It Says in The Bridge: Sep 07
Back after its summer break, The Bridge is bursting with stuff, and has some new writers too.
There's also a front-page welcome to Fr Paddy Ryan, recently joined to the parish as a curate. Again, there's an introductory piece inside which provides more information about Fr O'Sullivan's replacement.
Space has been found too for a front-page congratulations to James Nolan on winning a bronze medal in the World Transplant Games.
The Bridge's Editorial for September urges people to 'Give it a Swirl' on the 26th, the National Day of Volunteering, and notes that the benefits of volunteering are always two-way. There's also a nomination form for the annual Community Awards, where the work of volunteers and people who serve the community or their friends in other ways is marked.
News items through the pages include the achievement of a Certificate of Quality by the Early Learning Montessori School (ELMS), details of an upcoming public meeting on developing a Kilcullen Community Web Forum, a request for volunteers to run the new Parish Website and revive the Newsletter, and a nostalgia-tinged reflection by Bernard Berney on the 'Reeling in The Capers' night last week.
Back to school and on to College events are photographically covered, such as the Pyjama Day at Brannoxtown NS and the Results Day at the CPC. Happy faces everywhere.
The Bridge also catches up on a few events that happened during the August break, including the Drama Dynamics show for parents in the Town Hall Theatre and Mac & Norman's Vintage Rally.
Some of the participants in a Landers Dance Group visit to Denmark report on the trip, which included an excursion to Legoland that nine year old Jeff Keane says 'was brill'.
There's some pent-up creative writing in 'The Spout' pages, including a short story by Mary Barber and poetry by James Healy and Joe Kelly.
Among the regular features is Sean Landers's Letter from Taiwan, mostly about the end of his most recent stint of teaching and his efforts to get new employment.
Billy Redmond goes 'Off the Cuff' on thanking all involved in the success of his most recent special shop for the IWA, musing about the Cork/Clare game, the 'summer' weather, his personal astonishment at the 'Beverley affair', and his wonderment at how Eircom can justify the ongoing repair bills for the phone box on main street.
Pat Behan writes extensively on several subjects, albeit rather testily on the recent meeting of residents in Kilrush following a plane crash there. His other pieces are a profile of Peter and Jenny Young's Castlefarm in Narraghmore, a detailed review of the downsides of cocaine use, and a look at the zany 'warnings' that come with many items sold today; our favourite is the 'Not to be used as protection from a tornado' on the blurb with a blanket made in Taiwan.
A new contributor whose promised regular pieces will be of much interest to anyone with a home to decorate is Amanda McSeoin, co-proprietor of 'Haven' at Hillside. This month she outlines some key elements to be considered before starting a room transformation project.
The sports pages have pitch & putt, soccer and GAA news, and the Mull's Corner 'victim' this week is John Martin, PRO of Kilcullen GAA ... we have to say that the picture of John does indeed show him in victim pose!
And, since we have ourselves seen the gardai clicking away with digital cameras in the vicinity of illegally or carelessly parked cars, it is perhaps apt to close with a warning from the Kilcullen Gardai Notes that fines have been imposed and will continue to be issued in an ongoing clampdown of such practices.
Brian Byrne.
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