The NBA Returns TODAY

Today marks the start of the 2008-09 NBA season, and I am PUMPED. I'm obviously excited about the chance for my hometown Celtics to repeat as champs - even if a panel of ESPN experts thinks that the Lakers will be too motivated by their loss last season to let that happen. I'm also really psyched about the potential of my adopted Bulls. DERRICK! ROSE! WOO! Of course, those same experts believe that the delayed rookie season of Greg Oden (who I once saw casually hanging around outside of the Broad Ripple Steakhouse) will surpass that of Rose. My dear friend Jill Carlson at Fox has spoken to him a few times and confirms that he is a humble and focused young man who is ready to lead, no matter how old he is. Maybe he'll soon become the star some people already call him. The Bulls will certainly face a lot of challenges this year, but I'm excited to see what they can put together on the court.

And if nothing else, there's always Drew Gooden's beard.

Majestic.

Kurt Cobain Unseen... Until Now

I was more of a Pearl Jam fan than a Nirvana fan in the early 90's. Ten was one of the first CDs I ever bought. Kurt Cobain's death - on my brother's 11th birthday, by the way - shook me all the same. Now that he's been gone for almost 15 years, my hazy memories of his life are mingled with the years of mourning his loss. No one knows what Nirvana could have accomplished if he was still alive. The band might have put out years of great music, or it could have just faded into obscurity. Foo Fighters probably never would have existed. Courtney Love might have settled down into the role of loving wife and mother and never flashed anyone at a Wendy's. There are too many "what ifs" to count.

The fact that Kurt Cobain was an actual person sometimes gets lost in the discussion of his death. There's a new book called Cobain Unseen which makes that fact hard to ignore. It's not just a retelling of his life story: it's a collection of pictures and artwork that flesh out Kurt as a human being. RollingStone.com has excerpts from the book online now. This one is my favorite:


There's something inside me that aches when I see that little kitten. Check out the pictures. You might be surprised by what you see.

How I Spent My Indiana Weekend

I've wanted to go apple picking since fall officially began. Today, I got my wish. Paul and I spent the weekend in Valpo, and we stopped by the County Line Orchard in Hobart on our way home. I felt like a little girl again as we navigated the rows of trees, searching for the perfect apples. Paul hoisted me up at one point to stretch for a lovely red specimen, and the scratches and scrapes were worth the effort. Most of the pickings were slim, but we ended up with a selection of Fuji and Golden Delicious, as seen here. Then we just HAD to buy cider, cider doughnuts, AND caramel apples. Mmm.

Other weekend highlights: bowling (107, 112, 139), meeting Q101 fans at Reapers Realm (hi Whitney!!!), my second trip to El Amigo (and first trip while sober), and sleeping in (even if it was on a futon). I love my little gunslinger, but Roland doesn't always respect his mommy's need for rest. He's currently asleep on the back of the couch, right behind my left shoulder. Even when it's a great weekend, it's good to be home.

LLG Marathon Recap: THE VIDEO

Because words alone can't do it justice: it's the Last Letter Game Marathon Recap Video!


Can you tell how much fun I was having - and how exhausted I was at the end? Thanks for another great video, Adam.

Oh, and our FINAL final total, including donations made over the weekend, is $33,075. That's over 11,000 books for Reading is Fundamental in Chicago. Thank YOU, too.

Feel the Fury of Muse

This morning, my dear friend Joey O greeted me not with a "hello," or a "how are YOU doing," or even a "hahahaha, MY Phillies are in the World Series and YOUR Red Sox are sitting at home." (He's not one of the a-hole Philadelphia sports fans, so he wouldn't do that to me anyway.) No, Joey greeted me with the following story: Muse give away rare song free online!!! I remember standing with Joey, Josh T and my other Y100 pals in a parking lot at the Tweeter Center (in lovely and crime-ridden Camden) during the 2004 Curiosa festival. When the crowd sang along to every word of "Time Is Running Out," we all beamed at each other proudly. We felt like WE introduced them to Muse. That's one of the best feelings a DJ can have. Great night.

