Comparing Walgreen's to CVS is like comparing the Four Seasons to HoJo
I'm planning on moving back to Chicago in September, doing some contract legal work and taking massage therapy classes at night. So, with that in mind, I flew out there last weekend, took a free, all-day massage intro class at the school I'll be going to downtown, and had a load of fun.
I got in on Saturday afternoon and my friend, Breeg, picked me up at Midway. I always get nauseous on the landing into Midway. The runways are so short and the plane has to circle forever in order to land. I'm always thisclose to reaching for the air sick bag. Breeg dropped me off at my hotel on Belmont (I happen to have a thing for staying in nice hotels. Maybe it's because I never could as a kid, and now I can afford it? Who knows, but I dig it, so I do it.) and I went to check in. It was a nice place, and despite the fact that I was almost given a smoking room, it turned out okay. I walked around Lakeview, picked me up some Leinenkugel's Berry Weiss at Binny's (one of the beer-perks of being back in the Midwest), and headed back to the hotel to drink and wait for my friend Nach to get back in the city to hang out. It was not a problem to occupy myself in the interum because I don't have cable, and TLC has some great shows. Who knew watching 'little people' would be so interesting?
Nach biked over to my hotel and we went to a bar called "City Tap," I believe. The bouncer was hot and the steak samich I had was excellent. It came on this cheesy garlic bread. Awesome. Some dudes wanted to know where "May Fest" was. Nach told them. Then, they sat down and had beers. Uh... so no May Fest, guys? 2 of them, 2 of us. I think they thought the numbers would work to their advantage, but they failed to notice Nach's wedding ring and my intense focus on my steakwich. Too bad, guys. They also ended up walking in the opposite direction of May Fest. Silly boys.
The next morning I hopped on the L to go to my massage class downtown. It wouldn't be the L if I didn't get in the car with the drunken hobo who won't stop talking. Luckily, I remembered the 'ol Chicago L mantra, "look at the floor," and I also remembered my iPod. The poor schmo nearest to chatty sloshed hobo, however, was not as lucky as I. He was already in too deep. I kinda felt bad for him, but in a way, it was his own fault. He didn't know the rules of the train.
Nothing too interesting about the massage class itself.... I learned some massage techniques and we had partners that we practiced on. It was at Cortiva. The program will be 15 months and then I'll have to take a test and get licensed. Kinda like when I passed the bar to be a lawyer... Ok, so it's not like that at all, but this will be way more fun!
Later that night I went over to check out Nach's new place. It's like an apartment that's a house! Nice and quiet and spacious. I like it. She made some hot chocolate (with mini marshmallows for me!) and we watched 'Cheaters' on her big ass tv. I miss Joey Greco. No 'Cheaters' in DC. It's so funny to watch people make fools of themselves-- like the woman who was trying to beat up a dominatrix her boyfriend was cheating on her with. Oh, and the dude was dressed like a baby. Bib, bottle, and all. I mean, obviously it was his girlfriend's fault he was cheating because he told her that he wanted to be dominated, and she didn't do it. Yep, nothing hotter than dressing up your man like a baby and giving him a spanking.
On my walk back to my hotel, I had to witness a real-life couple squabble on Clark-- complete with crying girlfriend and boyfriend trying to get her not to walk away by forcefully grabbing her. He stopped when he saw me. This was a very awkward situation... I was walking in between them (behind the girl with the guy a ways behind me) for awhile and I asked the chick if she was ok. She nodded, so I was like, ok then, I'm not getting in the middle of this. The last thing I need is to play superhero on a dark Chicago street at 11pm.
Monday I got up and walked around the Lakeview area to check out possible rentals and areas I'd want to live. Breeg came into the city and we had brunch at 'Orange.' They are supposed to be known for their Chai French Toast, which I ordered and was then told by the waitress that, "We're never out of the chai mix for that, but we are today." Apparently, I don't know the meaning of the word, 'never,' or it's meaning has been changed and it now means, "sometimes." Regardless, it figures that the one time I'd hit up Orange, they wouldn't have the one thing I wanted to go there for. I got this Eggs Benedict thing that wreaked complete havoc on my stomach for most of the day. Me and Orange just weren't meant to be friends.
I had a hair appointment at Milios at 3:45 (yep, it's platinum now!), so Breeg left and we made plans to meet up later for dinner, and so I could meet her new man, Ray. It took about 2 hours and 45 minutes to go from brunette to bleach blonde, but it totally rocks! I like being blonde! It's super fun!
