are copies of a very peculiar sort.

"One of them taken from the Galatea of raphael, they now consider as an original; the original being almost defaced. They were the property of a Mr. Moore, who, during a long residence at rome, had them painted by Albano, and others, the best artists in that imperial city.

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Spring Breakers HHHHHDirector Harmony Korine. Starring vanessa Hudgens, Selena Gomez, Ashley Benson and James Franco.

ShoRT of cash for their Spring Break blowout, Candy and her friends rob a restaurant and head to Florida, where sex, drugs and a gangster called Alien waits.

okay, let’s get this straight from the off, Spring Breakers is not American Pie for this generation. It’s title and plot sound like something Jim and Stifler would get up to but this film is not fun. It’s a good film, but it’s not fun.

It is quite a hollow film actually but it says an awful lot about the American Dream, the hedonistic culture enveloping the world and the lengths people will go to attain it. James Franco is the best part of the film, totally changing his outward appearance to fill the role of Alien and it’s great to see the former Disney kids tear down the images that viewers have of them.

Spring Breakers is a strange, lurid MTV-esque film, full of neon colours and vacuous characters. It is energetic and hypnotic but not terribly memorable.Advice: Eh, only if you have to…

Oblivion HHHHHDirector Joseph Kosinski. Starring Tom Cruise, Olga Kurylenko and Morgan Freeman.

IN the future, earth is attacked by an alien race and humanity has abandoned the planet. Jack and his wife Victoria protect the machines that harvest earth's resources, but Jack starts to suspect that everything is not as it seems.

Joseph Kosinski gave us Tron Legacy, a fantastic looking film but really quite heartless. Unfortunately he has done the very same here, building a fantasy world that feels absolutely real but the characters don’t. Tom Cruise is Tom Cruise, he runs, he smiles, he shouts (standard Tom really, but that is why we love him). Morgan Freeman and Kurylenko really only phone in their performances as the action and sci-fi elements seem, from the outset, to be the film’s main focus point.

oblivion is a good film to watch, it looks amazing but in terms of plot there is absolutely nothing here that you haven’t seen before.Advice: Nothing special, but worth a view.

Graham Connor's Movie Advice

Is Depression Ruining your Life?DEPrESSiON has many meanings. it can be used in everyday contexts, describing how we feel when bad things happen or things don’t go our way.

in a medical context, clinical depression is a diag-nosis characterised by a mix of physical and psycho-logical symptoms such as weight loss, difficulty sleeping and feelings of sadness.

The boundary between everyday feelings of depression and clinical depression isn’t always clear. But, in general, has to do with the number of symp-toms experienced and the length of time someone is experiencing them.

Signs of depressionWhen someone is depressed they can experience a

range of things including:

• Feelinghopelessorhelpless• Lackofenergy• Changesinsleepingandeatingpatterns• Cryingalotorfeelingagitated• Highuseofalcoholordrugs• Losingtheirtemper• Withdrawingsocially• Headachesorstomachaches• Feelingempty• Feelinganxious• Losinginterestinactivitiestheyusuallyenjoy

However, it’s important to repeat that depression has many meanings and just because you’re feeling depressed doesn’t mean you’re suffering from clini-cal depression.

Why would someone feel depressed?Feelings of depression can be a completely normal

reaction to traumatic events in our life, like sudden negative changes in personal circumstances or an experience of violence.

Depression can develop over time, possibly when negative experiences haven’t been resolved in posi-tive ways, like talking to someone, but have been repressed through unhealthy coping mechanisms, like alcohol abuse.

FasterEFT is a collection of new cutting-edge techniques and processes founded in US that inte-grates the most effective elements of EFT, BSFF, NLP, science and the mind's great ability to transform itself. One of the greatest aspects in FasterEFT is that it is fast, direct and to the point. it has a healthy and logical belief system that's easily accepted. With this great mix of understandings, FasterEFT can quickly transform how you represent your past, shift your emotional disruptions and restore your mental health.

See www.fastereftdublin.com. I highly recommend you take time to browse any videos relevant to you.

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17The Informer

Spring Breakers HHHHHDirector Harmony Korine. Starring vanessa Hudgens, Selena Gomez, Ashley Benson and James Franco.

ShoRT of cash for their Spring Break blowout, Candy and her friends rob a restaurant and head to Florida, where sex, drugs and a gangster called Alien waits.

okay, let’s get this straight from the off, Spring Breakers is not American Pie for this generation. It’s title and plot sound like something Jim and Stifler would get up to but this film is not fun. It’s a good film, but it’s not fun.

It is quite a hollow film actually but it says an awful lot about the American Dream, the hedonistic culture enveloping the world and the lengths people will go to attain it. James Franco is the best part of the film, totally changing his outward appearance to fill the role of Alien and it’s great to see the former Disney kids tear down the images that viewers have of them.

Spring Breakers is a strange, lurid MTV-esque film, full of neon colours and vacuous characters. It is energetic and hypnotic but not terribly memorable.Advice: Eh, only if you have to…

Oblivion HHHHHDirector Joseph Kosinski. Starring Tom Cruise, Olga Kurylenko and Morgan Freeman.

IN the future, earth is attacked by an alien race and humanity has abandoned the planet. Jack and his wife Victoria protect the machines that harvest earth's resources, but Jack starts to suspect that everything is not as it seems.

