Do you fancy a day out, a break from the dull and dreary, a little divertissement? Then why not go along tomorrow to the Doyle Tara Hotel in Dublin, where you will find the members of the Irish Meteorological Society en fete. There you will find Jest and youthful Jollity, and all the other tempting treats in Milton's litany:
Quips and cranks and wanton wiles,
Nods and becks and wreathed smiles;
Sport, that wrinkled Care derides,
And Laughter holding both his sides.
Although you may well encounter some or all of these, the description, one must readily admit, is probably a little OTT. Indeed tomorrow's theme is deadly serious - unless, that is, you subscribe to Henry Ford's dictum that all history is bunk, or to give him his due, as he said precisely, "more or less bunk". The topic of the day is "Weather and History".
We are presented with an impressive cast of meteorological historians. The first lecture after registration at 10 a.m. is by Dr John Sweeney of NUI Maynooth, who rightly, as the society's president, takes precedence.
His subject is a sweeping one, Climate and History in Northern Europe: the Saga of the Viking Colonies, and he will no doubt deal with the implications for those rather nasty Norsemen of the, in general, relatively benign weather conditions of that time.
The scene becomes more local for Eddie Graham's talk on The Weather of Old Dublin, and then more eventful, perhaps, for the final session before lunch, which features Denis Fitzgerald of Met Eireann on Historic Storms.
The two lectures of the afternoon are specific to particular historical events. The Burning Summer of 1798, Dr John Tyrrell's interpretation of the meteorological influences at work in that cathartic year, is nothing if not topical.
And if you have come across David Dickenson's delightful little monograph on The Extraordinary Story of the Great Frost and Forgotten Famine of 1740-41, you are certain to be enthralled by the final contribution of the day: it is Dr Dickenson himself who will provide an apercu of that most devastating occurrence in our history, which has been very much overshadowed by the even greater disaster of a little over a century later.
I wonder if it will be possible to discuss these matters for a whole day without blaming El Nino for at least some of the misfortunes that have befallen our nation over the centuries? If you would like to find out, admission, as far as I know, is absolutely free, so:
Come, and trip it as ye go,
On the light fantastic toe.