So this past weekend we took a trip to the Gateway to the West. That's right, we ordered our tickets for the best rivalry in Baseball - at least as far as Cubs/Cardinals fans are concerned. We bought our tickets when they went on sale - oh about 4 months ago. Little did we know then, that we had purchased tickets for the most exciting and HOTTEST (literally) baseball games I have ever been to. Don't get me wrong, I've been to many exciting, come from behind/walk off/blowout games at Wrigley Field. None of them were quite as exciting as these two games.
Let me reflect on the weekend as it happened...
I received a call from my brother last Wednesday while eating pizza at Al's Pizza (Warrenvilles finest pizza!). He just wanted to let me know that the Sunday game that he bought tickets to (he bought 6 tickets together so we could all sit together - The 3 brothers and their significant others) was changed to the Sunday Night Game of the Week! We had to choose - Do we watch one game this weekend in St Loius, try to sell the tickets, and drive home early Sunday - Or WATCH BOTH GAMES AND GET HOME EXTREMELY LATE SUNDAY NIGHT/EARLY SUNDAY MORNING. For me, there was no decision - we had the tickets, we had to watch both games. Most of us didn't have the option of taking Monday off work, so we would have to sacrafice.... After a few days of pondering and checking our options for selling the tix, we all decided to go for it!
So we get up at the crack of dawn, pack up the car and go! We get to St Louis with about an hour to spare, just enough time to do a little tailgating under I64. Good thing my bro forgets the grill - we get to have a liquid lunch, not the best thing for a 100+ degree day. Luckily our seats happened to be in the shade, because it was seriously the hottest day I can remember. We stopped at a gas station on the way, a man told us that Busch stadium was the hottest stadium he had ever been in "It holds the heat well". Wonderful! We were sweating as soon as we stepped out of the A/C'd van, now we had to sit in "the hottest stadium" for an afternoon of Cubs/Cardinals baseball. Now history has told us that the Cubs had little chance to win either of these games we were about to enjoy. My siblings went to a game last year in St. Louis and after the Cubs lost the game, they said the walk back to the car was one of the worst experiences ever. "The Cardinal fans were brutal". Not sure why they wanted to go back, but here we were. The game was hot, very, very, very hot. The shade was great, I don't think we would have made it in the sun. The beer was good, although I did have to walk a few sections to get a Budweiser. Guess people really like their Bud Light down there. The game was great, the Cubs took an early lead and kept it after the Cards would battle back every time the Cubs would score. Derrek Lee hit a home run and Aramis Ramirez hit a home run in the 6th inning to put the Cubs up by 2 runs;the bullpen allowed 1 run and Dempster closed the game with a save.
Excellent close game. Final play - Albert Pujols hits a hard line drive to Neifi Perez who then tosses to Todd Walker for a double play to end the game! Very close play, Cards would have tied the game had the hit gone through the infield. AWESOME!
We drove to the hotel checked in - unpacked and cleaned up for dinner. Went to Show Mes for dinner, based on a recommendation by a friend. Probably the biggest Hooters rip off ever - its a wonder how they can even get away with it. The wings were very similar to Hooters too, can't really say I liked them better, or say they were worse. Seriously, I think whoever started Hooters had some background in starting this place. Finished off the night playing cards - no poker - but a fun game called "Hand and Foot" or something like that. Pretty fun game, we played until we were too tired to carry on.
End of Day 1. Not enough time to finish this up today. More to follow...
Waj
Wednesday, July 27, 2005
Tuesday, June 14, 2005
Emo-Core?
Went to an awesome show on Friday. Bands: The Get Up Kids - Straylight Run - Lucero Venue: House of Blues Chicago (HOB).
