243/365 - Blades

March 31, 2014.  Now, this was a beautiful spring day. It was a little cool in the morning and wonderfully warm even into the evening. It got a bit chilly when a rain shower blew in at night, and the streets were populated with people more thickly than I've seen in some time. Aside from those roaming the sidewalks and viewing the sites of the city, more people were on bikes, skateboards, and inline skates, as we see here. I can only imagine what the Lakefront Path was like. It had already picked up considerably on the most recent warmish day, when swaths of lakefront were still covered in ice. Maybe if the skies are clear tomorrow after work, I'll go check it out.

242/365 - Overdubs

March 30, 2014.  First thing in the morning, I headed to the studio to record a new Squared Off album. We somehow managed to get all of the drum tracks and most of the guitar and bass tracks done before taking a break for lunch. The rest of the day and early evening was spent adding guitar tracks and replacing a few bass tracks, a pretty successful studio day. This is our frontman Hoser putting down guitar tracks later in the day. Stay tuned for the eventual record release, after vocals are recorded and it's all mixed, mastered and pressed.

241/365 - Kettle

March 29, 2014.  Another incredibly lazy day this weekend. I slept the entire day away. I did make myself some breakfast when I woke up in the evening and spent some time on the computer. With a long day of recording to follow, I went back to bed at a somewhat reasonable hour.

240/365 - Caitlin Ferraro

March 28, 2014.  Tijuana Jai Alai debuted a new four-piece lineup at a show at Wrigleyville's Underground Lounge. Christina Danger seriously rocked it with us. The first band of the night was Bumsy and the Moochers, with Caitlin Ferraro, pictured here. They and the band Waste Basket put on fantastic shows, and I was glad for our band to be a part of it.

239/365 - Winding Path

March 27, 2014.  On my way home in the rain I took a few photos at Lathrop Homes, this one of the path that runs alongside the river.

238/365 - Jim's Hog

March 26, 2014.  Our friend Jim, guitarist for the C-Sides, let my band Tijuana Jai Alai rehearse at his shop. While we worked on music for our March 28 show, he worked on a motorcycle he bought not too long ago to customize.

237/365 - Taylor Anne Sings

March 25, 2014.  The Moonlight Owl Collective is a group of artists of many mediums, visual, literary, and musical, who have monthly events where work on a particular chosen theme is shown or performed. This is Taylor, singing at the March event at Gallery Bar on Clark near Chicago Avenue.

236/365 - SK8

March 24, 2014.  I was in the right place at the right time to catch this skater turning off of Jackson Boulevard onto the sidewalk at Wabash.

235/365 - Bed

March 23, 2014.  Despite any grand plans I may have had, I didn't leave the house. I was cold all day, hungry, even though I was eating, and feeling a bit down. Here's my bed, which I found myself in far earlier than usual.

234/365 - 00P5

234/365 - 00P5, originally uploaded by Mikey Brick.

March 22, 2014. After work, it was tacos followed by roller derby. The Windy City Rollers All-Stars took on St. Louis Arch Rival All Stars and won handily, though there were some close minutes and a short-lived Arch Rivals lead. A standout skater for Chicago scored quite a few points jamming and had one of the best names on the track: Jamburglar.

233/365 - Down By The Water

233/365 - Down By The Water, originally uploaded by Mikey Brick.

March 21, 2014. I spent some time at the lakefront, and Lake Michigan has returned to a liquid state. There is still a fair bit of ice on parts of the paved trail and the wall, as well as quite deep into the sand, as you can see here. There was a wall of ice to my right while taking this photo that was still over my head, but spring seems to be making an effort.

232/365 - Streetwise

232/365 - Streetwise, originally uploaded by Mikey Brick.

March 20, 2014. I came outside to fresh snow on the ground, but it was warm enough that I saw no trace of it by the time I was just a couple of miles from home. There are still patches of older ice and snow to be found, but they seem to be going quickly. This man selling StreetWise in Wicker Park has a friendly greeting for as many people as it seems he can, even people in bikes.

