Hello from Chicago

Hi Guys.

Well, I have officially been in Chicago for one week now. It’s growing on me. Slowly.

First of all, my apartment is fabulous. It’s much bigger than I expected, and has really nice woodwork on all the walls. It’s a very old building, with old-fashioned iron grill elevators and everything, but I like it. Lots of character. The view from my window looks down onto the courtyard, which contains our very own Christmas Tree.

The school so far seems a little intense, which I expected. I’ve signed up for my classes, which start on Monday, but I’ve already been doing homework for them. Sometimes I’m really glad to be here, and really excited about the challenge that I know this year is going to be. Other times, I tell myself that I’m really a little stupid for making myself go through this again, only exponentially increased.

The school campus itself is very urban, but there’re a lot of parks spread around. (And lots of bookstores, which I love! If only I had money to buy a book.) I live about 9 or 10 blocks from where my classes will be, but luckily I got myself a bike this summer. I have a feeling I’ll be living on my bike. The streets through here are gorgeous. There’s some crazy architecture here, and a surprising amount of trees, some of which have already started changing colors. I’m really looking forward to my first real autumn. My street’s going to be beautiful once the colors really get going.

I already bought myself my first pair of snow boots, which I am really excited about getting to wear for the first time. This Chicago weather’s not gonna beat me! (I hope!) This past week it’s been in the 80’s, which really had me missing my air conditioner. However, luckily a cold front moved in on Friday and put it into the 60’s. It feels totally awesome outside. I’ve only closed my windows once since I got here.

I’ve met some friendly people here. The faculty and staff are surprisingly warm and accommodating. The students… well, some of the students seem warm. This is largely a campus of loners. You see more people walking by themselves here on any given day than you’d see in a month at Spring Hill. I met a couple of nice girls, one from Toronto, the other from Salt Lake City. Unfortunately, I saw the Sale Lake City girl a day ago, and she seemed like she’d forgotten who I was. Oh well. I’ve also met a very nice guy from Portland. I like Northwesterners. They’re so laid back. (That’s my little shout-out to Katia.) It’s a very different feel here on campus. It’s just… intense. That’s the only word that adequately describes it. People wear shirts that say, “UChicago, The Only Place Hell Really Does Freeze Over,” and “UChicago, Where Fun Comes to Die.” On the whole though, I think there’s really a sense of pride about this place being so hard, kind of like how the snobby shirts always sold the best at SHC. This campus is peopled by eccentrics. I feel very plain and uncosmoplitan, which I guess I am. Maybe by the time I’ve graduated, I’ll be as weird as the next guy. We’ll see.

I miss everybody lots, and hope everyone’s doing well. I’m thinking about you guys. Say a prayer that I can handle this!