Summer

I woke at 7.00 am to bright sun shining from a cloudless sky. That's it, I thought, the nice weather will last for a few hours, then it will cloud over, we'll have rain, it'll clear up again, and the evening will be nice. How wrong could I get! Sunshine, blue sky and warm weather lasted all day long and we ended up having the best day since the beginning of June.

I knuckled down to a job which needed to be finalised with a client's last-minute amendments, and was free as a bird by lunch time, so I pulled the door behind me at 2.30 and didn't get home again until 7.30. Once again I headed northwards from home, but began this time in Portmarnock to the north of the Howth headland, where people were actually frolicking in the sea despite the chilly breeze and queueing to buy ice cream. Then it was on through Baldoyle and up to Howth Castle and the Deer Park hotel with the stunning views over the city from its golf courses (a bit hazy today, though). A refreshing bottle of cider, then back down again to Sutton and Baldoyle en route to Malahide and the sea and the boats. After a bite to eat in an okay restaurant there was still time and sun enough remaining for an admiring stroll around the Marina and all its mega-pricey moored merchandise.

That's when I had an unexpected encounter. 'That can't be him', I thought. 'There's no way he'd just be standing there chatting to that young girl without a care in the world and no bodyguards anywhere in sight.' But it was: Bertie Ahern, recently elected for an unprecedented third consecutive term as Taoiseach (Prime Minister elsewhere). I walked up to him, shook his hand and congratulated him on his electioneering achievement. But why didn't I voice my displeasure at government policy of granting the US military landing rights at Shannon on their way to Iraq? What a missed opportunity! I suppose I was overawed.

All in all, a perfect day and a perfect way to celebrate Blip's fantastic 1st Birthday. Congratulations Blip, thank you Joe, everyone at Blipcentral, and everyone in Blipland for a truly wonderful, hugely enjoyable, and thoroughly addictive experience.