Hi friends and loyal followers. Followers, first off I’m not sure why this stupid thing keeps only publishing half the blog but it is working my last nerve! I’m sorry.  Anyway,  I am about to review an event I went to a couple weeks ago.  I just had so many fun events happening recently that I didn’t have time to write about all of them.  It’s a good thing I saved this one since I didn’t have an “official” guinea pig outing this weekend! Which brings me to my next point: Chicago’s Social Guinea Pig is about to have a bit of a change.  The job I was working on got slow, and I got laid off.  Because there are 100′s of electricians out of work right now, I’m looking at a VERY long wait for work! Now how does this affect the blog?  Well, with less money, I’m a little more limited in the events I can attend..  HOWEVER, this does force me to enlist my more creative energies which is cool, AND I’ll have lots more time to do things!  Also,  I’m not sure how “attractive” this makes me at the singles events.  You know, I’m no longer the gainfully employed female electrician, I am now unemployed student that makes a little cash bartending here and there.  But then again, the economy being what it is, I don’t think being out of work has the same stigma it used to, so I’ll just continue to do how I do and try and make it work.  I mean, I don’t want to disappoint all my fans who wait anxiously for their Sunday evening blog post each week! (I’m apparently dellusional now as well).  But on to Paint and Pints….

Paint and Pints: Alright, in an attempt to cover all sections of the city, I went to a very cool thing on the south side at the Hyde Park Art Center.  http://www.hydeparkart.org  The Hyde Park Art Center is a fantastic place with all kinds of artsy things happening.  They have exhibits and classes (painting, photography, ceramics, digital art…) for kids and adults, and even a creativity camp.  Recently the Art Center has been attempting to become more of a social, community center.  It seems to be going quite well too.   I went to Paint and Pints a few weeks ago.  I went to this solo and I got there at 7.  The first session was at 7:30 which gave me some time to stroll through the different galleries.  They had some pretty provocative edgy pieces that I really liked, particularly this sculpture:  It’s probably hard to tell from this small picture but it’s a collection of “found objects” old and new, negative, deragatory and stereotypical as well as positive and hopeful,  that project different images of African Americans in our society.  Yeah, it’s defintitely hard to see, but it was good stuff.  At 7:30 I headed to the little bar they had set up,  purchased my “pint” of beer in order to complete the pint part of the event (yes, this was in addition to the “suggested donation” of $10), and entered the ”paint” portion of the event.  The best part of the evening WAS in fact entering the studio- some genius artist turned a vending machine into a door, so you actually walk THROUGH the vending machine into the studio!

The Paint Part: There were about 20 people signed up for each session.  And this was yet another event that had an impressive diversity in gender, age, race, sexual orientation, which is always nice to see.  I was expecting an actual easel with a canvas, but instead they were teaching people how to do silk screening.  There were about 10 different silk screen stations and two art teachers.  Each station had a different picture (tiger, music notes, a dog, a dollar sign, etc.) and paint.  The teachers gave us a short lesson on how to do it, gave us some paper, and allowed us to mingle, sip cockatils, and silk screen.  I talked to a few people, and everyone was nice and friendly, but I didn’t make any “connections”.  But I did make this:  Hey! I said I LOVE art, I never claimed to be good at it. 

Final Thoughts: To be honest, although silk screening is a fun thing to, it didn’t allow for much creativity and it didn’t take very long.  I think I was at the event- gallery exploring and silk screening- for an hour.  It wasn’t as exciting as I’d hoped.  And before I started writing this blog I went to another event here called “Clay and Cocktails” with GPit (Guinea Pig in Training) and Male Guinea Pig and that one was better.  But I was pretty angry that we didn’t get to keep our clay sculptures.  Overall, I think these events have a lot of potential.  But I think they’re still new and under construction.  I’m sure they will improve with more organization and popularity.  Also, these events are sporadic so if you’re interested in going you will have to periodically check their website. 

Rating:  3.0 out of 5

What happened to that date you were going to go on?  Yeah, didn’t happen.  I am, in fact, LIVID with this matchmaker! Not only has she failed at getting me even one date in five months, but she completely dropped the ball one and botched up the one she had “lined up” for me.  Coincidentally, however, I started talking to someone else who actually found me because of this blog, and who is beginning a matchmaking business and is interested in possibly getting together with me and adding me to the database.  I’ll keep you posted on all that.  But the dating aspect has defintately been bleak: not one date from How About We, every speed dating event has been canceled, and 6 0f the 8 Eight at Eight dinners I’ve signed up for I did not get “matched”  But hope springs eternal they say….  

Missed Opportunities: So GPit is amazing at sniffing out fun and unique things to do.  She alerted me to this annual event: Journey to the End of the Night http://chicag0.org that I was unable to attend due to a prior engagement.  Plus I was also a little intimidated by the athleticism involved to be perfectly honest.  Apparently this is a world wide, annual event.  It happens on different dates in different cities.  Hundreds of people gather together and receive maps and two armbands.  The maps indicate check points throughout the city that they have to get to.  BUT while getting to these points you get chased.   If you get caught, you change your arm band and become a chaser.  It seems pretty intense.  You don’t know who’s a civilian and who’s out to get you until you start getting chased! And it is truly city wide- the el is involved, strategy, running, jumping, hiding….And although I didn’t go myself, I thought this might be the kind of thing my readers might enjoy checking out.  The website said you didn’t have to be super young or athletic to play, but admittedly I am not the sporty girl.  Unless you count my obsession with dancing….

What’s next?  Speaking of dancing, it has not escaped my attention that the majority of my events are either dance or art related.  I can’t help it! Those are my favorites! But in the intrest of being more diverse I will be volunteering with Chicago Cares this week! I’ll tell you all about it next Sunday.  Bye.

Hi everyone!  You know, this was a weekend I thought “I’m really glad I write this blog!” I was feeling so lazy on Friday night, and it would have been so nice and easy to stay home and order in some food, watch a movie, and relax.  But that was not to be- I was expected to meet my brand new blog-accquired friend, (my new friend that I have now stolen from a friend of a friend that I went on the sexy bus with two weeks ago) at the Museum of Contemporary Art for First Fridays.  So I got dressed and headed out.  Were I not writing this blog, I probably would have stayed home and missed out on a fantastic time!

