< PreviousAugust 2017 The Meath Coaster ©30Drowning in a Sea of Mis/DisinformationWhen it comes to making technol-ogy decisions and purchases you as the consumer are entering a minefield of disinformation and misinformation. Some of it is due to ignorance or hubris on the part of the person providing it but a large portion of this “fake news” is designed to ensure you are shielded from the truth on the products you intend to buy. Buyer BewareMost people are not reckless when it comes to spending their hard earned mon-ey and will avoid wasting it particularly when we are talking at a minimum €500. The technology market and the sellers who operate in it are more than aware of this and will appeal to those tried and trusted baits – the bargain price and or the “as good as” argument. To avoid these traps you need to have the maximum reliable knowledge about what you are buying at your fingertips or you’ll be sucked in and in many cases regret the purchase for the life of the product. Sir Francis Bacon is attributed with coining the phrase “knowl-edge is power” and in today’s technology marketplace I would suggest the addition of the phrase “provided it is true”.All That GlittersRecently I did some consulting on TV pur-chases and this is one of the areas where you better have your wits about you. With the correct information you can get an ex-cellent state of the art TV from a reliable manufacturer and eliminate all but one of your remote controls. In addition the cor-rect TV will open up your viewing choic-es and make the long winter months more bearable. Price differences I encountered varied by as much as €350 between sup-pliers and it many cases the shops were hawking their own name brand models which are in my opinion not a spot on the more reliable and feature rich models. The Growth of NRU’s (Non Repairable Units)As users of technology we are all famil-iar with the NRU’s (non repairable units). Virtually all non technological devices in your house are NRU’s from your wash-ing machine to your microwave. In com-puter technology the growth of NRU’s is on the increase and one many consumers are not familiar with. If you have been a computer user for more than 7 years you are used to the idea that when your com-puter breaks it can be repaired, albeit at a cost. This is no longer the case with all new computing devices and again sound advice and knowledge is key before you shell out your cash. § Oliver Reidy is a computer technician and has been in the industry since 1981.You can contact him via email at help.desk@reidyonline.com or at the telephone num-bers listed on this page. This article, and all previous articles, are available to view online at http://reidyonline.blogspot.ie/ or www.reidyonline.com/blogspot.htm COMPUTER PROBLEM?Contact Oliver 041.988.7526 087.797.0740iPhones Smartphones RepairLaptop/Desktop Repair & UpgradesAugust 2017 The Meath Coaster ©31Check out: www.facebook.com/caoimhescrumbles or contact 0860518497 for more informa-tionIce Cream Cone CupcakesA regular recipe made extra fun, some-thing the kids can do with just a little help from the parents.All Caoimhe’s Crumbles recipes are adapted for children, easy reading, and easy following so they can be the main baker in the house. Ice cream cone cupcakes, make a fantas-tic bake during our summer camps; one which happened in July and the next on August 10th to 12th; places are still avail-able, costing €70. Everything is provided in the class and all bakes are brought home with recipes so the children can show off all their new skills. Recipe makes 8Ingredients for the cake mix:110g margarine110g castor sugar110g self raising 2 eggsIngredients for buttercream:125g unsalted butter250g icing sugar25g milkAll else needed:8 Flat based ice cream conesA mini cupcake trayA piping bagsprinklesMethod:1. Mix all the cake mix ingredients to-gether to form a batter with no lumps. 2. Evenly spoon the mixture into each ice cream cone resting in the cupcake tray. Add one spoon into each cone at a time, and back track until all the mix is gone. 3. Adult part: place in the oven and bake for 15 minutes at 180◦c.4. Adult part: with an electric beater, beat the buttercream until light; put in a piping bag.5. When the cupcakes are cool pipe the buttercream on top in a swirl and fin-ish with sprinkles.Some of the talented bakers from Julys camp with their ice cream cupcakes, along with other bakesAugust 2017 The Meath Coaster ©32Academic Award Winners Sean Sanders, Carl Morris, Calem MArtin, Sophia Lyons, Tyler Stewart, Aoife McAuley, Mahmoud Salama and Sean MortaloMáistir Corrigan with the Handball Players of the YearBasketball Players of the Year Adelina Mulaj, Elizabeth Bors, Cian Crowley and Sean Warmenhoven with Inion KellyRugby Players of the Year Alex Yore and Eddie Avram with Máistir CampionArt Students of the Year Caoimhe Murphy and Chris McConnon Espinola with Inion CunninghamFootballers of the Year Christian Finlay and Ewan Coughlan with Máistir McCabeFootballers of the Year Aisling Berney, Caireann Bracken and Shauna BellColáiste na hInse AwardsAugust 2017 The