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megankeskey
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Name: Megan
Country: United States
State: Texas
Metro: Dallas
Birthday: 5/26/1982
Gender: Female
Interests: Reading trashy magazines, Obsessively watching The OC, Law and Order, and Desperate Housewives, Nurturing my cats, Sleeping, Pilates, My iPod, Emailing, Shopping, Traveling, Laughing
Occupation: Sales
Industry: Computers (Software)
Message: message meEmail: email me
Website: visit my website
Yahoo:  mkeskey526
Member Since:
1/12/2005
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| So my co-worker and I were talking about the dating game yesterday, and
she told me that she has a theory that men are like shoes... You
find the perfect pair of pumps and you wear them all day but at the end
of the day you have blisters, so you buy a pair of sneakers. The
sneakers are great, they're comfortable, and they help your feet to
heal from the blisters. After a while, you realize that they
aren't dressy enough so you shop for new pumps. Finally,
hopefully, you find the pair of pumps that look good with jeans and
with a suit. You can strut in them and run in them. They
are perfect for every outfit. The perfect pair of shoes....
Damn good theory if you ask me, and I have been thinking about this for
the past week because I honestly do happen to own about 100 pairs of
shoes. This has led me to wonder if my shoe collection is
subconsciouly representative of my love life.
Sometimes I buy a pair of shoes that I fall in love with and keep them
in the closet for the perfect occasion. Then, so excited, I jump
into them! I tell everyone about them before I wear them, too.
When the big debut comes I usually get drunk, dance in them, run them
through the mud, and they end up in the closet until I am ready to
clean up my mess and put them on again.
Other times I buy a pair of shoes and I wear them every day because
they are so comfortable. I wear them out and they don't look so
nice anymore, but I still continue to wear them.
And then there are the shoes that I love. I have worn them out
and they really should be retired, but I keep them in my closet just in
case. Every year or so I give them to goodwill and move on.
It's hard though.
My biggest thing with shoes is that I want a shoe to be
versatile. I want a shoe that I can wear to every occassion,
always show it off, or just wear them around the house. These
shoes are hard to find.
My bottom line is that I love shoes and am still seeking the perfect
pair for my collection. My new strategy to find the shoes is to
change the store I'm shopping at.
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| INSIDE: Carol's Pub
Honky-tonk in the heart of Uptown
By Dan Kening
Carol's Pub
4659 N. Clark St.
773-334-2402
Sights:
It sure doesn't look like much from the outside. A brick corner bar
with a sign that says, "Carol's Pub -- Live Country Music/Hot
Sandwiches." Things don't look much more inviting in the entryway,
where a handwritten sign warns in no uncertain terms that there's no
"soliciting" allowed inside. At first glance this may be construed as a
warning to itinerant Amway salespersons, but, then again, it's probably
aimed at the working girls that ply their trade on Clark St. after
midnight. But once inside the door, Carol's is the closest thing
Chicago has to a good ol' fashioned honky-tonk, where the music of Hank
Williams and Tammy Wynette has yet to be overrun by Clint Black and
Shania Twain. And the clientele, who are just as colorful as the bar,
likes it that way. Carol's ambiance can best be described as "Kentucky
on acid." Indeed, the bar can have a somewhat surrealistic look to it,
especially after one too many shot-and-a-beers. From the rebel flag
behind the stage to the framed photo of Elvis, longhorn cattle skulls,
posters of country star Tim McGraw and the Pillsbury Doughboy and
virtually every neon beer sign ever made -- Carol's has everything
you'd want in a honky-tonk but the chicken wire in front of the stage.
There are about a dozen somewhat battered-looking tables, a
decent-sized (and well-used) dancefloor, a pool table in a back room
and a large, U-shaped bar filled with regulars like big-bellied, genial
"Pickles" and Joanne, a friendly -- if occasionally over-served -- soul
with a voice like a foghorn.
