Transitions, Part 1

Early next week two members of the Kansas City Irish Fest board of directors will complete their 5 year terms and join the other retirees in the whiskey lounge to whine about how much better we did things in our day. Today we'll say good bye and thanks to the first of those two fest stalwarts, my good friend Barney Walsh.

If there is a festival leader past or present who's had a greater impact on Irish Fest and who we are than Barney, I don't know who it is. He began his Irish Fest career as a pioneer, launching with his lovely wife Sarah, the venerable Site Host Committee. In our first years at Crown Center with Barney's guidance these gold-clad ambassadors quickly became the face of Irish Fest. Carrying countless strollers in the pre-ramp days, giving directions, reuniting lost children with lost parents, fielding questions and sometimes taking abuse with endless patience and cool–endless patience and cool being Barney Walsh trademarks.

Barney's many talents were noticed quickly by those of us serving on the board at the time and he was appointed to the board himself 5 years ago. As the longest serving board member in fest history myself, I can tell you that there are basically three kinds of festival leaders: those that take a sort of long view and direct the festival as overseer, dealing with broad issues as they arise. They tend toward the reactive rather than the active. There are those that concentrate their energies and interests in developing and improving one specific area of the event. Both can be effective and impactful leaders in their own ways. And then there those rare few who don't step into their board position, they leap in. They have the vision, the passion, the drive and the commitment to seek to shape and improve every aspect of the festival, from the ticket at the gate to the band on the stage. That's Barney.

From engineering front gate signage to structuring the drink token sales system to building beer bottle chandeliers for the Snug to improving crowd control, to herding kids, Barney has truly and quite literally done it all. He's always among the last to leave the grounds at night and the first to arrive in the morning. And yet he never lost sight of what we were really all about: having a good time. As a committee chair, a board member and president, he has set a standard and a work ethic that future fest leaders would be wise to emulate...and good luck with that.

Barney usually ended his emails about fest business with the line "relentless pursuit of perfection." And that kind of sums up his term at the helm. While he has certainly earned a break and some quality time relaxing in the Jameson whiskey lounge next Labor Day weekend, his presence and leadership and relentless pursuit of perfection will be sorely missed.

Thanks for everything, Dr. Walsh.

BFW

My best friend Barney Walsh died yesterday. He was a few weeks shy of his 49th birthday. It was sudden, unexpected, and has broken the hearts of all of us at Irish Fest who knew and loved Barney and were lucky enough to call him a friend.

Barney has been with Irish Fest since the early days, founding and heading up the late Site Host committee with his beautiful wife Sarah before joining the board of directors and eventually rising to the presidency in 2012. He did everything at Irish Fest, and I mean everything. And he did it all well, passionately and tirelessly. I'll be honest with you, I can't come close to imagining how we do this without him. Right now, I'm not sure I even want to try.

But of course it isn't his Irish Fest resume, impeccable as it was, that makes this loss so devastating for those of us left behind. It's the man Barney was. The warmest, kindest, most caring, most selfless and giving man I've ever known. We sat together, the two of us, just last Thursday night, as we had on many, many other Thursday nights, drinking beer, talking about work, kids, wives, the Royals and of course Irish Fest. He made me laugh, as he always did. He made me think, as he always did. And when we called it a night, I thought, as I always did, that we had hundreds of Thursday nights and thousands of great conversations still to come. And then just like that, on a sunny Sunday morning, Barney was taken from us. From Sarah, his wonderful son Seamus, his brothers and sisters, his family, his friends. The brilliantly bright and always steady light that was Barney Walsh went out, just like that.

And our hearts are broken.

Happy Birthday Barney!

Celebrating his 67th or so birthday today is none other than our rookie director Dr. Bernard "Relentless Pursuit Of Perfection" Walsh. Barney, or "Barney" as he likes to be called, having totally trashed the Site Host committee leaving his poor, long-suffering wife to clean up the mess, is now just 100 days away from his first fest in the fancy board of directors' shirt. We have no doubt that under Barney's unusual brand of leadership, we'll be out of business and possibly in federal prison by October.

