So… does anyone remember cartoons with Mr. Peabody the dog and Sherman his boy (on the Rocky & Bullwinkle show), and most importantly the “Way, Way Back Machine” that could transport them back in time?  Well, we need to employ that time travel vehicle in this article so we’re firing it up to describe a couple of events that took place recently in the Parrot Head world that we promised to tell you about in last month’s article (Were you paying attention last month?).

First off, members and friends hopped onto a beautiful beach day to celebrate the slowing of the season and a reuniting of the locals after a busy tourist season with our yearly “The Coast is Clear Under the Pier Party”.  Michael & Mendy and the crew put together another great party with a purpose this year with around 75 rowdy folks hanging out with the sun, sand, and surf, chowing down on hot dogs, shrimp and other goodies, with games, laughter, and raffles for a herd of generously donated booty that ranged from a variety of gift certificates, T shirts, hats, etc. to a beautiful paddle board.  Our very own Mr. B.R. Browder was the proud winner of the paddle board (how many tickets did that boy buy??).  The best part of this party was the Purpose, as all funds raised went to this year’s two chosen charities: O.W.L.S. (Outer Banks Wildlife Shelter) and Island Cat Allies.  Thanks to donations from supportive local merchants and individuals we were able to raise $1486 that was split between the two charities.  Great stuff, people!!

We can’t forget the happenings at our regular PHirst PHriday PHlocking with folks getting an early start on Halloween showing up with costumes, a pass the pumpkin game, along with Eddie’s food courtesy of the E Club, other games, birthday celebrations, and lots of laughter and good friends just chillin’ and catching up.  Also had some Parrot Heads riding in the Coastal Federation’s Ride for the Coast event; a good time for a good cause, with no injuries to riding PHlock member feathers.  Another Saturday morning rolled around with a dozen Parrot Heads heading out to pick up our Adopt a Highway stretch of road from 24 to over the bridge.   Boy did that stretch need some T.L.C.; we picked up 33 bags of trash along with such questionable rubble finds as a truck tire, buckets, a car bumper, siding, a set of headlights, a child’s car seat (we never found the kid that might have been in it), 3 Lira, and of course the usual tonnage of plastic bags and styrofoam cups.  Obviously, don’t litter or tolerate litterbugs, but please make sure stuff doesn’t inadvertently blow out of the bed of your pick ‘em up trucks or car windows.  ‘Nuff said on that.  Parrot Heads also volunteered with the Town’s annual Triathlon helping out wherever it was needed.

The next undertaking on the horizon is the building of our PH float for the Town’s holiday parade after Thanksgiving.  We won first prize last year and are getting the creative juices flowing again to try for another 1^st place, which will be a challenge with all the great entries.  Members have started gathering in a secret location (well really not that secret) to start assembly; always lots of laughter, creative work, and usually plenty of tasty food involved. Here’s a hint… think we’ll be calling it “The Flight Before Christmas”.  At any rate, it’ll be a sight to see and rest assured we’ll be tossing out a bunch of bling to the crowds with some good ol’ Jimmy Buffet tunes playing.

Oh yeah, certainly don’t forget to wish a Happy Birthday to those Parrot Heads who managed another trip around the sun this November:   Chuck Jacob, Rita “Cook the Books” Babich, Audie Tyrrell, Joe Quigley, Bobbi Raub, Deb Heverly, Lucy Gray, Leslie Dudley, Gale “Twins” Tutor, Dale “Twins” Tutor, Rick Demer, “Pretty Marj” Browder, Pat Thomas, Nick Klaus, Vickie King, Nancy “Bicycle” Johnston, Susan Fabian, Kathy “Early Bird” Ruge, Andrew Descary, Jim Rackenhauser, Jeffrey Sicular, Jake Mitchell, Sharon “Neighbor” Ambrose, Taylor Klutz, and Mike Creech.

Our membership is now bulging out daily into over 275 fun loving folks who believe in giving back to their communities and in a tropical lifestyle, so c’mon out and join us to “Party With a Purpose”.  Check out the website at emeraldisleparrotheads.com or just show up at one of our first Friday of the month PHlockings, 7:00 at The Emerald Club.  Meanwhile, to all y’all… be kind to those around you and the environment, and stay safe out there!  See you around Town.    Ken

Parrot Heads: In the Autumn of Our Years??

