{"id":142,"date":"2014-06-16T05:25:46","date_gmt":"2014-06-16T05:25:46","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/writingsinrhyme.com\/?p=142"},"modified":"2014-08-10T05:30:00","modified_gmt":"2014-08-10T05:30:00","slug":"fiddling-at-longford","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/writingsinrhyme.com\/index.php\/fiddling-at-longford\/","title":{"rendered":"Fiddling at Longford"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone\" src=\"http:\/\/www.writingsinrhyme.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/06\/Great-Big-Fiddle-of-Longford-by-Cork-artist-Alex-Pentek.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"702\" height=\"345\" \/><\/p>\n<p>As if Nero, as the city is destroyed<br \/>\nConsumed by economic storm<br \/>\nFiddle is played &#8211; how good we are<br \/>\nCome, listen to us perform&#8230;<br \/>\n&#8220;Forget all of your troubles<br \/>\nPlaying music makes me forget mine&#8230;&#8221;<br \/>\nFiddling in times of trouble<br \/>\nBy leaders is the biggest crime.<\/p>\n<p>Shops shutting, factories long vacant,<br \/>\nPubs bust, bankrupt each hotel&#8230;.<br \/>\nBut there&#8217;s a new bypass, there&#8217;s art for that<br \/>\nA big fiddle, and all is well.<br \/>\nThey found a violin during excavation,<br \/>\nSo they thought a big one there as art should go&#8230;<br \/>\nThe poet ponders what else could have been found there&#8230;<br \/>\nGood thing it wasn&#8217;t a &#8230;fiddle dil di de do!<\/p>\n<p>So alls well that all is wrong in Longford<br \/>\nThe fiddle is standing there proud,<br \/>\nIt should symbolise all the cute hoorisms thats wrong in the world<br \/>\nAll the smarmyism that should not be allowed.<br \/>\nThose who got in on the utterances for the commonest ear,<br \/>\nWho fault the Polish for taking all the jobs,<br \/>\nThen fault gypsies and travelers for not working&#8230;<br \/>\nOther suchlike drivel dribbles from their gob.<\/p>\n<p>When their kind are voted into power<br \/>\nGood men of character at the ballot cast aside<br \/>\nWe see the weakness of democracy<br \/>\nWhen all fairness and merit has died.<br \/>\nIt will be a long time again until good times come to Longford<br \/>\nThe fiddle stands, is played, he who has cash calls the music they play<br \/>\nFor progressive Ireland, take the bypass by the fiddle<br \/>\nTowards Dublin rapid make your way!<\/p>\n<address>Frustration is building in Longford at the decline in the town,with long established businesses hitting the wall, and a lack of progres in the town. Added to this, the new instillation of the Fiddle sculpture meant to represent Longford\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Rich Musical Heritage\u00e2\u20ac\uf19d by Cork artist Alex Pentek &#8211; based on the fact that the workmen uncovered a fiddle when excavating the hillside during the construction of the bypass &#8211; has rankled locals. The &#8220;&#8221;Percent for Arts&#8221;&#8221; scheme in times like this is seen as extravagant, especially in an area which has an arts heritage where the artist works for free and earns their living at regular work.<\/address>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>As if Nero, as the city is destroyed Consumed by economic storm Fiddle is played &#8211; how good we are Come, listen to us perform&#8230; &#8220;Forget all of your troubles Playing music makes me forget mine&#8230;&#8221; Fiddling in times of trouble By leaders is the biggest crime. Shops shutting, factories &#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[223,55,2],"tags":[224,226,42,225],"class_list":["post-142","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-art-inspired-poetry","category-current-affairs-in-ireland","category-satire","tag-art","tag-bypass","tag-longford","tag-percent-for-arts-scheme","column","twocol"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p7EI4f-2i","jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":1548,"url":"https:\/\/writingsinrhyme.com\/index.php\/engaging-with-art-in-longford-providers\/","url_meta":{"origin":142,"position":0},"title":"Engaging with Art in Longford Providers","author":"Tom\u00e1s \u00d3 C\u00e1rthaigh","date":"18th March 2015","format":false,"excerpt":"Art and Longford are not two words often seen together, but as with empty venues across the country, the old Providers Hardware in the town has become something of a mecca of the arts in the past while. The latest space to open to the public is the Engage exhibition\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Art Inspired Poetry&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Art Inspired Poetry","link":"https:\/\/writingsinrhyme.com\/index.php\/category\/art-inspired-poetry\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Thomas Brezing @ Engage in Longford","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.writingsinrhyme.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/03\/20150318_162831.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.writingsinrhyme.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/03\/20150318_162831.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.writingsinrhyme.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/03\/20150318_162831.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.writingsinrhyme.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/03\/20150318_162831.jpg?resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.writingsinrhyme.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/03\/20150318_162831.jpg?resize=1050%2C600 3x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.writingsinrhyme.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/03\/20150318_162831.jpg?resize=1400%2C800 4x"},"classes":[]},{"id":4016,"url":"https:\/\/writingsinrhyme.com\/index.php\/culture-night-in-cafe-45-longford-leads-in-literature-and-arts\/","url_meta":{"origin":142,"position":1},"title":"Culture Night in Cafe 45 &#8211; Longford Leads in Literature and Arts","author":"Tom\u00e1s \u00d3 C\u00e1rthaigh","date":"29th September 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"This Culture Night I was in Longford reading with Longford Writers Group who I joined lately, in Cafe 45, after which I ran into friends from Tullamore of all places, before visiting the art exhibit in Providers. While at home after I was listening to a show from Cavan where\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Blog&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Blog","link":"https:\/\/writingsinrhyme.com\/index.php\/category\/blog\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Longford Writers in Cafe 45 for Culture Night 2017 - Photo Montage by Sally Martin","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.writingsinrhyme.