Chicago, I love you....I Miss You.

The thing about Chicago is...it grows and changes and becomes better over time.

Detroit on the other time stagnates, decays and has the most retarded city council ever. I hate Detroit. I hate it. I want to love it. I try to love it and it just keeps being so stupid.

Detroit, why you gotta be like that?

But Chicago...Chicago is beautiful. I love you. I love everything about you. I even love you when a man urinates on a building as I pass by and I have to skip to avoid stepping in his urine. In fact, I think I love you more because of the man peeing on that lovely brownstone in Lincoln Park.

Oh Internet there is just so much to tell you about my weekend away. And I'm going to write it in one installment because I can't wait to tell you all about it.

First of all. HOLY SHIT it has been a long long long time since Logan and I went anywhere by ourselves for a long, very long weekend. In fact on the drive to the big city I screamed at the top of my lungs at least 8 times, "OH MY GOD!!!!! WE'RE ALONE!!!!!!!!!!!!"

And we were! We were alone and we drove along and I didn't know what to do with myself. I read and I knit and I talked and I listened to the radio and it almost pains me to think about that feeling of freedom because it's over. Not that it wasn't wonderful to come home and see our kids and my mother's bloody ear drums. Not that it wasn't wonderful to hear my mother say, 'Thank God you didn't breastfeed them.....I can only imagine how much they'd talk then."

It was wonderful to see my beautiful kids and one of the things I've missed out on, being a stay at home mother, is the reuniting at the end of the day. I love missing my kids because it's much easier to remember what I love about them when I've been away.

But back to Chicago.

We stayed in the biggest heap in Lincoln Park. But it was cheap. Seriously cheap and it was across from the Lincoln Park zoo and we went running through the park and were close enough to run along the lake and Chicago, did I mention how much I love you?

Because I do. I love your parks and your lake....you're lovely. I have this fantasy where I will actually be a happy stay at home mother if we live in Chicago. It's an entirely unrealistic fantasy but one I will cling to because it's how I am.

I love you even though we spent so much eating dinner here that we didn't have enough money to eat the tomato and watercress benedict I've been dreaming of eating here for 2+ years.

Friday night we visited Trader Vic's. Logan's been dreaming of this place since our visit to Kahiki in 2000.

It was a lovely place and Logan forced his old writing partner to endure the Tiki with us. He did the art and Marguerite did the writing...she also endured Logan. (Some things never change.)

I met with my friend Patti and her lovely daughter Sofia at Cafe 28. Sofia was not thrilled with our brunching and was not buying into Logan's attempts to charm her. However, she was perfectly adorable once we all got up to leave...because she was riding the train back home. (This furthered my belief that being a Stay at Home mother in Chicago would make my life happier somehow....see how happy Sofia was to be riding the train? This would be me every single day!) Logan took our picture at our brunch, but photography is obviously not his forte (backlighting? Hello!)....running 26.2 miles however is his forte.

See this is getting so long and I'm not stopping.

Yes, Logan ran 26.2 miles. Here he is after it was over looking sufficiently pained, but not really. He's a God damned robot, look at him. Not bleeding, not swearing, standing still to allow me to take his picture. I'd be ripping the limbs off anyone in a 5 mile radius had I just run 26.2 miles. But there he is smiling through the pain because that's how he is. I love him. After this photo was taken I trotted him all over the city. Later that night we had sex and that medal bruised my face because he's not taking it off....ever. (Kidding...see he's such a robot he doesn't even need you to know he ran the marathon!)

Okay now this is getting really long and it's 12:44 right now and I have a real life you know. God Internet! Logan's leaving tomorrow, hobbling off on a jet plane for Portland, OR. I feel bad for him but I mostly feel bad for me who has to face the two beautiful children we created together and tell them that, no....the fun parent won't be home tonight. It's just me. Your alcoholic crabby mother here to entertain you!

Weeeeeee.

Before I go further into our Chicago weekend you should go here and here. Start thinking about where I'm going with this.

Comments

[Kathie]

I am a Chicago stay at home mom and ,trust me, it's not better. Yes, the kids are excited about riding the train home, until you get on the train and they discover it's a 40 minute train ride.Then they try to change seats on the train 800 times, driving all the other passengers crazy, and then you whip out the "candy treats" and let them gorge themselves until you arrive home.
Good days and bad days- just like in Detroit. But maybe our city is a little nicer. The lakefront is beautiful, isn't it?
Congrats to Logan on his run.

[Ninotchka]

Congrats to Logan. M - You look great! Sounds like a very enjoyable weekend indeed. Why'd it have to end? WAAAA! :)

[Amy]

Congrats to Logan, and glad you enjoyed your escape to our fair city! I must say you hit some great restaurants. Cafe 28 is one of my absolute favorites! And I've always heard how much that Days Inn sucks, but hey, it's a good location. You can practically see the lions and tigers from your window!

I hope being a SAHM in Chicago is that good, because I'll probably be doing it in a few years...

[Marguerite]

It was lovely seeing you guys. So when is the move? Since I'm getting such great feedback on LOGAN'S work during MY interviews, I don't think he'll have much trouble finding work. :)

[patti]

What frightens me is that when I first saw that picture of Logan with this marathon medal, I thought, "Huh? I didn't know they gave out the medals BEFORE the race". That's how unscathed he looks. I do believe you are right: He is a robot.

Glad you guys had such a good time. If you want to knock the love for Chicago right out of your bones, come visit us again in January. ;o)

[Caracao]

Detroit stagnates, decays like a prize winning cheese. Mmmm, Detroit.

[Melissa]

I try to love Detroit. Truly I do. But AFRICA TOWN????

Puh-leeze Detroit. Stop it. Stop it right now.

[Anne B]

The only time I ever went to Chicago we stayed at that hotel! Does it still have the gnarly 200 year old carpet in the rooms? I have to say, given the low, low discount price and the location I was fine with the lack of luxury. When I called to book a room they were going for something like $89/night but the reservation guy kept voluntarily lowering the price. I think we ended up paying $59. Someone told me that the summer we stayed there a lady jumped off the roof because she was suffering from post-partum depression, so I guess they decided to give rooms away.

[Katherine]

I just stumbled over here in the way that most bloggers find other bloggers. But I continued reading when I saw the name Logan as it's my son's name too, and that's what moms do. They scope out all the other Logan's in the world and make sure that their Logan is the cutest and smartest in the world. It's a close one with my Logan and your Logan, but my Logan still has at least 20 years to catch up to your Logan so watchout! Oh but you might let Sofia know that for the time being my Logan is still single and he's *amazing* with milk bubbles! (http://www.shuttergeek.com/archives/002032.php)

[Michelle]

Howdy! Found your delightful blog via Fussy via dooce. I'm assuming you are in the Detroit area as well, and I just had to give you a big ol' WORD on the stupidity of "African Town". City. Hell. Handbasket. Ugh.

[Lili]

Home is where the heart is :)

and of course the spleen...