kevinschummer

I nominate Lionel for his near perfect response to Devon's thread.


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OK haters, unleash on me

@shacking I'm guessing you've spent time on other forums, and are used to the hostile nature of those and social media in general. While our users are more than willing to call bullshit, banter, disagree, and toss f-bombs at each other, unfounded sniping is so far not a common thing here. I think the replies here speak to this - both the publisher and the author gave serious responses. @Cantucan even took your criticism and, while disagreeing with your opinion on the overall tense, thoughtfully used your words to edit his article.

I hope that this example will keep you and others coming back for more. :beer:

I think bullshit responses won't ever gain a foothold here as others will promptly take issue. Different community with a different outlook on how to do things...

I have a structured week in terms of what I do, but I have no end goal right now. I follow @AaronWebstey "too bad, so sad" approach, too. I have plenty of other life commitments (as others do) that my training has to fit into my life, not my life into my training. Also, I have a wife, and I want to remained married.

I decided to make a strong commitment to swim this off-season so I swim at least 4 days a week, usually around 1700+ yards (depending on my day). One of my big problems is an inability to get up early to go to the gym. If I could get up , my volumes might be higher. Then again, right now, I'm not worried about volume, rather time in the pool. I was never a competitive swimmer so being in the pool this much has been really really good for me.

Once I have a goal (signing up for races is key for my training), then things will come together more. Generally, I just train but a race will really target me. Strength training is something I enjoy so I'm doing it now but it'll get dropped as I ramp up volume. Then, I might start looking for a real plan or coach. I'll prolly start with a plan, something like Crowie's to structure me more. Re-evaluate next year.

@Granpa Chook Great show last night! Played a lot of Violent Sleep, which I wasn't a huge fan of. No Dancers, unfortunately, but they played Bleed during the set, then fucking ripped through Future Breed Machine in the encore.

Couple of good hows coming through town soon. Khemmis is on the Decibel tour at the Hawthorne on May 7 then Between the Buried and Me at the Wonder Ballroom on March 9. Wonder if I can swing a hall pass to both...

I love being looped back into this conversation. Always fun to see where this has gone. As for Mirror Reaper...holy shit that record. I think I made it through like 20-25 minutes before I gave up.

On a brighter note, I'm going to Meshuggah tonight. And. I. Am. Fucking. Stoked.

@ADRBilly No kids? Hey, you can skip all the shitty tourist stuff! So South of the River?

Downtown and the Mag Mile suck. Get a 3 or 7 day CTA pass and go all over if you're willing. The el covers most of the good neighborhoods well. Someone mentioned above, and now I can't find it but the single best tourist thing to do is the river architecture tours. They're no joke awesome. That's the one tourist thing I reco to everybody. If you want to skip the crap I wrote below, go the River North (you'll slip and find good food), Bucktown/Wicker Park (hipster hood), maybe Wrigleyville because Wrigley Field. Honestly, the biggest thing is to get north of the River and west of Michigan Ave.

Skip Navy Pier, it's the tourist asshole. Only reason to go is to get a cool view of the skyline, but that's not worth the hassle. But, if you want the view, go to the Planetarium (Museum Campus) instead. Cool park, surrounded by the lake, usually not filled with tourists. Nice walk from the Aquarium out to the Planetarium. Open late still (I think), go at dusk, may be nice and romantic for you and the wife. Speaking of views, the J. Parker on top of Hotel Lincoln in Lincoln Park. Outdoor on the 13th Floor over looking Lincoln Park. If you're into the tall buildings thing go the 96th floor of the Hancock Building on Michigan for a drink. I always preferred the views at night, but the daytime is good, as well. Tell your wife to use the bathroom.

Pizza: Pequod's. There is no other. Hidden gem, even among those who live there. There will be line on the weekends. You will wait. Gino's East or Lou Malnati's for back up. Do not go to Giordano's or Uno.

Good shit: Always dug The Whistler for cocktails. Drink beers from Three Floyd's or Half Acre (Daisy Cutter is a personal favorite. Easy drinking. Used to live down the street from the brewery). Off Color, 5 Rabbits, and Revolution are good, too. As @Emily Cocks said, Spacca Napoli is good and not far from Half Acre. Also, Kuma's. It's fucking loud and fucking metal. Names of burgers are metal bands. If you're not feeling the original location (which is the best but out there & difficult to get to), go to Kuma's II on Diversey for a late lunch. You lose the atmosphere but still get the food. And no wait.

Chicago is full of so many good restaurants. You can slip and fall into one in River North. But Longman & Eagle. It's out there in Logan Square but totally worth it.

Training: From the Loop, run east to the lake. From there, you can go N or S for a nice short run then back to the hotel. If you go south, the Museum Campus isn't too far, paths around there are good and wide. If you cycle, absolutely go south and just keep going south; DON'T EVEN THINK OF TURNING NORTH unless it's stupid early. If you want to swim, go to Oak Street Beach. Along the lake front path there, the city puts up a lane marker for swimmers. Loads of triathletes.

@AaronWebstey Totally possible. You just need an kick ass artist who will listen to your wants/needs. Some are good, some not so much and just want to do something HE/SHE thinks is cool. It's on your body, you're in control.

I will tack onto what @yournotunique said and add this, every time you see a piece you like, ask where it was done and who at the shop did it. Build your knowledge of who does what style-wise. You want something tribal? Find out who does that well in your area. You want something traditional Japanese? Ask questions. Also, don't get a tribal piece.

The wife and I are in the process of doing what you mentioned for ourselves, too.

My guess is that one of @Kevin Ryan 's hands is busy so he can't properly type. @HSeeley14

His side of the story Crowie told when the two of them almost came to blows.

@James Lange Fantastic article! Had me giggling the whole way through. And yes, it makes me think about how I was recruited into it. After expressing some interest, one of my wife's friends sunk her claws into me and here I am justifying all the money I spend!