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/09\/Longford-Writers-in-Cafe-45-for-Culture-Night-2017-Photo-Montage-by-Sally-Martin-300x171.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":536,"url":"https:\/\/writingsinrhyme.com\/index.php\/cute-hoor-councillors-vs-artists-minding-their-own-arses-debating-the-one-per-cent-for-the-arts-scheme-blog\/","url_meta":{"origin":142,"position":2},"title":"Cute Hoor Councillors vs Artists Minding their Own Arses &#8211; Debating the One Per Cent For the Arts Scheme","author":"Tom\u00e1s \u00d3 C\u00e1rthaigh","date":"10th September 2014","format":false,"excerpt":"The issue of public funding for the arts, in a time of austerity, has been a hot topic in the bars and hair salons and outside the church gates and also online of forums and social media for a long time now. My own take on the issue, is that\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Austerity&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Austerity","link":"https:\/\/writingsinrhyme.com\/index.php\/category\/austerity\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/c2.staticflickr.com\/8\/7379\/14124088374_d47eaf338d_q.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":4577,"url":"https:\/\/writingsinrhyme.com\/index.php\/home-made-explores-concept-of-home-for-longford-writers-group\/","url_meta":{"origin":142,"position":3},"title":"&#8220;Home Made&#8221; explores concept of home for Longford Writers Group","author":"Tom\u00e1s \u00d3 C\u00e1rthaigh","date":"3rd December 2019","format":false,"excerpt":"The Longford Writers Group - featuring yours truly - launched their anthology of poems and stories in Longford Library, to the musical accompaniment of Bernie on the keyboard, and Valerie on vocals. The anthology explored the concept of home, as it is known to each of us, and a contribution\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Blog&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Blog","link":"https:\/\/writingsinrhyme.com\/index.php\/category\/blog\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Launch of \"Home Made\" - the anthology of Longford Writers Group","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.writingsinrhyme.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/Launch-of-Home-Made-the-anthology-of-Longford-Writers-Group-1024x467.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.writingsinrhyme.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/Launch-of-Home-Made-the-anthology-of-Longford-Writers-Group-1024x467.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.writingsinrhyme.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/Launch-of-Home-Made-the-anthology-of-Longford-Writers-Group-1024x467.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":4000,"url":"https:\/\/writingsinrhyme.com\/index.php\/the-famine-cross\/","url_meta":{"origin":142,"position":4},"title":"The Famine Cross","author":"Tom\u00e1s \u00d3 C\u00e1rthaigh","date":"28th September 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"At the back of St Josephs Hospital in Longford, there is the local famine graveyard. This poem is dedicated to those interred there during the famine, and until the home closed, those folks were the poorest of the poor. They died while in the workhouse, of which the father of\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Art Inspired Poetry&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Art Inspired Poetry","link":"https:\/\/writingsinrhyme.com\/index.php\/category\/art-inspired-poetry\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"The Famine Cross in Longford - Photo by Lalin Swaris","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.writingsinrhyme.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/09\/The-Famine-Cross-in-Longford-Photo-by-Lalin-Swaris-1024x683.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.writingsinrhyme.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/09\/The-Famine-Cross-in-Longford-Photo-by-Lalin-Swaris-1024x683.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.writingsinrhyme.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/09\/The-Famine-Cross-in-Longford-Photo-by-Lalin-Swaris-1024x683.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":4243,"url":"https:\/\/writingsinrhyme.com\/index.php\/2017-looking-back-on-the-year-that-was\/","url_meta":{"origin":142,"position":5},"title":"2017 &#8211; Looking back on the Year that Was","author":"Tom\u00e1s \u00d3 C\u00e1rthaigh","date":"29th December 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"The year ended in December with my Christmas Reflection in the Galway Eye rounding off a successful year in the arts, which I hope to expand on in the coming year. I gather an article on the Banagher Fair made it to the Banagher Review as well, of which I\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Blog&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Blog","link":"https:\/\/writingsinrhyme.com\/index.php\/category\/blog\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Their last photo together in good health","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.writingsinrhyme.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/Mam-and-Dad.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.writingsinrhyme.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/Mam-and-Dad.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.writingsinrhyme.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/Mam-and-Dad.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.writingsinrhyme.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/Mam-and-Dad.jpg?resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/writingsinrhyme.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/142","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/writingsinrhyme.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/writingsinrhyme.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/writingsinrhyme.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/writingsinrhyme.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=142"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/writingsinrhyme.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/142\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":143,"href":"https:\/\/writingsinrhyme.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/142\/revisions\/143"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/writingsinrhyme.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=142"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/writingsinrhyme.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=142"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/writingsinrhyme.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=142"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}