Aug. 7, 2007 - It Was A Real Good Lunch

As many of you know, this "real estate blog" does not always stick to the topic of real estate as such.  Every now and then I get moved enough by some off topic event that I feel the need to share.  In a market as slow as this one I have my nose to the grindstone for my clients, trying to get their home sold and so I have blogging low on the priority list.  This time it was yesterdays lunch that inspired me to take the time to pay attention to my blog.

Well OK, it wasn't the lunch itself that inspired me, I had an Italian Sub with everything but mayo at Potbelly's in Metropolitan Square.  It was the entertainment that got me raved up.  When I walked in there was a slight sort of man wearing a pork-pie hat sitting in the window playing a Pink Floyd tune on an acoustic guitar.  I had noticed him there one time before playing something that the lunch time troubadours don't usually play.  Some deep cut or another, I don't remember.  What I do remember is that he was just finishing up his lunch time gig and he vanished really quickly before I had a chance to talk to him. 

Any way, I didn't have a chance to speak to him this time either, but he, or should I say his music, sure did speak to me.  He went on to do Neil Young's "Southern Man", "Five O'clock World" by whoever the heck it was that did that and some other foot tappin' ditties that had me humming along.  He put his own style on everything he did and I must say I was very impressed.  I find that there are those out there that can cover one or two artists really well but aren't versatile enough to run the gambit on an entire era.  This guy certainly is.

Who is this guy who could stir the musical soul of a crusty old curmudgeon like myself?  His name is Noel Rivera.  His business card gives him the title of "Guitarist/Vocalist".  His tag line is "BEST OLDIES AND ROCK N' ROLL".  The truth be told, his tag line hits the nail on the head.  He is really damn good.  I am going to find out what his schedule is and pass it along as soon as possible.  If you have the opportunity to catch his act you should take it, you will be giving yourself a real treat.

As always, if you have found yourself receiving my blog postings via e-mail, it is because I have either blogged about you personally, blogged about something I know is of interest to you, or I consider you to be a person of deep thinking and intellect and I would love to have you occasionally commenting on my blog. If you would like to be removed from the list simply send me an e-mail saying so.

Sep. 22, 2006 - The People And Places Of Metropolitan Square

I have written about Metropolitan Square before. That is name given to the redevelopment that is on going in Downtown Des Plaines. It is really turning into a nice place. The shops are beginning to open up and the people are coming. It's walking distance from my home, so I am there pretty often The eateries are my favorites. You can grab a bite to eat and be entertained at the same time. I can even tap into the wi-fi hot spot connection at Panera Bread with my laptop and work if I want to. Let's talk about the eating and being entertained at the same time part of it, shall we?

I remember ranting about Cheeseburger In Paradise when it first opened up, calling it Cheesy Version Of Paradise. Allow me to take this opportunity to admit that I was sadly mistaken. I was wrong in my assessment. I had just returned from Florida I believe, and I was still missing the smell of salt water in the air. Having not been in Florida for a few months now, I have grown sort of fond of the "island theme" atmosphere. Not only that, but some of the entertainment is really damn good. In fact, there is a story to be told about the first entertainer I saw there.

Some friends of ours from the south side came to visit and my wife and I wanted to show them how Metropolitan Square was shaping up. It was a very nice day so we decided we would eat outside at Cheeseburger. We ordered up and began chatting the way friends chat when they are waiting for their food to arrive. The live music, coming from inside, was in the background, and was weaving in and out of my consciousness. One time, upon weaving into my consciousness, it struck me as a very familiar voice. I had to check it out. Low and behold, it was Bobby Dunne. I had not seen Bobby for many, many years. Not since open stage nights at places up and down 63rd Street, place like The Speakeasy and The Upstairs Downstairs Lounge. Bobby was, and still is, a masterful singer songwriter. I was a so so bass player. Bobby has a few very good Cd's out, which you can check out by clicking on the link up above, and he is still making his living playing music. He is at the Des Plaines Cheeseburger on Sunday afternoons, but his complete itinerary is available on the Sopro website.

The next treat Cheeseburger offered up was Matt Scutter. I hear tell he is appearing as part of a duo in the future, but when we met him, he was a one man band. Scutter can play all three guitar parts; lead, rhythm and bass, proficiently. Through the miracle of digital looping he is able to seamlessly put together the middle breaks to a number of fine tunes and make you believe you are listening to an entire group. This talent alone should be enough to entice you to one of his shows. The bonus is, he sings extremely well also, so if you aren't dazzled by guitar playing ability, like I was, you will still be glad you searched him out.

This bring me across the square to Potbelly Sandwich Works. It was there that I had the pleasure of running into Tony Berry. Tony entertains the lunch time crowd with his unique cover of an extensively eclectic repertoire of popular tunes. I have heard him play everything from the Beatles to Jimi Hendrix, from "Happy Trails" to the "Banana Splits Theme". Potbellys is a sufficiently wacky kind of joint, with hyper-happy people taking care of you and good old Tony fits right in. I am always pleased when I walk through the door and Tony is in the house. I have been apologizing to him for not getting him into my blog as I told him I was going to do, but that stops today. Unfortunately, he does not have a website that I know of, so I can't give you a link, but I am sure If you e-mail him, he would e-mail you back telling you where you might catch his performance.

With all of this good stuff happening in Downtown Des Plaines, you might just know someone who wants to move here. If so, tell them that you know a really good REALTOR® and give them my number, e-mail address, URL, whatever. I'm not hard to find.

As always, if you have found yourself receiving my blog postings via e-mail, it is because I have either blogged about you personally, blogged about something I know is of interest to you, or I consider you to be a person of deep thinking and intellect and I would love to have you occasionally commenting on my blog. If you would like to be removed from the list simply send me an e-mail saying so.

Apr. 6, 2006 - I Enjoy The NEW Des Plaines

Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, moms and dads...............the long awaited, highly touted Metropolitan Square in Downtown Des Plaines is beginning to show some signs of life.

The Shop and Save grocery store was the first business to open. I must say there is a lot to be said about food shopping in a brand spanking new store. There are many imported items available there, so much so that I personally refer to it as the European Market. I have discovered plenty new goodies.

Cheeseburger in Paradise has finally opened it's doors to the public as well. It is my humble opinion that if Jimmy Buffet never wrote the song, the restaurant could be called "Cheesy Version of Paradise". Believe me, if it was possible to move Key West to Des Plaines, or any other Midwestern City for that matter, I would be the first one to stake my claim on a cabana and a beach chair. The cheeseburgers are just as good at Porter's on the corner of Miner and Laurel and you don't have to pay for the "cheesy" ambiance.

There are a couple of places like Lee Nails and The Hair Cuttery open now also. I guess if you are going to build a mall type Town Square these are standard equipment kind of places.

The real news as far as I am concerned is Flex. In their own words "Flex is the pre-eminent workout facility for Des Plaines and surrounding communities". I agree. My wife and I joined Flex this week. I have previously worked out at the YMCA and at the Des Plaines Park District facilities and my wife frequented Curves. Flex is far and above the best facility around. Either Andrea or Michelle, the General Manager and Assistant Manager, respectively, always seem to be on site to meet and greet you during the course of a workout. The front desk personnel are a kind, courteous, and attractive bunch. I hope for their sake Flex is a smashing success. I hope for my sake it doesn't become too crowded. For now it's really nice and I am sure I will be receiving plenty of inspiration for blog material during my quiet times in the steam room.