The Old House and the Sea

The Old House and the Sea

The past couple weeks people at work and friends have been asking me where I want to end up after med school for residency etc etc. I always think this is an interesting question because it implies that where I am now isn't necessarily where I'll be 5, 10, 15 years from now. I start imagining what it would be like to live on the West Coast for example and how nice it would be to see the ocean everyday and have perfect weather year-round. Then I'm like, oh yeah I just moved to Chicago, which is a pretty amazing place in itself, why should I already be envisioning my next possible move? We might not have the Pacific but we have the lake (and they recently planted palm trees on North Ave beach so it's not like we're not trying...). And sure the temperatures might hover just above zero at times (something I have yet to experience here), but on the whole I feel like I could see myself staying here for many years to come. Skyscrapers have replaced trees as scenery, Chicago drivers may have replaced New York City as the country's angriest motorists, the rumbling of the L on its tracks has become an almost welcome background noise in day to day life, and yet I love it all. Sometimes when I arrive at the 900 building early before work, I'll walk further along Michigan to the underpass and go sit on the beach. The lake is prettiest in mid morning-early afternoon. It's where the city comes to relax, work out, play with their kids, play chess, read a book, or just appreciate the great view of the Gold Coast. A friend last night told me that he's "so over Chicago," and I just wanted to say ... how is that possible? Maybe after being in one place for years and years some people are jaded, and I'm sure I'm romanticizing everything in my head because it's all so new to me. But I just want to take it all in, and at this point I feel like I could never get tired of it. And now I'm sitting outside on my deck looking at the lights of the city. This is where I'm supposed to be right now and where I hope to stay for a long time.