“Here’s to a long life and a merry one. A quick death and an easy one. A pretty girl and an honest one. A cold Old Milwaukee….and another one!” – Thomas Ropella, Member of Welcome to Thursdays
Greetings and Salutations my Thursday Night Wanderers,
There is an Irish toast that I’ve heard throughout my travels: a bird with one wing can’t fly. It’s said to encourage those around you to take a second drink and celebrate life. This fits perfectly with this Thursday’s destination: O’Brien’s Irish Pub. Come out to celebrate Irish and Irish-American Culture, but more importantly come out and celebrate Welcome to Thursdays. Now I am sure many of you have never heard of the “Clover Clarity” state of mind, but I was very fortunate to have experienced this amazing feeling. It all started where these stories usually do, in a pub over a cold pint…
I was on the Great Expedition of Old Mil’ in 2011, when my journey found me in O’Brien’s Irish Pub, a pub that was very inviting on a cold Milwaukee night. I sat down at the bar, ordered a tall pint of relaxation in the form of Guinness, and slowly dipped into tranquility. Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed that I was not alone; there was a hooded man clinging to his pipe in the corner of the bar. I asked the bartender who this man was and he answered “Patches O’Houlihan: keeper of the tales of old”.
The Keeper of Tales himself, Patches O’Houlihan.
I was in the mood for a good tale, so I got up to seek one from Patches. Before taking a step towards the lad, the bartender stopped me and explained that Patches does not tell such tales for free – I would need to give him something in return. I pulled some money out, but the bartender laughed and said that Patches did not need money, he would need something of greater value. This, of course, was a simple fix. I approached Patches and held out a can of Old Milwaukee; a ray of light broke through the night sky and illuminated the can. Patches stood up, took the can, opened it, and took a sip. Suddenly he grabbed my shoulders, yelling, “Hold on!”. In the blink of an eye I found myself on the Cliffs of Moher overlooking an image that simply took my breath away. For the rest of the day, Patches and I sat and gazed upon an Irish sunset. He told me tales of old, and in the end he whispered into my ear: “This, my friend, is Clover Clarity.” That day I was truly happy – hopefully this Thursday you too can witness the “Clover Clarity.”
Just a taste of the Clover Clarity.
Cheers my friends!
Your co-founder and friend,
Jeremy Blandin
Happy St. Patrick’s Day!
*Keeping your glass filled and spirits high one Thursday at a time, this is Welcome to Thursdays: a local social group determined to make your Thursdays more fun. Each Wednesday, The Squeaky Curd features a fictitious history of a Milwaukee County bar that we gather at on Thursday evening. Join us this Thursday, March 16, 2017 at O’Brien’s, located at 4928 W Vliet St (Washington Heights) at 7:30pm. Also, go Badgers (we will be watching).*