Discovering Norwood Park
Okay, moving in kinda sucks too, but at least it’s a different kind of suckage, one consisting more of intermittent annoyances–What box is that damned vitally important widget in?!? How could we have missed that problem with this hellhole money pit?!?–interspersed with longer stretches of the sense of new possibilties–At long last we’ll set up the office (living room, entertainment-system connections, network wiring, etc.) properly–rather than several days (weeks?) of physically deconstructing your life, room by room and box by box.
But we’re here, so far nothing seems to be broken, and apart from some surmountable plumbing issues all seems as well as could be expected two days after a move. I wonder what it says about me that the things I’ve set up first have been
- Stereo system
- Bed
- Couch
- Cabinet with wine glasses
- Desks and computer network
- Pantry shelves
- TV
- Coffee-mug hooks and pilsner glasses
It didn’t take long to start noticing the differences between Norwood Park and Lakeview…I mean, the movers hadn’t even finished before the next-door neighbor started chatting with us; after another ten-minute conversation on Monday, I had thus spoken to my neighbor more in two days than I did in our apartment over five years. On Sunday, a stroll around the neighborhood to preview my route to the train station revealed that we didn’t just relocate to an area dominated by single-family homes, but one with really nice houses; some of them are even amazingly large–this is still The City, after all!–but fortunately none appear to be McMansions but instead just older, well-kept homes.
The commute downtown was also interesting. I think the last time I rode Metra was either late high school or early college–my most recent analogue with a similar vehicular experience was in fact half a world away on the Sydney CityRail system last September. Anyway, during my morning and evening commutes today I mused on the differences between Metra and the El. I was pleasantly surprised to find that even as far down the line Norwood Park is, I was easily able to find a seat–and they are much comfier than anything the CTA has to offer; perhaps that’s a decent tradeoff for having to pay attention to a schedule rather than simply walking to the station and knowing a train will be by in a few minutes. Yet Metra vs. El also reminded me of the difference between Interstate and U.S. highways: in both, the former is quick and smooth but provides an almost deathly boring view–okay, the ass-ends of three-flats aren’t the most equisite view of the city, but they’re more interesting than a hundred yards of gravel and railroad track–as well as a sense of separation from the landscape. I suppose once I settle into a commuting routine I’ll just end up buried in a magazine or my PDA and won’t even notice any more.
Well, according to Chicago Bloggers, at least I’m blazing a trail as the first online commentator in Norwood Park!