2014 list
SHOWS:
24Jan2014 XAmbassadors, The Colourist, Panic! at the Disco, LC Pavilion, Columbus
25Jan2014 XAmbassadors, The Colourist, Panic! at the Disco, Bogart's, Cincinnati
26Jan2014 XAmbassadors, The Colourist, Panic! at the Disco, House of Blues, Cleveland
11Feb2014 Junior Prom, The Colourist, Panic! at the Disco, House of Blues, Houston
12Feb2014 Junior Prom, The Colourist, Panic! at the Disco, Emo's Austin
28Feb2014 Carbon Tigers, Empires @ Township
8Mar2014 The Drowning Men, Flogging Molly @ Aragon
23April2014 Butch Walker/Petty Fest @ Metro
4June2014 Hannah Thomas and the Indigo Girls @ HOB-Chicago
11June2014 Elvis Costello @ Copernicus Center
5July2014 Sarah McLachlan @ Ravinia
11July2014 New Politics, Paramore, Fall Out Boy @ Tinley Park
21July2014 Andrew McMahon, Gavin DeGraw, Matt Nathanson @ Ravinia
24July2014 Soundgarden & NIN @ Tinley Park
25July2014 Magic Man, Walkthemoon, Panic! at the Disco @ FirstMerit Bank Pavilion
10Aug2014 a bunch of bands at Northalsted Market Days
16Aug2014 The Dillinger Escape Plan, Soundgarden, NIN @ CWMP
3Sept2014 empires @ JBTV
12-14Sept2014 Riotfest @ Humboldt Park (The Offspring, The Cure, The National, Rise Against, Weezer, etc)
26Sept2014 empires @ W Hotel
27Sept2014 Cage the Elephant & The Black Keys @ United Center
16Oct2014 Cory Branan, Against Me, The Gaslight Anthem @ Aragon
31Oct-2Nov 2014 Voodoo Experience, NOLA City Park. Foo Fighters, Rise Against, Trombone Shorty, Rebirth Brass Band, etc.
1Dec2014 Royal Blood, Rise Against @ HOB
27Dec2014 Minor Characters, Wavepool, Empires @ Lincoln Hall
30Dec2014 Frank Wala, Billy the Kid, Laura Jane Grace (Against Me) @ Double Door
MOVIES:
RED2
Kickass 2
The LEGO Movie
Oz The Great & Powerful
Blackfish
Captain America: The Winter Soldier
Maleficent
Wolverine
Thor: The Dark World
The East
Riddick
Guardians of the Galaxy
The Maze Runner
Hellbenders
The Hobbit: Battle of the Five Armies
TV:
Archer (continued)
Agents of SHIELD (continued)
Grimm (continued)
Penny Dreadful
Orphan Black
BOOKS:
419, Will Ferguson
The Good Lord Bird, James McBride
Cat of the Century, Rita Mae and Sneaky Pie Brown (Would not have read this on my own, received as a gift; tired of the trope that country folks are smarter and less venal and somehow more virtuous than city folk, and the author's bullshit speeches about how young people today are uncivil; taxes are the root of all evil; complaining that air travel & computers are to blame for global warming and health problems while not addressing that a main character uses as 1978 truck as her form of daily transport, NOT A FUEL EFFICIENT VEHICLE, irked me. DONE with the hypocrisy.)
Divergent, Veronica Roth
Insurgent, Veronica Roth
Allegiant, Veronica Roth (So much better drawn than The Hunger Games, less rocks-fall-people-die, but the alternating POV in the final book gives away part of the ending.)
Things We Set On Fire, Deborah Reed
Buddha In The Attic, Julie Otsuka (wow, depressing)
Garment of Shadows, Laurie R. King
Who Cooked The Last Supper? The Women's History of the World, Rosalind Miles (genetics isn't quite correct; the sad thing is that the last chapter (reproductive rights) is still stagnant, given the current legislative barrage)
The Rented Mule, Bobby Cole (DNF; head-jumping POV in each chapter, unsympathetic to essentially all the POV characters; CBA)
My Notorious Life, Kate Manning (historical fiction; based on the life of Ann Trow Lohman, ladies' physician in NYC in the 19th century, victim of the Comstock fuckery)
Hellions: Pop Culture's Rebel Women, Maria Raha
A King's Ransom, Sharon Kay Penman (the end of the Lionheart trilogy)
Concealed In Death, JD Robb (meh)
The Maze Runner, James Dashner
Death on Blackheath, Anne Perry
Breakaway: The Inside Story of the Pittsburgh Penguins' Rebirth, Andrew Conte (Would the Penguins be the same in KC or Houston? Would Sidney Crosby be the same without Mario Lemieux as a mentor, and then with other management perhaps rushing him back from his TBI?)
