Satisfied my Green Thirst
14 Mar 2010 Leave a Comment
in alcohol, Green, Squirrely Gurl
Ahhhh Shamrockfest… in the rain!
I missed last year and last year it rained too. I braved it this year and took Squirrely Gurl with me.
I had high hopes as the rain had stopped when I was getting on the Metro. By the time I got to the Stadium it was POURING! Plus I walked right past Squirrely Gurl. The VIP line was GINORMOUS but thankfully it moved rather quick as they had us walk through the mud. Until I got there. They questionsed if my ticket was VIP and were unable to scan it. They asked me to step to the side where some chick decided to bump me with her rear because I was in her way yelling at me “I’m working here!”.
“Hey sorry they told me to stand here”.
Squirrely Gurl and I beelined it to the VIP section and the shortest beer line to then duck into a tent to get out of the rain.
The beer went fast and we needed to warm up. We got more checked out the food in the VIP section but passed. We got more beer and ventured out. That didn’t last long cause we needed more beer so back into the VIP section we went. On our way we checked the lineup and the times and noticed Scythian was playing in the VIP section in about 30 minutes.
As we were drinking our beer we enjoyed the sights around us. I had enough beer at this point to stop people for pictures. Like this big balled fellow:
Then I noticed this guy with an extra short kilt. I hadn’t even noticed his shirt until Squirrely Gurl pointed it out. But then I had to show my shirt so I unzipped and then went to unzip the next jacket as he said, “Oh Yeah! keep going!”
There was the HOT, bearded leprechaun twins.
All kinds were at Shamrockfest.
And then there was SCYTHIAN! I have not seen them live in such a long time. I can’t believe I’d forgot how they ROCK the house.
Then they played “Gypsy Fiddle”. Leks can bring you to tears when he plays this.
The crowd seems to agree!
Can’t wait til Scythian makes some regular appearances back here in D.C. I know I’ll be checking their website for upcoming shows.
It was cold and rainy so it was difficult to show off my St. Patty’s shirt so I was sure to get a picture of it.
I kinda look like an Irish Snookie, eh?
We found more great outfits on our way back to the beer truck.
After we got a refill we were hanging out when Squirrely Gurl says, “I think I found my favorite. There’s an Asian guy with a frog umbrella.”
“OMG! That’s JOE!!!!”
I haven’t seen Joe in years, but what was most unusual to me was I had just gotten rid of the EXACT same umbrella just earlier that day when Purple Heart picked up my donated items.
Squirrley Gurl and I agreed we were done and worked our way out. We stopped for a bite on our way and experienced a reunion of sorts when these two found each other right in front of me and under Squirrley Gurl’s umbrella.
As we walked out we were very glad to be going. We were soaked to the bone and wet jeans just aren’t a lot of fun.
All things considered we had a blast. We didn’t see as many acts as I would have liked but Scythian satisfied my thirst.
Shamrockfest is an experience that must be had by all!!
Póg mo thóin!
08 Mar 2010 Leave a Comment
The lineup has been finalized!
Tickets are selling fast and the prices are increasing. VIP tickets are only $79.99 right now and will be $120 soon. That is cheap for all you can drink… ALL DAY! Plus cleaner, NICER bathrooms.
Fer the love of St. Paddy… If yer gonna buy a ticket do it NOW!!!!! Tickets
Póg mo thóin! = Kiss my Ass!
Green!!!
25 Feb 2010 Leave a Comment
OMG! It’s that time again…
SHAMROCKFEST!!!!
I’ll be quite frank when I say I wasn’t that interested in going this year but then I checked out the line up. Here’s just a taste:
- The Roots
- Train
- Scythian
- Carbon Leaf
- Seven Nations
- Mr. Greengenes
- Donegal Express
- Enter the Haggis
- Dr. FU
OMG!!!!
This line up is off the hook. I mean Train!?!? With “Hey, Soul Sister” in the top ten right now and they will be celebrating with lil ole us?
I love that this year is more diverse, Rock, Irish, Blues, Retro and Folk music. A leetle something for everyone and I love it all.
Sweet Motha of Gawd!
I’m so freaking excited.
