My Chicago

I got to spend my first three hours in Chicago with Karla. She picked me up from the train station at Randolph and we had lunch in a mall on michigan ave. Then we walked to a little park near the water tower where Jack could play. She's such a good mama.

Karla dropped me off at a Panera on Canal and Roosevelt where I met another friend, Amy Todd. She was the manager at Seattle's Best on Michigan before Starbucks closed us down. Now she has a little girl, Leah and works as a manager for Bank of America...After lunch (again) we went to DSW Shoes and I found a killer pair of ruby red Stuart Weitzman pumps, originally over $300 on clearance for $35! What fun!!

Amy dropped me back at my old office building, where I met my former colleague, Julie, from Special Counsel, to go out for dinner across the street at the Park Grill. It was great to laugh and chat together again just like old times.

Afterwards, I took a cab back down Michigan to Trish and Ryan's new apartment, where I collapsed into their guest bed and woke up to an incredible view: My Chicago.
We went to breakfast at a great new place called Yolk. Then she took me to her new favorite local chocolatier (they just moved to Chicago from Seattle in March) and had me pick out a dozen decadent truffles! I felt like Audrey Hepburn in Breakfast at Tiffany's the way we just walked all over downtown, through the Taste of Chicago, eating our box of chocolates!
We needed a place to cool down, so went into the Water Tower and got suckered into facials at a make up booth in Macy's. It felt so good and Trish bought me some honey lip balm.
As it turned into evening we made our way back towards Trish's to take care of their adorable border collie, Frankie. Then we changed our clothes and went down to Summer Dancing in the Park, not too far from her new apartment. That night was the waltz and the Cajun two-step. She is always game for letting down her hair and having fun, even though she doesn't know what she is doing! We were even asked by some sweaty, slightly drunk, older men to two-step with them--which of course, we did!!

Finally, Ryan met up with us and we all walked down to my favorite restaurant, Grand Lux and enjoyed a delicious late night dinner together. It was hard to say goodbye in the morning, but as least I was going to the arms of one more precious friend, Paula...
We have such a special connection. We also met at Special Counsel, but now she works as an attorney for Northwestern Hospital. She is Polish and Hoosier born, so maybe that's why we're two peas in a pod! We had breakfast together and she saw me off to my train back to Indiana. It was terribly difficult to walk away from each other...Love you, Girl.

Whew! Five friends in two days. Aren't you proud of me?

(Passed my old street, Hyde Park Blvd, on the South Shore heading home. It hurt.)