March theme: lists

I continue to feed my scrabble addition through Scrabulous.com. I just finished three excellent games with someone from B.C., Canada.

In addition to games with other people, there are other games designed to improve ones scrabble skills. I’ve been indulging in the highly addictive Scrabble Blitz: four minute rounds where you just try and accumulate as many points as possible. The fact that it’s so fast means I keep playing “just one more” and then it’s two hours later.

Besides feeding my addiction, it’s been a nice day. I met Jen & the Bridesmaids over on Clark a.k.a. Wholesale Purse Row. There is great stuff over there. Some of it is blatant knock-offs of Prada (I think they call it Prego? Hello? Spaghetti Sauce?) and Louis V., but lots of it is just trendy-looking purses. I say, if you’re buying something trendy (it’ll look dated sooner rather than later), you shouldn’t pay a lot for it.  

Nights like this, when I’ve voluntarily stayed home and felt great satisfaction just playing Scrabble with the dog on the foot of the bed (seriously, she takes up half the bed), I think about my 10-year high school reunion. Learning that I lived in Chicago, a former classmate said, That must be very exciting! Bless her heart. I guess it can be sometimes. I love Chicago. But a lot of times, I probably do the same things she does: hang out at home and just be.

I met Jen and Erick the other night for $2 hamburgers at The Yard. What I love about Chicago is how we, more than any other place I’ve ever experienced, truly embrace decent weather. This winter has been especially long and cold, but every year, at the very first sign of spring, bars and restaurants throw open the patio doors and people flock to them. Everyone bundles up, but cheerfully endures just for the chance to be much less cold than usual. We sat at the back of the bar, beneath a heater going full blast. And yes, every single patio door was wide open.

I gotta talk about the dog some more. I marvel at her size, the expanse she takes up. Ben (1st dog, may he rest in peace) was only 10 lbs lighter than she is, but he was the type of dog that slept curled up, whereas Ruby spreads way out. It’s pretty impossible for us to sleep in this bed together because she literally takes up more than half of it.

For some reason, when I found Ruby, I had a twin-sized bed, which was plenty of room for Ben and myself. At night, we’d all retire to the bedroom, Ben on the foot of the bed in his customary circle, and Ruby beside the bed on the floor. In the morning, I’d open my eyes, and be nose to nose with the German Shepherd. Somehow, during the night, she would creep onto the bed beside me, very delicately. There we’d all be. But now that it’s just Ruby and myself, we cannot co-exist in a larger bed. Go figure.