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Woodinville Cruisers Car Club Christmas Light Parade

The run up to Christmas brings with it the annual Woodinville Cruisers Car Club Christmas Light Parade in our town. This might be an annual event but it isn’t something we had been to before. The evening was looking dry so we decided to pay it a visit. We didn’t have any idea what to expect but, as we drove down towards the town center, one of the cars for the parade was ahead of us. It wasn’t hard to know where it was going given how many lights were on the outside of the car. (We did spot it in the parade later.)

We went in plenty of time because we didn’t know how crowded it was going to be. This proved to be unnecessarily cautious as the town was still pretty quiet when we arrived – a Sunday night is not hopping in Woodinville – particularly when there is a Seahawks game on TV. We killed a bit of time but as it got close to the 6pm start time for the parade, plenty of people started to show up and, once the cars started rolling, lots of spectators were out.

A firetruck from the local fire department started things off. Then the cars came rolling through. We had no idea how many there would be so we were curious as to whether we would soon be back at home. We needn’t have worried. There were loads of vehicles coming through. Some were vintage vehicles that were interesting in their own rights. Others were modern cars but adorned with tons of lights. Some looked like they had barely bothered to prepare! I was surprised how willing some of the owners were to tape a ton of lights to their paintwork!

I would say that the parade took about half an hour to roll through. There was plenty of pausing as things backed up but there were definitely a ton of different vehicles. Local businesses also took part with their trucks decorated or, in the case of the local balloon pleasure flight business, they had a basket on a trailer with the burners providing a blast of heat and light on a regular basis. A local Facebook group had someone questioning whether there was a fire downtown!

The whole thing was a fun time and we were really pleased to have made the trip out. It far exceeded what we had anticipated and everyone seemed to be having a good time – particularly the kids grabbing the candy thrown from a bunch of the vehicles. There didn’t seem to be any left where we were. Thanks to everyone that took part for making it such an enjoyable event and congratulations to the organizers.

Need to Find Another Way Around

St Patrick’s Day Parade in Dublin

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Ten years living in the heart of Chicago meant that St Patrick’s Day was treated with a certain level of trepidation. Yes, the dying of the river green was fun and there was a parade. (It was a huge parade that went on forever and could be held in some bitterly cold weather that made you wonder whether you really wanted to know what you still hadn’t seen.) However, the city got taken over by people getting hammered from breakfast to early the next morning so it wasn’t always the best place to be! You can see some of my previous writings on the day here if you wish.

Now we are in California, we live in Dublin! Okay, it isn’t that Dublin and it might not have much real connection with Ireland but it has embraced the name and made St Patrick’s Day a big event. There is a parade the then a fairground and stalls are set up in the area around the public library and the sports fields. I figured I should stroll along to see how the parade went.

While it might not be on the same scale as the Chicago parade, it was still a pretty sizable affair. Plenty of people seemed to be out lining the streets to watch it go through. The participants were a mix of groups. The various local schools had their marching bands, the emergency services participated, local groups would show off their specializations and you had some of the light-hearted elements thrown in for good measure like the Shriners in their little cars. A few horses and dogs were thrown in for good measure.

Bringing up the rear was a vintage bus and a modern bus from Wheels, the local transit agency. I was standing next to a woman who obviously worked for them but showed up after things had started and was worried she had missed them. She needn’t have worried. The weather was great – another difference from Chicago – so everyone in the parade as well as those watching seemed to be having a good time. A variety of groups were throwing goodies out to the crowd but I was on the wrong side of the road to get anything they threw. Just as well really because, while I am enthusiastic for the freebies when they are throwing them around, I always find myself wondering why I wanted the stuff shortly afterwards. However, I did get some free Pocky samples and I didn’t mind eating them at all!