Packing was a bitch... no surprise there but Karen and I got everything to fit…barely
Then we’re merging on to 55 and Karen couldn’t see anything so I was sticking my head out the window to make sure everything was clear…naturally. I was wearing my luna hat (which I got when I started as LUNA leader my junior year), it blew off my head…boo. Karen kept suggesting turning around and I actually considered it before I realized how ridiculous of an idea it was.
I mourned my loss as Kanye sang Homecoming on the radio… oh life
if i compare this summer to the last few i honestly think this has to be #1 or very very close
2006 summer after freshman year i moved to LA into an apartment I found on craigslist and once I got there started working background in movies and TV. A very eye opening and learning experience...to say the least. All I can say is the LA public transportation system is not good (we are very lucky in Chicago with the cta). I feel like I spent my life on buses that summer.
2007 summer after sophomore year I spent most the summer in NYC (apartment off craigslist like the previous summer). Things didn't fall into place as easily as in LA though so I spent time in St. Louis (with my sister), Ste. Gen, and late summer (once my lease started) in Chicago.
2008 summer I spent in Chicago. It was great to be 21 and to be able to hit up the specials on weeknights...although I worked a lot in Student Life so that made the summer busy as well. DAB took up so much of my time, creating a very love/hate relationship with premier.
2009! AMAZING AMAZING I think this is the best summer I've had!
*quality running time i have the chafing to prove it
I got my 20 miler in and I was pretty determined to hit as much of the pavement as possible my last week here so I got in 70 miles...i'm satisfied.
*bike bike bike i have the calluses on my hands to prove it
The Hi Guy fixed it so it didn't make so many noises and shifted gears!
My good ole JCPenny bike. I had a nice bike in the city, but quickly learned my lesson when it was stolen. I brought the bike my mom rode when she first married my dad (27 years ago)...it's steal proof =)
*greek town...yum
*taste of chicago...twice =)
*movies in the park...sunset blvd. (we went to grant park)
*chicago diner probably my fav restaurant in the city...or at least one of them. i just have SO many options. i never ordered the same thing twice...i just know not to take my family there, they're not fans-but they're still sports =) me: "dado, how do you like your sandwich?" dad: "i'm just trying to pretend it's pastrami." me: "haahahahha!"
This summer I loved the outdoor seating with the draped lights everywhere and my table eavesdropping on the 1st date next to us..teehehehe
And the other time making friends with the waiter. I really think we were his favorite table.
*quality farmers markets
*cans in bucktown
*wore a 1996 gold medal (from the olympics) wasn't on a list or anything, but something i wouldn't normally do
*seeing buckingham fountain lit up at night...finally
*trying out new brunch spots-Handlebar in Wicker Park-so so so delicious Karen loved it so much I may have just spread my love of brunch to her... finally
*street festivals Old Town Art Fair-I was there for LUNA and it rained hard in the morning so i was wet and not super happy the rest of the day, but i did make friends with the anthony's guy next to us. He came over at the end and offered my whole family treats. honorable mention to Sheffield Garden Walk-I didn't actually go on to the street, but I heard it from my apartment all weekend. Wicker Park Fest great music, art & weather! so wonderful! While walking around we stopped at my favorite store Greenheart (they moved to Wicker Park) and I glanced through this book The Better World: Shopping Guide it grades companies based on how they do business. I graded how I generally shop and scored decently (karen not so much). Just as I said, "I wonder where energy bars are?" I flipped to the next page and there it was! Who was on the list??? A+ (yes, you read right... the highest score) CLIF, LUNA and some other company that starts with an A that I've never heard of and obviously don't remember. I got all excited. Then I read the fun facts on the next page and it said Clif is the #5 company on earth. Yes, you read that right. on earth! =)
*SAILING-see previous post
*skydiving after striking out the first try (too many clouds) i went on my way out of chicago and got to jump! Patrick (my instructor) and I jumped right though a cloud (it's hard to breathe) ... isn't life ironic.
*Venetian Night & fireworks bryan was nice enough to come say good bye even when he was up for more than 24 hours (oh china)
*a last trip to the bean. oh my i have been there so many times =) one last time never hurt
*wonderful trips to trader joes
*guthrie's oh how i love it there
*free mcgee's happy hour i have been to SO many of these, but one more to wrap it up...perfect =)
I received several heart felt cards from some wonderful people so I proceeded to carry them around with me all night...of course. Probably not the best idea. I got a lot of "is it your birthday?" "Hi Lisa." (people I didn't know...i then realized i had the envelope with my name facing out...i switched that around) and the best or worst depending on which way you look at it one guy said "do you need a stamp for those?" seriously? ugh.
The night was a blur, but it was great to be with so many people I love and share some more wonderful laughs!
*first round-trip metra trip
*meeting friends significant boys-I have a feeling some of them may be around awhile so I'm very happy I got to meet them before leaving
*lots of time by the lake
no need to talk about what i didn't get to do. it's ok. some other time.
no regrets
On the ride home before Karen decided to nap she said she would need to sleep 24 hours to recover from the weekend =) Then she slept for a couple, woke up and said "I FEEL REJUVENATED!" no joke =)
as we entered the big MO I said, "Welcome to Missouri." (not very enthusiastically) Karen got all excited "YEA!" =)
we stopped by my grandma on my mom's side (my 94-year old one) to return the fan & boots she lent me 2 years ago. she used the fan while she raised her children and it was my air conditioning as well. my mom wore the rain boots when she grew up. although they were a little big on me they definitely kept my feet dry during those deep snow falls.
i dropped karen off at her home and continued on my way.
i was shocked to see a whole new exit as i entered ste. gen county! no one told me about it. (this is big news in ste. gen) then even more shocked to find they repaved one of the two-lane highways we take from the interstate to town. honestly when i was learning to drive the highway kind-of scared me because it was very narrow and the shoulder dropped down to gravel. no more though. shocked i tell you. AND as i drove by our little strip there was a new business. no, i've never heard of it before but that's kind-of not the point.
i saw the signs for Jour de Fete. To my Chicagoians: it's basically like a street festival in Chicago, but instead of taking over one neighborhood it takes over the whole town. It's once a year and a big deal here.
Some things never change though. I saw the new high school crowd hanging out at McDonald's still....
then time to unpack everything.
on to a busy, busy week with lots of doctors, shots and hills to run...
but as we unpacked I got to see the beautiful stars and hear the animals. =)
...not the eL or horns, but i love those too... in a different way
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