A Weekend in Providence

Old Dude paying a visit to H.P. Lovecraft

For many moons now, Ms. B. and I had planned to attend a Dark Shadows gathering at Seaview Terrace in Newport, RI, this weekend, but a while back, event organizer Bob Issel regretfully announced that, due to HBO using the mansion as a staging area for the series Gilded Age, and their shooting schedule running overtime, the Dark Shadows event would have to be postponed. Well, boo. We had nonrefundable plane tickets, so we decided there was nothing for it but to spend the long weekend in the Providence area anyhow.

Friday, November 15, 2024

These days, the only flights you can get at reasonable prices are the ones that depart for your destination before the ass-crack of dawn and return you home barely in time to catch the Late-Late Show. Brugger and I hit the road for Greensboro's Piedmont Triad International Airport well before sun-up this morning, bound for Providence by way of Detroit on Delta Airlines. Fortunately, our flights went off without a hitch, and we arrived at Rhode Island T.F. Green International Airport a good half-hour early. Once we'd retrieved our bags, we picked up our rental car and went on a desperate quest for lunch, for the Great Starvation was upon us. We found acceptable fare — fish & chips for the Old Dude, mac & cheese for Brugger — at a little Irish pub called Sullivan's Publick House in Pawtucket, not far from our lodgings. Upon checking my geocaching app to see if any caches lurked nearby, I discovered there was one just across the street! Needless to say, I zoomed straight over and made quick work of it.

The only hitch of the day came when we arrived at our AirB&B in Pawtucket. Check-in time was 2:00 p.m., and we arrived at 2:45 p.m., only to find the place hadn't been cleaned. We immediately messaged our host, who figured there must have been some miscommunication with AirB&B regarding the timing, so he saw to it that everything was promptly set right. We planned to head into Providence proper anyway, and it wasn't very long before he let us know everything had been taken care of. Yay! This was a disconcerting greeting, to say the least, but we were pleased that our host rectified the situation before it could become a serious issue.

For our part, we made our way southward to Swan Point Cemetery, to the resting place of H.P. Lovecraft, which I figured I ought to visit at least once in this lifetime. Some thoughtful geocacher had designated the grave a virtual cache (a cache with no physical container; instead of signing a log, you answer questions about the specific location). Upon our arrival, we discovered a passel of turkeys madly running about the graves, perhaps hoping to have the place renamed "Turkey Point." Probably not gonna happen.

Once done, we made our way into downtown Providence, where I led Kim on a little tour of the area where NecronomiCon 2024 had been held a few months ago. Our first destination was Reiners Bar & Game Room at the Graduate (formerly the Biltmore) Hotel. It's a lovely bar, and their dirty gin martini rocked. After a little roaming around, we drove back to Pawtucket, where we settled on Rasoi Indian Restaurant for dinner. Since I've consumed more than my share of dead critter recently, I decided on the Vegetable Biryani, which was good, but I sure did miss the lamb, which is my preferred protein in the dish.

I found one more cache on our way back to our AirB&B, which — true to his word — our host had thoroughly cleaned and otherwise prepared it for us as it should have been.

And now, exhaustion sets in. At least this kind of exhaustion, unlike the brand of exhaustion we've been otherwise suffering lately, is quite welcome.

Turkeys run wild at Swan Point Cemetery

Providence by night

Saturday, November 16, 2024
Our B&B is generally comfortable, the bed in particular, but the walls are thin, and some of the noises from the surrounding environment are a bit more than one might care to hear in the middle of the night. Still, when I woke up this morning, I felt generally well-rested, for which I was glad, as we had a busy day of winging it planned — well, winging it but for a highly anticipated lunch appointment with a certain New Englander of our acquaintance.

 

Ms. B. needed a new computer mouse, so we set out about ten o'clock and picked up a mouse at a Staples just down the way. Then we drove over to nearby Benefit Street, specifically to visit number 135, which served as the inspiration for H.P. Lovecraft's "The Shunned House" (1924). The house was built in 1763 by Stephen Harris and owned by John Mawney, for whom it is named. Lovecraft's connection with the house came by way of his Aunt Lillian Clark, who lived there from 1919 to 1920.

135 Benefit Street: H.P. Lovecraft's "Shunned House"

We took some photos of the house and wandered around Benefit Street, where I also claimed a very cool virtual cache in the graveyard of the nearby Episcopal church. Kimberly and I both loved the atmosphere of the neighborhood, especially since many houses were still decorated for Fall and/or Halloween. A few already had Christmas decorations up.

From there, we proceeded down to Wickenden Street, near Brown University, so Ms. B. could fit in some shopping and I — yes, you guessed it — some geocaching. We both ended up very pleased with the results of our respective endeavors.

