Old friends (yay), nasty traffic jams (boo), and yummy pitas (yay again)

Happy three-day-weekend to all!

Well, the potential job I mentioned last time didn't pan out, I discovered yesterday. Disappointing, yes - it was a sad afternoon - but I'll keep pushing on! I actually landed another interview the night before (to be held next week) for potential freelancing with a marketing firm, which is very exciting - we'll see what happens! The perfect job is out there somewhere (right?). : )

I visited the college on Thursday, as well as went into the city later on. It was a bit surreal, pretending to be a student and wandering campus (no one really does a double take at me yet, except maybe when I wore my outdated "first night football game shirt!" the visit before, betraying my age). I visited Career Services to get a little advice and some leads, and then visited friends in the OCO, the registrar's office, and the poli-sci office, which was great. It was so wonderful to catch up with people - Sue and Cathy in the OCO, Peggy, Lynda, and now Jan (from PSIR!) in the registrar's office, and Dr. Black and Dr. Hawkins in PSIR. Being here, it can alternate between feeling like so much time has passed, and yet none at all....I alternate between lapsing into complete, bittersweet nostalgia and shaping a new, different life at the same time. It's an odd line to walk, emotionally, but I think I'm figuring it out.

As for the Chicago venture....I think I'm an even bigger fan of public transportation now!

• The good: going to the Paul Mitchell School (hair design) and saving a lot of money on a new haircut and highlights.
• The bad: getting a $50 parking ticket while inside (negating my savings!).
• The ugly: getting stuck at an intersection a block away for 25 minutes (first in line, no less). Cars kept pulling out every which way when they shouldn't and getting stuck in the middle of the intersection....every time I had a green light, there was a car sitting crossways in front of me, inches away. And as soon as my light turned green, everyone behind me would start laying on their horns, leaning out their windows, shaking fists (and most likely middle fingers), and screaming....at me. Really? *Sigh* Apparently I need to drive a Hummer to get around, so I can just plow through everyone! ; )

Needless to say, by the time I got out of there, I was pretty stressed out....and my wonderful hubby took me to Naf Naf Grill to comfort me.

This place is great. I love Middle Eastern food for so many reasons, but one is its freshness - it doesn't seem nearly so processed. Naf Naf had fresh-baked pitas filled with moist chicken, fresh cool vegetables, hummus, tahini sauce....Everyone knows how much I love sauces and condiments, particularly my ketchup, but there's something particularly great about a good, made-from-scratch, not-uber-processed sauce mixed with such fresh ingredients. Five stars for Naf Naf Grill! There's my Naperville find for the day.

 

Yummy!

Shannon