The Verdict

A few weeks ago, I posted a little bit about the trial of the guy who murdered my friend Mark "Atwood" Evans. He was tried first for the murder of one of his accomplices in the robbery in which Mark was killed. He had killed his accomplice because he was afraid he would talk if picked up by the police.

I was able to go to one of the days of the trial, but because of school was not able to be there on the day the jury's verdict came in.

My friends Tim and Matt, who were also two of Mark's closest friends, were able to be there. Since my school has wifi, I was able to have my laptop with me, with Facebook on. Tim fed updates with his Iphone.

My lab partner and friend Paul, a friendly guy from Cameroon, knew what was going on, and could tell I was having trouble concentrating on the class, which was a class which required a lot of concentration. He and I were in the habit of helping one another with making sure our class notes were complete, one showing the other his notes if we missed something. That day, it was all Paul showing me his notes. I appreciated it.

About an hour after I got the Facebook notice that the jury had adjourned, I got a new note from Tim: the jury had returned a verdict. From having worked as a law clerk, I had a good notion of what the verdict was going to be after such a short time.

A few minutes later, I got the next message from Tim: Guilty.

I felt a little dizzy and weak. We had known that there was not a good chance that they're going to get a guilty verdict in Mark's case. Knowing that this guy was going to be put away for a long, long time felt like justice.

Later, I was a little amused, thinking about it all. Years ago, Mark had been one of the first ones of my old college gang that knew about the internet. He'd been the apostle of the internet, telling everybody how much it was going to change things. He'd described, many years ago, what we would now call social networking. The irony of the fact that I first learned about his murder via an email, and got the news of the verdict by a social networking application was not lost on me.

I also recently got more information through the news group we set up after his death. The guy who killed him will be sentenced for the other killing tomorrow. I plan to be there. Tomorrow they will also start the trial for Mark's killing.

Johnny Yen's Chicago Stories: Not One, But TWO!

As a typical midwestern American kid growing up watching television, one of the stereotypes I saw frequently was the combative in-laws. Happily, I grew up not to have that relationship; my in-laws are delightful people. I get along wonderfully with them. I suspect that with my father-in-law, it helps that I'm a huge baseball fan (and a native Chicagoan) like he is.

My father-in-law was born and raised in Chicago, and after serving in the military, ended up in Long Island, then finally the Minneapolis area. Over the years, he transferred his loyalties from the Cubs to the Minnesota Twins. Given that the Twins have won two World Series in my lifetime (1987 and 1991), this was proabably a wise move.

A couple of years ago, I was on the phone chatting with him, and of course, talking baseball. Somehow we began talking about the Cubs player who was shot by a deranged female fan, a story that was the inspiration for the book and the movie "The Natural."

In talking about the specifics of the incident, we remembered vastly different things. My father-in-law is 81 years old, but is still sharp as a tack. I actually questioned if I was remembering things wrong. I ran and grabbed my copy of Richard Lindberg's great book "Return To The Scene of the Crime: A Guide to Infamous Places In Chicago" to check if I was remembering my facts straight. And it was then I discovered that we were both correct. We were talking about two different guys. Not one, but two Cubs players were shot in hotel rooms by deranged female fans. I was talking about Billy Jurges and my father-in-law was talking about Eddie Waitkus.

Billy Jurges was shot in the Hotel Carlos, now the Sheffield House, at 3834 N. Sheffield Avenue, about two blocks north of Wrigley Field by a young showgirl named Violet Popovich on July 6, 1932. She had become increasingly obsessed with him, even renting a room at the Hotel Carlos, where Jurges lived. Jurges ignored warnings from people around him who saw how obsessed she was getting with him, and remained friendly with her. After three frantic calls from Ms. Popovich, Jurges allowed her into his room. After threatening to kill herself, Ms. Popovich fired three shots at Jurges, hitting him once in his hand and once in his side. Jurges lunged at her and disarmed her before she was able to fire again.

After Popovich was subdued by the police, Jurges was taken to Illinois Masonic Hospital (coindicentally, this is the hospital that I will be doing my clinicals for next semester's nursing school classes). Jurges wounds were treated, and he missed the remainder of the 1932 season. The Cubs brought in former Yankee Mark Koenig to replace him. That year, the Cubs went to the World Series, playing the Yankees. It was during that Series that Babe Ruth had his famous "called shot" in Wrigley Field.

