Lost in the City

Arizona, here I come!

The long awaited trip finally started yesterday. I was overly stressed out at the beginning, particularly by the renting-a-car-and-drive-at-night-to-a-new-place part. It turns out it went well. Now let's hope the trip will continue in the same fashion!

The flight was great. Of course, it was long and tiring, but I got window seats from Paris to L.A. and then from L.A to Phoenix, and we had a clear weather most of the time, to I was able to watch great landscapes and take a lot of pictures. The flight over Greenland and Northern Canada was particularly magnificent. The desert was pretty cool as well. I'll post pictures when I get back.

I stayed with Chad for that first night. Chad is a couchsurfing host who took me in. We had a good time in the evening and this morning for breakfast.

Then... then I split for Hohokam Stadium, "the Winter home of the Chicago Cubs", where I had a wonderful _sunny_ day. The Cubs lost... again... Let's just say that Dempster wasn't at his best. The game still was a lot of fun. There was a great couple from Colorado sitting next to me, and that made the whole afternoon very enjoyable.

I am now at David's, another Couchsurfer who will host me for a couple of nights.

Tomorrow, a trip to Sedona is scheduled. Then it will be another Cubs-Angels game on Sunday... and then I'll be on the road again.

I have just been asked to update… and being weak, I am giving up and doing so.

A lot has been happening during the past few months. Time got a little sparse, and I have also been questioning the interest of keeping up that blog. I am really not convinced it isn’t a loss of time… so I don’t think I will update regularly in the future. Maybe if I find a new voice, maybe from time to time, like when the Cubs win the World Series (that means THIS year, of course, ‘cause this is the year, I’m tellin’ ya!!)

Let’s see… since October 2007…

Visits from friends
I enjoyed visits from several good friends. My friend Winnie spent a few days in Paris on her way back from a European trip. It was wonderful to see her away from D.C., catch up, walk around Paris, and just hang out. In December, Matt and Mike visited from Glasgow. Like last time, I had a very good time with them: talking about many different things, discovering common acquaintances and laughing… laughing a lot.

San Francisco
I flew away for the Holidays. All the way to San Francisco. Spending Christmas with my close family is nice, but throw in more people and that becomes too much for me. Since I don’t like NYE’s celebrations that much either, I figured it was the perfect time to take a break and get some air. That’s how I ended up in SF from Dec. 24th to Jan. 1st. I found a great host – Stas – through Hospitality Club. She is fun, smart, energetic, very generous… I could go on and on. Anyway, I had a wonderful time there. Somehow, I was a little disappointed in the city itself. You might blame it on the gloomy weather or the time of the year… I’m not sure, but that’s a fact. I liked it, but I didn’t love it. I liked the architecture; I liked several neighbourhoods like the Haight or the area around Green Street… I just didn’t feel the vibe I was expecting. And damn, all those hills! That said, I still had a great time thanks to Stas and her cool group of friends. Waiting to see them in Paris now!

More surgery
I am currently at my parents’ in Southern France, healing after some more surgery. Last Wednesday, my surgeon removed part of the hardware that has been in my leg since August 2006. The pins, plaque and screws are all gone. The rod remains on the tibia. I am hoping that my ankle will be able to move better now that the pins and screws are gone. The surgery went very well. I was out of the hospital the next day, on crutches for a few hours, walking hesitantly the day after, and nicely the following one. I started physical therapy right away to reinforce the muscles surrounding the ankle. It hurts, but it’s the good kind of pain.

What’s next?
Back to Paris by the end of the week.
Back to work on February 4th.
Off to Arizona for Spring Training in March (Yeppeee!!!).

A very special event took place tonight: the premiere of "Maman", a short movie written, produced and directed by my college friend Lucie Viver. It was at 7:30 pm at the "Ciné 104" in Pantin.

It's impossible to explain what happens in the movie without ruining the fun of it: since it's a short movie, spilling out the juicy part would be spoiling the whole thing. So let's stick to the general topic: it's a scene including a young mother, a kid and a swing. Nope, not telling more about what happens...

What I can say is that I loved it. Frankly, I had no idea what to expect. Okay, knowing Lucie, I was expecting something well done and meaningful. But as to the content, I didn't have a clue. Well, I wasn't disappointed at all. In 9 little minutes, she manages to raise questions, convey amazingly well a strange atmosphere, and all that with very few spoken words.

So... Congrats Lucie!!!

