48 Hours of Freedom


It’s the weekend. You can spend it singing “Danny Boy” over and over again, or you can dance a jaunty jig and enjoy it. Here are some suggestions for your precious two days of total freedom, prepared for you by Boston Daily.

Tonight
Finally, we get a night off from listening to Joe Keohane pontificate. The BoMag staff writer teams up with Southie native Michael Patrick MacDonald to discuss Easter Rising, the All Souls author’s latest book about growing up in the Old Colony Housing Project.

As a brown-eyed girl, I’ve always had a soft spot for Van Morrison. The Irish singer makes a rare stop in Boston to perform his old favorites and tracks from his latest album, Keep It Simple.

For those whose musical tastes skew a little more modern, world-famous DJ Paul Oakenfold spins at The Estate.

It’s finally time to start thinking about your spring wardrobe. Feral Childe designers Moriah Carlson and Alice Wu attended Wellesley College and work on their funky designs in Brooklyn. Check out the Spring 2008 collection at Turtle.

Saturday
Mike Barnicle will be there. Will you? George Carlin performs at the Wang Theater.

Last night, you got ready for spring at Turtle. Tonight, buy some steeply discounted fall merchandise at Queen Bee.

If you want to explore Salem but don’t want to deal with the Halloween or summer boating crowds, check out the Salem Spring Fling. Sample wine and local brews while enjoying art and music.

We haven’t seen this many Irish people fighting since The Departed. The Celtic Invasion pits some of Ireland’s top fighters against their American counterparts.

Sunday
Not everyone gets Evacuation Day off, so many people will celebrate St. Patrick’s Day on Sunday. Most notably, the South Boston St. Patrick’s Day parade takes place today. For a fun way to pass the time while waiting for the parade to start, see if you can spot the old-timer Southie residents among all the condo owners and drunk college kids.

After (or before—the bar opens at 6 a.m.) the parade, head to The Black Rose for an Irish breakfast and games. And beer, obviously.

Once you’re good and drunk, have a designated driver bring you to Lowell for Michael Flatley’s Lord of the Dance. It’ll be funny.

If you prefer Bennifer to beer, check out Ben Affleck and Jennifer Garner at Rumor. The A-list couple will talk about their love for presidential hopeful Barack Obama, and VIPs may be able to meet the stars after the spiel.

There’s much more going on for St. Patrick’s Day than we’ve listed here. If you need more ideas, check out our holiday guide. As always, you can check our event listings, or subscribe to our weekly newsletters for fun ideas of all colors, not just green.