minow@decvax.UUCP (Martin Minow) (03/01/84)
It should be pointed out that this refers to "the mythical St. Urho" who drove the grasshoppers from Finland. The celebration of St. Urho's day started in the upper mid-west of the US when the Finns, observing their Irish brethren celebrating St. Patrick's day, said "well, we can drink as well as the Irish" and off it went. Some Massachusetts residents actually got our previous govenor to issue an official proclimation in recognition of St. Urho's contribution to Finland. How they kept a straight face is beyond me. "Real" Finns (in Finland), never having heard of St. Urho, are confused by the celebration -- maybe the emphasis on grape juice threw them off. Remember, the Finnish national drink is "Pontikka" -- a product of Finland's great forest industry. "Pontikka, the manufacture of which is forbidden, is a rarely encountered alcoholic beverage distilled in secret behind trees, from trees." Martin Minow decvax!minow