Wanderlust

In my opinion, traveling is education for the soul and tranquility for the mind and body.  I LOVE to travel and so does Bryan. He is usually up for anything, from impromptu neighborhood exploration days within Chicago to far away adventures. We definitely are itching for some travel so, now that we have two incomes (YAY, Bryan got a job! I don't think I mention that bit of news in this corner of my world) we can do it. Here are some places that we are hoping to visit within the next year plus. 

Galena, IL  - We are planning to go here for an overnight to celebrate our 1 year wedding anniversary (how has it been almost a year already!) in September! Leaving early Saturday morning and coming back late Sunday night.  Being city dwellers we want a rustic, rural getaway to provide some R&R, hiking, wineries, history - all of which Galena offers. With it located about 3 hours from the city it's perfect to accommodate our time constraint.  Bryan's job still so new it's too early to take vacation days. We are excited!

 

 

Ireland  (Dublin & Galway) - We are hoping to head back to Dublin in November. This is important for a number of reasons. 1) Bryan left over a year ago on a visa and got married! He hasn't been back since. 2) I've NEVER met my in-laws, except for my sister-in-law, Bryan's only sibling. (She has come to visit us in Chicago twice now).  So, people to see. Thank goodness for technology, as we are in constant communication with friends and family back in Dublin, but it does hurts my heart that I've never met his parents. Rationally, I understand why I have never met them.  The bulk of our relationship was long distance. He met my dad on a fluke when my dad came to visit me while I was studying abroad in Ireland. Also, I come from a much bigger family. And, anyone from a big family will understand that secrets do not exist! Everyone is all up in your business, of course with love. So, Bryan came to visit me 7 years ago when I was living at home with my parents - of course they met him... and then after every time he came to visit. I was only in Ireland for my study abroad and who meets parents in the first few months of dating? Then, I came back several years later for a couple of weeks - this at a crucial time of  solidifying us - "really, is this it?" We were so wrapped up in ourselves that I believe there were intentions to meet family, but it never happened. Anyhoo - I need and WANT to meet them. Also, I will say, we welcome them in Chicago ANYTIME - we have a 2 bedroom apartment for a reason. Guest are ALWAYS welcomed in our home. We have a comfy guest bedroom! However, from my understanding it is better for us to come back to Dublin. So, we will! And, while we are there.. we'd love to take a weekend trip to Galway. I've been, but Bryan hasn't and wants too. Galway is lovely.

 Dublin (above)

 

 Galway

 

Galway

 

 

Munich - while in Europe we'd love to visit another European city such as, Munich. Neither of us have been to Germany. I have a friend in Munich who I miss dearly and would love to visit. Bryan speaks a little German. Flights are fairly cheap from Ireland. Fingers crossed this happens!

 

 

 

 



New York - my cousin who is 6 months older than me is having a baby in September that I can't wait to meet. Also in New York is my other cousin, her sister, who is also close in age with me. They have never met Bryan and that hurts my heart. See, Bryan and I didn't have a conventional wedding. We may never.. who knows, but right now with extra money we want to travel and not plan a wedding. Ah, the pains of being self -sufficient! Anyhoo, with the distance and no excuse for family functions they haven't met him. So, we want to change that. Bryan and I are hoping to fit in a weekend visit sometime in Spring. (of course, providing it works with my cousin's schedule)

 

Arizona - I have two best friends that live here and my brother and his family recently moved here for his job. One of the two friends living in AZ have met Bryan during a visit to Chicago, but my other friend hasn't and again, my heart is heavy. I want all the people that I love to know each other. I'm kind of granola that way. Plus, AZ will be like a place Bryan's never seen before! Born and breed Irish boy he hasn't been to the desert before. This trip hopefully will happen in the Fall of 2014. I love AZ. I have been many times.

 

Oregon and Washington- Oh, swoon, I do over these states!! If I relocated to another part of the U.S. it would be in the Pacific Northwest. Such beauty!!! The ocean, mountains, national parks, art, beer!, cultural explosion... oh man, I could gush and gush. I really want to visit with Bryan.

 

 

We could add several more places to the list, but I think what we have is enough to focus on for now.  xoxo

 

Music Mondays

Hey hey... it's been busy in my corner of the world, so busy that I didn't blog at all last week. Ah, sure... it happens. I never stress over this blog as it's my fun side project. I think only my husband and sister read it.. so it's OK to leave them in suspense. ha. Anyhoo, here we are.. Monday... so, Music Monday.
 
