# Do you celebrate St. Patrick's Day? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [March 17, 2017, 12:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-celebrate-st-patricks-day/782394 "2017-03-17T12:43:46Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![panache45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/panache45/32/64_2.png) [@panache45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panache45)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2017, 6:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-celebrate-st-patricks-day/782394/21 "2017-03-17T18:03:02Z")
When I was much younger and somewhat of a contrarian, I’d go out of my way to wear red on the day. But since then, I’m fairly indifferent to the whole thing, as with most minor holidays. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2017, 6:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-celebrate-st-patricks-day/782394/22 "2017-03-17T18:06:39Z")
> [@panache45](#): > > But since then, I’m fairly indifferent to the whole thing, as with most minor holidays. Minor holiday? What? To me, St Patrick’s Day is a major holiday. Maybe you were thinking of Arbor Day (although I like trees). Or maybe Boxing Day (which I haven’t celebrated since Hagler/Hearns). ---
**Author:** ![Tamerlane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tamerlane/32/7602_2.png) [@Tamerlane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tamerlane)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2017, 6:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-celebrate-st-patricks-day/782394/23 "2017-03-17T18:13:03Z")
> [@kayaker](#): > > Minor holiday? What? > > To me, St Patrick’s Day is a major holiday. Major holidays come with a day off. No day off, no major status as far as I’m concerned ;). I have a green shirt and will buy some corned beef ( because I like corned beef ), so I guess I’m celebrating in a sense. But really it has no particular resonance with me, other than to remind me to buy some corned beef because they have the good stuff in the fancy supermarket and hey, might as well wear that green shirt today. ---
**Author:** ![Leaffan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leaffan/32/299_2.png) [@Leaffan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaffan)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2017, 6:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-celebrate-st-patricks-day/782394/24 "2017-03-17T18:13:35Z")
> [@panache45](#): > > When I was much younger and somewhat of a contrarian, I’d go out of my way to wear red on the day. But since then, I’m fairly indifferent to the whole thing, as with most minor holidays. Orange would have been more contrarian. ---
**Author:** ![ISiddiqui](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/97f17d/32.png) [@ISiddiqui](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ISiddiqui)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2017, 6:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-celebrate-st-patricks-day/782394/25 "2017-03-17T18:54:21Z")
> [@Leaffan](#): > > Orange would have been more contrarian. The Church of Ireland also has today as a Feast Day for St. Patrick, so really not necessarily contrarian as much as asserting Protestantism over Catholicism ;). ---
**Author:** ![Twoflower](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/twoflower/32/22_2.png) [@Twoflower](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Twoflower)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2017, 7:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-celebrate-st-patricks-day/782394/26 "2017-03-17T19:05:56Z")
My last name starts with O’ so I feel obligated to at least wear green. Probably have a Smithwick’s with dinner and a sip of Jameson later, but that’s about it. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2017, 7:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-celebrate-st-patricks-day/782394/27 "2017-03-17T19:06:25Z")
Yes, in a way. It’s a great excuse to make corned beef and cabbage. I might celebrate more, if I lived in Hawaii. ---
**Author:** ![gigi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a587f6/32.png) [@gigi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gigi)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2017, 9:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-celebrate-st-patricks-day/782394/28 "2017-03-17T21:39:25Z")
There’s a dispensation lifting the Lenten Friday abstinence today so I will be taking advantage of that and making a corned beef sandwich. I always wear khakis and a black shirt so I wasn’t even thinking about myself as I saw toherts wearing green today. Then I looked down and realized I had thrown on the green shoes I had out from wearing them yesterday. So I guess I inadvertantly observed the wearing of the green. :smack: ---
**Author:** ![Dobbs](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/5f9b8f/32.png) [@Dobbs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dobbs)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2017, 10:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-celebrate-st-patricks-day/782394/29 "2017-03-17T22:25:03Z")
Goodness, no. It’s not like the Irish need another excuse to drink. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![RivkahChaya](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rivkahchaya/32/8919_2.png) [@RivkahChaya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RivkahChaya)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2017, 10:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-celebrate-st-patricks-day/782394/30 "2017-03-17T22:39:18Z")
I’m Jewish. I don’t celebrate anything that starts with a “St.” We don’t celebrate Valentine’s day. We let our son pass out those little Valentines to the other kids in school, because we don’t want him singled out for not participating (and my husband doesn’t want to send him to the Hebrew Academy), but my husband and I don’t celebrate it in any way. We also capitulated to Halloween, but I never had that as a child, myself. I’m finding that even kids from pretty observant families let their kids go trick-or-treating these days. Sometimes I feel like chucking it all and moving to a Haredi community. ETA: I picked “I don’t care,” becauase other people can do whatever they want. However, I did hate getting threatened with pinching as a child. I never remembered to wear green on the Day as a kid, and during the years I was in a public elementary school, people loved to try to pinch me. ---
