Walk It Like I Stalk It
My Experience began on September 23rd at 3:30 pm after I had Just finished my photography class at the Lincoln Park campus, I was very thirsty, so I went to grab a drink at the local 7 Eleven on Fullerton Avenue, and I saw an interesting looking man checking out with a pack of cigarettes and a lighter in-front of me. He was an older aged man, and he had a tie-dye Grateful Dead shirt, dark green shorts, and a leopard skin hat to top it off; his outfit was so weird yet cool at the same time. I remembered that I could either follow someone or do a guided walk and for this week’s assignment and I decided on that moment that I would follow this man because I felt like he would the perfect person to follow.
The man finished checking out and I was next, I tried to check out as fast as I could so I would not lose him. I saw him take a right and I checked out as fast as I could and ran out of the store, luckily, I could see the man’s brightly colored tie dye shirt from a block away and started following him making sure to keep a good distance. I could feel the cold breeze hitting my face since it was particularly windy on that day, so I put my hoodie on to have a comfortable walk. The man took a right onto a residential street, the trees covered me from the wind, and it felt good to have a break from that breeze that was bothering me all day, it somehow felt warmer, and I was hoping that he would keep walking through the residential area. Unfortunately, the man took a right onto Wrightwood Ave and the breeze came back to haunt me.
I followed the man for a couple of blocks until I saw him go into this very cool looking Mexican restaurant across the street. It was named Broken English Taco Pub and it had this brightly colored teal outside with brightly colored text and the word ‘Tacos’ written with different color and font letters, I know part of the assignment was to not follow the person inside, but I was so tempted to go and try out those tacos. I did not go inside but now I must give that restaurant a try on a different day.
It had only been 30 minutes since I started following this man and I knew that I had to finish this assignment that day since I had to go home the next day and I would not be able complete this assignment. I was kind of anxious to find a new person to follow since it would get dark soon and I don’t want to follow someone in the dark, so I start walking back on N Lincoln Avenue hoping to find someone interesting to follow. I see a man in a business casual suit with a laptop bag and a backpack, this man looks important so I decide to follow him next since I could not find anyone else to follow.
This man was in a rush since he was speed walking full speed towards N Ashland Avenue, this is a very busy street, and I can feel the cars passing along me full speed with their breeze moving my hair. I can also hear honks from cars trying to take a right turn on a red light while someone is taking their sweet time turning, it was truly a hectic sight to witness the rush hour traffic rolling through the streets with each car going to a different destination was something interesting to think about that got me lost in my own mind while I followed the man. we crossed a major bridge above the North branch of the Chicago River, and it was something spectacular to see, I could see a large chunk of the skyline with the river as the foreground, I was excited to take pictures of such a nice view.
I followed the man for a couple more blocks until he went onto a Metra platform at Clybourn and boarded a train headed for the suburbs, He was a man commuting back home after a day of hard work at lincoln park. The station was very small and consisted of 1 stretch of concrete with 2 train lanes going in and out of the city with freight trains passing along at times. My Objective had been complete and I walked back to my dorm to finish my homwowork.
In “Paris, or Botanzing the Asphalt,” Rebecca Solnit quotes Walter Benjamin who writes, “But to lose oneself in a city — as one loses oneself in a forest — that calls for a quite a different schooling” (p. 255). What is the meaning of “losing oneself in the city?” Have you ever lost yourself in this sense? If so, describe your experience. What do you remember?-
I have lost myself in this sense before, sometimes when I walk, I focus on the environment so much that I lose myself in my thoughts and continue to walk thinking about the present and only the present. To be lost is to be in the present and focused on 1 thing at a time. when I lose myself in the city, I tend to look at the architecture and the people that walk in that area and I focus on the small details that make Chicago unique such as smells or sounds that are exclusive to the city. Chicago is full of life and there is always something to get lost in whether it’s a strange occurrence or a homeless man asking for money it is very hard to be bored here. When I lose myself, I enjoy it, I’m not worrying about upcoming tests or homework that’s due, and I’m focused on enjoying the city and taking everything in. Living and walking in the city is such a great and unique experience and I wouldn’t trade it for anything. (181 Words)
