See Ya Gas Hog!

Just in time. When our brakes began to squeal and the cd player ate our cd's we really began to hope that the third Honda dealership we were visiting would have the car we were looking for.

Three hours of our Memorial Day spent in Lisle with Ken (see picture) were worth it when we walked out with our Honda Civic. And we walked quickly hoping they wouldn't come running after us to tell us the deal was off, that our trade in was actually worth nothing. But luck was on our side and we drove off into the sunset with the soothing voice of our navigator pointing the way home.

Did I mention we just went from 15 miles/gallon to 30? It makes the excruciatingly high gas prices not seem quite so bad.

It's Business Time

The Chicago Theater has been good to us. We got some excellent pictures in front of it on our wedding night, and saw a great concert there on Wednesday.

If you haven't seen The Flight of the Conchords on HBO, I'd highly recommend you add it to your Netflix queue. Especially if you like awkward situations and singing New Zealanders. We loved the show when it aired last year so it was a no-brainer to check out Bret and Jemaine's live show when we heard they were coming to town.

The Chicago Theater is really cool...interesting decor and an old-fashioned feel (so old-fashioned, in fact, that cell phones don't work in there). We had a really good view of the stage from our seats in the lower balcony.

A standup comedian named Arj Barker was the opening act and he didn't disappoint. He had interesting and hilarious takes on gay marriage (we should support it until we can 'find a cure for them') and how difficult it is to be an uncle (it's exhausting playing with kids for an hour or so before heading home...tell me about it) before he introduced 'the two guys from New Guinea'. A good warm up to the main event.

The Kiwi musicians put on quite a show. Here's a detailed review with all the highlights, but I have to say that the banter in between songs was worth the price of admission...Bret's imaginary family with his miniature grandchildren and Jemaine's concern for the issues (no issue in particular...just 'the issues') were particularly hilarious.

Sometimes we get annoyed with living in Chicago (it's expensive, the commute sucks, etc.) but nights like these make me realize how glad I am that we're here. Whether it's a restaurant, a concert, a game, cooking classes...there's always something new to do.

Celebrating Cinco de Mayo

Drinking margarita's, eating carne asada with homemade salsa verde....with 24 strangers and a chef named Tobin. Oh, and Nicole and Louis, our awesome cooking table buddies.

Last night's class at the Chopping Block was much, much less intense then our first one. But the laid back atmosphere - we made the churros, salsa verde and carne asada while the other tables made the guacamole, queso fundido and mexican rice - provided us with much more time to sip our margaritas and beer. (I am assuming this is why I heard Ryan grabbing for the Excedrin Migraine in the middle of the night.)

The Chopping Block keeps adding more good looking, good cooking classes, so I am looking forward to our next time there and hoping that Tobin is our sous chef. I think he is good luck.

17 & 11

Only 83 more games to go and I'll get a new Prius.

Okay, maybe not, but that is what I am trying to convince Ryan that we need to get since gas is near $4 a gallon. Or maybe some matching scooters...