OK, so I realize that #TBT is for Throwback Thursday, but it could just as easily be Throwback Tuesday. Not QUITE the same alliteration, but close enough!
Given the post from yesterday, I figure that I might as well give my #TBT post about one of the days of that weekend. Alas, there is no photo record… Continue reading
Four years ago to this date, it was the beginning of the celebration after the pomp and circumstance. Thus, I might as well blog the journal entry!
Saturday, June 20, 2015
I woke up at 07:30, while everyone else was still sleeping (of course). As usual when I am on vacation and up first, I took my journal and went downstairs to the lobby. Yes, I’m a Lobbyist! However, unlike previous times, I was not very efficient with it, because I had my cell phone, and the temptation to check social media was quite high. I was still in my night clothes, but did some writing until about 08:30 or so. (Actually, I didn’t keep good track in my actual notes about the specific times. I guess I have to be okay with that missing detail!)
When I returned to the hotel room, everyone was slowly waking up. I equipped my NOAH jersey and purple shorts, of course. It’s perfect tailgate equipment! We decided to have breakfast at Jameson’s (the restaurant in the hotel). However, Dad was insufferable, partially because he didn’t want to eat in the hotel restaurant, but he later revealed that he was suffering from diverticulitis. I hate to have something like that ruin the weekend, but there’s only so much that I can do. I didn’t eat much, since the tailgate is not that far away in time. But, I’m not going to be insufferable on my celebratory weekend!
We drove off toward Engelhart, cramming once again into Brandon’s vehicle [ed: See Hooding Day for the AGAIN part]. When we got to Engelhart, we took a few of my jackets, as it was strangely a little bit chilly outside. Of course, the heat will probably come later in the afternoon or even morning. We then walked eastbound, following the FRONT route (i.e., via Emerson, instead of Foster). This took us past the Greek quadrangle, and I of course mentioned my memories associated with that area—Chilibowl, MegaShabbat, being a mensch and walking friends back to their dorms, and more!
At Sheridan, we walked to the multi-way crosswalk and crossed over to the sidewalk at The Arch. Photos obviously ensued, and afterwards, we walked through campus. I told stories of ShireiNU and Kallah in Harris, of NUJOT and Teaching Certificate Program in University Hall, of Fisk and Annie May Swift for Purple Crayon Players and SPG respectively, and of course, “On this site in 1897, nothing happened.” We continued and took a slight detour so that I could show everyone the facade of Louis Hall, where all my WNUR memories originated.
Mom, Dad, and me under The Arch.
As we were walking, Dad and Levi were checking out some of the women that were walking around (of course). We turned around Norris and continued on the lakefill trail, taking the shortcut that had the east view of the lake. The painted rocks were to the right, the lacrosse field dead ahead, and the weather was perfect. When we got to the shark rocks, we of course got a picture, because that’s one of the highlights of this area! I hope that those rocks STAY that way (with the exception of touch-ups). We arrived at the tailgate area, and thankfully I didn’t pull a Statton party foul!
Among the people who were there: Liz, Marilyn, Nancy, Phil, Pete, and more. Eventually, Tim, Dina and her parents, and a few others showed up. Additionally, the Matsens happened to be walking by (they used to be our across-the-street neighbors in Fort Dodge!!) and so that took Mom and Dad’s attention for a little while. I enjoyed the tailgate food (burgers, chips, and of course, my Chex mix). And yes, lots of snacks too. Life is short—eat more dessert!
Obviously, the focus was on me. I recounted some of my favorite memories from Northwestern sporting events, although now that I am trying to transcribe from short notes, I don’t have enough details to mention which memories those were! A lot of the stuff about my future was along the lines of, “I don’t know where I’m going, but it will be exciting!” That was Mom’s advice last night on how to not step on the third rail but not stay off the tracks either.
A cake was presented to me, and of course, lots of photo ops. I received a Northwestern flag from Phil’s family, a “Lacrosse Blanket” photo from everyone, a Blackhawks shirt from Dina and her family, and a few other items as well. Photo opportunities included me flaunting my new jersey underneath my regalia, a “Thou shalt not pass!” hood photo, a perspective photo with Dina appearing to hold me in her hand, and a group photo. Then, as the music was playing, I heard “Happy” by Pharrell and chose to dance to it, since it was one of my more-well-defined dances at Northwestern. Too bad they didn’t have Fire, but I can’t control the music that much! As the party wound down, I of course gave the circle of hugs. I’m really going to miss this community!
“Come back next week after we learn how to line up.”
