The Rev. Spyros' Snake Oil Emporium

Chicago - a hell of a town!

Got back from Chicago on Thursday - I happen to love Chicago but damn did I have a hard time this trip.

Broke my glasses first night out there, there was devastating sub-zero temperatures and I got hit on the melon by a big chunk of falling ice off of a building.  Then as I was about to fly home I watched on CNN as a plane crashed into the Hudson.  Made for VERY stressful travel.

So much for the bad news - here's the good.

Checked out a few awesome places.

1. Avec - I LOVED eating at this this joint!  Chef Koren Grieveson. Remember that name - this lady makes some kick ass eats.  I really want her to go on Iron Chef and wipe those smug smirks off Flay's and Battali's fat faces!

2. Rossi's - awesome dive bar off State St. with that great mix of people that makes for a perfect place to chill. 

3.  Gene & Georgetti Steakhouse - classic steaks with that old clubhouse feel where if it was allowed, every guy in there would have been chomping on a cigar after dinner.

4. Harry Carray's - (RIP) - Holy Cow - awesome home made chips - yeah, maybe a little touristy but solid eats - got an Italian Beef Sandwich and they don't squelch on the beef juice.  Gotta dip yer beef ;)

5.  The Orbit Room - This Wicker Park hipster hang shows horror movies on all TV sets and their DJ's spin top notch garage rock. 

6.  Frog of House of Frog! - This lady rocks - she's got a custom boutique in Chinatown built out of an old butcher shop (and she did it WAY before Dave's Quality Meats) that houses two giant turtles and miles of cool custom glammed up gear. 

7.  Blackbird Restaurant - right next to AVEC! You got to try the pork belly sandwich!  And they gave us a little box of donuts when we left - REALLY GOOD DONUTS! REALLY GOOD EATS!

A(Igained10poundsforsure)Men

DC for Thanksgiving...

The lady and I picked Thanksgiving day at about 1:00 PM to head out to DC for a visit with some friends.  We figured that the heavy travelling happens the Wednesday before. 

That said we head to our pick up point with the Bolt Bus (they got WiFi woo hoo) and walk smack dab into the cluster fuck of the Macy's Thanksgiving Day parade letting out by MSG. 

Aside from that, having to hire a guide to find the bus stop and eating an uncooked street-meat vendor chicken ka-bob, the trip was all fun and games. 

When we got to DC my boy Gary and I took a walk down to Malcolm X Park.

This park is a skateboarders DREAM with several small pool like structures that are perfect for practicing before hitting bigger ramps or pipes as seen here...

We also found out it was a big gay cruising spot.

As well as a bit of a homeless shelter.

Sa'll good though since this all makes the place the perfect spot to smoke some herb unperturbed - really is a beautiful park as well - double pinky swear.  The Rev highly recommends a trip out there.

Keep an eye for more travels wit da Rev - we think Chicago may be soon!

The Rev. on the Road!

The Rev.'s world tour is in effect -

So wut up in Rev. Spyro land?  Here's what!
My band Girl to Gorilla, adulterous bastards that they are, decided TO PLAY WITHOUT THE REV - OH THE HUMANITY! and to boot they did an Iggy Pop tribute - God Damn It, I wanted to jam on Passenger!!!! Tonight at Otto's Shrunken Head!

But alas I'm Pacific locked on bizzy biz. 

On my downtime I've discovered some REALLY COOL SHIT!

1.  My co-worker Matt Tucker has an awesome website called TWO CENTS SPEAKS - You may have seen the stickers around BBurg and Bushwick!  Who Knew??!!

2. The Ace Hotel in Portland - part retro - part modern - all cool - good folks - great bar attached and STRONG FUCKING COFFEE at the cafe next door.

3.  SHALOM - an LA  Jewish themed street-wear company with a sense of humor that surpasses irony and actually makes you smile and appreciate their images.

4. Skate Book - a massive tome of a magazine that covers  street culture and skateboarding that is rife with art, photos etc. and like the Rev.'s Uzi - it weighs a fucking ton.

5. In and Out Burger - yes the Rev.'s never done the In and Out...BURGER that is! and holy Free Masons Batman - they has got Bible passages cryptically referenced on the bottom of the soda cups and they got their own underground ordering code that it seems only locals know -  the drive-in line was around the damn block but so fucking worth it.

6. The Red Beer - OK so you take a pint glass and rub a lime around the rim.  You dip the rim in course salt Margherita style.   You add Tecate beer - out the can is best.  You add (bear with me, this sounds gross but it's awesome) some Tapatio hot sauce  - douse your concoction with as much as you can handle - and finally (here's the part most can't deal with but I swear it's awesome) you add Clamato Juice and abracahangover - you gotz da Cerveza Rojo.

7 . Holy Shit - I just found out  a Staten Island Newspaper ACTUALLY quoted me in an article about bad dating that the  righteous, dead-sexy, lady friend of da Rev. - Judith Mc(soon to be a best selling fucking author)Guire was the the impetus for! again WHO KNEW!  Though Lady Judes IS the expert here - the Rev's "Bad Date" advice was...

" ...I drank myself through it," Spyro Panousopoulos admits about the time he went out with an actress who literally wouldn't stop crying...I kind of blanked, like I was in a car wreck...I realized, it's time to find a way to make this a little less awkward for myself, and that way was through whiskey..." 

Tomorrow we hit Irvine and then Sandy Ago.

So-Cal here we come - oh yeah!  Surf's up bitches!

A(Double- Double Meal with extra onions, peppers and spread please)Men!