A little before 1:00 p.m., we headed back into downtown, where we met longtime friend and fellow writer, Tony Tremblay, who so kindly drove two and a half hours just to visit with us. We had settled in advance on dining at Durk's Bar-B-Q, where we now enjoyed a lengthy lunch and some great conversation. Then we migrated a short distance up the road to have drinks at 110 Grill, which I'd enjoyed visiting when I was here back in August for NecronomiCon.

A portion of the graveyard behind the Episcopal Church

Mr. T., Old Dude, Nice Lady

Once we had bid Tony a fond farewell, Brugger fit in a little more shopping at Providence Place Mall. We then decided to head back toward Wickenden Street, as it offered lots of options for drinking, dining, and geocaching. We had hoped to hit a coffee shop for a shot of caffeine, but the couple we found had just closed for the day. So we drowned our coffee woes by way of a Chardonnay for the lady and an Old Fashioned for the Old Dude at a nice little joint called The Point Tavern. Once done, it was still a hair too early for dinner, so we took a nice stroll out to the pedestrian bridge over the Providence River, where I snagged a couple of more caches. Then we walked back and found a fine dinner at Champa Thai/Laotian restaurant.

That was about all we had in us for the evening, and Kim had some work to catch up on, so we returned to our lodgings, where Kim worked and I blogged.

Till tomorrow, friends...

Another beautiful evening in Providence, viewed from the pedestrian bridge over the Providence River

Sunday, November 17, 2024
Brugger and I have noticed over the past couple of days that, wherever you go in Providence, the air is filled with the distinctive aroma of pot smoke, even when you're in a car. Mind you, this is not a complaint.

Our target this morning was Newport, about 45 minutes south of Providence. As mentioned previously, our original plan for this trip had been to attend a Dark Shadows gathering at Seaview Terrace, but HBO's filming schedule squashed that event. Since neither Ms. B. nor I have been to the house before, we decided to make our way to it and at least check out the exterior. So, we set our sights on the Ruggles Avenue address and headed out fairly early this morning. Sure enough, the property was closed off to visitors, but there are several areas where one can take decent photos, and so... many photos I took. I hope we'll manage to attend some future DS event there and can look forward to visiting the interior whenever that might happen.

After roaming about Seaview for a while, we headed into Newport proper. Ms. B. needed to find a CVS, so that we did, and once she'd accomplished her mission, it was lunchtime. We happened to see La Forge Casino Restaurant just across the street from the pharmacy, so we decided to give it a try. We both had burgers, which were pretty good, and I had a bloody mary, which was very good.

After that, we needed some exercise, so we set our sights on the Cliff Walk along Newport's eastern coastline. There was easy access at the end of Ruggles Avenue, near Seaview, so we parked there and started walking northward. A short distance on, we arrived at the clusters of rocks in the ocean that appear in the Dark Shadows opening titles. Several geocaches hid along the walkway, and I managed to claim the ones along our route. We hoofed it for several miles, so I figured that maybe we managed to work off a french fry or two from lunch.

Some of the rocks that appear in the opening titles of Dark Shadows, seen from the Cliff Walk

Old Dude and Ms. B. not quite on the rocks but still cool. Sort of.

One of the many mansions in Newport's Gilded Age area

Salve Regina University uses many of the Gilded Age mansions for their academic and administrative buildings as well as student housing

But wait! Oh, no! Ms. B. wanted to check out a local winery/brewery not too far away, so after our walk, we ventured up the road to Newport Vineyards & Restaurant, where we likely undid any calorie loss from our walk. She had a Riesling, which, unfortunately, she found unimpressive. Rather than wine, I sampled one of their IPAs, which was quite good, though — like so many items in the area — way overpriced for what you actually get. 

Heavens! We still had plenty of time to kill before our evening dinner reservation, so we ventured to the southeast end of the peninsula and found an interesting beach (and several geocaches). While I hunted caches, Ms. B. wandered the beach to hunt intriguing shells. We both found what we sought. This activity took us till about 4:00 p.m., and since we had a 5:30 dinner reservation at the Black Pearl restaurant (whose exterior doubled for the Blue Whale bar in Dark Shadows), we headed in the direction of the waterfront district to see what kind of trouble we might get into there.

As it turned out, a couple of Adventure Lab caches awaited us, one of which led to a few locations used in the movie Hocus Pocus 2, which both Ms. B. and I find fun to watch. The second AL took us on a little walking tour of the area, which we enjoyed.

Come dinnertime, we wandered over to Black Pearl, a cozy and atmospheric nautical-themed restaurant — very apt for the Blue Whale's real-life counterpart. We considered the numbers in the menu's price column mighty high, but we had counted on this and bit the bullet. Ms. B. had shrimp & pasta, which — rather sadly — didn't quite meet her expectations, especially since it's a dish she's very fond of. I had shrimp cocktail and Clams Casino, both of which were excellent, but I'd say that, for the price, the quantity came up a bit short. Still, for something like this, we figured we were paying for the experience as much as the food, and we did very much enjoy the experience.

