Slog - Comments on Happy (Secular) St. Patrick’s Day! http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/03/happy_secular_st_patricks_day Holidays in America, even those that originated somewhere else, fall into three basic categories: meat holidays, candy holidays, and liquor holidays. We will call the last category—which includes New Year’s Eve, Cinco De Mayo, and St. Patrick's Day—the “alcoholidays.” Most Americans associate these wonderful times primarily with drunkenness. Other holidays may be associated with drinking, too. But the drinking is secondary. For instance, Independence Day is a drink-liquor-and-eat-hot-dogs holiday; Valentine’s Day is a drink-liquor-and-cry-into-your-pillow holiday. Memorial and Labor Days are foremost about working, dying, and barbequing. But the true alcoholidays are all about getting wasted. And drinking on St. Patrick's... Copyright 2008 Mon, 17 Mar 2008 17:50:18 -0800 Tue, 18 Mar 2008 12:38:57 -0800 http://www.movabletype.org/?v=3.34 http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/tech/rss Comment by Mike of Renton When I was in college, posting numbers for cabs @ 5:50 pm would have been about 10 hours late.

]]> Mike of Renton http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/03/happy_secular_st_patricks_day#c972310 http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/03/happy_secular_st_patricks_day#c972310 Drugs Mon, 17 Mar 2008 18:12:32 -0800 Comment by COMTE Actually, I'd consider New Year's Eve the only STRICTLY drinking-only holiday. Elsewise, why would grocery stores order up extra cabbage and corned beef and stock them right next to the Guineess and Harp? Same with Cinco de Mayo and the end-capped displays of extra tortilla chips, salsa and seven-layer dip strategically placed in close proximity to the Pacifico and Corona?

I mean, it's not ALL about the drinking on these holidays - really it's just about consuming whatever the store thinks it can get away with selling you more of in the week or so leading up to that particular day.

]]> COMTE http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/03/happy_secular_st_patricks_day#c972312 http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/03/happy_secular_st_patricks_day#c972312 Drugs Mon, 17 Mar 2008 18:13:13 -0800 Comment by Fnarf In Ireland St. Patrick's Day was traditionally a sober religious holiday, with all the bars and restaurants closed. It's only been in the past decade or so that it's turned into an Americanized parade-and-green-beer sort of thing.

Similarly, no one in Ireland knows what the hell "corned beef" is; if they know it at all, they know it as a horrible canned-meat product like Spam. The association came about when Irish immigrants to New York couldn't find Irish bacon (very different from American bacon), but found Jewish corned beef to be an acceptable substitute.

It's safe to say that almost all "traditional Irish" cultural artifacts in the US have nothing to do with Ireland -- except the Guinness and the Bushmills.

]]> Fnarf http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/03/happy_secular_st_patricks_day#c972318 http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/03/happy_secular_st_patricks_day#c972318 Drugs Mon, 17 Mar 2008 18:17:03 -0800 Comment by Fifty-Two-Eighty Ah, Boy-o, it's been an Americanized, drunken holiday for a LOT longer than the past decade. I'm not disputing your facts, only the time frame.

]]> Fifty-Two-Eighty http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/03/happy_secular_st_patricks_day#c972340 http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/03/happy_secular_st_patricks_day#c972340 Drugs Mon, 17 Mar 2008 18:31:51 -0800 Comment by vooodooo84 Cinco day mayo is an even worse excuse for a drinking holiday than St. Patrick's day. Only Americans celebrate it (One initial victory over Emperor Maximilian of France, who cares)

dieciséis de septiembre is where the real action is

]]> vooodooo84 http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/03/happy_secular_st_patricks_day#c972343 http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/03/happy_secular_st_patricks_day#c972343 Drugs Mon, 17 Mar 2008 18:36:45 -0800 Comment by Seattle Exile very true - my only quibble would be to add that at least locally, and for a certain portion of my generation, memorial and labor days are the getting-very-high- at-seattle-center-music-festivals holidays.