We’re not “Fall”ing for that Autumn of our years stuff; we’re just getting started with a little cooler weather and the fact that the pace of the Isle has slowed down and mellowed with the departure of beach visitors and tourists who help out the local economy.  Nice to see some cooler nights and open windows rather than cranked up AC.  The beautiful weather and the saner temps brought out a herd of folks (maybe that’s a flock of folks) to our PHirst PHriday PHlocking at the Emerald Club.  Lots of great grub and fun people with a changeup of tunes from Jah Creation; a little background Reggae to chill folks out.   Of course Jane, Chuck, Ken, and Carl were on hand with coconut bowling to keep the PHlock entertained (we entertain easily) and ensure lots of laughter.  We picked up ten new members that night (welcome, welcome!) who happened to stop by the Tiki Bar, had a blast and joined the Parrot Head family.  We’re up to 289 members now!

There was still lots of chatter about the 10^th Annual Island/Sandbar Anniversary Party and looking forward to the Coast is Clear Under the Pier Party to celebrate the slowdown in pace of the Isle and return to the locals.  Due to article deadlines (everybody has deadlines, just like work) this will have already happened (have I told you about my time theory?), but with great food, games, rowdiness, and raffles for lots of booty like T shirts, fresh seafood, beach gifts, bowling and golf passes, etc., etc., and even a paddle board the party will be (was?  There’s that time issue again) a fun filled event.  Pics to follow in next month’s C.S. so stay tuned!

We’ll be doing an Adopt a Highway pickup in mid-October to keep the entrance to the Isle looking spiffy, then move into float building mode for the Emerald Isle holiday parade the Saturday after Thanksgiving.  Creative minds (??) will be churning up ideas for this year’s float to see if we can top last year’s.  The planning sessions and building sessions (parties?) are always a hoot and we always manage to come up with some grand stuff for the parade.

While your brains are still churning, don’t forget to keep the following birthday babies in mind who made an appearance on this planet in October.  Another trip around the sun for: Leonard “Super Trooper” Crumpler, Charlie Upchurch, Janice “Crazy Canuck” Brumbelow, Randy Runyan, Rene “Red” Synan, Barbara Morgan, Vickie Creech, Erin “Artsy Bartender” Sheldon, Dan “Lawyer Up” Ruge, Becky Parham, Sonia Brooks, Paula Hubbell, Ricky Taylor, Joe Oebbecke, Wendy “Candy” Gollihue, Kelley “ Crazy Carver” Nelson, Traci Runyan, Louise “Mama Doc” Ehrenkaufer, Bob Fowle, Jessica Pickett, Melelia Bass, Maggie “Volunteer” Rauschenberg, Jay Toler, Marcus Johnson, and Tim Cogdill.  Phew! Lotsa October B’Days… musta been a cold January!

Halloween’s almost upon us so start getting your costumes ready, enjoy the beauty of a less crowded beach, and be kind to those around you (strangers as well as friends).  And of course, that solid advice… if you’re drinking any whoopee juice, make sure you and any friends have a designated driver.  See y’all around town…  Ken  

The heat & humidity of summer have been sticking with us (literally) but that didn’t stop the PHlock from busting out a great 10th Anniversary celebration starting out with an oversized PHriday night PHlocking.  A huge crowd packed the Tiki bar patio at the E Club on a beautiful night to start off the weekend celebration complete with the Mayor of our fine Isle proclaiming Parrot Head Weekend in Emerald Isle and praising the Club for its’ community service.  Our buds Scearce and Ketner showed up with a full size band in tow who joined in the fun and cranked out some amazing tunes to the applause and dancing feet of the Parrot Head crew.  Thanks to the E Club’s generosity, Eddie laid out a great spread of tasty grub and the E Club ladies gave out lots of hats, leis and other bling to add to the festive atmosphere.  Big birds for the event, Jan & Rene, made sure we had some insane games to play to keep everyone mixing and laughing while Maggie R. and Leannna worked hard signing up new members and hawking “offishul” Parrot Head T shirts.  Fun for everyone!