Just down the way, we'd seen an Italian place that served gelato, and since we both love gelato... that is where we ended up. Giusto was its name, and yeah, that was some mighty fine gelato.

After a satisfying day and evening of mostly winging it, we made our way back to our Pawtucket lodgings, where we repeated last night's procedure: Ms. B. got some work done, and I blogged.

Try not to breathe too much of that pot smoke out there!

Looking down Newport's Thames Street

The Oliver Hazard Perry, docked in Newport

The Black Pearl Restaurant, a.k.a. The Blue Whale in Dark Shadows

Old Dude and a lovely ale, spinning Dark Shadows yarns for the nice lady

Monday, November 18, 2024
"On the far horizon were the open countryside’s purple slopes. Against these, some two miles away, rose the spectral hump of Federal Hill, bristling with huddled roofs and steeples whose remote outlines wavered mysteriously, taking fantastic forms as the smoke of the city swirled up and enmeshed them."

—H.P. Lovecraft, "The Haunter of the Dark"

On our last day in Providence, we still had some time to explore because we needed to check out of our AirB&B by 10:00 a.m., and our flight didn't depart until 7:20 p.m. Once we had fulfilled our clean-up duties and checked out from our lodgings, Brugger and I drove over to Federal Hill, first to claim a couple of caches — one being another stage of the Hocus Pocus 2 Adventure Lab cache (nothing more than a Walgreen's store, which had been done up for the film). Then I got it into my head that we should find the location of the long-demolished St. John's Catholic Church, which had served as the inspiration for the Starry Wisdom Church in "The Haunter of the Dark," which is perhaps my favorite H.P. Lovecraft story. This endeavor proved not at all difficult because, once I determined its actual address (at Atwells and Sutton Street), we found St. John's Park and an inlaid panel in the sidewalk that gave a brief history of the church. It's been over thirty years since the building was demolished, but I can't say I didn't feel touched by the "Shadow From the Steeple," to use the title of Robert Bloch's follow-up story...

Brugger in St. John's Park, the site of the old church that served as HPL's inspiration for the setting
of "The Haunter of the Dark"

Old Dude hanging with Roger Williams, founder of
The First Baptist Church

We found lunch at a little Italian grocer/eatery called Roma which was so Italian it felt more like being back in the boot than in Providence, Rhode Island. A Caprese chicken sandwich for Ms. B. and a pork loin sandwich with grilled onions and provolone per me, both excellent.

There was a virtual geocache at Providence's First Baptist Church, the very first Baptist church in the United States, established by Roger Williams in 1638; the present building was constructed in 1774–1775. Back in August, the opening ceremonies for NecronomiCon took place at the church, though I did not go after the virtual at the time because, after the festivities that day, the skies opened up and dumped a big old gullywasher upon us mere mortals.

With a good bit of time still to kill before hauling ourselves to the airport, we parked ourselves at Murphy's Tavern downtown, where the Lovecraft Ezine guys and I had several times parked ourselves and sank all manner of drinks during NecronomiCon downtimes. Brugger and I sank some fine spirits here, and I provided her with a few shivers by reading to her the first few paragraphs of Lovecraft's "Haunter of the Dark," which described the locations we had visited today as they appeared back in his day.

And then it was off to PVD. After returning our rental car, we checked in and settled ourselves at the airport's Providence Provisions restaurant (which I had seen a lot of back in August when I was stuck at the airport for two days) and fortified ourselves with a decent meal. Thankfully, this trip, our two flights were not only on time but early, so instead of 2:00 a.m., we arrived home at a little after 1:00 a.m.

For a trip that turned out to be something altogether different than what we originally anticipated, this one goes into our personal annals as one of our most enjoyable ventures — other than the fact Brugger was plagued by a lingering cough even after she'd gotten over the previous week's cold. Now, given the direction this country has taken, who knows if she and I will have the resources to indulge in such excellent outings as this in the coming days; hell, if she loses her medical insurance, thanks to at least half the country's fierce and foolish battle against any kind of universal health coverage, almost every penny that we've previously been able to pump into the economy will be going straight to healthcare. If this kind of thing is what "making America great" means to you, then you can go get fucked by an orangutan, and thank you very much.

Adieu, until next time.

Our last round in Providence, at Murphy's Tavern

My Memories of Lara Parker (R.I.P. October 12, 2023)

I just learned via actress Kathryn Leigh Scott that Lara Parker (née Mary Lamar Rickey), best known as Angelique from Dark Shadows has passed away at age 84 years old (October 27, 1938–October 12, 2023). Lara and Kathryn have been good friends since the days of Dark Shadows, so my heart goes out particularly to Kathryn for her personal loss.