I kid of course. Barney is an Irish Fest machine, a great friend and a font of innovative and bizarre Thursday night barroom ideas to improve KCIF.

We wish him at least 67 more birthdays.

Meet The Staff

There are those great inventions that change the world. Cars. Light bulbs. Aerosol cheese. At Irish Fest too, we have these innovations sometimes that make our world a happier, better place to be. In my opinion, the greatest of these is the formation last year of our now indispensable Site Host Committee. And like Thomas Edison is forever bound to his great invention, aerosol cheese, so too is The Site Host Committee linked with it's first couple, Barney and Sarah.
First of all, you should know this about Barney and Sarah, or Sarah and Barney, as they're sometimes known: they are seriously fun people. If you're one of those people who can't throw a fun party no matter what you do, do this: invite Sarah and Barney. Instant fun. They are also seriously organized, seriously dedicated, and seriously hard workers. All of which certainly help them in the very difficult job they do at Irish Fest. Their presence is felt as soon as you arrive, even before you see them. You were directed to the parking area (Site Hosts) and were able to locate handicapped parking, if you need it (Site Hosts). You knew where to get off the elevator to find the gate (Site Hosts). You were greeted at the gate by a smiling face (Site Hosts) who welcomed you and asked to be of any assistance. You had a nice person (Site Host) help carry your stroller up the stairs. You found out where that great comedy show was, which stage your favorite band was on and when, and were able to get Junior a band aid for his skinned knee so he could get back onto those big bouncing things and where are those again? Ask a Site Host. And amazingly, whether it's at 5:00 PM on opening day or quarter to 11:00 on closing day, they and their crew do this job, which requires them to be on their feet and moving all the time by the way, with unfailing smiles, grace and a sense of humor.

I forgot to mention that Barney and Sarah are also seriously smart. Try to stump them about Irish Fest, I dare you. You can't. When I need to know where something is or what time something starts or ends, I ask them.

So when you see these two, or another of their ilk, in their bright gold shirts at Irish Fest, remember to ask them whatever questions pop into your head, or for help in anything you need while you're our guest. They made the Site Host committee to help make your Irish Fest weekend pleasant, easy, and instant fun.

Exactly like aerosol cheese.

RIP Barney McKenna

DUBLIN (AP) — "Banjo" Barney McKenna, the last original member of the Irish folk band The Dubliners, died Thursday while having a morning cup of tea with a friend. He was 72 and had just marked his 50th year with the troupe.

Irish classical guitarist Michael Howard, who was with McKenna when he died, said he was talking with his longtime friend at his kitchen table, when "all of a sudden Barney's head dropped down to his chest. It looked as if he'd nodded off." Howard said paramedics over the phone talked him through emergency revival procedures, but McKenna "was pretty much gone."

"The comfort that I take from it is, he passed away very peacefully sitting at his own breakfast table having a quiet cup of tea and a chat," Howard said.

"What a lovely way to go," said McKenna's Dubliners bandmate for a quarter-century, guitarist and singer Eamonn Campbell.

McKenna was considered the most influential banjo player in Irish folk music. He spent a half-century performing, recording and touring with the band ever since its 1962 creation in the Dublin pub O'Donoghue's. The other three founders — Ronnie Drew, Ciaran Bourke and Luke Kelly — died in 2008, 1988 and 1984, respectively.

McKenna completed a United Kingdom tour with The Dubliners last month and performed Wednesday night at a Dublin funeral. Howard, who also performed there and drove McKenna home afterward, said his friend performed "absolutely beautifully. When he finished there was a spontaneous, thunderous round of applause in the church."

Born in Dublin in 1939, McKenna tried to join the Irish army band but was rejected because of bad eyesight. He busked in the streets and pubs of the capital and developed a reputation as an innovative performer on a specially tuned, four-stringed tenor banjo, then a virtually unknown instrument in Ireland that he made an Irish folk favorite.

