Tom Waits!
I have not updated in a while. There is no reason for not having done so, other than another of those periods of being distracted from livejournal by other things, mostly Facebook, which is addictive.
In June, I went up north to visit family, but mostly ended up sitting around at my sister Christine's house, doing nothing, for many days, and wishing I was back in Bloomington. Ostensibly, I was there to celebrate two birthdays and my niece Adrianne's graduation from high school. Well, I did not make it to the one birthday party, and the second was for a three year old, so I am not sure that he cared whether I was there or not. As for the graduation, it was very, very long---400+ people graduating will do that---and, afterward, at the dinner, my niece asked me what I was doing there... I was asking myself the same question. These family visits up north are generally like that, and I have to wonder why I keep doing it.
Two good things did happen whilst I was up north, though, and I would be remiss if I did not talk about them.
First of all, I made it to Chicago for the first time in 2-and-a-half years and met
utopian_camorra for dinner to celebrate his birthday. Unfortunately, I arrived later than expected, due to rain, and then, inexplicably, I got turned around coming up out of the subway station, and started walking west instead of north. To make matters worse, since I knew I was running behind, I was walking very quickly, and had gone at least 5 blocks before I realized my error. I then proceeded to wander the Loop, trying to find the Jazz Record Mart, which had, unbeknownst to me, moved around the corner from its original location. By the time I found it, I was an hour late for my meet with Devin. At that point, I was despondent, and certain that he and I would never find each other. Then I remembered that I had my father's cell phone and began frantically looking through my notebooks for a phone number I could call. Salvation came in the form of my friend LJ, who looked up Devin's number while I was waiting. I was able to call him and catch him before he got on the bus to head back to Evanston. He walked back down and he and I actually had a nice evening together at Fadó Irish Pub. Thinking about how close we came to missing each other, though, is a sobering thought.
I was also able to spend a night at the home of Barb and Robert in Hobart. They were having a party, and I hung out, drank entirely too much beer from Robert's tap (nice!), and spent the night. The next day, I went to the bakery, which had changed quite a bit, and waited for someone to pick me up. But, the visit with my friends was really nice, and I am reminded of how much more I like them now that I do not work for them.
Things back here in Bloomington have been much the same. Not a whole lot to report. I went to a square dance held in the home of my friend Brad, whose band provided the music, and I had a really great time.
Lindsay and I broke up almost two weeks ago, and I am still somewhat ambivalent about it. Her reasons really make no sense to me, and I honestly feel that she was judging me, and the way I live, unfairly. At the same time, the realization that she has priorities that I do not share is actually a good thing, and indicates that the relationship would not have lasted.
Last Sunday, I went to Knoxville, Tennessee and saw Tom Waits. It was fantastic. Lindsay and I were supposed to go to this show together, and her decision to ditch me really put me in a spot, since she broke up with me exactly one week before the show. I spent several days scrambling trying to find someone who was willing to drive in exchange for the other ticket. Unfortunately, I was never able to find anyone, and the ticket went to waste. That sickens me, because I would like for that seat to have been taken, especially by someone I actually like. At any rate, that aside, it was a great show! I will not bore you with a concert review, and would not know what to say, anyway. Suffice to say that he played several of my favorite songs ("Cold, Cold Ground," "Get Behind The Mule," "9th & Hennepin," "Rain Dogs," "Jesus Gonna Be Here," etc.), he was always inspired and energetic, and the band was just crackerjack!
Now, a closing note about my family. I have spent more than enough time in this journal complaining about them, but when it has mattered they have been there. My younger sister, Christine, made the hotel reservation for me in Knoxville---the hotel was going to be covered by Lindsay, natch---and my mother and father drove me down there. Honestly, I have been embarrassed to admit this. I considered trying to get a refund for the tickets when it looked like I would not be able to make it down there, but this proved damn near impossible. So, it was a choice: simply not go, and be out the $196.00, or spend even more money driving down there, and they chose to do the latter. This really left me speechless. I know that I do not do enough to let them know that I appreciate them. I called Christine today and spoke to her about it, and she said that she knows, but I still feel that I need to do more, not just say it once in a while. We have to live our appreciation of others, and I have to work on that.
