Saint Patrick’s Day

About Saint Patrick

Saint Patrick is the patron saint and national apostle of Ireland. St Patrick is credited with bringing christianity to Ireland. Most of what is known about him comes from his two works; the Confessio, a spiritual autobiography, and his Epistola, a denunciation of British mistreatment of Irish christians.

According to different versions of his life story it is said that he was born in Britain, around 385AD. His parents Calpurnius and Conchessa were Roman citizens living in either Scotland or Wales. As a boy of 14 he was captured and taken to Ireland where he spent six years in slavery herding sheep. He returned to Ireland in his 30s as a missionary among the Celtic pagans.

Saint Patrick described himself as a “most humble-minded man, pouring forth a continuous paean of thanks to his Maker for having chosen him as the instrument whereby multitudes who had worshipped idols and unclean things had become the people of God.”

Many folk ask the question ‘Why is the Shamrock the National Flower of Ireland ?’ The reason is that St. Patrick used it to explain the Holy Trinity to the pagans. Saint Patrick is believed to have been born in the late fourth century, and is often confused with Palladius, a bishop who was sent by Pope Celestine in 431 to be the first bishop to the Irish believers in Christ.

In the custom known as “drowning the shamrock”, the shamrock that has been worn on a lapel or hat is put in the last drink of the evening.

Saint Patrick is most known for driving the snakes from Ireland. It is true there are no snakes in Ireland, but there probably never have been – the island was separated from the rest of the continent at the end of the Ice Age. As in many old pagan religions, serpent symbols were common and often worshipped. Driving the snakes from Ireland was probably symbolic of putting an end to that pagan practice. While not the first to bring christianity to Ireland, it is Patrick who is said to have encountered the Druids at Tara and abolished their pagan rites. The story holds that he converted the warrior chiefs and princes, baptizing them and thousands of their subjects in the “Holy Wells” that still bear this name.

There are several accounts of Saint Patrick’s death. One says that Patrick died at Saul, Downpatrick, Ireland, on March 17, 460 A.D. His jawbone was preserved in a silver shrine and was often requested in times of childbirth, epileptic fits, and as a preservative against the “evil eye.” Another account says that St. Patrick ended his days at Glastonbury, England and was buried there. The Chapel of St. Patrick still exists as part of Glastonbury Abbey. Today, many Catholic places of worship all around the world are named after St. Patrick, including cathedrals in New York and Dublin city

A toast for St Patrick’s Day, “May the roof above us never fall in, and may we friends beneath it never fall out.”

Saint Patrick’s Day

Saint Patrick’s Day has come to be associated with everything Irish: anything green and gold, shamrocks and luck. Most importantly, to those who celebrate its intended meaning, St. Patrick’s Day is a traditional day for spiritual renewal and offering prayers for missionaries worldwide.

Why is it celebrated on March 17th? One theory is that that is the day that St. Patrick died. Since the holiday began in Ireland, it is believed that as the Irish spread out around the world, they took with them their history and celebrations. The biggest observance of all is, of course, in Ireland. With the exception of restaurants and pubs, almost all businesses close on March 17th. Being a religious holiday as well, many Irish attend mass, where March 17th is the traditional day for offering prayers for missionaries worldwide before the serious celebrating begins.

In American cities with a large Irish population, St. Patrick’s Day is a very big deal. Big cities and small towns alike celebrate with parades, “wearing of the green,” music and songs, Irish food and drink, and activities for kids such as crafts, coloring and games. Some communities even go so far as to dye rivers or streams green!

History of Sant Patrick's Day
Sant Patrick's Day Cartoon

Extreme Job Interview

Are you a team player? Do you pride yourself on your creativity and your ability to work well under pressure? Today's hiring managers are not content with simply taking job seekers at their word about these desirable job skills. Instead, when seeking top talent, they want to see it to believe it.

As a result, some of the most successful companies in the U.S. are changing up the traditional interview process by asking seemingly random questions to better determine a candidate's problem-solving skills. For example, a candidate at Google, Inc. was asked, “How many people are using Facebook in San Francisco at 2:30 p.m. on a Friday?” And at Hewlett-Packard Co., another was asked, “If Germans were the tallest people in the world, how would you prove it?”

Other companies have taken a global approach:
    “How would you cure world hunger?” (Amazon.com Inc.)
    “How many different ways can you get water from a lake at the foot of a mountain, up to the top of the mountain?” (Walt Disney Co.)


For candidates, these types of questions take them out of their comfort zone, forcing them to think on their feet. For employers, these same questions provide valuable insights about how the candidates approach difficult situations or, more importantly, whether they can remain positive and proactive in the face of a challenge. It's from these kinds of characteristics—gleaned from a conversation between the interviewer and the candidate rather than a one-dimensional résumé that lists skills and experience—that employers can gain important insights to help them make a hiring decision.

With this increasing trend, more companies are adopting the practice of asking interview questions beyond the standard “What are your strengths and weaknesses?” and even going to the extent of testing more extreme hiring practices. Some creative firms might invite two candidates to dinner to see how they interact in a competitive setting. Other companies might conduct a “hands-on” interview at their corporate headquarters to see if a candidate can dive in to existing projects and fit in quickly to the corporate culture. Companies are looking to find better candidates, hire them and hold onto them as long-term corporate investments.

By Suki Shah
CEO, Get Hired  

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Job Interview at Heineken

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NEW ZEALAND

Interesting Facts About New Zealand

-  New Zealand is one of the world’s least populated countries.

-  New Zealanders love their cars! 2.5 million cars for 4 million people (including the kids) makes New   Zealand’s car ownership rate one of the highest in the world.

-  In 1893, New Zealand became the first country to give women the right to vote.

-  Sir Edmund Hillary, the first person to climb Mount Everest in 1953, was a New Zealander.

-  Baron Ernest Rutherford, the first person in the world to split the atom in 1919, was also a New Zealander.

-  New Zealand has won more Olympic gold medals per capita, than any other country.

-  New Zealand is thehome to the world’s only flightless parrot, the Kakapo.

-  There are no snakes in New Zealand.

-  There aren't nuclear power stations in New Zealand.

-  The world’s first commercial bungee jump was a 43 metre leap off the Kawarau Bridge in Queenstown in 1988.

-  The longest place name in the world is Taumatawhakatangihangakoauauotamateapokaiwhenuakitanatahu, a hill in Hawkes Bay.

-  New Zealand is home to the world’s smallest dolphin species.

-  New Zealand has three official languages: English, Māori and New Zealand Sign Language.

-  There is a giant carnivorous snail living in the South Island