The gravel-voiced Drew recruited him to Friday night "sessions" — impromptu barside concerts — at O'Donoghue's, a diminutive pub near the Irish parliament so famously packed that its barmen had to stand on stepstools to take orders. It soon gained a reputation as the country's top venue for live folk music, with The Dubliners performing alongside such other rising folk stars as The Chieftains and the Fureys.

Many noted how McKenna always made time to help younger musicians learn the art of the tenor banjo, particularly the intricacies of his own strumming and tuning techniques.

"His influence on and generosity to other instrumentalists was immense," said Irish President Michael D. Higgins, who saw McKenna perform last month in a Dublin cathedral at one of The Dubliners' many 50th anniversary performances.

Friends and bandmates told anecdote upon anecdote Thursday of the many off-the-wall, comically illogical comments made by McKenna over the years.

"He was like a brother to me," recalled fiddler John Sheahan, who joined The Dubliners in 1964 and remains in the band today. His favorite Barneyism: calling an optical illusion an "obstacle confusion."

"He was very droll man and great company. You'd never know what he'd come out with next," Campbell said. "My favorite song that he sang was 'I'm a Man You Don't Meet Every Day.' And that was true about Barney."

His Dutch wife, Joka, died 28 years ago and the couple had no children. He lived alone in the upscale fishing port of Howth and spent spare time tinkering with his boat and fishing on the Irish Sea. He continued to perform, despite suffering from diabetes and a mild stroke.

McKenna is survived by his partner Tina, sister Marie and brother Sean, who is also a top Irish banjo player. Funeral arrangements were not immediately announced.

There Will Be Blood

I hope you all got what you wanted for Christmas and were able to spend time with all the important people in your life. Speaking of which, a group of some very important people in my life will gather as a group for the final time tomorrow morning at the last meeting of the current board of directors of the Kansas City Irish Fest. Founding director Patti Aylward Kalb will be leaving us as the old year closes and the next time we all get together it will be with newbies Barney Walsh and Laren Mahoney at the Irish Fest board table.

It will be a strange, confusing and often physically and psychologically painful time for Barney and Laren, beginning with the implantation of their tracking micro-chip, which will enable us to find them at any time during Irish Fest weekend. The initiation ceremony will follow, the details of which I can't divulge here, other than to say that ritual scarring and branding irons may be involved. I can also tell you that the ceremony or "boarding" of the two new members will span three days in an undisclosed location, during which the inductees will be deprived of sleep and will eat only corned beef and boiled cabbage. Both Barney and Laren will also be required to wear the Hat Of Shame for the entire month of March, so you'll be able to easily spot them on St. Patrick's Day. Patti, meanwhile will be subjected to a routine memory cleansing surgery to prevent her from spilling any Irish Fest secrets. She also gets a handsome alarm clock.

So please join me in wishing Barney and Laren well as they join us on the board. And be sure to thank Patti for her years of valuable service...though she may give you a blank, vacant, unknowing stare if you thank her after say 1:00 on Thursday. It's the thought that counts.

Happy Birthday, Mr. President

Staff birthday announcements used to be a regular thing here at Tir na Blog. But we stopped because it got kind of hard after awhile as our staff grew to the point where we had a birthday like every damn day and also it was hard to come up with new ways to say "happy birthday! You do an awesome job at whatever it is you do!" By the way, all our staff does an awesome job and should have the best birthday ever, whenever.

But I'm going to go all old-school on you, birthday-wise just this once because tomorrow is the anniversary of the day Irish Fest president Bernard Francis "Barney" Walsh came into the world. And if you can't wish the feckin president happy birthday there's something wrong in Blogville. Also we have to do it a day early for when Barney gets sucked up into the sky during tomorrow's rapture. I'll be sticking around.

Barney of course wasn't born Irish Fest president these 67 years ago. He was born a regular baby but through his relentless pursuit of perfection eventually rose to the presidencies of his hospital nursery, daycare, kindergarten, elementary school, CYO tetherball team, altar boys' society, high school glee club, local Johnny Cash fan club chapter, unicorn figurine collectors' club, fraternity discipline committee, SSAS* chapter, and ultimately of course, the Kansas City Irish Fest. And it's going to be all down hill from here, buddy.

