Millennium fatigue is already setting in. My prediction is that it will be one great damp squib, with most people staying at home or staying over with friends. The pubs will be closing early; those that don't will be charging whatever they think appropriate at the door and taxis will be at a premium or not available at all. Restaurants are either booked up already or their owners are planning their own private parties.
A few things associated with the event are of interest, though. One of them is the Dingle Millennium Coin in a limited edition of 1,000, designed by the Irish goldsmith, Niamh Ni Mhathuna, now Niamh Utsch, whose work is on show at her premises in Dingle.
The silver coin depicts the beautiful stone bridge of Garfinny on one side with the legend "An Daingean", looped over the bridge. On the other side are impressions of Hussey's Folly, built in the area during the Great Famine; Esk Tower, a beacon for ships, also built during the Famine, and a sailing bark.
Given that a taxi and a visit to one's local in some quarters on the eve of the great occasion could cost an arm and a leg, the £100 asking price doesn't seem to be too exorbitant.
And it's for a good cause as well. The Camphill Movement, founded in 1940, is dedicated to creating an atmosphere in which vulnerable children and adults can be absorbed into local communities. The next such facility will be based on a 44-acre site just east of Dingle.
The coin is part of the fundraising project. With adequate funding, the Camphill Movement hopes to form a cluster of close-knit homesteads where small farming and gardening activities will be carried out. It is hoped traditional craft workshops will develop in time.