About eight or nine years ago my friend Ajar brought a used 1995 Jeep Wrangler. While he took it for a test drive Ajar tried out the radio. It had a cassette player. And there was a cassette in it. Ajar didn’t know if it was from the previous owner, someone from the dealership, or maybe somebody else who test drove the car and wanted to try out a tape. Cruising down Chicago’s Western Avenue, Ajar turned up the volume. It was a mix tape. During the drive Ajar heard the Pixies’ “Wave of Mutilation” (the slower, better version), some Shellac, The Jesus Lizard, and the Sparks’ “Armies of the Night.” “I still don’t know if that tape played a part in me buying…
Essays, Interviews, Observations, Pop Culture, Stories, and other Dodginess
Posts from the “Reclusive Author Clive Javanski” Category
Chicago reclusive author Clive Javanski was having custom book shelves installed in his new apartment and our friend Aidan came to help. Clive is still in Bucktown, but now he lives near Lottie’s Pub. It’s where the three of us went on a recent Monday to enjoy few lunchtime pints (Dos Equis on tap) and the taco special . Aidan, who doesn’t live far but drove to Clive’s in order to bring work supplies and wood of some sort, bitched about the “no parking” signs plastered around Lottie’s before he figured out they were for a different day and time. It turns out they were posted because the TV show Chicago Fire films scenes at Lottie’s, something I’d forgotten about if I knew it…
The Asshole Book Club wasn’t your traditional book club. The Assholes didn’t all choose one book, read it on their own, and then return as a group to discuss it. That never happened. The Asshole Book Club would get together, drink some beers, and talk about something we read recently – whether it was a magazine article, love letter, diary entry, album/DVD linear notes or an actual book. The only rule was it had to be non-Web material. The Asshole Book Club was led by Chicago reclusive author Clive Javanski. In fact, I believe the name stems from a time when we were helping Clive set up a booth at a local festival. “Well look there, it’s the asshole book club.” I think it…
The Dodgy 