A story was requested last week, so here it is:

Once upon a time, there was a Restless, Sleepless Sailor who tossed and turned Out On The Ocean sailing toward Stormont and thinking about The Galway Girl in her White Petticoat. She was The Tinkerman’s daughter, and he was a Lusty Smith and he remembered strolling with her Down By The Sally Gardens. “You Go To My Head” he had told her when they were in Carrick Fergus, where she had twirled her Little Ball of Yarn and he had played with his Silver Spear.

He was trying hard to Keep On The Sunny Side as he reminisced about wanting to wear the Green Cockade, for he had really wanted to be A Gentleman Soldier, or anything really, as long as he could still be Teahan’s Favourite Every Now and Then. For as Teahan so correctly observed, they could both say the other was The Weakness in Me. But in those days it was not to be, and so he decided to Say Goodbye To The Hope and Anchor where he and Teahan regularly called out “Bring Us A Barrel” and sang enthusiastically and anachronistically along to The Pin Ball Wizard. But Teahan was now in The Unquiet Grave murmuring sadly away to him from Where The Blues Are Found.

In reality of course he knew his only option was to go back to being The Blacksmith if he wasn’t going to stay and sing Hawl Boys Hawl anymore. He might even have to go back to “My Emma” as he called his wife, but mostly his dreams were, rather surprisingly, of being with Maggie In The Woods, who had called him “My Man” as they walked The Streets of London singing The Ballad of Bethnal Green.

Please add more to this story via the comments box.
Does the sailor find his Galway Girl in Stormont, does he sail back to London and Maggie, does he find more than his wife when he returns, or does something tempt him to stay on board ship? The possibilities are endless.............