In June, I went up north to visit family, but mostly ended up sitting around at my sister Christine's house, doing nothing, for many days, and wishing I was back in Bloomington. Ostensibly, I was there to celebrate two birthdays and my niece Adrianne's graduation from high school. Well, I did not make it to the one birthday party, and the second was for a three year old, so I am not sure that he cared whether I was there or not. As for the graduation, it was very, very long---400+ people graduating will do that---and, afterward, at the dinner, my niece asked me what I was doing there... I was asking myself the same question. These family visits up north are generally like that, and I have to wonder why I keep doing it.
Two good things did happen whilst I was up north, though, and I would be remiss if I did not talk about them.
First of all, I made it to Chicago for the first time in 2-and-a-half years and met
utopian_camorra for dinner to celebrate his birthday. Unfortunately, I arrived later than expected, due to rain, and then, inexplicably, I got turned around coming up out of the subway station, and started walking west instead of north. To make matters worse, since I knew I was running behind, I was walking very quickly, and had gone at least 5 blocks before I realized my error. I then proceeded to wander the Loop, trying to find the Jazz Record Mart, which had, unbeknownst to me, moved around the corner from its original location. By the time I found it, I was an hour late for my meet with Devin. At that point, I was despondent, and certain that he and I would never find each other. Then I remembered that I had my father's cell phone and began frantically looking through my notebooks for a phone number I could call. Salvation came in the form of my friend LJ, who looked up Devin's number while I was waiting. I was able to call him and catch him before he got on the bus to head back to Evanston. He walked back down and he and I actually had a nice evening together at Fadó Irish Pub. Thinking about how close we came to missing each other, though, is a sobering thought.
I was also able to spend a night at the home of Barb and Robert in Hobart. They were having a party, and I hung out, drank entirely too much beer from Robert's tap (nice!), and spent the night. The next day, I went to the bakery, which had changed quite a bit, and waited for someone to pick me up. But, the visit with my friends was really nice, and I am reminded of how much more I like them now that I do not work for them.
Things back here in Bloomington have been much the same. Not a whole lot to report. I went to a square dance held in the home of my friend Brad, whose band provided the music, and I had a really great time.
Lindsay and I broke up almost two weeks ago, and I am still somewhat ambivalent about it. Her reasons really make no sense to me, and I honestly feel that she was judging me, and the way I live, unfairly. At the same time, the realization that she has priorities that I do not share is actually a good thing, and indicates that the relationship would not have lasted.
Last Sunday, I went to Knoxville, Tennessee and saw Tom Waits. It was fantastic. Lindsay and I were supposed to go to this show together, and her decision to ditch me really put me in a spot, since she broke up with me exactly one week before the show. I spent several days scrambling trying to find someone who was willing to drive in exchange for the other ticket. Unfortunately, I was never able to find anyone, and the ticket went to waste. That sickens me, because I would like for that seat to have been taken, especially by someone I actually like. At any rate, that aside, it was a great show! I will not bore you with a concert review, and would not know what to say, anyway. Suffice to say that he played several of my favorite songs ("Cold, Cold Ground," "Get Behind The Mule," "9th & Hennepin," "Rain Dogs," "Jesus Gonna Be Here," etc.), he was always inspired and energetic, and the band was just crackerjack!
Now, a closing note about my family. I have spent more than enough time in this journal complaining about them, but when it has mattered they have been there. My younger sister, Christine, made the hotel reservation for me in Knoxville---the hotel was going to be covered by Lindsay, natch---and my mother and father drove me down there. Honestly, I have been embarrassed to admit this. I considered trying to get a refund for the tickets when it looked like I would not be able to make it down there, but this proved damn near impossible. So, it was a choice: simply not go, and be out the $196.00, or spend even more money driving down there, and they chose to do the latter. This really left me speechless. I know that I do not do enough to let them know that I appreciate them. I called Christine today and spoke to her about it, and she said that she knows, but I still feel that I need to do more, not just say it once in a while. We have to live our appreciation of others, and I have to work on that.