I remember the first time I saw Lara as Angelique on Dark Shadows, and I fell in love with her right there on the spot. She was beautiful, powerful, menacing, passionate... everything a nine-year-old boy could possibly desire, apparently. Back then, I adored everything about Dark Shadows, especially Jonathan Frid as Barnabas, but it was when Angelique appeared on the screen that I melted into a mass of lovestruck goo.

After Dark Shadows went off the air, Lara appeared in numerous television series, such as Baretta, Kojak, Kolchak: The Night Stalker, Kung Fu, Remington Steele, The Six-Million-Dollar Man, and Switch, and a few theatrical films, such as Hi, Mom, Race with the Devil, and Save the Tiger. I made a point of watching most of these, and my youthful heart remained smitten, but it took a long time for me to get over my resentment over the cancellation of Dark Shadows... and thus Angelique.

Many moons later, Lara wrote a series of Dark Shadows novels, the first being Angelique's Descent, which HarperCollins released in 1998. At the time, Harper was planning a full series of Dark Shadows novels, and Elizabeth Massie and I secured a contract to write the second book — Dreams of the Dark, which was released in 1999. To my profound excitement, Lara wrote the introduction to our book, and to this day, I remain ridiculously geeked about this. Unfortunately, it wasn't long after Dreams of the Dark's release that Harper shuttered its media tie-in division, and this put the kibosh on Ms. Massie and I writing any further Dark Shadows novels for Harper. In the early 2000s, Tor Books contracted several more Dark Shadows novels from Lara.

Over the years, I attended a number of Dark Shadows events, but none was more memorable than my first — the 1999 Dark Shadows Festival at the World Trade Center in New York City. Most of the show's surviving stars were slated to appear and, more than anything, I looked forward to meeting Lara. And, in fact, she was literally the first familiar face I ran into at the festival. She greeted me cordially but had pressing obligations that prevented her from carrying on a lengthy conversation. Happily, several times, she and I were able to talk at greater length. However, the clincher for me was that she and I appeared together for a presentation on our respective Dark Shadows novels in front of the entire convention group. I had started out with a few butterflies in the old gut, but once things got under way, I managed to carry on without (much) embarrassing gushing.

I met numerous other Dark Shadows cast members at that and other gatherings, but that was the first and only time I ever got to spend any appreciable quality time with Lara Parker. And, of course, that was also the last Dark Shadows event at NYC's World Trade Center. I absolutely cherish the fact that I was able to spend some happy, memorable time there before it was gone forever.

To all Lara's friends and loved ones, I send all my sympathies and respect. She truly played a pivotal role in my childhood, and to me as an adult and an author, she added special meaning and nuance to my career. R.I.P., Lara.

Here are a couple of links to articles featuring some of Lara's thoughts on her acting and writing careers:

• The Collinsport Historical Society — Out of the Shadows: Lara Parker
• Tor/Forge Blog — Researching the Back Story by Lara Parker

On stage with Lara Parker at the 1999 Dark Shadows Festival at the NYC World Trade Center

Another Fun Visit with Penny Dreadful

Author/Editor Katherine Kerestman and I dropped in on Penny Dreadful’s Terror at Collinwood podcast the other day, and the episode has now been posted for your frightful pleasure. We talk about Dark Shadows, of course; the upcoming The Weird Cat anthology, edited by Katherine and S.T. Joshi, which features short fiction by both Katherine, me, and a ton of noteworthy authors; Deathrealm: Spirits, my new anthology, due in October; plus all kinds of other fun stuff. Mind you don't get seduced!

 

No... wait... go right ahead. Get seduced. Try it, you'll like it.

 

PS: Frazier likes Dark Shadows and makes a guest appearance.

Back in the Shadows Again

I recently wrote on this blog that I’m getting too old for this shit, and I’m thinking I might swipe that line from Danny Glover on a more permanent basis. Whew! Brugger and I are well into getting the Martinsville house restored, although there are still weeks and weeks’ worth of (expensive) work left ahead of us. Today, it’s the new roof. Concurrently, we’re trying to whip the Greensboro house into saleable condition, which is also anything but a small (or inexpensive) job. Since all this restoration work began back in April, I’ve been going to bed each evening mostly satisfied with the progress we’re making, but so sore of muscle and bone that getting a solid night’s sleep is possible only occasionally.

Still, there’s so much cool stuff happening. It was nice to get some of my old books—all the James Bond novels (and certain associated titles), the Dark Shadows novels (and certain associated titles)—back into the old homestead where they and I grew up together. The Bond books, at least all the old Signet editions, are back on the same shelf in the den where I discovered them as a youngster, when they belonged to my dad. It was in that same den that I first started watching Dark Shadows on a regular basis (right at the start of the Leviathans storyline in 1969), so I’ve put all the Dark Shadows books together on the shelf below the Bond books. And, for shits & giggles, I’ve started rewatching the Dark Shadows Leviathans episodes on Freevee.

