Birthdays:

Busta Rhymes: rapper

Louis Theroux: journalist/broadcaster

Cher: singer

Timothy Olyphant: actor

Holidays,Festivals & Special Days:

Feast of Saint Sanctan.

World Metrology Day.

In History :

1932 – Amelia Earhart took off to fly solo across the Atlantic Ocean. She became the first woman to achieve the feat.

1942 – Japan completed the conquest of Burma.

1990 – The Hubble Space Telescope sent back its first photographs.

Birthdays:

Lily Cole: model

Jenny Berggren: singer

Phil Rudd: musician

Holidays,Festivals & Special Days:

Feast of Saint Dunstan.

Greek Genocide Remembrance Day.

In History :

1962 – Marilyn Monroe performed a sultry rendition of “Happy Birthday” for U.S. President John F. Kennedy.

1999 – “Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace” was released.

2003 – Hundreds of Albert Einstein’s scientific papers, personal letters and humanist essays were make available on the Internet.

Birthdays:

Tina Fey: comedian/actress

Chow Yun Fat: actor

Bill Wallace: musician

Holidays,Festivals & Special Days:

Feast of Saint Felix.

World AIDS Vaccine Day.

International Museum Day.

In History :

1897 – A public reading of Bram Stoker’s new novel, “Dracula, or, The Un-dead,” was performed in London.

1951 – The United Nations moved its headquarters to New York City.

1974 – India became the sixth nation to explode an atomic bomb.

Birthdays:

Trent Reznor: musician/singer

Bill Paxton: actor

Andrea Corr: singer

Holidays,Festivals & Special Days:

Feast of Saint Restituta.

World Information Society Day.

International Day Against Homophobia and Transphobia.

In History :

1940 – Germany occupied Brussels, Belgium and began the invasion of France.

1980 – Rioting erupted in Miami’s Liberty City neighborhood after an all-white jury in Tampa acquitted four former Miami police officers of fatally beating black insurance executive Arthur McDuffie.

2007 – Trains crossed the border dividing North and South Korea for the first time since 1953.

Birthdays:

Pierce Brosnan: actor

Megan Fox: actress

Krist Novoselic: musician

David Boreanaz: actor

Holidays,Festivals & Special Days:

Feast of Saint Abdas.

In History :

1929 – The first Academy Awards were held in Hollywood.

1975 – Japanese climber Junko Tabei became the first woman to reach the summit of Mount Everest.

1991 – Queen Elizabeth II became the first British monarch to address the U.S. Congress.

Birthdays:

David Cronenberg: filmmaker/writer

Jessica Sutta: singer/dancer

Jasper Johns: artist

Holidays,Festivals & Special Days:

Feast of Saint Dymphna.

Aoi Matsuri, Japan.

Peace Officers Memorial Day, United States.

In History :

1930 – Ellen Church became the first airline stewardess.

1957 – Britain dropped its first hydrogen bomb on Christmas Island in the Pacific Ocean.

1988 – The Soviet Union began their withdrawal of its 115,000 troops from Afghanistan.

Birthdays:

Mark Zuckerberg: Facebook founder

George Lucas: Star Wars creator

David Byrne: musicin/singer

Holidays,Festivals & Special Days:

Feast of Saint Matthias.

World Naked Gardening Day.

Izumo-taisha Shrine Grand Festival,Japan.

In History :

1846 – The Associated Press was founded.

1973 – Skylab One was launched into orbit around Earth as the first U.S. manned space station.

1996 – A tornado hit 80 villages in nothern Bangladesh. More than 440 people were killed.

Birthdays:

Harvey Keitel: actor

Stephen Colbert: satirist

Robert Pattinson: actor

Holidays,Festivals & Special Days:

Feast of Saint Julian.

Rotuma Day.

In History :

1888 – Slavery was abolished in Brazil.

1940 – Winston Churchill made his first speech as the prime minister of Britain.

1958 – French troops took control of Algiers.

