7 months later....

Hello! It's been a while. More than 7 months, actually. Life's been a fabulous whirlwind since my last blog post! I'm now settled in at the new address, complete with new driver's license for me and dog license for Baxter. It's been a complete lifestyle change for both of us. City living has been treating us very well and I can't believe I've been here for 3 1/2 months already!

A super-quick recap:

*Still running -- have a 3-mile run planned for tomorrow!

*Survived my 1-week volunteer adventure at Camp Barnabas.

*Finally made it to the TT races in Peoria (and got in a nice visit with Aunt Nancy).

*Got to see my beloved (and beleaguered) Minnesota Vikings play in Kansas City at the beginning of October.

*Packed up and moved to the Chicago suburbs!

*Rediscovered the joy of newspaper and pizza delivery, Starbucks around the corner, Target a skip and a hop away, gym membership, perpetual cell phone service, and tons more lovely things.

*Found out I remember how to drive in the snow and ice -- although this winter has been incredibly mild and we've really only had two measurable snowstorms.

*Tried showshoeing and didn't fall down!

*Checked out Cirque du Soleil -- Quidam. Amazing.

That's the supersonic, condensed list of highlights. More to come, complete with photos, I promise.

updating

Well, here we are, six days into 2011 and I've already slacked on the blog!

I spent the holidays "up north" and had a white Christmas. Quite a change of weather from 2010, when I was in Arizona. Actually, it wasn't as cold as I was afraid it would be -- the piles of snow even melted while I was up there! Brenda and I didn't even have COATS on when we went out for sushi on New Years Eve in the Chicago 'burbs. That was a-mazing. It sounds like I headed south just in time for the temperatures to plummet back down to their normal frigidness.

I got to kick off 2011 with my bestie in Illinois. We had martinis, sushi, martinis, a movie and greeted the New Year. It was calm and mellow -- the way we are hoping 2011 turns out to be. We packed a lot into our girls' weekend (Hooch the French mastiff and Baxter were the only boys allowed exclusive access): sushi, bubbly, Little Fockers, afternoon tea at the Drake Hotel downtown, movies, naps, baking, Panera, Lou Malnati's pizza and more. The only thing we didn't get to check off the list was going snowshoeing at the Morton Arboretum -- and that was only because there was no snow!

I'm now home -- the car is unpacked, the Christmas decorations are packed away once again, and I'm catching up on all the things I let slide while I was gone. I have a few packages to send out, a few Christmas cards (well, they are now late New Years greetings and going to become Valentine's Day greetings if I don't get moving!) to send out, cows to track down and resolutions to keep.

Kidding about the last one. Sort of! There is a Project Life scrapbooking project I would love to do, but not only are the packaged projects sold out on Amazon, but it's out of my budget right now.

http://www.amazon.com/Project-Life-Turquoise-Edition/dp/B0049MFPW8/ref=pd_sim_k_1
So instead of doing the pre-packaged Project Life, I'm creating my own. I found a do-it-yourself calendar with write-in dates, plenty of room for journaling and blank pages to add photographs and embellishments. It fits in nicely with my desire to take more photographs this year. I'm planning on heading out for a hike this afternoon with Baxter and the Nikon to see what we can find. The sun is shining and the weatherman promised it would get up to 55 degrees today!

So Long, Chicago

Chicago is in the rear view mirror. I miss my Chicago girls already!

And this big guy, too. (Shh, don't tell Baxter!)

We went to the Morton Arboretum on Sunday--it was a gorgeous day and we let Sophia burn off some of that famous two-year-old energy in the children's area. I got this awesome shot of her by pure luck of coaxing my point-and-shoot camera to time it perfectly: Now that I'm back in Iowa, I finished up some magazine articles for the September issue of Connection magazine. Can't wait to see them paired up in layouts with the photos. Which reminds me: I seriously need to get a move on with that online portfolio I keep talking about.

Downtown!

Heading to downtown Chicago today! I can't wait! Brenda and I are going to meet up after she is done with work, and we will see what trouble we can get into. I have several places I want to check out.

I wonder if the Lisle Starbucks folks will miss me? I've spent hours (and dollars) working there this week. It's nice to get out for a change of scenery sometimes. The writing life can get lonely when it's just you and the computer. The dogs always tend to lay around napping and aren't much for entertainment.
Yes, those are two BIG dogs snuggling -- Hooch the French mastiff and Sugar the pit bull.

