Do you miss me yet? I'm on vacation!

Photo of Grand Traverse Bay, published by Flickr user jowo.

Starting last Friday and ending next Monday, I'll be turning off the PC and cellphone in favor of the great outdoors. No posts during that time, so check back in a week!

In the meantime read Gapers Block, Chicagoist and Time Out! Chicago for your Midwestern metropolitan fix.

Pool-hopping in the sky.

Photo published by Flickr user Helium!.

Tall buildings are undeniably inspiring and impressive, and leisurely kicking back on a rooftop is second to none. Putting a swimming pool in the middle raises the bar to pure luxury. How do you get your taste? Let's see what the word on the street is.

Rent a high-rise condo: $222 per night. That's for as many people as you'd like to cram in. I hear first-hand this is a great deal and fun time.

Shack up in a hotel room:

• Avenue Hotel Chicago: $179 per night.
• Holiday Inn: $150 per night.
• Double Tree Magnificent Mile: $200+ per night.

Those are all the base price for a single person. Add $14 drinks at the poolside bar, and you have a sizable investment just to take a dip. We recommend this choice for company credit card holders.

There's the sneaky way too: less legal, more adventurous. Infiltration.org tells us how to swim in luxury on the sly. New York Magazine reports a high success rate when bluffing ones way into elite swim spots. LiveMint.com gives some insight into the psychology of five-star pool attendants, albeit in an exotic local. Feel up to the challenge? Report back with your results!


Photo published by Flickr user jasmined.

Smoke-flavored decadence.

Photo published by Flickr user diginux0

I got a text half way through yesterday from my neighbor, "BBQ later?!", and responded Pavlovianly, the smell of meat and charcoal floating through my brain like a sultry summer breeze. After a couple hours and a walk to the corner grocery, it was time to fire up the Weber(a proudly Midwestern brand)

Here's my recipe:

• 2lbs of ground beef
• 1 onion, diced
  
• 1 jalapeno, seeds removed, diced, sauteed.
  
• 1 avocado, cubed
• Salt and pepper.
• 1 egg
  

Mix it up with your hands, make five generous patties, and go.

If you don't have a porch or stoop, don't worry. You can pick from our assortment of parks and have no trouble from the authorities.

Weekend Olympic Update.

I had a nice moment of Olympics connection the other night while waiting for my carry-out at our local taqueria(who now does online orders!). The Phelps vs. Cavic finish of the 100-meter freestyle final was on TV, and everyone in the tiny restaurant was watching the TV closer than the food counter. When Phelps won, guy next to me actually started dancing around at the counter. People were turning and grinning at each each other in a rare moment of public warm-fuzziness.

Totally worthwhile side note: In case you hadn't noticed, track racing is popular now, and so is enthusiasm for British racer Victoria Pendleton amongst the male population.



The Chicagoist has more local Olympic offerings.

All-ages Chicago

We get lazy in this bar-centric city. With top-notch watering holes on every block and liquor stores open till 2, it's easy to forget about good clean fun.

My teenage brother was in town this week with his characteristic baby-face and no fake ID. As always, I rose to the challenge.

It's summer, so there's not a shortage of booze-free activities.


Chicago Outdoor Film Festival. Photo published by Flickr user jvoves.

We went to museums, rode around on bicycles, went to house parties, sat on rooftops, went to restaurants, and checked out all of the stores only found in the city. We had plans to check out a free movie in the park(above) but got tired and stayed in the neighborhood.

The internet has a few things to add:

New City suggests wedding crashing, rollerskating, and strip clubs.

Center Stage advocates exercise as a more wholesome approach.

All-you-can-eat bacon: Any takers?

Flickr user ejshea wrote this excellent rave about Chinaski's, the latest bar to occupy the Darwin's/Whiskey Road space at 1935 N. Damen. If you've been kicking yourself for not getting in on the "all-you-can-eat bacon" before Whiskey Road closed, you get a second chance. She also notes they have Bell's, my much-missed, favorite local beer, on tap.


Photo published by Flickr user ejshea

I don't mind drinking milkshakes instead of beer.

Thanks, Califone, for one of the most relaxing lunch breaks in recent memory.


Photo published by Flickr user ross_meyerson

Chicago Nightclubs at Noon has been the greatest reason to come to work on Mondays, all summer long. Today we sat in the shade and ate lunch, soaking in the waves of lush, atmospheric sound. The Jay Pritzker Pavilion makes bands sound great, evidenced by groups like Birdnames, who's appearance at the park earlier this summer was the only one I've seen outside of a basement.

Satuday night at the Bicycle Film Festival: The kids are stoked.

It's fascinating to see your subculture grow up. Especially when it turns into a movement of tidal wave proportions. The Saturday night Urban Shorts segment of the Bicycle Film Festival made me proud, even though it's been a while since I've been a group participant in anything cycling related.

The festival felt more like a rock show or religious revival than a film screening. There was group chanting, ecstatic testimonials, and shout-outs to go around. Everyone there seemed to be part of the scene in some capacity, and the event was celebrating something they had collectively made. There was some much raw energy in that sea of sweaty bodies and dirty cycling caps that it was impossible not to feel a vicarious high. The shorts weren't bad either.

Highlights...

Wolfpack Hustle: The Midnight Drag Race

Fumikiri

The Making of the Bootleg Sessions v.2

Macaframa

Lucas Brunelle Worldwide Adventure

Sexy surfaces of Jeff Koons at the MCA

We cruised down to the MCA, armed with free passes, to check out the Jeff Koons exhibit. I wasn't that familiar with his work, outside of knowing that he was a friend and student of Chicago's own Ed Paschke. I liked the level of detail shown in all his piece, and was interested in his low-brow sensibilities. I particularly liked flawless steel inflatable pieces, the large format he uses, and the sexual portraits with his ex-wife Cicciolina. She is such a pop-culture phenomenon (both porn star[NSFW] and politician!), she adds considerable cultural value to the work.