Please join me in wishing a glorious birthday to a friend, president, mentor, drinking buddy and karaoke singer without peer, the man who will lead us into the 9th annual Irish Fest and glory, Barney Walsh.

*Sarah Spinharney Admiration Society

The 2008 KCIF Board

The 2008 Kansas City Irish Fest board of directors is in place and introductions are in order...this time in two cases. We voted at our last meeting to expand the board by one to reflect the ever expanding Irish Fest and the demands on our time and talents. Returning for 2008 are old geezers and founding members Ed Scanlon, serving his final year as president, Ed Follis, and yours truly. Slightly less geezerly, at least in tenure, are returning board members Rory O'Connor and Ronan Collins. Also back are the ever youthful and always lovely Mary Alice Beebe and last year's rookie Erin Kiekbusch.

And filling out the expanded 2008 roster are two fine people plucked from the ranks of our own staff:

Laren Mahoney has been a behind-the-scenes dynamo at the Kansas City Irish Fest the past few years. Through her "other job" with Kansas City's Convention and Visitors Association, Laren has been instrumental (by which I mean "wholly responsible") in making the Kansas City Irish Fest a regional and national vacation destination. Our 2007 Festival MVP Award winner, Laren never slows down, never runs out of great innovative ideas to move KCIF forward, and never seems to stop smiling. Often mentioned here in Tir na Blog as "my buddy Laren", she's going to be a huge asset to the board and we're thrilled to welcome her into our ranks. She also decreases the median geezer level substantially. Congratulations, buddy!

Barney Walsh is one of the founders and driving forces behind our invaluable Site Host committee, they of the bright gold shirts at Irish Fest. But beyond that, Barney has quickly become the go-to guy in nearly all aspects of the Fest (including stints as guest blogger), with a knowledge base, interest and an enthusiasm for Irish Fest which is second to absolutely none, present company included. During the discussion at our meeting of potential board nominees, Barney was described accurately as someone who's cool headed, always willing to look at all sides of an issue, thoughtful and dedicated. I think every single person on our board and staff would agree and add the phrase "good friend" to those platitudes. I also feel confident that Barney knows these are the last nice things I will ever say about him in public.

We're excited to welcome both our new comrades and are looking forward to a great 2008. A round of applause please for our new board members.

Februliciousness

I don't know about where you live, but February has arrived here in Kansas City. Big things happen this month. The KC St. Patrick's Day Parade Committee/AOH concert featuring The Young Wolfe Tones is this month. My Grandfather McCunniff's favorite holiday, Groundhog Day is this month. The "how-many-days-until-Irish-Fest" counter will dip below 200 this month. And your heartfelt message to your loved one (or liked one) will appear here on the perfume scented pages of Tir na Blog.

It's easy. Let's say there's that special someone. We'll call him "Barney", just to pick a name at random. And you...we'll call you "Sarah"...you  think "Barney" is big bad boss, the bee's knees, the bombdiggity or whatever descriptive terminology your age group might employ. You compose a little message. Doesn't have to be anything fancy. Rhymes aren't required. Let's say you write something like:

"Barney...You're a fine young man and I have deep affection and abiding respect for you. Please accept this small token of my esteem. Sincerely, Sarah."

Wow. You don't think that would melt somebody's heart? Anyway, so you write your steamy little missive and then e-mail it to us at IrishFestLove@yahoo.com and we'll do the rest. Your declaration of warm regards, hot crushes or incendiary love will appear here on Valentine's Day wrapped up in a pretty package for your inamorata and the world to see.

Get yours in by February 12th.

Love, Uncle Bloggy.

Ch Ch Ch Changes

Here at the end of the year we start shuffling bodies around here at Irish Fest. Board and officer terms end on the last day of the year which is something like 3 weeks away now. On that day, Irish Fest president Rory O'Connor will hand over the briefcase containing the launch codes* to incoming president Barney Walsh. Rory has served Irish Fest well and leaves us in good stead, unlike some of his predecessors. We thank him for his generous service and wise leadership.

