Good Morning and Welcome,

To issue No.41: This week, An update on the statue to one of Cahersiveens finest, Bees, Breakwaters & Betting…

South Kerry by the numbers:

• 53: People attended the public meeting on Coastal Protection in Waterville.

• 7: Areas throughout the country were identified as primarily at significant risk of coastal erosion, Waterville to Ballinskelligs being the primary one of these.

• 35,492: €’s worth of funding was approved in 2023 for Refurbishment and strengthening of a beach friendly rock revetment at the Promenade, reports from the meeting tell me, it’s going to take a whole lot more.

First, a word from this week’s sponsor

All are welcome at the very first meeting of the Skellig Coast Beekeepers Association, I’m going & haven’t even got any bees. Any questions contact Denis on 0872382665

All is full of love at The Lobster. Just call or call in to book.

Ads now €20 p/week for the close season.

And Iron Mick Murphy, where is your monument?

It will be in the town park, Cahersiveen.

You remember Mick Murphy from last week, don’t you? Just in case, he won the 1958 Rás Tailteann, a national road cycle race, but he was so much more than that. For the uninitiated, read this. For those wanting a shorter intro, his Wikipedia page is here & if you want to listen to the man himself in conversation, there’s a fabulous podcast here (thanks Jack for sending it over).

Also, you’ll remember I asked the Oracle hive mind if they knew anyone involved with the Committee looking to commemorate this mighty man with a statue & obviously, such community spirited individuals are avid subscribers themselves. Almost immediately on publication last week, Mike Greaney, secretary of said committee got in touch to explain where we are with the project so far.

Thanks to Mike & founding committee members Brendan O’Sullivan (chairman), Joe Thompson & Anne Reidy & their tireless work over the best part of a decade with the Mike Murphy Memorial Cycle the project is now very close to fruition. So close, we could see the statue itself unveiled in September! The committee are keen to commission a local artist for the job, so all you creative types, keep an eye out for that in the coming weeks, The Oracle will keep you updated. Kudos too, goes to Cllr. Norma Moriarty for championing the project throughout.

We Should Celebrate the Open in Close Season.

Thanks to everyone who are still getting in touch. To all of you out and about this week, do call in to one of these brave businesses still serving our towns & villages. New category this week! Handy one too

Where’s missing? Add them by clicking below

It’s The Signs of South Kerry 🎺🎺🎺

Where’s this?

Easy, isn’t it?

What will take the force of the blow? Protection

A well attended meeting in Waterville discussed the potential solutions to coastal erosion in Waterville. Broadly speaking, Dr Michael O’Shea of UCC outlined the problem and four potential solutions;

• Do nothing & watch the prom & N70 disappear

• Continue to add rock armour as is currently happening, but increase it’s height

• Artificial reefs

• An offshore breakwater

Whilst, the most costly of the solutions, to my wholly uneducated on the topic mind, a breakwater is the one to go for. Wouldn’t it be some craic to have a few of these just off the prom?

Auntie Agnes Answers

This week a reader looks to take advantage of our Agnes’ magic & asks:

Dearest Agnes
Who do you think will win the South Kerry League which starts this weekend or do you think that clubs no longer take it seriously and that nobody cares who wins it?
Best wishes
A betting GAA man

Agnes Answers:

Dear Reader 

Thank you for your enquiry!

I will have to come clean and say I know nought of the South Kerry League these days. There was a time when I would know who was playing, shivering in the sharp Waterville wind or eaten alive by midgets in Dromid. 

Heading into the Lobster or Skellig Rock for pints and banter afterwards! Now those were the days when the games were packed with spectators and each team had enough players to field a full team, none of this club amalgamation business! 

So I am of no help to you. What I will say is, be careful with the auld betting, it can lead to dark places 

Enjoy the matches and you’ve inspired me to reconnect with the GAA 

If you got a problem, yo, she’ll solve it;

The Oracle’s Eighteenth Cartoon

Lovely, isn’t he?

Everything Else

• The Lobster Cup, Double Darts Tournament starts tomorrow evening. €10 p/person to enter, teams must be in by 10 tomorrow morning

• Pompeii Pizza are on the lookout for summer staff, more here 

• Sea Synergy have announced their Spring lineup of beach cleans, see here

• Recovery Haven Kerry have a drop in meeting next Thursday from 10.30am, more here

• There’s a meeting for those interested in sustainable energy tomorrow in Cahersiveen library, more here

• The Paudie Coffey band play Foilmore Community Centre tomorrow evening as a fundraiser for Aghatubrid National School.

• There’s a Boston Tea Party fundraiser just been announced, for the Iveragh Eagles u16 girls team (there are no better women) in Caherdaniel Hall, 16/3, compulsory attendance for all subscribers. More here

Thanks

For those of you generous supporters of the Oracle, still no bonus article but many of you now have magnets, the rest on the way next week. Hit reply to tell me what to write about.

If you have any ideas, events, suggestions, feedback, stories, characters, or dramas that you think should be in this email, just hit reply.

Good luck, be well.

Dave

southkerryoracle.ie