Odds-n-Ends

Howdy! I haven't been around much in the past week. Not a whole lot to discuss so I'll summarize my week in one tidy post.

Last Monday and Tuesday I was off from work. I had lunch with my friend Heath on Monday. Heath lives in Texas and I haven't seen him in about 4 years. It was nice to catch up. On Tuesday I went to the beach and got some much needed sun. It was nice.

I came down with a sinus infection and I've been fighting it for a few days now. I haven't seen my doctor about it because I get them somewhat regularly and this is not a bad one, it's more of a nuisance. Related or unrelated, I've had a problem with an impacted wisdom tooth. Whether one caused the other I don't know. 3 out of 4 of my wisdom teeth came in and have been no problem. This last tooth has been a problem on and off for a number of years. It acts up, I complain about it and just when I'm ready to have something done about it, it feels better. It's feeling better now, but not 100 percent back to normal. It has definitely grown more in these past few days and it may not be impacted much longer.

Saturday, Denise and I were invited to Dan and Luis' house to be stand-ins for dinner guests who had to cancel at the last minute. As usual, Luis produced a wonderfully creative and delicious meal. The original guests had some dietary restrictions and Luis met the challenge and wowed us. He also impressed himself.

Sunday, my sister came over, we celebrated her 50th birthday (which is actually on the 30th). Denise joined us, as well as my friend Karen. I gave Georgette a Skagen watch and a handbag, hand crafted by Denise. It was nice that Denise was there to see Georgette receive the purse that she created. While I have no pictures from the day, here are pictures of the watch and the purse.
.

It was back to work on Monday and the first 5-day work week I've put in since the 3rd week in June. So far it's been a good week, even though it's the last week of working with my current CEO. Tomorrow we're having a cookout for him, it's his last day. He starts his job in Pittsburgh on Monday.

So that's what's been going on. Not much, but that's not a bad thing. How have you been? I hope you're doing well.

Songs of Summertime

"The Warrior" - Scandal, faturing Patty Smyth

This song reminds me of summer because it relates to a funny story from the summer of 1985. I was 18, living at home with my parents in a large 2 bedroom apartment in the Rogers Park neighborhood of Chicago. It was mid-August and I was home on a Friday night (I was home on ALL Friday nights but this one in particular relates to the story) and was watching TV in my bedroom. I heard music playing, but it wasn't my downstairs neighbors, it was coming from out back.

The apartments in my building were long. Bedroom 1 was up front and the second bedroom was half way down a long hallway. Further down was the dining room and then the kitchen. I went out to the kitchen to inspect the source of the music. It was one of those really warm nights after a stifling hot day. I could see light coming from the apartment next door, reflected on the shared back porch. I opened the door and could hear a party happening next door.

My next door neighbors were gay. They had lived in the building for a couple of months. In my mind, they were old, realistically they were probably 30-ish. They dressed "funny," wearing shredded cutoff jeans and vests and tank tops and work boots. they looked like gay people I had seen in shows about San Francisco or images from the Gay Pride parade on the news. When they moved in, I was intrigued by them. I would watch for them to leave their apartment or come home. I wanted to know what made them different. After weeks of studying them, I learned that NOTHING made them different, at least outside of their apartment. What happened inside of their four walls was unclear to me, but also none of my business.

So, back at the party, whose music had leaked out onto the back porch, I quietly opened my back door. "The Warrior" was playing. The porches were dimly lit, much of the light came from their kitchen window. I stood at my screen door and looked. One of my neighbors was on his porch enjoying the music. He was in short denim shorts and a white tank, and he was dancing, alone. As the words "Bang Bang, I am the Warrior" were sung, he held up his left and right hands, mimicking a gun, as if he were shooting in the air. He was in his own world and loving the moment. I laughed to myself but at the same time I was fascinated. I stood and listened for a couple minutes more before quietly closing the door. I didn't want to disturb his fun.

To this day, when I hear that song, I laugh a little because I picture that neighbor doing his dance on that warm August night.

Songs of Summertime

"Mad About You" - Belinda Carlisle

During the summer of 1986, I became "Mad About" Belinda.


The demise of The Go-Go's during the spring of 1985 was sad, but the career of the band's lead singer was about to skyrocket. Right away, she was signed as a solo artist, set up with producers and writers, and primped to be the new "it" girl.

