Me: Hey guys, nice sign.

American Demolition Corp: Yep. Pretty sweet.

Me: I just noticed that that’s not actually an email address, it’s a web address.

American Demolition Corp: CRASH! Sorry, just demolishing things over here. Yeah, we’ve totally got e-mail. We’re Breaking Into The Future!

Me: No, I said that’s not an email. In fact, it looks like you’ve let your domain registration expire, so it’s just a bunch of ads for other companies.

American Demolition Corp: BOOM! What? I can’t hear you over our explosions.

Me: Nevermind. Have fun with the blowing things up!

Nobody? I don’t know if I’d brag about that…

Whew. I haven’t been in my metblog account in what feels like an eternity. Turns out that exploring Chicago and settling in takes longer than I anticipated.

I’ve been doing a lot of things Chicago-related. Just in the past three weeks, I’ve gotten new ink at Chicago Tattoo and Piercing Company, discovered some amazing food, and seen some great shows.  I’ll save the food and shows for other posts, since I’m a bit backed up. But right now, let’s talk about my tat!

A few weeks ago, when a friend was in town for her birthday, we decided we were going to get tattoos. Kind of an impulse, I know, but it was something I had been thinking about for a while.

I made some calls and was referred to The Chicago Tattooing and Piercing Company (1017 W. Belmont). We hopped on the bus and headed south, and when we walked in the door, we were pleased with our decision.

The business is very clean and professional looking (unlike the place where I got my first tattoo) and the man who did my tattoo (Mike) was lovely. He was patient with me, and he explained everything he was doing as he went along. He even talked me out of getting it on a specific part of my body, because the quality would be bad. He didn’t have to do that, and I know a lot of 19-22 year-old girls that are proof positive that not every tattoo artist does do that!

The whole thing, which I’ll post a picture of just as soon as I have a functional camera, only took about 20 minutes and was fairly cheap….as far as tattoos go, anyhow.

So, if you’re itching for some ink, and I know you all are (right??), head over to the Chicago Tattooing and Piercing Company.  If nothing else, they won’t let you get a bad tattoo….

May I brag for a minute? By some cosmic twist, a reticent, relatively unambitious blogger (me) has become co-producer of arguably the best alternative stand-up showcase in Chicago (Chicago Underground Comedy).

Every Tuesday night, our show features four of our performers and two or three guests, including other promising up-and-comers in the Chicago stand-up talent pool, returning Chicago friends have found success on the coasts, and sometimes, comedy heroes whose resumes and upcoming projects are enough to make us stutter with awe when they take our stage.

Night before last we had what may be the strongest show we’ve ever produced. The lineup included our hugely creative and talented castmembers Dan Telfer (my co-producer, and a sometime contributor to this site), Sean Flannery, Prescott Tolk, and Adam Burke, and our pal Hannibal Buress, who’s dashing between appearances on Comedy Central’s Live at Gotham, Chicago Public Radio’s 848, the Craig Ferguson Show and a featured spot in the upcoming DC Comedy Festival.

Then there was the guest lineup, that had our packed house falling out of their chairs.

Get this: former Saturday Night Live writer Michael McCarthy (who’s moving to LA to write a pilot for Showtime), Chicago native Jimmy Dore, who’s about to have his first one-hour special on Comedy Central, and our pal John Roy, who comes home to Chicago every so often to sharpen up his bits for his latest Jay Leno or Craig Ferguson appearance.

Check out this ten minute highlight reel (edited by yours truly). If you’re at work, watch the audio, though, since the show included a tribute to George Carlin’s “Seven Words” bit (and because we’re comedians) there are a few naughty words included.

If you like what you see, pop into our show some Tuesday at the Beat Kitchen (2100 W. Belmont). It’s well worth the $5.

With consumer goods prices burgeoning and my “still somewhat timid freelance writer” schtick not yet helping me rake large piles of cash into my wallet, I’ve been looking for more ways to cut costs.

Having sold my Ford Explorer (did I really drive that thing?) before I moved from Indiana to Chicago not long ago, I’m not feeling the pinch at the pump like you auto-owning Chicagoans are, but these days I’m riding my bike as much to save myself the $1.75 on the CTA as to get some fun summertime cardio.

I’ve been cutting my own hair. I’ve been sneaking snacks into the movies. I’ve been bringing my own food with me whenever I leave the house.

And I’ve been forgoing the convenience and selection of the Andersonville Jewel for the vastly cheaper and more interesting Edgewater Produce (5509 N. Clark St., near Bryn Mawr), a small Mexican grocery store right across the street from Jewel. Some prices might slowly be creeping up — the cheapest eggs have jumped from $.99 to $1.29 — but the produce and Mexican staples are cheap and delicious. They also have a small but nice baked goods selection, cheap tofu (if you swing that way), and a delightful assortment of strange and delicious Mexican candies and treats.

And while I go mostly for things like the bulk dried fruit and trail mix-type snack selection, even my boyfriend the foodie (who uses strange and fancy gadgets like skillets and spatulas) is happy with the selection of meats, veggies, and the colorful array of ethnic sauces and spices that populate the shelves there.

And the best part — the eagle-eyed shopper will spot little snapshots of comedy embedded in the Edgewater Produce experience, like the labels on the bulk foods. Exactly which pointy rice snack makes the “fancy Oriental mix” fancy? Does the energy in the “energy mix” come from the fake M&M’s? And how much of my RDA of ape-liciousness will I get from a half cup of “banana chimps?”

- photo by Bryan Bowden

I went to the Lincoln Park Zoo last week. You can see some photos of the trip in my set here. But what I’m most interested in is this sign right here:

The animals can turn invisible!!! I think I’ll start my own zoo and have a bunch of empty cages with this sign on each one.

Legendarily irascible comics (and novel) author Warren Ellis will be appearing at Wizard World Chicago (out in Rosemont) on Friday at 9 pm. The event is free and you don’t need a convention ticket to attend. If we’re lucky, he’ll bite the head off a cosplayer or something. (Thank or blame Avatar Press for setting the thing up.)

Ron Chester traces the saying “You can fool some of the people all of the time, and all of the people some of the time, but you can’t fool all of the people all of the time” back from a Bob Dylan lyric to an 1858 lecture in Bloomington, Illinois by Abraham Lincoln, with stops along the way at Carl Sandburg and Illinois Governor Joseph Fifer.

(via Daring Fireball)

It’s Monday. We’re back at work after a great Chicago summer weekend. What could Monday possibly have for us to enjoy? How about this:

All you can eat?!?!? I know vegetarians are probably disgusted, and as an omnivore even I’m thinking, “two pieces of bacon should be sufficient.” However, I know that bacon has some ravenous fans that will take up this offer (or challenge).

To find out more head for the Whiskey Road at 1935 N. Damen. Even if “all u can eat bacon” is not your thing, it’s still a nice little bar. They have tasty burgers (beef, turkey, crab, and veggie). It’s also the only place I’ve found that serves one of my favorite foods, fried pickle chips. Plus, Monday is not only “all u can eat bacon”, but also movie night. I go to Whiskey Road on Thursdays at 9pm for a stand-up comedy open mic run by the awesome Chicago comedian Adam Burke (here’s a sample of his stand-up).

Don’t like any of those things? Then draw on the chalk board walls or enjoy some one else’s chalk drawing of the physical embodiment of two euphemisms for self love.

If you go tonight, let me know how much bacon u ate.

Bunz (1134 W Thorndale). Bakery, I think.