And-here's some news-Barney's current job as vice president will, come January 1, go to board member Laren Mahoney, she having been voted into that esteemed position by her peers on the board. Unlike some vice presidents (I'm talking to you, Spiro Agnew) this position actually means something. Because Laren becoming VP means that come 2012, she'll become P. I mean president. So that's exciting stuff. For one thing, she'll be Irish Fest's first woman president. For another thing, she'll be president for our big 10th anniversary year. And for another 'nother thing, she'll be great at the job. Our board of directors will have a couple new faces come '11 too, and will be dumping a couple old ones. More on that later.

So the Walsh-Mahoney regime...I mean administration begins January 1st. At their side will be treasurer Carrie Slattery and newly minted secretary Mindy Johnson, who takes outgoing secretary Laren Mahoney's job, the secretary job not the VP job, which she hasn't started yet, because Barney still has it. Please join me in bowing before our new benevolent overlords. Oh, and congratulating them, too.


*Watch your backs, Ren Fest.

Committee Moves

One of the problems with drawing our new board of directors members from the ranks of our great committee heads is that in the process we lose a great committee head. Such is the case this year. When Barney Walsh was kicked upstairs, he left his poor co-chair and wife Sarah all alone to manage the huge and work-intensive Site Host committee all by her lonesome. A terrible thing to do to the poor girl.

But I'm happy to report today that Barney's big stinky shoes have been filled, and by one of our own. Amanda Kelly Dennis, formerly Volunteer Coordinator for Irish Fest is returning to the fold after a year off in 2007. We couldn't be happier. Amanda brings invaluable experience, energy and enthusiasm to the job. And she's a lot better looking than Barney, too.

Welcome home Amanda.

Birthday Boy

Happy birthday today to our own Bernard "Barney" Walsh, co-boss (with the similarly named Sarah Walsh) of the Kansas City Irish Fest Site Host committee. Barney enjoys soft jazz, long walks along the beach, carrying strollers up flights of stairs, and keeping up on latest in men's fashions. He is the proud owner of the Midwest's largest collection of unicorn figurines, and if you're looking for a gift idea...well, you can never have too many unicorn figurines.

Tip a glass today to a great man, a great friend and one of the hardest working men in the Irish Fest biz. Happy birthday, Barney!

From The Desk of The President

Since it is Presidents Day, it's only right and appropriate that we hear from our esteemed Kansas City Irish Fest president, my good friend Dr. Barney Walsh:

KCIF headquarters are closed today, in honor of Presidents Day. But as every other President knows, there are no days off during your administration. So I thought I’d spend the day finishing up my move into the Shamrock office, and clean out the closet. It appears my predecessors left a few mementos behind.

There’s a box of umbrellas, some soap from the Hotel Phillips and a case of Boulevard beers left from the Sullivan era.

Regan’s Dynasty (the real reason term limits were put in place) left an Eileen Ivers poster, a box of crayons and a Big Chief tablet containing three years worth of cow, unicorn and bunny doodles.

There’s a bull horn, a podium with the KCIF seal and a step stool, apparently from the Scanlon administration.

Follis left what appears to be a bag of money marked “Emergency Use Only”.

And an old tool belt, a nuns habit and a half bottle of Midleton were probably left by O’Connor.

Well, as my old Scoutmaster used to say, leave the place better than you found it. So we’ll get the closet organized, dust off the statue of St. Patrick and sharpen some pencils, ready for the mountains of work to pass through this office in the next year. With luck, planning and a whole lot of hard work by a lot of people, KC Irish Fest 2011 will be the best one yet.

Now which one of these wall panels holds the minibar?

