Puppy Power

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I’d love to take credit for this little gem but I have to give credit where credit is due.  Lulu Lindsey was driving down Lakshore Drive when she came across a guy who not only thought it was necessary to drive his vespa on a highway going 50 mph but also found it necessary to bring his poodle along for the ride.  Linds said the dogs ears were whipping all over the place from the wind but it didn’t appear that he was going to jump out so I’m assuming they made it home safely.

Nothing says manly like a man with a vespa.  And a poodle.

Bacheloretting

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I ventured from my fair city this weekend to attend the bachelorette party of my dear friend Mallory.  Armed with a new dress that has pockets, champagne and cupcakes from More, I was ready to celebrate. 

Sidenote: I don’t know what heaven smells like but I hope it smells like More Cupcakes.  Walking into their Delaware Street boutique made me want to curl up in the corner and just breathe in chocolate-y, sugary, frosting-y goodness for the rest of the day.  Amazing.

I’m not sure I understand bachelorette parties, the bride costumes worn during a night of drinking or the necessity of decorations in the shape of phallic symbols but I do understand the value of girlfriends coming in from all over to spend some time together before one of those girlfriends enters a new season in her life.  Mal is a friend in the truest sense; that person who knows the importance of close friendships and holds those in her life very close to her heart.  She is marrying a man she has loved for a very long time and seeing her grow even more in that love as her excitement  hits a fever pitch about their upcoming wedding has been such a blessing to see.  Celebrating these leaps and seasons are exactly like the cupcakes I gave as a part of her gift: sweet, nostalgic, and a rare treat.  I wouldn’t have missed it for the world.

Plus, Mal had these fabulous pink shoes and if there was ever an occasion to take them out, it’s for your own bachelorette party.  A reason for celebration, indeed!

 

Bittersweet

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“When life is sweet, say thank you and celebrate.  When life is bitter, say thank you and grow.” Bittersweet

Chicago author Shauna Niequist is releasing her second book in August and I’m eagerly anticipating it’s arrival at my door–the first book I’ve ever pre-ordered.  Titled “Bittersweet: Thoughts on Change, Grace and Learning the Hard Way”, it comes out in August and I can’t wait.  I had the pleasure of meeting Shauna through participating in a book club for her first book “Cold Tangerines” –a book filled with tons of delicious “me too!” moments–and I’ve followed her writing ever since.  It just makes you feel warm and inspired and heard, even though it’s her words you are reading.  It’s one of my favorite books, the kiind you keep going back to and reading a chapter when you need some sustenance or inspiration.  I highly recommend it.

The above quote from Bittersweet really struck me.  The good stuff–promotions, babies, engagements, good news, holidays–is easy to celebrate because you know that’s what you’re supposed to do.  It feels good and you act accordingly (preferably with champagne and chocolate).  But the bitter, the bitter is always so much more difficult and, at least with me, I always struggle with knowing what to do.  And I rarely feel grateful for it.  But what if I went into it like that quote from Bittersweet–going into everything with gratitude and then action.  Amazing day?  Thanks, let’s get tapas!   Scary and bumpy cab ride home with a guy who smells and listens to bad music?  Thanks, I’ll take the train next time.  Gratefulness, learning, AND growth.  What a concept. 

High Five of the Day:  The Barefoot Contessa Cookbook. I ate my cereal this morning while delving into it and bought the ingredients for Lobster Pot Pie to make tomorrow.  Stay tuned.

Burn

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I forgot to bring my own bags to Trader Joe’s yesterday. Dangit. I have all these great reusable grocery bags and while I’m probably not as Eco-conscious as I should be, I really do try to make an effort. So I was very disappointed that I was going to have to use paper bags from the store. I was apologizing to the cashier for my Eco- blunder and his response caught me off guard.

“How’s it feel to hate the environment? What’s that like?”

He was kidding in that “haha, I’m joking but not really…” way. Ouch.

Hey buddy, it felt really bad to hate the environment. I try really hard to be a good person and sometimes I just forget stuff, ok? I recycle my Diet Coke cans and I turn off lights when I leave rooms and once it starts up again, I’ll go to the Green City Market to buy local, sustainably grown produce. I date a carnivore who I can’t convince to trade beef for organic tofu. But I try my best and I’ll try harder, Trader Joe cashier man.

