nothing kills a thread like encouraging others to exercise.

I dunno. Implying that people who shop at Jewel are hopeless rubes didn’t seem to stop us.

I am re-starting my exercise routine this evening. It’s one of those things I really want to do but have had a hell of a time convincing myself to do again. The first few times are always the hardest, but then it’s a cake walk. I want/need to lose ~25 lbs. I figure I can do it inside of 3 months or so...

We’re going to the gym tonight. I plan to listen to the new LCD SS for the first time.

Good for you, dude. I’m going to restart next week. It was going to be this week, but this week is gig, gig, rehearse/shop for wedding present, gig, bake dessert for ev3n’s wedding, wedding/gig, hangover.

You can totally do 25 pounds in 3 months, but don’t feel discouraged if you don’t make it, Dan! That’s roughly 2 pounds each week which is the max you should be losing (& be healthy about it). I certainly haven’t lost that on WW (although I think I’ve lost maybe 2 or 3?).I joined weight watchers a week & 1/2 ago & have been exercising for 6 weeks at a rate of 6 days each week. I lost two inches through my torso. I think I’m going to start weight lifting next week & keep at the crazy schedule. I will tell you that Trader Joe’s meringue cookies are a sweet tooth saver. You can eat a buttload of the tiny chocolate ones & they hardly count.

Want to do a sprint tri with me in May or June to have an exercise goal to shoot for?

man, this thread is huge! so, another music trivia last night, with a round by jon wurster of superchunk, all about drummers. sample question:

what song from 1967 had james brown saying ‘give the drummer some’?

Man, gimme a hard one.

2x

Want to do a sprint tri with me in May or June to have an exercise goal to shoot for?

I don’t know if I’m up for that just yet! My poor knees aren’t too good at actual (read: non-eliptical) running. I’d settle for being able to wear my skinny jeans again!

Where is it, Kelsey?

We’re toying between a few . . .there are a couple near me in MN & then there’s also one in Iowa (near Iowa City) that look good. The distances seem reasonable, entry fee isn’t horrible, etc.

I can email the ones we’re tossing around if you want!

here’s another one—what did spinal tap’s 2nd drummer die of?

also easy

Choking on vomit — but not his own.

you guys are good, clearly. i’m trying to think of other questions but blanking at the moment on his round. other rounds were a music history/innovations round, a broadway/musicals round, and an audio round consisting of only whistling.

the first recording to feature multi-tracking was by who?

As soon as it gets above 50 degrees I’m going to start jogging.

I have ab flab.

Who doesn’t?

SRSLY

Going to the gym three days a week for a year didn’t do ANYthing for my figure a few years ago, but taking yoga once a week plus my dance class worked wonders, both times without significant change in my diet. That seems crazy but who can know about metabolic cycles, interactions, body chemistry? Depending on pricing I might take up bikram yoga in my neighborhood and see what happens. Will be good for recurring shin splints anyway, and if I don’t lose weight I might have to stop highland because my shins can’t take it.

Braggart.

;)

I just want my clothing to fit better! And to be rid of my double chin as much as possible.

Clothes fitting is key. I can’t afford all new ones! I don’t mind being Cuddlestein Laurel that much except I have like four perfectly good pairs of jeans that I can’t get on & etc throughout my whole wardrobe.

Watching what I eat is helping, I think. Swimming has probably done the most for my body shape, I’m getting nice arm muscles now.

I know it would be super-duper easy if I just cut out beer. But it’s so goooooooooooood!

I dunno. Implying that people who shop at Jewel are hopeless rubes didn’t seem to stop us.

Can someone find where this was said?

I think moving to Minneapolis & having a less-established social life has been key in me minimizing my beer/wine/liquor consumption. I drink a whole lot less out here.

I’m sorry. I’m totally obsessed with this exercise thing lately. I don’t mean for it to be the only thing I’m bringing to the table.

Usually people talking about exercise has the effect of making me want to do it less. I already have to force myself to do it and knowing that it’s so EXCITING for other people makes me rebel and not do it. I know this isn’t “healthy thinking” but that’s what happens. I’ve always hated exercise. I like walking and dancing. That’s about it. Occasional bike riding.

2x

The rest is very much like punishment. Oh, actually yoga is ok but I have to have a teacher who forces me to keep going.

Speaking of trivia, are we still on for Wednesday?

