I was shopping for several hours on Saturday afternoon, looking for a new winter coat–a little late in the game, I know, but hey.

Anyway, I went back to the Gap to return something but it was too packed to even think about it. As I turned to get ready to go, I saw a woman that was (or looked a hell of a lot like) Alpana Singh of Check Please! fame. I wanted to say hello, and also that I thought her book was full of really helpful information, although a little too “You go, girlfriend!” for my taste. Then I decided that I was a) too unsure if it was actually her, and b) too cranky from all the slow-moving crowds to say howdy. Next time.

Anyone else have any famous [or not-so-famous] celeb sitings in Chicago? They’re not too frequent, but cool just the same.

Every once in a while I experience a moment of deja vu. And ever since 1999, when I have that little frisson of deja vu, I say to myself, “Glitch in the Matrix.” I bet I’m not the only one. In addition to being a groundbreaking special effects movie, the Matrix has embedded itself in our collective consciousness. And if you’d like to find out where the premise came from, check out tonight’s Chicago Public Library lecture at the Bucktown-Wicker Park Branch (1701 N. Milwaukee Ave., 312-744-6022) tonight at 7: “From Plato to Neo: The Philosophy of the Matrix”: “The Matrix was inspired by Plato’s Myth of the Cave and contains many cultural and philosophical references. Lecture with clips presented by Claire Campini, Ph.D.”

Sign up for cell phone spam and you can see Lupe Fiasco for free at the Park West (322 W. Armitage Ave) on November 24.

The incredible “clown theater” group 500 Clown will be presenting their Christmas show, 500 Clown Christmas, again this year at the Storefront Theater (66 E Randolph) from November 17, 2006 to January 6, 2007. The show is physical and musical and interactive and awesome. I still hum songs from the show last year year. And 500 Clown shows always evolve, so even if you saw the show last year, it’ll be different this year. And if you didn’t see it last year, you should.

International Professor of Danger Michael Bérubé was in Chicago for a conference this weekend and the hotel elevator television had been specialized:

[T]he hotel suspended its broadcasts of CNN in the elevators and replaced it with advertising for the anti-cholesterol drug Lipitor. What was especially strange about this was that Lipitor (or Pfizer, or, more accurately, whoever has Pfizer as an ad client) had apparently designed the video advertising specifically for this conference: it consisted entirely of still photos of various Chicago landmarks and those three-ringed Lipitor logos arranged so as to suggest that “Lipitor” was a verb synonymous with “heart,” as in “I Lipitor the Windy City” and “I Lipitor the Buckingham Fountain.”

(Chicago Hot Dog image by Diva Eva)

Fister? Where exactly are they going to put my money?

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Originally uploaded by Sambone.

Alright, I’m cautiously optimistic about the Bear’s Future. While my heart has been broken by the Bears before (far too often it seems) even I’m on the bandwagon. So what’s the consensus people? Are the Bears all that?

Well it’s happened again. A Peoria man was stalked and ultimately run over by his ex-wife. Whatever she was upset about, it didn’t end well for him as he died this morning. I doubt she’ll be seeing the outside of a jail cell anytime soon.

Guys, do you have any ladies in your past that could do anything like that?

Didn’t happen.  Our winner had to move today, and she was far too tired to get back to the city.  So, I did what my favorite commenter, JoJo, recommended and brought a family member.  Since he is not able to drink (legally), I didn’t have any beer either. 

Unfortunately, none of my pictures turned out; however Flickr has some great shots (which i did not post because they’re not CC).  Without further ado, here’s my opinion of the show:

Technorati Tags: Concert, contest, Music, TheDecemberists

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