“I operate under the understanding that gremlins exist. It’s a government cover-up.”
‘Shit Chicagoans Say’
well played… well played indeed!
I lived in Chicago a little less than a year, but there are still a few things I said or heard so much that I wish they’d made the cut, too:
- “Are you gonna bring a jacket? The low’s only 30 tonight.”
- “Barleycorns? No. Not Barleycorns.”
- a series of “Is it on Upper Wacker? Lower Wacker? East Wacker? West Wacker?”
- “How about Portillo’s?”
- “You want to take a cab all the way to Wicker Park?”
- “How was Butch McGuire’s last night?” / “Awful.”
- a fight about the best deep-dish in town, with at least one person adamantly supporting Lou Malnati’s
Basically all I know about Lyle comes from his “What I’ve Learned” interview this month in Esquire. But I like a lot of what I know:
- I’ve always thought that writing isn’t really that hard. It’s having a good idea that’s hard.
- You don’t have to have anything in common with people you’ve known since you were five. With old friends, you’ve got your whole life in common.
- On matters of the heart, one’s reason can be affected in ways that just can’t happen in any other circumstance. The same sort of thought you might be able to apply in one area of your life you just cannot access from any functioning part of your brain. It’s completely unavailable to you. Which is sort of what’s wonderful about it.
- Here’s a question for you: Is it possible to be religious without being judgmental about other people’s religions?
- I’ve never been ready to do a single thing I’ve ever done in my life. I haven’t been prepared enough, haven’t studied enough, haven’t known enough. You can never be ready. There’s just so much to know.
“Simple Song” - The Shins
Everyone’s obsessed with this, right?
I made a fumbling play for your heart / and the act struck a spark
I hope those of you with slutty tear ducts understand that some of us have been forced to become hardened to displays of wild emotion for social reasons, personal reasons, sad commercials, or mean Internet commenters.
It’s important to respect that we all operate on different demonstrative frequencies.
I feel like I could have written a lot of this article, mostly because I am the absolute worst person to be around if you’re going to burst into tears without notice. I just don’t know what to do or how the person wants to be comforted or if they even want to be comforted at all. Everyone’s different, and as a general non-cryer, I’m especially at a loss. But this bit really resonates with me and is the best take-away: People cry for reasons that might seem strange. They might not cry when other people expect them to. Show a little compassion, no matter what, and we’ll all be okay in the end.
“You’re always talking about the fans, the fans, the fans.
She was your biggest fan! And you threw her away.
And if you can’t see that, that’s your biggest problem. ““It’s Penny Lane, man, show some respect.”
