2015 list
FIC: (all hockey RPF)
people keep talking Sidney Crosby/Alexander Ovechkin, 1314 words. There's the media-driven narrative of the Crosby/Ovechkin rivalry, and then there's reality.
around some corner Paul Martin/Ben Smith, 1653 words. Ben probably wouldn’t’ve recognized Paul Martin otherwise, but he’s had alerts for the Sharks sent to his phone for the past thirty-six hours.
and one fic for the hockeyholidays exchange, which has not yet had the authors revealed
SHOWS:
The Beer Nuts, The Orwells, Andrew W.K. @ Riv 13March2015
Empires @ Lincoln Hall, 12May2015
Chevelle/The Used @ Aragon, 22May2015
Butch Walker, @ the Vic Theatre, 26May2015
Bonnaroo - Bleachers, Billy Joel, DMAs, Courtney Barnett, Ryn Weaver, Rhiannon Giddons, Mumford, My Morning Jacket, etc. 11-14June2015
Little Hurricanes @ City Winery, 20June2015
Hoodie Allen, Wiz Khalifa, Fall Out Boy @ Tinley Park, 11July2015
letlive, Killswitch Engage, Rise Against @ Northerly Island, 17July2015
Hoodie Allen, Wiz Khalifa, Fall Out Boy @ CWMP, 24July2015
Hoodie Allen, Wiz Khalifa, Fall Out Boy @ Gexa Energy Pavilion, 25July2015
Hoodie Allen, Wiz Khalifa, Fall Out Boy @ Austin260, 26July2015
Drag the Rope, Nikki Lane, Social Distortion @ HOB, 7Aug2015
Urge Overkill, Naked Raygun, Cheap Trick Foo Fighters @ Wrigley Field, 29Aug2015
Riotfest @ Douglas Park [NWA, No Doubt, Motorhead, Alkaline Trio, Flogging Molly, Coheed & Cambria]
Beans on Toast, Skinny Lister, Frank Turner & the Sleeping Souls @ HOB, 6Oct2015
RayLand Baxter, Grace Potter @ Chicago Theatre 23Oct2015
Rise Against @ Orpheum, Madison 7Nov2015
Jr Jr, Frank Turner, Atlas Genius, Panic! At the Disco, Milwaukee @ The Rave/Eagles Ballroom, 12Dec2015
John Oliver @ Chicago Theater, 30Dec2015
TV:
Archer
Agents of Shield
Penny Dreadful
The Brink
Blunt Talk
BOOKS:
Blood on the Water, Anne Perry (I think I missed a book in this series, bc I’m not sure what happened that Oliver Rathbone was disbarred and traveling in Europe with his father)
Guardians of the Night: A Gideon and Sirius Novel, Alan Russell (I’m still not clear on the entire point of the angel part of this)
Miramont’s Ghost, Elizabeth Hall (meh; it was free, so.)
One Kick, Chelsea Cain (Cain is really good at writing really fucked up protagonists, and Kick, like Archie Sheridan, is fucked up from the start of this book; enjoyed the set-up and the hook at the very end; problematic things w/r/t Bishop, but willing to let slide for sake of setting up a series)
Bad Blood, Dana Stabenow (DNF; poor copy editing w/r/t consistent comma use, poor metaphor/wording use, outright WRONG word use (an Alaskan State Troooper is not a lawmaker, s/he is a law ENFORCER; that is actually NOT the same thing), DONE WITH THIS SERIES, DONE WITH THIS AUTHOR)
Stone Mattress, Margaret Atwood (short stories, the first few connected)
End of Secrets, Ryan Quinn (borrows so heavily from Ayn Rand’s Atlas Shrugged for plot that Harris owes her estate royalties)
Wreckage, Emily Bleeker
Obsession in Death, JD Robb
The Dead Key, D. M. Pulley
Helen of Sparta, Amalia Carosella (retelling of the story of Helen, her POV, focused on the abduction by Theseus, giving her some agency; only goes to the point where Menelaus et al retrieve her from Theseus)
All the Way: My Life on the Ice, Jordin Tootoo (brutally honest about alcoholism; unbelievably biased North v South, country v city “bullshit”)
Trail of Murder, Jennifer Quashnick (gift; written by a friend of Moya’s; she did the stock photography. eh. do not like how the women are either oblivious or victims)
Younger, Suzanne Munshower (wow, could the narrator be less self-aware?)