Sounds:
Under various names, Carol's has been presenting live country music for
30 years in a part of Uptown once known as "Hillbilly Heaven" because
of the numbers of southern transplants that used to live there. The
resident band, Diamondback, is really the reason to come here. This ace
unit plays an exhausting seven sets a night on Fridays and Saturdays
beginning at 9 p.m. And best of all, there's no cover charge. While the
Carol's jukebox is well-stocked with Alan Jackson, Garth Brooks, Patty
Loveless and the like, you won't hear Diamondback playing any of that
stuff. They play classic country: Merle Haggard, George Jones, Johnny
Cash and Waylon Jennings, with a bit of Bob Wills-style Western swing
and a smidgen of blues and roots rock 'n' roll thrown in. Make special
note of lead guitarist Dave Doran: This former Nashville session
musician is one of the best pickers in Chicago. The band takes requests
-- just attach your dollar bills to the sticky tape in front of the
band. A word of advice: Don't ask for anything by the Dixie Chicks. On
Sundays the Diamondback rhythm section combines with members of the
Country Roads Band to back any and all comers for an eight-hour jam
session beginning at 9 p.m. The pickers and singers range from pretty
darn good to pretty darn awful. Feel free to come on down and do your
best Patsy Cline or Dave Dudley ("Six Days On the Road") imitation!
Smells: Cigarettes and cheap beer (sounds like a country song, doesn't it?). Everybody smokes in Carol's, and I mean everybody. If cigarette smoke is a problem, this probably isn't your kind of place.
Prime time:
While Carol's is open nightly, weekends are the best time to come here
because of the live music. Because of its 4 a.m. license (5 a.m. on
Saturday), the place doesn't really start rockin' until after midnight
on weekends. Before then you can enjoy Diamondback's first few sets in
relative peace and quiet before the hordes descend from all the joints
that just closed. Hours: 9 a.m.-4 a.m. Monday and Tuesday, 11 a.m.-4
a.m. Wednesday through Friday, 11 a.m.-5 a.m. Saturday.
People:
One of the greatest things about Carol's is the clientele. While you
would expect it to be full of Southern types with John Deere hats and
big hair (and you won't be disappointed on that account), the crowd
here is mind-numbingly diverse. You'll find fully decked-out swing and
rockabilly kids in their 20s, white-belted seventysomethings, biker
types who look like they just got out of Stateville, North Side yuppies
and people of various ethnic groups. A former member of the Chicago
Symphony Orchestra has also been known to hang out here. For the most
part, everyone gets along just fine. Oh, every once in a while there's
a minor scuffle, but it's quickly quelled by the efficient (and
scary-looking) Carol's doormen.
At the bar:
Don't try to order any foo-foo fruit drinks or martinis. This is
essentially a beer joint (the usual domestic brands plus imports like
Corona and Heineken) that also does a pretty good trade in Jack
Daniels. Wine is available -- just order it by the color rather than
label and vintage.
At the grill:
The word is that Jimmy behind the bar makes a pretty mean cheeseburger.
Other sandwiches include veal, chicken, fish and shrimp and, best of
all, none costs more than $3.
Essentials, etc.:
The neighborhood is a changing one, meaning that while it's relatively
safe, keep your eyes open after midnight. Street parking is pretty easy
to find on either Clark St. or the block of Leland Ave. just west of
Carol's. It's also easy to get a cab, as there's a cab terminal just a
block north of the bar. The Clark St. CTA bus stops nearby as well.
Dan Kening is the interactivity editor for metromix.com.
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| I have definitely become some sort of internet junkie - I never thought
that would happen to me. I am now on Xanga, Myspace, and Facebook
- all of which I have at some point made fun of. Anywho, while I
was updating my Myspace profile today I was thinking about my hobbies
and listed 'journaling'. Well what kind of journaler am I if I
only do it once every couple of months? I really should do it
more...
I've been giving so much thought lately to life in your early
20s. I talk to friends in their late 20s, early 30s, late 30s and
try to make sense of what these years are about. I guess you
first hit the "I wanna party like I'm in college stage" where you try
to let go of college but just can't. My sister has a friend who
constantly yells "COLLEGE" at the top of his lungs just because it
makes him feel good. Then I think you hit the spot that I'm at,
which is basically where you realize that you want for your life to
take some sort of direction but aren't ready to grow up. I'm
surrounded by friends who are 20some going on 40 and those who are
20some going back to 21. It's weird -seriously. Then you
have people getting married, popping out kids, buying houses. It
freaks me out, man. I recently found out that one of my childhood
friends is having a kid and getting married. I remember last year
sitting on the phone wiht her and listening to her discuss making ganja
rice krispies. How does that happen???