]]> Seattle Exile http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/03/happy_secular_st_patricks_day#c972346 http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/03/happy_secular_st_patricks_day#c972346 Drugs Mon, 17 Mar 2008 18:40:13 -0800 Comment by keshmeshi But it's still during Lent. Is drinky drinky allowed on Lent?

]]> keshmeshi http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/03/happy_secular_st_patricks_day#c972365 http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/03/happy_secular_st_patricks_day#c972365 Drugs Mon, 17 Mar 2008 18:54:04 -0800 Comment by Giffy @3, Reason #1062 why we are better then the Irish.

]]> Giffy http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/03/happy_secular_st_patricks_day#c972379 http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/03/happy_secular_st_patricks_day#c972379 Drugs Mon, 17 Mar 2008 19:17:30 -0800 Comment by RainMan @7: Holy Week is about as early as it gets in the liturgical calendar this year, but actually St Patrick's Day always falls at some point between Ash Wednesday and Easter Sunday. That has never stopped anyone I know unless alcohol is what they gave up for Lent. Dumb choice, in my humble opinion.

]]> RainMan http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/03/happy_secular_st_patricks_day#c972381 http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/03/happy_secular_st_patricks_day#c972381 Drugs Mon, 17 Mar 2008 19:18:17 -0800 Comment by Dr_Awesome Fuck you. Fuck all you people drinkin' today. I gave up booze for Lent. Good thing I didn't give up cussin' too.

]]> Dr_Awesome http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/03/happy_secular_st_patricks_day#c972406 http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/03/happy_secular_st_patricks_day#c972406 Drugs Mon, 17 Mar 2008 19:51:02 -0800 Comment by beauty hey, i saw some pics about Britney in bikini in Miami's South Beach on http://www.intimatemingle.com which is a free dating site for youngth.

]]> beauty http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/03/happy_secular_st_patricks_day#c972420 http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/03/happy_secular_st_patricks_day#c972420 Drugs Mon, 17 Mar 2008 20:04:01 -0800 Comment by Polka Party Don't forget Mardi Gras! That's the biggest booze fest around, especially if you're in New Orleans.

]]> Polka Party http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/03/happy_secular_st_patricks_day#c972423 http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/03/happy_secular_st_patricks_day#c972423 Drugs Mon, 17 Mar 2008 20:04:54 -0800 Comment by eclipse 12 is right, you missed mardi gras on the alcoholiday list!

]]> eclipse http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/03/happy_secular_st_patricks_day#c972544 http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/03/happy_secular_st_patricks_day#c972544 Drugs Tue, 18 Mar 2008 06:53:30 -0800 Comment by D FAT TUESDAY

]]> D http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/03/happy_secular_st_patricks_day#c972594 http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/03/happy_secular_st_patricks_day#c972594 Drugs Tue, 18 Mar 2008 09:09:57 -0800 Comment by Dominic Holden Yup, 12, 13, & 14. Fat Tuesday's one of them. Never said it wasn't.

]]> Dominic Holden http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/03/happy_secular_st_patricks_day#c972619 http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/03/happy_secular_st_patricks_day#c972619 Drugs Tue, 18 Mar 2008 09:33:12 -0800 Comment by COMTE Dr. A @10:

Um, giving up booze for Lent, doesn't that make it kind of tough to take Communion?

Or has the wine already turned to Christ's blood by the time it hits your tongue? And can you in fact get drunk on Christ's blood, assuming you could get enough of it down you at one time? And does that mean Christ could be jailed for DUI, even if he could prove he hadn't actually been drinking?

Ah, makes me almost miss Sunday School...

]]> COMTE http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/03/happy_secular_st_patricks_day#c972772 http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/03/happy_secular_st_patricks_day#c972772 Drugs Tue, 18 Mar 2008 11:48:10 -0800 Comment by wbrproductions 11 - what's a youngth? Does that involve my tongue?

]]> wbrproductions http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/03/happy_secular_st_patricks_day#c972824 http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/03/happy_secular_st_patricks_day#c972824 Drugs Tue, 18 Mar 2008 12:38:57 -0800