Category: everyday life

A Very Eventful Weekend

I had grand plans for the past weekend, which ended up being realized for at most 70%. If was a long weekend, starting with our monthly Wellness Friday. I went for what I hoped would be an enjoyable semi-long ride. On my way back, near Montrose Harbor, an older gentleman decided to cross to the exit from the pedestrian lane right in front of me. I had no time to brake, and I did my best to make a sharp left turn so I won’t knock him off. I still touched him, but slightly, so he didn’t fall. As for me, I ended up falling off, although not very bad.

My chain had fallen off, the handlebar turned sideways, and my knee was scratched pretty seriously, but at least I didn’t get a concussion! 

Still, it was a bad start to the day. I lost a lot of time fixing the chain, straightening the handlebar, getting back on the Trail, and then taking care of my knee at home. 

And then, I could not return to my original plans for most of the weekend. The heavy rain most of Saturday didn’t help either. To be fair, I planned a little bit too much for this weekend, and it is possible that I would have to abandon many of my plans regardless of this bike accident, but I still blame those who do not look to the left and the right before crossing!

The list of good things that happened:

  • I swam in the lake on the only day when it was possible (Friday)
  • Recorded an hour-long podcast with Hasura (should go live tomorrow)
  • Went to the Bridgeport Art Center Open House with Igor
  • Went escorting
  • Saw a part of the Chicago Air and Water show (and figured out how I am going to do it next year)
  • Visited the Glenwood Art Fair
  • Baked a pumpkin pie and a blueberry pie
  • Gave a lengthy interview about MAC hosting
  • Finished one of the five presentations for my fall conferences
Bridgeport Art Center
Bridgeport Art Center
Continue reading “A Very Eventful Weekend” →

Still, More Lake :)

The last sunrises I can capture, the waves, the sun, and the sand…

Jumping in the waves is the best thing you can do by the lake! And there were lots of waves these days. Overall, the weather was very beach-like, and I would go to the beach during my lunch break pretty much every day. And every day, I say: thank you, Universe, for the lake!

Grant Park Music Festival End of Season

The last concert will take place on Saturday, but for me, Wednesday was the last one I attend this season. It was a beautiful event, and as usual, Carlos Kalmar was amazing!

The concert theme was “Fairy tales,” starting with Tchaikovsky’s “The Sleeping Beauty,” and the orchestra and the conductor were projected onto a big screen.

Also, the weather was perfect for the concert – not too cold, not too hot, and that was the only time during this season that I was able to take mom to the concert.

It Can’t Continue That Way

Boris went to Saint-Petersburg again. The main (and almost the only) reason for this trip was the dissertation defense of his post-grad. This student is going to emigrate from Russia, so it was vital to have all the paperwork (he won’t be able to receive his diploma for several months, but at least Bors did whatever he could).

Boris was surprised to find out that it was very difficult to get the tickets on the bus. Remember that his bus is now almost the sole mean of communication between Russia and the rest of the world. We still could not figure out, however, why all of a sudden the demand had grown so much.

Today, when Boris returned back to Helsinki, the first thing he told me was, “now, I know why there are no tickets available.” Most of the seats on the bus were occupied by families clearly heading to their vacation destinations, with huge luggage, wearing sunhats and shorts. After he complained about mothers screaming at their children, I asked: ok, what’s your problem with this? Screaming Russian mothers are, unfortunately, a very familiar site. He said: It’s not right! It’s not right that they continue to live like nothing is happening!

I could not agree more. That’s why I support Zelinsky’s call to Western governments to completely ban Russian tourists. And I do not want to hear anything about “those who are innocent.” Not everybody can take out to the streets. Not everybody can take a risk of arrest, and not everybody can accept the possibility of being fired. But there is one thing that an honest person can do: not allow themself to live life as if nothing happens.

I saw this video on my friend’s blog, a horrific video showcasing the worst cases of ignorance. I can’t comprehend it: I feel my guilt all the time, even though I never voted for Putin. How come people in this video do not?!

Model T Ride

The only thing which was not perfect with this trip was the weather: it was bare 70F, and it rained on Saturday evening, but honestly, the weather did not stop us from having fun.

