Today's Random Pics...

More pictures from the races...

At the Races...

Dee and I had a rather fun outing this weekend. We needed a day away together and decided to do something we have never done before. We dawned our wellies and went to the races. Each year a small set of horse races is held at a beach near where we live. The stretch of sand is only visible during low tide, and the number of races held each year are in direct correlation with the rising and lowering of the water. There were probably a couple of hundred people braving the rain and cold winds to cheer on the young jockeys. The riders ranged in age from 9 to 13, but they all knew exactly what they needed to do in order to win. The bookies all had stands set up along side the hamburger stands and drink vendors, and masses of people made pilgrimages to all three between each race.

I have to admit that at times I was cold and wet, but in the end it was exciting to see the race horses tear by at breakneck speeds all the while kicking up sand and water as they attempted to squeeze out the other riders. I was also amazed at the beauty and strength of each horse. The power and speed that each had was truly awesome.

The races ended as the tides reclaimed the beach. As everyone made for their cars a large group of young guys worked frantically to get their stranded car out of the sand as the waters slowly rose.

Here are a few pictures from the day:

A horse after the race - click to see it larger:

Bloody Sunday...

As you may know... the Irish don't like the English very much. In fact, most /all of the Celts don't like the English. When you think of all the historical baggage (700 years of occupation) and abuses ( kicking people off of their land and letting them starve during the famine), it is easy to understand how there could be a few hurt feelings.

All of these ancient wounds were brought to the surface this week because of a Rugby match. England and Ireland played yesterday in Dublin. This is not the first time that the two have played, but it was the first time that they had ever played at Croke Park.... and it was the first time that "God Save the Queen" (the English national anthem) was played there.

I know that you have never heard of Croke Park, but this field is sacred ground to the Irish. It is the sight of the November 21st, 1920 massacre known as "Bloody Sunday". It was on this date that English troops occupying Ireland raided a Gaelic football match. 10,000 men, women, and children sat in the stadium watching the Gaelic game when the English troops begin firing pistols and machine guns into the unexpecting crowd. The casualties included Jeannie Boyle, who had gone to the match with her fiancee and was due to be married five days later, and 14-year-old John Scott, so mutilated that they thought he had been bayoneted to death. Another two victims were aged 10 and 11. Two players were killed and one man was killed as he performed the last rites. The soldiers kept shooting for about ninety seconds and as the spectators streamed out, an armored car fired its machine guns over the heads of the crowd, trying to halt them.

Major-General Boyd, the officer commanding Dublin District, said that in his opinion, "the firing on the crowd was carried out without orders, was indiscriminate, and unjustifiable, with the exception of any shooting which took place inside the enclosure." The findings of the courts of inquiry were suppressed by the British Government and have only recently come to light.



All of these old wounds began to ache as the English national anthem was about to play. In the end the 80,000 Irish fans treated the team and the anthem with respect... and the Irish rugby team went on to whip the English by a score of 43-13!!!! What a game!