Chicago & Me

I’m being a bit slow responding to people’s topic suggestions, but only because I found with the first two that I’m writing a lot more in these posts than I am otherwise. Consequently, they take a little longer to draft, which means I have to spread them out and sprinkle the blog with youtube videos and political hypothesizing, too.

Anyway, Melissa, herself one of the things I miss most about Chicago, asked what I missed about the Windy City. And, she rightly knew that Pockets would be at the top of the list. Mmmm....Pockets. To call it a calzone is accurate but doesn’t give you a sense of how good it is! And it’s healthier than a regular calzone, too, because it’s baked and the bread is whole wheat, so there’s no guilt. And, the Pocket-people are geniuses for knowing that ranch dressing was a perfect Pocket companion. I know some of you are probably thinking how weird it sounds to put ranch on a calzone (at least that’s what I first thought), but trust me: it’s delicious. I’m getting hungry just thinking about it.

Ok, my favorite order-in food aside, there is a lot to miss about Chicago. As much as I love New York (a post on that is coming, Dorrie!), I can admit that Chicago has it beat in a couple of ways. First: Chicago apartments kick New York apartments asses! I didn’t have to sell any limbs or unborn children to afford to find a place, either. Unlike New York, where you pay thousands of dollars to a broker for doing, in my experience, next to nothing, I signed a lease on a place without paying a broker a dime. Short side note, in the two and a half years I lived their my rent never went up and I got my entire security deposit back when I left.

And the apartment was great—I really loved it. I had more space and more closets than I’ve ever had in NYC, and the apartment itself charmed me with architectural details like built in bookshelves, a (nonworking) fireplace, and casement windows that gave the place a cool sort of café feel. Camilla loved that the windows had really wide sills so she could really spread out in the sun. I’ve tried to make every apartment I’ve had feel like a home, but my place in Chicago just had so much more to work with. And all for a fraction of NYC prices.

I also love how pretty Chicago is as a city. The lake and skyline together is really beautiful. And there are specific neighborhoods I miss, too, like Lincoln Square. That neighborhood had a great low-key vibe (the “hip” places like Wicker Park were just too hip for me; it’s sort of how I feel about Williamsburg now) and had lots of little mom and pop shops like Mertz Apothecary. On the same note, I loved seeing movies at the old-school Davis Theater instead of at an AMC or Sony theater.

And speaking of theater, I miss seeing shows at The Steppenwolf and Goodman Theaters. I had subscriptions to both while I lived in Chicago and always saw great plays. Most memorable at Steppenwolf were incredible productions of Top Dog/Underdog and Proof. And I saw a fantastic production of The Goat, or Who is Sylvia at the Goodman. Chicago has a reputation for great theater, and it’s well deserved. Living in Chicago, I got to see The Light in the Piazza before it came to Broadway and collected 11 Tony Awards. And I was able to see Bounce, a Sondheim show that didn’t make it to Broadway. And while we’re on the arts/culture topic, I also miss visiting The Art Institute!

Logistically, I have to confess, too, that as someone who is utterly without a sense of direction, I miss how easy it was to figure out where you were going in Chicago. The grid was made for people like me!

And, of course, I miss the people. I never made a huge group of friends there, but that just made the ones I did have all the more meaningful to me.