HOB Chicago is one of my favorite venue's in Chicago. It is big, but also intimate, almost anywhere you stand, you can see the band pretty well. Unless of course those 6" 5' fatheads stand in front of you (which pretty much happens at all standing room only shows, doesn't it?). For being a good venue, they really jack you for drinks though. $4.50 for a can of beer? Thats right we paid $27 for a six pack. Ouch. Luckily, no fatheads on this night! Now for the good part (very long review ahead):
We drove downtown right after work. 5:00. That is right, for all those people that know, 5:00 is not the time you want to be driving in Chicagoland, anywhere. The doors opened at 6:00, show at 7:00. We figured, OK if it takes us more that 2 hours, we'll just miss the first band, Lucero, who I have never heard of before that day, and listened the 5 songs that you can stream on their website. The drive was as perfect as a rush hour drive could ever be. There was little traffic going through the I88 construction, and even the Hillside/Oak Park traffic wasn't horrible. It was stop and go for a few minutes, but it was less than 10, so a trip to downtown was actually close to the 50 minutes a 40 mile drive should be!
We arrived about 10 minutes to 7:00, driving by the HOB, we can see that the sold-out-show was a little late opening the doors to let people in. It was about 15 minutes to showtime and there was still a line around the building. We parked nearby (parking garage) and stood in line. 10 minutes or so later, we found a nice cozy spot at the bar and waited for the show to begin. The curtain opened and the band played. I wasn't too excited, after listening to the 5 songs, and reading their bio, I kind of thought they were a mix of Bruce Springsteen, Bob Dylan and Nirvana. Kind of different for sure. Their bio was something like "Lucero was started by someone that wanted to play country at a punk show". I have never liked country, and this wasn't something that interested me. They were very slow and I wasn't that impressed, but I can say it didn't hurt my ears, so it wasn't bad either.
Next up Straylight Run. My brother is a pretty big fan of this band, and he even let me borrow the CD. I think I listened to it once or twice, but never gave it a chance. I can tell you this, if you are a fan of The Get Up Kids, or any other emo band, you should definitely see them live. I have a ton more respect for this band after watching them, and am a little disappointed that I didn't give them a chance so I could "sing along" with them (I try not to sing aloud, ask anyone who has heard my sing). They put a lot of EMOtion into their music, which I felt, and it made me all warm inside. I have since listened to their CD, which is now much better!
And finally The Get Up Kids. I have seen the Get Up Kids and one of their various side projects before. They have announced this as their final tour, 14 shows, 2 of them in Chicago. I guess they have a connection to Chicago, recording one of their CDs here, and playing countless shows at The Fireside Bowl, the Metro, and of course HOB. I was very excited to seem them, even if for the last time (reunion?!). They did not disappoint. I was so glad we decided against our new theme of not driving to Chicago for anything during the week, i.e. Cubs games, Concerts, etc. They played all the old favorites and 2 songs off their latest CD that I had not heard (but have now!). They played for over an hour without delays, and finished with the Favorite "Don't Hate Me". Amazing performance, great stage presence and the crowd was great. I haven't been to too many EMO shows, but it wasn't smokey, and there weren't a lot of crowd surfers (allowing the Body Guards to stand in front of the band so you can see them), quite impressive. Guess I am getting old, but it was a great night, except for the vast amount of money we spent, but we came home with 2 T-Shirts that I'll get some use out of and a CD full of music that I'll definitely get some enjoyment out of!
Well that ends the review... Not sure what is next, nor when it will be. Thanks for reading until the end!
Waj
HOB Chicago is one of my favorite venue's in Chicago. It is big, but also intimate, almost anywhere you stand, you can see the band pretty well. Unless of course those 6" 5' fatheads stand in front of you (which pretty much happens at all standing room only shows, doesn't it?). For being a good venue, they really jack you for drinks though. $4.50 for a can of beer? Thats right we paid $27 for a six pack. Ouch. Luckily, no fatheads on this night! Now for the good part (very long review ahead):
We drove downtown right after work. 5:00. That is right, for all those people that know, 5:00 is not the time you want to be driving in Chicagoland, anywhere. The doors opened at 6:00, show at 7:00. We figured, OK if it takes us more that 2 hours, we'll just miss the first band, Lucero, who I have never heard of before that day, and listened the 5 songs that you can stream on their website. The drive was as perfect as a rush hour drive could ever be. There was little traffic going through the I88 construction, and even the Hillside/Oak Park traffic wasn't horrible. It was stop and go for a few minutes, but it was less than 10, so a trip to downtown was actually close to the 50 minutes a 40 mile drive should be!
