Race week 2014

September in Listowel

 Bunting, flags and broadcast music….Nothing compares to The Listowel Harvest Festival in a year when Kerry has qualified for the All Ireland.   AND the sun is shining…..Heaven!

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No matter where I take a photograph these days, a certain ferris wheel seems to make its way into the shot.

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Pity she can't foretell the winner of The Kerry National.

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 Some People I met at Monday's Races

Eddie Moylan, Anne and Liam Dillon and Mary Cogan

Santa brought him the jockey's outfit.

 Mairead Devine, Mary Whelan and Beta (Whelan) O'Brien

Norella Moriarty Flynn was at the races with her husband

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The Good old Days are back

Sign at Listowel Races Sept. 15 2014

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And the winner is….

This is John Kelliher's winning photo in the Loving Listowel Races photography competition. Joe Broderick is the subject.

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Focus Tralee this week

You'd never guess Kerry were into the All Ireland Final.

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Meanwhile in Ballyduff….

Moss Joe Browne posted this clip of Thomas Sullivan singing The Tennessee Waltz. It's lovely to hear an older singer interpret one of the old classics.

https://www.facebook.com/video.php?v=282186185316901&set=vb.100005765641568&type=2&theater

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PGA Player of the Year

Huge honour to cap a great year of golf.

Let the Races begin

It's that time of year again when the skyline over Listowel is dominated by Bird's Ferris Wheel. Yesterday's high winds meant that it had to be decommissioned for the day but hopefully it will be in full swing shortly.

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This lovely one on Twitter was captioned "The Circle of Life"

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 Jrr. Kennelly attended the opening of Daffy Motors in Lisselton and he took these photos on the night.

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When Jer. was trawling through the internet for things of interest to Listowel people he came across this interesting photo of two handsome young ladies.

Danbury, CT, 1921,  Catherine Hanrahan née McNamara (1888-1975) and Annie Burns née McNamara (1895-1990). Their half-sisters' grandfather-in-law William Nolan was from Listowel.

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On Friday night last I went to the launch of Billy Keane's new novel in The Listowel Arms. The launch was a great success. Rumour has it that 1000 books were sold. The entertainment was of a very high standard and we all had a great night.

The book is another matter. Let's say it is the type of book I would never read and if it were anyone else who had written it I would not have persevered beyond the first chapter. It describes that violent amoral  subset of society we came to know in Love Hate on TV. I have no doubt that such people exist, but I just don't like to read about them.

I took a few photos at the launch . I'll share a few today and I 'll keep a few more for tomorrow.

Billy  enlisted some of his friends to help out on the night. Máire Logue and her son helped sell the books. They were very busy.

Billy is sitting in the audience listening to Madeleine O'Sullivan introduce the book.

It is a measure of Billy's generosity that he endeavored to write a personal message in every book he signed.

The Writers Week gang were out in force.

Seán Moriarty was the M.C. for the night, a job he did with great good humour and tolerance.

Here Billy is pictured with his proud mother, Mary, and his brother, John