The Northern Lights are visible at Porsanger Garrison, near Lakselv, Norway. Andrew Milligan/PA Wire/Press Association Images

HERE ARE ALL the things we learned, loved and shared today.

THINGS WE LEARNED

#CONCLAVE The frontrunners have emerged in the last day of the pre-conclave talks over who will become the next pope in the Roman Catholic Church. Vatican insiders put Milan Archbishop Angelo Scola in the lead, while Brazilian Odilo Scherer, the archbishop of Sao Paolo, is also seen as in with a chance.

#FIRE A man aged 62 has been pronounced dead after a house fire on Clare Island. Gardaí said they are not treating the fire as suspicious.

#LONDON Taoiseach Enda Kenny met with British Prime Minister David Cameron today, where he made a speech at the London School of Economics. Following his speech – during which he called today “symbolic and important” – he was asked by an audience member if Ireland would rejoin the Commonwealth. His answer was negative.

#REFUGE A refuge for domestic violence sufferers is still unopened, a year after TheJournal.ie revealed that it had been completed but never opened due to a lack of funding. Funding issues persist, although the HSE is in negotiations with Teach Tearmainn, who runs the centre. It is hoped a solution can be found by the end of the year.

#JAILED A former UK minister, Chris Huhne, and his ex-wife Vicky Pryce have been jailed for perverting the course of justice after she took penalty points he had been given for speeding 10 years ago. They have both been sentenced to eight months in prison.

#PISTORIUS Lawyers for Olympian Oscar Pistorius have filed an appeal in a South African court against bail restrictions imposed on him. He is charged with murdering his girlfriend, and his lawyers say that the conditions appealed against are unwarranted and not substantiated by the facts.

A photo taken today on the shores of Lough Mask, Clonbur, Co Galway, by TheJournal.ie reader Tomás Burke, who described it as “frosty and windy”. Quite!

THINGS WE LOVED

• Snow! Snow! Snow! And there’s more on the way… so here are 14 tips for dealing with the snow. You’re welcome.
• Is there anything a good bun (or muffin, or fairycake) can’t fix? Here’s how a treat cheered up one young girl after she met Pat Kenny. Don’t worry, all will become clear when you click on that link.
• After a 3-year-old girl requested that Pauline, the damsel in distress in the game Donkey Kong, should get to do the rescuing for a change, her dad stepped in to help. We love this story.

(Mike Mika/YouTUbe)

THINGS WE SHARED

• A pine marten wanted to get in with the action during a Swiss football match on Sunday – and the footballer who caught him ended up getting more than he bargained for…
• Not a fan of clowns? Then DON’T click on this link to a vintage Hovis ad… hey! We said don’t!
• This comic video has been doing the rounds in the wake of the recent Oireachtas communications committee meeting about social media:

(Dónal Mulligan/YouTube)

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