Travel Log - Whirlwind Weekend in Chicago

Latent post but I spent a weekend in Chicago and had the time of my life. It was a whirlwind tour that took me all around Chicago proper, acting like both a resident and a tourist. Here is the summary of my jam packed weekend:

Friday, Aug. 26
I decided to take my break at work and bike from Marina City to Wicker Park in order to finish up my work day from a friend's house. Biking is absolutely the best way to get around. 3.1 miles and a hefty backpack strapped on, I had a great ride Northwest. If you have never biked a city while on a stay I highly recommend it. Only downfall, I was riding a mountain bike (borrowed) as opposed to a road bike so I was getting passed left and right by bikers.
Once I arrived in Wicker I finished up my work day (ahhh, the glories of working from home) Once I was done with work I could truly focus on my gracious hosts: friends and family, discussing life and catching up - added bonus was her mother in for the weekend from South Dakota....every time I visit it is as if I have never left. Claire, my host, cooked an amazing dinner for eight. We had shrimp tostados with avocado, queso blanco, salsa and hot sauce, cilantro rice, refried beans and of course, beer, margaritas and wine. After a fantastic dinner a game was invented. We each had a piece of paper and were instructed to draw something based on a theme (like pictionary). I gathered and shuffled the entries and then gave an intro to each one before passing it around, having every person guess who drew what. The game is hilarious. I have since rolled it out to other people and hilarity constantly ensues. It is so fun to see what people draw, interpret and how much slight deterrents from your 'norm' can throw off guessing.

Saturday, Aug. 27
Another jam packed day. It started with the bus down to Lincoln Park. The farmers market is a sight to see. So many vendors with amazing offerings from fresh cut flowers, to local cheeses and amazing heirloom tomatoes! It is hard to visit Lincoln Park without walking the shoreline of Lake Michigan. We walked up the shore, stopping to admire the beautiful views and vast array of people enjoying the wonderful summer day. It is amazing to see how many people take advantage of the lakefront - Chicago has done an amazing job preserving this beauty for all.

Another gem in Lincoln Park is the zoo and surrounding area. We took a stroll through the Alfred Caldwell Lily Pond. It is just gorgeous. It is so peaceful you'd never know you are in the middle of the city. People come to paint water colors, read and just spend time admiring nature...and each other.

Of course, no Chicago trip is complete without enjoying deep dish pizza. We took a nice walk through the city to Lou Malnati's. The pizza was good. Not the best I have ever had, but dang...deep dish is just so great! Three gals finished of a medium and it was just enough, almost too much, but mmmmm.

From there, knowing we had consumed a lot we elected to walk to our destination: Museum of Contemporary Art. We saw some great exhibits but the highlight for me was this rad watch I got on a 50% discount!

We toured around a bit more, stopped off at shops to buy stuff (of course). After relaxing at home it was off to the Happy Village for a few games of Bananagrams prior to an amazing sushi dinner at Bob San then back home for Wii and bed!

Sunday, Aug. 28
I needed to get back up to Lincoln Park and return my bike to its rightful owner. There is an awesome website, Ride the City - Chicago, that lets you map out the route from quickest to safest. 5 miles later I was back at the apartment. We had a lovely lunch, a nap, sat on the rooftop and bused it downtown to my other friend's apartment. That night we cooked up an amazing veg-friendly meal and went on a walk.

We went to Millennium Park around 10p where we did yoga under the Jay Pritzker Pavilion, sat and talked at the reflecting pools and toured the gardens. It was resplendent. Void of many tourists nighttime adds a whole new dynamic to visiting this park.

We then walked to the new and controversial Marilyn Monroe statue. What's all the fuss about? It is a lovely, very life-like statue BUT you can definitely see her pink undies and the hint of more when looking 'under the skirt'. While I love the statue I guess I can see what some of the fuss is about. This statue is across the street from the Tribune Tower building. If you have never taken time to view the building it is a must-see. There are pieces of structures, buildings and monuments from across the globe, spanning the test of time from the World Trade Center to the Parthenon...check it out, especially if you are a rock dork like me.

