it's a swell season.

the swell season, chicago theater, sunday, june 15th

okay, so, i won't even attempt to describe how much i loved this show. they are so talented. and glen hansard has a graceful, unpredictable stage presence. both him & marketa paused before each new song, to whisper something to each other, or to describe for several minutes what they felt the song was about. at the end, after their microphones were turned off -- and after their encore -- the whole band played a song together, as loud as they could to be heard by everyone still in the theater. they skipped up & down the aisles, and it looked as though they were mentally straining themselves to leave the stage.

rockin' out

new song: "loved you wrong"video: glen talking about where he's played in chicago over the years. he talked more than any other lead singer i've ever seen perform. after this, he went on to play "hoover-fixer-upper guy", and then did a van morrison cover during which i thought he was going to break his guitar, which he had to stop & tune mid-song (during many songs), several times.

i loved it. that's all. good night.

soldier field 10-mile.

back on may 24, 2008, i raced the Soldier Field 10-Mile.

conor was able to catch me on the jumbo-screen.
i cross between seconds 12 & 14. so cool! my final time was 1:53:42.

after the race.
so tired, but so happy!

early.

i enjoy being awake at this time on a warm, sunny morning. the day obviously doesn't realize just how early it is, with it being so bright.

Do you want to go for a walk?

Lars and the Real Girl
I absolutely adored this movie. Something about the colorful music, and the sweet, sad acceptance of the townspeople for Lars and his state of mind, and the way that Lars would whisper and smile at his female companion was so warm, so believable. The movie makes you ache for him and that piece of yourself that you will undoubtedly recognize in his character.

i watched the stars fall silent from your eyes.

R.E.M.

Friday night I saw The National, Modest Mouse, and R.E.M. at the United Center.

A few notes:
1. The National is amazing. They've got it.
2. Modest Mouse doesn't like to play to the crowd. I left still wanting to hear my favorite songs.
3. Michael Stipes is one of the best performers I've ever seen. R.E.M. felt so real; Stipes forgot the lyrics to a few songs, talked to the crowd, and did the robot, several times. My favorites to hear live were Electrolite, The Great Beyond, and The One I Love.

take the death cab downtown.

a gray chicago day turned into a hauntingly beautiful, hazy evening underneath the awning of Jay Pritzer Pavilion. i watched ben gibbard bounce on the heels of his feet as he played his guitar. fog floated in patches between the skyscrapers and purple neon lights darted from the stage to the crowd. it was perfect. it was chicago.

View from underneath the open air lawn. I was in the pavilion.

I didn't take this photo. I was probably sitting somewhere near the left hand corner.

Hello, this is Lisa.

After 10 months, I finally did the inevitable... I set up my voice mail.

Now, when you dial me, you may get 1 of 4 options.

*ring*
Lisa [pause] Doyle.

*ring*
You have reached Lisa Doyle, copyeditor at Q. Please leave your name and message.

*ring*
You have reached Lisa Doyle. I am on the other line.

*ring*
You have reached Lisa Doyle. Except, I'm not here.

I love book stores in German villages.