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The West's Awake
Cormac MacConnell is an Irish novelist, journalist and columnist. His weekly column in the Irish Voice newspaper, "West's Awake," is a huge hit with readers. MacConnell published a collection of his Voice columns in his book, "Cormac's Corner."
The West's Awake
Posted by CormacMacConnell at 5/11/2009 9:12 AM EDT
The province of Munster was playing the province of Leinster last Saturday evening in the semifinal of a big European rugby competition called the Heineken Cup. Munster are the current champions. They are rated as being the best rugby club side in Europe. They have played Leinster twice already this season. They hammered ... Read More »
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Posted by CormacMacConnell at 5/1/2009 11:53 AM EDT
The Optimist Fell 10 Storeys, And At Each Window Bar, He Shouted To His Comrades, 'All Right, So Far!' When the late, gentle Erskine Childers was our president I was covering some event in Clarinbridge over which he was presiding. It was a low key occasion with no huge crowds in the village, and it was for that reason the ... Read More »
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Posted by CormacMacConnell at 4/23/2009 11:41 AM EDT
Lovely weather altogether in Co. Clare. The cherry blossoms are exploding everywhere, the meadows are emeraldizing magically, there are early blossoms on our apple trees in Maisie's garden in front of the cottage, the clouds are passing high overhead, and whatever rain is in their bellies will tumble down on top of the ... Read More »
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Posted by CormacMacConnell at 4/15/2009 11:59 AM EDT
Illustration by Caty Bartholomew These are mind-boggling times both nationally and internationally. We are almost daily seeing things we thought we would never view in our lifetimes. Internationally, the elevation of President Obama is perhaps the most striking global evidence of this clearly different new world. ... Read More »
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Posted by CormacMacConnell at 4/8/2009 9:12 AM EDT
Before I can relate the story of Sabrina O’Dea’s wondrous umbrella I have to briefly sketch the history of her family. Her father Tomas was stationed as a sergeant in the hamlet and parish of Doonagare way back in the forties and Sabrina was born there. Tomas was the kind of policeman who was reluctant ... Read More »
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Posted by CormacMacConnell at 4/1/2009 9:54 AM EDT
Caty Bartholomew I saw the first swallow of the summer today! And March still has two days left! Not alone did I see one swallow. I saw three of them flitting over the lough on the very day that we in Ireland shoved our clocks forward one hour to formally welcome in the summer season. Every year I tell ye when I first spot ... Read More »
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Posted by CormacMacConnell at 3/26/2009 8:59 AM EDT
Illustration by Caty Bartholomew I was saying last week that strange alternative events in the cottage threatened to disturb my peace. It arose from the visit of Antonyeta  from Amsterdam, a healer and shaman, who said to me that she was going to convert my lovely Dutch Nation into “a wild witch!” I ... Read More »
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Posted by CormacMacConnell at 3/18/2009 11:58 AM EDT
The Dutch Nation has many interesting friends in Holland. Most of them are alternative thinkers, independent women of worth, often healers or shamans of one kind or another.
I’ve met most of them over the years and liked them for their intelligently questing spirits and wholesomeness, all except one whom I ... Read More »
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Posted by CormacMacConnell at 3/17/2009 5:14 PM EDT
I remember the time in Ireland when the number of millionaires we had in the whole country could be counted on the fingers of one hand and the thumb left over. If you met or even saw a millionaire you did so with a sharp intake of awed breath. We did not even know that billionaires existed, except we'd heard that the ... Read More »
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