I feel like I was in that same place until recently, Amanda. I have never fallen for running. I keep waiting to have the moment that people talk about . . . that moment when you love it & it hasn’t happened yet. Swimming, on the other hand, I am loving. I feel like swimming for me is the epitome of “finding what you like” only I didn’t know I liked it until I started doing it regularly.

I also realized yesterday that I have this fiercely competitive monster that lives beneath my skin.

Speaking of trivia, are we still on for Wednesday?

Very good question. Am I in or out on this? (I was never clear)

See, I absolutely do not have that monster when it comes to physical activity. I have never excelled at anything requiring physical skill. Except for dancing. I’ve always been alright at that. I need to take a dance class. I’ve scouted out a few for the summer. In the meantime, it’s a matter of somehow coaxing myself to go to the gym at least once a week.

I have no expectation that this is going to change —I just need to find some sort of regular, aerobic activity that doesn’t make me want to hide under the covers.

I just need to find some sort of regular, aerobic activity that doesn’t

exacerbate every ache and pain I already have.

I think you’re in, Dan. I thought our team was: you, me, Jenny, Nick, and Leslie.

I hate the IDEA of running, and I hated it even when I did it every day! But at one point I realized that only a run would save me from my temper & feelings on a bad day at work and I knew I was hooked.

Re yoga, I don’t really buy into the whole energy-focusing “namaste” thing as a first principle but stretching in and of itself is kind of a meditative state even if I’m just doing routine dance warm-ups (ie not yoga poses that are specially engineered to influence chakras or something). Even more so for the concentration of balance/abdominal support/breath control of real yoga. So it’s self-fulfilling, I think.

During the time when I went from 250 to 160, I exercised very little. I did change my diet drastically (but did not eliminate beer or booze).

I’d like to lower my body fat percentage now. I still have leftover flab parts from being a great big fat person. I figured I can best do that through some good daily cardio. I’m not really interested in building muscle mass, just toning down and looking really skinny. I like the runners physique.

I finally got over my reservations about going, but I went to a running shoe store (http://www.momentumchicago.com/). They looked at my feet all sorts of ways and watched me run (I pronate heavily), and I got probably the most comfortable athletic shoes I’ve ever had on my feet.

I finally got over my reservations about going, but I went to a running shoe store (http://www.momentumchicago.com/). They looked at my feet all sorts of ways and watched me run (I pronate heavily), and I got probably the most comfortable athletic shoes I’ve ever had on my feet.

I just found out about places like this the other day. It sounds like a wonderful dream. I always assumed that my bad ankles would doom me for life, or at least leave me helpless when it came to finding comfortable shoes.

Whatever that running store is by Whole Foods in Lakeview, I got shoes there that have been the best I’ve had thus far. I would like to do it again as I wonder whether my pronation has worsened or perhaps become slightly better via the magic of shoe correction.

Hey, if you guys are getting into shape, I’ll join.

Thirsty Thursday at da wheatgrass bar.

EZ, wanna do a sprint triathlon with me, brooke, leaf, and maybe jordan?

So, not to change the subject, but yesterday I was at TJ’s and I saw this dude who looked REALLY familiar. I couldn’t remember if I knew him or not, if maybe he was a friend of a friend or something and I was supposed to be friendly or whatever. I even remembered sitting next to him at some point. It was weird. I think he recognized me too, but I scuttled away toward the milk because I wasn’t sure if I actually knew this person and I didn’t really feel like talking to anyone.

Then I realized that this was a dude who always used to ride the same red line train I rode every single day until I quit my job downtown.

Has anyone ever eventually had conversations with people they know from riding public transpo and do not know at all otherwise? How do these people fit into the public code of conduct? Should we always ignore each other? I should mention that when I was 22 I made a friend at the bus stop when I lived in DC and we even kept in touch for a while after I moved. Her name was Susan.

Discus.

I’ve never really struck up a conversation with anyone I see frequently on the Blue Line. Not to say I haven’t wanted to (HI DERE CUET INDIAN GIRL @ LOGAN SQUARE STOP) but it’s just not my way. I’ve had many conversations with people on trains/buses, but not anyone I see repeatedly.

Oh yeah!! I sat across from a group of three cute people on a Greenpoint bus one day, I remembered because the girl had very funky glasses. Months later, I went to a friend-of-a-friend’s house party and THEY ALL CAME. I actually got drunk and introduced myself as someone who’d sat across from them months before. I think they were a little freaked out.

