we drove and drove (and by "we" i mean "manny") and finally made it to chicago late thursday evening. most of friday morning and afternoon were spent hunting down sand (to weigh everything down) and lollipops (to make the rain slightly more bearable), and adding tags and last minute touches to some of the bags. then i whipped up some cucumber sandwiches (on pumpernickel, of course), and headed over to steven's to the potluck he and meredith put together, because they are absolutely spectacular. there was homemade pizza and homemade caramels and lemon-freaking-verbena soy ice cream (i LOVE lemon everything), among other tasty treats.
on saturday morning when we arrived to set-up, it was POURING rain. we tried to ignore it and make the best of it, but even after the canopy was set up and the walls were attached, rain was leaking inside pretty steadily. after purchasing and attaching all sorts of shower curtains and tarps, and crying a lot of tears and almost giving up several times, we were finally able to open the booth around 4pm (we arrived at 8:30am, and were supposed to be ready by noon). words cannot quite describe how very very wonderful manuel dominguez, jr. (my boyfriend and very most favorite person) was during this slightly terrible ordeal. thank you forever, manny.
photo by steven wade
we had to close up around 7:30 or so, when it got dark, because we were not allowed to have electricity for fear of electrocution. when folks started using their cell phone lights to try and see the fabrics, we had to call it a night.
sunday, however, was a bit more fun. we ate a delicious breakfast of vegan biscuits and gravy at a very great place called the handlebar with meredith and steven. meredith helped me set up shop, while steven and manny searched for a battery operated lantern for the booth.
photo by steven wade
meredith and manny took turns handing out lollipops and we made some sales and some new friends. overall i would say it was a success, despite the fact that chicago saw the most rain in its recorded history. buh.
monday, however, was the best day of the trip. meredith and steven showed us around their city that they love so much, and the city that we now love so much. we went to millennium park and took silly pictures in front of the bean (i will share some later, but manny shot them on film and they have not yet been processed). we wandered around the navy pier and rode the swings (um, chicago has swings and a ferris wheel and i want to live there), and saw the dark knight (for the second time! and it was even better!) on the imax screen and ate way too many jelly belly beans.
photo by manny d
i think i fell a whole lot in love with chicago and our excellent and fun and charming and pretty and handsome and knowledgeable hosts and i cannot wait to go back.
above: meredith and steven, taken by manny d
1 comment:
such great photos and stories, glad you had a good time! (except for the rain!) i figured you'd be a hit since your bags are so lovely! i love your hunt for the lollipops too, haha so great.
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