Monday's child is full of....something!

So I was carrying on last week about not having anything to blog about. And then my weekend happens, and leaves me with so much fodder for a blog post that I hardly know where to begin!

Friday night ended with a big get-together of Chicago's Australian community, almost a reprise of the Australia Day celebration at the Cubby Bear. Minus the band. And minus the Cubby Bear. But not minus the partying spirit of some Midwestern Aussies! This event was held at a Downtown cafe that's owned by an Aussie and while the night was only supposed to go until 8.30pm or so, none of us left until well after 10. And others of us didn't leave until we were man-handled onto the pavement. [I was not one of the latter, you'd be pleased to learn!]

Saturday was an indulgent day, spent at the hairdressers and then enjoying the rare burst of warmth and spring sunshine with a long walk around Lake Michigan. Lexie and I were not alone in our stroll either; in fact, we were constantly jostled about by dog-walkers, roller-bladers, and generally just by other pedestrians. I guess it gave me a good taste of what summer in Chicago will be like. And I can't wait.

I missed the pre-St Patrick's Day celebrations on Saturday - and I was a bit sad about that, because the City turns the Chicago River green in honour of the event, and I missed it. But I have to say in retrospect that the pampering at the salon was probably what I would have preferred to enjoy, rather than the push & shove of Downtown crowds.

Sunday was supposed to be a slow day too, but I accepted an invitation to join my friend Irene for lunch and that led to more wine and great catchups and chats than I could have anticipated. I hadn't counted on some of the things we got up to, including meeting a very high-profile British lawyer, who rather pompously announced that his hourly rate is $450 and that yes, that WAS his Bentley with personalised plates parked outside. Uh huh. And I hadn't counted on leaving Mr Legal Eagle behind to end up at Duffy's pub near my house and meeting a vast contingent of the New York City Fire Department! Believe what you see in the calendars girls, cause there's literally no airbrushing going on. Wowee! Mind you, other than being propositioned in very clear terms by a rather inebriated but muscular (and ultimately disappointed) fireman, the less said about that pub in general, the better.

So Monday morning rolls around, perception is rather foggy, but otherwise with very positive memories about my weekend. And very glad to finally have some decent blogging material. More to come later this week too, when I can give you my reviews of Jamie Cullum (Britain's "Sinatra in Sneakers") and also our own Dame Edna, who I am seeing on Friday night.