3 Word Wednesday Linky Party with RealLifeReslers

 Linking up with RealLifeReslers for the 

3 Word Wednesday Linky Party!

 

"Each Wednesday, link up with a photo--BUT--the catch is you can only have 3 words to describe your picture!! No more, no less." 


 here's mine!

early              morning            doodles

 

Chicago Mayoral Election

Everyone is crazy about the election today!  Who knew choosing a new mayor could be so much fun!

Global Warming

Out on Lake Michigan

Frozen waves

Ice Surfing

Standing on the lake

The Morning After.....

Our snowed in parking spot!

 

 

Halpert and I check out the damage from the big storm!

Blizzard 10:00 PM Update!

Here is what the outside of my building looks like.

I tried to close the main door, but the wind was too much for me.  Looks like we will be shoveling the entryway tomorrow! 

The Calm Before the Storm

Great snowstorm of 1967

(Tribune archive photo)

See more on the 1967 storm here:The 1967 Chicago Blizzard

Here in Chicago we are bracing ourselves for what is being called the worst storm to hit since 1969 when 23 inches of snow blanketed an unsuspecting city.  The difference this time around is that the snow is no surprise.  SNOW is on everyone's mind, and as you slush through the streets people say, "Stay warm" "It's just beginning!" "Better head home!" to one another.  It only take a storm to make the 3rd largest city in the US feel like a small town.  

Chicagoans are playing the waiting game now only two and a half hours until the looming whiteout.  Construction workers are finishing up jobs and heading home, school buses are collecting students early, salt trucks and snowplow rigged dump trucks are loitering in parking lots waiting to be needed.



Here is some footage Halpert and I took of the calm before the storm...

 

On Lake Michigan around noon

I'm going back to school!!!...

I am going back to school in 2 months!! 

Well, for one class!  I got my master's degree in education in WV, so when I moved to IL I found that I needed one more course to teach middle school.  AND since my life's dream is to be a 7th grade language arts teacher, I need to suck it up and take the course.


I have my application, my resume, my transcripts, and my $30 application fee in.  Now all I have to do is WAIT. 


I am getting excited to take the course: Psychology of Middle School--What could be crazier than the inner workings of the mind of a middle schooler?? 

Sometimes I would LOVE to know what is going on in my students' heads!!

Sometimes we are a little TOO connected

Here's one from last year.  :)  

Poor Halpert

I just want to put a shout out to my poor dog Halpert.  He has had one hell of a day.

First, he had to tolerate me dressing him up like an Eskimo dog.

Then he had to go to the vet and get three vaccinations, blood work, and a full...um... exam.

Then, when he was chasing sticks in the snow he fell on a patch of ice and went sliding on his butt!

 

Hopefully tomorrow will be a better day!

Wednesday night Monkey and I were waiting the car at his school like crazy people stalking the FedEx guy who had Daniel's new bass (we waited over 2 hours and it never came!!!)  He wistfully said that tomorrow was el dia de reyes and we didn't have anything to celebrate it. 

Some background:

• Daniel grew up in Mexico
• In the past 5.5 years together we have never celebrated this or any of his Mexican holidays
• We let all of our holidays be a bust this year (we didn't dress up for Halloween, we couldn't go home for Thanksgiving, we waited until the last minute to go to my parents for Christmas, and we didn't even count down for New Years.)
• We are trying to be happier people this year

So when he mentioned this holiday that used to be important to him, I knew we couldn't let this one slide too.

I had one day to research this holiday and then surprise Daniel with a celebration.
I stopped off at Target for his gift.  (The Wise Men are supposed to come with their camels and leave gifts in your shoes)  I bought a wallet and a little razor because I thought they would fit neatly in Daniel's shoes

I opened my class by asked the students if anyone knew where I could buy a Rosca de reyes (a cake with a little baby toy in it that they serve at this holiday)  They gave very vague directions to various panaderias.

School let out, and I began driving.  No way was I going to be able to find the places my students were trying to describe.

I found the first panaderia and parked.... then a guy said, "you can't park there!  it's rush hour! you can't park anywhere on the street during rush hour you will get a ticket".  I thanked the guy for his advice thinking, "how could I have made it in Chicago since june and not know this apparently obvious rule??"

I drove around the neighborhood a dozen times, getting tripped up with one-way streets, finding myself trying to make impossible turns, horns were honked  etc etc (I HATE CITY DRIVING!!)

Finally I found a little panaderia with a PARKING LOT!!!!  inside the cakes were in stacks, and they were beautiful!

The lady working there helped me find one with fruit on it and I bought it!!

 

 

What makes YOU happy? Music!

I asked my husband, Daniel--aka--Monkey, what makes him happy.  He said he is happiest when he is doing his hobby, music.  Monkey has been much more dedicated to his music lately and has created a home music studio with a new keyboard, two electric guitars, and some music making software.  The difference is noticeable.  When asked if he is happier now that he is working on his music again Monkey says, "Yeah."  I think that says it all!!  Hobbies make you happier!

Feng Shui

My husband has the flu, so this week I have been spending a lot of time in my rat-hole apartment.  As I move several coats and a few discarded pieces of mail (probably overdue bills) so I can sit at my computer, I think, “This might be part of the problem.”

I can’t walk from the bathroom to the kitchen without tripping on something.  A cord, a dog bone, a table leg.

The ancient Taoists would say I had bad feng shui. 

<---- This is what I find myself living in. 

Feng shui’s literal translation from Chinese to English is “wind” and “water.”

(and it there is anything I have plenty of on the shore of Chicago’s section of lake Michigan…. It is WIND and WATER!!!!)  

So I set my first mission:  Make my apartment feng shui friendly!!

 As my sensei, Ohmyapt.apartmentratings.com, says “Positive energy can’t come through when there’s dirt and clutter everywhere.”

I say NOTHING can get through in this super cluttered apartment!

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I identify a few problem areas and get to work!

1.  LAUNDRY

 

I have to do laundry in the ancient laundry room in my building.  I am sure these machines are older than I am.   I call it a good day, four loads and the dryer only stole 75 cents!

 

2. CORDS!

Computer cords have taken over my apartment!  I trip over them regularly. 

 I find ZIP ties and go to war....

3. Dishes......

tomorrow??.....

 4. Junk

It is ridiculous how much junk I can accumulate.

How does this stuff find it's way into my home!

 

Now I have to carry it down to the trash room. How embarrassing!!  If someone sees me walking through the building with so many trash bags they will know how long it has been since I've cleaned.  

I will wait until nighttime, then sneak down.

After cleaning all day, I am FINISHED!!  

Feng Shui ALL the way!!

 Am I happier?  I am at least less frustrated.  The clean area makes me feel more at peace, and the aerobic exercise involved with cleaning has perked me up.  Though I can't help the nagging anxiety that says that I will never be able to keep this room clean....