Best in Show, er, Street

Clara and I decided to go on our evening walk early tonight. After taking some towels down to the laundry room to throw them in the wash, we strolled out the front door and smack into a neighborhood block party that I didn't even know existed. Fortunately for Clara, we came out right in time for the neighborhood dog awards. I assume every dog got one, but Clara's was very well-earned as she won for the Best Haircut (which she just got last week). We decided to ignore the fact that the people giving out the awards were the owners of Rogers Bark...our groomers. I'm so proud of my girl. :)

Clara's award

A very happy Clara with her prize for best haircut

The Great Marshmallow Test

There is a rather famous psychology test on delayed gratification first conducted by Walter Mischel in the 1960s. Dubbed "The Marshmallow Test," the experiment involves placing a child in a room on a chair in front of a table. On the table is a plate with a single large marshmallow on it. The child is told that they have a choice. They can either eat the marshmallow in front of them now, or they can wait until the adult leaves the room for 20 minutes and then comes back. If they can make it all the way through without eating the marshmallow, then they can have TWO marshmallows--the one in front of them, and a second one that will be given to them by the returning adult. The subjects are then studied later in life to see if those who possessed better impulse control at an early age were better adjusted adults. The version of the test below happened to be videotaped. The struggle of the kids to not eat the marshmallow is pretty hysterical. This should brighten up your day just a bit. :)

In Defense of Shoes

Today I made my semi-annual pilgrimage to DSW, a place in which I could easily blow one or five paychecks, as I was sorely in need of some new shoes. Having seen the ridiculousness that is my mom's feet and all the pain they've caused her partially as a result of wearing uncomfortable shoes for many years, I have become a devoted fan of flats. Now we all know how extremely tall I am. Obviously, I wouldn't want to give myself any added height or anything... So, flats seem like the way to go. They're both comfy and cute, two things I strive for in most aspects of my life (That must be why I hate my job so much. It's neither comfy, nor cute. Moving on...). I was very proud of myself because I set a budget and get this: I did NOT go over it. And I was in a SHOE STORE. I even put back two pairs of shoes I wanted to get so as to stay within my budget! I know, it blows my mind too. I'm pretty much a financial genius, you know, this being the one and only time I've managed to stay within the budget I set for myself. Anyway, the shoes above were the fruits of my labor. And I tell ya, that's my kind of labor.

Beauty Paw-lor

Clara got beautified today. She was not pleased.

Play Ball!

Last Friday I was invited to go to my first ever Cubs game by my friend Veronika who regularly gets free tickets via her work. I was thrilled to finally experience Wrigley Field during a baseball game, something I probably should have done a long time ago considering I've been here for 6 years now. While the game wasn't especially exciting (the Cubs won 2-0), the hot dog, cotton candy, and company were great. Vince Vaughn, a Chicago native, was there to sing "Take Me Out to the Ballgame" during the seventh inning stretch, and we had awesome seats (although honestly, did I pay much attention to the game? I'm sure you can guess the answer to that one...). Thanks for inviting me to experience a Chicago institution, Veronika. :)

Veronika and Katie

Punk old lady who shushed me for talking too loud. AT A BASEBALL GAME.

Vince Vaugh singing "Take Me Out to the Ballgame"

Veronika, Beth, Me, Katie

Great seats!

One boat, two boat...

Never before have I seen so many boats out on the lake as today, a beautiful September day that was calling to the sailors to wait just a little while longer before putting their boats away for the fall.

Babysittin'

Renegade!

My favorite event in all of Chicago is the annual Renegade Craft Fair. Renegade is a DIY (Do It Yourself) art fair attracting over 300 artists from all over the country. It has been taking place in Chicago for the past seven years, and there are also Renegade Craft Fairs in Brooklyn, Los Angeles, and San Francisco. The fair consists of booths of vendors selling their wares which consist of clothing, jewelry, posters, prints, stationary, bath products, accessories, housewares, baby items, pet items, and anything else you could possibly think of. The merchandise is funky, alternative, unique and uber-cool. If you buy something at Renegade, chances are you won't see it anywhere else. I have to be careful in settings like this, as I can go crazy in there, but this year I was very good. I bought a scarf made out of jersey cotton fabric (ivory with line drawn flowers on the ends), a pair of earrings made out of necktie material, and a pair of earrings made from vintage postage stamps. I'm also planning on purchasing a hat from one of the vendors online, as she didn't have my size at the fair. Renegade also has an annual Holiday Fair in early December, which is not quite as big as the September event, but it is still fairly overwhelming considering the large chasm between what I want and what I can afford. Still, if you are ever in one of the Renegade cities on a weekend that a fair is going on, I would highly recommend you stop by and take it all in. With that many vendors all showcasing bits and pieces of their individual personalities via their art, you're sure to find something that strikes your fancy.

