(Photo from Olomouc, Czech Repbublic – Image for new single ‘We Don’t Have To Talk About It’ ) Rockaway, New York, Sat Jan 30th, 2021 Even in the best of times January lingers, hangs around a little too long. December’s poor house guest, the smell of yesterday’s feast. Whatever times we are in, […]
Rockaway, New York, November 29th, Somehow Still 2020 Today forgot to be winter, blue skies and warm sunlight found us here on the edge of USA. We took a 25 minute drive to Shirley Chisholm State Park in Brooklyn this morning. I’m still foreign sometimes and there are many gaps in my local and national […]
Rockaway Park, NY, Sunday, November 1st, 2020 My new single ‘Maybe Next Year’ will be my first official release in over three years. It will be out on Bandcamp and usual streaming platforms later in the month. It’s available right now through my Patreon page. It’s a simple song that looks forward, hopefully, to a […]
Rockaway, September 29th, 2020 The Day of the first Presidential Debate/ The Tuesday after Trump’s Tax Revelations/ Half a Year into the Pandemic/ Children back at NY Public Schools/ Cases Rising in Ireland and many parts of NY Bless me reader for I have sinned. It has been 270,000 random thoughts since my last […]
Rockaway Park, September 15th, 2020 I am thinking of my friends out West and of all those who have lost their lives, homes, livelihoods this week. I toured in the Pacific North West in the winter of 2015. Never before or since have I been so consistently bowled over by the kindness of strangers. Below […]
Rockaway Park, July 10th, 2020 Last Saturday, July 4th, was the first livestream that I have missed since the lockdown began in mid March. A sideways summer rain taps gently on my window. The bedroom curtains dance to the sirens. I am back in Rockaway this weekend. My father in law turns 83 today. […]
East Durham, May Something-th, 2020 I promised her frogs. ”If you’re very quiet we might see frogs.” I’ve been promising this for weeks. Clearly having forgotten the precise timing of the life cycle of frogs, a life cycle that was so thoroughly imparted to me at St. Jospeh’s National School circa 1982. I have […]
East Durham, NY, Friday May 1st, 2020 I grew up in Meadowbrook, Riverstown, Glanmire, County Cork. Beside the Glashaboy river. We had two television channels. We spent a lot of time by the river. Skimming stones and building rope bridges as children. Drinking cans as teenagers. It comes back to me frequently as I sit […]
Rockaway Park, Saturday, March 21st, 2020 How are you? I hope you are finding ways to stay calm and sane and safe in this incredibly trying and strange time. Do tell. What books, podcasts, tv shows, poems, albums, recipes, mental health practices are you finding helpful right now? Until recently my favourite book was […]
Rockaway, March 15th, 2020 Since we’re going to have to dig deep to get through the next few months, this old Ewan MacColl mining song came to mind. This next week of gigs are cancelled, with further cancellations very likely. It’s the socially responsible course of action, but it’ll be hard to keep spirits nurtured […]