The Scorch Trials, James Dashner
Helmet for my Pillow, Robert Leckie
The Death Cure, James Dashner
Dragon's Triangle, Christine Kling (Part of a trilogy; obtained as a free Amazon Prime for Kindle book; this definitely would have made 150% more sense if I’d known it was part of a series before I picked it out, doesn’t stand alone as well at all.)
Salt: A World History, Mark Kurlansky
Three Strong Women, Marie NDiaye (Uh. Maybe it was better in its original French? Some of the imagery was a little over the top for my taste.)
Skin Games, Jim Butcher (Dear author: you think you are making Harry not creepy, but description of his apprentices 'assets' and his praised self-denial for not noticing them is actually worse)
The Empty Quarter, David L Robbins (I think this is part of a series, but it can be read alone and still make sense.)
The Seventh Child, Erik Valeur (DNF; narration changes between one primary narrator and the other seven children plus the matron, drags a little bit; feels like it’s trying to follow in the new Scandanavian thriller tradition but doesn’t quite manage it)
The Fracking King, James Browning
A Literation: TL:DR To: Long Distance Relationships
Let Me Go, Chelsea Cain (is this the end of Archie's story? I can only hope)
Magic Breaks, Ilona Andrews (terribly copy-editing; consistency issues within the book and within the series)
The Kid: A Season with Sidney Crosby and the New NHL, Shawna Richer
A Cold and Broken Hallelujah, Tyler Dilts
The Seven Wonders, Steven Saylor (backstory for Gordianus the Finder AT LAST)
Innocent Blood, James Rollins & Rebecca Cantrell
Fives & Twenty-fives, Michael Pitre
Festive In Death, JD Robb (copy editor needs to be better wrt consistency through a series this long; also needs to stop La Nora from overuse of some words she clearly likes)
The Moor’s Account, Laila Lalami
As You Wish, Cary Elwes
The Game: The 30th Anniversary Edition, Ken Dryden (man, he's oblivious to race and privilege)
Hockey Confidential, Bob McKenzie (NGL, I've re-read the chapter/interview of Brandon Prust since reading the Boogaard book)
Foxglove Summer, Ben Aaronovitch (I hope the US version is better edited wrt to punctuation than the UK version I read)
The Goldfinch, Donna Tartt (DNF; do not care for the narrator AT ALL, which makes the first person narration utterly abhorrent for me as a reader)
Boy on Ice: The Life and Death of Derek Boogaard, John Branch
Still not finished: Jeremy Scahill’s Dirty Wars: The World Is A Battlefield
SPORTS:
Edmonton Oilers vs. Chicago Blackhawks 12Jan2014
Rockford IceHogs vs. Chicago Wolves 18Jan2014
Iowa Wild vs. Chicago Wolves 1Feb2014
Texas Stars vs. Chicago Wolves 15Mar2014
Rockford IceHogs vs. Chicago Wolves 21Mar2014
Milwaukee Admirals vs. Chicago Wolves 19April2014
Rochester Amerks vs Chicago Wolves 1May2014
Toronto Marlies vs Chicago Wolves, 10May2014
Mn Wild vs. Chicago Blackhawks, 11May2014
Baltimore O’s vs. Chicago Cubs, 23Aug2014
Habs vs. Chicago Blackhawks, 1Oct2014
Chicago Wolves vs. Charlotte Checkers, 11Oct2014
Chicago Wolves vs. Lake Erie Monsters, 18Oct2014
Chicago Wolves vs. Iowa Wild, 22Nov2014
Chicago Wolves vs. Rockford IceHogs, 23Nov2014
Chicago Wolves vs. Rockford IceHogs, 29Nov2014
Mn Wild vs. Chicago Blackhawks, 16Dec2014
Ottawa Senators vs. Washington Capitals, 21Dec2014
PLAYS:
Gypsy, Chicago Shakespeare Theatre (the actress who played Rose was amazing)
Russian Transport, Steppenwolf Theatre (creepy, so creepy)
Venus In Fur, Goodman Theatre (meh)
RESTAURANTS:
(because I decided we needed to stop going to the same one all the time, and try new ones)
Longman & Eagle
Cicchetti
Mitan del Mundo
Rosebud on Rush
Nomi
Silver Spoon Thai
D4
Webster’s Wine Bar
The Harding Tavern
Howells & Hood
90 Miles
Table, Donkey & Stick
Reno
The Radler
Arruzzo Eno
Taco Joint
Logan Bar & Grill
Farmhouse
Perennial Virant
Letizia’s Fiore
The Capital Grille
Davanti Enoteca
Local Root
Alewife
Jaleo
Cafe Poupon
Monkey’s Paw
Beatrix