The other day, I dug up an envelope, which I feared had gone forever missing, of old love letters (as well as a few that expressed something distinctly other than love) from certain young ladies in my junior high and high school years. Marybeth, Gretchen, DeeDee, and Courtney... it’s so nice to read all those lovely sentiments again, haha.

We’re holding an estate sale this weekend, Saturday, 5/20 and Sunday, 5/21, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. each day. Here’s the Facebook listing for it: Estate Sale, 5/20–5/21. If you’re in the vicinity, stop on by.

Some of the James Bond novels, the original Signet editions of which now re-reside on their original shelf
in my dad’s old den

Kolchak, Dark Shadows on Rondo Award Ballot

Although not solely for my own work, it’s mighty gratifying that two books to which I contributed are on the ballot for the 21st Annual Rondo Awards (for work published in 2022). First, in the Book of the Year category (#11 on the ballot), is Running Home to Shadows (Becky Books), edited by Jim Beard and Charles R. Rutledge; second, in the Best Graphic Presentation category (#22 on the ballot), is Kolchak: The Night Stalker 50th Anniversary Graphic Novel (Moonstone Books), edited by James Aquilone (this one has also been nominated for a Bram Stoker Award).

The Rondo Awards are cooler than fuck. Yes, they are! You can check out the ballot and vote here: The 21st Annual Rondo Awards

Penny Dreadful's “Terror at Collinwood: The Leviathans“ with Rick Lai & Stephen Mark Rainey

The exquisite Penny Dreadful talks to author Rick Lai and me about Dark Shadows on her “Terror at Collinwood” podcast. This episode: “The Leviathans”!

“The deeply fascinating but oft-maligned Leviathans arc is the focus of this episode. Acclaimed authors Stephen Mark Rainey and Rick Lai visit the podcast to discuss and analyze this Dark Shadows storyline, while also looking at its inspirations. Other topics include Mark’s official work on the Dark Shadows Big Finish audio plays and the Dark Shadows novel Dreams of the Dark, and Rick’s intriguing essay on the Leviathans as well as some of his fictional tales that incorporate nods to Dark Shadows.”

Check it out here: Penny Dreadful’s “Terror at Collinwood: The Leviathans”

Old Dude at the NBC HOUSE OF MYSTERY Radio Show!

“At an early age, I discovered the only thing more exhilarating than being scared was scaring other people.”

Last week, NBC's House of Mystery host Alan Warren and I had a fun time talking about Dark Shadows, Ameri-Scares, Fugue Devil: Resurgence... and all kinds of other scary things. You can listen to the podcast here.

The HoM episode will air next week on 106.5 FM Los Angeles, 102.3 FM San Bernadino, 1050 AM Palm Springs at 9 p.m. Pacific Time or online at KCAA Live Stream. Listen to the House of Mystery Radio Show interviews at any time here:

House of Mystery Radio Show Interview

Ghosts Appear and Fade Away

For years, I’ve been wanting to make my way back to Chicago for a visit, primarily to reunite with the Japanese Giants Guys — the right dishonorable Bill Gudmundson and Ed Godziszewski — both of whom were among my closest friends when I lived in the Windy City in the 1980s, as well as several other wonderful folks in the area. As far back as 2018, Ms. B. and I had tried to plan a trip northward, but finding the time off from work, particularly with other obligations we had, never allowed for it. Finally, in early 2020, we had things squared away and were all set to go in the spring. And then... WHAM! Here comes COVID-19. And in 2021, our long-planned trip to Europe took priority over everything else. Thus, we had to postpone Chicago yet again.

But now... at long last... we’re on our way. Chicago... by way of Nashville, TN.

Some months ago, Ms. B. discovered that Colin Hay, of Men at Work fame, was scheduled to play at City Winery in Nashville in early May, and since both our birthdays are in early May — and both of us love his music — taking in his show struck us both as a mighty fine mutual birthday experience. And thus did the plan come together.

Sunday, May 1, 2022 — GSO to CLT to BNA

Long before the ass-crack of dawn, we were up and at ’em for a 7:15 a.m. flight out of Greensboro. We connected in Charlotte after the briefest of layovers — one of those run-through-the-airport-at-top-speed-or-miss-your-fucking-flight kind of layovers. I feel almost bad for plowing into at least one person as we made haste from one end of the airport to the other; I might even feel some honest-to-goodness bad if the person in question hadn't been one of a row of slow-creeping numpties taking up the entire width of the corridor. We made it onto the aircraft with moments to spare — we were literally the last passengers to board the plane. We were worried our luggage wouldn’t make it on board, but once we arrived in Nashville... happily... our bags showed up on the baggage claim carousel. Literally, the last bags unloaded from the plane.

