Current Account: The unbridled use of mobile phones in restaurants, cinemas and theatres is enough to anger even the most placid of souls. The use of mobiles in the enclosed environment of an aircraft cabin is another thing altogether.
Most people find the experience of flying stressful enough without adding the additional irritant of someone barking into their mobile phone throughout a long flight.
Well, Ryanair doesn't see things like that. It hopes to offer mobile phone services by next summer - at a premium no doubt. But do travellers actually want to use their mobiles on board? Does Ryanair represent views across the airline industry?
Not necessarily. This week Scandinavian airline SAS struck a different tone. It said its research showed that 92 per cent of respondents expect airlines to enforce a code of etiquette for the use of mobile phones on board flights. Its survey found that 89 per cent of passengers were against putting systems on board to allow mobile phone use.
All this simply prompts the question of whether Ryanair passengers are more patient and easy-going than people flying with the old flag carrier airlines. Or maybe Ryanair passengers are just more used to irritants generally (no allocated seating, out of the way airports, the sale of scratchcards etc) when travelling and an extra one is hardly going to make much difference.
Ridiculous in any language
Nationalist fervour appears to have backfired in Galicia, the northern Spanish province that is battling raging wildfires. As flames engulf miles of forest and claim lives, it transpires that Galicia does not have enough experienced firefighters on hand because of a recent rule that requires public servants to have a basic qualification in Gallego, the native Galician language.
A wave of nationalism has inspired Spanish regions such as Galicia and Catalonia to champion their local languages, to the irritation of much of Castilian-speaking Spain.
Opposition politicians are having a field day, haranguing the socialist-nationalist coalition that controls Galicia's government over their language snafu. Emilio Pérez Touriño, president of the Galician government, "puts gerunds before firehoses", wrote one columnist in the conservative daily, ABC. Cristina Narbona, the outspoken environment minister, added fuel to the political fire by suggesting the blazes had been started by disgruntled firefighters who were not hired to work this season - in some cases because of the new language stipulation.
A small step
The cafeteria inside the US Congress recently added French fries to its menu, replacing the "freedom fries" on offer since the days when US troops were being showered with flowers by the Iraqi people.
A sign of improving relations between the US and France? Perhaps. But are Americans prepared to have their passports made by a French company? That might be a stretch.
Gemalto, the world's biggest smart card maker, said this week it had received an order from the US to provide the technology for electronic passports.
Before US congressmen protest at the idea of outsourcing passport technology to the French, they might consider that these smarter passports might make airport queues a bit shorter for their constituents.
Now if the US and France could just agree on a plan to ease the crisis in Lebanon.
All bets on Trinity
True to form, Current Account spent the bank holiday at Mallow Races last Monday. One of the races featured a well-fancied favourite by the name of Trinity College.
As the horse's odds were so short, one of the bookmakers offered punters the opportunity to back the race "without" Trinity College, meaning they could back something and collect if their fancy came second to him or won outright.
So the bookie began exhorting the punters with the cry, "c'mon lads, ye don't have to go to Trinity College to beat this one".
One of the other bookies in the ring heard this and responded: "Trinity College? Yerra, it's all perception and no percentage".
Clearly, the really clever people don't go to Trinity at all.
