No quitten we're whelan on to chitchat 11

Was a 2wd with a front loader on dd, clean it was, was that it?

Well ware, they are essentially the exact same as a late model 135, except the tin work, so should be reliable and no shortage of cheap spares if there is any issues. I keep my 135 fairly busy here and prefer to use it for any jobs it is comfortably capable of over the bigger machines, weather permitting of course.

How do you feck up filling a shoe box?

No knives, toy guns, rubber snakes, masks, anything that has connotations to war or danger or might instill fear.

Some people put rubbish in them so a child is seen to leaving them up in school/church etc, some are practically empty.

Every box should contain 1 something to wear, cap gloves Tshirt etc. 2, soap, toothpaste toothbrush, facecloth, 3 something to write with, paper,books ,crayons markers etc and 4 then fill the box with toys, puzzles, sweets etc .

We have to open every box and check them , and fill whats missiing, some are very poor.

People leave in fillers as we call them at the depot but there's never enough.

Every box has to be filled, we're not allowed throw two three boxes into one

I only got two boxes with the four euros in them so it must be collected else where.

I counted 350 boxes in my pile after the week, I only worked from 11 to 2 every day, I'd be wrecked after that

We have to open every box

My Mrs used that shoe box appeal to go into Mullingar last week and buy 2 new pairs of shoes. Then of course the next day she had to go to Athlone to buy stuff to put into the boxes!

And this evening she tells me she's actually not gone on one pair of shoes but can't return it as the box is gone!

If you can find your nearest depot where the boxes are being checked, That'd be the place at this stage, thanks for that

Phone the local contact in your county from this list, you'll see there's a list of drop off points and one or two LOCAL CONTACTS in each county.

Just say you want to donate money to fill off the existing boxes.

https://www.teamhope.ie/christmas-shoebox-appeal/drop-off-points/

The only thing I find not suitable is chocolate, anytime i need a sugar fix, i take a chocolate santy. chocolate doesn't travel well, even the few weeks it's in the box, it's wrecked already. Liquids as well is taken out you'd get the odd bottle of shampoo.

We always do the shoebox appeal too. My aunt runs an orphanage in Romania for children who are terminal. She says it’s one of the few joys they get.

Is the shoebox thing a religious thing?

I mean, are there strings attached to getting the shoebox, maybe around listening to some religious mumbo jumbo or the likes?

No green, I prob shouldn’t have quoted you.

It happened to be a conversation between me and the missus here. She said there was some religious thing with the shoeboxes…

google threw this up for me… seems to be a good dollop of religion in there, in this article anyways. Now, according to the article, it seems the kids are still getting the boxes - but trusting priests with presents for kids seems dodgy to me…

https://www.irishtimes.com/news/where-the-shoeboxes-go-1.13655

Dined and stayed in Nevin Maguires place last night. Wouldn't be a foodie type but in fairness it was some dining experience. Thoroughly enjoyed it. Was gift for wife's 50th 2 years ago. Cancelled twice due to Covid. Great to finally get there.

Sligo tonight so not quiet as fancy !

I read it all right Bass…

The article does indeed come down mainly on the American crowd… And as I said the kids are still getting the boxes. But I dunno, it just doesn’t sit well with me for some reason…