Great Weekend in the City.

So last weekend really made me realize why we Chicagoians struggle through the cold winters in Chicago and that is to live for the summer festivities.

Friday night Robyn, Sara, and I went to dinner to catch up and I wanted to go somewhere to watch the Tigers game. There is a restaurant on the corner of my street “Avenue Tavern” (http://www.avenuetavern.com/) that has good food and it is “Michigan owned” (They even have Coney Dogs on the menu:) Unfortunately, the Tigers ended up losing against the Sox that night.

Saturday, Sara and I went to breakfast at “Stella’s”. Stella’s is a neighborhood dinner close to my house. After Stella's we ran some errands and did some shopping in the area. We planned on going to the Lincoln Taste Fest later in the afternoon. Chicago has many street festivals during the summer all over many of the neighborhoods. I went to the festival around 6PM and the street was just packed. There were multiple bands (about 5-6) that were playing a variety of music. There were a ton of food vendors as well as local vendors in the area selling arts/crafts items. I stumbled upon a booth that was selling wallets/belt and leather accessories and I noticed they had quite a few “Detroit” accessories. I ended up buying a change purse with the “Spirit of Detroit” on the purse. I asked him if he still lives there and his response was “yes, someone has to”. This made me a little sad when I was reminded that so many people are moving out of Michigan. The festival ended up being a really good time and I even ran into a few friends from WMU (dancing in the street at one of the bar's booths where they had a DJ set up) that I haven’t seen in forever, so we went out in Wrigleyville for a little bit afterwards.

Oh and of course we have to get a pic with the CPD:-)
On Sunday, I was very productive! I couldn’t believe it, I usually dread Sundays b/c that means I have to pack and get everything in order to fly out the next day. But Sara, Robyn, and I went to breakfast at “The Bagel” another good breakfast place in the neighborhood. Then I went home started a load of laundry, did pilates, went to the gym and ran 3 miles (while watching the Tigers game so that was a plus), and packed for the next week. It was a very productive day! On Sundays it is pretty traditional go out to dinner with the girls (and Chuck sometimes) and this Sunday we went and tried a different sushi place. They had very different sushi rolls and most of us agreed that we liked our “normal” place better. The night ended at Murphy’s. We had a couple of glasses of wine on the patio out front, had good conversation, and enjoyed people watching. It was a great way to wrap up a fun weekend.

Now off to ATL for the week. I am staying the weekend for a wedding.

Long week......

Since I had to work the weekend of 7/19 I was able to stay in the city for a few days during the week. It was nice to see my friends and relax at home. I was able to go to the beach on Tuesday afternoon which was well overdue. I love Lake Michigan!

On Thursday morning I flew to ATL, as I would experience my first go-live. So, basically the project that I am working consists of migrating computer systems between companies and a go-live is basically when they “flip the switch on,” so there are many tasks up until that point that have to be completed. I was very disappointed that this weekend had to be the weekend of go-live. This is the weekend I go home every year for the fair. The fair is a big deal in my hometown and it is a time where everyone gets together. I have been going to the fair as long as I can remember. I'm really disappointed that I am missing a corn dog, french fries with malt vinegar, lemonade and an elephant ear. God bless my mom, she is getting a couple of corn dogs for me and is going to freeze them until I get home. I also am disappointed that I will not be able to ride the "Zipper" It is my favorite ride at the fair.

On Friday, I was able to layout at the Marriott pool and relax before the long day on Saturday which was nice. Garry, his roommate and his girlfriend, and I grilled out on Friday night and played a couple games of Scene It and then called it a night.

Saturday was a very long work day (started at 8AM and lasted until 130AM – yes 16 ½ hours). It was an interesting experience. On Sunday we went into the office for a couple of hours and then the management team took us out to dinner.

During the week in ATL I went bowling again on Garry’s league. I definitely did much better than last week, so I was happy about that. Yesterday, Garry and I had dinner before I left for the airport. We went to a restaurant called “Shout” in Midtown. The food was tapas with Mediterranean influence. They had cabanas outside for seating (where the picture was taken) and it was very relaxing. The food, ambiance, and of course the company was very nice. I ended up back in the city around 1130 PM and if definitely felt good to be home after a long week!

The dirty dirty (ATL) and the dirty (DET) all in one week.

Monday morning (7/7) came bright and early. I usually take the 7AM flight but Garry’s ticket was for the 6AM flight, so I was nice and decided to fly back with him, but yikes 6AM….ugh

On Wednesday we went bowling and I didn’t do as well as I did the last time. I am not even going to mention my scores for the last 2 games, but my first game I got 136 – which is only one under from what I had the previous time but the last 2 games were ridiculous) I used to make fun of him for being on a bowling league, but actually it is really fun. On Friday Garry took me to the Atlanta Fish Market. It was so good and we ate way way to much food. The fish is flown in 3 times a day and it was fresh and very delicious.


