Saratoga Irish

Tuesday, May 31, 2011

Festival Season has Started




Saturday and Sunday East Durham held it's 34th annual Irish Festival. I can remember going to the Festival in the early 80's and each year seeing changes made and better accommodations. Now in 2011 they have it down. With music from bands like, Andy Cooney, The Prodigals, The Kitty Kelly Band and others, the festival was full of happy people. I saw Shileagh Law, Celtic Cross, The Whole Shabang and Black 47. Fantastic music for singing along with (with Maura, Eileen, Erin ) and dancing to (with Sheila ). The real fun was the time spent with friends. I went on Saturday afternoon which led into Saturday night. It was a day of laughter and hugs, carnival food, and beer. These festivals are fun for the whole family, kids of all ages were running around eating cotten candy, going on the rides and dancing to the music.
Don't be upset if you missed the Festival because this is only the beginning. Without driving too far from the Saratoga area you can go to
The Great American Irish Festival in Herkimer County on July 29 - 31. They will be featuring, Enter the Haggis, The Prodigals, Seven Nations and our own Hair of the Dog and the Fighting 86's.
The Bennington Irish Music Festival is on August 20 & 21. They pack the stage with, The Makem and Spain Brothers, Rakish Paddy, The McKrells, Hair of the Dog and...........Donnybrook Fair.
The summer ends with Irish 2000 Music and Arts Festival at the Saratoga County Fairgrounds. The September 16 & 17 lineup includes, Shileagh Law, Celtic Cross, The Screaming Orphans (one of my favorites), Gaelic Storm and Enter the Haggis, The Flynn Brothers and Kevin McKrell.
All three festivals have websites with all the information you will need for a great time.
If you can't wait for the festivals the bands all have sites with their schedules and play dates.
So go out and enjoy a summer of great Irish music.

Monday, May 30, 2011

Memorial Day




The United States Government recognizes ten days a year as national holidays, days set aside to remember. All to often we, as Americans, forget the reasons behind these holidays. They become long weekends, just a day off from work. How happy are your friends when the 4th of July lands on a Friday or a Monday and it becomes a three day weekend. How many times have you heard the saying , keep Christ in Christmas? I think that Memorial Day has become a holiday that people forget the reason behind it.
We set aside two days a year to remember the people that have served our country, Veterans Day on November 11, ( originally called Armistice Day, the ending of World War 1, the war to end wars, at the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month). The other day is today, Memorial Day, to remember and honor those that did not return from war. More it has become the unofficial start of summer. This was posted on facebook today by the local Fox affiliate, "Coming up on FOX23 News this morning: Fly those flags and fire up the grill, it's Memorial Day". Should flying the flag and having a cook out be held in the same breath when it comes to Memorial Day?
If you do attend any of the parades or ceremonies today you will hear catch phrases for the day, "ultimate sacrifice" and "freedom is not free" are two of the politicians favorites. In my 52 plus years over 58,000 men and women died during the Viet Nam war, 293 during the Gulf war, and as of May 2011, 4454 men and women died in what they are calling, Operation Enduring Freedom and Operation Iraqi Freedom ( I guess if you don't call it a war it doesn't sound as bad ). So how has this affected me this memorial Day? I have two stories (yeah I know I always have stories).
A few years ago I took my sons on a vacation to Washington DC, we went to see all the monuments one day. At the Viet Nam memorial I started to walk along the wall. Most people that have been to the wall will tell you that it becomes a very eerie place as the wall becomes taller. Very quiet and solemn. I tried to read as many names as I could as I started to walk but soon the names fade into the wall and mostly you see your reflection in the stone. Now I remember the war as I was growing up but I didn't know anyone who had died. As I walked along all of a sudden a name popped out like it was larger than the rest, Peter McCardle. The name didn't mean much to me, I remember that my mom and dad had a high school friend named Pat McCardle but that was all and I only remember meeting Pat once when I was very young. When I returned home from vacation I called my mother to tell her about our trip. When I told her I went to the Viet Nam Memorial she asked (my mother has never seen the memorial in person ) if I saw Peter McCardle's name? Yeah I got chills.
My second story is about a friend of mine, Todd Clark. Todd is a career military man and has served more than one tour overseas. Last July the word spread quickly that he was severely wounded in Afghanistan. The Irish community came together in prayer and support of his family. Thankfully, Todd has recovered from his wounds. He was awarded the purple heart. The first time I saw him after he came home all I could say was, thank you, and it seemed such an empty phrase. Todd is a husband, father, son, brother and friend. Today he is lucky enough to be sharing Memorial Day with his family. So for the rest of us today, as you are enjoying your burgers and dogs in the back yard please remember the men and women that can't be here and the wives, husbands, sons, daughters, sisters, brothers for who this Memorial Day holds so much more meaning.

Thursday, May 26, 2011

Who's reading this?




