Here's a little YouTube video for your listening pleasure. This is one of my favorite songs, though I've never heard it live:
The Pogues, Wake of the Medusa
Tuesday, March 08, 2011
More photos
The Untouchables/Naked Gun stairs in Union Station:
Schmoopies!
Buildings
More Buildings
Millinneum Park:
Cute photo of John :)
And more buildings
THE POGUES!!!
Congress Theatre balcony (the entire balcony was the VIP section)
In the Congress Theatre lobby:
Schmoopies!
Buildings
More Buildings
Millinneum Park:
Cute photo of John :)
And more buildings
THE POGUES!!!
Congress Theatre balcony (the entire balcony was the VIP section)
In the Congress Theatre lobby:
Chicago Photos
Outside the Adler Planetarium with the skyline behind us:
Cool skyline:
This one speaks for itself:
It might be....it could be...it IS! Holy Cow! It's John in front of the Harry Caray statue!!
The Schmoopies in Union Station:
Our downtown view from the hotel:
Ready to take the Amtrak!
Cool skyline:
This one speaks for itself:
It might be....it could be...it IS! Holy Cow! It's John in front of the Harry Caray statue!!
The Schmoopies in Union Station:
Our downtown view from the hotel:
Ready to take the Amtrak!
Sunday, March 06, 2011
Wrapping Up Chicago
We woke up late the morning after the concert, just making it downstairs in time to get some complimentary brekkies (which was an adventure in itself: a wise traveler will always be the early bird and avoid the late mad rush for free food). It was a good day for wandering: moderate temperatures, interesting skies with both clouds and blue, and the tall, gorgeous hallway of buildings before our path. It really is a cool city for its buildings alone, and the feel of the city is like a perfect mix of Minneapolis and New York.
We trotted off to the Chicago Cultural Center to see a photography exhibit of the late Vivian Maier, whose talent for capturing expressions and moments in forgotten time was almost painful. There's something very poignant about "unknown" artists, and in my opinion, much more important than those who are known and have no humility in their work. In some ways, I think fame destroys art, and it is exhibits like these that drive that home to me. When one starts to create for others instead of for themselves for the pure joy of it, something changes, something dies. It was neat to see her cameras, spent film rolls and notes about projects, too. It's like a living wake...if that makes sense. It keeps the spirit of this persons greatest passion alive, and that's something this world could use more of. Passion for spirit.
The rest of the Cultural Center was awesome; it had a vibrancy of people, music, creation and sharing that just hummed through its halls. The building itself was gorgeous; floors with detailed, tile inlays, curved, marble staircases, giant windows in the main halls and short little stout windows as you climbed up the stairs. There was a band getting set to play, people set all about with their laptops writing, tables dotted with people engaged in discussion, and there were little areas that displayed books and journals and comics to enjoy as you sat. We looked at an impressive exhibit of architectural art and also a small studio for people with mental and developmental disabilities called Project Onward that was very cool because you could see all the little studio nooks right there and see the individuals' creative process at work with sketches and tools all about. The art was all very sparkly, which made me smile :)
Then we wandered around Millennium Park, taking in the views of the city in a romantic stroll. It's a neat park, and cool to envision the night that Obama won the election. Our good friend Chris, best man at our wedding, had driven there that night, and he called us to share the experience. We had silent tears for such an important moment in history, a moment of pride and hope. Whatever one's political stance might be, the fact that a person who is not caucasian being elected president of our country is a day for the books indeed. To see where this moment happened felt important, though I can only imagine the feeling of excitement that filled the air that night.