I left early Sat morning and flew back to the ‘D’ to go to a Tigers game with Sara and a few friends from the LaSalle days. It was so much fun being back at Comerica Park. Sara and I stopped at the dollar store to pick up some orgnge and blue pom poms. I was able to see “My Tiger” (Joel Zumaya) pitch so that pretty much made my day. On Sunday morning, Sara’s mom cooked us breakfast and I was headed back to Chicago on Amtrak. I was excited to spend the next 4 days in Chicago b/c I knew I was going back to ATL on Thursday to work all weekend.

Podcasts

So, I was riding in the elevator yesterday and this guy was listening to his ipod and I thought I heard something that sounded like an ESPN sportscast. I asked whim what he was listening too and he said an ESPN Podcast. So, after I asked a few people in the office I figured out what they were. A podcast is a media file that you can download. They have various podcosts available on iTunes to download daily. AND....these are all free. I think this is the best thing that I have learned this week. So far, I have subscribed to Bill O'Riley, Fox News Radio, ESPN Radio Daily, Mike and Mike, and The Wall Street Journal. These will be convenient to download and just listen to on the plane or in the airport. Woo Hoo!

Fourth of July in Chicago

For the fourth of July weekend, Garry decided to make another trip to Chicago. Thursday night we went out to dinner with my room mate and her boyfriend to a really good Mexican restaurant on the corner of my street. Then we headed out to Wrigleyville for the rest of the night.

Friday, we went to the beach. It was colder than what I thought it would be and really packed but we decided to go to Castaways (restaurant/bar on the beach) and we sat on that deck with our towels and it was much nicer. Friday night, Robyn had a BBQ on her roof deck. It turned out great! We all made home made sangria and there was plenty of good food. Her deck has awesome views to the city and to the lake. We watched some fireworks that were going off at Belmont Harbor. Then, from one angle of the building we could see the fireworks that were going off in all of the burbs. After Robyn's we went to Murphy's and then called it an early night.

On Saturday we went on the Untouchable Tours. The tour takes you to the famous gangster hit spots and hot spots including the St. Valentine's Day Massacre site, Holy Name Cathedral, the Biograph Theatre (the ambush site of John Dillinger, where the "Lady in Red" betrayed him) and the flower shop of Capone's North Side rival Dion O'Banion (who Capone "rubbed out"). It was neat to see all the different areas of Chicago at the same time.

After the tour, since we were downtown, we decided to go to the Signature Room for a drink and to see the view of the skyline. I went into the bathroom and took pics of the view and showed Garry the pics. He was very disappointed when he went to the guys bathroom and came back with a picture with no view. (Below - Women's restroom view on the left/Men's on the right)

After the tour we ended up going shopping and then headed to Murphs to meet up with Vic, Robyn, and Sara and we played cards.

Sunday we relaxed and went to dinner at I took Garry to my favorite sushi restaurant for his birthday gift. Oh and over the weekend, I found out that there is a way to get to the top of my roof from the back stairs and you can see the view of the city. It isn't necessarily a roof deck, pretty much just the roof, but people go up there all the time. The view is awesome b/c you can also see a small part of Wrigley Stadium, the Sears Tower, and Trump tower.

The weekend in Chicago for the Fourth and really fun, I was not excited about the 6AM flight to ATL on Monday morning.

First full week in ATL

So, the week of June 23 (I know I haven't blogged in forever!) I decided to stay a few extra days in ATL. The week in ATL was eventful. Garry and I grilled out one night (which I love doing in the summers) and we went to a Braves game that he owed me for losing a bet. Although, we didn’t get to the game until the 7th inning b/c I was working late, we still had fun.

Garry decided to take the chance and bet against me for the Redwings/Penguins Stanley Cup finals. He obviously lost which meant that he needed to pay up and take me to Six Flags. On Friday we took the day off and spent the day at the park. We weren’t able to ride on some rides b/c the lines were ridiculous. We were able to ride the new ride “Goliath”. I loved the roller coaster but I still think that my favorite was the “Acrophobia” which is like the “Demon Drop” at Cedar Point. It takes you up abut 16 stories and to make it more thrilling it tilts you at the top. Then it drops you fast and the whole ride lasts around 45 seconds. So much fun. Even with a little afternoon rain (during lunch) the day turned out to be great. I would love to go back again though to ride the other rides that we couldn’t.

On Friday night 10 of us who went out to a Japanese Steakhouse for Garry’s birthday. The food was really great! After the restaurant we all met back at Garry’s for everyone to gather before we headed out on the town in ATL. It was a really fun night and I definitely enjoyed seeing more parts of ATL other than downtown.
Since everyone was pretty tired from the night before, we all went to dinner on Saturday and watched the movie “Wanted”. The movie was a little far fetched but it was really good. And, some parts were filmed in Chicago (close to my house) and that was awesome to see. I think at one point Garry was annoyed with me telling him “I know where that is” all throughout the movie:-)

I had an 8AM flight back to Chicago on Sunday. The Gay/Pride parade was held that weekend and everyone in Chicago, says you need to see it at least once and it was in my neighborhood so I wanted to see what it was all about. I met up with friends to watch it and it rained on and off so the parade was stopping and then starting again. It was definitely a different experience but I am glad I decided to see what it was all about. A few pics from the parade are below.

