Category: Uncategorized

Following on from my pheasant story yesterday I became curious enough to research the origins of the phrase ‘killing two birds with one stone’. Considering it is such a well-used idiom I began to think of how cruel a saying it actually is.

It has its origins in Greek Mythology from the story of a father and his son called Daedalus and Icarus. Two birds are killed with one stone by Daedalus to use the feathers to make wings. Both father and son escape from the Labyrinth on Crete using these wings.

Even though the phrase is unpalatable when I really think about it, I am a fan of its intention. Working smart appeals to me. Why do one task when I can do two at the same time.

Case in point is how I cook as I always tend to batch cook.  Last weekend I cooked a (even if I say so myself) magnificent vegetarian lasagna for a few friends.  I am not a vegetarian myself but it was well received. Instead of cooking one batch I cooked two and froze the rest.

Afterwards the craic and the giggles were mighty.  As we sat around chatting afterwards one of the girls asked if we had reached a point where it would be unnecessary for people to come out and announce that they are gay.  In other words, as a society can we just accept people as they are without judgement? I had to go one step further and said imagine if someone said the following

‘I have an announcement to make. I am coming out. I am black’.

We all got the giggles. But according to another friend as a society we are not there yet. As many people still face non acceptance and discrimination. Please God we will get there one day.

All the best

Stay Fab

Adele

Six impossible things before breakfast revisited

http://adeleleahy.ie/six-impossible-things-before-breakfast/

Following the completion of daily blogging for a year I felt the need to revisit one of my favorite blogs. I look at my Alice in Wonderland ‘Six Impossible things before breakfast’ fridge magnet every morning upon wakening and it makes me smile.

In completing all my blogs yesterday-I was 3 weeks behind-I actually did something that I had almost believed was impossible. But back to this morning. Here are my six impossible things before breakfast.

1.Be ungrateful for all the blessings in my life and spellcheck the word possibel -Impossible

2.. Get Buzz to stop growling at passers-by because he maybe doesn’t like the cut of their jib-Impossible.

3.Write my blog- on the day, not three weeks behind- Impossible.

4.Look in the mirror and adore my negative self-critic- Impossible

5.Resist having two gorgeous coconut protein balls made by my friend- Impossible. – I had three.

6. Resist going down a Google rabbit hole today. Impossible.

As that great Cork man Mr. Ford once said- ‘Whether I think I can or cannot. Either way I am right’.  Some days I work this philosophy and others not so well. But I have learnt that progress and not perfection are what work for me. And Buzz has just barked in agreement.

All the best

Stay Fab

Adele

What a day.   I was driving along minding my own business whilst talking to the vet on my handsfree phone. An appointment I had booked needed to be cancelled.

Finn had a sore on his back leg which did not appear to be healing and I had decided to book an appointment at the vet.  Eventually he licked it better which was a relief.  I believe he has learnt his exemplary licking skills from Dr.Buzz, his fellow Morkie.

Mid call I spotted a beautiful pheasant crossing the road in front of me. I had never before seen a pheasant crossing the road and was in a degree of shock. Travelling at the correct speed limit did not allow me to slow down in time.

I screamed down the phone to the vet’s receptionist who was unsurprisingly taken aback.  The thought that I had possibly killed one of the most beautiful birds with my car had put me in a degree of shock.

I frantically looked in my rear-view mirror to see if it was still alive.  To my relief it had survived as it had reached the other side of the road.  Albeit minus a few tail feathers.

When I eventually got home, I felt like shaking my own tailfeather with joy.  And then I realized that I do not have a tailfeather but a fine arse.  Which I shook instead.

All the best

Stay Fab

Adele

I attended a lovely party over the weekend for a very dear elderly friend.  I have met her on many occasions over the last many years as we meet when walking our dogs.

The girl that hosted the party pulled out all of the stops.  Gazebo, bunting, fairy lights, cakes galore and the most magnificent fire pit.  I later found out that she was an event organizer which was no surprise considering the general party standard.

