Tag Archives: cliffs

The Grumpy Grotesque’s Grand Getaway

Entry 1: Day 1,472,305 of Unappreciated Perch-dom

Another dawn. Another flock of pigeons mistaking my head for a public convenience. Honestly, if I wanted this much unsolicited avian attention, I’d have been carved as a bird feeder. Name’s Gary. I’m a gargoyle. A gargoyle, mind you, not a grotesque. There’s a difference. Gargoyles have a function – we spout water. Grotesques are merely decorative. I, however, have not spouted water in approximately 300 years, largely due to a blocked pipe that no one, not even the highly-paid “historical monument conservation team,” has bothered to fix. So, technically, I’m a grotesque with an identity crisis. And a perpetually damp chin.

My view? Dublin Castle. Grand, yes. Historically significant, undeniably. But after a million years of watching tourists take selfies with duck faces, and politicians entering with promises they’ll never keep, it all blends into one grey, drizzly monotony. My stone heart yearns for adventure. My calcified buttocks ache for a change of scenery.

Entry 2: The Escape Plan – Operation: Wing It (Figuratively)

I’ve been observing the humans. They move. They go places. They use these contraptions called “buses” and “cars.” Fascinating. My initial thought was to simply sprout wings and fly, but alas, structural integrity issues. A gargoyle on the loose might cause a bit of a kerfuffle. No, subtlety is key. I’ll need a disguise.

My eyes, which admittedly haven’t blinked since the Normans were still fashionable, landed on a particularly lumpy, discarded bin bag at the castle gates. Eureka! A perfect, if slightly malodorous, cloak of invisibility. And perhaps a few strategically placed leaves for that “au naturel” look. My destination? The Cliffs of Moher. I overheard a tourist raving about the “majesty” and “untamed beauty.” Sounds far less stressful than guarding a castle from imaginary dragons and very real seagulls.

Entry 3: The Great Descent (More of a controlled tumble, really)

Getting down was… an experience. I waited for the darkest hour, and with a mighty heave, unmoored myself. Gravity, my old friend, took over. I bounced off a decorative flagpole (oops, sorry, King William!), slid down a drainpipe like a stone toboggan (surprisingly exhilarating!), and landed with a muffled thud in a rose bush. A nearby fox gave me a look that clearly said, “Are you serious right now?” I gave him my best gargoyle glare, which mostly just made him yawn.

Disguise on. Bin bag secured. I looked less like a mythical beast and more like a very confused pile of rubbish. Perfect.

Entry 4: The Bus Stop Blues

Finding the bus stop was easy; understanding the timetable was not. “Route 41 to Swords via the airport bypass”? What even is a Swords? I decided to trust my instincts, which, after centuries of static observation, were mostly telling me to stay put and complain. Eventually, a double-decker bus rumbled along. I squeezed myself aboard, attempting to look inconspicuous. The bus driver, a kindly man named Pat, glanced at me. “Bit early for Halloween, isn’t it, mate?” he chuckled, clearly mistaking me for a particularly unconvincing costume. I merely grunted, which he seemed to accept as a valid fare.

My fellow passengers were an interesting bunch. A woman knitting a jumper for a chihuahua, a teenager engrossed in a device that glowed, and an elderly gentleman who kept trying to offer me a biscuit. I politely declined, worried about crumbs getting lodged in my intricate stonework.

Entry 5: The Scenic Route (and the Seagull Incident)

The journey was glorious! Rolling green hills, quaint villages, and not a single pigeon in sight. I even saw a field full of sheep, none of whom looked particularly interested in mistaking me for a rock. My stone heart swelled. This was living!

Then, the seagull incident. We pulled over at a roadside diner, and I, eager for some fresh air (or as fresh as a gargoyle gets), hopped out. A particularly brazen seagull, clearly a veteran of chip-stealing, swooped down and attempted to make off with the bin bag that was my disguise. A tug-of-war ensued. Me, a centuries-old guardian of Dublin Castle, locked in a battle of wits and sheer stone mass against a feathered chip-fiend. I won, of course, but not before my bin bag was slightly tattered, revealing a hint of grey, moss-kissed stone underneath. The seagull squawked indignantly and flew off, probably to complain to its union.

Entry 6: Moher at Last!

And then, there they were. The Cliffs of Moher.

The Grumpy Grotesque’s Grand Getaway (Conclusion)

Entry 7: Moher at Last! (Continued)

And then, there they were. The Cliffs of Moher. Sheer, glorious, unadulterated rock. The air was sharp with salt, and the wind—oh, the wind was a roaring, magnificent beast that tugged at my remaining bin-bag remnants.

I found the perfect spot, perched precariously near the edge (a familiar feeling, really, just without a castle beneath me). I looked out over the vast Atlantic. The waves crashed against the base of the cliffs with a spectacular, deafening roar. It was raw, it was wild, and it was entirely unlike the polite, drizzly chaos of Dublin.

I closed my non-blinking stone eyes and took a deep, imaginary breath. This was the peace I craved.

My contemplation was abruptly shattered by a tiny, flustered puffin attempting to land on my head.

“Excuse me, mate! Are you new?” chirped the puffin, hopping down my shoulder. “This is Seamus’s viewing spot! He’s very territorial about his lichen patch.”

I sighed, a sound like grinding geological plates. “I am Gary, and I am merely seeking a moment of respite from the endless monotony of Dublin Castle.”

The puffin, unimpressed, pecked at my mossy ear. “Dublin Castle? Oh, a city boy! You won’t last five minutes. The sheer solitude will drive you mad, and the local folklore is very strict about unauthorized stone figures.”

Entry 8: Philosophical Conclusion and an Unforeseen Career Change

I spent the next hour in a profound, existential debate with the puffin named Seamus about the nature of eternal stillness versus migratory urgency. It was surprisingly enriching, though Seamus kept demanding I stop “hogging the good light.”

The wind, however, had a surprising effect. It whistled through the crevices in my old stone frame, creating an unexpectedly melodic sound. Tourists walking past stopped. They pointed. They took photos.

“Listen to that!” cried one tourist. “It sounds like a mournful Celtic wind chime! What a brilliant piece of natural art!”

Another leaned in close. “Look! They’ve carved a gargoyle here! It’s so authentic, it looks like it’s been guarding the sea for centuries!”

Suddenly, I wasn’t a disgruntled escapee; I was a majestic, windswept attraction. I was a Cliffs of Moher Grotesque, revered for my melancholic whistling.

I realized then that my problem wasn’t the job; it was the scenery. I was a mountain gargoyle trapped in a city gargoyle’s life.

Epilogue:

Gary never returned to Dublin Castle. He sent a curt, one-line message via a migrating pigeon: “Mending that drainpipe is your problem now.”

He now resides permanently on the Cliffs of Moher. He is locally famous, known as ‘The Whistling Sentinel of the West.’ He has a new job: official atmospheric sound effect for the Cliffs of Moher. He gets regular compliments, the occasional free picnic sandwich left by tourists, and his only co-worker is Seamus the Puffin, who still demands I move, but mostly just uses me as a very sturdy, slightly grumpy landmark.

And Gary? He’s finally happy. He’s found his purpose: standing still, looking magnificent, and complaining about the weather to the Atlantic Ocean, which, unlike the Castle, actually listens.