Plus:
- 40+ bands and djs
- 10 massive stages
- Dozens of party areas
- Activities
- Strolling entertainers
- Irish Village – with all your favorite Irish bars
- Shamrock Pub Games
- NCAA basketball viewing tents
- Tons of beer trucks serving a variety of brands
- Visit the D.C. United interactive tent
- Acres of food & beverage vendors
- Much, much, lots more!
Oh and have you heard? It’s a little hush hush right now but I know you won’t tell… yet.
There’s a new addition to the line up…
Maybe you’ve heard of them?
Currently, they are touring with the Black Eyed Peas.
LMFAO!!!!
Two Irish fist pumps up!
Now I just have to find someone to tag along with me.
Have I mentioned… SO EXCITED!!!! You know that funny feeling in your tummy kind of EXCITED!
St. Patty’s T-Shirt
06 Mar 2009 1 Comment
I found and bought my St. Patty’ s t-shirt today.
In the process I found some really great St. Patty’s t-shirts from Cafe Press.
Here are some of my favorites:
Mine is the last one: “Rock Out with your Shamrock Out“.
How Green is your Plastic?
18 Jun 2008 2 Comments
in family, Green Tags: family, Green, plastic
The topic of bottled water has come up quite often in discussion with friends. I caught a news report on this some months ago and have made a concerted effort not to use bottled water. I have been using my own bottles and tap water. So much money has been put into cleaning our tap water so why put more money into costly bottled water and contributed to all the plastic in our dumps.
Ahh plastic! That has been a more recent news topic. Mrs. Chickie (a coworker of mine) has mentioned it and how she has been cleaning the bad plastics out of her house and away from her three children. I admit I have been lax in looking it up and educating myself even though it has been a prevalent topic in the news.
Today Mrs. Chickie stopped by my desk and noticed all my plastic containers of fruit and salad as well as my water bottle. She started checking what number they were and was ohhing and ahhing about how bad my plastic is. Finally, I did some research. She suggested checking out Z Recommends, which is a blog with a wide range of information geared towards a safer environment for your kids.
I started by Googling “plastic” and that turned up everything except what I was looking for so I tried “good plastic, bad plastic”. This brought me to a blog titled “A Bunch of Greens” geared towards living green and a post titled “Good Plastic – Bad Plastic”. This has a fantastic overview but I became very bothered because my new water bottle, purchased at Starbucks, is a #7. I guess I figured this is just the type of thing Starbucks would be on top of, which is why I purchased the water bottle. Yes I should have done my own research from the git so I guess I was disappointed in both myself as well as Starbucks.
I forged forward looking for more information and came upon a wealth of info that I am still going through. I found a site called “The Green Guide” and seems its part of the National Geographic web site. I can’t wait to see what else they have but their info on plastics is extensive starting with “Green Learning: Plastics by the Numbers”.
I’m finding a lot of information but I’m still bothered by my recent Starbucks purchase. I went to Their website to see if I could write to them about my disappointment. This is what you do when you are older… You write letters when you are dissatisfied with a company. Well, my Mother wrote letters I write little blurby emails expressing my disgust with them as well as myself.
“I recently bought a water bottle from my local Starbucks in my town’s Safeway. I’ve heard about the issues with plastics lately but neglected to do any research. I decided to purchase a new water bottle from Starbucks figuring you guys were on top of this type thing. I have recently done my research and found the grade of plastic used is one of the worst ones out there 7. I was shocked to find this out since I figured Starbucks would be on top of this situation. I am disappointed to say the least as well as disappointed in myself for placing such trust in Starbucks.”
I was honest I didn’t put all the blame on them. I wasn’t even sure what I expected them to do but I had this need to express my disappointment in both of us.
It wasn’t long before I got this response:
“Hello Red,
Thank you for contacting Starbucks Coffee Company.
We will happily offer a full refund or exchange for the original price paid if the original sales receipt is presented with the merchandise within 90 days of purchase. If the original receipt is not available, the last sale price will be refunded. Also, if the returned item was purchased with cash or a check and the refunded amount is over $25 we will need to issue a refund check which will be mailed within thirty days.
If you have any other questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact us at 1-(800)-235-2883.
Thanks again for contacting Starbucks Coffee Company.