We walked back along the lakefill, with Dina. The cloudless skies became an oscillation of cloud cover, and thankfully did not threaten to bring precipitation. Before we left the lakefill, I got my “Paradigm of Paradox in Paradise” photo with Dad, as we both held a die in one hand and a dime in the other. As we walked, I walked with Dina, chatting randomly. We took a break at Norris for water and the loo, and Mom got a picture of me playing ping-pong with Levi. I’m so bad at that game! As we continued, we walked along the Hillel side of Foster so that I could point out the Ducking Tree (and hopefully to return there tomorrow or Monday for a photo in a brown shirt). Not long thereafter, we arrived at Engelhart, I parted ways with a hug for Dina, and we drove off for the next rendezvous with Sarah.
Paradigm of Paradox in Paradise.
We drove down Emerson, and then took McCormick. I pointed out my favorite sculptures that could be seen from the trail, and it reminds me of the times walking and riding down the trail as a commuting exercise (for the latter). The infrastructure is great! There was a little bit of traffic, but that’s okay since I probably still have all the time in the world. Once we got to Lincoln Avenue, we took a left, continued somewhat slowly since Richmond is sneaky, and then parked at Richmond and Ardmore (i.e. two Chicago blocks north of her place). Might as well find the first parking spot that is nearby!
We were a few minutes early, and continued to Bryn Mawr. Sarah had told us to meet at the Channel/Bryn Mawr bridge. However, Molly needed to go to the bathroom, and I obediently followed the squad as they headed east instead of west. However, at California, I walked back toward Richmond with Levi—Mom, Dad, Molly, and Brandon would text us their whereabouts. As Levi and I walked back, we spotted Sarah walking toward the bridge. Therefore, I ran toward her, calling “Sarah!” She turned around, and saw me running, so we met up in the middle. I’m glad that this rendezvous worked out!
Levi tried to text Mom as to their whereabouts, since we had no idea where they ended up. We (i.e., Levi, Sarah, and I) all walked eastbound on Bryn Mawr, past California, and eventually got to the corner of Bryn Mawr and Lincoln. I was chatting randomly with both of them, and Levi got a text, saying, “We’re at Dunkin’ Donuts.” So, that took us up on Lincoln, on a wild goose chase. Because when we finally got a walk signal to cross Lincoln, we found none of our party at Dunkin’. I apologized to Sarah for leading us on this wild goose chase—I hope that she wasn’t offended. The rest of our party then met us as we continued a little bit northwest on Lincoln. Whew! The hurry-up-and-wait, or the mutual-seek-and-such. Which do you prefer?
We returned to Bryn Mawr, and headed toward the bridge that we were originally going to meet at. There were three distinct groups of people—Sarah and I led, Mom, Dad, and Levi were the second squadron, and Molly and Brandon seemed to keep their distance. Just before the bridge, we turned right into the park, in some sense continuing the walk from Tuesday. Ha! I don’t remember any of the specific conversations, since (a) everything about today seemed to blend together anyway since there was so much going on, and (b) I didn’t write notes about today until the following Wednesday. Oh well—the large picture is sometimes all that is needed!
There were a couple of photo opportunities in the park. Sarah and I shared pictures on the swing set, and then under (fresh?) tree. As we continued, we saw some well-dressed young people, and after further consideration, concluded that it may have been a photo session for a quincea\~{n}era. We left the park, and rather than walking down Lincoln, cut through the neighborhood. I was starting to get hot under the collar, and so I shed my regalia, passing it on to Dad to hold. As we continued to lead, Mom took a photo of Sarah and I walking together, chatting. It was fun like always, because sometimes a great activity is just something low-key! The conversations that I do remember involved Sarah’s excitement to go to Israel tomorrow, which is why we had to get together today.
We returned to the car, and separated ways (of course with a hug before leaving). We returned to the hotel via McCormick, Dempster, and then Gross Point. I probably could have taken them along Lincoln further, but since I hadn’t gone that way, best not to risk missing the boat. When we got to the hotel, everyone showered in separate shifts. I failed to get much journaling done in the meantime, since I find it harder to journal nowadays for whatever reason. I equipped a nice suit, and once we were all ready, the car headed back in the direction it went earlier!