I’ll start by bringing my own bags to the grocery, everytime.

Ommmmmmm.

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More often than not, whenever I don’t know what it is that I need, yoga fits the bill.

I’ve been practicing yoga exactly 6 months today, a fact I realized after a really fulfilling practice at Core Power Yoga. I hadn’t practiced in awhile and was feeling a little off kilter all day.  Make that the last few days.  Ok, fine–the last week.  I’ve been really trying to reconnect with myself (how anyone gets disconnected from themselves beats me), figure out why I’m so off balance, come up with an action plan…and nada.  Couldn’t come up with anything.  But after work today, my body was just crying “Do yoga.  Do yoga.  Go get sweaty and twisty.  Do yoga.”  So I did yoga.  I brought all the excess noise of life to my mat.

And you know what?

I feel better.  I didn’t solve global warming (what is up with it snowing today, btw?) or anything other huge issue but an hour and fifteen minutes of focus on only my breath and my postures…wow.  I always underestimate how amazing it makes me feel and how back down to earth it brings me.  It’s not that I’m “good” at yoga–it’s that it’s a practice. It’s called a yoga practice, not a yoga show so there’s never any pressure to do it perfectly (at least for me–forgive me if I’m wrong, yogis).  My “utkanasana” was not pretty today but I held crow for 10 seconds!  There was not a snowball’s chance in hell that I was getting up into birds of paradise today but I was a super good frog.  It’s just all about wherever I happen to be that day.  How many things can you say that for?  “Sorry, boss–this sub-par performance is just where I’m at today” or “Sorry, kids–this lame meal and picking you up from school 4 hours late is just where I am today.”  Not so much.  But with yoga, you just show up and that’s a beautiful practice in and of itself.  Not everything can be like that, I get it but I think that my relationships and my yoga should be.  Just showing up and being you.

High Five of the Day: The “bb seaweed” masque I picked up from Lush.  Lush is a fresh, handmade cosmetic company and I am in love with their masques. Everything made from fresh, organic fruits and veggies so you could eat it if you wanted to.  Imagine that–putting something REAL on your skin instead of chemicals.  I usually  get the Love Lettuce one that has crushed almonds in it to get rid of yucky winter dry skin but I was pleased with bb Seaweed and even had a few pieces of seaweed on my face.  Lovely.  Oh and because it is handmade and only lasts 3 weeks, there is a sticker at the bottom with a picture and the name of the person who made it!  So, thanks Joanne–you made my night.

Sunday Best

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My family came to Chicago this weekend, which was such a treat.  My mother was in on Friday on her way to visit my dear grandmother in Florida and my Dad and step-mom were here on Saturday and Sunday.  Lots of great food, lots of warm talks, lots of quality time together.  Holiday or not, any time I get to spend with my family always feels so special.  I am so lucky to have people I truly like, not just love, as parents, if that makes any sense.  We didn’t do a traditional Easter yesterday–we had Thai food instead of ham and deviled eggs and the only hat I wore was a Cubs baseball one when I went running later that night.  But I spent the day with my parents, walking around the city I love, laughing about old family stories and catching up on the details that don’t quite fit into phone conversations.  That, to me, is my Sunday best.

The Zoo

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I have lived here for over a year and have never made it to the Lincoln Park Zoo.  Lame, I know.  It’s free, it’s super close, it’s free…how did I never find time to do this?  Well, today at 10am, I found time.  After a Starbucks stop, my man friend and I walked over to the zoo.  It was 75 degrees by the time we left the house so we could have been walking to the landfill and been as happy as we were to be outside in weather that didn’t include ice, snow, or sleet.

Lincoln Park Zoo is really something.  Founded in 1868, this place all started with a pair of swans.  Apparently, there was also a bear that used to escape and roam around the nearby neighborhoods.  Today, I saw a lot of animals living happily in their habitats.  The “cat” exhibit kind of made me sad, the leopards seemed way too big to be in such a small area but there was one asleep on its back with its paw in the air that reminded me of Luna Bell.  Cats are cats, I suppose, although this leopard would not have fit in my window sill the way LB is right now.  And I suppose it would also eat more.  Anyways.  We saw lions, leopard, blue frogs, bats, flamingos, zebras, swans, guerrillas, monkeys and snakes. The Zoo was packed with families by the time we left and kids were noshing on cotton candy, popcorn and pretzels.  Such a cool options for kids in the city.  Free, fun, educational and it gave us something different to do.  I will definitely be looping in there on my next run, just to wave hi to my new guerrilla friends.

