Staying at Home in Evanston, Illinois

I am in school and have been neglecting my rocket squid challenges recently but the one about the stay "cation" interested me. I just moved back to Evanston in November of 2013 after having been away for over a decade. I lived here during some of my working years but found it too expensive when I was trying to go to school for awhile. Now that I am officially retired and on social security retirement benefits and Medicare, I was able to afford renting a shared apartment. After living there for awhile, I found an SRO (single room occupancy) near Northwestern University. I would gladly take a "staycation" in Evanston regardless of the time of the year or the condition of the weather. From walking and biking in the spring and summer to walking and shuffling through the leaves in the fall and the snow in the winter, I could make a trip out every day and see something new and interesting. (All pictures in the lens were either taken by me or given to me.)

Cycling through the Suburb

Evanston is a bike friendly town. There are two bike paths in Evanston, and bike lanes are marked off on several streets. The bike path by the lake starts at the rocks near clark square, and ends at Northwestern University. To get to the bike bath near Clark Square you can ride along the lake front on Sheridan road on the sidewalk with the lake on one side and the graveyard on the other. It is a fun ride. The picture to the right shows the bike path proper that begins in Evanston at Clark Square rocks.

Seasons are the seasonings of Evanston!

Evanston has a variety of weather - from stormy to snowy to rainy! To the left is a picture of my friend Helene outside her apartment on Chicago Avenue in Evanston on New Year's Day 2014. It was a very snowy new year's day! What is normally walking distance becomes shuffling distance. Believe me that a lot more calories are used slogging through snow!

Once upon a dreary!

To the left is the viaduct that hangs over the sidewalk entrance to the street I live on. The street can not be entered from Chicago Avenue by car for some strange reason. I walk through there going and coming from the Howard el station where I can catch buses and trains to many nearby locations.

In the summer time there are street festivals galore. There is the Custer Street Fair, Taste of Evanston, etc. The Rose Garden near the corner of Oak and Grove is in full bloom. Walking is popular in the early morning and late afternoons. The above picture was taken of me at a Memorial Service for my friend Bernard, who used to take me on walks in Evanston. He died at the age of 86, and we thought the Rose Garden was the best place for his service. He used to love to go there and always had a story about it such as the Hare people selling the roses or events he had attended at the Catholic Church, Saint Mary's, across the way.

Northwestern University has a beautiful campus on the Michigan Lakefront. The University blends into downtown Evanston. Their library is open to the public during business hours. Their students volunteer at a number of charitable organizations in the Evanston area. Since a university does not pay taxes, there is sometimes differences of opinion between them and the "townies" but I for one am appreciative of their influence on Evanston.

Evanston is a liberal town that supports many civil rights issues. It has a very diverse population, and there is a lot of community service work done here. We have a local Pioneer Press newspaper "The Evanston Review" as well as "The Roundtable" that caters to the opinions of people living in south Evanston. We also have "The Daily Northwestern" published by the students at Northwestern University. Evanston is a literate and educated town.

Sometimes when I stay at home in Evanston, I am just "chillin'." For example, I just moved to a new apartment and in this picture I am drying my towels after a shower. Life in the slow lane.

I live right by the Foster El, a few blocks from the Evanston Northwestern campus. I can use the el to travel to other hotspots in Evanston or use it to travel south to Chicago and north to Wilmette. In the selfie I am waiting for the train.