deirdyweirdy

“Anyone who lives within their means suffers from a lack of imagination.” ― Oscar Wilde I studied a subject called Economics for four years in secondary school. It taught me lots of theory but nothing

My father’s longtime girlfriend died in my arms as I struggled to place an oxygen mask on her face. One minute alive, the next taking her final breath, a sort of wheeze, her body went limp and she was

There was a slaughterhouse behind the house on Camden Street where I lived as a child. Perhaps it made some impression on me for I was never much of a meat eater. In my teens, after seeing a documentary

“No man undertakes a trade he has not learned, even the meanest; yet everyone thinks himself sufficiently qualified for the hardest of all trades, that of government.” Socrates Have you heard about the

or, shaft them before they shaft you!

I’m pretty upfront about my opinions on most things. In fact, I could likely give a 30-minute lecture to anyone who’d care to listen on the evils of government, the madness of the medical industrial complex,

I wouldn’t describe myself as a good person exactly, though I did once help a blind person cross the road. I’ve lied and cheated, but only in dealings with authorities, which I see not only as my right

I was born fast. I walk, talk and think fast, which is just as well given the number of sticky situations I’ve had to talk myself out of. It’s my contention, though I have no scientific evidence to back

There was a photo, unfortunately, lost in the mists of time, of me, my head in my hands, as I sat doing the accounts for my family’s corner shop business. My father had captioned the photo Despair! 20

I played the piano when I was young, though through no fault of my own. My uncle and aunt, both unmarried, shared a huge old house on the posh side of the city and were happy to take advantage of my parents'

Am I a master first-aider? Sure I’m like Florence Nightingale, Nurse Ratched and James Herriot rolled into one; doctor in residence to the family and veterinarian to galliformes and canines. I have a healthy

or I will not eat ze bugs

I’ve only ever had one job and it didn’t last long. It was 1979, I was 16, in school and studying German for the Leaving Certificate. A relative of my best friend organised a job for us as Zimmermädchen

My father outside our bookshop circa 1967 As I have no doubt said before, since I never tire of repeating myself, in my childhood home we operated according to the Little Red Hen principle, to wit: Those

To celebrate my generosity, my munificence and being 7 years on the blockchain, I'm giving 50 Hive to the first person to correctly describe, in 15 words or less, what happened in the picture below. What?

What the bejaysus are we doing here? Where did we come from? And where the hell do we go? These are the questions that have occupied my mind for as long as I can remember. I went to a Catholic school,

Survive in the wilderness? Me? But of course! I was a girl guide once you know. I suppose it’d depend on how long I had to survive though, and whether I’d just wandered into the wilderness with only my

I could brag and say I do everything well, but I’m far too modest for that. Suffice it to say that there is little I have turned my hand to in life at which I have not excelled. Well, ok, I never really

Would I take up arms and kill a stranger I have no beef with because some politician ordered me to? Would I heck! I’d leave that to the men!:) I’m one of those conspiracy nutters who believe that the same

It is a truth universally acknowledged that in any apocalypse the most important item to have to hand is toilet roll, and let me tell you I have that one covered! Numbers two and three are a bit of a food