Happy St. Patrick's Day

Or as I like to call it "Make Up an Irish Ancestor Day." It's the one day a year you can pretend to be Irish because you made up the fact that your Great Great Grandfather's Uncle had an Irish Setter. Go out, drink green beer or Guinness and talk in a very badly faked Irish accent. It's fun and you should just generally be drunk.

Little know facts:

I keep thinking St. Patrick's day is on the 16th.

My grandfather was, in fact, Irish so I do have cause to celebrate. His family moved to northern England when he was still a baby.

I realized during the St. Patrick's Day Parade that I had an orange T-shirt on for the 3rd year in a row - unintentionally. They should let you know when parades are taking place...

I lived in Hammersmith just after the IRA tried to blow up Hammersmith Bridge earlier in the week. The bridge was outside our balcony. The explosives didn't go off thankfully or it would have obliterated the flat before I could move in - not to mention the death involved.

I always wished Finn McCool (yeah I know I spelled that wrong it's probably Fionn mac Cumhail or James Duggan, I just don't know Irish Gaellic) would be a Superman villain or misunderstood colleague. Doesn't that sound like a gangster from the Thirties? "Hey, Finn, the man of steel is heading this way." "Don't just stand around you palookas, blow him ta pieces." "Sure thing Mr. McCool." These days they'd make him an ice-themed villain instead of just Irish.

I'm not actually going to get much chance for Guinness today, unfortunately. I have tickets to go see Richard Ashcroft and Coldplay tonight. At least it better be Richard Ashcroft who is opening here tonight as that's more of the reason I bought the tickets than to see Coldplay.

During the last election the candidates in an Alberta riding (I think it was in Edmonton) were asked to take part in a presentation to a grade 3 class. One kid stood up and asked the Green Party member if the Green Party was started by Leprachauns. He glanced to the left, to the right and answered "yes."