Hamilton · 2:04am Apr 29th, 2019
Picture the scene: it’s spring. Not just kind-of spring, we’re not talking a day or two after the equinox, we’re a full month on and flowers are blooming and we’re going to see Hamilton in Chicago.
Look, it’s so spring-like, you can see that there are boats headed out into Lake Michigan. Since Chicago is further south, it’ll surely be much more pleasant there, and a good day to walk around a bit.
The train left the station at 6:49 AM which is quite unfortunate for a Saturday, but it’s convenient because it gets to Chicago in plenty of time to look around and walk about and so forth.
Naturally, as the opening might suggest, Mother Nature had different ideas. “Oh, hey, it’s almost May, and you know what that means! Snowstorm!”
Lyra contemplates the future
No, for realsies.
But that’s okay. Thoughtfully, the CIBC theatre put on the performance inside. And it was amazing!
Admittedly, I’ve heard the hype (and who hasn’t?) and I wondered if it was overblown. Was the thing going to be a boring recitation of history that nobody really cares about any more, maybe with a few catchy numbers?
It was epic. Well worth watching. If y’all get the chance, do it, you won’t be sorry. And, if you’re like me, you’ll have a moment or two in the musical where something you learned in American History class and then forgot will percolate back up to your brain not in time to anticipate what was about to happen, but only in time to realize what’s going to happen immediately next.
Wait, a duel? Didn’t Aaron Burr fight a duel with somebody when he was VP? It wasn’t . . . oh. Oh, this won’t end well.
Source unknown; probably public domain by now
It’s not a spoiler if it’s historical fact. 
So in summary, ♫the weather outside was frightful, but the play was so delightful. ♫
Also worth mention, our train got back about an hour late.
Also also worth mention, I’ve been more into ponies and less into trains for long enough to not have been aware what a Siemens Charger was or that Amtrak had them or why there is an open, illuminated section in it. More research needed!
Being the paranoid person that I am, I put my phone on silent mode and airplane mode before the play. Then I turned it off, too, just to make sure.
And later on, when we were at the train station, waiting to board the train back to Michigan, snacking on Au Bon Pain in honor of Silver Glow, I checked my notifications on FimFic, and discovered that Kalum had become my 2,000th follower!
Good day? Sounds like you had fun at least.
2,000 followers?
Congratulations man!
5050920
Oh yeah, it was a great day. Long, but great!
5050931
Thanks!
You can keep the snow. I was in South Carolina that week. I'm not sure if they know what a snow shovel is there.
What were/are your favorite Hamilton songs?
Mine are
and
Grats on 2k followers, you crazy t-shirt-giving-away madlad.
5050970
I used to live in SC. I'm pretty sure they don't know what a snow shovel is.
https://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=it%27s+a+most+unusual+play&&view=detail&mid=5B5AB0B4165FE91D18565B5AB0B4165FE91D1856&&FORM=VRDGAR
5050983
Well that was amusing.
Just within this past year, my parents had to live up in the vicinity of Grand Rapids for about 4-6 months so that my Dad could work there a while. Since this was when winter was kicking in, they couldn't wait to get out of there. ()^_^
A bit ironic, since they were both raised in Michigan, but hey.
Glad things worked out for you. :)
cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/204934588953264130/572282666171236352/mapa-de-hamilton-ontario-canada-elegant-map-cities-in-tario-canada-inspirational-hamilton-canada-of-.png
Stop confusing my poor Canadian brain!
Also I found some footage of Lyra.
i.imgur.com/acdpIRG.gif
Wrong Lyra, but still.
Oh damn, you were in Chicago and didn't let me know? Gosh darn.
So jealous of you right now! Going to see that show would be a blast!! Glad you had a good time!
Research session complete. Siemens Charger's mid-ship "porch" is directly under the radiator section seen on the roof. It probably lets in plenty of cool air to keep the engine cool.
As for late season snow... I used to live in Wyoming.
Snow Never happens in June, July or August, right?
Wyoming weather: Hold my beer.
Welcome to Chicago! Where it snows in late April like it's January.
5051015 Ditto.
Glad you enjoyed the play, and grats on 2k followers!
Lucky you, been hoping to see Hamilton in London if I can get tickets n congrats on 2k followers
I live just outside Chicago, and that snow was more slush and it sucked having to drive in it.
5050970
I have a relative who lives in one of the Carolinas (legit can’t remember which one), and they don’t.
Actually, funny story. Years ago, we went to a family reunion in Florida, right around November. Michigan, it’s snowing, sleeting, and being winter in the Midwest. Florida’s winter is lows in the 60s . . . you can tell from the pictures who the northerners are, they’re the ones in t-shirts while the Floridians are in heavy parkas.
5050973
The one that I keep coming back to is the ten rules of dueling.
I also liked most of the ones that went “Burr, sir?”
5050975
Thank you!
5050982
I’ve never lived there, but I’ve got family there (or NC, or both--not entirely sure) and they do get confused about snow.
5050983
It’s always amusing listening to old comedy that really pushes the bounds of decency (for the time) and now it’s like, okay, so what’s the big deal?
5051004
That’s a nice city, from what I know, although I’ve never lived there. Visited a few times, though.
I gotta figure that some people leave because they don’t like the weather. Especially the winter. That was something people at my college had trouble with if they weren’t northerners. Especially the numerous false springs that Michigan often has.
5051009
Disappointingly, your Hamilton wasn’t named after our Hamilton. Quite a shame, really.
True story! My friends insisted I watch Cabin in the Woods because there was a scene in there that I’d love. They wouldn’t tell me what it was, but they assured me I’d know when I saw it, and they weren’t wrong. I almost fell off the couch I was laughing so hard.
Unicorns are just horses that can stab people.
