New York, New York
So good they named it twice.
The city that never sleeps. The championship game involving Roscommon and New
York on Sunday next reminded me of three great summers I spent on a J1 Visa in
the States when a student. The summers were ’68, ’69 and ’70. I actually spent
two of the summers in New York and the third in Philadelphia. It was early days
for the J1 exodus and I travelled with my friend from Creggs, Jim Mulligan. Jim
had been there in ’67 and had considerable back-up with three sisters in
residence there.
It was June ’68 and
interestingly the day before departure I was with my father and older brother
cutting the turf. At the end of the day we walked out of the bog accompanied by
a neighbour John Crehan. As we parted from John at his house gate he said to me
‘See you tomorrow Tony’ to which I replied ‘No John I am actually going to New
York tomorrow’. This was a big surprise to John as going to the States was
still a big adventure then. ‘Wait there a minute’ he said going into his house,
returning and pressing a ten shilling note into my hand.
My memory is a bit confused
as to whether it was Shannon or Dublin we left from. There was an issue with
Jim’s ticket and the possibility of the plane being overbooked but Jim was not
to be denied and I was much relieved when he appeared on board. It was a
probably my first time on a plane but the atmosphere was like a subdued party.
On arrival at John F. Kennedy Airport in Queens the first viewing made a considerable impact especially in the sixties. One’s impressions of such airports were all taken from films or movies and Kennedy Airport lived up to all the images. The hustle, the bustle, the jostling crowd, the sheriff-style police with the holstered guns and the cacophony of differing languages and voices. It was all there and more, just as it said in the movies. After clearing immigration and passport control it was through to the arrivals hall and the pleasure of seeing Jim’s three sisters there to welcome us. Apparently we had to get a larger ‘chequered’ taxi because of our numbers. In any event we arrived at our destination which was University Avenue off 183rd Street in the Bronx where a small reception party ensued.
On arrival at John F. Kennedy Airport in Queens the first viewing made a considerable impact especially in the sixties. One’s impressions of such airports were all taken from films or movies and Kennedy Airport lived up to all the images. The hustle, the bustle, the jostling crowd, the sheriff-style police with the holstered guns and the cacophony of differing languages and voices. It was all there and more, just as it said in the movies. After clearing immigration and passport control it was through to the arrivals hall and the pleasure of seeing Jim’s three sisters there to welcome us. Apparently we had to get a larger ‘chequered’ taxi because of our numbers. In any event we arrived at our destination which was University Avenue off 183rd Street in the Bronx where a small reception party ensued.
The next day was, for me,
local exploration since Jim had been there before. It takes some adapting to
the idea that one is 3000 miles or so from home and all the securities involved
there. On the corner of 183rd St. was a ‘shop’ /store with the letters A&P
with which I was to become familiar. My first day dealing there, with my raw
Irish accent, was a self-conscious experience. In the same area was the
local church ‘Nicholas and Tolentine’ and not far away a church of
different kind ‘The Aqueduct Bar’ run by the Moynihan brothers from Kerry. As
the summer progressed there were many bars with familiar names like ‘The
Leitrim and Mayo Inns’ and so on.
After a couple of days
getting the feel of things the search for work began. Our first job was
on a regular tour boat from Manhattan up the Hudson for perhaps forty miles or
so. It was called the ‘Day Line’ (there is also a famous Circle Line tour of
Manhattan) tour and a Roscommon man had the food and beverages concessions on
the boat. My role was to attend to a ‘frankfurter’ kiosk. Sometimes the
frankfurter might look a bit mouldy but a run on the rolling grill solved those
reservations. The boat travelled under the impressive George Washington Bridge,
past a place pronounced Pikipsie with a stop at West Point Military Academy.
While it was ‘cool’ as they say today the dollars were not in it and we were
there for a few dollars more. So I departed from my sailing days in short
order. Construction was where the dollars were and I had some experience of
that in London town. (To be continued I expect.)
Government Formation or Lack of
It … 60 Days On
The present efforts to form a
Government are just depressing and the politicians are digging a huge hole for
themselves and their class. Their credibility is diminished by it all.
The current ‘negotiations’
have resulted in the old political animosities and positions flourishing. How
can trust be engendered by the bitterness and brinkmanship of the current
‘negotiations’? Irish Water has become the rock on which all this is
being played out. Obviously Fine Gael think that a single utility and charging
for water with concessions is the way to go and I agree with that.
Now, whichever way this is dealt with, it is certain to leave a widespread legacy of resentment. One could hear that in remarks on Thursday morning radio from Leo Varadkar. As someone who actually paid my water bills what happens this group now? I believe that paying a reasonable amount for water is acceptable. I believe that a single utility for the provision of and maintenance of same is appropriate. To back-track on all that has been put in place, whether shoddily or not, is trying to change horses in mid-stream. I also listened to Roscommon East Galway T.D. Ml. Fitzmaurice in the background this am and the clichés came ‘thick and fast’ such as ‘at the end of the day’, ‘the bottom line’, ‘water charges are dead in the water! , ‘being honest’, ‘Lookit’ and ‘I’ll be very clear’. Alan Kelly had very strong words for the current policy developments calling them ‘environmental treason’. This seems to be the e-voting system (cost 50m) multiplied by X.
Now, whichever way this is dealt with, it is certain to leave a widespread legacy of resentment. One could hear that in remarks on Thursday morning radio from Leo Varadkar. As someone who actually paid my water bills what happens this group now? I believe that paying a reasonable amount for water is acceptable. I believe that a single utility for the provision of and maintenance of same is appropriate. To back-track on all that has been put in place, whether shoddily or not, is trying to change horses in mid-stream. I also listened to Roscommon East Galway T.D. Ml. Fitzmaurice in the background this am and the clichés came ‘thick and fast’ such as ‘at the end of the day’, ‘the bottom line’, ‘water charges are dead in the water! , ‘being honest’, ‘Lookit’ and ‘I’ll be very clear’. Alan Kelly had very strong words for the current policy developments calling them ‘environmental treason’. This seems to be the e-voting system (cost 50m) multiplied by X.
