| Category: General | 1 Comment
Amazon.com: The Complete Calvin and Hobbes: Books: Bill Watterson
This is on my holiday/birthday/any list until I get it. I know it sounds silly, but I read Calvin and Hobbes from junior high through high school, and nearly lost it when I found out that was it on 12/31/95.
Now I know how the Far Side people felt when that collection came out a year or two ago.
(Santa, are you listening?)
| Category: General, Music and Movies, Entertainment Tonight | 3 Comments
“Okay, where are you now?”
“I’m on the corner of Monroe and Clark, but I don’t see the Bank One Tower, or anything that looks like Nick’s.”
“Walk around a little and see if you can find it.”
“Okay, I call you back.”
(I continue to crawl along the Kennedy, trying to get downtown for my rendevous with TLEMK)
“Hello?”
“Okay, I found it. But it’s way too corporate for me. There are lots of people with $1000 suits in there… I think I’m gonna go hang out at the McDonald’s until you get here.”
“Is it crowded? Did you see the banners?”
“Oh, they’re there… but I don’t think you we could squeeze in to get a drink…”
“Alright, I’m about ten minutes out… I’ll call you when I’m ready to pick you up…”
And thus began our night of Ben F to the Olds. Originally, in my perfect world, I was going to pick TLEMK up at the train station, and we were going to go to an Ambassador party for a certain beverage I enjoy that’s made in a certain county of Kentucky. We would grab some grub, and head on over to the Chicago Theatre, conveniently located less than a half a mile away.
It wasn’t to be. V’s train got in early/late (she caught a train that was running late, but before her original train was supposed to leave blah blah blah blah…)
Where was I? Oh yeah. Driving to the city stinks. It took well over an hour to get there, hence me being late and unable to pick TLEMK.
Eventually, we “hooked up” and we ate at some Italian place off of Wabash. I had some sausage pasta thing. It was very tasty…on to the concert!
The Chicago Theatre is very cool. Like the Fabulous Fox in St. Louis, it’s an olde-tyme, well-decorated palace that has delicious acoustics.
I couldn’t tell you the name of the first opening act, unless it was Mopey Folk Keyboard Singer with Forgettable Backup Band.
The next opening band was called The Fringe, and supposedly, they have a hit song. I got nothing, not for being old or anything; I just had never heard of them. And I’m old.
Then Mr. Folds came on. He has a new band. I don’t know their names, except they’re Australian.
The good news: Ben having a band back gives him a LOT more energy. For those of you that went to Ravinia, not only did we actually hear more energy, we even got to SEE more energy. The last few times, we saw him on his own, and while it was good, it was REALLY good to see some of the older songs played. His band took a break in the middle of the set, and he played on his own, including “The Last Polka,” my personal favorite on the first Five album. He also played “Summer, Where Ya Been?”, which I hadn’t heard yet live, so that was terrfic. He played for about an hour and 45 minutes, and suprisingly, our setlist did not include “Not the Same.” It’s probably because our crowd was unable to sing two parts during “Army.”
All in all, a terrific concert in a splendid venue.
