Today was an early day, as I was drafted into work last night to help with the Festival. Everyone who works as a volunteer for the festival gets a yellow shirt – and I got mine this morning. My alarm went off at 6:30 AM, and I was the first to hit the shower. By…
On our last half-day Friday of the year, Liz and I decided to spend our time at the Shedd Aquarium. It’s been a while since I’ve been here (and even longer for Liz – last time she was here was when she was a kid). I’ve got a lot of fond memories of the place,…
Left work at work today, because Liz and I had scheduled a date night. Went out to dinner, ran a quick errand, and then made our way over to Diversey Rock’n Bowl for a few rounds of bowling action fun. It’s been a while since I’ve been here. And though I’ve bowled here since the…
Jasmine, looking cute as ever during our meal at Club Lucky. I’m not sure if this is a Chinese thing, or just something with our family, but there’s always been a big rush to grab the bill. This is something that’s stemmed from back when I was a kid – and all the adults (uncles/aunts)…
In addition to all the fabulous stuff Liz made last night, she also made a light strawberry cheesecake (which we were too full to eat). And so – today, we got to dig in a little bit. And, what better way to eat pie than with some whipped cream? After the previously unsuccessful attempt, we…
Entryway – Lincoln Park Zoo. I should mention that Liz let me drive her Vespa today (I drove to breakfast, and to the zoo). Lots of fun, as we left North Ave due to traffic and zipped up some side streets. The Seal tank. One of Liz’s favorites, we hung out here a good long…
I’ve been wanting to go to the Bongo Room for breakfast for some time now. This morning, Liz and I started off our day doing just that – brunch at the Bongo Room, and then off to the zoo for an afternoon of hanging out with animals. The coffee here is great, and though we…
Liz and I were talking on IM today, and she brought up the idea of having lunch together. The last time we went out during the workweek was back in April – so it’s definitely been a while. And while I usually balk at doing things spur-of-the-moment, I’m really glad we went today. Liz knew…
Liz recently got a whipped cream maker, which she was trying out for the first time. We were having a bit of her key lime pie (and she makes a mean key lime pie, just for the record), and decided to break out the whipped cream. We couldn’t find any real cream nearby, and so…
One downfall with Liz’s new place – the heat. Up on the second floor, the heat tends to collect and Liz has found her bedroom (and the kitchen) to be pretty hot. There are no windows back there, so the only hope is to offset the stagnant, hot air with some fans. She and I…
Got an invite from Liz and Steph today, and learned they were to be grilling in the backyard. Liz and I wandered over there around 6:30 or so, with some beers. Firing up the grill… There were additional folks in the backyard, who I didn’t really know. Turns out it was the downstairs neighbors (Evan…
Earlier in April, my friend Matt (aka Tha.Riddla) went to go compete in the 2006 United States Barista Championships… and won! Since then, Intelligentsia has opened up a new store downtown. To help celebrate their opening day, Matt was there to serve coffee drinks on-site. I was bummed I missed it (I forgot until about…
Hung out with Liz tonight, and we were in her neck of the woods (Wrigleyville). Actually, I was showing up to meet her and her friends for some mural thing (I think a friend of hers to be on-site at a bar, painting a mural live). Well, on showing up… Liz and I discovered that…