The Big, Green Holiday

Yesterday was my most authentic St. Patty's Day EVER-- it was such a blast!

Courtesy of my lovely friend Stephen and his lovely roommates, I, a very Irish person, got together with several other very Irish people, and we all subsequently got our Irish up.

Stephen left me a note about coming over for dinner, so we hit the store and got cabbage, potatoes (probably too many- we bought 10. I don't know why I thought that was a good idea...) and bread (potato rosemary- we couldn't find soda bread). And Guiness. Of course. How cliche do you think the shopping basket looked?

So then we ventured onward back (so wait, is that "we ventured backward"???) to his apartment, where the corned beef was already on the stove, where the roommates were up to their eyeballs in studying (why did the Irish high holy day have to fall the weekend before finals? I ask you!) and where we set right in on peeling, chopping, and boiling potatoes. And boiling cabbage. What I did not realize about all of this traditional Irish food was that you just have to boil it to cook it. Sweet.

We watched Boondock Saints, which I had never seen before (yes, I realize that is a disgrace to my heritage. Sue me) while I finished up the potatoes (two batches- one had to be non-dairy. It was a progressive traditional Irish dinner. No contradiction at all). When it was all finally ready, we gathered around the island in the kitchen and had a toast before eating and finishing the movie. I felt very lucky to be there right then (I did the whole night, but especially right then).

Then, sadly, when the movie was finished I had to come home and finish my sociology paper. But at least it's done now (14.5 pages, baby!!!). All that's left is revision. Today will be one long, melodramatic epic of chemistry review. You know how in epic movie trailers they have the big, dramatic choir wailing in the background as the protagonist grimaces in pain at what is probably the most climactic part of the movie? That's what it's going to be like until either my body or brain can't take it any more. I'm taking my deep breath before going under (picture me gasping in one last, deep breath or air...)

However, had it not been for the big, green holiday, I'd probably have no motivation to keep going. So, thank you Stephen, Matt, Martin, and Reed! Good luck with finals, everyone!