A Little Winter Solace

There's not much good to speak of in terms of winter weather in Chicago. But as I sit studying at my desk tonight, about 11pm, all is quiet out on State Street outside our apartment as the first flakes of a coming winter deluge begin to fall. And it's quite peaceful and pretty.

What Chicago Is.. and Isn't

Chicago is:
1. Ridiculously cold and snowy.
2. Grey for too many days in a row to count.
3. Obsessed with the Chicago Transit Authority (CTA) and it's problems, there's even a newspaper that has a daily CTA
column. Hmm.
4. Full of good restaurants.
5. Racially diverse and yet quite segregated.
6. Fun to walk around.
7. Really puddle-y after a snow because obsessive amounts of salt are used to melt snow really fast.
8. Always full of traffic.
9. Really into sports, food, and beer.
10. My current home!

Chicago is not:
1. That bad of a place to live.
2. My favorite place I have ever lived.
2. As cold as I thought it would be, really!
4. That hard to get around.
5. Denver.
6. Sunny.
7. Very fit.
8. A boring place to be.
9. Culturally lacking.
10. Without a large body of water.

That's how I amuse myself on a cold, snowy night. The winter is kind of dragging here, but it isn't as bad as it could be. I love to compare Denver and here, because they are so different in so many ways. I think it is kind of cool how you could move to any region of the country and get a totally different vibe and culture. Josh is doing well on his interviewing/recruiting process and I am sure we will know in the next 2-3 weeks where he will be spending his summer. And probably where we will move/go after school is done, because the business school internships usually turn into a full-time job opportunity. Hope you are all well! Heidi

Random Updates

I realized that because I am not very good at keeping a diary, that that lack of a desire to put daily life on paper oten transfers to a lack of wanting to/ taking the time to blog. But, seriously, we have been busy, and that is a lot of it! For me, alot of time has gone into five solid months of studying for my Nurse Practitioner boards that I just passed on Friday 2/1! Here are the other updates...

-My brother Matt's cancer diagnosis is Hodgkin's lymphoma. We are relieved to know what it is finally and to have treatment underway. He will get 6 months of chemo and then 2 months of radiation. The prognosis is very good, and thanks for keeping him in your prayers.
-I got to visit him and my family in Denver two weeks ago. It was good to be able to see them all as well as support Matt. I was able to go to Pinecrest for a Sunday which was great, especially when Ray bowed in front of me in the foyer when I walked in and said, "I am not worthy." That story made Josh laugh a lot when I told him.
- Josh is doing well on his internship interviewing. He already has a full time paid summer internship offer in NYC, with some other offers likely coming.
-I turned 30 on January 27. I have decided not to be a woman who hides her age. I am proud of it actually...
Josh surprised me with a brunch with a bunch of Chicago friends and family at Cafe Lux downtown. (That's what the picture of all the people is...)
-My youngest brother Mark surprised me, by flying in from Denver for my birthday. That was fun and we all took in a great Italian dinner together. (There's a pic of me and him, as well as a picture of me with the Tiramisu at the Italian restaurant).

That's about it for now! Hope you are all doing well. It was good to see many of you when I was Denver, even if it was brief!

Heidi