After a little R&R on Saturday, we moved on to the main event of the weekend, our day long Island/Sandbar Party out on Pelican Island bringing out 175 folks not counting dogs and parakeets (young Parrot Head wannabes) who came by skiff, shrimper, kayak, sail, houseboat, and other means of nautical transportation (including wading over from the mainland; not recommended but doable at low tide) to have a great time in the sun, sand, and water.  Of course there was tons of great grilled up food and sides (chefs James, Bob, and Jack with a host of helpers made sure no one went hungry).  Aquatic wonder Sue roped off a swimming area that quickly filled with bodies and floats, more games, water balloons, and constant music from island hoppers Scearce & Ketner added to the fun.  After a worrisome start of dark clouds, the day turned out perfect.  A great way to celebrate a 10^th anniversary with laughter and good friends.

So, wassup next?   None other than our The Coast is Clear Under the Pier Party on September 16^th where Parrot Heads and friends gather on the beach near the Pier to chill out and celebrate the slowdown of the season as many of our visitors retreat back home after a good vacation and visit to the beach.  There will be lots of games, rowdiness, good food, and raffles for a variety of generously donated items from local merchants and individuals.  This year all donations and raffle proceeds will go to Island Cat Allies and O.W.L.S.  Big Birds Michael and Mendy with their crew are working hard to make this year’s event even bigger and better than last year; looking forward to a great time at the beach!  Also, keep an eye out for our Adopt A Highway pick up some Saturday in September or early October to spiff up the entrance to the Isle over the bridge.

And oh yeah, you better not forget to wish a big ol’ HAPPY BIRTHDAY to those Parrot Heads who entered the world in September:  Duane Brown, Bob “Too Tall” Horner, Sherri Randall, Cindy Smith, Sandra Flowe, Mary “Zumba” Adams, Theresa Lewis, Jessica Frosch, Judy Dobler, Noland Parham, Chris Donaldson, Jo Wieciech, Jack Luther, Deborah Upchurch, Jason “The Son” Stone, Hunter Synan, Scott King, Mike Love, Kate “Colonel” Tate, Lee Ann “Itty Bit” Grissom, Tammy Griffin, and Dorothy Curtin.

Check out the Parrot Head website at emeraldisleparrotheads.com and join in the good times, partying with a purpose.  Give back to your community by helping out charitable organizations and endeavors making where we all live an even better place.  Stay safe and we’ll see y’all around the Isle!   Ken

Oh yeah… it’s been a hot and humid summer so far, but that hasn’t stopped all those local Parrot Heads from PHlocking.  How to stay cool at our regular PHirst PHriday PHlocking?  Aside from a good ol’ cold beverage served up with a smile by Erin or Matt, one way to cool off the crew was with a frozen T-Shirt contest.  For those newbies, not what you might have thought; good clean fun by soaking and then rolling up and freezing a bunch of T’s to hand out to willing participants.  The first one to get it unfrozen by any creative means (whacking it on the pavers, yanking with a friend, thawing on body parts, etc., etc.) and over their body won a prize.  Of course everyone who participated got to #1: cool off, and #2: keep the shirt.  Lots of rowdy fun coupled with great tunes from the maestros of music, our very own Scearce and Ketner, plenty of tasty grub courtesy of the Emerald Club via Eddie, some wobbly coconut bowling with prizes, and the laughter and camaraderie of good friends.   We also hooked up with the Rotary Club to sell tickets to their Duck Race for charity.  For each ticket Parrot Heads sold we were able to keep a portion that is being contributed to help extend the Town’s multi-use PATH, so folks can bike, jog, walk, whatever for 5 miles around town.

Lots of other scheming going on too, talking up and making plans for our Parrot Head Club 10^th Anniversary Weekend, August 3-5 (watch for pics in the next issue of Carolina Salt!).  This is shaping up to be quite the event with a PHlocking on the first Friday (Aug. 3) followed by our Anniversary Island Party (August 5) out on Pelican Island.  Parrot Heads and friends will arrive by boat, kayak, canoe, or other(?) for a fun day in the sun and water with games, grllin’ & chillin’, and music by Jack and Dickie (A.K.A Scearce & Ketner.  Be sure to ask Jack to tell you his cannibal joke.).  In honor of our 10^th Anniversary, the honorable Mayor of Emerald Isle (and all around good guy) has proclaimed August 3-5 as Emerald Isle Parrot Head Weekend praising the good things the Club does for the community and encouraging “…all residents and visitors to enjoy and embrace this weekend in the same way that it will be observed by the Emerald Isle Parrot Head Club – with laughter and good friends –Party With A Purpose”.

