When in Roam
March 7 — March 13: Chicago, Week 2
Hey everybody, it’s been eight weeks since my last post. Sorry for the disruption of service to you loyal Roamers! Like many other deliverables at this phase of COVID, the delay was a supply chain issue. I fried the motherboard on my less-than-one-year-old Dell XPS so I couldn’t produce content. (Note to self: always work on a flat surface so the fan can vent out the heat.) It took three weeks to get the part installed and by the time that was resolved, I was drinking from the firehose at…my new gig! More on that in an upcoming post. Here’s the lineup as we wind down:
- Chicago week 2 (below)
- The ride back
- Finding/landing a job while Roaming
- The Happy Recap
Thanks for your patience — here we go!
We started the Sunday of our second week in Chi-town at Oz Park. It’s just west of Lincoln Park off Lake Michigan, and named in honor of Frank L. Baum. According to Crain’s Chicago Business, he resided at 1667 N. Humboldt Blvd. from 1891–1910 where he reported for the Chicago Post and penned fiction on the side. His books included The Wonderful Wizard of Oz in 1899 followed by 13 other Oz books that provided the raw material for the beloved movie. The park itself contains tributes to the four main characters, each commissioned over the last twenty years by the community. Seeing all the locals hanging out, parents with kids in the playground, extended families and friends huddled up in small circles on the grass, gave the vibe that this neighborhood felt there was no place like home.
We headed west to Oak Park where Frank Lloyd Wright built or remodeled 25 homes between the 1890s and the aughts, including his home and studio. Beautiful neighborhood that Rome-eo Al Kreitner got us hip to. Hats off to Al! If it weren’t for all his great suggestions, we probs would have been back in the New York metro area by now!
On the way back to Fertig Regional HQ, we stopped in Chinatown. I had broken out in a rash and realized it was due to foregoing my favorite cuisine for the longest period of time in my adult life. While there we took in Nine Dragon Wall. It’s modeled after a similar installation in Beihai Park in Beijing and is made of glazed tile from China.
We came home and dined, first catching up with Spence and then finishing Ted Lasso for the second time — which was just as enjoyable as the first time for me. It felt like when you turned on the TV and caught one of your classic movies where you knew what was coming next and were able to savor it again. That never gets old, right? It happened again when we saw a classic Schitts Creek where David (at Stevie’s urging) submitted a lease to run the general store…
Monday, March 8, started with a little stress, the first we’d felt in four-and-a-half months. I had recently accepted an offer for a new full-time gig. Long story short, I had to be in Alexandria, VA, the week of March 29. Last night, Spence asked how I could do that when we weren’t scheduled to get our first COVID shots till April 5 and it would take 14 days for the inoculation to take effect? I responded as I typically do when someone has asked me a question I don’t have a great answer for, “That’s a very good question.”
That little interlude gave Carol and me pause and when we woke up on Monday morning, we both had come to the same conclusion. We’d cut our trip short and go home after Chicago. This coming Saturday. Three weeks early. We texted the news to Spence and he went on the hunt for vaccine appointments for us on or about March 15th, a week from today, in the New York metro area.
That set up Monday morning’s activities for me: cancel our Airbnbs in Detroit, Cleveland, and Pittsburgh, let the Residence Inn in Wayne know we’d be arriving three weeks earlier, and move whatever doctors’ appointments I had set up for April to next week, before I would start my new gig remotely, the week of March 22.
On one hand, we felt a little blue, our trip was ending and we were getting back to real life three weeks earlier than expected. On the other hand, I had a gig that I was excited about!
Even though that was the scenario, a little involuntary stress did start to seep into our brains and bloodstream at the thought of reentering day-to-day life sooner than expected. Our lives and habits had changed but would that newfound attitude last?
It reminded us of annual summer vacations to Cape May over the last seven years. We always tried to bring the vibe home with us, with mixed results. Maybe this time, after being away for four-and-a-half months instead of one week, we’d be able to break through that barrier of anxiety, or at least subscribe to the definition of Nirvana as being comfortable with the anxiety and uncertainty of day-to-day life.
We had all of the itinerary changes secured by early afternoon. With the weather in the 50s, we headed out to Pilsen, in the Lower West Side. For over 100 years, that neighborhood had served as a haven for immigrants new to town. First, it was eastern European Czechs, then Poles, and now Hispanic cultures. Residents are of primarily Mexican descent, sprinkled with a smattering of young white peeps. All surrounded by new construction harbingering gentrification.
