11 minute read
Paul Hopkins
The Fact OfThe Matter
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PAUL HOPKINS PAUL HOPKINS
Shopping centre addicts: sure, it’s a day out isn’t it
FOR 16 years now, Amazon has changed how virtually every one of us shops, or at least 200 million of us in some 16 countries. In 2005, the company launched Prime, the rst-of-itskind, lightning-fast subscription delivery service. Along the way Amazon assembled an army of couriers hauling your packages in the boots of their cars, and turned toilet paper into the kind of thing people have delivered to their homes by the case-load — a status symbol of sorts for burgeoning middle class Ireland — no more so than in the time of the coronavirus.
Amazon’s Je Bezos has made enough money — a lot from yours truly — to launch himself into space. Now, the online giant’s next great innovation is to build an actual department store, in the belief that, ultimately, we all, despite the phenomenal success of home delivery, prefer to go traipsing throughout a shopping centre. A day out, as it were. e Wall Street Journal has reported that Amazon is planning to test several locations with their brick-and-mortar concept. is might seem somewhat counterintuitive. Especially during a pandemic, when online shopping has grown explosively and millions of us have got used to ordering even those loo rolls on the internet, why would the world’s most powerful retailer opt for the bricks-and-mortar option?
Perhaps, I would contend, that the more aspects of our lives move online, the clearer it becomes that some things are just better done in person; that we are more and more addicted to going to the shopping centre. It’s the tactile experience we crave.
Have we become a veritable nation of shopping centre addicts? After all, such centres, which have sprung up everywhere, o er everything from co ee shop to multiplex cinema to top brand stores to your everyday Penney’s for socks and jocks, and those pyjamas.
My psychologist friend from Magherafelt thinks so. And I learned a new word from him, over co ee the other morning in, yes, a shopping centre.
‘Oniomania’ means pathological or compulsive buying addiction. “Shopping addiction in full ight can be devastating and its wider negative impacts can be, shall we say, shocking,” he tells me.
“People with oniomania feel completely ruled by the compulsion to ‘shop and spend’. e time – let alone the emotional stress – involved in visiting shops, juggling credit card bills, hiding purchases from family and returning goods can take over our lives,” he says. is addiction can lead to serious debt, dysfunctional family life, even neglected or over-indulged children. And, it’s a problem that exists on a worrying scale for, statistically, about one in every seven of us, my psychologist friend says.
I’m now in Penney’s, my psychologist friend tagging along. I’m buying socks and jocks, even though I’ve more than I could need at home.
Shopping, it seems, has a tangible e ect on the brain; research shows that the chemical ‘dopamine’ surges when we are anticipating a new purchase. For some people, this ‘pleasure’ rapidly declines, sometimes as soon as they’ve made that purchase, and they need to repeat the process to experience the same ‘high’ again. is increase in dopamine conjures up powerful feelings of reward and motivation. For most with any common sense, this usually remains balanced by self-control and, eh, practical nancial considerations. When the process gets out of hand, however, and we become addicted to the pleasure sensation of spending, this can turn into a full-blown addiction.
Says my friend, as we reach the cashier desk: “Any addiction is a way of coping with emotions – so shopping for some people is a way to avoid confronting negative or uncomfortable feelings such as sadness, boredom, stress and anxiety. If you’re overloaded with work, for example, you feel you deserve that treat. But, if you become reliant on that ‘hit’, it can develop whereby your response to stress is always to buy something.”
“Hmmm,” I say. “ at must be awful for those people...” e girl at the check-out puts my three ve-pack of boxers and two dozen socks, adorned with Bart Simpson, into the iconic brown bag and I swipe my debit card.
It is declined. Insu cient funds. I’m embarrassed. And suddenly feel rather down. “I’ll leave them,” I mutter to no one in particular.
We exit Penney’s and I say sheepishly to my psychologist friend: “I’ll order some online when I get home.” With the rider: “We need to boost the economy in this time of coronavirus...”
