The International Hello! Tour temporarily regresses to a mere National Affair

The recent lack of blogging activity can only mean one thing: I’m in New Jersey, and there’s nothing much to blog about. I’ve been back in good ol’ Toms River (a.k.a. TR, River City, Tommy’s Pond, Mullet Town) since Christmas. Surprisingly enough, it has been a pleasant stay. Still, ever the itinerant, I got a bit restless in mid-January and decided to take a few trips to break up the monotony that is now my suburban existence. After landing at O’Hare, I actually got on a bus to Madison, Wisconsin, current residence of good pal, Julie. Much to my horror, disappointment, and utter confusion, my camera recorded no photographic evidence of the visit! Oh, where did those lovely pics of the sunset over the semi-frozen lake in Madison go? ::SIGH:: So pictures of my return to the Midwest on the first domestic leg of the tour begins with the trip back to Chicago:



Julie’s sweet VW “Jetta”ed (heheh!) us back to sweet home Chicago, where our first stop was the most excellent Superdawg (Yes, I know this photo of me is scary – apologies!). Apparently, Superdawg is one of the “1,000 Things to See Before You Die,” which is also the title of a travel book given to me by the lovely SuperXiao some time ago. I’m working my way slowly but surely down the list of 1,000.

Less satisfying then the sweet taste of Superdawg bliss was the trip to Harold’s Chicken Shack:



I actually gasped when I saw the green sign. “License Suspended”!!! My audible disappointment was not a result of any concerns about health violations (those fryers will kill any disease and eradicate ill effects of any vermin droppings!). I was just super-bummed that I wouldn’t be tasting that sweet chicken!!! DANG!!! Better luck next time, then…



During my visit, the weather was a very balmy high 40s-mid 50s! This is Chicago in January! Crazy! I know I should be upset about this climate’s implications about global warming, but it sure was nice. And, in such glorious weather, I finally get to see the Bean…er, I mean, Cloudgate(!), in all its uncovered glory! Last time I saw it, it was being polished. This time around, the bottom was still being polished, but at least I got to see the nifty Chicago skyline reflected on the sculpture. I almost forgot how pretty it all is.



The freaky face fountains at Millenium Park are now dry. I think I missed the casting call to be a face on the fountain.



The week of my Midwest Tour also coincided with the We Are Scientists’ tour date in Chicago! YES! I was disappointed that the New Jersey venue was sold out, but seeing the show in Chicago proved much more fun because it was a rock-out reunion with my friends! Julie, Jamal, and Rebecca proved to be excellent concert companions as always. Of course, the band was terrific, too, and the show at the Subterranean ended up being sold out. Seriously, W.A.S. rock and are very amusing! We stayed after the show, where I proceeded to act as giddy/annoying/teenybopperish fan. The guys were incredibly nice about it. Still, I’m really happy for the success of W.A.S. – the Chicago crowd seemed to like them a lot!

It was sad to leave Chicago, but I did so (nearly kicking and screaming…okay, that’s a lie). The harsh return to NJ reality was buffered by my almost immediately leaving for Virginia, where my sister lives and works. We ended up taking a roadtrip that weekend through rural VA to Charlottesville! Our destination was Monticello, the home of Thomas Jefferson.



My sister assumed driving duties through cow country. At one point, we stopped at a gas station to ask for directions towards Charlottesville, whereupon the lady allegedly replied to my sister, “Why do you want to go there?!?” Hee! Speaking of directions, the “Lazy Sunday” rap from Saturday Night Live may have proclaimed Google Maps as the best (“True that!” “Double true!”), but I have to disagree, as it caused us nothing but trouble and multiple wrong turns during the whole trip. I’m sticking with Yahoo! Maps in the future. Luckily, extended views of the lovely Virginia landscape proved to be an unexpected reward for our crappy driving:



Ooh, pretty!



We finally reached Monticello and learned, much to our delight, that the wrong turns were well-worth the trouble! That Thomas Jefferson was a sexy beast, indeed! In addition to all that business with the Declaration of Independence, Virginia Statute on Religious Freedom, Louisana Purchase, etc. (!!!), the man taught himself architecture and knew how to read in seven languages! Yeesh, they don’t make people like that anymore. I’m willing to ignore that stuttering problem he had…and the fact that he was never successful as a planter (he died terribly in debt, and his family actually had to sell Monticello and all his stuff to pay it all off!).

