Lucille’s Kitty Korner: St. Patrick’s Day!

Top o’ the morning to you, feline friends!

As you may know, Skittles is half Irish, as was my yamama, so St. Patrick’s Day is very dear to our hearts.  This March 17, learn to kitty-party the Irish way, alcohol-free!

St. Patrick’s Day is named after the patron saint of Ireland, who taught about the holy trinity using the shamrock and, as legend has it, single-handedly drove out all the snakes from Ireland.  Skittles is a lapsed Catholic at best, but we still enjoy respecting our heritage with these fun activities:

Attire

Although it doesn’t match well with pink, green is a wardrobe MUST on St. Patrick’s Day.  For me, I choose a sensible kelly green cardigan and a four-leaf clover rhinestone pin I purchased on QVC seven years ago for this express purpose.  Skittles’ festive attire is similarly understated for effect — a classic green collar — because if there’s one thing that’s true about St. Patrick’s Day, it’s that it should be celebrated with taste, dignity, and subtle elegance.  It is, after all, a religious holiday!

Activity

While Skittles and I have a grand time every day, I must admit this holiday activity may be his favorite.  We just love reenacting St. Patrick’s banishing of the snakes.  The set up is elaborate and somewhat costly, but trust me, your kitty will just LOVE you for it.

1.  Select a room to designate as “Ireland.”  If you are lucky and have a fenced-in yard, that is ideal, but otherwise pick a room that has doors you can seal off, remove any furniture and delicate items, and cover the floor and lower sides of the wall with heavy duty tarp.  You can get this by the roll at Home Depot.

2.  Go to your local pet store and purchase 8-12 garden snakes.  You might want to request this ahead of time, as apparently they don’t get these orders often.  Or, if you have a yard, save up the snakes you find year round.  Whatever you do, make sure the snakes are not poisonous!

3.  Choose a club or similar instrument: I prefer the sheleighley hewn from the trunk of a blackthorne that my yamama passed down to me from her bludgeoning days.  Release the snakes in”Ireland,” release your kitty, and let the banishment begin!

(The tarp will HUGELY help you in the clean up.)

Special Snack

Some people celebrate St. Patrick’s day with beer, whisky, and catnip.  This is an abomination.  I do, however, appreciate the idea of Irish fare and green food.  I usually serve myself some corned beef with a glass of milk dyed with green food coloring, while Skittles is permitted, on this one day, to go to town on one of my ferns.  The small amount of vomit that follows is a small price to pay for the intensity of his joy.

Hope you found those tips useful!  Erin meow bragh!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k2xr-v_Kec4