Don't Let Me Be Lonely

I thought parts of this article in the Washington Post today was interesting. Certainly the study is. Here's the hed and then a paragraph that I thought made a salient point.

The question about loneliness is: Why do people do this to themselves? Why do Americans, who reported an average of nearly three close friends in 1985, now report an average of just over two? And why does one in four have nobody with whom to discuss personal issues? This is the age of Oprah and MySpace, of public emoting on television and the Web. Apparently people watch "Friends" but don't actually have many....

...And then there's the subtle effect of the culture. "Family time" is endlessly extolled, and lovers emit poetry and song about every facet of their relationships. But when was the last time a rock singer or a new man waxed lyrical about friendship?

Things Fall Apart

I'm here in D.C. Not as smooth a start as I would have hoped. The morning of my flight from Louisville, my contact lens fell out of my eye and onto Jaber's floor, never to be seen again. Ever since it's been one thing after another, and I've barely had a moment to stop. I did file a story last week, though (I'm writing for the St. Joseph News-Press in Missouri), and we did go to the Eastern Market yesterday, which was really fun. I had a delicious crab cake sandwich, sweet tea, a brownie and plenty of samples of fresh fruits and vegetables at the farmers' booths.

The residents of this fair city are friendly and helpful, which I noticed immediately. The first thing I told my housemates when I walked in the door from the airport is how nice it is to be back in the South, where people offer to help a lone traveler with her unmanageable luggage, where Fed Ex men stop not once, but twice!, to drop off boxes so the recipient doesn't haveto go to the headquarters-or-whatever and somehow get them home herself, where people actually look you in the eye and say hello.

Also, I'm expecting mail this week, so there's that. Something to look forward to.

There's thunder and rain just outside my window. My roommate is out with a friend. Alone with nothing but my thoughts and Graham Greene. I love it. I'm off to read a few before bed.

Goodbye Chi

The title says it all. Sad! I'm out. Moved yesterday. Left my beloved studio on Oakdale in the trustworthy hands of a friend, but still, I'm a sentimental fool and the whole thing makes me sad. I'll miss having the Apple Bite on the corner and the Bobtail icecream shop/soda fountain a block away. I'll miss the rumble of the El and the breeze off the lake and the idea that I'm going to go get samosas at Tahoora on Devon Ave. I never made it to the House of Hookah, land o pillows, argillah and beautiful brown men, but I had the best intentions. I also never made it back to the Angel Food Bakery for Chicago's best hot chocolate. I did go to the Berghoff, though. You thought it closed? So did I. The bar and cafe opened about a month after the restaurant and bar closed. The menu may be a little condensed, but they still offer Weiner Schneitzel, if that tells you anything. Someone said that the "Berghoff is closing" story was the best scam ever. I'm not bitter, though. I was happy to see the sign lit up every day on my way home from the newsroom.

I'm off to D.C. from here. I hope it's as good to me as Chicago has been.