Julian's View
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Captain Oates, the polar expedition's most unfortunate figure
One hundred years ago, Captain Lawrence Oates set out on Robert Falcon Scott's South Pole expedition never to return.
Bus crash on the way to the call centre was highlight of the year
A few years ago my work colleagues sent me out to the shop to get milk. On the way back from the shop a car pulled up alongside me and wound down the window, a man leaned over looked at me and said "Excuse me where is the hospital?, my wife's waters have broken". "What's broken?" I replied, thinking that something must be wrong with the car. "My wife, she's in labour, where is the hospital?" shouted the man.
Our cultures which help make us distinctly different
A Nun is teaching a class of girls. She decides to go around all the girls in the class and ask them what they want to be when they grow up. She asks the first girl, "What do you want to be when you grow up?" "A nurse Sister" says the girl. "Very good, there will always be a need for nurses" says the Nun. The Nun then asks the second girl "and what do you want to be my child?" The girl smiles and says "I want to be a Nun like you Sister" the Nun smiles and says "very good my child, you will never regret becoming a member of the Sisterhood" The Nun then asks the third girl "well my child, what do you want to be?" the girl says "a prostitute sister" the Nun can hardly believe her ears, again she asks the girl "what do you want to be?" The girl says "a prostitute Sister", the Nun is gob smacked, she breaks out in a cold sweat, hardly able to keep her balance she has to sit down on her chair, she looks at the girl in total shock and disbelief "I will ask you one last time young lady, what do you want to be when you grow up?" The girl looks her straight in the face and says "I want to be a prostitute sister" the Nun smiles and leans back in her chair "Thank God" she says, "I thought you said you wanted to be a Protestant."
It's worth remembering the fate of the 1522 people who died on the Titanic
Some of you will be saying "no Julian, don't write about it, we are fed up hearing about it". However I have decided to jump on the bandwagon and tell you the story of the Titanic.
Mystery death of farmer is still talked about to-day
It all happened in February 1939 at a place called Derrygiff near Bellanaleck. "The Derrygiff Murder" Is one of Fermanagh's darkest stories and still provokes debate to this very day.
Ten years of debate on the issue of going to war goes on
The war in Iraq and Afghanistan is a controversial subject to this very day.
Making a poor impression on the lady with the crystal ball
Last week I went to see a fortune teller or a "medium" as some like to be called. I decided to go because a friend of mine was going, and to be honest I was just nosey.
St. Patrick was an extraordinary man whose legacy lives on
I admire many figures throughout history, and one of them is undoubtedly Saint Patrick, the Patron Saint of Ireland.
Bizarre reactions on the doorstep even when you are giving away something free
One of the first jobs I ever had was delivering phone books. I had just passed my driving test and I was driving around in my silver Ford Ka. I had to put the back seats down just to get all the phone books into the back of the car. To be honest with so many books in the car I was probably over loading it, however there wasn't really any other alternative. At that time you were not supposed to just leave the phone books at people's front doors, it was your duty to ring the doorbell and hand the book to the person who answered. Apparently it was something to do with health and safety as in previous year's people would leave the phone book on the front doorstep, and when the person who lives in the house next came out the door, they would trip over the phone book and make a claim.
How Churchill became an inspiration to the nation
Never give in, never, never, never, never, in nothing great or small, large or petty, never give in, except to convictions of honour and good sense. Never yield to force; never yield to the apparently overwhelming might of the enemy". These are the words of my hero, Sir Winston Churchill. This is a quote that I think about through difficult times, and it always makes me feel better. No matter how bad things got, Churchill would not give in, he stood up for what was right, and inspired nations to rise up against that which is wrong.
Feeling spooked while visiting the infamous Cooneen ghost house
I have always been intrigued by the story behind the Cooneen ghost house near Brookeborough. It's a place I had never visited, until last Saturday that is. Yes on Saturday I decided that I had researched enough about the Cooneen ghost and now it was time for me to go out there and have a look for myself. I am going to be completely honest when I say this, but I was a little apprehensive about going, so I decided to take my cousin with me for moral support.
Academic selection at 11 means nothing
For parents and children in P6 and P7 these are worrying times. The controversy surrounding the dreaded eleven plus is still going on, with no real end in sight. I have to say that I am no fan of the eleven plus, I was delighted when it was abolished in 2008. My only wish was that it didn't happen sooner, like in the mid nineties, when I had to sit it.
So as we approach Valentine's Day, I hope you have all bought a gift or two for the one you love. If not don't panic, you have a few more days to get sorted out. I will be honest and admit I forgot last year, I didn't remember a thing about it until that night when Leanne gave me a card. I said "hang on a minute, I'll get yours" I ran into my dad's office and raided the cupboard; all I could find were a few blank Christmas cards. I found one with a nice robin on the front, so I wrote Happy Valentine's Day on the inside and thought to myself this will do nicely. I gave Leanne the card, and upon opening it she said: "Why is there is a robin on the front? This is clearly a Christmas card and you have just written Happy Valentine's Day on the inside, in fact the ink is still wet, you have just written this now haven't you?" So indeed I had to admit I forgot. Leanne was fine about it though, if nothing else she thought the card was cute, she went home and put it on the mantelpiece. Later that evening her sister arrived home with a card from her boyfriend, it was huge and expensive looking, and of course she went and set it beside the card I gave to Leanne. The picture explains it all.
The Clones Ambush and a turbulent time in history of Fermanagh
Out of all periods in Irish history one that stands out for me is the Anglo Irish Treaty and the implications it would have. Last year I had relatives over from England, they were very interested in Irish history and one thing they found really fascinating was the fact when we crossed the Border, they didn't even notice. In fact we were about four miles into County Cavan before I said anything.
Holiday bag packed with copy of Farming Life and packets of monster munch
I have never been much of a traveller. I am what you may consider a home bird. As a child I hated long journeys in the car, I am still not keen on travelling long distance. If I am driving I don't find it too bad, however if I am on a bus or something, I just find it intolerable. I was never a fan of holidays as a child, and I think I brought this with me into adulthood. I managed not to have to go on holidays until 2008, when Leanne gave me the dreaded news that she had booked a holiday to Salou that summer, and I didn't have a choice, I was going.
Hatred and intolerance is learned, not innate behaviour
Next Friday the world will mark Holocaust Memorial Day as it does each year. It is my belief that every child and every adult must have a basic understanding of the holocaust, not just so they know some history, but so they can learn what intolerance, ignorance and hatred can do, if left to go too far.
The boy who saw his father hanged
If I was to tell you that there was once a riot in Bellanaleck would you believe me? If I was to tell you that the riot in Bellanaleck left some unfinished business that led to 4 men being killed just up the road at Macken, would you think I was crazy?
Hospital visits can brighten your life
I think we can all agree that no one likes going into hospital. It's an essential place to have, and we all have a general sense of comfort that it's there, however we just do not like having to go ourselves.
Guns fell silent on western front
wo years ago this week, I wrote a letter to this paper about the Christmas Truce. Upon publication the letter was well received, and people told me how it made them feel encouraged over the Christmas period. I would like to share the letter with you again.