Turning up in my duds was not such a good idea.  For some reason I expected maybe two or three people and not a party fit to be a ticketed only event. Several dogs were also in attendance in honor of the birthday lady’s love of dogs.

We heard yelping and discovered that two dogs were entwined following a frisky interlude. They appeared to be unable to become unstuck.  It was quite frightening to witness as I had never seen it before.

Most of us were unsure as to what to do as you could see that they were uncomfortable.  We left well enough alone which eventually worked.   We all laughed about it once they did become unstuck.  I mentioned that the same thing had happened me the night before which got a laugh.

This video describes the event as I could not understand why they were back-to-back.  It looked very painful.

https://youtu.be/m8WFxmGxatA

 

All the best

Stay Fab

Adele

A friend got last minute tickets to see Feile Classical in the 3Arena.  It was fab.   I had gone to the reunion in 2018 having never been to the famous festival throughout the 90’s. I was working in London and Saudi Arabia at the time. The Cranberries and INXS were some of the headliners in the early days. The 2018 reunion had the RTE Orchestra as did the concert at the 3Arena.

Crowd favorites Frank and Walters kicked off the evening, followed by Women In Harmony, The Pale, Emotional Fish (Jerry Fish looking like the coolest man on the planet which he is in my eyes), Something happens. Hothouse Flowers and The Four of Us.  It was truly an awesome evening.

It brought back such lovely memories of when I went to the reunion in 2018, especially our accommodation.   That year myself and a friend had been to Electric Picnic and treated ourselves to a yurt for the first time.

It was worth the spend as there was lots of room to stand up, extra bedding and being in The Pink Moon camping site had many other perks. The showers were fab complete with hairstyling tents next door. And the restaurant and bar were also a lovely addition.

For the Feile 2018 reunion we went to the other extreme and booked a ‘Kartent ‘. It is essentially a cardboard dog kennel like structure which has been proven to stand up to extreme weather as indicated in this YouTube video.

https://youtu.be/tJz6nup6VTk

It was very comfortable as the cardboard structure was as complete as a cardboard box with cardboard underneath. Perhaps it was a little tight but for the price we paid it was great.

Being 100% recyclable, it is possibly one of the most innovative eco ideas. They are also a wonderful solution for the homeless.  I shall be booking one the next time I am at a festival.

All the best

Stay Fab

Adele

The witching hour shall be upon us soon with children dancing door to door requesting treats.   Many of the houses where I live are decorated to the highest level.  Pumpkins are popping up outside every doorway. There is one particular house that I have to stop by and enjoy for at least a few minutes whilst walking Buzz and Finn.

Besides the 20-foot inflatable ghost, the front room is like a Halloween shopfront on Grafton Street.   The entire area is decorated with Halloween paraphernalia.

But my favorite feature is the non-stop video playing in the top bedroom window.   It features skeletons ballroom dancing and playing instruments in a band.  There are witches and cauldrons and dinosaurs and werewolves.

Buzz and Finn just stand by my feet waiting patiently until I have had my nightly Halloween fix.   The only downside is the fireworks and the bangers.   Like many dogs Finn cowers with fright when he hears them and has begun to try to hide under cars.   Or when at home he will go under the table. Unfortunately, they started about two weeks ago and I can only hope that they will not carry on for another few weeks following Halloween.

When I was younger, I enjoyed watching scary movies. Particularly Halloween with Jamie Lee Curtis. Then I watched The Exorcist and as it scared the living daylights out of me, I have never been able to watch horror movies again.

Now, where did I put my popcorn? Maybe I will give Scary Movie a try.

All the best

Stay Fab

Adele

https://www.tiktok.com/@gma/video/6977399227768966405?is_from_webapp=1&sender_device=pc&web_id7010808282940409350

Watching this clip brings me such peace. I love elephants.  But I could never eat a whole one. I had never imagined that elephants sleep together in a group like this. Or maybe they don’t?  It could just be a one-off massive slumber party?

