There is movement on The Marsh development in Skibbereen, with a glimmer of light for the long-promised carpark and walkway, which might, in time, lead to a Marsh Ecology park.
However, and as painful as it is to cast a shadow on good news, it must be done: the state of the opposite river walkway is appalling, and is that what can be expected across the Ilen if people were able to access it?
As it stands, looking across to the Marsh from the rear of the Southern Star offices, it is a glory of purple and white, untouched, and it’s impossible to measure the satisfaction of the multitudes of birds and other animals for whom the Marsh is home, but without human touch it’s safe to assume they’re happy.
It would be better that the bridge to nowhere stayed that way, if the short walkway on the opposite bank on Wednesday morning this week is anything to judge it by.
Broken glass ground into the dirt, empty tobacco pouches, plastic bottle caps; it’s disgusting and depressing.
It’s almost comic, to look across the Ilen and see a patch of ground untouched and to think, ‘wouldn’t it be lovely to have a walkway there too?’
Tidy Towns in Skibbereen have tackled this area, and it’s safe to say that the vast majority, a huge number of visitors and citizens of the town have no intention of destroying their own home.
That doesn’t change the fact that some always will, out of ignorance, laziness, and a self-serving attitude eloquently known by the young ones as ‘main character syndrome’.
The difference between those of us on this side of the river, and those in The Marsh, is that a bird won’t soil its own nest.
Silence is golden
Speaking of animals, Irish Rail have announced a possible penalty of €100 for those who use their phone without headphones on the train.
The bus driver of the coach from Dublin post-Oasis threatened all passengers not to dare make a call on loudspeaker, or neglect to use headphones; someone organise a parade for that man.
If you are reading this, and you don’t see the problem, then you are the problem. It’s an invasion of people’s space and ears; there is nothing about a stranger’s phone call, or their Netflix choices, that are as interesting to other people as they think they are.
And it’s not just teenagers; older people who discovered WhatsApp during lockdown are as guilty as the 13-year-old inflicting TikTok on the innocent.
The dope watching the Premier League at full volume (you hardly need the commentary), the fella in the suit who sat for lunch at The Bridge in Skibbereen listening to the News At One at full volume; they are all at fault, but now the tide is turning.
The issue is reflective of a larger problem in capitalist society; the need for constant noise.
More shops and cinemas have ‘quiet times’, ostensibly for those with neurodivergent tendencies, but the hours are welcome by many more with no diagnosis at all.
The ads before a cinema screening are an assault; in any other context it would be termed low-level torture.
Venice has a ‘silent airport’ policy, with no public announcements. It’s the most zen place you’ll ever stay waiting for a flight, and guess what – you still don’t leave your luggage lying about, and you still miraculously know that you can’t smoke inside, no public service announcement necessary.
The popularity of the Silent Bookclub, featured in this week’s Life section, is testament to this seeking and retrieval of quiet living. Let’s all just shut up, and let the silence in.
