Thanks to an awesome friend, I finally got to check off a city I’ve always wanted to visit: CHICAGO!
Ever since I’ve heard of Chicago, I always called it Chick-ka-go. Imagine my surprise when I learned it was really pronounced Shi-ka-go! ShiiiiiKAAAAAgo!! Ya hear me? Sheeeeeeeeeee Kaaaaaaaaaaa Goooooooooooooooooo. Okay, I’m done being a retard now. Here’s a photo that shows how “Chicago” is cued in Cued Speech.
What an awesome city! The weather was definitely in our favor. We had constant sunshine with great temperatures. Chicago didn’t even live up to it’s name, “The Windy City,” because there was barely any wind! All the while, Washington DC had constant rain, which was nothing new. DC’s been rained on so much this summer, it’s ridiculous.
We took the Metra into Chicago to the Taste of Chicago festival (and to see the city in general). This was awesome, because I felt like I was in the movies. I’ve seen these types of trains before. Not quite a subway, but a much extended suburbs train! Very convenient for those who live farther out! The Taste of Chicago festival was definitely satisfying. Why? We got tons of good food samples, especially Hot Asian Buns. Yummm. Tons of laughter, tons of goofy moments, and tons of fun! There was a WiiFit on display where you could try it out, a Karate show, and a concert that was actually good: Ash Avenue. The music was pretty good, and it prompted one of us to buy their CD.
The Cloud Gate (Aka “The Bean”), made by Anish Kapoor, was marvelous! Sitting right in Millennium Park is a 110 ton elliptical sculpture that boasts a reflection of the Chicago skyline. Not only do you see the reflection of the Chicago skyline, but also the sky, clouds, and a million reflections of people. Ultra cool!
Here’s some useless information (which I find important as I get older!). Taking a picture of the Bean wasn’t free before. You had to PAY to be able to take a picture. Not surprisingly, because the Bean is one of the best architectural achievements for 2004, according to Time. Twice a day, the Bean is wiped down by hand and cleaned two times a year with detergent.
“Love and Marriage, Love and Marriage,
Go together like a horse and carriage,
This I tell ya brother, you can’t have one without the other.”
In Grant Park, surrounded by the Chicago skyline and Lake Michigan, you’ll find the Buckingham Fountain, which was donated by Kate Buckingham. This is the fountain that is in the introduction credits of the Married… With Children TV show.
By looking at the fountain, I would have never guessed that it was built in 1927! Every hour, the center of the fountain shoots water up 150 feet into the air. The fountain holds four sea horse statues that spit out water to the fountain, and those represent the four states that touch Lake Michigan: Illinois, Michigan, Wisconsin, and Indiana.
See the Navy dudes? Yes, I know they look hot and all, but there’s a funny story that you would have laughed at if you were there. Jeff asked, “Why is the navy in Chicago? Are they here to defend us from Canada?” We were all, “Well if that is their mission, it’s failing, because there’s Canadian bacon here!” And, “Our friend here is French Canadian, and she is in the USA!” For you all that were there with me, I’m sure you’re giggling now!
We took the Water Taxi to get over to the Navy Pier, which was a total blast! Why? Because we got wet.
While we were on the Water Taxi, all of a sudden the boat came to a halt. So of course that got our attention. We noticed a big spray shooting out of a wall! Us girls got all reactive. One friend took cover, another was going “It’s raining!” And I was going, “Oh my god, a PIPE BURST!” The boys, on the other hand, were completely calm:
Apparently the water sprays every 10 minutes. For fun, I guess, and indeed, it WAS fun! Whoo! $3 bucks for a water taxi ride, and a water spray!
The Navy Pier was absolutely too crowded because of the 4th of July holiday. The women’s bathroom at the Pier was a mile long, but guess what? So was the men’s bathroom line! So, we just had one beer and got the hell out of the Pier. Luckily, we caught the last Water Taxi and we were pretty much the only passengers, which made the ride worth it again. The fireworks started going off right when we were on the boat, so that was cool to see it from the water. Yep, we got wet again, probably more than the first time. We got to see more fireworks on the Metra going home.
Other than the city, we got some great chill time at the pool, playing games, and just hanging out. If only we all lived close to each other!
This week has been boring, scary, exciting, and extremely busy. But, I’ll be back soon! Stay tuned. In the meantime, do Earth a favor and get a reusable SIGG bottle for your water!
Sick of paying full salon prices for your hair?Thanks to a friend, I’ve discovered Aveda Institute in Chinatown of Washington DC. All the services are pretty much half off from professional salons, because the stylists are in training! I’ve gone twice now, and each time, I walked out satisfied.