Don’t kill me but I have to bail on Wednesday night trivia. I know, I know it was my idea but now many of you have met not only the Lovely Leslie (Jesse wants to marry her) but also my professor I figure you’ll be okay on your own. My week has gone from kind of busy but doable to “HOLY SHIT I AM GOING TO FUCKING DIE BEFORE THURSDAY” in about... three hours.

Kels, congrats on the triathlon! You are a ROCK STAR!

xp I generally avoid making train friends (You are all falling over in surprise, I am sure, given my proclivities to make all sorts of inappropriate friends in many circumstances) because public transpo time is MY time. I usually resent seeing acquaintances that I feel compelled to chat with during my ride. I’m usually pretty excited to see real friends, though, since one of my favorite ways to spend ME time is with my amigas.

It’s not my way to talk to strangers either. I was just wondering if this had happened to anyone and if they talked to the person. I tend to remember/notice people way more than I own up to, so it’s better to keep quiet because usually I don’t want to talk to anyone either.

When I was at the bus stop in DC it was mostly because this girl was super chatty and I didn’t really have a choice but to jib jab with her.

Hmm hmm Kels, maybe with a stationary bike...?

Chicago: Hi Dere Cuet Indian Girl @ Logan Square Stop

I don’t talk to strangers much but I don’t regret it when I do, except sometimes when they’re schizophrenic.

She even invited me over once. I felt really weird. One time I met this strange old lady at a thrift store in Cleveland and she invited me to come along with her to some other thrift stores, so I drove her around and we shopped. We wound up in her basement apartment and I got the willies, made up an excuse and left.

xp—Or drunk, racist, anti-Semetic, stinky union electricians?

I make fast friends in situations that aren’t quite public are therefore pre-screened (classes, workshops, etc.), mostly because it’s easy to find something in common to talk about.

Lovely Leslie (Jesse wants to marry her) but also my professor I figure you’ll be okay on your own

Wait, I thought Leslie WAS your professor...?

I don’t talk to strangers much but I don’t regret it when I do, except sometimes when they’re schizophrenic.

This is just like the guy who cornered me when I was waiting for K@tie to get her taco before heading into the Green Mill the other night. Biiiiiig mistake making eye contact with him.

I do recognize people all the damn time too, and it weirds me out—kind of in the same way going back home and seeing random people I know (but don’t KNOW) walking down the street weirds me out. I have gotten too used to the thin veneer of anonymity that Chicago provides.

There is a guy I see on the train, probably at least 3 times a week. He has glasses and hair that sort of make him look like Where’s Waldo. I probably see a lot of the same people everyday, but he’s the one that is most noticeable. I would probably never talk to him.

No, Leslie is my classmate who drinks wine out of a travel mug during class. My professor is the hummingbird-like lady who came out for drinks last Thursday after finishing her night class!

Oh. Who is doing trivia then? Both of them?

I haven’t met either of them, so I don’t know how this is going to work.

Here’s how it works:

Leslie is going to be asking the questions. She is a live question asker. Prof. is going to be on a team answering questions. She will probably be on a team w/ Nora, whom you all have met. This means that ILX is free to form its own team, show up, register said team, and then compete against Prof. and Nora’s team for the grand prize which is like beer or something. I don’t know. Leslie has nothing to do with the teams because she is asking questions.

Capiche?

Oh, I talked with a homeless guy from Texas the other day on the blue line. He told me not to waste my time supporting Barack Obama, because he is Muslim. He thinks Hillary is going to win. He was generally interesting, but I didn’t initiate the conversation.

Yes, thanks, Jewnifer!

I find something about surreptitious drinking in class strangely attractive.

\louisjagger

I still don’t know exactly who or what Louis Jagger is, but I would be lying if I said that her surreptitious in-class drinking wasn’t part of what made me decide I should be her friend. Well, that and a shared love for labor law and the fact that we have a shit ton of classes together this semester. By which I mean “two.”

I would be angry if I smelled one of my students drinking during class. I might even send him/her home. /grouchy old teacher

The LJ reference was a comment on my own crepe-ing out, nothing more.

And yeah, if I was teaching, I’d be pissed too. I’d probably be pissed if I knew/liked the teacher, too. But since I’m completely removed, it’s kind bad-ass.

Yeah, I can see that. She’s pretty low key about it when she does it, but there is an inherent “you are boring so I will drink to deal with it” message there. I’ve had a couple of beers before class when I’ve gone to lunch with someone before hand but I figure that I am 34 and allowed to do that as long as I’m not an asshole about it. I couldn’t drink during class, though, because I’d have to pee too much. And usually if I get to feeling like I’d like to drink during class, I just skip and go take a nap.