In ten years the Club has grown from a handful of folks with a vision to a membership of 250 fun loving characters who give back to their communities and local charities in a variety of ways, all while having a great time of it.  Speaking of great times (we were, weren’t we?), don’t forget to celebrate and have a great time with the following members of our PHlock who are putting  another year astern and having an August birthday.  They be… Leni Newell, Judy Sears, Michael “50-ish” Moyer, Richard “Doc Bogus” Ehrenkaufer, Tom “Turtle Trench” Minnick, Peggy Knecht, Dennis Caldwell, Mark Kocourek, Chuck “Morehead Man” Sewell, Scooter Hopkins, Alexandra Williamson, Walt Bass, Paula Dail, Claire Stern, Rhonda Davis, Mary Catherine Thomas, Rob Childree, Johnny Foster, Ray “Travelin’” Gollihue, Gordon Pickett, Ramona Hale, Trish Logan, Bernie “Bennett’s Dad” Zucker, Cindi Palilonis, and Sandy “Coastal Outlet” Fontaine.  HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

Enjoy the beach, stay safe on land and in the water, laugh a lot, and be kind and considerate to those around you whether you know them or not.  And remember… “No matter where you go, there you are.”  See y’all around the Isle!    Ken

The pace of the Isle is picking up with an influx of visitors and friends crossing that bridge to hang out and enjoy what “locals” hopefully don’t take for granted.  Parrot Heads got into the summer spirit at our regular PHirst PHriday PHlocking  at the Emerald Club with PHunky tunes by Scearce and Ketner out in the Tiki Patio while enjoying some great grub and crazy games.  Special guest Chef Jack Synan and his trusty assistant James “I’ll Have Another” Hicks were on hand to cook up a bunch of Jack’s world renowned beer can chickens.   Supplement that with Eddie’s salads and such and you’ve got a great feast for the PHlock to enjoy while laughing at a variety of dressed up loonies.  The theme for this event was “Solid Gold Summer” so people came dressed up in their favorite music era; hippies, Elvis, disco, whatever.  Good times, fun people.  We also collected pennies to help out Atlantic House (a recovery program for adults with mental health illnesses) with their Miles of Pennies fundraiser and added 3500 pennies to their chain.

July’s an R&R month; time to kick back, enjoy the beach, walk/ride/jog the Town’s extended multi-use PATH (hey, we just completed a new section with donated and Town funds that makes the total distance almost 5 miles), work with the Sea Turtle Protection Program (12 nests already!), do some fishing, and just plain ol’ lounge and live it large.  We’ll be resting up for our 10^th Anniversary weekend in August (3^rd through 5^th) with a PHlocking and then an Island Party on Pelican Island.  This is just a FUN raiser with Scearce & Ketner playing tunes, lots of grilled up food, swimming, chilling, games, laughter, and all around fabulous day in the sun coming by boat, kayak, canoe or whatever and enjoying what we have around us with friends and family.

And speaking of friends (nice segue, eh?) don’t forget to wish those Parrot Head friends a big Happy July Birthday, including… Marsha “Turtle” Horner, Natalie “Mrs. Super Trooper” Crumpler, Tara “Unwinding Lady” Dyer, Marilyn Acker, Pat Bills, Bill Lewis, Ann McBeth, John “Church Boy” Dyer, Karran McGlothlin, Carl “Coastal Outlet” Meeks, Robin Sanders, Sue “Susie Cutie” Swiderski, Eric McCuen, Margaret Wells, Janet “Fishing Treasurer” Lewis, Doris “Teeth” Black, Sandra McCuen, and last but certainly not least… Pat “El Presidente’s Neck” Haut.

