Cowen & The Few Pints

I observed from a distance the furor that followed Brian Cowen's Morning Ireland interview. To say I was surprised would be understating it. This wasn't a good interview by any stretch but neither was it deserving of the genuine outrage which followed. Mr Cowen has never been a wonderful orator. He is a man possessed of a strong intellect but his communication skills have all too often been of the gruff and rushed variety. He is always on message however and that it what a citizen would demand of...

read more

Prague Diaries - Week 6

A largely uneventful week it has to be said. I will refrain from a daily breakdown as it isn't warranted. The weekdays pretty much took the following format; apply for any English speaking jobs in the Accounting sector. I have a stack of emails with the standard rejection template, ie 'We have reviewed your profile and decided that we will not offer you an interview at this time. Please continue to visit our website for future opportunities'. I have some solace in the fact that I am by no means...

read more

Movie Themes

A selection of some of my favorite themes from movies. Also included are some tracks which weren't main themes. The Bourne Series - Main Theme - Composer John PowellGladiator - Main Theme - Composer Hans ZimmerPirates of The Caribbean - Main Theme - Composer Hans ZimmerHome Alone - Main Theme - Composer John WilliamsHome Alone - Setting The Trap - Composer John WilliamsThe Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford - The Money Train - Composers Nick Cave & Warren EllisAmerican Beauty...

read more

Prague Diaries - Week 5

Wednesday September 1stSaturday is moving day in a golf tournament. For us it came on a Wednesday and constituted a 10 minute taxi trip across town with all the belongings to our name, in the Czech Republic at least. In this case two large and two small suitcases. We were both looking forward to the move and having a long term residence. The short term rental was fine and all but it never felt comfortable. It was a small space in truth. We arrived shortly before 10am to be greeted by the landlord....

read more

Prague Diaries - Week 4

Wednesday August 25thMy interview with Johnson & Johnson is at 2. I spend the morning doing further research in to the company. The first think I think about when I hear J&J is baby products, those sweet smelling products of childhood. They are of course involved in much more, oral health care and diagnostics to name but two. I also give a quick scan through their 09 financials. This served me well in previous interviews and is always a healthy sign of a potential employee going that little...

read more

Prague Diaries - Week 3

Wednesday August 18thOne of the many formalities a foreigner has to go through is register with the foreign police if your intended stay exceeds 30 days. I take my intrepid interpreter Zuz along to ease me through the paperwork and translate. They can only issue me with a temporary pass lasting 30 days as I don't have a permanent address yet. Our initial accommodation is for 30 days only. Once full time accommodation and employment has been found then my new employers will look after the paperwork...

read more

Prague Diaries - Week 2

Wednesday August 11thWoke up to thunder and lightning storms and flashes of hail hammering the window. What? This is August in Prague. Where did this come from? With the weather as it was indoor pursuits would be the order of the day. I had yet to finalise my travel arrangements for Switzerland the following day. An exhaustive search of the options took up most of the afternoon. I had tagged the train as being the most suitable option but further investigation turned up the fact that it would have...

read more

USPGA 2010

Well that was a tournament to remember, so many talking points and another European winner in what has been a purple year for European golf. Martin Kaymer moves to 5th in the World Golf Rankings and solidifying his place at the Ryder Cup after his playoff win over Bubba Watson. The playoff was level up the last before Watson got adventurous from a poor lie and found water. Kaymer played the safe option and took the honors. He didn't look overcome with emotion, rather pleased with a job well done....

read more

Paul Hession

Little Sprints, Great Strides; The Fastest Irishman in History.Perseverance is not a long race; it is many short races one after another. - Walter Elliott, The Spiritual LifePaul Hession has been running many short races for the best part of 18 years now. The headline might suggest a decorated national hero but sprinting operates well below the radar of the average Irish sports fan. 100mts and 200mts are his chosen disciplines, 200mts his preferred and one to which he has excelled to a world class...

read more

Prague Diaries - Week 1

Wed August 4thThis was it. The big move was finally here and a new life abroad awaited. One backbreaking suitcase and an equally overbearing hand luggage were to be my only companions for Aer Lingus flight EI0646 from Dublin @ 18.30. Well I lie, I did of course have human companionship in the form of Zuzana. This was a joint move and one which he hoped would transpire to be a prosperous one. Packing everything was of course a nightmare. Despite our best efforts to turf out the unnecessary in the...

read more

Inception

Quite a lot of hype had built up around Christopher Nolan's latest movie and so I was anxious to see whether it was justified. On balance after two and a half hours I am satisfied that it was, just about. With Nolan the viewer is almost guaranteed that they will be served up a work of thoughtful intelligence, this is no different. A multilayered plot arises naturally from the subject matter at hand, namely dreams and their impact, perceived or otherwise. Stories have emerged that Nolan worked for...

read more

World Cup 2010 - A Reflection

Ok, so my best laid plans to blog daily on the progress of the World Cup fell by the wayside under an umbrella of laziness, mostly. It wasn't a stellar tournament by any yardstick. In fact it had more lows than highs. I'm going to do a highlights and lowlights package.HighlightsGermany: They embraced this campaign with gay abandon and provided it's brightest moments attacking wise. A mainly youthful side threw caution to the wind and played with real verve, especially on the counter attack. They...

read more

In The Heat Of the Night

Widely regarded as a classic yet somehow I hadn't managed to get round to watching it. That changed last night when I spotted it's listing on BBC4 @ 10.30pm. My girlfriend and regular viewing companion was of a similar persuasion so we sat back to digest. This is a near perfect movie in every sense of the word. The main roles are played by Sidney Poitier and Rod Steiger as an out of town homicide detective and a local sheriff respectively. Ably supported by a uniformly brilliant cast there are brilliant...

read more

World Cup Log - Day 4

Today saw the start of the Dutch campaign, a side who I fancy strongly to win out this year and have backed accordingly. Their first foray was against a resolute Danish side which included the sparky Bendtner up front. A dull first half saw each side cancel each other out before the Dutch sparked in to life somewhat in the second. It took a scrappy og from Agger to get the Dutch ahead on the scoreboard but it had the effect of jolting them in to life. They added a second from Kuyt after an impressive...

read more

World Cup Log - Day 3

Thank god for the Germans. Many a European has echoed those words in these times of unprecedented crisis off the pitch. On the pitch the Germans treated us to a celebration of attacking football, knocking in four goals in all. We have to qualify this performance by saying Australia looked badly out of their depth, most worryingly for them in defense. Germany's youthful side committed to attack from the outset and goals from Podolski, Klose, Mueller & Cacau secured a comprehensive and impressive...

read more

World Cup Log - Day 2

Day 2 saw the hype machine oil it's cogs, for it was the day England kicked off their campaign. They played the USA in the evening game but before that there were two early kick offs. Argentina played Nigeria in a lackluster affair. The Argies started brightly and took an early lead with a header from Heinze. They looked fallible at the back however and Nigeria threatened on a number of occasions. They didn't capitalise and Argentina held on for a 1-0 victory, although in truth it could have been...

read more