Gettin' my drink on

How is it that it's been almost 2 weeks since I last blogged? At least I can say that there's been fun stuff going on lately...

This Monday I was lucky enough to have the day off for Columbus Day and had a really fantastic day. I started off with a voice lesson, which was a lot more relaxed than normal since I wasn't in a huge rush getting there or going back home (normally I go after work and need to get to the Metra right after). One of my goals right now with the new rep I'm choosing is to do a little bit of French, a language that had really eluded me. I found a piece that's fits my voice so perfectly I'm actually motivated to it - the Jewel Song from Faust, which is going to be awesome once I get it worked up. :-)

That link, by the way, is a clip of Joan Sutherland. She passed away over the weekend, but was one of the greatest sopranos of her time.

Anyway, after my lesson I took the train the rest of the way downtown and met up with Trey, who'd gotten us signed up for a wine & spirits tasting on the Sears Tower Skydeck (ok, it's called the Willis Tower now, but that still sounds so wrong). The weather was wonderful so the sky was nice and clear, which meant incredible views. We actually got to see clouds rolling down over the lake, and then over the shore and into the city on the north side - so cool.

The tasting was put on by one of the huge distribution companies in Chicago, so there was all sorts of great stuff to try. Trey wasn't expecting much from the wine, but was plesantly surprised. Probably my favorite wine experience of the evening was the stuff the McManis folks brought - it was good, I learned that it wasn't very expensive, but it was fantasic for the price. The couple that owns the place and makes the wine were actually pouring, which was cool - they were neat.

(sorry, no more links as I need to finish this up and get to work)

Favorite liquor experiences were:
-Pritchard's whiskey & such from Tennessee - Mr. Pritchard was pouring himself and was a delightful southern gentleman. The guy had to be over 60, but I just wanted to stand there and flirt with him all night. His stuff was great, too.
-Bakon Vodka - dude. Best. Shit. Ever. Best bloody mary. Seriously. The guy who worked for this company is one of the luckiest guys in the world.
-Smoked Salmon Vodka - tried this after the Bakon stuff. Take everything I said about the Bakon and take it up a notch. In-sane. So good.

That's all for now - hopefully I'll have a bit more time to post about my performance with Trey's band last weekend (10/3). The next couple of weeks are going to be insane though - Texas this weekend, and CCC concerts the next...