Sure as Hell ain't Carnaval

I didn't come back to the U.S.A. for a Saint Patrick's Day parade, but it was more fun than I imagined. I mean it wasn't all that much fun, the drums were lame compared to what you get in Brazil, but you can't beat the Bagpipes. Well, after a while Bagpipes get old and noisy, but they do cause as splash as do men in tartan plaid skirts etc. etc. Nobody was drunk _ I guess post-Giuliani prohibtions on open beer bottles _ or maybe it's just Park Slope. Who knows? It was different from what I had expected, much calmer and the kids loved it.