chicago weekend

This weekend, I went to Chicago for my best friend’s wedding. It was absolutely gorgeous weather, nearly 80 degrees the whole weekend. Saturday, I went into the city with my husband to celebrate my birthday! Woo! It was very busy. Crowds everywhere.  My husband took me out to dinner at the Signature Room on the 95^th. This is a very nice restaurant located in the Hancock building where you can sit in the dining room, or the lounge and overlook the city of Chicago. Lake Superior is right outside as well. The view is spectacular!  It was a good evening.

            When I mention that I am from Illinois, people normally have this programmed response, “Chicago!!! Oh I love Chicago!”  Then I have to go back and wordily clarify that I was raised in southern Illinois, not Chicago, and that they are very different. Where I come from there is coal, tire factories, corn, soybeans, farmland, bon fires, four seasons to the year, etc. But then smile and simply say, “But yes, Chicago is a fun city.” All the while not understanding all the hype. EVERYONE LOVES CHICAGO. What is it about this city that seems to get a unanimous vote of approval? It is very cold and windy in the wintertime, which never seems to bother people who desire to visit or live in this city.

            After leaving the small, horticulture rich, mid-western town I grew up in, I wanted to head to the “big city”. I chose Atlanta for a variety of reasons.  The first set of reasons involves family ties.  I was born in Albany Georgia, where my mother moved after being born and raised in Jacksonville Florida; where her parent (my grandparents) still reside.  My mother’s brother and his family live in Savannah, Georgia. I knew I wanted to live young and independently like my mom did. The south made sense to me. The warm weather accompanied by blue skies is a perk. The vague idealized thought in my mind of being a part of busy activity, being successful, living at a fast pace, was always exciting for me. I knew the school I wanted to attend (SCAD). So Atlanta made the most sense.  However, Atlanta, doesn’t receive the same raving reviews as Chicago does.  Not even from me.

            What is this likability? Even after visiting Chicago prior to this weekend, I never grasped what it was that everyone so raved about. But this time, I realized that one afternoon/evening was not even enough.  The city is so big!! It is impressive; breathtaking…literally with the wind….and it is beautiful. It is how a city should feel. Now I am not a world traveler, and I speak only from ideals in my own mind, but Chicago is in fact a fantastic city. But then I question if that is a lasting fact, an acquired fact, or a true fact.  Do the people who live in Chicago see the city as intriguing as the visiting tourists?  Is the Chicago love a lasting love, or does its charm fade over time?           

             These two worlds that I have in my life are ones that I would like to include in my work right now. The vast differences between rural and urban; country and city; nature and industry; my roots and my future. There seems to be an internal battle between this little country girl and the sophisticated city gal. Both of these roles are ones that I think should both share a part of who I am. But how do they fit together, and where?