20th July, 2000
Notice
Board
DOUGLAS LIBRARY
Douglas Library is
running an exciting Summer Programme for children, with
storytimes most Friday mornings
at 11.30 am
On Friday July 28th at 11.30 am. there will be a puppet show.
Check with the library, Ph: 4277110 for further details.
For Adults, there is a series of literary videos, one every
Wednesday morning at 11.00am
There is no charge for any of these activities.
YOU LIGHT UP MY LIFE!
Head Lice, the charming bugs that usually set up home in children's hair, according to latest reports have developed resistance to the shampoos that have traditionally been used to get rid of them. Now an American paediatrician has patented a shampoo that stains nit eggs, so that they glow under ultraviolet light. The development offers parents hours of fun looking for the glowing dots. He's called his product 'Headlights' and plans to launch it soon.
MINUS ONE
Minus One , a Support Group for Separated and Bereaved people , is setting up a group in Cork. This is in response to many requests over the years. The inaugural meeting will take place in the function room of the Sunset Ridge hotel, Killeens, Blarney on Saturday 5th August at 8.30pm. The purpose of the inaugural meeting is to explain more fully what Minus One is and where the weekly meetings will be held. A contingent of 35 MinusOner's is coming down for the weekend and is looking forward to greeting those from Cork who attend the meeting. Those wishing to obtain more information about MinusOne should t phone local representative Noreen at 021 843937 . MinusOne has been in existence for almost 20 years and has been of tremendous help to those of us experiencing the trauma of being alone through Separation or Bereavement.
FREE INFORMATION BY PHONE
Since opening its phone lines at the end of last year the
Citizens lnformation Call Centre has received hundreds of calls
from employees who are unaware of their rights in the work place.
"Many of these calls are from young or previously unemployed
people who are in their first job- - said Call Centre manager
Judy Bamford" but we also receive calls from, for example,
people who have worked part time, for the same employer for years
and have had no paid holidays in that time, or have been told
that the minimum wage does not apply to them because they are
only working part time. We even had one caller -who had been told
that because their employer was not an Irish company they were
not subject to Irish Employment Legislation! Whilst the majority
of employers ensure that their
employees receive all their entitlements it is apparent that in
some cases there is a huge lack of awareness of just what those
entitlements really are!"
For information on your rights in the workplace or on any other
aspect of you rights and entitlements you can call the Citizens
Information Centre on 1890 777121. The Citizens Information Call
Centre operates a lo-call information telephone service to all
people in the Cork City and County areas from Monday to Friday
between 9.30am and 18.30pm. Or by email at information@nssb.ie or
fax at 021 4861479. Information can also be sent out by Braille.
DIGSY PAYS A FLYING VISIT
Well folks, it's good to be back, back where I truly belo...hang
on a second. Where the hell am I? Oh, right - Douglas Weekly.
Sorry about that - all this global jetsetting plays havoc with
your sense of direction sometimes. Anyway, seeing as Euro 2000
ended a few weeks ago and the Charity Shield ain't starting for
another few, I felt now might be a good time to fill that gap, as
it were. Almost as good as a Twix and with only have the calories.
Really all that's been happening lately has been the usual
summertime "transfer frenzy" (copyright The Sun 2000).
Lazio proved that they have WAY more money than sense when
spending £36 million - yes, you read that right -on Argentine
striker Hernan Crespo. Do Lazio ever do anything but spend
ludicrous amounts of moolah? Already this summer they've spent £70m
and it's still only July, for the love of God. They have made
three of the world's top ten most expensive transfers ever,
including this latest record-breaker.
Memo to the Lazio board: STOP SPENDING SO MUCH MONEY!!
Batistuta earned himself a nifty 95 grand a week when moving from
Fiorentina to Roma; the fee involved was £22m. Roma are another
bunch of spendthrifts their summer spree tops the £50m mark.
Memo to the Roma board: STOP SPENDING SO MUCH...ah, you know the
rest.
Meanwhile back in Engerland, the only really enormous purchase
has been Chelsea's unfathomable decision to splash out £14m on
Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink. And I thought Chris Sutton was a poor
bargain. What next? 20 large for Alan Kelly? A billion for Sol
Campbell? Fifty trillion and half the entire African continent
for Henning Berg? It's possible, folks. It's possible.
The other only transfer news of note was the Evil Empire's
aborted bid for Ruud Van Nistelrooy (wouldn't that have been a
tragedy if the Red Menace had bought a player with a knee dodgier
than a Northern Irish punishment victim?), Baldy Barthez becoming
Man U's seventeenth goalkeeper and Dave "My babies" O'Leary
having a bit of hassle getting a work permit for Mark Viduka. Of
course he can't get a work permit - HE DOESN'T DO ANY WORK!! Just
ask poor old John Barnes, aka Digsy - the original and the second
best. After me, that is.