We spent the whole Sunday in the Henry Ford village and museum; we arrived 15 minutes after it was open and left 15 minutes before it closed. We hardly saw a half of everything, and my brain was exploding with all the new information! I won’t have time to blog about everything, so there will probably be bits and pieces, not necessarily in order of importance.

Speaking about Henry Ford and Model T, you can’t stop feeling the mixture of amazement with the greatest human mind achievements and, at the same time, the realization of all nowadays environmental problems starting back then.

That’s where it all began!
Waiting in line for Model T rides
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Yesterday’s Sunrise

Not In My Backyard!

For two months, there was a discussion in our community about opening a men’s homeless shelter. The building in which the shelter would be open is located exactly where there is the most need in the shelter. However, many people were opposed. In fact, I learned about this discussion from a letter from one of my neighbors who asked everybody to go online and vote against the shelter.
Granted, I clicked on the link to the Google form and voter in favor. However, I was still very upset that regardless of socioeconomic background, income or education, the argument stays the same: anywhere but not in our backyard!
I read several discussions on NextDoor and attended one more virtual meeting, and time and time again, the “nay” people were the loudest, and their arguments were the same old “property value” and “we already have enough services.”

And then, in her last newsletter, our alderwoman said that the majority voted in favor of the shelter.

Although I am happy with this outcome, it makes me wonder whether people avoided publically expressing their “in favor,” or those who were against it were louder, not more numerous.

The South Side

“Do you like the Soth Side?” a young woman in the youth shelter asked me. We talked about her home; she said she is from St. Louis and wants to return there. “What about Chicago?” I asked her. 

– Chicago is my second best. The South Side

-Which places do you like on the South Side?

-It’s not places; I like being there. I like how I feel. It gives me good vibes. People are friendly, and I feel good when I walk there and people say Hi. 

-I like how you said it! It’s very important to feel good vibes!

And then she asked: Do you like South Side? 

She asked with hope in her voice, and I avoided the answer. 

I do not know it enough, although Igor took me to tour the South Side landmarks on multiple occasions. It is a foreign land for me; even though people are indeed nice and friendly, I do not belong there. And this young woman is blissfully ignorant of that. 

I don’t know what to make out of that except for acknowledging the fact..

Approaching The End Of Summer

The days are busy but in a good way. I liked a lot how productively we spent time with Boris, especially the last three days when he was here when we went kayaking, to a concert, and to the Art Institute, and found a new gelato place, and did the bike shopping, and went for a long bike ride just before it started raining.

And now, when he left, I am still doing something interesting every day, and my work days are full. Even though I know that I am missing a lot of summer events, I do not feel like I am “missing out.” I feel like I am living this summer to the fullest.

Today I managed to go on an hour-long bike ride in the morning, even though the sun was rising later these days, and then worked with my current customer with no unproductive interruptions and went to the beach for my lunch break. And after work, I had a friend over – we didn’t see each other in person since before the pandemic.

I have something planned for almost every day until the end of the month, and it feels very good 🙂

In Search Of A Bike

After looking for my potential new bike online, Boris insisted we should go just to any shop to touch and feel and see how I would like it. First, we went to one of the Evanstone’s shops which had very good reviews on the internet, and after that, we went to the shop where I usually have my bikes checked and tuned. We didn’t go there in the first place because I knew they have a very small inventory, and even if I ordered from them, I wanted to see some bikes in the flesh.
That was a very interesting experience :). The prices and the way the service went were so different and so much geared to the respective demographics of Evanston and Rogers Park that it was not even funny. And especially interesting was the conversation with the owner of the Rogers Park shot: he talked at length about the current inventory problems, shipments from China, and unpredictable demand. At some point, he mentioned a bike shop “somewhere in Libertivill” and how they “could sell twenty $1,500 e-bikes, because they have people who make 150K over there, and I can sell maybe one because where here I can find families who make 150K?!” We kept nodding 🙂

In the end, we figured out which model and size I needed, and now we will be waiting for a shipment, which may be a month, maybe three…