So. Very. Tired.
Feb. 21st, 2005 06:10 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
kyburgWas hungry. That's fixed. Now tired. Not much else. Certainly not capable of anything more than sound bites.
I'm home. And oh, so glad to be home. It seems to be a consistency. I love traveling - I love going places, but the best part is coming home. I love home.
I think it's time to file a complaint with the FCC about CNN. I swear, this morning you could have convinced me that the whole Los Angeles basin was washing into the sea - when I get here, the sun is shining, the roads are DRY and while there is a lot of water standing around, there is no evidence to support any large amount of concern.
Uh, it's February. It shouldn't stop raining until like, April dude. This is when we get our rain. REALLY. It's not news that we're getting inches and inches more than last month - or last year. STFU.
I did give the dog a hot bath once I put some dinner in the oven. Yes, she spent the weekend outside, even if under a wonderful patio cover with a papasan chair piled high with towels to curl up in.
So - Chicago.
What can I say about the Dear Friends concert - three little words.
Anime.
Fanboy.
MAFIA.
Kid you not. While I'm aware that this is a colder climate, and so forth - I was not prepared for the long black wool coats. Not the lovely swing coats you saw Neo wearing in the Matrix - this is what my Mom calls "car length" - just brushing the knees, straight. Lapels. Uniformly black. With black shirts and jewel-colored ties.
Add shades, and hats - and you got the Blues Brothers. Yes, we had cosplayers doing them. There were a small number of costumes - mostly cheogsams over long sleeved t-shirts and jersey pants. But - for the most part? Very well-groomed males. Their very best clothes - the girls, the few of them there were? Evening gowns. I was very frustrated in that most of them stayed in their coats most of the time - I saw some incredible fabrics peeking out from under coat hems.
But when you jump up to giving a standing ovation, and you find yourself...well...short - you discover quickly something very different is happening here.
This audience is MALE. VERY male. I figured at least 2/3's male. Maybe 3/4's.
And they're here for music. Orchestral music. If you asked the average Joe on the street if he wants to go see a bunch of old guys saw on some string instruments, what would you expect to hear? Oh, and listen to a choir. Go ahead. Tell me.
So out of character for the expectation of the typical American male. So incredibly welcome at the same time. And every single seat in the place was sold - that's 4,500 seats. They had to hold the show to get everyone seated - because confusion did set in at times and people were in the wrong seats, but there was a seat for everyone and not one seat more.
It's been a long time since I've been in a venue that sold.
And the roars that the opening bars of each piece met were just incredible. People were on their feet at the end of each piece after the intermission. We greeted Uematsu with something one would expect for a rock star - and he's a puckish sort who doesn't mind posing for pictures. Lovely Chicago - the security wasn't as tight - he actually sat in a seat with the rest of us (padded with some security bodies, of course).
It's pointless to tell you what was played - you either know it or you don't. Should I get my hands on some of them from soundtracks, I'll let you know. And the program is still packed away and I'm tired. ~*whine*~ (Here. I found this. The songbook is due out 3/10/05 in Japan....)
I brought a pound of Sees and got it to the conductor, Arnie Roth - who was so cool, you couldn't help but love him. (I also had to love that first seat first violin, who was the last one out onto stage after the intermission - greeted with w00ts and applause, he froze for a moment, then turned the audience and bowed. Then he sat down and waited for the conductor...yeah, we even applauded the first seat.)
The saddest part was that you could count the numbers off as they played - four sets of three each, with an encore.
Afterward? Getting out of the venue was a breeze - we went right back to our hotel - and the Steak n Shake that was right across the street from it.
And then watched people show up from the concert. Half the restaurant was people coming directly from the concert -
But nobody talked to each other. Welcome to Chicago. I had no problem - I'm a silly tourist, after all. But this was something I noted as a consistency - people are very isolated there, for no really good cause that I could see. Almost withdrawn into themselves, but unaware of it at the same time.
