A Weekend with Friends

AT the Apple Store playing with the camera.







Vince and I were in Chicago last weekend to meet with his bestfriend from residency KB and his wife, R. They flew from South Carolina, where they are now based, to tie up some loose ends with the
house they were selling at Oak Park. Vince and I stayed at their empty old house. Most of their belongings are already in SC, the only things left were a futon and some foods left in the fridge. Vince and I brought an air mattress to sleep on. While KB and R used the futon.

Our first night together led us to Emperor's in Chinatown, our favorite chinese restaurant. We ordered our usual tofu/seafood soup, peapod leaves, tomato beef, spicy eggplant, chicken/salted fried rice and a tofu dish. We were all excited to be able to eat our favorite chinese foods again. We talked about wedding plans, having babies, our jobs, our next vacations, etc. KB and R seem to be living a nice life in SC. KB practices in a small group and is very busy. R is not working and doesn't seem to be bored at this time.

Saturday found us having brunch at Sweet Maple(I am not sure of the name) near Rush with Barb and John. I was happy to see Barb again. She's like a mother to Vince and the other PM&R residents at Rush. After brunch, we headed back to Oak Park to see the furniture that Virgil, one of our friends, was selling. Then KB, R, Vince and I drove downtown for some shopping. R and I have the same tastes in clothing that even if we split up, we always end up bringing the same clothes to the fitting room. After shopping, we stopped by Big Bowl to have some appetizers and drinks so we could get our parking validated. We then drove back to Oak Park for dinner with V and B. The dinner was enjoyable especially spiced with converation.

Sunday, our last day, we had brunch at George's in Oak Park (once again.) If you ever go to Chicago, visit Oak Park and try this breakfast place. They have good food and huge servings. The peach crepe was yummy. Their omelletes are delicious, too. After brunch, R had to meet with some of her friends for coffee, so we dropped her off to Caribou Coffee. KB, Vince and I then decided to go to Oakbrook Mall to pass the time. We went to the Apple Store where the two guys acted like little kids in a candy store. We had fun playing with the new G5 with the built in iSight camera and the photo effects. Vince was so bummed because the G5 his brother gave him didn't have one. Oh well, that was a gift so he shouldn't be choosy, right?

When we got back to pick R up, it was already 3. KB and R were still supposed to clean up the house and pack some stuff. Vince and I ended up inheriting some of their foods in the fridge, and some odds and ends that they didn't want to take back to SC with them. I wanted to help them finish packing, because they helped V pack his stuff and move them to my place last June. But they were shooing us away.Vince and I arrived home at around 830pm.

A nice weekend spent with friends sure makes life more enjoyable.