Buckets and Ramblings

I am revising my bucket list for the semester:

1. Ride on all colors of trains. So far I've crossed red, blue, and pink off. That leaves green, yellow, purple, and brown.

2. Green Mill Poetry Slam. I've been here eight weeks and still no poetry slam at the founding bar.

3. The Brew and View Movie Theatre. I'm most likely going to watch the last Twilight movie tipsy. Hopefully it will make it better. Or at least more enjoyable.

4. Ice Skating in Millinium Park. I've never gone ice skating. It may kill me. But I want to try anyway.

5. DuSable Museum of African American History. It's only free on Sunday, so it may be my afternoon outing today.

6. Jane Addams Hull House Museum. Always free, just need to take the time and actually go.

7. Blue Man Group. If you volunteer to usher, you can see the show for free. My roommate and best friend went last night, I was jealous.

8. Museum of Mexican Art. Also always free, just need to take the time and actually go.

9. Have one drink in the Hancock Building Signature Lounge. Because buying a drink is cheaper than paying to go to the observatory, and the lounge is higher.

10. See as many shows for as little money possible. My goal is actually one every week, but that might be stretching it a bit. It's possible to get cheap seats, but I don't know if it's possible to get that cheap of seats.

It's been an interesting week. Monday I had my first really awful day of school. Week seven is pretty good for my first awful day. And then Tuesday was great, so it all turned out fine.

I went to a ballet. Beautiful. But I'm realizing that my attention span isn't long enough for ballets. It's very hard to just focus on what is happening on stage. It's lovely and moving, but often times I'm watching and thinking about something completely different. I think it's because I'm such a lover of words that it's hard to pay attention when there aren't any.

I've been struck by the first homesick twinges for awhile. Like Monday after my awful day, I just wanted to go home. I also made pizza casserole for Andrew that night and ate his mushrooms; if I was home, I would have been eating my brother Brad's mushrooms. Stupid things like that. Or going to a show on my own yesterday made miss walking into the theatre department and finding someone who would go see a show with me. I'm also missing friends who don't require going out and drinking every night to have fun. Not that I'm against drinking, but I don't want to do it every, single night. Not my scene at all. Strangely enough, I found myself a little homesick after talking to my dad on the phone about farming and my absentee ballot.

The desires to go home pass quickly, but they are there nonetheless. I'm excited for Christmas so I can go home for a bit. I'm not excited for Christmas, because I have no idea what my life is going to look like after December 7. I need a Chicago roommate.

My weeks in Chicago are over half over. By the time November comes, I'll have missed it. Halloween, then I have friends coming the first weekend of November, then the elections happen, then Aleah is visiting, then I think Heather and Lynda are visiting, then it's Thanksgiving, then I have two weeks of teaching left. Bah. Crazy to think about. So I'm not going to think about it.

Until next time.