North to the Orient, Anne Morrow Lindbergh
Dirty Wars: The World is a Battefield, Jeremy Scahill (FINALLY FINISHED)
Crow Hollow, Michael Wallace
The Devil’s Mixtape, Mary Borsellino
Tunnel Vision, Aric Davis
Heart Collector, Jacques Vendroux
Juliet’s Nurse, Lois Leven
Cold Black Earth, Sam Reaves
As If: The Oral History of Clueless As Told By Amy Heckerling, the Cast and the Crew, Jen Chaney
Black Ice: The Val James Story, Valmore James & John Gallagher
The Ides of April, Lindsey Davis
The Hundred-Year Flood, Matthew Salesses
Girl at War, Sara Novic
Enemies at Home, Lindsey Davis
The Omega’s Bodyguard, Dessa Lux (LOLLLLLLL)
Wild, Cheryl Strayed
The River of Doubt: Theodore Roosevelt’s Darkest Journey, Candice Millard
Slammerkin, Emma Donoghue (same person who wrote Room; based on a real person but reeeeeally fictional in terms of details)
Corridor of the Night, Anne Perry
Long Upon The Land, Margaret Maron
The Martian, Andrew Weir
Devoted in Death, JD Robb
Daughter of Sand and Stone, Libbie Hawker
Mr Smith Goes to Prison, Jeff Smith
You Could Make A Life, Taylor Fitzpatrick
SPORTING EVENTS:
Rockford IceHogs v Chicago Wolves, 3Jan2015 (lost)
Rockford IceHogs v Chicago Wolves, 17Jan2015 (lost in shoot out)
Rockford IceHogs v Chicago Wolves, 31Jan2015 (won)
Colorado Avalanche v Minnesota Wild, 7Feb2015 (won)
San Antonio Rampage v Chicago Wolves, 21Feb2015 (won in OT)
Grand Rapids Griffins v Chicago Wolves, 28Feb2015 (lost)
Utica Comets v Chicago Wolves, 14Mar2015 (lost)
Milwaukee Admirals v Chicago Wolves, 28Mar2015 (won in OT)
Minnesota Wild v Chicago Blackhawks, 7April2015 (the Wild won 2-1 in regulation to clinch playoff berth)
OKC Barons v Chicago Wolves, 11April2015 (it was 4-0 at the end of the first period. bailed to go home and watch BU/Providence)
Toronto Marlies v Chicago Wolves, 19April2015 (5-2, two were bad puck-luck, one was an ENG, two were off HORRIBLE turnovers in the d-zone; but JFC Nylander is pretty and pretty good at hockey)
Utica Comets v Chicago Wolves, 22April2015 (lost in 2OT)
Utica Comets v Chicago Wolves, 24April2015 (won)
LA Dodgers v Chicago Cubs, 25June2015
Blake Geoffrion Hockey Classic (HILARY KNIGHT) 26June2015
Orioles @ Sox, 4July2015
Stars @ Blackhawks, 3Oct2015
Admirals @ Wolves, 10Oct2015
Checkers @ Wolves, 17Oct2015
Griffins @ Wolves, 21Nov2015
Wild @ Wolves, 22Nov2015
Rampage @ Wolves, 28Nov2015
Wild @ Blackhawks, 1Dec2015
IceHogs @ Wolves, 19Dec2015
Habs @ Wild, 22Dec2015
Pens @ Wild, 26Dec2015
MOVIES:
Inherent Vice
Avengers: The Age of Ultron
Merchants of Doubt
John Wick
Snowpiercer
Big Hero Six
Mission Impossible: Rogue Nation
Lucy (so terrible, omg)
The Martian
Gone Girl
Star Wars: The Force Awakens
PLAYS:
Improvised Shakespeare, iO theatre, 9Jan2015
Improvised Shakespear, iO theatre, 30Jan2015
Rapture, Blister, Burn, Goodman Theatre, 15Feb2015
Two Trains Running, Goodman Theatre, 20Mar2015 (basically slept through half)
The Little Foxes, Goodman Theatre, 31May2015
Disgraced, Goodman Theatre, 4Oct2015
Feathers & Teeth, Goodman Theatre 11Oct2015
Improvised Shakespeare, iO theatre, 27Nov2015 (The Jeweler’s Daughter)
NEW RESTAURANTS:
Sapori - decent wine list, good service, fabulous bucatini carbonara, duck confit, calamari
The Bourgeois Pig - amazing coffee, good sandwiches, cozy tables
Mike Ditka’s Steakhouse - had a gift certificate or wouldn’t’ve bothered
Pars Cove - minimal wine list but good 4-course for 2 in terms of food (kabob/lamb/veg + salad/soup + appetizer + dessert), prompt service, would go again
Cork’s (St Paul)
Erin’s Snug Irish Pub (Madison)
bistronomic
ROOF
Tre Soldi - good restaurant week menu, questionable wines by the glass selection
Fornetto Mei - meh.
Greek Islands
L’Patron - TACOS
Fig & Olive - cocktails that are overpriced but delicious, tapas from Italy, Greece, Morocco, south of France, Spain
Tocco - great, simple Southern Italian, decent wine choices that are not overpriced
Demera - ethiopian, excellent spice combos, a little sweet
deca - good coffee, delicious scone + clotted cream
Allium - great crab salad. in the Four Seasons
The Kitchen - delicious, great wine
Di Pescara - allll the tiramisu, also good kale caesar as entree
Churchkey (DC)
Paul’s (DC)
701 (DC)
Acadiana (DC)
Cavanaugh’s Bar & Grill
Osteria Langhe - great food, great wine list; uncomfortably loud, to the point where I wanted earplugs - partly a design problem (nothing to absorb sound on floor, walls, ceiling, narrow room) and partly a problem because one loud party made the next table loud, which made the next table louder, til the dude next to us was essentially shouting
Kashmir (Boston)
Kuma’s Too
Jam
Macello
Le Bouchon (great food; waitress’s manner was tres Parisienne)
Crosby’s Kitchen (lol)
The Bristol
Kurah (mmm, hummus)
Wyler Road (where the Brown Sack used to be; good cocktails)
Cocco Pazzo
The Boiler Room
New Rebozo
Homeslice
Jeni’s Ice Cream
Cumin - mmmm, biryani, naan
Side Door
LoKal
Bru
Mott Street
Green River
Hot Chocolate
Old Fashioned (Madison)
Cooper’s Tavern (Madison)
Mickey’s Tavern (Madison)
Fat Rice
Sobelmann’s
Georgie V’s Pancake House
Barrio (MSP)
Wild Thyme (MSP)
The Bulldog (MSP)
The Buttered Tin (MSP)
El Parian (Spirit Lake/Okoboji)
Public (MSP)