Other impressions -
Cold. But so dry! The room was always too hot, but we didn't dare turn it down or off because there was no thermostat - the end result was bloody noses because the air was so dry.
We got our Priceline at a Doubletree. There is nothing like walking out to the car with hot chocolate chip cookies when it's nearly 19, and you've been in airports, airplanes and terminals all day. Warm and sooo good!
When I got off the plane today, the first thing I felt was soft, warm air - with moisture in it. I didn't care if it smelled of exhaust, I loved the touch of warm breezes on my face waiting for the bus to take us back to the green line station parking lot and our car. With moisture in it - you could smell the water, and it made the air inside closed spaces almost musty.
I wanted something that wasn't smothered in cheese, marinara sauce or oregano. I was so hungry when I got home, I popped open a can of french-fried onions and munched half the can waiting for the chicken to be done.
And now?
Now, I go curl up and rest. I'm pooped.
And very glad to be home. I got kitty snuggles to catch up on.
I'm home. And oh, so glad to be home. It seems to be a consistency. I love traveling - I love going places, but the best part is coming home. I love home.
I think it's time to file a complaint with the FCC about CNN. I swear, this morning you could have convinced me that the whole Los Angeles basin was washing into the sea - when I get here, the sun is shining, the roads are DRY and while there is a lot of water standing around, there is no evidence to support any large amount of concern.
Uh, it's February. It shouldn't stop raining until like, April dude. This is when we get our rain. REALLY. It's not news that we're getting inches and inches more than last month - or last year. STFU.
I did give the dog a hot bath once I put some dinner in the oven. Yes, she spent the weekend outside, even if under a wonderful patio cover with a papasan chair piled high with towels to curl up in.
So - Chicago.
What can I say about the Dear Friends concert - three little words.
Anime.
Fanboy.
MAFIA.
Kid you not. While I'm aware that this is a colder climate, and so forth - I was not prepared for the long black wool coats. Not the lovely swing coats you saw Neo wearing in the Matrix - this is what my Mom calls "car length" - just brushing the knees, straight. Lapels. Uniformly black. With black shirts and jewel-colored ties.
Add shades, and hats - and you got the Blues Brothers. Yes, we had cosplayers doing them. There were a small number of costumes - mostly cheogsams over long sleeved t-shirts and jersey pants. But - for the most part? Very well-groomed males. Their very best clothes - the girls, the few of them there were? Evening gowns. I was very frustrated in that most of them stayed in their coats most of the time - I saw some incredible fabrics peeking out from under coat hems.
But when you jump up to giving a standing ovation, and you find yourself...well...short - you discover quickly something very different is happening here.
This audience is MALE. VERY male. I figured at least 2/3's male. Maybe 3/4's.
And they're here for music. Orchestral music. If you asked the average Joe on the street if he wants to go see a bunch of old guys saw on some string instruments, what would you expect to hear? Oh, and listen to a choir. Go ahead. Tell me.
So out of character for the expectation of the typical American male. So incredibly welcome at the same time. And every single seat in the place was sold - that's 4,500 seats. They had to hold the show to get everyone seated - because confusion did set in at times and people were in the wrong seats, but there was a seat for everyone and not one seat more.
It's been a long time since I've been in a venue that sold.
And the roars that the opening bars of each piece met were just incredible. People were on their feet at the end of each piece after the intermission. We greeted Uematsu with something one would expect for a rock star - and he's a puckish sort who doesn't mind posing for pictures. Lovely Chicago - the security wasn't as tight - he actually sat in a seat with the rest of us (padded with some security bodies, of course).
It's pointless to tell you what was played - you either know it or you don't. Should I get my hands on some of them from soundtracks, I'll let you know. And the program is still packed away and I'm tired. ~*whine*~ (Here. I found this. The songbook is due out 3/10/05 in Japan....)
