CurtBlog

after a month in my new place, I finally have broadband again.  Comcast screwed me by telling me they would have it ready in a couple weeks when I signed up.  that was bad enough.  when I called back 2 weeks later to check status, they couldn't give me a firm delivery date.  it's in parts of my neighborhood, but not my building.  so I decided to switch to RTN, but it took another 2 weeks to get an install.  it's weird how you learn to live without Internet access, although I have it at work just fine.  the thing that went missing was just involvement in the online community and keeping up with personal email, since I had to do that on my lunch break or before and after work.  which isn't always very convenient.

I was first introduced to Damien by my friend Trevor Henderson about this time last year on my trip to the UK.  Damien is an awesome Irish singer-songwriter, just brilliant.  very popular in the UK, hardly heard of here.  he's been playing some US dates and just came through last night to Schubas, which is a great rock club just down the street from me.  small venue, pretty packed.  we all sat on the floor.  great performance with lots of cool touches.  he finished the encore with an amazing rendition of "Cheers, Darling" which is basically this guy who meets a woman in a bar and buys here some drinks, only to find out her boyfriend is coming to pick her up.  or that's one interpretation anyway and the way he introduced the song.  he told this story while downing a beer and then launched into the song as he continued to drink the beer and smoke a cigarette that he bummed from someone in the front row.  it was amazing. helps if you've heard the song.  they are finally releasing his album here on Epic I believe.  it's called "O" and well worth tracking down.  or you can get it from his website at damienrice.com

looks like MSN Music, which actually had some decent electronic stations, is going to a pay model.  and it isn't enough that I already have a Passport, I have to have a Passport with a hotmail.com or msn.com address to use it.  what is that crap about?  i don't need or want another email address, i have my own mail server for goodness sake. Passport is intrusive enough already. i was going to at least do the free trial to see how it is, but screw that.  sometimes Microsoft can be a little short sighted in their "only slightly obvious" attempts to push people into using their services.

in looking closer, I guess you can still listen to the regular ad-supported version, but i'm still ticked about this Passport thing.

this past weekend I made my first trek out to IKEA.  One of the things I really like about Chicago is all the stores here that you don't get in smaller cities.  I'm not as much into shopping as I used to be (it wears me out), but when I do go I like to have plenty of options.  plus, my taste is so eclectic, it's tough to find stuff I like.  at least it was in Nashville.  i've read too many Wallpaper magazines I guess.

anyway, as I told my mom, I'm not that easily impressed anymore.  I've traveled quite a bit, been overseas, etc.  But when I first walked into IKEA, I was a bit blown away.  the first time you see it is a bit overwhelming.  for those of you who don't know, IKEA is a huge warehouse and home design center which I believe started in Europe.  they specialize in what I like to call Scandanavian Lite, the kind of clean modern design you will often see coming out of Denmark, Sweden, etc.  Lots of straight lines, woods, frosted glass and everything is very modular.  I'm a big fan of that type of design.  IKEA has all that, but it's also dirt cheap (and often not very well made).  but it's cool.  that's why I call it Lite.  if you really want the good stuff, it's expensive (and will last forever). 

IKEA is more like disposable furniture.  you are paying so little that if you only keep something for a year or 2, it's still worth the money.  kinda like clothes.  and all the big items come in flat boxes, making it easy to take home, even in a MINI.  one thing I forgot to take, a pen or pencil.  all the stuff is on floors 2 and 3, but anything from the warehouse has an aisle number and location.  and you never remember where the things you like are unless you write it down.  it's just too big.

found a cool table and a couple chairs for my new balcony.  paid so little for them, don't really care if a couple of winters end up destroying them.  also some rugs, since for the first time I have hardwood floors.  and some other odds and ends.  i'm going to post some shots of my new place, but due to the lack of home Internet access right now it's a bit tough to get those up.

Couple of comments on the el.  (For those of you who aren't familar with Chicago, the el is the public transit elevated train.  it occasionally goes underground, but is usually on elevated tracks).  I finally moved into the city this past weekend and so this is my 1st week taking the el to work.  Now I've ridden the el quite a bit on visits here, but generally not during rush hour.  and generally not standing up.  i'm learning there is a whole art to riding the el standing.  it reminds me of riding a horse, you just gotta find the rhythm and go with it.  otherwise you are staggering around and falling into people's laps.  the el is packed in the mornings, it's nuts.  i actually have a couple options from the stop closest to me, which is nice.  one requires a bit more walk to the office once I get downtown, but seems faster and not as crowded.  as usual, there is always a tradeoff on anything.  the other one drops me off less than a block from the office.  but it gets so packed that there will be some cars in the morning that you can't even squeeze onto.