Granville Island on Sundays attracts a lot of visitors. Lots of visitors means Street Entertainment. This gentleman manages to balance on a plank of timber on a pipe on a platform. While there he suceeds in passing his body through a tennis racquet (with no strings) and juggle some kitchen objects, including knives and a plunger! It's all happening literally on our front doorstep.
To mark a couple of significant birthdays we had a Murder Mystery evening last night.
The photos from the night are up on the web. Flickr Photo Album
It was a wonderful night – we had 26 characters. They included:
Coconut Joe — Owner of Margaritaland. The owner of the resort and the man to talk to when anything goes wrong.
Coconut Jane — Wife to Coconut Joe. Jane is in charge of guest relations and will go to any extent to make sure that the guests remain happy and satisfied.
Bindy Barkeep — Bar Manager. With bar sales decreasing lately, Bindy is looking for someone to blame. Will Bindy be able to keep the bar in the black… and their job?
Flick Click — Paparazzi. Has come to the island to get exclusive pictures of Starr Bright. Will go to any lengths to get the front page picture.
Kylie Cocktail — Cocktail Waitress. A gold-digger at heart, her aspirations might be a little ambitious for even her to achieve.
Lifesavin’ Sam — Lifeguard. Sam is supposed to be the safeguard of the resort, however, after his recent break-up with Kylie Cocktail, his actions have been doing more harm than good.
Cabana Bob — Cabana Boy. Ambitious and driven, Bob will do anything to advance his career and his love life.
Cinders — Fire Dancer. Raised on the island, she is a close friend of Izzie. There has been a lot of island gossip about her and old school friend Cabana Bob.
BJ Baggage — Bellhop. With hopes of promotion, this bellhop is willing to help out the guests and the staff for little price if it means advancement of their career.
Carrie Behan — Resort Staff. Confidante and secret admirer of Jack Daniels, but might know just too many secrets.
Sgt. Lord — Police officer. As the island’s top crime fighter, Sgt. Lord is here as a personal favour to Coconut Joe. Before the night is through, their sleuthing skills will turn up more than a few lost dollars.
Tatum Tatt — Tattoo Artist. An artist and true talent. Another talent that they have is one of observation and Tatum has seen more than they are leading on.
Thurston Howard III — Millionaire. A man of money and power, Thurston will let no one take what is his or make a fool of him.
Candy Cotton — Millionaire’s girlfriend. As the vivacious and young girlfriend of Thurston Howard III, she will do anything to keep the adoration (and financial security) of her beau.
Lucky Numbers — Lottery Winner. Lucky came here to celebrate his winnings and ended up falling in love with Izzie. Now, he doesn’t know how to get something he can’t buy.
Starr Bright — Movie star. Tired of the limelight and paparazzi, Starr is here to recuperate and rejuvenate far, far away from a daunting public.
Agent Hollywood— Hollywood Agent. With Starr Bright’s sudden rise to fame, this agent has had to work overtime to keep their client happy and Starr’s career on the right track.
Sandy Beachbum — Professional Surfer. A two-time world champ, has this pro hit it big and then decided to hit the beach. Was the surfing circuit too much for him to take?
Mo Manager — Sandy Beachbum’s Manager. Mo will do whatever it takes to make sure Sandy stays healthy and out of retirement.
Margie Mooner — Honeymooner. Proof positive that keeping a secret, any secret, from the one they love can be deadly.
Mike Mooner — Honeymooner. Desperately in love with his wife, Mike is determined to make this marriage work and will do anything to keep Margie true to him.
Jack Daniels — Bartender. Known as the Casanova of the pool bar, it is hard to say whether his philandering ways will get him promoted or in trouble.
Izzie Islander — Island girl. Raised on the island, Izzie is a natural beauty and has a way of capturing everyone’s heart except the man she wants most, Jack Daniels.
Hans Off — Resort Guest. Rich and extravagant, hangs out with Lucky and Thurston and any other millionaires he can find.
Bahamas Bill — Resort Guest. A fun-loving holiday-maker. Has befriended Margie Mooner with whom he shares a secret – some say much too friendly.
Camilla — Resort Guest. Wealthy heiress, has befriended Cotton Candy and like Cotton, likes to get what she wants.
Trays — Waitress. Working as a waitress in a cocktail bar – a very happy go lucky gal. The only blot on the landscape is the fact that she has fallen out badly with her one time friend Kylie.
If you want to try it yourself log into Night of Mystery
It was stunning in every sense of the word. Croke Park was full - we were full of anticipation. The Irish were slow to start. By half time the French were ahead 13-11 - Ibanez's first half try was converted while O'Gara's wasn't and we exchanged 2 penalties. But in the second half we scrapped and scraped ahead. O'Gara gets over for a try to take the lead. But it was just a single point at 14-13. The French could back in with a penalty. With 3 minutes to go we won a kickable penalty. "Go on Ronan - put it over - then at least they will need a try". Be careful what you wish for!! He did, we allowed ourselves a sigh of relief. What a mistake - now we can say that he would have been better to miss. From the kick off France attack, we make 2 mistakes and a missed tackle and Clerc is in for a try; they convert and its just 1 minute left. Can we not do the same? We kick off - they gather the ball set up a maul that goes nowhere, but lasts until full time. They kick the ball out, the whistle blows; we are stunned .... but what about the grand slam ... what about the best Irish time in living memory... such is life and rugby.
We had a great start with a try in 2 minutes. But all in all it was a nervy start to Ireland's season - we were happy to secure a 19-9 victory.
There were 3 Irish tries. The first from the kick-off by Rory Best:
Rory Best's try in less than a minute The second came from O'Driscoll before half time and then in the second half Ronan clinched it.
Ronan gets over for the clincher.
O'Driscoll gets a once-over by the physios
Good Effort
Originally uploaded by JonnyCat UK. 
We went to Handel's Messiah with the Irish Baroque Orchestra and Resurga at St Patricks Catherdral last night. Excellent performance and venue.
The President Mary McAleese was also in attendence.
The Messiah was first performed in Dublin on the 13th of April 1742.
13th October – Katy’s Debs in
Today was Katy’s Debs. The tradition in her school is that the parents attend too. We have invited family friends and neighbours as well as her escort’s (Paul) parents for drinks before we set off for Killiney.
Katry was getting her hair done in town so she and I met for lunch in Fitzers. We were sitting down when who should walk over but Paul’s father and mother.
Now it’s a strange co-incidence but when Katy was in
So Maurice comes over and says hallo, chats about the debs and says – see you later. When they go back to their table, Katy says “who’s that? Why did they say see you later?”!!!
The evening was very enjoyable, and represents the end of an era for us at Killians.
