A lot of people take Chicago for granted.  They have lived here their whole life, or at least in the Midwest, and are convinced that getting out of here is the solution to all of life’s problems.  When I explain to people that I lived in California for 4 years and then CAME BACK, they look at me as though I have toes growing out of my ears.

The fact of the matter is, Chicago breeds a different personality than most large metropolitan areas.  Whereas most large cities seem self-involved and disconnected, Chicago holds these weird roots of the working class, the little brother (second city), and hugely broad ranging backgrounds.  People here are polite, but are still honest.  There’s a hard combination to find.

The reason I have suddenly turned all sentimental and crap is because I had my faith restored in humanity today.  Here’s how it went down.  I have wanted a GMail account ever since I saw the first posting about it.  I would give my arm for an invitation.  But I refused to pay a single penny for a free service as that is a load of crap.  Lucky for me, I saw a post on craigslist today offering to trade an invitation for whatever you want to offer.  I immediately emailed the poster and started in on my spiel.  We emailed back and forth all morning and, in the end, I walked away with an invitation after offering to burn 3 Radiohead CDs and get them reservations for brunch at the Ritz.  Good deal.  But the best part is, we both thought we got a good deal. 

It just makes me happy to live here knowing that I share this space with other people who are willing to trade niceties for niceties, help for help.  It makes me smile.