I wanted to see my friend Paul, but he was out of town that weekend for a bachelor party in Atlantic City. I called him on Monday and, turns out, he was back in town! He tried to give me the 'I'm so tired and I have to get up at 5am" excuse but, when I told him he had to see the new blonde Jen, he finally caved and we met at Argo for some tea. I had my first ever bubble tea (coconut) and he had this thing called a 'Hibiscus steamer." I think it was just tea and steamed milk. Paul gave my bubble tea a whirl and I tried his hibiscus thing. It tasted like ass. I tried to break this to Paul as gently as possible by saying, "This tastes like ass." He replied, "I know." It was really a funny exchange, if you try to picture it. I suggested that he get some Splenda. He did, and this led to my confession that I hoist Splenda packets from Starbucks sometimes 'cause they're expensive for a whole box of those things, and I never need a whole box. Paul's response was a mixture of confusion, pity, and sarcasm. He pulled a few dollars out of his wallet and pushed them across the table to me. That was so I could afford to buy my own Splendas next time I was at the store. Haha! What a card! No, thanks, I'll continue to stuff my pockets with the Splenda packets I am entitled to at Starbucks. I mean, I'm paying for them, right? It's included in the cost of my beverage, isn't it? You bet your ass I'm loading up!
We chatted for awhile and then Paul walked me over to the restaurant in Wrigleyville, Chen's, that I was meeting Breeg and Ray at. He had to get some stuff at Walgreen's first. Can I just say that, as far as drugstores go, I love Walgreen's? I mean, CVS just pales in comparision, and the candy aisle at Walgreen's comes pretty close to what I picture Heaven to look like. They have every candy bar you can think of, some you've never heard of, and then they also have all of those in King Size. I was biting my nails and hopping from toe to toe trying to make a decision. I might be the most ambivalent person ever when it comes to food choices. So, although I love the huge candy selection at Walgreen's, it's a little bit nerve-wracking to walk into that aisle unless I have a game plan before hand. When I mentioned all this to Paul, he told me to get a candy bar. I felt about 5 years old-- when you are all excited at the check-out and your parents say you can pick out some candy.. but you have to hurry up because the clerk is ringing up all the groceries! That's exactly how it was. Good thing the checkout lane's candy selection was meager. I went with a 'Take 5." Not one I'd normally buy, but I was under pressure and I had to pick fast!
I then met Breeg and her man at Chen's and had a vodka tonic and a tasty Rainbow Maki. We went to the Ivy afterwards and had a beer, then I hit the hay and Breeg was generous enough to brave the morning traffic and drop me off at Midway on Tuesday morning for my flight. It was such a great trip! I can't wait to be back in Chicago for good! :)
I got in on Saturday afternoon and my friend, Breeg, picked me up at Midway. I always get nauseous on the landing into Midway. The runways are so short and the plane has to circle forever in order to land. I'm always thisclose to reaching for the air sick bag. Breeg dropped me off at my hotel on Belmont (I happen to have a thing for staying in nice hotels. Maybe it's because I never could as a kid, and now I can afford it? Who knows, but I dig it, so I do it.) and I went to check in. It was a nice place, and despite the fact that I was almost given a smoking room, it turned out okay. I walked around Lakeview, picked me up some Leinenkugel's Berry Weiss at Binny's (one of the beer-perks of being back in the Midwest), and headed back to the hotel to drink and wait for my friend Nach to get back in the city to hang out. It was not a problem to occupy myself in the interum because I don't have cable, and TLC has some great shows. Who knew watching 'little people' would be so interesting?
Nach biked over to my hotel and we went to a bar called "City Tap," I believe. The bouncer was hot and the steak samich I had was excellent. It came on this cheesy garlic bread. Awesome. Some dudes wanted to know where "May Fest" was. Nach told them. Then, they sat down and had beers. Uh... so no May Fest, guys? 2 of them, 2 of us. I think they thought the numbers would work to their advantage, but they failed to notice Nach's wedding ring and my intense focus on my steakwich. Too bad, guys. They also ended up walking in the opposite direction of May Fest. Silly boys.
The next morning I hopped on the L to go to my massage class downtown. It wouldn't be the L if I didn't get in the car with the drunken hobo who won't stop talking. Luckily, I remembered the 'ol Chicago L mantra, "look at the floor," and I also remembered my iPod. The poor schmo nearest to chatty sloshed hobo, however, was not as lucky as I. He was already in too deep. I kinda felt bad for him, but in a way, it was his own fault. He didn't know the rules of the train.
Nothing too interesting about the massage class itself.... I learned some massage techniques and we had partners that we practiced on. It was at Cortiva. The program will be 15 months and then I'll have to take a test and get licensed. Kinda like when I passed the bar to be a lawyer... Ok, so it's not like that at all, but this will be way more fun!