I was tired after a stressful long weekend and was in need of an early night.

I called my Step-Mom for a catch up. I needed to let her know how everything was going with me and find out how she was. This was nothing out of the norm. When I’m on my way home from work, I usually call some family member for a catch up because this is the only time of day where I can talk without worrying about getting fired for being on the phone or having my baby crying at me for attention.

I was 30 seconds from my house, when before I could even blink, my phone was snatched out of my hand.

I won’t deny it. For a split second, I thought the person was joking. It was that pause that meant I didn’t even see his face.

All I saw was a grey hoodie, tracksuit bottoms and runner. I can’t even tell you what colour the bottoms or runners were. He glanced around quickly whilst weaving his way through traffic but all I saw was a blur.

Another hoodie said he would get it for me. He ran after the guy. I have no doubt in my mind that they were in it together. A group of lads behind kept telling me it was a junkie just before they disappeared on the same route as the thief. And so, I know they were with him too.

I could see people in their cars looking at me and shaking their heads in sympathy. A few people walked by me while I was trying to pull myself together.

One girl stopped to see if I was ok.

One person.

I got home to my house and did all the things you are meant to do when your phone (or anything else) is stolen from you.

I called the guards. I called my mobile network.

The guards, much to my surprise, arrived after five minutes and not only did they drive me around to see if I could recognise the guy, they actually searched people fitting his description. While I was in the car with them, three more calls came through the radio about other phones being taken. They are calling to my home on Saturday to take some form of statement. I know they know who did it but will never be able to prove it.

I know I won’t get my phone back. I accepted that once it left my hand. But that doesn’t make it any easier.

I can still feel his nails on my face as he scraped along it to grab my phone. No physical mark is left but I doubt that what I do feel will fade for quite some time.

And it’s not the phone that has me upset. It’s everything on the phone. All photos of the last 9 months of my daughters life were on that phone. These are pictures I will never get to replace.

“You should have backed them up” I’ve been told. Yes, I should have but I don’t know one person who doesn’t think “Ah sure, it’ll be grand. I’ll do it tomorrow”.

“You shouldn’t be walking around on your phone” is the thing that gets to me the most. It’s called a mobile phone . I shouldn’t have to worry about someone stealing my phone while I talk on it.

I guess what I’m wondering now is when the worry about where I live will go away. Will I always be frightened of that road? It’s not as if I was beaten up or attacked so to speak. It was more the violation. I didn’t pay for the phone but it was mine. Someone stole something from ME.

I work hard to help provide for my daughter with hardly any money for luxuries. That was my luxury. I used to feel sorry for those kids – ‘The Hoodies’. I could call them much worse now but really, what’s the point in that!?

This has made me question everything I thought and felt about Dublin. Until Tuesday, I had never once felt nervous here. I never wandered down places where I shouldn’t. I never spoke to strangers. I was never one to get so drunk I would lose all reason. In short, I was careful.

The one time I let my guard down, I was robbed.

I wish I could campaign for some sort of action against things like this happening but what can be done? Those people shaking their heads in sympathy couldn’t or wouldn’t help. The people who were on the street at the time couldn’t or wouldn’t help. That ‘hoodie’ and many others will never get their just comeuppance.

My rose tinted glasses have been removed. I fear that I may have actually seen the ‘real’ Dublin now and it’s a Dublin I don’t like.

Birthdays:

Holly Valance: singer

Perttu Kivilaakso: musician

Jeremy Paxman: journalist

Holidays,Festivals & Special Days:

Feast of Saint Majolus.

National Technology Day, India.

Lemuria, Ancient Rome.

In History :

1689 – French and English naval battle took place at Bantry Bay.

1995 – The Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty was extended indefinitely. The treaty limited the spread of nuclear material for military purposes.

1997 – Garry Kasparov, world chess champion, lost his first ever multi-game match. He lost to IBM’s chess computer Deep Blue. It was the first time a computer had beat a world-champion player.