I was looking at the stats page for my blog the other day and started to search where people were from who were reading this blog. The stats page shows how many people a day, week, month or all time, have read the blog. It also shows how people found their way here, the Saratogian, Facebook or right through google. It has a world map with colors for countries that readers live. It also list the number of people from each country. Now the largest group by far is from the United
States, that was a no brainer, but what I found surprising was second and third. Germany was third and second, right below the good ole USA was Russia. Yes, Russia, besides the US my biggest audience is from Russia.
Does this mean that all those e-mails from Russian women were real? Here I was joking and laughing about the lonely Russian women and they were really reading my blog and thinking ," Эй, ​​это похоже на хороший парень, может быть, он будет хорошим мужем." (Hey, this seems like a nice guy, maybe he would make a good husband. ) Did I miss out on finding Mrs Right? Then I thought about the stats more, Germany was third and I had not e-mailed any German women, and where was The Ukraine in the stats log, many of the women I was corresponding with were from Ukrainian. Thoughts were running around my head all at once, maybe they really came here, is there a big room at JFK filled with Russian and Ukrainian women waiting for me to pick them up. Did the e-mails stop because they are stuck at the airport in a room without WiFi and not because I refused to send them money. I could be the cause for all the immigration problems in this country, ( my mind has a lot of room for wild ideas, it's not clogged up with a lot of knowledge). but then the stats page showed me my mistakes. I haven't written to any women in a couple of years and the stats they were giving me were recent. So all I can say is, Thanks for reading my blog and I hope you all enjoy it.

Спасибо за чтение моего блога, и я надеюсь, что вы всепонравится.
Danke fürs Lesen meines Blogs und ich hoffe, Sie alle genießen es.
블로그 읽기위한 감사합니다 당신 모든 그것 즐기시기 바랍니다.
Gracias por leer mi blog y espero que lo disfruten.
感謝您閱讀我的博客,我希望你們都喜歡
Grazie per aver letto il mio blog e spero che tutti voi piaccia.
Tá súil Go raibh maith agat as mo bhlag, agus mé ag léamhmbainfidh tú taitneamh as go léir é.



Sunday, May 15, 2011

Songs about dating


All right, looking for help here. Friday night I spent time with two lovely unattached women. The discussion turned towards dating. Well it started out as a sharing of ideas about dating but soon turned into a swapping of information. What do women think of you when you approach them? That's right fellas, I was getting info only meant for women. Here's what I found out. Women are just as shallow as men. There it is I said it. Women are shallow. Men are shallow. I am shallow. Now I'm not going to say that women won't date unattractive men, I mean, I've had dates so I know that they do. What I'm saying is that women, just like men, make up their minds in about three seconds as to if you are worthy or not. So if you don't look like Brad Pitt you had better have a very good line, and make it short, remember you have three seconds.
I told them, yes guys I let them in on a few of our secrets too, When I was younger I would make it a point to hit on a girl who was between me and the men's room, because if she blew me off (most of the time) I could just keep on walking to the bathroom like nothing had happened. When I returned to my friends and they started to bust on me for being shot down, I would say"what? Her? nawww. I just said excuse me as I went past." Everyone knows it's a lie but it works.
"Oh yes, the friends" one of the women said in that tone of disgust. Now I know that I am speaking in generalizations here but guys will not hang around if another guy is doing well with a woman. The only reason for a wing man is to get in between the girl your talking to and her friend, who always thinks you are not good enough. Why must dating be so hard.
As for the being shallow part. People, for the most part get over that real quick. Good looks can only get you so far. It takes more then a pretty face and six pack abs. Liz Taylor, married eight times, Tony Curtis and Clark Gable both movie stars, married five times (not to each other), Brad and Jennifer became Bard and Angelina. Think back to that guy or girl in high school who everyone thought was so hot. Go to your next reunion and have your self a good laugh. Hair falls out, gravity takes over, we are what we are. So all you single people out there, good luck in your search.

About the title of this blog

Those of you that read this blog know I always try to add music to the beginning of the post. Something that relates to the topic. I'm sure most of you could have done better but I could not find a song about dating. Sure, lots of songs about being in a relationship or getting out of a relationship. Lost love, true love, puppy love, looking for love in all the wrong places. I thought that one would work but as I watched the video the guy already had found the girl. It's almost a confession of past dating not finding new dates. Lot's of sad songs of what could have been, silly love songs of what life will be now that you're together. This is one reason I need to have a girlfriend, because I have so many songs for when she dumps me. They range in anger from Ben Folds, Song for the Dumped to Ray Charles, You Don't Know Me (although I prefer the Van Morrison version). I want to end this post on an upbeat note, so here's the song that every man should sing or play to every women he falls in love with.


