Howdy!
So my birthday was Thursday. It's funny how birthdays aren't as exciting as you get older...I guess it must be that you have to go to work, huh? What I DO get excited for, though, is eating out :O) We enjoyed lovely fillet mignon at Hyde Park Restaurant last Saturday and will be having Prime Rib tonight with Mom and Dad at the Steer barn. That's the one thing that I enjoy about birthdays now ;o) It's not the gifts, it's the fillet! And, how lovely is this, for my birthday Kurt made me dinner on Sunday AND on Thursday! What a guy ;o)
It just so happened that we got tickets to a show Thursday night. It wasn't really planned as a birthday treat, just a band we wanted to see called Humanwine. GREAT show! They are a combination of gypsy, eastern European, and rock music. Very entertaining and interesting!!!! One of our favorite rock drummers, Brian Viglione, is touring with them. We actually got to talk to Brian for a bit and got his autograph on the Humanwine CD.
And to think that this could be what I do for a living - How COOL is that????
That's it for now!!
Saturday, March 31, 2007
Monday, March 26, 2007
Nothing much...
Well...there's not much to post about today. Nothing new on the Chicago front - I've made a posting to Craigslist, so I hope some people reply! Actually, it's still considered pretty early to most rental offices/landlords. We probably won't be able to sign the lease until May. Of course, those of you who know me, know that I NEED to plan ahead and like to have things all figured out WAY in advance. Needless to say, this is driving me BONKERS! "Oh, wait until May"...they say. Easy for them;o)
One thing that is really great is that Chicago has these nifty "apartment finders." It's a free service for people like us who are trying to find a place to move. One company will actually drive their customers around to different showings! Talk about a fabulous service! We're going to try to meet some of those "finders" in April - maybe, just maybe, we'll find something then ;o)
On a completely different note...tonight is our first rehearsal for our last concert with the Heisey Wind ensemble :o( Sniff Sniff...
Heisey is a community band based in Granville, Ohio (Dennison Univ.). Kurt plays a lot of aux. parts, while I am the timpanist. What's great about this ensemble is that it's not your average community band. For instance, we played a Barne's symphony at our last concert (this is stuff college ensembles play!). Many of the people are well trained musicians, either with a music degree or many years of playing. So we play really cool music that's actually challenging! Based on the email I just got from the coordinator, it looks like we're playing a Broadway themed concert. Should be interesting!!!!
Kurt and I are hoping to find something similar in Chicago because we both enjoy playing in an ensemble together! Unfortunately, because Columbia isn't a classical music/performance focused school (more jazz perf., rock, media, etc.), they don't offer a concert band. But they do have a choir and possibly a percussion ensemble, so I guess that will quell my performance needs for the next few years!
Ok... I need to get dinner started. It takes about 45 minutes to get to rehearsals for Heisey, so once Kurt gets home we eat and then jet!
Take care and I'll post more as it comes!
One thing that is really great is that Chicago has these nifty "apartment finders." It's a free service for people like us who are trying to find a place to move. One company will actually drive their customers around to different showings! Talk about a fabulous service! We're going to try to meet some of those "finders" in April - maybe, just maybe, we'll find something then ;o)
On a completely different note...tonight is our first rehearsal for our last concert with the Heisey Wind ensemble :o( Sniff Sniff...
Heisey is a community band based in Granville, Ohio (Dennison Univ.). Kurt plays a lot of aux. parts, while I am the timpanist. What's great about this ensemble is that it's not your average community band. For instance, we played a Barne's symphony at our last concert (this is stuff college ensembles play!). Many of the people are well trained musicians, either with a music degree or many years of playing. So we play really cool music that's actually challenging! Based on the email I just got from the coordinator, it looks like we're playing a Broadway themed concert. Should be interesting!!!!
Kurt and I are hoping to find something similar in Chicago because we both enjoy playing in an ensemble together! Unfortunately, because Columbia isn't a classical music/performance focused school (more jazz perf., rock, media, etc.), they don't offer a concert band. But they do have a choir and possibly a percussion ensemble, so I guess that will quell my performance needs for the next few years!
Ok... I need to get dinner started. It takes about 45 minutes to get to rehearsals for Heisey, so once Kurt gets home we eat and then jet!
Take care and I'll post more as it comes!
Wednesday, March 21, 2007
Map of Chicago - Where we are looking!
Here are a few maps of where we are looking in Chicago!
This map shows a large view of Chicago. The area we are looking is in the red box. It doesn't look that big, but it's a lot larger than you think!
This map shows the area in an enlarged view.
This map shows a large view of Chicago. The area we are looking is in the red box. It doesn't look that big, but it's a lot larger than you think!
This map shows the area in an enlarged view.
Monday, March 19, 2007
Chicago-in-a-day
HA!
So I had this big post all set to go and when I tried to publish it, it said "ERROR"! Silly ol' me should have saved it first ;o)
So here's the run down of our most recent trip to Chicago... (this past weekend). We didn't get the chance to see the green river (I saw it on the news, does that count?), but we sure saw our share of drunks, especially in the crammed el stops downtown!
We were able to visit Ukranian Village, Wicker Park, Bucktown, and Old Town - all by foot. Needless to say we are still aching from the hours and miles of walking in the windy, cold, Chicago weather!
Ukranian Village was, by far, our favorite. The residential areas are very nice (but, a bit packed with cars) and very peaceful. The homes are mainly greystones with multiple flats (floors), so we'll have VERY close neighbors...but that's to be assumed, living in a big city and all. This neighborhood was also very close to an el stop, which is good for me so that I can get to school easily and good for Kurt if he works in the Loop.