Oddly, Jurges declined to press charges, and Violet Popovich was released. Jurges continued to play for the Cubs until 1948, and afterward worked as a manager and a scout.

Eddie Waitkus was a World War II hero whose career, oddly, briefly crossed paths with Billy Jurges'; he played on the Cubs from 1946 to 1948. While he played in Chicago, a female fan, Ruth Ann Steinhagen, had become obsessed with him. Waitkus was traded to the Philadelphia Phillies in 1949, but this did not diminish Ms. Steinhagen's obsession, but increased it.

On June 14, 1949, Waitkus was in town with the Phillies to play the Cubs. He was staying in the Edgewater Beach Hotel, on Bryn Mawr Avenue. Checking into the hotel under the name of a high school classmate of Waitkus', Ms. Steinhagen sent him a note that she needed to see him on an urgent matter. When he entered her room, Steinhagen shot him with a rifle.

Mr. Waitkus' wounds were much more serious than Jurges' had been; he nearly died in the operating room. Fortunately he lived, but was never the same. He probably suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder from the incident, and it affected his career. Ms. Steinhagen never stood trial for the shooting; she was confined to a mental institution.

As always, there were two odd little coincidences in this story for me. The first was that the only time I have ever been in the Edgewater Hotel, which now is an apartment building, it was to meet the guy who was to perform the marriage ceremony for my now-ex-wife Cynthia and I. He lived in the building. The other involves my current wife, Kim. When I met her, in 2004, she was living on the 3600 block of Sheffield Avenue, a few doors north of Wrigley Field-- and a block and a half south of the Sheffield House-- formerly the Carlos Hotel-- on the same side of the street. If you stand on the steps of her old apartment building, you can see the old Carlos Hotel.

Guess it's a good thing for me that both current and ex-wives hate guns.

Father's Day

Father's Day was over a month ago, and though it might seem to be a bit belated to post about it, it isn't, for reasons you will see.

The picture at the top was not actually taken on Father's Day, but about a week later. it is one of my favorite pictures of my kids-- it includes their friend Alexandra. We'd finished eating food I'd cooked on the Weber, and they were toasting marshmallows.

This summer has been a ball-buster for me. I made the decision to take one of the courses I needed for the nursing program, Anatomy 2, one of the harder ones, in summer school. I took it for a number of reasons-- among them, that I wanted to have it out of the way, so that I wasn't taking it while I was juggling time with my kids, preparing for nursing school and work

Work has become interesting. When I was a teacher, I worked as a waiter because it was the perfect second job-- you walked out of the place with cash in your hands, no lesson plans to worry about, no politics to worry about-- it was a great part-time job-- and it was fun-- you had a couple of drinks at the end of the night and chatted with co-workers.

Now it's a different reality. It's my only source of income now. I like most of the customers and most of my co-workers, but the fact is that at 48, I am doing this at an age I had never planned to be doing this. While it helps keeps me in good physical shape, it also kicks my ass physically.

My school and work schedule has also cost me time with my wife and my kids. With Kim, my consolation is that she and I will have the rest of our lives together. Becoming a nurse will give us a financial stability that we've craved for a long time. The time I miss with my kids is harder. I have only a few years with Adam until he's an adult, and a few years with Mel after that.

Both of my kids have survived the end of their parents' relationships. They've survived my and Kim's financially difficult single days. They've survived blending two families into one. And thrived. They're friends. And, as people have noted, they think of one another as a brother and sister. I couldn't be prouder of them.

Today, I had a full plate; I had to get up early and take a CPR course this morning that is a requirement for my program. I had worked last night, and so was really exhausted this morning, and the rest of the day. But I try to keep my eye on the ball. I try to remember what this is going to mean-- that my kids will be able to go to college and come out of it without crippling debt. They'll be able to study whatever they want and do whatever they want afterward without worrying about paying off $100,000 in college debt. It's important to me.

