Between McSwiggan’s and Burke’s is where Mike stands around waiting idly and endlessly for nothing, smelling of old carpets and looking like he’s been lost in the woods since the fifties.

Seventeen years ago his brother gave him two thousand euro and drove off. A solid base to build on.

Patrick Mc Loughlin is an English Language Teacher in Ireland who dabbles in writing. He also dabbles in painting and music and someday hopes to do more than dabble. He lives in the west of Ireland, where it’s hard to concentrate.