First Fridays: http://www.mcachicago.org/programs/now/all/2011/e62  Every first Friday of the month, from 6-10pm,  and for $14 in advance or $20 at the door, the Museum of Contemporary Art keeps its doors open for visitors to look at the art, drink, snack, socialize, listen to music, and enjoy different activities.  Each month they have a different theme.  I’ve gone to two of these before, one was a masquerade theme and the other was a Valentine’s Day theme.  I wasn’t sure what this one would be until I saw the sign.  Being in my 30′s and nostalgic for “my day” I squealed in delight and went into the museum to bask in art and 80′s glory.  I saw that there was a hair crimping and make-up station in the lobby.  I was relieved that my new friend (and the posse that she was bringing with) was running late so I could take advantage of this fun.  Because I had spent the 80′s rocking the Pat Benatar look, I never had hair long enough for crimping.  Who knew I would ever get the chance!  While waiting my turn, my new friend and her four friends showed up.  I was next in line for make-up, so while I didn’t want to be rude, I DID want some extreme 80′s make over and I couldn’t stop with the crimped hair! So I told the ladies I would meet them upstairs once I was new, improved, and suitable for the art-stravaganza.  And here I am with my retro look (complete with the Billy Idol sneer- kind of!)  Hot, right?  And I was off to the event.

The event: My ladies had already found the snacks and the bar.  We all hung out and chatted for a while.  Two of the girls I didn’t get to talk to them much, but they seemed nice enough.  But the other two, I just adored immediately.  We decided to explore the museum- starting with the gift shop of course.  The place was jam packed with a nice mix of people- age, race, and sexual orientation.  Some people were even dancing to the DJ who was spinning all of the best of the 80′s.  Here’s the scene: you can see it’s pretty packed.  And in the picture all the way on the right you have the Creation Station.  Apparently, if the art, socializing, scavenger hunt, music, and drinks aren’t enough fun for you, you can go to the Creation Station and make your own skinny tie! Oh, I didn’t get to do the scavenger hunt- I think it must have been earlier in the night.

The art part: For me, I actually go to this not only for the fun socializing, but because I LOVE contemporary art!   So much so, that I actually did an internship in the library and worked in the gift shop the very first summer that the MCA opened up at this address.  I have such an affinity for this place and it’s my personal favorite museum despite the fact I am forever attempting to defend the art.  But I always find it provocative and edgy.   I mean, art museums are almost religious experiences for me. Here’s some of the pieces you will see in the 1980′s exhibit.  If it’s hard to tell what’s happening here, the one on the right is the famous, signature Jeff Koons rabbit with the AIDS wallpaper in the background done in the style of Robert Indiana’s LOVE.  The next picture, I didn’t see who the artist was, but it’s a white Jesse Jackson with “How ya like me now” graffitied on it.  Damn.  Intense. 

Wrap-up:  Maybe it was the crimped hair and blue eyeshadow, or maybe it was the fact that I was so much more interested in the art than the socializing, but I did not meet anyone besides the posse my new friend brought.  BUT one of the ladies from our group DID meet a very handsome boy and they actually went out for a drink after the event- so it IS a good place to meet people.  Although as one of my new gal pals pointed out (and gave me permission to quote her in the blog) “Yeah, if I were really tall and skinny I would be meeting guys at these events too!”  Yeah, that never hurts I guess! We were a stunning group of ladies, but admittedly the one that got the boy did in fact look like a model.  Isn’t that always the way? But guess what I got? More new girlfriends! I will be going to another Mingle Around event over Memorial Day weekend with my new friend and my NEW, new friend! I’m so delighted with the very cool ladies I am accquiring!   Oh, but I was significantly less delighted with the outrageous expense of the MCA’s parking garage.  Just a head’s up if anyone decides to check this event out.

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars.  It’s a bit of a hit or miss thing.  The first two of these First Friday’s I went to weren’t as good, but I thought this one was fantastic.  Also, check out some of their other programs.  They have cool events on Tuesday nights like Bingo Tango (yes, it’s what it sounds like- Bingo games and Tango lessons) or Stitch and Bitch. 

In other news: I haven’t heard back yet about my impending date that the matchmaker is supposed to be setting up for me, but all up in her grill. (do people still say that?  Probably not.)  Also, Saya and Guinea Pig in Training have alerted me to some cool new thing that hasn’t even started up yet.  It’s an experimental dating thing called Project Fixup http://projectfixup.com/  There are no profiles or messages.  You fill out some questions, take a test, and you get “fixed up” with someone you may be compatible with by the people who run the sight.  Each fixup costs $15.  I think it sounds like a clever, new concept, right?  So, I’m signed up and I’ll let you know what develops!

I’m not sure what I’ll do next weekend, but I still never told you about the Paint and Pints event from two weeks ago.  Maybe next time…..bye.

Hi readers! Check this out! Welcome to the 5th annual Zombie pub crawl.  These people do not mess around! They take their drinking and zombie-ing very seriously as you can see.  It was quite a thing to be a part of!

So what is it? The Zombie pub crawl is put on by a non-profit theatre company as a fun way to fundraise and it happens every year in Andersonville.  Here’s the info: http://chicagozombiepubcrawl.com/about.html  This will tell you a little about how it all goes down.  And while I know it’s an annual thing and you missed it, don’t be sad! I’ve noticed that if you just google zombie fest Chicago 2012 you will find similar events coming up this summer like a zombie march and a zombie prom.  Apparently zombies are hot right now.

Speaking of hot zombies, check ME out! While at the thrift store, shopping for a zombie outfit, I came across the nearly exact dress that Carrie was wearing when they dumped the pig’s blood on her at the prom! (You horror movie buffs know what I’m talking about)  The funny thing was, I actually ended up looking more like Barbie doll zombie or generic prom queen zombie.  In fact, someone even asked me if I was a Lady Gaga zombie because I looked like her! Well, I found these zombie figures even better than Carrie.  Why limit myself to which zombie I am!   Now I may be ballsy, but who wants to go on a pub crawl alone?!?! So I took my favorite MPG (Male Guinea Pig) with me.  He zombied it up too and cut up all his clothes like he’d been dead for years! And off we went.  We drove up to Andersonville and picked up our zombie swag at the theatre.  Swag included tickets to a show, a year of Time Out Chicago, a T-shirt, a cup, and a pass that let us partake in zombie related specials.  Because MPG and I are no longer 20-something college students, we did not feel compelled to spend the entire 6 hours (2-8pm) pub crawling and getting “wasted”.  So we got there around 5 and were way more interested in dinner than drinking! But where does one go to eat when dressed like a zombie?

Mary’s Attic, also known as Mary’s Hamburgers.   http://www.hamburgermarys.com/chicago/  There was a wait to have dinner, so while we waited, MPG and I checked out the Attic part of Mary’s for some zombie drink specials and a dance party.  This is what the scene looked like:

As you can see we have Rosie the Riveter, a cop, a generally gruesome guy, a construction worker, and Fred Flinstone.  It’s funny, it seems like people just put on Halloween costumes and add zombie makeup!  MPG and I surveyed the scene and drank our special blood punch until we got called for dinner.  We indulged in some of the tastiest burgers.  And because I love sweets like zombies love brains, I just had to have the German Choclate milkshake: chocolate shake with vanilla vodka and Frangelico.  I thought I HAD died and gone to heaven it was so good! My point being- this place is worth a visit even without the zombie fest.  Admittedly, that was not the best choice as I then had to go on this pub crawl with a rather large bellyache.  But it was so worth it!

