Mere and I got Ventra cards today. There is a summer sale and a 7-day pass is $20 (discounted from $28). We took the train into downtown. It's dead. I know it was a bank holiday, but still. I feel the impact of covid.
We made our way through the heat and walked towards the water. We found ourselves at Buckingham Fountain in Grant Park. The fountain reminded me of the fountain int he Friends theme song, only this was way bigger. It's bigger than the Cesar's Palace fountain with the Gods and Goddess show. Per Wikipedia, it's one of the largest fountains in the world.
The top of the hour hit and water shot up from the center of the fountain, like a geyser. This created a strong mist, and we were in the wet zone. I was just admiring how clean and clear the water in the fountain was, and then it granted a reprieve from the heat! I felt cool and energized afterwards, ready to sightsee.
We took a small snack break and sat by the lake. I ate my puff chips as I watched kayaks and boats go by. There was a boat full of men, and I waved at them. They waved back and I imagined a scenario where they invited us on for a ride. When I shared that thought with Meredith, the cautionary thoughts, which we as women must always brace for, started to surface. I told her we'd be fine because she had her stun gun.
"What are we going to do?" she asked. "Are we going to stun them and then jump in the water to swim to shore?"
"No," I said, shaking my head. "We're going to stun them, toss them over, then commandeer the boat! Your version involves swimming and far more work."
In my imagination, though cautious, I wanted to take siege, not have to run away should things go awry.
After we made our way to Cloud Gate, so I could use the Bean for a TikTok video. We walked across the BP Pedestrian Bridge. It looks like it'd be a fun slide, but I'd want a burlap sack since the metal pieces were scaly and would be hot to touch, especially in this summer weather. I admired the amphitheatre as we crossed Millennium Park.
This was where the crowd was. Still, it wasn't as many people as I expected, again due to covid. I took my TikTok clips and we took another break on shaded grass. This is precisely why I packed my picnic blanket from home. Chicago has all these parks, and I knew (well, I hoped) we would randomly chill.
Meredith wanted to check out a Kitchen 17, which served vegan pizza. Coincidentally, I had a restaurant starred on google maps that was in the same neighborhood. We took the red line to go north, when we should have taken brown. This resulted in more walking. I felt bad because I gave the wrong directions. Meredith assured me, "Nothing we do will not be not right." Translation: there's no wrong way. We were just exploring.
@jmeprcn ##vlog Summer day in downtown ##adayinmylife ##chicago ##buckinghamfountain
♬ Thot Shit - Megan Thee Stallion
I found Wake 'N Bacon through TikTok by searching "Filipino Chicago." The menu had filipino elements like ube pancakes and adobo for a philly cheesecake sandwich. The menu and the decor are very hipster. They were fully booked with reservations, so I ordered my Ube Flap Jack Stack and Calamojito to go.
While we waited for the food, we took a picture at their mirror photobooth. I wrote my TT handle on the wall. I definitely wouldn't have done that last year. Now, I want people to discover me. Now, I feel like I have lots to offer.
@jmeprcn ##vlog Saw this hipster spot with Filipino elements on the menu. I ordered Calamojito + Ube Flap Jack Stack ##calamansijuice ##ube ##filipino ##chicago
♬ Watermelon Sugar x Seaside - Remix - Eduardo XD
Kitchen 17 was closed because of the holiday, so Mere got a breakfast sandwich at another plant-based shop. We sat down at a table on the sidewalk. It was for a restaurant, so technically we probably weren't allowed to sit there, but I figured we'd sit until we got kicked out, and we didn't get kicked out.
We took two buses to get back home. I got to pull the stop requested cord. The Chicondo is right next to a bus stop, which is convenient. I was grateful to come back to central AC, a fridge full of fruit, and a new blender to make an ice cold smoothie.
When Christina and Luisa got home, Christina mentioned how nice it was to see me when she got home. Comforting to see her friend/new roommate. She made spaghetti using plant-based protein, and I wouldn't have been able to tell it wasn't meat if you hadn't told me.
I'm trying to establish good habits to go with the exploration:
- Arm & ab exercises
- Build a streak on DuoLingo again
- Blog (which for now is my ease back into writing)
- Vlog (which I am enjoying)
- Memory associations for U.S. presidents and periodic table
And I have goals for tomorrow:
- Start proposal for potential client. because I said I would. My heart isn't in the side accounting business I was trying to start for myself, but I have to honor commitments for now.
- Seen Sa Scene social media posts + upgrade
- Go to sleep before midnight. It's currently 12:43am. I failed.
- Memorize "I'm A Little Bit Alexis" song and dance from Schitt's Creek
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