Walking back to the corncob building we had to make one final trip for FroYo. This self-serve, toppings galore joint will leave you starving for more (we went back the next day).

So that about sums up my weekend. It was jam packed with excitement, fantastic food and amazing friends. 

Travel Log - Aug. 6 - Sun Country flight - MSP-->SFO

a journey begins

trepidation, confidence

thus, I forge ahead

While I was in Minneapolis for a month, it just now feels like I am embarking on my adventure. Westward, ho; on my journey and there's no turning back. Cleveland and Minneapolis are placeholders, each adding to and enhancing my life but both not my choice, rather my circumstance. What lies ahead, what awaits is up to me, the path unfurling, unplanned, unknown.
11 days out west, if Portland is meant to be on this trip it'll happen; if not, something else is in store.  While the calm comforts of friends, dirt cheap rent and having made a great life for myself in Cleveland are in my mind, my wanderlust is insatiable. The winds whispering to me to carry on, head west, a course is being charted. The path appears moments before I take each step; like headlights cutting through dense, midnight fog, each curve illuminated exactly when appropriate, the path behind solidified in memory and confidence - all indicating the next adventure awaits.
I can feel it in my soul. I'm headed towards the unknown. I am headed towards my destiny. From head to toe I'm filled with emotion [as I write this] so much physical, mental and spiritual energy. Sitting [here] in 16A, listening to Thao & Mirah, eyes brimming, a smile creeping across my face, this is it. Here I come.

Farm to Mouth

So it begins. Finally after 8 months of pining, yearning and reminiscing, the day is here. Today, after putting weeds from the lettuce beds at Blue Pike Farm I had my first tomato of the season. All the patience and longing was well worth it, these tomatoes warmed my soul.

It is amazing how different fresh produce is from anything you buy in a store or even from the Westside  Market (can we say generic, anyone?).

As I was pulling weeds and then noshing on my sweet rewards of tomatoes, blueberries and black raspberries off the vines and bush, I took a pause to think about this life and the next and how zen farming makes my life. I can work with my hands, getting dirt under my fingernails, seeing and tasting the immediate results of my labor. Giving back to nature as she gives back to me. 

Nothing beats it. 

If you haven't been, .Blue Pike Farm has its weekly Farmers Market every Thursday evening from 4-7 p.m.

900 E. 72nd St. in Cleveland.

 

Nostalgia: M.A.S.H.

Remember the game of M.A.S.H. you played as a kid? You know the one that had you list out M.A.S.H. (mansion/apartment/shack/house) list out significant others, careers, cars and the likes? My girlfriends and I decided to have a little fun with that recently and it was just like I remember it. Leaving your life to 'fate' based on swirls, choices and hopes.

If you forgot how to do the game of M.A.S.H. it is as follows:
Take a piece of paper.
On the top write out M.A.S.H.
Write three numbers in boxes (outlining how many children you will have)
Next create four columns, in whatever vernacular you use, depicting significant other, job, location and vehicle.
I used:
Suitors
Transportation
Life
Career

From there, have your friend draw a spiral and tell them when to stop. Depending on how many spirals there are, that is how you will count out each selection.
For each selection count it out. i.e. Mine had 7 spirals so in each section we counted to 7 and then crossed out the options. Whichever one is left standing in each section is your destiny.

As you can see from the photo below, my destiny is living in a mansion with Buddha as my significant other, enjoying my life in Zihuatanejo, MX, tooling around town on a moped, in my career leading Pets for Vets. Fate? probably not, but maybe? Either way, it sounds nice.

Accidental Vegan - Edemame, Black Bean and Wheat Berry Salad

I am a localvore and I don't shop at super markets. For some this is tough, for my house of one it is pretty easy.