The song is called "Fury," it's in video form, and it's glorious. Sure, it might be a while before there's a new Muse album or another live show - oh, wonderful Lollapamemories - but this makes life a little bit better. Mmm, Museykins.

LLG Marathon Year Three: The Recap

Another year, another successful Last Letter Game Marathon. I'm humbled by the generosity of my listeners, colleagues and friends. In a time when money is tight for so many people, we were able to raise almost $32,000 for Reading is Fundamental in Chicago. That's enough to integrate seven new schools into the program. I'm honestly shocked in the best possible way.

Some highlights:

• Discussing the brilliance of Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day with, of course, Alex Quigley
• Celebrating the birthday of the doubler with the Mannos brothers - and Hostess cupcakes
• Getting ridiculous overnight giggles with Dana (pee songs!) in between serious conversations about the educational power of reading
• Being serenaded by Sherman and Tingle's powerful and stirring acapella version of "More Than Words" 
• Closing out the final hours of the marathon with the on-air support of my not-boss Marc - and courtside Bulls tickets, an LCD TV, and sold-out Smashing Pumpkins tickets for generous donors
• Having my wonderful boyfriend take care of my every need for 22 out of 29 hours - from cough drops to comedy and back rubs to birthday candles (for the doubler, of course)

First song: "Knights of Cydonia," Muse

Craziest musical transition: "Cantaloop," US3 to "Psychosocial," Slipknot

Last song: "A Favor House Atlantic," Coheed and Cambria

This incredible experience would not have been possible without the hard work, dedication and planning skills of Q101.1's promotions manager, Jeannine. She's the brains behind the marathon, and she deserves most of the credit for its success. I'd also like to thank all of the volunteers who handled phone duty, during both the quiet and busy hours. Finally: thank YOU for your donations, your requests, and your support. If you have your own highlights... I'd love to hear them. Thanks again.

It's Here!

It's once again Last Letter Game Marathon time at Q101.1! I will be your host for 29 straight hours of requests, and I'm doing it for the kids. Learn more about Reading Is Fundamental here. Here is a link to donate as well as more info about the marathon itself... AND an entertaining video from last year.

Please listen. If you can, please donate. If you can't - and I know times are tough for a lot of people right now - love and support are always appreciated.

Thank you. I can't wait to recap our third straight year of success when it's over!

Wii!

I impulsively bought a Wii over the weekend. I couldn't help it: there it was, sitting alone behind a locked glass door at Target, simply begging to be freed and find a new home. The purchase didn't happen right AWAY, however. First, the following conversation occurred:

Electra: Oh my god, there's a Wii! That's a good price! What do you think, should I get it?
Paul: Do you need it?
Electra: Of course not. No one NEEDS a Wii. I just WANT it.
Paul: ...
Electra: Ok, fine, I won't get it.

(10 minutes of shopping pass)

Electra: Can we go see if anyone's bought the Wii?

No one had bought the Wii. Paul and I have spent some quality time bowling and playing tennis, and I've already downloaded Super Mario Bros. 3. My brother, whose recent acquisition of a Wii inspired this purchase, is insisting that I buy Mario Kart IMMEDIATELY if not sooner. I won't have a lot of video game time until after the LLG marathon, but then I'll have the whole long winter to play. Who's got recommendations for me?

Ben Folds: A Review

Not too long ago, I wrote about my excessive love for Ben Folds Five. Ben Folds brought his solo show to Chicago Friday, and I was there - well, for ONE of the shows, anyway. I was not amongst the uber-fans who saw Ben perform at the Michigan Avenue Apple store on Friday afternoon. Considering how much time I've spent in that store (and will again soon, since my poor Sam seems to be on her last legs), it would have been neat to be part of the event. Alas.

The Congress Theatre show was mostly a showcase for Ben's latest album, Way to Normal, as well as the alternate "fake songs" he and his band created and "leaked" before its release. I have to admit that I enjoyed the fake songs more than the real songs, since they reminded me of the raw sound of the Five. The fakes were created and produced quickly and have funny, frequently absurd lyrics:

Why do we frown?
Is it something within us?
Or in the world at large?
Maybe it's both, y'all.

