Summary: Shuttle launch | Dreadful jokes | Seen any motors? | Crumlin Hospital cutbacks | Random photos| Contact emails
Astronomy & Space – this week’s shuttle launch
There’s been a lot of interaction in our Astronomy & Space forum this week, with the shuttle launch thread from Calibos at over 23,500 views and a lot of detailed instruction and discussion for everyone, no matter their level of knowledge.
One lovely reaction from new member twalsh:
Thanks Calibos and JammyDogger. My kids have been facinated since seeing Endeavor go over last night just 18mins after it launched in Florida. So the questions have begun and they got to see Endeavor again tonight and also ISS at 12.04 as we missed it the first time. Thanks to all who keep posting the times, way easier than trying to look them up.. Cheers everybody.
There was also a fantastic photo shot and posted by oozler:
There are more shots – including a fantastic one of the shuttle over Cork taken by Crispin – to be seen here.
For those reading today (Friday), here’s the times/directions for Friday night’s passes of the ISS and Space Shuttle
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Sometimes you have to despair at what passes for humour over on our Humour forum:
A hungry African lion came across two men. One was sitting under a tree and reading a book; the other was typing away on his typewriter. The lion pounced on the man reading the book and devoured him. Even the king of the jungle knows readers digest and writers cramp.
My mate Sid was a victim of I.D. theft. He’s just called S now.
A mother, cleaning her son’s room, finds an S&M magazine under the bed. Upset, she immediately shows the magazine to her husband. “Well?” his wife asks. “What do you think we should do?” “I’m not sure,” the father replies. “But we certainly shouldn’t spank him.”
Those are taken from a thread – Not Anti-jokes, just dreadful jokes – that’s got over 1,100 views at the time of blogging. Have you got any to add? Worth mentioning too is the puntastic and popular one-liner jokes thread.
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Motors > Here’s what I saw today
Continuing on a random theme, one of the most popular threads on the Motoring forum is the Here’s what I saw today thread where members can post photos of what motors they’ve seen.
Darsad has just posted this one, something he spotted on the M50:
There’s loads of photos of various cars, imported, souped-up and others. If vehicles are your thing, you should take a look.
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Crumlin hospital closures – parents need your help
With over 19,800 views, a thread about the closures in Our Lady’s Children’s Hospital, Crumlin has now got over 440 replies. It’s also one of the most thanked posts on the site.
Biggins, starter of the thread, has a daughter suffers from scoliosis, a non-curable spinal disorder that needs fully body cast changes every two to three months due to body growth. The only place that does this in Ireland for his child is the hospital in Crumlin, whose funding has been severely cut by the government.
Biggins posted a photo to show the effect the treatment has had on his daughter before and after:
This treatment is absolutely vital not just because of the spine but also if the spine is twisted, further pressure is brought down to bear on the kidneys and lungs of my child. Causing them major further problems.
Understandably there’s a lot of anger, of frustration and disbelief at some of the decisions taken by the government – there’s a particularly emotive post here (and connected thread here) where Biggins watched a motion being denied by the Dáil.
Via Boards.ie, parents and families of other sick children affected by the cutbacks and other methods, a protest was organised at the hospital and Dáil which made national headlines and brought this very worthy cause to the fore in people’s minds.
The conversation continues over on the thread. If you would like to add your thoughts and opinions on the cut in funding that is affecting so many children up and down the country, you can do so here.
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Random photographs in the photography forum
The premise is simple:
This thread is for random pictures of random things in random places by random people – so basically this is the place for random photographs. No expectation of quality or content. It’s for everyone.
There are, however, as you’d expect from one of the top communities of Ireland’s photographers, some pretty amazing shots:
You’ll find these photos – by members Buzz Lightyear, Inibaz and Gloobag - and many, many more over on the random photos thread in the photography forum.
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Sometimes members using the Contact Us page don’t really get that they’re talking to Dav and Darragh and not addressing posters or authors of threads directly.
Take this one about our fundraising for example, which is a valid point, though misdirected:
Reason: I have a different query to any of those.
Summary/Link: observation
Real Name: <snipped> E-mail: <snipped>
Message: i work voluntarily with addicts both in cork and dublin,i think what ye do is terrible,remember there is a huge gambling problem in ireland and ye fundraise with scratchcards and also the street sellers know little to nothing about the centre,why not do what other centres do advertise with signs and get buckets be open about it and stop using “ambush” ;tacticts. all street collection need a valid permit none of the girls on grafton st could produce or direct me to one.use ex patients not agencies. it all seems very wrong to me and disrepectful to gambling addicts
And then there’s the thought that we’re open to bribery:
Reason: Our company would like to work with your company..
Summary/Link: giveing you for callcanter
Real Name: <snipped> E-mail: <snipped>
Message: ithis is not spam i was banned and i will give you a free helpline if you on ban me sorry but this is my real email not my offce
We won’t go into the deplorable grammar or spelling this time…