Yeah, and I know I’m biased and somewhat prudish about that kind of thing.

“Your honor, it’s not like I was being an asshole about it.”

OK, if Jenny’s out, who wants to be on a trivia team with me and Dan for Wednesday? Nick, are you still interested?

Excellent argument, Mr. Z! Case dismissed.

Amander, you’re not prudish. If I were teaching students under, say, 25 I would have a shit fit if I found out they were drinking during my class. Similarly, there was a whole cadre of ding dong frat boys who would come to class reeking like booze, sit in the back of the room, and whisper all through class my first year and they made me FURIOUS.

The collective noun for ding dongs is “cadre.”

I love the word “cadre.”

It’s maybe not as cool as “phalanx,” but it blends in better.

I know it sounds like I am taking one position on something (drinking in class) and then totally changing my position depending on someone else’s opinion (Teacher Amanda’s) and that’s because that is exactly what I’m doing. I did this the other day when I starte railing on people who wear sweatpants to class and the person I was talking to was like, “I wear sweatpants all the time!” and my response was, “Well, that’s different!” and I was being totally honest. It was different because I like this person so there is an exception to my opinions special for her. (And any of you who want to wear sweatpants to class and drink in class OR get angry at people who drink in class.)

I’m coming to realize that’s just the way I roll, opinion-wise.

I hate X except when Friend Y does it, in which case it’s totally acceptable.

I don’t even think I could pronounce “phalanx” without sounding like I had a mouthfull of novacaine.

hey chicago folks.

do you have any recommendations of good venues my band might be able to get a gig in chicago. i’ve heard it’s really tough to get into the “cool” venues, so any advice would be much appreciated. thx.

We should follow up last summer’s all-shorts karaoke night with an all-sweatpants karaoke night.

Matt—try South Union Arts (as long as you’re not a straight-up rock band).

I have a pair of sweatpants I have never worn. I guess I am saving them for the right occasion. With all of you.

Shorts! That’s another excellent example.

I do have a pair of sweat pants. They say DePaul on them and I wear them all the time but only around the house and to Jewel.

I have LPs (leisure pants) but they are not gathered-at-the-ankle sweatpants.

ALTHOUGH I must tell you that in college I had a huge crush on this obviously ballsy dude who would wear the same sweatpants and Public Enemy t-shirt to breakfast every single day. He swaggered mightily and didn’t give a single goddamn shit what he was wearing. He was cute and I invited him (anonymously) to a party once. The story will end there.

NOTE: I do not mean he had giant balls — just that he boldly wore the same sweatpants every day, which takes confidence, which is appealing.

Matt—try South Union Arts (as long as you’re not a straight-up rock band).

hmm....we’re pretty “regular” like post punk/new wavish...is that more an art space/noise/improv dealy?

Leisure pants! I refer to mine as “house pants.” My DP sweatpants are the modern kind that are really just flappy-legged yoga pants made out of sweatpants material. I have... gawd, like eight pairs of house pants? Only that one pair could be considered sweatpants, though.

If I spent that much time schlepping around the house to need eight pairs of house pants, why do I feel so stressed out, I ask you?

That is possibly the most boring and pointless thing I have ever posted on ILX. GO ME.

I have all my windows open, and the wind is whipping through here, clearing out weeks of staleness with its balmy 42 degrees.

Matt—it’s kind of arty (Tim Kinsella and the like play there).

Maybe Beat Kitchen or Subterranean? I get the feeling that no one randomly checks out shows here at most bars, so it’s hard to know where to play and get an audience.

I prefer “house trousers”.

The Mutiny

“house trou” (pronounced like hausfrau)

haha

Matt H — what dates are you looking at? Would you be able to guarantee any draw? There are some “name” clubs that MoN might be able to get into (and I might be able to inquire about), but if you’re just looking for a place to play on an off-night, a non-traditional venue might be just as good (if not better) in terms of a built-in crowd.

JESUS I just spelled “Illinois” wrong on the envelope in which I intended to send my bar application crapola.

From the anals of funny law review article titles:

OUR NATION’S FORGOTTEN WORKERS: THE UNPROTECTED VOLUNTEERS.

haha anals

Oh god.

Golden Palace (Asian market that Kenan mentioned) which is great for noodles, sauces, odd produce and giant frozen fishes

Actually, I was wrong. I just walked past it. It’s Golden Pacific. Golden Palace is... a casino?