Set Two: Download the PDF today!

Now that Set Two is available, it won’t be long before Set One is gone forever!

For a very limited time

Download and print out your very own trading cards of the best Face Posters of Ireland 2009! Each PDF will be available for just a day or two, so be sure to check in frequently, so that you can…

COLLECT THE WHOLE SET!

Set One: Download the PDF today!

The staff will award points for Caption Six in the next twenty-four hours, so contribute your best work to that post right now! Will says that the submissions so far are outstanding. Go Bugle Readers!

(We’ll also award a prize in the Guess the Number Taken!™ contest today. If you haven’t guessed yet, take a stab at it!)

The holiday in January was a full three days — County Donegal is a large and picturesque region, and we saw the city of Derry, too. There are four sets for your viewing pleasure:

• Donegal, Friday: A small set from our drive from Dublin to Killybegs, with a detour far out into McSwyne’s Bay at St John’s Point.
• Donegal, Saturday: A large set of photos from all over Donegal, particularly near the coast.
• Derry, Sunday morning: Our walk around Derry — mostly the political murals in Bogside and the walled portion of the central city.
• Malin Head to Dublin, Sunday afternoon: From the northernmost point in Ireland to home, with all kinds of weather in between.

A preview of the delights on Flickr:

Although the announcement took many by surprise, Bugle officials said that the move was part of a plan announced in mid-2007 to grow the Bugle brand throughout Europe. Also part of that plan is the today’s acquisition of The Bakker Bugle by the Luxembourgish edutainment giant, Bastelengebläers SARL.

In a brief teleconference before the opening of European markets today, Bastelengebläers officials announced the change of ownership and predicted a bright future for the beloved Bugle website and tourist destination.

Also speaking on the call were spokespersons for Bakker Bugle Holdings, which will soon be renamed Ewing Shelf Corp to reflect its change in focus. Ewing Shelf Corp will retain one lone Bugle property, the copyrights and film-options for the Bugle PI oeuvre.

During a short question-and-answer period, Sidd Finch of Bastelengebläers addressed legal concerns related to the company’s role in the attempted Flemish secession of three years ago.

“Our embrace of The Bakker Bugle brand is not related to that unfortunate period,” Finch said. “Today, more than ever, our leadership of the content-based industry comes from the value-rich expansion of our suite of market-oriented solutions.”

The move of jobs and assets out of Ireland leaves some industry observers with questions. Isaac Bickerstaff of London’s “Eye on Hibernia’s Business” said, “It is hard to see what The Bakker Bugle and Bastelengebläers have in common, beyond the first letters of their names. I am afraid that the merging of corporate DNA may be a rocky road. And The Bakker Bugle, as a corporation, has not offered good value for money since San Serriffe.”

Eight months ago, the Bugle’s corporate directors were embroiled in a public-relations nightmare regarding the San Serriffe offices of one of its subsidiaries. Two international business newsletters carried stories by Janet Cooke that alleged that company executives opened the offices in the idyllic haven in order to entertain friends and potentially friendly politicians. The company’s spokespersons immediately called parts of the stories “fabrications,” and both newsletters ran partial retractions within weeks.

“The Bugle can’t put the toothpaste back in the tube,” says industry expert Kazuo Uzuki, “but the larger narrative of being acquired and moving a corporate headquarters is likely to divert attention from the San Serriffe fiasco.”

At the end of the teleconference, Masal Bugduv of The Bakker Bugle said, “Many of the executives that held roles in both the Holdings company and The Bakker Bugle have decided to spend more time with their families.

After the announcement, Bakker Bugle Holdings director Henri Mensonge commented from his office in San Serriffe, “I’m rich, b****! That’s all there is to it. Those Liechtensteinian thugs can have their intellectual property. I’ve got beach-front property and plenty of booze.”

In a separate press release, Bastelengebläers announced that all staff in Ireland will be offered attractive relocation packages.

Links:

Bastelengebläers Press Release: Bugle Acquisition
Bastelengebläers Press Release: Bakker Bugle HQ to move to Luxembourg City

To keep you hooked until then: The Bakker Bugle is happy to announce a twist to the contest. One of the next three rounds (6, 7, 8) will be declared a Double-BuglePoints™ Round after the first comment by the staff awarding points for that round. For example, if Round 5 were the Double-BuglePoints™ Round, then the participants mentioned in the staff comment from yesterday would have received twice as many points (e.g. Dave would have received 124 points, bringing his total to 472).

If you’re new to the contest, remember that you can still submit captions to all the old rounds, and you can earn extra points by nominating photos for the contest.

Now, on to Round Six! As usual, you can click on the image for a larger version.

As usual, click on the image for the full-size version.