These are the first babies of the seaaon. Fresh from bluire’s farm, which is fifty meters squared approximately. I planted lots and lots of things in freshly rotovated soil, and it’s been a battle against lots of weeds.

Many crops got pulled up with the weeds, cos, there was such a bed of weed, it was difficult to tell weeds from seedlings. I have it down pat now though, if there is wine in the stem, it’s a weed, if it is all green, it’s something I planted.

The first radish of the season are radish hilds roter neckaaruhm. they are a great success, i have a whole row of them. They taste peppery. On the packet, it says that they are traditionally offered to accompany beer in Northern Europe. It’s strange to taste a real radish, one that is spicy, peppery, previously, I thought that they (radishes) were tasteless.

Gemma Ahern, sister of Abigail Ahern of Artelier Abigail Ahern and her boyfriend live in a dramatically painted apartment. It was featured in the New York Times. My current obsession is with white tongue and groove cottage interiors, so I was amazed to find myself extremely drawn to the images of these interiors. I’m not sure I could live with a whole apartment painted in Down Pipe, a colour described as A colour appropriate to imitate lead on exterior ironwork and to help ‘lose’ plumbing against brickwork. but certainly, I think it would work well in a small space, like a shower room, the fact that I want to paint our en-suite in a dramatic colour has nothing to do with posting these images.

A few weeks ago, when in Cork, I purchased prawns from O’Connells in the English Market. O’Connells is the best place to buy fish I have ever come across in Ireland. They are beyond helpful.

Some of the praws were shelled and others were left whole. During the week, we had them for dinner. They were defrosted in the fridge and then, trying to decide how to cook them, I decided to bake them. They duly were doused in olive oil and lemon juice with some chilli flakes thrown in. Then I put them in a two hundred degrees centigrade fan assisted oven. I left them in there until they had turned prawn colour, i.e. pinked up.

I have to say, I have never in my life tasted such delicious, soft, tender prawns. I will never again fry a prawn unless there is no oven to hand. I highly recommend this method.

From the Irish Times is the breaking news that Cori have signalled a u-turn on their redress payments stance. This is good news, but why have they taken so long? Last night, I watched Brian Cowen’s speech and his acceptance of apologies from the various congregations. I don’t think the apologies are enough. I think that there should be no statute of limitations for crimes of a sexual, physical, abusive nature perpetrated against small, innocent children. Those who are still alive should face criminal proceedings. The religious orders who en-slaved children should face criminal proceedings or the seizure of their assets if they claim to have none.

I cannot understand what went on in this country with regard to small children being removed from their parents’ care and placed in institutions. I cannot understand how they survived the abuse they received at the hands of those who were supposed to care for them. It is horrific. Anyone who survived and lived to tell the tale is amazing. The letters page of the Irish Times tells its own story regarding the feeling in the country. The only subject today is the response to the report on abuse in State institutions.

Taxi drivers want a cap re-introduced, because the poor taxi drivers can’t make a living. Of course, in an economy with nearly 20% unemployment, a taxi license that costs six thousand three hundred euro may seem like a good investment with your redundancy payment if you think that there are no other ways to earn money than to buy a taxi licence. I am sure there is anecdotal evidence showing that newly unemployed sometimes buy taxi licences.

Restricting the market artifically is dangerous. Taxi drivers who fail to make money will choose to leave the profession. There is also natural attrition through retirement and returning to a previous profession if you secure a new job.

A better way to control entry to the taxi market than a cap, surely is to insist on minimum standards and sizes for cars and also to introduce a knowledge test. Not much point being a taxi driver in Dublin (for example) if you don’t know your way around the city.