Boystown Bánh mì Excursion
1:23 I left my dorm and began my walk towards Bánh Mì BáGet on North Broadway. It is cool outside but not quite cold, it feels like Colorado. The weather is in the low 60’s and cloudy. After walking east past the train, there are drill and spray construction noises.
1:27 I look in the window of Chicago’s Dog House and see a small rubber decorative crocodile with a hotdog in its mouth. I run warm, and it is not cold enough; I regret my sweater.
1:31 There is a short white post next to a fence to my right. It has many different stickers on it, I don’t know why it’s there, but I liked seeing it.
1:32 There is a car with its trunk open, no one is there. The interior is black, and there’s some pink object inside. A guy walked out of City Dental, and I wondered if it was his car, but he walked past me on the phone.
1:33 I see small glossy white owl planters that remind me of my mom.
1:34 There’s a parking lot that smells like the Asian market, but it’s at the back of a hardware store. Kingston Mines is across the street; I want to go there sometime.
1:35 There’s a parking lot with a mural that has bears on it across the street.
1:36 More construction on the side of the road. Not loud like the last site. A machine digs up the street.
I’m thinking about weather, very grey skies. A guy speeds down the street on a scooter. As I pass by Home Depot employees are moving crate onto a car with lift. I felt like I was in their way. One of the employees said hi to me; she seemed nice.
1:40 I look at the dirty windows of the Hidden Shamrock (pub) there are messages written in dust that say: ‘buy me,’ ‘waz good,’ ‘…so was reo,’ and others I couldn’t make out.
1:40 I look in the window of Halsted Flowers. It is charming. I stopped inside, air plants in the glass planters cost $12–15. I will be buying an air plant soon; I first need to get a water sprayer. I notice the flower petals on the ground when I leave the flower shop; they look like they are there on purpose.
1:44 There’s a lush garden outside a little house. The red and pink hibiscuses stuck out the most to me. I see Nando’s across the street.
1:46 I need to go back to Trader Joe’s soon. There are little gourds, pumpkins, and fall colored mums outside. The keys of a guy with a hat and flannel jangle as he walks past me.
1:47 There is a Stan’s Donuts I got a pistachio donut there one time it was very good. I pass Walgreens, and there is a sound of luggage dragging. A guy and girl walking with only one suitcase, he is pulling it, it is black.
1:48 Across the street Renaldis’ plays Have You Ever Seen the Rain by Creedence Clearwater Revival. The hotel where my parents stayed last time is down the street. The Broadway Public parking beeps. A woman’s black glossy heels click against the concrete.
1:50 A woman on the phone says, “Vicky knows my name.” She has her hair up, wears glasses, and a purple shirt. While crossing the street, I smell sweet bread. An old man in a yellow windbreaker is eating an apple while getting his bike.
1:52 I pass a The Crepe Shop, I had a matcha crepe there once, it was excellent.
1:53 I notice that a place called Friar Tuck is designed to look like a beer barrel. A sign outside says ‘karaoke tonight.’
1:54 There is a spider web under a sign, it was very nicely weaved. I crossed the street at the same time as another person.
1:55 I stopped a Bánh mì and lychee lemonade it was amazing. After I ate, I decided the goal of my walk was to go to the north point of Boystown.
2:24 I passed a couple with Pomerania. The dog was white with brown spots and was very fluffy and small. I don’t know the point of its existence. A guy with bright orange socks crosses the street. The socks have a little pattern, but I wasn’t close enough to tell what it was. It smells like rain and cigarettes outside Walgreens.
2:26 There’s a fish produce truck. I noticed it was bringing seafood to sushi place which makes sense. I realized I’ve been to that sushi place and it has cars that bring out your food.
2:28 I cross the street because the Nettelhorst School is colorful. No one on the playground, a woman sits outside talking on the phone. I feel raindrops; it is misting, so I put on my jacket.
2:29 A red fire escape ladder across the street has a star and says something; I can’t tell what it says, maybe: “Ranke iron.. works Chicago ILL”. I look at the horse statue outside the school, through the window there are kids wearing crowns. Another Stan’s Donuts is across the street.
2:30 There is construction going on inside a shop, I made eye contact with the two men, one was in a vest. A woman is carrying the inner part of a comforter.
2:31 More street construction. There is a sculpture of an abstract purple flower. It has stopped misting. A construction worker waves a red flag.
2:33 There is a cute building with ivy. There is a little bush light that has googly eyes.
2:36 Purple punch advertised at Lakeview Rewired Cafe, the sign says its made with blueberry iced tea, lavender, and soda. There is a bird feather under the sign. I have walked to a more spread-out area.
2:37 Lots of acorns on the ground.
2:42 It smells like fries.
2:57 I reached the point of Boystown. The Halsted side of point feels more comfortable than the Broadway side because the Broadway side felt more isolated after passing the last block of shops. It smells like detergent and fries.
2:59 I hear sounds of an ATM. It smells like my aunt. There’s an airplane noise.
3:00 There are little buddha sculptures on the corner of the block.
3:01 The Whole Foods across the street is pretty. It smells like a fall candle.
3:02 There is a building side fire hydrant. One part of it is open, I looked, and there is a green hot wheel toy inside.
3:04 I pass a medium/large size dog, white with black dots, it looked like it was kind.
3:05 There is a cute building with green paint on the door and strip of green higher up. It has a little floral mural. There are baskets of pink flowers on the outside, and it has pink awnings.
3:06 A taco and burrito place had a sign that moved and entertained me. It claims to have the best tacos. A car plays rap music loudly.
3:11 I looked in window of Progress Bar; the app Field Trip mentioned there’s a installation called the Cloud Ceiling made from up-cycled iridescent bulbs. It looked cool during the day, but I imaged I would have been in awe from it lit up at night. A water jug truck is being unloaded, and it opens at the side instead of the back. There’s a siren in the background. Another car plays rap.
3:18 A CTA bus stopped in a parking lot, why? No one was on the bus. Another siren.
3:19 I hear long car beeps. A girl crosses the street with a pink bag and pizza box.
3:20 I saw a Hollywood Mirror store, I want to shop there. I realized that was the one I’ve been to before, which made me recognize my location. A guy says to his friend “Yo what should we get to eat.” I passed more resale places.
3:23 It starts misting again right as I get to the train.
