Happy Columbus Day!
I love working for the government! We get Columbus Day off!!! So today I got to sleep in, and be lazy, and sleep more, and read, and it was just wonderful!!!
Yesterday was a good day, too. First, I woke up at around 8:30 a.m.
from sounds outside - people were gearing up for the Chicago Marathon. I made myself coffee, got my camera, and sat out on my balcony watching the action, from the first runners passing to the masses coming a bit later and continuing for a very long time! I had to get gloves after a bit, cause it was really nippy outside that early!
A bit later, The German called and came over an hour later. He cooked up omlettes for us, and after that we headed out. He's deciding whether to move out of his apartment now or say there until next September. And even though my lease doesn't expire until June, I'm still thinking about moving to another area as well when that time comes. So we took the Brown Line to the Irving Park stop and walked north on Lincoln to around the Montrose area and then walked on a few side streets to check out whether there were any For Rent signs, what the rent price was listed as, and just get a general feeling for the area. We walked through Lincoln Square and got ourselves a cookie, and then walked on many more side streets.
At one point, we were really near his friend Kristin's house, so we tried calling her to stop by, but no answer. But
then five minutes later we ran into her on the sidewalk and she took us to her place to show us her fully gutted kitchen. The workers are coming this next week to start on it. But what was sooooooo cool is that there were all these old newspapers behind the kitchen walls from the last time it had been remodeled, and they were all from 1944!! I took some pictures of some of them, so cool!!! There was of course a lot about the war, and also some really crazy "help wanted" adds - mostly looking to hire women. But one add specifically asked for "a colored woman" - thank God we've come so far since then. One paper she found was a Chicago paper written in German, which I guess isn't so surprising since Lincoln Square still is a German area and was so much more so then. But at the same time, I'm sure the Germans were keeping a bit of a low profile then.
The German and I left after a little bit and walked around many more side streets. I have always preferred a much more modern place, and especially have always liked carpet. But I admit that after seeing Kristin's place (I'd seen it before, but was never thinking about potentially living in a place like it before), I was realizing that I could actually be quite comfortable in an older place. She had the wood floors, and they were squeaky a little bit. But I could always get cheap area rugs. And James and Emma would probably love running on wood floors. And really, there is so much character in the older places. And they are of course much cheaper - well, in the areas I'd look at, like the Lincoln Square area. And what excites me sooooo much is that there is so much more space and more rooms, and that means I can PAINT more, and in more cool colors!!! And more wall space to hang pictures!!! We saw two-bedroom places for cheaper than I'm paying now! So I'm getting excited! I was thinking about what other colors I'd like to try for the walls!
Anyway, I loved yesterday. I loved seeing other options for places for James, Emma and I to live. And I loved walking around outside. The only bad thing - I wore my Uggs for the first time this year, since it was a bit chilly out. And I wore short little ankle socks. But I forgot that the first few times I wear the Uggs, they really irritate the backs of my ankles. Only one was bothered, but by the time I got home, all the skin was gone and there was a bit of dried blood. I hate breaking in shoes/boots when the seasons change!
So now, I'm going to every once in awhile check out listings for apartments in the Lincoln Square area and maybe even look at a few, so I can get a better idea of what I want, for when my lease runs out. I don't know for sure that I'll move, but I do like the idea of me being courageous and really moving to a different area!
Yesterday was a good day, too. First, I woke up at around 8:30 a.m.
from sounds outside - people were gearing up for the Chicago Marathon. I made myself coffee, got my camera, and sat out on my balcony watching the action, from the first runners passing to the masses coming a bit later and continuing for a very long time! I had to get gloves after a bit, cause it was really nippy outside that early! A bit later, The German called and came over an hour later. He cooked up omlettes for us, and after that we headed out. He's deciding whether to move out of his apartment now or say there until next September. And even though my lease doesn't expire until June, I'm still thinking about moving to another area as well when that time comes. So we took the Brown Line to the Irving Park stop and walked north on Lincoln to around the Montrose area and then walked on a few side streets to check out whether there were any For Rent signs, what the rent price was listed as, and just get a general feeling for the area. We walked through Lincoln Square and got ourselves a cookie, and then walked on many more side streets.
At one point, we were really near his friend Kristin's house, so we tried calling her to stop by, but no answer. But
then five minutes later we ran into her on the sidewalk and she took us to her place to show us her fully gutted kitchen. The workers are coming this next week to start on it. But what was sooooooo cool is that there were all these old newspapers behind the kitchen walls from the last time it had been remodeled, and they were all from 1944!! I took some pictures of some of them, so cool!!! There was of course a lot about the war, and also some really crazy "help wanted" adds - mostly looking to hire women. But one add specifically asked for "a colored woman" - thank God we've come so far since then. One paper she found was a Chicago paper written in German, which I guess isn't so surprising since Lincoln Square still is a German area and was so much more so then. But at the same time, I'm sure the Germans were keeping a bit of a low profile then. The German and I left after a little bit and walked around many more side streets. I have always preferred a much more modern place, and especially have always liked carpet. But I admit that after seeing Kristin's place (I'd seen it before, but was never thinking about potentially living in a place like it before), I was realizing that I could actually be quite comfortable in an older place. She had the wood floors, and they were squeaky a little bit. But I could always get cheap area rugs. And James and Emma would probably love running on wood floors. And really, there is so much character in the older places. And they are of course much cheaper - well, in the areas I'd look at, like the Lincoln Square area. And what excites me sooooo much is that there is so much more space and more rooms, and that means I can PAINT more, and in more cool colors!!! And more wall space to hang pictures!!! We saw two-bedroom places for cheaper than I'm paying now! So I'm getting excited! I was thinking about what other colors I'd like to try for the walls!
Anyway, I loved yesterday. I loved seeing other options for places for James, Emma and I to live. And I loved walking around outside. The only bad thing - I wore my Uggs for the first time this year, since it was a bit chilly out. And I wore short little ankle socks. But I forgot that the first few times I wear the Uggs, they really irritate the backs of my ankles. Only one was bothered, but by the time I got home, all the skin was gone and there was a bit of dried blood. I hate breaking in shoes/boots when the seasons change!
So now, I'm going to every once in awhile check out listings for apartments in the Lincoln Square area and maybe even look at a few, so I can get a better idea of what I want, for when my lease runs out. I don't know for sure that I'll move, but I do like the idea of me being courageous and really moving to a different area!
And I leave you with a picture of some of the delicacies available at the German deli in Lincoln Square - including cans of head cheese, liver pate, liver sausage, veal loaf, and Bauernbratwurst - oh yum! (I'm kidding!!!)
