North Halsted Market Days 2018

I needed to do so much before my trip, but of course that did not happen.  Not only did I go out the night before, but my friends woke me up early to go for brunch.  I haven’t seen my friends in a while since they are busy due to their schedules and motherhood.  I miss them very much so I agreed to tag along.  The joke has always been that I never eat and just normally pick at my food.  I ordered a light breakfast from a restaurant that we settled in on Roscoe Village.  We happened to show up during Retro on Roscoe fest, so that was fun.  Afterwards we spent some time at Buy Buy Baby since one of our friends is expecting her 2^nd child.  I had a great afternoon with The Ladies.

They dropped me off so I could get ready for my hair appointment.  I wanted to get a trim before my trip.  Since my salon is at Boystown, I was going to meet my co-worker there for North Halsted Market Days.  I ran out the door luckily made it on time!  We decided to leave my hair curly since it was very hot that day.  I usually get a blow-out but it would have been pointless.  I met my friend at the fest since he already made his way to the stage where Crystal Waters was going to perform.  I was cutting it close!  I found him right away and we saw her performance.  It was amazing!

We made our way to the other stage and stopped along the way to grab some drinks.  Up next was Ultra Nate and she was electrifying!  I love 90s dance music! 

The big headliner this year was Martha Wash.  It was packed at the stage but luckily we got as close we could.  Everyone was so excited to see her!  She blew the crowd away!

I decided not to do anything afterwards because I was just too tired.  I had some friends out that wanted me to meet up with them but I declined.  I spent the day Sunday doing laundry and getting ready for my trip.  I was super anxious too and didn’t want to miss out any details on packing.  Sometimes you need some time alone to focus.

Spring Awakening 2018

The following weekend in June me and my brother attended Spring Awakening.  This festival used to be held at Soldier Field but has moved to Addams/ Medill Park.  During the weeks leading up to the fest, me and my brother were having trouble trying to figure out which day to go.  I knew I could not leave much early on Friday from work and Sunday was out of the question.  I had to work by myself the following Monday and that would be a lot for me.  The only day left was Saturday, which disappointed my brother.  He wanted to see a dj on Sunday but that was going to be difficult.  In the end it didn’t matter because we both had a blast. 

My friend was also going to be there with some friends.  We ended up meeting her with her group.  That weekend in particular the weather was acting up.  Chicago started to have A LOT of rain, and it affected Friday’s show.  Luckily it was passing showers, so the field wasn’t too muddy when we arrived.  I wore my studded boots because the temperature reached in the high 70s, but with the sun hitting hard, I was working up a sweat!  Oh well, what can you do?  At least I wasn’t cold (which I hate even more).  In the end we all hung out at the same stage because we loved the djs there more than the other stages, but we all had a blast.  I was pretty pooped out the rest of the weekend.  I  had a friend in town and I ended up seeing her on Sunday.  I miss my old friends.  I wish we could all live near one another.  

Memorial Weekend! Part One

So far I’ve been enjoying my summer.  For the most part I got pretty down after I came back from Italy, and my birthday creeping up on me in June did not help my mood.  But I started to feel more myself once I focused my attention on other things.  I’ve been reading “Less is More” by Goldian VandenBroeck and got into the World Cup tournament.  Now that it’s over, I’m looking forward to planning my next trip out of Chicago, and to finish catching up on the blog.  Time to recap Memorial Weekend!  Lol.

Like I mentioned earlier, I was in a funky mood once I returned from Italy.  The annual house party at Millennium Park was taking place the Saturday following up to Memorial Day.  I’ve enjoyed this festival in the past and knew I didn’t want to miss this.  Plus, dancing to good music ALWAYS puts me in a good mood.  I needed to do this!

Luckily my little brother was available to accompany me.  We made our way down there late afternoon and caught a few sets before heading home.  I was not up for clubbing whatsoever, but I did get my dancing fix in.  I love watching people enjoy themselves.  It automatically lifts my spirits and I found myself smiling at everyone.  My brother loved it as well.  This was his first time being there and he thought it was amazing.  For putting on a free festival, Chicago knows how to do it right!

My souvenir t-shirt from Rome 

Happy hour and Housemusic

Now that the weather warmed up a bit in Chicago, people took the opportunity to go out and enjoy themselves.  I got a chance to see my friends on tax day Tuesday for happy hour at Union Sushi.  My friend will also be in Europe the same time I will be but traveling in different locations.  It was nice comparing notes.  I am reminded how fortunate I am to go once again.  We ended up at Concrete Cowboy to check it out before we all jumped in our Ubers.

Inside Concrete Cowboy 

That Friday I found out that one of my favorite djs had passed away.  I was quickly saddened and decided to play his music all weekend at home.  Avicii brought a different element to edm that was recognized throughout the dance scene.  I was going through my breakup when he was at the top of the charts.  His music helped me cope with the sadness I was dealing with.  To hear that he is gone too soon shook me.

A few days later the media announced that his family implied he might have taken his life.  NOW THIS HURTS.  I had watched his documentary Avicii True Stories at home earlier, and to hear this news brought a new perspective on what was going on in his life.  He was exhausted about his work schedule, but his management team would not lay off the grueling tours he had been committed to appear in.  Eventually he took some time off to recoup, but reports suggest his management team were continually pestering him about returning to work.  

It made me think a lot about what success means to people.  For some, it’s having a lot of money.  With that in mind, it gives off the notion that you would be free to do whatever you want to because money would be there to provide for you.  But is that true?  Avicii employed a crew for his tours and business.  He was the talent of course, and without him involved, how would the business survive?  There is speculation that Avicii never liked the spotlight, and had anxiety whenever he performed live.  He just wanted to make music behind the scenes.  

