ShamRocking St. Pat's Day

Top O' the Morning to You!

Here at the 3 things blog we like to celebrate all things holiday, and St. Patrick's Day is no exception. Before we share a wee bit o' wisdom about what is good about March 17, let's discuss what we won't talk about:

• Corned beef and cabbage - one word, BLECH! My apologies to all the corned beef and stinky cabbage lovers out there, and to those who eat reuben sandwiches. Just not my cup of Irish coffee. This opinion is mine and mine alone. Brian can speak for himself.
• Leprechaun horror flicks - never seen one, never will.
• Michael Flatley
• And rainbows. We will not talk about rainbows.

So with that in mind, we offer you a pot of good things about the day to wear green, starting with the man who must have kissed the Blarney Stone many, many times. (Legend has it that if you kiss the Blarney Stone in Ireland, you will have the gift of gab) Therefore, up first is the the one and only . . .

Brian MacAtkinson

3) The Shamrock Shake: Yes, I'm caving-in to commercialism and the partially-gelatinous, semi-dairy, frozen beverages served by our favorite Scottish place on an Irish holiday. I love them. BUT - you must mix the minty-green goodness with the chocolate. Also, do not let them put the whipped cream and cherry on top the way they do now. That's like kissing your sister - just wrong.

2) Wearing of the Green: Some of us look good in green and others do not, but on this day, everyone is allowed. It's also a song, you know. Here's a link to a Celtic-punk band from right around the corner - Kilmaine Saints, on their album The Good, The Plaid, and the Ugly - track 7.

1) More Celtic Music: This year, I get to go to Bethlehem, PA to see Runa at the ArtsQuest Center at Steel Stacks. It's a very cool venue, and I'm not even all that particular about who's playing, but man O'man, can they play!


Sue O'Borowiak

3. Everyone is Irish on St. Patrick's Day! As a child with strawberry blonde hair and freckles, many people would mistake me for an Irish lass. However, I am Slovak and Slovenian by birth, and Polish by marriage. There's not a bit of Irish blood in me except on St. Paddy's Day, when we all can be Irish. A favorite memory of my teaching days is construction paper shamrocks hanging in the school office with the names of all the staff Irish-ized, like McOerter or O'Sabadosa. (That's a little shout out to my good friends and former colleagues, Kate and Eva!)

2. You can fool small children into believing that leprechauns are real! Not mean creepy ones, but cute tricky ones like the lad in the Lucky Charms commercials. When my kids were in preschool, the teachers would put tiny green footprints all around the classroom, dye the water of the toilet green, and make messes here and there so the kids would think little mischievous green men paid a visit.

1. You can drink green beverages! My first fav is the aforementioned green minty shake, but not McD's. I've discovered the Leprechaun Shake found at a local frozen custard shop in our area - creamy, minty, and cool with green sprinkles and a cherry on top - yummy! Then, of course, there is green beer, which I have not toasted with in a long, long time, and the infamous Green River soda.

And speaking of rivers, here's a bonus good thing: The Windy City dyes the Chicago River green for St. Patrick's Day. How fun is that?



Timelapse of the river dye-job last year