SPARE a thought for the Taoiseach's favourite lands ape artist, Michael Brien, who must produce seven Meath landscapes by the end of November and have a total of 15 on display for the closing month of the Irish Presidency of the European Union.

The Meath Chronicle reported that the Taoiseach, Mr Bruton, already has eight O'Brien paintings adorning his offices. But that's not enough for him. Now the Taoiseach wants an O'Brien landscape to hang in the office of every EU head of state. O'Brien must have the seven landscapes ready for presentation at the Dublin EU summit on December 14th.

"Now what will I do for a subject?" O'Brien was asking himself last week. Nevertheless, he declared himself "delighted with his biggest commission ever". A six time exhibitor in the Royal Hibernian Academy, O'Brien is also an accomplished performer with the local amateur drama group, the newspaper said.

The Sligo Champion carried an unusual front page report of the decision by a local priest to leave the priesthood because he feels he needs a "career change". The item was unusual, by 1996 standards, in that it was not sensationalistic, lacked any hint of scandal and didn't mention celibacy or sex.

The dignified resignation of the priest, Father Noel Connolly, has "shocked" the parish where he has been a popular curate for six years. He told the newspaper his decision came after "months of soul searching and counselling" and had "nothing to do with disenchantment" with his faith or the church.

With the numbers of priests falling, the Bishop of Ardagh and Clonmacnoise, Dr Colm O'Reilly, said in a pastoral letter that the time was right for "an involvement by the laity which is movement forward for the Catholic Church."

Reporting the contents of the letter, entitled "Sowing for a new springtime", the newspaper said "co operation between priests, between people and priests and readiness to travel will form part of what Bishop Colm calls a new way of being a church'."

The Longford Leader put it more plainly, saying the letter meant the faithful should get ready for changes such as the sharing off priests between parishes or larger Masses at venues central to many parishes.

A "grouse with a grouse is giving Ballyhoura walkers the bird", said the Limerick Leader. Several new walking trails have been opened in the area recently, but no one begged permission from a little native red grouse, the size of a pigeon, which is objecting to intruders by blocking their paths in "a challenging way", landing at walkers' feet and screeching in a manner that has them turning tail rather quickly, only to be chased by the bird.

"About 20 people altogether have been accosted by the grouse," said the newspaper.

Road rage of the human variety was reported by the Leinster Leader which said gardai were looking for a lorry driver who drove off with in motorist clinging to the side of the cab. It happened when the motorist tried to confront the lorry driver who, he alleged, clipped the wing mirror of his van on the Naas dual carriageway.

The driver of the lorry "took off and the motorist hanging on for dear life". Three miles down the road, the lorry driver stopped and hurled £50 sterling out the window. The Minister for Justice, Mr Owen, had more supporters than detractors among the local lender writers, but that didn't mean confidence in the Government was fully restored. The Meath Chronicle said instead of pointing fingers, voters should focus on the fact "successive governments have failed to carry out reforms, preferring instead to keep control over various things - like the appointments of gardai to the rank of Superintendent and above, for instance, and similar matters.

"Looked at like this, it can be seen that what is at issue is not the culpability of any one Minister for Justice, but of a political system in which patronage still plays an important and damaging role."

"We're like beggars," declared one of Wexford's famous hurlers on the front page of the Wexford People. "There is growing anger over the failure of the GAA at national level to make a contribution to the holiday planned for Wexford's All Ireland hurlers at the beginning of January," it said.

"Players are furious that they have been left to raise funds themselves while the GAA nationally - the big winners from the All Ireland gates' - contribute virtually nothing to the fund."

The 70 strong group of travellers planning to take the 18 day holiday to the US, costing £150,000, includes county board officers and a supporters' club representative.