It’s been a minute, since I’ve parked the car by the Wisteria on a nearby block. I looked up and was happy to see that it’s made it another year, unmolested. I have a hunch the owners love seeing this plant extend beyond the property just as much as I do.
I’m always reminded of Bernie, whenever we see or pass by the chapel. And though I seldom say it out loud, I do tend to say hello quietly to Bernie, every time I see the building.
And today, as we sat there listening to the bells… I felt like Bernie was saying hello back. Each time I hear the bells, I like to think he’s saying hello back.
Today was meant to be a lazy day. We woke up somewhat early, to catch a breakfast before the crowds showed up at Plein Air Cafe.
Then afterwards, we were heading home… but decided to swing by Botany Pond, to check out the ducks and turtles.
After work today, Liz wanted to have a bit of a surprise… and took me out for a quick ride. We parked near MSI, and walked over to Jackson Park, where the Cherry Blossoms were in bloom (after four years of deterred blooms).
Friday night, late. We’ve been running errands after work downtown, and decided to try out a local place for dinner: Truth Be Told. Turns out, it’s the restaurant at the base of the The Study, a hotel on the University of Chicago campus.
It’s right on the midway, a place I’ve circled an awful lot last year… but I never ran down this side of the Midway. And I never noticed this hotel before. So I got to see it tonight.
Spotted this bumper sticker, after parking my car. I love how unassuming and subdued this bumper sticker is. I’m used to bumper stickers being these big, bold, declarative statements – a shouting of text, announcing a particular morality or point of view onto anyone who passes by.
I was changing in the bedroom upstairs, when I heard a lot of commotion outside. After listening a while, I realized that it was crows cawing. And not just one or two, but a lot of crows making a lot of noise.
And in a remarkable Goofus and Gallant moment, we spotted this guy nearby. Sculpted, formed, almost an art installation.
You can almost hear him asking: “Why am I here? Why am I out here in the cold?”
You said it, buddy. You said it.
We headed north from Hyde Park, and Liz showed me some of the paths she took when she was doing her marathon training earlier this year.
While the two of us ran five miles while we were at the lakehouse last week, it didn’t quite dawn on me the actual distance.
We decided to stop at Plein Air Cafe for breakfast, and found that a lot of the nearby parking spots were all taken up. We normally come here on the weekends, when there are fewer students around. But today, the streets were all jam packed. We ended up needing to park several blocks away.
This year, we dusted off the Operation game for Halloween. I’ve been making some variation of this costume for, oh… over two decades now. That’s a little crazy to say out loud.
I did my first version a long while ago, when I was a grad student at OSU. I think the first documented version I have of the costume is from 2004, which was a wearable/portable version.
Near the end of our run, with dusk and downtown Chicago in the distance.
For part of my run today, I did a loop around the Midway Plaisance, next to the University of Chicago.
Our neighbors put up some decorations, and it reminded me how close Halloween really is. On seeing this, I had a good chuckle… and was glad I didn’t see it for the first time at night, in the dark.
On closer inspection, it looks like they paved over the existing concrete paths with asphalt. Seemed a difficult job to keep people off of this path, but looking forward to checking it out when the barriers are gone (and running along the paths).