The movie as be selected by two short films festivals :
- Courts devant: Sunday, Oct. 28th, noon, "Cinema des cineastes"
- Ciné Banlieue: Saturday, Nov. 10th, 4 pm at "L'Ecran de Saint Denis"

to read more about it: http://www.lesfilmsextramuros.fr/maman.htm

The new Ludi version is now available... it's version 26.2 as in 26.2 miles. Yes, I did it! I ran my first marathon today in Chicago!!!
Since it couldn't have been drama free, we had some serious heat going on during the race. So much heat that the marathon officials cancelled the race around noon! BUT, even if they cancelled the race and times were not officially taken, they allowed all those who had crossed mile 13.1 to finish. Since I was way beyond that point when it happened, I got to cross the finish line!
First impressions? My legs are killing me! Seriously, it was tough. I walked several times in the last 10Ks, partly because I was dead on my feet, partly because we didn't know what was going on with the race. They were saying the race was cancelled, that times wouldn't count, and were encouraging everyone to walk. But I didn't want to walk to the finish line, so I ran and walked for the last stretch... which got me to the finish after 5 hours of running. My knee bothered me a little at the beginning, but it passed very quickly, so all the pain I experienced during the race was "good" pain.
The heat didn't bother me. Hey, I grew up in southern France, where 87°F is nothing to be afraid of!! ...particularly if you consider that the temperature wasn't that high when we started the race at 8 am. I just tried to be cautious: I didn't skip a gatorade or a water station, by mile 5 or so, I started pouring water on my neck at every water station, and a few miles after that, I started pouring it on my legs as well. That was enough to keep me in great condition until the end.
Now, I'm already thinking about the next one... the one I'll get to really train for, without having to preserve my leg and knee. And I'll be aiming at 4:15 or less.

They did it!!! The Cubbies are Division Champs!!! After three straight loses against the Marlins, they hit the Reds hard and won 6-0. But that wasn't enough to win the title: the Cubs needed the Brewers to lose against the Padres. And they did. Even better than that: they lost to Greg Maddux, notorious former Cub. So I guess I'll have to honor my bet and go to work dressed up in Cubbie gear on Monday.

Here is an amazing feeling... I hadn't heard from my great friend V. in a year. Last time I was in contact with her was a phone call she gave me last August, when I was in the hospital. I didn't get any news from her after that, neither did any of her other friends as I found out a few months later. What happened? Let's just said that she went through a very tough patch and we had to have her institutionalized. That was about one month ago, very little before I took off for Chicago. At that time, I was relieved she finally was in a position to get the help she needed, but not sure about how it would then unfold.
Good news awaited me when I came back: first, I managed to talk to her on the phone, then, I got to visit her at the hospital. I don't have the words to tell how glad I was to see her again. The bottom line is... welcome back V. !!

I'm not really sure about what to write about tonight. I just feel like venting, so consider yourself warned!

My Chicago trip, despite its brevity, provided me with a much needed break. A break from work, and a break from my thesis. It also gave me the opportunity to change sceneries, which was appreciated! It makes it even harder to go back to the old routine now. Working, reading for my PhD and training for my marathon don't seem too appealing to me. I only have one idea on my mind right now: taking off again as soon as possible.

Going back to work was tough. I really didn't feel like it. Thankfully, I have a few great colleagues I can count on to cheer me up. Where would I be without them? I wonder! Oh it's not that my job situation is traumatizing, it's just that I'm not sure where I'm going with that, and the more time passes the more I wonder what the hell I am doing with my life (yes, just that...).

The marathon training is a good thing for me. I see it as the next step in my rehab, and it provides me two things at once: a focus and something to look forward to. I have been training for several weeks now (5 or 6 I think), with 4 sessions a week. It is going well. Overall, I've only opted out a couple of times due to tiredness, and once because I was flying back from Chicago. For now, I have managed to keep up with the training program without pushing the rehab too far. I am finally done with the longuest run of my program: the 2-hour run that I did last Sunday. From now on, the distances will reduce so that I can be in good shape, and not tired to death on October 7th. It really isn't an easy task to decide when you ought to test your limits and when it is better to rest. I might go easier than the training program in the following weeks as the 1-hour run that was scheduled today was hard on my leg. For the first time in a while, it is actually the leg that hurt, right where the bone was/is missing. It is usually my knee or my ankle that bother me. Well... we'll see how it goes in the next few weeks.

The other good thing (is it?) is my Cubs obsession. Well... it's not an obsession yet. Nope, I swear it's not. I mean, I'm not at the point where I would recite the batting averages and ERA of the players in my sleep! The end of the regular season is proving excruciating for the Cubs, Brewers and Cards fans alike. The pennant race is close and won't be decided until the very end if all three team keep competing like they have been for the past few weeks. I really enjoy watching the games. Yes, I love baseball, and believe me, it's not something that's easy to get through people's head here in France. They just don't get what a beautiful game it is. Their loss. I'm fed up with sarcastic and dismissive comments about how boring it is. They don't even know the game for Darwin's sake!! Do I badmouth soccer or rugby? No. I actually enjoy watching those sports. So give me a break with baseball. There. I said it. (ah... always sugarcoating things...)

Anyway, I hope the Cubs will get a win out of the Dodgers' ace tonight while I sleep. Living in Paris, I have an obvious reason not to like night games... they are those I only get to watch when I have insomnia!

