"Do you have a meeting to cover tonight?" Marge asked on the phone.

"Yeah, afraid so," I replied. "And it will run really late. Better not wait up for me, dear. My never-ending search for news can never be a 9 to 5 job."

"You poor thing."

After we hung up, I immediately drove to Mick Kelly's Irish Pub in Burien and drank liberally.

At Kelly's, I met up with Lazy Gardener columnist Stephen Lamphear and retired King County Sheriff's deputy Cherisse Luxa.

Lamphear and Luxa are co-hosts of Burien Drinking Liberally, a monthly gathering for progressive-minded people who just want to get together and chat.

"There's no dues, no agenda, no speakers," Cherisse explained.

It reminded me of the local chapter of the Red Hat Society. Women of a certain age (under 50 wear a pink hat; over 50, a red hat) get together about once a year at a luncheon for a good cause.

They've served their time as officers and volunteers in countless organizations and can appreciate a group with no president, no treasurer and no refreshments committee.

Drinking Liberally is like that, except you don't have to be female or even 21. A young boy in the backroom where the group congregates was more interested in pool than politics.

Conservatives are even welcome if they don't mind wandering into a liberal lion's den.

Attending political meetings, the agenda is usually filled by speakers and business, Cherisse noted. By the end of the night, there is no time to talk.

So when the folks at Mick Kelly's said they would be happy to welcome a horde of arguing liberals on a midweek night, Cherisse checked for schedule conflicts with various district Democrat meetings and settled on the fourth Wednesday of the month at 7 p.m. as a good time.

There are six other Drinking Liberally chapters in Western Washington, including Seattle, Bellevue, Tacoma, Olympia, Monroe and Bellingham. Around the country, there are almost 150 groups.

Sitting around a pub arguing politics is as American as the nation's founding. Picture John and Samuel Adams hoisting a pint in a tavern while planning the Boston Tea Party.

Kelly's didn't have Samuel Adams Beer so I settled for Alaskan Ale.

I sat with a contingent from West Seattle. After a far-flung discussion, we arrived at the following consensus: Sonics, bad; Progressive talk-show host Thom Hartmann, good; Sen. Joe Lieberman, although a Democrat, bad.

It was also great to see Georgette Valle, who represented Highline for 24 years in the state legislature and also served on the Burien City Council.

Georgette has been active in politics around here for over half a century.

My family and I have known Georgette that long. Her husband, Odd, was our first family dentist.

The third dentist to set up a practice in Burien, Odd's office was just four doors down from Kelly's. Georgette reported the building is now occupied by a tattoo parlor.

I remember silk screening signs in their home above Seahurst Park when a young whippersnapper named John Carlson ran against her.

Carlson, now a local right-wing radio talk show host, didn't fare any better against Georgette than when he ran for governor.

She said she would send me a review copy of her just-finished autobiography. It should be fascinating to anyone interested in politics or Highline history.

For those interested in the local Drinking Liberally chapter, email burien@drinkingliberally.org. For more general information, log on to drinkingliberally.org.

"How did the meeting go?" Marge asked sleepily as I tiptoed into the bedroom later that night.

"Fine," I replied. "But it's a late-night meeting I will need to cover every month."

"You poor thing."

Eric Mathison can be reached at hteditor@robinsonnews.com or 206-388-1855.