Chicago: More Bars in More Places

Fuck a Critical Mass. No, really. I'm all for people riding bikes instead of driving cars and very much for people protesting, but that was some crazy shit. I pulled off the Edens at the Division exit at 7:02. The exit finally opened back up to let traffic through at 8:05. Over an hour stuck on the fucking exit ramp is some bullshit.

ok, let's go guerilla next month where pedestrians reclaim the streets from the bicycles. we'll run in a giant circle around them like some massive game of duck duck goose.

I mean, I really do agree with what they are trying to get across... really. It just sucks that it got so out of control this year.

We beat Halo 3. Now what do I do?

I was expecting to see/hear Critical Mass fallout on the Blue Line, but... nothin'.

CUBSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSs

thanx for posting the song jeff, i've been meaning to try and download that since i went to wrigley.

wow this reporter is totally doused in champagne!

what's up with all the helicopters? someone on another website thinks it's something about the cubs, but that seems weird... jenny/jeff/other neighbors i don't know about?

they are definitely showing aerial views of cubs fans on comcast sports net. i dont think they're high enough to be from a helicopter though

i guess we're a house divided now! toby roots for the red sox...

yeah, we've had helicopters for a while tonight. in london they always seemed to be police helicopters, so it didn't cross my mind that it could be the news.

i got stuck for an hour on north ave. as someone who had planned to do the critical mass tonight, it was still pretty crazy. the only people who annoyed me, though, were the ones who came racing down the sidewalk yelling for us to get out of the way. i'm ON THE SIDEWALK I AM NOT USING GAS

I'm just used to noise around here. Helicopters, sirens, screaming in the parking lot of Jewel, it all sounds the same to me now.

(1) i texted nick but he didn't get back to me ;_;
(2) do i go to danny's now y/n

sorry about critical mass, guys :-/

it was really fun, tho, is the thing

I got no text message from you! Did you send it to my home phone no.? I'll text you so you have my cell no.

Probably wouldn't have been able to do anything anyways, we had late FF practice. My new guitar sounds great, way better than my old one.

Haha--So the Critical Mass action against fossil fuel-based transport results in thousands of gallons of petroleum products being used in cars getting 0 mpg as they sit and wait for anti-pedestrian cyclists.

Argh, yes. The inefficiency of a bad system. It's only once a month, though, is the thing.

This has truly, truly been a full and rewarding day. I have a http://images.craigslist.org/01021001030201040120070925c8f25baf4d97415052005df7.jpg which I rode home from the South Loop. I found some really incredible spots along the lakefront where I want to do some nighttime photography.

While meandering through the service road behind the golf course by Belmont harbor I encountered what I thought was a dog. It was in fact one of many http://tbn0.google.com/images?q=tbn:uZyuEY8KcZLoFM:http://images.usatoday.com/tech/_photos/2006/08/23/raccoons.jpg that were hanging around by the parking lot. I thought they were really cool and I approached them and was around 6 feet or less from a group of three when a BUNCH more started gathering. Their disposition quickly went from *cuet* to http://nymag.com/daily/intel/2007/03/01/01_raccoon_lgl.jpg.

I don't know if it was because they were in a pack, but they reacted poorly to my advancing on them and they began to GRRRRROWWWWL and come at me. I screamed and pedaled away.

But I didn't stay away. There were so, so, so many of them (I counted 12 at one point, and some other movement behind them and later in other areas) and they were so awesome that I wanted a picture. I pulled out my phone and crept up on them again. Once again they went into their loping attack and I wound up dropping my fucking phone.

I retreated to a safe distance and waited for them to back off, but you know how raccoons love shiny things, so they gathered around the phone. Probably their plan was to make off with it and wash it or something, so I began to whistle and rear my front wheel into the air and rush them. They backed off a bit and I got my phone just before they came at me again.

BTW- this is exactly what the aggressive little fuckers sound like.

I have rabies now. Someone organize a Fun-Run for me.

This is the face of rabies.

I tried to find a really unflattering picture of you to post under that, but then thought, Wait a second, I don't hate Jesse!

dannys was kind of subpar last night! saturdays are much more consistent

i'm about to go to hot dougs if anyone is in the area

seriously, next month i'm going out with 2x4's and jamming them in the spokes of front wheels. it might be a shitty thing to do but hey, it's only once a month.

toby roots for the red sox...

toby is good people.

i'm going to the farmer's market in wicker park tomorrow, what's in season?

yeah, so the Cubs game last night was... um... dull. The Cubs wiped the floor with 'em. And the Brewers lost, so unless there's a surprise re-emergence of Morganna the kissing bandit, we can all chillax.

Oh no wait... there's the Padres. I got bad news for you, jules... we're still watching baseball today. :)

i'm going to the farmer's market in wicker park tomorrow, what's in season?

Probably anything they are selling there, since it is a farmer's market. This chart is good (pdf). They have been selling MI honey crisp apples at Treasure Island and OMG. Soooooo good, you guys.

i love honey crisp apples.

peppers and melons are on the list, thanks for the chart jenny.

i posted this elsewhere but i love so i'll share it here too:

http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1309/1458618673_5049bee95d.jpg?v=0

LOOOOOOOOOOOLLLLL

That might have convinced me to stay within the flock when I was a lass.

That might have convinced me to stay within the flock when I was a lass.

seriously, i keep looking at it and thinking "jesus on a dinosaur.... maybe i gave up on catholicism too early."

i just love the presumptive "but he probably did" add on at the end. it fucking slays me for some reason.

'cause you know, he was hip like that. that's the kind of dude jesus was. a badass dinosaur riding motherfucker.

Kenan, you're the biggest fair weather Cubs fan I know.

Congratulations!

Container store today.

i put the books i want to take to myopic in shopping bags but forgot how heavy a two shopping bags full of books are. now i'm not sure i can make it. but i'll probably give it a shot.

mmm... I just ordered sushi. I like the place, and I went a little nuts with the ordering. I like how ordering sushi is complicated enough that you're always pleasantly surprised when the food comes, because it reminds you what you ordered.

my forearms are killing me, i carried my books to myopic and when i got there they told me they're "out of cash" and only doing store credit. which would be fine with me, but my landlady doesn't strike me as such a reader.

Wow, driving sucks.

Kenan, you're the biggest fair weather Cubs fan I know.

oh jeez, like that's hard to do. Apparently around here you need the be named Wrigley to be a *real* Cubs fan. Can't I watch the late season and have fun watching it? Fuck all y'all.

but of course you're right. A friend from college who hasn't seen me in years called me on it last night when I told him I was watching a baseball game... "Dude, I know you. You do not like sports." I explained that it's impossible to avoid anymore, and as far as sports go, baseball is defintely my favorite. Maybe because it's easy to watch with the sound off.

The Brewers have the prettiest uniforms in baseball. Great font, clean design. Love it.

You should get into college basketball. You could watch games in bars with me and Stingy.

3/4 of the 40k+ fans in Wrigley are fair weather.

The rest are just drunk.

In the years when the Cubs suck, that ratio is reversed.

Can't I watch the late season and have fun watching it?

uh, kenan? that's kind of the definition of a fairweather fan.

jeff, i'll be down for some acc action this winter.