Chicago: The Eponymous Thread

yeah I think you told that story, that cab driver is a tard

USPS LOLz

As I was leaving for lunch at ~ 1:15, the line for the PO in my building was out the door and around the corner by the entrance to the GNC (so like half a block long). There was ONE cashier, and before her stood a man yelling (I could hear him as I walked past the open door) and waving his arms frantically.

On the way back from lunch, the line was out the door of the PO but no longer curled around by the GNC. There were two cashiers.

I've been forced to go to the Post Office twice in the past few days, and, yeah, it's been crazy. But I prepared myself (girded my loins, if you will) as best as I could and it was okay.

I was just on hold w/ our credit card company and this song was playing

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4IFQZyxxyyM

I just sneezed something terrifying onto my sleeve. HI!

work is nuts today, what's up with that

otm, I'm hoping all week won't be this bad, but I'm betting it will. Things get so hectic just before the holidays.

it's so unpredictable when things are going to suddenly get crazy at this job. no rhyme or reason.

living the bachelor life for the next few days.

my work is ridic too, but I'm taking like 6 days off so it's not that surprising

still I could do w/o this headache and the prospect of staying until 6

there's nothing like explaining something to four adults and then 5 minutes later eavesdropping as they try to puzzle out how to do the thing you just explained to them

lol

I'm struggling with a deadline for a project on Tuesday the 3rd. This deadline was chosen long ago by our clients so we're kind of stuck with it, but its turning into a nightmare because, for whatever reason, our firm is giving us Friday the 30th off but not Monday the 2nd. So we're here that day, but all our consultants on the project are off.

if i can just straight-up be a dick for a second, there are too many olds trying to figure out databases in the library today

My work is extremely slow, as it always is around the holidays. Which is great, after the ridiculous 2 months we've had around here. And Liggy mentioned in passing that she was going to give herself and me bonuses. Hoping the Jerkstore firm is feeling generous after last week's trial victory and the hundreds of billable hours we put into it last month.

if I'm gonna be here past 5PM I am eating several holiday theme packaged york peppermint patties

That is fair.

when sarah's out of town i watch lots of movies. last night i was really wiped out so i watched "scream." it was funny how many times they talk about the "cellular phone" in that movie. then last night and this morning i watched the david hyde pierce-starring horror/thriller/black comedy "a perfect host," which was pretty ridiculous but had some funny stuff in the middle and a complete unnecessary twist in the last 20 minutes.

jesse, z_s, et al - any idea for a time to meet at delilah's on thursday?

So we are having lunch brought in today to celebrate the wedding of a coworker, which is super cool and so glad for free lunch. But we get an email five minutes before it starts saying, "please provide your own beverages". Except, we don't have a fridge to keep drinks in or vending machines anywhere in our building, so we'll all be stuck with water. How hard is it to plan to have beverages too when you get food catered?

What kind of beverages were you expecting? (I just drink coffee and water at work, but maybe that's just me.)

I typically drink water too, but like if we have an outside lunch presentation they usually bring a narrow selection of like sodas and juices. I'm weird, but I don't like drinking water with meals since I drink so much of it throughout the day.

I think it's reasonable to offer soda with a catered work lunch if you work at a for-profit, private sector place.

Linguists and language enthusiasts: I would like to talk about leaving the object off prepositional phrases beginning with "with." Examples: Do you want to come with? Just bring it with.

Specific questions: Where do people say this? My childhood BFF's PA Dutch grandmom said it all the time. Why have I started saying this now that I live in Chicago?

I feel like I've heard that all over the place, really. I mean, I don't think I could pin it to a certain demographic without paying closer to attention to who says it.

I can say for 100% certain that the quickest way to annoy my wife is to end a sentence like that, particularly with "at".

Sentences ending in a superfluous "at" make me crazy. Just leave off the at!

The "come with" is a sin of ommission.

NICK: I don't care. It will be at ZS's convenience, I suppose.

ZS: Report to Chicago thread, plzs.

I mean, I work on Thursday, so probably 6 at the earliest.

jaymc, are you joining us?

Why have I started saying this now that I live in Chicago?

I am pretty sure this is a Chicago/Midwestern thing.

jaymc, are you joining us?

Possibly. I haven't decided yet.

http://www.chicagotribune.com/features/tribu/ct-tribu-words-work-midwest-20101208,0,2295075.story

Which brings us to "come with," probably the most common example of Midwest speak. "I'm going for coffee. You want to come with?" (Also works for "bring with," "go with" and most verbs indicating movement.)

John Spartz, assistant professor in the department of writing studies at the University of Minnesota Duluth, explored the famous phrase in his PhD dissertation: "Do You Want to Come With?: A Cross-dialectal, Multi-field, Variationist Investigation of With as a Particle Selected By Motion Verbs in The Minnesota Dialect of English."

He says "come with" can be traced to the upper Midwest's heavily German, Norwegian, Swedish and Dutch roots.

"Basically these immigrants landed here, and in learning English took some of the nuances of their languages and mapped them on to English," Spartz says. "There are some super technical linguistic reasons that happened, but essentially the phrase is prevalent in a variety of those languages so it makes sense that it would find its way into English as well."

interesting graphical representations of a few different 'hoods

http://www.thechicagoneighborhoods.com/

John, thank you. That is interesting.

I am finding it kind of fascinating how the designer focuses on the present for some of the neighborhoods and the past for others. I don't aesthetically like all of the logo designs, but it's a really neat project.

Yeah those are interesting, although I'd kind of like to see a couple different designers take this project on, if only to get some alternate views on what they'd come up with.

That would be cool.

jesse, z_s, et al - any idea for a time to meet at delilah's on thursday?

sorry, today's been insane, just now getting online. i'm with jesse, i'm flexible. but in general, the earlier the better for me. i'm finishing up interview stuff around 3 to 4pm, and will probably just kill time shopping and hanging out wherever until we meet up because the friends that i'm staying with won't get home from work until later in the evening.

Me and my hair will be ready to board the party train at 7:45 so just text me if you're all still around and I'll come over.

I couldn't get there until like 5:30-6 at the earliest.

how about we just say 7pm?

Sounds good to me

OK, I think I should be able to stop by at least. I may be going out after work with coworkers, but I can easily hit up Delilah's on the way home.

7:00 p.m. at Delilah's. I will be there, forcing Malort down Zach's face hole.

They don't have food, huh. They're going to have a DJ playing Otis Redding and Sam Cooke songs though. That's nice.

Maybe Sam can "Cooke" you some food.

If Delilah's is too loud or whatever we have 1 bajillion other options, by the way.

Other options w/in a block or two: Witts, Paddy Longs, Racine Plumbing*, Rocks Lincoln Park*, Rose's**.

*High likelihood of dudebro clientele.
**No food.

Racine Plumbing? Is that really a bar?

Yes it is.

Paddy Longs is selling Malort t-shirts now fyi guys

sorry if hueg

https://fbcdn-sphotos-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-snc7/385039_10150457429909631_30053384630_8399889_2123075572_n.jpg

I want to try Delilah's at least, if it sucks we can meander over somewhere else.

Totes. I just like contingency plans.

So what are we going to do if there's an unexpected, sudden, and apocalyptic blizzard while we're at Delilah's?

If I didn't live in Chicago, I would totally want a Malort shirt. I would kind of feel like a tool wearing it around here, though.