The Windy City Recap

I Spent some time last week in The Windy City to celebrate a friends birthday.
In total, the trip was 4 days long; the first night we spent on a farm outside St. Louis, celebrating Easter with a huge family dinner (many thanks to Terin's motha,) the next day we stopped in the city, hung out on top of The Gateway To The West, then headed off to Illinois.  A few hours later we were in Joliet to see the first bands of the week; Stick To Your Guns, Rotting Out, Stray From The Path, and The Ghost Inside.
The next day we arrived in Chicago.  We spent the day exploring downtown, learning the subway system, taking pictures by the bean, eating deep dish pizza, and trying to find our hotel from the top of the Sears Tower.  We ended the day by going to see Sigur Ros play in a stadium just out side of the city skyline.  The next day we headed home; I'm always bummed out to leave adventurous big city life behind where I found it and trade it in for the mundane simplicity of Springfield.  Until next time, Chicago.

It was cool running into our old friend Katie, aka Tina Fey, at Starbucks.

Check back for more photos I'll be posting pretty soon. Also, check out my society6 account for prints from this series. (The link is on the right side of the page.)

I am the barely living son of a woman and man who barely made it

but we’re making it taped together on borrowed crutches and new starts

we all have the same holes in our hearts...everything falls apart at the exact same time

that it all comes together perfectly for the next step but my fear is this prison

that I keep locked below the main deck I keep a key under my pillow, it’s quiet and it’s hidden

and my hopes are weapons that I’m still learning how to use right but they’re heavy and I’m awkward

always running out of fight so I’ve carved a wooden heart, 

put it in this sinking ship hoping it would help me a float for just a few more weeks because I am made out of shipwrecks, every twisted beam lost and found like you and me scattered out on the sea 

so come on let’s wash each other with tears of joy and tears of grief and fold our lives like crashing waves 

and run up on this beach come on and sew us together, just some tattered rags stained forever

we only have what we remember

~Listener, Wooden Heart

 these lyrics have inspired me a lot this past year.  In the spirit of new beginning and letting go of the old, I think these pictures capture the same emotions the song evokes.  

enjoy!

creative tip, deer antlers make great props.

they also make great back scratchers.