see as i saw

Two mornings with 3:30am wake-up calls in the same makes for a tired girl.  The end of the month, with the end of the year approaching, was in imperfect alignment with my desire to do nothing but pass out for a nice winter's nap.  So my friends for the day were coffee and music.

And at some point today, I managed to realize that tomorrow is December.  I have no idea what I did in November or how it disappeared so quickly.  Honestly, I always thought my parents were being melodramatic when I was younger and they'd say something about how quickly time passes.  That was back in the day when the distance to Christmas break always seemed interminable.

The arrival of December also means that I'm down to one month remaining in this blog-a-day mission that I set in the waning days of 2011.  I've been thinking about how I want to proceed when the calendar flips to 2013.  Although there's no definitive course, the daily photo and writing requirements are taxing at times.  I can virtually guarantee that this blog won't continue to be daily. Perhaps instead of trying to force inspiration daily, I'll post when inspiration (visual or rhetoric) strikes.

I would say that I shouldn't worry about it too much, because I have time.  But I've already covered that.  Time flies.

Do you remember, as a kid, when you got a new toy so coveted that you couldn't even consider leaving home without it?  That's how I'm feeling about my camera.  I'm afraid that if I don't have it with me at all times, I'm going to miss a prime photo opportunity.  And my Android camera just isn't going to instill the same giddy feelings in me.

Since I don't currently have a bag for my camera, I'm tentative about bringing it out into the wild.  Not to mention that I don't have a strap attached to the body, and the cold air makes me afraid of fumbling through gloved hands.  I did go for a little test drive through the Lincoln Park Conservatory today, after an owners manual reading session.


Although the camera managed to catch some interesting shots, I'd attribute that more to the naturally amazing baseline of a dSLR and some luck.  When playing with manual adjustments, I was just fooling around with only a scant idea of why I'd nudge the setting up or down a level.  The good news is that I'm excited to learn; being the nerd that I am, learning and projects are exciting to me.

If anyone happens to know Chicagoland locations that would provide rich atmospheres for test driving my gear, I'm all ears.

Against my best interests, and my own personal promise to the contrary, I ended up inside of a Best Buy on Black Friday.  I didn't camp outside or even wait.  My parking spot was midway down the row closest to the door.  Needless to say, I arrived far after the door busters ended.

My intention was to just wait for my mom as she returned a surround sound system.  Her line was so long that I started to wander.  I happened upon a portable hard drive with a terabyte of storage for $70, something I've been telling myself to buy since I invested in my MacBook Air.  Might as well pick one up.

Seeing that my mom was still only halfway through the line, I headed toward the digital cameras.  I thought maybe they'd have some dSLRs with charged batteries for me to play with.  It was a little too congested, apparently cameras are popular gift items.  I did strike gold in the accessories aisle, where 16GB memory cards for dSLRs were marked down from $40 to $9.99.

Despite my strongest loathing for Black Friday, I found two items that I wanted and were worthy enough sales to...wait in line.  The line was winding through the home appliances and an internal battle occurred as I took my place at the end.  It could have been much worse, and I'm sure it was earlier, but the ten minutes that I waited was enough to test my patience.

Now that I was committed to the memory card, I might as well head over to a local camera shop for a little hands on time.  Luckily that's not exactly a door buster type of retailer.  Although there were other customers in the store, I walked right in to a helpful sales associate.  And despite thinking that I knew what I wanted, he managed to plant a Canon seed in my mind.  Regardless, I don't think I'll be leaving this town without a camera.

My dad left the police force somewhere around 1997, but this piece of memorabilia lives on in my parents house.  Much like the ash gray t-shirt I still wear that bears the same logo.

Since my parents no longer live in my childhood home, or even the same city, coming home has become a juxtaposition of familiar and new.  For the most part, the material items representing my childhood and adolescence have either migrated to my own home or been purged.  My mom has a similar love for photography, but the type focused around people.  Those reminders of years past hang everywhere in my parents' home, sometimes eliciting a smile and a fond memory, other times a shake of the head and amazement that anyone would wear that outfit.