Now imagine that being sung while a gentleman roams the stage wearing a gigantic mask that looks like this:
Completely bizarre, and thus right up my alley. I give Ben a lot of credit for making the concert an unusual storytelling experience, even though the acoustics in the Congress Theatre made it hard to hear a lot of his creative lyrics and funny asides. Other highlights: sound effects created by Altoids tins ("finding 20th century solutions for 21st century problems), the promise of "old sh*t" in the encore which paid off with "Emaline," "Boxing," "Fair" and "Kate," and the delightful Missy Higgins. Good show, good company, good night.

One Week

No, I'm not talking about the Barenaked Ladies. In ONE WEEK, I'll be taking on Q101's 3rd Annual Last Letter Game Marathon. I'm excited to once again have the opportunity to play nothing but awesome requests for 29 hours. I'm excited (selfishly) that Paul has taken two days off from work to be my coffee runner/provider of hugs/all-around great boyfriend. And I'm extremely excited to help out with a cause that means a lot to me: children's literacy. Reading builds character, creativity and intellectual curiosity, especially in young people. Reading is Fundamental helps them learn to view reading as a pleasure, not just a chore for school, and it puts books into the hands of Chicago kids who often have no other way to enjoy them.

So please: tell your friends. Take a minute to think about your favorite childhood book and the fond memories that go along with it. Most importantly, start thinking about awesome songs to request - the kind we only dig out during our end of the year countdowns, perhaps. I'm thankful to have a great support system this year, so making it through without having some kind of breakdown should be a breeze.

I know it's a rough time to be asking people to donate money to any kind of cause, but as the saying goes: every little bit helps. We're going to have a some "incentives" for people to donate throughout the marathon, too. It's going to be a lot of fun.

Start time: 10am, 10.16.08
End time: 3pm, 10.17.08
Sleep time: approximately 5pm, 10.17.08

Thanks.

Next Year Already?

In what feels like the blink of an eye, October baseball is over in Chicago. I'm happy about my hometown Sox but sad for my adopted city. Ever since I moved here, I've enjoyed how passionate and knowledgeable Chicago sports fans are. I love talking to listeners about baseball stats and fantasy football busts. (Aside: Santana Moss, you are dead to me.) It's hard not to get caught up in the exciting achievements of a rookie running back or the whirlwind of a playoff scenario 102 years in the making. When Chicago hurts, I hurt, and the disappointing sting of yet another "next year" hurts.

No matter how much it hurts, though, there IS a next year. There is always hope, just as there are always people who would rather kick you when you're down than extend a hand to help you up. It may be hard - especially for Cubs fans - to see it right now, but hope is still there.

I'm fighting the urge to quote The Shawshank Redemption, so I think it's bedtime.

...

Oh, what the heck. Don't watch it if you haven't seen it, and if you haven't seen it, you must. (Paul, this means you.)

Tina Fey RULES

The world is a better, funnier, smarter place because Tina Fey is in it:


Jason Sudeikis rules as well. SNL is finally making me laugh again, and all it took was an election year.

(I'm not ready to discuss October baseball just yet. I have a game to go to in 3 hours, and we'll see what happens then.)

The Return of Top Chef

Top Chef is coming back next month, hooray! I fell in love with the show in large part because of Stephanie Izard, local chef and Season 4 winner. There is only one Chicago chef in the new 17 person cast: Radhika Desai, the executive chef at Between Boutique Café & Lounge in Wicker Park. Despite the pretentious and clunky name, it IS a restaurant, not a boutique. My brief review: it features creative small plates (I'm sorry, they're boutique plates, my bad), a solid wine list, and a very date-oriented atmosphere. According to her Top Chef bio, Radhika cooks "with a huge spoonful of love." I don't remember tasting any love in my food when I went. I also didn't SEE much love, as the place was mostly empty. Maybe I'll go with Paul next time to experience it properly.

There is also a Italian cheftestant named Fabio. I wonder if he uses I Can't Believe It's Not Butter in his recipes.



So in conclusion, Season 5 of Top Chef premieres on Bravo on November 12th. Woo. Now back to watching playoff baseball.