Hallelujah.

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65 degrees and sunny.  In Chicago.  At the end of March.  Wow.

Luna Bell has been nestled in the window sill since I opened the window this morning.  Being able to feel a breeze and stare down cars, dogs and kids going by outside…let’s just say, LB is beside herself.

I’m going to go enjoy this before it starts snowing again.

High Five of the Day: The weatherman.

I Love March

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Oh you know, just sitting here, drinking some coffee, enjoying a sunny Saturday morning, reveling in a Spartan win last night that advances us to the Elite 8!  Personally, I don’t love March, I think it’s an unnecessarily long winter month, but Tom Izzo loves March.  And I love Tom Izzo.  And I love being a Spartan.  So, in turn. I guess that means March and I are making peace.

There are tons of Spartan alumni in Chicago.  When I wear something Michigan State, 9 times out of 10, I will hear a “Go Green!” shouted from across the street.  And I dutifully follow up with a “Go White.”  Yes, my knuckles are pretty much permanently white from every single basketball and football game I’ve ever watched.  Yes, entire days have been ruined when my team blows a massive lead (I still can’t talk about Notre Dame ’06).  But nothing feels better than watching the team you love, watching the school you love get the W. Spartan Pride is unlike anything I’ve ever seen and I’m so proud to be a part of that tradition.

Go Green, indeed.

Bucktown

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The neighborhood of Bucktown is growing on me.  I say “growing on me” because the first time I went there, it took me an hour and a half via bus and it’s only 1.5 miles away from my apartment.  I was late for a meeting and cursed Bucktown for not having a good, fast, public transportation way to get there.  This time, I took cabs and I must say, the absence of struggle to get there really improved my opinion of this charming area.

Bucktown is just east of the Kennedy Expressway and apparently, gets its name from the many goats that were raised there in the early 19th century.  While I did not see any goats during my 3 days in Bucktown, I did see lots of high end shopping, eclectic art galleries, gourmet groceries, cool bars and trendy restaurants.  A colleague brought me to Olivia’s Market where I was greeted by this:

These fresh cut flowers were just as fragrant as they were visually beautiful.  Olivia’s Market was wonderful little specialty food store, filled with a great wine selection, made-to-order sandwiches, cheese, an olive bar AND 10 cent candy.  Everyone working in the store knew my co-worker which reminded me of what it was like to go to the market in Italy, where everyone knows each other and it’s just a big social event.  I left with a 7-grain salad, guava Kombucha, 2 Swedish Fish, a peanut butter cup and very, very happy.

Mid-afternoon, I was in dire need of caffeine so I schlepped across the street (which technically brought me into Wicker Park, just so no one tries to beat me up for saying it’s still Bucktown) to Buzz: Killer Espresso.  I don’t claim to be a coffee connoisseur but if I was, Buzz: Killer Espresso would be my regular haunt.  Everything is custom made (i.e. no coffee poured from a vat that has been sitting there for hours) and I had the most lovely chat with owner Stefan about the book “Pour Your Heart Into It” and to be really great in business, you need to figure out what is it you do best in the world.  I can’t wait to come back in the summer when the outside patio is open–I envision lots of lattes and people watching.  1644 N. Damen–check it out.

Finally, I checked out Coast Sushi Bar.

I have been hearing about this place since I moved to Chicago and I must say, it did not disappoint.  BYOB, minimalistic but lively atmosphere, and the quality of the sashimi and make rolls were excellent.  The White Dragon Roll was amazing!  Being there with co-workers I can also call my friends didn’t hurt either.  Did I mention it was BYOB?  Can’t wait to go back.

High Five of the Day: Waking up to Luna Bell asleep on my stomach.  She is such a sweet kitty, I don’t know what people without pets do.  If you don’t have one, I suggest immediately going to PAWS Chicago to get one.  Awesome organization and really, how can you say no to this little face?