24Jan2014 XAmbassadors, The Colourist, Panic! at the Disco, LC Pavilion, Columbus
25Jan2014 XAmbassadors, The Colourist, Panic! at the Disco, Bogart's, Cincinnati
26Jan2014 XAmbassadors, The Colourist, Panic! at the Disco, House of Blues, Cleveland
11Feb2014 Junior Prom, The Colourist, Panic! at the Disco, House of Blues, Houston
12Feb2014 Junior Prom, The Colourist, Panic! at the Disco, Emo's Austin
28Feb2014 Carbon Tigers, Empires @ Township
8Mar2014 The Drowning Men, Flogging Molly @ Aragon
23April2014 Butch Walker/Petty Fest @ Metro
4June2014 Hannah Thomas and the Indigo Girls @ HOB-Chicago
11June2014 Elvis Costello @ Copernicus Center
5July2014 Sarah McLachlan @ Ravinia
11July2014 New Politics, Paramore, Fall Out Boy @ Tinley Park
21July2014 Andrew McMahon, Gavin DeGraw, Matt Nathanson @ Ravinia
24July2014 Soundgarden & NIN @ Tinley Park
25July2014 Magic Man, Walkthemoon, Panic! at the Disco @ FirstMerit Bank Pavilion
10Aug2014 a bunch of bands at Northalsted Market Days
16Aug2014 The Dillinger Escape Plan, Soundgarden, NIN @ CWMP
3Sept2014 empires @ JBTV
12-14Sept2014 Riotfest @ Humboldt Park (The Offspring, The Cure, The National, Rise Against, Weezer, etc)
26Sept2014 empires @ W Hotel
27Sept2014 Cage the Elephant & The Black Keys @ United Center
16Oct2014 Cory Branan, Against Me, The Gaslight Anthem @ Aragon
31Oct-2Nov 2014 Voodoo Experience, NOLA City Park. Foo Fighters, Rise Against, Trombone Shorty, Rebirth Brass Band, etc.
1Dec2014 Royal Blood, Rise Against @ HOB
27Dec2014 Minor Characters, Wavepool, Empires @ Lincoln Hall
30Dec2014 Frank Wala, Billy the Kid, Laura Jane Grace (Against Me) @ Double Door
MOVIES:
RED2
Kickass 2
The LEGO Movie
Oz The Great & Powerful
Blackfish
Captain America: The Winter Soldier
Maleficent
Wolverine
Thor: The Dark World
The East
Riddick
Guardians of the Galaxy
The Maze Runner
Hellbenders
The Hobbit: Battle of the Five Armies
TV:
Archer (continued)
Agents of SHIELD (continued)
Grimm (continued)
Penny Dreadful
Orphan Black
BOOKS:
419, Will Ferguson
The Good Lord Bird, James McBride
Cat of the Century, Rita Mae and Sneaky Pie Brown (Would not have read this on my own, received as a gift; tired of the trope that country folks are smarter and less venal and somehow more virtuous than city folk, and the author's bullshit speeches about how young people today are uncivil; taxes are the root of all evil; complaining that air travel & computers are to blame for global warming and health problems while not addressing that a main character uses as 1978 truck as her form of daily transport, NOT A FUEL EFFICIENT VEHICLE, irked me. DONE with the hypocrisy.)
Divergent, Veronica Roth
Insurgent, Veronica Roth
Allegiant, Veronica Roth (So much better drawn than The Hunger Games, less rocks-fall-people-die, but the alternating POV in the final book gives away part of the ending.)
Things We Set On Fire, Deborah Reed
Buddha In The Attic, Julie Otsuka (wow, depressing)
Garment of Shadows, Laurie R. King
Who Cooked The Last Supper? The Women's History of the World, Rosalind Miles (genetics isn't quite correct; the sad thing is that the last chapter (reproductive rights) is still stagnant, given the current legislative barrage)
The Rented Mule, Bobby Cole (DNF; head-jumping POV in each chapter, unsympathetic to essentially all the POV characters; CBA)
My Notorious Life, Kate Manning (historical fiction; based on the life of Ann Trow Lohman, ladies' physician in NYC in the 19th century, victim of the Comstock fuckery)
Hellions: Pop Culture's Rebel Women, Maria Raha
A King's Ransom, Sharon Kay Penman (the end of the Lionheart trilogy)
Concealed In Death, JD Robb (meh)
The Maze Runner, James Dashner
Death on Blackheath, Anne Perry
Breakaway: The Inside Story of the Pittsburgh Penguins' Rebirth, Andrew Conte (Would the Penguins be the same in KC or Houston? Would Sidney Crosby be the same without Mario Lemieux as a mentor, and then with other management perhaps rushing him back from his TBI?)