Meath Coaster ©33Gradam Acaduil Winner Mahmoud SalamaSports Award for the Year Winner Alannah BolandMusic Student of the Year Zach Plunkett with Inion ConwayRéalt Eolais Winner Aoife McAuleyAthelete of the Year Lee McGuinness with Máistir FinlayGradam Cultura Winner Medb Brereton HurleySports Award for the Year James McElearneyGaelic Footballer of the Year Ewan CoughlanSenior Debating Student of the Year Eoghan BolandGradam Dearcadh Award Winner James RiceAugust 2017 The Meath Coaster ©34Please mention The Meath Coaster when replying to advertisementsTHE VIEW FROM THE KITCHEN TABLE, By Geraldine HughesMy mother swears she can’t breathe properly unless she is somewhere near the sea. As soon as she was able to we moved to live beside it and as soon as I was able to, I did the same. I can climb dunes, bury people in sand, build a sand-castle, paddle, and collect shells like a pro. I almost always go on holidays to a beach as well so it’s a bit of a mystery to me why I can’t sunbathe properly. We were lucky enough to spend a week at the beach in the old part of Albuferia, Portugal in June. It’s as unspoiled as you’ll get, and the first day we just popped the towels on the sand and got on with reading the books we never seem to have time for at home. So far so good but we ended up covered in sand. I felt I could improve on the experience so I was delighted when I found an airbed in the apartment. Perfect! I strolled the 5 minute walk to the beach the next day, on my own as Mr.The View and my daughter, mortified by the neon pink inflatable, pretended they weren’t with me. We set up camp, and this time I felt I had it sort-ed. We put up the umbrella, which I then tied all our other stuff to weigh it down, lay my towel on my airbed, and -instant comfort! Except it wasn’t. Every time I moved, the towel slid around on the slippery airbed, and every time I Oasis Childcare Centre Mornington, Co. Meath Crèche, ECCE, Montessori Playgroup, After School Contact: 041-9888135 Now enrolling for SEPTEMBER 2017 Early booking advisable! DO NOT BE DISSAPPOINTED East Meath’s Leading Childcare Provider for 12 Years www.oasischildcarecentre.com ONE CHILD ONE LIFE ONE PRE-SCHOOL EXPERIENCE Since 2005 our loyal repeat customers & 100% occupancy tells you that we deliver the highest quality, affordable childcare in the East Meath area. We are family run and not part of a chain. Enrol with us and make sure your precious child gets the best! went for a paddle, my daughter was on it when I returned. We went home covered in sand. Day three a cheeky little wind rocked up and while we turned our backs for five minutes to grab a coffee, the um-brella turned inside out and deposited all our clothes on the sand. The airbed, mean-while, had taken off up the beach and was terrorising an innocent family a few hun-dred metres away. We went home covered in sand. Day four we took it back to basics and pretended not to mind the breeze tem-porarily blinding us with sand every ten minutes. I people watched as three guys, unbeknownst to themselves, gave me a masterclass in beach-craft. Firstly they laid out a beach sheet each, (who knew you could buy such a thing?!) which were tucked into the sand as though making a bed. On top of this they carefully laid out large beach towels, a radio tucked into a pillowcase (clever!) and their belongings. They didn’t even speak to each other throughout. This was a ritual, and they were experts. It was becoming clear that the three of us sand covered Paddies, were rank ama-teurs. They went swimming and when they arrived back, did they dive head first for their towels like us? No. They stood chatting until not a drop of water remained and then lay down on tow-els that remained pristine all day long. Us? We went home covered in sand. §HOUSEHOLD SERVICESPlease mention The Meath Coaster when replying to advertisementsBG PAINTING & DECORATINGInterIor & exterIor25 YEARS EXPERIENCE REFERENCES AVAILABLEFREE CONSULTATIONS & ESTIMATESWALLPAPER ALSO AVAILABLEContact Brian 086 7308449Call Nicky - 041 9887128 087 7734344 A Local BusinessCosmic Cleanwww.cosmicclean.ieT&Cs & Minimum Charge appliesMAJOR DISCOUNTS for Multiple RoomsRug Collection & Delivery Service AvailableProfessional Carpet & Upholstery CleaningSPECIAL OFFER!Noel SavageElectrical Services20 Years Experience • Security LightingFuseboard Upgrades • Rewires, Extra Sockets • Lights, Fully Insured and RegisteredNo Job Too SmallBettystown, Co. MeathMobile: 086 2518898TREE SURGERY Trees Topped, Trimmed or Removed incl. root destruction and removal. Stump GrindingHEDGE CUTTING & SHAPING. OLD GARDEN SHEDS & FENCING REMOVED All green waste removed, Driveway, Patio, Power-washed, Gutter cleaningSpecial OAP RatesFree Estimates, Fully Insured, Long Experience4 SEASONS GARDEN SERVICESContact Jim 085 1163631-042 6822585No Job Too Big or Too SmallSILKPLASTERWall Covering Material for Interior Design083 877 0274 Bettystown AlterationsWedding Alterations and Evening WearPremises located behind the offices in McDonough Caravan Park on Triton Road (Opposite Tesco) Phone: 086 775 3 776Tues - Sat 