BONUS: Luck o' the Irish Setter

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[00:00:08] This is BewilderBeasts, an infotainment show dedicated to inspiring curiosity for all ages

[00:00:13] by investigating the ways animals intersect at humanity.

[00:00:17] I am not a historian, an ethologist, a researcher, a scientist, a zoologist, a trained audio engineer

[00:00:23] or an expert in... well... anything.

[00:00:26] Y'all, I'm lucky if I can remember to put my clean laundry in the dryer before it

[00:00:30] gets funky.

[00:00:31] And while I make every effort to present things as accurately as I can with a fun flair, I'm

[00:00:36] going to mess up.

[00:00:37] And that's okay.

[00:00:38] I hope I've given you a nice place to jump off from on your own adventures into curiosity

[00:00:42] or at the very least, I've given you the key to win your next round of trivia.

[00:00:46] Oh, and welcome to BewilderBeasts.

[00:01:12] I'm your host Melissa McKimograph and today on this Patreon special, I'm recording

[00:01:16] 2,786 miles from Inishmore, Ireland, baby.

[00:01:20] Today we are discussing the boringness that was St. Patrick's Day in Ireland unless you

[00:01:25] were getting toasted at the National Dog Show.

[00:01:27] Alright, let's go.

[00:01:36] I've been having a really fun break.

[00:01:37] So I had my birthday, that was a lot of fun and got to see my husband play music,

[00:01:42] live music again.

[00:01:43] So it kind of feels like with this particular spring we're getting a little bit of a taste

[00:01:49] of what was just before 2020 and I know we're not out of it yet.

[00:01:54] So continue to be safe, get vaccinated, do all the things that you need to do.

[00:01:58] But there's a little taste.

[00:02:01] I'm not getting my hopes up yet that we are in the clear but we are hopefully starting

[00:02:09] to see a little peek of what it was like before and it's felt really good to kind

[00:02:14] of have these little touchstones of normalcy.

[00:02:18] I'm also trying a new setup with my recording space so this may or may not be the permanent

[00:02:25] solution to sitting in a closet but if you have feelings about the audio I will happily

[00:02:30] take your input as to how this sounds different, better, worse, whatever.

[00:02:34] Don't be mean.

[00:02:35] I know you guys won't be but I've heard a lot of podcasters out there, friend podcasters

[00:02:40] of mine that have been like oh I've been getting a lot of criticism about my

[00:02:45] audio and it can be hurtful if it's like well you suck.

[00:02:51] And I know you guys won't do that but if you happen to see some people getting raked on social

[00:02:55] for their audio quality but their content is good go ahead and throw them a bow and give

[00:03:00] them some stars on their rating app of choice and all that other fun stuff because you know

[00:03:05] this is we're doing the best we can with the tools we have.

[00:03:07] A lot of us are not professional audio people.

[00:03:10] I think I say it up at the top.

[00:03:11] I'm not a professional audio engineer.

[00:03:13] In fact I don't really know what I'm doing.

[00:03:15] I'm just kind of tooling around with a microphone my husband got me.

[00:03:18] He's a musician so he knew what to get and I've taught myself how to do this and a lot

[00:03:24] of people have done the same thing.

[00:03:25] So if you happen to have content that you like it doesn't have to be the show go

[00:03:30] ahead and spread some love this spring by just going and just tapping a five star

[00:03:34] or a four store review and just letting people know that you're listening.

[00:03:38] It does make a huge difference.

[00:03:40] All right so that's that I think.

[00:03:42] So if you guys are ready buckle in here comes your

[00:03:45] Patreon exclusive.

[00:03:47] Let's get our Irish on.

[00:03:54] So it turns out Ireland was very religious who knew.

[00:03:59] You may think of St. Patrick's Day as a rollicking good time but truthfully if you're

[00:04:03] actually in Ireland on the 17th of March there was no green beer no late parties or

[00:04:09] $20 cover fees to get into the pub.

[00:04:11] In fact from 1927 to 1961 St. Patrick's Day was a holy day and specifically one of the

[00:04:18] three big high holy days meaning dry no liquor no alcohol in which people were to pray and

[00:04:26] emphatically not in vibe on a Guinness or a foggy dew or anything.

[00:04:31] These days were Good Friday Christmas and St. Patrick's Day because of the intoxicating

[00:04:35] liquor act.

