Tuesday, January 6, 2004

Professor John and His Band and Tom Jackson (Tom's the tallest guy in the beard) at The Hideout. LAISSEZ LES BON TEMPS ROULER! Saturday night really hopped for me. First, I went down to a South Side place called The Lucky Strike to do an assignment for metromix.com. They've been sending me out to ask the musical question of the week. I get people to answer the question -- and I take their picture. It's a lot of fun. Check out the dead-tree edition of metromix in Wednesday's RedEye and look for "Reader Reviews." Getting down there was a bit of an effort, though. Because I'd be stopping in at the Hideout later on, I felt obliged to get into my cowboy gear. My friend ____ had palpitations over the prospect of me riding the Green Line down to 55th and Garfield dressed like McCloud, but nothing untoward happened. As I've said before, I seldom get negative comments about the hat. And besides, I think the South Side has an undeservedly bad rap as far as public transportation safety goes. Once I'd shot up the South Side, I haightailed it to the Hideout, where my Pens & Lens partner and I watched Chicago's Mystick Krewe of Laff Social Aid and Pleasure Club and Professor John and His Band kick off the Mardi Gras season. MC for the evening was Krewe Captain Tom Jackson, who hosts popular radio programs devoted to the Louisiana music scene and more. Check out his site to see some of my photos from the event. 2:58:20 AM    Comments []

SHOCKINGLY CLOSE TO THE TRUTH! Check out the latest edition of Saucer Smear. Editor and Still Supreme Commander James W. Moseley serves up his usual smorgasbord of tasty eclectica. I found this tantalizing bit of information about shenanigans at a UFO conference especially amusing: "Following the banquet, there was a small party in the hotel room of one of the speakers, and free wine & beer was provided. Shockingly, a woman came by with a small amount of marijuana, and later another attractive young lady indulged in a little harmless necking with some of the male attendees. Your editor took a few pictures, only to find out later that the film had been literally ripped out of the camera when he wasn't looking! We are about 99% sure who did this and why, but we decided not to make a scene." Once Saucer Smear whets your appetite, have a look at Moseley's "Shockingly Close to the Truth: Confessions of a Grave-Robbing Ufologist," a free-wheeling tale of his adventures investigating (and occasionally playfully perpetuating) the paranormal. 2:14:45 AM    Comments []