We arrived about 10 minutes to 7:00, driving by the HOB, we can see that the sold-out-show was a little late opening the doors to let people in. It was about 15 minutes to showtime and there was still a line around the building. We parked nearby (parking garage) and stood in line. 10 minutes or so later, we found a nice cozy spot at the bar and waited for the show to begin. The curtain opened and the band played. I wasn't too excited, after listening to the 5 songs, and reading their bio, I kind of thought they were a mix of Bruce Springsteen, Bob Dylan and Nirvana. Kind of different for sure. Their bio was something like "Lucero was started by someone that wanted to play country at a punk show". I have never liked country, and this wasn't something that interested me. They were very slow and I wasn't that impressed, but I can say it didn't hurt my ears, so it wasn't bad either.
Next up Straylight Run. My brother is a pretty big fan of this band, and he even let me borrow the CD. I think I listened to it once or twice, but never gave it a chance. I can tell you this, if you are a fan of The Get Up Kids, or any other emo band, you should definitely see them live. I have a ton more respect for this band after watching them, and am a little disappointed that I didn't give them a chance so I could "sing along" with them (I try not to sing aloud, ask anyone who has heard my sing). They put a lot of EMOtion into their music, which I felt, and it made me all warm inside. I have since listened to their CD, which is now much better!
And finally The Get Up Kids. I have seen the Get Up Kids and one of their various side projects before. They have announced this as their final tour, 14 shows, 2 of them in Chicago. I guess they have a connection to Chicago, recording one of their CDs here, and playing countless shows at The Fireside Bowl, the Metro, and of course HOB. I was very excited to seem them, even if for the last time (reunion?!). They did not disappoint. I was so glad we decided against our new theme of not driving to Chicago for anything during the week, i.e. Cubs games, Concerts, etc. They played all the old favorites and 2 songs off their latest CD that I had not heard (but have now!). They played for over an hour without delays, and finished with the Favorite "Don't Hate Me". Amazing performance, great stage presence and the crowd was great. I haven't been to too many EMO shows, but it wasn't smokey, and there weren't a lot of crowd surfers (allowing the Body Guards to stand in front of the band so you can see them), quite impressive. Guess I am getting old, but it was a great night, except for the vast amount of money we spent, but we came home with 2 T-Shirts that I'll get some use out of and a CD full of music that I'll definitely get some enjoyment out of!
Well that ends the review... Not sure what is next, nor when it will be. Thanks for reading until the end!
Waj
Saturday, May 28, 2005
Fantasy Baseball
A little update on the fantasy front. Vladimir is down and the Corked Bats Squad is not longer corked. I'm on the verge of losing 2 weeks in a row, after not losing a week yet. Some good things must come to an end. Even though I was winning the margins weren't enough to keep me that far ahead in my league.
In my other league on the other hand, there is no competition. I'm destroying every team that I play, and am well ahead in the standings. I had to post about it, because it really can't last much longer. I'm probably jinxing myself royally, but if I don't post about it now, it will be lost forever, long forgotten as I lose the rest of the season. Right now I am 23.5 games ahead of second place. I'm playing the team in second place right now, and am winning 11-2, which may not end up that way on Monday, but even so, it will take a few shutouts for anyone to make ground.
Have a happy holiday weekend, I'll be relaxing, drinking some brews and playing a little cornhole. Too windy for disc golf, still haven't been out yet, but I will be very soon.
Waj
In my other league on the other hand, there is no competition. I'm destroying every team that I play, and am well ahead in the standings. I had to post about it, because it really can't last much longer. I'm probably jinxing myself royally, but if I don't post about it now, it will be lost forever, long forgotten as I lose the rest of the season. Right now I am 23.5 games ahead of second place. I'm playing the team in second place right now, and am winning 11-2, which may not end up that way on Monday, but even so, it will take a few shutouts for anyone to make ground.
