Originally published in Village Magazine, this series of satirical sketches revolves around a crusty know-it-all who holds court at his local pub more often than his doctor would recommend. He is attended by three other regulars, Matt ‘Two Ducks’ Butler, Alec ‘Maxwell’ Cosgrave, and the narrator, who we find out in the third instalment is known as ‘Howard’. The theme of the series concerned the neglect of personal and civic responsibility rife in Irish society, which lays the foundation for an environment accommodating to more significant corruption. It has occurred to the author that he is too hard on what he sees clearest, and that maybe the whole world is this way. It is also worth noting that the third instalment mentioned above, 'Contagion', has had a topical resurgence in the advent of swine flu and 'respiratory etiquette'.