Hey y’all, I’m baaaack, just like that one extra-course chin hair you keep having to pluck! (Oh wait, you’re not a mid-to-late 40s woman? Well, enjoy your good fortune!)
Shoutouts:
Big gratitude to my two additional paid subscribers since last post, Susan S. and Mandy G.! (The latter of whom happens to be a friend I’ve known since we went to Sunday School together, probably pre-K!) Her note of support made my day! (Or week, let’s be honest!)
I have lots of QC Potpourri (and not the kind that smells) for you this week, but before I get to that list, I want to acknowledge that this has been a hard week, as we’ve had to acknowledge the reality that….. this guy is now 50 years old.
I know, it hurts. You thought I was referring what lies ahead (or more like is going backwards) in terms of the presidential election? (And that people are having amnesia about what went down?) No, I can’t get into that, for many reasons, so I’m going to focus on something incredibly happy instead. On how the planets aligned, lottery numbers lined up, an angel or a god smiled down on us aging hipsters: a favorite musician is coming to town to put on a show, and it’s happening ON A SATURDAY NIGHT!!!
That’s right. One of my absolute favorite living singer-songwriters, Jenny Lewis, is not only coming to good ol’ Davenport, Iowa, but the show at the newly refurbished Capitol Theatre lands on a NON school night. So when it might be 8 p.m. by the time she takes the stage, I won’t be (as) anxiously focused on my watch and worried about how rough I’ll feel the next morning when I’ve gotten, say, one hour less of sleep. How did we get this lucky??
And another thing, about that word “we”: I’m obsessed with the fact that Lewis — whose latest album features a song with the opening lyrics “My forties are kicking my ass/And handing 'em to me in a margarita glass”— is a big enough draw in this area to get on the marquee at the Capitol. Who are all these other Jenny Lewis-loving people living nearby, and why don’t I know them?
But what a delightful surprise to learn that Jenny knows us. Specifically, she knows which cities make up the Quads, thanks to a lesson from none other than Bill Murray, as she recently told the Quad City Times. (Paywalled link, sorry.) Here’s what she had to say about that:
I had no idea she’d been in Davenport before! (And the whole Bill Murray connection to the QC is something I’m definitely going to have to explore in another post.)
I’d been a casual fan of hers since around the time of her album Rabbit Fur Coat (2006), but it’s her last two albums, Voyager (2014) and On the Line (2019) that turned me into a true devotee, quite possibly because her themes have seemed to align with things going on in my own life — to the point that I often feel like she personally knows what I’m going through and has helped me feel less alone in hard times. J-Lew is not only a woman well into her 40s like me, but one who knows what it feels like to be “just another lady without a baby.” To end up in unhealthy entanglements, but also to find the strength to free herself. To try to date at this age—see “Psychos,” which was in my top three songs (if not thee top) of 2023. She writes about these experiences with wit, and often with delightfully catchy melodies (or, especially on those last two albums, with great classic-rock guitar.) So, yeah, I’m psyched about Saturday night, and even better, I actually get to go with a friend! (Here’s a previous post about trying to go date-less to shows.)
Oh, and in other news on the Capitol Theater concert front, allow me to kick off the first item in our QC Potpourri list with this:
QC Potpourri
“Exes”… but Not in Texas
It was recently announced that Elle King is coming to town. Normally my eyes might’ve skimmed right over this, because I only really know her for her hit “Ex’s and Oh’s,” but it caught my attention because she was just in the national news for getting really drunk and saying dumb things at a Dolly Parton birthday bash. (Which dear Dolly is telling us to forgive her for, because of course she is). But guess what: I looked up what people were saying online and it’s true, King happens to be the daughter of SNL alum Rob Schneider. (God I love a weird twist like that, and a second reason to drop a Saturday Night Live cast member in the same post.)
A ‘Lost Boy’ wanders into a local store
In addition to the fact that we’ve had Bill Murray grace us with his presence around town(s), one local-business owner in downtown Davenport recently got the surprise of having actor Kiefer Sutherland show up in her store. It’s not exactly known what he was doing here, but he definitely was spotted around Davenport. I spoke with the shop owner (of Trash Can Annie’s, which features vintage clothing) a couple of weekends ago and asked if he’d said why he was in town. “Yes,” she told me, “but I told him I wouldn’t share that.” Fair enough!
Indie bookstore win/lose/win-win
When it comes to the wonderful existence of indie bookstores: we recently lost one, then gained one, then (kinda) regained the one we lost! Late last year, the bummer of an announcement came out that the Artsy Bookworm, located just near the Augustana College campus (and run by a former Augie professor) was shutting down, though it would still have an online presence. A new indie bookstore, though, opened downtown Moline, called The Atlas Collective. Then, in early February, the owner of the great Skeleton Key Art & Antiques store in Rock Island announced on their Facebook page that the Artsy Bookworm would set up (a bit of) shop inside. Any and all bookstores in the community are assets; indies, even better. I’ve been meaning to get to the Atlas Collective, but it’s still on my to-do list!
Cool Carnegie building
In addition to an indie bookstore opening in Moline, another positive bit of news about downtown is that the Carnegie building (the former 1903 Moline Public Library) is no longer sitting empty! In fact, it’s now a music conservatory. I lived right across the street from it for four or five years and was always a bit worried someone would buy it and knock it down. It makes me glad to know that cool-looking and historic building (closed since 2008) has something going on inside.
And finally:
A ‘red carpet’ event on Oscars night — and I’m going.
Have you heard about the Hollywood-connected and incredibly cool new addition to Davenport, the Last Picture House, (which I wrote about visiting when it opened)? This Sunday night, they’re putting on an Oscars party, complete with a live showing of the broadcast, which will be the first time I’ve watched the ceremony in years, so many years in fact that I can’t remember the last time. And this year I’ve not only seen some of the contenders, but liked several. (OMG last year, the one with Woody Harrelson and the boat full of barf? And that one with that poor dead donkey? Oof.)
The advertisement for the party encourages black tie and/or costume. I’m considering seeing if I can find some kind of gown at Goodwill — but even if I luck out with that, I will not, like women at the real deal, be wearing boob tape. Just so you know. Have a great weekend1, and even though it’s not on the ballot, I’ll be rooting for Barbie!
Before I go: do you need some great music to clean the house to? (because that’s the only way to listen to music as a grown up, I know.) I’ll drop a bopp-able Jenny Lewis song below the paywall (down under the Iowa Writers’ Collab info0 for my special, paying peeps as a little treat. If you’d like to be like them, please consider a monthly subscription (or get a $10 discount by signing up for a year). Or just subscribe for free— either way, having any kind of reader makes me happy!
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