10 minute read
Paul Hopkins
The Fact OfThe Matter
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PAUL HOPKINS PAUL HOPKINS
Time, once more, to put our best feet forward
IT seems only yesterday. I could not take my eyes o her, the beauty of her young countenance, the dark, sallowed, awless skin, the night-sky black of her eyes, as we furtively side-stepped each other; she looking anywhere but at me, and when she does, inevitably and unavoidably, she blushes which makes her all the more desirable to the then 14-yearold me.
It was the mid-Sixties. e afternoon dance reserved for those not deemed ready for the grown ups’ world. e child/girl before me, an angel on lithe, foal-like limbs. is is how I remember the Sunday afternoons of my 14th year. How I remember the dances.
Abruptly, e Beach Boys cover is over. e girl with the jet-black mane pouts her lip, silently mouths ‘thank you’ and, before I can ask her to stay for another dance, returns to her friends on the girls’ side of the dancehall.
“Well?’’ asks my friend.
“Well nothin’,” I sigh. “Sure, it’s only dancing’.”
From long before the coming of the comely maidens at Dev’s crossroads — going back to pre-Celtic dawn — to the coming of Riverdance, dancing, in all its many guises and expressions, has been part and parcel of the way we are, since Man rst got up on all twos to give thanks to that lifegiving Fire in the Sky. Perhaps more so, but not exclusively so, an Irish thing, dance and its rituals form part of all cultures. Man is a social animal, and we need to talk with each other, we need to entertain by singing to each other, and need to congregate and interact by dancing and partying.
Such too are the rituals of courtship, essential to the pursuit of young love. Small wonder, after nearly two years of no gigs, no clubs, no dancing, our young have literally, and metaphorically, gone to town the past weeks, since clubs reopened.
We humans dance for all kinds of reasons – to mourn, to celebrate, to heal, to give thanks, to preserve cultural heritage and treasured legends, to demonstrate physical prowess, to assert individuality, to provoke and, not least, to entertain.
Human beings probably danced even before there was a word for it. Rhythmic bodily movement is instinctive. It connects people, even if unconsciously, to the rhythms of nature. Dance springs from that aforementioned human desire for personal expression and social connection. And it feels good.
Almost anyone can dance, regardless of age or ability. Of course, ability being a key word here. Cue... that bachelor ommadawn uncle of the bride who insists on strutting’ his stu with every one of his niece’s female friends.
Although the said gent is making a complete horlicks of himself, one doesn’t have to be a contender for Strictly to show a modicum of ability up on the dance oor.
Globally, pretty much every culture has some sort of inbuilt ‘dance’ . Rhythm naturally a ects us. When you hear music you like (or music you hate that still has a pretty catchy beat), your body wants to move in time with the rhythm. You might not break out into a moonwalk, but almost all people will nod their heads or tap their toes unconsciously with the music.
And that’s true even in the womb! Mothers talk about babies kicking around when certain songs come on while more than one academic study has found that babies can detect rhythm in the womb.
Ever it were so simple... Musicians, notably Justin Bieber, have complained about audiences clapping o -beat to their songs. Apparently, nding the beat is not always natural. And that doesn’t even include all those dads on dance oors — this here dad excluded — who look like they’ve never encountered the concept of rhythm.
For a small portion of people, this lack of rhythm has a name: beat deafness, with about three percent of people su er from such congenital amusia which means they can’t perceive music through either pitch, timing, or rhythm.
Rhythm is the dancer
An even smaller percentage of the amusical are considered “beat deaf.” As in, they cannot nd the beat in any form of music. One study found two such beat deaf individuals. ough they could keep time with a metronome, once actual music entered the picture, they were lost. at said those poor ‘su erers’ will now be out in droves dancing the night away in the pubs and clubs of the nation.
Despite the Covid free running of such having fallen on deaf ears...
As weather turns, stock prices come under pressure
PLAIN cattle and animals with a dairy in uence have come under price pressure in the last few weeks, whereas cattle prices have been excellent with no decline in prices. Due to the good trade they have to calculate what the trade will be like in the months ahead, especially beef prices. Top quality suckler types are selling very well with bullocks and heifers in these categories ranging from €2.30 to €2.70 per kilo with the exceptional lots breaking the €3 per kilo barrier. Numbers have remained relatively steady with turnover in excess of €1 million euro being breached on ve or six occasions over the past few months at our ursday cattle sale.
Remember if you have cattle to sell they should be entered before 3.30pm on the previous Wednesday the mart o ce contact number is 056 7721407 .
e sheep farmer has had a very positive year with prices well ahead of last year’s returns. e fact that the UK dependence on New Zealand has been badly a ected by a reduction in numbers from that country is a positive for this country and has helped to keep prices stable and with store lamb prices at an all-time high there is a lot of positivity in the future.
