Wow, what a windy and wet few days we have had.
During the last few days I have been out on the beaches with the dogs, and trust me when I tell you, there will be some cleaning up of rubbish to be done at a later date, anyway we had better wait until tomorrows storm is over, so batten down the hatches guys, Tuesday evening the winds could be up 100 miles an hour.

Well I hope everybody had a great time during the Christmas and new year period, and do I dare say it, but it is quite nice to get back to some sort of normality, I am not quite sure how we define the word normal, we are still caught up with the Asian tragedy, and our changing climate perhaps a better word to use would be back to routine.
However it has been a good start for Roundstone for the year 2005, the student Christmas results came out on Friday, and talking to some of the troops, they seemed happy and smiling with their results, all of the 50 trees for the Fair Green have now all been planted thanks to the FAS lads
Pantomine:
The Roundstone Parents association took all the National School Children with their parents to Galway to see a Pantomine “Aladdin” then afterwards on to Super Macs, and talking to Rebecca Conneely, I got the impression that parents alike certainly enjoyed themselves.
Golly just thinking I have not been to a Pantomine for years, maybe next year I will ask Geraldine and Theresa, if they want another leader.
The Asian Disaster
The most topic of conversation of course is the Asian disaster and right now, fund raising all over Connemara has been staggering as to what has been collected and literally from all age groups.
The first lodgement of the Asian fund appeal from Roundstone from last weekend came to €3,931 which was subsequently sent to the Red Cross via the bank of Ireland in Clifden for distribution on Wednesday.

O’Dowds Fund Raiser:
Then all last week a special collection was arranged from O’Dowds, who doubled the bucket takings, its not a question of a competition, but the amount was wonderful, so what Nicky Griffin has done as part of the Restaurant / Hoteliers Ass to raise funds for the disaster, he has sent a cheque to the Association on behalf of Roundstone, for the red cross, so all the monies are going in the right direction.
So therefore to date from a small community as ours as from tonight is now €4’821 and still on going, Father McCarthy was telling me this evening that from the parish of Roundstone funds raised for Trocara came to €3’700, interestingly €2’000 of that came from the village, so we now have from the village a grand total €6,821 its a vital contribution as part of the Connemara get together to raise funds.
Money is one thing, but it is the spirte that it is given, I have witnessed certain people over the last few weeks who are not well off, that have given some serious money and who can ill afford to do so, god what a great country we are.
Christmas lights:
Came down on Thursday, just another way of saying the holidays are over. Our thanks to Nicky Griffin, Michael Conneely, Bernard King, and Paddy King and of course to Sean Burke for his hymac, and to John Sheridan for the disconnection of the electrics it was a wet evening for the volunteers but a job well done.
RDC
As we speak, you could call it, business as usual, the first Roundstone Development Council meeting for the year 2005 with the new committee is taking place tonight, and one of the main points on the agenda is the grant of €32,400 that has been allocated to our Community Hall project under the locally base community and voluntary Grants Programme, which came from Eamon O’Cuiv, and his Department of Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs.

Well that’s all from me, just to wish all our school kids luck, as they head back to school today, which reminds me of what I heard as I walked into the sacristy after Mass yesterday, Father McCarthy was wishing his little servers luck for School with naturally giving Gods blessing as he put it, and one of the lads responded, by saying “Tanks father but its god help us when we do go back”, but hey it was said at least with good humour.
Richard de Stacpoole