Leave No Trace and protect our natural heritage
AN ambitious new Strategic Plan to inspire responsible outdoor recreation over the next three years has been launched by Minister of State for Heritage, Malcolm Noonan TD.
Speaking on the launch of the new Leave No Trace Ireland Strategic Plan 2021 - 2024, Minister of State for Heritage and Electoral Reform, Malcolm Noonan TD, said the new plan re ects a changing relationship with the great outdoors and a need for stakeholders to work together in its stewardship.
“We have all witnessed a remarkable reconnection to nature over the past year and this new Strategic Plan re ects that – and more. e ‘Great Outdoor’ has never been as important to us as it’s been since the onset of Covid in 2020. “Where the pandemic con ned us, nature freed us, and many of us sought sanctuary in nature, be it through general recreation to more adventurous hiking, boating and camping. Looking after our natural heritage is a collaborative endeavour; we all play a role, and that is why a far-reaching plan such as this is welcomed.”
Leave No Trace Ireland is Ireland’s only outdoor ethics programme, which promotes the responsible use of the outdoors.
Leave No Trace Ireland Chief Executive, Maura Kiely said: “ e new Strategic Plan will respond to Covid-19 as well as securing adequate resources to scale the organisation to deliver an accessible, e ective national framework on responsible outdoor recreation for all stakeholders.”
Leave No Trace Ireland Chairperson, Paddy Doherty added: “During 2020, the organisation undertook substantial work to design a new Strategic Plan for the period 2021 to 2024. is was a major piece of work, which involved our core members, trainers, members and the public in the process.” is plan will direct the work of Leave No Trace Ireland for the next ve years and will build on the development of Leave No Trace Ireland, from a voluntary initiative in 2006, to the vibrant national organisation that it is today.
You can view the full Strategic Plan 2021-2024 at: www. leavenotraceireland.org
Rooms for rent needed for WIT students
HUGE demand for student accommodation in Waterford has prompted WIT to urge south Kilkenny residents with spare rooms to advertise on its accommodation e-platform.
Individuals and businesses with comfortable rooms to rent are being asked to think about opening up their homes to needy students, so long as they’re located within driving distance of, or on bus routes to, WIT.
If you would like some company or are interested in bringing in some extra money (tax-free) WIT can help.
Derek Delaney, WIT Novus Accommodation Manager says there is high demand for accommodation in Waterford.
“We want to get the message out to people who may not have considered renting out their spare room that they could be helping someone out by doing so – and there is a nancial bene t.
“People can earn up to €14,000 a year tax-free by renting out rooms in a home ‘rent-a-room relief’. ere is a huge opportunity for anybody whether they have a number of bedrooms or one spare bedroom,” he says.
All you need to do is advertise your spare room on WIT’s accommodation portal, witstudentpad.ie.
“It is free to advertise using the witstudentpad.ie website, developed in conjunction with WIT Novus,” says Derek. “We understand not everybody who has a spare room is tech savvy, so if you can’t get a friend or family member to help you, we have set up a phone line to take details of rooms available. If you have a room to rent and can’t use the internet, phone us on 087 0628322.”
WIT is bringing students back on a phased basis – rst years start college on Wednesday, 22 September, with other students having started on 8 September.
Lauren English-Adams, Welfare & Equality O cer at Waterford Institute of Technology Students’ Union (WITSU) explains that while many WIT students live in commuting distance of Waterford, she has been contacted by students from across the country, who cannot commute and who urgently need a room.
English-Adams outlines the bene ts for home owners: “Renting a spare room to a student is a great way to have company if you’re on your own or have a large, empty house. It can also be a way to cover the cost of a son or daughter’s rent elsewhere while they are away during the week – to pay winter heating bills or save for a post-pandemic holiday.
“ ere are a variety of students looking for a room – from rst years and second years nding their feet, and international students studying for a semester in Ireland to apprentices on block study at WIT. You can choose whether or not you want to rent the room Sunday to Friday and for the academic term only.”
