A Year In Redwood

As I was trying to remember where I’d put something this morning, and pulling the place apart looking for it… I was reminded of the very first week we were here, and for some reason we had to go and sign some form or other at the local Garda Station.  As you all are probably aware, rural Garda Stations are seriously under threat – in fact, we now no longer have our own Garda Station in Lorrha. However, back then in 2003 we did have a part-time Garda Station.  In all the time I lived in Dublin, other than the Gardai I knew through diving, I can honestly say I never knew my local Garda, even when you consider the years that I was the key-holder for Clark’s house, and the number of late night/early morning alarm calls I answered.

Anyway, that first week as you can imagine we were busy unpacking boxes when I suddenly remembered that we needed to sign this form.  At the time the station was only open for a couple of hours on certain days of the week.  And, of course, it was 5 minutes to closing time when I remembered we had this job to do.  We both ran out and jumped into car.  (I will admit we were rather scruffy looking!)  Get to Garda Station and explain the reason for our visit…. we were asked for identification and verification of who we were… and then received a lecture for not having a driving licence with us as “it is an offence to drive a vehicle without having your licence”!  However, it was OK for us to get back into car, drive the 2 miles back to the house and come back with the said licence!  On our return… we were once again quizzed…. Alfie was behind me as we were quizzed, I was afraid to turn around at look at his face.  One of the questions was “you both live in the same house and yet your surnames are different!”  For those of you who know Alfie you can imagine what his face must have been like!  We managed to sign the form, and left the poor Garda to work out how you can live in a house with two different surnames!

A couple of months later, I had to renew the tax on my car, and pulled the house apart to find the tax book.  At this stage I think we still had boxes that weren’t unpacked.  I know there were boxes not unpacked coz we still have boxes of books that haven’t been unpacked!  Despite the fact that I had diligently labelled all boxes as to what their contents were, no matter where I looked I could not find the tax book.  So being the good person I am I completed the form for the renewal, wrote a nice letter explaining the situation to the car tax people telling them that I had lost my tax book in a house move.  Seems perfectly plausible!  BUT you have to get the form and letter stamped at a Garda Station!  So this time, I thought I’d go to the Garda Station in Birr which would be like the HQ for Lorrha.  Guess who was the Garda on duty – yes, my old friend!  I decided to keep it simple and just ask him to stamp the form.  Oh no, he had to read through everything and then started on at me that I couldn’t put on the form that my tax book was lost in a house move!  I am standing there looking at this guy, and wondering is he going to give me an idea as to what I should say….  No, he just kept arguing that I couldn’t say this!  Thankfully, for somewhere in the depths of the Garda Station (I couldn’t see who was even speaking) a voice boomed out “for God’s sake sign the form for the woman – it’s easily known you’ve never moved house! Hasn’t the woman been through enough!”  It turned out to be the Sergeant who had moved house and knew the chaos that that involves!

Since those first few months we have had 2 different local Garda based in the village and have gotten to know them.  Only last year, when we were going visiting to Cadamstown on a dark, wet, winter’s evening, we came upon a Garda Checkpoint and were greeted with “Hi there Alfie and Margaret” – even though we couldn’t see the Garda’s face….

Does all this now mean we ‘are known to Gardai’.  I wonder every time I hear those news reports!!!!

BTW thank you to all who’ve left such nice comments…. it is great to get them – keep them coming, please!