Jason and I attended a Utah Grizzlies hockey game on Saturday. Although I have been to an Olympic hockey match, this was my first time at a professional hockey game and honestly, it was a bit of a shock to me.

Everyone knows that hockey is a pretty violent sport. Players get slammed into the plexiglass, high-sticked occasionally, and shoved on the ground; that I expected to see. However, I wasn’t counting on all the team brawling and fist fights. Yeah, really, fist fights.

So yes, the game was much more viscous than I anticipated. I was amazed at just how many times play was stopped abruptly due to players randomly deciding to pound each other. These sudden violent exchanges seemed to quickly escalate into team affairs. If two guys started quarreling the other players usually swarmed around them ready to jump in, and often did. On several occasions the ice was littered with dozens of gloves and various forms of padding, which players had removed in order to better get in on the action. I frequently had to remind myself that I was actually at a hockey game and not the WWE on ice.

But the players weren’t the only ones ready to battle; anytime there was even an incline of a confrontation the crowd was immediately on its feet chanting “Fight, fight, fight!” It felt like junior high all over again.

Jason and I were seated on the second row directly adjacent to the penalty box, so we were in a prime location to catch all the cross-team banter. (The comments we heard will not be repeated here because they were deemed inappropriate for small children, left-handed monkeys, and your mom.) We were also in a perfect spot to hear all the crowd heckling directed at the opposing teammates unfortunate enough to end up in the penalty box (also not repeatable). All this rampaging seemed a bit over the top to me and I contemplated the possibility that I had somehow entered a parallel hick universe. What was with all these people? I seemed to be the only one in the arena that felt anything akin to sympathy for the players that got thrashed. (If you find my sensitivity laughable, you are not alone. Jason got a kick out of it too.) But while the fighting was a bit too brutal and testosterone fueled for my taste, I did enjoy the actual playing. The Grizzlies played a great fast-paced game and pulled off a landslide victory, with a final score of 5 to 2. This was the last game of their regular season but they clinched a spot in the playoffs, which will begin on the 10th. Jason and I plan on catching one of their playoff games. If you enjoy bloodthirsty crowds, mean slap-shots, padded men hitting each other at unpredictable intervals, or perhaps just padded men in general, then you might want to check out one of their playoff games as well.

Jason and I are of very mixed national descent but, as far I know, the only place in the British Isles that we don’t have ancestors from is Ireland. However, that fact doesn’t stop us from celebrating St. Patrick’s Day.

This year, in honor of the green holiday, I decided to prepare an Irish meal for Jason. I made Shepherd’s Pie for the main course, courtesy of Rachael Ray, and for dessert I made an apple crisp recipe that incorporated Irish oats and Irish whiskey. It all turned out quite scrumptious and Jason and I enjoyed our candlelight dinner with the sweet sounds of U2 playing in the background.

And, of course, you can’t truly celebrate St. Patrick’s Day without turning something green that was never meant to be that hue. So, I added food coloring to our bottle of Martinelli’s until it was a shocking emerald shade.

So, considering our lack of Irish lineage, Jas and I may not have any apparent reason to observe St. Patrick’s Day but, since we love to party and get down, we think that is reason enough.

Jas and I went to see Thriving Ivory back in October of last year and the show was fabulous, so when I heard they were coming to town again I had to get tickets.

We didn’t make it to the concert in time to see the first group perform, but we saw the last two bands that played before Thriving Ivory. Generally, concert goers have low expectations regarding the opening bands at smaller events such as this one. So last night I didn’t expect much from the opening acts. However, to my surprise, I was very impressed by both the opening bands that we heard, Company of Thieves and State of Shock. I was so impressed, in fact, that I bought both of their CD’s.

Company of Thieves played with plenty of energy. It was great to see their lead singer, a chick, tearing it up on stage. The audience members responded to that energy by being much more enthusiastic than you would expect, considering that most of them probably had never heard of this band before.

State of Shock, a band from Vancouver just beginning to play in the U.S., also performed with a lot of passion. You could tell they truly loved what they were doing. I got a chance to chat with them after the concert. They were the nicest rockers I’ve ever met, very friendly and accommodating. They were more than happy to oblige my request to have a picture taken with them. I’ve been listening to their CD and am happy to report that I’m digging it. Their music is catchy and fun, good toe-tapping tunes.

And as for the main attraction, Thriving Ivory, as anticipated, did not disappoint. Like last time, they put on a great show and the audience definitely enjoyed themselves. It’s easy to see why Salt Lake City is Thriving Ivory’s favorite place to perform. With girls screaming “I love you” whenever there was a quieter moment, you’d think you’d just stepped into a Jonas Brothers concert. But I guess I can commiserate with the screaming masses, I too love Thriving Ivory. I love their music and watching them perform, and I love that they’ve found such a captive audience here in Salt Lake City; I kind of feel like they’re my homeboys. Next time they come to town I can guarantee that I will be in the crowd cheering them on.

My sole complaint is that I wasn’t able to get a picture with the band this time. Unlike at their previous show, last night I remembered to bring my camera with me, but also unlike last time, people weren’t allowed to take pictures with the band afterwards. I’m sure the band members were exhausted; they looked like they were worn out from touring. And they were very sweet to hang around, following the concert, to sign swag. But man, I just wanted a good picture after the dismal state of the iPhone ones I took last time. So I waited in line, only to hear when I was close to the front of the line that they weren’t permitting any pictures to be taken. How sad! Oh well, my pixilated picts will have to do for now. Maybe next time…

Still, it was a tremendous show. I enjoyed all of the bands, which is a rarity. And I loved seeing my Thriving Ivory boys again. I hope they will return soon.