3/17/2010
St. Patty's Day -- When everyone is Irish
Google turns all clover-y, people at work (ab)use the internal mail system to send around jokes, people at the bus stop talk to friends on cell phones saying the feel bad not wearing any green today, and slide shows with Celtic blessings and touching music make the round via e-mail.
It's one of these days of celebration again in the United States: St. Patrick's day -- the day when everyone is Irish, as a friend nicely put it. March 17 is traditionally celebrated in Ireland to hail the national holy St. Patrick or Patty in its cropped version.
But politically correct as the United States are where Hebrew Hanukkah -- the festival of light, the Iranian New Year (watch out, coming up March 21), the Bangladeshi New Year, international women's day, U.S.-African heritage celebration Kwanzaa, Western Christmas, Divali -- another festival of light, this time Indian as in India --, and Valentine's day to name just a few all co-inhabit the calendar and commercial markets, the Irish heritage need not be missing. (Even mathematical constants are not neglected: of course pi was given its day of honor on 3/14).
But as it is Wednesday, and for most a normal working day in Washington DC, not much else happens. Sure, beer in bars will turn green again (and sell very cheap during the coming days when it is quickly out of vogue again) and the seasonal sections in supermarkets and stores turns likewise into the color of clover. The greeting card area sports a whole section of little gnoms and clover to send greetings to each other and maybe Patty. But already chocolate eggs and bunnies clad in pastel-colored foil along with baggies full of multi-colored jelly beans compete for space on the shelves.
With some effort it would be probable to find a holiday, celebration, or observance of one or another date throughout the entire year here -- a neatly chopped up salad with a piece to pick for every one, dressed with Americanization and sprinkled with continuous commercialization.
Shopping makes the year go round.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
Posts
3 comments:
Hi again.
To be fair, for most people in the US, St. Patrick's Day is just an excuse to drink day/night.
People wear green, maybe school children color four leaf clovers with crayons, and every bar has a special. When I lived in the states, there were certain nights I didn't want to be driving around late - St. Patties Day, July 4th, New Years...
And P.S.
These kinds of holidays are starting to get "store time" here in Germany too. Last month I saw valentines at more than one store, and I spotted some green St. Patrick's Day stuff this month too.
That St. Patrick's Day seems to make an appearance in Germany is interesting. I had never heard of it home unlees you might enter an Irish pub of which there are many also often twinned with a companion in Ireland. Commercialization certainly is not contained within U.S. borders. Thank you for your contribution.
Post a Comment