The area is also a mecca for street art. One-and-a-half miles of murals running east/west on 16th Street. Some great, some not so much, some new, some faded. Memorials to soldiers lost in action, tributes to native cultures, and Be Boys and Girls strutting their stuff. It reminded us of Cabbagetown and Reynoldstown in Atlanta, and the RiNo District in Denver, both referenced in previous posts.
The similar environments, presenting similar content struck me. Since the dawn of time, people had been creating the same things simultaneously in other places, often with no knowledge of what was occurring outside of their own Private Idaho. Seeing this art in Pilsen was another reminder that we human beings have so much more in common than what separates us.
We worked up an appetite digesting all that great art and drove north to Tuco and Blondie, a buzzy Mexican eatery and bar with patio in Wrigleyville, to meet Spence’s Bar None Games co-founder Lillian. We figured just a drink, she probs had plans. But we were the plans! We got to hang for dinner and had a wonderful time!!!
Turns out she and Spence met prior to starting Harvard Business School at an icebreaker known as Yacht Week (you can’t make this stuff up), and never even had classes together. They did work on a school-related start-up project though, and that planted the seed for their re-connecting on BNG.
She was engaging, smart, funny, and passionate. It was great getting to know the person who spends the second most amount of time with Spence on a day-to-day basis. Looking forward to being of service in any way we can and watching yet another great person evolve and live a rich and rewarding life!
Then it was back home to sign the offer letter on my next adventure and celebrate by watching Feed Phil: South Korea, and the Schitt’s where the Apothecary had an open mic night — another classic.
Tuesday started out as a typical weekday morning. Journaling, networking, volunteer work, and connecting with family and friends. That stuff hadn’t been compelling enough to post about, but now that I’ll be re-entering the working world, I’ll start to drip it into the remaining posts.
One call was with a couple of software developers from a former employer who’d started their own company and were focusing on delivering Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) reporting for companies. Was nice to be of assistance to them. Another chat was with my fellow trainer to prep for an upcoming Moms Demand Action national training sesh on Applying Trauma-Informed Best Practices at Chapter Events. And, we wished a belated 95th B’Day to Sylvia Kagan, my mom’s best friend, and the only surviving Golden Girl from these second moms to me.
(Insert Golden Girls)
After lunch, we rented bikes via Chicago’s Divvy system at The Bloomingdale Trail on The 606. We biked on this elevated rail trail over residential neighborhoods, past runners and dog walkers for about ten miles, then celebrated mid-60s weather outdoors at Small Cheval with a can of wine and an Old-Fashioned. We reminisced about the last four-and-a-half months as we prepared to head back to the Garden State on Saturday for vaccine shots in Coney Island on Sunday night?!
On Wednesday morning, I drove 25 miles to the Egg Harbor Cafe in Oak Brook to catch up with my old RiseSmart colleague, Jason. Born and bred in Huntsville AL, he’d been in Chi-town with his family for the last 25 years, and I have fond memories of us imbibing Gibsons at Gibson’s on Rush Street. On more than one occasion, we’d compare notes, insights, stories…on most everything. By the end of the night, we’d end up solving the world’s problems, just like each of us and probably all of you do with our local peeps, right? Hanging with Jason, I’d get a hint of Southern twang and dialect and a geographic/cultural perspective that’s not New York metro. Refreshing. And this morning was no exception. We picked up right where we left off, sans martinis. Yet another example of us having more in common than what separates us.
That afternoon, on what felt like a late winter day in Chicago — 60s and windy, Sweets and I headed to the loop for our own little walking tour. A combination of greatest hits (we have all been here before) sprinkled with similarly iconic attractions:
- First stop, was next to the old IBM tower that is now the Langham Hotel. It’s supposed to be beautiful — not that we’d know during COVID. We checked out The Gentlemen.
- Then we walked south to see The Picasso sculpture on W. Washington St.
- On that corner, Miro’s Chicago used to stand, but it wasn’t there and we didn’t see any signs regarding its removal. Wonder if anyone had noticed. Perhaps we should have contacted the authorities?
- We continued south to Chase Tower Plaza to see Marc Chagall’s mosaic Four Seasons. If this weren’t COVID, we’d have entered the building and sat patiently in the Chase Auditorium until Thursday night when we could have seen, one of Carol and my weekly rituals for over 20 years — NPR’s news quiz show…Wait Wait…Don’t Tell Me!
