Last Friday I took the day off and got some Christmas shopping done.
It’s funny because normally I find Christmas shopping to be somewhat frustrating and stressful.
And normally I find Michigan Avenue to be somewhat frustrating and stressful.
But the two of them together are actually a pretty awesome, Christmas-y good time.
It’s a pathetic amount (by Chicago standards) and will be completely gone in a few hours, but this is officially the first snow I’ve seen this season!
Fantastic. Now that we have that over with, can we just and move on to warm weather and summer now?
No?
Last Saturday, we met up with some college friends at Christkindlmarket in Daley Plaza for some German beer, bratwursts, gluhwein (hot spiced wine in a boot!) and some good old fashioned Christmas-y fun. Then we headed to the Beer Bistro in the West Loop for – you guessed it – more beer! (And they also have a pretty amazing goat cheese and pepperoni pizza.)
But let this be a lesson, my friends, that extreme fun does not come without a price.
Because thanks to a lingering cold and talking too much, I now cannot speak. At all. And it’s not for lack of trying. However, when I do attempt to vocalize something, it sounds less like human speech and more like some sort of animal who is gargling and suffocating at the same time. Words are unrecognizable. Thank God I’m a skilled mime. (No I’m not.)
But Saturday was totally worth all of the sympathetic looks I’ve been getting at work today. I mean, I got to drink out of a boot – again – and I think I can safely say that drinking out of footwear is now my preferred method of (de)hydration.
Long live das boot!
Drinking ginger peach tea, catching up on my blog reading, listening to Christmas music, people-watching and giving tourists restaurant recommendations at the Argo Tea on Rush and Pearson.
There’s no shortage of awesome architecture here in Chicago.
Proof: These cool buildings can all be found within a 1-block radius in River North.
I took these photos a couple days ago when I decided to leave work for 5 minutes to take a quick walk and enjoy the nice fall weather.
Sometimes it’s fun to play “tourist.” All it takes is a moment to stop and look up.
But I recommend doing it somewhere off to the side so you don’t get body-checked from behind by a businessman on a mission. (Real tourists: please take note.)
Last Friday was date night with the hubs (I actually never call him that) at The Pump Room.
Back in the day, The Pump Room in the Amabassador East Hotel was famous for its glamorous clientele (think Sinatra, Bogart, Bette Davis), and was the place in Chicago to see and be seen (read about it here). But it experienced a gradual decline in the 1990s and by the time I became a Chicago resident, I’m pretty sure that almost no one went there. <sad trombone>
But then along came Ian Schrager and Jean-Georges Vongerichten (fancy restaurant/hotel people), who completely re-worked the menu and renovated the whole place, including the hotel, which is now called the Public Hotel.
It just reopened last month, and at the risk of sounding extremely un-hip – the place was hoppin’!
By the time we left, the restaurant, bar and hotel lobby were packed with very stylishly dressed people. The entire place was one big party!
The sleek, modern/slightly futuristic vibe of the restaurant is pretty cool (there are glowing balls of various sizes suspended from the ceiling), and the food is really good, and actually reasonably priced.
A few tips if you plan to check out the new hot spot in the Chi (yes, I’m aware I sound like a complete tool): dress to impress – trendy, but not too formal, go hungry, be ready to people-watch, and keep an eye out for celebs! (You know if you’re into that sort of thing…)
I took this photo yesterday while eating my lunch by the river.
Winter? What winter?
(I know, I know, I’m jinxing it!)
I know, I know… I’ve been obsessed with posting photos lately! But now that I have a good camera on my phone, I can’t help but whip it out whenever I see something pretty.
And if you thought the second half of that sentence sounded dirty, I assure you it was unintentional. <snicker>
Carlie Crash 