[00:04:36] This made it illegal for pubs and restaurants to sell alcoholic drinks on the big three Irish

[00:04:41] holy days.

[00:04:42] As March 17th also falls during Lent it was feared that people of Ireland a very very

[00:04:48] very Catholic Ireland would be too tempted and break Lent.

[00:04:55] So the Connaught Telegraph once reported in 1952 quote St. Patrick's Day was very

[00:05:01] much like any other day only duller from what I gathered most people just went to

[00:05:06] church went home and either sulked or went back to more church.

[00:05:09] It's hard to imagine given that any podunk town in the United States looks like a sea

[00:05:13] of people wearing green white and orange but mostly green and it's a full day party

[00:05:19] even if it's on a Wednesday.

[00:05:21] Aside from a very few exceptions this is a normal day at work or school unless

[00:05:28] you're in Boston.

[00:05:29] Yep.

[00:05:30] People because Boston turns out the U.S.

[00:05:36] City that boasts the most Irish folk by percentage over 20% in 2013 found a way to shut down City

[00:05:43] Hall government offices some businesses and yes even public schools in Boston, Chelsea,

[00:05:49] Revere sorry Revere, Winthrop and yes my old stomping grounds of Somerville, Massachusetts

[00:05:56] which seems like it's always raising its hand going hey hey hey me too don't forget about

[00:06:01] me whenever Boston does literally anything.

[00:06:05] But don't call it St. Patrick's Day it's evacuation day.

[00:06:09] It's not as the name may suggest where everyone just up and leaves the city though leaving

[00:06:14] is kind of part of it and it's absolutely not what happens to your stomach contents

[00:06:19] after celebrating the American version of St. Patrick's Day but it is instead

[00:06:23] the day that is the big and don't let the door hit you on the way out to the British

[00:06:27] forces.

[00:06:29] From the city of Boston early in the American Revolutionary War here's the best part if

[00:06:34] March 17th happens to fall on a weekend schools and government offices in Boston are closed

[00:06:40] the following Monday which makes it a three-day weekend which might help you if you stayed

[00:06:45] out a little too late rocking out to flogging Molly or screaming the chorus a Shanaid's

[00:06:49] version of Foggy Doo with the chieftains.

[00:06:52] Wait that's just me.

[00:06:54] It just so happens that evacuation day is the same day as St. Patrick's Day purely coincidence

[00:07:00] right wink wink nudge nudge Boston St. Patrick's Day parade is the oldest it started in 1737

[00:07:08] before the United States was even the United States 1776 is the U.S. birthday so almost

[00:07:15] 40 years before the United States was like U.S.

[00:07:19] Boston was like yo let's do this thing or rather ah yo let's do this thing but where

[00:07:26] there's a will there's a way and a lot of people in Ireland for the majority of the

[00:07:31] 20th century the Irish people felt like they had the will to go find a pub and enjoy

[00:07:36] the day like any other with friends and there was one sure way to get a pint on St. Patrick's

[00:07:43] Day from 1927 to 1961 by attending the Royal Dublin Society dog show turns out members of

[00:07:52] the Kennel Club would be able to imbibe at the annual dog show as people had to be an

[00:07:57] official member of the Kennel Club to participate every March there would be a sudden influx

[00:08:02] of people registering their dogs for membership to the RDS people who didn't even have

[00:08:07] dogs or like dogs or even have a passing interest in dogs maybe they even thought

[00:08:12] cats were better they all decided that the dog show is absolutely the place to be on

[00:08:17] March 17th because they all had one thing in common they also found a loophole in fact

[00:08:23] the loophole was so strong that Brendan Bayhan famous Irish poet in playwright who said quote

[00:08:29] the most important things to do in the world are to get something to eat something to

[00:08:32] drink and somebody to love you and his brother Brian B. Han said of Brendan Brendan

[00:08:38] lit a bonfire under the arse of Irish literature he took it by the scruff of the neck and dragged

[00:08:44] it kicking and screaming into the 20th century that Brendan B. Han he was said to have picked

[00:08:50] up stray dogs and we'd use them to gain entry into the members lounge of the RDS this

[00:08:56] is really hard to confirm but I really am enjoying this urban legend and I'm not a

[00:09:02] go back in time expert so let's just say it might have happened Patrick Kavana another

[00:09:08] Irish poet who is famous enough to be quoted by Russell Crowe at the Oscars has a statue

[00:09:13] at Walt Disney World in Orlando was also alleged to have paid a young woman for the quote rent

[00:09:19] of her dog on that one day every single year on paper the numbers of dog aficionados

[00:09:26] were the most anywhere in all of Europe and that's saying something Europe loves it

[00:09:35] some dog shows however in reality it was just people who weren't as into the whole

[00:09:39] Catholicism thing dry day thing boring thing especially while the New Yorkers

[00:09:44] were throwing a massive party and having parades in honor of Ireland's Saint is there

[00:09:50] any lasting effects of this well they eventually turned this whole thing around on St.