From BNA, we took a cab to the city center and checked our bags into a luggage drop, since we couldn’t check into our lodgings until 4:00 p.m. We'd had no food — or coffee! — on either of our flights, so we immediately sought breakfast, which we found at a lovely place called Frothy Monkey. Our vittles proved delicious: eggs over medium, taters, bacon, toast, a Bloody Mary, and most of a pot of delicious coffee (as black as midnight on a moonless night). Happily, in downtown Nashville, there are geocaches aplenty, and so, after breaking the fast, we wandered and geocached. As afternoon approached, we walked up to the big farmer’s market near the Capitol grounds, just north of city center, where some of us cached and some of us shopped. One guess as to who did what. 

At last, after a brief stop at the nearby Publix to snag a few staples, we wandered back into the city center, grabbed our bags, and checked into our AirBnB, an industrial-style, reasonably comfortable place called Sonder-Dovetail on Church Street. After freshening up and relaxing for a time, we decided to seek dinner, which we found at an establishment called Puckett’s. I killed some better-than-tolerable beef brisket and Ms. B. demolished a pulled pork sandwich. This might have been followed by bit more geocaching. According to our phones' health apps, we walked just over nine miles today.

I had come to Nashville a couple of times for World Horror Con — way back in 1991 and 1992, I believe — but my memories of the city are hazy, at best. It is safe to say the first day of this travel venture proved pleasant.

"It's wine... wrapped in plastic!"

Monday, May 2, 2022 — Who Can It Be Now?

Window washers viewed from our window.
Not a job for which I'd be well-suited

Whose birthday is it? Surely, not mine. But wait....

Ms. B. and I slept in for a bit this morning because we could. We had picked up some light breakfast fixins at Publix, so we braced ourselves on coffee and yogurt before hitting the streets (which, given our heavier-than-usual diets since leaving home, was just the ticket). More geocaches (yep!) and shopping (yep!) awaited us in the very touristy Broadway area, so we added some additional mileage to the soles of our feet (which eventually began to bother Ms. B., for she is old and frail). There's a big-ass place called Assembly Food Hall with tons of restaurants and bars, so we stopped a little spot called Smokin' Chikin for lunch. Relatively light fare (except for the french fries) and reasonably satisfying. Then... wine time! There's a large wine bar/restaurant on the upper floor of the Assembly building called Sixty Vines, and between Ms. B. and I, we checked out a good half dozen of said vines. Our sommelier was knowledgeable, attentive, and a great conversationalist, so we give Sixty Vines high marks.

We returned to Sonder-Dovetail for a while to mellow a bit before heading to City Winery, about a mile south, for dinner and the Colin Hay show. We hung out on their terrace for a while, where I tried a couple of Jalapeno margaritas, the peppers in which turned out to be hotter than your average jalapeno, so I was happy.

City Winery is a lovely venue, with dinner tables set up in a relatively small auditorium. Once inside, we ordered big honking burgers for dinner, and these were delicious. Again with the french fries! (I am now thoroughly potatoed out.) Our table was the closest possible to the stage, so our seats were fantastic. We got to watch Colin Hay go at it from a distance of fifteen feet, with lovely lighting and an excellent, very clear sound system. Hay is 68 years old and still in fuckin' top form — his vocals sounded better than ever, he told many engaging anecdotes, and he played a few Men at Work favorites as well as many newer compositions. The show went nearly a full two hours, and the experience was a joy. The crowd clearly loved every minute of it.

Adding an unexpected and very enjoyable twist to the experience was my running into a familiar face in the crowd — a fellow geocacher who goes by the moniker MonkeyBrad. Brad is a Facebook friend, and for quite some time, his mug was literally the face of geocaching.com. His image was ubiquitous on the Geocaching site and in advertisements. Some time ago, he had purchased a copy of West Virginia: Lair of the Mothman — which I had autographed — for his son. I knew he lived in the Nashville area, but I had absolutely no expectation of running into him, especially at a non-geocaching-related event. We did get to have a couple of brief but pleasant conversations. So, Day Two in Nashville ended on an altogether satisfying note. Which, I suppose, is proper for a birthday I'm not really claiming.

By the time we hoofed it back to Sonder-Dovetail, we had put another seven-plus miles on our achy-breaky feetz.

View of downtown Nashville from pedestrian bridge over the Cumberland River

Old dude and Ms. B. sampling the fare at Sixty Vines in Assembly Food Hall

A delicious if junior-size jalapeno martini at City Winery

Tuesday, May 3, 2022 — Hurry Up and Wait

Our flight to Chicago was scheduled to leave at 10:45 a.m., and since we wanted to make sure we had plenty of time to get to the airport (during the morning rush hour), Ms. B. and I rose with the dawn. We had scheduled an Uber ride for 7:45 a.m., and our driver arrived right on time. Morning traffic did slow the ride, but we made it to BNA without undue delay. Naturally, about the time we arrived, a text notified me that our flight was delayed by 45 minutes. Well, at least we'd have plenty of time to get through security, have a leisurely breakfast, go pee, and such. About midway through breakfast at some airport restaurant, I received a text that the flight was now moved up to 11:00 a.m. Still plenty of time, so we didn’t rush to the gate. Once we did wander over that way, we discovered the incoming flight hadn’t even arrived yet. It didn't pull into the gate until after our “updated” departure time. So, not only was the altered flight time wrong, take-off was well over an hour late.

