This is a Saint Patrick’s Day Like No Other

It’s a lot less stressful but not nearly as much fun.

Photo taken at Johnny’s by Charisse

A challenge by J.M. Troppello inspired me to share this post I wrote a few years ago about the Saint Patrick’s Day celebrations at my bar Johnny’s. What a walk down memory lane.

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This is the first Saint Patrick’s Day in 28 years that my husband and I won’t be eating corned beef and cabbage. I didn’t even think about purchasing the necessary ingredients. The day just snuck up on me.

Saint Patrick’s Day was a big deal when I owned and operated Johnny’s Bar & Grill in Hollister, California. My historic bar was once legendary in its celebration of the green holiday, and I was determined to bring back its distinction as the place to be on St. Patty’s Day. I revived the tradition of giving away free corned beef and cabbage in my first year as owner and continued doing it for 18 years.

This photo is from Charisse’s memoir Born Again in a Biker Bar

Sadly, it started feeling like it was expected, not appreciated. When people began calling the bar at 10:00 a.m. to ask when the free food was being served, I decided I’d had…