10am - 5pm Lunch 1:30pm - 2:30pm Close Tue 2pmClothing Alterations•Wedding/Evening Wear • Leather/Suede Repairs •CurtainsSame Day ServiceMoloney Boiler MaintenanceBarry Moloney - Heating Engineer• Oil Boilers Services and Repairs• Aga Cookers• Central Heating Power Flush• Installation of Central Heating Filters• All Aspects of Heating & Plumbing - Commercial / ResidentialFree Quotations, All Work GuaranteedMobile: 087 3337488barry@moloneyboilermaintenance.ie Grant Electrical96 Betaghstown Wood, BettystownPhone: 041 988 6908Mobile: 087 275 4057• Electrical Installation and Maintenance• Extra Sockets & Lighting• Electrical Shower Installed & Repairs• Immersion Heater Installed & Fitted• Free Estimates NO JOB TOO SMALL!August 2017 The Meath Coaster ©36What would you do to save over €3500 a year ?The Central Bank of Ireland recently announced that there are over 100,000 households with mortgages, who could get a better deal by simply switching their mortgage. What most banks rely on is that people will not want to have to go through the hassle of switching, but have you re-ally considered enquiring about reducing your monthly mortgage cost?Example:If we use a mortgage of €240,000 on a house worth €300,000 (80% Loan to Value) and a variable rate of 4.5%, the rough cost of interest payments per year is €10,800. Currently, one Mortgage pro-vider offers 3 year fixed rate of 2.99 % for mortgages that would yield an annual sav-ing of €3,624. That’s €302 a month less in interest repayments just by moving mort-gage providers!Is there a lot of work involved?The first step is to put in an enquiry to see if it’s worth your while. This is not a lot of work and shouldn’t take long. If you decide the savings are worthwhile, you would then have to consider if you wanted to proceed with an application. In this regard, the real question you should ask is “am I prepared to put in a little work getting documents together to make monthly savings on our mortgage?”. Your mortgage provider is hoping that you are prepared to pay more to avoid the hassle involved in switching to a cheaper provider.Isn’t there a huge cost involved?There are costs involved but the main costs are usually the legal ones. Some mortgage providers now cover up to €2,000 of po-tential legal costs. This would make the process far less costly. But even if you had to cover the entire legal fees, if you were saving over €2,000 a year, it would still be a cost saving exercise. Can I make any other savings?There is a good chance that many peo-ple took mortgages out directly with the banks and were required to take out Life Assurance (e.g. Mortgage protection). In many cases, this was not the cheapest cov-er available. By reviewing your mortgage you can also review your Life Cover.How do I know if it’s worth my while?If you have a mortgage that is currently 90% below the value of your property (90% LTV), you may be able to make substantial annual savings. The lower the Loan to Value (LTV), the better the rate/savings you will be offered.I am interested, what do I do?If you contact me by phone/email, I can begin a pre-enquiry. This shouldn’t take long and all you are doing is seeing if it’s worth your while. You are not obliged to proceed and will not incur any cost at this stage. Asides from a few minutes of your time, what do you have to lose? . §Drumgoole Financial Services is regulated by The Central Bank of IrelandAugust 2017 The Meath Coaster ©37Why Therapy Is Good For You? Everything you feel is in-tense? Perhaps you suffered Trauma and it's affecting you? Looking for health and wellness improvement or to enjoy life more. Maybe your relationship is strained. You need more con-fidence and esteem to change jobs or get promotion. Therapy is not just for mental illness or issues, it is excellent for Life Improvement, and some well -earned 'ME' time. Some think therapy sounds like a con-demnation. In fact therapy is effective for helping painful experiences become tolerable. A proven method for changing harmful thinking, and behavioural pat-terns AND to make good lives great. For comparison, look at two ways you manage your physical health: Go to a physician to treat a medical problem: You feel symptoms and seek treatment to re-turn to your “normal” state. By contrast, you come to me for Therapy to get to eliminate the actual CAUSE of this prob-lem and generally many come simply to make a good life better. Two different ap-proaches to health, one focused on illness and the other wellness. Therapy is unique in that it acts as the psychological equiva-lent of both the MD for the symptoms and therapy to eliminate the Cause of those symptoms. So in essence you go to thera-py to treat problems as well as improve an already decent life. In the vein of the wellness model, here are more reasons to come to me. You want to love and accept yourself – Therapy helps ex-plore roadblocks to self-esteem and learn ways to make your happiness a priority. You want to Improve your Re-lationship. Many are functional and couple coaching, improves communication and strategize ways to return excitement. You