Synchronicity, Casement, golf and old phones

Synchronicity is the experience of two or more events that are apparently causally unrelated or unlikely to occur together by chance, yet are experienced as occurring together in a meaningful manner. The concept of synchronicity was first described in this terminology by Carl Gustav Jung, a Swiss psychologist, in the 1920s.^{[1] 
(Wikipaedia)}

Remember Mike O'Donnell the portrait artist who painted the striking portrait of Con
Houlihan that now hangs in Castleisland library. That same Mike O'Donnell's latest exhibition was on the theme of Roger Casement. 
This week I had an email from Bernard O'Connell of Listowel and Canada. It was on the subject of  Denis Guiney, cousin of the Cleary Guineys, but had an unexpected connection to Casement. 

Here is Bernard's message:

I saw the article about Denis Guiney on Listowel Connection. Well here is a bit more about him. He was married to Julie Griffin from Castleisland, well she was my Gran's sister on my dad's side, My Grans maiden name was Catherine Griffin, and her Uncle was Dan O'Mahony, he was the guy in charge of his Battalion  that went to meet Roger Casement at Banna Strand but was a day late because of the intel that he got, actually Dan O'Mahony spent some time in Africa as a young man but was injured by an Elephant when he was thrown up in the air by one. As they say we all have stories to tell."

I have had another email from Liam Murphy of New York. He also knew Denis Guiney of Church St.

 With interest I read Martin Sheehys comments of Denis Guiney, my late father, aunts and uncle were great friends with Denis and would spend time there on all visits to town. Many the visit I made there and listened to events of his life, born in Brosna and about his first cousin of the same name the proprietor of Cleary's. My sister who lives in Kildare and some cousins used to help at the time of the Races making sandwiches, for sale in the pub.. When he heard I was emigrating to the U.S I told of some of the tough times he experienced in the U.S. way back then of been ill and of this woman who took care of him, of the time he would take a bottle of tea for his lunch and because of the extreme cold it would be  be frozen solid when he went to drink it. I visited with him a few times after on my visits home, he always wore a sports jackets with leather around the elbows, a hat and chewed some gum.


(Those elbow patches are now the height of fashion.)

<<<<<<<

Rory McIlroy celebrates the European win in the Ryder Cup. He is sporting the biggest watch ever as he pokes fun at himself for nearly missing his tee time. All's well that ends well.

Golfers from nearer to home: this is the Newcastlewest team celebrating their historic victory in The Pierce Purcell Shield ; their own Ryder Cup.

>>>>>>

A few pieces of nostalgia from the internet

If you are my age, you will remember these telephones. In the days before mobile phones this is what a public telephone looked like and this was your only method of contacting someone when you were away from your home. These ones are in an airport but we had them in train stations, pubs, schools and in any location where people might need to use a phone. 

You lifted the receiver from its cradle. You lined up your money on the black box. If you needed a local number, you put in your coins and dialed the number on the clunky metal dial, one number at a time. When it was answered, you pressed button A and the coins were gobbled up by the machine. If there was no reply you pressed Button B and got your money back. There were no answering machines in my day. You spoke to a human being if there was one there or you spoke to no body.

If you needed a long distance number, you called the operator and she told you how much you needed to have ready in coins and she rang you back when she had dialed the number for you. If your message was for one particular person at the other end, you could book a "person to person" call and then you did not waste your money talking to her mammy or her flatmate or whoever was passing by the phone when it rang.

Ah, those were the days!

Old love

Open wide: these boys are lined up for their weekly dose of aperient (Maybe Castor Oil!)

<<<<<

http://www.illyria.com/vn_irish_names.html

This is a link to the names of Irish men and women on the commemorative wall of veterans of the Vietnam War in Washington.