I brought a pound of Sees and got it to the conductor, Arnie Roth - who was so cool, you couldn't help but love him. (I also had to love that first seat first violin, who was the last one out onto stage after the intermission - greeted with w00ts and applause, he froze for a moment, then turned the audience and bowed. Then he sat down and waited for the conductor...yeah, we even applauded the first seat.)
The saddest part was that you could count the numbers off as they played - four sets of three each, with an encore.
Afterward? Getting out of the venue was a breeze - we went right back to our hotel - and the Steak n Shake that was right across the street from it.
And then watched people show up from the concert. Half the restaurant was people coming directly from the concert -
But nobody talked to each other. Welcome to Chicago. I had no problem - I'm a silly tourist, after all. But this was something I noted as a consistency - people are very isolated there, for no really good cause that I could see. Almost withdrawn into themselves, but unaware of it at the same time.
Other impressions -
Cold. But so dry! The room was always too hot, but we didn't dare turn it down or off because there was no thermostat - the end result was bloody noses because the air was so dry.
We got our Priceline at a Doubletree. There is nothing like walking out to the car with hot chocolate chip cookies when it's nearly 19, and you've been in airports, airplanes and terminals all day. Warm and sooo good!
When I got off the plane today, the first thing I felt was soft, warm air - with moisture in it. I didn't care if it smelled of exhaust, I loved the touch of warm breezes on my face waiting for the bus to take us back to the green line station parking lot and our car. With moisture in it - you could smell the water, and it made the air inside closed spaces almost musty.
I wanted something that wasn't smothered in cheese, marinara sauce or oregano. I was so hungry when I got home, I popped open a can of french-fried onions and munched half the can waiting for the chicken to be done.
And now?
Now, I go curl up and rest. I'm pooped.
And very glad to be home. I got kitty snuggles to catch up on.
![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
no subject
Date: 2005-02-22 03:21 am (UTC)I'm glad you guys had a wonderful time. I've never been to the Windy City, but one day... :)
no subject
Date: 2005-02-22 06:09 am (UTC)In my town (because Chicago will probably be my town no matter where else I find myself) people won't ask you about your day out of the blue unless they know you well enough, and when they say "how are you?" they mean to know, as opposed to just using it as a convenient way to say 'hello' but not giving a damn.
One of the things that initially really put me off about Texans I would run into was that they seemed to ask all sorts of questions to strangers that they could possibly not care or want to know about, that occasionally I'd rather not answer anyway.
Makes you wonder if there are regional standards of politeness, certainly.
no subject
Date: 2005-02-22 03:22 pm (UTC)Not that my attentions were unwelcome - "heeeyyyy, I know where you've been!" Note the clothes, note the hairstyle - and the face just lit up. "Wasn't it GREAT?!"
But while the two of them sat at a table near us, there were four other groups who sat in the same section and never shared a word between the tables. It wasn't a comfortable distinction - and if I heard it once, I heard it often - "I have to go spend time (doing something) with a bunch of old people." sneer. Old meaning anything more than five years older than they were. If spending any time in a group meant not interacting on your own steam, but waiting to be noticed at the age of 16, 24, 29, 31 - and then not given more than a cheek pinch and a "that's nice dear" - I'd have serious trouble.
*thinks* Didn't see many bumperstickers, come to think of it. The hotel had little else in the way of media besides CNN and Fox (UGH) - but when you came into common rooms, sports were on - and that was that.
Cracker Barrel was very low-key, come to think of it.
There's reserved, and then there's isolation - and it treads that line very closely.
no subject
Date: 2005-02-22 10:28 pm (UTC)We really enjoyed lunch and hope very much that will happen again in the future. James thought ya'll were really neat. :-) I knew you were and am happy to be proven right.
no subject
Date: 2005-02-22 11:30 pm (UTC)Got your text - but my phone doesn't support sending text messages and I didn't want to call you during working hours. I missed seeing the cats! DAMN.
We got home in one piece - all good, but yeah. I would have enjoyed a whole 'nother day!