@#%*’n Weather!
By Dan on Dec 11, 2007 in Blog, Family, Music
Right now, we should be in transit.
We don’t do much holiday-wise that doesn’t include the kids, but this year was going to be different.
Aimee Mann is bringing her Christmas show to the Vic in Chicago tonight. We had tickets. We had hotel reservations at a nice place a half block away from the concert venue. We had recommendations for places to eat and places to enjoy a nice pre-show ale. We had babysitting.
Now, all is lost.
The threat of perilous weather in Chicago and the fear that we might end up stranded compelled us to make the responsible parental decision and cancel the trip.
You know, I’m a rational person. I wouldn’t normally harbor suspicions that weather events were being used to conspire against us to fulfill some sort of vendetta. But consider this.
My wife trains for five months to run the Chicago Marathon and fulfill a dream, and then on the big day, unseasonably high temperatures cause the cancellation of the race.
And now, a trip to Chicago to see one of my favorite performers of all time, a trip that we had planned since September, is thwarted. By ice! In December!
Someone or something doesn’t want us to experience life’s joys in the Windy City.
Oprah lives in Chicago.
It makes you think, doesn’t it.
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Is Oprah a Red Hatter?
I’m admittedly not familiar with the Aimee Mann catalog, but I did enjoy her work in “The Big Lebowski.” Her toe, too.
Anonymous Communist | Dec 12, 2007 | Reply
Argh. That SUCKS. I really really empathize. And I fully subscribe to your conspiracy theory.
You were going to be four blocks from my humble abode and you didn’t ask MOI for my beverage and food recommendations?
Kath | Dec 12, 2007 | Reply
Oh, and by the way: WILCO. Five shows, five nights, February. At the Riviera. Presale tix on sale Friday via WilcoWorld.net. Plebian fans can buy them Saturday. I’m all over it!
Kath | Dec 12, 2007 | Reply
Kath,
I guess I still think of you being in the Big Apple, that’s why I didn’t seek for restaurant advice.
I’d love to see Wilco again. I saw them a couple of times during the A.M tour, but not since. Have you ever been to the Riveria? What’s it like?
Thanks for commenting,
Dan
Dan | Dec 12, 2007 | Reply
I’m back in Chicago and here to stay, so any time you need Windy City info, feel free!
The Riv is a great place to see a show. It’s an old theatre, so a lot of the time you can stand on the floor in front of the stage if your ticket allows. It’s a small, intimate sort of venue.
Definitely sign up for WilcoWorld so you can get in on the presale. Just go to wilcoworld.net, and I think you can click on the links to get on the email list, which in turn will put you into the presale thing on Friday morning.
Kath | Dec 12, 2007 | Reply
Hey Dan, I remembered that you had to cancel your trip to Chicago for Aimee Mann last year’s Xmas show. Not to gloat but I just saw the Christmas Show monday night at the Birchmere in VA. Overall it was pretty good. The comedian/emcee was awful though – just not funny and went on and on and on. Grant Lee Phillips was really good (especially his impersonation of Willie Nelson covering “Voices Carry”) and the drunken Hanukkah Fairy was very funny. There was a funny Dickensian video spoof of Aimee/California with John C Reilly, Michael Cera (as Tiny Tim) et. al. Nellie McKay has a great voice and was funny as well. Although a appreciate the effort of putting the Christmas special together and her ability to laugh at herself but Aimee’s role was mostly deadpan schtick and for my money – ticket was $50 – I would rather have just seen a regular Aimee Mann show.
Doug D | Dec 17, 2008 | Reply
I just went to her website and she has a bunch of home madde videos. This is the first one I saw. I don’t know who the other woman in the video is but she is “the Hanukkah Fairy” from the Christmas special. Is she just some friend of Aimee?
http://www.aimeemann.com/media.php?vid=9
Doug D | Dec 17, 2008 | Reply
Thanks for bringing up such a bad memory. I had to eat those tickets, although the hotel did late me cancel without penalty even though I didn’t give them 24-hour notice. Anyway, I’m glad that you got to enjoy the show.
The girl in the video is Morgan Murphy, an LA comedienne. I don’t know much about her.
Aimee stayed on the coasts this year and didn’t have any Midwest dates for the Christmas show. I agree that I’d probably rather just see her in concert. The one time I did see her it was with the Boston Pops, which was great, but I really want to see her do a full concert with her band.
Are you planning any trips to Springfield this winter? Sarah Borges is playing here on Jan. 26. It’s going to be a great show.
Dan | Dec 17, 2008 | Reply