RIDIN' THE STORM OUT
Getting to a Teaching Gig During a Blizzard


The long walk to the El was against the ridiculously strong wind coming off Lake Michigan.






I figured it was better to take the El than to die on the way to class.




Many people were on the El. Many of them admired the ancient ski goggles I was wearing.




Somehow I got to the club 45 minutes early, and spent the time talking to the boss and catching up on e-mail. There were four students for class (astangis love bad weather). One of them told me how to access the CTA's new Train Tracker. So on the way home, I timed it so that I left the club three minutes before the El was scheduled to arrive. Despite the wind and snow drifts I made it in time; the train appeared 20 seconds after I walked onto the platform.


This time, the train was nearly empty. This time, many of the people on it were drunk. Yet they still admired the goggles. "That's smart!"







The long walk home was not as fun, what with the 60mph wind and large drifts that activated an old running injury. I trudged past the Sivananda Vedanta Center - which was open. Further up, there was a whole block without power on Clark Street - which was like a ghost town except for McDonald's - which was also open.





The wind at the intersections was so strong it nearly blew me over. It was eerily quiet during the whole walk - except for that wind (the thunder-snowstorms hadn't started yet) and the sirens. After a few blocks I was the only person on the streets. Good thing, since I looked pretty scary!