Late May 1986 was the first time I heard "Mad About You" on the radio. I was hooked. Different than anything that the Go-Go's released. The song was decidedly pop, Belinda's vocals were soft and sweet. I couldn't wait to hear it again. Here was the voice of my favorite band doing something completely different.

About a month later, my family was taking a road trip to Gatlinburg, TN. We stopped in Louisville for the night. The hotel had a video channel. I turned it on and the next video played was "Mad About You." The Belinda that I knew so well was different. She was slim, her hair was longer and very blonde. She looked amazing. The video was fun...dancing on the beach, dancing with her husband (another change since the band disbanded), hanging out with her pal Charlotte (former bandmate).

I was 19 during the summer of '86. I was taking night classes so I could get ahead with school. I was working full time, and spending my free time just hanging out with my friends.

I remember buying tickets to see Robert Palmer in concert. I had heard that Belinda was on tour with him as his opening act. My sister Georgette and our friend May went to the show with me. Unfortunately Belinda had only committed to playing half of the shows, and my show was the second one she didn't perform. We still enjoyed the show.

To this day, it could be the coldest winter day if I hear "Mad About You," it puts me in a good mood and makes me feel warm all over.

"Something 'bout you, right here beside me, touches the touched part of me like I can't believe."

Songs of Summertime

"Vacation" by The Go-Go's

By the summer of 1982, I was completely enamoured by The Go-Go's. I had played their debut album "Beauty and the Beat" until it was worn and skipping. There was talk on the radio that they band had gone back into the recording studio to record their second album.

Sure enough "Vacation" the album was released, as was it's lead single "Vacation." It's an uptempo song beginning with a flourish of peppy guitars and drums. I was hooked. As is true of many Go-Go's songs, the songs sounded happy, but the lyrics were sad. "Vacation - meant to be spent alone..."

The time period I associate with the song was happy. I had just finished my Freshman year of high school. I had a summer job, working as a file clerk in the Payroll office of Edgewater Hospital. I was excited to be making money and I could finally buy things like a new stereo and Izod shirts.

Today when I hear the song, I still think of summer fun. I saw my first Go-Go's concert in the summer of 1982 and "Vacation" was the song that opened the show. Even when I saw the band back in April, "Vacation" is one of those songs that generates a lot of excitement throughout the venue.

It's definitely one of my essential summer songs.

"A week without you, thought I'd forget. Two weeks without you and I still haven't gotten over you yet."

Summer Music

Music is important to me and certain songs mark events in my life. Other songs remind me of a season. It's summer and there are certain songs that I hear and they remind me of the season. Over the next few weeks I'll revisit some of those songs and tell you what they mean to me.



Today's song is a new song. It doesn't really evoke a memory yet, that just means it's ripe for the picking and at any point, a fun summer memory will be attached to it.



"Waking Up in Vegas" by Katy Perry has such a hook to it. The lyrics are clever and it reminds me of the fun, crazy adventures I've had in Vegas. Maybe I need to plan a trip to Vegas and have that be the song I associate with the trip. :)

"Get up and shake the glitter off your clothes now, that's what you get for waking up in Vegas..."

Neighborly

File Under: In the Neighborhood

I like my neighborhood. I like most of my neighbors. I like to think that I'm pretty neighborly, most of the time.

Saturday afternoon, I was driving home from the gym. I had a couple hours to kill before I had to be at a birthday party, so I decided I would stroll to Starbucks, get a cool drink and relax. A couple blocks from home, I glanced down a street and there was, what appeared to be an attractive guy doing yard work on one of the newer homes. I decided to have a closer look, to see if this was the new owner or just the help. I parked my car at home and decided to walk over there. I was going on a walk anyway. I was wearing a pair of leather flip flops. I haven't worn them since last year, figured I would break them out since it was sunny and 82 degrees. I got about a block from home and realized why I don't wear them, they hurt my feet. They rub in different spots on the top of my feet. But, I was on a mission so I soldiered on.

