Today Starts Another New Chapter (or Two) In My Story

It's finally here! Tonight at 6pm, I will begin my Captain's Class. I am nervous, excited, anxious, curious, full of hope, and ready to embrace the challenge. I am looking forward to learning new things, meeting some new people, and to devote almost everything I have to this endeavor. Thanks again to all who made it happen and now it's up to me to succeed and make myself, as well as all my believers, proud.

I am also starting this new chapter as an engaged woman. It happened last week. Eric and I will be getting married on August 10. We decided to do it AFTER Lollapalooza weekend (I don't want to be downtown with thousands of suburban teenagers), and the 10th is fitting because August is the month in which we first met, and it is the day of Drum Corps Internationals World Class Finals. Eric introduced me to DCI and all things drum corps. We are going to get married at City Hall, then probably wander over to the Riverwalk and take some pictures with the water taxis, then join some friends and family for drinks/a light bite somewhere and end the day with the Wendella fireworks cruise. These plans are preliminary, except for the getting married at City Hall part, and I am open to any ideas or suggestions people might have.

The path to getting to this point hasn't been smooth and it hasn't been easy, but it has made for a very interesting and full life. Sure there have been tears, arguments, times apart, doubts and problems. Throughout it all though there has been laughter, happiness, adventures, and most of all love. This rings true for Captains Class and for getting married.

I'll be blogging more with class and wedding plan updates. I hope you'll enjoy following along as the story continues to unfold.

I Can Breathe Again

The polar vortex of last week is history, the snow is melting, football is over, the birds are building nests on the porch, and I finally feel like I can relax a little bit.

The cold last week really messed up my car again. It wouldn't start, AAA wouldn't come out to jump it, and the electronics were so messed up that my temperature display on the radio was either missing, or stuck at 8 degrees. Since the weather has been warmer for a few days, the car is back to being normal and I was able to pass my emissions test today and get my license plate renewed. I'm being extra careful with the car since the accident and hopefully, except for an oil change, the car has had it's adventures for 2019.

I'm also set for Captain's Class. The class starts in 2 weeks and I'm nervous and excited and ready to work extra hard for this. Thanks again for everyone who helped me out and who continue to believe in me. I'm doing this for all of us. It's also time to get ready for the water taxi season which should be starting soon. I need some new khaki pants, some new undergarments, and maybe some new footwear.

Wednesday it's supposed to be cold and icy so I may just battle my taxes that day. Like I said, I'm being extra careful with the car so any bad, iffy weather means I will probably not drive for Lyft. It's a catch-22 since that's when you can make more money, but I'm not taking any chances.

Just like the groundhog predicting an early Spring, I am ready for the change out of Winter and on to new things.

Tales from the Deck(hand)

I'm about 4 months into my job as a deckhand for the Chicago Water Taxi and I have to say, it has been a learning experience. I am sore after every shift. I have bruises on my legs, arms and even my toes (as a rule...try not to drop a ramp on your foot). I am tired, a lot. But all in all I am quite happy. I have met interesting people, I am getting tanned and in shape, and I'm even making some friends.

I seem to get assigned to shifts on my own. Gives me a positive feeling that they think I can handle all the tourists and commuters and money and closing out the shift and tying up the boat by myself. The captains do help me out and for that I'm thankful. Everyone is really nice and most of the captains were deckhands once themselves so they know what we are going through. The boss says people enjoy working with me and that I'm doing a great job and he hopes I'm having fun. Some days are more fun than others. The weather has gotten warmer so we can wear shorts, which is nice, but some of those hot, humid days are tough. I did a double shift last Saturday on a boat with no generator, which meant the head (bathroom) wasn't working, we couldn't use the POS system, and after the sun went down it was a bit dark. It was also hot and the poor captain couldn't even cool down because there was no fan in the pilot house.

I've seen fireworks off of Navy Pier and seen some spectacular sunrises and sunsets from the water.

I've seen John Wayne's boat "Pilgrim" floating up and down the river.

I've waved at hundreds of people and would venture to guess that my picture is taken at least 50 times per day.

I've watched bridges open for sailboats and learned that the tugboats pushing the barges down the river have a very strong wake.

I've been a part of the "Blessing of the Fleet" Ceremony.