Sincerely,
Tim G.
Starbucks Customer Relations“
Wow! I didn’t think I would be offered a refund. I will definitely be taking them up on that but I have to admit I’m a little disappointed the environmental point seems to have gone unmentioned.
I started going through my kitchen and checking numbers on anything plastic, especially my water bottles. I am shocked that all of my water bottles are a #7. I definitely have more reading to do but now , hopefully, I have caught you up and given you some good sites to do your own research to make better choices for your families.
Shamrockfest 2008 has come and gone… Do you remember it?
16 Mar 2008 7 Comments
in celebrities, Green, music
Every year I say I’m going to see more bands than the year before but alas I only saw a few but I did catch a really important one. This band had me before but I have been thoroughly sucked in now. Ok I’ll get to that in a minute.
It seemed as if everyone arrived at once by the looks of the Armory/Stadium metro station. It was a sea of green and hoards of people hollering and cheering. Someone would yell “WHO’S ALREADY DRUNK?” Others would holler in unison “HELL YEAH! I’M EFFED UP!”
As we neared the stadium I noticed this redhead in front of me and I yelled “SCARLETT!” Wouldn’t ya know it, it was her. This was extremely lucky because she had arranged to interview Carbon Leaf. So after a few beers and the three o’clock hour hit she dragged me with her to interview them.
I’ve never done any interviews and had no idea what to say. I’m familiar with Carbon Leaf’s music and love the favorites like “The Boxer”. I’ve always thought of Carbon Leaf as such a famous band that last year I was pleasantly surprised to hear they would be playing Shamrockfest. I wondered how they could get such a big name like them to play in DC.
At the entrance to backstage we were met by Terry Clark. What an amazingly nice guy he is. They let us through and we were joined by Carter Gravatt, Jordan Medas and Barry Privett. We then walked out the back gate in search of someplace a little quieter to talk as Scarlett and I introduced ourselves. In any other situation this would seem kinda sketchy walking to the banks of the Anacostia River outnumbered by dudes. We found a decent spot and copped a squat in a circle. Well… it was more like an oval but I think you get the point.
Scarlett was ready and pulled out her notebook and started shooting off questions. I sat there with a goofy smile on my face and just amazed they took the time to chill with us like this. They are just regular guys with families. They talked about their most recent album, Love, Loss, Hope, Repeat, as well as future albums, hopefully two. They told us how their sound is moving away from their Celtic roots, which they are known for, in search of more.
I asked them what ties they have to DC that brings them to us for Shamrockfest. Terry told us their roots are Richmond, VA but coming to Shamrockfest started with Elliot from DC101 and Kegs and Eggs. Terry couldn’t say enough good things about Elliot and his crew.
These guys have a love of music and feed off the reactions of their crowds which is evident when they are on stage. When it was time for them to play I had gotten a spot fairly close and when the crowd would react I noticed this smile would come across Barry’s face. I felt like I was in on their secret.
Thanks for bringing them in Elliot. Please bring them back next year.
Alcohol was invented to keep the Irish from ruling the world
11 Mar 2008 2 Comments
But then the Irish started singing in their drunken stupors. This is how we got a plethora of traditional folk songs a/k/a drinking songs. It didn’t stop there and they hopped up off their bar stools and started dancing around and calling it the jig.
So many got injured while doing the jig that laws were passed against getting jiggy with it after downing a few pints. Some chose never to dance again whereas some chose to give up the Guinness. Those who decided to dance took it to new levels. This, my friends, is how we got Riverdance.
The music also evolved. I just can’t get enough of the Irish rock, as I call it. My first introduction to this type of music was Ashley MacIsaac and his album “Hi, How Are you today?” Who wouldn’t dig a dude in a kilt and combat boots?
As the years went on I found:
If you want to check out some of this music, LIVE, then you could always catch Scythian and Carbon Leaf, along with many many more, at the Shamrockfest.
When is the Shamrockfest?
SATURDAY, SATURDAY, SATURDAY
I will definitely be there to check it all out and maybe find some new music but I will definitely enjoy watching all the honorary Irish gettin smashed. If I’m lucky then I should be able to capture some great pics. Who knows I might get a pic of one of you!
