June / July 2002 Newsletter

Greetings from Newbridge and Platinum Clubhouse. It is time for the summer holidays and as such the numbers of members and staff attending fluctuates a lot. We are not long back from the European Conference which we found to be enlightening and good fun. Enjoy this latest issue of Newsbridge.

Enjoy the rest of the summer…...

If anyone has any articles or comments they would like to submit please e-mail them to us at:

platinumclubhouse@eircom.net

The Weed Field
When I was a teenage spider
grasshopper said to me,
come along now young man
the world you will have to see.
We flew to farmer Jones
to have a big feed of weed
we stopped a while
I nearly cried
that world before the feed
it had almost disappeared
and everything was weird.
Five years later
I’m getting better
flies are my only vice
Why, they are ten times as nice.

Tim

You have a little angel,
watching over you,
guiding and protecting you,
in everything you do.

So if you’re feeling lost,
and if you’re in despair,
just turn your eyes to heaven,
and say a little prayer.

Siobhan

I am a new person (changed)
though you know me
you know me not.
Though my stay be brief
my passing be quick,
why, I know not.
Shed no tear for me
I know not where I go
but forth I go
I have a new life.
From here I go
I Am

Eileen

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Catering News

All is going well in this unit. Fred, Philip, Ray, Roisin and others helping out and getting involved in the work ordered day. Various dishes are being cooked, but we are not having many salad days, as the weather is not favouring them!!! We had a Health and Safety inspection recently in the catering unit and are waiting for the response. We hope all our readers will like our recipe of the month. We here at Platinum Clubhouse, hope that Ann and Karin at the Clondalkin Clubhouse will try out the recipe, and treat their manager to a desert of his liking….Sorry Girls!!

Recipe Of the Month

Chocolate Rum Torte

Prep. Time 25 minutes

Cooking time: Approx. 30 mins.

Ingredients:
3 eggs
3 oz. Caster sugar
2 oz. Self-raising flour
1 oz. Cocoa
2 tablespoons corn oil
1/4 pint double cream
3 tablespoons rum
Decoration:
2-4 tablespoons evaporated milk
4 oz plain chocolate chocolate curls

Method:
Line and grease a 7-inch deep cake tin. Whisk eggs and sugar together until mixture is pale and thick. Sift flour and cocoa together. Fold into egg mixture with corn oil. Turn into prepared tin and bake in a moderate oven for about 40 minutes. Remove from tin and leave to cool before cutting in half. Whip cream until it forms soft peaks. Fold in 2 tablespoons rum. Use to sandwich cake together.

Heat evaporated milk and remaining rum slowly together until hot. Remove from heat and add chocolate, all at once in pieces. Stir until chocolate has dissolved. Cool until just warm, and is of coating consistency. Thin down with a little more evaporated milk of necessary. Pour icing over top of cake. Decorate with chocolate curls.

ENJOY

Breda

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Racing News

The Swordstown Sprint

This is the richest two-year-old race in Europe. It is for two-year-old fillies only and is six furlongs long. There is €80,000 in prize money. First prize is worth €52000 second €16000, third €8000 & fourth €3200.
The winner was the English horse “Rag Top” at odds of 2-1, second was “Luminata,” trained by Jim Bolger and ridden by Kevin Manning at 7-2.
Jim Bolger also trained the third placed “Tus Maith” which was ridden by D. J. Moran and came home at nice odds of 33-1.
This race was run on 3rd June in Naas.

Pretty Polly Stakes

This race is worth €130,000. It is one mile and two furlongs long and is for horses that are two years old and upward. It costs €520 to enter but the later the entry the more it costs. The value to the winner is €78,000. An English horse at odds of 7-2 won it.
Kevin Prendergast trained the second placed horse called “Wrong Key” ridden by D.P. McDonagh. This placing was worth €26,000.
The third horse was also English at odds of 5-1.
Jim Bolger was fourth with “Margarula.” It was ridden by Kevin Manning and won €5,200. Aidan O’Brien was fifth with “Kournakova.” It was ridden by Michael Kinane and won €3,900. The sixth horse was English, though it did have an Irish jockey (J.P. Spencer) The Pretty Polly stakes were run on 29th June at the Curragh.

