September Season

Sept. 15-21: Rally, Fall Social, Fashion Show, Wine Tasting, Furniture, Food Festival

On Monday, I carved out a little bit of time to attend the rally at Fountain Square. Late afternoon on a workday can be tricky! 

Tuesday afternoon was the Fall Social at our building, so Mr. E and I popped down to see what sort of treats were available and gather a few items for later. 

Our primary event this week was the opening night of the reFashioning History exhibition at the Evanston History Center. We started off the evening with a special three-course dinner at The Homestead Room in The Graduate Hotel with great service and really lovely food with no problem accommodating my dietary needs. At the event, we were able to get close-up looks at each designer's contribution to the exhibit and celebrate the two winners of this year's event. 

On Friday morning, we had an emergency evacuation of our building. It was the first time we had to go through this type of procedure, so we gathered up the kitties in their carriers and traipsed down the stairs along with all of our neighbors and lots of other pets. 

Luckily, we were able to return to the building within less than 30 minutes. And at least Mr. E had already taken his shower and gotten dressed by then! (I was in the middle of breakfast and homework) That evening, we went to an Italian wine-tasting at Binny's, which wasn't quite as good as some of the previous tastings we've done there. 

Mr. E had decided not to go to Madison for the football game on Saturday, so instead he went to go check out a condo while I stayed at our apartment for delivery of our two new furniture items from West Elm: a bar cabinet and angled bookshelf, both in the mid-century modern style that we like. Luckily, Louis XIV gave his seal of approval for the bar cabinet.

We had thought about trying to check out the Busker Festival on Central Street in the afternoon, but the timing didn't work out. So we missed seeing Evanston Mayor Daniel Biss juggling fire!!! But I did find a photo in a local e-newsletter.

After pickleball on Sunday, we met up with friends M & L for the Taste of Evanston event in Dawes Park. I focused mostly on sweets and beverages, since many of the items available were either meat-focused or contained allium. The weather was lovely, and it was nice to have a chance to catch up with M & L, as I hadn't seen them yet since we came back to Evanston.

To wrap up the evening, Mr. E and I returned to The Graduate to check out the bar. We took advantage of the beautiful weather to sit in the rocking chairs out on the lanai and enjoy some people-watching along the sidewalk. 

We learned that this is a popular spot for residents of the nearby retirement community, The Mather, as a trio of folks from there met up for dinner on the lanai. We chatted with them just a bit before leaving and learned that Sunday evening is the one night with no dinner service at The Mather, so the Homestead Room offers them a great option for that meal.

Sept. 22-30: Cubs, Book Club, Celebrating Evanston Latinos, Love Your Block, Bikes, Family Dinner, Woman's Club

On Tuesday, we joined other supporters of Hubbard Street Dance Chicago for a Cubs game. We lucked out with taking a purple CTA express that made a special stop near the stadium, which we'll have to remember for future game days. We left after about two hours and avoided seeing the Cubs give up their lead, so that was definitely the right timing.

Wednesday evening was my Better Off Read Book Club at the Public Library. This month's book was Love Your Enemies by Arthur C. Brooks, which sparked some really interesting conversations about contempt and the divisions in our country and culture. 

We had a check-in with our Fidelity advisor on Thursday afternoon, and then I headed to the Evanston History Center again for another community event, this time to celebrate the history and influence of Latinos in the city. I really enjoyed the panel discussion and learning more about the community in our new second home.

On Friday evening, we went to a celebration of the Love Your Block program to learn about different improvement projects in various parts of the city. Very inspirational! And another great way to learn about different aspects of the Evanston community. We tried Hokkaido for takeout dinner on our way home and were really pleased with the quality and options on the menu. 

We were supposed to have a walking tour on Saturday morning, but it had gotten cancelled earlier in the week. That gave us more time for breakfast and coffee before we took the train to M & L's condo to try out their bikes. The previous week, after the Taste of Evanston, Mr. E was talking to M about his new bike and asking if he was going to sell his old bike. M told him not yet and then offered to let Mr. E borrow that bike since we still hadn't bought bikes for ourselves. We then discovered that L also has a bike she wasn't using. Such a coincidence! 

M made sure both bikes were in good condition, and the three of us then rode back to our apartment. So now Mr. E and I have bikes to use at least for the next couple of months. Yay! I purchased a purple helmet for myself and locks and lights for both bikes at Ace Hardware. Mr. E got the registration form and tags from our apartment management office so that we can store our bikes in the secure bike room in the parking garage. For the first few days, however, the bikes were in our office, and Louis XIV was very curious about them.

We were able to use the bikes immediately the next day, for the Sunday morning Bike the Ridge, an annual event when two miles of Ridge Avenue are closed to car traffic so that cyclists can ride along this street that is otherwise off-limits to bikes. 

M met up with us for the ride and then went home to pick up L so that the four of us could have brunch at Mensch's. M & L are fans of this spot, but Mr. E and I still aren't totally impressed with it, primarily due to rather slow service. But the $1.99 coffee that is actually really tasty is pretty hard to beat!

We managed to fit in 30-minute massages after pickleball that afternoon. Since Mr. E's cousin D was in the area for the weekend, we then took the train to downtown Chicago for a family dinner at Minghin Cuisine that evening with his mom, sister, and brother-in-law. We returned home with several leftovers and a small tub of the special popcorn from Mariano's next door. 

On Tuesday evening, I was able to attend a membership information session at the Woman's Club of Evanston (WCE). Mr. E and I have been to several events at the WCE, and it was one of the first community organizations I learned about last year when we started spending time here, primarily because it's just half a block from our apartment building so I walk by it nearly every day on my way to the Lake or the Library or CVS, etc. Everyone was very friendly, and I got a great tour from C, including a look at the backstage area, which I don't think was on the itinerary for everyone. After reviewing more information, including the organization's 990 Form to better understand their finances and their giving, I decided to join. I'm looking forward to getting more involved in volunteer activities and making new connections to start creating a network here.