From there, our flight took a little over an hour to reach ORD. Lots of turbulence, but that’s not at all unusual for Chicagoland. The worst of it was being forced to listen to a boisterous know-it-all run his useless mouth at top volume for the entire flight, never once pausing to take a breath. He, I suspect, might have been responsible for the turbulence. We had reserved a car, and getting to the rental area required a long walk and a train ride. And once we got there... lord a’mighty... the place was almost empty except for our check-in counter, where a passel of very angry-looking people were gathered. It took a while to get things squared away at the desk, and we were told it would be twenty minutes or so before a car was ready for us. One livid, elderly woman demanded to talk to a manager because she’d been told twenty minutes but had been waiting for over an hour. This did not bode well. However, sure enough, twenty minutes later, the nice folks at the desk called us over, and... what do you know... they had a car for us. Getting to it required another fairly hefty trek, but at least things went more smoothly for us than they clearly had for most of those other folks there (I suspect they had not reserved their cars in advance).

We headed out of O’Hare into the afternoon traffic jam on I-90... wow, just like old times! Half an hour later, we arrived at our AirBnB, about three miles from the airport. It was the upper floor of a typical Chicago bungalow, with two comfortable bedrooms, a bath, and small kitchen. The only thing missing was a living room or other common area, but for the price we paid, one could scarcely complain. Once settled in, Ms. B. and I headed over to friend Bill’s place, just over a mile away. What a joy to see him again — and old friend Bob Scism was also here! After hanging out for a bit, we set out for Morton Grove, a few miles up the road, to have dinner at Pequod’s Pizza, which had been one of our favorite pizza restaurants way back in the old days. Here, we met friends Ed; his wife, Mariko; and Mike Paul. Another joyful reunion! And the pizza at Pequod’s was still as delicious as ever — unique even for Chicago, and certainly beyond compare of anything we have back home.

And there was a geocache on premises. Hell, yeah! Fortunately, for me, I snagged it quickly while we were waiting on the pizza.

Mike presented me with a copy of an old drawing (on a restaurant placemat!) of King Ghidorah that Bill and I had collaborated on sometime back in the 1980s. He had kept it on hand for all these years, and seeing that again brought back a flood of great memories. All in all, we had a wonderful little reunion in one of our favorite places ever. There are still more gatherings yet to come this week.

After another brief hangout at Bill’s place, Ms. B. and I made a supply run at the nearest supermarket and returned to our place. It was a long... LONG day, much of it spent in transit (or waiting for transit), but what a payoff at the end. A long-awaited homecoming, such as it was.

Pequods — the best anywhere

King Ghidorah, drawn on a placemat at Nancy's Pizza, by Bill Gudmundson and me, circa 1984

A ravenous bunch: Ms B, old dude, Bob Scism, Mike Paul, Ed Godziszewski, Mariko Godziszewski

Wednesday, May 4, 2022 — Our Shadowed Past

Hiding in the corner at Café Touché...

Ms. B. and I had a fairly early lunch date, out in Elk Grove Village, with old friend Bob Issel and somewhat newer friend Jeff Kenny. Our Shadowed Past — a collection of Dark Shadows memories — was Bob’s original project, but he, Jeff, and I became the creative team that put it all together back in the fall of 2021. We met at Sweet Baby Ray’s BBQ, enjoyed tasty lunches, and hung out yakking for a long while. Bob and I have a considerable shared history in our respective Dark Shadows–related creative journeys. As with all my Chicago friends, it’s been too long since our paths have crossed. Jeff brings in new talent and perspective to the table, so it was a treat to meet him for the first time.

After we parted ways, I headed after a few nearby geocaches. Then Ms. B. and I hit the road toward the city proper, figuring we could partake of a drink or two prior to heading back to our lodgings. We found a lovely little neighborhood bar called Café Touché, which fit the bill nicely. Wine for Ms. B., a gin martini for me. After that, we returned to our home away from home to refresh ourselves and make Ms. B. more presentable. Then it was back over to friend Bill’s abode, where we met his lovely and charming wife Gari for the first time. Bill hauled us to dinner at Kalbi Korean Restaurant, where we met old friend Alex Wald, another good friend I probably last saw before the turn of the century. Dinner was fantastic — our courses were brought to the table, where we roasted them over a flaming hot grill in the center of the table. I’ve had plenty of Korean food, but never in this presumably authentic fashion.

