It'll be freaktacular, that's for sure

Know what a beer circus is?

Me, neither.

I’m about to find out, though: On Sunday Mike and I are joining our friends Art and Dana Bergeron to head over to the Lagunitas Beer Circus to celebrate the new brewery the California-based company is  opening on Chicago’s south side. A story in Time Out Chicago says the beer circus is a “time-honored tradition” at Lagunitis.

“The two-day event will assemble local performers like Vau de Vire Society, Redmoon and Mucca Pazza; beer from Ale Syndicate, Begyle and Finch’s; and food trucks such as Tamale Spaceship, Chicago Patty Wagon and Fat Shallot.” I have no idea who Vau de Vire Society or Redmoon or Mucca Pazza is, and I’ve never eaten anything from a food truck before, but I know I like the beer Lagunitas brews, and I think it’s fantastic they decided to open a brewery on Chicago’s south side. A story in Crane’s Chicago business says Lagunitas owner Tony Magee, who grew up in the Chicago area, is making a long-term commitment to the neighborhood. “If we do this right, the brewery will be here for 100 years,” he said in the article. “And there will be kids born in this neighborhood next month who will grow up thinking about being a brewer.”

The Beer Circus benefits Rock for Kids, and an email Lagunitas sent after I signed up claims that “half the fun of coming to the Lagunitas Beer Circus and taking in all the freaktacular eye candy (and local beer) is being a part of it!” The message suggested we wear a crazy hat, an old Halloween costume, a random uniform.

I like to think of myself as someone who is generous to charities, and I’m eager to show off the crazy hat Marjorie (a writer in the Thursday memoir class I lead) gave me to wear, but the real reason we are going on Sunday is…Brian Ulen will be there!

That’s Brian, the happy groom, walking me and Harper to the altar just before the ceremony began.

It was a happy day for the entire family three years ago when our niece Jennifer married Brian Ulen – you blog readers might remember a post I wrote explaining how it is that their official wedding photos include pictures of my heroic Seeing Eye dog Harper at my side officiating the ceremony.

Brian has been working for Lagunitas since February, and his official title there is pretty great: he’s an Ambeersador! He’s the Regional Sales Rep for Central Florida, and Jen says that means ”he works his way around Orlando to bars, grocery stores and restaurants promoting the awesomeness of Lagunitas.”

Jen and Brian are expecting their first baby next month, so she wasn’t able to fly to Chicago for the circus. We’ll miss having her here, but of course we are absolutely thrilled about the reason she can’t come. We’ll just have to give double the hugs to Brian when we meet up with him at the circus. He shouldn’t have much trouble spotting me there – it’s pretty likely I’ll be the only elderly great aunt who is holding a white cane and wearing a crazy hat at the freaktacular beer circus.