**Author:** ![Trinopus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/2bfe46/32.png) [@Trinopus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Trinopus)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2017, 12:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-celebrate-st-patricks-day/782394/31 "2017-03-18T00:37:23Z")
> [@Leaffan](#): > > Orange would have been more contrarian. My old roommate always wore orange on SPD. ---
**Author:** ![kopek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kopek/32/337_2.png) [@kopek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kopek)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2017, 1:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-celebrate-st-patricks-day/782394/32 "2017-03-18T01:09:06Z")
On a semi-related note; when I got to work today a coworker I’m close with who is/was a British native was in the parking lot so I pulled up beside and offered to kick the crap out of him. He looked puzzled and asked why I wanted to do that so I said so I could celebrate the Irish way by decking some Tommy for no good reason. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![swampbear](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/swampbear/32/467_2.png) [@swampbear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/swampbear)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2017, 1:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-celebrate-st-patricks-day/782394/33 "2017-03-18T01:18:30Z")
I did not go out and party today, but my church, St. Patrick’s Episcopal, is having our annual celebration tomorrow evening, so I spent some time this evening over there doing prep work and will spend from late morning into the evening with cooking, set up and etc. So I voted yes I celebrate but because well, St. Patrick’s Episcopal Church. ---
**Author:** ![Count\_Blucher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/c5a1d2/32.png) [@Count\_Blucher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Count_Blucher)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2017, 1:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-celebrate-st-patricks-day/782394/34 "2017-03-18T01:33:31Z")
I’m posting this after a rather fine dinner: We slow-cooked the corned beef in a crock pot with some cabbage and some sliced potatoes for 10 hours. Additional cabbage was cooked before serving (in brine). The loaves of soda bread were all made last weekend. One glass of good red wine and the meal is complete. (The glass of red wine is supposed to be good for me. By Og, it feels like its Working! 😉 ) ---
**Author:** ![Graymalkin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/35a633/32.png) [@Graymalkin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Graymalkin)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2017, 1:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-celebrate-st-patricks-day/782394/35 "2017-03-18T01:54:00Z")
Back when my main hobby was getting shit-faced, I absolutely celebrated it! Couldn’t hack the hangover now–too old. ---
**Author:** ![FairyChatMom](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fairychatmom/32/21906_2.png) [@FairyChatMom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FairyChatMom)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2017, 2:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-celebrate-st-patricks-day/782394/36 "2017-03-18T02:09:21Z")
I don’t drink much, I don’t like bars, I don’t like beer. Nor am I Irish - my family roots are all in Poland. In fact, at work today, I wore blue jeans, a multi-colored (except for green) polo shirt, and a grey cardigan. It wasn’t deliberate - it’s just what happened. So, nope, I don’t do anything. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2017, 2:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-celebrate-st-patricks-day/782394/37 "2017-03-18T02:20:00Z")
At work today, a few people asked me why I wasn’t wearing green (I was, but not very much, and I guess not enough for them to count it). I was instead wearing my Irish wool sweater and my Irish necktie (both _actually_ Irish, not just everyone’s-Irish-on-St.-Paddy’s-Day Irish). Right after work I headed straight to the biggest party in town. I spent the whole evening in the kitchen, making corned beef sandwiches and doing miscellaneous gofering. It’s one of my church’s biggest fundraisers: One of the West Side’s largest intertangled webs of Irish families has been having their party in our basement for forty years now. I saw a lot fewer four-leaf-shamrocks this year than usual, which is good, though it might just have been because I didn’t get as good a look around as I usually do. ---
**Author:** ![TokyoBayer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tokyobayer/32/13989_2.png) [@TokyoBayer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TokyoBayer)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2017, 2:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-celebrate-st-patricks-day/782394/38 "2017-03-18T02:27:45Z")
I live in a small town on the east coast of Taiwan. No one here has heard of it. When I lived in Japan, sometimes the expats would use it as an excuse for drinking, as if we ever needed an excuse! I did have a good friend who mother’s side was Irish, and they apparently fit the stereotype as heavy drinkers. ---
**Author:** ![Spiderman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spiderman/32/230_2.png) [@Spiderman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spiderman)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2017, 2:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-celebrate-st-patricks-day/782394/39 "2017-03-18T02:38:59Z")
I’m not Irish; I feel like a wannabe stealing their holiday so no, I don’t partake. ---
**Author:** ![China\_Guy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/779978/32.png) [@China\_Guy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/China_Guy)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2017, 5:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-celebrate-st-patricks-day/782394/40 "2017-03-18T05:43:46Z")
I make a point to drink Guinness. Does that count? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-celebrate-st-patricks-day/782394.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-celebrate-st-patricks-day/782394.md?page=3)