- Further south, at 50 W Adams Street, Alexander Calder’s Flamingo, stood out starkly in Calder Red and held its own against the large skyscrapers that surrounded it. How could something that large made of steel be so much fun?!
- From there we walked east under the Wabash elevated train line, aka The L, to see The Wabash Lights, but alas, they weren’t lit during the day. So I just imagined the lights they remind me of that connect the terminals at O’Hare airport.
And that took us to Michigan Avenue and Millennium Park!
- We said hello to Crown Fountain, those videos of faces on two walls. On occasion, a stream of water spits out of their mouths — though it didn’t on that day.
- And climbed the stairs to Cloud Gate.
Seeing our pal aka The Bean (I tend to ascribe human qualities to inanimate objects that I like, for instance, I’ve named all of my cars*) on this day, encapsulated this year of COVID in one image. Usually, this spot was crawling with selfie-takers. On this day there was a fence around it. No one could get within 50 yards in any direction. Seeing that reminded me of all the iconic spots we’d had to ourselves on this jaunt that were usually teeming with people. The Lorraine Motel aka The National Civil Rights Museum in Memphis, the Book Depository in Dallas, and Broadway in Nashville. Actually, during COVID Broadway was teeming with primarily unmasked people. Yeesh.
On our way back we stopped by Pequad’s Pizza for some personal Basil/Mushroom Deep Dish. We had experienced it virtually on Somebody Feed Phil: Chicago and we consumed it while watching Feed Phil: Marrakesh. Kinda felt like we were in an Escher painting. My taste buds found it to be a worthy competitor to Lou Malnati’s.
On Thursday, we went out with Larry to see his Chicago.
The first stop was a part of Chicago few get to see let alone are aware of. Walkin’ round the Loop, below street level, and below the river walk, that’s where vendors delivered their goods including food services, restaurant equipment and linens, and where HVAC, electrical, and plumbing technicians maintained this great architecture and managed the infrastructure of the third-largest city in the U.S. We even saw the train tracks where coal used to be delivered to heat these grand structures back in the day!
Next, we headed south to the Chicago institution Ricobene’s where Larry’s granddad used to take our friend for their world-famous Breaded Steak Sandwich.
We picked up Randee, his better half, and Carol’s sista from anotha mista, from her place of employment where she’s a researcher. You know all those news reports that came out about the efficacy of each of the vaccines? Well, Randee’s been one of our heroes doing the day-to-day heavy lifting on those clinical trials! She worked on Remdesivir, and now Moderna. Thank you, Randee!
We headed to the historic Pullman District of Chicago. Located 13 miles south of the city, it was the first planned industrial community in the United States. George S. Pullman, President of the Pullman Palace Car Company, had a vision of developing “a model community, a total environment, superior to that available to the working class elsewhere. By so doing, he hoped to avoid strikes, attract the most skilled workers, and attain greater productivity as a result of the better health, environment and spirit of his employees.”
Between 1880–1884, Pullman employees built 1,000 homes on 4,000 acres, and by 1885 population swelled to 9,000.
Currently, it’s in various stages of repair. Since the ’60s, residents had fought tooth and nail to save and restore it. In 2015, President Obama named it a national monument and since then some blocks have been restored beautifully to its bygone era. Others resemble Berlin after WWII. It felt like a location that will be gentrified. You could currently purchase a dwelling for a song, but in ten years we may not be able to touch it.
We dined at Victory Italian for our farewell dinner with our friends, accessorized by the venue’s friendly space heaters and our fleece blankies, and we look forward to providing them with the same hospitality they gave to us when they come to visit in the Hudson Valley.
For our final day in Chicago, we drove up to Evanston to visit with another great former colleague of mine. Karen, and her hubby Daniel.
On the way up, we stopped at the magnificent Baha’is Temple. There are only seven of them in the world, and having seen one in Haifa, Israel, we’ve now covered 28.6% of them!
