A lot of national holidays this week in three countries that are important to me: St. Patrick’s Day (Ireland, 17 March), Mother’s Day (UK, 15 March) and White Day (Japan, 14 March).

Check it out on IMDB

Today, of course, is St. Patrick’s Day. My hubby, son and I had good intentions to go and watch some live trad music but, alas, Ireland’s only kung fu movie got in the way and tempted us to stay home. Have you ever watched Fatal Deviation? If not, then you must. This gem of a martial arts movie is set in Trim, Co. Meath and is an Irish martial arts extravaganza. I’m a huge kung fu fan; you may or may not know that aside from being a big Bruce Lee fan, I also love all kinds of kung fu movies whether low budget or blockbuster. Don’t miss Ireland’s answer to Bruce Lee! (The mad monk is my favourite, lol).

On Sunday 15th March, we celebrated Mother’s Day with dinner out and my son surprised me with a lovely card complete with a teabag treat…aww.

On Saturday 14th March, it was White Day in Japan. To explain this for those folks reading who have never been to Japan, Valentine’s Day over there is when women make a proposal to men they like by giving him chocolates; he then either accepts or rejects her proposal on White Day by giving her white chocolates (acceptance) or cookies (rejection). My hubby and I met over in Japan while we were both teaching English for rival schools in a kind of Montague-Capulet-esque scenario. We’ve celebrated Japanese style Valentine’s Day and White Day ever since (and yes, I do receive white chocolates, thank you very much!).

Happy Paddy’s-Mother’s-White Day, everyone!

Posted by on March 17, 2026 in Random stuff and tagged , , .

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About Leilanie Stewart

Leilanie Stewart is an award-winning author and poet from Belfast, Northern Ireland. She writes ghost and psychological horror, as well as experimental poetry. Her writing confronts the nature of self; her novels feature main characters on a dark psychological journey who have a crisis and create a new sense of identity. She began writing for publication while working as an English teacher in Japan, a career pathway that has influenced themes in her writing. Her former career as an Archaeologist has also inspired her writing and she has incorporated elements of archaeology and mythology into both her fiction and poetry. In addition to promoting her own work, Leilanie runs Bindweed Anthologies, a creative writing publication with her writer husband, Joseph Robert. Aside from publishing pursuits, Leilanie enjoys spending time with her husband and their lively literary lad, a voracious reader of sea monster books.

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