Highlights of 2009, Part 2

Living in Chicago, where there is a lot of theater we got a chance to see a few interesting performances this year. One was a free aquatic performance (picture above on the right) by a french group performed out near the end of Navy Pier. (I originally blogged about it here.) Another outdoor performance was by Redmoon Theater and was a sort of musical based on a fictional Norwegian Pop star. I tend to highlight events that sound truly unusual, difficult to imagine from written descriptions and possibly involve puppets and these two events fit the bill.

We also recently got to see The Addams Family, a new musical in previews here in Chicago which they will take to Broadway soon. It is still playing at the Oriental Theater (signage pictured on the left) for now. It stars Nathan Lane & Bebe Neuwirth as Gomez and Morticia. What really impressed me though was the set design, which was rotated, connected & assembled to create various sets, reminding me of the original stage version of Sweeny Todd, only with a larger budget. There were also puppets involved. It was pretty cool.

We didn't have a chance to go to as many concerts as I would've liked this year. Perhaps in part because the first one we made it to was a pretty big deal. Leonard Cohen toured this year, and seeing as how I've been listening to his work (at first with my parents) for over 25 years, I couldn't miss his show. And it was well worth it! We did get to one other show, on my birthday as it happens. Devandra Banhart was much better in concert than I expected, in fact it was a fantastic show, summarized well over at chicagoist.

I'm probably resolving, again, to cook more often than I currently do. So my favorite sources of inspiration for that from 2009 are shown above. Tiramisu cupcakes, from Vegan Cupcakes take over the World, and tempeh meatballs from Vegandad. The meatballs were surprisingly easy to make, and the cupcakes were not surprisingly harder, but not that hard, and well worth the effort. These photos make me drool...so I will move on.

Pictured above are, yes, the only two things I sewed up this year. But I was satisfied with the results. I enjoy sewing...the Lotta Jansdotter bag especially, with many pieces was a lot of fun to construct. But somehow I find that it just takes to much for me. I can almost see how it isn't really all that much, and especially not that much more than knitting I guess...but somehow I find that (though my yarn stash can at times make a mess) it's much easier to tuck away some balls of yarn, a project, etc....it's significantly more difficult for me to pull out the sewing machine, ironing board and everything else in our small apartment. I either have to commit to single setting project completion, during which time it sort of feels like the whole apartment is in chaos, or I am faced with a mess to clean up then recreate until I finish. It feels like more of a pain than I want it to. But I will keep trying, I feel like I have improved even though my projects have been few and far between. And maybe some day I'll have enough space for a sewing corner or something, where stuff can just sort of stay out.

As for resolutions....I'm making "read more" a resolution again. But...it should go better this time. I was given a Kindle for Christmas, which really surprised me. I've been having a lot of fun with it so far, and I expect will help me towards this goal. (one way it helps is that I can knit and read with less of a challenge than propping open a book) Pictured above is a contest entry to win a kindle etched with your design (I didn't win.) I have no plans to etch that into my kindle (I'm not taking any risks, the thing is too awesome!) but I might end up doing something with that design.