Writing to Reach You

Writing to Reach You by Travis



Whatever happened to these guys? They were pretty good. Really, what's the difference between Travis and Coldplay? Coldplay even ripped off this Travis video... sigh.

Growing up I was a suburban kid—raised in the western 'burbs of Chicago—but I went to high school in the city (and owners of one of the most amazing wikipedia entries ever) just a few miles from the Loop. And my high school brought in kids from all over Chicago and the area—Oak Park, Lincoln Park, Bridgeport, the far Northwest side, and Beverly.

Growing up a die hard Sox fan and my mother being a South Sider herself, Beverly held a place in my heart. The 'hood and the people from there awed me, an Irish Catholic middle to upper-middle class group of kids who had attitude. Not always in a bad way and not always in a good way. Those kids just were, well, Beverly.

For reasons I can't tell you, if I had a few hours to burn and nothing to do, I'd drive to Beverly just to be there. To take it in and see what it would be like to live there. I had heard the stories, knew the parishes... I wanted to be a South Sider. But having one parent and being the biggest Sox fan in school didn't carry a ton of weight to the born and raised Beverly kids. And it's not that I even wanted to be like them or hang out with them—though I did from time to time and a lot my senior year—what I wanted was to experience a life that I never would be able to experience. The life of an Irish Catholic, Sox fan from Beverly who went to Christ the King.

So what does Travis have to do with Beverly? My trips to Beverly almost always ended with me going to the Borders on 95th and Western. And I remember listen to Travis on many of these trips to the Beverly Borders, listening to this song and enjoying it. Hell, I might even have bought the album at the Beverly Borders... I don't remember though.

Finally a few notes from the editor:
- The Greatest American Band search isn't over, but I'm going to take a break from it. It was much more taxing than I thought it would be... but I'll do it from time to time since there are a few bands that should at least make the now longer list.

- I'm going to wake the dogs and fire up Views from Life on a Bench again. It will be a sports only blog this time around and I don't plan on writing every day there, but enough that you should check it out. I'm sure the likes of the Big Lead and Deadspin will find a way to link us once again. And eventually we hope to get a policy-like editorial blog going sooner rather than later. I'll let you know when it happens.