Sunday, September 14, 2008

The rain and my neighbor, Barack

People! It has been raining here nonstop for a million days. It is out of control. I have only experienced this much humidity before in the rain forest. Our couch feels damp because of all the moisture in the air. We are going to attempt to foil our cabin fever by venturing out later to see Burn After Reading. We might not go, except we already bought tickets online. I am excited! I love the Coen brothers and the previews look good!

In other news, have I mentioned how we live mere blocks away from Barack Obama? We found his exact address recently and walked over to have a look. His block is blocked off with concrete barricades, and it looks like you have to pass a checkpoint to get through. There are Chicago Police all over the place, although we did not spy any obvious secret service people. Also interestingly, R and I stood right on the sidewalk in front of Obama's house a month earlier, and had no idea he lived there. All the security did not go up until he was the official nominee.

I also walk by Obama's barber to get to the public library. It is pretty cool being neighbors with a presidential candidate. It also encapsulates the contradictions of our neighborhood. We have a prestigious university, Obama's $1.6 million house, Farrakhan's very fancy house, other super fancy houses, and also are not far from some of the worst neighborhoods in Chicago. So if you hear people complaining about Obama being out of touch with regular people, I don't see how he can be and live here and go to the barbershop he goes to, unless none of the rest of us here are "regular people". Unlike many other people with big houses, his is not in a rich-people only compound, walled off from everyone else around.

6 comments:

Corbett said...

Laurie, while strolling by the Obama household have you by any chance seen anyone standing outside serving sweet red libations out of a giant punch bowl called "Hope"?

Erin said...

If you see a secret service person, do they just become a service person because they're no longer a secret?

Albatross said...

That is pretty cool. But also means there is a Pizza Capri near you as well
....mmmm......pizza....

Laurie K said...

Is Pizza Capri good? There is one near by, but we haven't tried it yet.

Erin -- I think I have figured out some of the secret service people, there by demoting them to merely service people. :)

girl_in_greenwood said...

Whoa, I was already going to vote for him, but now I like him even better because he's your neighbor.

Albatross said...

Pizza Capri is not nearly as good as Pequod's Pizza (which is in Lincoln Park) but it is darn tasty!!