231/365 - Little Clown

231/365 - Little Clown, originally uploaded by Mikey Brick.

March 19, 2014. I spotted this van next to an empty lot while walking home. I know some people will have nightmares now, and I apologize.

230/365 - I'm Going By

230/365 - I'm Going By, originally uploaded by Mikey Brick.

March 18, 2014. At long last, my bike is in riding condition, and I'm ready to reclaim my spot on the street. I last rode early in winter, and apparently didn't clean and lube my bike afterward. Passing this guy on Milwaukee Avenue, I thought, "you're the first bike I've passed this year." Then I realized that was actually true. I haven't ridden in three months. What a terrible winter! Now the CTA's grip on me has been loosened, and I'll see a whole lot less of the inside of a train. Just as well, since major work is beginning on the Blue Line which will have stations closing throughout the coming months.

229/365 - Balaclava

229/365 - Balaclava, originally uploaded by Mikey Brick.

March 17, 2014. St. Patrick's Day was a cold one, and Tara prepared for it for her ride home from work. I was still using the CTA, spending a couple bucks plus change every time I went somewhere.

228/365 - Down On The Street

228/365 - Down On The Street, originally uploaded by Mikey Brick.

March 16, 2014. After band practice with Tijuana Jai Alai, I went to Wicker Park to grab something to eat and catch the Blue Line home. This photo was made on the platform waiting for a train. After yesterday, the train was mercifully vacant.

227/365 - Lady Leprechauns

227/365 - Lady Leprechauns, originally uploaded by Mikey Brick.

March 15, 2014. The City of Chicago held its St. Patrick's Day parade two days before the holiday in order to have it on Saturday, and I backed out of my plan to go see it and shoot it, since, you know, morning and all that. Rolling around town helping a friend look at apartments, I saw plenty of revelers, many of the type that find St. Patty's to be an excuse, if not an imperative, for vigorous dawn-til-blackout drinking. These two seemed fine as far as intoxication levels, though I was beyond my tolerance for cheesy leprechaun gear by the time I noticed my first group of party-bound people coming out of a building to hail a cab at eleven a.m. When I was getting on a train to go home around four o'clock, there was an alarming number of people lurching down the street in drunken zigzags and passed out on the train. I'm hoping this means I can celebrate St. Patrick's Day on St. Patrick's Day in a relatively sane environment.

226/365 - Papers

226/365 - Papers, originally uploaded by Mikey Brick.

March 14, 2014. I decided this must be an Art Institute professor who decided he'd rather read students' papers out in the sunlight than in his office. I spotted him to the side of the main entrance of the Art Institute gallery building. Of course, he could just be doing his taxes.

225/365 - Los Cupcakes

225/365 - Los Cupcakes, originally uploaded by Mikey Brick.

March 13, 2014. A wonderful dinner with friends Thursday night was followed by chocolate cupcakes, freshly frosted by Emiliano.

224/365 - It Came Back Again

224/365 - It Came Back Again, originally uploaded by Mikey Brick.

March 12, 2014. That beautiful, warm(ish) Monday was a tease, indeed. Tuesday was cold, and waking up Wednesday, a new covering of snow greeted Chicagoans. I'll be optimistic about spring when we get two warm days in a row. I won't believe it intends to stay until we get a warm week, though.

223/365 - Teeth

223/365 - Teeth, originally uploaded by Mikey Brick.

March 11, 2014. It was an uneventful photo day, so I ended up looking around my apartment again. I settled on this photo of the teeth on a large mask I have in my bedroom.

222/365 - The Suggestion of Spring

222/365 - The Suggestion of Spring, originally uploaded by Mikey Brick.

March 10, 2014. At long last we had a somewhat warm day in Chicago. The temperature ended up in the 50's and people really took it in, knowing that the cold would be back the next day followed by yet more snow. But that one day gave us hope that winter would actually end.

221/365 - Sofa

221/365 - Sofa, originally uploaded by Mikey Brick.

March 9, 2014. After hardly sleeping for a week or more, it was nice to finally have the chance to sleep in. Saying I slept all day became a little closer to true after adjusting the clocks for Daylight Saving Time. My 3 pm wakeup became 4 pm with a click of a button.

