And we say Chi-City

This past weekend, I stayed with Ina in Chicago.  I got to meet Mike and Beth's son, who is almost 1 year old now.  He is walking and has said a few words, both verbally and in sign language (if you hadn't heard, babies are capable of learning some simple sign language before they can talk, and the ability to communicate helps them to cope by expressing themselves without crying).   He is adorable, of course.   I also got to catch up with Ina and hang out with Chris, another old roommate. 

We also went to Joe's to watch the heartbreaking Georgetown-OSU game (well, heartbreaking for me; my two traitorous former roommates were rooting for OSU...at least Chris got a lot of money out of it), and went to a lounge in Wicker Park.  On Sunday, we went to Tango Sur - a fantastic and affordable Argentine steakhouse located in Lakeview that basically served meat with your meat.  Dishes included steak stuffed with spinach and cheese, and a steak topped with ham, melted cheese and a tomato-based sauce.  Incidentally, all the meat served there is from free-range cattle. 

Speaking of Lakeview, I regret that I didn't have the chance to spend time walking around my old neighborhood.  I haven't walked around Lakeview since I left Chicago in 2000.  This weekend was eally rainy, so it wouldn't have been idela conditions.  But I definitely will make sure to do that when I go back. I also realized that my old apartment was right near R. Kelly's house.  No, I don't remember smelling pee when I lived there.

My stupid voucher ended up being a blessing in disguise.  Instead of flying from Chicago to Philly and from Philly to DC on Sunday, I stopped in Philly to have dinner with Ed and Regina (in Jersey), then took a train back to DC.  Though my visit with them was way too brief, it wasn't the worst way to cram in visits with so many of my closest friends in only one weekend. 

links: digg this    del.icio.us    technorati    reddit