What to do on a free Saturday in Chicago? Makes me tired just thinking about it

It’s hard to imagine, really, considering my crazy schedule these days, but the very thought of it — a free Saturday to spend in our fair city — sends the mind wandering, almost lifts the spirits (and drops the blood pressure).

One of these weekends, I will have it, and it will be glorious, not to mention hopefully above 30 degrees.

How would you spend a Saturday in Chicago completely free of obligations? I posed that question to two of my writers, Jeremy and Crissa, and they tackled the subject in their own unique ways on pages 12 and 13. We also asked readers the same question in the Chicago Speaks department, back on page 18. Several different answers from them, as expected, and most of them, like me, had a Saturday in summer in mind. As expected.

To each his own, as the saying goes. If you’re as busy as I am and would love nothing more than to downshift your life to relax a bit more and scratch off the many things on your proverbial to-do list of laid-back Chicago activities, this question can be fun. One that, the longer you ponder, makes you ache for 16 hours of nothing to do and spurs you on to actually make it a reality, not just part of a dream sequence.

Probably my best weekend of last year, and possibly several years, came in July and involved a Jimmy Buffett concert at Alpine Valley in Wisconsin with 20 friends and my dad, boating on Lake Geneva, a night Cubs game at Wrigley and the Taste of Lincoln street festival with Hairbangers Ball. Yes, I’m a fan, and yes, it was all in one weekend.

After partaking in such a whirlwind of activity, Kurt, my roommate from college, who was born and raised in Fort Lauderdale, had this to say: “Will you invite me up here again in January to remind me why I don’t live here.”

It was indeed an epic weekend, but for this purpose, in this issue of The Real Chicago, it’s all about a Saturday. One Saturday, free of obligations. No bills to sort through, no groceries to buy, no work project to mess with, no oil change to get. Nothing. Just you and a Saturday in Chicago to do with it what you wish.

This idea is something so rare, so precious for a lot of us, that it requires some thought, maybe even a little meditation, or preparation, so as not to waste such an opportunity.

Well, if I could have it, my day, like that of a lot of folks, would involve sleeping in. No alarms, no cell phones, just good ol’ American shuteye to the point where you feel truly refreshed (remember that feeling?). I’m not talking about wasting half the day, just enough solid snooze time and drool on the pillow to feel better than you do most mornings.

Then, since I’m not a coffee drinker (for shame, I know), I’d head off to Jamba Juice and one of my favorite breakfast joints. Einstein’s and the Chicago Bagel Authority on Armitage make a solid breakfast sandwich, but I’d probably head to Wishbone on Lincoln to get some crab cakes, eggs and home fries. And then I’d read a few magazines, perhaps a newspaper or two, outside, watching the world go by.

As Jeremy and others mentioned in Chicago Speaks, a trip to Wrigley would make for an excellent excursion with friends when the weather turns more accommodating, stopping to have a brat and a few beers at Bernie’s or Murphy’s beforehand. And if I didn’t have tickets, I’d do what I did when I first moved to the city more than eight years ago. Wait for the game to start, then offer ticket brokers a five spot to snag a seat. They’re always left with a handful at gametime and make a living out of gouging the customer, so why not share the love?

A casual bike ride down the lake shore would be sweet as well, with perhaps a stop to throw the football around, play a little volleyball or watch the monkeys fling unspeakable things at each other at Lincoln Park Zoo.

If the weather isn’t as pleasant as I’d like it to be, a long-overdue trip to one of our many museums could be in order. There’s nothing wrong with opening the mind a little on a day off. But I’d leave the field trip alone. It’d probably be considered creepy, at this age, if you try to hold hands with the kids like Ferris Bueller did.

A beer garden, with the sun fading through the trees, would be huge after all that learning (and stuff). There are few things more satisfying than a cold beer, outside with your friends, during the late afternoon with no real plans for the rest of the day.

In the summer, a cookout with a collection of lawn chairs around the grill at someone’s house might be in line if the weather is agreeable. If not, taking my time over a nice meal somewhere like Rose Angelis or Wildfire would be grand. A chance to catch up with people you don’t see as much of anymore, but still value more than ever.

After that, who cares? That’s already a full day and then some. Maybe it would be on to Guthrie’s for a few pints and a mean game of Scrabble or Trivial Pursuit. Or it could involve settling into that lawn chair and that conversation with the old friend, to the point we’re making fun of each other about something from years ago and wondering why we don’t get together more often.

See what a free Saturday can do? Just the thought of it can send the mind wandering and lift the spirits. I’ve got to find one now. Find it, and don’t let it go. Jamba Juice here I come.

Trent Modglin
Publisher
The Real Chicago
Trent@TheRealChicago.org

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