The line up for Riot Fest came out last week. So Exciting!! I have (surprisingly) never been before. What I'm not excited about is the location. It's in Humboldt Park. It's not that easy to get to from our apartment (2 buses) and it's a less than appealing neighborhood. Though, I know it will be fine and a stellar time.  Bryan and I bought 3 day passes the second they went on sale. I'm glad we did. They were a 100 bucks a piece! That's less than 34 dollars a day for a gazillion fantastic bands/music acts! Ok, not a gazillion, but a ton. Here is who I'm so stoked to see breaking it down by day.
 

Friday: 

Yellowcard - Smoking Popes - Flatliners - Flatfoot 56 - Masked Intruder - Screeching Weasel and (I guess) Fall Out Boy - more curious than anything to see them. Their first album was fantastic, but everything that followed was just too commercial pop for my taste.

 

Saturday:

Blink 182 - Public Enemy (how could I not check these guys out!) - Taking Back Sunday - The Lawrence Arms - Pennywise - Say Anything - Rancid - Stars

 

Sunday:

Against Me! - The Broadways - Pixes - Brand New - Saves the Day - The Wonder Years - Off With Their Head- Bayside -Direct Hit! - Reggie and the Full Effect - Chuck Ragan - Deals Gone Bad - Replacements

In other music news, I was at a party Saturday night and the host was playing Lana Del Ray. Oh my! *swoon* She is so good! My only previous experience with her was the infamous (terrible) SNL performance she gave. I was totally turned off after that until Saturday night. Me: This is great music, who is it? Everyone else: UGH, LANA DEL RAY... *rolls eyes* haha, not really. I don't hang out with rude people!

Love this jam:

DIY Birthday Project

I love celebrating birthdays! And, I love arts and crafts. So, most likely I will give a DIY birthday gift. For my friend, Kristen's birthday I tackled t-shirt bleaching. She loves t-shirts and she loves penguins. No brainer!

I heard all about this crafty project from my friend Kat and decided to take to Pinterest and sure enough there were several tutorials. I ended up going with this one... I used a Clorox bleach pen for whites. And, seriously, make sure you have the one that says FOR WHITES. I did not. I had this one....

....and after all my work saw NOTHING on the black shirt. I ran out and got the correct bleach pen

....and take 2 was a success.

Not a great photo.. but you get the idea. cute penguins holding hands. *swoon*

Kristen loved it and I loved that. Happy friends make me feel all stellar and awesome inside! Now, what shall I do next?  xoxo

Music Mondays: Top 5 Music Documentaries

My last "Music Monday" post was about a music documentary I had recently seen. This got me thinking, "what are my top 5 music documentaries?" So, here they are....

 

 

The Other "F" Word - "The Other F Word" is a documentary following a few notable punk rock musician dads. Here is a clip. http://www.theotherfwordmovie.com/movie-clips.html 

Another State of Mind - "Another State of Mind" is a documentary  made in the summer of 1982 chronicling two punk bands – Social Distortion and Youth Brigade – as they embark on their first international tour. The full length documentary can be found here

Control - "Control" is really a biographical film about the life and death of Ian Curtis, lead singer of British band, Joy Division. Here is the trailer

 

 

Beats, Rhymes & Life: The Travels of a Tribe Called Quest - one of the best Hip-hop music documentaries (in my opinion). Here is a clip

 

 

 

Festival Express - In the summer of 1970, a chartered train crossed Canada carrying some of the world's greatest rock bands. The Grateful Dead, Janis Joplin, The Band, Buddy Guy. Here is the full length documentary

 

 

 

 

 

I  have "Sound City" downloaded, but haven't watched it...yet.

 

 

Happy Music Monday, kiddos! 

 

Currently...

 

 

Reading:  I just finished Bossy Pants by Tina Fey. Oh my, that was a funny, interesting, engaging – overall stellar read.  Now, I’m on to reading Blink by Malcom Gladwell. I read The Tipping Point in college for one of my journalism classes.. ekk, so sad that I can’t remember which one. Maybe Feature Writing? Anyhoo, I love how Gladwell examines human behavior and interactions.

