Sunday was a beautiful day to be in Chicago, walking down Halsted Street from Montrose to Belmont. Clear blue skies, temperature in the 70s. It seemed all of Boystown was out, and the bars had their windows flung open and people could be seen in the dimness within, gathered in groups, eating and drinking.
The entire experience was a reminder that, sometimes, if you do something kind for someone, it rebounds well. I hadn't begun the day planning to spend an hour strolling city streets — the plan was to help our future daughter-in-law pack to move into a new condo. Well, my wife's plan — she has the glassware packing skills, from her years at Mindscape Gallery in Evanston. I was there to drive, provide moral support, do what packing I could, and lift heavy things. I felt a little bad, to be spending the glorious day indoors. But duty is duty.
Noon came and went, but by 2:30 p.m. lunch was suggested and I did not argue. I was good with wherever anybody wanted to go, and that turned out to be the Momo Factory, a Nepalese dumpling place at Broadway and Belmont. It's a mile and a quarter away, my soon-to-be-relative explains. Were we good for that? We were.
So packing morphed into a leisurely stroll through a city full of young people. We passed spots we used to know, and chatted on the changes — this spot is now that. Yoshi's Cafe is closed, recently enough there is a note on the door, re-directing mail. We had a nice dinner there once.
I of course thought about all those Floridian cops cringing and damning Chicago as some kind of hellscape, when — on Sunday at least, through these neighborhoods — it was about as inviting and happy as a place can be. We cut down Melrose, the block where my wife used to live, and I pointed out the balcony from her place.
At one point we saw the chair above, and I noticed that rather than give it away, someone had put a QR code, asking for $15, which is not bad for a second-hand office chair. (And a "Comfy chair!" at that — could that be a sly Monty Python reference? Or did those stop decades ago?)
I of course thought about all those Floridian cops cringing and damning Chicago as some kind of hellscape, when — on Sunday at least, through these neighborhoods — it was about as inviting and happy as a place can be. We cut down Melrose, the block where my wife used to live, and I pointed out the balcony from her place.
At one point we saw the chair above, and I noticed that rather than give it away, someone had put a QR code, asking for $15, which is not bad for a second-hand office chair. (And a "Comfy chair!" at that — could that be a sly Monty Python reference? Or did those stop decades ago?)
Like a farmer setting out eggs at a wooden stand on a countryside road, my future daughter-in-law observed. With a slotted box for a few dollars. Only we weren't in the trusting heartland, I thought, but on the mean streets of Chicago. Maybe not so mean after all.
What charmed me was the owner's hope that whoever wanted the chair would take the time to convey the money, as opposed to just take the chair. Plus the modern Venmo twist. That expectation of decency, of honor. Not to be pollyannaish about it. But one person in Chicago thought there was some slight chance that a random person in need of a second-hand chair would both take it and throw some money their way. There was something sweet about that. Or maybe I was just in a hopeful mood.
I grabbed my youngest and dropped him at his moms place in Edgewater before heading over to the dog beach at Wilson Sunday around noon . Every dog in the city seemed to be there which was wonderful. After an hour or so I heard from my oldest who was on the beach at Ardmore . Grabbed him on the way back to the exes and headed south on DuSable with the youngest and the beaches were packed all the way to South Shore Drive.
ReplyDeleteI love chicago , the lakefront being one of its best features. I'm so grateful for the forward thinkers who made sure it would be used for the benefit of the people and not commercialized or industrialized. It makes you forget for awhile that there are some terrible things going on in many other parts of the city.
Im glad we could enjoy such a beautiful day with our families
The lakefront is probably one of the three things about Chicago I miss the most, the others being live jazz and the Cubs. Imagine having only three real beaches along miles of lakefront...one on each side of the city and the third one in a distant suburb. That's all that Cleveland has. Lakefront access is minimal, because nearly all of it is privately owned and sits on bluffs that are dozens of feet above lake level. We live four miles from Lake Erie, and we don't really see it all that much.
DeleteI have seen things set at the curb marked FREE. Never pay if you wish. I wonder if someone did?
ReplyDeleteHalsted begins at Grace. You were probably on Broadway from Montrose to Belmont.