See ya - wouldn't wanna be ya.
PUT A CORK ON IT
Wine ruined because of chemical or microbial contamination from corks could become a thing of the past thanks to EU-funded research. A consortium of small companies from Germany, Portugal and Spain and a German research institute have found a technique using microwaves to penetrate the corks which prevents them from chemically reacting with the contents of the bottle. Funding to develop this project came from the Commission's CRAFT programme, which helps small companies who do not have sufficient research capacity of their own to access the latest technology collaboration with research institutes. An increasing number of small businesses are participating in European research projects: more than 14,500 from 1994-1998 and their participation rate increased by 20% in 1999.
ST. LUKES, DOUGLAS
The Rev. Horace Townsend, who died on December 19,1837, at the
early age of thirty four, was evidently held in such high regard
by his parishioners, as to be remembered on stone and in verse.
They erected a monument over his grave in Douglas churchyard and
erected a beautiful pulpit of Caen stone in St. Luke's Church to
his memory. Here is the last verse of a poem written in his
honour.
"While talent tempted his own fame to sound,
He chose his Saviour's praise as far more sweet,
Tho' genius' wreath was for his temples bound,
He laid that crown at his Redeemer's feet."
Buried in Douglas also was Dr. Richard Caulfield, well-known
scholar, historian and librarian of Queen's College,now
University College, Cork. Smith, in his History of Cork and
County relates: "Before Dr. Caulfield's death, he expressed
a wish to be buried at Douglas, near his friend Rev. Canon Hayman,
who died in the winter of 188~7, and it devolved on me to see
that wish carried out and to secure the only vacant spot where
two paths meet, between the graves of Hayman and Milliken, and
here he was laid on Monday morning, the 7th of February,1887."
Besides being a wealthy man, Canon Hayman was also very
charitable.
At Christmas and Easter with his gardener, Mr. Callinan, he
distributed coal to every house in the parish regardless of creed.
Large families got four bags, smaller families two.
Next Week St Patrick's Woollen Mills
DYSLEXIA
Dyslexia is a Specific Learning Difficulty (SpLD) that makes it
difficult for someone to learn to read, write and spell well.Dyslexia
is a genetic condition caused by differences in the brain's
method of acquiring and processing language. It is not caused by
poor intelligence, physical problems (bad eyesight or hearing),
emotional disturbance, poor teaching, lack of encouragement, or
family background. It affects about 8% of people, and males are
four times more likely to be affected than females. Dyslexia
cannot be cured. Early detection and specialised remedial
treatment is important to avoid serious difficulties in adulthood.
This condition is often not recognised by parents or teachers.
Pre-school indicators include delayed speech, lack of co-ordination
and poor concentration. By school age, watch for problems with
reading writing or spelling which seems to be at odds with the
child's general progress in other areas. Persistent reversing of
numbers and letters, difficulty learning sequences (such as the
alphabet or the months of the year),and difficulty following
instructions are also indicators. If you think your child might
by dyslexic, contact his teacher to discuss your concerns and
arrange sight and hearing tests to rule out physical problems.
Arrange for a psycho-educational assessment with a qualified
psychologist. Primary schoolchildren can be tested for free
through the Schools' Psychological Service. Ask the school
principal or medical officer or your family doctor to arrange an
appointment. Waiting lists are long. Post-primary schools can
request a free test for pupils through the Department of
Education and Science. If you want to go private, a psycho-educational
assessment costs about £150. Get advice from your child's school,
your doctor, or the Association for Children and Adults with
Learning Disabilities (ACLD, Tel (0l 679 0276) to arrange a
private assessment. Depending on the severity of the condition,
treatment options include remedial help in your child's own
school or privately, placement in a special reading unit, or a 2-year
placement in one of the country's four special reading schools.
The Department can make special arrangements for dyslexic
students taking State exams, including the provision of a reader
or scribe, and use of a word processor or tape recorder. Further
details are available from secondary schools and the Department
of Education and Science, Tel (0l) 873 4700. Applications for
special arrangements must be made to your child's school
principal 2 years before the exam. ACLD has 29 branches around
the country. It runs group and individual tuition, workshops,
examination preparation classes, and summer schools for children;
courses for teachers; and tuition for adults. It provides lots of
information about the condition, how to recognise it and where to
get help. This includes a useful new booklet called Understanding
Dyslexia - in formation Guide from the Monaghan Association for
Children and Adults with Learning Disabilities.