Then we just wandered along the Miracle Mile until we came to an Irish Pub to have some food. The food was delicious; I had a chicken, bacon, avocado sammie on a ciabatta bun, and John had the corned beef on rye with a beer. We felt so pooped after eating that we took it a bit slow back to the hotel, going briefly by the AMC Theatre where we wanted to catch a movie later that evening and taking in some really awesome looking condos along the Chicago river. I was exhausted and fell immediately into the bed for a nap, and John fiddled on the computer. I don't know what it is about traveling that always seems to make us feel so peaked, is it dehydration? The dry air in the hotel? Are there really that many germs to catch on public transit....ok, don't answer that! After a lazy afternoon in the hotel, we ventured out into the rain to see Cedar Rapids at the AMC. We got there a bit early, so we enjoyed a couple of drinks in the sports bar that was in the theatre before the movie started. The movie was hilarious, and John C. Reilly is one of my favorites. He was crass and kept the movie wacky when it needed to be :) We walked briskly back to the Comfort Suites in the rain, which would have been more pleasant had I not been feeling so out of it.
Saturday morning was kind of a bummer because we knew we had to leave, but also anxious to get home, and not really having any time to do any more sightseeing it just felt like waiting around to go. We took a brief walk to get some incidentals at Walgreens and also buy me a new purse because my Swiss Army purse strap broke as we were running in the rain. The purse is awesome, AND waterproof, so I was pleased to have found something suitable within a few minutes in the luggage store because I hate shopping so. It was a bit brutal out with the wind having picked up considerably, flakes were falling and the weekend mood of downtown seeming the same in every city. Finally we checked out and dragged our bags along to Elephant & Castle for some lunch of beer battered chicken strips & fries (very good) and John had the Shepherd's Pie with salad (good, but not as good as John's homemade version!), then off to Union Station.
Union Station deserves a paragraph for its sheer cool vibe. It's how the airport feels on the cusp of a new journey, but with way more class. It's a gorgeous building, and we made sure to take pictures of the staircases where The Untouchables and the Naked Gun spoof of the same were filmed. As we walked in, I made (quiet) machine gun noises and acted like I was Al Capone holding two Tommy guns. Minneapolis could use some classy main train station port such as this and Grand Central. I'd love to see the US Postal Service building used for such a purpose. Though the station itself if wicked cool, the waiting of trains feels as spine-crawlingly boring as any long, stuffy wait. Finally aboard our train, we settled back into The Lord of the Rings on CD (how awesome is John for making sure we had a splitter so that we might share an iPod?!) which took us almost all the way home. For the remainder of the trip, we stretched our legs on the lounge car and watched the stars and small lights of the cities fly by. Mum was waiting for us as we finally pulled into the station a little after 11. Not having to wait for luggage and airport protocol is a freakin' dream come true for the weary traveler, and we were home by 11:30.
Our darling kitten was waiting by the door, wide eyed in disbelief and stand-offishness at our return. Within an hour, though, her eyes returned with their usual happy winking cheerfulness, and she followed us around purring until we retired. John said he woke up this morning with her sniffing his lips and tickling him with her whiskers. I woke at various times to find her either curled up on my chest purring, lying beside me purring or standing, looking straight down at me wide-pupiled as if to say, "Are you going to get up yet?!!" That little nutter :)
Pictures to come!
Love & hugs, R&J
We trotted off to the Chicago Cultural Center to see a photography exhibit of the late Vivian Maier, whose talent for capturing expressions and moments in forgotten time was almost painful. There's something very poignant about "unknown" artists, and in my opinion, much more important than those who are known and have no humility in their work. In some ways, I think fame destroys art, and it is exhibits like these that drive that home to me. When one starts to create for others instead of for themselves for the pure joy of it, something changes, something dies. It was neat to see her cameras, spent film rolls and notes about projects, too. It's like a living wake...if that makes sense. It keeps the spirit of this persons greatest passion alive, and that's something this world could use more of. Passion for spirit.
The rest of the Cultural Center was awesome; it had a vibrancy of people, music, creation and sharing that just hummed through its halls. The building itself was gorgeous; floors with detailed, tile inlays, curved, marble staircases, giant windows in the main halls and short little stout windows as you climbed up the stairs. There was a band getting set to play, people set all about with their laptops writing, tables dotted with people engaged in discussion, and there were little areas that displayed books and journals and comics to enjoy as you sat. We looked at an impressive exhibit of architectural art and also a small studio for people with mental and developmental disabilities called Project Onward that was very cool because you could see all the little studio nooks right there and see the individuals' creative process at work with sketches and tools all about. The art was all very sparkly, which made me smile :)
Then we wandered around Millennium Park, taking in the views of the city in a romantic stroll. It's a neat park, and cool to envision the night that Obama won the election. Our good friend Chris, best man at our wedding, had driven there that night, and he called us to share the experience. We had silent tears for such an important moment in history, a moment of pride and hope. Whatever one's political stance might be, the fact that a person who is not caucasian being elected president of our country is a day for the books indeed. To see where this moment happened felt important, though I can only imagine the feeling of excitement that filled the air that night.