Today's coffee goal is to find one of my beloved CARIBOU coffee shops. A standby in the midwest, they are nowhere to be found in the south.

I have two big articles in progress for the September issue of Connection magazine. One is almost done and the other is getting there. Once again, these are light on quotes -- but I am learning to embrace that as my trademark. Instead of letting quotes do the work (aka write the story for me), I let my writing shine. At least, that's what I tell myself. My editor and readers don't seem to mind.

I'm looking into some software I ran across yesterday that is basically speech-recognition software. For $99, I am not sure how reliable it would be, but it may be worth a look-see. It would sure take some major stress off my shoulders when it comes to interviewing people!

Yoga + Pizza

Who says yoga and pizza don't go together?

I tagged along to a yoga class with Brenda last night. It was awesome. And hot. And challenging! I loved it. I am in better shape than I thought -- I am walking fine today. heh. A little sore, but in a really good way.


Ninety minutes of yoga in a 90-degree room equals how many calories burned? We may have negated the calorie burn by going to Lou Malnati's for some incredible pizza. I apparently have no shame, since I am posting this picture (Brenda doesn't either -- she put the pic on Facebook for all the world to see. Or at least our 600+ combined friends.)


Soooo good.

Violet Hour

This is the violet hour, the hour of hush and
wonder, when the affections glow again and valor is reborn, when the shadows
deepen magically along the edge of the forest and we believe that, if we watch
carefully, at any moment we may see the unicorn.
- Bernard DeVoto "The Hour"

Ahh, Chicago! Technically, I'm in the Chicago suburbs as I write this, but whatever.

It's been a whirlwind. I arrived at Union Station at 4 on Saturday and negotiated a drive-by pickup with Brenda via text message. Success! And I didn't get lost, either. Did you know the Caribou Coffee adjacent to Union Station is closed on the weekends? I didn't, either.

Brenda and I headed for Wicker Park, a neat neighborhood north (I think!) of downtown for the evening. After waking up with some caffeine and chatting in velvet chairs at Starbucks, we headed out in search of the Violet Hour. One of Brenda's former co-workers recommended the place--there's apparently a sister bar in Minneapolis. We knew the address and walked down Damen Avenue. And kept on walking. The bar was so well-disguised we walked past it once!

And then we went in. This place was Awesome. They said it did not open until 6 p.m., and thinking we were losers for being there early, we slunk in at 6:10, hoping we weren't the first people there. We weren't--the bar seating was half full, and the seating area had several people settled in already.

Not that we could see. Once you enter the bar, you go through sets of curtains and it feels like you're in a dark abyss because it is so dim. We could not see where we were going, so I was super-careful NOT to knock over a candlelit table as I tried to stumble after the hostess. Both B and I had to "feel around" for our seats--which turned out to be really comfortable high-back, padded chairs.

Once our eyes adjusted, we could see each other and the drink menus just fine. The Violet Hour is a Prohibition-style place, place and they handcraft their own bitters and several house items. I had a Moscow Mule with Tito's vodka, lime and ginger syrup. Heavenly. And strong!

After mellowing out with our pre-dinner drinks, we cabbed it over to our dinner party destination. OMG, was the food good. Cold avocado soup, jumbo grilled shrimp, pork shoulder, and some other Cuban delicacies. And some fantastic company.

I could get used to evenings like this!

Next time: Why I was running through Brenda's neighborhood yelling "HOOCH!!!!!"

Chicago Recap

Chicago was, in one word, awesome. It was a girls' weekend to remember. I'm already looking at the calendar (and the budget) to see when I can go back.

I flew into O'Hare in the middle of the afternoon, then navigated my way to the Blue Line from O'Hare to the Clinton stop in downtown Chicago. It's amazing how so much of the train system in Chicago is not handicap-accesible -- at least on the route I traveled. There are stairs. LOTS of stairs, which are not for the faint of heart.


I found Union Station without a misstep (we won't talk about the poor guy I almost tripped with my rolling suitcase) and even got the express train to Lisle & Brenda's house. She hid a house key for me in a super top-secret spot so I could get into the house while she was at work. Lucky for me, her dogs love me and I got a tail-waggin' greeting from Sugar the pit bull and Hooch the french mastiff!

Sure, this might be too much detail, but this country mouse is proud that she didn't get lost in the Windy City! I guess you can take the girl out of the city but you can't take the city out of the girl.

