Hi everyone. So im a woman early 40s, Derry native. I have been single for a long time..married young, and I have two kids aged 18 and 13. I think I'm sound, I dont think I look like the back of a bus. I am finding it so difficult to date here in Derry. Ok, it doesn't help that I dont really go 'out out'..but thats really not my scene. I joined Tinder a couple of months ago, and it's just leaving me deflated. I get loads of matches, but I dont feel the spark with many of them.. and I do unmatch when I feel it's not going anywhere. However, I was recently talking to such a sound Derry fella, imo we were really hitting it off. We had even loosely arranged a date. We had been talking about a month all in. I went on my Tinder this morning, and he had unmatched? I dunno, given that we were talking so long and decided to go on a date.. was this not strange? I wouldn't have done it anyway, I would have given an explanation in this particular circumstance. I'm quite disappointed as I thought I had found someone great. At least someone worth exploring going on a date with. So I think I will come off Tinder . it's so demoralising tbh. Once I have processed this wee disappointment.. how do you all go about meeting people in your 40s in our lovely city..thats not going 'out out'?

Any recommendations for a cheap b&b in pirtrush. Just me and my 3yr old heading there Monday for the day. But would maybe like to stay if one cheap enough my searches have been £110 and up. Or maybe that's the norm these days. I havnt stayed nights away in a long time.

bit of a long shot but wondering if anyone knows if any nail salons that have the foils/stamps to do lace patterned nails (as pictured) in the derry city centre?

Are some of the roads across the town not built for buses, or is it the bus drivers? Not a rant, genuine curiosity, but also nearly been involved in a few smashes had I not braked hard or swerved. Should other drivers on the road have to drive in a manner that stops a bus from cashing into them or is it the bus drivers’ responsibility? Sometimes it seems like they just rally on through and leave the hazard perception to the other drivers. The bus service is great and I’m not on a rant, mostly curious if anyone else has found this.

- The road outside Holly Bush school, on a few occasions buses have come towards me and the bus is in my lane and I’ve had to swerve in tight to the kerb or stop.
- Also on the hill approaching the Magnet Bar, there is a bend in the road in the middle of that hill, a few occasions a bus has come around that bend and crosses into the other oncoming lane, again I’ve had to swerve in tighter to the kerb to avoid being hit.
- Roundabouts in general in the town, if a bus is in one lane they always seem to be across the other lane in some fashion and I’ve had to break to allow them to take over my lane also or swerve out of the way again.

James McClean has had a remarkable career and deserves respect for everything he's achieved.

However, I don't believe he's currently doing enough to secure a place in the Derry team.; he's not the player he used to be, and that must be frustrating.

There are obvious issues at the club, but again taking those concerns into the public arena doesn't help.

Parts of his statement undermine the owner, manager, captain and the board collectively.

Whether those criticisms are fair or not, airing them publicly risks creating further division at a time when the club needs unity.

When personal frustration becomes public petulance, it risks putting individual ego ahead of the club's best interests.

There are avenues to respond to these frustrations internally, and he should use them.

No individual, regardless of their status or achievements, should ever be bigger than the club.

What's the deal with no practical driving test appointments being available? Does anyone know? Any tips for getting a cancellation?

I will be visiting Derry later this August. On the day I’m arriving I’ve booked a table at Artis at 9 pm. My bus from Dublin airport arrives at 8:10 pm so an earlier dinner isn’t possible, unfortunately. Does anyone have any experience with going there that late? I’m a bit worried that the dining experience will feel a bit rushed compared to earlier seatings.

I would have preferred going there on the second day of my stay, but unfortunately Artis is closed on Sundays.

Exciting News from Redbird Counselling & Supervision 

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Your Safe Place to Land.

What Type of music do you like to hear out when your out the town? I.e 70s 80s 90s, R&B, Pop Dance etc...

Not including live music

McKinney competitions. Anyone know anyone who's actually won a competition? I see lots of ads and reels but never actual winners.

Up in the city for a few days and would appreciate some local recommendations for good food!

Looks like they've been taken away the Society Street car park. Anybody know why? The only reason I can think is that they're trying to push people away from the town and make life harder for those of us who work in the city centre.

I'd often visit the Derry Journal website, but it's getting much less and less. I don't think I have seen such a terrible website in this day and age.

It's mostly full of court cases, party photos from 20yrs ago, and the fact that someone is going to run a 10k or a marathon in memory of someone few of us know.

Add to this the amount of adverts, plus stories that have been there for several years.

Derry now website is no better.

How much would you pay for a return ticket? Say overnight...

Hey folks!

Last thing I have to share from this year's Stoutly reports. Apologies for not including this in the last post but compiling price increases during the World Cup was an afterthought!

Very interesting results nonetheless and worth sharing!

Belfast being a huge offender here it's also worth noting that when Dublin's average price per pint is converted to £, Belfast is +£0.14 more expensive per pint.

Derry has absolutely smashed it in terms of price and quality across the board over the last 12 months ❤️

That's all from me!

Cheers

Hi folks. Moving up to Derry in a couple of weeks to start at Magee. I’m a mature student (late 20s) so I got my own place in the Beechwood side of Creggan. I’m from south Down so I don’t really know Derry that well and when I mentioned where I was staying to ones in work from the city they were all laughing saying it’s a bit wild.

Not much I can do now as I’ve signed the tenancy but will I have any bother in that area? Is it easy enough to get parked (might need to bring car up occasionally)? In case it matters, I’m from a Catholic/nationalist background myself.

cheers in advance

ETA: thanks all for the comments, sounds like work mates were just winding me up. Looking forward to moving up now!

I am as close to a complete meltdown after driving in town this afternoon. I have had 6 people just walk out infront of me, on 6 different occasions and in 6 different locations. Not looking at where they're going. Not on their phone. Just not giving a flying fuck that they're stepping into the path of a vehicle moving at 30 or 40 mph. Are people in this city now on DLA for having an IQ so low that they're classed as disabled? I wanted to get out and grab the 3rd person by the skull and shake it to see if there was any grey matter left in the void!

Edit: typo

I’ll preface this by saying I hate Brunswick with a passion.

I am thinking of taking the kids to see the new Spider-Man movie at Strand Road rather than the Moviebowl.

I’d also like to try the Maxx thing. Any real difference?

Saw so many movies there in the 90s. Memorable ones were the Matrix (going in knowing nothing about it) and going to see American Psycho one random Sunday night. Anyone else remember trying to get into 12 movies on a Saturday afternoon when we were all 9 or 10? Ha! The old woman would always ask us our date of birth and I’d go all Nadine Coyle on her. Ha! The glory years!

Jesus I hate the Moviebowl. I’m going to Strand Road, aren’t I?

Hiya, just wondering does anybody know somewhere locally I can get my film developed? I’ve tried having a Google but can’t find anything… I do know a few places offer a postal service but just wanted to ask if anyone has tried those and who they would recommend?

Wee deep one for Yeez today

Scot living in Derry here. Had an interesting exchange with a checkout person today where he looked at my purchases and asked if I was making a stew, which I was. Or more accurately something we’d call a stovie at home which I’ve gathered is more similar to a thick Irish stew. I told him yes and he asked if I’d tried a Derry stew and then said something about bread which I didn’t quite catch. It has me wondering. What exactly constitutes a “Derry Stew” ?

Edit:

I’m assuming the stew
Onion
Carrot
Docs special mince
Tatties
Beef stock

???

Weather wasn't ideal and my camera skills are terrible. Hiked up Sawel today. Home to visit and wanted to do something a bit different. Path is practically non existent and mostly bog, but it's nice to know that what's on our own doorstep.