Top O' the Marnin' To Ye

May the road rise up to greet you
May the wind be at your back
And may you be half an hour in heaven before the devil knows you're dead

Why do people talk about "The luck of the Irish?" Seems to me that the Irish have been having a pretty difficult time of it ever since the English realized there was an island out there in the sea! Maybe the Vikings found it first--they weren't the most respectful of neighbours, either.

But the Brits took the land and the language. I think I remember reading somewhere that the reason the harp is the (other) symbol of Ireland is because the English took harps away from people, much like they did the pipes in Scotland. The reason the pennywhistle is such a part of Irish music is because they were easier to hide than harps. And the reason the potato famine was so devastating is that the English landowners sent the vegetables produced on their estates over to England (where there was a profitable market) and couldn't care less about the Irish.

When looking for St Patrick's Day clip art, the vast majority I found involved rather simian-looking leprechauns and green beer.

St Patrick's Day was not, traditionally, such a huge deal in Ireland as it is here. I think that the original parades in New York, Boston and Chicago were a kind of F. U. to the more established immigrant populations (read, Anglos) who treated the Irish so very badly.

So have a wonderful day, get on out and listen to some Irish music somewhere, and, if you get a hangover in the morning, don't come crying to me.