Later that night I went over to check out Nach's new place. It's like an apartment that's a house! Nice and quiet and spacious. I like it. She made some hot chocolate (with mini marshmallows for me!) and we watched 'Cheaters' on her big ass tv. I miss Joey Greco. No 'Cheaters' in DC. It's so funny to watch people make fools of themselves-- like the woman who was trying to beat up a dominatrix her boyfriend was cheating on her with. Oh, and the dude was dressed like a baby. Bib, bottle, and all. I mean, obviously it was his girlfriend's fault he was cheating because he told her that he wanted to be dominated, and she didn't do it. Yep, nothing hotter than dressing up your man like a baby and giving him a spanking.
On my walk back to my hotel, I had to witness a real-life couple squabble on Clark-- complete with crying girlfriend and boyfriend trying to get her not to walk away by forcefully grabbing her. He stopped when he saw me. This was a very awkward situation... I was walking in between them (behind the girl with the guy a ways behind me) for awhile and I asked the chick if she was ok. She nodded, so I was like, ok then, I'm not getting in the middle of this. The last thing I need is to play superhero on a dark Chicago street at 11pm.
Monday I got up and walked around the Lakeview area to check out possible rentals and areas I'd want to live. Breeg came into the city and we had brunch at 'Orange.' They are supposed to be known for their Chai French Toast, which I ordered and was then told by the waitress that, "We're never out of the chai mix for that, but we are today." Apparently, I don't know the meaning of the word, 'never,' or it's meaning has been changed and it now means, "sometimes." Regardless, it figures that the one time I'd hit up Orange, they wouldn't have the one thing I wanted to go there for. I got this Eggs Benedict thing that wreaked complete havoc on my stomach for most of the day. Me and Orange just weren't meant to be friends.
I had a hair appointment at Milios at 3:45 (yep, it's platinum now!), so Breeg left and we made plans to meet up later for dinner, and so I could meet her new man, Ray. It took about 2 hours and 45 minutes to go from brunette to bleach blonde, but it totally rocks! I like being blonde! It's super fun!
I wanted to see my friend Paul, but he was out of town that weekend for a bachelor party in Atlantic City. I called him on Monday and, turns out, he was back in town! He tried to give me the 'I'm so tired and I have to get up at 5am" excuse but, when I told him he had to see the new blonde Jen, he finally caved and we met at Argo for some tea. I had my first ever bubble tea (coconut) and he had this thing called a 'Hibiscus steamer." I think it was just tea and steamed milk. Paul gave my bubble tea a whirl and I tried his hibiscus thing. It tasted like ass. I tried to break this to Paul as gently as possible by saying, "This tastes like ass." He replied, "I know." It was really a funny exchange, if you try to picture it. I suggested that he get some Splenda. He did, and this led to my confession that I hoist Splenda packets from Starbucks sometimes 'cause they're expensive for a whole box of those things, and I never need a whole box. Paul's response was a mixture of confusion, pity, and sarcasm. He pulled a few dollars out of his wallet and pushed them across the table to me. That was so I could afford to buy my own Splendas next time I was at the store. Haha! What a card! No, thanks, I'll continue to stuff my pockets with the Splenda packets I am entitled to at Starbucks. I mean, I'm paying for them, right? It's included in the cost of my beverage, isn't it? You bet your ass I'm loading up!
We chatted for awhile and then Paul walked me over to the restaurant in Wrigleyville, Chen's, that I was meeting Breeg and Ray at. He had to get some stuff at Walgreen's first. Can I just say that, as far as drugstores go, I love Walgreen's? I mean, CVS just pales in comparision, and the candy aisle at Walgreen's comes pretty close to what I picture Heaven to look like. They have every candy bar you can think of, some you've never heard of, and then they also have all of those in King Size. I was biting my nails and hopping from toe to toe trying to make a decision. I might be the most ambivalent person ever when it comes to food choices. So, although I love the huge candy selection at Walgreen's, it's a little bit nerve-wracking to walk into that aisle unless I have a game plan before hand. When I mentioned all this to Paul, he told me to get a candy bar. I felt about 5 years old-- when you are all excited at the check-out and your parents say you can pick out some candy.. but you have to hurry up because the clerk is ringing up all the groceries! That's exactly how it was. Good thing the checkout lane's candy selection was meager. I went with a 'Take 5." Not one I'd normally buy, but I was under pressure and I had to pick fast!
I then met Breeg and her man at Chen's and had a vodka tonic and a tasty Rainbow Maki. We went to the Ivy afterwards and had a beer, then I hit the hay and Breeg was generous enough to brave the morning traffic and drop me off at Midway on Tuesday morning for my flight. It was such a great trip! I can't wait to be back in Chicago for good! :)