What are you doing at this very moment?

Hi

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Health is the greatest gift, contentment the greatest wealth, faithfulness the best relationship.
Buddha

Indeed. There was a DS3 parked across the street for about an hour this morning and I had as close a look at it as possible without appearing to be a thief. It's a lot smaller than I'd figured when meeting one on the road - Fiesta sized but a bit squatter. Doesn't look good in white though.

Anyway, it's a grim day here what with the blowing up of a young police officer in my home town. When I heard the news yesterday I thought it was a guy I know quite well who's been on the force for a decade (who's also a Catholic living in the same part of Omagh) but this poor guy had only just started.

The place has moved on from the time of Tone, Connolly, Pearse and even from the modern incarnation of Republican struggle. Not everyone seems to have grasped this and, to be honest, I think that sporadic attacks such as yesterday's will always be with us.

No matter how little support these characters actually have in the community, it only takes one man to plant a bomb under a car.

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"Critics are like eunuchs in a harem; they know how the Tatty 100 is done, they've seen it done every day, but they're unable to do it themselves." - Brendan Behan

Very nice car T, but you really must plan for outrunning the violent hordes that will come after you during the apocalypse. I suggest this one (300 bhp and 5 mpg). Also bring some buckets and cans for scrounging gas from wrecks...

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Under-the-radar Movie Awesomeness.
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Ha! I was thinking only an hour or two ago about the dream I have to buy an old V8 muscle car and drive from the East to West coast of the US. A Camaro Z28 would do.

The only V8 car (I've had a couple of V8 Discos and a Grand Cherokee when i needed a towing vehicle) I've ever owned was a 1980 Porsche 928 which I bought for £5000, ran for a few years as a Sunday car and sold on for a profit. It was a lazy big beast of a thing on our roads but show it a dual carriageway and the old girl would sing!

Ah, the days when I had money. I can vaguely remember them.

Sad.

I think people forget this sometimes. It's a shame the media affiliates political motivation to the attacks (though I understand why they do) when it's really a bunch of ill-rasied scum bags with nothing better to do. Most of them are as thick as two short planks and the intensity of their hatred becomes laughable when you question, for example an 18 year on the roots of his motivation, only to discover he's entirely ignorant about politics. Of course not one to prevent that fact from getting him arrested on the 12th for a public disorder offence that involved sectarian abuse. I suppose you don't have to demonstrate any intellect and understanding whatsoever to start yelling about "fenian bastards" on the street.

I always get a kick out asking folks who are wearing Rangers and Celtic shirts "who are they playing today" or "how they getting on" only to have them shrug there shoulders as if to say "F**k should I know, I don't like football!". When you look at the age of the of the offenders these days, you come to the conclusion it has to be the parents at fault who are filling their kid's heads with rubbish of letting others do that.

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I wouldn't steal a car, but I'd download one if I could.

Anyone who's made the mistake of taking the Stranraer ferry when there's an Old Firm match on knows just how true those words are.

Ok, I can see why people here support Man Utd, Liverpool etc. Our standard of football is awful, semi-pro stuff. That my dad (Stephen Hawking could probably have given him a hard time) used to play in the old B Division says it all.

Choosing to support either of the two Glasgow clubs is a whole different kettle of fish but I suppose the lines between religion and culture are especially blurry in this dysfunctional little statelet. I'm sure there are thousands of genuine Northern Irish Rangers and Celtic fans but, as you say, the mere wearing of one of their shirts is incitement to hatred in the wrong area from people who know nothing about football.

If anything, that level of shoutyness has, in my experience, become worse post ceasefire because the chances of someone actually pulling a gun on you have markedly decreased. I live in the shadow of a Catholic cathedral which is walked past by loads of young men from the biggest Protestant estate in the town on their way home from the pub at the weekend.

You'll regularly hear some winner start up singing The Sash to show how hard he is while staggering, full of Buckfast, past some empty bricks and mortar.

