As one great socialite nearly said "You can never be too rich, too thin or too organised." Admittedly, organisation is not usually high on the list of glamorous virtues but these days keeping tabs on the social whirl is a feat that would flummox Miss Moneypenny herself.
In the good old days it was quite simple; there was a season for balls, a season for hunts and the odd madcap picnic held by the Fotheringays, and that was that.
Nowadays, the Celtic Tiger will not desist from roaring, and every night of the week is taken up with some not-to-be-missed event. It is quite impossible to know whether to accept that opening night invitation - I mean, who's to say that Ron Wood won't decide to choose that very night to hold an impromptu soiree celebrating St Bohunk's Day?
To help you mark your cards and give you time to order that Philip Treacy number, here's a list of the eight social events of 1998.
1. They were hanging out of the rafters in three continents for the stage version, so expect to see a bumper turnout at the premiere for Pat O'Connor's film of Danc- ing At Lughnasa when it opens late in 1998. It will be rivalled only by the premiere of Neil Jordan film of Pat McCabe's novel, The Butcher Boy, in the spring - a "wellies on the table" vs "corpses in the kitchen" play-off.
2. To Slane or not to Slane, that is the question. With doubts now hanging over a summer concert at Lord Henry Mount Charles's place, the rumours about whether the crowd-puller would be Oasis or U2 seem a bit redundant. If it does go ahead, the place to be is at the Slane's private party, if it doesn't, the place to be is at one of the villager's houses where they'll be celebrating the peace and quiet.
3. The Bodega bar beside the River Lee in Cork is already doing well for Jonathan Burke, Eoin Foyle and Joe O'Kelly, and is undoubtedly the place to sip a cappucino cappuccino in the south. So when the trio convert the back of the old warehouse into a nightclub in 1998, you can bet the opening night will be the grooviest invitation of the year.
4. Anyone who enjoyed the glamorous opening nights of the Gate's Pinter Season last spring will be rubbing their hands with glee at the prospect of the theatre's forthcoming American Season. It will kick off at end of March with movie director, Karel (The French Lieutenant's Woman) Reisz's Long Day's Journey Into Night. The real "get that frock out" occasion, however, will be when Tonywinning actress Frances McDormand opens in the next play of the season, A Streetcar Named Desire.
5. Weddings are always good social events, and two in particular look set to be more stylish than most. When the daughter of casting agents Ros and John Hubbard, Amy Hubbard, marries her American beau, Drew MacLean, in Dingle, you may be sure that any number of close personal friends, who just happen to be famous in the movies, will be coming along. The other guaranteed elegant bride of 1998 is Sonia Reynolds, who is going to marry go-getting solicitor, Barry Lyons, in June.
6. The rumour mill has it that Michael Flatley is going to be hanging up his Lord of the Dance- ing slippers in the early spring and will end his world tour with a special homecoming concert in Dublin. The man who put the ego back into Irish dancing will then be working on a film about - you guessed it - Michael Flatley. The final show may not sound like the most funky of engagements but think of all those new millionaires that will be bidding a fond farewell to the man who danced them all the way to the bank.
7. Literary events are all the rage these days, and there's one in particular in 1998 that will be the perfect event to gain some intellectual cachet. The first Oxford Book Of Ireland, edited by Patricia Craig, is due to be launched in June and with masses of high calibre contributors such as Seamus Heaney, John Banville, John McGahern and Nuala Ni Dhomhnaill, there is sure to be a good party.
Doubtless there will also be some glaring flaws and omissions - and we all know there's nothing like a good argument to spice up a night out.
8. Of course, the biggest social event is one that isn't happening: - no Eurovision in Ireland in 1998. To help fill this huge gap in the social year and help assuage the obvious feeling of loss in the Irish psyche, Bono, Joe Dolan, Dana, and Boyzone are getting together in the Aras and having a huge Hibernovision bash to which they've already invited many of their very close personal friends. Nelson Mandela, Sporty Spice, Teasy from Glenroe, Tammy Wynette and Mike Tyson have all accepted their invites. Ah no, not really, but I live in hope.