Panoramic

Being new to the city, new to the "real world," new to my job, and my roommates, and subletting, I have no shortage of topics to write about. My days and nights revolve around, and within, this magnificent city. It makes me feel like a child, all this newness. I'm re-acclaimating myself to my surroundings, exploring the ways I fit, or if the city even has a niche for me. Of course, Chicago seems all-encompassing, as if she had outstretched arms into which all of us tiny people run, looking for comfort, but she's a bit stiff. She's a frigid mother. Her arms are always open, but she won't protect you--that you'll have to do for yourself.

Within these far-reaching arms there sits a cluster of buildings where activity is particularly concentrated, a place I love to be--downtown. I work in a famous, lanky building that I bounce toward every morning, listening to my iPod. Each morning, I hop into an elevator, and let it lift me up into the clouds with ear-popping swiftness. As we climb the stories, I fight away those sneaky fears that try to creep into my mind of the possibility of elevator malfunctions and a swift-plummet death (and, oh yes, I have those fears.) I'm always relieved when the elevator spits me out onto my floor, where I do one last yawn to open my ears against the altitude, and then patter along to my desk.

The view in the morning is breathtaking. The beauty of the lake's untamed nature juxtaposed against the hard precision of man-made skyscrapers always gives me a thrill. I can see the Sears Tower from the window by my desk (facing southwest), and enjoy the sun flooding into and over the magnificent architecture of the city. On foggy mornings I giggle at the thought of working in a cloud.

Once I've savored the morning, I get right into work. I work hard, and usually for nine hours straight, and it feels good. I accomplish so much, I forget about my worries, and I feel more authentically Chicagoan. I idealize this place as a city of hard workers, career-minded and solid. Though I know that's a gross generalization, and untrue, it's what I want for myself, and what I strive for. After all, the city won't take care of me--I have to pave my own way.