therealmattjones

All is quiet on the Midwestern front...mostly because at this point in the winter, many Chicagoans are content to stay indoors 23 and 1/2 hours a day.  Landon and I are again being unusually punctual to our show at The Elbo Room, and we find that once we arrive, the venue isn't even open.

"Why don't we take a rigorous constitutional down the road to a public house and absorb some local color?" I say to Landon in moderate tongue-in-cheek snooty tone. When it's in the low teens temperature-wise, you want to move rigorously regardless of what you do. 

"Let's try this place - Jack's Bar and Grill," Landon says as he puts his Iphone into his pocket and starts walking briskly, almost at a jog, in the direction of our destination.  After taking a number of wrong turns at a 5-way intersection, we make our way through an alley between two houses, and Jack's is in sight.  We race over hoping for sanctuary from the fast-declining temperatures,  and we find a sign on the door the reads:

Awesome. After searching by walking another few Chicago city blocks, we find a small pub called "Patsy's" and settle in for a quick drink before we start loading in to The Elbo Room.  Landon and I make a new friend in the bartender, Colin, and find that he can't leave his post to come to the show, but he will be with us there in "spirits"  Colin didn't make that terrible pun. Matt did. He's the punisher.

The Elbo Room show rocks - great sound, and a cool vibe of being in an overly-decorated and metal-music driven basement. Can't wait for Iowa City tomorrow and it's official, I have closure on the fact that the Midwest is awesome.

-TRMJ