But tonight, we weren't worried about college. We went and played putt-putt golf and had fun. We got home and the kids got out the "Settlers of Cataan" game. They're happily playing it right now with their friend Arleigh. They've got the Beatles playing on Itunes, and I can tell from the noise level that they're having a great time. And so am I. I'm brain-dead from my busy day, and am unwinding with a glass of wine, enjoying watching "When We Left The Earth," a dvd that Skyler's Dad was kind enough to send me.

Because of the joint custody agreement I have, my son is frequently not here. Last weekend, he wasn't here because I'd allowed my ex to have him last weekend for an event that was important to her. I realized that I was pretty irritable all week. And I realized that it was because I'd had to go too long without seeing my son. Tonight, I'm happy to have both my kids here, happy to hear them with their friend having a great time.

The other day, I overheard my stepdaughter and my wife having a discussion. My stepdaughter told my wife that she'd observed that I always made time for she and her step-brother, and for what was important to them, no matter how crazy my schedule has gotten. And she's right. And I always will.

When my son was a baby, my father gave me some great advice. He told me as daunting as it may seem, looking across the chasm of the next 18 years, it was going to be, believe it or not, a tiny, tiny moment of life-- of yours and theirs. You only get them for this moment, and then they are adults.

It's funny how much smarter your parents get as you get older. He was absolutely right, and I'm happy to say that I've always kept his advice in mind.

So on Father's Day, I had a wonderful day. Not only was I surrounded by my lovely wife and my wonderful kids, but Bubs and his family. But it isn't just that day.

I've had some great successes in my life, and some stunning failures. I'm about to start one more career and it scares me to death. I hope I'll be able to add it to the success column. But as I hear my two bright, kind and happy kids playing together, I know that I can put one thing into the success column. I've raised two kids who are going to be ready to take on the world. They're confident, curious and competent. They make me happy realizing that despite my greatest fears, I've done my job. I love being a parent. Father's Day is not just the third Sunday every June. To me, it's every day.

The "Bat Out of Hell" Friday Random Ten

I've been running like a bat out of hell for the last week, with work and trying to get everything done for nursing school-- hence the lack of posts. I did do the legwork for a couple of posts that I think you'll enjoy. Tonight, though, it's dinner and Putt-Putt golf with the kids.

1. Europa- Santana
2. Frankenstein- Edgar Winter Group
3. Don't Try To Lay No Boogie Woogie (On The King of Rock and Roll)- Long John Baldry
4. The Stars of Warburton- Midnight Oil
5. Happy- The Rolling Stones
6. Run, Run, Run- The Velvet Underground
7. Forever Young- Bob Dylan
8. Jumping Someone Else's Train- The Cure
9. You Got The Silver- The Rolling Stones
10. Heaven- Los Lonely Boys

Notes:
1. Love this slow, smoky instrumental.
2. Holy smokes, another of my favorite instrumentals!
3. A great story-song.
4. My favorite Midnight Oil song. Love the imagery in it.
5. From Exile On Main Street, the greatest rock and roll album ever.
6. The Velvets' first album is one of the great debut albums ever.
7. This is a lovely, spare demo arrangement from the fabulous "Biograph" set.
8. I wasn't crazy about the Cure in the eighties, but they've grown on me over the years.
9. Woo hoo! More Stones, this time from Let It Bleed
10. A sweet little number from a few years ago.

Summer Vacation Friday Random Ten

My Anatomy 2 summer school class finally wrapped up on Wednesday. I took a day to decompress, and even get some reading done-- I'm devouring Bryan Burroughs "Public Enemies: America's Greatest Crime Wave and the Birth of the FBI, 1933-34." It's been at the top of my reading list since it was published in 2004. I'll post a review as soon as I'm done, but let me just say that as much as I like Michael Mann as a filmmaker, the book so vastly superior. Like I said, more later.