Set atop a hill in the residential neighborhood of Wilmette, IL, it seemed out of place, like those McMansions that are plopped on small tracks of land in Whitestone, and Malba, in Queens, New York. The temple deserved to be spread out with gardened lawns on all sides. As we climbed up the granite steps, we could see couples, some of them pregnant, and young families, on the garden grounds, taking lifecycle photographs that seemingly would be framed in the not-to-distant future. The closer we got to the architecture, the more it revealed intricate design work on the exterior. And the nearer we came to the temple, the more I felt the spiritual vibe I get when I’m in the synagogue and the Ark is open to present the Torah, that sacred scroll aka the Old Testament. We approached the surprisingly utilitarian glass front door and found a printed word doc entitled Forging a Path to Racial Justice from the Baha’is of the United States. It stated that the community joined in the heartfelt grief at the recent deaths of so many that were suddenly taken by appalling acts of violence.
We turned to walk back to Sweet Chariot and saw all the nice porched Victorian houses across the street. I wondered what it must be like to live there, seeing this iconic structure every time you walk out your door.
On the way into Evanston, we stopped by two Frank Lloyd Wright homes in town. Both were in states of disrepair. While it saddened us to see them this way, it reminded us of the commitment required to live in one of those landmarks that have specific structural requirements when there’s no aisle in Lowes’ or the Depot to buy materials for them.
As we got closer to Karen and Daniel’s abode, we drove by part of the Northwestern University campus including Ryan Field, the 47,000-seat stadium where the Wildcats play football. Fun fact, according to Wikipedia. It’s the only Division 1 Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) stadium that didn’t have permanent lighting. Reminded me of Wrigley Field prior to August 8, 1988.
We parked by their home which was directly across the street from campus. Sweet. One of the criteria for our next Happy Place was to live in a college town. You couldn’t get closer than this!
Karen met us and she gave us a tour of the campus which sat at Lake Michigan. It was a cool mid-thirties day when we started. Karen, who was a soccer goalie star in high school and college (she’d probs be a little embarrassed that I’m complimenting her, which only made me want to do it more ;) set a brisk pace, so after 15 minutes we were all nice and toasty.
Touring the grounds we passed the soccer field, where a women’s game was in progress. Looking at Karen, I was half surprised that she didn’t hop the fence and finish the game. We also went by a number of other beautiful modern buildings, including Kellogg School of Management, that weren’t there when Spence and I toured the campus in April 2007.
Then we veered downtown. While Evanston had lost its share of establishments, it was fairly active. We headed upstairs to the rooftop bar of the Five & Dime, where Daniel met us for some drinks and a bite.
While Karen was born and bred in Evanston, Daniel, sporting a Rangers knit hat, was a New Yorker through and through, not unlike myself. I’d met him once before at a company dinner in the Big Apple, where I recall us hitting it off. The secret? All you have to say to a fellow Ranger fan of a certain age is Potvin Sucks and you’re good to go.
Carol getting to know Karen and Daniel connected yet another piece of the professional/personal puzzle pieces that had been a big part of my life for the past thirty years. Eventually, dinner ended because there was only one space heater. Daniel was kind enough to give us an autographed copy of his book 27 Essential Principles of Story, which contained testimonials from two of my favs — Paul Giamatti, and Tracy Letts.
Why didn’t he give me his before I started my blog?! Damn.
Why didn’t I buy it when it first came out?! That’s fair.
I can’t wait to read it!
Another great day that encapsulated a bunch of Roam themes. We checked out an iconic local spot that we probs would have bypassed if it wasn’t for COVID, a classic college town, and we broke bread with great peeps from the not-so-distant past.
Next, we’ll have two days to drive from the Windy City to our old stomping grounds, six weeks earlier than we’d originally planned.
Why?
You’re just gonna have to wait for the next When in Roam to find out 😉.
Onward to Wayne, New Jersey?!
* Favorite cars have included:
- Ruby Baby: my cherry red white landau roofed ‘76 Monte Carlo with an Audiovox echoplex which made every station sound like WCBS-FM. That was my secret weapon when I met Carol 😉.
- The Green Machine: My first vehicle. A 1970 army green Ford Econoline 300 which contained shag carpeting throughout. Floor, walls, ceiling, a futon in the back, and one of those crank skylights. Would have been an upgrade from Frances McDormand’s van in Nomadland.
- The Dan: A beige Toyota Corona with a mind of its own, and a loose tranny. Though it was an automatic, it acted as a manual, so even in Park, it tended to move just a skosh. I recall getting out of her at a stoplight to mail a letter and having to dive back in and hit the brakes (yes, the car was in Park) to keep from going through a red light. Yes, The Dan identified as she/her/hers, and I was single at the time.
