March Roundup

So, while the mono did not succeed in destroying my March, in did end up taking complete control of my weeknights, which is why even though I claimed last post I would be back, I actually haven’t been.  It didn’t help that almost immediately after I started to “feel better”, I did Erin Express.

Erin Express runs again this weekend in Philly.  If you go, as I’ve suggested prior, end at Bonner’s.  You’ll thank me.  They have cheap bud-light (in Shamrock cans !!!), cheap mozzarella sticks, and a very accommodating DJ that is request friendly.  I wish I had picture to share.  Unfortunately I had my camera on video mode most of the day, so now I have over 20, 30-second videos of my friends making fools of themselves, and I’m not a dick, so they stay private.

I survived better than I thought I did, reacquainted myself with the world of adult beverages, and spent the entire next week going to work, driving home, napping from approximately 3:30 till 7:00, eating dinner, and then going back to bed for the night. They daily 4:00 PM bedtimes were all in preparation for my holiest of days: the Scranton Parade.

Now, I don’t think I can impress upon you how much you need to experience this day if you have not already, and don’t let anybody tell you that if  you’ve hit age 25-26ish that you’re too old.  A few of my friends skipped using this excuse, which frankly holds zero merit.  I spent most of the day with a crowd of post-college (23-26 year olds) and we had a blast.  I stayed near the University of Scranton, because it’s my alma mater and I have trouble letting go, but if you venture downtown the age of the crowd varies wildly.

Unfortunately, since I didn’t make it downtown I have no photos to share the scale of how crowded it gets. I pillaged the above shot of the parade from my sister’s roommate’s Facebook account (gracias Alyssa, even though I neglected to ask your permission).  I spent the majority of my afternooon ensconced in Oscars, my old college bar, and didn’t venture downtown till well after it got dark out.  My group and I ended our night at Whiskey Dick’s, a great dive downtown that had no cover, cheap drinks (most downtown bars hike the drinks up terribly…flasks are key), a great jukebox, and dollar hot dogs.  One negative of parade day is if you make it past 8 or 9 (which more do than you’d expect), alot of the bars close early.

Needless to say, parade day was last Saturday, and I’m up now on a week night after work blabbering on.  It’s safe to say I’ve officially kicked the mono.

I was going to write a how to survive parade day post, but before I could, read this blog that a friend posted on Facebook.  I really can’t do any better, so give it a read.

I’m heading up to Boston Friday for St. Pat’s and definitely plan on writing about my findings there.  I’ve done a fair amount of research and found quite a few Boston bars I’d like to check out.  If everything works out I’ll be spending my holiday somewhere in a southie dive.