There are certain creations and art projects that my mom couldn't bear to part with, and they still have a place of honor near her desk.  For some reason, my prom dresses still hang in a basement closet.  I'm sure if I dug through a couple of boxes in storage, I might unearth some other "treasures".  For now, I'll passively sit on the couch and sip from my Novi Police coffee mug, absorbing the morning sun.  I wish it came with a donut, too.

I have this idyllic notion of a work day as one where I sit on a patio, enveloped by sun and warm air, sipping an iced coffee.  That doesn't seem like too irrational of an expectation; I'm even willing to tolerate only moderately comfortable outdoor furniture.  In an effort to find a local coffee establishment to match my criteria, I engaged in a little web wandering.  At one point, Google informed me that some of Chicago's very own Starbucks are soon to be engaged in a concept test.  Alcohol.

The particular patio that I was eyeing is in the process of obtaining a liquor license, while the second location is still under construction.  Not only will the latter store serve beer and wine, but it's also intended to be a flagship store.  I'm not sure what characteristics define a flagship Starbucks, but they had me sold on the idea of a second-story balcony seating area.  I'm unequivocally in favor of outdoor seating options, especially those that don't place me twelve inches from the curb of a traffic-laden city street.

What I haven't quite decided on is whether I'll feel inclined to visit my barista during the morning and my sommelier in the same place during the evening.  Although, I suppose it has a certain Euro appeal to it.  If they're pouring $3.50 venti-sized pinot noirs, though, I'm sold.

While many people spent the day celebrating a "holiday" (that Mexico doesn't even recognize) with margaritas or import beers, I reconnected with an old love.  Starbucks Frappuccino.  There were several factors that converged to lead me there:

1) I haven't visited a Starbucks since redeeming a free birthday beverage
2) A tempting new Frappuccino that sounded like just my chocoholic style
3) Half price happy hour special on said Frappuccino
4) Gift card from Grandma to pay for my caloric overload

Since I was splurging, I figured it was time to go all out.  I completely skipped over the those non-fat, sugar free options for my delightful mocha concoction.  Did I mention that it was topped with chocolate whipped cream and cookie crumbles?  Mmm.  (This post is not a paid endorsement, but I'd be willing to accept free beverages from Starbucks if they offered :)

A couple of weeks ago, I test drove a free yoga class at this experimental community events/financial advising/cafe hybrid that State Farm created in Chicago.  Obviously that landed me on their email distribution list.  It turns out that this was in my favor.  Yesterday I received an email with an irresistible offer: free coffee and crepe (nutella!).  Sold.

As it turns out, it's nice to get out of my apartment for a few hours.  You know, mingle with the masses.  Truthfully, that's been one of the things on my mind during this quest for employment enlightenment.  As much as I want my lifestyle to be fluid, would I go crazy playing the "work from home" game?  Sure, cubicle dwelling can feel confined, but there's something to be said about having other people around to liven up your days.

Oh, and I really liked the tables there - that nice, natural woodgrain.  I wish I could bring one of them home.

At least Chicago is still offering me a bit of sunshine and moderate temperatures.  That made today's midday stroll down Broadway St. possible.  Along the way, Monique and I ducked into the Coffee & Tea Exchange to check it out.  It's one of those neighborhood places that you've always walked by, but never taken two seconds to patronize.  It turned out to be quite an interesting gem.

They have these barrels of whole bean coffee from various international locales (Costa Rica!).  The whole vibe is very natural and artisanal.  Besides the barrels, the back of the store features floor to ceiling shelves lined with glass jars full of various spices, each one hand-labeled.

This is only one of many local businesses that I've never visited over the course of three years in the city.  Why not?  Routine keeps you from experiencing interesting new places where you could potentially meet new people and learn things.