Have done many times. I was on the boat about 2 years ago actually coming back from Scotland. I was listening to the Arsenal game in the car as I queued to board the ferry. We lost to then newly promoted Hully City (cracker goal from Geovanni left Lehmann with a red face), depressed I thought I'd treat myself to a pint. On the HSC Stena Voyager the bar is in the middle of the ship sort of elevated with a large seating area. I sat at the bar oblivious to what was going on though I could tell from the noise the place was suddenly packed. When I finished I turned to leave and was comforted with a sea of green and white shirts. I suddenly thanked God my mum was born and raised in Islington and not Glasgow or a I might have had a Rangers shirt on that day . I did have to endure a bit of stick from a few lads as I left, but It was all good banter. Lucky all one following that day, but as you say, when there's an old firm game on the atmosphere is horrid. I would like to say though, I have nothing against a proper fan, it's just the other idiots I dislike.

I suppose you just have to turn a blind eye to that sort of behaviour (which is bloody annoying). When I used to go for nights out on the city side of derry I'd hear "up the RA" shouted into double figures by people who are just sitting having a drink and enjoying themselves. I always thought to myself, "why are you saying that, why is any of that crap on your mind rite now when your sitting there having fun with your mates?". It depresses you because you start to question whether this will ever fade when it's being shouted by the youth, will there misplaced bitterness transition onto their kids, history shows us it probably will.

In bed

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Comment is free but facts are sacred

If I were First Minister (The Tatty Socialist Party would double its membership if I could only bribe someone ) I'd pass a law which states that everyone between the ages of 18 and 40 must spend at least a year outside NI, lest their benefits be cut.

Travel broadens the mind, they say, but sadly the biggest journey most of our youth make is up the M1 to Queens.

I'd also outlaw Fermanagh.

Booked myself in today for a bout of cortisone injections in my shoulder to try and stave off my latest issue in the ongoing battle with decrepitude.

I'm turning into JF Sebastian.

And in response to that I've been told that injections are only gonna provide temporary relief and there's not a lot else they can do besides more pain meds. I didn't bother with the jab, I'll save it up until it gets worse.

Y'know the old joke?

Patient: Doctor, it hurts when I do that.

Doctor: Well, don't do that then.

The sketch was enacted for real a couple of hours ago.

Watching The Masters. Great performance by Rory McIlroy. Hope he can keep up that pace over the weekend.

I love it when people respond to their own posts Hope you are feeling better Tatty

I heard the best cure for Methuselah Syndrome is a new car and a TV!

Arf!

And an independently wealthy woman...

Well that didn't quite work out did it? Felt really bad watching him just completely blow up

Poor wee Rory.

It's funny about the 'kick em when they're down' mentality of some people, especially over here. I was speaking to a guy yesterday who saw Rory at George Best airport a while back and was complaining about him waiting to have his Lamborghini delivered to the door when everyone else was waiting for their taxis.

I'm sorry, but if I had a Gallardo I'd bloody well want it delivered to the door, even if I only lived a mile up the road!

In other news: Why oh why oh why oh why oh why do TV salesmen not listen? The interminable saga of me getting my TV replaced ended on Saturday. Or so I thought.

I'm a simple man with simple tastes when it comes to televisions - All I really wanted in the replacement set was proper 24p Blu Ray support. After watching a few movies over the weekend I suspected that this TV doesn't have it and a quick call to Samsung this morning confirmed my fears.

Now waiting for the manager to phone back where he'll probably offer me a second replacement set. I think I'm done with the whole bloody shop now and want a refund.

Simple tings are never simple, mon. I would just wait for the replacement set, though. Unless you feel you can get a better deal elsewhere??

I'm just chilling out right now in the library. Debating with myself on whether or not to watch Source Code before 5pm or wait until tomorrow. Might do some deadlifts before then though.

Yeah, I got it replaced.

Mainly because the original telly was bought well outside their 28 day automatic refund policy so all they'd do was exchange. I could probably have argued a bit but I was so ****ed off with the whole thing I caved in and got an LG LED 42" at £50 less than the Samsung (which they did refund me, heh).

Unless I spent mega bucks (which I don't have) I wasn't gonna get exactly what I wanted but the LG has proper 24p Real Cinema mode, which I've been checking out and it's miles smoother than the Samsung but just not quite as vibrant in the colour department.

I never wanna see the inside of that store again, and I bet they feel the same about me.