@tmosphere: http://www.atmospherebar.com/ This was the next stop- also filled with zombies and drinking and dancing! There were between 50-100 zombies in each bar! It was an impressive scene! These two sexy lady zombies who looked like they were in a car wreck circa 1988 even stopped dancing to do a little fierce voguing for me.  There is nothing a zombie loves more, it seems, then getting their picture taken.  We finished up our beer (rather MPG finished his beer, I was still nursing my tummy ache) and headed off to bar number three.

 Simon’s: http://www.simonstavern.com/  So, this is a very cool dive bar that is packed with interesting historical significance.  None of which I can remember right now of course.  I actually frequently this place on non zombie occasions and it’s always packed and happenin’.  MPG and I met a very nice, friendly zombie couple in Hogwart’s garb (that’s Harry Potter speak for you non-nerds) and chatted with them for a while.  Now what I found particularly both awesome and disconcerting was the fact that I had boys coming up to me and complimenting me ALL evening on how good I looked.  I said “Thank you” and this guy goes “No, thank YOU”.  I was loving it! In fact, these two boys who looked like they might be cute under the zombie make-up asked if I would pose with them.  Who am I to deny anyone such a sexy photo op? Of course I will! But here’s the disturbing part: why is it, that I get hit on more when I look like a dead Barbie doll, than when I am walking around as my cute, live, natural self?  Are guys just that weird? Or is it because it was five hours into a pub crawl?  Or maybe I just need to rock this look more often.  Who cares? It was fun regardless of why!

Wrap-up: Since MPG and I are closer to 40 than 21, we decided three hours was enough fun. We just wanted to participate, we didn’t need to get wasted or go to the after party, or to Farragut’s or The Call (the other two bars).  So we called it a night and headed home.

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars.  It’s a funny, random, hilarious thing to be a part of, but it really was a young crowd.  Once a year is definitely enough!

Speaking of boys…. So it seems as though I am having more success with the finding new friends and super fun things to do aspect of this blog more than the romantic portion, but like I said, it seems that’s more where I’m at now anyway.  BUT, if anyone recalls a blog I wrote in January about meeting with a matchmaker, she contacted me this week to let me know we might have a live one! So I’ll keep ypu posted on all of that.  But until then, stay tuned for whatever it is I might do next weekend!

Yeah, except not really.  Ok, I DID swear not to divulge any “personal” information about my new friends, but that doesn’t mean I can’t tell you other stuff! (I don’t think….)

Anyway, Several weeks ago,  I got a Facebook message from a girl I had met through a friend of a friend.  We had met maybe twice.  And because of that, along with the fact that she was a friend twice removed- an accquaintance really, I was surprised at her invitation to a Mingle Around event to a Singles-Sexy-Haunted-Pub-Crawl-Bus-Tour. (She thought it would be a great blog topic- and it is!)  My response was basically: “What?!?! What is this awesomeness, how do I not know about it, and more importantly: Hell yes I want to go!”

 I also called up MGP (that’s my male guinea pig best friend that accompanies me on adventures frequently) to see if he was interested in tagging along.  His response was similar to mine.  So I went onto the Mingle Around website and bought two tickets to sexy, spooky fun!

Mingle Around: http://www.minglearound.com/  It’s free! And it’s primarily for singles. They seem to have at least one event a week- a lot of Nuts’n'Bolts parties, some speed-dating, and some general socializing parties (themed or otherwise).   It seems similar to Meet-up (www.meetup.com ).  I will definitely be doing more of these events in the future! I see potential blog worthy happenings here….I think it’s worth checking out!

The night of: So MGP picked me up and we headed off to Hard Rock Cafe.  I met my new friend (twice removed) there too, and we headed onto the bus.  There were 23 singles there! And it was pretty evenly split between boys and girls.  I’ve been pretty impressed with the diversity at some of these events lately- I mean age, race, gender…it’s all pretty evenly represented! Anyway, we headed off to our first stop while sipping on some adult beverages (yes, you could drink on the bus) and while listening to our tour guide Sunny talk about the differences between fetishes and kink, and getting us to play a sexy, revealing game (Thank god we could drink on the bus!).  But before I tell you about the first stop, let me educate you about this bus tour, because you do NOT have to go through Mingle Around to take a tour!

Where to find these bus tours:  http://www.weirdchicago.com/  So this company has tours every weekend- they may be sex tours, haunted tours, Devil in the White City,  Serial Killers, or Gangsters.  And this isn’t some cracker-jack operation, they’ve been featured on the History Channel, and I think maybe National Geographic Channel as well.  It may be morbid and subversive stuff, but our hostess was funny, interesting, and extremely knowledgable! Ihighly recommend going on any one of these tours! Now, ours was custom made for Mingle Around as a combo of several of these tours- kinda like the “best of” I think.  Oh! Remember the scandal at Northwestern about the “Live Sex Show” demonstration?!? Our tour guide was a part of that! A local celebrity!

The first stop:  The first stop was a sexy stop! We went to a real live S&M dungeon! (It’s actually a few blocks from my house! Wow!  I wonder if they’re hiring…)

So here’s your sneak peek into a dungeon! (Seriously, can I get in trouble for posting these pictures?  Whatever.)  On the left are fetishy shoes and an overnight cage! On your right you have leather masks and every kind of device you can imagine! And there were more racks, and cages, and all sorts of weird chairs and contraptions! It was very clean.  And there is no actual sex of any sort that occurs here- it’s all just a big, erotic mind fuck.  It was actually really interesting and educational.  I would tell you more but this is just the first stop!

The second stop: The second stop was a scary stop! But it was scary to me for more than its haunted history! The minute I was told our next stop was the Congress Hotel, I became sick to my stomach.  (Please allow me to digress momentarily).  The workers of the Congress have been on strike for 9 years! In fact, I have walked the picket line with them on numerous occasions. I didn’t want to be the jerk who ruins the Saturday night fun, happy tour by standing angrily outside- awkward! But how could I ethically cross a picket line?!?! So, friends, I sold out.  I walked into the bad, hateful Congress hotel.  But I refused to patronize the bar!!! Back to the tour….It WAS a gorgeous old hotel with a rich history.  Sunny told us all about H.H. Holmes- America’s first serial killer of Devil in the White City Fame.  He picked up many victims here.  That’s a crazy story.  She also told us of the 12th floor hauntings by a mother who threw herself and her two children off the balcony! On that happy note, we were off to our next destination! On the way out I stopped and chatted (and apologized) to one of the UNITE HERE  protesters.  So in apology and solidarity, if anyone wants to know about the 9 year protest: http://www.presidentpicketscongress.org/  Ok. I feel a little less dirty now.  Oh! Speaking of dirty, back to the sexy bus tour….

