THIS WAS MY SECOND TIME IN CHICAGO. THE FIRST TIME WAS IN

2006 FOR A TWO-MONTH TOUR OF MOST OF AMERICA. THAT TIME

I STAYED AT A HOSTEL SOMEWHERE, PROBABLY IN DAMEN,

PROBABLY NOT. I CAN'T REMEMBER. ALL I REMEMBER ABOUT THE

HOSTEL WAS THAT THERE WERE BED BUGS.

THIS TIME I WAS IN CHICAGO FOR A DIGITAL ARTS FESTIVAL CALLED

GLI.TC/H. CONFUSED? YOU SHOULD BE. GLITCH ART ISN'T

ANYTHING NEW, BUT IT HAS BECOME POPULAR (AGAIN) RECENTLY.

BROADLY SPEAKING THE WHOLE GLITCH ART THING LOOKS AT THE

ART OF ERRORS, PARTICULARLY, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, COMPUTERS.

IF YOU REALLY WANT TO KNOW MORE GO TO HTTP://GLI.TC/H (YES,

THAT'S A REAL WEBSITE)

THIS TIME I WAS IN CHICAGO FOR A DIGITAL ARTS FESTIVAL CALLED

GLI.TC/H. CONFUSED? YOU SHOULD BE. GLITCH ART ISN'T

ANYTHING NEW, BUT IT HAS BECOME POPULAR (AGAIN) RECENTLY.

BROADLY SPEAKING THE WHOLE GLITCH ART THING LOOKS AT THE

ART OF ERRORS, PARTICULARLY, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, COMPUTERS.

IF YOU REALLY WANT TO KNOW MORE GO TO HTTP://GLI.TC/H (YES,

THAT'S A REAL WEBSITE)

WHAT I REALLY LIKE ABOUT CHICAGO IN GENERAL IS IT REMINDS ME OF

HOME IN MANY WAYS. I'VE LIVED IN BIRMINGHAM, ENGLAND, FOR MOST OF

MY LIFE. THE BEST WAY TO DESCRIBE BIRMINGHAM IS THAT IT'S NOT

LONDON. IT'S A BIG CITY BUT DOESN'T HAVE THE OVERCROWDED NATURE OF

LONDON OR NEW YORK.

I HATE BEING A

TOURIST. I REALLY DO. WHEN

I GO TO A NEW CITY I LIKE TO FEEL

PART OF IT EVEN IF I'M ONLY THERE

FOR A SHORT TIME. THE FIRST TIME IN

CHICAGO I AVOIDED DOING TOO MANY

TOURISTY THINGS. YEAH, I SAW THE BIG

BEAN THING AND SOME OTHER BUILDINGS

BUT, TO ME, THAT ISN'T AT ALL INTERESTING.I WANT TO MEET THE PEOPLE/THE NATIVES

AND KNOW WHAT IT'S LIKE TO LIVE IN THE

CITY AND THAT'S SOMETHING YOU

CAN'T GET BY FOLLOWING A TOURIST

GUIDE.

THANKS TOO R00S I WAS STAYING WITH ONE OF

THE ORGANISERS OF GLI.TC/H, NICK. AS THIS

WAS THE FIRST AMERICAN HOUSE I'D SPENT

ANY TIME IN I COULDN'T REALLY SAY IF IT

WAS A TYPICAL AMERICAN HOUSE.EITHER WAY, IT WAS A PRETTY NICE

PLACE, ALTHOUGH THE ONLY

TIME I WAS AT HIS HOUSE WAS

TO SLEEP AND SHOWER.ANY PLACE THAT HAS

CATS GETS MY

APPROVAL

INSTANTLY.

I SPENT A LOT OF MY TIME BEING HIS SHADOW

WHILST HE SET UP FOR THE FESTIVAL. HE

APOLOGISED FOR DRAGGING ME ALONG TO

SUPPOSEDLY BORING TASKS LIKE CARRYING TABLES

OR SETTING UP AN EXHIBITION BUT I REALLY DIDN'T

MIND. IF THIS IS WHAT LIFE IN CHICAGO IS LIKE I

WANT TO LIVE IT. BESIDES, WHAT ELSE WOULD I HAVE

DONE? GONE AND BEEN A TOURIST? I DON'T THINK

SO!

ALL OF THE DAYS SORT OF MERGED INTO ONE. THEY ALL

SEEMED TO START WITH A TRIP DOWNTOWN, WANDERING

AROUND FOR A BIT IN SEARCH OF FOOD, DOING ONE OF THE

GLI.TC/H THINGS AND THEN ENDING IT IN A PARTY

SOMEWHERE. DON'T BE ALARMED THAT I WOULD DRINK

ABOUT FIVE CANS IN A NIGHT AS THEY WERE THE SIZE OF A

SMALL COKE CAN. THAT BEING SAID I PROBABLY DID

EMBARRASS MYSELF ON VARIOUS OCCASIONS. HOPEFULLY

MY BRITISH CHARM (HA!) MADE UP FOR IT.

IS CHICAGO KNOWN FOR ITS PIZZAS? IF NOT IT

DEFINITELY SHOULD BE. MYSELF AND JEFF DON

HAD A PIZZA THE SIZE OF TEN PIZZAS CONDENSED

INTO ONE SMALL PIZZA. YES, IT WAS A SMALL

PIZZA. IT LASTED ME THREE DAYS BY WHICH

POINT I HAD TO THROW IT OUT BECAUSE IT

WAS GOING GREENISH. I THINK IF I'M EVER

IN CHICAGO AGAIN I'LL JUST BUY ONE

PIZZA AND LIVE OFF IT FOREVER.

rock on chicago!