The photo of Monticello above is actually a view of the back of the house. This is the same view found on the back of the nickel.

Monticello may also be the only place in the whole United States where it's more than okay to give change with the two dollar bill. I think they even price the tickets so that they have to give you change of $2 (and multiples thereof). In any case, I was really tickled and actually giggled out loud and proclaimed, "Wow! That's so cute!" upon receiving my change. The elderly gentleman working in the ticket window seemed amused, too. Or annoyed. Whatever.



The austere tour through TJ’s house was peppered with my sister’s and my clearly audible comments of, “Um, this is awesome” (repeated many times), “I want to live here!”, and “I want that” while pointing to various gadgets and pieces of furniture in the house. Incidentally, save up your pennies (or nickels...?) to buy me this replica of Jefferson’s rotating bookstand one day.

Everything was neat! The alcove beds! The use of natural light! And don’t get me started on that wine dumbwaiter hidden in the flanks of the dining room fireplace! Whew!!! Unfortunately, photos are forbidden inside (and I felt too shy to sneak a pic in the cramped space), so you'll just have to take my word for it until you can see it all for yourself. Truly, Monticello is an excellent place, and I highly recommend a visit for American history buffs, TJ groupies, architecture and decorative arts fans, and general admirers of very cool stuff.



The grounds of Monticello are beautiful. The house is on top of a hill (Monticello is old Italian for “Little Mountain”), and you can see for miles around. Apparently (I’m guessing in part because Jefferson was a Francophile and needed to get his wine fix after his initial European stores ran out), this part of Virginia is wine country central!!! A reason to come back! To add to the Founding Fathers Frenzy, I should also visit the nearby homes of Presidents Monroe and Madison.



They still grow quite a bit of stuff in Jefferson’s Vegetable Garden. Here’s my sister, in her words, “bogarting the French lavender”.



They had to erect another monument/gravestone over my man TJ's grave because people used to go up to the old monument and carve out large chunks of it to keep as souvenirs! Yeesh, have people no respect for dead presidents?!? Anyhoo, the graveyard is now fenced off, and the most desecration that goes on now is tossing change at TJ's gravestone. I guess it's good luck? My sister and I appropriately tossed some nickels. When you visit (and I know you will now!), have a little respect and don't toss another President's head on that grave, eh?

Interesting tidbit about the graveyard where good ol' Jeffy is buried: it is still a functioning graveyard owned by the Jefferson's descendents. However, because of all that crazy Sally Hemings controversy, those wishing to be buried in the graveyard must be descended not from Jefferson, but from his legitimate daughters!



Ah, the unavoidable gift shop! And who would want to avoid it if such fashionable wares are being peddled there? Why should they hide such a lovely hat in the children’s corner?!?



You saw it here first: tri-cornered hats and bunnies are going to make a comeback!

All in all, the domestic leg of the Hello! Tour was terrific fun! Maybe I'll have to plan a couple of more stops yet. In any case, some news about the next stops in my tour itinerary: Paris (yes, again) and Amsterdam. I'll be leaving on Wednesday, February 1st, but only for a short while. I'm spending a mere 3 days in each city because this is actually a proper vacation with former roommate and current friend, Liss! It's very exciting to have a travel companion (thanks, Sis, for the company to rural VA!), so I'm pretty psyched. Until next time, then!


A Note on Photographs Posted on my Blog
Notice how all the pictures I post are usually of me? I assure you this isn’t because I’m a narcissist (well, maybe…?). Instead, I have this weird philosophy about posting pictures of my friends on my website. Do you want people to see what you look like? Maybe some freak will Google you and stalk you! I don’t know if you’re freakish about privacy like that, you know! Admittedly, this stance on privacy comes from my brief stint as a college journalist (I was the forerunner of Judith Miller, really). Given recent discussions on this topic with some friends, I think that I might start relaxing a bit. Of course, I will still try to ask the subject in question before posting any potential stalking materials.

Incidentally, I did get my sister’s permission to post her picture, and I believe that “public personalities” (i.e., anyone who has performed in public) are open fodder for stalkers, anyway (read: I don’t have any problems posting pictures of We Are Scientists, Bai Ling, Zhang Ziyi, and that band that I let sleep in my apartment).