Necktie earrings

Purses made out of books

Magnets

Shark pillow (I actually took this to send to my friend Jessie who just got her husband Eric to watch Jaws for the first time ever)

Funky stationary

The Beara, kindly modeling my new scarf

Vintage stamp earrings

Fruishi

There is a little brunch place I'm fond of in the city called Orange. In the beginning, there was only one Orange, on Clark and Belmont in Lincoln Park. The enterprise has grown, however, to at least four Oranges. Today I tried out a new one, the one on Grand Ave. downtown, with friends before hitting up the Renegade Craft Fair. While the service left a little something to be desired, their famous fruishi (sushi made out of fruit and fruit-infused rice) still withstood the test of time. :)

Flash Mob!

This is from the Oprah taping on Michigan Avenue last Tuesday. I long to be a part of one of these some day...

At Last...

Dear Pickled Eggs,

Ever since I first heard of your existence I've been hoping to make your acquaintance. I've looked high and low, near and far. From grocery store to convenience store, across state lines, over the river and through the woods. For years I've looked, longing to add you to my arsenal of pickled goodness. To bite into your vinegar-y outer layer to your...equally vinegar-y yellow center. I'd all but given up when at last, out of the corner of my eye, I spotted you at the local Topeka butcher shop.

Of course. Where else would you be? Thank you for finally showing yourself. I'm sure my taste buds will be dancing with delight in short order.

Love and chickens,

Erin

Zoe

This is my parent's dog, Zoe, also known as The Zo-meister, or The-Naughtiest-Dog-In-The-World for short. We got Zoe the year after I graduated from college, when I was living back at home and working at my worst job ever which we won't go into because even now it will give me a headache just to think of it. The dog we had while I was growing up passed away in December, which was terribly sad for everyone. She, too, was an Airedale and we loved her dearly. Seeing as my family are all huge dog lovers, there wasn't much of a question about leaving the house without a dog to roam around in it for very long.

In February, after much research, we drove out to a farm in Missouri owned by an Airedale breeder. We jumped out of our car and gleefully searched the grounds for puppies. There were none. So we asked the breeder, "Where are all the puppies?" to which he replied, "OH PUPPIES!" and all of a sudden eleven tiny little Airedales with the most adorable faces you've ever seen came careening around the corner of the barn. They fell all over each other, rolled on their backs, bit each other (and us), and generally acted like they were very good at their job of being puppies. It was hard to pick one, but pick one we did, and that one ended up being Zoe.

The first night we had her, Zoe slept in a crate down in the laundry room while the rest of us were upstairs in our bedrooms. She cried and cried. Finally, in the middle of the night, I went down to the laundry room armed with pillows and blankets, and laid down next to one end of her crate. She immediately moved to that end of the crate and lay down as close as she could get to me and fell asleep. I continued to bond with her the rest of that year until I left for Chicago. Though I've been gone for nearly 7 years now and only return 2-3 times a year, Zoe has never forgotten me. As soon as I walk in that door, even if I've been gone longer than six months, she immediately starts crying and screaming, for lack of a better word. I've never heard sounds like that come out of a dog. She gets completely worked up and jumps on me (which kinda sucks considering she's over 90 pounds) and circles me over and over, her whole body shimmying from how hard she's wagging her tail. It's hilarious.

Though I've been gone for a long time now, I still consider her "my" dog in addition to Clara. I don't think Clara would like this very much (and we'll see how they fair when I bring Clara home for the first time at Christmas this year), but I can't help it. Zoe will always be "my girl" too.

Home Sweet Home

Though she would probably deny it to the n-th degree, my mom fashions herself a mini-Marth Stewart. The thing is, she's really good at it. She's managed to make the house both very chic and interesting to look at as well as extremely cozy. I love it here. I hope they never leave.

Scrabblicious

My parents and I are known Scrabble enthusiasts. The difference between them and I, however, is that they're actually crazy good. My dad is a skilled strategist, known for his put-down-one-letter-and-build-five-words kinds of moves. And he never lets an available Triple Word Score pass him by (which is insanely annoying to my mom and I). My mom knows lots of obscure words and she's also good at seeing the many possibilities in the letters she happens to have. I hold my own, but, extremely frustratingly, never seem to win. So far, we've played both nights I've been home. The score is Mom: 2, Tie between Dad and Mom: 1, Me: A big fat lousy zero.

First Visit

I went to see my friend Erin's baby for the first time last Thursday evening. She is a TEENSY TINY little girl (which you can't tell at all from the pictures below)!! She's a very good baby and oh so sweet. Every inch of her is silky--her hair, her ears, her face, her tiny little hands. I already can't wait until another little rendevous into babyland.