Causing a Ruckus: St. Patrick’s Day in Chicago

After nearly five years in Chicago, I finally celebrated the most holy of holidays in the Second City—St. Patrick’s Day. In fact, I am pretty sure there some are folks in the city still celebrating…or recovering.

Now you are probably thinking, “Well my town/city/place of employment/school celebrates St. Patrick’s Day, too. That’s nothing special.” Well friends, you would be wrong. You’re probably used to wearing green and hoping not to be pinched. Maybe you do a car bomb and call it a day.

Not in Chicago. We celebrate St. Patrick Kane Day for nine straight days…over two weekends, on the day itself and at every Blackhawks game in between. True Irishmen in their fisherman sweaters and newsboy caps and real gingers come from miles around to party with their “Irish” brothers and sisters across the city.

St. Patrick’s Day kicks off the Saturday before the sacred day with the annual dyeing of the Chicago River. The local plumber’s union pours a mysterious orange concoction into the river and churns it with motor boats. The river magically turns the brightest shade of green, much to the delight of the thousands of people who gather to watch.

Y’all Listen Up…My 2016 Chicago Wish List (And 2015 Recap)

I hope all y’all had your hoppin’ John and collards last week…2016 is going to be a good year.

Before I get too far into this post, I want to thank the 600 people who checked out my blog last year. I am humbled by how much people have enjoyed Bless Yer Heart, and I have to admit I love writing it.

Now to the task at hand…I thought I would kick off 2016 with an update to the Chicago Wish List I made last year and add to it for the new year. I didn’t cross many things off the list, but I had a blast nonetheless. Here is what last year looked like:

Oh, My Stars! My First Blackhawks Game

Guess what, y’all?! I have officially crossed off the first item on my 2015 Chicago Wish List. That’s right…I have now attended my first Chicago Blackhawks game, and it was even better than I could have imagined. We played the dreaded Detroit Red Wings, an Original Six rival even though we are no longer in the same division.

My evening was the epitome of all things Chicago, and the city truly felt like home. I started the night with a few pints of Goose Island’s Green Line on Chicago Ave. before making the trek to the UC (the United Center to non-Chicagoans). Oh and of course, I wore my Kane shirt!

My friend received two tickets out of the blue, and he refused to tell me where we were sitting. I just figured they would be up high, but I didn’t care…as long as I was in the building to cheer on my boys. As we made our way to our seats, I realized we were in for a treat…16 rows from the ice. Better than TV!

The house lights dimmed, and a laser light show began on the ice. Chants of “Detroit sucks” and “Let’s go Hawks” echoed throughout the arena while the starting line-up skated onto the ice. In true Chicago fashion, Jim Cornelison belted out the National Anthem flanked by one active-duty solider and one veteran while we hooted and hollered as loud as we could. This, folks, is a Chicago tradition that can’t be missed, and it gave me goose bumps.