Scribbler After Dark: Chi-Town Heat

Today was tourist day as I rode the El to the lakefront and checked the Shedd Aquarium and the ballyhooed lizards and kimodo dragon exhibit.

That dragon ain’t shit. The thing just laid on a rock, opened its eyes once or twice and ignored everyone. I even went back through the exhibit a second time about an hour later. Nothing. Pffft! Zip. Zero. Nada. I don’t care the saliva of a kimodo dragon is lethal. I don’t care that it turns out 10 percent of a kimodo dragon’s diet is other kimodo dragons - that the beasts are essentially cannibals.

Much cooler were the sharks, the Japanese spider crabs, the dolphins, the other smaller lizards and even some really cool turtles and an ocotopus. Well, the octopus was sleeping when I went by his tank, but, still, it’s a friggin’ octopus.

Anyway, Shedd is a pretty cool place. I mean, sharks and dolphins are going to be a good time. Unfortunately, the beluga whales were not being exhibited Thursday.

In other Chicago news, I think I picked up an appreciated for the universal-ness of the term “poopy.” While waiting for my take-out Thai dinner, there was a woman with two toddlers walking down the street, and one of the woman’s daughters went toward a typically fearless Chicago pigeon. The girl tried grabbing the pigeon, and her mother, in a really polite but firm tone, began speaking what I thought was French. I can’t be sure, but I could figure out the woman was reminding her daughter to stay away from the pigeon. I couldn’t make out the language for certain - whether it was French or some romantic-language sounding other one - but I very clearly made out the word “poopy” in the mother’s brief lecture to her daughter.

Funny thing, pigeons. In their “Rats-Of-The-Sky” existence, they’re also helping shape my understanding of different cultures.

Posted by at 5:21 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

This picture here is my good friend Andy Turner - or A.T. Turner as he’s known in certain circles - and myself posing last night outside a location at the corner of Addison and Ashland in Chicago. Andy and his wife, Corri, went to Wrigley on Tuesday to see the Cubs host the Phillies. Andy is a huge Phillies fan, it was his first trip to Wrigley and with the Cubs losing the game, it all worked out pretty well for my friend.

Jason and I went down to Wrigleyville to meet Andy and Corri for a couple of drinks, and it was a fun time to take our little Milwaukee show into, really in my mind, what is one of the nicest but also most annoying neighborhoods in America. I just do not enjoy at all the Chicago Cubs fans and culture. There’s nothing inherently wrong with it, but I dislike Water Street enough without having an entire major league baseball team’s popularity structured around that culture.

Anyway, it was another good day just hanging out in Chicago. We checked out a bunch of different neighborhoods and watched the local talent at a skateboard park off Lake Shore Drive during the afternoon.

The completely meaningless - or is it? - part about the picture at the top of the page is that Andy and I are posing in front of a bridal shop. We were trying to pose in front of a sign in the window that said “Furs” but it didn’t quite work out. Anyway, friends and good times in Chicago.

Posted by at 10:32 AM | Permalink | Comments (3)

So, check it out. There’s a dragon in Chicago right now. More later …

The best way to get into a vacation, no matter how simple the trip, is to just start acting like you’re on vacation. Few things say to me, “VACATION,” more than bar-hopping on a Monday night. You’d better be on vacation - or in college at Auburn - if you’re going to try that behavior very often.

In Jason’s area, which he just said is the East Village/Wicker Park, there’s a few neighborhood-type places and then one hipster kind of “scene” place within two blocks or so of his place, and it being a Monday night in a massive city, there were actually people out and about. Weird sight, actually. You don’t expect a corner bar to be jumping on a Monday night. An added bonus: $2 Pabst taps at one of the bars.

Anyway, mostly just drinking and conversation for the first night here. It’s not exactly Chi-Town Heat fully ablaze, but not bad considering the usual Monday routine these years.

Oh, and the dragon is actually a kimodo dragon that’s at the Shedd Aquarium, so I think today or tomorrow I’m pulling the tourist act and going to check that out. I mean, it’s a dragon.

Posted by at 11:01 AM | Permalink | Comments (2)

As I mentioned in August of last year about Irish Fest, there’s nothing inherently wrong with it, it’s just not an overly spectacular great time - for me at least.

We made another stop at Irish Fest this past Saturday, and other than the international travesty that was the corned beef sandwich served by The Abbey of Chicago (It was more shaved ham coldcuts than corned beef), it was a serviceable Saturday night in Milwaukee. Another big downside, having to buy tickets to get beer. I’m sure there’s some rational business explanation for this, but I hate when festivals do this. It stinks and is annoying.

OK, having said all that, I’m taking the next week to go see Irish people (and Polish people, and Korean people and so on …) in more natural surroundings - where, hopefully, people won’t be wearing so much green. That’s right, I’m headed to Chicago for a whole week.

What will I do there? Who cares! It’s Chicago, and I always enjoy going to that city - except for when I leave at a bad time and end up getting stuck in traffic. It’s not as often as you think.

Anyway, try to keep an eye on this space for “Scribbler After Dark: Chi-Town Heat” during the next few days. I’ll try and get some updates included. And if the heat is really on in Chicago and things get out of control, don’t take any calls from Sun-Times or Tribune reporters looking for background information about the dude who just got arrested for peeing on the mayor while buying a bag of weed from an undercover cop. The news story itself will be bad enough. Don’t feed the beast, people.

Posted by at 1:11 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)