My New Writing Space

I tend to get more writing and work done when I'm out of my apartment - no surprise, there - so I'm all for looking for new places that are comfortable, inviting, and conducive to getting stuff done. My local Panera sometimes does the trick, but with classes back in session at the downtown Northwestern, it can get a bit crowded on the weekends. So, last weekend, Tyler and I tried working at the Fox & Obel Cafe - not the section right next to where you order food (because that's always just way too crowded and loud), but in the atrium that is tucked off to the side of the store.

We've studied at Fobel - our abbreviation for the sometimes-expensive but always worth it grocery store and cafe - three times, including twice this weekend, to do work. I suppose the down-side and up-side of this is that we have gotten lunch each time we've studied there, and that can get pretty pricey even though it's always delicious.

Both Tyler and I wholeheartedly agree - studying and writing here in the atrium rocks. Even if there are a bunch of people eating and talking, the high timbered ceilings keep in pretty quiet. While the inside is nice in and of itself, with a small kitchen at the far end for the occasional cooking classes, it's the view outside that makes this spot pretty awesome.

The trees along a slip off the river still twinkle with white Christmas lights. Today, the water in the slip was frozen over for the most part - a large glacier of white. Near the slip's walls the ice had melted, and a large sord of mallard ducks slid into the water as if the ice is a slip 'n slide. On the other side of the water, a bunch of kids built snowmen, even as the snow kept falling. Yeah, I can definitely spend some time here writing - but maybe I should get coffee instead of a full lunch the next time I'm here.