Booktube! Kari here. Alexis and I are SO EXCITED to be able to hang with you in-person finally. For a year now, we’ve chatted each week about books and drama, joined every Thursday by all of you supportive, beautiful people. It’s like we were all pen pals for 12 months, communicating only through the pages of literature. Today, though, you’re coming to Chicago. What’s more – we’re giving you a private tour of our city, the greatest place in the world. So, put on your mask and come to my house.
Welcome, play cuz! Kindly remove your shoes.
It’s my off day. Both Alexis and I have jobs, and with the podcast and other important commitments and priorities, it can feel like we never have a moment just to relax. That’s what makes today so special. Not only do we have a day off, but it’s beautiful outside, and we’re doing brunch for the first time this year. Woo woo!
First, we’ll grab Alexis and head over to Beatnick on the River. Named after bohemian artists and philosophers, Beatnik is the perfect setting for us to catch up on plush couches set on stacked rugs under ornate lanterns. It’s vaguely ethnic, as is the trend, Moroccan-ish (sitcom coming soon to ABC). The cuisine is global, emphasizing the transcontinental area of the broader Middle East. Think of dishes like the Shakshuka we’re ordering today, rooted in both Africa and Israel. Of course, brunch without booze is just breakfast. So, let’s get something with tequila. Moments like this, Chicago feels almost like an island. No? Well, listen, we can’t travel these days, so who in the world remembers what it feels like to be on an island anymore.
One more drink, and we’re ready to head to the Riverwalk. The Chicago Riverwalk is where people go to get away from their co-workers during lunch. But since everyone’s WFH, it’s more a park without grass. While we dig into Alexis’ business (who’s been sending her red roses all the time?), we can watch the newly unemployed float by on “paddle pubs”. “Paddle pubs” are like “pedal pubs,” those multi-rider bikes with bars in the middle, but on water. Did you see the guy with the red hat fall overboard? It was funny.
Moving on, let’s head to Wrigley Square. Surrounded by trees, just off Michigan Avenue, but before Jay Pritzker Pavilion, it’s a semi-isolated grassy escape. Especially these days, with fewer folks filling office buildings nearby. Oh, now you want to know all about MY business? Well, ask anything. I’m an open book. An open book too boring to read.
Finishing the afternoon at Block 37, the world’s last indoor mall, we’re planning to spend all of the money we’ve been saving by not traveling in 2020 on mugs that look to be made by our baby cousins. Classy.
Finally, we meet a cute alien in the street (random, but this is Chicago), and he agrees to drive us back to my house for games and fun. Alexis won’t be joining us, unfortunately. All of this outside air has made her exhausted.
Anyhoo! This has been the BEST DAY EVER! Let’s do it again next Thursday, shall we?!
- Your Friend, Kari ❤️