The Scorch Trials, James Dashner
Helmet for my Pillow, Robert Leckie
The Death Cure, James Dashner
Dragon's Triangle, Christine Kling (Part of a trilogy; obtained as a free Amazon Prime for Kindle book; this definitely would have made 150% more sense if I’d known it was part of a series before I picked it out, doesn’t stand alone as well at all.)
Salt: A World History, Mark Kurlansky
Three Strong Women, Marie NDiaye (Uh. Maybe it was better in its original French? Some of the imagery was a little over the top for my taste.)
Skin Games, Jim Butcher (Dear author: you think you are making Harry not creepy, but description of his apprentices 'assets' and his praised self-denial for not noticing them is actually worse)
The Empty Quarter, David L Robbins (I think this is part of a series, but it can be read alone and still make sense.)
The Seventh Child, Erik Valeur (DNF; narration changes between one primary narrator and the other seven children plus the matron, drags a little bit; feels like it’s trying to follow in the new Scandanavian thriller tradition but doesn’t quite manage it)
The Fracking King, James Browning
A Literation: TL:DR To: Long Distance Relationships
Let Me Go, Chelsea Cain (is this the end of Archie's story? I can only hope)
Magic Breaks, Ilona Andrews (terribly copy-editing; consistency issues within the book and within the series)
The Kid: A Season with Sidney Crosby and the New NHL, Shawna Richer
A Cold and Broken Hallelujah, Tyler Dilts
The Seven Wonders, Steven Saylor (backstory for Gordianus the Finder AT LAST)
Innocent Blood, James Rollins & Rebecca Cantrell
Fives & Twenty-fives, Michael Pitre
Festive In Death, JD Robb (copy editor needs to be better wrt consistency through a series this long; also needs to stop La Nora from overuse of some words she clearly likes)
The Moor’s Account, Laila Lalami
As You Wish, Cary Elwes
The Game: The 30th Anniversary Edition, Ken Dryden (man, he's oblivious to race and privilege)
Hockey Confidential, Bob McKenzie (NGL, I've re-read the chapter/interview of Brandon Prust since reading the Boogaard book)
Foxglove Summer, Ben Aaronovitch (I hope the US version is better edited wrt to punctuation than the UK version I read)
The Goldfinch, Donna Tartt (DNF; do not care for the narrator AT ALL, which makes the first person narration utterly abhorrent for me as a reader)
Boy on Ice: The Life and Death of Derek Boogaard, John Branch
Still not finished: Jeremy Scahill’s Dirty Wars: The World Is A Battlefield
SPORTS:
Edmonton Oilers vs. Chicago Blackhawks 12Jan2014
Rockford IceHogs vs. Chicago Wolves 18Jan2014
Iowa Wild vs. Chicago Wolves 1Feb2014
Texas Stars vs. Chicago Wolves 15Mar2014
Rockford IceHogs vs. Chicago Wolves 21Mar2014
Milwaukee Admirals vs. Chicago Wolves 19April2014
Rochester Amerks vs Chicago Wolves 1May2014
Toronto Marlies vs Chicago Wolves, 10May2014
Mn Wild vs. Chicago Blackhawks, 11May2014
Baltimore O’s vs. Chicago Cubs, 23Aug2014
Habs vs. Chicago Blackhawks, 1Oct2014
Chicago Wolves vs. Charlotte Checkers, 11Oct2014
Chicago Wolves vs. Lake Erie Monsters, 18Oct2014
Chicago Wolves vs. Iowa Wild, 22Nov2014
Chicago Wolves vs. Rockford IceHogs, 23Nov2014
Chicago Wolves vs. Rockford IceHogs, 29Nov2014
Mn Wild vs. Chicago Blackhawks, 16Dec2014
Ottawa Senators vs. Washington Capitals, 21Dec2014
PLAYS:
Gypsy, Chicago Shakespeare Theatre (the actress who played Rose was amazing)
Russian Transport, Steppenwolf Theatre (creepy, so creepy)
Venus In Fur, Goodman Theatre (meh)
RESTAURANTS:
(because I decided we needed to stop going to the same one all the time, and try new ones)
Longman & Eagle
Cicchetti
Mitan del Mundo
Rosebud on Rush
Nomi
Silver Spoon Thai
D4
Webster’s Wine Bar
The Harding Tavern
Howells & Hood
90 Miles
Table, Donkey & Stick
Reno
The Radler
Arruzzo Eno
Taco Joint
Logan Bar & Grill
Farmhouse
Perennial Virant
Letizia’s Fiore
The Capital Grille
Davanti Enoteca
Local Root
Alewife
Jaleo
Cafe Poupon
Monkey’s Paw
Beatrix