After all, I'll just pass the blame on to Dru:
And then there are the trips to "the city" where our group of inexperienced teens can be found wandering down streets, searching for Wax Trax and Cabaret Metro, while tourists take their picture. Dodging Nazi skinheads and posing at Punkin' Donuts. Drucilla picks up a PETA pamphlet and becomes convinced, once and for all, that it is wrong to eat animals.
If you're not wondering how/if Cafe Voltaire fits into this, and how much was spent at The Alley, I may not want to be your friend.
rocket 69...arandas...clark st. dog...eat-a-pita...99th floor...Medusa's...the aragon ballroom...
etcetera etcetera etcetera etcetera
(in the midst of life we are in death, etcetera.)
I need to remind you that drucilla is, in fact, a fictional character. Any resemblance to any real life human beings is strictly coincidental. And all of those places? They don't really exist.
Good lord, it's my childhood.
. . . you're a figment of Dru's imagination?
Well, so much for dinner, then.
Chicago Diner is real, right?
Chicago Diner was unmentioned and, therefore, could very possibly be real.
I'm not sure if I'm powerful enough to have imagined the entire city of Chicago.
Can anyone tell me why Chicago is often referred to as "chicagoland" thereby making it sound as if it is one giant amusement park? Is there any other city that enjoys this whimsical distinction?
My interpretation of that, Dru, was that Chicago was one of the few cities who for a long time (if we can use the term "who") wanted to avoid having suburbs nestled right up against the city -- or, at least having those places nestled right up against it referred to as suburbs.
I think it's an inclusion issue. See, then everyone gets to say they're a Chicagoan.
I have no clue whatsoever if that's the case. More cynically, it would just expand Chicago's land ownership.
Is Medusas still there, btw? I remember going on their first night open. Suffice it to say, it was no less boring with five people there than it was when it got to be packed. AAnd like an errant husband intent on having a furtive affair even when his wife would be fine with an open poly deal, I confess that being able to go in underage with no problem took the thrill out of going out altogether for me.
Didn't Chicago & the closer suburbs all share 312 back in the day? Seems like there was a great wailing and gnashing of tooth about some of the 'burbs getting 708.
Seems charmingly naive, now the city itself has, what, three?
Heather, how did you get into Medusa's? Didn't you get carded a few days ago at that 18+ reading? The one you were reading at?
Expats dinner at Chicago Diner in. . . Neo, you'll be in town in January, right?
Those of us who are real, anyway.
Hey! I think I can morph into realness for that. How about my birthday, youngster?
When Medusas first opened, it was all-ages. A juice bar, as you will. But gods bless ya for the attempted compliment. My artfully-concealed grey hairs and stretch marks thank you.
And yep, everyone did used to share the 312 area code.
Didn't realize you were an ex-pat, Aaron. I'm a former Northsider/Juneway-Jungle-Baby myself. While I miss parts of Chicago, I cannot with any semblance of sincerity say I miss Howard Street. At all.
Um, help, Garrity- it's Jan 3-5, right?
Anyway, Aaron, 1st weekend in Jan- Dru, can we pretend that's your birthday even if it's not?
Neo, Dru's birthday is about a week before mine, so it's somewhere around those dates. We'll have to remind her closer to January. She's getting on in years, and forgets things.
Heather, I would have mentioned the Chi thing, but Hanne's driving was scaring the hell out of me I was much too intimidated to talk much at the time.
Never really got north of 79th Street when we lived there. Um, except for going to Whitney Young for 7th grade. Ah, those hour-long bus rides down the Ryan during rush hour. Good times, good times.
Neo, it's 2-5, although I doubt either one of us can give up our deeply fulfilling academic lives for four whole days . . .
Ha! Well, I went to high school downtown, though on the El, not the bus, so I can relate to the cross-town shuttle.
We can talk Chicago when we do dinner. Sans car.
*grin* Hope this comes off, you guys.
*cackling*
You know, when you're in my line of work, you get a reputation for a lot of things. I never thought I'd get a rep as a scary driver, though. Whee!
Garrity, you couldn't have phrased that a wee bit less. . . never mind.
Hanne, I could say something about that last story you read Saturday night, and impediments to driving, but your otherwise pristine reputation has suffered enough already.
And Heather started it.
Aaron, hearing double entendre where none was intended is one of the first signals that you *have* in fact done interesting things with your ears. Neo may not care what you do or don't so with them, but your rep for purity is shot in my book.
I'm fairly certain there was a time when I didn't have these sorts of conversations.
In fact, I think it was last week.
Before I fell into a cursed spring while training in China.
Aaron is actually Raunchy Ranma?
What happens if we splash you with hot water?
Garrity, please tell me you meant to say cold water. I'd like to think this is the real me.
Wait, no, you might have a point there. . .
Medusa's no longer exists; about 10 years ago, in 1994, the building was turned into an office complex.
"Punkin' Donuts" still exists, it was assimilated by The Alley into the Alternative Shopping Complex collective. Scary, eh? The ASC now includes the Alley, Punkin' Donuts, Architectural Revolution (plaster staues), Taboo tabou (lingerie, condoms, etc.), Blue Havana (cigars) and for some reason, an Ethiopian restaurant.
Go to www.thealley.com for an idea...
To give you some idea how much the area has changed, the SW corner of Clark/Belmont has a Starbucks.
And to give some idea how much it HASN'T changed, The Vic Theater still does a nice cheap movie deal. And they sell beer.