want to be a fantastic parent – Many revert to parenting patterns observed in our own childhood. Therapy helps you be-come the parent you want to be (and your children need). You want to thrive in your career – Is fear, hard work, or interpersonal conflict hold-ing you back? Therapy is the catalyst for healthy change in your career. You want to understand your purpose in life – helping you uncover the passions buried under the busyness of life. You want one hour each week to focus completely on yourself – Therapy is a course where you are the subject matter. Explore yourself, go deeper into your cur-rent thoughts and feelings, or just sit and “be” for a while. You want to let go and forgive – Holding a grudge has serious physical and emotional consequences. Therapy resolves these is-sues for yourself and moves you forward Therapy is helpful for serious problems, but it offers much more. Move past the medical model myopia that contributes to therapy stigma, and call me right now on 085 8126677 to book your appointment to wellness or life improvement today. Ber-nice Mc Kenna MICHP. See my Ad on page 39. §August 2017 The Meath Coaster ©38Wild West to Ancient East The CocaCola 52nd European Sandyacht Championships , Laytown & Bettystown Beach, 10-15th Sept.For the first time in its 55 year history the European Sandyacht Champion-ship is being held in the Republic of Ire-land. With the encouragement support and assistance of Meath County Council and local Councillors the event is being hosted on the beautiful beaches of East Meath. Bringing 200 overseas visitors to the area for an extend stay of in excess of one week. This is a terrific opportunity to showcase East Meath and to get the local area onto the world tour of Sandyacht-ing events and as a venue for other beach sports tourism activities.This event has so far attracted participants from 16 countries including some from Western North and South America, like Santiago in Chile, California and Nevada US. From the wild west to our own piece of the Ancient East in East Meath. This is a truly unique event to Ireland and it promises to be a fantastic spectacle with 110 sandyacht of different types already entered. Competitions will take place between Monday 10th and Friday Sept 15th along the beach on the area normally covered by the sea at full tide, the area below the high water mark.During the week pedestrians are requested to please follow the Beach Wardens in-structions and stay clear of the competi-tion areas which will be clearly marked out by walking along the area not normal-ly covered at full tide.The local organisers would love more of the community to get involved through volunteering to assist with the event. Part of the event project is to recruit and train 10th -15th September 2017Laytown & Bettystown Beach, Meath, IrelandEuropeanSandyachtingChampionship52ndSome Numbers1 Week12 European Titles 16 Countries Participating17 yrs old is the youngest competitor50 Officials76 yrs young is is the eldest competitor110 Competitors2000 plus tourist nights in East MeathMany of the event participants have indi-cated that they are arriving early to attend the Annual Laytown Strand Horse races the week preceding this colourful event and others are staying for the week fol-lowing the event to explore the historic Boyne Valley region.August 2017 The Meath Coaster ©39Stamullen, Co. Meathwww.mammydaycare.comCrèche, Montessori & After schoolPhone:01 6905333 Purpose Built Fully Insured Experienced staff Fire Certified Intercom Entry Enclosed safety tiled play area Private car park Nutritious meals cooked in houseWeekly Summer Camps Now Onchildcare in Bettystown3, 4, 5 days a weekoptions availableAffordable ChildcareSchemeECCE places offeredChildren from1.5 years +mobile:087 0541391email: miles.of.smiles@hotmail.comDOCTORS RECOMMEND BERNICE MC KENNA Counselling and CoachingIF YOU ARE SUFFERING HEALTH PROBLEMS EMOTIONAL DRAMA OR LACKING HAPPINESS I CAN AND I WILL HELP YOU TODAY . SIMPLY PHONE OR TEXT 0858126677 RIGHT NOW.people from the local community who are interested in assisting with future beach based events on the East Meath foreshore. This can be done by registering on www.eventvolunteers.ie and this part of the project is kindly supported by Bord Ias-caigh Mhara North East Fisheries Local Action Group, (FLAG , NE).This event is the fruition of a com-munity effort supported generously by many local businesses and agencies including The Meath Coaster to whom the organisa-tion are eternally grateful.The event will generate Tourism Ambassadors for East Meath and assist in expanding the reach and potential of the local tourism offering.Come along and watch or better still vol-unteer to be a part of the event. Please support the local businesses who are assisting the event and are identified by the Event Branding they display, they are investing in the future of our area by making these events happen..www.ec2017ireland.comPlease give our overseas guests a warm welcome and big cheer and do please follow the signage and Beach Wardens’ in-structions during the event.Next >