The posturing and attempts at
points-scoring of the political negotiating groups as they walk towards their
meeting venue in Trinity College or wherever is something to behold.
My own view is that a
minority Government, if put in place at all, will be short lived. The
question then is, will the result of another election be any clearer?
And bending a Maureen Potter
'spake' to apply to politicians and another election ‘If you fall off that wall
and break your leg don’t come running to me’.
There are several critical
issues which are not getting the attention they should as the hiatus continues
such as: The constant of the health service with the length of time
people have to wait for a multiplicity of procedures and also the position of
housing provision for the homeless and those who wish to get on the ‘property
ladder’, to name but two.
As Laurel used to say to
Hardy ‘Another fine mess you’ve got me into’.
The Continued Rise of Trump.
If one is depressed about all
that is happening or not happening here I imagine that there are huge numbers
of people in the United States becoming more than depressed about the rise of
Donald Trump. He seems to be getting a broad vote from varied zones while at
the same time alienating certain groups especially women. It will certainly be
a big challenge for Hillary Clinton who I expect to win the Democratic
nomination unless a thinking middle ground emerges to support her. What is it
about the system in such a great country, in so many ways, that it ends up
presenting its people with such a choice? Then what do I know
either?
The Roscommon Herald
Centenary Supplement
Once again the Roscommon
Herald has come up trumps with a fine supplement dealing with a particular area
of interest. This time it deals with the Centenary of the Rising and
Roscommon’s connections with it and the War of Independence which followed. An
older touchstone document, which is a collector’s item for Roscommon people
now, is that which was published by The Roscommon Herald in 1959 on the
Centenary of the establishment of the paper in 1859. The paper has published a
number of ‘supplements’ since then on sport and such and also on the papers 75th
Anniversary. All these form a collection of interesting snapshots of
those events. By including a number of photographs of schools commemorating the
Rising Centenary the current publication has added a contemporary link and I
imagine the supplement will be a valued document into the future for those
students and the many people pictured or whose forbears are mentioned
therein.
Some Sports References
Boyle GAA
Seniors win provides window
of opportunity
Boyle 0. 14 Oran 1.9
Boyle by virtue of their
necessary win over Oran on Sunday last maintain the possibility of retaining
senior league status for next year. There are still very stiff hurdles to
overcome with probably three points necessary from the remaining games. Boyle have
played Pearse's (won)/Kilmore (lost)/Elphin (lost) Strokestown (lost) Oran
(won) i.e. 2 won 3 lost. Teams to be played are Western Gaels/Roscommon
Gaels/Clann na nGael/ St. Brigid’s.
The Boyle performance last
Sunday was a big improvement on the second half against Strokestown. Donie
Smith was a key player for Boyle on Sunday with 9 of Boyle’s tally. At half
time the score stood at Oran 1.6 Boyle 0. 8. After an even first half Boyle
dominated the second half and finished pretty strongly. The classic error of
‘giving away’ possession with misplaced passes still remains. It also has be
said that Oran did not appear near as strong as the prospects coming down the
track. Again as I have mentioned last week Boyle are still missing key
players and if they can get 99% of the team out together they should be a good
side. It was good to see the return of Roch Hanmore and Conor McGowan back from
injury and coming on last Sunday.
Boyle’s next big game is
their first championship outing of the year and that is against Castlerea St.
Kevin’s on the week end of the 7th/8th of
May.
Boyle Celtic’s Final League
Game
As happened a couple of years
ago the Sligo Leitrim Super League decider will come down the last game on
Friday the 29th at 7.45 when Boyle Celtic take on Calry in Boyle. Celtic have ground out a couple of results this last week against Yeats
and Manor to arrive at this point. It is some achievement that having drawn the
first game they have gone the next 19 games winning all. The margin for error
is so narrow with City just a shade behind. Apparently many games in this
league have been ‘no shows’ and it looks as if the league is a creaking vehicle
at this time and in urgent need of rejuvenation.
Dublin Boss Kerry
It is rare to see Kerry being
bossed at Croke Park. While the dismissal of Kerry’s Aidan O’Mahoney had some
impact on the latter part of the game Dublin ended in full control. They were
hugely impressive on Sunday against the one team which would be expected to
challenge them in what was a great game of football. Dublin now have such an
extended panel of fine players and a bit like Kilkenny a few years ago perhaps
could field two intimidating teams. It is hard to envisage any team derailing
their All-Ireland march again this year. Of course great sides have been beaten
before and showed vulnerability that we did not anticipate but this team looks
really special.
Leicester City’s League Win
Sport is speckled with
unlikely winners and that is the beauty of sport. This is what inspires teams and
individuals to dream and very occasionally have the dream come through.
Leicester will go down as one of the greatest sporting successes in the history
of sport. I mentioned above being in New York in the late sixties. In 1969 New
York’s Shea Stadium was home to the New York Mets baseball team and they
came from the basement to not only win their own league but win ‘The World
Series’ which is the pinnacle of baseball. Even I got involved in their
progress. They were labelled ‘The Amazing Mets’ or ‘The Miracle Mets’ and I
have a book on their ’69 season sub-titled ‘The Year the Mets Lost Last Place’.
This time it is the ‘Amazing Foxes of Leicester City’. They will surely be
contenders for the sporting success story of the ages.
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