Chicago, I Love You

It's official: I love Chicago. I mean, I love Boston a little bit more. But in a head to head competition, these days I may have a tough time picking between the two cities. If I ever left Boston for good (and I have no plans to do that), I'd make a beeline to Chicago. That's just how I feel after a fantastic long (and yet still too short) weekend in the Windy City. It was my annual July 4 trip to Chicago, which means I also spent time in Michigan City, Indiana. Combined, it was just awesome. Some highlights:

• For the first time in a while, I hung out on Michigan Ave. with people, and that made for a more fun day (and better pictures too). Typically I get a day on my own because, you know, folks have to work. While that's fine, and I can very easily (too easily) amuse myself downtown, it was so much better to spend the day wandering around with friends.



• In Michigan City, I was crowned Drunken Salami King — an honor I shared with Sporkful podcast co-host Dan Pashman. What's Drunken Salami? That's a secret. But suffice it to say, it's a salami that's been marinated for months (seriously) in scotch and Russian dressing (and maybe some other stuff too) and then cooked on the BBQ grill. It's delicious. (Really.) Every year there's a king or queen crowned, and suffice it to say, it's a very big honor.

Other highlights? I don't know ... It was all good. I'm not going to go on and on about my awesome Blizzard from Dairy Queen, or my first trip to Sprinkles, or the ominous-looking clouds over Chicago on Friday that passed right over, or the great conversations, or the Sporkful meetup, or the fact that I got a sunburn but not really, or the awesome fireworks pictures I took Saturday night, or the great flights on Southwest Airlines. The whole trip was a highlight.

Best of all was that I was out of Dodge, I was happy, I relaxed, I laughed, and I really enjoyed myself. Just sitting on the beach Saturday afternoon, listening to the waves crash on the shore ... That didn't suck. I needed this trip, and it delivered. If only I'd stayed longer.

So now I long for my next trip to Chicago, and look forward to the next time I'll be able to see the people, the buildings, the Bean, my friends, the whole scene. Damn, I love that city.

4th of July Pops Concert Could Be Better

Anyone who knows me knows that I enjoy few things more than watching the Boston Pops and the fireworks on July 4th. Which is why it's a shame that I hadn't been down to the Charles in so long to see it live. Last night I corrected that, and got a chance to introduce my friends Justine and Nick to the awesomeness as well. Seriously, no city in America (as if the "in America" part really needs to be said) does July 4th festivities like Boston does. None. I've seen the New York fireworks. They're big, but that's all they are. And they don't have the Pops. So there.

But here's the thing: While I love the fact that the whole country gets to watch some of the show, I do think the national broadcast is what's wrong with July 4th in Boston. And being there to watch live brought this home for me. National audiences see so little of the Pops concert. In essence, they see the Pops play "backing band" for whoever the special guest is. They see the lame patriotic sing-a-long. And yes, they get the "Stars and Stripes Forever," including 3 of my favorite minutes of the year, but because the whole night now is geared around this national broadcast, it sorta ruins the rest of the concert.

Used to be that the "1812 Overture" was the penultimate number. Now it's in the middle, with only a small section replayed for the whole country, and it's anticlimactic. The headliner gets more attention, with the Pops playing second fiddle. And the commercials — the excessive commercials — cut into the flow of the concert, and kill the momentum.

Or so it seems. During the commercial breaks, that's when the real Pops music is played. Last night we heard the Pops' versions of "Sweet Caroline" and "Shipping Up to Boston," plus the theme from E.T., among other numbers, during the commercials.

Don't get me wrong: I really enjoyed last night's concert and fireworks. The Pops were good, Martina McBride sounded great, and the fireworks were incredible. Song choices may have been obvious (Katy Perry's "Firework?" Owl City's "Fireflies?"), but some of the fireworks themselves — like the ones during "Firework" that burst and then burst a little bit faster — were very cool.

Why can't the national broadcast be extended by 30 minutes so the rest of the country can see and hear more of the good stuff? It does a disservice to the Pops and to audiences, both at home and along the Charles. Sure, there's nothing that compares to being there to watch the Pops and see the fireworks live. Watching on TV is never a close second choice option. But it could be better, and I hope some day it is.

Summer in Michigan City

Growing up in suburban New York, I never thought that one day I'd get really excited about spending July 4 in Michigan City, Indiana. But after going there last year and having a great time, that's what's happened. So that's why I went to Chicago this weekend. Thursday and Friday I wandered around town (about 6 miles of walking, in fact), took a day trip to Evanston to see Northwestern (just for fun), checked out two of Chicago's leading cupcake places (Molly's and Sweet Mandy B's — both of which were tasty, but not as good as the hype), had some custom-made rapid-frozen ice cream at a place called iCream (really, that's its name), and finally got to meet my friends' daughter, who is totally cute. But spending the weekend in Lake Michigan was the highlight of the trip.

Like last year (and every other year), there was Drunken Salami (i.e.: salami that's been marinating in Scotch and Russian dressing for months, and then grilled — yum), beach time, sun, an awesome sunset, fireworks on the beach, a bonfire, s'mores, good friends, and a good time. "Chuck Wagon" was there, as were some other folks I had met last year. A bunch of young kids added extra excitement to this year's festivities. Oh yeah, and we also stopped at Dairy Queen on the way home. Can't go to Michigan City without doing that. It's been nice to be included in this traditional gathering now for two years, and it's no exaggeration to say that I'm already looking forward to next year's celebration. (And this is coming from a guy who used to think there was no better place for July 4th than Boston. How times have changed.)