Then we just wandered along the Miracle Mile until we came to an Irish Pub to have some food. The food was delicious; I had a chicken, bacon, avocado sammie on a ciabatta bun, and John had the corned beef on rye with a beer. We felt so pooped after eating that we took it a bit slow back to the hotel, going briefly by the AMC Theatre where we wanted to catch a movie later that evening and taking in some really awesome looking condos along the Chicago river. I was exhausted and fell immediately into the bed for a nap, and John fiddled on the computer. I don't know what it is about traveling that always seems to make us feel so peaked, is it dehydration? The dry air in the hotel? Are there really that many germs to catch on public transit....ok, don't answer that! After a lazy afternoon in the hotel, we ventured out into the rain to see Cedar Rapids at the AMC. We got there a bit early, so we enjoyed a couple of drinks in the sports bar that was in the theatre before the movie started. The movie was hilarious, and John C. Reilly is one of my favorites. He was crass and kept the movie wacky when it needed to be :) We walked briskly back to the Comfort Suites in the rain, which would have been more pleasant had I not been feeling so out of it.
Saturday morning was kind of a bummer because we knew we had to leave, but also anxious to get home, and not really having any time to do any more sightseeing it just felt like waiting around to go. We took a brief walk to get some incidentals at Walgreens and also buy me a new purse because my Swiss Army purse strap broke as we were running in the rain. The purse is awesome, AND waterproof, so I was pleased to have found something suitable within a few minutes in the luggage store because I hate shopping so. It was a bit brutal out with the wind having picked up considerably, flakes were falling and the weekend mood of downtown seeming the same in every city. Finally we checked out and dragged our bags along to Elephant & Castle for some lunch of beer battered chicken strips & fries (very good) and John had the Shepherd's Pie with salad (good, but not as good as John's homemade version!), then off to Union Station.
Union Station deserves a paragraph for its sheer cool vibe. It's how the airport feels on the cusp of a new journey, but with way more class. It's a gorgeous building, and we made sure to take pictures of the staircases where The Untouchables and the Naked Gun spoof of the same were filmed. As we walked in, I made (quiet) machine gun noises and acted like I was Al Capone holding two Tommy guns. Minneapolis could use some classy main train station port such as this and Grand Central. I'd love to see the US Postal Service building used for such a purpose. Though the station itself if wicked cool, the waiting of trains feels as spine-crawlingly boring as any long, stuffy wait. Finally aboard our train, we settled back into The Lord of the Rings on CD (how awesome is John for making sure we had a splitter so that we might share an iPod?!) which took us almost all the way home. For the remainder of the trip, we stretched our legs on the lounge car and watched the stars and small lights of the cities fly by. Mum was waiting for us as we finally pulled into the station a little after 11. Not having to wait for luggage and airport protocol is a freakin' dream come true for the weary traveler, and we were home by 11:30.
Our darling kitten was waiting by the door, wide eyed in disbelief and stand-offishness at our return. Within an hour, though, her eyes returned with their usual happy winking cheerfulness, and she followed us around purring until we retired. John said he woke up this morning with her sniffing his lips and tickling him with her whiskers. I woke at various times to find her either curled up on my chest purring, lying beside me purring or standing, looking straight down at me wide-pupiled as if to say, "Are you going to get up yet?!!" That little nutter :)
Pictures to come!
Love & hugs, R&J
Thursday, March 03, 2011
Wrigleyville, Adler Planetarium and The Pogues!!!!
