Spring has sprung in Chicago!

Or should I say summer has sprung? It is 79 glorious degrees in the windy city today, and the sun is shining brilliantly off the lake. After doing some reading this morning for class, Will and I decided we *had* to get out and enjoy this day.

I was planning on just biking over to Promontory Point and maybe just whiling away a couple hours on a picnic blanket by the water, but Will had another idea. He wanted to bike to Navy Pier. It's an 8 mile ride from our apartment. That means 16 miles round trip.

Ok. Why the hell not?!

About half way there, it dawned on me that we didn't bring any water with us, and the sun is really beating down today. Meh. No biggie. We can just buy a bottle or two at the pier, right?

Wrong. :(

I also realized I had taken the $20.00 out of my camera case.

Oops. No money, no water. We are dumbasses.

But we made the trip anyway. It was Will's first trip to the pier! We walked around enjoying the sights, sounds and sunshine. I took a couple of crappy photos, which I shall post below for your enjoyment. (I desperately need to get batteries for my camera because I think it takes much nicer photos than Will's camera.)

Taaaaaaaaaaaaaa daaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa! Navy Pier! Yeah, told ya the pictures were craptastic. Some day my camera will function again, and Will might let me stop to take more photos along the way like a "nerdy tourist".

So it was an afternoon well spent, although I don't think Will will want to bike there without water again.I have to confess to you that before my sweet Seattle-bound friends gifted us a pair of bikes, I hadn't ridden a bike in about ehhhhhhhh 8 or 10 years-ish.

Read: I was getting reeeeeeeeeeeeeeeally crabby and tired on the way back! I am not used to biking such long distances yet! My ass and calves were begging for mercy at around mile 12!

Will, bless his sweet little heart, tried to cheer me up by singing Beatles songs and that Rocky song that goes "da da da, da da da getting stronger!", but I was having none of it!

The rest of the evening will be spent lazing around the apartment reading for class with the windows wide open. Eventually I will pry myself off of the couch and cook us up some steak fajitas. Yum.

Until next time,

Emme.

90% done!

As I am writing this post, I'm laying on my bed which is placed directly across from two large windows with a breathtaking view of lake Michigan. We're finally here. We're about 90% unpacked, and we are already in love with our new city.

My observations so far:

1. We have a 24 hour door person at our building. There are actually 4 door people that rotate shifts. There are 2 men and 2 women, and 3 out of the 4 are wonderful, funny, sweet, intelligent people! The 4th one is a grumpy old asshole of a man who obviously doesn't enjoy his life (or job) very much.  Luckily, he only works part time on the weekends, so hopefully Will and I will be able to avoid him most of the time.

2. The first night we were here, our toilet was leaking when we flushed it. Uh oh. I went down stairs to the sweet door person, filled out a work order, and the maintenance man came the next afternoon. Um...huh? The next afternoon? Before we signed the lease we *specifically asked * if there was 24 hr. maintenance and were told yes. *sigh*

Anywho, it really wasn't a huge deal. The water wasn't GUSHING or anything. It was more of a slow trickle, and only after the toilet was flushed. The maintenance man came on Sunday afternoon. He was super nice and friendly and it's working just fine now, no leaks, so I can't really complain too much.

3. I suck at remembering names. I can remember 2 out of the 5 people we've met at this building so far. Fail. I need to start writing names down.

4. My husband is seriously a handyman. He doesn't give himself enough credit in that arena. In the two days that we've been in Chicago, he has put together our sofa bed as well as installed a new shower head. The shower head that was in there when we moved in on Saturday was so. evil. It either pelted so hard with water that you were wincing in pain and begging for mercy, or it sprayed so lightly and cock-eyed that you'd have to spend at least an hour in there trying to shampoo your hair and shave your legs. Sheesh. So we bought a new one and I am about to test it out once I'm done with this post.

5. The people that we have met so far have been extremely friendly. I have no idea why the stereotype exists that Chicagoans are mean or impatient (except while driving- this is oh so very true!)--everyone we've come across (with the exception of grumpy mccrabass part-time door person) has been really friendly, and genuinely interesting.