1. Mainline Florida- Eric Clapton
2. The Old Laughing Lady- Neil Young
3. The Beat Goes On- Sonny and Cher
4. Redemption Song- Joe Strummer and the Mescaleroes
5. Love Me Tender- Elvis Presley
6. I Threw It All Away- Bob Dylan
7. Real Men- Joe Jackson
8. Excuse Me- Peter Gabriel
9. Moondance- Van Morrison
10. Blinded By The Light- Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band


Notes:
1. From Eric Clapton's "comeback" album, 461 Ocean Blvd. Ironically, he had just got off heroin. (To "mainline" is to shoot up heroin).
2. From Neil Young's great first solo album
3. This one is still a lot of fun.
4. A great Bob Marley cover by the Clash's Joe Strummer
5. The melody of this song is based on "Aura Lee," an old folk song.
6. A bittersweet little number from "Nashville Skyline."
7. From Jackson's great 1982 "Night and Day" album.
8. From Peter Gabriel's first post-Genesis solo album.
9. The perfect autumn song.
10. Manfred Mann had a huge hit with a cover of this in 1976, but the original is my favorite

I'm Still Here!

I know my posts have beens sparse lately. I am in the midst of three tests in three days. Tomorrow's the last day of class. I'll have a test on the urinary system, and I'll be pissed if I don't do well on it.

Okay, so I flunked out of comedy school...

Right Here, That's Where...

A few weeks ago, Republican Fucktard Congressman Boehner had a video where he had a bloodhound searching for jobs created by the Economic Stimulus money. Huffington had a post about it here:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/07/02/boehner-video-stars-job-s_n_224701.html

I can tell him exactly where a portion of the money is: resurfacing Lincoln Avenue in Chicago. Here's a picture.



The stretch of Lincoln Avenue, around Bryn Mawr, was pot-holed to the point of being dangerous; I had to drive over it when I picked up my son at my ex's house. I'm very happy it's being fixed.

Boehner is, of course, playing to the rubes that 1. forget that a Republican was president for the previous eight years, and the current Democrat has had not even eight months to start mitigating the damage of the previous administrations and 2. don't realize that his state, Ohio, has one of the highest unemployment rates in the country and stands to gain the most from publicly-created jobs.

Keep on digging your hole, Republican Party.

The "Sprint To The Finish" Friday Random Ten

I've got to meet classmate Paul this afternoon to study for Monday's test, then work tonight, Saturday and a double shift Sunday. Oh, and tests and work on Tuesday and Wednesday. Thankfully Wednesday is the last day of class.


1. Girl, You'll Be A Woman Soon- Urge Overkill
2. Sexual Healing- Soul Asylum
3. Original Sin- INXS
4. How Deep Is Your Love- The Bee Gees
5. School's Out- Alice Cooper
6. Suspicious Minds- Fine Young Cannibals
7. Bela Lugosi Is Dead- Bauhaus
8. Cherry Bomb- John Mellencamp
9. Keep Your Hands To Yourself- The Georgia Satellites
10. Cathy's Clown- The Everly Brothers


1. From the Pulp Fiction soundtrack. Funny how I usually like Neil Diamond when others cover him-- Monkees' "I'm a Believer," UB40's "Red Red Wine," and this one-- though I do like his own versions too.
2. Okay, a theme here-- a midwestern band covering a song. This time it's a Marvin Gaye song.
3. I nearly wore this album out the summer of 1984, along with REM's Reckoning, Prince's 1999 and Huey Lewis and the News' "Sports."
4. This is one from the Bee Gees' disco period, but sounds more like something from their folky roots. The Brothers Gibb could write a pretty tune, couldn't they?
5. This one was put to good use in "Dazed and Confused," one of my favorite movies.
6. A fine cover from the Fine Young Cannibals' first album.
7. There used to be a punk bar at 63rd and Pulaski in Chicago called "Over Easy." They had a remarkable jukebox that had great songs like Husker Du's cover of "Eight Miles High," and this song, with a cover of T. Rex' "Telegram Sam" on the other side.
8. John Mellencamp at Poplar Creek in 1988 is one of the great shows I ever saw. This song was popular at the time.
9. These guys were refugees from The Brains, the song that wrote and originally performed "Money Changes Everything," which Cyndi Lauper covered.
10. The Everly Brothers were pioneers in the "Brothers Who Hate Each Other But Are In A Band Together" movement-- the Davies Brothers (Kinks) and the Gallagher Brothers (Oasis) have continued it.
Notes