Have a happy holiday weekend, I'll be relaxing, drinking some brews and playing a little cornhole. Too windy for disc golf, still haven't been out yet, but I will be very soon.
Waj
I can see my house from here!
Google has done it again. First their search absolutely destroys yahoo and msn. Then their maps system (although still in Beta) is by far much better than mapquest or yahoo maps. The clean interface, dragging of the map, in my opinion, is way better than mapquest or yahoo. Now they have a link where you can actually view a satellite image of the address you are looking for. Some addresses you can zoom in further than others, but still amazing. I'm not sure if all images were taken at the same time, but judging by the buildings in our area, we estimated they were about 5 years old.
Hey there's my house!
Waj
Hey there's my house!
Waj
Wednesday, May 25, 2005
Obligatory 60 day post
What can I say, who has the time? Went on a fishing trip this past weekend in MN, near Wynona if anyone knows MN. Its walleye country up there, but out of our group of 10 people, only 2 were keepers. We also caught a few Northern, big suckers too.
I've been pretty busy so far this year, can't believe we're going on the 6th month already. Summertime is here again. Weekend gatherings, daylight until 9:00, and of course the evergrowing grass that needs to be cut.
The new job is going great, though its really diminishing my IT skills. I piddle around on the server a few times a week(next up SBS SP 1), but the day to day troubleshooting I am used to doesn't happen when you have 10 PCs to support, and even though some aren't the most PC saavy people, they are smart enough not to cause problems. Speaking of support, I had an offer to support a side project of our graphic designer. She was thinking about hosting a web site and setting up a mini network. Any of my faithful readers that host their own sites have any suggestions on firewalls? I don't know much about hosting a site, as far as the incoming Internet traffic and how to keep it under control. I would be mostly in charge of the hardware, but I'm sure I'd be doing most of the initial setup.
That's about all I have time for today, but I'll try to post more often.
Go Cubs. Beat Valley!
Waj
I've been pretty busy so far this year, can't believe we're going on the 6th month already. Summertime is here again. Weekend gatherings, daylight until 9:00, and of course the evergrowing grass that needs to be cut.
The new job is going great, though its really diminishing my IT skills. I piddle around on the server a few times a week(next up SBS SP 1), but the day to day troubleshooting I am used to doesn't happen when you have 10 PCs to support, and even though some aren't the most PC saavy people, they are smart enough not to cause problems. Speaking of support, I had an offer to support a side project of our graphic designer. She was thinking about hosting a web site and setting up a mini network. Any of my faithful readers that host their own sites have any suggestions on firewalls? I don't know much about hosting a site, as far as the incoming Internet traffic and how to keep it under control. I would be mostly in charge of the hardware, but I'm sure I'd be doing most of the initial setup.
That's about all I have time for today, but I'll try to post more often.
Go Cubs. Beat Valley!
Waj
Sunday, March 13, 2005
Home Improvement
Warning: Long post ahead.
Well were going on two years in our house and its amazing the difference in owning your place than renting (for me anyway, not sure about anyone else). If you are a fellow homeowner, you should be able to relate to this post, if not, you might be bored.
For one, those chores you used to do when you were a kid don't seem like chores. Namely, mowing the lawn. Yes, I live in the burbs. Yes, all the houses in my neighborhood look similar. I've also turned into an obsessive compulsive when it comes to mowing my lawn. Since spring is fastly approaching, it will be that time of year again, I guess it can be OK to blog about it. I think mowing my lawn is FUN. Its no longer something I dread, something I put off until my parents force me to do for that all important allowance. My step dad would mow the lawn if whoever's turn it was to mow hadn't cut the grass in two weeks. Then you were in trouble. I now can see why. Something I never thought would change me, but if my lawn needs cut, I don't hesitate, I get the mower out and get it done. Granted my lawn isn't very big, so I can cut the grass and trim it in less than an hour. But as a kid, I would put it off as long as I could.