6. We are literally right off of lake shore drive. I thought that the constant noise of the cars traveling day and night would bother me. It really has the opposite effect. Will suggested (and I agree) that it's got this nice "white noise" quality that is really kind of soothing when you're trying to sleep.

7. Our kitchen is teeny, and I can't stress how much I love those little kitchen hooks for hanging up pots and pans! They're great for maximizing space in our small kitchen.

8. 900 square feet is a great amount of space for two newlyweds and a cat. We moved from a house that had over 2000 square feet of space, and I thought we'd feel a little bit cramped, but we don't at all!

9. I can't tell you how much I LOVE waking up to the view of the lake, the park, and navy pier in the distance. It is really, truly spectacular, and I've woken up with a huge smile on my face for the past two mornings.

10. This city has an energy that is really invigorating for a small town girl. It might sound stupid, but it's true. I feel like so much is out there right at my fingertips, and I swear I will take full advantage of that!

Those are my observations on Chicago living thus far!

So today we unpacked, cleaned, and took an hour and a half walk along the lake paths which are just steps from our front door. Our plans for the rest of the week include:
- Explore neighborhood and public transit options in more depth.
- I have to read for class and write a mid-term paper.
- Go to the museum of science and industry because 1. I haven't been there in several years. and 2. It is within walking distance from our place.
- I need to continue job hunting.
-This weekend my sister and her fiance are coming into Chicago for St. Patty's celebrations! So that should be a blast!

Finally, I am going to post some pictures that we've taken over the last two days. I've probably seen it a thousand times, but the Chicago skyline still rocks my world.

A not so good picture of our teeny kitchen. I did not get a good shot of the pots/pans on the hooks that I love so much!

A crappy photo of one side of our living room. The hall comes into the living area in such a way that makes it difficult to get a good shot, but it's actually a very large space. Excuse the mess. Oh, and the bike won't always be in our living room. Heh. We have not gotten our bike storage assignments yet.

This is a view of our building from the bridge. It was built in 1918 and it was originally a hotel where people stayed while vacationing on the lake.

 Chicago skyline. Nuff said.

My view as I am typing this post. Okay, I need to get off here and clean that window! lol.

Stayed tuned. I have a feeling this blog is going to get better and better as we learn to live in this fantastic Windy City!

A few teaser pictures of our new place...

Let me show you some pictures of our view. (Because you do not want to see pictures of the boxes stacked in our place. I will post some pictures of the inside of our apartment once we have things put away!)

 
See the Sears tower (Willis tower, whatev) in the second picture? Saaaaawwweeet! And at night, it's all lit up green for St. Patty's!

Please know that the pictures do not do this view justice. The lake looks sooooo far away in the first picture, but when you're looking out the window, it's like we're right on top of it! I always said I wanted to live on the water. This wasn't really the water I was talking about, but it is gorgeous just the same.

I am really, really tired from the move today, but I promise to write a real, quality post in the next couple of days once we get settled.

Approved!

We were approved for the condo! We move this weekend! Woot woot! We are SO excited!

I promise to blog again once we're settled in. My material will hopefully be getting more interesting since we're finally going to be in the city! :)

Hurry up and wait!

I feel like we've been doing a lot of this "hurry up and wait" thing lately. Most recently, we were in the hospital waiting for my sweet little nephew to be born! And wait we did! Cher's labor was 22 agonizing hours long! She said every minute was worth it when she gave birth to precious little Allen on leap day. He was born at 9:54pm on February 29, 2012. He weighed 7lbs 10oz and he is just as perfect as babies can get. Both mom and baby are doing well, and I have been absolutely loving on him since he got here! Gotta get those kisses and cuddles in before we move!

Here is a photo of the sweet lil man!

On the very same day, in the very same hospital, we were waiting for Will's dad to have surgery for his kidney stones. Any type of surgery makes me nervous, especially those that involve general anesthesia! Thankfully, the surgery went well, and he is feeling so much relief.

