Proud to be an American...finally

Obviously I was heavily invested in all the health insurance hubbub going on in Washington, and despite all the craziness it finally passed! And instead of conceding defeat and moving on, the Republicans are going to sue! Whatever, maybe it'll distract them while the Democrats pass some legislation to curb Wall Street and pollution and other fun stuff, that would be sweet.
Anyway, things in Chicago have been going really well. The weather is getting better and better, which makes walking dogs more and more enjoyable. I also joined Ross' other band, Far Things. They're definitely harder and punkier and louder than Bricklayers Foundation, but we played a gig Friday night and it went really well. It was in a basement, and the ceiling was about 6 feet high, so I had to play with my head down the entire time, and we still sounded really good. Hopefully we play some more gigs together and get more comfortable.
As for reading, I finished the Human Stain, which was great. Roth's style is very unique, and I really like it. After that I went back to the sci-fi genre, trying another Philip K. Dick book called Flow My Tears, the Policeman Said. Very cool stuff, definitely trippy, as usual a neat glimpse into a possible future. Now I'm halfway done with Sister Carrie, recommended by Uncle Charlie himself about a Wisconsin girl who moves to Chicago in 1890. I love reading about their adventures downtown and in Lincoln Park, riding in carriages and paying 5 cents for breakfast. After that I'm thinking about another Vonnegut book I got from the library, Player Piano. And then hopefully some of the books I actually own for a change.
Ooh, I'm seeing Julian Casablancas when he comes to town April 6th. For those of you who don't know him, he's the lead singer of the Strokes, one of my favorite bands. His solo album is pretty good, but he's just too dreamy to miss in person.
Last night me and my buddy Justin grilled on his porch, made hotdogs and garlic fries, and just ate up the gorgeous weather. Followed by watching Star Trek and Adult Swim. Great night. Here's a glimpse, with his aunt's crazy Chihuahua in the background:
Who else is excited for Opening Day?!?!?!?!?! Go Orioles!

A Masterrific Weekend

Great Success! I passed my oral exam. And I turned in my revised thesis to the library. I have completed my Master's Degree. It was a phenomenal weekend with the gang, hitting the bars of Broad Ripple, tasting the wonderful cajun/creole splendor of Yats, celebrating the timeless festival of Purim, watching the most awesomely terrible movie The Room, and perusing my old notebooks. I had been preparing for weeks, even rereading the beginning of The Rest is Noise, but I was always confident. Well, almost always. Luckily my professors are great guys, so they asked me some tough but good questions relating to my 2 years of studies at Butler. I wasn't perfect, but I proved that I knew my stuff. I got over the nerves pretty quickly, and by the end of it we were all smiling and laughing. To celebrate, we went out for buffet Indian food. Doesn't get much better than that. I printed my officially completed thesis on some special paper, turned it into the library, and am now done. It was a bittersweet ending, as expected. I love that Butler gang, and even though Chicago is a far superior city, I still miss being there sometimes. Those two years were unforgettable. Granted, I will probably go back and visit again, and they will come up here and visit me, but it was still a surreal feeling.
Here are some pictures of our third and final Purim Party (I apologize for the low quality, these moments were too good to ruin with a flash):
Dace opening the ceremony with a song.
Max and Scott were chosen to be the cantors for the evening, and did a great job of improvising some modern prayers.
And Max tells us how Mordecai and Esther defeated Hamen on the Lower East Side.
I finished the Power and the Glory, and have just started the Human Stain. I have a nice long to-read list, but please keep the recommendations coming!