Stop three: This was just a semi-stop.  So in between stops, Sunny did a fantastic job of telling us sexy and scary stories about Chicago’s history! She was telling us about the Eastland disaster.  This is the story of a ship that, although tied to the dock- tipped over and drowned over 800 people! We stopped at the area of the Chicago River to see where it happened. Apparently there are more 911 calls that turn out to be false made here, than any other point on the river.  People frequently claim to see a drowning body!

Stop four: So I didn’t know this, but the Liars Club http://www.chicagounbelievable.com/2009/10/liars-club.html is not just famous forbeing cool, but for being haunted! (That website is in fact, ABOUT the people who put together these tours as well as the 3 murders that happened in the SAME room!!!) We stopped in for a drink and to maybe even see some ghosts.  I had a drink, but no sighting.   This was our last stop, but not the last story.  On the way back Sunny told us about the Everleigh Club- a high class whorehouse run by two sisters during the early 1900′s.  Did you know that the term to “get LAID” came from people asking visitors who went to Chicago if they got to go to EverLEIGH?!?! And the most desired prostitute was an exotic Asian woman who worked there named- Suzy Poontang?!!? No joke! I even verified that shit on google! Sexy AND educational!

The after party: So wait! This was a singles event, right?  Did you meet anybody?  MGP had to leave early because he’s been working 7 days a week 12 hours a day for a couple weeks.  So about 12 of us, including twice removed friend, went to Fado’s for an after party drink.  While there was a decent amount of guys, a decent amount of them were kinda weird and we were not interested! There were some cuties though too!  And it DID appear as though there were a couple connections, so Mingle Around seems to be a good way to meet people!  Nonetheless, my new friend and I were actually more interested in talking to each other than flirting and we hung out and had a drink and talked. 

In conclusion: I am convinced that I can quite possibly be the only person in the world who goes TO a singles event with an attractive, single, wonderful, heterosexual man (shout-out to MPG!) and ends up going HOME with a woman! Haha! Isn’t it supposed to be the other way around?  I’m so confused! Seriously though, I’ve always said that this blog, and life itself, is about more than “love” and “relationships” and “boys”.   I mean, not only did I go on a great tour and learn and see lots of cool stuff about sex, death, and history, I took a twice removed friend and made her my own new friend.  (Sorry friends that I just stole her from!).   And I just think that in my 30′s, finding a real friend is sometimes more difficult and precious than some silly, stupid, old boy anyway!  She has expressed interest in joining me on future adventures, and I will be happy to have her!

Rating: 4.0  I would give Mingle Around a 4.0 and the tour a 4.0.  I will have to go more Mingle Arounds and actually do more mingling.  This event was  really more about the tour than the socializing.  I also really loved the tour and it was cool to see the “best of” each of their tours, but it actually kind of made me want to go on one that was all sex, or all haunted, and more focused because I felt like I wanted to know more about whatever topic we were discussing instead of jumping to a totally different one.  3 hours wasn’t enough time to fit everything in, but any longer would have been too long.  I guess I kind of felt like I wanted to know what else they showed on the tours.  But perhaps that was their plan to get me to sign up for another tour….

OH! I also went to Paint and Pints on Friday, but I’ll catch you up on that another week.  Next week is the annual Zombie Pub Crawl.  It’s only once a year so if you want to check it out….http://chicagozombie.com/2012/03/5th-annual-chicago-zombie-pub-crawl-april-28-2012/

So I hope that none of my readers think I’m “cheating” or being lame.  Because next week I have two- yes, TWO- uber awesome events planned, I took it easy this weekend and just hung out, did the dinner and drink thing with my friends, and enjoyed their company without worrying about the blog.  I have something I’ve been wanting to share for a while and I feel that even though I did this thing pre-blog, it is VERY blog-worthy, it’s kind of the essence of what my blog is about.  I took a circus class.

Where does one take a circus class?  http://www.actorsgymnasium.com/  If any of you are insane or daring enough to take a circus class after I tell you the story of what a complete ASS I made of myself week after week, you can go to the above website and check out the classes.  They meet once a week for several weeks and they are not cheap.  The school is in Evanston.  These pictures show the kind of stuff you will learn how to do. Pretty amazing, right?  I thought so too! That’s why I signed up.  But for some strange reason, I never quite managed to look like these ladies here.  I wanted to be the aerial superstar, but I instead, was the clown.

That’s so sad guinea pig! What happened? I was tricked! I called the studio and said “Hi!  I have no experience, and I not in the best of  shape.  I would like to use this class to help me become more fit and strong in a fun way, and meet new, interesting people while doing it!”  And the lady said “Absolutely! This class is just fine for inexperienced beginners! Come on in!”  LIAR! She forgot to add: “if you are in your 20′s and able to contort yourself into pretzel shapes”.  I walked into class on the first day and was told to “warm up” with the group.  So I began to stretch and touch my toes and do some arm circles.  But apparently their version of warming up was for all these smoking hot, freakishly in-shape, 20-somethings to begin walking around- ON THEIR HANDS!  Show-offs.  I was very uncomfortable and out of place.  But I decided to give it a shot anyway, despite the fact I can rarely walk very well on my feet, much less my hands.  So I stayed and learned how to juggle and, as pictured on the right, to walk on a ball.

The 1st injury: I should have known after the first injury that I should not atempt to run off with the circus and should keep my day job.  At that very first class I was told by the guy teacher “Go on!  Just take a running start and leap onto the ball.  I’ll be on the other side to help keep you up.”  I was looking around to see if anyone else looked as petrfied as I did.  Not only did they not look scared, they were all jumping up and standing gracefully on the giant ball.  Maybe it wasn’t as hard as it looked.  So I confidently broke into a run, lept onto the giant ball, and promptly overshot right over it and fell onto my ass.  While falling off said ball I kicked my instructor in the groin area- perhaps 6 inches from a very, ummm, precious place.  Both my body and dignity were in great pain. That lunatic told me “Don’t worry! I’m fine! Try it again!”  I said ”I’m good, thanks.”   I thought about asking for a refund right then and there.  But my friends insisted that it would get better, I should cut myself some slack, it was only the first night after all.  Besides- you love to have funny stories to tell, right?  Add this adventure to your repetoire!

The 2nd injury:  I went for several weeks without incident.  I was the worst in the class though.  But I got to do the tightrope, that circle thing pictured above, the unicycle, and stilts.  Finally it was time for the trapeze! I expected to be harnessed in and swing around.  But the trapeze was lowered and I was supposed to flip myself- upside-down onto it.  Again, I could not do it.  So the teacher decided to help by shoving my ass into the air and onto it.  She couldn’t do it.  (To be fair, I WAS 50 lbs. heavier than I am now….). To add insult to injury, instead of letting me just say: “Oh well, next time!” She called over another student to push up the OTHER half of my ass up onto the trapeze!  On the count of three, they hoisted, and I used all my strength to flip over and onto the trapeze.  We did it!  But my glory was eclipsed by the fact that I had just kicked this SECOND teacher in the FACE!  She left the room in a lot of pain.  She left the class early.  I was again, mortified.  I decided that after wounding both teachers it was a sign that I needed to quit before someone got killed.

