It is hard to imagine that we will not be staying in this apartment anymore. I submitted the notice stating that we will vacate this apartment at the end of the current lease term in August 2013. It was 2010, the year we got married and moved into this studio apartment in South Loop. I had never lived in a high-rise before. I grew up in a house that was on the ground floor and never gave a thought to what it would be like to live in a high-rise. When I walked into this studio on the 10th floor, I remember getting mobbed by so many thoughts and emotions! My first home as a married man, my first home with Neena, my first experience of high-rise and my first experience of living in a building with a 24 hrs doorman and maintenance!
Looking down from the window, I remember thinking - "look at those tiny people and vehicles on the road!". Everything seemed like a game with a pre-destined outcome - vehicles running around on their own and stopping obediently at the traffic lights. Little men, women, children and their pets crossing the road hurriedly and going about their business. Everything was happening smoothly and systematically. I almost felt like god - looking down at the world and it's tiny inhabitants. But the minute I was back on the street, the same setting seemed so chaotic! There was noise all around with people shouting, cars honking, cars and bikes jumping lights and children running away from their parents. From the 10th floor everything seemed to be planned out and certain but walk down to the street level and you did not know what was going to happen the next moment. This was so much similar to how life goes, I wondered. When you are living your life and trying to plan things on the ground, you do not know what is going to happen the next moment. But when you zoom out and take a holistic view of your life (from above), it seems well planned and systematic.
With one entire wall made of huge windows facing west, every evening was magical. We saw the sun set over the horizon, leaving a crimson red sky in it's wake. For the first time, I actually noticed the sun setting at different places in the west at different times of the year. The universe was alive and I was seeing it every day! After the sunset, the city beneath us transformed. What was once filled with people rushing to their offices in the morning, was taken over by neon lights garlanding the pathways through which vehicles went like a procession with their red tails high in the air. When I woke up in the middle of the night for water, I always used to stand by the window for sometime. The garlanded road was mostly deserted except for a few taxis. A couple of homeless people walked across the street to the Roosevelt train station or the #12 bus stand. Some cars stopped at the gas station opposite to our building. The 24 hours Jewel-Osco was still alive and people came out of that place with huge shopping bags. I always wonder who shops at those odd hours! Some houses still had their lights on. I could see a TV playing in a dark room. The city was surely alive even at this odd hour!
It is incredible to think that the first three years of my marriage were spent in this apartment. These walls have been witness to so many emotions, feelings and conversations that if walls could speak, they would tell the story of an ever-growing love and understanding between two people. I consider this apartment very lucky from that perspective. A female car-rental agent at Midway airport had once mentioned to both of us that the first 6 years of a married life are always the most important and difficult (yes out of all the places, a car-rental agent at the airport!). In a way, this home has given us the strength to survive 50% of that time and grow strong together. I believe having good vibes is very important and this place has excellent vibes that helped us grow as friends and lovers. We had fun cooking together in the small but cozy kitchen that was just the right size to fit the two of us :) The kitchen was the place for long conversations and unwinding after a hectic day. We used to stand there and cook and see the sun setting down over the horizon… it was just magical!
I wish we could stay here forever and forever but nothing can remain constant forever… especially the rent! So now the market has decided that these walls, the windows, the closets, the kitchen and the view are worth more than what we can afford. We will pack all our memories, love, adventures and vibes into small boxes and move out (thankfully to a great neighborhood in Wicker Park!) soon. It is still hard to believe that 3 years have passed by so quickly. We will miss the apartment and also the great South Loop neighborhood that has developed so much in front of our eyes. Trader Joes, Flo and Santos, Pita Heaven, Nepal House, Potbelly, Yolk, Wabash Tap… we will miss them all. Both of us love to eat out and explore new places and that's why we chose the Wicker Park neighborhood! Life is too short to waste it living boringly and we don't know what will happen next moment. So we might as well enjoy an awesome egg salad sandwich at Jerry's and then some amazing home-made tiramisu at Letizia's on an evening stroll in Wicker Park. In the end, like this apartment had taught us the first day, everything works out and seems to be planned and systematic from the above :)
