Year: 2015

Music Tuesday – Lilla Vargen

Music Tuesday – Lilla Vargen

Posted by | Aug 18, 2015 |

Today we want to introduce Lilla Vargen as one of our favourite new musical acts. At Ballymena Today we have used our Music Tuesday blog posts to showcase talented local musicians including SOAK (who is currently on the Radio 1 playlist), Foy Vance and Robyn G Shiels. Originally from Northern Ireland, Lilla Vargen has been playing on repeat in the Ballymena Today office. She has released her first single This is Love earlier this year, which showcases her beautiful voice and piano playing. Her Soundcloud features her single alongside an unrecognisable cover of the Red Hot Chili Peppers song Don’t Forget...

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Samaritans advice about how to start a difficult conversation

Posted by | Aug 17, 2015 |

Ballymena Today writes about lots of great charities who are here to help you and the Samaritans offer a listening ear to anyone who needs to talk. On the Samaritans website there is also lots of helpful information about what to do if you are worried about a friend or a family member. One such article talks about how to start a difficult conversation with the person who you are concerned for. Maybe you have noticed that they are not quite themselves, maybe a friend has been making some strange statements on twitter or Facebook, or you know that someone is going through a really hard time. It takes courage to speak up if you are worried and here is the Samaritans advice about how to start a difficult conversation: Find a good time and place Think about where and when to have the conversation before you start. Choose somewhere where the other person feels comfortable and has time to talk. Ask gentle questions, and listen with care You might feel that you don’t know how to help someone, because you don’t know what to tell them. But you shouldn’t tell them anything. Telling doesn’t help. The best way to help is to ask questions. That way you leave the other person in control. By asking questions, the person you are talking with finds his or her own answers. The more...

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Google is now Alphabet

Google is now Alphabet

Posted by | Aug 14, 2015 |

The name Google is now synonymous with search on the Internet. We don’t ‘use’ Google, we just Google! In the past week Sergey and Larry announced that Google is now Alphabet. [See their post here] What is Alphabet? Alphabet is mostly a collection of companies. The largest of which, of course, is Google. This newer Google is a bit slimmed down, with the companies that are pretty far afield of our main Internet products contained in Alphabet instead. This development won’t change how you and I use Google to search the Internet. Google won’t look any different on the...

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Check the MOT status of a car – Ballymena

Posted by | Aug 14, 2015 |

Every car in Ballymena is gets an MOT after three years and then every year after that. If you are buying a second hand car and are unsure about whether it needs to go through the MOT or not then you can check the MOT status of a car online. Just enter vehicle details to see the date of the last MOT test, the mileage at the time and the expiry date of the test. Gov.uk has an online tool which you can use but before you go online you will need the vehicle registration mark and either: the MOT test number (you can get this from the VT20 test certificate or the VT30 refusal certificate) the document reference number from the V5C registration certificate (logbook) if you don’t have the MOT test number You can also check the MOT date by registration number and make and you can use the online service to check if an MOT certificate is genuine by comparing your details with the details online. Click here to check the MOT status of a car or Vehicle at Gov.uk. If you need to put your vehicle through its MOT then book yourself a slot at the Ballymena MOT centre which is located in Pennybridge Industrial Estate. Normal opening hours at the Ballymena MOT test centre for booking tests or making enquiries are Monday to Friday from 8.45 am...

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Braid Arts Centre is Top Tourism draw in Mid and East Antrim

Posted by | Aug 13, 2015 |

The Northern Ireland Statistics & Research Agency recently published a set of statistics concerning tourism in Northern Ireland. The results showed that in Mid and East Antrim the Braid Arts Centre was the top visitor attraction followed by Carrickfergus Castle and then Portglenone Marina. The research also showed that many of our visitors are people who are visiting friends and family or on a holiday. The Northern Ireland Statistics & Research Agency have published results for all of Northern Ireland which you can read here. The top tourism site are the Giants Causeway and the Titanic Centre in Belfast, hotly followed by the Ulster Museum, the walls of Derry and W5. Do you agree? We at Ballymena today love the Giants Causeway and are looking forward to visiting the Titanic Centre soon. We often feature shows and events from the Braid Arts centre and you can find out about what they have planned for the next few month by visiting their website here. They have a gallery, a film theatre and regularly run comedy and music shows. Voiceworks recently put on a performance of the popular musical Annie and all who were involved had a great time. Congratulations to all who were involved in Annie at the Braid Arts Centre in...

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