By Bob Tagert

Here we are in the month of March. As I write this in the last week of February, the temperature is expected to reach 67 degrees. A week ago, when we did our Road Trip to Virginia Beach, we witnessed nearly a foot of snow and 35 mile an hour winds – see the write up in this issue. I sure hope that the temperature today becomes the norm as we wing it into spring.

In addition to celebrating a late Fat Tuesday on the 5^th, turning our clocks ahead an hour on the 9^th and welcoming the first day of spring on the 20^th, we celebrate one of my favorite holidays on the 17th – St. Patrick’s Day! In celebration, we have dedicated some of our March content to members of the Irish community. The Personality Profile is about Tom Mooney, Jr. – the owner of Murphy’s Grand Irish Pub in Old Town and Murphy’s Irish Pub in Virginia Beach. In Business Profile, Lani Gering writes about Ripe Specialty Foods owned and operated by Irishman Fergus Kennedy. Ripe Specialty is a purveyor of Irish meats, cheeses and dry goods as well as a long line of cheeses and meats from around the world. Our Dining Out highlights the Irish fare at Daniel O’Connell’s Restaurant & Bar. All of these establishments play a big role in our Alexandria…and beyond…communities.

Keeping in the spirit of Erin, Let’s Eat columnist, Glenn Morel takes a different approach to corned beef and cabbage and tells us how to make a Saint Pat’s Wrap. In Let’s Get Crafty, Tim Long keeps it Irish with profiling Stout, you know, like a Guinness.

Exploring VA Wine’s Doug Fabbioli is thinking “green” as well as he looks to the arrival of spring. In Grapevine, Matt Fitzsimmons introduces us to the winemakers of Barrel Oak and Vint Hill Wineries and their award-winning wines. Several of the Commonwealth’s wineries have garnered some major awards on the West Coast edging out some California vintages.

In From the Bay, you will find our annual “anti-sock burning” piece penned by SpinSheet/PropTalk Editor Molly Winans. While most Annapolis/Eastport residents celebrate the vernal equinox by participating in the “Annual Sock Burning & Oyster Roast”, Winans likes to keep hers on for a few more weeks.

In Caribbean Connection, we learn about the Bahamas first moonshine company as well as The Grace Bay Beach of the Turks and Caicos. Rounding out the issue, Steve Chaconas revisits the Northern Snakehead invasion of 2002 in Go Fish; Gallery Beat’s, Lenny Campello visits Old Town’s own Athenaeum; High Notes, Ron Powers writes about Blondie’s studio album, Parallel Lines and the song, “One Way of Another.” In History, Sarah Becker celebrates the Ladies, Miriam Kramer reviews The Frozen River in the Last Word as Lori Welch Brown tries to convince us that March really isn’t a lost month in Open Space.

All of the above and much more await you in the following pages. Let’s hope that spring continues to roll in after this harsh winter we had and that our coldest weather is behind us

Go out and order a Hurricane and gumbo on the 5^th, turn those clocks ahead an hour on the 9^th, get your “green on” on the 17^th and think about what you are going to plant in those flower beds and gardens on the 20^th!

Laissez les Bon Temps Rouler – Let the Good Times Roll – and Happy St. Patrick’s Day everybody. Slainte!