Friday, August 30, 2013

030/365 - Cloud Gate


030/365 - Cloud Gate, originally uploaded by Mikey Brick.
August 30, 2013. After I ate lunch today, I hit the street as usual to look for something to photograph. I found myself going toward Millennium Park, where I found quite a crowd at the Crown Fountain (it was hot today), but no characters or behavior that demanded photographing. Next thing I knew, I was walking toward The Bean. I find it nearly impossible to avoid photographing that thing, but I felt I could do it. I became more optimistic when I heard music from three different areas and remembered that Jazz Fest started yesterday. Two of the acts were inside tents that I didn't think I had time to navigate. One was rehearsing and/or soundchecking at the Pritzker Pavilion, but there were barriers preventing me from getting very close. I took a few shots anyway, but there was nothing special. Heading back toward work, I had to pass the Cloud Gate again, and braced myself against the lure of taking a photo of that giant mirrored bean. I almost made it away, but then I saw these tourists (speaking Italian, I think), my eyes drawn for the obvious reasons. Looking up at the reflection in The Bean, I noticed her admirers as well, and captured this moment as I passed by on my way back to work.

Thursday, August 29, 2013

029/365 - Barber-To-Be


029/365 - Barber-To-Be, originally uploaded by Mikey Brick.

August 29, 2013. Sometimes, Kevin, who I previously knew as the singer from the band Brick Assassin, comes in to the cafe where I work on his morning break. This afternoon on my break, I caught him outside the barber school that he attends a couple of doors down from me. It's always a pleasant surprise to run into a friendly familiar face in a city the size of Chicago.

Wednesday, August 28, 2013

028/365 - Adams Street Sunset

August 28, 2013. On a reasonably cool, but still humid, cloudy day, I found myself not getting hot on the 9-mile ride to work, but sweating like crazy nonetheless. This photo was in the first of my nine miles back home, heading into the sunset on Adams Street approaching Dearborn. The building ahead is the 41-story Clark Adams Building, built in 1927. You can see the clouds, which remained throughout the day, swallowing the taller buildings behind it.

027/365 - Shannon Hayden


027/365 - Shannon Hayden, originally uploaded by Mikey Brick.

August 27, 2013. While waiting for the bus at Ashland and Division that would take me to band practice, I heard kind of loud cello music, with electronic augmentation coming from Polish Triangle across the street. I wandered over and listened and took a few photos of Shannon Hayden as she played to a modest crowd of spectators.

Monday, August 26, 2013

026/365 - Peace Cycle


026/365 - Peace Cycle, originally uploaded by Mikey Brick.

August 26, 2013. If you were looking at my photos from September 2012, you know that I can dedicate each day to cycling photos, but I'm trying to avoid that right now and keep a bit of variety going on. Most days I do happen to have photos of cyclists or bikes, but I've chosen others to post. Sometimes I like the cyclists best, though, as is the case today. I had just come up from the Montrose Blue Line station with my bike and was putting on my gloves when this gentleman rode by. I framed him up, of course, and he gave me this instead of the curious scowl I often get.

Sunday, August 25, 2013

025/365 - Samba


025/365 - Samba, originally uploaded by Mikey Brick.
August 25, 2013. I only went to one street festival today, even though there were three that I thought about going to, and at least five in the city that I knew of. No, six. I just remembered another. I went to Brazil Fest in Logan Square. I was at first confused by the band on the west stage where I entered. The band itself wasn't confusing. I see one like them every time I go to, or even cross through, a street festival, or a band playing in the park or on the street. They were one of those folksy, Americana, we-gots-banjos-mandolins-and-singers-of-both-sexes bands. And a bass drum, of course. I was just confused that Brazil Fest had to include a band from Ohio or Connecticut or Detroit or wherever that was so influenced by the other South America - the one that includes Alabama and Kentucky and Tennessee. But certainly not Brazil. So I took a few pictures of the beardy people and went toward the east stage where I could hear a bateria pounding out a samba. Eventually that ended up snaking through the crowd as you see in this photo. Good fun, and I hope to make it back next year.

