Monday, March 17-Happy St. Paddy's Day

St. Patrick's Day and its promise of spring is an especially welcome relief for millions of Americans who have suffered through one of the coldest winters in recent memory.

In New York City, where the country's largest and oldest parade will
be held on Monday, the streets will have snow, so the advice is to dress warmly.

The modern celebration of St. Patrick's Day really has almost nothing to do with the real manFor starters, the real St. Patrick wasn't even Irish.
He was born in Britain around A.D. 390 to an aristocratic Christian family
 that owned a townhouse, a country villa, and plenty of slaves.

What's more, Patrick professed no interest in Christianity as a young boy.
At 16, Patrick's world was turned upside down: He was kidnapped and sent overseas to tend sheep as a slave for seven years in the chilly,
mountainous countryside of Ireland.

According to folklore, a voice came to Patrick in his dreams, telling him to escape. He found passage on a pirate ship back to Britain, where he was reunited with his family.

Patrick's work in Ireland was tough—he was constantly being beaten by thugs, harassed by Irish royalty, and admonished by his British superiors. After he died on March 17, 461, Patrick was largely forgotten.
But slowly, mythology grew around Patrick, and centuries later he was honored as the patron saint of Ireland.

According to St. Patrick's Day lore, Patrick used the three leaves of a shamrock to explain the Christian holy trinity: the Father, the Son,
and the Holy Spirit.Today, St. Patrick's Day revelers wear a shamrock.

Trifolium dubium, the wild-growing, three-leaf clover that some botanists consider the official shamrock, is an annual plant that germinates in the spring.
Other three-leaf clovers, such as the perennials Trifolium repens and Medicago lupulina, are "bogus shamrocks," according to the Irish Times.
The custom of wearing a shamrock dates back to the 17th and 18th centuries. Botanists say there's nothing uniquely Irish about shamrocks. Most clover species can be found throughout Europe.

Another St. Patrick myth is the claim that he banished snakes from Ireland.It's true no snakes exist on the island today, but they never did.Ireland, after all, is surrounded by icy waters—much too cold to allow snakes to migrate from Britain or anywhere else.

Since snakes often represent evil in literature, "when Patrick drives the snakes out of Ireland,it is symbolically saying he drove the old, evil, pagan ways out of Ireland and brought in a new age.

St. Patrick's Day: Made in America?
Until the 1970s, St. Patrick's Day in Ireland was a minor religious holiday.
A priest would acknowledge the feast day, and families would celebrate
with a big meal, but that was about it.

Sometime in the 19th century, as St. Patrick's Day parades were flourishing, wearing the color green became a show of commitment to Ireland

Your corned beef and cabbage isn't really Irish
This classic fare is a staple at many Irish pubs on St. Patrick's Day
as well as American households throughout the year. But it's not exactly Irish. Corned beef and cabbage is an Irish-American thingOver there, it’s totally different. They use boiling bacon and they put it on wilted cabbage leaves. unlike our salty corned beef over here.

There's no such thing as St. Patty's Day.
That's right, you've been spelling it wrong. Don't worry, you're not alone. 
Put this high on your list of superior Irish knowledge.
Here's the deal: "Patty," in Ireland is short for Patricia. 
"Paddy," on the other hand (note the "dd") is short for Patrick.
Sound trivial? Think again. Someone even started a website, paddynotpatty.com, in order to stop this travesty.


Information Brought to you by
Lynn Humphrey, Administrator/Owner
BizEturtle:Events in Monmouth
contact me at lynn@bizeturtle.com or 732-759-0485