I've made friends with some commuters and some other people who like to just ride the boat on weekends. I've had some people angry with me when I tell them their child can't stand on the seats or that our boat isn't going to a certain location at a certain time. I've also learned not to take any of this personally. (The standing issue is safety, the location issue is scheduling...if you can't read a schedule, then I'm sorry).

I've done fire drills, security drills, safety drills, first aid drills, pumping out drills, and man overboard  drills.

I've had dreams about work.

At least once a day I hear someone say "I've lived in Chicago all my life and I never knew this existed."

I've been interviewed.

I've watched the captains get filmed for shows or commercials.

I've made the day of a little boy who wanted a ride for his birthday and we let him ride for free.

I've seen them filming for Chicago Fire, the new Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson movie "Rampage," and even saw a "red carpet barge" for the new Transformers movie.

I've watched the fireworks barge make it's way out to Navy Pier every Wednesday night.

I've been cold, I've been hot, I've been soaked by rain and swept snow off of decks.

I've watched the Chicago Cubs Kris Bryant hit balls into the river.

I've watched a helicopter lift heavy construction pieces onto a building.

I've gain confidence in jumping a gap to get onto a dock, or climbing over a railing onto the roof of a boat.

I've learned that no matter what time of night or morning, there is always someone else on the bus or the el.

I've been offered tips, beer, and one little girl even shared her french fries with me.

I've had more comments made about my safety vest than any other piece of clothing I've ever worn.

I've fist bumped hundreds of people.

I've said "Good Morning, Good Evening, Happy Friday and Watch Your Step" more times than I can count.

It's been a great 4 months. I can't wait to see what the next months bring.

One More Week

Next week at this time I will be at orientation for my new job as a deckhand with the Wendella Sightseeing Co. and I can't wait! I need to get into a new routine, I need a sense of purpose, a place to go every day.

Since I left California and came back "home", I have had a couple of routines. The first one involved getting the apartment back into a livable condition. That was fine because I was busy all day. I was shopping or cleaning or throwing things out or building furniture or reuniting with old friends, introducing myself back to Chicago. Then came the holidays and there was baking and cooking added to the mix. I was also job hunting the entire time. Sending out resume after resume, but it's very hard to get a job during the holidays when many of the decision makers are out of the office.

So, after the holidays and after going through the money I had to sustain me while on this transition, I got into a routine that I'm not really happy with. I'd get up in the morning, feed the cats, feed the birds, watch the news, watch some game shows, watch The Chew, give the cats a snack, watch more game shows, watch the news, watch a movie or something on TV, feed the cats and then go to bed. I ventured out a couple of times; even after the car got repossessed I walked to the pharmacy, the grocery store, or the post office. I went downtown and took the train out to the suburbs to have lunch with a friend. But mostly my routine was the same day in and day out. The cats mostly sleep during the day and sometimes I did too. I play games on my phone. I was starting to get a little stir crazy. Hell, I've even been spending time watching a giraffe that could, according to all the sites running the video, "at any moment" have a baby. I had the desire to go out, but no funds to do it. Eric's Mom takes me grocery shopping every Saturday, but that's necessity and errands.

I did get excited about the thought of going to pastry/baking school and I am still excited about that, but also aware that it costs money and financial aid will only help a little bit, so that dream may be put on hold.

Luckily, I applied to Wendella one afternoon. I have fond memories of taking the water taxi from the train station to the Wrigley Building in the morning and back in the afternoons. It was relaxing. It was quiet, and it was way more fun than the bus! So I went in for an interview on a sunny, warm Friday and was told I only needed to pass a drug test and a background check. So I took my drug test the same afternoon I had the interview and filled out the background check the Monday after the interview and last Wednesday was told I got the job! Yay!

So, next Monday I have orientation all day. Then I'll have 3 days of (paid) training and then I can officially start as a deckhand. It will be challenging but it will be fun. I'll get to meet all sorts of new people, share my love of Chicago with people who are just visiting, and probably get to know a few of the regular commuters. This will be an excellent kick-start to my new routine. I'll also be making money so when I have some time off I can go to a movie, or to lunch, or to buy my own groceries and pay my own cell phone bill. I'll also get to put a little money away for culinary school. No one ever said starting over was easy, but I consider this a big step towards making me feel like Robin again.