10 things I like about living in Chicago

Today I was on my way to work and observed something interesting which I have now forgotten. However, I had a decent day (not hard in comparison to the rest of the week...) and thought of a few other random things I like. Coming up with 10 will be an interesting exercise in positive thinking.

1. Michigan Avenue "characters." I went down to the "Mag Mile" today to find some home furnishing sales and instead observed some interesting people on the streets. My favorite was the tourist (you can just tell who they are...) with the purple metallic ballet slipper style shoes, still sporting the price tag sticker on the bottom. There were also a few ladies in really outrageous dresses (think neon animal print dresses and high heels) and I couldn't tell if they were drag queens or just more tourists...They were carrying Saks Fifth Ave bags so it was hard to tell... The six foot tall lady in four inch heels in H&M was pretty funny too.

2. Going to Michigan Ave to shop for a few essential items now only takes 15-20 minute, the same amount of time it would take to drive to the mall in Charlotte! Instead it is a major shopping STREET instead of just a piddly little mall...

3. I can go to H&M, an outrageous fashion store from Sweden, and buy the most plan black long sleeve shirt possible and still be really happy (work clothes, you know...). People go to H&M to look fashionable. I go to H&M to get a nice shirt to wear to work that lacks embellishment, low necklines, and short sleeves...

4. There are lots of theaters.

5. The people on the El. Yesterday as I was riding home, a middle-aged woman sat down across the train from me with two purses - one a normal leather purse and the other canvas hippy type purse with a beautiful lotus flower patch/pattern on the front. I was instantly intrigued so I watched her a little while listening to my ipod. While we were stopped behind another train at one point, she closed her eyes and I realized she was probably the calmest, most serene person I had seen in a really long time. Due to her apparent inner peace and the presence of the lotus flower on her bag, i almost asked her if she is a regular yoga practitioner. However, I decided this might make her self-conscious and I would much rather make up a story for her in my head.

6. There is an African-American/African diaspora theater group and I am their ASM! Congo Square Theatre is amazing and after only two or so weeks of rehearsal, I am highly impressed by the dedication the company members show to this specific group of theater literature. As always I am a little saddened that there has to be a group like this to fill the void found in other Chicago theaters but the work is so impressive, it does not bother me too much. Even if the other major theaters showed more dedication to producing works that showcase diversity, having Congo Square would still be an important asset to the community!

7. It snows here. Obviously I am not basing this item on recent incidents like the previous numbers, but snow is so important to my love for Chicago, I can't really leave it out.

8. A lot of NU grads stay here. Thus, I have a lot of amazing friends here!

9. It is a really fun place for OTHER people to visit and therefore I get a lot of visitors! Since I may not always be enough of a draw for people to come visit Chicago, the zoo, museums, culture, etc do a lot for my social life. I also get people visiting who are actually in Chicago for other purposes such as business trips, college visits, and conferences.

10. Wrigley Field and the Cubs. Need I say more? In case I do, let me say that I love the fact that I can see the lights and upper seats of Wrigley Field from my bedroom window. My roommate is currently sitting on the other side of this huge mound of boxes watching the Cubs away game on one of the few set up items in our apartment. Since I ride the El to work now, and live North of the Wrigley Field stop, I am often crowded on the train with copious amounts of Cubs fans, turning the major colors on the El from dull silver to brilliant red and blue! Of course I usually have to stand up more when there are Cubs games but the excited spirit of the fans makes up for a lot of that.

Well, I am feeling much more cheerful now that I have written this! Only a few of the things were things I thought of throughout today but all of them are things I think about at least once a week (yes, even snow).