evanston

About a Girl: The Gaslight Edition

in: viewing room, on: the girl

Happy summer, folks!, and greetings from Evanston.

It’s hot as hell out here, with even the breeze coming in from the lake doing little to abate the stifling heat. But it’s pretty, rull pretty, with mid-afternoon rainstorms and gorgeously encroaching sunsets and rippling tides. The coastline (can you call lakeside beaches “coastline”?) is astounding. I love summer ’round here. I’ve barely entered the city limits at all – hell, I haven’t gotten downtown but once this summer, surprisingly – but there’s so much to do in Evanston on a budget, so much to enjoy, even if the best of times are marred by itchy mosquito bites. My dear friend Jimmye and I have embarked on a grand old tradition to beat the summer heat. We delinquents are breaching the delicate Evanston-Wilmette divide and dragging our less-than-divine North Shore tourist butts to the Wilmette beaches. And it’s glorious. We trek up to Wilmette, biking along Sheridan, past the looming Bahai Temple and down through Gillson Park to the beach. The water is clear there, the sand fine and warm, the quasi-boardwalk pocked by generally well-behaved kids. It’s actually incredible, and it’s truly reminding me of why I love summer.

And, y’know, more than that, I think I’m loving the experience because it reminds me of a little movie I used to love called “Now and Then.” When it came out in ’95, critics called “Now and Then” the female “Stand By Me.” And while that’s hilariously untrue – one’s a classic, one’s a laughably admirable sleepover flick – it remains one of the most beloved films from my youth. And my little bike jaunts with Jimmye remind me a bit of this –


Clip from “Now and Then”

I like to think that, if we were to actually reenact “Now and Then,” I’d get to be the character of Roberta (Christina Ricci), the tomboy who tapes her breasts and flirts with and then (spoiler alert!) snogs dreamy Devon Sawa. But that would mean I grow up to be Rosie O’Donnell, and I’m not sure I’m on board with that if it can be helped. Regardless, last night, Jimmye and I caught a bit of an a capella group’s set live in the park amphitheater. Ac•Rock, “Chicago’s premier acappella rock ‘n roll singing group,” as per their website, played a few pretty fun songs, a number of which would have fit right in with the whole “Now and Then” thing. It was fairly perfect.

To you, all of you, happy summer! I hope you’re enjoying it as much as I am. And be sure to enjoy tomorrow’s moderate temperatures. I, for one, will likely be beachside, bitten and buried in schoolwork. For now, I’m off to find out a little something about Dear Johnny.
Au revoir, Simone!

Stolen Bike Alert!

on: tap, on: the girl

Hey, you guys. Charlie Conway’s been bikenapped!

It’s been such a sad few days, friends o’ the blogosphere. Charlie Conway, who I mentioned a few posts back, my beloved Bianchi Milano Citta, has been kidnapped by some big fat jerk! I am oh-so-sad. He was taken right out from under my nose, and I couldn’t even protect him.

I’ve been on a pretty heavy duty Veronica Mars mission to locate him and punish (through some vigilante justice) his captor. Shit’s going to get real.

I’m reposting a photo below, and you can find out more specifics about the circumstances of his disappearance at the Chicago Stolen Bike Registry and the Stolen Bike Registry (national). I’m offering an ample reward for his safe return, so please let me know if you hear anything. I’m devastated!

If you’re in Evanston, please keep your eyes peeled, and protect yourself and your wheels by registering it with the local police. I hope you don’t find yourself in this position, and know that, as soon as I get ‘im back, I’ll be taking the most severe of precautions.

Here’s Charlie:

About a Girl: New Shoes

on: the girl

“hello new shoes, bye bye blues.”
– paolo nutini, “new shoes”

So many exciting things to write about this week! There’s been a lot going on in my life – though the weather in Evanston is still pretty treacherous (if warm) – and a lot of joy and thrills, but I’m making an actual effort to regularly blog this time around.

Some tidbits on me/life in general:

  • Red Sox sweep their series against the Yankees earlier this week! And the Bravesare holding strong at just above .500, especially after a win tonight against the Phillies. Gotta love that sort of success, even if the Phillies are whooping us in the NL East.

    San Francisco, CA

  • I found out Wednesday I will be placed in beautiful San Francisco, California, for my JR this fall! I’ll be working at San Francisco magazine for three months beginning in mid-September, and I’m truly thrilled to begin. There’s so much to do in SF, and I’m hoping to hit up AT&T Park, the Ferry Plaza Farmers Market (y’know, the one at the Embarcadero), Haight, the sea lions, etc. It’s surely going to be a whirlwind experience, and I’ll be damned if I waste a single second of it.
  • I’ve become a serious fashionista in the last few weeks or so, cleaning my closet a bit (throwing out some still-gross pukey flats and donating some beloved and still fashionable Gap T-shirts) and repopulating it with some pretty exceptional (if secondhand) designer threads. I’ve picked up a little Vera Neumann, some Kate Spade and, of course, Marc Jacobs and Betsey Johnson. I’ve been doing a good bit of clearance rack diving at Anthropologie, Gap, J. Crew and even Macy’s, where I picked up a gorgeous pair of navy Marc Fisher pumps. I’ve given my wallet a brand new policy – I only purchase clothes which I will want to wear to the office in the future. That means no more Threadless tees, no matter how hilarious, and a depleted Converse collection, though I like to believe that I can still wear Chuck Taylors in the real world. All in all, I think I’m really becoming a clothes horse – and I love it.
  • I chopped off all of my hair. Reinvention. It hasn’t been this short since…well, ever.
  • It’s formal season here at Northwestern, and, though I’ve all but removed myself from my chapter to claim allegiance to a particular fraternity, I attended both my sorority formal and my favorite fraternity’s formal this weekend. The latter was at the Willis (formerly Sears) Tower, the 66th floor, and it was a truly gorgeous venue. I had a blast, and the view was absolutely exceptional. I do love college, Asher.
  • Northwestern’s Dillo Day is next weekend. B.O.B. was announced as the night headliner months ago, while both the New Pornographers  and Chiddy Bang were announced last week as the early and late afternoon performers.

    The Mighty Ducks' Charlie Conway

  • And, finally, my brand new (birthday) bicycle is here and built and totally perfect. It’s a smokin’ hot Bianchi hybrid, and I just want to keep it in my bed and cherish it always. It’s got a built-in bike light in the seat and a sweet streamlined style. I’m calling in Charlie Conway after my reignited passion for the Mighty Ducks trilogy. I’m rewatching D2 as I type this, and I’d forgotten how great (slash terrible slash slightly racist slash totally jingoistic) this film is. But I seriously do love this movie. All of ’em. Even 3.

    The Bianchi Milano Citta, my brand new baby

  • I took my bike for a nice ride along the lake tonight. There was a storm a-brewin’, and it was a bit eerie. The waves were lapping, and there were birds flying really low at the shore. It was indescribably beautiful.

Okay, that was a heck of a lot. I’ll be back tomorrow with a new mix (I promise!), and some other fun stuff, so check back then. Happy living!

xoxococo