The first time was for a haircut, and I was out the door in less than an hour. I got lucky with a fabulous woman who was about to graduate. Very impressive.She was extremely gentle with my hair. While she shampooed me, I didn’t even get water in my ears! That’s a BIG plus for me, since most stylists tend to pour water in my ears.
Yesterday, I went in for the 2nd time for highlights. Boy, oh boy, I felt like a punching bag.The stylist was very rough on me. I think I lost about 34900 hair strands yesterday, because of all the yanking and brushing so hard. My head kept jerking in every direction. Owwwwwww! She kept throwing foil pieces on the floor if she wasn’t happy about the way it looked. The end of the comb to separate my hair to put highlights on it kept scraping my scalp – OW!!! Professionalism was NOT her middle name.She kept chit chatting with other people, complaining about her back, throwing stuff on the counter, and so forth. My shampoo experience was awful. Water kept going in my ears, her hands scrubbed my head too hard, and that made my neck bang a few times on the neck-rest.
However, WOW, she did a GREAT job with the hair color. Again, I walked out of the place satisfied! I no longer cared how unprofessional or painful she was, because I was happy with the outcome! And this is coming from someone who always has a breakdown when her hair color changes. My mom knows this.
My point is: Aveda Institute is a great alternative to those expensive salons!
After an exhausting day of looking for a home in 95+ heat, Jeff decided to leave me in the dust and go search for his new love – an iPhone 3G.
Was I sad? Naw. I laughed and thought he was crazy. It was 7:30pm and as far as I was concerned, lines were hella long. Once Jeff got to the Apple store on Bethesda row, he text messaged me going, “Whoa, there’s no line. I’m looking for parking, but can you call them and ask if the iPhones are sold out?” Of course they’re sold out! But I humored him and called the Apple store. Yup, sold out at 4pm. I told him to start driving to the mall while I called that place. SOLD OUT!!! The poor guy told me to call the Pentagon City Apple store, so I did. They were not answering their phones, which was an obvious sign that they were too busy with a mob of people craving an iPhone! By the time Jeff got there, there were 50 people in line and it was 8pm. Being skeptical and all, I laughed and said good luck.
Imagine my surprise when he texted me saying, “So close! ZOMG.” Then ten minutes later, “I’m in!” Apple let in a whole bunch of people in and locked their doors since they were closing. And then there was silence. I ran to Jeff’s roommate and said, “I haven’t heard from Jeff! I think he got his iPhone!” The roommate quickly started making signs and hanging them up all over. I grabbed a black marker and added my own comments. Check them out!
With pride, he can say he’s one of the first million people to get the iPhone 3G in just three days! He’s been downloading all kinds of applications and this one gives free beer!
Me: My brother has gchat now to chat with me and to be able to email family members only. Oh boy. I don’t know if he should be using email and gchat at age nine?
Him: Hahaha, nothing wrong with that!
Me: But he’s nine! Should he even BE using email?
Him: It’s the 2000s, kids are born with keyboards in their arms.
Me: True. Okay.
Him: Your mom might want to set up the filters to immediately delete any spam, though. “Mom, what’s Viagra and cailis?”“Mom, can I get my penis extended 3 inches?” “What are hot sluts and why do they want me?”“I don’t have to go to college because I can buy a phD online for $100!”
Okay, I know I’ve been talking about rodents a lot, but just ONE more thing. I cannot, and I mean CANNOT, resist bringing this up. Please check out this link about a woman from Mendocino County, California, who shot herself while trying to kill mice in her trailer home. I had to laugh for a few minutes after reading the article. Was she was drunk? I bet right before she shot the mouse, she said “Here, hold my Budweiser.” And go POW POW! Who knows, maybe the mouse story was a cover-up for something really idiotic. Good thing no one died.
Dudes and dudettes, life is incredibly short. Do you ever stop and just be in the present moment? Some of the sweet things of my life:
Listening to the water fountain at the park and marveling at how beautiful the surrounding flowers are
Lazy Saturday mornings in bed doing nothing
Savoring every bite of mint chocolate chip ice cream
Precious moments with my Nana
Watching babies giggle so innocently
When a total stranger tells me to have a good day
Spending time with family
Laying on the beach with a frozen drink
Watching the sun set and create a beautiful, colorful sky
Sitting near a fireplace on a cold night snuggled up in a blanket
Cuddling up with my fiance
The feeling of accomplishment
Quality conversations with friends
Watching documentaries about our solar system, so fascinating and amazing
Seeing new parts of Earth that are incredibly beautiful
Smiling, because it lights up every part of my body
Being on water
We are the creators of our universe. As much as that sounds corny, it’s so true. The biggest lesson of losing many dear ones to death: life is short. Take in the flowers. Smell them. Look up at the sky. Breathe. Exhale. And be joyous. Life is wonderful!
