Life in Chicago

Autumn

It's cold!

I forgot what it feels like to be chilly! Seriously. I really forgot.

I feel like my whole being is waking up, stretching and lifting my neck, and remembering the sensation of a cool Fall day.

Yesterday in the late afternoon I left the house to head downtown to meet Greg and suddenly there I was in a trenchcoat and heels, walking down the sidewalk, the trees overhead rustling in the cool breeze and my hands were in my pockets and it was Fall and I couldn't have been happier.

I was supposed to meet Greg at the Apple store on Michigan Avenue but I was so distracted by the lovely weather that I forgot my directions and even after I called Greg for a reminder I forgot what he said and so there I was on the red line headed downtown but with no idea of which stop I needed to get off at. I think I just figured there would be a Michigan Avenue stop but when I looked up at the list of above the door I realized there wasn't one.

I made a quick decision and hopped out at Chicago and skipped up the stairs onto the sidewalk and although it all looked very exciting and like downtown I still didn't know where I was. What a funny feeling! I called Greg but he didn't answer and then I kind of hovered around the Chicago stop waiting for him to call back. I don't know how it is that I can go to Taiwan and go traipsing all over the city by myself, riding subways and not speaking a lick of the language, but when I get off at the wrong stop in my new city I feel too shy to ask someone where I am.

Anyway, Greg called back a couple of minutes later and we figured it out and off I headed for Michigan, and fell right back into being absolutely delighted to be walking down the sidewalk in my trenchcoat and heels on a cool fall day and Michigan Avenue was so grand and like 5th Avenue in New York and everyone was out and I just really couldn't have been happier.

After the Apple store we popped into a little bistro for a glass of wine and to catch up on our days and then went to Borders to hear Sue read from her new book, Only as Good as Your Word and she was fantastic and funny and we all ended up at her brother's beautiful high-rise condo afterwards, drinking wine and looking out the floor to ceiling windows at the sparkling city.

Sue Shapiro is one of the most dedicated and motivated writers I've ever met. She's absolutely inspirational and if you've ever been curious about how to really get yourself out there as a writer, you should read her new book.

And now it's Tuesday morning and I've got the door to the back deck open and the cool Fall air is flooding the apartment and my feet are cold and I don't know what to do about that! I'm trying to remember what I did when I lived in New York. Did I wear socks? Did I have slippers? I have a feeling that my California flip-flops are not going to do the trick.

Today I resolve to finish unpacking most of my stuff, email Time Out Chicago about freelancing, work on my book and/or book proposal, go to a meditation class tonight, and finish a batch of thank you notes I owe all the lovely people in my life.

Settling In

Well, it's Monday afternoon and I'm still in my nightie. This means things are almost kind of normal. When I lived in LA I spent endless productive days in my nightie.

I finished my Taiwan article today. I've been REALLY procrastinating on it for some reason but I finally sat down and hammered it out today. One more thing to cross of my extensive to-do list. My ratio of what I add to the list and what I cross off the list on a daily basis hasn't been so hot lately.

On a positive note, I had the BEST mail day I think I've ever had this past Saturday. Greg and I had just come back to my apartment from a day spent at the Museum of Science and Industry and then a languid afternoon exploring Wicker Park, and while I started dinner I sent him down with the mail key to check for Netflix arrivals.

I wasn't at all expecting him to come back upstairs, his arms laden with packages and letters. It was very exciting. My lovely friend Tricia, a fantastic blogger and former roommate of mine, sent a beautiful little welcoming gift. It was so sweet and made me feel so thought of a cared about. I was really quite touched.

On top of that, my friend Kimberlee Auerbach sent a signed copy of her newly-published book The Devil, The Lovers, & Me which I've been dying to read and which Greg and I immediately fought over.

And then in addition to those two packages, there was a sweet hand-written note from an old Atlanta friend just saying hi, hope all is well in your new life, etc. There was even an Entertainment Weekly and two Netflix DVDs! Seriously. The best mail day ever. Thank you!

We're going to see Susan Shapiro read from her new book at Borders in the Loop tonight which should be fun. Sue is wonderfully funny and sharp-witted. She's a former professor of mine from my BA days at the New School in New York and I still credit her as the reason I got my internship at Time Out New York. The woman knows how to write a cover letter.

That's about it for now. I'm off to take a walk, check out some yoga studios and gyms. I've got to start getting some exercise. Job hunting, laundry, the last of the unpacking awaits.

Life in Chicago

My name is Claire Bidwell Smith. I am 29 years old and I live in Chicago.

I moved here a week ago from Los Angeles where I lived for five years. Until today I've been blogging on a site called Life in LA which I originally began in June of 2003.

I moved to Los Angeles five years ago from Manhattan. My father was living in Orange County and dying of cancer. I spent my first year in LA taking care of him, and working for Citysearch and Student Traveler. My father died in August of 2003.

I moved to Venice Beach after that and lived in a beautiful little apartment on the canals. I'd never lived by the beach before. At night ocean air flooded my bedroom windows and I could hear ducks quacking themselves to sleep beneath the bougainvillea covered bridges. I spent four years living there and recovering from the loss of my last parent.

I traveled a lot. I worked for 826LA. I went back to school and got a Master's in clinical psychology and became a therapist. I wrote a book.

And then I fell in love. And decided to move to Chicago.

I've only been here a week. I live in East Lakeview. My apartment has a lot of windows, high ceilings. I can't really imagine what winter is going to be like. I need to get a job. I've spent a few afternoons crying but that's starting to seem pointless.

I live in Chicago. I'm young. I'm healthy and happy and my whole life is ahead of me.