twelve hours in Chicago (not kidding!)

This past weekend, my sister and one of our best friends drove to Chicago for our annual Christmas tradition. We arrived around noon, left around midnight, and were absolutely as exhausted as you’d guess.

We actually almost cancelled this trip because of our work schedules, but my friend called and said, “Evan, I think we should go. We need to protect our traditions.”

That sentiment really resonated with me because we all have things in our lives that are worth protecting and sometimes it just takes a little nudge to remember it. So here’s to “protecting traditions” and fighting to make life a bit more memorable.

As for recommendations: vanilla spice lattes at Heritage, gnocchi and risotto at Quartino, and hot-dogs-with-everything at Portillo’s. I adore Chicago. I could live there someday…