Listening to: Bruno Mars. I’m SO late to get on board, but hey, I don’t typically listen to pop music. Also, as a city dweller sans car I don’t have the top 40 hits blast through every channel every 10 minutes.  I honestly remember a few years ago at my previous job a couple coworkers were talking about Bruno and I truly had NO IDEA who he was.  I think they thought I was lying and trying to pretend not to know in attempts to be different, but I was being genuine. I wish I had known. He’s  extremely talented! I love Mo-town and get a strong sense of that musical style in his songs. LOVE.

Thinking about: Trying to NOT be overwhelmed. We are still a one income family and the knowing the finances are all on me is … well, difficult. Bryan is working very hard at job hunting day in and out, but still nada! I know this will not be the case forever. We are strong and very much in love… the rest will fall into place, correct? He has a college degree in computer science… from Ireland, trying to get a job in The States. Oi! However, I have yet to meet Bryan’s parents in person. I so badly want to be able to afford to send us both to Ireland over Thanksgiving, but just not sure how I will manage that. Ok, deep breath and moving on.

Feelings thankful: For all that we do have! It’s easy to get wrapped up in the negatives. However, there are SO many positives.. I suggest taking a few minutes each day to remind yourself of them.

Eating: Corn on the cob, homemade pizza’s and summer fruit. We are LOVING making homemade pizza’s now that we have a cast iron skillet. Read all about it here.

Watching: Peep Show. It’s fantastic! After watching a handful of episodes I said to Bryan, “this show is like someone brought the cartoon Beavis and Butthead to life – humanized it.” He definitely agreed.  It’s a British show and Bryan does fancy work with laptop hooked up to the TV to make it appear, so I’m not sure if the link will allow you to watch the show, but at least you can click on it to learn more about the show. http://www.channel4.com/programmes/peep-show  

Loving: Summer time hangs with great people, afternoons spent in the park and discovering hidden gems in the neighborhood.

Music Mondays: A Band Called, Death - a great music story.

"Punk before punk existed, three teenage brothers in the early '70s formed a band in their spare bedroom, began playing a few local gigs and even pressed a single in the hopes of getting signed. But this was the era of Motown and emerging disco..."
...Taken from Drafthouse Films website

 

Hey ya. I’m not sure if I’m the last to catch the scoop of this phenomenal story, but for those who are saying “what, a band called Death,” here goes the story….

Taken from Shelia O’Malley's article on Roger Ebert.com -- http://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/a-band-called-death-2013

"This is the Ramones, but two years earlier." — Questlove of The Roots on Death

In the 1970s, three teenage brothers, David, Dannis and Bobby Hackney, formed a rock 'n roll band called Death. They grew up in Detroit, with loving supportive parents who gave them only one credo: "Back up your brother." Death never got very far, and their story is a fascinating one, told beautifully by Jeff Howlett and Mark Christopher Covino in their new music documentary "A Band Called Death."

David, the visionary, who came up with the band's controversial name, died of lung cancer in 2000. F. Scott Fitzgerald may have been right: there may be no "second acts in American lives," but "A Band Called Death" is a portrait of the good fortune and recognition that can come your way if you just stick around long enough. But it also delves movingly into the bittersweet feelings that come from being a pioneer, someone who is right before it is time. It tells what it's like to withstand a decade of professional rejection, followed by two decades of total silence, and what it's like to endure unimaginable loss.

The brothers loved all kinds of music growing up (their father made them watch The Beatles on "The Ed Sullivan Show," and each brother said they picked the instruments they wanted to play as they watched that historic broadcast). It was after The Who played Detroit that it became clear to them the sort of band they wanted to be. They loved Alice Cooper and Queen. Death's stuff was loud, fast, and powerful. David's lyrics were evocative, political, and eerily prophetic. But in Motown-dominated Detroit, three African-American brothers playing screaming rock 'n roll (or, as their brother Earl, laughingly called it, "white boy music") was against the grain in every which way. "We were the loudest thing they'd ever seen," says Bobby. Nobody quite knew what to do with them. Radio stations hesitated to play their songs. David was okay with that, saying to his brothers, "Pure rock 'n roll is what they don't play on the radio." This was before the Sex Pistols. This was before punk rock. As Mike Rubin wrote in his 2009 New York Times article about the unknown band from 35 years ago, "Death was punk before punk was punk."

There was also the little problem of the name of the band, a huge turnoff to record executives, producers, and pretty much everyone else. Arista Records offered them a deal, but only if they changed the name. David turned Arista down. Bobby and Dannis were furious; they both were willing to change the name, but David refused, and that was pretty much the end of Death. 

The rejection got to Bobby and Dannis: they were rejected for the name of the band, rejected for the fact that they were black boys playing "white boy music", rejected for the sound of the music itself which didn't "fit" at the time. For 35 years, the master tapes made by United Sound (the Detroit studio which recorded them) sat in an attic collecting dust. Bobby and Dannis moved to Burlington, Vermont, forming a reggae band which had some success, and David stayed in Detroit, writing songs, and drinking too much. One of his brothers says, "He was one of those genius types. The demons get to you."

"A Band Called Death" is a story of the burgeoning punk rock scene, of the exploding DIY energy in the 1970s, but it is also a sweet and touching family story. The filmmakers keep it simple, using floating black-and-white photos of the brothers jamming with their instruments, or, hauntingly, walking through a covered bridge in Vermont. Home movies of the boys playing in an upstairs room at their parents' house shiver with the excitement of their raw energy and self-belief. 
 

I'll stop here... to read the entire article click on the link above. 
 

So, how did Bryan and I hear about this story/band? We were at an after party for PRIDE a couple of weeks ago and two teammates from our kickball league told us about it.  Bryan and I were skeptical at first. The name really does put you off. Also, often when we are in a conversation with people about our love of punk rock music the lines get blurred. Most people think of hard punk rock ...borderline metal and that is all wrong! We like classic punk rock with the 3 cords - music where the drums and bass lead with clear, upbeat vocals. Welp, that's Death!

We watch the documentary last night and IT IS FANTASTIC! I HIGHLY recommend you watch it.. even if you aren't into punk rock or music. It's a heart warming story of a family bond that never dies along with a dream that was destine to come true!

 Definitely click on HERE to check out some more of their story, music and where/how to see the film.

Happy Music Monday!

  

Bon Appetit

Bryan and I love to cook. Cue the music, pour some wine and off we go! 

Recently we inherited a 12 in' cast iron skillet that was my grandmother's. Immediately I started thinking of all the goodies we could make in it. The first one was a no brainer - PIZZA! So, off I took to the interwebs to find a recipe. This was going to include making dough from scratch. I was determined!  After researching a few dozen recipes I went with this one: http://www.grouprecipes.com/73741/cast-iron-skillet-pizza.html.  I'll note we did doubled the dough recipe, since it stated that the recipe was for a thin crust. We wanted more of a pan crust. Next, we gathered all of our ingredients and off we went.  However, when my active dry yeast did not react I called my mom. Because, that's what I do for everything that doesn't work ...moms have super powers of knowledge, don't you know. I think it's a right of passage in becoming a mom. haha.  Anyhoo, she mentioned that adding a bit of sugar to the luke warm water helps to activate the yeast. VOLIA! It worked. The pizza was amazing and Bryan and I had a blast making it. We thought it tasted way better than any store bought pizza and vowed moving forward to only make homemade pizza. It's healthier and it's so fun to cook together. Here are some images:

Music Mondays

Heading into last week I thought I was going to attend 3 concerts. Nope. The concert on Monday was canceled due to weather. Every Monday Millennium Park holds an event called Downtown Sound that features a band for free and starts at 6:30pm. It's fantastic. You're outside, the Chicago skyline is your backdrop, you can bring a picnic and choice of adult beverage and hang out on the lawn and listen to music.  Perfect way to kick off the week! Ah, swoon! Welp, last Monday was stormy and humid. So, that didn't happen.

Wednesday the Mr. and I had tickets for a band we LOVE called Two Gallants. The gig didn't start until 9pm so we had time to make it to our kickball game. However, on our way to our kickball game this happened! I'm so clumsy!!!!

I will note that I still played which most likely made it worse! We only had an hour in between the end of our kickball game and the start of the concert. I knew the smart choice was to ice it and rest. Since we have seen Two Gallants a few times, neither of us were tragically upset, but bummed.

The next day was another story. After icing and resting it I felt healed enough to go to the Dispatch concert. I had many reasons for going such as:

1. Tickets were 10 bucks
2. I bought all 6 tickets on my credit card and entry was by swiping the card at the gate and entering with your entire party. I had people counting on me!
3. The concert was at Northerly Island. For those who don't know the venue.. here's a picture

LOOK AT THAT VIEW! I bet you want to go see a show there now. So, I wrapped it and  I went... ...AND came home with my ankle looking like this...

 

boo!! Though, I did have a great time...

 

Ashley and me

My sister, Mary and me

 

Ah, good times... now, back to resting my ankle!