St. Pats is a bank holiday in Boston...

Actually, that statement is utterly true. The Irish politicos in Boston reached a point many years ago where they decided that the Italians got Columbus Day off, then the Irish deserved St. Pat's off - but how to make it happen? They called it Evacuation Day, named for the day that the British evacuated from Bunker Hill in the Charlestown neighborhood of Boston (most famous product of that neighborhood? Former Oakland Raider and current FOX football analyst Howie Long).

The Boston government made it a city holiday, giving all city employees (excluding emergency services personnel like the police and firefighters) the day off - teachers, city workers, and bankers have that day as a holiday.

This area has the day off this year because, of course, the day that everyone celebrates being Irish is this Saturday. If you're wondering what to do in the area, here are some ideas...

Just like to hang out at an Irish bar or restaurant? Try Bushwaller's in Frederick on North Market Street (get there early, they start with breakfast on St. Pat's) for a good pint of Guinness. Other options in Frederick include Callahan's Restaurant and Lounge on Rosemont Avenue, and Jennifer's Restaurant on West Patrick Street near the corner of Bentz. If you're up-county, check out The Shamrock in Thurmont which makes a more than week-long event of the holiday.

If music is your thing, you can start getting into the spirit of the holiday on Thursday night by attending the Celtic Jam at Boe's Strings music shop on South Market St. near Carroll Creek. The Celtic session begins at 7:00 PM and is followed up by a Bluegrass jam at 8:30.

Other area venues hosting musicians for the big day include (contact venues about possible cover charges and performance times) -

Frederick -

• The Olde Town Tavern (301-695-1454) on North Market Street will have rock act Bigger Better Faster More


• The Big Easy (301-631-1134) on the Golden Mile stretch of West Patrick Street will have rock/blues act The Phat Katz Band

Mt. Airy -

• Mt. Airy American Legion Post #191 (301-829-9161) is hosting country act Jay Henley & The Stone Broke Band (call for tickets)


• The Green Turtle (301-829-9229) has acoustic act Altered Mike

Purcellville, VA -

• White Palace (540-338-2566) will have acoustic blues/folk/country performer Lenny Burridge

Daytrippin Culpeper

Approximately an hour and forty minutes away, Culpeper makes a good meeting point for the day if one has friends or relatives coming from points south, but doesn't currently have enough to merit a day trip.

One of the town's problems in its quaint historic district is the lack of restaurants that are actually open for lunch. It's prize-jewel, the well reviewed Foti's Italian restaurant, is open for lunch during the week, but is not on Saturday - a common issue amongst the finer establishments in downtown.

For that reason, the It's About Thyme cafe does very good business during the Saturday lunch rush. Don't get me wrong, the meal I had was excellent - fettuccine Alfredo with sun-dried tomatoes followed by a flowerless chocolate torte - but there were constantly people waiting to be seated due to the fact that there were few other dining options.

The main drag in the historic district was lined with small boutiques, but none of the shops were out of the ordinary. The Cameleer was worth a visit, but was reminiscent of Ten Thousand Villages, and there was a nice Irish shop that carried the typical items for that sort of store.

Culpeper might work better as a base of operations - the sort of place where you get a room at a bed and breakfast in order to visit the attractions that are within half an hour of the location, including the multiple wineries and equestrian farms.