Paddy's Day is usually one of my favorite days of the year, but this year, it was on a Saturday, which pretty much ruined it. Paddy's Day was always something to celebrate in my family on account of our Irish heritage. It became one of my favorite days after spending much time on the Emerald Isle (including two Paddy's Days), because the music and good times came to represent what I love about the place. However, it is not much fun anymore because of how much American excess has ruined it.
Now, I'm a big fan of beer - Guinness is my favorite - but I'm not a big fan of people who come out of their holes on days like Paddy's Day, New Years, or Halloween and get obnoxiously drunk, spill beer everywhere, elevate the decibel level exponentially, puke in the bathroom, etc. It's one thing to have a pint every few hours if you're going to start drinking at noon on these days. It's another to continuously drink all day long. This city can be lifeless for much of the year and suddenly people have to come out and ruin the good days with their drunken behavior. And it's far worse when it's on a Saturday and people who normally would be at work are imbibing from morning till night.
This country has a big problem. A recent study shows an increase in binge drinking and drug use in college - again. No wonder we continue to get dumber as a nation. When those who are supposed to be learning are beating their brains up with substance abuse, how the heck are they supposed to shape their minds to be the strong contributors to society that university graduates are supposed to be? Thing is, though, that this country doesn't really look at university as a place to acquire knowledge. Rather, it is a place where you can get a piece of paper that can get you a better job. Students don't take their studies seriously. Solution? Make it more difficult to get into college. Make good grades difficult to get. Make it easier to be expelled for alcohol and drug violations.
Anyway, back to Paddy's Day. I had to return some books to the library, which is next door to the best real (not chain) Irish pub in the District. (There aren't many Irish pubs in DC compared to other American cities.) I thought I'd stop in, have a pint, and catch some trad until I saw the $10 cover, which was more than the $7 pints inside, so if I wanted a pint, it would have cost $17! Plus the place was so packed, it wouldn't have been enjoyable. And it was only noon.
There's another Irish pub across the street, which was far less crowded, but I discovered that it, too, had a $10 cover, and they didn't even have music. When Paddy's Day is on a weekday, the covers didn't start until later in the afternoon. I can't imagine what the drunken crowds were like in the evening. I feel sorry for the cops, who were in full force yesterday.
I made it my mission to have a pint after the two failures, but first I stopped off at a coffee shop for some lunch and, of course, coffee. There was a green wearing, drunk college student passed out at a table. The manager had to call the cops on him, but fortunately for the guy, the manager was able to wake him up and called a cab for him before the cops arrived. The guy was passed out for about an hour.
At 2pm I stopped into Biddy Mulligan's on Dupont Circle, where there was no cover and I actually found one seat at the bar, watched the Ohio State game, had a few pints, and ate corned beef and cabbage. The staff was awesome - never had to wait for a pint - but as the gray day progressed, the crowd of people grew and became noticeably younger and drunker.
When it became difficult to walk through the bar, I knew it was time for me to leave. As I headed into the early evening daylight, I sighed at the thought that my Paddy's Day had already ended thanks to the culture of American excess.
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But I am glad Bush is using only his second veto ever on the troop withdrawal deadline. As much as I want this disaster to be over, there are so many problems with this that if our system of government wasn't driven by campaign funding, this bill would never have had a prayer. They could start by at least giving a decent timeline. Some people who are in Babylon right now have enlightened me to the real problems out there, and I'm still absorbing the situation, mulling over it, trying to figure out how what many said would happen has happened, and wondering what the solution is.
