Tag Archives: commute

Ch-Ch-Changes

Posted on February 22, 2011 | 25 Comments

Look at my new house.*

Click for a tour of mah house.*

*KIDDING. Totally kidding.

So here’s the deal. The short story is that we were 99% sure that we were going to leave the city and move to Chesterton, IN next month. Our plan was to live in an apt for 6-12 months while house hunting/building. The schools are good, we could afford a 3-4 bedroom house, it is near the lake, and I know good peoples there. There would be a yard in the near future. A YARD!

Sounds perfect, eh?

Well.

The catch is this this: It would be 1.5 hours into the city, and 1.5 hours out of the city on the train for Justin. Every day. This means he would likely not see B much at all on the weekdays. We had a long talk last Friday night, and I was feeling kind of blindsided and heartbroken. I just had a “sure” idea in my head of where we were going. And a house was in sight. But honestly, I understand why he is weary of the daunting commute. I don’t blame him.

However, I consider myself a fairly adaptable person. I just need a day or so to let new plans sink in.

We woke up on Saturday morning on a mission. We would find a place in the city that worked for all three of us. We will rent for a few more years, until we can afford a decent place in a nearby burb. The goal is to get into a house by the time Benton goes to school. Justin is just starting out his career, and things are going really well for him. So. I am not heartbroken anymore. The house idea is not off the table, it is just pushed back a ways.

By Sunday afternoon, we had toured several different kinds of apartments. My lists of demands were all checked off in the final townhome that we saw. It is located in a residential nook with no thru traffic in the South Loop. 9 minute commute for Justin. And easy public transportation to anywhere in the city from the loop location. Two parks in the nook for me and B. And a walk to Grant Park/lake/museums and aquarium. I can meet my friends who work in the Loop in the park for lunch. The place has a new full-size washer and dryer, a place for cat litter and get this: ATTACHED GARAGE. Life changing for sure.

For you map creepers out there. Here is the new hood. Did I mention I am a couple blocks from Target and Whole Foods? BRAGGING!

I know that maybe three people are still reading this post.

Anyway, I am excited now. Early spring and the move will coincide. I’m looking forward to nesting in a new place. I want to walk outside. Take B to the swings. Meet the other mama’s in the new hood. Go to the gardens in the park. Sit in the sun. THE SUN.

Soon.

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Posted in Chicago, Uncategorized

Tagged Chicago, commute, home, house, nesting, new apartment, south loop, the move

Squatting in the Dirt

Posted on March 29, 2010 | 1 Comment

If you see a pregnant lady laying in the dirt on the side of the road, don’t worry too much. If she has a camera and bright green shoes on, she is most likely just fine down there.

I have started to see all kinds of awesome things creeping out of the dirt and dead leaves along my route home. The only problem is that they are so tiny and close to the ground. I am able to squat to get the shots, but I can’t get up super easy. At least the view is nice from down there.

All. Pregnant. Photographers. Should. Have. Life. Alert.

Oooh. Look at the sky from down here! It is light outside at 7 pm! Amazing.

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Posted in Daily Picture

Tagged blue sky, commute, Daily Picture, flowers, photography, signs of spring

I Spy Geese

Posted on July 18, 2009 | Leave a comment

This is from Friday’s crispy blue commute along Wacker Drive. The geese were on their way somewhere as well.

It was such a gorgeous morning that I was tempted to play hooky. Luckily I decided against it, because a team of ominous clouds rolled in shortly after I settled into my office. Good thing I was at work, because someone needs to help the world SAVE (AHORA) up to $1 on NEW PRODUCTS! Now Formulated with 200% more MAGIC!! You want to buy these products now, don’t you? No? Would it help if I made it bold and red?

Now please excuse me while I go line the floor of the liter box closet with circular ads.

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Posted in Daily Picture

Tagged blue sky, Chicago River, commute, commuter tourism, Daily Picture, photography, wacker drive

Karma and Nubbins

Posted on July 7, 2009 | 2 Comments

I haven’t talked about Commuter Tourism for awhile. If you are new, let me tell you that I do not have a car. This means that I don’t have to endure horrendous traffic on the way to work. Since I happen to love my route to work, I often take pictures along the way. Many days, these do not make the cut into DPH. They end up in the trash because I can’t stand the extra files crowding my space. Makes me itchy. Even though they are generally sent to digital death row, I continue to take them everyday because it keeps me fresh. Commutes have the danger of becoming monotonous and mind numbing, but if you look closely, there is something new happening all the time.

