It started late on Friday; several patrons thirsty for some holiday drinks lined up outside of various Bowling Green bars. Outside of the bars, some houses hummed with Irish music, conversation and the holiday spirit of “St. Practice Day,” a pre-spring-break tradition that gives students a chance to party before St. Patrick’s Day.

The history of St. Practice Day is hard to pin down. Most college students are not aware of the “holiday” before heading to college, and no major locations talk about the event. Although the date varies depending on the area, the purpose of the holiday is clear: to unwind and relax with friends.

St. Practice Day serves as preparation for St. Patrick’s day, with all of the cliches included. Bars and patrons alike dress in green, and an Irish fiddle echoes from many bars and restaurants through the town. Houses are filled with people, dancing, joking — and of course drinking. For some it is an all-day event where the party doesn’t end until they see the sun rise on the next morning.

Even on a rainy and windy Saturday evening, there were events downtown and house parties through the community. Becketts Burger Bar, Tubby’s Tavern and 149 were completely crammed with students, some shoulder-to-shoulder. Senior accounting major Serapio Gonzales relaxed in Mr. Spots, spent time with several friends and took part in the St. Practice Day spirit.

“It’s a good way for students to blow off steam before spring break. … It’s amazing that people wake up for St. Practice Day but not for classes,” Gonzales said.

Downtown around 11 p.m., students were still lining up outside bars, braving the rain and wind to pack into bars near campus.

Tabitha, a bartender at City Tap, spent the day serving customers from when the bar opened at 5:30 a.m. until late Saturday evening with a short break in the afternoon.

“It’s interesting because most people wake up at 5:30 in the morning,” Tabitha said. “People are nice — a lot nicer than on our normal days.”

Based on small talk with several people on St. Practice Day, it seems the event was mostly discovered during college. With that comes the question of what to participate in, and what not to participate in. The bartender at City Tap gave some advice to students who may have trouble deciding.

“A lot of students are concerned about missing out,” Tabitha said. “You’re going to school to get an education and should not worry about drinking so much.”