Rating: 2 0f 5 stars.  One star because it was an interesting thing to do, and one because it makes for a funny story now- over a year later.  But no more than that because of the injuries and embarassement that came with the unique experience.

So if it was that bad, why are you blogging about it? Clearly, Circus Class was not for me.  HOWEVER- I DO think it’s a really, really cool thing to do, IF you know going into it that it’s kind of advanced, and if you are in decent shape (again, I was REALLY out of shape when I took it).  I did notice that now they have added some classes that are called “beginner”.  Perhaps I inspired that decision.  I mean, I would recommend it highly to anyone who is athletic.  I really love classes in general, it’s the best way to meet people because you have this thing in common, and obviously it’s easier to make and maintain a friendship (or relationship) when you see someone more than once at some random event.  Sadly, since people were afraid of me, I did not make any friendships here, BUT speaking of friends and classes….

Discovery Center: http://www.discoverycenter.cc/  I’m not going to spend much time talking about this just because I think most people at least know about it.  It’s this small place on Lincoln Avenue that offers classes in just about anything you can imagine for a pretty decent price.  They have classes in: language, dance, music, sports, computer, bunsiness, games, socializing, etc., etc.  You really can take a class in anything you want, and while they’re not super high caliber, they’re pretty good and awfully enjoyable! I’m a big fan of Discovery.  I’ve taken fencing, burlesque,  and Texas Hold’em as classes, and went on a day long canoe trip as well as to a coffee-house-speed-dating event.  Pretty versatile stuff, huh?  And I did make some friends through the fencing and Texas Hold ‘em.  (I also earned back the money I spent on that Hold’em class using the skills I had learned! Sweet.)

Rating: 3.5 of 5 stars.  It’s worth a look.

Well, that’s enough of a trip down memory lane! Next week I’m bak again in full swing with Paint and Pints on Friday, and the Sexy-haunted-pub-crawl-bus-tour on Saturday! Jealous?  I can’t wait! I think it will be fun, fun weekend!  See you then.

Happy Easter everyone! Just in case you were wondering, Easter is my favorite holiday! It makes me so happy, partly because I feel like it unofficially celebrates the beginning of awesome weather! And what do we do in awesome weather?  We bike.     

Before I start, I want to apologize upfront for the pictures.  I usually take them with my phone, but my phone fell into the street while biking, and I watched a cab drive right over it while ignoring my agonizing screams of “NOOOOO!”.  But that was the only bad thing that happened that day!  The rest of the day made up for it.    But first, speaking of pictures, does anyone know if there are any rules or laws I need to be aware of when posting these pictures?  I feel like I’m supposed to be getting permission or something….

Beer ‘n’ bikes-  This was way cooler than I anticipated.  www.goteampete.com  As a rule, I do not enjoy mixing my drinking with even the slightest physical exertion.  But for some reason, not only did I not mind, I loved it.  So here’s a picture of the 2011 Beer ‘n’  Bike tour that I’m hoping Pete does not mind that I stole off his Facebook page.  While this was last year, we looked pretty similar this year, so just pretend please.  So the idea is, for a mere $20, you get together with a group of about 20 people and go for a bike ride.  But this bike ride makes several stops during which you will talk about craft beer, learn about beer, and drink beer! It’s a beer filled day! This was the first tour of the year and it was about 9 miles and went from 10am -3pm. 

Stop 1: It was the most perfect weather you could imagine.  I met my new posse of friends at Brew Camp http://www.brewcamp.com/  I think this place is awesome! You don’t need to do Beer ’n’ Bikes to go there either.   You can attend beer brewing classes over the weekends.  They just started wine making classes and soda making is coming soon too! But for our intents and purposes, we had a brief lesson on the history of beer.  Interesting stuff. 

Stop 2: After that, the bad ass bike gang (I totally felt like I was in a gang!) took over Lincoln Ave. and biked several miles to Small Bar.  http://www.thesmallbar.com/fullerton/     It was a cool place with pages of craft beers to choose from.  I had an apple blueberry cider.  (I know that’s not a “real beer” but I have such a weakness for beer that tastes like, well, not beer)  Anyway, it was delicious. 

Stop 3:  We biked another mile or two to one of my favorite bars in the world… Quenchers! http://www.quenchers.com/  They have over 300 beers and from almost every country imaginable.  Here I had Pyramid’s apricot hefeweizen.  Very nice.  It’s a chill place- not so trendy that it’s hipster and not such a dump that it’s  dive bar.  They even have live music on the weekends.

Stop 4: For those of you who have been following the blog, you will know what I mean when I say we ended the tour at Saya’s place.  That is Saya of www.macncheeseproductions.com 

(if you are not familiar, she hosts a wide variety of different social events that are phenomenal) We had a tasting of a variety of beers from 4 Paws Brewing.  http://4pawsbrewing.com/  Now, I am not a beer connoisseur or aficionado by any means.  I just drink what I like- more “fun” beers than the “serious” or “real” beers.  But these beers were blowing my mind.  We tasted four.  Although I personally did not like the Kilted Pup; the Brown Dog, Pupkin Ale, and Pioneer Red actually made me clap my hands in delight.  I mean I have never had any beer in my life that was so rich and luxurious and just so full of flavor!!!! Mmmm, the way they used spices was incredible.  I could really taste the caramel, chocolate, pumpkin, vanilla, cinnamon, coffee, and different flavors in each beer.  They are not available just yet to the public, but they will be soon.  And I cannot wait to stock up on that tastiness.  Not only that, but they will be starting their OWN bike and brewery tours this summer! I strongly suggest  you look into these guys.

Enough about the beer, who was there?  So like I said, there were about 20 of us.  There were actually more guys than girls at this event.  Everyone was nice, and friendly, and fans of beer.  There was actually a pretty decent variety of people- a wide age range, straight, gay, married, black, white…  And there were some really cool people: a guy that used to make models for the Smithsonian, a pilot, an architect, and even a guy who used to fit Blago for shoes at Fleet Feet!  And interestingly, I saw several people that I had met before at previous events that I’ve blogged about! That’s something to keep in mind too- the more you get out there and do things, the more you will start seeing the same people in your circle and start forming some real friendships.

Rating: 4.5 of 5 stars.  I highly recommend this.  It was a really good time.  It was educational, fun, and you can tell yourself that you are doing something healthy while consuming beer! Pete told me he has another one planned in a few months, but he hoped to organize another one- a longer one- before then.  So go sign up!

Ok, see you next week for more fun!

