Thursday, May 20, 2010

All Stuffed Up

I did make it to Bally three times last week, but the total for this week is going to be a big, fat zero. Even though I didn’t feel that great Friday after work, I went swimming anyway. I woke up on Saturday morning with a nasty head cold. Steve had been sick the previous 3 days, and a few people had been out sick at work. I am sure I caught it from one of those sources. I attempted to go to work on Monday, but my supervisor sent me home after commenting how miserable I looked.

In college, I used to get sick quite a bit—late nights, stress over papers, etc. But they were usually mild colds that I could work though and go to school with. Since I moved to Chicago and started working at Cision, I honestly have way less stress than when I was in college. I usually only get sick twice a year or so (knock on wood). When I do get sick, it hits me hard. It’s kind of a good thing that I got sick on the weekend, because I was down and out for four full days. After finally getting some sleep on Tuesday night (my cold eased up enough for Nyquil to FINALLY work), I came back to work Wednesday. I’m taking a break from the gym this week so my body and immune system can fully recover.

Side note—Isn’t it so weird when your nose is plugged up on both sides and you can’t smell or taste anything? It really limits your appetite, because it’s like…what’s the point of eating this yummy food when I can’t taste it? Someone should hone that in for a diet plan.

In other news, Steve graduates from UChicago Law on June 12 and will be done with classes and finals by this time next week. That is INSANE to me. In September, we will have been here for three full years. What a fun and interesting ride. He’ll then start his studies for the bar that he takes in Cali at the end of July. Once that’s over, I’m hoping that we can have a fun and relaxing summer – with some national and perhaps international trips, wedding planning and taking it easy until the next chapter in our lives really starts to pick up speed.

Thursday, May 13, 2010

Windy City Exploration

A visit from an old friend from High School equaled another exhausting weekend in the Chi! Josh, a very good friend who now lives in LA, decided to come and visit his birth city, and the place that he lived for three weeks before his parents moved. He’d never been back to Chicago before, and I can’t imagine how odd and wondrous it must have been for him to see the house and hospital that he stayed in. I’m exhausted from all of the stuff that we did, but we had an amazing time and it was so great to explore and show him all this city has to offer.

On Thursday, Josh arrived in the loop via the Blue Line from O’Hare around noon. I met him, ate lunch at Panera Bread, and then took his stuff so he could explore the city until I got off at 4:30. During that time, he managed to walk all the way up to Navy Pier, jump on the train and check out the architecture building. After we arrived at the apartment, we all headed for some dinner at Mr. Beef – a famous Chicago Italian beef shop on the near west side. And so started my weekend of eating amazing(ly unhealthy!) food again.

Friday I had a half day of work, so Josh took off to Wrigleyville to discover where his parents lived during their time in Chicago. I met him up there at about 1:00 and we had lunch at Murphy’s Red Hots, where I had a burger and Josh, of course, had a famous Chicago hot dog (no ketchup!). After, we headed to Wrigley Field to check out where the cubs played and then made our way down to Lincoln Park where we had Molly’s cupcakes…YUM! We then stolled around Lincoln Park zoo and enjoyed the semi-nice weather and super fun animals. We grabbed Steve to go to dinner and ate some delicious pizza at Gino’s East and then went to our favorite bar – Guthrie’s for some Life, Balderdash and Scatagories.

Saturday, we went to brunch at a new place on North ave. called Elly’s. I was happy with my food, but they definitely could make some improvements on other things. Yelp review to come soon! We rode the Red line down to the Sears…pardon, Willis Tower and took in the city from 103 floors up. Steve had to go back for some studying after the tower, so Josh and I wandered down to the Museum campus to look at Soldier Field and the other beautiful buildings around there. We also got a great view of the city from the Planetarium, which extends out into the lake a bit. We rode the Red line back to Grand, where Josh and I sampled some of the local FroYo at Berry Chill. Then we headed home to get ready for dinner at the swanky new Purple Pig on Michigan and the Broadway musical, Avenue Q, with Steve and our friend Katelynn. While the restaurant left us a bit hungry and a little broke, it was fun to be somewhere on Chicago’s hot list. The play was fantastic and SO funny.

On Sunday, I was dying to check out the Celtic Fest in Millennium Park, so I took Josh with me while Steve studied and we enjoyed a few hours of Celtic music and dancing. Lunch on Sunday was at White Castle (well, Steve and Josh ate White Castle-- I had McDonalds) and then we drove around to look at Swedish Convent Hospital, where Josh was born. We drove through Devon Street to check out all the Indian restaurants, and then down to Hyde Park to show off the Law school and the UChi campus. We then decided to get in touch with our hipster side in Bucktown for dinner. We picked out Café Matou and had some fantastic French food and finished the night at the Map room, which is known for its great selection of beers.

On Monday, I went to work for another half day while Josh got to explore the Art Institute of Chicago. When he returned, we headed out for one last Chicago staple – a gyro from Five Faces ice cream by our house. I was sad as I rode down to the Blue Line with Josh to wish him well on his trip home. It’s so fun to have someone in your city to hang out with and show around. I’m so excited that he came to visit and look forward to exploring more of his city soon!

Now, Steve and I don’t have much going until my cousin Monica’s wedding in Carmel in June, so it’s back to the routine and the grind for a while. I’m excited for the next adventure!

Tuesday, May 4, 2010

Hurry Up, Weekend!

I’m happy to announce that I did in fact make it to the gym three times last week, and walked two miles home for the other two work days. I feel stronger already. :)

I did kickboxing yesterday and tried to work out my arms extra hard. I really want to tone them up before the wedding, since that is the main body part that is sure to be exposed no matter what dress I get. I’m on track to swim tomorrow, but the rest of the week gets busy. A good kind of busy!

My friend Josh, whom I have known since high school, is coming to Chicago on Thursday to visit for four days! I’m pretty stoked for him to see the city. He is from LA and has never been back since he was born here some 23 years ago. We’re going to see Avenue Q, and do all kinds of fun Chicago things. I think that the walking we will do will be a pretty good workout, and I’m going to try REALLY hard not to eat terribly while he is here.

In other news, I have gone a little wedding nuts. I joined herecomestheguide.com and theknot.com and have been using them to find venues, colors ideas and so, so much more. It’s so hard for me because I want to start planning, but since we don’t live in the state that we are getting married in, I can’t book any appointments to see places or interview caterers, etc. We’re still not even sure if we’re going to have the wedding in Monterey area, or Palo Alto area. I still have quite a bit of time, so I am trying not to stress too much, and my cousin’s wedding in Carmel this June will be a good learning experience too.

This weekend can’t come soon enough!