Denis Lehane: Here’s a great tip on handling critics

An east Cork farmer told me that my ram would cover 20 ewes, while a plucky west Cork farmer said he’d cover 30. So, erring on the side of caution, I kept the number at 20.

But alas, with no lamb to show, it would seem the only covering the ram did was to cover me with shame.

The lack of lead in the old boy’s pencil has make me a laughing stock, not only in the rolling hills of Kilmichael, but internationally too, I fear, on account of the reach of this paper.