Take a Walk with Big Tex, Part 1

Many people have asked me to address the neighborhood in which I live. They would be interested in hearing stories about the general area and would love to "see" where I live. Well, you asked for it, so here you go. Welcome to A Walk with Big Tex Part 1. Essentially this post and the next few will be an interactive journey where you join Big Tex on an exploration of the surrounding area. This will be a long and ardous journey, and it is warm outside, so perhaps you might be interested in a drink? Why dont you sit down in my chair while I get something from the fridge for you.






There we go thats a little better right? Well now while you sip your beverage and lean back in my chair, I will give you a little background on the general area. Chicago is loacated primarily on Lake Michigan. There is a 15 mile walking trail from the North part of the Lake Shore to the Southern part of the Lake shore. I live in an area that is a few miles North of Downtown. It is this general area that I will concentrate on for the next few posts. Ah, good you seem to have finished your drink. Lets go!

















Now that we have walked outside of the building you will notice this narrow street. In fact the reason it is narrow is becuase it is actually a one way street. As you can see by the way the cars are parked ( and the van as well), the cars travel towards us rather than away. As we travel down this street you might notice that some of the cars have parking tickets on them. This is becuase this particular street has not parking meters or any other deterent that stops a person from parking. Thus people tend to leave their cars here for weeks at a time without moving them. In fact if you look just to the right of the van, you might see a yellow ticket. As we come to the stop light, lets take a look at the highway in front of us. This is the LSD(Lake Shore Drive) and it will be neccesary for us to cross it in order to reach our destination.





In order to get across the highway we will utilize a small tunnel that will allow us to traverse the highway underground. There are many such tunnels in this part of Chicago. They are convienent, safe, and a fun way to go from one side of the street to the other. As we walk through the tunnel you might hear tires behind you. This is becuase there are many bike riders who will be riding along LSD, and this in one of the ways they can get to their bike paths. As we wlak to the other side of the tunnel we will come to a small park. This small park has many children playing on swings while their parents enjoy the outdoors. If you look to your left you can see a couple of people grilling while others are trying to hide their beer from the Chicago police. In fact, if you look up, you will get your first sight of Lake Michigan.




And here it is. This is Belmont Harbor, one of four major harbors along the Chicago side of Lake Michigan. This harbor tends to be a mix of larger and smaller boats. There is one harbor north and two others south of Downtown. Since this harbor is close to downtown, it can be pretty busy. Pictured here is of course Big Tex's boat. I will not reveal the name of my vessel now, but I will a little bit later on. As we lean on the guard rail and look out on the lake we can appreciate the small breeze which is hitting us. It is a bit of a warm day, so every little buit of breeze is helpful. Interestingly enough, you came to visit on a great day, because today is the day of the military air show. Did you see the F-14's that just flew by? Damn. Look up periodically and you will see it. Anyway, lets head down LSD and see what else is out there.