220/365 - Smooth

220/365 - Smooth, originally uploaded by Mikey Brick.

March 8, 2014. My friend Holly really wanted to see this band, The Yacht Rock Revue, so I decided to go after being on the fence over an invitation from another friend. It was a lot of fun, and they did an amazing job of covering soft rock gems from the 70's and 80's. Just as before the show, though, it remains true that I never need to hear Toto again, ever, not even capably performed by a band having fun with it.

219/365 - Rachael Price

Rachael Price, originally uploaded by Mikey Brick.

March 7, 2014. I actually made it to a show I wasn't playing, seeing Lake Street Dive at Lincoln Hall. They played fantastically, as I expected, and the show was a lot of fun after I moved away from the frat boys who loved the singer so much that that they wouldn't shut up about it and listen to her sing.

218/365 - Miles of Ice

218/365 - Miles of Ice, originally uploaded by Mikey Brick.

March 6, 2014. I knew that temperatures were about to go above freezing, so I went to get some photos of the lake while it still looked like a never ending sheet of ice. I could see pretty far (the cribs are a good marker for distance), and all I saw was frozen. I'm sure much of it is too thin to walk on, so I postponed my hiking trip to Michigan across the lake, but I could not see any open water.

217/365 - Shoveler

217/365 - Shoveler, originally uploaded by Mikey Brick.

March 5, 2014. Ash Wednesday might seem to be early spring, especially due to its association with Easter, but winter is just not letting go in Chicago (or most of the US) this year. Another good snowfall came, and the cold temperatures continued to linger below freezing. Like many people throughout the city, this man needed his alley to be shoveled clear of snow and ice.

216/365 - Über Amy

216/365 - Über Amy, originally uploaded by Mikey Brick.

March 4, 2014. My only photo of the day where Mardi Gras was in evidence was taken in the morning, when I found Amy in a Carnival mask delivering paczki for Uber, the ride-sharing service. Paczki are Polish donuts, and Paczki Day is the same day as Mardi Gras, the day before Ash Wednesday. The Polish population and influence in Chicago is so large that Paczki Day seems to be the most prominent way to celebrate Fat Tuesday.

215/365 - Logan Love

215/365 - Logan Love, originally uploaded by Mikey Brick.

March 3, 2014. In search of photos, I took a walk around Logan Square after getting off of the train and before catching a bus home. My choice for the day's photo was found right outside the Blue Line station.

214/365 - Frozen Fallon

214/365 - Frozen Fallon, originally uploaded by Mikey Brick.

March 2, 2014. I knew I should be at the Polar Plunge an hour or more ahead of time for a good position, but I didn't make it there that early and couldn't get a good shot of the water until the crowd cleared out a little bit. Fortunately, I did end up next to the VIP bus from which Rahm Emanuel, Israel Idonije, and Jimmy Fallon emerged. I got photos of icy Fallon and Idonije heading to the warm drying tent before going closer to the water to get some fun photos of the rest of the event. My fingers are no longer numb.

213/365 - Another Saturday Night

213/365 - Another Saturday Night, originally uploaded by Mikey Brick.

March 1, 2014. The snow came back. The Blackhawks played at Soldier Field, outdoors, with snow accumulating on them and the ice. I certainly am not wealthy or connected enough to be there breaking the icicles off of my whiskers, so I stayed home and did laundry. I had to make sure my heavy SmartWool socks were clean because tomorrow I'll be standing on the side of the lake for a few hours taking photos of the Polar Plunge for Special Olympics. I'll also be breaking the icicles off of my whiskers.

212/365 - Mickey

212/365 - Mickey, originally uploaded by Mikey Brick.

February 28, 2014. A short recording session for Squared Off ended up running until after 2 am, but we got some solid recordings of a couple of songs. Mickey at Wall To Wall did a great job getting the songs down for us, and Mike Rastelli helped out admirably with backup vocals. Here, we listen back to drum tracks I had just finished.