[CrackMonkey] ?Has it been a year, already...

[George J.P. Perry]

?Has it been a year, already.  It's time, once again, for:  

"The Man Who Orders Three Beers".  

An Irishman by th' name o' Pauly McLean moves into a tiny hamlet in
county Kerry, walks into the pub and promptly orders three beers.  The
bartender raises his eyebrows, but serves the man three beers, which he
drinks quietly at a table, alone.  An hour later, the man has finished the
three beers and orders three more. This happens yet again.  The next
evening the man again orders and drinks three beers at a time, several
times.  Soon the entire town is whispering about the Man Who Orders Three
Beers. 

Finally, a week later,the bartender broaches the subject on behalf of the
town. "I don't mean to pry, but folks around here are wondering why you
always order three beers?"  "Tis odd, isn't it?" the man replies, "You
see, I have two brothers and one went to America, and the other to
Australia.  We promised each other that we would always order an extra two
beers whenever we drank as a way of keeping up the family bond.  The
bartender and the whole town was pleased with this answer, and soon the
Man Who Orders Three Beers became a local celebrity and source of pride to
the hamlet, even to the extent that out-of-towners would come to watch him
drink.  Then, one day, the man comes in and orders only two beers. 

The bartender pours them with a heavy heart. This continues for the rest
of the evening: he orders only two beers.The word flies around town. 
Prayers are offered for the soul of one of the brothers. The next day, the
bartender says to the man, "Folks around here me first of all, want to
offer condolences to you for the death of your brother. You know-the two
beers and all..." 

The man ponders this for a moment, then replies, "You'll be happy to hear
that my two brothers are alive and well.  It's just that I, meself, have
decided to give up drinking for Lent."