I have my struggles too, on “Meaning, Life, Happiness”.  I sometimes look back on my life and see the mistakes and wrong turns I’ve made.  They lead me to a different path that was not what I expected.  I can’t help but feel responsible about the outcome, but I try not to beat myself up too much about it.  

For Avicii, I pray that he didn’t suffer much on his final hours here.  I can’t help but wonder if people would have left him alone this all could have been avoided.

RIP Avicii 

North Coast Festival

I’m recapping September events!  I’m glad I’m getting to Labor Day Weekend.  I saw the single-day pass off of Groupon.  My older brother got one as well since he wanted to see Gucci Mane.

I was looking forward to Eric Prydz and Deadmau5 performing together on stage.  I absolutely love dance music along with EDM and these two are on the top of their game.  I got there early to checkout the scene before my brother arrived.  Part of the fun is seeing all of the action around you.  I love silly costumes and good vibes!  Everyone is having a good time.  I couldn’t think of a better way to kickoff my weekend.  

Now an update in the Hurricane Maria rescue mission.  It seems that airlines are booking flights on-line only to cancel them or delay flights altogether.  Over the weekend, we’ve gotten word about loved ones through a 3^rdparty since communication is still down.  No running water or electricity throughout the island.  People are donating goods in New York as well as Chicago and Florida.  It’s a rush against time to get these items to those in need.

Mamby Memories

The holiday weekend is right around the corner!  I hope you have some fun stuff in store this weekend.  I have two parties to go to and I’m looking forward to seeing my friends.  I got a chance to see some of them last night over cocktails and it was a good time.  Sometimes catching up with everyone gets your mind off things. 

Last weekend I went to Mamby on the Beach music festival.  My friend encouraged me to get a ticket at the last minute and I’m glad I went.  Music festivals can be a crazy atmosphere but as long as you’re with the right people it could be tons of fun.  I have friends that question why I still go to them but for me, music is everything!  Especially when it’s dance music…

Let’s face it.  Seeing the crowd react to the dj and people jumping up and down can put a smile on anyone’s face!  You can see the expression of joy everywhere.  For a moment, everyone is riding one harmonious wave.

Although I was unfamiliar with some of the acts that performed, I did get introduced to new djs and recently started following some on social media.  They even finished off the festival with fireworks.  I loved every minute of it!

Chicago House Party at Millennium Park

I hope everyone enjoyed their Memorial Day Weekend!!  I had an eventful one despite it raining heavily on Friday.  I wanted to do some window shopping but never got a chance to because of the rain.  By the time I got home I decided to take a nap thinking the rain would eventually pass, but it never did!  I was a little annoyed because I was excited about the three day weekend, but the weather definitely killed my vibe.  Oh well.

The next day was a different story!  I was excited because I woke up to a sunny apartment.  I laid out for a bit on my balcony hoping to get some color.  I did my usual Saturday routine which was cleaning up my place, but I noticed that the forecast was not including rain for a change.  I went to the gym earlier so I could get Leg Day out of the way.

Once I got back and showered up, I grew anxious.  I wanted to go out and enjoy the sunshine, but everyone seemed to have prior commitments.  I knew the house music party at Millennium Park was taking place.  I figured if people showed up later on, I’ll find them eventually.  What a party it was!!  My brother and his girlfriend showed up towards the later part of the evening but I had a blast regardless.  I love that our city celebrates house music.  It started here in Chicago and the music spread all over the world!  I have included a mini history of Chicago House Music from Wikipedia.  At least it will give you a better understanding how much dance music means to me!  

House music became popular in Chicago clubs in 1984. It was pioneered by figures such asFrankie Knuckles, ^[19] Phuture, Kym Mazelle,^[20] and Mr. Fingers, and was associated withAfrican-American and gay subcultures. House music quickly spread to other American cities such as Detroit, New York City, Baltimore, andNewark – all of which developed their own regional scenes. In the mid-to-late 1980s, house music became popular in Europe as well as major cities in South America, and Australia.

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!

It's officially the first week back to work for everyone!  The funny thing is, yesterday was pretty quiet.  I'm wondering if  people weren't ready to come back from the holidays.  lol.  That's ok.  I caught up with my work, and believe it or not, I'm feeling pretty good about this week.  It's something about getting things done that can make someone feel productive.  Plus, me and my friends are trying to help one another with our new years resolution on saving money!  I think it's more helpful than doing it alone.
I hope everyone's holidays were filled with love and joy!  Me and my family celebrated Christmas Eve together and the next day I celebrated with my dad and his wife.  For New Year's Eve I kept it low key this year and went to a friend's house in the suburbs.  Over the years, the craziness of New Year's has wore me down.  I like to be surrounded with friends, not drunken strangers.  Regardless, I'm trying my best to finish recapping my 2015 year, and hopefully by the end of this month, I'll be up to date.  My main concern with trying to keep current is to improve on my writing and context of my blog.  Sometimes I feel rushed and worry that I'm not expressing myself.  Let's start with November events!
Back in the first weekend in November, I had dinner at Nia Restaurant back at Randolph street.  We had such a good time in that neighborhood 2 weeks earlier, we figured we'll try it again.  Nia is a Mediterranean tapas restaurant, with an intimate atmosphere.  I loved the fact that I was able to carry a conversation and not feel interrupted.  Some restaurants in River North feel more like a nightclub, but that was not the case here.  It was nice to catch up for a change!
Afterwards some friends notified us that they were going to be at The Mid down the street off Halsted.  We decided to join them to see Crookers play their set.  I miss dancing to good music!  Don't get me wrong, I like top 40 and pop music, but sometimes you want something grittier.  I had fun that night.

Bathroom selfie at Nia...

Wore a black silk top with some flare jeans and leopard pumps.  I'm glad flares are back!

Had a blast at The Mid for Crookers...