Patricia

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Holiday Report

This is Des speaking. I was down in Castlegregory from the 13th June until the 19th. We were staying in a house attached to the home of a man named Tom. He’s a farmer and he keeps cattle. He rents out the house every summer to anyone who wants to use it. The beach is just around the corner from the house. Water sports are provided also. We were blessed with the weather. In the town of Castlegregory itself there was a family staying in another house and we are great friends with them. There were six children and we all went swimming and horse riding, it was lovely. There is a fabulous pub with a restaurant called Spillane’s. We went there most evenings. Brigid and I loved to go to the pub and look at the sea – the Atlantic. We also went for lovely walks along the beach.

Des. T

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Admin Unit

Hello from the Admin unit in Platinum Clubhouse. We have been quite busy in regard to preparing packs for the European Conference that went very well by all accounts. Our printer has been out of action for a while but now we are back in business. We also had some problems with our computers, which has deleted all the E-Mail addresses from the system. The Back-ups are also affected. In the circumstances, any club or person who would like to receive the newsletter by email is asked to send details of their address to us at:

Website: www.kildare.ie/platinum

Since the newsletter is prepared using Microsoft Publisher 2000, we ask you to specify what version of Publisher would be most convenient for you.

We look forward to hearing from you

Regards from everyone involved in the Admin Unit

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Clondalkin Clubhouse

We would Like to take this opportunity to inform the “Newsbridge” readership that a new Clubhouse has opened in Clondalkin. Our building is located in Clondalkin Village, directly above the Ulster Bank.
It consists of 2 Large rooms, a kitchen / dinning room and a smoking room. We moved into the building on the 4th of June this year. We are at present open on Tuesday and Thursday mornings, while we are building up our membership.
At the moment we have 15 Members attending the club. We are very busy organising the units and making links within our community.
We would like to thank everyone who has helped us to date, especially the members and staff of Platinum and Dochas Clubhouses.
We will keep you all updated on our progress when we start up our own Newsletter in the future

Staff and Members of Clondalkin Clubhouse.

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European Conferance

The 7th European Conference was held in Edinburgh, Scotland from July 3rd to 5th and was attended by Catherine, Des, Breda and Ray from Platinum Clubhouse along with Tom O’B from EVE.

Lots of Clubhouses attended from around the World. There were different workshops each day on different issues. Each member of Platinum attended different workshop, gaining lots of information. Platinum Clubhouse was also involved in hosting a workshop on space and location. The accommodation was excellent and we had a great time we learnt a lot of valuable information. We also visited another clubhouse, the Core Clubhouse who organised the whole conference, where we spoke to members and had a great time.

Ray

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My Story

My name is Philip. I work eight hours a week in Timbercraft from 10.30 am to 12.30 pm, from Monday to Thursday. Each day, I give the factory floor a good sweep up, all around the machines. The shavings off the machines, I shovel into a plastic bag, which the lads burn later in the furnace. Some days, I have to polish the furniture up in the storeroom. The lads in the factory are a nice bunch and I have made many new friends. I want to say thank you to Breda, Mary and Des for getting me the job there.

When I started the job, I was nervous following in Ray’s footsteps. He was well respected by the staff and management of Timbercraft. Finally I wish all the lads and ladies in Platinum clubhouse, members and staff all the best in the future. By the way Ray, the day you left Timbercraft, you broke poor Peter’s heart.

Philip

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Fun Page

Word Search

Please note that words occur in all directions, including diagonal, we hope you enjoy the 'search', let us know how you get on!!!!!!

Jokes And Gags

Q What do you get if you cross a ghost with a packet of crisps?
A. Snacks that go crunch in the night.

Q Why did the one handed man cross the road?
A. To get to the second hand shop.

Q What happened when the carrot died?
A. There was a turnip at the funeral.

Q What do you call a mean tempered horse?
A. A nightmare.

