I have two former improv students who are in an improv group called Informal – the improv group of Moody Bible Institute in Chicago. I made it to two shows last year, and I wanted to try to see them again this year, so Mer and I headed out to Chicago last Thursday to see their first show of the season. But that was not until Saturday. Mer and I took Friday off from CVCA so we could spend time with Shannon and Jolene. The Thursday drive was uneventful, except I was able to tune in the Bills-Browns NFL game in on the car radio for about thirty minutes of the trip, right around South Bend. We got to Shannon’s place around 10:00 Chicago time. Jolene was already in bed since she had to work, but we stayed up to watch the last ten minutes of the game with Shannon. Sadly, the Bills lost in a close game.

Friday morning, Shannon and I went running in a nearby park while Jolene got ready for work and Mer slept in a bit. The park is very nice – the loop in it is one mile around, so Shannon and I ran there and then ran four laps before walking home to cool down, having done four and a half miles.

Jo had left for work by the time we got back, and Mer was awake. We all got ready in a leisurely  fashion, and then struck out on the two-mile walk to Anne Sather’s restaurant in Andersonville. Anne Sather’s is a favorite breakfast place for me and Mer – they have the best cinnamon rolls I have ever had, and you get two just as a side. Yum. We ate well, and then walked back, taking the opportunity to walk through some very pretty parks on the way home, although I started to feel ill from my breakfast – I’m guessing it was the rather greasy egg-and-ham burrito I had.

Shannon and I took a nap while Mer graded. We then all walked over to the El to take the train downtown to go to Magnolia – a cake shop in the Loop. Shannon swore they had the best chocolate cake on the planet, and he was pretty much right. We all got a slice of cake, and Shannon even remembered to get Jo a piece. Since we were downtown and it was after 4:00, we walked over to the building where Jo works so we could all go home together. She was pleased to see us (and the cake).

After supper (Thai take-out for everyone but me, who got pizza), we geared up to go see a play. Shannon said he had looked up the location, and Google insisted it was less than two miles away, so we should walk. Fair enough. We set off at a brisk clip, and got there a bit winded an hour later. Two miles, my eye – it was over three. We made it in time for the play, though, so that was good. The play was a small production called Set Up. It was a modern look at a blind date between two 40-ish-year-olds, who both had relationship issues from the past. Add in an over-involved waiter, a well-intentioned girl friend, and a pushy brother, and the play was funny for much of the time. It had thoughtful moments, and while certainly an exaggeration, there was much to relate to, even for someone like me who never really dated (just Meredith). It was not a heavy-hitting play, but was fun and had enough to think about not to be total fluff. It was well done.

We hoofed it back to the apartment, tired but happy. Shannon has a watch that keeps track of his steps, and it put him somewhere around 38,000 steps, which put us roughly in the region of twenty miles walked and run during the day. Not quite a marathon, but enough for us to feel pretty beat.