Last month, it was great to welcome back an old friend in our community. I'm speaking of the Patio Theater, a historic 1927 movie house here in the city that closed in 2001.
Marquee on the Patio Theater
Back in my high school years, I remember catching films here with my friends. It was a unique theater because of the abundance of seats (1,500) as well as the very cool ceiling, which featured twinkling star lights and projected clouds that moved.
Gloriously repainted lobby
Introducing a new collaborative brew from Steve and Amy, packed with a combination of creativity, compassion, and craziness.
Something new from Steve & Amy
Available in a portable, compact size, and made with all-natural ingredients, you'll be able to find it as part of a "Take 2, Get 1 More FREE" deal.
You won't find this flavor in stores!
While you won't be able to read about it over at BevReview.com, this limited, one-of-a-kind edition is coming this December. Don't miss out!
Summer officially started today, and we celebrated by heading up to the Chicago Botanic Garden for some after-work music as part of their Summer Evenings activities.
The Gardens... and Amy
On Tuesday nights they host "Music on the Esplanade". This time around it was the bluesy Guy King Band.
Sitting outside the McGinley Pavilion
Because of a private event taking place on the Esplanade, they moved the music over to the semi-enclosed McGinley Pavilion.
This weekend we saw Back to the Future screened free at the Portage Theater. Can't pass up a deal like that, can you?
The Portage Theater marquee
The Portage is a historical theater that first opened in 1920, but eventually fell into decline and closed in 2001. It's located in the Six Corners shopping district of Chicago as part of the Portage Park neighborhood. In other words, it's been in my backyard since I was a kid.
Admit Two for free? Sure!
Thankfully, it reopened in 2006, and Amy & I were there to experience that awesome moment. Since then, it's seen quite the resurgence, by becoming the home of the Silent Film Society of Chicago and the Northwest Chicago Film Society, as well as quite a few live events. It was even featured in the 2009 film Public Enemies.
It's still pretty early in biking season, but I've already been pretty active this year. In fact, I've put over 100+ miles on my new bike tires so far.
It's hard to miss Steve wearing this shirt!
I'm doing a lot more riding in traffic and on main city streets, which presents its own set of challenges, including the avoidance of "dooring" collisions with parked cars. Needless to say, it's been an adventure so far!
My friends Bryan & Jen Sampson were concerned for my safety with this increase in urban riding and bought me the shirt featured in the photo above. Although, since the printing is written backwards, does that mean that the only way it will be read is by the driver in their rearview mirror AFTER they've rolled over my body?
So I've purchased new tires for my bike this season. I've never actually bought new tires before, so this was an educational experience.
Introducing the Specialized Crossroads Armadillo
Come to think of it, I've never actually owned a new bike. Everything I've ridden over the years has been purchased used. So I guess I could splurge on some new tires, right?
I'm currently riding an early 1990s Giant Iguana mountain bike that I bought used from the adventure trip folks at Phantom Ranch back in 1996. Over time I've probably replaced almost every element on the thing… crank, seat, handlebars, cables, etc. (At one point, I fractured both my arms while riding it, but that's another story.) Sure, I should probably get a new bike with a better fit, but other priorities always come up.
Steve and his bike last summer
As we finally put winter and cold weather behind us, one thing that really brings me joy is the ability to ride my bike. Last year, Amy and I really hunkered down to eliminate our student loans and other outstanding debt, thus bike repair wasn't really in the cards. But this season we got our bikes tuned up and repaired… and I shopped for new tires.
It was March 1997 and I was a senior in college. A few guys that lived on my floor invited me to join them for Spring Break in Florida, as one of them lived there at the time.
Steve sings a painful "Via Dolorosa"
I'm not a Spring Break party animal, thus during our stay we enjoyed a day at the Magic Kingdom, spent a lot of time outside, watched a few spring baseball games, and attended a very early Sunrise Easter Service at a local church. Needless to say, because of that early wake-up call, we were quite tired from getting up at the crack of dawn, and personally, I think I was a bit loopy.
This video is a result.
A few weeks ago, I went to a Cubs day game with my friend Tim, a huge Cubs fan. We both work from home, so this was a nice break from the everyday. The Arizona Diamondbacks were in town, it was "Starlin Castro Bobblehead Day," the sun was out (but it was cold), so why not?
Wrigley Field is decorated to start the season
This game took place shortly after the season started, thus Wrigley Field was still dolled up with all the promotional garb used to kick off the Cubs latest battle into anticipated futility.
Back in February, shortly after the Chicago Blizzard we experienced, I was greeted with 2 parking tickets on my 1996 Volkswagen Jetta, which I park on the street. The violation? "No city sticker or improper display." And they nailed me for it two days in a row. Ah, but I did have a sticker.
It just fell off.
Not 1, but 2 tickets on my car
A few weeks ago my college roommate of 3 years, Tim Walston, gave me a call from O'Hare as he was passing through town.
Steve & Tim
He was flying back to St. Louis from a presentation he gave in Baltimore on behalf of Truman State University (Kirksville, MO), where he is an Assistant Professor of Biology.
Given how close Amy & I live to the airport, I was able to pick him up during his multi-hour stopover. We hopped over to the Potbelly's in Rosemont and enjoyed lunch together. It was great to see him again and catch up a bit.
Incidentally, the title of this post comes from the nickname we gave our dorm room in college, "The Warehouse." Basically, we had a lot of everything, both useful and weird, including a giant stick of Wrigley gum!