Barney

The Gold Standard

We produce huge piles of t-shirts at the Kansas City Irish Fest. Veritable mountains of multi colored cotton. All of our 1000+ volunteers get a white one. All our committee chairs sport a grey one. Our stage managers wear black ones. Our recycling staff wear green ones. They're a valuable tool for us because those shirts identify festival workers to our patrons who might be looking for help or information. But in that rainbow of uniforms, there's really only one you need to look out for when you come to Irish Fest. That's the bright gold shirt of the Site Hosts.

The Site Hosts, run like a well oiled machine by the husband and wife team of Barney and Sarah Walsh, are your best friend at Irish Fest. They are the people with the answers. They've got answers to questions you don't even know you want to ask. They've got answers to questions nobody's even thought of yet. They can tell you where to get that great meat pie you had last year. They can tell you where and when the bodhran workshop is. They can tell you where they best spot to view our fireworks is. They can carry your stroller up the stairs, get your scraped knee to the first aid tent, and make sure you don't miss your favorite band.

Think of Irish Fest as one big volunteer: The Site Hosts are the face. (Go ahead and insert your own joke here about what part I am.)

So in that sea of t-shirts, if you need help with anything at all during this year's Fest, go for the gold. The Site Hosts will be everywhere all weekend long waiting to help you have the best weekend possible. Just ask them.

If you'd like to join Barney and Sarah's crack team of can-do go-getters, you can sign up right here.

The Far Flung Diaspora

Last week while you guys were raking leaves and carving pumpkins, a sextet of Irish Festers made up of festival president Barney Walsh, his wife, volunteer coordinator Sarah Walsh, fest executive director Keli O'Neill Wenzel, her husband tech committee chair John Wenzel and Mrs. Bloggy and myself headed for the warm beaches of Roatan Island off the Honduran coast. We went on official Irish Fest business of course, tasked with investigating whether or not we should start serving Honduran beer and rum at our beverage tents. After much intensive research, results, and our heads remain murky.

Photo by Barney Walsh

However we did find a wonderful example of the far flung Irish diaspora on the white sand beaches in the form of Bill Connor, a gregarious islander who befriended us, brought us fresh lobster he'd caught by hand himself and key lime pie baked by his mother, took us snorkeling near a 110 year old ship wreck and sang us American country and western songs on his battered blue boat. He didn't know anything about how he came by his Gaelic surname but judging by his personality and love of a drink and a song, he was a Irishman, sure enough. He left us with great memories and fledgling plans to go back and start the Honduras Irish Fest with him as our headliner.  We left him with some well-earned American dollars and our left over beer, which shockingly there wasn't much of.

If you ever find yourself on the north coast of Roatan, wander the beach and he'll find you. Be sure to ask for a song.

Goal! And Then Some.

Thanks to all of you who called or logged in yesterday when Barney, Cami and I were pitching for public radio in Kansas City. Thanks to you we beat our goal for the hour by nearly $600. Lots of familiar names on the pledge sheets, including at least two that came in immediately after we'd left the air and didn't get a chance to read. So thank you to Carrie Slattery, who happens to serve as treasurer on the Irish Fest board of directors and thank you to Becky Regan, who happens to serve as my big sister and Irish Fest volunteer.

And thanks to Barney and Cami for a job extremely well done.

A Presidential Farewell

Barney Walsh ends his successful stint as KCIF President at midnight tonight. His parting thoughts:

As my time at the helm of the USS KC Irish Fest comes down to the last few hours, it’s time to clear out the office and reflect on the year it was.

We had an amazing festival this year. The music lineup, the crowd and the experience were overwhelming. We were blessed with beautiful Midwest weather, mostly. Turns out, we needed the umbrellas left around from the Sullivan era. Two big things we learned this year – Crown Center is the perfect all-weather location for our festival. And you guys are a resilient bunch. While we worked overtime to keep everyone safe, dry and entertained - we also discovered how much you guys really want to stick around for the party. For that dedication we are humbly grateful. It allows us to pay all our bills and return to do it another year.

The all-volunteer KCIF staff continue to surprise me year after year. The amount of individual hours that go into pulling together this party would surprise you. Everyone has a different motivation for giving so much of themselves – for some it’s the free beer, or the chance to hear and maybe meet their favorite Irish band, or others enjoy bringing so much joy to so many people every Labor Day weekend. Regardless the motivation, we are fortunate to have so many gifted individuals to organize the best festival in Kansas City. It’s been an honor to lead such a talented group of people.