Wednesday, May 11, 2011

My First Resume



So I wrote my first resume the other day. Back in the late 70's I did attend college.....sometimes....spent most of the the time at the Grove or the Brothers II. After two years of college they told me I needed to go another year and I told them, hey, you're a two year college. So we parted as friends. I started my working career with New York State. After a few years I moved on to the Federal Government with a job in the Postal Service. Now at age fifty something and it's something low. I find myself looking for work.
I attended a resume writing workshop and found it to be of no help at all for my situation. In twenty five years with the Post Office I acquired zero skills, or at least zero skills to find another job. Even if I had skills I don't want to work for another Post Office, you never know maybe Canada is hiring. So I sat down at my trusty computer and fired off my first resume. It looked something like this.

Employment History
1985 - 2011 United States Postal Service

Skills: ability to read letters upside down
Able to follow directions from unqualified supervisors
Can swallow anger as not to shoot any co workers

That was as far as I could go. I thought the one about not shooting people was pretty good but the woman at the workshop disagreed. I was going to have to become very creative.
Employment History
1985 - 2011 U. S. Government

Skills: ability toXXXXXXXX
Able to XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Can XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Not creative enough. I have to work harder on my creative writing. So it came down to focusing on my volunteer history over the last twenty five years, anybody looking for a Hibernian girls under 12 soccer coach? With one season of little league experience.

I better practice this line, "Would you like fries with your order?".

One minute twenty of this clip could be me. Sid is not the only one with a plan.


Thursday, May 05, 2011

more than cinco de mayo




Just a wild thought here but are U Albany students planning a "Tequila and Taco" riot tomorrow? So even if your not Mexican but you are tossing back a couple of Dos Equis or Coronas lift one to the memory of Bobby Sands.
I was in Ireland in 1981 during the Hunger Strikes and saw on RTE the funeral of one of the heroes, but I can't explain it better than Mike McCormack, the historian of the Ancient Order of Hibernians. Here is just part of what Mike wrote.

REMEMBER THEM

30 years ago, a five-year protest of Irish republican prisoners ended in one of the most pivotal events in recent Irish history. It began when the Brits withdrew Political status from Republican prisoners. In July 1972, Political Prisoner Status had been introduced after a hunger strike by 40 IRA prisoners led by Billy McKee. It meant being treated as prisoners of war and not having to wear prison uniforms or do prison work.
In 1976, as part of a policy of "criminalization", The Brits ended Political Prisoner Status. Prisoner's clothes were taken and prison uniforms issued. Refusing to wear convict uniforms and brand themselves and their cause as criminal, they wore nothing but a blanket through the brutal northern Irish winter in a cold stone cell.
In 1980, it was decided to embark on an age old Celtic method of redress - the hunger strike. There were no lack of volunteers but only seven were selected to match the number of men who signed the Easter 1916 Proclamation of the Republic. The strike ended after 53 days in December. In January it became clear that the prisoner's demands had not been met. On February 4, the prisoners declared another hunger strike. This one began on March 1, 1981 - the fifth anniversary of the withdrawal of political status - led by former commanding officer Bobby Sands refusing food.
Fully aware of the consequences, other prisoners joined one at a time at staggered intervals, to arouse maximum public support to exert pressure on PM Thatcher. A sympathetic public even elected Bobby Sands to the British Parliament during the strike, prompting media interest from around the world.Other prisoners ran for office and after two were elected, the Brits rushed through an Act preventing prisoners from contesting elections.
Bobby Sands was the first to die. Then one by one more young men had starved to death rather than criminalize Ireland's fight for freedom; it wasn't just about wearing jeans. Sand's funeral was attended by 100,000 people.
The strike was called off on October 3. Three days later the prisoners were allowed the right to wear their own clothes at all times and gradually all the demands were met, but without formal recognition of political status. In the final analysis, the Brits paid the price of having world pressure focused on what, until then, had merely been an internal struggle that they had been able to conceal from the world.
They were our bravest and best which is why they had to die, for because of them our cause was made sacred. As we prayerfully remember with love and pride the names of the martyrs of 1916, let us also remember the names of:
Bobby Sands (27), died 5 May after 66 days; Francis Hughes (25), died 12 May after 59 days; Patsy O'Hara (23), died 21 May after 61 days; Ray McCreesh (24), died 21 May after 61 days; Joe McDonald (29), died 8 July after 61 days; Martin Hurson (24), died 13 July after 46 days; Kevin Lynch (25), died 1 August after 71 days; Kieran Doherty (25), died 2 August after 73 days; Thomas McLwee (23), died 8 August after 62 days and Mickey Devine (27), died 20 August after 60 days.


"Our revenge will be the laughter of our children"
Bobby Sands



Monday, May 02, 2011

George, now you say "mission accomplished"






My thoughts are changing as the minutes pass. What I felt an hour ago is gone and new feelings are running around my head, so I deleted what I wrote and can only replace them with this.

Osama bin Laden is dead, thank you to the Navy seals that finished the job that was started almost 10 years ago.

Please, please never forget those that have given their lives in that pursuit.
Never forget the Americans that died on that terrible September morning in NYC, Arlington VA, and the Pennsylvania country side. You are all our heroes.

Over 6000 servicemen and women have died since the fighting started.