Hettie’s Reflections – Blog Posts

Lost And Found

Tuesday was, as it was, the most stressful day of the past week. Tuesdays are typically my “biking before work” days. Now that we are in this short period of early sunrises, I am trying very hard not to miss any of these opportunities. However, that meant going to work a little bit later to make a longer bike ride, and I was debating with myself whether I should cut some time off my already congested day. Finally, I decided that the weather was too nice to miss and that I would get both more energized and more relaxed if I went. So I did.

There is a 2.5-mile ride through the streets before I get to the Lake Front Trial, and when I was almost there (I was just about to make the last turn towards the lake), I suddenly saw a message on my watch: Your keys are no longer near you. Last seen on Farewell… It was a little bit chilly at 5 AM on Tuesday, and I put on a different biking jacket and didn’t pull a zipper all the way up after I got out of the bike room, so somehow, the keys fell off. I didn’t even realize at first that I was already very far away from the keys, and started to walk back, looking down at the road. A minute later it registered to me, that the keys were lost on Farewell, and that ten minutes on the bike on the empty streets would take you very far from your starting point.

I got back on the bike and biked back to where my phone was saying the keys were left, and was imagining all sorts of things that could happen if somebody took them. The phone was showing the keys at the same location, but no guarantee it was the whole case, not just the AirTag. Finally, I reached the turn to Farewell, and when I turned left i immediately saw the case with the keys in the middle of the road! It was a relief, and for a moment I started thinking whether I should go back for a bike ride :). Then I decided that I do not have enough time for anything more than just reaching the Lake Front, and that I can go down to the gym for 20 min.

So I continued my ride home, put my bike back to the bike room, climbed up to my apartment and took the apartment key out. It won’t fit into the lock! I took a look and realized that at least one car went over my key case! The key was badly bended. Several people have my keys, but no one whom I would dare to disturb at 5-40 AM!

i was desperate. I stepped on the key trying to straighten it, and I did it – a little bit. And then, I managed to push it all the way in, and the door was unlocked! I was even able to pull it out, but that was it – I was unable to push it in one more time. Fortunately, I had several extra copies of the apartment key, so I just replaced it.

… when the day started like that, it was very difficult to convince myself that it’s not the end of the world, and the rest of the day will be fine! (spoiler alert – it ended up well!)

Another Crazy Week

Since there was almost no word from me this week, one can imagine that my life was pretty intense. And it was, indeed. It was rather bad for the previous two weeks as well, and this week, things at work continued to be crazy.

Tuesday was especially challenging because, in addition to work, I presented at an online conference. The talk was pre-recorded, but I needed to be there for Q&A, and I also made an effort to listen to other speakers. After work, I had a meetup with Chicago Open Source Data Infrastructure, and the RSVP list was over eighty people, so I had been panicking since the night before.

Also, I am leaving on vacation on Sunday, which is good, but the number of things to be done before I leave is unimaginable! Wish me luck!

Sunday

On Sunday, we had an early celebration of Nadia’s and Kira’s birthdays. Our original plans changed dramatically due to circumstances beyond our control, but the day ended up being so busy that it was probably for good that some things were canceled.

The day included a trip to the Sunday Market, getting the annuals for my balcony, the beach, pizza, presents, and the cake – what could be better!

Volunteering Activities

On Thursday, we had our first meeting of the Howard and Evanston Community Center (HECC) Community Board. This is my newest volunteering activity, and I had many thoughts on whether I should engage before I said yes.

The most significant decisive factor was the idea that I would be able to make a big impact with a relatively low time commitment by joining the Strategic Planning Group. Now, I am trying very hard to stay with this task and not jump into my usual mode “let me do things myself because otherwise, nobody would do it.”

Overall, I have a good feeling about this meeting in terms of knowing how to ask the right questions and having a good idea about the areas of potential improvement. The worst part is that it looks like the budget figures remain a mystery, although I am determined to resolve it.

We’ll see how it will turn out!

