Herb Alpert and Jilly Moose's Birthday Bash

 

Yesterday Travalon and I headed down to Chicago, stopping in Rockford for lunch. I thought we should have Mexican to celebrate Mexican Independence Day, but Rockford is the only place we know where you can eat at the Beefaroo, so we went there. When we got to Chicago, we checked into our hotel and then went to the Lincoln Park Zoo, but it was inexplicably closed early. We weren't the only confused people, and there weren't even people lingering inside of it, so maybe something happened? We went for a walk on a boardwalk around a pond that seems to be part of the zoo, and there were two weddings going on beside the pond. Here is a photo of one.

Here are some more photos showing the pond and boardwalk.

We had dinner at an Australian restaurant that only sold meat pies and Australian soda, but they were delicious. It didn't have a bathroom, and it barely had any seating, but there was one table outside, so we ate there. Then we went to a beautiful bar full of fish tanks for fancy cocktails. Mine had gin and green chartreuse in it. Travalon took a photo, but he hasn't sent it to me yet, so watch for that. We saw so many trucks with Mexican flags flying because of the holiday, but we didn't even have Mexican cocktails. I don't particularly like tequila.

The reason we went to Chicago was to see Herb Alpert. Everyone said, "He's still around???" and yes, he's 88, but he played and sang, and so did his wife of 50 years. She did some Brazilian songs, and he did a medley of Tijuana Brass hits, then he and the band did some other stuff, like a long jam on "Fly Me to the Moon" and "Puttin' on the Ritz" and for an encore, "Copacabana." It was a great show in a historic old theater called the Vic - as Herb Alpert said, "I love playing in places that are older than I am!" He told quite a few funny stories. There was an obnoxious drunk guy hollering from the back, which was annoying because it was a more intimate venue and Herb Alpert could hear him. Sometimes he answered him with good humor, and sometimes he just ignored him. I'm so glad we got to see him live! Here are some photos of the interesting backdrops he had.

This morning we went to Mass at a church near our hotel, and they didn't do the Creed! Is that allowed? They did a blessing of the catechists, but it didn't include any renewal of baptismal vows, and then they launched right into the Prayers of the People. Also, during the Gospel reading, a very fidgety altar boy stood holding a candle right in front of the altar - I've never seen that before. On the way back to the hotel was a Turkish Restaurant called One Thousand Tales, so we went there for a wonderful brunch. Next door was a Turkish grocery store, so we got some pomegranate and pistachio Turkish delight for tonight's party. Then we headed back to Madison, listening to the Packer game.

The Packers seemed to be doing very well in Atlanta, so we missed the fourth quarter and went to the Willy Street Fair. We got baobab shakes and duck fat fries, and I got a citrine crystal that looks like orange sherbet and vanilla ice cream swirled together. Here is a photo from the Fair:

This is not atypical of what people wear to the Fair. It's a time to be as extra as you want and get your freak on. Though most people don't wear such elaborate costumes, I'd say nobody's dressed for work. Meanwhile, the Packers had blown it in the fourth quarter and lost by one point, but still I'd say it was a respectable game against a tough opponent on the road. 

We had to hurry back for my Irish class. Am I rusty! And everyone gets on my case for not going to all the Irish classes and stuff that they all go to. As a committed dilattente, I just don't have the time to get so into things like other people do. They always want you to go to ALL the stuff and become an expert, whether it's the Irish language or the ukulele or whatever. How am I supposed to learn everything if I actually have to focus on getting good at just one thing?

In the evening we went to Rich's house for Jilly Moose's birthday party. There were at least two dozen people there, and a lot of people had brought stuff, so there was a lot of stuff. Rich had made lasagna, and Jilly Moose brought garlic bread, and there were all sorts of salads. For dessert there was a Black Magic birthday cake for Jilly Moose, and the guy who always brings fabulous desserts also made an incredible berry pie. Anna Banana II and her husband were also there, because tomorrow they are heading back to North Dakota. It was so good to see them! Jilly Moose got all sorts of presents, including a stuffed camel from Luxuli and Prairie Man and a card from the Dairyman's Daughter with a rhino on it, prompting R Van the Terrible to wonder if Jilly Moose was branching out from moose. Not that we know of... Here is a photo of the moose she got at the Packer Pro Shop and named Reggie, after Reggie White, the Minister of Defense:

Sorry, no photo of our dragon yet. It doesn't have a name yet, either. I thought Travalon might come up with one, but while he seemed delighted with the dragon and said how cute it was, he didn't suggest a name for it. I'll see if I can think of one myself.

Famous Hat