Players up the ante at the Super Poker Event of Europe 2012.
(Credit:Danny Maxwell, courtesy of Poker Ireland)
Ah January, named after Janus the two-headed god from Roman mythology, mostly because January is all about lying to yourself. Whether it’s pretending that New Years Eve went exactly as you had planned or that empty promise that you’ll give up whatever that thing that is ruining your life is, nobody gets through January without a fib now and then.

Think about it, as soon as you get into work your boss will go “Man, bet you miss being off…” and you have to hem and haw and go “No, having zero responsibility and almost choking on chocolate because I was gorging on them so fast I wasn't taking the wrapping off was a punishment, a burden and one I CANNOT WAIT TO BE SUBJECTED TO AGAIN IN 351 days."

As soon as you bump into someone who doesn't live with you they have to ignore the fact that you've stopped washing your clothes…never mind that your diet has consisted of an even mixture of custard and gravy, vitamins at this point being but a distant memory. To avoid mutual embarrassment they white-wash the truth to a level only previously used by murderers trying to escape a conviction.

“You…you’re looking well,” they’ll say. Eventually.

“Thanks! You…you too!” you’ll say, playing verbal table-tennis, using a lie as the ball.

“We should catch up soon!” they’ll respond as they walk away, not waiting for a response, not looking back, the lie we’ll say to a lot to people in January.

Here in the offices of The Gathering Dublin, we’re mostly looking forward to February. It’s when our events begin and they couldn't be more diverse.

To kick things off, on the 17th of February we have Feis Cluain Dolcáin, a day of Irish Dancing in Citywest Hotel Conference, Leisure and Golf Resort. It’s such a thrill to see talented dancers putting all their focus into something they love.

Then on the 23rd of February Pokerireland.ie are running the Super Poker Event of Europe with a prize-pool of an estimated €300,000. Bluffing is just polite lying, right?

So, as you can see in February alone we've got quite a mix going on! Until then we might finish off the last of the chocolates, sure wasn't everyone telling us how good we were looking all day today.

For further information check out www.TheGatheringDublin.com.