Photo published by Flickr user Heather Lucille

I've since read up on a few news sources about the exhibit, and am excited to have finally been turned on to another artist that I like. It reminds me how worthwhile it is to have galleries and museums in the city.


Photo published by Flickr user lobstar28.

Self-clowning via cinema?

I've been looking forward to the Tarantino produced biker-sploitation flick Hell Ride ever since reading this post on Hell For Leather. It's playing at the Logan tonight, but unfortunately, it's supposed to be awful. [Edit- not at the Logan, see below.]

The critics rave:

"I never thought bikers could be this boring. It should have stayed a trailer."

"A self-adoring, offensively boring homage to biker movies of the '60s" - Filmcritic.com

"Street cred can't save this pic, not even with Dennis Hopper and David Carradine cameos, and QT himself exec-producing and initiating the project." - Village Voice

"One of the most incoherent, boring, useless films I have ever seen and I pray to God that you guys never subject yourself to it." - Bloody Disgusting

Somehow I'm not dissuaded. I guess it's like driving past a traffic accident- with everyone discribing the carnage, I can't help but look. It's the same as watching any 70s exploitation movie, we're interested in the motorcycles and violence, not plot. God bless the Logan, I'll only be out three bucks either way.

[Edit] - Despite a number of different websites listing Hell Ride at the Logan tonight, apparently we are not so lucky.

The poster is pretty nice, if it's the only good that comes of it.

It takes a lot of work to look this good.

It requires dedication to snap a picture of yourself before going out every day. You have to be an advanced Flickr user (or really lucky) to have those photos show up in the list of most interesting tagged with "Chicago". Flickr user Slubird caught my attention by doing both of these things and showing up all over my search results today. She's one of those highly motivated fashion types doing the wardrobe remix thing.



I can't help but notice that guys don't take part in this, which is a shame because I'd love to have someone less lazy than myself give me tips for getting dressed in the morning. I pretty much go with "put on the thing that smells least disgusting".

Think you're tough?

Why didn't I see you at the Legacy Motorcycle Club 7th Anniversary party?

I've been googling Chicago motorcycle organizations recently, and these guys really stand out.

Don't worry, I didn't see the flyer until today either, but it promised several notable items:

#1. Only recognized Polish motorcycle club in the US. This is a group of guys who, hundreds of years ago, would have definitely been slaying their foes with warhammers.

#2. Main courses: Hunter's Stew and Soldier's Stew. I have no idea what either of these are, but the sound like the most manly dishes ever.

#3. After dinner, you have the chance to win a "skeleton chaser axe", a combo of 3 throwing knifes and an axe, or a knife. I'm sure it wasn't the kitchen variety.



More pictures available on the official photo page.



Other than Charles Bronson, the third guy from the right is the last person on earth that I would pick a fight with.

Also of note: The Ladies of the Diamond Ryders Motorcycle Club.

Night Swimming

I'm one of those Chicagoans who doesn't think twice before jumping in the lake on a sticky summer night.* Get a crew together on bicycles, put some beers in your backpack, and bring a pair Chucks that you don't mind getting wet. Forget the beach because it's too easy to get caught. Head for the rocks by Diversy Harbor or the point in Hyde Park. I'm actually the cautious type who likes to scope a spot out during the day first, but don't let that stop the free spirits among you.

No parking is required, just carry the bikes down close to the water where no one can see them. Strip out of your sweat-soaked clothes and slip in to the refreshing water. Look at the moon over the water, the the airplane lights in formation, and pure blackness beyond that. Listen to the little waves lap against the rocks. Leave the shoes on cause rocks are sharp. Float in the warmth and stare up at the glowing sky and neon buildings, while far away traffic on Lake Shore Drive is nothing more than the hum of insects.


Photo published by Flicker user mLeePhilly.

Be careful climbing back up the rocks, and remember to pick up your empties.

*If you're not, check here first.

Wild Night

A storm tore branches off trees throughout my neighborhood. I don't think anyone in the city missed this one. A huge downed tree created a forest in the middle of Campbell, and there were brush piles mixed with garbage all down the alley, as commuters emerged to find their cars blocked in by transported trashcans and foliage.

Gaper's Block posted this video, which sums up most of last night. The sky looked like an aerial bombardment.

There have been a flurry of intense photos posted since last night.



Photo published by Flickr user dane brian

[EDIT]

Here are some more nutso images of the storm, via perquackey.com:

Stoop sitting.

Because:

- It's summer.
- My neighborhood is walkable as hell.
- I love greeting passers by.
- We worked hard all week.
- It's cheaper than the bar.

Read this romantic account. That's pretty much how I feel too. What better than to spend weekend afternoons sitting on the stoop and drink beer and talking to friends? We always have some rad neighbors stop by and lean on the fence to bullshit for a while. Our dog sits out too. We see the same people all of the time. We know our neighbors! There is the old priest who walks to work, the gorgeous Polish mom who is also a model, and the manic 8-year-olds on bikes. There are kids our age, families, and people who are just visiting our beautiful tree-lined street. You should try it. If you don't have a stoop, you still have options.

If anyone wants to post the view from their stoop, please do! I'll take some pictures from mine and start a Flickr set.


This rad photo of some 1970's Brooklyn stoop-sitters was published by Flickr user Whiskeygonebad. Here are a bunch of other photos tagged with "stoop".