5051015
I’ll tell everyone when I’m not doing it as a family thing, I promise!
5051031
Dude, it’s all kinds of amazing, and this is coming from a guy who doesn’t particularly like musicals* or rap. If you get a chance, take it!
Super long day, but totally worth it!
*There are reasons, and Company is most of the reasons.
5051036
I figured that the big openings were for that reason, and the stuff I could see through the grilles looked like heatsinks--but why’s it illuminated? I could see them having some light in case the crew’s got to go from one end to the other, but our locomotive on the way back looked like they were showing off the guts.
We’ve got the lakes as a moderating force, and as such I’ve never seen snow in June, July, or August (in Michigan). Weather patterns often work in our favor in that regard.
5051049
We get that in Michigan sometimes, too. Led to a memorable shift driving wrecker once; seems like a month after spring officially starts, everyone forgets how to drive on snow. . .
I suppose it would have been quite a surprise to my parents if all of y’all Chicagoans had been waiting at the train station for my arrival.
5051053
Thank you!
5051174
Dude, it’s totally worth it; if you can get tickets do so!
5051303
That was the nice thing about taking the train. I bet the roads were a real horrorshow, but we weren’t on them. We were zooming by on the tracks where all we had to worry about was oncoming freight trains . . . so many freight trains.
Huh. I hadn't realized that CIBC (Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce) had a U.S. subsidiary, let alone that they had a theatre named after them.
(Canada has five big banks which, around here, we refer to as CIBC, TD (Toronto Dominion), Bank of Montreal, Royal Bank, and Scotiabank (officially, The Bank of Nova Scotia) ...and no, there's no consistency in whether we use the official name, their brand name, or an abbreviation or acronym of one of them in common speech. They tried to merge down to three back in 1998 but it was denied.)
5051414
I've lived in Phoenix, Az. for a bit over 30+ years. IIRC, it has snowed 2 times the entire time that I've been here.
Of course, it depends on your altitude. The higher that you go into the mountains, the more often it snows.
On the other hand, it hit 100 degrees in mid April & the high temp won't get below the mid 90s until late September -if then
https://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=mlp+we%27re+not+going+to+freeze&view=detail&mid=92AB473489226F69C85792AB473489226F69C857&FORM=VIRE
5051417
yeah a lot of freight trains run through Chicago. Im not more then a couple minutes from the tracks by car, and their is a freight train three or four times a week going through. You can hear them late at night going by if its quiet enough. More often then not you will find one going by just before noon. And theres almost no way to go around it. Plus you have the local commuter going by every couple hours as well. Yesterday I got held up by the metra a couple blocks from home, usually no big deal, however on the other side of it was a maintenance train. So after Metra left, it was there moving along a couple feet every few minutes, so the gate wouldnt go up. Had to turn around and go further down to get home. Trains are awesome but they get rather annoying when you have to drive and your surrounded by them.
5051416 Hoping to but they sell out fast
5051414
Speaking of weather, I live in Washington and it's already turning into some form of tropical hell here.
5051440
I have to assume it’s a coincidence, but it would be funny if they had all their bank holdings and one theatre in Chicago.
I just googled it, and it turns out that they’ve got branches in Michigan, too, at least in the Metro Detroit area.
Off the top of my head, US banks tend to use their full names (Chase, Wells Fargo, etc.), while foreign banks like to use acronyms (HSBC). Credit unions also often use acronyms (like MSUFCU). Although a local bank was one exception; they used to be SSB Bank, and now they’re Eaton Federal.
5051446
Yeah, altitude makes a big difference there. Like most, I tend to think of AZ as hot, but when we went to the Grand Canyon in winter, we got off the train in Flagstaff and it was freezing rain, and then of course at the top of the canyon everything was covered in snow. Not what I’d been anticipating.
See, I couldn’t deal with that. I”m not a huge fan of cold cold, but as long as it stays above single digits, I don’t mind so much. But I do want winter to end when it’s supposed to rather than drag into late April or early May.
5051518
There’s a few places in Michigan that are like that, but not too many. Durand can be difficult to get through; the Great Lakes Central and CN cross and interchange there, so it tends to be busy.
Out where I live, they took up the tracks in the 70s.
I believe in most part of the actual city of Chicago, the tracks are largely either above or below grade, due to infrastructure improvements in the 1800s after two competing railroads made an illegal crossing and then acted as if it wasn’t there until two trains collided and the powers that be decided something should be done.
Interestingly, St. Louis should be the major east/west hub for the US, but by the time people realized how bad a location Chicago was for that, it was too late. All the railroads had already gone there.
5051647
Yeah, I can imagine. Just talked to another friend who saw it in Chicago a year ago or thereabouts, and he said that he wound up buying his tickets eight months in advance--of course, he had to get a block of seven, which added to the challenge. Still, totally worth it if you can.
5052006
Especially if y’all had been wearing Admiral Biscuit shirts.
5052804
As opposed to the normal hell that Washington DC is?
5053988 They sell the tickets only up to a certain date each month but it'll be worth it once I'm able to see it
5053980
It's more that we're lazy about it. Toronto Dominion Bank's brand name is "TD Canada Trust" (the result of a merger while I was a kid) but we still just call them "TD", and Royal Bank's brand name is "RBC Royal Bank", but we call them "Royal Bank" rather than "RBC" in my experience... probably because it's more intuitive despite having one syllable more than "RBC".
5054164
Dude, it totally is. Almost worth killing a man, honestly. Although I don’t advise that.
5054548
There’s a lot of that going around. When I was in college, we still called the dining service “Saga,” even though it hadn’t been that for some time. I think a lot of times when a name sticks, it stays and doesn’t change unless there’s a lot of pressure to change it.