They must have been a bit peeved by the aircraft flying above them making this video whilst they were trying to send up some elephant z’s.

I wonder what they dream of?  Giant muddy lakes and no seasons so that there can be food in abundance.  They must never get lost as ‘an elephant never forgets’.  Is it possible for them to be mortified if they forget considering the high standards that they place on their memory?  Research claims that they remember places for food and water as well as friends and enemies.

WPA-Woeful pun alert- ‘Tusk tusk’ I hear you mutter as you sigh at my mindless meanderings.  Some may even suggest that this blog be truncated (really sorry about that one. It’s bad.  Even by my standards) but for ivory (every) protestation about my unsolicited use of woeful puns I shall persist regardless.

I am now off to dream about elephants wandering through the Serengeti seeking out giant muddy ponds and juicy delicious trees.

Here is a cute video for your perusal. The first baby elephant looks like he is attempting parkour on the tree trunk.

https://youtu.be/SNggmeilXDQ

All the best

Stay Fab

Adele

Yesterday I received a lovely surprise. The postman came.  I knew this because Buzz and Finn became feral upon his arrival. Normally the letter is chewed by the time I get to it.

I believe their act is known in canine terms as ‘positive action’.   In that they bark at the intrusion of a postman’s hand through my front door in the hope that he will go away.  And guess what?  He does go away.

If I ever decide to open the front door and invite the postman in Buzz and Finn wouldn’t know what to do.   Anyhoo, I went to the door and to my surprise there was nothing there.  After a few minutes, I went into my bedroom and found a lovely letter on my bed.  Buzz or Finn must have delivered it.

Later in the day I went swimming. Just before we got in two guys who had completed their swim were standing on the rocks and noticed two seals in the sea.   We had never seen seals in the bay before.

When we got in, we were hoping that they might swim up to us but unfortunately, they did not.  When we got out another friend had been standing with the two guys and overheard them saying -I wouldn’t like to have my black wetsuit on and have my back to a seal. When we heard this, we creased up as we imagined the visual.  Maybe they will return. Here is hoping.

All the best

Stay Fab

Adele

Yay. I have completed one year of daily blogging.   It was a great exercise and thoroughly enjoyable. From here on I have decided to blog weekly to keep up the discipline of writing as well as the enjoyment that I derive from it.

It has also served as a journal on more than one occasion. I know that I can look back on them over the years and smile as I recall what I was thinking about at that stage in my life or what I was doing.

Buzz and Finn have featured heavily. So much so that I shall write a book where they are featured.  Their antics and shenanigans keep me entertained. I hope that I have entertained you throughout the year. And made you smile.

That was and still is my ultimate objective. Any day without a giggle or a smile is not a great day in my book.  I have loved featuring all of the comedy videos from TikTok and YouTube. They are all my favs. Whenever I need to cheer up, I know that I can go back and look at them. Thank you for reading my blog.

All the best

Stay Fab

Adele

Billy Porter Oliver Star Entrance

https://vm.tiktok.com/ZM8e5tkQf/

I just adore this guy.  Not only for his fashion sense but his sense of humor, singing and his obvious acting chops.  He was enough of a sensation in 2013 playing Lola in Kinky Boots that he won a Tony award.

The fact that he started off playing Fagan in high school only adds to his magnificence in my eyes.  I saw Oliver in the West End in 2000 and was blown away by the production.  Ever since then I have measured every musical against it and they have all failed to live up to the standard of Oliver.

So much so that I have decided to stop going to musicals to prevent being disappointed. Even The Lion King 4 years ago in the Bord Gais theatre in Dublin was a woeful disappointment for me.

I have decided to stick to plays and I cannot wait until I can go to The Gate Theatre in Dublin to watch a play.  The two best plays that I have seen over the last many years are ‘Quiet’ which I saw in The Gate theatre and ‘The Risen People’ which I saw in the Abbey.  I am being greedy when I say that I cannot wait to see a band in a venue or go to a music festival also. Bring it on.

All the best

Stay Fab

Adele