RAG Week: I am shite craic

RAG Week is a time for students to act the bollocks even more so than usual, to drink more than an older adult could possibly comprehend, and to have more craic than was previously thought possible. What about when you are no longer a student? Does the idea of RAG Week hold any appeal any more?

10 am on a Tuesday.
What else would you be doing?

For the Americans who will read this purely because they do not know what "shite craic" is, you'll know by the end of this post. We will explore four variations of craic today, and they are: serious craic, shite craic, minus craic and anti craic. There probably should be five but anything between serious craic and shite craic isn't craic at all.

The craic debate all came to light watching the antics that were engaged in (on Ash Wednesday of all days - ye may as well have pissed all over one of Jesus' three fish meals) where there was an Arab Spring of sorts in and around Supermacs, the premier hub for nightlife in Galway. The passion, energy, and flare (not flair) reminded me of a soccer derby in Milan or Turkey somewhere. All is not lost on a night out in Galway until you fail to secure the shift in Supermacs - and even then you can drown your sorrows in a tub of curry and a snack box.

Watching the video (see right) inside Supermacs where people were singing football chants that originated in Spain and shouting about their new-found republicanism and interest in the Scottish Premier League, my heart sank a little. First it was because I though that I was embarrassed that this went on in a place I frequented once and that chances were I knew a solid number of people in and around there. As it went on, however, I realized what that sinking in my heart was - it was the sad realization that I am now shite craic.

Serious craic - is what happened in and around Supermacs last night. People experienced much enjoyment, fun and laughs at little real expense to anyone else. Except the Gardai. And Supermacs themselves I would imagine. And whoever had to clean up afterwards. And the people who had already used up their "craic allowance" for the week and were in bed asleep. Young people of today like to refer to this as the "lols and bants".

Shite craic - is the group I now belong in. I was once serious craic and can still recognize and appreciate instances of this, but there is almost no way I would be able to partake any more.

Minus craic - is not even recognizing the possibly of - or the willingness to pursue - craic. A person who is minus craic will probably be too busy with assignments, making dinner or watching a Scrubs marathon to have the craic. These people can easily be confused with someone who wants some alone time in order to catch up on their masturbation. This person has most likely weighed up the amount of craic that is likely to be had against the happiness that they can achieve by catching up with their sexual organs. This shows leadership and a willingness to sacrifice for the greater good.

Anti craic - can be described by what I would imagine the people on Keith Finnegan and Joe Duffy were like today. They had full knowledge that there was craic to be had and that the appropriate people had it. They may or may not have had serious craic themselves in the past but there is a certain tinge of jealousy to the fact that they were not the ones to be experiencing the craic.

The thing that immediately stands out here is that you will most likely experience three of these four in your lifetime, slowly becoming less and less craic as you get older. For me, I am far too young to be at the shite craic stage already and fear that I may only be years away from minus craic, whereby people are having craic around me and I am completely oblivious to it. It's a scary thought but at least if I'm still in America, no one will notice because they don't know what craic is here yet.