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chicago to home

What's this? A twofer?! Youuuuu betcha. My last post was all about crossing the Mississippi and spending time in Chicago. If you didn't get a chance to read it, click here for marion to wisconsin to chicago! And let's dive into days 12 and 13!

June 24, 2018

Chicago, night 2!

Today was fun! Therese and I both woke up early, though I did get up first to walk Archy, so I walked to get us Starbucks. We drank coffee and chatted and picked a brunch spot called the Bongo Room where I got eggs benedict and she got the most delicious-looking breakfast burrito. It was really good! After we got back she went to Starbucks to do some work while Archy and I were going to nap. Instead, though, we had a long phone call to catch up with Alyssa. Therese got back, and we hung out for a little bit before I went and got some fun Harry Potter-themed and Game of Thrones-themed yarn. I also forgot that we went into a cute book store after brunch where I got myself 3 lithographs and one for Marissa for her birthday!

Therese and I then went for a walk through the neighborhood, and I saw a shirt I liked at a kids' store. We stopped and looked around for a little bit, but I didn't end up getting the shirt for my godson since I didn't know his size in time before the store closed. Sundays, man.

After the walk we each took a nap and then got some delicious ramen for dinner. We were just winding down the rest of the night. It was a really fun day. Archy's been walked, and I'm about to pass out. Hitting the road tomorrow morning!

Ok, so having a bed two nights in a row is a GAME-CHANGER. And man, those eggs benedict at brunch were SO good. If you're ever in Wicker Park and jonesing for some Eggs Benedict at brunchin' time, check out the Bongo Room. I'd definitely go back! And if you want to check out the book store I went to with the lithographs, please do. It's called Volumes Bookcafe. It's an independent bookstore AND a cafe, and I've gone back multiple times since this visit (I did a week-long comedy stint at iO Chicago in August). Also the yarn shop I went to in Wicker Park? Firefly Fiber Arts Studio. Super cute, super friendly workers, and they have knitting clubs you can join (because I obviously signed up for their email list)! Yes, I finished a Harry Potter-themed yarn scarf. Still have yet to begin the Game of Thrones one (though there have been other knitting projects, and I am a monogamous knitter)!

Okay, so now that all those hot Chicago tips are taken care of, let's get onto one of the shortest entries from the journal: day 13.

June 25, 2018

Chicago to Home

I woke up at the same time as Therese so I could hit the road and she could go to work but also so that we could see each other off before heading our separate ways. Getting out of Chicago was pretty easy, which was nice. I'd heard tales of traffic nightmares, so I was pretty lucky to not experience it! I got pictures with state signs as I passed through Indiana, Ohio, and Pennsylvania. The toll people recognized me because I missed Indiana the first time around and decided I wanted the photo, so I looped back around. The toll systems take credit cards now, which is awesome! I realized I hadn't driven anywhere I'd needed tolls without EZ Pass since I'd moved to California 5 year prior. It was like the present finally caught up with the future. I don't know if that would make sense to anyone else, but I know what I'm writing. Plus, it's not like anyone's going to read this stuff anyway. Oh, and the toll booth people gave Archy some treats! Which was so awesome! I don't think I've ever seen a toll booth worker do anything like that! I was going to camp in Pittsburgh but decided to drive through in order to get to a bed. Plus, Pittsburgh sucks. Oy vey, apparently I will just be a Philly girl forever, huh? Haha.

I'm home now and exhausted, but it was an amazing road trip I'm so happy I got to experience. Cat's birthday is in two days, and she said awhile ago that she wants to go to the Russian Tea Room with her mom and her Gram and me, so I'm just happy I was able to plan all of this in order to be home in time for that. And now that I'm home a day earlier than originally scheduled, I can get some rest for a day before I head up to New York for her birthday!

It's also worth nothing that my friend Molly also reached out to me about letting me stay with her in Ohio if I needed somewhere to crash. She and I went to boarding school together, and the fact that we are still friends and communicate and make a point to see each other when we can is really freaking awesome. She's a gem and I am so happy we kept in touch from boarding school!

Anyway, so! If you've made it this far, I commend you! You shall be promoted to Lieutenant Corporal of this blog's modest army of followers! Joking aside though, thank you for reading all of it. Looking back and reliving this experience has brought up so many feelings, and honestly, at this point they're all really happy ones. Truly. But being on a road trip with that much time to yourself to think, there were definitely some moments of high stress that go hand-in-hand with not only packing, moving, and leaving the place you've called home for half a decade but also some stressful moments that go hand-in-hand with doing a cross-country road trip on your own. Even in those brief moments of "what the F am I doing?" though, where I would get in my head for a little bit, this road trip was still really the best way to take a sticky situation and make it a really happy one. Solo road trip? 10/10. Would recommend. And if you're curious about the process that went into planning this road trip, let me know. Maybe I'll try to write about that at some point, too! Seriously, though, thank you for reading. It was a great 13 days, and the United States has so much incredible natural beauty. If you ever get a chance to road trip across the US, do it! I've done it twice now, and both times were incredible!!

For a listing of all the posts of my solo road trip, here they are in order:

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