Now we're doing the "hurry up and wait" as we wait to hear back from our potential landlord. On Friday, Will, Ellie, and I drove to Chicago to drop off Will's clinical paperwork and to drop off our application for the condo on that we absolutely love.

I don't think I blogged about it before, but it is definitely the place for us! Both of our jaws dropped when we saw this place which was a great sign, because Will had been a little hesitant at all of the other places we saw. Not here. He was loving it just as much as I was.

We had no idea we could afford a view like this! It is quite literally right on Lake Michigan in a gorgeous old building that was a swanky resort back in the 1920s and 30s. It's 900 square feet of space on the 11th floor with closets galore, and stunning views of Lake Michigan and the Chicago skyline. The building also has a great laundry room, a bike room, and it feels very secure, as in you have to be buzzed into the building. It has a really friendly doorman too, which makes me feel a little spoiled! It doesn't have a gym, but the lake paths are steps from the front door, so I'll have to deal.

The gentleman that showed us the place said you can watch the fireworks at Navy Pier from the living room! How awesome is that?  We love it so much because it's so spacious, and it offers so many of the amenities that we were looking for, as well as breathtaking views, but without the cookie cutter, boring look of the new high rises.

We are supposed to hear back on our application by the middle of the week. So we're crossing our fingers that we get a big yes! If so, we move next Saturday! That's 6 days from now.

Until then...I am going be packing, doing homework, and spoiling my sweet little new nephew!

My first day of voluntary unemployment...

Yesterday was my last day at the clinic where I've worked for the last five and a half years. The girls at the clinic sent me off right by buying my lunch and surprising me with not one, but two HUGE balloon bouquets, lots of sweet cards, and a sparkly tiara. The balloons said "best wishes" , the cards were heartfelt, and I'm not sure what the hell the tiara was all about, but hey, it was pretty.

While I was getting spoiled by my now ex-coworkers, Will had another meeting with his med school advisers and his start date in Chicago will be April 2, 2012. We have appointments set up for this Saturday to see at least four more apartments in Hyde Park. We will get the application process started early next week after we make our final decision.

Ideally, we'd like to be all moved in by the second weekend in March, but there is some paperwork that needs to get finalized between Will and the school so we don't have a precise move in date yet. We were thinking it would be next weekend, but now that may not be the case. This no date nonsense, of course, is driving me crrrrrrazy because I am a planner. I want to get in there and get settled soon so that I can begin pounding the pavement to find myself a new j-o-b.

So now you know the scoop on the move, and now you know that I am officially unemployed. It hasn't sunk in yet, but instead feels like the start of a wonderful vacation of sorts. I woke up this morning shortly after eight o'clock rather than seven which was GLORIOUS. That extra hour makes a huge difference to me. I ate an unhurried breakfast, spent an hour with Will at the gym, and spent a couple of hours working on homework. I am still very much a full-time college student, despite the fact that I don't have a "real job" anymore.

Here's my plan for the remainder of the day:

-Go with Will to pick up some medical records that the school needs.
-Accompany Will to get his picture taken for an ID that he needs. (Also, I will be printing out a wedding photo for a newspaper announcement that I have been neglecting to do for almost six months. It's so crazy to think that Will and I have been married for nearly half a year already, and that next month we'll celebrate nine years of together-dom.)
-Go with Will to the police station to get a background check.
-Outline a list of all of the projects I want to finish in the next week. (i.e. sort through our stuff and get rid of what we don't use/don't want to move, print and organize the recipes I've been wanting to organize for the last year or so, outline our dinner menu for the next week, plan out midterm projects for school, etc)

Sounds good, ey?

My plan for the next month:
-Being very productive at home and in class.
-Spend at least an hour, 5 times a week at the gym. Since I'm not working, this should be a cinch.
-Next week I think we're going to head down to Ellie's house for a few days. I miss my little sister, and always look forward to spending time with her and her fiance.
-Choose a place, sign a lease, and MOVE IN! Get settled and learn more about our new neighborhood.
-Enjoy the last few weeks I have with Will before his schedule gets crazy again.