With summer upon us and the number of people on the Isle and in the surrounding areas increasing like crazy, I have to remind myself and all y’all too… “Slow down, this ain’t the mainland”, “It’s only a movie”, and “Practice random acts of kindness; pay it forward”.  If you’re a visitor and reading this, please remember to respect and be kind to everything and everyone here and you’ll be a more than welcome guest.  One other very serious piece of advice… if you’re inclined to have a cold one (or two, or so), DON’T DRINK and DRIVE (or let anyone else for that matter)!  PHins up, and see you around the Isle.   Ken

What a great way to start the summer with fabulous weather for our regular PHirst PHriday of the month PHlocking at The Emerald Club!  The warm weather brought out a host of Parrot Heads to hang out in the outdoor Tiki patio and listen to foot stompin’, hand wavin’, butt wigglin’ tunes pumped out by our good buds and PHellow Parrot Heads Dickie Scearce & Jack Ketner.  Lots of good times and laughter among friends old and new with “competitive” Coconut Bowling.  Not as easy as it would seem to roll a coconut into a hula hoop but we still handed out 8 T-shirts to those skilled (well lucky, actually) individuals who rolled for glory.  Other folks who wandered in must have thought we were a pretty good crew as we signed up 25 new members to the PHlock that night.  Welcome to the “Party With A Purpose”, newbies! Carrying on during and after the PHlocking, we set out to help out the Friends of Atlantic House in Morehead City (a recovery program for adults diagnosed with serious and persistent mental health illnesses) by collecting change and donations for their Miles of Pennies fundraiser.  We also sponsored a hole in the Crystal Coast Civitan Club’s Charity Golf Tournament to help them out in their fundraising efforts for community projects.

Just a warm up for the grand event, however… our 9^th Annual Beach Bicycle Poker Run.  This is our largest charity fundraiser of the year that seems to grow bigger and bigger and more and more fun each and every year, with all funds raised going to the Hope for the Warriors charity that supports our wounded warriors and their families who have given so much of themselves for all of us.  Despite weather predictions, the day turned out to be beautiful  and we started registering a herd of people at around 1:00, shot out some free T shirts into the crowd with a monster slingshot (saving a bunch more for later in the evening) , and followed up with a bike decorating contest at 1:45 which got some pretty creative (and oft times a tad bizarre) decorations.  Gypsies, fruitcakes, and coconuts were all over the place.  Of course during the registration (and throughout the day) we drummed up more charity funds with a huge raffle with all kinds of items donated by generous supporting local merchants and individuals.  We topped last year’s attendance of 114 folks with 148 participants this year hopping on their bicycles at 2:00 and pedaling on off in no particular order to our 5 sponsoring stops: The Emerald Club, El Zarape, Rucker John’s, The Emerald Grill, & Paddy’s Pub.  Quite the sight to see the flow of bicycles zipping up and down the Town’s well used bike/multi-use PATH to pick up a card at each stop, party with friends, draw for door prizes, and get back to The Emerald Club by 5:30 to see who had the best poker hand from cards handed out by our hard working (thanks so much faithful Parrot Heads!) team of “Card Sharks” at each of the stops.  Despite a back wheel coming off of one of the bikes (many thanks to good Samaritan Ronnie from Hwy. 58 Bikes for his help in getting a Parrot Head back underway), some parts and pieces falling off here and there, and the rumor of an untimely demise of a squirrel (??) we all made it back in time, and $600 in cash prizes donated by the Parrot Head Club and The Emerald Club were handed out for the winning hands.  Time to collect on door prizes and raffle winnings, then out came the tasty free chow to feed the starving masses, with Big Drink on stage cranking out great tunes.  A fabulous fun filled day for everyone, and all in all with raffles, registrations, and donations we were able to raise $3632 for donation to a great charity, Hope for the Warriors.  THANKS SO MUCH to all the Parrot Heads who worked so hard putting this event together, our generous sponsors and stops, raffle donors, Mike, Pat, Matt, Erin and the rest of the Emerald Club crew, and of course all the fun folks who came out to Party With A Purpose.