WHY PAY MORE
Going on holidays? Why pay through the nose when you can book your flights direct, often at fares less than half price, by going online to www.go-fly.com. All flights are from London but you can get a low fare to London from www.ryanair. Not alone that they can also help you get accommodation at very low prices. One of our readers got his airfare from Cork to Bilbao reduced from £350 to £150(return) and a top Hotel in Santander reduced from £120 per night to £40 a night. That's a saving of a £1000 on a week's holiday in Spain. It's worth thinking about.
SWITCH
Switch are three young girls from Bandon, Co. Cork. They are
students in the University of Limerick in the music area. Switch
are Catherine Foley, Joanne Coughlan and Denise Goggin.
Their musical influences include the Corrs, Indigo Girls and
Christy Moore, and these influences can be heard in their own
original material. Switch’s style is both original and
captivating, ranging from trad to pop and contemporary music.
These bright young ladies are finalists in the prestigious ESAT
Digifone Band Competition and will compete in the final on July
27th in the Vicar St. theatre in Dublin.
You can see/hear what the girls have to offer when they perform
for Laser Discs in the Douglas Village Shopping Centre this
Friday 21st July at 7pm. Not to be missed, these girls will
undoubtably be the future of Irish contemporary music.
COVENEY PROMOTED
Deputy Simon Coveney has been promoted to be Assistant Party Whip within Fine Gael and has also become the spokesperson on Drugs, Crime and Policing issues.“ I am delighted to have been given increased responsibility within the party. I have taken an active interest in the area of drugs and crime since being elected and so look forward to the challenges that will face me in this area,” said Deputy Coveney. “ We are living in an increasingly violent society, already 32 people have lost their lives in violent circumstances this year, a number of whom were children and babies. While some criminal activity has reduces in recent years, juvenile crime is increasing and at a younger age. At the same time we have a prison service that is over-crowded and that is failing to successfully rehabilitate offenders,” stated Deputy Coveney while outlining a number of problems that must be addressed. “In the area of drugs, Ireland and Cork have huge problems. Dublin's heroin and cocaine problem is amongst the worst in Europe. While every week an estimated 30,000 Ecstasy tablets are sold to young people around the country. More15-16 year old teenagers in Ireland have taken Ecstasy than in any other country in the EU, per head of population. The frightening truth is that experimentation with drugs and substance abuse is becoming the norm for many young people, who see themselves as immune to the dramatic problems associated with addiction. A huge percentage of crime can now be linked to drug addiction. I look froward to trying to make a positive impact in this area by bringing forward policies and ideas to the government parties,” concluded Deputy Coveney.
EXAMS ... EXAMS .. EXAMS ...
Here are some more howlers that have turned up in exam papers;
21. One of the causes of the Revolutionary War was the English
put tacks in their tea. Also, the colonists would send their
parcels through the post without stamps. Finally the colonists
won the War and no longer had to pay for taxis. Delegates from
the original 13 states formed the Contented Congress. Thomas
Jefferson, a Virgin, and Benjamin Franklin were two singers of
the Declaration of Independence. Franklin discovered electricity
by rubbing two cats backwards and declared, "A horse divided
against itself cannot stand.". Franklin died in 1790 and is
still dead.
22. Soon the Constitution of the united States was adopted to
secure domestic hostility. Under the constitution the people
enjoyed the right to keep bare arms.
PHOTGRAPHIC COMPETITION
To celebrate their recent public launch Cork Environmental
Forum has organised a photographic competition. This competition
is open to photographers, young & old, amateur &
professional. The competition, which features a prize fund of £1,500,
is intended to raise the level of public awareness of the total
environment of Cork City & County.
"The quality of our environment is decided by a combination
of how we care for our heritage, natural and man-made coupled
with the level of creativity and responsibility we demonstrate
when designing, constructing and managing development within our
landscape" said Mr Terry Q'Regan, Chairman. Entries must
demonstrate the following themes; Our Environment - The Good, Our
Environment - The Bad, Our Environment - The Ugly. Photographs
should reflect the beauty, the spoliation or care for our
environment. The judges will assess entries on the basis of the
quality of the picture, the effectiveness of the photograph in
making it's point and the appropriateness of the caption. The
Irish Examiner, the Department of the Environment and O'Leary's
Camera World in Cork, has sponsored the competition. The closing
date for entries is 30th October. An awards ceremony and
associated exhibition will be held in Cork in the New Year. The
short-listed entries will be included in a touring exhibition
based on the competition, which will be shown around Cork City
and County.
Entry forms are being distributed through members of the Forum,
Muintir na Tire groups, schools and are available in public
libraries, banks and art centres. Interested parties can contact
J. Hodgson. Development Officer, Cork Environmental Forum at 028-37400
