20 years and I'm still here.
The end of September marks my 20-year Anniversary in Chicago.
Sight unseen, I moved from rural northern Wisconsin to Chicago in September 1990 for orientation week at the University of Chicago. My Dad and brother dropped me off at the dorm and helped me put all my stuff on the curb. Immediately thereafter my Dad yelled at my brother, "We got to get the f_ck out of here before it gets dark!!" It was about 9:00am. My Dad wasn't fond of big cities, or the fact the U of C was on the south side of Chicago. I waved good bye, they sped off, and I realized it was truly a new chapter in my life where I didn't know anyone and felt both excited and scared.
Looking back, I chuckle a bit. I sort of bumbled my way into Chicago without thinking things through. And yet, I feel things have worked out pretty well. Now its been twenty years and that's over half my life. For as long as I've been here and its been home, I still feel like I haven't settled down. I can't figure out if its because I move to a new apartment every couple of years or if its because I have been here so long I'm getting wanderlust.
Regardless, Chicago has been a wonderful home. Its a big city with a small-town feel. I've taken a number of photos of the city at night over the last few years, and they can be seen here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/mikiedoggie/sets/72157603120236360/show/
A couple of favorites, even though I've posted these a number of times in the past:
I'm not sure how many more years I'll live here, but its certainly a beautiful city in which to live.
Sight unseen, I moved from rural northern Wisconsin to Chicago in September 1990 for orientation week at the University of Chicago. My Dad and brother dropped me off at the dorm and helped me put all my stuff on the curb. Immediately thereafter my Dad yelled at my brother, "We got to get the f_ck out of here before it gets dark!!" It was about 9:00am. My Dad wasn't fond of big cities, or the fact the U of C was on the south side of Chicago. I waved good bye, they sped off, and I realized it was truly a new chapter in my life where I didn't know anyone and felt both excited and scared.
Looking back, I chuckle a bit. I sort of bumbled my way into Chicago without thinking things through. And yet, I feel things have worked out pretty well. Now its been twenty years and that's over half my life. For as long as I've been here and its been home, I still feel like I haven't settled down. I can't figure out if its because I move to a new apartment every couple of years or if its because I have been here so long I'm getting wanderlust.
Regardless, Chicago has been a wonderful home. Its a big city with a small-town feel. I've taken a number of photos of the city at night over the last few years, and they can be seen here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/mikiedoggie/sets/72157603120236360/show/
A couple of favorites, even though I've posted these a number of times in the past:
I'm not sure how many more years I'll live here, but its certainly a beautiful city in which to live.