Burns Night Supper 2012

Last Sunday, "me handsome Scott" and I went on an honest to goodness date proudly wearing our Clan Lamont regalia. We went to the Burns Night Supper the Celtic Society of Eastern Oregon put on. I was a little nervous, not knowing what to expect from the food or the atmosphere. I was pleasantly surprised by both. The Celtic-themed food was terrific, even the haggis, and the best part was that apparently Celts CAN hold their drinks because I didn't notice one drunk Celt in the place. Very nice in my opinion. They read great poetry by Robert Burns and the man who read the tribute to "the immortal Robbie Burns" (Scotland's most famous poet), did an excellent job of keeping it as short as he possible could.

Here are some other members of the Celtic Society as they were taking tickets from people coming in. There were around 80 people who attended. I went to high school with the gal on the far left, Nessa. It has been great reconnecting with her through the society after all these years. As you can see, the Celtic decor complimented the beautiful wood work in the restaurant.

Piping in the Haggis.

"

Toast to the Haggis!"

I took this quick picture of Michael's food before he started eating. He was one of the last to go through the line because he is the Sergeant of Arms, so he was very disappointed that he only got a few crumbs of haggis. I, on the other hand was one of the first in line and got brave enough to try it, mainly because I knew I'd never hear the end of it if I didn't. I have to admit it tasted much better than I thought. If you've never heard of Haggis it is a very traditional Scottish food made of ground up lungs, kidneys, tripe and goodness knows what else, mixed with barley or oats and spices. That mixture goes into a sheep's stomach or large intestine, then it is cooked. As one movie actor once put it, "Scottish food is based on a dare". I think he was right! The rest of the meal was excellent, rivaling even the Haggis. We had mead soaked mussels, Irish lamb stew, corned beef and cabbage, kale with bacon, mashed potatoes, Irish soda bread, Scottish shortbread and and an interesting yet tasty dessert I didn't catch the name of. 

The best part of the evening was when I won the silent auction for an adorable blackboard made out of a old window frame. I've been looking for one for awhile now because I wanted to start writing a different bible verse that our family could memorize every month. It is hanging in the living room and I will have to post a picture of it once I get some chalk. It is adorable. I bid three times on that puppy and was so happy I won!

Burns Night suppers happen all over the world. If you ever get a chance to go to one, you won't regret it!

Blessings,

Jackie