As co-host Andrew Huff said in this poignant haiku:

Snow, snow, snow, snow, snow,
Snow, snow, snow, snow, snow, snow, snow.
Sweet lord, no more snow.

Surprise! It snowed. But that didn't keep our intrepid literature and beer lovers away from Tuesday Funk! It was standing-room only... packed to the gills in our warm little room, and Mark hustled to and fro, granting our every boozy wish.

Mare Swallow set the bar high with her rousing (and arousing) tale of a rebound love affair with Billy Crystal's stunt double. Then Cameron McGill stepped up to the mic and stunned us with his evocative and lyrical poems about illness, love, and avocadoes. Co-host Eden Robins reassured us all with her micro-essay about how our weird sexual fantasies are actually what make us normal. And Tom Underberg delivered a knock-out with a dark fantasy story about the legendary tree-punchers of northern Wisconsin.

Then it was time for more beer.

Andrew pulled us back in with his snow-related gallows humor and a few other haiku about the perils of technology. Chuck Sudo followed with a humorous and touching tale about learning to ice skate as a grown-up. And Amelia Beamer finished us off right with an excerpt from her book about... what else... horny zombies.

And then it was over. We cried, we wrote "K.I.T" in each others' yearbooks, even though we knew there was no way to recreate what we had that fateful Tuesday night. But don't worry! We're doing it all over again on Tuesday, March 4th, 2014, with fabulous readers Joseph O'Sullivan, Naomi Buck Palagi, Nikki Pill, Wendy McClure, and Laura Adamczyk. Don't miss it!

Don't forget--tonight is Tuesday Funk's 66th episode, featuring Mare Swallow, Cameron McGill, Tom Underberg, Chuck Sudo, and Amelia Beamer! We're like the birds returning to the trees... the mucky slush flooding the streets... the first hint of spring thaw bringing an end to this endless winter!

Our readings take place at Hopleaf Bar, 5148 N. Clark St. in Chicago. We get started promptly at 7:30 pm in the upstairs lounge. Arrive early if you want a seat--but no earlier than 7:00 pm. Our readings are free, but only those 21 and over will be admitted. No food can be brought in from the restaurant. See you there!

Amelia Beamer writes science fiction, fantasy, and horror novels & stories and has spent the past few years in the UK, Australia, Japan, Germany, Ireland, and Iceland. She is the author of The Loving Dead, the number two zombie novel of the past decade according to Barnes & Noble. Her most recent short fiction appears in Psychos: Serial Killers, Depraved Madmen, and the Criminally Insane, and Zombies vs Robots: Women on War! Amelia works as an editor for Shueisha English Edition, a new general imprint of popular Japanese titles translated into English, available from the Sony Reader Store.

Please join Amelia and all our first-rate, zombie-loving readers on Tuesday, February 4th, 2014, upstairs at Hopleaf at 7:30 pm. This 21-and-older event is free.

Born and raised on Chicago's Northwest side, Chuck Sudo has called Bridgeport home for nearly 15 years and has written for the popular local website Chicagoist for nearly nine years--the last three-plus as editor-in-chief. His writing has appeared in the Chicago Sun-Times, Time Out Chicago, Chicago magazine, Centerstage and Playboy.com. Chuck has read onstage at The Paper Machete and CHIRP Radio's "The First Time" series. He'd read onstage more but he's getting older and tires easily, despite staying in good shape for his age.

Please join Chuck and all our amazing, physically fit readers on Tuesday, February 4th, 2014, upstairs at Hopleaf at 7:30 pm. This 21-and-older event is free.

Tom Underberg writes speculative fiction and raises children. He can often be found photographing bricks, sidewalks and manhole covers for a blog on overlooked infrastructure. Before Tom's children were born he worked at less demanding jobs in software and consulting. He has burglarized a deli, shot out a window, and exaggerated his accomplishments. Tom's work has appeared in Weird Tales and the Thackery T. Lambshead Cabinet of Curiosities.

Please join Tom and all our top-notch, curious readers on Tuesday, February 4th, 2014, upstairs at Hopleaf at 7:30 pm. This 21-and-older event is free.

Cameron McGill is a Chicago-based singer and songwriter. He recently released his sixth album, Gallows Etiquette. The album was funded via a PledgeMusic.com campaign; a percentage of funds raised will support Rock For Kids, a charity which provides instruments and music education to under-served Chicago public school children. His work has appeared in Poetry East, Measure, and Split Lip Magazine.

Please join Cameron and all our fantastically lyrical readers on Tuesday, February 4th, 2014, upstairs at Hopleaf at 7:30 pm. This 21-and-older event is free.

Author Davis Schneiderman read his first 30 tweets ever, then shared a harrowing and funny tale of taking care of his father, who has brain cancer, December 3rd edition of Tuesday Funk.

If you liked that, you'll love our next show, coming up on Tuesday, February 4 and featuring Mare Swallow, Cameron McGill, Tom Underberg, Amelia Beamer and Chuck Sudo. See you there!

Mare Swallow is the founder and Executive Director of the Chicago Writers Conference, an organization that exists to connect writers to publishing professionals...and each other! CWC will feature a Self-Publishing Workshop in March. She is also a professional speaker and public speaking coach, and the author of 21 Ways to Engage Your Audience, available only on Amazon. Mare lives in Chicago, loves to travel and loves red wine.

Please join Mare and all our stellar, audience-engaging readers on Tuesday, February 4th, 2014, upstairs at Hopleaf at 7:30 pm. This 21-and-older event is free.

Warm yourself by the fire of literary passion at the February edition of Tuesday Funk. The roster will feature Mare Swallow, Cameron McGill, Tom Underberg, Amelia Beamer and Chuck Sudo. We'll also have a round of Haiku by Andrew, a micro-essay by Eden, and cheek-warming beers from around the world.

The evening gets underway with your hosts Andrew Huff and Eden Robins on Tuesday, February 4th, 2014, 7:30 pm, in the upstairs lounge at Hopleaf, 5148 N. Clark St., Chicago. Doors open at 7:00 pm, no earlier -- arrive early for a table and grab a beer from Mark at the bar. Admission is always free, but you must be 21 or older. And come early or stay late after for some great Belgian-style food downstairs.

Bring a friend, and become a fan of Tuesday Funk on Facebook so you never miss an invitation to one of our readings. See you there!

At the January 7 edition of Tuesday Funk, co-host Andrew Huff read his trademark topical haiku to help warm the crowd.

The Polar Vortex
turned Chicago into tundra.
Thank you for coming.

Holidays always
get insane. Here's to good cheer and
a happy new year.

The full moon rises
the wan color of bone through
cold wisps of cloud.

Feet freeze in our boots,
crunching through barriers of
dirty, hardened snow.