Ok! I found a new favorite activity! After last week’s horrible date, I wanted to have some girl time!  So Saturday night I went out with some girlfriends.  We went dancing.  (Have I mentioned that I LOVE to dance and do not care one bit that I probably look ridiculous?)  It was fun, but it was so cramped, everyone was drunk, skeezy dudes were rubbin’ up on me and my girls, the music wasn’t that great, and I did see some judgemental looks. And I thought: where can I go that I won’t have to deal with this kind of ickiness?!?!   Oh- DDPP pf course!

If women had their own version of fight club….  DDPP would be our version. DDPP stands for Dance Dance Party Party. http://ddppchicago.wordpress.com/  (they have the most hilarious video of what DDPP is all about that you need to watch!)    For one hour women can come together and just dance!  There are 3 rules: No boys, no booze, no judgement.  It happens on Sundays from 4-5, and Wednesdays from 7-8 and it only costs $5!  It’s at a dance studio on the north side.  This is the only picture I have.  Because the dancers want to dance freely and not be judged, I was not allowed to take photos inside,.  But  I respect that, and it was fine because I was too busy Dancing Dancing Partying Partying!   

What was it like? I walked in (late) and it was pitch black but for some colored party lights.  I was greeted by some Michael Jackson.  As my eyes adjusted, I looked around and I was surrounded by about 30 women! They were all ages, colors, and sizes.  And they were all dancing! And they were all great dancers!  They were great because they were completely uninhibited. I have never been so instantly comfortable around strangers- no one was watching or judging, everyone just wanted to dance and have fun!  They played  some songs I didn’t know, but they also played Outkast, Kesha, Eminem, that old song from the 60′s that goes “I can mashed potato, I can do the twist.  Now tell me baby, do you like it like this” (we all know this song).  But you KNOW I tore up the floor for Tiffany’s “I Think We’re Alone Now”.  It was like I was 13 again and at a slumber party! I loved it!   No one was drunk and stupid, no dudes grinding up on us, no need to be dressed up and looking perfect, and enough room to dance but not enough to feel exposed.  It was like girl utopia! For one hour I released all stress by twirling and jumping and grooving on the dance floor!  By the end I was drenched in sweat!  It was one of the most purely joyful, liberating experiences I’ve had in a while!

Rating: 4.75 out of 5 stars!! It’s one of my new favorite things to do! I just wish it weren’t on the north side (so far from me!) and I would have given it a perfect 5 had it been ALL 80′s music….(but yes, I understand the need for variety)

END OF THE QUARTER REVIEW I:

So I thought I would do this review a few times.  It’s one thing to write a blog, but what am I getting from this experiment?  How’s it all going? From Jan 1- Apr 1, here’s what’s happened:

Boys: 1 bad date (Eight at Eight), 1 sexy doctor/professor blowing up my phone for a week and then just disappearing (How About We dating website), and 2 phone numbers given (Eight at Eight).  Impressive?  Not really.  BUT last year, when I was recovering from a break up and just focusing on school and work and my girlfriends, I had ZERO dates.  So while it’s no Sex in the City, the first 3 months of 2012  are already sexier than all of  2011!

Girlfriends: So very many! The blog has reaccquainted me with many girlfriends I’d not seen in ages, brought me closer to ones that I barely knew, and introduced me to many others.  Do I have a new best friend?  No.  But I often say that in your 30′s, it’s just as hard to make new, quality girlfriends as it is to find a good man! And in the past 3 months I have met some amazing women.

Miscellaneous: I have gotten two speaking engagements out of this- Oak Park Library and the Potluck! (Both thanks to Saya of macncheeseproductions)

Works in progress:  Still waiting on my matchmaker and working on How About We.  Plus I still have some Eight at Eight dinners left.

Total Busts: Looking for Love Dating Game show, the musical chairs dinner party through Meetup,  and HurryDate- the speed dating which has been cancelled FOUR times!!!!

My top 5 favorites so far: Minglers- the party where the only rule is: everyone comes alone, (or anything from www.macncheeseproductions.com really ) One Brick- the volunteer organization where you help out at some altruistic event and then all go out afterwards for dinner and drinks,  http://www.onebrick.org/  Grub With Us- strangers come together and go to a restaurant and enjoy a delicious family style meal https://www.grubwithus.com/welcome  Willowbrook Ballroom- the gorgeous ballroom on the south side that offers dance lessons in salsa, country western, swing, and ballroom and then has a live band play so you can show off your new moves  http://www.willowbrookballroom.com/  and along those lines, last but not least- DDPP Dance Dance Party Party.  Which,  I just posted about here so I’m not repeating the info.

Other decent things I checked out: Meetup (but go for the specific interest groups- the singles groups are frequently disappointing) , 2nd Friday’s Art walk in Pilsen,  and the Chiditarod

Coming up in the next quarter: Beer and Bikes, Chicago’s Sex Tour, Paint and Pints, and Zombie Fest.  That’s what I have for now! We’ll see what else I can come up with.   I’ve gotten some great suggestions from my readers (Mingle Around and Paper Machete) that I have on my to do list as well! I do take requests!

Overall:  I started doing this because I wanted to get back out there after getting over my last relationship.  I also wanted to make new friends because I lost my two closest ones to a new baby and Mexico (I’m actually on very good terms with the ex and the two girlfriends, but obviously the amount of hanging out has decreased!).  Plus, I was getting so caught up with work and school that I wasn’t having much fun anymore.  So I started to do this.  In the past 3 months it’s made me very happy.  It’s rekindled my love for the city, and I’ve been so amazed by all the things to do out there and all the very cool, amazing, interesting  people who are out there doing them! But the irony is, it’s made me actually love, enjoy and appreciate my singleness! In fact, I’m having so much fun doing this, that I kind of don’t want to date right now- I just want to keep going out there and doing my own thing! That’s a pretty liberating feeling. 

Until next week friends!

Oh, I have  so much to tell you about readers! First I will tell you about the St. Patrick’s Day Dating Game Show and then I will tell you about the “big date”

Looking for Love: http://www.chicagostagereview.com/?tag=looking-for-love (this was the most recent posting I could find about it- there’s not a whole lot of information out there for this!)  This is a dating game show that occurs once a month through the theatre company Collaboraction.  The show is done in the style of “The Dating Game”- three bachelor(ette)s are asked questions by a bachelor(ette) who cannot see the potential suitors. 

So bad and ridiculous that it was almost good? I really try not to talk smack about events, just because it makes me feel mean, but I would like to keep my journalistic integrity intact.  (Because this dating blog is both jounalistic and filled with integrity, haha).  So to be kind, it WAS at 10:30pm on St. Patrick’s day and I’m sure at most performances they are slightly more sober. 

