Aaand We’re Back

Yikes!  It’s been two weeks since I posted last-  being on the road seems to rearrange one’s priorities.   For those of you who have emailed wondering where we are,  we’ll try to post more regularly- we’ve still got another three weeks on the road before we get to the boat in Salem.

Much has happened since The Great April Blizzard Of 2018.   The roads were pretty clear the next day,  sun was out, snow was melting,  and we drove a short day (5 hrs) into… another blizzard.  We stopped in Trempeleau Wisconsin,  on the Minnesota/Wisconsin border- thick heavy wet snow that clung to tree branches (pretty!) and created icy slush on the road (terrifying!).

Trempeleau is a pretty little town right on the Mississippi River.  We stayed here two years ago during the summer,  and were surprised to find out that the “hill” behind the inn where we were staying is actually an ancient Native American mound,  built over 1000 years ago as a sun worship site.   There was too much snow to go up there this time,  but if you ever have a chance to visit here,  check it out-  there’s interpretive signage showing how they built this impressive mound, one basketful of dirt at a time.  It’s fascinating, and the view of “Ol’ Man River” below is incredible.

Here’s a view from the Inn:

From Trempeleau, we skedaddled east to Chicago,  to spend some snow-free time with our son Danny.  We were pleased with our decision to leave the trailer and dingy back in Minnesota,  it made getting around the crowded city much easier.  We got to Chicago during Friday evening rush hour.

We got to the Airbnb we had rented-  plenty of parking, and only a mile walk to Danny’s house.  The house was incredible-  owned by a very quirky and artistic gentleman,  it was magical.  Every interior piece of that house was made from found objects, mostly beautifully finished wood items that Dennis (the owner) had found scavenging the residential alleys of Chicago.  From cabinets made from chess boards (with chess piece embellishments) and baseboard trim built up out of piano keys,  to touch operated light switches made out of pennies embedded in wood trim,  it was  like walking into something from a Harry Potter movie.   Certainly a step up from a Best Western motel, it would take a whole book to describe it all in detail-  see  below for a better view:

 

We were there for five days,  and in that time, got treated to four solid nights of comedy.  For those that don’t know,  Danny has been working in the improv and sketch comedy field since he got out of high school,  and is a natural at it.  He’s been working at Chicago’s famous “Second City” for a couple of years now,  and we stayed an extra night just so we could see him perform a final show on Second City’s main stage.  It was pretty impressive to see our boy doing his thing in a venue surrounded by caricatures of some of the most famous comics in the world.

Impressive as that was,  it didn’t hold a candle to our favorite show-  a House Show put on in his own home.  D and his roommates (who are also comics) run with an incredibly talented crowd, and they have been holding these House Shows in their own home on a semi-regular basis since last summer.   Shove all the living room sofas into the dining area,  hang some back-drops and creative lighting,  borrow the PA system from the restaurant around the corner,  and you’ve got a venue!

There were about 65-80 folks crammed into the audience (the dining room!), and about a dozen performers.   And DAMN! were they were good!  Freed from the constraints of performing to someone else’s expectations, and performing for a select audience of friends and peers,  these folks were on fire!  There was one group that did a sketch piece,  but all the rest was stand-up, which was new to me-  all I’ve seen these guys do is improv and sketch.  But every one of them were really good,  and it was a privilege to watch them hone their craft.

Of course I have to brag on my boy.  His piece was… unique.  There were no laugh line setups in his monologue.  He simply described how he had been assaulted the week before by a jealous ex-boyfriend of the young woman he was with that night.  It was painful to listen to-  not so much for what had happened (although that was bad enough, involving trauma, shock, pain, hospital ER, stitches, etc), but for how the experience affected him, and how he had been coping with that in the time since his head had been repeatedly slammed into a brick wall.

Danny told me years ago that he had a unique vision of what “comedy” is, that it doesn’t line up with a lot of what we experience as comedy,  and that he wanted to explore how to present that vision.  I got to witness some of that at his house show,  and it was amazing.  He ended his monologue on an up note, involving his realization that as much as he wanted to inflict pain and suffering on the guy who had assaulted him, his overriding belief is in Peace, Love, Unity, and Respect.

Not your normal stand-up routine- not a “laff riot”.  On the other hand, I’ve heard comedy defined as “the response you have to something when the only other appropriate response is to cry”, so in that respect,  I judge it was 100% effective.  I’m proud of my boy.

OK,  enough of Chicago,  although I’d love to regale you with stories of all the good food we ate,  and how friendly the people there are,  and if someone told me I HAD to live in a big city,  I’d pick Chicago… but I want to get this post out, and then another updating  our return to Minnesota, etc.

Stay tuned!

OK,  PS-  here we are, the day after driving through a Wisconsin blizzard, cruisin’ round with the top down on D’s household communal convertible,  on our way to the Adler Planetarium.  We can’t WAIT for them to discover Planet IX!!!