St Patrick’s Day in Butte

You could spend St. Pats in Boston if you wanted to, but why would you do that when you could spend it in Butte?  Butte has a huge Irish-American population, and has been celebrating the day since 1882.  As a matter of fact, Butte’s newest holiday is “Halfway to St. Patrick’s Day.”  I’m serious.

Disclaimer: I’m not Irish in the least bit.  And all I drank was Pepsi.  I have to say it was great people watching.  My mother in law joined us and I am pretty sure she is scarred for life from the Butte March 17 experience.  My poor husband was having a great time, exclaiming “This is f___ing awesome!” and “I haven’t drank like this since college!”  Later on I found him wandering down Continental Drive with a forlorn expression. 

St. Patricks fell on a Monday, so it was pretty tame compared to weekend holidays.  The crowd got bigger throughout the day.  As the sun set, the arrest and DUI count went up.  Here are some pictures from the day:

The governor of Montana was there…

As was the Pirate Bus

From a shop in Uptown Butte

A green Shot-ski

The M&M crowd at noon

These guys kept the wind off their faces with…panties

The MOAF…mother of all flasks

This guy is wearing a Silver Bow County Jail jumpsuit…he came ready

1 PM…the first medical personnel nearly ran us down…someone needed rescusitation from too many beverages

If you can’t afford a cab ride…

I drank Pepsi all day to maximize the fun of people-watching…and to drive my peeps home.  It was great!  See you next year!