***

Today, I went to the clinic for escorting for the first time in a while. I went for the morning shift, and it was very quiet. The first group of protesters appeared ten minutes before the end of my shift, although they were very loud and annoying right away. At least, it was not like two weeks ago – I was not there, but others told me that there were over a hundred protesters. The noise-controlling city ordinance is still hanging up in the air, and our team leader says that she doesn’t foresee it being approved in the observable future.

I guess I will keep escorting when I retire, which was always my plan.

More Cultural Activities

Thursday at CSO. A very French concert 🙂 The legendary Jean-Yves Thibaudet (not as young as in the pictures, but magnificent!). Conductor Stephane Deneve. All-French program: Boulanger (a woman composer who died young, I never heard of her!), Saint-Saëns, Debussy, Ravel. It appears to be my last concert of this CSO season: the Sunday concert was unfortunately postponed, and I exchanged all the rest of my tickets for the. next season since I will be out for the second half of June).

Friday: “English” in Goodman Theater. Full house. The audience laughed and cried. The program said that there would be a play discussion after the show, but there was no announcement, so we left. There was still enough to process, even without a discussion.

From the Goodman website:

“English Only.” Four adult students in Karaj, Iran are studying for the Test of English as a Foreign Language—the key to their green card, medical school admission or family reunification. Chasing fluency through a maze of word games, listening exercises and show-and-tell sessions, they hope that one day, English will make them whole. But it might be splitting them each in half.

Theo Ubique Little Night Music

I knew there will be video clips later, and here it comes! Enjoy!

TIME Magazine: How To Measure Your Workout

Several workout-related articles appeared in recent Time issues, even though it’s not the beginning of the year. This one is about “the magic numbers” and why there is no “best single way” for wellness.

Continue reading “TIME Magazine: How To Measure Your Workout” →

June is Pride Month!

Pride bagels at work
Pride CTA train

Kidnapped

I just watched Marco Bellocchio’s Kidnapped at the Siskel Center. I am speechless. It’s an extremely powerful movie, and the director’s work, and all the actors, including children, are brilliant. I didn’t know what an amazing movie it was, and I am so glad I went! I walked out shaking… still can’t say anything legible.

Sunday

Nothing special happened last Sunday, but the whole day was amazing. I enjoyed each moment, and once again, I couldn’t stop thinking how fortunate I am to live in Rogers Park—there is no other neighborhood like this!

I started my day with a long bike ride. We are at the start of two months of early sunrises, and I do not want to miss any of these mornings!

Monroe Harbor

Even though I left the house before sunrise, a long bike ride was indeed long, and when I came back, it was already 7-15. I just had time to shower, and got out of the house. My plan was to have breakfast at the Common Cup just because I wanted to try it for a while, and I never did. I was not sure how crowded it would be in the morning right before opening, so I ordered in the app while I was on my way there. When I entered the coffee shop, I found that:

  • They were just finishing my order.
  • There was nobody inside. except for myself.

I sat down with my cappuccino and my quiche and enjoyed. My next stop would be at Glenwood Sunday Market, and I still have some time to spare. Several customers would come in and out, both for takeaway and dining-in, but the place was still far from being crowded. I walked to the counter to ask were is the garbage – I could not spot it around me. A person at the counter was taking an order, and just as I started asking, a customer turned to me, and I saw that it was our Alderwomaan Maria Hadden! It was unexpected (her office is just the next door, but it was Sunday!), so I was like: Oh, hi, Alderwoman Hadden! And she was: Oh, you are looking for a garbage? Let me show you! And she led me to the opposite side of the caffee, where the garbage can was. I asked her: are you going to the same place as we all are going? And she said: yes, of course, to the market!

I walked to the marked fifteen minutes before opening. Everything was set up, and nice, and fresh, and the sun was bright, and it felt like a holiday.

Shortly, the opening ceremony started, and all of the officials talked about how our Glenwood market is a thing they are bragging about, and how it is a center of community, and people get together there, etc.

And then the ribbon was cut, and the bell rang, and people disbursed to their favorite vendors. I went to the south corner of the market to check in with my favorite all-natural popsicle makers:

And then got my flowers!

Now until the end of October, I have no problem having fresh buquiets every week!

That was enough to make it a perfect day. The rest of the day just rolled!