Bearing Witness to St. Patrick's Day

I realize that St. Patrick's day is a complete event that stretches from whenever the bar doors open to when they're hastily padlocked shut. I have experienced St. Patty's day at night, and to be quite honest I can barely remember those memories, so focusing on events in the daylight is far more lucid and interesting.

I work at a bank in West St. Paul which is right across the street from a famous Irish pub by the name of Shamrocks. A great restaurant known for their Juicy Lucy's and homemade fresh cut fries Shamrocks is the ideal place to douse your sorrows in liquor and grease on St. Patty''s Day. Typically I usually sojourn over to it after my shift on this hallowed day, but until that is possible I am confined in the professional atmosphere of the bank, where I witness the heavy deluge of drunks throughout the day.

West St. Paul is considered as Irish a neighborhood as you can get in Minnesota, therefore on St. Patrick's Day Shamrocks is the place to be in the local area. Each year the planning and the preparation that goes into parking, entertainment, and food is astounding. With good reason, knowing how many drinkers will be entering their doors on that holy day. The only thing more amazing then participating in St. Patrick's Day is watching all of those early birds stagger around causing mischief and trouble for the surrounding authorities.

Shamrocks is an Irish Pub located in the center of a block long chain of buildings which are of varying sizes and strengths. It has gleaming green lettering and framing, marking it as an Irish hot-spot. On its back parking lot Shamrocks sets up a tent on St. Patrick's Day where it shackles in people throughout the day. Our big bank window which is almost like an aquarium, spreads out for perfect viewing of the days events. The tent which is sealed in and lacking any discernible exits for drunks to stagger out of, is where most of the festivity takes place. Security is ready to swarm and the music begins booming practically the moment dawn breaks. The tent is quite the thing to see, though the inebriated merriment is not withheld in this mighty structure for long.

Typically the people going into Shamrocks for St. Patrick's Day are well-dressed and ready for the occasion. Their usual garments include green hats, green vests, green shirts, green skirts, green shoes, green socks, green pants, green glasses, green skin, green teeth, and everything in-between. Any piece of clothing that can somehow have St. Patrick's Day green gleaming off it in its deep boldness, will eventually be walking into Shamrocks. Hair is dyed, skin painted, and random tattoo's are blazing as people trot into this Irish pub.

Through a few years of observation, I can honestly declare that the first hordes of people arriving at Shamrocks are the ones that I see acting obscenely later on in the day. These actions include: vomiting, staggering around aimlessly, incessant screaming or yelling, fights between friends, lovers, family, and of course very lewd behavior. It all happens outside that small parking lot, despite traffic and scrambling security. Shamrocks does an amazing job of trying to maintain it, but the drunks slip through, its literally an unstoppable force.

Another situation that is fun to witness well observing Shamrocks is when the shuttle loads up to take the drinkers around to other Irish pubs throughout the Twin Cities. The march to the bus always takes longer then expected since the riders either; fall down, trip, teeter, totter, scream, yell, rage, or pass-out. When the giddy line of people finally ends, the driver will slowly pull away in the bright green bus careful of any strays that might have wandered from the herd. Sometimes you can catch the bus drivers exasperated face through the windshield.

As the day continues more people arrive and the vibrations from the band beat against the bank windows. Pretty soon the whole scene is a swirling ring of chaos contained into the tent and restaurant. It's quite a sight. Eventually barely any customers arrive at the bank for fear of wandering drunks and traffic.

Judging from my own St. Patrick's Day memories, sometimes the holiday is best observed under a sober eye, not an inebriated one. Nothing really beats people watching on some of these infamous holidays. I suggest finding a good spot with a clear head and watching away on St. Patty's Day.