Today, I feel like giving some of my commute files a pardon from their sentence of certain death, and will let them live with the cool kids on the interwebs.

Vines again. I have a special place in my heart for them. My first attempt at growing plants was when I lived in Florida. I had many vines clinging delicately to my balcony railings. Then there were four hurricanes in one season. I had to cut them all of so the pots wouldn't fly through our glass doors. :( I am so sorry my little vine babies.

Vines again. I have a special place in my heart for them. My first attempt at growing plants was when I lived in Florida. Many flowering vines clung delicately to my balcony railings. Then there were four hurricanes in one season, and I had to cut them all off so the pots wouldn't fly through our glass doors. I am so sorry my little vine babies.

Follow the blue/orange/pink/green/yellow brick road. This must have taken someone hours to draw. It runs the span of our block and alternates colors and number of lanes. My guess is that the artists are Francine (lemonade stand extraordinaire) and her buddy who was making invisible strawberry sundaes the last time I saw her.

The colorful road ends at a house that has very nice people living in it. I must have dropped my security badge outside of this lovely home on my walk to work this morning. On my way home, there were two big orange signs in their front walkway that read: “MEGAN BOLEY we have something of yours.” AWESOME. I love people like that. I wish I would have photographed the signs. When I got home, I also had an email that informed me that they had the badge, since they had been thoughtful enough to google me. How nice is that? Thanks, nice neighbors.

Back to the commute now. Half of my journey is in the Loop. You have seem many photos taken of Chicago in the loop. I am sure of that. Many just featuring a picturesque panorama of our beautiful skyline. Recently, I have been admiring the skyline from below, but just in bits and pieces. I like to isolate the tip-top of the buildings in the photos. Why embarrass the Merch Mart by revealing the whole body? Sometimes it is sexier to just peak your interest and then leave the rest up to the imagination. Here are the first shots in my new series called Chicago Nubbins. Sorry if you hate that word. I am open to alternate names.

Whoa! Double nubbin.

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Posted in andersonville, Chicago, Daily Picture

Tagged andersonville, Chicago, commute, Daily Picture, good neighbors, karma, nubbins, photography, sidewalk chalk, vine

Fast+Easy+Healthy+Delicious

Posted on June 2, 2009 | 1 Comment

Yesterday was not great in terms of weather or commuting. Someone was actually clipping their nails on the train. It was a loud, thick-nailed, super nasty kind of clipping sound. This went on for at least 15 minutes!?!? Did they get done with the hands and move to the feet? I didn’t dare look twice, because the first whip-around-and-glare move did nothing more than heat up my irritation further. I had to move cars for my sanity and the nail clipper’s safety.I won’t even talk about the commute home. It was too dreadful to revisit.

Yesterday morning was also wet and stormy, so I had to change my initial couch to 5k training to a Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday schedule. And did that happen this morning? NO. It is still raining. Bummer. Now I have to go treadmill it at lunch. Luckily, one of the perks at work is a company gym complete with laundry service. Not too shabby.

One thing that I have been successful at in the last week is eating healthier. I haven’t gone off the deep end into the pool of strict and irrational eating which I have done before; but better choices have been made. I will call it eating with awareness, not dieting. Part of this awareness means that you have to acknowledge the human need for a treat now and then. Last night, I tricked myself into thinking I had pizza. It was amazing.

All you need is whole wheat pita pockets, and some fresh toppings that you love. Keep them intact for a fluffy crust or peel open the pocket to create two very crisp crusts for the pizza. I added heirloom tomatoes, pesto, basil, and fresh mozzarella. And for Justin, arugula, prosciutto, and Parmesan. Then just bake them for about 5 minutes at 375 or 400 degrees. Very easy and very good.

