i checked the experation date on the milk carton this morning. it said FEB 30. does that mean it’ll never go off?

leap day graced chicago with the first 50+ degree temperatures we’ve seen since october. i know it’s just a cruel tease, as winter is rumored to last until may around these parts, but a temporary lightening of the cold is so good for the psyche. walking to work i kept tucking my hands into my sleeves against a vague, nagging sensation until i realized: i’m just unused to the feel of cool fresh air on my hands, they’re so used to being encased in mittens. chicagoans celebrated the weather by breaking out all the fashions of summer: shorts, tank tops, miniskirts that have been taunting spring in the windows of trendy shops got their first outting, exposing goose-bumped but determined winter-white legs.

congratulations to vienna teng on the release of her new album, Warm Strangers. we have limited experience with being friends with someone who is now a famous rock star. what exactly is the etiquette for attending her chicago gigs? should i get in line with the other fans to have my album autographed? can i cut in line? come early, stay late, regale everyone with stories of i-knew-her-way-back-when? throw underwear? vienna, of course, wears fame beautifully; the social awkwardness is all of my own creation. maybe when she becomes super famous and embarks on her full-band european tour she’ll let me be the stage manager.