Another thing about being a homeowner that has changed me is how everything works. From the clothes washer, to the sink, toilet, furnace, pretty much all of our appliances. I always took it for granted how they worked, just knew that they cleaned your clothes, made water come out and heated the house. Then all of a sudden it doesn't work. Then what do you do? Either call a repairman or fix it yourself. Of course being a male, you have to try and fix it yourself first. And if your like me, the first thing you do, google search. I tend to search the Internet for as much information as possible before starting a project. There is so much information available, usually I can find what I need within a few tries. Sometimes it takes a little digging, but after fixing the washer, sink and toilet, I think I can fix anything. OK maybe not the furnace, yet. We had to call in for service a month ago, but it was well worth it. Turned out to be the flame sensor, a small part, not too complicated looking, but quite expensive. $100 for something that probably can be made for a few dollars.
I guess maybe I should have a point to this post, but oh well. Point is, I guess I'm growing up. Weird huh?
Waj
Well were going on two years in our house and its amazing the difference in owning your place than renting (for me anyway, not sure about anyone else). If you are a fellow homeowner, you should be able to relate to this post, if not, you might be bored.
For one, those chores you used to do when you were a kid don't seem like chores. Namely, mowing the lawn. Yes, I live in the burbs. Yes, all the houses in my neighborhood look similar. I've also turned into an obsessive compulsive when it comes to mowing my lawn. Since spring is fastly approaching, it will be that time of year again, I guess it can be OK to blog about it. I think mowing my lawn is FUN. Its no longer something I dread, something I put off until my parents force me to do for that all important allowance. My step dad would mow the lawn if whoever's turn it was to mow hadn't cut the grass in two weeks. Then you were in trouble. I now can see why. Something I never thought would change me, but if my lawn needs cut, I don't hesitate, I get the mower out and get it done. Granted my lawn isn't very big, so I can cut the grass and trim it in less than an hour. But as a kid, I would put it off as long as I could.
Another thing about being a homeowner that has changed me is how everything works. From the clothes washer, to the sink, toilet, furnace, pretty much all of our appliances. I always took it for granted how they worked, just knew that they cleaned your clothes, made water come out and heated the house. Then all of a sudden it doesn't work. Then what do you do? Either call a repairman or fix it yourself. Of course being a male, you have to try and fix it yourself first. And if your like me, the first thing you do, google search. I tend to search the Internet for as much information as possible before starting a project. There is so much information available, usually I can find what I need within a few tries. Sometimes it takes a little digging, but after fixing the washer, sink and toilet, I think I can fix anything. OK maybe not the furnace, yet. We had to call in for service a month ago, but it was well worth it. Turned out to be the flame sensor, a small part, not too complicated looking, but quite expensive. $100 for something that probably can be made for a few dollars.
I guess maybe I should have a point to this post, but oh well. Point is, I guess I'm growing up. Weird huh?
Waj
Wednesday, March 09, 2005
Account Deactivated?
Actually, it is still active. Over 60 days and no posts, I don't think it should be allowed. Much to my dismay, most of my readers (all 4 or 5 of them, OK 1 or 2) have mentioned to me about my lack of posts. Seriously this one is short.
I've been really busy lately, in a good way. I finally landed a full time job, even though it is with the company I've been working for part time the past few months. Turned our really well, I love the company, my commute is 3 miles and I work with family.
Recent purchases include the Rockford Fosgate Ominifi bundle from Woot, a new HTIB system (damn Koss system fried after less than 18 months, but well worth the $150 paid for it), and a treadmill. Yes, I know I don't look like it, but I am really out of shape. Plus the WWDN post regarding the 5K run was inspiring.
Waj
I've been really busy lately, in a good way. I finally landed a full time job, even though it is with the company I've been working for part time the past few months. Turned our really well, I love the company, my commute is 3 miles and I work with family.
Recent purchases include the Rockford Fosgate Ominifi bundle from Woot, a new HTIB system (damn Koss system fried after less than 18 months, but well worth the $150 paid for it), and a treadmill. Yes, I know I don't look like it, but I am really out of shape. Plus the WWDN post regarding the 5K run was inspiring.
Waj
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