What other deep stuff do I have... Um, I finally am starting to
tell people at work that I have cats and have made it a good joke
during business conversations. Usually I sit at a table where
everyone goes around and talks about their kids, wives, etc. Then
they get to me and ask the dreaded question - "Megan, are you
married? Kids?" That's where I routinely say, "No, I'm
pathetically single. I have a cat - does that count?" I
haven't quite yet decided it is appropriate to say that I have two cats
and live with mom in fears that they will think I like chicks.
Creepy.
Well, I"m out like a fat chick.
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| All hail to the Great Namekagon River Trip! 2006, another hell of a year. Remember everyone, the river is not a sprint - it is a marathon. The River is a life force. The trip down the river is a total of 20 miles for the weekend, but I'm really convinced these days that we never really get off of the river and we all learn something about ourselves every year while we're on it. This year Katie's group learned that canoes aren't for them. My group learned that if all of you smoke on a canoe then someone should bring a lighter. As a community, we all learned that 30 sunscreen is not for pussies. All people in the tent learned that everyone deserves a cabin and an air conditioner - they are not for the socially elite - they are essentials that keep people alive during the North Woods Hurricane.
Without further ado, the River Trip 2006 Top Ten list...........
1. Breaks are good.
2. I've got the right temperature to turn you on......... Wait, what temperature is that again? 100 degrees? And oh yes - Pops is Tops!
3. How many life vests does it take for Kevin to float while standing in the canoe and peeing? How many Katie's does it take to change a lightbulb?
4. Everyone is TOTALLY on the bus... except Ryan.... he is never coming on the bus.
5. Hey, did everyone get a good tan?
6. Katie and Megan officially developed an incentive plan to get people to sing karaoke. It was called "Jello Shots if You Sing."
7. Dance Revolution 2006. Ryan and Jon can really cut a rug. They are legends at the Prime. I think Jon's picture is on the wall - the one with the guy in the Nike shirt. Look for him next year.....
8. Katie and I accomplished our goals this year!!!! Katie actually managed to lift herself from her tube to jump off the bridge (yes, everyone else was doing it) and I ended up in the CORRECT cabin wearing my clothes. Yay for winners!
9. Dirty Boobs Smentek is the official romancer of the campsite - Kozy Cabin #4 heard the official soundtrack.
10. Drinking beer with my River Trip friends!
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| Well, as I start almost every journal entry - it's been way too long.....
I had a total desire to write in the journal on my really exciting
(catch a mad drift of sarcasm) July 3rd night when I was in my sweats
cruising Target at 8pm totally content, finding odd things to buy like
rope and Napoleon Dynamite post-it notes and an 80s CD. I got a
McDonald's sundae and sat on my mom's back deck with my sister
listening to the CDs and having a beer before jumping into bed to watch
the Goonies and pass out. Is this really what life is coming to???
Then I had another surreal moment today. I left my house before
6am for an early meeting and didn't arrive home until 9:30 at
night. It was a long day. I ate my dinner and went to go
wash my face. While scrubbing up my mug, my mom and my sister
thanked me for being pleasant tonight and not crabby like I "usually
am." So I just walked out of the room now and decided I've had
enough.
I am in a weird place right now with having moved back home. I
read my entries a year ago where I was pretty wild and usually curled
up with the pussies and a hangover. I've moved back in where I
grew up and I'm not gonna lie, it's not easy. I'm hoping to move
out this fall, but that would require me living on a budget to save
money. I have a hard time deciding which is more important -
shopping and taking shots at the bar or my sanity to move out. It
really is a toughie.
I act like I'm an old spinster but to be honest I was at the bar for 2
weeks straight for my Philadelphia trip for work. I felt like I
was at a time share vacation. During the day I would listen to
speakers and at night I would go out and party like it was 1999.
I am still suffering from a sprained butt that I can't really explain
how it happened. I just know that it involved a lot of
shots. Cherry bomb anyone?
So Beau Beau and Tom are doing well. They are tired of being
cooped up in a shoebox, but they enjoy it when they get to run around
the big house when I'm home. They are getting fat because they
eat to compensate for a lack of love.
And the love life? Ah, it's as boring as usual. Did you
really think it would change? My life is pretty much full of the
"we like each other but nothing's going to happen" thing. It's
really quite weird to be honest. I feel like a broken record with
that line.
Well, I'm out like a fat kid. It's pretty much my bed time for a
wild day in Kankakee tomorrow! Ciao ciao for now friends...
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