We started the morning with a quick jaunt to Wrigleyville to get some photos of Wrigley Field and check out all the rooftop seating that the surrounding apartment buildings have installed to sell to patrons hoping for a seat and/or to catch an out-of-the-park homerun. It was cool to see, but obviously it's not baseball season, so it was fairly deserted, save maintenance people, and didn't look as if they were offering tours. Since there was a chilling wind, we decided to head to Adler Planetarium for some indoor fun. We caught a couple of movies; the first, a very short "Great Observatories in 3D" movie about different observatories and how the large telescopes are made. It was neat, but seemed like it should have been longer. Right after that, we saw a traditional planetarium showing "Night Sky" which was brilliant, except for the bajillions of obnoxious Catholic school kids that were in attendance. We both still managed to fall asleep at the very end, though, despite all the chatter. We poked around a bit in some other exhibits, but the day was getting on, so we caught a bus back to the hotel and grubbed down some delicious Chipotle and had a lovely nap.
I had to check in with Mum about our little pur-kitten Vesta. I just miss that cat so much, she helps me when I can't sleep (which I can never seem to do on vacation) and she's our crazy little furry nutter :) Mum said she was fine and lovey today, and she and Fiona will be visiting her tomorrow :) YAY! She loves company! Oh, and we did pick up two little trinkeys from Adler, one for Fiona and one (practical) gift for Mum for schlepping us to and from the train station and watching the kitten. We're not too big on getting souveniers for people anymore, but these two are the exceptions :)
Then it was finally time to head off for a quick bite at Logan's Bar & Grill, which was a great alternative when our first choice of dining establishment, Revolution Brewery, was packed beyond the brim and had an hour-long wait. Logan's was just up the street, and we shared some yummy chicken tenders and sweet potato fries, I had another Guinness and John tried the Arrogant Bastard, which he deemed "pretty good". We sat right in front of a little gas fireplace and overall it had a nice atmosphere, if not a wee crowded.
And now, ladies and gentlemen, the moment you've all been waiting for, the reason for this trip in the first place, the band that commands the respect and listenership of anyone in their right minds, The Pogues! They played at the Congress Theatre (and I might point out the very theatre where Naked Raygun JUST played last freakin' weekend which we missed so bollocks to that!!) which had lots of well-worn 1920s charm, but definitely on par with the atmosphere of other punk venues. It was massive, however, which was desirable since the very eclectic crowds that The Pogues attract can be somewhat diverse. It's nice to have space to move about. There was everyone from skinheads to old crotchety farts (even more old and crotchety than us!), jocks wearing all their St. Paddy's Day gear to your Celtic-Riverdance types. I must point out, also, that any club that has a ladies room attendant all night long has GOT to be given serious snaps. The place could have used several porta-potties for the event, seeing as the entire second level of VIPs got to hog the only other restrooms in the place and with 2-3 thousand drunkards needing to pee. It was interesting to see on several occasions that the men's room line was twice that of the ladies room!!
The set list was long, and they were a tad late going on. It's their new custom to preempt every show with playing a recording of Straight to Hell by the Clash in honor of their friend (and our fallen music hero) Joe Strummer. They stumbled out, apologizing for their lateness, and then proceeded to rock our fucking socks off!! They began with Streams of Whiskey, and some of the set list included: Poor Paddy, If I Should Fall From Grace With God, A Pair of Brown Eyes (during which crowd surfing skinheads kinda killed the mood as it's a song about maimed soldiers coming home with no limbs or eyes), Repeal of the Licensing Laws, Broad Majestic Shannon (a personal romantic fave for us Schmoopies), Lullaby of London, And The Band Played Waltzing Matilda (another very depressing song about the war in Gallipoli and that surprisingly most of the entire theatre knew the lyrics to), London Girl, Body of an American, Rainy Night in Soho, Dirty Old Town, Tuesday Morning, Bottle of Smoke, Thousands Are Sailing, Sunny Side of the Street, Boat Train, Sick Bed of Cuchulainn, Sally Maclennane, Irish Rover and Fiesta. I may have missed some, and they had two encores, ending the evening with Fiesta, during which both Shane and Spider were smashing beer trays over the heads of themselves and the rest of the band. We purchased a black hoody with the Rum, Sodomy and The Lash logo on it (one of their albums) and the only thing I've ever considered getting tattooed into my skin. A wonderful night; The Pogues could never, ever disappoint, and we made it back to the hotel safely via the "El".