There are a few more things I'd like to write (rant?) about tonight, like a certain someone I miss, ideas on the US subway systems, a novel I just read, and a few urban studies books I long to read... but I'm getting tired, and a long day is coming, so I'll sign off now.

Back to France yesterday afternoon, back to work this worning, totally jetlagged and sleepdeprived... but it's nothing that can't be cured!
I'll give you the rundown on this great Chicago vacation soon... for now, here is a link towards some of the great pics I took in the Windy City: http://community.webshots.com/user/windycitygirl

Departure date is nearing and I still had not toured Chicago’s ethnic neighborhoods. So today, unlimited metro pass in hand, I rode the El from Downtown to Chinatown, Pilsen, Lakewood, and finally Andersonville.

Chinatown isn’t a big neighborhood and it’s a little out of the way. It isn’t very far from downtown, but you’d better take the metro if you want to get there. It’s particularly obvious if you compare it to the location of Chinatown in NY or DC. There is another striking difference and that’s with regards to the kind of neighborhood Chinatown is. It just doesn’t mean the same thing as it does in NY or in DC. In DC, Chinatown has become a trendy neighborhood with Chinese and Thai food, that’s true, but mainly regular franchised stores and restaurants like Potbelly, Starbucks, Citysports or CVS. In NY, it’s where you find cheap electronics, souvenirs and the like. Lots and lots of little shops. In Chicago there are shops all right. Just not the same kind. You’ll find authentic (well, seemingly at least) Chinese products, from food to furniture. And on the contrary to NY and particularly DC where you’ll mostly find white people walking around, there are very few of them in Chicago’s Chinatown.

Pilsen used to be the Czech neighborhood. What I forgot is that it now is a Latino neighborhood. Well… I was reminded as soon as I stepped out of the metro. There is nothing but Hispanic stores on 18th Street. What makes Pilsen interesting is the difference between the Latino vibe and the kind of architecture you run into. On one hand, you have signs in Spanish all over, Hispanics walking around, including food vendors with carts. On the other hand, most of the buildings have a distinctive Eastern European style. The contrast is striking. The church on 18th Street looks out of place, so does the former Czech community building you find a little further east on the same side of the street. It’s odd, really, but not uncharming.

Andersonville is the neighborhood I liked the best compared to the previous two I saw. Maybe because it’s more “european” in atmosphere, more like what I’m used to. It’s the king of mix I like between stores, restaurants, cafés and resisdential buildings. It used to be the Swedish neighborhood of Chicago, and a few stores are still there to remind people, like the Swedish Bakery (which is the first I saw).

On the way from the Berwyn metro station and Andersonville is another little neighborhood usually called Lakewood-Balmoral. It reminded me of the neighborhood surounding the National Cathedral, north of DC. It’s a totally residential neighborhood, with nice houses, sometimes rowhouses, sometimes not, but always with a spot of the greenest grass in front. Kind of a suburban look within the city… but within a few blocks of Clark Street, it’s stores and restaurants, which makes the neighborhood much more appealing than the suburbs!

…out in the bright sunshine
There’s no place for me like Wrigley Field
With that team of mine
I hear the call of the Ivy on the wall
God’s own green grass let’s play ball”
(Alan Barcus)

I made it!! Yes, I actually saw the Cubs win a game at Wrigley Field! That was a wonderful experience.

I started my journey on the red line, riding the El up to Addison station, which is right next to the ballpark. I had been there several times before, as you know, but it was obviously very special today. Eager as I was to enjoy the Wrigleyville atmosphere on a game day, I arrive quite a bit early on site. I mean early like more than 3 hours early… Hey, I also wanted to watch batting practice, and that starts 2 hours before the game, so I actually wasn’t _so_ early. Ok… maybe still a little bit. Well, this gave me time to wander around, look at all the cub gear, and be in the line early, which got me a little fluffed Snoopy in Cub away uniform, the give-away of the day. Just enough to revive the kid in me.
Frankly, I was afraid I would be disappointed by Wrigley Field. I had been waiting to step into the Friendly Confines for so long and had heard so much about it that I almost expected the disappointment, even if several fans said they had been afraid of the same thing and weren’t disappointed at all in the end. Well I was many things when I walked in, but disappointed wasn’t one of them. It was amazing. The closeness of the field, the layout of the ballpark, the ivy, and the general atmosphere as the fans started to come in.
The atmosphere during the game was something too. Did I mention it was a Cub-Cards game? Since it is the big Midwest rivalry, there was a lot of tension in the air. Many Cards fans had made the trip or (for those living in Chicago) dug up their Cards outfit. The result was a lot of Cubbie blue, but quite a bit of Cardinals red as well in the stands.
The game itself wasn’t thrilling, as just a few players got on base, BUT it ended with a victory, which was good enough for me, particularly since it made the Cubs advance to Central Division first place. And I got to hear “Go Cubs Go” and see the “W” flag wave in the wind.