Uh-Oh
I just caught Monte—the world’s most bulimic orange tabby—with his head in my queso. I fear that this night is not going to end well.
south of the loop
All Atwitter
The problem with Web 2.0 stuff (applications? websites? help me out here, computer geeks) is that I feel like I have to try something out before I can decide whether I love or hate it. Generally, no matter how much somebody tries to sell you on something—say, del.icio.us, which I use heavily and evangelize endlessly—it just doesn’t work for everybody. With the three bazillion Web 2.0… things… out there, it seems like I have two bazillion ninety-nine dormant accounts.
So, yeah, I’ve joined another one to test out: Twitter. I’ve read several persuasive accounts of Why Twitter Will Change Your Life, but I’ve never really understood it. It basically allows you to send a “tweet,” an overly precious term for the Web equivalent of a text message. And instead of sending it to one (or a few) friends, you send it out to cyberspace where it can be tracked by all your friends as well as that creepy guy on the elevator. I know: what’s the point? Well, two rather grown-uppy bloggers I sometimes read both use it, which convinced me that it might not just be for 13-year-old girls. The selling point? One of those bloggers uses it to describe her daily carpool. And those of you who have had the pleasure of hearing me bitch about the CTA know I have a lot to say about my commute.
I might love it, I might hate it, but in the meantime, stay tuned at http://twitter.com/ellembee. (There’s also a link in the right sidebar of this blog).
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current book: I just finished (again) The Devil Wears Prada, which I started while at my parents’ house for Thanksgiving. It is fluffy, cliche-laden, and delicious.
current music: Lisa just reminded me about the Margot & the Nuclear So-and-Sos show at the end of this year. I’ve got to get on that!
current socks: Stripeys in various shades of blue, covered in smiley faces.
Band of Horses
I just got back from seeing Band of Horses at the Metro, but it was nearly a bust. The plan was for me to buy tickets at the box office and then meet my friend for a quick dinner, and then we’d head back to the Metro in time for BoH.
I got to the Metro about 6:30, half an hour or so before the first of two opening bands went on. I had my purse checked by a man with a flashlight, and then went up to the box office. First problem: a handwritten sign that says, “cash only.” Bastards! I ask the woman at the ticket window where the nearest ATM is. She says there’s one right outside the door.
It really was right outside the door, so I grabbed some cash and headed back in. A couple ahead of me finished their ticket purchase, and I walked up and asked for two tickets, a crisp $40 in my hands. “We just sold out!” the girl says. Excuse me? “They just bought the last two tickets.” AARRRRRgggggghhhhhh. Seriously? If she’d been really awesome, she would have offered to hold the tickets while I got my cash, perhaps in exchange for my driver’s license. At the very least, she should have warned me that they were down to their last two freakin’ tickets.
As I turned away, a guy (security? bouncer? I have no idea) said, “Hey, is it just you?” I said that I had a friend coming, but he told me he could get me one free ticket. He said that somebody had bought an extra and left it there (I’m a little unclear on how that would have happened, but whatever), but he was happy to give me a free BoH ticket. One down, one to go.
I called my friend to update her on the bad news, and we agreed to meet for dinner and figure out what to do. I went to the appointed meeting place, a little joint called Penny’s Noodle Shop, which I had SPECIFICALLY LOOKED UP ONLINE to make sure it was open on Mondays. According to the internets, it wasn’t just open on Monday, but it was open everyday. Except that… it wasn’t open today. Strike two.
So my friend and I had dinner at a cheesy Caribbean-themed place called Trader Todd’s, which features a half-priced menu on Mondays, including about a dozen girly drinks. Of course I got the girliest one on the menu. I’m too embarrassed to tell you what was in it.
We headed back toward the Metro. I tried to convince my friend that if we couldn’t find a second ticket, she should take the free one and go enjoy BoH, since she is by far the bigger fan. We agreed to wait outside awhile and see if anything showed up.
So we waited. And waited. And asked people if they had extras. And asked more people if they had extras.
And… somebody did! He only charged us the actual price of the ticket, so my friend and I split it and got in for half-price each. Not a bad ending to what could have been a shitty night. BoH were very good—a little guitar-heavy for my tastes, but I definitely really enjoyed the middle three-quarters or so of their set. I will leave you with their words as they started off the concert.
BoH: How’s everybody doin’ tonight, Chicago?
Chicago: WOOOOO!!! Yeah! WOOOOO!
BoH: We are also “woo.”
Wasted Saturday
I spent most of my Saturday moving from nap to nap, something that the kitties enjoy immensely. This makes me feel sort of less pathetic—like, I’m not napping! I’m spending quality snuggle time with my cats! My lazy Saturday means that I will now be getting up early to run eight miles tomorrow, which I think is excellent penance for staying in my pajamas all day today. I also found out on Friday that I have Monday off for Veteran’s Day, so at least I won’t feel like my entire weekend has to be crammed into tomorrow.
Speaking of running, I just started training for another half-marathon. I’m training for a race in Austin in late January (Mark, are you in?) which should be a lot of fun—with only about 4,000 other runners, it will be the smallest race I’ve run (by about 30,000 people!), and I’m really looking forward to being able to cross the start line in under 20 minutes. It also supposedly features “net elevation loss,” which is a convoluted way of saying “mostly downhill.” Also, the average high in Austin on January 27 is 61 degrees, a good 20 degrees warmer than it will be in Chicago. The Weather Channel claims the average high in Chicago on January 27 is 43; I remember it being more like 3, but maybe that was early February.
And now I am going to cap off my perfectly lazy Saturday by attempting to set up the DVD player and watch Bridget Jones’ Diary. I say “attempt” because it involves dealing with two gallon-sized plastic baggies filled with at least four different colors of wire, an amplifier, the TV, and the DVD player itself. I normally do okay at this sort of thing, but the sheer volume of wire is overwhelming. Wish me luck.
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current book: Rereading Tony Horwitz’s brilliant and funny Baghdad Without a Map. If you haven’t read it, do so immediately.
current music: Going to see Band of Horses at the Metro on Monday night.
current socks: Um, my white fuzzy slippers. I told you I was being lazy.
