Chicago -
By Mike Luce
One in a series.
Title: Dr. Dude
Year: 1990
Manufacturer: Appropriately enough, the defunct Midway Manufacturing Company, formerly of Chicago (1988-1999), produced Dr. Dude.
Theme: According to the Internet Pinball Database, Dr. Dude falls under “Celebrities – Fictional.” I would classify the good doctor as “Relic – Charming” or possibly “Machinery – Possessed.”
Posted on September 3, 2009
By J.J. Tindall
The Longest Spring
My soul has committed local treason
by praying aloud for an endless spring.
A restless lake, white-blue sky, bouyant breeze;
songs chubby robins and jaybirds do sing;
the soft, green sea of undulating sod
which glistens through Humboldt Park in the rain
had me sighing to that three person’d God
we project my wish such bliss They sustain.
Summer popped by for Lollapalooza
and may yet return as foliage fades.
Thus bray not like a Canadian goose
that spring extended its brief staycation.
Send not to know where the lost season went.
We’ve been spared our summer of discontent.
Posted on September 2, 2009
By Jerome Haller
The first half of my overnight shift passes fairly quickly. I check in, get an update, chat with some staffers, and settle at my post. The rush of customers keeps me on my toes. I focus on the store’s merchandise, especially the goods in the cosmetics section.
By about 2 a.m., the rush ends and the store gets quiet. The screaming kids and folks with morning jobs have gone to bed.
In theory, the next few hours should be smooth sailing. That’s not the case. Instead, I grind through the toughest part of the night.
Posted on September 1, 2009
