Having dragged myself through the Christmas debacle I find safe haven in storm-tossed Schull. We have rented a large comfortable house, high on a hill overlooking the harbour (almost bereft of boats).
I quickly adopt the old routines: down to the supermarket in the morning for the delicious fresh crusty bread and the Irish Times - a warm greeting from owner Tom Brosnan, the de facto Mayor of Schull; then a long walk by the sea with the dogs; before dinner a brace of pints in Newman's or the Courtyard (the murderer looks in), then a leisurely dinner and so to bed with an improving book.
Certain well-trod paths have to be revisited: a walk on the beach in Barleycove; a crab sandwich in O'Sullivan's in Crookhaven; a meander around the graveyard near Barry's Hill (I notice a new gravestone for David Wigginton - a Cork Hibs star during the Seventies and a pathfinder when it came to soccer player excess. He kept Krojaks and a few other night-clubs in profit and ended up marrying the daughter of a chip-shop proprietor). A nice man though.
There have been some changes. Newman's now offers wireless access along with your pint, or coffee and scone.