Q What part of a cow goes out through a gap first?
A. Its breath.

Q What often falls on the road but never gets hurt?
A. Rain.

Q What goes up and down the road but never crosses it?
A. The white line.

Q Where do fish sleep?
A. In a water bed.

Q How do make a sausage roll?
A. You push it down a hill.

Q Why did 5 eat 6?
A. Because 7 8 9.

Q What happens when the price of pork goes up ?
A. Pigs fly.

Q What do you get if you cross a skunk and a boomerang?
A. bad smell.

Q What do you call a laughing motorbike?
A. A yamahaha.

Patricia

Here is the final word on nutrition and health. It is a relief to know the truth after all those conflicting medical studies.

The Japanese eat very little fat and suffer fewer heart attacks than the British or Americans.

The French eat a lot of fat and also suffer fewer heart attacks than the British and Americans.

The Japanese drink very little red wine and suffer fewer heart attacks than the British or Americans.

The Italians drink excessive amounts of red wine and also suffer fewer heart attacks than the British and Americans.

Conclusion: Eat and drink what you like. Speaking English is apparently what kills you.

Well here we are with 6 to go and the world championship is already over, and we are only part way through the season. Juan Pablo Montoya was meant to be the danger to Michael Schumacher and he took pole position nine times through practice, but never took advantage of it. Therefore, when Michael qualified second or third behind Montoya, he was able to take advantage of the newcomer who was making silly mistakes.

Now the championship started a long time ago, and Montoya was meant to be a danger to Schumacher’s crown and there were those who said that Michael had lost his appetite following his win last year. As they started off, Michael won race after race, and has now clocked up wins in eight races and a second place. And he took a lot of records off other people. The only records left are by getting more poles in qualifying than Alain Prost did in his whole career, or to get another world championship. He could break the record by getting over 100 points in the championship, something not done before.

So you see how the engineers, the big man himself Ross Brawn and the mechanics are so dependable, and the cars themselves so solid that surround the whole team. Then there is Ruebens Baracello who helps things along. He is only 2 points behind Montoya. He could finish second which would be great, because they have already won the drivers and the constructors’ championship. It could be a one two, which would be brilliant.

Go ahead Ruebens and make Ferrari’s day.

As the race went on in Magney Coeur, France Montoya took the lead, and he faded as always. Then Michael took the lead and the racers took over from each other.
But, when it came to the crunch, the main man took the lead. He pulled in to take a pit stop; he pulled out into the race too quickly and encountered a 10 second race-through penalty for crossing the white line.

Then Kimi Raikkonen took the lead for McClaren. He was odds on to win his first race for McClaren, but Miko Salo who drives for Toyota went off beside the track. He dropped some oil and as Kimi was following, he skidded on this oil, which allowed Michael Schumacher came from behind. Michael blocked Kimi off and won the race that was to bring his 5th world championship.
He can now go to his home race, Hockenheim in Germany as the champion and this will take some pressure off him.
So when all is said and done, the only thing Ferrari needs now is Rubens Baracello to come second in the driver’s championship and then Ferrari has done it. So what about next season? It wouldn’t surprise me if they let Rubens win more races, or to be the next world champion but that is probably a long shot. The main three contenders to take Michael’s crown are Rubens or Montoya.

There is a long shot in Kimi Raikkonen because his performance this season has being very good. I am not saying Michael because he has won already, so I am only giving you the three that I think would push Michael for his crown.

Michael has Ferrari. Ferrari has Michael, so champions in 2002.

And next season???

Andrew

Members (attendance) of the Month: Philip and Ray.

Get Well wishes to: All our members who are unwell.

Birthday Wishes to: Martina, Kieran, Roisin, Linda, Desmond, Martin, Siobhan, Jackie, Eleanor Reg, Breda, Aileen, Denis, Bernie, Shane.

Welcome to our new members: Alan.

Contributors:
Tim, Philip, Breda, Patricia, Siobhan, Eileen, Des T, Ray, Andrew, Clondalkin Clubhouse.

Editorial Team:
Karin, Tom W and Catherine.