It was the strangest of days.
Everyone on the government side (although it is the lack of a precise definition for that side which is causing all the bother) was dressed up in their finery for the big day.
But the main event never happened and instead stalemate and stand-offs took hold of Leinster House.
Sticking with sartorial matters for a moment, there were reports in the Dáil canteen that some TDs went off to buy new clothes for today's second tilt at electing a Taoiseach.
They had not brought an overnight bag.
And why would they, given that for the best part of a century the Dáil has been able to elect a Taoiseach when the required majority is in place?
Not on this occasion, however.
The way it all would play out wasn’t immediately obvious.
The new Ceann Comhairle, Verona Murphy, exemplified diplomacy in the opening exchanges.
She let those bubbling with angst and concern about the Regional Independents' speaking time have their say, as she smiled almost beatifically.
With the air of a sage elder her predecessor Seán Ó Fearghaíl watched on attentively.
But in a manner akin to a student teacher being tested by an unruly class, the opposition continued to up the ante.
Then the first of the day’s four Dáil adjournments was called and the ceremonial political procession to elevate Micheál Martin to the office of Taoiseach was well and truly sidetracked.
Along the way Peadar Tóibín found a parachute and jumped from the Regional Independents into the arms of another Dáil technical group during the afternoon.
Rumours abounded that Mattie McGrath would follow and Independent Ireland opened their arms to embrace him, but Michael Lowry insisted "Mattie was solid".
That would be an apt description too for the opposition parties who walked out of Leinster House in lockstep just after 6.30pm.
A sense of unity, which had eluded them during the General Election campaign, was now apparent.
All agreed that Michael Lowry and the Regional Independents would have to be redesignated as government TDs and forsake eating into opposition speaking time.
Democracy was at stake they contended, and they would hold firm until the government conceded on this key point.
If that does not happen, they pledged to act as something resembling a cohesive force intent on snatching Micheál Martin’s big prize.
A little earlier, there was a very different analysis of the day’s events as Martin and Simon Harris eventually appeared at the gates of Government Buildings to give their equally united view.
The location for this appearance had changed twice leaving a chasing media pack to galumph up Merrion Street in a frenzy, as some interested members of the public joined our race.
Could it be a 'Reeling in the Years' moment someone asked?
That is not certain yet but the verdicts of the Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael leaders on what had unfolded in the Dáil was unambiguous as they spoke.
The atmosphere charged with both soft gloom and barely concealed anger.
"Stunt politics," said Harris while Micheál Martin felt the Constitution had been subverted.
That latter is indeed a lofty political charge, and it suggests that finding the pathway to a compromise won’t be straightforward.
All the while, President Higgins waits up at Arás an Uachtaráin to formally appoint the new Taoiseach.
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What to expect today after serious row leaves Dáil deeply divided