Tomorrow it's supposed to rain, so it will be a day for a photography exhibit at the Chicago Cultural Center and a movie somewhere close by. We may head back to see if we can have lunch at that Revolution Brewery, but we'll see where the day takes us :)
I had to check in with Mum about our little pur-kitten Vesta. I just miss that cat so much, she helps me when I can't sleep (which I can never seem to do on vacation) and she's our crazy little furry nutter :) Mum said she was fine and lovey today, and she and Fiona will be visiting her tomorrow :) YAY! She loves company! Oh, and we did pick up two little trinkeys from Adler, one for Fiona and one (practical) gift for Mum for schlepping us to and from the train station and watching the kitten. We're not too big on getting souveniers for people anymore, but these two are the exceptions :)
Then it was finally time to head off for a quick bite at Logan's Bar & Grill, which was a great alternative when our first choice of dining establishment, Revolution Brewery, was packed beyond the brim and had an hour-long wait. Logan's was just up the street, and we shared some yummy chicken tenders and sweet potato fries, I had another Guinness and John tried the Arrogant Bastard, which he deemed "pretty good". We sat right in front of a little gas fireplace and overall it had a nice atmosphere, if not a wee crowded.
And now, ladies and gentlemen, the moment you've all been waiting for, the reason for this trip in the first place, the band that commands the respect and listenership of anyone in their right minds, The Pogues! They played at the Congress Theatre (and I might point out the very theatre where Naked Raygun JUST played last freakin' weekend which we missed so bollocks to that!!) which had lots of well-worn 1920s charm, but definitely on par with the atmosphere of other punk venues. It was massive, however, which was desirable since the very eclectic crowds that The Pogues attract can be somewhat diverse. It's nice to have space to move about. There was everyone from skinheads to old crotchety farts (even more old and crotchety than us!), jocks wearing all their St. Paddy's Day gear to your Celtic-Riverdance types. I must point out, also, that any club that has a ladies room attendant all night long has GOT to be given serious snaps. The place could have used several porta-potties for the event, seeing as the entire second level of VIPs got to hog the only other restrooms in the place and with 2-3 thousand drunkards needing to pee. It was interesting to see on several occasions that the men's room line was twice that of the ladies room!!
The set list was long, and they were a tad late going on. It's their new custom to preempt every show with playing a recording of Straight to Hell by the Clash in honor of their friend (and our fallen music hero) Joe Strummer. They stumbled out, apologizing for their lateness, and then proceeded to rock our fucking socks off!! They began with Streams of Whiskey, and some of the set list included: Poor Paddy, If I Should Fall From Grace With God, A Pair of Brown Eyes (during which crowd surfing skinheads kinda killed the mood as it's a song about maimed soldiers coming home with no limbs or eyes), Repeal of the Licensing Laws, Broad Majestic Shannon (a personal romantic fave for us Schmoopies), Lullaby of London, And The Band Played Waltzing Matilda (another very depressing song about the war in Gallipoli and that surprisingly most of the entire theatre knew the lyrics to), London Girl, Body of an American, Rainy Night in Soho, Dirty Old Town, Tuesday Morning, Bottle of Smoke, Thousands Are Sailing, Sunny Side of the Street, Boat Train, Sick Bed of Cuchulainn, Sally Maclennane, Irish Rover and Fiesta. I may have missed some, and they had two encores, ending the evening with Fiesta, during which both Shane and Spider were smashing beer trays over the heads of themselves and the rest of the band. We purchased a black hoody with the Rum, Sodomy and The Lash logo on it (one of their albums) and the only thing I've ever considered getting tattooed into my skin. A wonderful night; The Pogues could never, ever disappoint, and we made it back to the hotel safely via the "El".
