It was nary a month ago that Haley and I boarded the Penske truck and I heeded the words, "Go west, young woman." Not only was the drive fantastic and laden with expert Haley Glover playlists of Toad, Chicago (the Peter Cetera days, of course), Morrissey (le sigh), and the Cure; large, sausagey meals from the Erie, PA Cracker Barrel, and lots of chatting and reminiscing - but the drive was also accompanied by snow, freezing rain, and the lovely surprise of receiving a 16 foot truck, as opposed to the 12 foot one I reserved. After getting over the additional 4 feet to accommodate ("that difference is only a little shorter than I am!"), we settled into being road warriors of the best kind. It was a truly memorable journey. We arrived safely at Amber's abode on the 16th, played with darling house doggies for most of the day, and then took Hays to the airport (so she could present at a conference in MN - what a friend!). The remaining days were spent moving into my apartment, fighting with IKEA about my couch, hosting my father and my mother via separate, but equally lovely trips, and visiting the Anti-Cruelty League (right down the road from me, trouble) to have tearful hellos and goodbyes with shetler pups of my dreams who I could not take home because I travel too much. WTF was I thinking taking a consulting gig, when all I want is to give those dogs a nice home?! Ah, well.
A month in, I've adjusted well at work, which has me going to Indianapolis every M-Th to work on a health and human services project. Normally, this would suck, but I get to see Haley at least once a week (last night we saw "Twilight" swooooooon) and the Westin is kind of like a floating spaceship of convenience right in the middle of downtown Indy. Snowing outside? No worries! The Westin has a skybridge that will take you right to the mall, the movie theatre, the TJ Maxx, and the food court (hi, Johnny Rockets and Chik-Fil-A). I even like the Westin toiletries and have grown accustomed to the synthetic smell of white team being pumped through the lobby. The 3 hour drives to and from are made better by the fact that I am on the project with some KPMG folks who have turned out to be pretty swell. And, when I finally get back to my darling, 28th floor view of Chicago, I treasure my home time and my weekends more than ever. I am greeted by Gandhi, the little, ever-welcoming doorman who I love so much I've taken to baking him cakes and cookies to express my gratitude, and I never have to worry about a dying rat or a noisy stoner urinating on the facade of my building. And though Chicago is bitch-ass cold, cheap cabs and a puffy down coat make it easy to explore and fall even more in love with.
I'm slowly exploring my neighborhood (both because of the cold and the time in Indy). I live next to a fantastic, cheap tapas place that is hopping in the evenings. If I take a right out of my apartment, I can hit up Barney's, a cupcake boutique (trouble), and see my fill of disgustingly nipped and tucked women with impossibly small dogs donning ridiculously cruel floor-length furs. They call that area "Viagra Circle," because when the sun goes down, the older, wealthy businessmen come out to play...with their young, nubile escorts. If I go left, I get into the more salt-of-the-eart Old Town and River North, brimming with dog shelters, eco-boutiques, and the Moody Bible Academy. In fact, I was eating at a restaurant before Thanksgiving and was struck by a very handsome guy taking his little sister (he was ~ my age and she was ~12) to dinner. He was so polite and Harry Potteresque and I was swooning as I watched him teach her how to make a little football out her her napkin ring and kick a fake field goal through his fingers. Then, when their meals came, he instigated one of the longest in-public sayings of grace I'd ever seen. Not that this really deterred me - I'm down with the spirituality and can totally embrace the idea of a sexy man of faith or whatever, but it was a little astonishing - until I realized that I was steps from the Bible academy. Then, of course, I was consumed with thoughts of corrupting buttoned-up Bible academy men. Rowr.
For the most part, Chicago still holds the "people are nice" badge with me. Of course, like all cities, there are outliers, but for the most part, folks are dandy. And the nightlife is all that. Truly. Mike Mason has been kind enough to show Amber and me the grittier, more Indie sides of Wicker Park and Rogers Park, complete with their ping pong bars, incredibly over lit Polish dives run by foul-mouthed women named Olga, and places with great jukeboxes where you can linger over heated Scrabble games with hipsters. Work folks and friends-of-Boston-friends have shown me the glossier bars in town, complete with David Schwimmer sightings (and brief interaction - he asked me if I was a "naughty librarian," I think because I had come from work and was wearing a sweater vest) and 2am trips to the 'Rock n' Roll' McDonald's. My cousin Laura has shown me great brunch spots, salsa dancing clubs, and the Lyric Opera. One of these weekends, I will hunker down at the Field Museum or the Art Institute and take it all in. Snowy walks downtown to Christmas shop always feel magical. Yeah, the cold is a bitch, but the snow falling around the city is beautiful and, I'm usually surprised by new discoveries like Puppet Bike (puppetbike.com - amazing) or some dude selling delicious smelling Chicago dogs outside the Macy's. It's really wonderful to have new, unexplored things to look forward to every day. And even better, is when the things you've already explored still give you a rush. I know it won't always be this intense, but after just a month, I already feel incredibly at home here. And my demeanor is much calmer now that the B line is a distant memory. A 5 minute ride on the bus, where I usually get a seat and/or get to chat with someone interesting is how I get to work - easy and happy.
Of course, I miss my Boston folk and old haunts, too. Much as I love the relative ease and glamour of my new digs, I miss the sound and feel of hardwood underfoot and the ability to have the windows open so I can hear the trees rustle and people walk by with their dogs (of course, I am romanticizing this - usually it was that I was hearing someone digging through the trash or the constant 'ting ting ting' of Rigatone - such is the anthem of Brighton). I miss my little routine of going to Whole Foods, reading trashy books and listening to certain songs on the T. I miss Polar pomegranate and vanilla seltzer, which does not exist in the Midwest. I miss friends and pseudo-family and coworkers and b.Good - Lord, how I miss b.Good. Of course I miss things and people and memories, but I've traded up. People in Chicago don't think I'm strange when I chirp out peppy hellos. People on the street say hi to one another. I haven't seen anyone litter (though I'm sure it happens, Chicago is fucking clean as a whistle). It's all I really wanted from a city - to be somewhere where people sort of give a shit about one another and where they live.
And let's talk about Edward Cullen. Lord, how can a fictitious vampire character ruin me for all other men? Every time I read that damn 'Twilight' book or watch the film, I am sighing like an old spinster. How can a human be that stunning, that interesting, that mysterious, that sensitive, that sexy, and that protective/strong/fast/nice dressingerish? It's unfair! I actually had to stop reading the book because it was making me develop a "why bother?" attitude about dating. I'd read it, go on a date, and act formidable, but the whole time I'd think, "this guy is not as fast/strong/sexy/inwardly conflicted as Edward Cullen." Ha. Yes, Robert Pattinson is a creature of unfathomable beauty. And the pale skin, dark hair, dark eyes combo? Well, I've been on that bandwagon long before that Mormon chick put pen to paper. BUT, it's not because he's so hot that entirely accounts for the allure. Men, take note - the character is interesting and sexy because he (a) is interested in Bella in the truest sense, as in he asks her questions, exhibits real concern for her, etc and (b) because he's protective of her. At least, these seem to be what resonate with me. Am I 27 and blogging about a fictitious vegetarian vampire character? Yeah - so what?!
I wish I could say I have work to do, but I don't. After a bushel of work, today is slow slow slow, hence the blogging. I will post some pics of the apartment and nights out soon. Right now, all I want to do is go back to the 'Westin heavenly bed' and sleep. If only.
kiss kiss, little bumblebees!
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