It’s hard to top this event, but we do have a few more tricks up our sleeves with more fun events throughout the year including our 10^th Parrot Head Club Anniversary weekend coming up in August complete with a PHlocking and then our annual Sandbar/Island Party out on Pelican Island with Scearce & Ketner and Barefoot Wade chilling with us on island time.  Watch the Coastal Salt for details.  Hard to believe we’ve been partying with a purpose for 10 years, growing from a dozen PHolks to over 250; what a long strange trip it’s been…  And while you’re contemplating that and enjoying your summer, don’t forget to send best wishes to those good ol’ guys & ladies who are growing older but not up as they celebrate their birthdays in June.  They be:  Lovely Lois Harmande, Bettina Candelore, Gary Odie, Jack “Chef” Synan, Russ “Pelican Island” Davis, Brad Bills, Mickey Henrickson, Ann Stewart, David Harlowe, Lee Summer Williams, Randy Penny, Gigi Linder, Pam “Turtles” Minnick, Terry Passey, Gary Pontenberg, “Cap’n” Bill Gerdsen, Lisa Jo Brattich, Patricia Voutsinas, Barbara Meyer, and Kim West.

Stay safe out there, watch out for and help others, enjoy this special Isle, and if you’re having a cold one, make sure you have a designated driver.  See y’all around Town!      Ken

PHirst… a correction!  We had some last minute contributions to our fundraising for the Emerald Isle EMS and were able to push up our donation to $720!  These dedicated and trained folks deserve our thanks and respect for the great job they do in the community; never know when you may need ‘em, but you can bet they’ll be there.

With great weather upon us here on the Isle and surrounding areas, Parrot Heads flapped on out for our regular PHirst PHriday PHlocking complete with an Easter egg hunt, fun games, some great grub compliments of The E. Club and Eddie from the Piggly Wiggly deli, and of course fine fingered tunes cranked out by our Parrot Head buds Scearce & Ketner.  I guess looking for eggs was the warm up for the next event, our 5^th year annual Scavenger Hunt as ten teams of four got wound up to follow clues and gather up a bunch of interesting and sometimes strange stuff.  What a hysterical crew that brought laughter to all those they came in contact with on their quest for glory as the first team to find everything and get back in 2 hours to try for prizes.  Many thanks to this year’s prize and equipment donors: MacDaddy’s, Quiznos, Dairy Queen, Big Drink, Sweet Spot, the Parrot Head Club, Walgreens, Pacific, Bert’s,  Wings, and of course The Emerald Club.  The first place winners (with some possible chicanery? Yeah, yeah.. no whining) were the Stressed Out Ladies Unwinding Together.  A fun party unrolled afterwards with fine funky tunes by Big Drink and lots of laughs with tales of the hunt.  The best part though, was that the team entry fees ($200 total) all got donated to Martha’s Mission Food Pantry. “PARTY WITH A PURPOSE!”

A new members social held at Ribeyes brought “newbies” and seasoned Parrot Heads together to get better acquainted and schooled in the ways of the Parrot Heads; giving back to the community, making new friends, helping others out, and having a great time out of life.  Also, the Parrot Heads jumped in to help out the NC Coastal Federation with their Native Plant Sale and Craft Fair.  PH good humor and a helping hand loading plants is always appreciated by the Federation and helps them raise funds for the important work they do in watching out for the health and well- being of our coast.

So what’s our next purpose and party??  Why, none other than the infamous Beach Bicycle Poker Run on May 19^th starting from the E Club; watch for signs around the Isle for details.  Bike decorating contests, fabulous prizes donated by local merchants and individuals, door prizes at our 5 stops that we ride to (well, yeah… they’re close.  No sense exhausting yourself), raffles for great stuff, lots of laughter and fun!  That’s’ the party part; the purpose part is that all funds get donated to the Hope for the Warriors charity to support our wounded warriors who have given so much for us.  This is our largest fundraiser of the year.  Last year we had 111 rowdy folks participating and raised $3000 that was donated, so we’re hoping that this year will be even bigger and better.  Mark your calendar and come on out for a great time!

OK, so while you’re busy marking your calendars, don’t forget to remember the following Parrot Heads who bounced into the world during the Merry Merry Month of May; they be:  Bets Love, Jane Sewell, Dianne Tyrell, Wayne Young, Allen Ross Jr., Emily “Bennett” Zucker, Pam Harlow, Jeanne LaVana, Russell “Tax Man” Adams, Jean “Vice Prez” Jensen, John Henrickson, Sharon Alford, Kip “Artiste” Baker, Terry Groseclose, Bob Linder, Ken “Hey, That’s Me” Stone, Doris “Biscuit Lady” Speicher, Kathey Fairchild, Gina Mathis, and Janet Geisler.  Happy Birthday!

