I work hard for the money

Yay- my last day of work at the Galway Races! I should net between 140-240 euros for the five days (since I don't have a PPS number, the government is allowed to take 40% tax, but I'm not sure if they'll catch me.) Still, at the minimum, it's $5.50 an hour to stand there doing nothing. I really hope that when I come back to Ireland, I get a job doing SOMETHING. I like to keep myself occupied, and it's just not that cool to know that my work could be accomplished by a sign pointing to the bathrooms and a rope across the stairs encouraging people not to go up.

At least every day was better than the day before. Here's a rundown:

Wednesday: Andrea went with me and it took us over an hour to get there. Because we didn't know our way around, she paid 15 euro just to get in (she could have gotten into the infield for free), and we were also instantly separated. I was sent to the Champagne Bar, where the rich sit far away from the actual racetrack, drink champagne at 90-160 euros a bottle, and bet on the race as seen on TV. My major perks were a free ham and cheese baguette from the caterers and a 5 euro tip for finding a guy two folding chairs. The downside of this job is that I was totally useless, I could never sit down, I saw no horses, and the supervisor was a dick.
Thursday: I was sent to the staircase leading to the back of the Panoramic Restaurant, the best place in the whole racecourse. Pros included no supervisor and being able to walk up and down the stairs and sit on them. Cons were lots and lots of drunk people trying to screw with me, and not seeing any horses.
Friday: I was totally useless again in the hospitality village (people were checking tickets both before me and after me, so I was redundant), but I was with a cool Irish girl called Rosaleen who taught me how to bet on the horses and showed me the Secret Hamburger Tent (free to staff) where I had the best burger in the world. Cons: still no horses.
Saturday: I was back on the staircase, but the addition of a white plastic chair made it heavenly. On my extra-long break, I went to the parade ring and then watched my first race from the most exclusive stands. It was awesome.
Today: I spent the first race of the day IN the Panoramic Restaurant with a view of the entire racecourse, salivating as plates of braised Connemara lamb went by me- definitely the best place I've ever been assigned. After that, it was back to the staircase with the plastic chair, and three adorable 12-year-old boys asked me a million questions and gave me a winning horse tip. (I won 4.80.) Then I had two different outside assignments in the rare but wonderful sun. I finished the day off by stealing a hamburger, two sandwiches, and a Smirnoff Ice for the road. All in all, not a bad way to spend the week. It was fun to see all the ladies with their big feathered hats, and to be able to go anywhere just by flashing my badge.