As I've mentioned a couple of times in this blog, March proved pretty challenging. Between losing a mother, having folks in town visiting and getting really sick, it was an exhausting month. Sure I learned a lot, but it took its toll on me. So much so, that when the trip to Chicago was approaching I was almost dreading it. How was I going to recover from food poisoning while on the road? How was I going to catch up on sleep when I have to show face at these after parties? I was worrying for no reason, it turns out.
I am so thankful for my college buddy De and his amazing girlfriend Piper. They were fantastic hosts and they bought me deep dish pizza which means that there is a special cubby carved out in my heart for them forever. These are some of the best folks on the planet. How can you not love a couple that gets drunk and paints a mural of themselves holding a heart while riding a unicorn with a glitter paint tail under a rainbow on their bathroom wall? Yes. That exists. And I loved looking at it every time I took a sh*t, which was apparently quite a lot, because I remember this mural in vivid detail. They have two cats named Arbus and Dolly Parton. Like seriously, how could I go wrong here? Love you guys. Muah!
They took me to a hella awesome pizza place in Logan Square called the Boiler Room, and yes that is spicy Gardenia mix on my pizza. There was deal called the PBJ - tall boy PBR, shot of Jameson (Chicago is effin' obsessed with Jameson) and a slice of specialty pizza for $7.50. Holy crap! Can I move here please? They made me take a shot of some kind of wormwood liquor called MaLort that make me cringe like a mofo. Piper was real bitch and took a photo. Apparently there's a whole blog of these kinds of pics.
On the last day, we went to brunch at a lovely place near their apartment called West Town Bakery. They have breakfast sandwiches where the toast is substituted for two glazed donuts. FML. I resisted and went for a big flaky croissant with eggs, white cheddar and fried green tomatoes. Piper got salted caramel waffles and they were beyond insane, and yes that is black sea salt. Drooooooolllllllll.
In addition to seeing these guys, I got to throw down with my girl Emily Walker, who I also know from my HappyGAS days at WKU. We did a two prov set that brought down the effin' house at Chemically Imbalanced Comedy. I got to play a wedding planner named Febreze and he will be a part of me forever. I can't wait until Em comes back to town so we can book some shows. PS - Girl, WE NEED TO APPLY FOR DCM NEXT YEAR!
And my sweet Caroline Sweet (both sweets were included intentionally). It was so fantastic to get to hang out with my California girl (she's undeniable). We got to spend a lot of quality time together. Between day drinking outside of Millenium park at The Gage (check out our lunch below - holy crap - Brussels Sprouts with Brie and Bacon, marinated wild mushrooms, Caesar salad, and Pork Confit Poutine. Ugh, so damn good and awesome going down with some malty porters) and then eating our face's off at the incredible Reza's in Andersonville pre-show, I think it's safe to say we got our fill of food and friendship. She's doing so well in LA, and dammit. I'm just so durn proud of her. And I got to hang out with her mom Nancy, which is always a blast. Loved it.
And this was the vegetarian combo at Reza's - HOW IS THIS FOR ONE PERSON?(Stuffed Pepper, Dolmeh, Eggplant/Mint/Carmelized Onion Dip, Eggplant Steak, Chopped Salad)
And my Nana and Pap came all the way up from Indianapolis to visit me too! I got to catch up with my Aunt Cheryl, Uncle Rich and even see my cousin Jessie (apparently people don't call her that anymore) who I haven't seen in a legit d*ck year.
The Mannequin Room had a great set at Upstairs Gallery, and I got to play a velociraptor which is something I not only welcome, but also, encourage. Brian, Lou and Caro tore the house down with their Southern movie spectator characters who suggested that the costumes in Lincoln were perhaps not authentic, "I mean, how do they know he always wore a top hat? They didn't have many pictures then. Maybe he just wore a top hat that one specific day!" And anytime Chrissie gets to play a fortune teller (which is coincidentally pretty often. One time she was a crystal ball reader named Sister Hazel and when I asked her for my future she said "It's hard to say what it is I see in you" and then our heads exploded) she murders everyone in a two mile radius. I love my team - you guys are the best and it's an effin' honor every time I get to take the stage with you fabulous folks. AND WE GOT WRITTEN UP IN TIME OUT CHICAGO. HOW COOL IS THAT?! (Also thank you so much for coming Molly, Jordan, Ryan, Brandon, Nicole, Grant, Jessie and Nick - so awesome to have your familiar faces in the audience!)
On my last day, I took a two person scenes class with Scott Adsit. "Your scene partner's idea is ALWAYS better than yours." Such perfect words to remember, especially for someone like me who becomes a wild ferret anytime I'm on stage. This afternoon was an absolute treat, and I was so pleased with his direction. It's helpful to take it back to basics. My scene partner and I found ourselves in a Brokeback Mountain scenario that ended with me accidentally shooting him in the chest after he agreed to trust me enough to shoot a beer can off of his head. Can we say magic? To hear the words, "I really liked this scene. It was so active and fun to watch." come out of Adsit's mouth was like an effin gift from God. "Great job today, Megan. Really awesome stuff." AAAAAGGGHHHHH. It was so cool. I would love to work with him again in the future.
Other highlights of the weekend - seeing a show at Second City and mutually agreeing with our team that it was full of dad jokes and really not what we thought it would be, catching up with the always hilarious Josh Chapman and clawing his face on accident at the afterparty, finally getting to meet Stefan Gearheart, a HappyGAS legend, catching up with Cincy friend Matt Derda at the CIC bar, running into childhood friend Ryan Wright at both of my shows, and taking these photos at the bean.
Chicago, until next time. You're a real effin' peach, you know that?
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