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Hello friends,

I hope all are well this Monday morning. I write you from Naperville, Illinois, just east of Chicago. I have a few minutes to check in before I depart for my gig at 10 am. I was fortunate to score a job on my second day here after arriving yesterday morning. I kind of figured it would go well after seeing plenty of ads posted. This city is huge and I could probably find work every day if I wanted to stay or move here. 

I have been here before as a tourist back in the mid-nineties with my late mother and older sister. I don’t remember much about our visit other than falling asleep on the four hour tour bus that took us through some of the normal tourist spots including the Miracle Mile and Oprah’s house.  I’m here taking advantage of the good weather which is usually warm for this time of year. The traffic though is quite heavy no matter the time of day and most drivers seem to be really impatient and aggressive. I drove around yesterday and couldn’t tell it was a relaxing Sunday drive. The city’s M.O. is rough and straight to the point and I got a dose that right off to bat at a local north side eatery. Breakfast is my favorite meal out (after lunch and dinner) so I Googled something close after taking some pics at the Navy Pier. I followed the directions to the Horizon Café which had some good ratings on line. I arrived before the morning crowd and didn’t wait too long to be seated. The place was small and already full at eight thirty.

The host took my name and I stood by the door waiting for my table. I noticed the next table open had an outlet to charge my cell phone so I asked the gentleman if he could put me there. He rudely said no and he sat me on a tiny table squeezed between two other tables on the back wall. I was touching elbows with both parties on either side and could have easily eavesdropped on both conversations if I wanted to. So much for a relaxing meal I though as I took a look at the menu. The server was a young man (thirty some) who was buzzing around his station like the building was on fire. It took more than just a few minutes for him to come to my table so I flagged down the immigrant busy boy and asked him in Spanish to get me a cup of Joe. The server finally asked me if I was ready to order and I told him I was ready ‘a long time ago’. He quickly gave me a snobby look and rushed off after I placed my order. I was miffed not because of the wait, which I understand when it’s busy, but because he skipped me over and had approached the adjacent table first, who was seated after me. I didn’t think he even got my order correct and it was confirmed when he splashed the plates on my table. By that time I figured it was par for the course so I get let it go and shut my mouth for a change. The only saving grace was that the food was actually fresh and well prepared but Mr. Personality didn’t even bother to fill my cup or thank me for my patronage. Nevertheless I still tipped him, though it was the bare minimum. Welcome to the Windy City!

Tomorrow is national Election Day and I’m sure all focus is on the presidential race and by Wednesday morning it will all be over. I vast number of people will be disappointed I believe and the country will move on. I too will move on to Wisconsin after today and I hope the good weather holds up!

Have a wonderful day friends and thanks for your support.  #Yo-Ga-Fla.

Juanjohn