That's it folks! Stay tuned. Hopefully I'll keep this positive outlook throughout my "sabbatical". That is my goal! ;)

Hunting Apartments in Hyde Park!

Oh interwebz, how I have missed you! School is sort of kicking my ass this semester, but it is Saturday! And I am up before noon! So I shall delight you with this post about apartment hunting in Hyde Park!

Will and I, along with my awesome note-takin' momma, went apartment hunting in Chicago last weekend. We left the house at 7:45am to make it into the city in time for our first appointment at 10:00am, where we met with Dennis from TLC apartments. We arrived a little bit early, so we found some street parking, and proceeded to enter the Madison Park Apartment building. Dennis wasn't in his office yet, so we wandered around the awesome lobby checking things out. The building was built around 1930, and the architecture was awesome, if you're like me and you geek out on that sort of thing.

We checked out their brand new fitness center; a gym on site is a MAJOR plus in our book. We also checked out the laundry facilities. Very clean. Ample washers and dryers. 1.65 per wash, 1.65 per dry. Around that time, Dennis found us, and we filled out some paperwork to let him know what we were interested in.

Basically, we *need* something that rents for around 1000 per month that is cat friendly. We *want* something with a gym, on site laundry, relatively easy street parking, some legit closet space, very easy access to public transit, 600 or more square feet, a dishwasher, and a view. (Yeah, we'
re not picky at all, eh?!)

Dennis was really friendly and knowledgeable. He was supposed to show us two units in the Madison Park building, but one had been rented out the night before, so he showed us the one that was left. It was a small, 500 square foot box. The teeeeeeeny bedroom was directly off of the small living room. It was updated with a brand new, teeeeny galley kitchen. The kitchen had a brand new dishwasher! OMG! YES! Holy hell, I HATE hand washing dishes! I am too lazy for that shit, y'all!

The building was located on a nice, quiet, tree lined street. The unit had brand new carpet, and a huge window with a view of the street below. Dennis said that it rents for $975.00 per month, including the cat rent, and that it's so close to UC that we get the added benefit of the UC police force patrolling our street. He also said that street parking is relatively easy on Dorchester, but if we wanted a guaranteed spot, they have one space in the lot across the street that rents for 125.00 per month.

We thanked Dennis for his time, and we had about two and a half hours to kill before our appointment with MAC apartments, so we strolled the neighborhood. We saw some funky little shops, several ethnic restaurants, a dunkin donuts, a starbucks, and several adorable cafes. We ate breakfast at a great little spot called Mellow Yellow that has been around since the 70s. I took a mental note that the food here was relatively inexpensive, and pretty tasty. It could definitely be our breakfast spot in the area.

We also decided to go inside Hyde Park Produce, a grocery store that I had previously researched online, and I was very excited to check out their goodies. True to their name, they had a HUGE selection of tasty looking, fresh produce. I purchased 3 avacados for $1.10. SCORE!

Then we strolled past the produce section and began checking out other foodstuffs, and I almost shit my pants. I knew grocery prices were going to be high in Chicago, but it was still sort of shocking to see a pint of Breyer's going for over $8.00. I can buy one here for $3.60. Ah well. It won't kill me to give up a little icecream. Plus, when my parents and sisters come in to visit, I can tell them to bring cheap groceries and write em a check when they arrive. ;) Muahahhaa!

Our next appointment was at 1:00pm with Seth at MAC apartments. Again, we explained our likes and dislikes, and off we were to check out some apartments. Seth told us that pretty much all of the units we would be seeing were within a mile of the Obama home. So natch, I asked to drive past it. We did. And the Obama home is MASSIVE, old, and gorgeous, and there were secret service dudes all over the place. The street is blocked off at all times. I made my momma take some pictures. I am nerdy like that.

But I digress.