Overall, like trips to Chicago in the past, this was a great one. Beautiful weather (alright, fine, maybe it was a little too hot), I went to went to favorite places (like the Bean), saw and did some new things too, and came home thinking I should go back more often. And as a bonus, I came home with a tan! So yeah, a good time had by all.

Want to see pictures?
Chicago and Evanston
Weekend in Michigan City

It Never Lets Me Down

I say it every time I go there, but it's true: Chicago is my kind of town. And my trip over the past few days was definitely one of the best yet. Sure, I do some of the same things whenever I'm in the Windy City (hello, Bean), but I haven't had the same agenda twice. There's always something new and different to do. For example, although I'd been to the Sears Tower — ahem, I mean the Willis Tower — before, this trip I got to experience the Ledge, which you've seen me mention on this blog. Suffice it to say, it didn't disappoint. I mean, it's not like the Ledge is an action-packed thrill ride or anything — in fact, it's kind of just there, with no extra signage or anything — but it is pretty cool, and given that I went on a day with perfect weather, it made for a fun time and some great pictures. That was definitely a highlight of the trip.

Also a highlight was my first trip to the friendly confines of Wrigley Field, where I saw the Cubbies beat the Milwaukee Brewers. It was a much more low-key experience going to a game at Wrigley, which I say because it was an afternoon game and though we had seats in the upper deck (section 516), Andrew and I moved around a bit and were able to sit in various seats in the field box and 100 levels. You can't do something like that at Fenway; there are too many ushers there, and the games are always sold out, with nary an empty seat to be found. Other "new" things for me this trip were a trip down the Chicago River on an architectural boat tour, experiencing the chaos of the Taste of Chicago, watching the fireworks on Yuntiff (i.e., the night before the holiday, on July 3), and a few trips on the El. And of course, I took plenty of pictures while I was there; you can see them here.

The reason I went out this week, though, was because I was invited to Andrew's wife Rachel's family's beach house on Lake Michigan ... in Michigan City, Indiana (which, I learned after the fact, is not a red state). There are many longstanding traditions at the house, including labeling your plastic cup and not getting another all weekend, the serving of Drunken Salami (i.e., salami that's been marinated for a couple months in Scotch and Russian dressing) and the awarding of a Salami King/Queen, and a great bonfire on the beach with family-bought and family-lit fireworks. It was an awesome time. You know how I feel about being in Boston on the Fourth, but I have to say, sitting there on the beach Saturday night watching all the fireworks going off (not just ours), and having a sing-along with the gang, after eating delicious barbecue, playing some beach volleyball, and watching an amazing sunset, I decided this was a perfect Fourth of July. (Though full disclosure: I had the Boston Pops' "Stars and Stripes Forever" on my iPhone and I played it around the same time they were playing it at the Hatch Shell.) And as if the weekend couldn't get any better, one other tradition is a stop at the local Dairy Queen on the way home. Yum. If you'd like to see pictures of just the Fourth of July weekend, click here (Note: it's a separate album from the other Chicago pics).

And now the vacation is over. As the song says, "Each time I leave, Chicago is / Tuggin my sleeve." True enough. Chicago is one town that never lets me down. I can't wait to go back.

Ain't Nothing Like the Fourth

I don't know where you are right now when you're reading this, but in Boston, it's hard to believe it's July 4 already. Maybe you've heard how awful the weather has been. Rain, chilly temperatures, very little sun. It's enough to make a person flee the city. Judging by the weather, we should probably only be in April, or early May. Definitely not halfway through the summer.

But let's forget all that for a day, shall we? After all, good weather or not, it's July 4th. The Fourth of July. Independence Day. One of my favorite days of the year (after my birthday and Christmas, probably number three). When it comes to July 4th, I'm a very traditional guy. I love barbecues, the Boston Pops, and fireworks (and a Red Sox win would be great too). In fact, few things reliably give me chills of happiness and bring a smile to my face like that moment during the annual Pops concert at the Hatch Shell when the Pops come to the end of "Stars and Stripes Forever" and the flag unfurls and the confetti flies and the first few fireworks go off. That, to me, is the Fourth of July in a nutshell, and it doesn't get any better than that.

So, no matter where you are today, no matter how good the weather is, I hope you have a very happy Fourth of July, and that come 10:20 p.m. or so (Eastern time), you'll be listening to the Pops do their thing and will enjoy it as much as I do.

Ain't That America

I sure hope I'm not the only one who still gets chills every year when the Boston Pops hits the final verse of "Stars and Stripes Forever" and the flag unfurls from the top of the Hatch Shell and the confetti shoots out from the machines on the sides of the Esplanade. It's a fantastic, only-in-Boston moment, five of my favorite minutes of the year, and it never ceases to excite me year after year after year. My only real regret about the Pops show this year (and every year) is that the national audience doesn't get to see and hear more of it. I'd love for CBS to start their broadcast at 9:30 instead of 10, so more folks can enjoy the great music — and not just the special guest and the lame, cheesy Patriotic Sing-Along. I also wish there were fewer commercial breaks between the songs, but hey, musicians that good deserve their breaks.

And those fireworks? Awesome, as always. Colors bright enough to light up the entire sky. Booms loud enough to be heard out by B.C. "Nessun Dorma" was beautiful. "I'm Shipping Up to Boston" was predictable but fun. And that finale? Wow. I'm such a sucker for fireworks, and the Boston ones do it for me each and every year.

Combine it with a fun BBQ at Farry and Barrah's, and another big Red Sox win over the Yankees, and the only thing I have to say is: What a great day to be in Boston. What a great day to be an American. Happy July Fourth!