leaving on a jet plane

 Phil went off for the weekend to the Evanston Folk Festival and I worked on getting ready for ewight months away.  Then Monday we had a big meat night at Tango Sur with Frank Patterson and his buddy Rob Adler. Two burgs - a white and red.  Two Argentinian reds both blends.  Perfect choices for the giant amount of protein on the table. I ordered the entraña and despite giving away three large pieces to my table mates I ended up taking half mine home. Everything comes with salad and potatoes. We also split two empanadas (beef and spinach) and a seafood salad and the eggplant escabeche. Sobremesa lasted long after the meal and we ended up leaving about three hours after arrival. Getting back into practice for meals in Sevilla next week. 

Tuesday we had leftover meat at home LOL - Wednesday we headed to Norhtlight Theater's new facility in Evanston for a revival of The Front Page.

We attended the opening play Wednesday night at the new Northlight Theatre facility in Evanston. They picked an oldie but goodie in The Front Page.  It's been freshened up and is thoroughly entertaining. An all star cast, many of whom we had seen in prior performances throughout the Chicago theater community, were in top form.  The large cast had some standout performances in roles bigger and smaller. I particularly enjoyed the comedic slant given to the Pincus character (played by Tim Karzurinsky) and also the mother of the fiancé Mrs. Hefflefinger (played by Cindy Gold.) In the main character roles, despite not entering the stage until literally the last minute before the first act ended, Walter Burns (played very effectively by Timothy Edward Kane.) Recommended.

A fun night's entertainment. And to top it off we ran into our friends Richard & Irene 

Teitur celebration - started in 2018 and we're still going strong.  We have historically marked the occasion by dining on cheeseburgers. So Friday night we headed to The Loyalist for a round of the OG burgers. All menu items are marked. A last hurrah for 2026 with Ron & Mary, as I leave Monday.  #dinnerwithfriends

Sadly, since I had gone on Thursday to get my Flu and Covid shots I was under the weather on Friday morning when we were shceudled to meet John & Stephanie and Todd and AJ and Bernie for a trip to the Obama Center. I was feeling better by 6:30 but had a super rough time between 2 AM and about 6 PM.  But Phil brouhgt back some nice photos which helped relieve my regret at missing it. 

We go on. Today I have chores like change the HVAC filter and clean the coffee  maker before leaving. The plants have come inside for the winter and I am working on final finances reconcilation before heading back home to Sevilla. 

My last night dinner here for 2026 will be at Burrito House on Sunday. Meanwhile I review lists so I don'r forget anything I need to accomplish before leaving.

See you on the flip side!

September comes

 Labor Day is late this year so this last week of summer actually feels like it has already happened. We started the week (which was 8/31) with pizza at Pat's with Nick. Lee is on a cruise with his mom for a couple of weeks. 
Went for pizza Monday night - a last time for the season for me - at Pat's. The three of us split a family size salad (not to self - even for three it's too much!) and two pizzas: a large sausage and a small pepperoni. We had started the evening at home with a camomile sour (2 with gin and 1 vodka). Good but strong enough we all had water with dinner...

Tuesday we ate at home because Phil went to Costco - so food... then Wednesday, Mike and Leslie were in town between trips. Just back from Scotland and leaving town for South Africa and safari in Botswana, Zambia, and Zimbabwe on Friday. So we were happy our paths crossed before I leave for Sevilla! We met up at Cafe Beograd for some heavy meat choices. The others shared a Beograd Mixed Grill and I had the cevapchici. We lightened the intake with two excellent salads and a spinach and cheese burek.  Two great bottles of wine an '05 red burg from Beaune and a Pinot from California. Both showed really well.  Not sure when our paths cross again but we do have a trip planned together NEXT September.

So many left overs from Pat's and Beograd that we had those for dinner on Thursday. Friday we had dinner with Nick at Orange Garden then the weekend ate at home - Monti's late on Saturday as Phil had a long concert. Then Sunday I cooked and Monday and tuesday I cooked because it was the holiday weekend. Wednesday we went o sun Wah before the theater and Thursday we had Falcon's. Friday the 11th was a celebration for Todd's 64th birthday!  All Follow:

Truly excellent play Wednesday night at the new facility of TimeLine theater. Some of my favorite works of the last couple of decades have been TimeLine productions. Do not be distracted by the play's title. This topic is a vehicle for pondering much bigger questions.

The play is a powerful exploration of the "whole" story of The Birth of the Pill (or at least more than the previously well publicized) and the history of its development.  Many would attribute its availability as the spark of the so-called women's "liberation"  movement of the 1960s. 

Lots to unpack here, but the line that struck me as completely relevant to a broader understanding of this, or any age, "History is something we have to live with." So very true.  Questions about ends justifying means, medical ethics, and non-consented human testing are explored with quite an even hand. 

Of note, the new facility is marvelously spacious and has a nice lobby with a bar for waiting until "doors open." And more importantly, the production values were truly outstanding. It would be a great venue to see a restaging of one of their best productions in recent years - The Lehman Brothers Trilogy! 

Recommended...and an added bonus Sun Wah BBQ is right next door. 

Then on Friday night the gang got together and celebrated Todd's 64th!  A fabulous evening at Hermosa. Ethan Eang Lim and Richie Ribando were perfect hosts for Todd's party tonight. Cocktails from Nick Goel started us with a 💥 then we went into a great selection of wines to accompany a delicious meal - a Cambodian riff on the Wisconsin supper club. FAMILY dinner in the best sense of the word. In spirit if not blood. We toasted the foodie groups that brought us all together years back and created a circle of friends that feels like "home" whenever we get together. ❣️

So the weekend AFTER Labord Day Phil went to the Evansont folk Festival and I finished getting ready to leave for Sapin. Cleaned up the deck for the winter, finished packing except for last minute items. Started to get things set for being away all winter for me (Phil returns in January for a conference.) So we have busy fall planned with trips for me to Ávila in late September. For both of us to Istria (via Venice and Trieste) in late October and then in mid November to Frankfort to celebrate Claus' 75th! Then late November Larry is coming and we will do some Spain exploring - Toledo for sure and likely Jaen and Ubeda... 

Potential guests are cicrling trying to pin down dates specific for visits. And we have visa renewal application due in late October - so we are busy.... year end will be here before we know it.