Monthly Archives: February 2008

I’m blowing thru Hartford again this week. It’s about like I expected. I spend my days feasting on Dunkin and working in a windowless cell and my nights testing the elasticity of my per diem. (Update: surprisingly inelastic.)
So far the highlight has been my cab driver on the way in, who almost got in a fist fight with another cab driver at the airport right before I got in his cab. Um, I’ll wait, thanks? Then he spent the first 15 minutes of our ride GOING OFF about the other guy and how he was such a “wise guy”. Meanwhile, I spent the first 15 minutes of the ride praying silently that I would make it to my windowless cell in one piece. Seriously, I was a little freaked out. I was trying to go all peacemaker on him, talking about the weather and doing all my “dumb Minnesotan” bits. There’d be a lull and I’d be all “So, you call it a grinder, eh?” and he would be all “THAT GUY IS A WISEGUY!!” and I’d quickly resume my praying. At least we took the carpool lane so it was a quick ride.
Tonight the team rocked out this Vaughan’s Irish Pub joint. It’s the best place we’ve been to so far for dinner. Good atmosphere, good food, absurdly great homemade irish cream. And yeah, that’s maybe kind of a sissy drink (right?) but whatever, next time I’m thinking maybe I’ll just skip dinner and get 6 of them instead. That good. We clumsily begged the waitress for their secret recipe and she humored us by asking but – duh – it was a nogo. I looked around online a bit and it’s actually not that crazy hard of a recipe. I’m sure my sister has made it 50 times and serves it up in matching mugs with a dollop of whipped cream and a handwritten Yeats poem for each person. This weekend, maybe? Love to, thanks.
Can we talk about this NPR Wilco show streaming live to my hotel room right now? Because it’s ridiculous. Reaching back to ‘AM’. To ‘Being There’ (!!). The new stuff. It’s all so comfortable now. Top of their game? Some say yes. I d/l’d a couple of the recent Chicago run shows and haven’t listened yet but they clearly must have been inspiring. DesMoines on the 9th? Tickets are still available?! Temp. Ting.

While the rest of you new media rubes were de-bunching your undies over at the UBS Forum thing, I was home doing dishes and changing diapers and watching this video I shot of Sunday night’s roller derby over and over and over again. And by that I mean like maybe twice, at which point I took the liberty of tweeting at myself about how boring I was being. Zingers!
Derby was awesome as expected. Even with the blowout first match. And the crazy halftime metal band entertainment. Though they were fun for a while. In a surreal kind of way. Like “who is that lady who looks like my mom and why is she standing motionless 4 feet from the stage while a band named ‘Corpse Show Creeps’ is laying waste?” Seriously, who was she? Mom?
The second match was superclose. It even went into OT, which I think may have been a first because the refs had to huddle up and decide what the OT rules were. I’m still not sure I understand what exactly went down, but I can guarantee you this: the Garda Belts got totally jobbed. Sid will have the full breakdown, I’m sure.
Video comment: that loud guy yelling ‘Sparkle Ninjaaaaa’ may or may not be me. Ok, wait, it’s totally me. She’s so fast and spunky and stuff, how can you not cheer for her? Exactly.