The creative team behind Our Shadowed Past: Old Dude, Bob Issel, Jeff Kenny

Dinner at Chicago Kalbi Korean Restaurant

Thursday, May 5, 2022 — Chicago de Mayo

In front of the apartment building where
Bill & I lived, many years ago

Ms. B. and I didn’t avail ourselves to any Mexican treats today, but treats aplenty we did find. This morning, we met Bill at his abode and then had a delicious brunch at his favorite coffee shop — Perkolator, on Irving Park. From there, Ms. B. and I drove down to Logan Square, where Bill and I lived back in the 1980s. There was a cache just down the street — or should have been — but after a thorough search, I am confident it’s missing. Sad!

After roaming Logan Square for a little while, we headed downtown, for what turned out to be a consistently drizzly day of walking around the northern end of the Loop. Ms. B. wanted to check out a paper store to pick up some of the papers she uses for her arts and crafts, so while she did that, I hunted a nearby cache — again, sadly, unsuccessfully. Apparently, many Chicagoland caches have gone missing and aren’t being maintained, which is pretty disappointing. But I did find a handful of particularly nice hides as well, so that made me smile real big.

Eventually, we wandered into Harry Caray’s Bar on Kinzie Street, which, in all the time I’ve spent in Chicago, I had never visited. A most pleasant experience indeed. Martinis for me, vino for the lady. I never realized the building was once owned by Frank Nitti, Al Capone’s number one man back in the bad old days. From the bar area, there’s a “secret” stairway down to his old vault room, which has been turned into a mini-museum. Kinda fun, I will say.

Again, out into the rain for a handful of caches, and another wine bar stop — a happy little place called Good Funk, but where we actually found some bad funk (wine, that is). Happily, our top-notch server gave us a couple of tastes for us to see what we liked because, in her words, “some of this stuff smells like it came from the barnyard.” No exaggeration. We did end up with some really good wine, though.

From Good Funk, a walk along the river to an establishment called The Smith, which we sort of randomly selected for dinner. Not even a little bit inexpensive, but the food was incredible. I had spicy roasted duck wings, and Ms. B. went with Spaghetti Bolognese, which was red-wine braised chicken ragu, parmesan, and basil. I sampled some of hers and was literally stunned by how delicious it was. I hate to say it, but it rivaled or surpassed most of the Bolognese that we had while in Italy. Yeah, it was that good.

By the time were were finished, it was getting late, so we made our way back to the car and headed to our home away from home. This little venture into the Loop was, to me, invigorating, certainly among of the most satisfying times we’ve had on this trip. The crowd downtown was actually the smallest I’ve probably ever encountered there. Traffic wasn’t bad, we had no delays getting in and out of any place we visited, and parking was quick, easy, and not all that expensive. Once back at our AirBnB, we decided to watch a movie, so we went with U.S. Marshalls, which neither Brugger nor I had seen for many a year. It was, as I recalled, quite entertaining.

And now... one more full day in Chicago before heading back home.

A mighty drizzly day in the city

At Harry Caray's Bar

Down by the lazy river

There was supposed to be a cache at the Homeless Jesus bench, but he wouldn't give it up.

Friday, May 6, 2022 — Sushi Station, Mitsuwa, and More

Old dude, Old Mr. Bill in The Library

I’m glad our day of hoofing it around the Loop was yesterday and not today because today it rained real water. Not that phony stuff that came down yesterday. Happily, for the most part today, we had roofs over our heads.

Once up and going, Ms. B. and I drove out for a couple of caches and then over to Bill’s place. We piled into Bill’s car, picked up Gari, and headed out to the suburbs, to Sushi Station, a lovely little Japanese restaurant in Arlington Heights. After a most enjoyable lunch, we trucked the short distance over to Mitsuwa, a large Asian market (back when I lived here, it was called Yaohan). Here, we browsed the bookstore and shopped for groceries — mostly for our evening dinner at Bill’s Kitchen. Once done, we hit the road for our return to Bill’s, only to be stopped by a parked train blocking the road. So... alternate route! Anyway, once back, we hung out, drank some wine, and made googly eyes at Bill’s impressive library. Sometime prior to dinner, longtime friends Jeff Osier and his wife, Cathy Van Patten, arrived, and — again — coming to Chicago brings us to yet another happy reunion.

Mr. Bill and Gari set up the fixings for okono miyaki, savory Japanese pancakes, which we prepared as we desired and grilled at the table. I haven't had okono miyaki since visiting Bill on some previous trip — probably in 2007, when I was here for a G-Fest (the last one I ever attended, I do believe).

Afterward, Ms. B. and I returned to our AirBnB and started getting things together for our departure on Saturday. This trip to Chicago meant a lot to me; it’s been in the works for many years now, and I hope there won’t be so many years before our next visit here. Truly, I still have more good friends here than anywhere else in the world, and even after such a long time, when we’re back together, all those years just kind of melt away.

Okono miyaki in the works

Bill and Gari preparing to attack