The Last Mass at St. Augustine’s
It was announced a few months ago that St. Augustine’s Church in Cork City would close on July 12th, with a final mass at 11:30 that morning. I arrived around 11:20, curious to see what it would be like, only to see every space on every bench taken and people standing at the back of…
Casting Off the Pier
Two anglers cast off the end of Ballycotton pier as the sun set. The harbour crane stood black against the sky, and one man’s rod bent back mid-cast, blurred by the long exposure. The cloud broke into pink and orange over the headland to the west, with the houses along the shore already lit. It…
The Tide Coming In at Youghal
A line of old groyne posts runs out into the sea at Youghal, the nearest ones capped in green weed, the far ones worn down to stubs. I used a long exposure to smooth the incoming water into streaks across the brown sand. The evening was flat and quiet, the sky a soft blue turning…
The Day Before the Championships
The 114th Irish Rowing Championships begin tomorrow at the National Rowing Centre in Inniscarra, and today Farran Woods was all trailers and trestles. Shells were stacked four high along the path, riggers half bolted on, blades leaning against gazebos from Shannon, Bann, Commercial and a dozen other clubs. A rower in a yellow bucket hat…
North Main Street, in Yellow
On North Main Street the two buildings split the frame: grey-blue on the left, worn yellow on the right, with Barnardos and the old Edward B. Sheehan shopfront underneath. A man in a yellow T-shirt walked past the charity shop, a few paces in front of a woman in a yellow cap, phone in hand….
Evening Sails at Kinsale
A grey evening in Kinsale, with a fleet of small boats out on the harbour for what looked like club racing. Most of them carried red sails, Squibs I think, a class Kinsale Yacht Club is well known for, with a few white ones mixed in. The water was almost flat, and the crews sat…
Cork Wash
The brushes spin past in blue and yellow while a black Micra sits in the middle of the cycle. This was 2005, so the driver had a newspaper open across the wheel to fill the couple of minutes it took. Water beads across the bonnet and the Cork plate, 98-C-6325, reads clearly through the spray….
A Long Trans Flag Across the City
We marched with a great crowd through the centre of Cork today for Trans+ Pride Cork. A trans flag big enough to need a dozen pairs of hands was carried down the street, past the shops on Grand Parade, St. Patrick Street, Winthrop Street and then up Oliver Plunkett Street to Grand Parade again. Pink…
The Boats of Ballycotton
Ballycotton harbour late on a summer evening is one of those places that is rewarding to visit. The working boats had all come in, Atlantic Chief, Excelsior and Prolific were rafted tight against the wall, hulls bobbing in calm waters. The setting sun cast long, side-on shadows and clouds streaked across the sky.
Two Heads, One Conversation
The mannequin is spying on you. It’s not just Facebook.
Roses for Sale, Bantry Market
The roses lean out of their black plastic pots like they’re craning for a better view of the customer, and she’s giving them a proper once-over, but what I noticed was the tote bag so floral it could be for sale at the flower stall.
The Reflection and the Real
The poster girl gets the beach, the dunes, the perfect light and a 30% discount; the actual shopper gets a footpath, a purple handbag and a too-warm day in the town.