Signage saga seems settled
Over the last few months we have been contacted by many viewers expressing their annoyance at the state of road signs in Boyle and in particular, the lack of cleaning of the signs. One sign that is the subject of frequent comment is located at the top of Maple Drive as one goes onto the Carrick Road. It is nearly illegible with dirt and grime. But the good news is a major revamp of signage is about to be undertaken in the town in conjunction with Boyle Town Team and Roscommon Co Co. It is understood a survey has taken place of all redundant and existing signage and that arising from the findings of the survey, a number of signs will be taken away, others will be cleaned and updated and new signage installed this summer around the town.
Railway Station glass door for sale
One of the highest reached posts on our Facebook page over last weekend concerned the sale of the original glass door from Boyle Railway Station, now housed in Castlerea Railway Museum. The Museum uploaded a post with a photograph of the door stating: “This door was in the waiting room in Boyle Railway Station. It was in our Railway Museum for the last 25 years. We are renovating at the moment so we are looking for offers for this beautiful door so the highest bidder will be successful. The sale is open until the 31st May, we would love to hold on to it but we have run out of room”. The post got a large number of comments with many suggesting it should be brought back to Boyle – it’s original homeplace. One viewer commented: “The same one was in Carrick on Shannon station. Most likely an original feature from the MGWR. There is some history to a door like this. All the people that left Boyle, some never to return, would have passed through it”, while another said: “Surely this should be kept in Boyle? Can it not be put back into railway waiting room or if not installed in local library or town hall? It’s a piece of local history”.
The future of two iconic Boyle buildings
Along with McDermott’s Castle on Lough Key, “The Second Gate of Rockingham” as it is referred to locally, is probably among the most iconic images of Boyle’s famous Lough Key Forest Park. Unfortunately, both buildings are falling into disrepair and need urgent attention. While McDermott’s Castle is in private ownership, the 2nd Gate is not but the process involved of getting it upgrade is believed to be complex. Meetings are understood to have taken place recently between the Heritage Officer and local civic bodies with a view to undertaking some form of remedial works on the buildings, before long term viability work commences, while Boyle Town Team are endeavoring to have landscaping and cleaning work completed around the Gate Lodge this summer. As the keyboard warriors (and we have many of them in Boyle) sit behind their screens and blame everyone and anyone for these buildings neglect, perhaps it would be more beneficial if they did something productive to assist those who are working tirelessly behind the scenes to get these buildings saved for future generations.
News snippets from around Boyle
Great progress being made at Celtic Park on the Sligo Road where progressive soccer club Boyle Celtic are installing a state-of-the-art 4G all-weather pitch including an upgrade to the existing Astro training pitch, new stand, car parking and ancillary services. When completed this development will be a great addition to the town………….At last there is now a litter bin at the bus stop on Military Road. Now, how about installing some in the Pleasure Grounds?……….“Songs for Midsummer and for Tommy” in St. Joseph’s Church Boyle this Sunday at 7pm. Tickets €10 from choir members or Tommy Simon Care Fund Committee…….Plenty of jobs being advertised online in local businesses in Boyle at present. Some employers in town say getting suitably qualified staff is posing a problem for their future growth and indeed existence…..Cooney’s Centra in Greatmeadow were on the ball a while back publishing a photograph of ‘Cascada’ as she stopped off at the popular shop for a coffee. Cascada explained this week on Dublin radio station 98FM how she happened to be in Boyle. You can hear her interview here……..With not enough night time food venues in Boyle at present, could the town entice more food trucks like ‘Paul’s Retro Eats’, to locate here in summer especially during the evenings with seating, patio heaters and canopies outside?…….It was great to see an inter county game (albeit it under 15 academy) played in the Abbey Park on Wednesday night when Sligo and Roscommon had a drawn game………The Crescent area looks lovely and colourful, thanks to the Tidy Towns volunteers who have spent a long number of hours planting shrubs in the area. Let’s hope they are left in situ and not vandalised………As predicated last week, it looks like there will be no additional train on the Sligo Dublin line this Sunday (or no extra carriages according to Irish Rail) for those from north of the county who want to travel to and from Dublin for the Roscommon match. Irish Rail have put an extra train on the Castlerea to Heuston service but not on the the line that serves Boyle……..Boyle’s Lough Key Forest Park looked great on ‘Donal’s Road Trip’ on RTE TV during the week. Unfortunately Donal Skehan forgot to mention that it was Lough Key in Boyle he was on! You can watch the programme here
And finally…..!
Two groups of ladies were sitting in the large sauna room.
One group were clearly there to show off their wealth more so than to relax.
They were loud in their bragging to one another about their latest purchase.
The other group were senior citizens laying back and enjoying time together with their lifelong friends.
They shared stories of days gone by, laughed deeply, and maybe bragged a little about what each of their grandchildren was doing…
Suddenly there was a beeping sound that caught everybody by surprise.
One of the show off group pressed her forearm and the beep stopped.
All the other women in the sauna looked at her questioningly.
“That was my pager,” she said. “I have a microchip under the skin of my arm.”
A few minutes later, there was a sound of a phone ringing.
A second young woman lifted her palm to her ear.
When she finished, she explained to all the other impressed women, “That was my mobile phone. I have a microchip in my hand.”
The older women were all looking at each other and suddenly felt very low-tech.
Not to be outdone, one of the old ladies decided she had to do something just as impressive.
She dropped her towel and stepped out of the sauna and went to the bathroom.
When she returned there was a piece of toilet paper hanging from her rear end…
All the younger ladies raised their eyebrows and stared at her.
The older woman finally turned to her older friends, looked over her shoulder, and said:
“Well will you look at that….I’m after getting a fax…!!”