About 20 people showed up, everyone was drunk save me and G.P.iT (that is my friend “Guinea Pig in Training” if you’ve not been following). There was some terrible hipster band that did a rap song that was somehow about Cookie Monster or something and was supposed to be clever and ironic, except it wasn’t.  This was followed by two very drunk hostesses reading haikus and doing interpretive dance.  By now it is 11 and there is no dating show.  Instead, there was a comedienne who was to perform.  She made the hostesses seem sober.  I would not have minded if she were funny, but she kept talking about her vagina, and about masturbating and how she works in a porn shop, and about her vagina again, and f*** and f*** and f****.  And do you know who was sitting in the front row? HER MOTHER!!!! Awkward….  It was the least funny half hour of my life.  Apparently one of the bachelors was not amused either because he was heckling her from the back and they had a heated exchange in the middle of the show!  Look, I’m no prude, but if you just keep slurring the words cock, vibrator, vagina and cunt for shock value with no clever content to glue it together, then the only thing you’re “shocking” me with is how not funny you are.   

Finally, at 11:30 the dating game started.  Apparently some of the contestants arrived well after the show started, and one didn’t even show up at all! Weird!  How do you not show up for a game show/performance that you have a major role in!  The bachelorette was cute and the bachelors, especially heckler guy, were obnoxious jackasses.  But the drunk hostess sat on their lap and asked the questions, and the bachelorette chose number 3.  I’m not sure what happened after that.  But what I AM sure of is that G.P.iT almost got one of the bachelor’s for herself! I will spare you the long version, but in short, on her way home,  he spotted her from the opposite side of the el tracks and crossed over to talk to her (romantic, right?), he gets on the el with her and strikes up a conversation.  Assuming he recognized her, G.P.iT said “so the civil war, huh?” (in reference to one of his answers from the show) and bachelor number 1  said “Oh.  You were at the show?  That show was FUCKED!” and jumped up and actually fled to the next el car, leaving G.P.iT confused and relieved. 

To give the show credit, as I said, it was so absurd and ridiculous that it was kind of enjoyable.   Also, I am very much under the impression that the sparse audience and chaos and drunkeness of the thing was due to St. Patrick’s Day, and that is not normally how the show plays out.  Would I give it another chance? Honestly, no.  Would I recommend it? No. But to be fair, if you wanted to be a contestant just to do something ridiculous, or if you think the concept sounds cool and you’re curious, you should go,  I think it’s a great idea and has SO much potential.  And I bet this was not a fair representation of what usually occurs.  I think it got lost in the holiday, and I think that it’s still new-ish.  So it might be worth a look in the way a freak show is fun to see and if you know that it has potential to be lame. 

But what about the “big date”? So for those of you who need a refresher, this is “Wisconsin dude” that I  met a while ago at the 8 at 8 dinner event.  (The story of that evening is posted on here somewhere….)  After many weeks of one or the other of us being out of town, we set up a date.  I’ll save you the details.  In short- he was obsessed with trying to get me to drink.  He spent the whole evening trying to persuade me to drink more, and faster.  He was getting sloppy drunk.  He was saying some very inappropriate things for a first date like “So, you take yoga?  I bet you’re REAL flexible.  Maybe after some wine you could show me some of your moves” or telling me a story about how a Bangkok stripper was dispensing change from her Va-jay-jay and could I imagine myself getting up on this table and doing that?  I didn’t mind the Bangkok story, I minded that he had to verbally imagine me in it! Then he said something about thinking that I might be “the love of his life” as he kept invading my personal space and finding an excuse to brush my thigh, rub my back and be generally creepy.  I thought the fact that I said I didn’t want any more to drink (so he put the bottle in front of me and told me I should just finish it- he had an extra room I could sleep in), deftly ducked his every attempt to touch me, and replied “NO” to both the yoga and change from my lady parts questions, and chattered nervously about any inane, non-sensical thing I could think of whenever he got all up in my personal space would be a HUGE indication that I was not interested! I really thought that I was past the age where boys think they can get a girl drunk and get into her panties on a first date! Is this not the case?  Obviously, there will be no second date.  Again, I’m not a prude but can we have just a modicum of respect and decorum on the very first date?!? I mean if you’re going to act like a douchebag on the very first date, what will you be like once you’re comfortable with me?!!?

Rating: Looking for Love 1.5 out of 5 stars and “the big date” 1 out of 5 stars (the food was good).  It was a rough weekend friends!

Speaking of dates, I was supposed to have like 10 of them in an hour this Thursday with Hurry Date www.hurrydate.com doing some speed dating.  But that is not to be.  It’s been cancelled- for the FOURTH TIME! So I’m not sure what I will write about next week.  But I will definitely be doing an end of the quarter reflection is nothing else!  See you then.

Hi everyone.  So I think that I will change the name of this blog to “Every event that Saya Hillman of www.macncheeseproductions.com hosts is awesome.  I love everything she does and go to as much as I can.  So should you.”  But that is a very long title.  I would also like to give a shout-out to co-host Pete.  He too, was awesome.  While I have not yet attended any of his events, (www.goteampete.com Beer and Bikes tours) I do plan to go in the near future and blog about it as beer, bikes, and Pete are very good.  So if you were not at the Potluck, you missed a good time, but don’t worry, I’m about to fill you in.  If you were there, however, I apologize that I am not giving you some new event to check out this week.  You will just have to tune in next week for the Looking for Love Live Dating Game Show post which I attended on St. Patrick’s day.  Everyone (hostesses and contestants) except me was wasted.  That’ll be good.  Until then, enjoy the recap!

So, what is a Potluck?  It is NOT a bunch of people bringing 7-layer dips, hummus and vegetables, and cookies to share.  No, it is people sharing IDEAS.  Clever, huh?  Saya and Pete pick 10 of the coolest, most interesting, smartest, sexiest people the know (hell yeah, they picked me!) and invite them to talk about anything they want for six minutes.  You would be surprised what people talk about when given a limited time and a limitless topic.  Subjects ranged from circumcision, to mullets, to Cambodia. 

Who were the dishes for this Potluck?  Well, there we are! I’ll let you know who everyone was and their topics.  I HOPE I get all the right topics matched to the right names.  Ok, Jessica Murphy is a beer blogger.  She told us about craft beers and breweries in Chicago.   Speaking of beer, Jarrad Apperson is a bartender at Uncommon Ground who taught us all about our pallette and tasting food.  In short “Your mouth likes the way something tastes, or it doesn’t.  Period.”  Mig Reyes is a designer at 37 signals and gave a six minute talk about the concept and use of time.  Mark Bazar, host of The Interview Show gave a hilarious and surprisingly informative talk about circumcision.  Jason Pritzker talked about start-ups.  Andy Crestodina of Orbit Media showed us a fastastic video he created that involved claymation pirates and poetry in the form of a Choose Your Own Adventure Story- good stuff.  These next two girls were both great and apologize if I mix up the names and the topics (the event was a week ago, cut me some slack!)  I believe Carly Mandell did the comparative analysis of the itsy-bitsy spider song and her life choices, and that Lindsay Muscato talked passionately about her time in Cambodia.  Last, but not least, was my personal favorite: Natasha Tsoutsouris told us the funniest story about her lack of swag growing up and how she learned to play Jump on the piano and confidently rocked a David Lee Roth mullet (not to be confused with the dude from REO Speedwagon’s mullet) in order to go from the nerdy girl to the cool chick.  Hilarious.  And if anyone has caught me matching names and topics incorrectly, feel free to straighten me out.