Wicker Park, was equally as nice, albeit a bit more pricey. The funny thing is everywhere I read says that these places are "Very affordable." HA! I'd like to see their incomes ;o) Anywho, this neighborhood is also close to an el stop AND has a park that's open to dogs! Always a good thing with our little psycho-pup ;o)
We also visitied Bucktown. This neighborhood is still going through gentrification, so it's not as nice as the places above. However, the rent is more affordable (still pric$y ;o) and it's considered to be the "artsy" neighborhood of Chicago. That means we'll fit right in ;o) AND, this is (I think) where the Polish-American Museum is. So there should be some Polacks around ;o)
Finally, we visited Old Town. This neighborhood was simply too urban and too commercial (not to mention VERY EXPENSIVE). It was really close to town, so lacked the peace and quiet we were hoping for. And, it's missing the charm we seek as well.
We were planning to visit Logan Square, but after walking the extra miles in O.T. (we walked to an el stop that we thought was open...but it turned out it was under construction so we had to walk an extra mile or so....this being AFTER we walked our tushies off all over the place), we decided that we didn't want to die young.
SO...our next trip to Chicago will be April 9th-11th. We'll visit Logan Square, Ravenswood, and Roscoe Village. These places are all a lot further north than we would like, but we feel obligated to check out as many places as possible. But, I have a feeling we'll end up in "Ukie" Village, Wicker Park, or Bucktown.
I'll try to keep the posts coming at a quicker pace, and since we are getting closer to the moving date, I'm sure I'll have more to report.
So...as I close, I'm crossing my fingers that this will post. Because, gosh darn it, I'm tired of typing ;o)
So I had this big post all set to go and when I tried to publish it, it said "ERROR"! Silly ol' me should have saved it first ;o)
So here's the run down of our most recent trip to Chicago... (this past weekend). We didn't get the chance to see the green river (I saw it on the news, does that count?), but we sure saw our share of drunks, especially in the crammed el stops downtown!
We were able to visit Ukranian Village, Wicker Park, Bucktown, and Old Town - all by foot. Needless to say we are still aching from the hours and miles of walking in the windy, cold, Chicago weather!
Ukranian Village was, by far, our favorite. The residential areas are very nice (but, a bit packed with cars) and very peaceful. The homes are mainly greystones with multiple flats (floors), so we'll have VERY close neighbors...but that's to be assumed, living in a big city and all. This neighborhood was also very close to an el stop, which is good for me so that I can get to school easily and good for Kurt if he works in the Loop.
Wicker Park, was equally as nice, albeit a bit more pricey. The funny thing is everywhere I read says that these places are "Very affordable." HA! I'd like to see their incomes ;o) Anywho, this neighborhood is also close to an el stop AND has a park that's open to dogs! Always a good thing with our little psycho-pup ;o)
We also visitied Bucktown. This neighborhood is still going through gentrification, so it's not as nice as the places above. However, the rent is more affordable (still pric$y ;o) and it's considered to be the "artsy" neighborhood of Chicago. That means we'll fit right in ;o) AND, this is (I think) where the Polish-American Museum is. So there should be some Polacks around ;o)
Finally, we visited Old Town. This neighborhood was simply too urban and too commercial (not to mention VERY EXPENSIVE). It was really close to town, so lacked the peace and quiet we were hoping for. And, it's missing the charm we seek as well.
We were planning to visit Logan Square, but after walking the extra miles in O.T. (we walked to an el stop that we thought was open...but it turned out it was under construction so we had to walk an extra mile or so....this being AFTER we walked our tushies off all over the place), we decided that we didn't want to die young.
SO...our next trip to Chicago will be April 9th-11th. We'll visit Logan Square, Ravenswood, and Roscoe Village. These places are all a lot further north than we would like, but we feel obligated to check out as many places as possible. But, I have a feeling we'll end up in "Ukie" Village, Wicker Park, or Bucktown.
I'll try to keep the posts coming at a quicker pace, and since we are getting closer to the moving date, I'm sure I'll have more to report.
So...as I close, I'm crossing my fingers that this will post. Because, gosh darn it, I'm tired of typing ;o)
Monday, March 12, 2007
Busy week!
A busy week in the neighborhood! Rehearsals for my elementary and middle school musicals are in full swing. Things are going very well! The kids are catching on to all of the songs and the ES kids are doing great with their choreography. Now I just hope my MS kids pick up on their moves too!
BIG news for the MS musical - it will be performed at the Ohio Dominican University Theater! What a great experience for the kids!
On another note, Kurt and I will be visiting Chicago this weekend in search of the "perfect" neighborhood to live in. SO many choices and so little time! We're currently looking at Bucktown, Wicker Park, Old Town, Ravenswood, and Humboldt Park. It should be a lot of fun, but we realized AFTER we made plans that we will be in town during St. Patrick's Day. We'll see how that goes... Maybe we'll even get to see the GREEN Chicago River. AND we'll eat some Giordano's Pizza, too! YUM!!!
BIG news for the MS musical - it will be performed at the Ohio Dominican University Theater! What a great experience for the kids!
On another note, Kurt and I will be visiting Chicago this weekend in search of the "perfect" neighborhood to live in. SO many choices and so little time! We're currently looking at Bucktown, Wicker Park, Old Town, Ravenswood, and Humboldt Park. It should be a lot of fun, but we realized AFTER we made plans that we will be in town during St. Patrick's Day. We'll see how that goes... Maybe we'll even get to see the GREEN Chicago River. AND we'll eat some Giordano's Pizza, too! YUM!!!
Monday, March 5, 2007
First Post!
Woohoo! My first blog! I thought it would be great to start a blog since Kurt and I will soon be moving away from everyone! That way, you can all keep up with our ever-changing life!
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