Remembering Waterloo

Happy St. Patrick's Day everyone!

This is a bittersweet day for me every year because back in the university days, St. Pat's was the best day of the year and each time it rolls around, I get a little misty eyed over the boys, the beers and the best times ever.

So today, our first St. Patrick's Day together here at iBlog, I'm going to tell you about those days gone by and why a reunion is a must. Sit back, raise a pint of the dark and drink it in.

This one is for Pauly, Stu, Tommy and Irish.

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Big greasy fry ups at the house to start the day. Paul rocked the fry pans, I answered the door. Everyone was welcomed. Everyone showed up.

First pints were at 7:30 AM and weren't optional; you're spending St. Pat's with us, you're doing it our way.

Year 1 we had to stand in the cold outside of Failte, the little pub up the road from my house, waiting for the doors to open so we could wrestle for seats.

Year 2, they opened the doors early, escorted our group in and presented us with our now customary position along the back wall. The biggest bench in the bar, prime real estate. The only group allowed to run a tab.

The table of old men behind us throwing Lucky Charms and bars of Irish Spring, antagonizing the youngsters then raising a glass. A couple even stopped by to take our ladies for a dance in the over-crowded aisles.

Great food, all day - Potato and Leek soup for lunch with a thick slab of bread for dipping, fish and chips or Sheppards Pie for dinner, all homemade and the best I've ever had.

Pint after pint, with a shot of Tullamore Dew mixed in every once in a while.

The band - the same band as always though their name escapes me now - playing the old classics and some quality new stuff too. They did the best "High and Dry" this side of Thom Yorke and The Boys...

Smokes in the bitter Waterloo cold on the tiny upstairs patio or the equally little deck out back.

Standing in line for the pisser, talking to everyone and anyone who walked on by...

The owners coming round for a sip and a sing, thanking us for making their place our place each and every year.

Everyone from school who came by for a drink, knowing that Failte with The Boys was a must on St. Patrick's Day, if only for one drink.

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We've drifted apart over the years; lives, families, opportunities taking us to different corners of the globe.

But every year on March 17th, we reunite in our memories and over emails, raising a pint to the best days ever.

Pauly was first this year. I followed suit. Tommy's yearly update and remembrance will come later.

Stu is globetrotting, but I know he's raising a glass. Irish is too, on both fronts.

"I miss ya boys and I miss those days. A reunion is a must."

That's all that needs to be said.

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Happy St. Patrick's Day everyone.

To the best friends and best times a man has ever had... Cheers!