Who Let the Crazies Out?

This one may be a little long :)

The more I've thought about what I'd write in this blank space, the more introspective and melancholy I've become. I'm sure that as I think back and recall this week spent with friends, the more I will laugh, thinking about the crazy memories we've made and end up feeling a lot better than when I first started. For now, I hope you'll bear with me as I take my time working through the thoughts and feelings I have leaving friends who I love dearly.

I think we have different friends for different reasons. I don't believe there is one person (even a husband or wife) that can meet all of our needs. There are some friends that we can have a blast with. These are the crazy people who want to do things like jump out of planes (I won't name names) and spend their lives seeking the thrills that some of us will never even experience.

There are friends who's mere presence elicits a sense of peace and belonging. Being around these people is like standing on the shore, with the sand between your toes as you watch the sun settle below the waterline. Breathtaking.

One of my favorite types of people are the people who always speak truth (even if somewhat aggressively). I find myself drawn to them because I can go to them in any situation and hear honest-to-God good advice, even if it hurts.

Then there are your "challenging" friends as we so gently call them. You probably disagree with these people more than you agree with them, but their strength of character and sincere heart draw you together even if personalities discourage it.

I am sure that I could go on and on. These are just some of the types of friends I've run into. They are amazing and I love them all. Needless to say, some people find these friends once in a lifetime, I have found them all and hope to continue finding more.

Enough of the philosophy!

So we got into Chicago's Union Station on Friday morning, tired and scuzzy, but excited to be near the end of our journey. The last leg of our journey was an hour train into Orland Park, where our friend Molly would pick us up from and take us to Olivet.

We lugged all of our stuff onto the last train and anxiously waited. I almost had a heart attack, I was so impatient. :) As far as I knew the schedule went like this:

Friday- party at Molly and Joe's house
Saturday- Chicago

That was all I knew, but it was enough to get me pretty excited. We arrived to a sunny and cold Orland Park and lugged our stuff off of the train and into the waiting room. (Next time I will pack less. The luggage thing was pretty old by now.) We waited and waited, and then we finally saw her car tearing through the parking lot. I think she was excited too. :) The drive to Olivet was fun. It was great to see familiar things.

Once we got there, I kept seeing people I knew, so it took a while to get back and get showered. Ashley met us at Joe and Molly's apartment and we went through wedding and honeymoon pictures and just caught up about life in general.

The party was scheduled for 7pm, so Steve and I showered, unpacked a few things and ran to the store with Molly and Joe to pick up some more food and drinks. While we were there, we met Kara and all of us headed back to the apartment. Julie and Tim met us at the apartment with mexican dip and these pinwheel things. Kara brought enough food for an army along with games and cute plates and things. I think she should plan parties for a living. I think I ate almost half of her homemade carmel corn. Delicious! Ash made these peanut butter and cholocate fudge things....to die for!!!! Molly and I were the loosers and made the healthy stuff. :)

Ash and I!


Ash and Kara setting up the food:

Some of the food:

We played games and had a great time! There was this Christmas carol song game that was pretty fun. You'll have to ask Kara about it. Unfortunately, the guys won, but we redeemed ourselves and won the next game.

The next morning our trip to Chicago was almost cancelled by a winter storm. They were calling for snow during the day, but sleet and freezing rain (along with speedy wind!) towards the evening. The original plan had been to go to Jimmy Johns (a hoagie place) for lunch and head into the city after that. We decided to head in a little early and brave whatever would come for later that day. We took the train in and I think everyone had a great time, except for Ashley who had to use the restroom in the worst way!

Boy, was it COLD! The snow was beautiful, but the wind was so bitter, that it was hard to enjoy it without having your face freeze off. We headed to our first stop...FOOD! Joe suggested this place in the Water Tower called Food Life. I know the name is not that exciting, but it was great. You sat down with your party at a table, but were able to go to several places to get your food. There was everything from cheeseburger and fries stand, to stir fry and smoothies. They had everything and the food was delicious. A definite recommendation.




Steve and I would look nice in this picture if I didn't look like the Michelin Man and he didn't squint his eyes.

Molly and Joe

It was snowing pretty hard by the time we left Food Life. We decided to be brave and head to our next stop, The Cheesecake Factory. Notice any pattern here? While we were there, we decided to take our cheesecake to-go and head back to the train. The snow had turned to freezing rain, and the ground was extremely slippery. Our walk back was bitter cold, but the city looked beautiful! The lights were extraordinary and despite the wind, if you squinted your eyes enough, everything looked shimmery and golden.

Grand Lux Cafe, where Steve took me after we got engaged!!!!


We were about a mile from the train station and our legs, hands and faces were frozen. The wind was so strong and the ground so slippery, we were LITERALLY sliding on the sidewalk. At one point, Julie and I couldn't catch our balance and we slid back, only to realize there was a man sliding right past us. Steve and Tim caught us in time to not fall. We entered the train station cold, soaked through and I think we loved every minute of it. We were a little concerned about travel, but there was group of Olivet people COMING just as we were going, so we felt like we were the smart ones.


When we got back from Chicago, we watched some movies and went to bed late. The next morning (Sunday) we got together and made eggs and pancakes for a late breakfast. We were all still in our pjs, so it was pretty much as relaxed as things could get. I made eggs and Kara and Ashley made pancakes. They made Steve this midget pancakes...it was really funny.

Picture of me cooking in my Pirates of the Caribbean pjs.

We spent the rest of the morning (and most of the afternoon) watching the Colts v. Jacksonville game. It was great to be able to lay around and be lazy. After we got showers, it was time for Kara to leave. Even though I knew the time would fly, it was disappointing when it really did. I won't see her until May. :( Ash went back to her apartment to study and Molly, Joe, Steve and I headed out to Walmart and Kroger for some groceries and odds and ends. We had a good time walking around. When we came home we made taco salad for dinner. The guys were extremely adamant that there was one way to make a decent taco salad, so Molly and I apparently learned how to make it the best way...just like their moms do.

After we ate the most amazing, spectacular, delicious, wonderful taco salad, we decided to watch Rescuing Dawn. I had picked out this movie from Blockbuster because it had Christian Bale in it and was about a solider stuck over enemy lines. Well....it turned out to be an extremely long movie. It would have been a little better if the plot was a little more complex and moved at a faster pace.

Halfway through the movie a LOUD alarm started to sound, followed by flashing lights. At first everyone thought it was part of the movie, but here to find out, it was the dorm fire alarms going off. We grabbed our coats and shoes and headed out the door. As an RD, Molly has the responsibility of overseeing all the RAs and students in her building. I am sure she was glad to be in such a position this night. :)

We huddled outside along with an enormous amount of freshman girls and waited to see what had started it all. There was smoke coming from some of the windows, but there weren't any flames. The culprit was a bowl of brocolli and chicken microwaved and blackened beyond recognition. I imagine the girl responsible felt terrible.

Although I have more to write, I think this particular entry is long enough.

Until next time!!!