Facebook
Twitter
YouTube
The best things in life
Laughing all the way through the Bank Holidays.
Any type of holiday is nice, really. Christmas holidays are probably the best, as they combine all the good things about the human condition: giving gifts, spreading goodwill, warming yourself with a fire and the knowledge it’s minus twenty outside, eating until you pass out, snow…
Then there are summer holidays, which depending on your job or school year can range from a fortnight to three whole months, but either way the mixture of sunny weather (theoretically anyway), lying in til noon and watching attractive children’s TV presenters demean themselves is pretty sweet.
And then there’s Easter, where we celebrate the return of Jesus by eating our body weight in chocolate. When you think about it, it was a smart move on Jesus’ part to associate his holiday with chocolate eggs, that’s why he’s the son of God I guess.
While those big holidays are all excellent, you sometimes have to thank God for small mercies, the merciest of which is undoubtedly the humble Bank Holiday. For most people, the weekend is a time when they can wind down, forget about school and work for a while and just relax or go a bit crazy, whatever happens first. Whatever you choose to do though, it’s your time to do what you like before you get back to work again, the beginning of which is initiated by what experts call “Glenroe Syndrome”.
The name originates from young people of a certain age who knew bedtime and indeed bath time, was imminent when the legendary Irish soap aired every Sunday night. That sinking feeling we all got every Sunday night is still present in us, long after Dinny, Biddy and Miley ceased to be.
That’s why Bank Holidays are so awesome. They work on so many levels, not only do they extend the weekend into decadent territory, but they also eliminate Monday, the Richard Nixon of workdays, meaning a working week that starts on Tuesday and goes in unusually fast. Then it’s Friday, the Bill Clinton of working days, in no time whatsoever. Bank holidays kill three birds with one stone.
The other great thing about Bank Holidays is the TV. You’re guaranteed to find some old classic film you haven’t seen in ages or a heart-warming Disney tale about a useless baseball team who reach the playoffs against all odds because they start believing in themselves, either way it’s all good. Bank Holiday radio is always interesting too, and while you could easily assemble a Top 100 of Top 100’s at this stage, they’re always pretty compelling nevertheless.
We’ve got a few Bank Holidays on the way, so sit back and savour them when they come, for truly they are the King of Holidays.
By: Paddy Duffy