After his first helping, Justin took his plate back to the kitchen to load it in the dishwasher. When he flipped the lights on in the kitchen, he yelped something unintelligible when he saw the sight of an extra cookie sheet of mini pizzas. I think it would be weeks and weeks before he would complain about eating pizza, even if he ate it for every meal, every day. Needless to say, this was his DPH.

Yeah, not the healthiest thing I have eaten all week, but if this is the most sinful thing I have done, my penance is not a big deal.

Yeah, not the healthiest thing I have eaten all week. If this is the most sinful thing I have done, my penance is not a big deal.

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Posted in Cooking/Baking, Daily Picture

Tagged commute, couch to 5k, Daily Picture, delicious, fast and easy meal, food, healthy pizza, justin

Fresh Recreational Cat Drugs!

Posted on May 12, 2009 | Leave a comment

Tis the season for lilacs. Being from Michigan, I pronounce this "LIE-laaacks"

They smell amazing, and are completely unavoidable on my walk home. They are falling all over the fences. The only way to miss them is if you are blind and deaf, or wearing the hood of a winter coat.

This sidewalk chalk drawing is a couple doors down from us. I thought itwas a beautiful gradient. If they put a glow and a drop shadow on it, this little one has a future in promotional advertising design.

This sidewalk chalk drawing is a couple doors down from us. It's a beautiful gradient. If they put a glow and a drop shadow on it, this little one has a future in promotional advertising design.

There is also a new crop of catnip popping up along the commute. This stuff smells like a pungent mint plant in need of some deodorant. It is on the verge of being really nasty stuff. I plucked a single stalk for Porpus, since she enjoys the finer things in life. She went nuts over it and guarded it from Schween with a vengeance. Don’t feel too bad for Schween, she doesn’t appreciate the fresh catnip anyway, and just sniffs it without proper enjoyment.

This is not a great photo, but you can see silly Schween trying to creep in on Porp's prized nip. She obviously got a warning bite on her ear.

———————

Here is a little DNH to listen to: Bagel Brigade

I will try to find some more tonight.

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Posted in Daily Picture

Tagged cat, catnip, commute, Daily Picture, DNH, lilac, sidewalk chalk

Commuter Tourism, Part 2

Posted on March 19, 2009 | 1 Comment

On occasion, I will have a moment of clarity or realization that sends a satisfying—and sometimes manic—surge of energy through my veins. Chicago can do this to me at unexpected times. And I feel the need to thank it.

I have written about Commuter Tourism before. This was during my pre-Canon days, but luckily not pre-appreciation for my surroundings. Sometimes it takes a trip outside of the city to realize what I have here, and sometimes out of nowhere I am suddenly in-love with everything around me, even without the distance to make my heart grow fonder.

I am not a fan of strip malls and big parking lots surrounded by the same stores that you can shop at in nearly every town and city in the US. We have many of these lots in Chicago, but they aren’t immediately apparent and can easily be avoided, if you so choose. I think the “choose” part is key. Sometimes when I visit places outside of the city, I realize just how lucky I am to live and work around beautiful architecture and neighborhoods. My commute is really amazing when I think about it. I am lucky that it doesn’t involve a car, highway, or road that is flanked by miles and miles of strip malls. I grew up less than a block from said strip mall land back in Michigan. I didn’t really mind back then, but now I am spoiled rotten by my current city, and would have a hard time moving back.

A lot of the Midwestern towns, included Kalamazoo, MI and Bloomington, IN, have a downtown so cute that you could pinch them. Some of them look like a Rockwell painting. They have nice restaurants, wonderful storefronts, a central park, or a courthouse lawn filled with cherry trees. Drive 3 minutes from these downtown areas, and welcome to the same strip mall crap and big box stores that you see in any other city. It gets me down. There aren’t even sidewalks along many of these roads. Bill Bryson writes about this in his book I’m A Stranger Here Myself. By the way, he is a brilliantly funny writer. I laugh out-loud the whole time I read his books.

So to get back to my point, I love living in Chicago. And since I wasn’t worried about falling and dying on icy sidewalks as I walked to my train, I took a look around. Rubbernecking is not something you will see most hurried commuters doing, but I highly recommend it. Just along my normal route I captured the following textures from the buildings I pass on a daily basis: