My kind of town

Just home from a few days in Chicago, where I spent my time wisely . . .

. . . enjoying too much food at Russian Tea Time

. . . admiring the visual masterpiece that is Seurat's La Grande Jatte, as well as Grant Wood's American Gothic, perhaps the quintessential American icon, both on view at the Art Institute

. . . shopping too much at the largest H&M and Filene's Basement I've been to so far

. . . wishing that so many fine examples of Louis Sullivan architecture hadn't been demolished but glad some of the stunning details have been preserved

. . . appreciating being in the land of broad shoulders, if you catch my drift

. . . cheering on Alanis Morissette at the Chicago Theater (although disappointed that she didn't perform "Hands Clean" or a few other favorites from her last three albums

. . . getting mobbed on the Red Line train at Lawrence as the crowd from the Beck and MGMT concert at the Aragon overwhelmed the station

. . . marveling at the return of stripey, peg-legged pants, and Sid Vicious haircuts, among today's youth. Thirty years later and just in time for my birthday.

To celebrate the visit, here's a musical and visual montage culled from YouTube of some of my favorite Chicago moments. Some of the clips featured were overheard around town. Some of the other images are merely popular culture reminders of the significant role Chicago plays in American history and life.



Chicago. My kind of town. And my favorite American city.