One of the highlights of the trip was this smiling face:

We took a field trip to the Chicago Botanic Garden and wandered through the greenhouses and gardens. It was a beautiful day and we had a very relaxing time. I loved this purple flower -- it was surreal and the color could not quite be captured on camera! I need to find some seeds or seedlings of this flower.

After the relative calmness of the Botanic Garden, we decided to do something off-the-wall for our Girls Night Out.

We went to Medieval Times.

Yes, with wenches, knights, jousting, princes, horses and cheering. It was dinner theater with horses.

There was also a visit with the Easter Bunny at the country club on Sunday:

I got a city fix, times ten. I made a few trips to my beloved Caribou Coffee for a cup of happiness. Stopped counting calories and indulged in Chicago deep-dish pizza, sushi, chocolate-chip-blueberry pancakes, the best dessert ever at Stir Crazy, and a few martinis. (Not all at one sitting.) I also became addicted to chocolate Cheerios.

I also got to see a movie. In the theater. With captions. It's been about eight years since I've been to a movie theater with captions. I think seeing a movie in the theater is going to become a girls weekend tradition!

Thanks to Brenda & Sophia & Sara for a fabulous time. I can't wait until the next one!

still on Chicago time

It's still the weekend for me!
I've had an absolutely great time up here in Chicagoland. Tons of girlfriend time. Great food. Too many desserts.Pink Peeps.A visit to the Chicago Botani Garden. And Costco. Easter brunch & an egg hunt that garnered me $4. A few drinks. Great movies (even two in the theater!). Lots of giggles with sweet little Sophia. Cuddles with Hooch and Sugar. Shopping. And more.

I'm enjoying one last round at Starbucks & then heading back to Brenda's for a relaxing evening. The journey via train, plane & car starts Tuesday morning. Catch you later!

Chicago!

Hello from Chicago! No, it's not an April Fool's joke. I've been looking forward to this trip for about 2 months. It's finally here!

As usual, I got to the airport way too early. After an uneventful flight (which means I only had sweaty palms and heart palpitations during takeoff & landing), I worked my way to the Blue Line at O'Hare, got off the subway at the right station, lugged my suitcase up flights & flights of stairs. And then yet another flight to get up to street level & sunshine! After a quick detour into Potbelly Sandwich Works, I made it to Union Station. No problem for this country chick.

I only tripped one person, and only took one wrong turn. Now I'm sitting on the Metra train, waiting to depart Union Station for Lisle. Once there, it's a leisurely stroll to Brenda's house, where she has a key hidden for me in a super-duper top-secret location. There's a pit bull and a French mastiff in the house, but they know me, so I'm expecting some big, stinky doggy lovoing while we wait for Bee and Ms. Sophia to get home.
Ciao for now!

St. Patrick's Day

Happy St. Patrick’s Day!

May your neighbors respect you,
Troubles neglect you,
The angels protect you,
And Heaven accept you.

Whether you’re indulging in green beer or Guinness, watching a parade or eating some Irish food, I hope it’s a green day for you!

I just finished the book “An Irish Country Village,” and that Irish dialect is still rolling around in my head, so. (Sorry, one of the main characters in the book, Mrs. Kincaid, usually ended her sentences with a “so,” and I just couldn’t help myself, so.)

St. Patty’s Day is probably the only day everyone and their grandmother can get away with wearing an unflattering shade of green – and drink their lunch without professional repercussions.

I’m not doing anything special for St. Patty’s Day, other than living vicariously through others, the news and some random Facebook posts.

Everywhere you look, Irish themes are everywhere today. There’s Google’s uber-cool Celtic symbols on their home page. Cities like Chicago, NYC and Boston offer full-fledged celebrations. Kieran’s Irish Pub in Minneapolis chose yesterday as the day to move to their new location – by having a parade of 300 people led by bagpipes from the old location to the new one. I’m sure they’re doing lively business today. Ahh, I do miss some things about working in downtown Minneapolis!

I’d love to see Chicago with its green Chicago River! Or just sit in an Irish pub and soak in the atmosphere. But neither are close enough for a day trip. I’ll just have to get my Chicago fix – minus the river green – in two weeks.
Even Cake Wrecks is getting in on the fun with this classic wreck:
(how can you not know how to spell “Patrick”??)
Or this one (above). Wonder who picked up THAT cake!