Happy Hour at Masada

Following up Spring Awakening, I had drinks with a friend later in the week on a Thursday at Masada.  It was nice catching up.  I rarely do things during the week since I try to catch up with my workouts as well as shopping for groceries.  I have limited access to a supermarket in my neighborhood and not having a car does not help.  Plus as I’ve gotten older I hate doing chores on the weekends.  Lol.  Regardless, Masada was a nice treat.  We sat outside in their beautiful patio and had some light bites.

Cubbies

I’m recapping events that happened since I’ve been back from my trip.  Needless to say, I’ve been thinking about my time there a lot.  Part of it is because that was probably the last time I was truly happy in a long time.  Sometimes life knocks you down a bit and you get lost in your thoughts.  I try my best to keep a positive attitude but these past events have broken my faith.  It is times like these that makes you want to be surrounded by loved ones.  I just want them to be safe. 

Our friend that has moved to California came back for a visit that following weekend.  I have to admit, I was glad to get together with friends.  My friend was constantly telling me news about Puerto Rico and the lack of communication with the towers being down.  She was falling apart and all I could do was try to keep her spirits up.  I had faith that people in Puerto Rico were coming together, even if we couldn’t see it for ourselves.  I was mesmerized by the images of people pulling out survivors in the Mexico earthquake.  I reassured her, too, that the same thing was happening there.  Our coworker had finally left out of Florida on a flight to San Juan but we knew we would probably not hear from her until she got back to work.  All I did was pray that week and tried not to get too anxious.  I had to be strong for my friend.

Our friend from California had an itinerary for us.  Since her only day to socialize with us fell that Friday, she understood how it might be difficult for some to get through rush hour traffic.  I met up with her and her friends after work at her favorite bar in Lakeview called Schubbas.  She wanted to go to Wrigelyville to see the marquee and then make her way over to Andersonville to a brewery.  We walked over to Wrigely Field and took a bunch of pictures before we had a drink at Murphy’s Bleachers.  The Cubs were on fire and Chicago couldn’t be more proud.  Obviously they are not going to the World Series but they did get close.  Some of her other friends had shown up but couldn’t find parking to join us.  We finished up our tab and jumped in their car to head over to the next spot.

At Half Acre Balmoral we grabbed a table and that’s where more people showed up.  We had some laughs and caught up with one another.  Our friend has a bubbly personality.  I forgot how much fun she is to be around.  I miss her a lot.

Once we finished up the tab, our other friend suggested Estero bar in Logan Square for those who wanted to continue the party.  Unfortunately our group got smaller, but other friends of hers met up over there instead.  There the silliness continued and we had a blast.  I realized how blessed I was to be around my girls, mostly Latinas who suffered from the news like I did.  Some had family in Mexico, others were waiting to hear from loved ones in Puerto Rico.  But tonight we were here to see our friend who misses us tremendously in California.  I need to book a trip soon over there…

Dark Storm

The 2^nd weekend in August I went to the movies!  Lol.  The last movie I saw was Beauty and The Beast with my mom but that was a while ago.  I had a nice time with my friend the week before at the Taj Mahal that we decided to check out a flick.  We made our way to the theater and had some time to kill before the movie started.  We ate Mexican food nearby and talked for a bit.  So many people were walking around Logan Square.  The neighborhood keeps changing so there’s always something new to checkout.

Once we got inside the Logan Theater I noticed the bar right away.  I absolutely LOVE this concept of lounge/ movie theaters!  It was very relaxing having a cocktail while we watched Dark Tower.  Idris Elba and Matthew McConaughey were eye candy galore! 

 

Rooftop Action!

Hope everyone had a great Memorial Weekend!!  I've been M.I.A posting because I've been a little busy.  Plus, it's summertime in the city so you know how that goes.  Time to have some fun in the sun!  lol.  Let's recap:
After my weekend with my friend's holy communion for her daughter and the twins'  Hello Kitty birthday party, softball season officially started.  We finally had no rain!  We made our way out to Grant Park for our first game.  We lost, but by 2 runs.  It was a good time to see how well we played with one another now that there's some new faces.  We will resume playing next week for the rest of the month with a couple of double headers to make up for the two games that got cancelled out.  Can't wait to play ball!
The following weekend I stayed in and did some spring cleaning.  My friend from Italy was making her way to Chicago, so I wanted to run some errands before she got in.  I missed her so much!  We made plans to meet up on Monday after she spent time with some family.  I had no idea we were going to experience a mini heat wave that was coming for us right after!  My friend asked me why didn't I warn her about the heat but I had no idea.  That's the problem with Chicago weather.  Summer hits you out of no where. 
We met up in downtown late afternoon and decided to hit up some roof top bars before the rush hour sets in.  We figured we could get a head start.  The last time my friend was in Chicago was two years ago and a lot has changed since then.  Rooftops were not a thing for us back in the day.  With more opening this summer, it's definitely an added bonus for people to enjoy the outdoors.  We made our way to Loews hotel but unfortunately, the rooftop was set to open Memorial Weekend.  We missed it by a few days.  Oh well.  A worker there suggested we hit up the Sky Terrace at the Ivy boutique hotel by Streeterville.  We made our way up to the 16th floor and checked it out.  We had paid for two hours of parking at a meter, so we wanted to squeeze out as many places as we could before we met up with a friend for dinner.