024/365 - Wunny


024/365 - Wunny, originally uploaded by Mikey Brick.

August 24, 2013. On a previous day that I did nothing, you were introduced to Tokio the cat. There is another cat to meet, and here he is: Wunny! I also did nothing that day, despite it being one of the very few remaining summer Saturdays, and having a list of parties and shows to make appearances at. Oh, well.

Friday, August 23, 2013

023/365 - Sunny Day Crosswalk

August 23, 2013. Rainy Thursday was forgotten on Friday. It was a beautiful day for sunshine and warm, but comfortable, temperatures. The tourists noticed, too. They were definitely out and about on Michigan Avenue, as well as stopping suddenly at corners in the Loop to figure out where they were while others tried to continue their walks to work, or lunch, or home without being involved in a multi-person pileup.

Thursday, August 22, 2013

022/365 - Rainy Day On Wabash

August 22, 2013. After eating lunch, I made a trip around the block in the rain shooting photos of people trying to keep dry, mostly with umbrellas. The rain was actually quite light, so several people, myself included, were willing to get a little wet.

Wednesday, August 21, 2013

021/365 - Flying Bird


021/365 - Flying Bird, originally uploaded by Mikey Brick.

August 21, 2013. Sometimes our instinctive gestures don't match our intentions. As I was straddling my bike photographing the rush hour commuters coming up Milwaukee Avenue, this smiling trio came along. As you can see, one raised her hand with her middle finger extended. She promptly yelled out, "Oh God, I don't know why I flipped you off. I meant to wave!"

020/365 - Top Hat


020/365 - Top Hat, originally uploaded by Mikey Brick.

August 20, 2013. Riding my bike home from work, I shared a few stoplights with this tophatted fellow on a motorcycle. He said he normally wears a different hat when riding, but he was taking this hat to a friend to borrow for Burning Man. Having moved a top hat myself, I've found that the best way to carry it is indeed on your own head.

019/365 - Another Homer?


019/365 - Another Homer?, originally uploaded by Mikey Brick.

August 19, 2013. JJ found tickets from a season ticketholder to a game between the Chicago Cubs and Washington Nationals at Wrigley Field. This is JJ after the inexplicable eleventh Chicago run, one of several homers, and the second for Donnie Murphy.

018/365 - Splash Landing


018/365 - Splash Landing, originally uploaded by Mikey Brick.

August 18, 2013. I wanted to make it to the second day of the Chicago Air and Water Show, having missed the first thanks to playing a show the previous night and getting home really late. Although I woke up at a decent time, I found it difficult to move myself from North Mayfair to North Avenue Beach in a timely fashion and only saw the last couple of planes from Bucktown while riding my bike that way. I still hung out at the beach for a little bit, where I came up with this photo of a kid getting his air and water simultaneously.

017/365 - Second City


017/365 - Second City, originally uploaded by Mikey Brick.

August 17, 2013. With JJ and Renee visiting from out of town, we went to Second City to catch some comedy. We laughed and all that.

Saturday, August 17, 2013

016/365 - Jayna


016/365 - Jayna, originally uploaded by Mikey Brick.
August 16, 2013. I had a gig drumming with Squared Off again tonight at Quenchers Saloon in Chicago. The C-Sides played before us, and this is their drummer Jayna. This was the second time we played with them, and I really enjoy them. You can check them out here: https://www.facebook.com/TheCSides.

Thursday, August 15, 2013

015/365 - Preseason


015/365 - Preseason, originally uploaded by Mikey Brick.

August 15, 2013. After work, I killed some time downtown before meeting coworkers at a birthday party, by photographing among the crowds on the evening streets. A significant number of people were headed to Soldier Field to see the Bears play the San Diego Chargers. Another significant number of people was, of course, anxious to get home from work.

014/365 - Bike & Ball


014/365 - Bike & Ball, originally uploaded by Mikey Brick.

August 14, 2013. After my friends JJ and Renee arrived in town, and after we had some dinner, we walked around Wicker Park for a bit. In the park itself, we saw a bit of a basketball game (or 3), and several other small congregations of people.