I love trying new recipes, especially foods that will keep me satiated and health. I found the following recipe in a random magazine. I did not include tomatoes because they are out of season but the results were delicious. Try it out and let me know what you think!

4 c water
.5 c dry wheat berry
.5 c of dry black beans OR a can of black beans
1 c thawed edamame
1 c chopped tomatoes
.5 c red onion
3 tblsp EVOO
2 tblsp red wine vinegar
salt & pepper to taste

Bring wheat berries & H2O to a boil, reduce and simmer 55 minutes or until tender. Run under cool H2O, drain and cool. If preparing dry black beans follow the same procedure as outline in the wheat berries.

Combine all ingredients and serve.

Sunday with Friends - The Solo Marimba

Thin, solid, wooden handles; turquoise yarn, tightly wrapped around the ends of the mallets; a small yet powerful instrument; often two in each hand drawing out a deep, melodic sound unassuming in nature, so wildly robust in sound.

The crowd is small, a few dozen mostly aging neighbors, enjoying their Sunday with Friends; so many, yet so few, random people drawn together for the love, the curiosity, the enjoyment of the new and unknown.

Each note drops down, down onto the thick wooden keys; sending sounds through organ-like pipes, their sizes dwarfed yet guttural notes are emitted down, down towards the earth. Each ping, each stroke, emitting a sound reminiscent of the summer abroad, that one person you connected with those years ago, the forgotten but remembered moment, day, experience, that shapes the mind and soul.

Paul, our Sunday musician, strokes the keys with methodical attention. The emitted sounds engulf me like a peaceful rain shower. Each drop, varying in size, strength and value falls to the earth; landing in ponds and rivers, leaving droplets on the foliage and ferns; the lush, green, peaceful land absorbing life, beginning anew.

The music, the rain, tapers off leaving the observer, the now participant, rejuvenated, breathing deeply, honestly and truly experiencing life, its minute intricacies – the Marimba, an instrument unbeknownst to most, yet its sound, producing airy yet deep tones, drawing out notes that hold on, delay, allowing you to experience and know it before it lingers and fades into the depths of serenity, the sounds of life through silence.

The artist with his repertoire of songs has a set, as all do; one particular song entitled Yellow After the Rain seems to embody all the Marimba has to offer; the song originally created for four mallets as opposed to two, one that allows the musician to truly feel it and be one with his instrument, turning his wrists, eliciting staccato notes in rapid succession, looking as astoundingly beautiful as it sounds.

The music fills both my body and soul with such depth and light; sounds and knowledge only culled from natural elements within; for the earth, by the earth, the soundtrack to our existence. Soft and deep and as only truly soulful music can, the hum of the Marimba transports me, the listener, to a far away place, unique to only my imagination and desires.

Keeping track of weather

There are dozens of ways to track weather these days; channels are dedicated to it, my phone gives me a constant update depending on my location, we are inundated with ways to immediately update ourselves, yet, some old colloquialisms work just as well.

Take this morning for instance, I was in awe staring at the sky; the clouds looked beautiful, tinted with amazing hues of red and orange. It immediately made me thing of the old saying: 'Red at night, sailor's delight; red in the morning, sailor's warning." This idiom pretty much holds true. If you pay attention to the sky, it tells you all you need to know. It holds beauty, it holds wonder and it speaks loud and clear.

I recently read an article about a man who studied the ancient art of the Polynesians and learned how to navigate the seas through the stars, without GPS, without modern day tools, just using what is already available - the sky. How amazing and talk about living by an ancient practice. Yes, technology is great. Of course it is a useful tool but let us not forget the ancient roots. When a computer fails, when cell service doesn't work, we need to remember there are alternatives. It may not be a quick fix but it is certainly an opportunity to learn something new. Let's not forget how to navigate through our existence; when technology falters, or even when it doesn't, take a moment to look around and appreciate what your analog life has to offer.