July 13th, 2015 § permalink
Outside, people enjoyed the festival.
They got corndogs and eyed craft jewelry. They traded cash for tickets and tickets for beer. Outside, kids ran and laughed and got their faces painted like tigers as the bright sun burned sandaled feet and unlotioned necks.
Inside, a packed auditorium remembered a friend with guitars and drums, bass and banjo. » Read the rest of this entry «
July 10th, 2015 § permalink
A racist patent. A Swedish piano repairman. A corner that now houses a four-story car dealership and a faux-Irish sports bar.
This is how Chicago helped make the ray gun. » Read the rest of this entry «
July 8th, 2015 § permalink
500. Half a thou. D, to the ancient Romans. As close to the halfway point of the project as an odd-numbered goal allows.
So what should I write this milestone story about?
I decided to toss that question to the folks who made up the first 499, asking the people who got me this far how I should kick off the second half. » Read the rest of this entry «
July 6th, 2015 § permalink
A sweaty night, stepping off the Skytrain Ratchathewi stop and wandering down an alley past street vendors selling cuttlefish on a stick and rows of mini-dress women calling “Massage? Massage? You want massage?”
Bangkok smells amazing in season, especially during the endless nights. Squid and chicken steaming from a cart. Spices and a sultry damp. The Thai capital can smell like the sweat-breath of an alluring stranger leaning in to whisper you a secret.
And sometimes it smells like someone peed on a dog. » Read the rest of this entry «
July 3rd, 2015 § permalink
I would now like to review the headcheese bahn mi from Bon Bon Vietnamese Sandwiches in West Town, Chicago.
It’s not entirely headcheese, which is a cold cut made from the meat parts of the head of a pig. There was also Vietnamese ham, pâté, something called “pork roll” and the regular bahn mi fixins — carrot/daikon slaw, cilantro, cucumber, jalapeños and mayo on a baguette (the latter a product of French colonialism).
It’s a damn tasty sandwich, and my friend Tommy and I decided to get the one made of pig head. » Read the rest of this entry «
July 1st, 2015 § permalink
“I’ve been a circus performer for 11 years,” the 27 year old dressed as a superhero said. “Wow.”
Mister Terrific is not a well-known superhero. He has a red T on his face by way of mask and his logo isn’t a big S or stylized bat, but the words “FAIR PLAY” written on his jacket, a nod to the 1940s hero who inspired him.
Mister Terrific is corny and dutiful and nuanced, which is why circus acrobat Eric Robinson chose him as his superhero alter ego for Acrobatica Infiniti: The Nerd Circus. » Read the rest of this entry «
June 29th, 2015 § permalink
The little old lady with the walker, gray Bears sweatshirt and small golden cross stood in front of a house drawn by an untalented child. » Read the rest of this entry «
June 26th, 2015 § permalink
The smell of tripe is faint.
The smell is meaty, yes. And it lingers in the air around the bubbling pot of stomach and bone. But it does so lightly, almost gently.
A Romanian woman smiles and offers a sliver of tripe. It melts on the tongue.
“I worry about Danny,” Mama Olaf said. » Read the rest of this entry «
June 24th, 2015 § permalink
The following is a work of satire, in the vein of Jonathan Swift’s “A Modest Proposal.” As with Swift’s masterwork, in which Robert Redford pays Woody Harrelson $1 million for a night with Demi Moore, the following work should not be taken at face value. All rights reserved. Member FDIC. » Read the rest of this entry «
June 22nd, 2015 § permalink
At a noodle shop in Little Vietnam, Ryun Patterson showed me a video of a Cambodian sorcerer on his iPhone.
The man in the video is garbed in brown with an embroidered orange sash across his chest and a red kerchief atop his head. He’s sitting in a doorway, happily chatting in Khmer, gesturing with a handful of yellow candles.
“What are the candles for?” I asked. » Read the rest of this entry «