Well what did YOU do guinea pig? Well, what I did NOT do was figure out how to upload the awesome video that G.P.iT.(that is short for “Guinea Pig in Training” as my good friend that has been coming on adventures with me as of late has dubbed herself.  That’s her new name.) took of my 6 minutes of glory.  I’m pretty bummed.  It took me about an hour to figure out how to NOT post that. Sorry guys.  Instead, you can look at a picture:  There is Pete introducing me.  I’m standing behind him ready to put on a show, and Saya is sitting on the couch ready to watch.  It was so much fun! There were about 40 people there, including two girlfriends I had not seen in ages and who were new to the Macncheese thing- thanks for coming out, that was a nice treat.  And all of them were there to listen to me talk about myself! (And ok, maybe they were there to listen to the other people too)  But I had a blast! I felt very confidant on the material I was covering.  I told the story of the worst date in the history of the world.  That’s posted on here somewhere under a title of “It can’t be a dating blog without an online dating horror story” or something like that.  But to be fair, while I had a great time talking, I had a lot of fun listening too.  I learned a lot, laughed alot, and met a bunch of cool, interesting people.

In closing: 4.5 of 5 stars! Good and unique event and a great opportunity to socially, professionally, and romantically network.  But Saya’s Minglers (See: “What is a Mingler?” p0st) are still my favorite.  But if you think Potluck sounds interesting, you should check it out.  And although I have not yet been, I hear Ted Talks and Ignite are similar concepts.

So, I will try to get back- as always- to my regular Sunday posting.  Stay tuned for the review of the live, dating game show. Oh! And someone has a date this weekend! (Me, fools!).  I’m sure-much to this poor guy’s dismay- that it might just creep into next week’s blog as well.  Wish me luck!

I love to dance.  Actually, I love to flail about clumsily and dangerously while music is playing.  I don’t care, it’s one of my favorite pasttimes, which is why I love Willowbrook Ballroom.  And I am dedicating this post to my south side people who are tired of everything that’s hip and cool being downtown or on the north side.  This is on Archer Avenue, south of Midway airport. 

Before I get started on this though, I want to give a shout out to any new followers I might have (hopefully) gained from the potluck .(http://macncheeseproductions.com/potluck)  If you are interested in reading the dating story I told at the event, it’s this post:

• Chicago’s Social Guinea Pig- Can’t be a dating blog without some online dating horror stories!

And if you want to read Saya’s personal favorite, it’s this one: Men in Bill Cosby Style Sweaters from Jan. 23rd.    Other than that, you will see more detailed reviews of some of the cool events going on in the city that are worth checking out.  Ok, back to Willowbrook…..     

What is Willowbrook Ballroom?  Willowbrook Ballroom opened in 1921.  And you know what? It still looks, feels, and functions as though it’s still the Roaring Twenties.  You can go to see live bands and dance the night away.  The admission is usually under $20- depending on the event, and each night has a different theme.  Sundays is for Ballroom Dancing (Rumba, Tango,Waltz, Fox Trot), Tuesday is Country and Western, Wednesday is Salsa, and in between that are the occasional Swing Dances and other special events.  The way it works is like this: for the first hour they offer a dance lesson, and after that, they open up the floor for  free-style dancing.  Check this out for exact events, times, and dates: http://www.willowbrookballroom.com/

And what kind of dancing did you do?  So myself and two other guinea pig friends (a guy and a girl) all went to see the Flat Cats play (pictured on the left).  My gal pal and I got dressed up in some 1940′s style dresses- because these people do get dressed up to go to Willowbrook-and made sure to show up in time for the dance lesson.  The lesson was an hour long and we learned some basic steps.  As you can imagine, there were more girls than guys, and in old school dancing, there are definate roles for each gender.  But that was actually just fine.  I danced with more men in that hour than all the men I’ve ever danced with in my life! Ok, so that was because the teacher MADE the boys dance with me because he had us get in a big circle and switch partners every few minutes.  But this was a great way to mingle, and meet new people, and learn how to swing dance.   Sometimes my girl and I had to dance by ourselves because there weren’t enough men to go around, but my guy friend ALWAYS had some very lovely dance partner. (So again, guys- get over there you are a hot commodity!)  And it was kind of cool because there was a huge age range.  There were some seventy year old men spinning me around the dance floor and putting me to shame! There were some newbies at the lesson as well as some Willowbrook regulars. 

After the lesson: The minute the lesson ended, the Flat Cats (who are a phenomenal swing band) came on, and the REAL swing dancers took the floor.  My fellow guinea pigs and I chickened out immediately and sat down to catch our breath and watch the pros.  The three of us sat gaping at the scene before us.  It’s hard to tell in the picture (it was very dark in there) but the floor was packed and couples were dancing like it was their job! I’m talking about a room full of costumed dancers that would rival any Dancing With the Stars routine! These people were good.  They clearly came here often.  We spent the next two hours glued to our seats watching the show, which was just as fun as actually dancing.  OK, I would have liked to dance more, as did my friends, but we were a little intimidated.  My gal pal did “grow a pair” and danced with the teacher for a swing version of a Johnny Cash song though.  The entire experience really got us wanting to learn how to dance more than what we learned in that one hour lesson.

What do you think?  This was my third visit to Willowbrook.  I went to a Salsa dancing one and the Swingers Ball last year.  If you think this sounds fun, be sure to go to the Swinger’s Ball, it’s coming up on March 31st! It makes this event look like child’s play.  It’s worth going even if you don’t know how to dance.  It’s just a lot of great entertainment with some fantastic music.  It’s like being transported to another era.  Like many of the other events I go to, I find myself thinking that I might like to put Willowbrook into my repetoire on a more regular basis because I believe I could learn how to dance and maybe become friends with some of these regulars.  I think one of the important things that I’m learning from this experiment is what activities and organizations I would like to commit myself to in the future.  This is one of those. 

Rating: 4 stars out of 5.  It would have been higher had I not felt too intimidated to dance.  But I’m working on that!

Ok, so my blog has earned me yet another speaking engagement! For those of you who have not seen this on my Facebook page, allow me to post it here: Potluck! (A Smorgasbord of Ideas) brings together several of Chicago’s best and brightest, funniest and handsomest, wittiest and engaging-est for an evening of rapid fire musings on whatever they choose to muse upon.  In the vein of Pecha Kucha, Ignite, and TED Talks, each presenter talks about whatever he/she wants, for six-minutes.  And I’m presenting at the next one!  Would love to see you in the audience.  Tickets and more info can be found here: http://macncheeseproductions.com/potluck.  And if you can’t make it- your loss.  But don’t worry, I’ll be blogging about it next Sunday!