Damien's diary: waking up to dangerous driving

Sleep apnoea is a new one on me. But it came to the fore last week following the jailing of Dublin man Anthony Handley after he pleaded guilty to dangerous driving resulting in the tragic death of young mother Olivia Dunne and the serious injuring of her infant daughter Eabha. The court heard Mr Handley had nodded off in a “micro sleep”. His car careered out of control, killing Ms Dunne.

By jailing Mr Handley, Judge Pat McCartan sent out a clear message to motorists about the potential consequences of driving while tired. But even if you don’t suffer from sleep apnoea, how many of you have felt so tired while driving that you find yourself rolling down the window, turning up the radio or generally fidgeting in the driver’s seat to stay awake?

I know that I have, on sporadic occasions. But only once, on a recent trip from Dublin to Cavan, did I have the good sense to pull in to a hotel car park for 15 minutes. Not to sleep but just to “rest my eyes”, as the saying goes. And it worked. Better to be 15 minutes late than 40 years too early.

I don’t think it is first nature for motorists to break up a journey for a nap. The motorway structure incentivises us to drive for longer to get from A to B. And sure, we are always rushing anyway.

But last week’s conviction is a sobering reminder to all of us about the seriousness of driving while tired. It is in a different category to driving while drunk, of course, but try telling that to Olivia Dunne’s grieving family or indeed to Mr Handley as he begins a two-year jail sentence.

So, maybe we do literally need to wake up to the dangers of driving while tired with the same sort of attitude we have towards speeding and drink driving. CL

What ever happened to proper names?

Thank you Michael Phelps for you have just confirmed my suspicions. Two weeks’ ago, the American Olympic swimming colossus and his fiancée Nicole Anderson became parents for the first time. Congrats to them both. Their bouncing baby boy arrived three weeks early, weighing in at 6lbs 12oz. And they named him, wait for it, Boomer!

Dear God, what were they thinking? But you don’t have to go all the way to American or indeed you don’t have to be a famous celebrity to pin your newborn with a designer name as opposed to a normal one. We were in the Phoenix Park last weekend, enjoying the arrival of summer along with scores of other families. Everyone happy. Children running around. Parents calling after them. To be honest, I didn’t know if they were calling after their dogs or their children. Like, whatever happened to proper names like, well, Damien?

I’ve little doubt but there are some grandparents reading this who are nodding in agreement that they have had to smile and silently keep their counsel about the names which have been penned on their poor little grandchildren by thoughtless “modern” parents.

Do they name their children these bizarre, makey-uppy or medieval names just so they look hip and sophisticated among their friends? Do they ever think about the actual child who must bear the handle for life? I don’t think they do.

And Michael Phelps has just cemented my opinion. When asked why he called his first born Boomer, he replied: “Nicole and I just wanted something different and something cool, and I had just heard it and it was kind of a pretty neat name, and Nicole and I both kind of agreed to it”. I rest my case.