Joseph Kosinski gave us Tron Legacy, a fantastic looking film but really quite heartless. Unfortunately he has done the very same here, building a fantasy world that feels absolutely real but the characters don’t. Tom Cruise is Tom Cruise, he runs, he smiles, he shouts (standard Tom really, but that is why we love him). Morgan Freeman and Kurylenko really only phone in their performances as the action and sci-fi elements seem, from the outset, to be the film’s main focus point.

oblivion is a good film to watch, it looks amazing but in terms of plot there is absolutely nothing here that you haven’t seen before.Advice: Nothing special, but worth a view.

Graham Connor's Movie Advice

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Is Depression Ruining your Life?DEPrESSiON has many meanings. it can be used in everyday contexts, describing how we feel when bad things happen or things don’t go our way.

in a medical context, clinical depression is a diag-nosis characterised by a mix of physical and psycho-logical symptoms such as weight loss, difficulty sleeping and feelings of sadness.

The boundary between everyday feelings of depression and clinical depression isn’t always clear. But, in general, has to do with the number of symp-toms experienced and the length of time someone is experiencing them.

Signs of depressionWhen someone is depressed they can experience a

range of things including:

• Feelinghopelessorhelpless• Lackofenergy• Changesinsleepingandeatingpatterns• Cryingalotorfeelingagitated• Highuseofalcoholordrugs• Losingtheirtemper• Withdrawingsocially• Headachesorstomachaches• Feelingempty• Feelinganxious• Losinginterestinactivitiestheyusuallyenjoy

However, it’s important to repeat that depression has many meanings and just because you’re feeling depressed doesn’t mean you’re suffering from clini-cal depression.

Why would someone feel depressed?Feelings of depression can be a completely normal

reaction to traumatic events in our life, like sudden negative changes in personal circumstances or an experience of violence.

Depression can develop over time, possibly when negative experiences haven’t been resolved in posi-tive ways, like talking to someone, but have been repressed through unhealthy coping mechanisms, like alcohol abuse.

FasterEFT is a collection of new cutting-edge techniques and processes founded in US that inte-grates the most effective elements of EFT, BSFF, NLP, science and the mind's great ability to transform itself. One of the greatest aspects in FasterEFT is that it is fast, direct and to the point. it has a healthy and logical belief system that's easily accepted. With this great mix of understandings, FasterEFT can quickly transform how you represent your past, shift your emotional disruptions and restore your mental health.

See www.fastereftdublin.com. I highly recommend you take time to browse any videos relevant to you.

Please contact Linda Walker (FastereFT Practitioner) 014976434 with your questions.

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Dublin Informer

20 The Informer

Dublin Advice

Expressive arts - a creative solution to personal and professional issuesPErSONAL development is serious work, but that doesn't mean it can't be fun as well. Art and other creative activities provide an original and playful way to explore issues, develop insight and transform our understanding of our lives.

Expressive Arts Therapy (EXA) combines all art mediums and creative processes to support people and community development. it can contribute to personal growth, healing, well-being, creativity, problem-solving and team-building.

How it works Expressive Arts Therapy uses music, theatre, writ-

ing, visual arts, storytelling, nature and dance/move-ment and will often incorporate more than one modality into a session. it can be a one-to one or a group experience. No artistic skill, talent or knowl-edge is required. Anyone can enter into the process and there is no judgement or critique of what is cre-ated. A sensitive approach means that one art form can inspire another so that we gain access to our inner resources for healing, insight and change.

Both life and art require improvisational skills, resilience, awareness of beauty and the necessary hands-on experience of shaping from materials at hand. An Expressive Art session is a practical expe-rience. When we create spontaneously through any type of art we address – Who we are? How we feel? - in this moment. This is always evolving and chang-

ing due to our natural development as humans and to the changes we face in our environment.

Questions about who we are and how we feel are important issues for each one of us and for all human organizations. They dictate how we act and interact and whether the outcome will be helpful or disengaging. EXA helps us gain self-knowledge; it can help us to understand who we want to be and how we want to feel. it encourages self-discovery and personal growth. We all have an innate capacity and a need to be creative, which is essential in responding to challenges with a greater awareness of possibilities and options.

Who can benefit Expressive Art is a healing practice for everyone

including individuals and groups such as: children, teenagers, adults, older people, homeless, refugees, individuals living with health issues or suffered abuse or going through difficult times.

EXA can support issues and concerns that need to be healed, in a safe therapeutic environment. Expressive Arts helps heal unresolved issues from the past, address difficult emotions such as fear and

By Boaz and Vered Zur

anger and sustain the emotional well-being of a person during challenging situations. EXA is used for solving problems, conflict resolution and brain-storming in business, professional and educational settings and in team building. EXA strengthens the resilience of the team to increase functionality, improve communication and activate resources within the team.

in community art, EXA engages communities in artistic activities, exploring the unifying potential of art and nature through various activities. Community art can take place anywhere including community hall, shopping mall, institution, restaurant or out-doors in nature.

images help us to tell our stories. Creativity and rituals comfort repair and heal. Creative arts and play are part of every culture because they normal-ize us, bring health and give comfort, facilitating recovery from trauma and loss and maintaining overall well-being.

… Art enables us to find ourselves and lose ourselves at the same time...

For more information www.expressiveartsireland.com

email [email protected] and find us on Facebook: expressive Arts Ireland.

Tel: 086 191 0302

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