Irish Language, Irish Studies, Irish Books, and a Giveaway

Despite my incredibly Irish-sounding name, I am not, in fact, Irish. Except by marriage. That hasn't stopped me from falling in love with Irish everything, of course; I even took Gaelic as my language requirement in college, and sang in the Irish Folk Group. (NYU, by the way, has an amazeballs Irish Studies program, in which you get to go to class in this gorgeous building, which is on this gorgeous street, and in between classes, you can sip this kick-your-ass Irish tea and sing some pretty baller Irish tunes.)

Sadly, I've forgotten much of my Irish, but I know enough to wish you all a Happy St. Patrick's Day:

Beannachtai na Feile Padraig Oraibh! 
(Rough pronunciation: bahn-ach-tee nah feh-leh paw-drigg oh-riv)

To celebrate my love of my adopted country, I'm giving away a copy of Frank Delaney's Ireland. Simply leave a comment to enter. Extra entries for following, and for tweeting, Facebooking, or otherwise telling everyone you know about it. You know, the usual. US & Canada only -- sorry, international folks. I'll pick a winner on Tuesday, 3/18.


And if you're looking for a new Irish saying for your celebrations tomorrow evening, try this:

Ta me are meisce! 
(Rough pronunciation: tah may are mesh-keh!) 
Translation: I am very drunk!