Tomorrow it's supposed to rain, so it will be a day for a photography exhibit at the Chicago Cultural Center and a movie somewhere close by. We may head back to see if we can have lunch at that Revolution Brewery, but we'll see where the day takes us :)
Wednesday, March 02, 2011
Chicago!!
We've made it to Chicago! For this trip, we decided to shake things up a bit and take the Amtrak (and to avoid any crappy driving due to unexpected snow/rain storms), and other than some confusion on the part of Amtrak customer service reps regarding our departure status (i.e. them not knowing diddly-skiffle about whether our train was actually going to be there), we had a very smooth journey. We're both now big fans of the luxury of traveling via train; the legroom, the freedom of movement, the reasonable rules for luggage. It's totally the way to go! We stretched out and spent most of the journey listening to the Lord of the Rings on CD as narrated, or rather, ACTED, by Rob Ingles. It was wonderfully relaxing!
On the way, we must have seen dozens of birds of prey, a small group of prancing deer among the wood, a wild turkey and even a coyote curled up in the afternoon sun! I kept looking for pheasant and grouse, but none were to be seen. Oh, and I think I may have spotted a fox slinking along, but maybe it was just a big barn cat with a fluffy tail. The trees and river were a joy to behold, sunny skies and a quiet train made for such a relaxing ride. Bluff country in Minnesota has got to be some of my favorite terrain in all the world. There's something beautiful and ancient, yet livable, accessible and humble about it. If ever we have the extra dough, buying a tiny little cabin in the Lake Pepin area would be awesome :)
We were pleasantly shocked to find that our Comfort Suites room on the 14th floor is absolutely amazing!! It looks recently updated, decorated with rich tones, a full kitchen with a nice little bar, a king sized, plush bed and even a washer and dryer!! It seems a shame to only be spending three nights in a room this groovy. Not only is it cheap ($81 per night!), but like all Comfort Inns/Suites, it comes with free brekkies in the morning, free internet and very hospitable service :) HOORAY!
After chilling for a bit in the hotel, we went across the street to a great eatery called Sweetwater Tavern & Grill for supper. John had a Dogfish Head Apricot IPA beer and a turkey, bacon, Swiss and avocado sandwich with tater tots, and I had a Guinness and The Gobbler (turkey burger) also with delectable tater tots. Now we've beached ourselves in front of the TV for the night. The view from our room is awesome, all big-city and lit up. Other than missing our little Vesta kitty, we're having fun :)
Can't wait to report how The Pogues show goes tomorrow night! WOOT!!
On the way, we must have seen dozens of birds of prey, a small group of prancing deer among the wood, a wild turkey and even a coyote curled up in the afternoon sun! I kept looking for pheasant and grouse, but none were to be seen. Oh, and I think I may have spotted a fox slinking along, but maybe it was just a big barn cat with a fluffy tail. The trees and river were a joy to behold, sunny skies and a quiet train made for such a relaxing ride. Bluff country in Minnesota has got to be some of my favorite terrain in all the world. There's something beautiful and ancient, yet livable, accessible and humble about it. If ever we have the extra dough, buying a tiny little cabin in the Lake Pepin area would be awesome :)
We were pleasantly shocked to find that our Comfort Suites room on the 14th floor is absolutely amazing!! It looks recently updated, decorated with rich tones, a full kitchen with a nice little bar, a king sized, plush bed and even a washer and dryer!! It seems a shame to only be spending three nights in a room this groovy. Not only is it cheap ($81 per night!), but like all Comfort Inns/Suites, it comes with free brekkies in the morning, free internet and very hospitable service :) HOORAY!
After chilling for a bit in the hotel, we went across the street to a great eatery called Sweetwater Tavern & Grill for supper. John had a Dogfish Head Apricot IPA beer and a turkey, bacon, Swiss and avocado sandwich with tater tots, and I had a Guinness and The Gobbler (turkey burger) also with delectable tater tots. Now we've beached ourselves in front of the TV for the night. The view from our room is awesome, all big-city and lit up. Other than missing our little Vesta kitty, we're having fun :)
Can't wait to report how The Pogues show goes tomorrow night! WOOT!!
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