It's Not Just a Josh Hartnett Movie

My exploration/adeventures in Wicker Park have been few and far between so I decided that it would be today's destination. I knew I could pique my friend Erin's interest by making the uber-trendy knitting shop Nina our meeting place.

At first the shop reminded me of a designer clothing store, by which I am very easily initimidated and thus into which I hardly ever go. But once familiar faces showed up, I felt much more at ease. And of course Erin had no trouble convincing me that I needed to purchase my own skein and needles with which to start my own knitting habit. So here I am, with a ball of beautiful pink, purple, and slate blue variegated yarn which I hope to soon turn into a beautiful pink, purple, and slate blue variegated scarf. Stay tuned.

We also visited Paper Doll, a cute little card and paper goods store a few blocks down, that was guarded by the terrifying Maude, an amazingly cute little pug with an attitude. (Scroll down on this page to see a picture of her.)

After exploring a little further without finding much more of interest, we had a beer and some chips and guacamole at Moonshine (which was eh, OK) and then took the 70 bus east to more familiar ground (hey, I'd been adventurous enough for one day).

We found ourselves on Rush, where we wandered a bit until deciding on Bistro Zinc for dinner. I thought it was relatively authentic for a mid-western French restaurant until the waiter butchered the pronunciation of a pretty simple dish. Then I lost all respect for the place. The food was OK, but I can't really provide a thorough review because I wasn't in the mood to dig in to something big and meaty so as to get a real feel for the chef's prowess.

All in all a good day. I must say that it seems as if Chicago has sort of emptied out now that the Christmas season has come and gone. Maybe it's just a lack of suburbanites wandering the streets in their matching cheerleader jackets and fanny packs, but the city sure seems less crowded to me. Now instead of dodging crowds on Michigan Avenue, you have to hurl yourself across lake-sized slush puddles at each intersection. Ah the joys of winter. Only four and half months left...