By CHRISTOPHER SURPRENANT
Managing Editor
On Saturday, everyone was green, but not with envy. Young and old celebrated Saint Patrick’s Day on Central Avenue, turning the city streets into an emerald sea. Horns and hats were worn by revelers who wanted to enjoy one of the year’s largest parties.
Maybe it was the luck of the Irish, but the weather was warmer than it had been all week. The snow was melting, and only a little light rain came down early in the morning. The temperature reached a high of 46 degrees, following a trend that’s signaling warmer weather. There was a steady wind all afternoon, but that didn’t stop people like Mandi Steves from having a good time.
“It was a lot of fun. We walked from Saint Rose to Lark Street, which was farther than I thought. By the time we got there, I had to find a bathroom, which was a pain, but it was fine after that,” Steves joked.
While Steves might have been joking, it was no laughing matter for a lot of people. Several of the shops along Lark St. were open for business, but their restrooms were not. Conveniently, many stores had restrooms that were “Out of Order,” like NoHo Pizza. However, popular coffee shop The Daily Grind opened its doors to the many people like Steves.
“Unfortunately, there aren’t a lot of public restrooms in Albany. It’s not what we’d rather do, but we do that for any big event, like Lark Fest and Tulip Fest. It’s something we have to do,” said Joseph Seman of The Daily Grind.
One might think that open restrooms might drum up business, but that’s not the case. “We get a lot of drunk people. They usually just want to use the bathroom,” Seman said.
While that aspect of the parade can get a little prickly for revelers and business owners, it didn’t overshadow the day’s festivities. It was a day for everyone.
“There were people of all ages and a lot of people selling things like horns, hats, and beads. There were a lot of cute Irish dogs, too. They were adorable,” Steves said.
Not only were many selling their wares, but there were also life-sized leprechauns, Irish dancers, marching bands, and the popular bagpipers. Of course, there were several varieties of green alcohols available at area bars all day long.
While this was the pastime for many people, some chose to spend the day a little differently. For people like Saint Rose sophomore Jessie Cacace the parade was “something new and different. I couldn’t go last year, but I would go again with my friends, definitely,” she said. While Cacace might have enjoyed the holiday festivities earlier in the day, her night was spent elsewhere. “I went to Silent Library afterward. My team won, it was great,” she joked.
Though Saint Patrick’s Day wasn’t until Monday, Saturday’s celebration is a tradition loved by many, Irish or not. For the red-haired, Irish-blooded Steves, “It’s my favorite holiday. Go Irish!”
