MichaelandChrissy.com

Despite the flooding last weekend, Aiden and I tried to drive over to Target to visit the pharmacy.  We couldn’t take the normal way, since Main street was closed between Kennedy Avenue and Indianapolis Blvd due to flooding.  The second normal way was closed too, since 45th Street was also closed due to high water.  We went to the next intersection north, Hart Road, and crossed over to Indianapolis Blvd there, then turned back south towards Target.

Once we got there, we saw that the entire parking lot was under water.  We drove towards the stores, but had to turn back because there was literally nowhere to go but into the lake that had formed in the lot.  The road was dry along the mall itself, but I couldn’t get over there.  The water between me and the stores was at least two feet deep (you could tell from the half-submerged car).  I wasn’t going to chance it.

On the way home, we took some pictures of the flooding at Main Street and on 45th Avenue.  The flooding on 45th wasn’t evident from Kennedy Avenue, but you could plainly see it from Indianapolis.  There were work crews out with pumps and portable pipes to try to drain the water.  It was all pretty crazy.  Aiden watched it all from the copilot seat.  We made it home safe and sound though.  Maybe we’ll try again tomorrow.

Chrissy and I go to “Cirque Du Soleil” every time they come to Chicago.  They set up a Big Top Tent outside the United Center.  The last time we went, two summers ago, Chrissy was pregnant with Aiden.  This time, she’s pregnant with Gavin.  Luckily, we got VIP parking because we pointed out to the attendant that Chrissy was extraordinarily pregnant.  We parked literally twenty feet from the main entrance, but it cost us twenty bucks (well worth it, says the impaired mommy).

The ticket-takers are positioned strategically right in front of the concession and souvenir stands. Both were painfully overpriced, but we indulged anyway.  We get a refrigerator magnet and a Christmas ornament every time we see Cirque, but I don’t remember them being $45 before.  An additional $21 bought us a medium popcorn, two Cokes and a bag of M&Ms.  Sticker shock, considering that the tickets to get in were fairly pricey to begin with.

The show, “Kooza,” was worth the expenditures.  We had a very good time.  The seats, as usual, were way too small, but I understand the need to cram as many people under the tent as possible.  The music was awesome, and the acts were excellent.  A few of them we had already seen, like the juggler and the trapeze artist.  I’m sure that we’ve seen the contortionists before too, but the new costumes were outstanding, and you can never really get used to seeing people bend like that. The “Wheel of Death” was perhaps the best of the lot, perhaps because one performer almost fell off (scary!).

Chrissy got us excellent seats: positioned in front of the middle of the stage, towards the back so that we could see everything, even with the sound director’s pit, with no tent poles in the way, and along the main aisle (in case she had to get up).  Since our parking spot was so good, we were able to get out and into the street before the rush of people poured into the parking lot.  We talked about the show all the way home. Next time, we might try to bring Aiden, since he may be old enough to appreciate it by then.

I work on Chicago’s South side in a neighborhood called “Hyde Park“.  I miss working downtown, but this is a nice place, with Lake Michigan to the East and the University of Chicago Hospitals to the West.  The Museum of Science and Industry is here too.  Unfortunately, what it doesn’t have is adequate parking.  Regular commuters to the area tend to call it “Hyde No-You-Can’t-Park”.

The problem is that Hyde Park is a university neighborhood, so parking becomes difficult to find whenever classes are in session.  You have to get here pretty early to beat all of the students who drive in (parking is a cakewalk during winter break).  Incidentally, I recently changed my work hours so that I could get in at 8AM.  I used to have to drive around the block twenty times to find someplace to pull in, so I was amazed at how much easier it was to park when you come in extra early.

Until it gets relatively warm, which is when the street cleaners come out of their wintery hibernation.  About once a month, the city blocks off half of each side street for cleaning.  Street cleaning usually lasts for about a week, during which time the amount of parking in the area is effectively cut by half. Competition for parking suddenly becomes fierce. I had to park a mile away from my office this morning, and I was none too happy about it.

I’m sure that this is an elaborate plot to bring more money into the city coffers. First, they post temporary “No Parking” signs everywhere.  Then, when you park somewhere illegally, they swoop in to ticket you.  I got two tickets in two days once during street cleaning week.  They’re quick too, they’ll get you within ten minutes of the posted time.  All of this may soon be a moot point, however, since I’ll most likely be taking the train in once the price of gasoline hits $5 a gallon this summer.