I got to the street, and he was still there. I envisioned him being relieved to find a friendly neighbor, he would invite me in, I'd tell him that my shoes were bothering me and he would bring me adhesive bandages and a cool drink. Okay, no...not so much. He turned his leaf blower (which he was using to blow tree branches from his sidewalk, in an effort to clean up from the severe storms we had 24-hours prior) away so that he wouldn't blow debris on me, I said "Hi" and "thanks." He barely grunted and went about his business. Oh well, he wasn't very attractive anyway. Onward I limped. I took my shoe off to see what was happening to my foot and it wasn't pretty. I managed to hobble home, but at that point the damage was done, my foot was a mess and I was a sweaty pig. I cleaned up my foot, bandaged it, put on different shoes and went to Starbucks.

So much for getting to know the neighbors.

Last Weekend in Andersonville

File Under: Friends and Fun


Summer in Chicago means lots of outdoor fun. We don't have year-round warm weather. Quite the contrary, so when we can be out and about, we make the most of it. For me that means street fairs. Now mind you, I don't attend one a weekend, or I'd be a 400 pound alcoholic with a really great tan! Sexy, I know!


The second weekend in June brings us Midsommarfest, a street festival with Swedish roots held in my neighborhood, Andersonville. While there is still a strong Swedish presence in the neighborhood and in the fair, it has become more of a big gay street party. Nothing wrong with that in my book.


Saturday, the weather could not have been more perfect. Sunny, 80 degrees, light breeze. Warm enough for some shirtlessness (no, I kept mine on...mostly). This is one of those days where the whole group of us met up and extreme fun ensued.


Denise and I started things off. We wandered for a bit, then found my friend Anthony who wandered with us for a while. He became distracted by some shirtless guy and we lost him. Next we found Polo, who was finishing up his eye exam (please keep in mind, 4 blocks of a major street are closed for this event but the businesses are still operating). With dialated eyes and dark glasses, Polo then called Tina who was just arriving. Tina called Luis, he and Dan were approaching from the other direction. Soon after, I got a call from Patrick and by 3:30, our core crowd had formed.


So there were drinks. We decided each would buy a round. Our drink of choice was our usual, the Clark Street Lemonade, a mixture of lemonade, vodka and raspberry liquor. Sweet and refreshing, they go down very easily. They're pretty, too. So I'll cut to the chase and just say that before long we were feeling very happy. Yes, we wandered back and forth, looking at the wares sold by the various vendors, greeting people we knew, checking out butts and chests, etc.


And there was food. One of my favorite neighborhood restaurants, Ole' Ole' had their usual appetizer items for sale so Denise and I opted for empanadas most of the time. At $2 a piece, they were an inexpensive and somewhat substantial filler and they're really delicious. Then there was the stop at Huey's, the hotdog place where we actually went in and sat down for a while. We finished our evening with some ice cream from Sweet Occasions and More.


Of course there was music. We first went to see Trippin Billies, a Dave Matthews Band cover band. I'm not a big DMB fan (right, Vahona?) so I stood off to the side with Patrick while the others watched for a while. While the band warmed up, there was the underwear check. Dan's were the cutest. We left that band to go see Hairbangers Ball. They were great and did lots of fun covers of 80's hair band songs. The band scene is fun because Patrick and I were checking out guys in the crowd. I picked out my new sweetheart.


Day 2 was a much smaller gathering, just Patrick and I met up for more fun. Again with the drinks and the laughs and the wandering and the food and music. Sunday's music highlight was the band Sixteen Candles, an 80's cover band that I adore! I watched them for a while with my upstairs neighbors. Patrick's buzz was wearing off and he decided he needed to go home, get food and walk his dog, and get ready for the work week. I didn't stay for the band's entire set, I walked home and could still hear the crowd cheering and awaiting an encore.



Here are some pictures from the weekend. Please enjoy.
(OKAY, UPON VIEWING, I SEE THAT SOME OF MY PICTURES ARE CROPPED AND I DON'T KNOW WHY AND I'M WAY TOO TIRED TO EDIT. I'LL ATTEMPT TO FIX THEM TOMORROW EVENING, I PROMISE.)


The drinking begins:






The drinks:


The CELEBRITIES - Top Chef season 4 finalist Dale Levitsky:



The hijinx!



The food...or what's left of it:



The underwear:





The shirtlessness (I'm so sorry!):



The future ex-boyfriend (green shirt):



The little person:



GNOME!



Crazy dog! (I don't approve of dogs at street fairs, but this funky pet won my heart)




So there you have it. Another street fest on the books. Next up, Pride!