[00:09:55] Patrick's Day not that long ago 1996 there was finally a St. Patrick's Day festival

[00:10:03] in Ireland the very next year the word day was officially out in case they wanted to keep

[00:10:10] the good times rolling which they did for three days they party and that's pretty

[00:10:15] respectable Woodstock was only three days and that turned out fine y'all over time

[00:10:21] the festival in Ireland had become a five-day long national party and it's now considered

[00:10:26] an important event it's Ireland's biggest annual celebration and the official start

[00:10:32] to tourism season so this week go get a myerland but what about the other two days

[00:10:38] Good Friday and Christmas y'all the Good Friday law was not lifted until 2018 that

[00:10:44] was three years ago they had a really good run their first break in 2019

[00:10:49] everyone went out pouring one out for the big guy upstairs if they were

[00:10:53] Catholic ish but until three years ago people could not go to the dog show

[00:10:58] that's only on March 17th but they could go to the Greyhound Racing track which

[00:11:02] they didn't droves they could have some snacks and see some dogs and drink a pint

[00:11:07] or eight if they really wanted to make a day of it and at this point why not

[00:11:11] they would take the train on Good Friday and if someone had a ticket for a train

[00:11:16] that was longer than 40 kilometers they were able to go get a drink at the

[00:11:20] train car bar car so lots of people just went to the train station with all

[00:11:24] their friends got tickets for 41 kilometers away ate some snacks got some

[00:11:30] drinks and got to go to a dog track they would then head back home on the same

[00:11:33] train have a couple more for the road as it were and head home even if you were

[00:11:38] to do this for one pint of Guinness on any holiday buying two train tickets

[00:11:43] or one round trip one betting on dogs and dog racing or even getting a

[00:11:47] hotel room to drink at that bar but that's a pretty expensive pint of

[00:11:50] Guinness I absolutely love a good pint of beer but honestly at this point it's

[00:11:56] modern times just go get a couple on pre-good Thursday at the packy and stay

[00:12:01] home anyway in 2018 the band was lifted 2019 all was great and then 2020

[00:12:07] alright where everyone even in Boston had to lock it all down hang out with

[00:12:16] their own dog and start the long slog that we are still kind of peeking out of

[00:12:21] but we are still actively in one more think about pubs Ireland and animals

[00:12:27] Ireland's first wildlife hospital is the former Tarr Nourie pub in County

[00:12:32] Meath just northwest of Dublin Tarr Nourie translates to Tower of the Kings

[00:12:38] or Hill of the Kings in Gaelic the pub in in Stanery Hill called Tara with

[00:12:44] an ancient burial mound hence Tower or Hill of Kings unfortunately the pub

[00:12:50] suffered as many did during the initial onslaught of the coronavirus pandemic

[00:12:54] the doors had to shut the taps ran dry but James McCarthy the owner of the

[00:13:01] Tarr Nourie pub after an initial blow had a really good think about what to

[00:13:05] do next like many of us he had to pivot and he ended up doing something

[00:13:10] spectacular he turned the outbuildings over to wildlife rehabilitation Ireland

[00:13:15] or WRI while keeping the main pub open as a way to hand out to go coffees it was a

[00:13:21] great way to pivot as people couldn't gather but birds of a feather flocked

[00:13:24] together and with people flocking together six feet away from each other

[00:13:27] masked up in the hills walking more and outside time became a respite from

[00:13:31] staring at the same four walls there was a huge increase in the number of

[00:13:36] injured and abandoned animals found and was able to get help at the pub

[00:13:41] the animal hospital was the first in all of Ireland that could care for any

[00:13:47] species size or medical need in one of these outbuildings a member of staff

[00:13:52] bottle fed Liam a two week old wild Irish goat who is found on a mountain