Stop, take a deep breath, and enjoy this awesome place we live in and the good folks around you.  And by the way, if you’re having a cold one or two, PLEASE make sure you always have a designated driver; everybody (as the Irish say) “Safe home”.  See you around Town.   Ken

Spring is finally here and the color of the month is GREEN!  Parrot Heads started celebrating St. Patrick’s Day early at our regular PHirst PHriday PHlocking at the Emerald Club with wearin’ of the green, St. Patty’s themed games, tasty grub from our bud Eddie (at the Piggly Wiggly Deli) courtesy of the E Club, and of course great tunes from those two pseudo sons of Ireland Dicky O’Scearce and Jack O’Ketner.  Good weather and great times!

That was just a warm up for the real “offishul” St. Patrick’s Day with our Parrot Head booth at the Town of Emerald Isle’s annual St. Pat’s Festival.  Aside from fun loving folks talking about the Club and pumping up the fabulous benefits of membership (like laughter, friendship, and mostly partying with a purpose; having a great time while doing good things in the community), we had a life size pirate cut out for free photo ops that got a lot of use from passersby.  We also handed out free Parrot Head bling for the kiddos, and had guest appearances by various Parrot Heads dressed in the role of Party On The Parrot just for giggles.  The Riff Raff Raffle took center stage though as this year all raffle items were donated by Club members; some fabulous art work by talented members and a variety of goody baskets that would please anybody.  All raffle funds ($540!) were donated this year to the Emerald Isle EMS who do a tremendous job in our community; they are there when we need them and it’s appreciated.  Great weather, tons of happy folks, delicious grub available, and lots of good music and of course some beers made the day a fabulous event.  Thanks to the Town, the Business Association, Transportation Impact, the Emerald Club and all the other sponsors and volunteers that always make this a marvelous St. Patty’s Day.

To make sure the entrance to the Emerald Isle was all spiffed up again after the Festival and with Spring upon us, the Parrot Head crew was out in force the next weekend picking up a variety of litter along our dedicated stretch of roadside from the 24 & 58 intersection over the bridge with our quarterly Adopt a Highway Clean Up.  As usual (sadly) we picked up and disposed of a ton of “stuff” that got thrown or blown out of passing vehicles. C’mon people, STOP LITTERING!  Next up on the Club’s agenda is a Town wide Scavenger Hunt on April 14^th starting from the Emerald Club parking lot (watch for time details on the E Club marque).  Then with summer coming in, our world famous (well maybe that’s a tad exaggerated) Beach Bicycle Poker Run on May 19^th with bike decorating contests, rowdiness and fun, and donated prizes and great raffle items with all proceeds being donated to the wounded warriors through the Hope for the Warriors charity .  An incredible event for a good cause that no one should miss.

Speaking of missing things, be sure you don’t miss the opportunity to wish a big Happy Birthday to the following Parrot Heads who popped into the world in the month of April.  They be: Wendy Merrill,  Phyllis Harke, Debbie Doody, Jim Bartell, Walter O’Berry, Annie “Mom” Hughes, Matt “Bartender” Morel, James “Hemingway/Papa Smurf” Hicks, Diane Hulse Wood, Gary Schroeder, James Jeanes, Janice Easley, and Bobby Brink.

If you’re thinking of joining our crew and partying with a purpose, check out our website at emeraldisleparrotheads.com for details, or simply show up around 7:30 the first Friday of the month at the Emerald Club for some fun, frolicking, and friendship.  Meanwhile, take a look around you and see what you can do to help out in your community.  Fundraising efforts to extend Emerald Isle’s multi-use PATH are underway, Habitat for Humanity needs help, the Sea Turtle Protection program will be starting up soon, and there are a variety of other charities and organizations that need our help and support, so GET INVOLVED and make where you live a better place.  Keep smiling, be careful out there, and we’ll see y’all around town!  Ken