As Totally Dublin #205 lands, our editor shares some thoughts on this month’s cover story.
I’ve had the idea of visiting some of the remaining laundromats in the city for a number of years now but never really got round to it. Partially inspired by a story on This American Life where they documented 24 hours in a Chicago diner called the Golden Apple, the idea was to literally hang out in them and just wait and see who dropped by.
Photographer Malcolm McGettigan and I started out on this quest back in April and concluded it in the middle of July.
Like everything else, we’d like to have staked places out for longer and no doubt there are countless fascinating stories to be told which we simply missed. However, the cross-section we encountered represents a fascinating small snapshot of the churning city these days.
There are brief snippets about evictions, the weather, creating a new life here, passing through and simply having a broken washing machine.
It was a real pleasure to inhabit these worlds and the lives of others for a moment and we are very grateful to them and the participants spaces for their time.
In particular, I’d like to thank Colm Bodkin for his assistance in helping us find Davy Little.
Words: Michael McDermott
Read this month’s edition here.