Tuesday, August 13, 2013

013/365 - House Hunt


013/365 - House Hunt, originally uploaded by Mikey Brick.

August 13, 2013. My friend and bandmate Hoser went to look at an apartment with me. Here, he waits outside for the owner. I hope I find myself living in this place. Besides finding house hunting unenjoyable, I really like it quite a bit.

Monday, August 12, 2013

012/365 - Rebeldes


012/365 - Rebeldes, originally uploaded by Mikey Brick.
August 12, 2013. Jazmin Corona, Paloma Martinez-Cruz, Stephanie Diaz Reppen, and Cristina Correa pose at the book release party for a book they contributed to (and Paloma edited) at Pilsen's Meztli Gallery. The book is titled Rebeldes: A Proyecto Latina Anthology.

Sunday, August 11, 2013

011/365 - Sam


011/365 - Sam, originally uploaded by Mikey Brick.

August 11, 2013. Sam relaxes in his backyard on a Sunday afternoon.

010/365 - Hops


010/365 - Hops, originally uploaded by Mikey Brick.

August 10, 2013. After a Squared Off show at Mary's Place in Rockford, Illinois, Matt from Squared Off and Leo from the Hard-Onz jumped for me out on the sidewalk. This may have been related to the excitement of Matt singing the Jurassic Park theme. Or maybe not.

009/365 - Wild In The Street


009/365 - Wild In The Street, originally uploaded by Mikey Brick.

August 9, 2013. The August 9 Liar's Club show was certainly the best one I've played so far with Squared Off in the past four months. I have several good photos of the other bands, but I was looking for something about the manic chaos to be my single photo of the day. This is later in the night, and not so manic, but I quite like it.

008/365 - Hustler


008/365 - Hustler, originally uploaded by Mikey Brick.

August 8, 2013. Lily and Tara came to spend the evening with me, a pizza, and a pool table. Perhaps unsurprisingly, this has been one of my more popular recent flickr photos in the two days that it's been posted before adding it here.

007/365 - Bungalowland


007/365 - Bungalowland, originally uploaded by Mikey Brick.

August 7, 2013. North Mayfair is the neighborhood I am housesitting in, which is filled with street after street of bungalows. This one, my friend Amy calls the Hansel and Gretel house.

006/365 - By The Ankles


006/365 - By The Ankles, originally uploaded by Mikey Brick.

August 6, 2013. During my lunch break, now that I work in the Loop, I sometimes go see what's up on Chicago's streets. I stumbled on the installation of several sculptures near the Art Institute one day. It looks a little bit like something I wasn't supposed to see.

005/365 - Flabbergasted


005/365 - Flabbergasted, originally uploaded by Mikey Brick.

August 5, 2013. Sometimes, all you can do is say, "Bismillah, that's terrible," and take a picture. This doll was in the window of a thrift shop in Wicker Park.

004/365 - Tokio


004/365 - Tokio, originally uploaded by Mikey Brick.

August 4, 2013. This one day I had to recreate since I did not yet know I was doing another 365 project. It was easy, though, because I didn't even leave the house that Sunday. This is Tokio, my friend Amy's cat. I was her housesitter for a month while she was in Montana. Tokio was sure to present me with occasional challenges, so I didn't become too comfortable.

Saturday, August 10, 2013

003/365 - Mustaches


003/365 - Mustaches, originally uploaded by Mikey Brick.

August 3, 2013. At the gracious invitation of Rick Carney from the Austin Texas School of Rock, I went to one of their shows at the House of Blues in Chicago. While sitting at my table after the show had ended, I saw this group walk up to the hostess stand.

002/365 - Sphinx


002/365 - Sphinx, originally uploaded by Mikey Brick.

August 2, 2013. There is a house I walk past when I take the blue line to Montrose that has a pair of sphinxes guarding its door.

1/365 - Burger


1/365 - Burger, originally uploaded by Mikey Brick.

Back to the 365! Starting with August first, illustrated here, I'll bring another photo each day for a year.

This is Matt, who plays bass in Squared Off, a band I play drums for, and his wife having some food after we played at Reggie's in Chicago.