By Paddy McCarthy
Hope you all had a fabulous Thanksgiving Day and I am sure plenty of turkey with the trimmings was enjoyed. And the gravy I am sure, yum yum. It’s amazing that after Thanksgiving everything changes; yes, I am talking about the weather, we get snow, sleet and rain now how about that.
I have to admit I was away for the holiday for a few days myself as I was invited to the Grand Cayman Islands. No I am not joking, I do have a few friends who care about me. It was very nice and very quiet and guess what, I got to meet a man from Newtown, Tipperary. His name was Rob Carroll who’s there working as a waiter and he loves it. We had a great laugh about my time going to Tipperary every year for our holidays in the summer from school with the whole family. The reason for that was that my father Tom was born in Davitt Street, Tipperary so we were all packed up in the train to Limerick Junction where we were met by my auntie Nora, R.I.P., to take us to her house in Tipperary town. Now, you can imagine that time there was six of us and my auntie had three children and boy, was it a full house, but we had fun.
A lot of sad things happened when I was away including the passing, the day after Thanksgiving, of a great friend and neighbor of mine, Edna Hanley from Williston Park, Long Island. She was just a beautiful person all round and had just turned sixty years of age. R.I.P. Edna. After I heard about Edna, I found out that Denis McCarthy, Sr. also passed away… two hurts in one day.
The County Cork BP&P Association said that they mourn the passing of their long-time member Denis McCarthy Sr., husband of Mary Anne (nee O’Neill) McCarthy, father to Past President Denis McCarthy, Anna Marie Murray, and sons John, Michael and Timothy McCarthy.
I can tell you this that Denis was a very hard working man all his life here in New York but always cherished his trips back to his native island cottage in County Cork, Ireland. R.I.P.Denis.
Here is a theatre show you should not miss playing at The Irish Rep right now. It is called PUMPGIRL and is playing until Decemeber 29 in The W. Scott McLucas Studio Theatre. Written by Abbie Spallen and directed by Nicola Murphy, the play stars Hamish Allan-Headley, Labahoise Magee, and Clare O’Malley.
It all starts in a gas station in Northern Ireland, barely north of the border, Pumpgirl gets few customers beyond lecherous men and cruel women who remark on her tomboyish appearance. She has struck up a friendship with “no helmet Hammy” – an amateur stock-car racer. As Hammy’s wife, Sinead, stays home alone, she simmers with rage over her isolated existence. On Hammy’s birthday, their lives become perilously intertwined, leaving them face-to-face with a desperate future.
Buy Tickets by calling (212) 727-2737 or online at irishrep.org.
You can’t beat this: The Dublin Society Christmas Irish Brunch will be held this Sunday, December 8, at Gossip (9th Avenue at 49th Street) from 1 pm to 4 pm. This is definitely not to be missed as I probably be there as well! They have a full Irish buffet brunch with sausages, rashers, black and while pudding – the works – with a three hour open bar, and live music by Shay Mac, all for just $50 for adults, 12 – 20 $25 for those aged between twelve and twenty, and under 12s getting in free.
In next week’s Out&About I will try and cover everything that is happening for Christmas and everything that did happen in the coming week. See you all then.