st. patrick's day @ mcmenimans

After church last Sunday we headed over to McMenimans Edgefield in Troutdale, OR. Phil's cousin, Royce (2nd from right), plays bass, guitar, and mandolin in a Celtic band and they were going to be one of the featured groups there for St. Patrick's Day. We found the building where they were playing and had lunch while we listened to some great music. There were people dancing, but no real Irish dancers, though. (Sadness.) 

Can you find us in the crowd? (Hint: the light on the back wall is almost right above my head.) By the way, the lady leprechaun was passing out chocolate coins and she never came to our table.

McMenamins is a company that updates really old buildings and changes them into restaurants, hotels, movie theatres, spas, and the like. There are several locations in Oregon and Washington. For our 2nd anniversary, we had dinner at the Old St. Francis School in Bend. The one we were at on Sunday is the McMenamins Edgefield and it has been a bunch of different things over the years: a county poor farm, a tuberculosis hospital, and a nursing home. Now it's full of restaurants, bars, and a winery so you can get your beer in about 10 locations on the grounds. . . if you are so inclined.

It's a pretty neat place. I'd driven by it lots of times, but hadn't actually been there. The buildings are old and covered with interesting vines. They have a glass blowing building and we watched a lady work her magic with hot glass. There are paths and gardens to explore and neat places to sit and rest.

There was lots of green, of course. Bald guys with spray painted heads, men in kilts, ladies in running tights and blinking shamrock necklaces (participants in Portland's Shamrock Run), and even the Jolly Green Giant made a special appearance.

I don't know why it took me almost 9 years to explore Edgefield, but I'd like to go back again. Particularly if there are going to be cloggers taking on the music from Riverdance ;)