Harping away ...

Like Nuvoletta in Finnegans Wake, I finally made up all my myriads of drifting minds and plumped for this as today's blip. I was vacillating (not a word I get much chance to use) between it, this Dutch visitor and this letting sign in Baggot Street.

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ALERT: I've changed my mind. The letting sign was my original blip choice, but my mate Derek emailed me to say he much prefers the harper - and who am I to ignore constructive criticism?

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The harper was strumming away on the corner of College Green beside Books Upstairs, while the Dutch visitor was enjoying her Guinness and toasted sandwich outside Cassidy's pub in Westmoreland Street. There isn't much to say about the harper (sorry, old thing, though the guy in the background certainly looks interested), but the almost-encounter with the Dutch visitor was fun. I was in a bit of a sweat after a fruitless afternoon in town, so stopped at Cassidy's for a shandy. The low table in the background was available when I arrived, but my timing wasn't the best and the barman came over to a group inside to take food orders just as I went in. By the time he came back to serve drink this couple had arrived and my intended table was no longer free. Not to worry, though. There were two higher tables within the smokers' compound when I approached, but all the stools had been pulled over by a group who occupied one of them. When I got my shandy I resigned myself to having to stand outside, so it was nice to find that the group had left by then and the stools were now available. [Sorry about the long story - almost finished.] I tucked myself into the corner facing towards O'Connell Street and settled back to watch the world go by (or as much of the world as was in this part of Dublin this afternoon). The Dutch visitor arrived soon afterwards, bringing her pint of Guinness out with her from the dim interior. She pulled over a second stool to put her feet up on, and was no sooner settled (her Guinness wasn't yet - settled, I mean) than she got up again, leaving her bag and her coat behind as she went back inside (silly girl). I made a quick mental note to keep an eye on her belongings and didn't have long to perform this self-imposed duty until she returned with her toasted sandwich. She was quickly followed by the barman, who'd finally decided to gather up the empty glasses from the previous group. He immediately struck up (or perhaps continued) a conversation with her, and I overheard him asking where she was from and whether this was her first time in Ireland ('Holland? Nice place.' 'You're being lucky with the weather anyway.'). He was back out again shortly after, reached for the mayonnaise and asked if he could take it. She said something to him which I didn't catch, to which his reply was 'Anything for you', he went back inside and reappeared almost immediately with ketchup. No doubt the Dutch visitor, when she gets home, will tell all her friends about how friendly the Irish are.

Did I mention it was a fruitless afternoon? I did. Part of the fruitlessness was to do with the fact that my printer is playing up, which prevented me from printing out the support material I've prepared for the presentation I'm doing at tomorrow's Music Group session. I brought the stuff on disc to Hacketts (in Baggot Street, close to where this sign which eventually got chosen as today's blip is to be seen), but they were (a) asking far too much and (b) were too busy to have it ready today. 'Is there anywhere else that offers a similar service?' I asked. So off I went looking for Read's on Nassau Street. I went to the red Reads first and couldn't find any sign of a printing service. The guy behind the counter told me I needed 'the green one', five doors further along the street, by which he meant another branch of Read's. It was chaotic there, with lots of people sitting on lots of benches in different parts of the place, no obvious indication of an actual reception area, and a general air of disorganisation all about. Someone said 'take a seat' and I did, even though I wasn't sure if the instruction had actually been directed at me. I gave up after ten minutes and decided the music group will just have to do without their printout.

There was another fruitless moment earlier on, but explaining what that was will have to wait for another day.