ReplyDeleteJack
Probably. I wasn't really paying attention, just following along.
DeleteI used to live in that neighborhood, from Montrose to Belmont, from Clarendon to Paulina (met my wife at 4050 N. Kenmore), and there are at least a dozen ways of getting from Montrose and Broadway (I suppose the War Bonnet bar is no longer located in the 4400 block of Broadway) to Belmont and Broadway (I see that the Momo Factory is right on the corner, 3202). But I associate the appellation "Boys' Town" more with Halsted than Broadway or Sheridan Road or Clarendon (which is the 800 West Street North of Grace). However, I haven't been over that way, barring Cubs games, in 20 years or so.
Deletejohn
Took a lot of Sunday strolls along Broadway in the 70s, when I was single. Hard to believe it's almost a half-century ago. So much has changed, but not the amount of Sunday business in the bars. If you were on a less-busy and more residential avenue, Mr. S, it might have been Clarendon, which runs due south, at 800 W, from near Lawrence and Marine Drive to near Broadway and Sheridan, at which point it becomes Halsted. When I finally married and lived
Deletenear Irving Park) in the 80s, I never lived that far east. We were a mile west, at Paulina, and later near Western. Different world.
I see upholstered furniture in the garbage all the time. Never go near it, it might have bedbugs!
ReplyDeleteI'm sure that office chair was full of the anxieties, the pretensions, the frustrations. the psychic angst of the owner. Not sure, however, if they're catching.
Deletejohn
Good point, Clark St.
ReplyDeleteMindscape Gallery!?!
ReplyDeleteI remember saving up my allowance to buy one of the sand creatures from Mindscape. I still have him on my desk.
I miss city adventures like this. I remember when those first few warm days of spring, and everyone is high. It’s fun seeing people having fun. It’s amazing what you can find on the streets (and alleys) of Chicago. I had a great time, fond memories. I’m glad that they still exist.
ReplyDelete$15 or best offer ...
ReplyDelete“Floridian cops”….lost on that one….did I miss a story? Sunday was a glorious day, the kind of day that we wish for in January and February. I washed a car and my motorcycle, took a walk and then sat in the garage to smoke a cigar and watch some of the Masters. A great day.
ReplyDeleteWhen I get a fear-laced email about crime in Chicago, it always seems to come from some retired cop in Florida. A generalization for sure.
DeleteIn the mid-1980s I lived in Uptown, corner of Montrose and Malden, across from the cemetery. Neighbors were quiet, but the corner was busy with dealers and working girls. Found a kitten there, whom I named Teddy. Moved to Logan Square in 1987.
ReplyDeleteLoved the reference to Mindscape Gallery in Evanston - my husband sold his glass work through there for many years, and I always enjoyed our visits when we dropped off new pieces. We probably saw your wife.
ReplyDeleteI loved the reference to Mindscape Gallery in Evanston. My husband sold his glass work through there for many years. I always loved visiting the gallery when we dropped off new pieces. We probably saw your wife there.
ReplyDeleteMindscape Gallery! I loved wandering through it when I lived in (a tiny 3rd floor) apartment in Evanston in the ‘80s. Beautiful things…thanks for the memories.
ReplyDeleteI read this post last night. Glad I glanced at it again, or I would have missed a couple things that have been added.
ReplyDeleteWe were in the South Loop on Sunday and can vouch for how many people were out -- at the beaches, in the parks, pretty much everyplace we looked. Unsurprisingly, it seems like quite a few folks have been waiting for a day like that. It was swell.
We used to live in East Lakeview and, in fact, lived about 3 blocks from you the whole time you lived on Pine Grove, NS. I don't know if I'd have even recognized you back then, but wonder if we were ever in Friar Tuck's at the same time. ; )
Another dining option at Broadway and Belmont: Chicken Hut. If you'd told me 25 years ago that it was going to be one of the places to last a long time, I'd have been surprised, even though we went there a fair amount. It's way outlasted a KFC right across the street, among many other departed joints in the area.
Ah, Yoshi's, a fine, charming spot. It closed in December, 2021, and has been missed by more than a few.