Chicago Sights

My nephew Blake was in town this weekend. We took a Segway ride on Thursday (like we did with his sister last summer). So fun! So many weird people in Chicago this weekend for Lollapalooza.

Buckingham Fountain



(Husband and nephew)

Prairie Field out past the Planetarium, near old Meigs Field. I have lived in this area for 20 years and I didn't even know this area existed before Thursday!




By the Planetarium


Kids goofing around under the Bean



Ha! You go, boyfriend.

Guy shooting a rap video


For reals, yo! See him rewind his boombox to get ready for the second take. Hee!


Take two. Oh, distracted by the little girl!

More scenes from Chicago

Crossing over the highway.



UIC was having a graduation celebration.




Buckingham Fountain. I don't actually think I've ever been this close before.




Wider angle shot. Such a pretty day!


Lots of people's creativity is inspired by the beautiful parks in Chicago.

Yoga at Millenium Park

Before we begin:



The view during Downward-Facing Dog:









I am seriously loving Saturday-morning yoga downtown. I can hardly move today, but I still love it!

Blackhawks Pride

A collection of all the Blackhawks gear I was able to see this weekend. Go Hawks!

The Art Institute lions


Flags on the Michigan Avenue bridge


Sue the dinosaur outside the Field Museum


Sue, later that night

Michigan Avenue goings-on

In the course of one day, here are some of the people I saw up and down Michigan Avenue.


Earnest nerd playing the guitar and singing to his girlfriend.


Young girls waiting for the Puerto Rican parade to begin.


More parade revelers.


Wedding party in front of the Wrigley Building.


A chess and checkers race game. Set up right in front of the Art Institute at night. Weird!

Chicago Weekend

We had another great weekend in downtown Chicago. Lots of Blackhawks pride, lots of goings-on up and down Michigan Avenue. Plus, it was a beautiful summer day.

First we did yoga at Millenium Park. This was before most people arrived.



This was my view from way in the back. Man, it was HARD!



After a tasty breakfast at Yolk, I goofed around in the Agora sculptures. My friend Jessie took these shots. Thanks, J!







A really earnest nerd sang to his girlfriend as she tanned and ignored him.


Later I went on the river and lake architecture boat tour. I love that tour, so pretty!









(That is my favorite building in the Loop. I love the old-school short brick and ivy against the tall gleaming glass skyscrapers. The ivy growth isn't a random coincidence, either.)



Then I went to a concert. Keith Urban is a tiny dot in the crowd. Oh, I curse my decision not to bring my camera! The iPhone camera stinks.



More photos coming this week, promise!

I love my pretty city

From this weekend.

5K: St. Patrick's Run at Diversey Harbor

One of my New Year's Resolutions this year was to run 5Ks as often as I could. I started training in December, and my first one was during my birthday weekend downtown.

R was only there for a few minutes before he took off to go fish, so there is only one photo of me, and the rest I took while I was running. :) The theme was St. Patrick's Day, so again there were lots of people dressed up in costumes. I stuck with just a dark green top (peeking out under my running jacket).



It was really freakin' cold out. So glad I had invested in all the cold-weather gear; I wore every single thing! We also got a t-shirt for signing up, and I added that to the layers as well.

The race was at Diversey Harbor. It's too soon for any of the boats to be in yet, but it's still a pretty area. We lucked out; the rain and fog that had permeated the area broke up in time for the race, so it ended up being a really nice day!



People getting ready:




Then we were off! It was pretty muddy with lots of puddles on the path, so it was slow-going in spots as we all navigated through narrow running areas in a large group. I think next time I will try to get a spot further up in the crowd; I know I ended up running with the slower people around me, but we were very far back and it was almost all walkers behind us. That actually doesn't do well for my motivation because it makes me feel even slower than I am, if that makes any sense.

The two mile mark (the time is from when the race started, not my actual time):


I averaged just under 13 minutes per mile. Not bad, not great. It gives me lots of room to improve as I keep racing! I won't lie; I did stop and walk 3 times during the race, for short stints. I'll be looking to improve on that too.

The three mile mark. I got a good hard run in after that, with my final burst of energy:


My final time was 39:26, my pace was 12:44, and I came in 815 out of about 1800 participants. 37 out of 48 of my division (Women ages 40-44), and 457 out of 545 for my gender overall. Not that any of those stats really matter, except as a personal baseline so I can see my improvement as my 5K year progresses.

They were serving bananas and green bagels to runners afterward. Ha!



Instead, Hubby and I went out for pancakes. I love pancakes after a run; that's a tradition I think I will keep.

Now I just have to remember to post the next one here too. Should be in April!