Sometime in late April after the Cubs home opener and after this post by Fave Bro, I proposed to throw a Chicago Style Hot Dog with my friends at SLC. In my email invitation, I set these guidelines, “In honor of Chicago, Baseball, and [Fave Bro] (and all associations with those three nouns), I propose an evening of Chicago Style Hot Dogs (and tofu pups for me). We'll do it right, boiled, on a poppy seed bun, with kosher dills, relish, onions, tomatoes, mustard, celery salt, and sport peppers. and maybe some Old Style and Twizzlers on the side. We can listen to the best of [Fave Bro's] Baseball Broadcasts, and make up some of our own. and then I will blog about it... in lots of detail.” I forwarded this email to Fave Bro, the inspiration of the party after all, and he was so excited, he posted this, “Inspired by my last post, my sister proposed a hot dog night among her friends. Sadly, at last check, it hadn't happened. I'm hoping it's happened by now.” Unfortunately, all the end of the year hustle-bustle took over and we didn’t find the time.

Then my SLC friend (and fellow ice cream adventurer) planned to come down to Chicago from the 4th of July. Sarah tossed around the idea of visiting Fave Bro up at the ring fingernail, but it turned out to be way too complicated (due to companion) (even though Fave Bro’s hyperlinked email to Sarah was a hit). So instead, she suggested to throw the Chicago Style Hot Dog Party in Chicago!! Even if we couldn’t be with Fave Bro, we’d party in honor of Fave Bro!

On Tuesday, July 3, at Lame Bro’s apartment (because he is only person in Chicago I know that has a television and CABLE-- and because it is fun to throw a party at your bro’s apartment) Sarah, companion, and I arrived with organic hot dogs, tofu pups, whole wheat buns, relish, onions, tomato, salted in the shell peanuts, pickles, chips, limes, and avocados. (We shopped at Stanley’s, Whole Foods, and Trader Joe’s, so we did our best, but no poppy seed buns… but even Fave Bro made exceptions… turkey dogs.) Lame Bro got out the thrifted x-mas dishes I gave him for Christmas. While I made guacamole in a gravy boat, Sarah and companion went to a food and liquor and bought Rwizzlers, beer, and sport peppers. Lame Bro provided the mustard and celery salt.

Though John Kim failed to show, Nancy and Aurora were there. We ate as we watched Chic-A-Go-Go -- live and tivo-ed! We saw two episodes: one featured Aurora and me dancing and the other featured Sharkula. We spoke with Erin Wingo, then in the Washington state back woods. She concluded that Lame Bro is really doesn’t deserve the name (and I agree, though I will still refer to him as such). Nancy threw grapes into Lame Bro’s mouth, which impressed companion the most! We left 3 long, annoying messages on Fave Bro’s phone. Then we went to the lake front to watch the fireworks reflect off the buildings behind us and walked home in the rain.

*Note: Later in the summer Sarah saw the recipe for the perfect Chicago Style Hot Dog in Travel and Leisure Magazine. Good job us!

In the ocean. Krakow, Poland. 20 October 2007.

On the Mound

Zagreb, Croatia. Oct 9-13, 2007

Daily Routine

mass email originally sent on 22 September 2007

Hello far and wide.
I am writing from my new home where I can feel the drone of the turbine in my bone marrow. I am at Cerveny Mlyn (Red Mill) in Southern Bohemia, in the middle of nowhere. No telephone lines come here. I walk twenty-five minutes in one direction to the closet-sized store and the other direction to the bus stop. At the end of this year, I hope to still sometimes romanticize the countryside. But right now, pulling weeds and working in isolation, it is a little difficult. There is always so much to do and an unexpected event always interrupts the day's plan. But, like this summer, I always make a list of the day's tasks.
Since I wrote last (about 3 months ago), I adjusted to post-graduation life in Chicago, tap danced every Sunday at the Maxwell Street Market, planted a garden, participated in the Goat Island Summer School, made new friends, boxed my belongings in my parent's house, and left with two bags and a one-way ticket back to the Czech Republic.
Now I am here, there, and adjusting to a whole new lifestyle. I work as the assistant to an artist-mother-farmer-teacher-curator-person of many other interests. My work touches all of these titles. We've created a schedule of diverse activities for me, though my actual schedule is driven more by the diverse deadlines (exhibitions, seasons, school programs, funding applications, etc.). Thus far I've focused on the looming winter by pulling weeds, harvesting potatoes, canning salsa, drying herbs, and cleaning out the gallery. It is a lot of tedious, physical work that is sometimes made more pleasant with the Chicago arts podcast, Bad at Sports. Now that I have left the city I have time to keep up with all its activities. So it goes…
I feel like I have a good group of active and interesting friends in this country, but it takes a lot of work and energy to get anywhere from the mill, and after a day of digging potatoes, walking to the bus stop is the last thing I want to do. But when I've made plans, I've kept to them, and I'm always happy to spend time with people my age.
I am making time to dance every day, morning and night. I need it everyday, morning and night. The other day I met a man who asked me how my work at the mill relates to what I studied in school and I responded that it all relates through the body. I was surprised by my own answer, but I guess that was the first time I put the feeling into words.
I am going to close for now. I thank you for all of your responses, please understand if it takes me weeks to return the gesture, as my internet connection is difficult at best. I hope this finds you well and warm and wearing bright colored socks.

Have the best time ever, often,
Annie…

Some Images from life thus far at the mill...

Harvesting Carp in Cerveny Rybnik. 5Oct2007