Orange County

Seeking out some really good "craic" (a great time) this St. Patrick's Day? Whether you have a toddler in tow or are looking for the best green beer deals, we've got you covered. And if you want everyone to think you have "bua na cainte" (the gift of the gab), just remember this toast: "Slainte agus tainte!" (Pronunciation for those new to Gaelic: slawn-che oggus tinn-che. Meaning: health and wealth!) Old World Village German Restaurant, 7561 Center Ave. #49, Huntington Beach, will switch from sauerkraut to stout for St. Patrick's Day with corned beef and cabbage on the menu, and drink specials on the board.

The Huntington Beach Art Center on Friday will open its 14th annual "Centered on the Center" exhibition. As many as 190 artists from Orange County and other parts of Southern California, who represent an array of genres and artistic levels, will be exhibiting 329 works in the non-juried show, scheduled to run at the city of Huntington Beach-run Art Center from Jan. 20 through Feb. 18. The genres on display range from oil paintings to sculptures,...

An audience from around Orange County and beyond congregated inside a circus tent pitched at the Irvine Barclay Theatre's Cheng Hall for a one-hour extravaganza featuring one man. Surprisingly, there was never a dull moment. Stand-alone showman Jamie Adkins gave himself his own drum roll during the Thanksgiving weekend in "Circus Incognitus," which showcased the range of his mind-boggling circus talents that included pantomime, stunning tricks, juggling and acrobatics. Adkins was as entertaining and engaging as a cast of 30 in a Broadway musical.

The Dave Mohs Orange County Championships girls' volleyball tournament is again stockpiled with talented teams. This year's event starts at 3:30 p.m. Friday. The tournament, hosted by Edison High, continues at 8 a.m. Saturday and concludes with championship match play on Monday. The field includes local teams Edison, Huntington Beach and Marina, and Los Alamitos is back to defend its Division 1 title. The 64-team field is split into two divisions (1 and 2) with each division made up of eight, four-team pools.

Most of the Indian food we are familiar is from the Punjab, a region of Northwestern India and Eastern Pakistan. It is a cuisine characterized by the liberal use of ghee (long-cooked clarified butter), butter and cream. The main seasonings in both vegetarian and non-vegetarian dishes are onion, garlic and ginger. The primary grain is wheat; rice is for special occasions. Classic dishes include: meats and breads from the tandoori oven, saag (smooth spinach or mustard green sauce)

When the Ocean View Little League All-Stars defeated Japan to emerge as 2011's world champions, they ended their season in dramatic fashion. Except that it wasn't the end of their season — not quite, anyway. The All-Stars, the first Orange County team to win the Little League Baseball World Series, are now busy making the publicity rounds. Saturday, the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim honored the team in a pregame ceremony, and the Los Angeles Dodgers plan to do the same Sept.

Sunset Beach residents might notice quicker responses and more police presence in their community than in the past. That's because the Huntington Beach Police Department is now serving Sunset's residents. The switch from the Orange County Sheriff's Department, which previously had jurisdiction over the area, took place Aug. 29, which is the official day Sunset became part of Huntington, said Huntington police Lt. Russell Reinhart Before the annexation, a deputy from the Sheriff's Department used to patrol the area along with Rossmoor, an unincorporated area north of Sunset adjacent to Los Alamitos and Seal Beach.

It was a warm and sunny Friday afternoon at the beach when 16-year-old Monica Candelario learned something new about herself. "I learned that I'm brave," she said. "I know when I put my mind into something, I can accomplish it. " Although she was afraid to get on a surfboard and learn to catch a wave, the excitement of tackling something new helped push her through. When Monica, a member of SteppingUP, a college preparation program offered by the nonprofit Orange County Community Housing Corp., first heard that her group was going to learn how to surf, she right away decided against the idea.

The 2010 prep football season reaches closure Friday with the 52nd annual Brea Lions Orange County North-South All-Star Game at Orange Coast College. Courtland Drummond (tight end) and Brandon Moss (offensive line), Zane Hudak (offensive line) of Huntington Beach and Roland Blackiston (defensive back) of Edison will suit up for the South. All were seniors during the 2010 football season. Drummond and Hudak were selected to the 2010 Sunset League first team and Moss was a second-team pick.

As the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear tragedy in Japan continues to unfold, some Orange County residents wonder what it might be like if anything like it happened here. Such a nightmare for folks along the Orange Coast would impact us all. A tidal wave of surge refugees would sweep inland. All reasonable preparatory steps should be taken. That's easy to say but daunting even to think about. We shrink from the implications of breached nuclear generation stations. Minute radioactive sparklers are now making their way into Japanese flesh, blood and bone.