英文歌曲：The Sick Note，向爱尔兰“搬砖工人”学学应用文写作吧！
英语中的民歌，很多都源于爱尔兰。其中有一首名为 The Sick Note，请病假的短信，也称为 Why Paddy's not at Work，为什么爱尔兰人今天没有来上班？
The Sick Note 的歌词，采用短篇书信的形式，作者是一位名叫 Paddy 的爱尔兰建筑工人，收信人工地的老板。
歌词中解释了自己因为在工地搬砖时受伤，因此无法去上班；但就受伤过程的描述和解释，明显是凭空编造出来的，如同动画片猫和老鼠中的情节。
The Sick Note 的大致情节是：
Foreman 工头要求自己把一堆砖从14层搬下去；自己觉得用 Hod 砖斗一趟趟地背下去太麻烦，但又不能从高处扔下去；于是打算使用 Pulley 滑轮这个简单机械，把砖放在桶里、用绳子吊下去。
结果，在操作滑轮时发生了事故，自己被绳子腾空拉起来、撞在滑轮上，然后摔下去落在碎砖上面、然后又被腾空拉起来，最后终于想起松手放开绳子，却又被落下来的木桶砸中，砸断了肋骨和胳膊。
The Sick Note 曾被很多歌手和乐队翻唱，在英国和美国都广为人知，是爱尔兰文化中的经典歌曲。
The Dubliners 都柏林人乐队演唱的版本
Dear Sir, I write this note to you to tell you of me plight
And at the time of writing, I am not a pretty sight;
Me body is all black and blue, me face a deathly gray
And I write this note to say why Paddy's not at work today.
While working on the fourteenth floor some bricks I had to clear;
Now, to throw them down from such a height it was not a good idea.
The foreman wasn't very pleased, he being an awkward sod,
He said I'd have to cart them down the ladders in me hod.
Now, clearing all these bricks by hand it was so very slow,
So I hoisted up a barrel and secured the rope below.
But in me haste to do the job I was too blind to see
That a barrelful of building bricks was heavier than me.
So when I untied the rope the barrel fell like lead
And clinging tightly to the rope I started up instead.
Well, I shot up like a rocket till to my dismay I found
That halfway up I met the bloody barrel coming down.
Well, the barrel broke me shoulder as to the ground it sped,
And when I reached the top I banged the pulley with my head.
Well, I clung on tight through numbed shock from this almighty blow
And the barrel spilled out half the bricks fourteen floors below.
Now, when these bricks had fallen from the barrel to the floor
I then outweighed the barrel and so started down once more;
Still clinging tightly to the rope, I sped towards the ground,
And I landed on the broken bricks that were all scattered round.
Well, I lay there groaning on the ground, I thougth I'd passed the worst,
When the barrel hit the pulley-wheel and then the bottom burst.
Well, a shower of bricks rained down on me, I hadn't got a hope
As I lay there moaning on the ground, I let go of the bloody rope.
The barrel then being heavier, it started down once more,
And landed right across me, as I lay upon the floor.
Well, it broke three ribs and my left arm, and I can only say
That I hope you'll understand why Paddy's not a work today.
歌词中的 Paddy，是针对爱尔兰人的 Ethnic Slur 歧视称呼，虽然熟人之间有时会使用 Paddy 开玩笑，但如果不是亲近的朋友，可能会引起反感。
Paddy 有些像中文所说的“搬砖”，可以用来“自嘲”；但如果别人把你的工作描述为“搬砖”，你多半不会感到愉快。
另外，歌词中的 Sod 也是粗话，是 Sodomy 的简写形式，在口语中用来指成年男性，相当于 Guy；Sod 在英国英语中虽然经常使用，但在比较正式的场合会被视为 Taboo 禁忌.
听英文歌曲最大的好处之一，就是能了解英语的多样性，尤其是各种方言的词汇和语法特征。
The Sick Note 这首歌，就全篇都在用“宾格形式 Me”来代替“所有格形式 My”，例如 Me shoulder、Me body、Me face 等等；除了爱尔兰英语，很多地区的方言也广泛存在这种用法。
在过去，Me body 这样的用法曾被视为 Incorrect，但今天在日常生活中已经被普遍接受，很少会有人大惊小怪地挑毛病。
当然，在考试答题、书面写作、以及各种正式场合，人们还是会刻意地避免使用这种方言口语用法的，否则可能会被当作没上过学的文盲。