[00:13:57] side three swans nested in straw in former stables a skittish fox

[00:14:04] nestled into an enclosure and a wide-eyed buzzard was being nursed to

[00:14:08] health quote we're bracing ourselves for orphan season which is our busiest time

[00:14:12] of year said animal manager Dan Donahue he was calming a flustered pigeon at

[00:14:17] the time on the examination table while giving this interview quote we'll get

[00:14:21] lots of baby birds baby foxes etc etc and they'll keep us busy for the

[00:14:25] next six months quote we embrace them and they embraced us at AFA Mcparton

[00:14:31] of the locals many of which were people who loved this pub and wanted to

[00:14:36] somehow give back these locals volunteered their time to renovate the

[00:14:39] buildings on the premises and to make it suitable for animal care but AFA

[00:14:44] said quote I think nature has saved a lot of people through the pandemic

[00:14:48] they're just generally more aware of wildlife and they know they exist now

[00:14:53] and we co-exist together that was at the beginning of the pandemic since

[00:14:59] then it became very clear that there was a much larger need for treating animals

[00:15:03] and a pub wasn't going to do it bars are great but it's hard to have and

[00:15:07] these are real seal kennels in the back of a pub these are kennels with a pool

[00:15:13] a large animal barn hedgehog overwintering area and a fully up-to-date hospital

[00:15:17] barn complete with a waiting room office staff room triage room ICU

[00:15:22] lab equipment storage room scrub room surgery room treatment room isolation

[00:15:26] toilet for people laundry kitchen food store bird room mammal room baby bird

[00:15:31] room baby mammal room you get the idea it's a lot and while they have a new

[00:15:37] location being built right now in county meath they are actively fundraising

[00:15:42] right now for building out these spaces so they can truly staff and create

[00:15:46] a state of the art wildlife rehabilitation facility for all of

[00:15:50] Ireland's 16 counties of sick and injured wildlife they also hope to educate the

[00:15:57] public on wild creatures hey oh that's something i can get behind

[00:16:01] and help injured wildlife and caring for these animals and most importantly

[00:16:07] why it is so critical to just leave wildlife alone unless there is a true

[00:16:12] need to intervene i'm going to leave a link on the

[00:16:16] show notes or you can look up the go fund me quote ireland's wildlife hospital

[00:16:23] they are so thorough in what they need and want and the plan for how this is run

[00:16:29] is super impressive they are also hiring so if this is your calling and you have

[00:16:34] experience grab a coffee at tyronner ree head out write your resume fill out an

[00:16:39] application and join the team at ireland's first wildlife hospital in county meath

[00:16:45] that had a quick stay at the irish pub now that is something i can raise a pint or

[00:16:51] four to this st patrick's day you can also check out information at wildlife

[00:16:56] hospital dot ie all right guys so thank you for listening today on be willed or

[00:17:09] bees this is your patreon exclusive thank you so much for supporting this show

[00:17:14] i've taken a break this whole month on the main feed and i just wanted to make

[00:17:18] sure you guys had something really fun and difference and new for you

[00:17:22] so thank you so much for supporting if there are topics that you would be

[00:17:26] interested in hearing about on this show or you know of any historical animals

[00:17:30] or other restaurants giving care to wildlife please send it in be willerby's pod at

[00:17:36] gmail.com tweet a bewildered pod be willerby's pod on facebook and be willerby's on instagram

[00:17:44] i'm melissimacumagrath with mudstuff media still dog training here in southern main so

[00:17:49] if you happen to know anybody down here need some help with their dogs send them

[00:17:52] to the animal welfare society in kenna bunk main now y'all know what to do

[00:17:57] go get curious i got all of today's information from irish central dot com history dot com

[00:18:05] wikipedia.org france24.com wbr.org washingtonpost.com

[00:18:12] trolleytoday.ie newssky.com and for fans of ted lasso trench crim the independent would totally

[00:18:20] support this the independent.ie links as always are in the description of today's episode

[00:18:27] intro music is still tiptoe out the back by danley boyd's interstitial music by mk2

[00:18:31] additional music provided by pixabayandfreesound.org i'll leave you this quote from pre-

[00:18:38] i'm going to leave you with this quote from patrick kavana quote my advice is this

[00:18:44] do whatever pleases yourself these things don't matter what does matter is that if you have

[00:18:50] anything worthwhile in you any talent you should deliver it nothing must turn you from that

[00:18:58] don't forget to like subscribe review and share with your curious friends thanks so much for

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