Full of Pride

This past weekend was Pride Chicago 2017. This was the first local Pride parade I’ve experienced despite wanting to attend for many years beforehand. It was one of the most fun events I’ve ever experienced. The floats were amazing, everyone was colorful and happy, and I felt surrounded by some of the nicest people in Chicago.

Even Big Boo was there!

I went with some of my friends and their awesome friends. I made new friends this weekend and felt welcome by everyone. Love this celebration and I look forward to attending more pride parades in the future.

Love wins. Love conquers all.

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Community = love

I’ve been in Oak Park for just about 3 months now and I can’t even begin to describe how much I love it here. I came for the church that I fell in love with (Free Church) and I’ve discovered so much more in Oak Park inside and outside of church. The community in Oak Park is amazing and has made me feel like I’m exactly where I belong.

There are many fun and free events in and around Oak Park. Every Thursday is Thursday Night Out where families go to listen to music and enjoy local food and drink. They close down about two blocks of Marion street and set up tables and chairs. It runs from 5pm to 9pm every Thursday night and has caused me to start taking rest days on Thursdays (but wait, no gainz!).

 

Also, about once a month, there’s a movie in the park. This past week was Star Wars: Rogue One which I went and saw a portion of with my friend Nathen Mixon. That was an enjoyable evening at Scoville Park. 🙂

In addition to these staples, there are also many other summer festivals happening over the next few months in Oak Park. So far, I have yet to be disappointed in anything happening in my town. Some notable upcoming events are listed below:

July 9 Church party in the Park (Free Church) (Lindbergh Park: link coming soon)

July 20 Field of Dreams movie in the park

August 19 Microbrew review

There are also free concerts. Looks like I have a busy summer ahead of me. I’m blossoming in Oak Park. What types of events does your town offer? Have you been to Oak Park and any of these awesome community events before?

Vegan Fest

I experienced my very first Vegan Fest yesterday in Chicago and had lots of fun. While I’m not an official vegan, I spent about two years being a vegan about 5 years ago. And while I eat certain types of meat, I generally try to avoid dairy and red meat for the most part. But when I was invited to the 2nd Annual Vegan Fest a few weeks ago, it was a no-brainer to go!

The fest officially started at 11am, but we didn’t arrive until around 1pm. It was a beautiful, sunny Chicago day and the fest was very crowded. There were quite a few food vendors, but long lines everywhere. Among the longest wait was Doomie’s, a place known for their Vegan “Big Mac.” Determined to get one of these epic burgers, I waited in line for well over an hour, and ordered two single burgers since they ran out of doubles.

I set out with a goal and triumphed. I even got to share some of this food with my good friend Paschen. She won even more, she got several bites without the hassle of waiting forever for them. And yes, they were amazing.  Worth the wait? Maybe not, it was really hot out there! And to be honest, while I enjoyed my time at the Vegan Fest, I likely wouldn’t go back just because of those lines. There was a line to get a drink ticket then another line to get a drink, like water. And it was too hot to wait for water.  It’d be nice if they figured out a better system, especially since they were charging $20 to enter the thing.

Overall, I had fun, ate vegan big mac, and saw a bunch of vegans being vegan. Do you like vegan food? What’s your favorite food? What’s your favorite summer festival?