magic's new name

I have decided that I will give myself a new name for Christmas - inspired by my current surroundings. Most names have alternatives in different languages, but Irish (Gaeilige) is somewhat different. When the British insisted on anglicizing every name in Ireland (read Brian Friel's play "Translations" for an account of the time), they came up with alternatives. The rough equivalent of Timothy in the Irish language is Tadhg. This name is pronounced like "tiger" without the "r" and not like "Craig" as is the misconception and it means "poet".

Of course it would be remiss of me not to translate "Magic" too. The word "draíocht" is the word for "magic", but it also means, ironically, "glamour" and "romance"

Timmy "Tadhg Draíocht" Magic

nollaig chridheil agus bliadhna mhath ùr!

Happy Christmas from Timmy Magic!

I am currently in Ireland with my parents enjoying a bit of festive rest, hence the slight lack of bloggage in recent days.

Thanks to everyone who sent me a card and/or gift and to those who didn't get a card from me, fret not, for I didn't send any. I did, however, make a donation to a charitable cause.

Timmy "Ho Ho Ho" Magic

i'm loving angles instead?

BBC News reports that around 17 million people in the UK don't have the sufficient reading skills to sing the Robbie Williams' song, "Angels". It is suggested that it requires 5 GCSEs or equivalent to manage the whole song at the right speed. They would also struggle to follow the lyrics of Gloria Gaynor's "I Will Survive", the Commitments' "Mustang Sally" and "Don't Stop Me Now" by Queen.

In other news, around 50% of prison inmates fail to reach the level of literacy expected of an 11 year old.

So that is why prison karaoke nights aren't successful...

Timmy "Singalong at Strangeways" Magic