The first place Seth showed us was on Drexel Ave. As we began walking up to the building, Seth told us that the unit we were seeing rents for $850.00 a month. I was psyched! If we could find something we really enjoyed for less than $900.00 a month I would be beyond THRILLED.

Buuuut then we walked into the building and down the hall. And it stunk. And it was dark. And it was dirty. It had a palpable, creepy vibe. Gross.

Will shot me a look that said, "OH HELLLLL NO, WOMAN. We are NOT living here." We walked into the unit and it was actually pretty decent. Fresh paint. Hardwood. Big closet. But we didn't feel comfortable in that building. The hall was smelly. And it was creepy. And it kind of made me want to go home and take a hot shower. So we told Seth thanks, but no thanks, and off we went.

Apartment number 3 was a vintage walk up on Woodlawn. Seth told us it rents for $962.00 a month, plus $25.00 each month for our darling little feline. We hoofed it up the 4 flights of stairs, and through the door. Annnnnd....



......it was glorious! Angels were singing and beating their wings! I think I heard Jesus himself say, "you're welcome, my child." I. freaking. loved. this. place. It was HUGE!

It was also really messy, and I think that really turned Will off. Apparently the previous tenants had literally just moved out the night before, and the place was pretty messy. But of course they have a team that comes in and cleans everything up, paints, etc. I tried to reassure Will (who admittedly hasn't done a whole lot of apartment hunting in the past) that we wouldn't be moving in until everything was painted, and all cleaned up. I think he was still slightly put off.

But omg. The place was MASSIVE at 800 something square feet. Hardwood floors. Vintage character that I looooooove. And oh the windows! Windows everywhere. Every room had a nice, big ceiling fan. The closets were plentiful and so spacious. I loved the layout because the bedroom is way off in back, and it's large. Then there were two other spacious rooms which we could make into the living room and office/dining area. One of my most favorite features: there was a butler pantry. So cool! The place had so much character.

The cons?  Laundry would have to be taken outside. No gym. No dishwasher.

After I marveled for a while, we moved on to the next space. It was on E 47th Street. One thing I noticed is that 47th is a super busy road; noise and parking could become an issue. The apartment itself was another vintage walk up. Smaller, at right around 600 square feet, it rents for $901.00 a month. It had one really large closet, small ceiling fans in each room, hardwood floors, and a small balcony.

As we were moving on I made a mental note of how I'd love to have a balcony! It would be so nice to be able to sit there and have a drink, or grill out when the weather is nice.

The last places we saw were 2 different units on S. Blackstone. The building was a hotel in the 1920s but they've made the inside modern. The building is a high rise,  and it has a nice gym, and laundry on site. The building also felt really secure, and it had a concierge. The first unit we saw was on the 6th floor. It was clean, fresh paint, the carpet was brand new. It had central air. The kitchen was brand new, it had granite counter tops, maple cabinets, and a dishwasher.  The bathroom had ample sink space, and the tub and shower were sparkling clean. The closet space left much to be desired. The bedroom was teeeeeeeeny. We'd only be able to fit our bed and one night table. It had a nice view of a park, and some of downtown Chicago. All in all, it was pretty nice, and it rented for 970.00 per month with a "one free month credit."

Then we went up to the 12th floor. And oh. my. gooooooooooodness. The view of the lake was AHMAAAAAZING. I seriously walked immediately across the apartment to the windows and my jaw dropped. I never dreamed we'd be able to afford something with a view like that! The unit was much the same as the one before, only reversed since we were looking in a different direction. And of course, the higher you go, the better the view, and the rent bumps up to $1025.00 per month with a one month free credit. The impractical part of me wanted to sign a lease immediately. "Yes Sir! We'll take it!" The view was just breathtaking. But instead of getting all crazy and signing a lease on the spot, we stared a bit longer, thanked Seth for his time, and headed back home.

I feel like this blog post was an episode of house hunters on TLC...which one will they pick?! So many great choices. We plan to check out a few more places in the next two weeks, so stay tuned!