I haven’t gone bonkers in quite a while now. Well – at least not since my now sister-in-law’s Hen Party where I went absolutely bonkers and got head-scratchingly lost in the mire that is Limerick City’s grid area on my way home and complained at reception that my room was no longer on the floor it had been on earlier.

It was a very fun night.

Anyhow. Apart from that, I haven’t gone bonkers in quite a while and the reason is probably self-explanatory. I am a 43-year-old stay at home parent to three tiny people who suck the very life out of me over the course of each and every single hour of the day. Most of my friends find themselves in a similar conundrum. And so with a deficit of energy and conspirators it would be nothing short of miraculous for me to find myself in the middle of a dance floor doing what I do well – that is, having fun, dancing and letting loose.

I used to be quite good at it in fact. I have the Arts Degree to prove it. Heading out was about so many things – letting off steam, catching up with friends, getting dressed up, letting the hair down, downing the shot, eating the chips…

But now that the craic has been banned, thanks to the dreaded Covid, that fun is prohibited and letting loose is nigh on impossible, I’ve developed an awful itch to go mental. Like that time Sharon and I went to a random disco in Bandon, with no spin home. I want to go to Puck Fair and sing karaoke, terribly, with three friends and smoke and if pints got spilled on me, all the better. All solely for the sheer earthiness of it, the basic-ness of it.

I WANT TO BREAK FREE.

And if that’s where I’m at, what must every single young person be making of this weird locked-in time? Those of an age where you should be making a fool of yourself and going overboard and making mistakes – because that’s what you’re supposed to do when you’re young – living and learning.

At my age you should know better. And I do. And I’m tired. So I’ll get over it and probably scratch the itch with a Zoom night with the girls and a glass or two of wine. Because I’ve had my time and I have the memories. However blurred and bonkers they may be…