To advertise your room/ property visit: www. witstudentpad.ie/Landlords.
Six-year-old Daniel McGing from Bennettsbridge NS, is awarded a Special Merit for his artistic entry ‘House On A Hill With Trees’.
Top art prizes for Kilkenny and Bennettsbridge students
TWO Kilkenny students have won top prizes in this year’s 67th Texaco Children’s Art Competition, the results of which were delayed until now due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
They were Rose Smyth (15) from Kilkenny College for her work entitled Woodwork Tools’ and Daniel McGing (6) from Bennettsbridge National School for his work entitled ‘House On A Hill With Trees’.
Both were winners of Special Merit Awards for artworks that Final Adjudicator, Professor Declan McGonagle said: “demonstrated high levels of skill and imagination”.
The Texaco Children’s Art Competition is popularly regarded as the longestrunning sponsorship in the
Rose Smyth’s ‘Woodwork Tools’ earns the Kilkenny College student a Special Merit Award in this year’s Texaco Children’s Art Competition. history of arts sponsoring in Ireland, with an unbroken history that dates back to the very first Competition held in 1955. This year, as has been the case throughout its life, it has been a platform on which young artists from Kilkenny and counties throughout Ireland have had their talents recognised and their creativity commended.
From September 14 to October 2, Drogheda’s Highlanes Municipal Art Gallery is hosting an exhibition of the top 126 winning paintings in this year’s Competition. Admission is free and further information is available at: www. highlanes.ie
El Doraco serves up a slice of Mama’s Meatloaf
KILKENNYBASED El Doraco have released a new single. is time it’s a “feel good” country song called Mama’s Meatloaf.
El Doraco is the collective name of several incredibly talented musicians and singers. Pat Coughlan from Kilkenny writes the lyrics and collaborates with his musician friends to bring the songs to life, reaching audiences far and wide.
To attract even more listeners, Pat is inviting Radio Stations and Music Agents to download his songs from his server available 24 hours a day. For the address to download either MP3 or VAV versions send an email to eldoraco@westeuro.eu
El Dorado is a passion project, a band which Pat describes as “a band of our time”, with the song lyrics written by Patrick during the Covid 19 global pandemic. One such song is Universal Healthcare Workers, a tribute to those who work in the service either within a hospital, care home or as a community service, co-written with Mick Walsh.
Mama’s Meatloaf is a country type song in uenced by Pat helping his wife make a Meatloaf and discussing with her where she got the recipe.
All the songs are available wherever you buy or stream your music, or you can listen online at www.jango.com/ music/El+Doraco
Signs of Life in Ballykeefe ampitheatre
LEMONCELLO, Aoife Nessa Frances, A Lazarus Soul and more are set to appear at Ballykeefe ampitheatre in Kilmanagh this weekend.
Signs of Life is a minifestival running across three weekends in September and October at various Kilkenny and Dublin venues. e music will celebrate all that’s great about Ireland’s vibrant music scene today, taking in folk, traditional, neo-soul and afrobeat artists, with disco, hip hop and house music DJs performing at the weekend nale weekend parties. e rst part of the festival takes place this Saturday and Sunday and features traditional, folk, electronic, and rock Irish acts such as Landless, Lemoncello, Maija So a, Rachael Lavelle, A Lazarus Soul, Aoife Nessa Frances, Brigid Mae Power and Cormac Begley.
Following the recent guidelines provided by the Taoiseach on September 1, ticket prices for the rst weekend have been reduced due to increased capacity for live events.
To complement the musical programme, analogue photography is part of the festival proceedings, with artists, attendees and production crew encouraged to make use of the free cameras and 35mm black and white lm supplied, to document their experiences throughout the day. A Super8 recap lm shot by artist/ lmmaker Moira Tierney will include participant’s photographs. Signs of Life is part funded by the Live Performance Support Scheme.
See: signso ife.click