Latest move on new SE varsity is welcomed
IBEC the group that represents Irish business, has welcomed the designation of Technological University status to Waterford Institute of Technology and Institute of Technology Carlow. Commenting on the designation, Ibec South-East Regional President Andy Crowley said: “ e designation of a Technological University is a signi cant milestone and follows a major collective regional e ort led by our Institutes of Technology to deliver a University for the South-East.
“A Technological University in the region, will support the retention and attraction of students, investment, and drive sustainable and quality job creation. It will act as an anchor for innovation and high-tech skills development in the South-East and maximise the growth of business in the region through practical learning, applied research and strong industry engagement,” said Mr Crowley. “A university will also support more balanced regional growth, by enabling the SouthEast to realise its economic potential and achieve its growth ambition.
“Both Institutes of Technology make a substantial contribution to the region’s economic and social development and have a strong track record of engagement with enterprise across the South-East. A Technological University presents a unique opportunity to build upon this and strengthen further how enterprise and our education partners collaborate on strategic issues that underpin regional development,” he said.
“An entirely new institution, drawing on the strengths of both existing institutions, but also adding further capacity across the region will only be achieved with considerable investment. A targeted and su cient capital investment programme in physical teaching and research infrastructure must now be delivered to bring it to scale and realise the potential of the new institution.” Meanwhile, one of Kilkenny’s best known schools has lodged plans with the local authority to build new dressing rooms facilities for students.
Kilkenny College, the largest co-educational boarding school in Ireland, has applied for planning permission to demolish two existing single-storey prefab classrooms on its grounds on the Castlecomer Road.
It is also seeking permission to build a single storey dressing room building with roof mounted photovoltaic panels and “all associated ancillary accommodation” and associated site works. e local authority is expected to announce its decision by early December. e South East’s rst ever university will open its doors on May 1 next year. e con rmation of the successful application for the Technological University of the South East (TUSE), which will merge IT Carlow with Waterford Institute of Technology, has been warmly welcomed by political, business and community leaders.
Local TD John Paul Phelan said the multi campus university brings “massive potential for the entire region”. And he added he hopes to see a TUSE campus in Kilkenny in the future.
Deputy Phelan said: “ ere have been many delays to this important project and I would now urge the Department of Further and Higher Education to work closely with both institutes, so that it can be accelerated in the coming months.
“ e TUSE will increase student numbers, not to mention giving students from the locality greater choice for a top class third level education and locally-sourced university quali cations close to home. is will help to reduce the brain drain which has been so damaging in the past.” e Carlow Kilkenny TD said the economic impact for the south east will be “enormous”, adding it will position the region for growth “on a scale that we could not have dreamed about twenty years ago”.
He added: “It will drive regional development and increase opportunities not only for students and sta but also enterprise and local communities across Carlow and Kilkenny.
“ rough continued investment, I hope to see footprint of IT Carlow increase in the coming years as the TUSE develops. Today’s news is the culmination of a lot of hard work on the part of IT Carlow and WIT and I want to congratulate all involved.”
Annual ceremony to remember Jo Jo Dullard
THE annual remembrance gathering for Jo Jo Dullard (pictured) takes place on Sunday, November 7 at noon. e annual gathering will take place at the missing persons monument in the Castle Park.
“It’s important to keep Jo Jo’s memory alive in our hearts and our prayers,” said Fr Willie Purcell, who with the Kilkenny Gospel Choir will lead the gathering for Jo Jo.
Kathleen Bergin, Jo Jo’s sister, said: “We appreciate very much all the support and prayers for her disappearance. At the time that she disappeared she was making her way from Dublin back home to Callan. She made a phone call from a phone box in Moone, Kildare.
Each year on her anniversary family, friends, relatives, and neighbours of Jo Jo gather at the monument to remember her and to hope and pray for information on her. is is an opportunity for all of us to gather 26 years on to ensure that Jo Jo is not forgotten and the search for her will continue.
The important role of the rural bus for our students
BUS Éireann employs 62 people in Kilkenny city and county and ferries 3,900 students to class every school day, a new report con rms. e study, which was carried out of professional services rm KPMG to highlight the positive impact Bus Éireann services have on communities. e survey also shows there the State transport provider has a total of 40 bus stops across the county.
Nationally, 83% of surveyed customers said Bus Éireann ‘provides an essential service for them or their family’.
Almost two third (74%) of customers said they would recommend Bus Éireann services. While 76% of freetravel pass holders said Bus Éireann allows them to ‘boost their social activity’.
Speaking about the report, Bus Éireann CEO Stephen Kent said: “We are proud of the contribution Bus Éireann and its employees make to the country, and to local communities in County Kilkenny.
“Ultimately, the value of Bus Éireann as Ireland’s national bus company is our understanding of transport needs in Ireland’s regional cities, towns and throughout our rural areas. e fact that we provide services in every county gives us a special understanding of what moves Ireland, how to do it better, and more sustainably.”
