From up high

(Part 2 of Sunday activity from 2 weeks ago)

Another pretty cool thing that has developed since making the journey to the Temple each month (see previous blog entry) is the newly found opportunity to actually see bits of Chicago again. As mentioned earlier, the missus and I have not exactly been huge fans of the densely populated metropolis. When we were a bit younger (okay, maybe MORE than a bit...), we would take many a weekend journey out that way to pick up a live concert or comedy show. And there was actually a time when MY own band played out in that general direction. We didn't think much about how irritating the drive was back then. Either the traffic has worsened considerably over the last 20 years or we've just become less tolerant. Or both. I vote for "both."

But since we're now out that way a bit more, we've used the journey as a means of showing Su a little more of what we typically don't see here in the suburbs. Two months ago, it meant a trip to Navy Pier and the Children's Museum. She really loved that one. A couple of weeks ago, it meant:

The Sears Tower

With the exception of about 5-1/2 years, my entire lifetime has been spent 20-40 miles outside of Chicago. And not once in all of that time had I ever ventured into the Tower. And it's been there for quite a while now. But now we're feeling the desire to show these wonderful iconic locations to Su -- and, in the process, also experiencing some of this for the first time. Good fun.

Su was simply amazed. For some reason, she had associated the words "tall building" with much lesser structures like the historic courthouse building in Geneva. Nobody would confuse this building with being tall. As you can see, we didn't get out much in recent years. But this city full of skyscrapers was just so exciting for her. And I have to admit that we enjoyed it a little bit, too. Not the driving. Not the parking. But the view.

So in we went. After paying an almost criminal amount of money to take the tour, we boarded the elevator and found ourselves at the top of the 110-floor building in seemingly no time at all. Not at all what I expected. Remember the elevator scene in the Blues Brothers movie? The agonizingly slow elevator ride accompanied by "Girl from Ipanema" muzak? Sort of what I was expecting. I'm not sure we were on this thing for more than a minute. Just remarkable.

Of course, what was even more remarkable was the view. Su ran from window to window, all the while declaring her disbelief at how far she could see and just how far up we really were. And this was on an overcast day. I imagine that a clear day would just be breathtaking.

Anyway, enough about that. Most of you reading have probably already been up in the tower -- perhaps even more than once. So consider us just a little late for the party. The building was completed in 1973. I just wanted to give it about 35 years for the crowds to die down a bit...