My experience of kissing the Blarney Stone was almost identical to yours. It was raining, the stairs were very slippery, my sunglasses fell off on the way up, I didn't bother going down to fetch them, the old guy with piercing blue eyes looked scary in his hooded black macintosh. When I said to him "if I already have the gift of the gab, will I lose it if I kiss the stone." He glared at me. I thought he was going to push me off! I had no idea it was this high and that you had to bend BACKWARDS. I was terrified. The next two times I went to Blarney, I did NOT kiss the Blarney Stone!