Landmarks

[Note: The photos are big. I mistakenly changed a setting on the camera and am too tired to adjust things now. More landmark pics are available on Flickr.]

I used to be smart. Today I decided that I’d ride my bike in to school  and take photos along the way so you all can get a mini tour of Rogers Park and Evanston. There are a few landmarks on my route — the Dagel & Beli shop a few blocks from my house, the cemetery on the border of Chicago and Evanston, and the construction site near campus — that help me know how much farther I’ve got to pedal before I reach my destination. I thought it would be fun to share these with all of you. So I grabbed my super cool tripod and wrapped my camera around the handlebars of my bike. I was off!

The ride this morning was perfect. It was still cool out and there weren’t too many crazy drivers on the road. I snapped photos left and right, imagining capturing the landmarks not only for you but for Google Maps. A few people caught me in the act as I whizzed by on the bike, but they didn’t seem to mind the flashbulbs.

Fast forward to 4:10pm when I was ready to bike home. It was raining. Now, a smarter woman would simply have ridden her bike to the train station and opted to allow public transportation to get her home. I decided to risk it since it was just a light rain. A sprinkle, really. And, besides, it wouldn’t take me long to get home.

Well, that light sprinkle turned into a deluge just as I reached the cute little cafe in Evanston I’ve been wanting to try. By the time I reached the cemetery a half mile away, it was no longer fun trying to see  through the rain pouring off my helmet. Fifteen minutes later, when I was actually home, I was soaked. And dirty. And I had to laugh at myself for not believing the weatherman when he said it was going to rain today. Apparently in Chicago, the rain really does arrive when they expect it. Now I know.

Soaked!