Road Trip – Operation BWI to Kazoo

On Thursday (June 19) I flew to BWI (Baltimore, Maryland). Erin, Carrie, and I were moving Andrea back to MI! My flight got into BWI about 1130PM. Andrea and I went to get snacks for the road after and we didn’t get home to her apartment until about 1230AM. We put in a movie and I was sleeping in the first 15 minutes:-) Erin and Carrie flew in on Friday morning.

So, Andrea wasn’t packed all the way. Carrie has helped move both of us and she said it was a toss up as to who was packed up the least. Luckily, Andrea had a few of her friend’s students (middle school age) come and help load the Uhaul (well we referred to it as a uhaul b/c I guess that is the staple, but it was actual a budget rental which we referred to as the “15 feet of danger” After it was all packed up we sat by the pool for about an hour.

We were MI bound by 4:30PM. (Carrie was driving Andrea’s car and Andrea was driving the “15 feet of danger” The previous week Carrie told me that she was brining walkie talkies. I responded with “awesome, but I have a cell phone”. However, they were the best idea ever! We were playing games over them which made for a fun and eventful ride.

Around 9PM we stopped at this pizza place (pretty much in the middle of nowhere) and we had dinner there. It was my turn and Erin’s turn to drive. And of course at that point it started to rain, only lasting about 45 minutes.

It was around 1130 when we started discussing where to stay over night; however, we made the decision to continue to drive b/c none of us were tired. I did have like 3 Large McD’s coffees throughout the course of the night. Carrie feel asleep and luckily Garry was in a talkative mood and stayed on the phone with me for an hour while I drove. 7 hours later (around 4AM) we stopped to go to the bathroom and get more coffee. At that point we were close to MI. Carrie decided to drive a little to let me sleep. A5 530AM I woke up when we arrived to Ann Arbor (Carrie and Erin left their car there when the left for the airport). So, it was now just me and Andrea. The ride from Ann Arbor was a little painful…I felt like a zombie at that point. We arrived in Kazoo around 730AM and finally made it to bed around 8AM. We slept until 230PM the following day…well needed rest. On Sat afternoon we had to unload some things from the “15 foot of danger” including a couch between the two of yes…that was fun. (Below I manged to take a few pictures of the nice scenery along the way)

Sat night we went to grab take out from Kansas City Dipping Grill where they have the best cream cheese based dips. We went to Monaco Bay for a couple drinks so we could see Brian. We went back to where she is now staying as a nanny for the kids on Gull Lake. It was nice to be near a lake for a change without all of the city noise. They had an indoor pool, so we swam for a bit and then went to bed.

Andrea took me to the train station in the morning and I headed back to Chicago to pack and get ready for the long week in the ATL.

Father's Day Weekend

On Sat morning I took the train to Kalamazoo where my mom and sis picked me up for a nice weekend at home. Of course on the way back to Ionia we stopped at Target, why not? Target twice in one week is too much! Now I know I why I went broke when I used to live by Target. Saturday night we visited my Nana in the nursing home. She will be there for a few weeks as she is recovering from some health issues.

On Sat night/Sunday morning (1AM) , my mom and I took my sister to Lansing so she could meet with her missions group to fly out to Costa Rica that day. After getting back home and catching a few hours of sleep we went to the nursing home and had cake and ice cream for Father’s Day.

I still had to work on Monday and Tuesday but it was just nice to be home and seeing family.

On Monday for dinner my mom made blue gill (which is one of my favs). I loved it growing up having blue gill during the summer for dinner, so having it on Monday brought back a lot of memories. She cooks it by rolling it in pancake batter and frying it and then she makes a “special sauce” that goes perfect with it. With the passing of my aunt, my cousin came into town. He is in the marines and lives in San Diego. I was able to see him for a few hours that night which was awesome. He is moving to North Carolina for a different position, so hopefully I will be able to see him more as that is a better commute from CHI and ATL.


On Tuesday I had a breakfast date with my Boppy (Grandpa). I was so excited to go to breakfast with just him and I. I went to pick him up at his house and he was already waiting outside We went to Big Boy and I tried Eggs Benedict for the first time and loved them. It is so cute b/c my Boppy knows like everyone in that restaurant and when a couple came by to say hi he said the “you remember so and so, right?” You have to love when grandparents do that and of course I didn’t remember them. I had the afternoon off so my mom and I went to get our nails done and I also got a pedicure! I went to visit with my Nana for a couple of hours before dinner and of course cried like a baby when I left. It is always so hard to leave home. I am satisfied with my decision to stay in CHI but I still question myself sometimes. I am the only one that lives “far away” so it’s tough. For dinner, my mom made another one of my favorites, goulash. My dad doesn’t like it that much but she still made it for meJ Then, around 7:00PM we left to go to the train station in Kalamazoo. My mom and Boppy and of course Kiara went to take me.

As always it was great to be at home and spend time with the fam. And, I also got to see my dog…Hopefully I stop traveling all the time, so I can have her back. I miss her like crazy. (And obviously her Aunt Stephanie purchased this toy for her)