Take back the city for yourself tonight...And I'll take back the city for me.

There's something about cities that makes me want to fall in love.

Travelling alone on the train tonight, I switched my iPod to Genius, which is my new favorite thing upon upgrading to a 15gb iPod Nano (it's purple). As the train whizzed past different apartment buildings and offices, my iPod played lovey dovey songs...and instead of switching the songs, I listened...and I listened good.

There's something about cities that makes me feel older than I am - more experienced, if you will, in everything that has to do with living. What is silly is that I am merely a 22-year-old girl, so completely naive and sheltered. Growing up in small-town Ohio, I always dreamt of one day living in a great apartment that had a view of some fabulous city. I used to pretend that outside my bedroom window in my parents' house was a beautiful, tree-lined street in New York City. Now, instead of pretending that I have always been resident of the city, I envision myself working, living and enjoying life in the city. Alongside this vision is a guy - a wonderful, career-driven, sports-fanatic, successful guy. And we're craaaazy about one another and the fact that we both prefer Bud Light drafts rather than in a bottle. We both love the same teams and discuss when it will be financially feasible to get season passes to all of our favorites. I want to fall in love and I want this guy to fall in love with me. I want him to be crazy about me. And I want to hold hands walking down that same tree-lined street that I envisioned when I was 10.

There's something about growing up that makes me want to be in a city. I want to be swallowed whole in the life - the thrill, the excitement, the culture - of a city. I want the love, the glory and the pride that comes with finding yourself, and someone else, in a city.

The Meat and Potatoes does Chicago

There's something about traveling and touring alone that makes me feel like a local everywhere that I go. I can remember even feeling like that in Dublin, Ireland - a place where I'd never be able to convince a local that I was from there. I felt that way in London and I ALWAYS feel like a local in New York. Maybe it comes from my fabulous sense of direction and my stubbornness toward asking for directions. Or perhaps it just comes from my undoubted love of exploration.

I am currently blogging from my $50 Holiday Inn hotel room in Elk Ridge, IL - just 7 miles away from Chicago's O'Hare airport. Before today at 11:15am CST, I had never actually been outside of the O'Hare airport in Chicago. But today, I checked another city off of my "to-do" list.

I am in town, interviewing for a position with the US PIRG, just for the night. I will return home tomorrow to spend the weekend with family in from New York.

Here are my tweets for the day, so that you know what I've been up to today:

Peace out, downtown Chicago. See ya tomorrow! Back to the Holidae Innnnnnn.about 1 hour ago from TwitterBerry

Yep. They're playing That's Amore in the restaurant!about 3 hours ago from TwitterBerry

Getting ready to feast on Pizano's world famous deep dish pizza! They are the inventors of deep dish! Mmmmmmmm.about 3 hours ago from TwitterBerry

To the top of the John Hancock observatory in the fastest elevator in N. America! 20 mph!about 4 hours ago from TwitterBerry

To the top of the John Hancock observatory in the fastest elevator in N. America!about 4 hours ago from TwitterBerry

Finallly made it to Michigan Ave! Awesommmme.about 6 hours ago from TwitterBerry

103rd observatory is closed. Only going up 99 stories today.about 6 hours ago from TwitterBerry

Found the Sears Tower. Okay good.about 7 hours ago from TwitterBerry

Whoops just jaywalked.about 7 hours ago from TwitterBerry

Don't really know where I am or where I'm going but I'm just enjoying life.about 7 hours ago from TwitterBerry

On the shuttle back to the airport to catch the "L" into the city. First stop, Michigan Ave! Thinking of taking the water taxi.about 8 hours ago from TwitterBerry

First beer of the trip at the hotel restaurant. And a delightful shuttle trip back has made chicago great already! To the city after lunch!about 9 hours ago from TwitterBerry

Just made it to my hotel and got checked in. Not bad for $50.about 9 hours ago from TwitterBerry

@gmac852 HI MOM! Look here! Keep track of my trip on Twitter!about 10 hours ago from TwitterBerry

Go figure I was 5 minutes late to this hours shuttle. Been waiting for the next one for a half hour. Good thing I have nothing to do.about 10 hours ago from TwitterBerry

@smalltwndreamer thanks Kater. PS I must mention that I hate Bluetooth and hands free cell phone devices. The guy sitting next to me sucks.about 10 hours ago from mobile web

Now to find the shuttle to my hotel. Hmmmmm.about 11 hours ago from TwitterBerry

Just landed at O'Hare. I did not like that bumpy descent over Lake Michigan though.about 11 hours ago from TwitterBerry

Sitting in the Columbus airport awaiting my flight to Chicago! @kelseymb Thanks for the luck!about 13 hours ago from TwitterBerry


So there you have it - my day in a twitter-nutshell (is it bad that I'm starting to become obsessed with my TwitterBerry?).