Catching some rays at the Sky Terrace...

Our next stop was Cerise at the Virgin Hotel.  We walked all the way over there by the river walk and settled in there for a bit.  At that time, a rush of people walked in since it was close to 5pm.  It was nice catching up with my friend.  So much has happened since I last saw her in Italy last summer.  We obviously lost track of time and had to run out of there to get the car.
By now we were hungry and found our friends on State Street once they got off of work.  We decided to eat at Bar Takito in West Loop for dinner for a change of scenery.  It is patio season after all.  Our friends are getting married and it was interesting to hear how the wedding was coming along.  They are going to be super busy since it's a few months away.  Me and my friend finished up and headed back north to my place.

I ordered a glass of Cabernet Sauvignon at Cerise on top of the Virgin Hotel...

Bar Takito's coconut shrimp and octopus ceviche...

 

Fish tacos!!

Pork belly tacos...

Bar Takito is located in the West Loop off  the Morgan stop on the Green Line...

Good times with the lucky couple!!  I wish them well on their upcoming wedding nuptials...

We freshened up and decided to head out since I requested the following day off.  I wanted to spend more time with my friend.  We headed towards Logan to Masada.  They had a rooftop as well.  It was a beautiful night and we had so much fun.  I miss her right now.  I hope to see her again soon...



Masada's rooftop is so pretty!!!

Throwback Thursday to the longest month of the year...

I hate January.  From Thanksgiving on life is a fast paced ride all the way to New Year's Eve. In January, it's another story.  Time stops.  It drags.  Everyone's broke.  And in Chicago, the weather is brutal. 
I DID have some little events going on to keep me occupied on what was going on with my family.  My mom's husband was sleeping a lot lately.  Whenever I stopped by to visit, he would be knocked out in the living room.  They set up his hospital bed there since there was more room to install it.  Me and my mom would talk quietly in the dining room.  But she was drained.  There was nothing TO do in that house but sleep.  She would turn in early herself. 
One of my friends had a little party at a Logan Square Bar called East Room.  It's funny because we all wore our down filled coats since it was freezing outside, not knowing they did not have a coat check!  I hate lugging around a fat coat.  We made the most of it and caught up with one another from the holidays.  I was already tired of wearing dark colors so I opted for my white jeggings.  Sometimes you have to break out of the winter rut.
The following weekend I was invited to another birthday party at Y Bar lounge in River North.  They were celebrating 3 birthday parties at once and the girls all wore white for their day.  I wore a sweater dress and paired it over my faux leather leggings.  Since we didn't have so much snow yet in the beginning of the year, I wore my patent leather pumps out.  I need to get another pair for these brutal winters.  They are the reasonable choice if you don't want to ruin a good pair of pumps.  All you have to do is wipe off the snow!  Believe it or not, the club was packed!  I love the fact that Chicagoans make it out regardless of the weather conditions.  I had fun that night.
Then the following weekend my little cousin turned 8 years old.  Despite just family being there, he enjoyed being pampered on his big day.  Birthdays should be special no matter what time of year it lands on, but I can see how winter birthdays can be conflicting.  Luckily he had a blast!

Celebrating at the East Room in Logan Square

Birthday girl!

I layered out for this night out...

The 3 birthday girls wore white!

My little cousin counting his candles...

Time for some cake!

In September...

Coming back from Italy was not easy.  Luckily the weather was still warm here in Chicago.  It was a pretty crazy month last September.  I jumped into the swing of things with our annual taco crawl!  My friend likes to coordinate this crawl every year and this time we headed down to Maxwell Street for an afternoon of fun.  I have to admit, I DID miss having some good tacos while I was gone! 

Following up in September we were entering Virgo/ Libra season.  Some of my closet friends were celebrating one after another.  First up, a night out at Analogue in Logan Square for some cocktails and light bites and then next door to finish up at The Owl.  The weather was still pretty warm around this time.  My friends took advantage of the warm weather and wore their summer dresses before it gets too nippy.

The following weekend we celebrated at The Dawson restaurant where we munched on appetizers and drank martinis!  We ended up back at n for some dancing and more cocktails. 

I also got a chance to squeeze in one last festival for the year!  The Riot Fest!  This year the Cure were performing and I've had them in my bucket list FOREVER!  I was SUPER EXCITED I scored a ticket to go.  Me and my friend had a blast!  I still can't believe how perfect they were. 

The Festival was held in Humbolt Park..

Robert Smith was AMAZING!!!  LOVE THE CURE!!