That is, we took Lincoln toward Highway 41, and got stuck in a little bit of traffic en route. That’s fine by me—so it goes! I pointed out the “you are beautiful” signs and placards that are in the areas near Clark/Bryn Mawr. Going a little further, we made it to the head (or is it the tail?) of Lake Shore Drive, and ain’t no road just like it! We passed by Weiss Memorial Hospital shortly after entering the road, and noticed that some threatening clouds appeared on the horizon. No rain fell, however. It goes so much faster in a car than on a bike on this road… DUH! However, once we got to the Grand Avenue exit, we ended up going around in circles, because the traffic person was not good at guiding. Dad started to get annoyed, as he usually does in parking situations. Nothing I can do about it, however!
We were quite early, so we walked around Navy Pier after taking valet parking. The first stop, as was usually customary, was the Chicago and pirate store. Mom and Dad wanted to stock up on stuff for September 19. It was very stuffy in there, as well as in the concourse, and it didn’t help that there was a brief downpour keeping us inside. However, we had enough time to go outside, get a Ferris wheel and skyline picture, and then walk outside along the pier before entering Riva. We didn’t get wet at all, which is a good thing!
This is the Chicago skyline–it is not a green screen!
At Riva, we headed upstairs and talked to the receptionist about our reservation. We waited in the bar while they set things up, and Karen and Pete had already arrived. I received a bike jersey that might look like a nicer shirt, and that is a very generous gift! I’ll be sure to wear it while riding! While we were waiting, we talked about the idea of chemistry as it applies to sporting teams, and how it can either tear apart a team or make them into more than the sum of their parts. There are plenty of good examples! The TV was also on, but I wasn’t paying much attention, and I abstained from drinking, though others had drinks. Conversations also considered family matters and it was good. I didn’t care about how late the table was, but we got it at 19:50.
Appetizers included tuna tartare, sushi, and more. I enjoyed everything that I had, and while we ate, we went round the horn with introductions, since this dinner combined family and friends. It’s a great thing to have happen! The What’s Next conversations continued, but as I have continued through the weekend, I think that my intimidation factor is reducing a little bit. Still, it’s a scary prospect ahead. But come on, Noah. YOU’VE GOT THIS! Before dinner arrived, we also had talk about NU memories (again), family lore and “That’s So Noah,” and more. Once again, and I should stop making excuses about this, the details were fuzzy when I took the notes.
I had Chilean sea bass for dinner, and it tasted great. The portions were huge, so I was able to have leftovers to take home. As we ate, a fireworks show went on, and we could all see them outside of the lakeview window. Interestingly, there was also a thunderstorm, so there was the lights from both the natural and unnatural. I really enjoyed it, even though I know the fireworks weren’t for me. Additionally, being inside sheltered my ears from the sonic-boom fireworks sufficiently.
Dessert was good, but I was already mostly full. Naturally, leaving noises took a long time since it’s my family, and I’ve realized that leaving noises take longer and longer nowadays, since I enjoy that social contact! That’s okay, because it’s a sign of maturity. We left, and unbeknownst to us, some misadventure followed!
We tried to get to Interstate 94/90 West (i.e. north), but missed turns downtown and went down some sketchy streets, in the dark and in a thunderstorm. And then when we got off the Interstate at Old Orchard Road, there was a seat belt enforcement zone. Thankfully, we were not detained, or we would have gotten in BIG trouble. We finally got to the hotel at 00:30, and I quickly went to sleep. It was a long day, and my pedometer says that I took 20,000 steps!
> TO BE CONTINUED…
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Happy Lincoln: 11 days
Phoenix: REDACTED days
Sophomore Campaign: 76 days
BACKGROUND: This is an account from Thursday of my first week of my senior year of college at the University of Nebraska.
Thursday, August 28, 2008
I got up at 625 and went to the restroom to put on my khaki pants with a red polo shirt. When I got back to the room, BEEP! BEEP! BEEP! So, I quickly set the alarm to OFF, but luckily it didn’t disturb Jordan. I planned my meals for the week using the online menu, and then headed downstairs for breakfast. Change in plans!
During this winter break, a bunch of old materials from school appeared in my room… relics that my parents kept from my preschool, primary, and secondary school years. A significant project that I had was to review these materials and clear out what I wanted (to make it easier to move when I eventually get a house).
In doing this excavation, I found various writing prompts and pieces of “artwork” (notice the scare quotes!) from my yesteryears.
Thus, because I think it will be interesting, some of my Thursday and Friday posts (for #TBT and #FBF) will be “Old School” sequence posts, where I share artwork and/or writing samples from my younger years. It’s fun to use the blog as a time capsule!
This was a blog post that I had planned on writing shortly after returning from my spring break trip in Lincoln, but of course it got delayed for one reason or another. Nevertheless, I wanted to post about it, inspired by what transpired over spring break.
Never A Worry 