Lunas 18, 27.

CONCEPT

COMMENTS:
- We hit eighty-nine yesterday.
- I stayed at work unexpectedly late... 5:45... but the day didn't end as lousily as it began.
- I don't think I've ever ridden a CTA bus so crowded. I counted 100 exactly, including the bus driver, but there might have been a few I missed. The eight or so clustered in the stopway were so tight that they remained standing through the bumps and jounces only as a result of cooperative friction. Of course, when I got off at Ardmore, three more 147s, all more-or-less empty, chugged through the same light cycle.
- I took a forty-five minute nap, interrupted by a fire truck shrieking at some motorists to clear the way. Sam left, heading to Bill's.
- I fixed a lemon/garlic chicken dish with rice and pinto beans for Cody, Jun, and myself. It turned out alright, though not very lemony.
- (I don't know if I reported with sufficient detail yesterday. Cody is my brother, and Jun his girlfriend from Japan (Kyoto specifically). She's visiting for a week and they decided to spend several days in Chicago.) They got me a Japanese outfit... I cannot recall the actual name, but it's a sort of baggy pants and gown, both in a warm, reedy color, and beautiful.
- Then, we all got in the Lumina and drove down to the HotHouse to hear Yoko Noge and the Jazz Me Blues Band, quite a deal at $7 cover and free parkings. Last night's crowd was a lot more lean than last time, at least in terms of numbers and noise. I preferred the more intimate experience; Cody and Jun and I sat at a booth, and we were eventually joined by Jess. I got us each a drink, and Yoko announced us to the crowd along with half the rest of the audience because we were from "out of town," (even if I, at this point, am reasonably not). They played a traditional Japanese stringed instrument, which was played with a fan-like bow and tuned throughout with three tuning pins at the top. I don't know anything about Japanese music, but the easiest description I can give is that of an elongated banjo. Shortly, the musician shifted into a blues riff, which Yoko joined herself at the piano. Then her playing became boogie woogie, and all Hell broke loose.
- The dancing was shattering and intimidating. Typical.
- Afterwards, I offered Jess a ride home, and she invited us in for ice cream. Once we'd eaten, Cody and Jun and I meandered our way back north, trailing through some of Chicago's more compelling neighborhoods: Bronzeville, Chinatown, the South Loop and Loop (along Wells and Wacker), the Mag Mile, the Gold Coast, Lincoln Park, Lakeview and Wrigleyville, Uptown, and back home Edgewater Beach. After an initial failure to find a single parking spot as far away as Granville (about a 10-15 minute walk) we stumbled upon a glorious spot less than half-a-block from my apartment.
- In the end, I got shy of four hours sleep last night. But it was one of the most worthwhile staying-up-lates I can recall recently.
- This morning, of course, I can't keep my eyes open.
- Weather? Absolutely nothing. Except boiling heat, roiling humidity, and possibly massive thunderstorms.
- And then there's the "News of the Day."

COUNTRY OF THE DAY
Nigeria.

WORD OF THE DAY
Betimes.

NEWS OF THE DAY
The New York Times: General Motors to Cut 25,000 Jobs.

PICTURE OF THE DAY
The '36 - '37 Flint Sitdown Strike: Passing Food. Walter P. Reuther Library.

QUESTION OF THE DAY
From Whet. What are five musicians / groups you think more people should listen to?