My Chicago Neighborhood History
1. Lincoln Park (take 1) - the cherry popper
When I first moved to the city, I rented a room for two months from someone who was renting a "two-bedroom" "apartment" in Lincoln Park. The ways of the city were new to me. I'd gone to grad school in Lincoln Park, so I thought I'd be fine, but to be fair, I'd never left campus.
O Lincoln Park, how you initiated me to the ways of the city. You are where a terrified Mandie learned how to get a Ventra card and use public transit on the reg, where she took a bus for the very first time, where she learned you have to pull that cord thingy if you actually want to get off the bus, and that Chicago has a multitude of neighborhoods. When attempting to find a new place, I remember just searching "Chicago" and the realtor getting back to me, "It looks like you've selected apartments in Rogers Park, Logan Square, and Bridgeport. Where are you looking to live?" To which I responded, "I don't know, is there any difference?"
2. Wicker Park - the fun experimental one
Imagine a street lined with bars and quirky little shops. Imagine a neighborhood catered to a certain kind of hipster in their late 20's to early 40's who is not that wealthy but not that poor. Imagine a place where you can always get inventive small plates, vintage clothes, rare used books, and Old Style. That is Wicker Park. I was with you less than a year, Wicker Park, so you kind of seem like a fever dream. I think I've outgrown you, but we had fun.
3. River North - the sugar daddy
So, you had to break up with Wicker Park when your apartment flooded. That's ok. You're ready for a more grown-up neighborhood. How about renting a room in a condo in a neighborhood where everything around you is ... a gallery or a studio or a gallery or a studio or ... yeah that's pretty much it.
O River North, I was out of my depth. I had not the age, nor the experience, nor the money to sustain this for very long, but you gave me a taste of what I guess I'd call the good life. Remember the time the condo association had a party and I tried to mingle with people who were all about 10 years older than me, married, and owned their condos? At one point, they were talking about their kids and one woman, trying to include me, asked me with a plastic smile, "So, do you have any ... nieces or nephews?"
4. Humboldt Park - the comfy guy you chillax with
Can you afford to live completely solo in the city? Yes, if you get a studio apartment that's a 20 minute walk away from the nearest public transit. But it's close to the gigantic Humboldt Park, the 606 trail that crosses the entire west side, and a diverse community of people that seem to give very few ****s. Your grocery store is the Puerto-Rican owned place that has produce you've never heard of. Your only local restaurant is a sandwich shop/liquor store where things can get weird but everyone there is used to weird. No frills, but it's a place where you can be you. You never feel like you have to dress up.
5. Lincoln Park (take 2) - the former friend who's just too good for you now
Maybe you want to be closer to work, and live in something bigger than a studio. What? There's a 700 sq ft apartment in your price range in good ol' Lincoln Park?
It turns out, not everything that says it is an apartment, actually is. And it turns out, you do not by any conceivable stretch fit in in Lincoln Park.
Everyone in Lincoln Park is a) a DePaul student, or b) a wealthy young family that looks like they were created in The Sims: Pleasantville edition. You do kind of derive pleasure from your nighttime walks around the neighborhood, lusting after the lovely gardens, the extravagant Halloween and Christmas decorations, it warms your heart. But your isolation sinks in after so many days of dodging spandex-clad, perfectly made up moms power walking with their likely designer strollers, having damn weiner kids pounding on the windows of your basement apartment to mess with your cats, and every weekend in the summer being a rager til 3 a.m. until the college kids stumble home, dropping many a White Claw clan down the steps leading to your door. GET OFF MY LAWN. Seriously. I live in the basement. You're partying right outside my window, and I am old.
6. Edgewater - the rebel that never really let you in
I decided, toward the end of my time in Lincoln Park, that I wanted to get as far out as I could get and still be in Chicago. So ...
I knew Edgewater only from running through it. It seemed like a cool place, and it was, but I could never make it feel like home. It's a diverse melting pot for sure; what do you expect when you live right between a college and a series of nursing homes? There are a whole lot of different folks here, but don't expect to get to know any of them too well. Overall, I got the feeling this is a neighborhood whose residents are pretty much just looking out for themselves. The beaches are nice, but other than that, a bunch of high rises and nowhere that seems particularly friendly to hang out.
Things to Do in Chicago
1. Watch the sun rise over Lake Michigan
Head out to the Lakefront Trail or one of the many beaches. It's a really incredible sight. Belmont Harbor is one of the most peaceful places I've found, but it's all good. If you're a swimmer, maybe go for a morning swim.
2. Go to a street fest
There is a fun party for just about everyone in Chicago. Regrettably, I don't think the Lagunitas Beer Circus or the Goose Island Battle of the Breweries tournament exist anymore, but I went to each of those once and they were legendary. I've been to the Wicker Park Fest three times, and it is always wild. In addition to the live music and the various food/merch stands and beer tents, all the stores and restaurants along Milwaukee are still open, including that one karaoke bar, and oh man I got the worst whiplash from headbanging there after overdoing it at Wicker Park Fest.
3. Run to Evanston
If you're a distance runner, like I used to be, run north on the Lakefront Trail as far as you can, and then keep running. When the trail ends, you get spit out onto Sheridan for a while, and then all of a sudden you're right back out by the lake, and there's a sign telling you you're in a new city! The exhilaration of having run that far is great in itself, but the beach on the Chicago/Evanston border is breathtaking, with rocky shores and typically calm waters that just merge seamlessly into the sky.
4. Have a drink at Signature Lounge
On the 96th floor of the Hancock building (97th? I don't remember) there's a bar you would want to go to after dark. There might be a little bit of a line to get in, especially if you go on the weekend, and your drink will be pricy, but it's worth it. Even when you're as jaded as I am, you can love the city lights, and the view here is amazing.
5. Go to the Field Museum
It's the best museum, ok? Alright, I might be biased because it's always been my favorite. Don't miss the exhibit that walks you through the entire history of earth. It is my happy place. Plus, you get to see some dinosawrs.
6. See local standup or improv
Yes, there are incredibly expensive theaters in the Loop you can go to where you can see the latest show to leave Broadway, but, there are a lot of hidden gems throughout the city where you can see amateur actors on their way to the top. One that I used to love was The Den in Wicker Park. In between shows, there was a lounge where you could play board games, read books about the history of Hollywood, and drink some interesting custom cocktails.
Things You Can Skip in Chicago
1. The Loop
No one lives in the Loop. No one is in the Loop that does not have to be. Every business closes shortly after work hours during the week, and god help you if you're there on a Sunday and need someplace where you can be indoors. Or if you miss the last train of the night out to the suburbs and you have to go to the bathroom. And don't even get me started on the "upper" and "lower" streets and how bad your GPS will crap out.
2. Deep dish pizza
Real Chicagoans don't eat deep dish. Any place you go for deep dish in the city is going to be a chain that is just as easy to find, and probably more popular, in the suburbs.
3. The Bean
... I mean, it's shiny?
4. Shedd Aquarium
It's a good aquarium. But, it's expensive AF. If you're going to have a Chicago museum day, maybe go somewhere that has something other than fish. Or, if you wanna see animals, go to the (to my knowledge still) free Lincoln Park Zoo, or visit one of Chicago's cat cafes!
5. The "Rock n Roll" McDonald's
It's not a special McDonald's. There's like some signs on the wall. The menu is the same. They do not sing to you or anything. I don't get why people from the suburbs thought this place was a big deal.
6. Wrigleyville when there is a Cubs game going on
Unless you wish to become one with the madness, and that madness is made of loud, and that loud is dressed in blue.
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