After walking from Millennium Park down the Magnificent Mile shopping stretch, Evan gave me directions to get back by bus. It was pretty exciting! Mainly because I got on at the tail end of rush hour and could pretend to be a young professional heading home from a busy day out on the town.
Two things wrong with this scenario.
1. I didn't bring a purse to Chicago and "had" to buy a new one. But for my trek around Millennium Park and down most of the Magnificent Mile, I had been swinging a pretty sweet canvas tote bag from Trader Joe's. The purse I ended up buying still had tags on it. I didn't realize they were visible/hanging out until a bit into the ride.
2. I was scared to death. The bus driver seriously hit like 80 mph in heavy traffic and the bus was swerving and hitting bumps and I was sliding all over the place and flying through the air. Clearly not someone used to Chicago's public transportation.
Evan said to keep riding the bus and it'd stop near the train station near their apartment. I had been in the area before and knew what to look for/expect. However, in the middle of nowhere, the bus driver comes on the intercom and announces, "This is the last stop. Everyone must get off."
I sit there and hope he just lets me ride around with him because this is NOT where I'm supposed to be. He stares at me in the rearview mirror. We are close enough that he can talk to me just fine and I can hear him. Instead, he picks the intercom back up and announces, again, very slowly and very clearly, "This. Is. The. Last. Stop. Get. Off."
I get off and call Evan. I am standing on a corner. Only a few cars are passing by. Evan says he'll come get me.
This is the corner I stood on. See. It's a legit corner at a not-real intersection. Some mensfolks drove by reeaal slow and rolled down their windows to ask me, "What're you doing? You looking good." My face must have registered disgust, but I'm not sure because I was trying not to say something stupid. Like, "That makes one of us." Or "Ew. Ew. Ewwwwwwwww VOM."
This was across the street. If you can't make it out, that building is a "Pregnancy Clinic."Haha, this was right next to it:
RIDICULOUS. It's a Christian video and book store. All I can think of is the pregnancy clinic is one of those make-believe places that promises a lady some significant guidance and health... via the Bible. Except they don't tell you the last part until you're cornered in an exam room. I saw a Law and Order on it once.
Or it's like competing stores. Like a RadioShack and a Circuit City. Which one has the better price for that baby?
Thankfully, Evan came to pick me up rather quickly. He rolled up withou a shirt on because he was getting in the shower when I called. Fearing for my life (and my possible rural farm naivette being demolished), he came to my rescue.
No comments:
Post a Comment