Join me in wishing President Mahoney all the best for an outstanding 2012 and an unprecedented Festival experience this year. It will be an epic celebration of Irish music, culture and craic, as we put on our show for the 10th time.

I am fortunate that I still have another year of service on the Board of Directors. Luckily for me, old Presidents never die, they just hang out in the Whiskey Lounge.

Barney Walsh

Welcome to the Whiskey Lounge, Mr. President

Play Ball

A very cool shot of the Halfway to St. Patrick's Day crowd at the ballpark last night, snapped on a cell phone by Kansas City Irish Fest site host honcho Barney Walsh. Along with Barney, Irish Festers including volunteer coordinator Mike Armstrong, longtime volunteers Brian McCarthy and Matt Scanlon, beer tent queen Mary Nestle, gate guru Kevin Bundy and yours truly were there watching the home nine get their arses handed to them by the visiting Southsiders of Chicago. Loads of corned beef and boiled cabbage. shepherd's pie, bangers, taters, bread pudding, free green caps and (ugh) green beer made for a good time had by all, in spite of the drubbing.

Who wants to give a report on the McCormick and Schmick party?

Regrets

A big decision made at the Irish Fest board meeting this morning. Fest president Barney Walsh has decided to decline his invitation to the upcoming wedding of Prince William and Kate "The Commoner" Middleton. In sending his regrets, Barney cited unavoidable scheduling conflicts, his tuxedo being at the tailor for repairs, the lack of Boulevard beer at the reception and 840 years of British oppression in Ireland. He did send a gift of 4 VIP passes to this year's Kansas City Irish Fest to show there were no hard feelings, and because he can get those for free.

Why Wait?

St.Patrick's Day is on a Tuesday this year, which let's face it, kind of sucks. Way too early in the week to stretch it towards a long weekend. Too late to tack it on the end of the previous weekend. Really there's only one thing to do. Start celebrating early.

How about, let's say, Thursday? Beginning on Thursday our friends and partners at Raglan Road Irish Restaurant and Pub are celebrating not just St. Patrick's Day but also their first birthday. Thursday, along with live music by Creel, a musical duo that impresses me more every time I see them, it's Boulevard Night with specially priced flights of Boulevard beer. Because of some draconian liquor laws, they're not allowed to advertise exactly how specially priced. But I happen to know. And it's special, believe me. There will also be giveaways and championship Irish dancing by Danielle Fitzpatrick. Friday the craic continues with more of those "specially priced" beer flights. This time, it's Raglan's Trinity Flights - a trio of Guinness, Harp and Smithwick's. Creel and Danielle return and you'll walk away with more giveaway swag. Saturday night the stakes get higher. There's a free Irish whiskey tasting. It's early, so if you're going to the Elders' Hoolie up the raod at the Midland, stop by on your way. After the Hoolie, swing back by for more great music with Creel and Danielle, and more giveaways, including the big grand prize: your very own whiskey locker.

What's a whiskey locker you say? As luck would have it, I and many other Irish Festers have one so I can tell you. Last Thursday night, Mrs. Bloggy and I dined at Raglan with fellow director Barney Walsh and his lovely wife Sarah, who heads up our site host committee. After dinner we retired to the Whiskey Room, where Barney and I took out the keys to our private lockers, the ones with shiny brass plaques bearing our respective names. I opened my locker and my own personal bottle of Red Breast and poured myself a drop. And it'll be there waiting for me this weekend, too. When you win yours on Saturday, you'll stock it with whatever you choose - Jameson, Power's, Middleton, Red Breast, Paddy. Tell them what you want on your plaque...maybe something like "I Won This For FREE, Suckers!" And they'll hand you the key.

So there we go. To hell with Tuesday. St. Patrick's Day starts this coming Thursday, downtown at 14th and Grand.