Halloween Party

Anyone who knows me well knows that I love having parties, especially for Halloween. This year I was excited to break in our new condo with a full spread of Halloween decorations, candy, and treats. My friends from work, Jenna and Sarah, came as Ann and Leslie from the T.V. show Parks and Recreation, whose characters at one time dressed up as Rosie the Riveter and Gabby Douglas. I was Paul Bunyan and John was a scary teddy bear. Neighbors Deon and Paul joined us later, as well as my good friend Anna, who came in from New York. We had lots of champagne, cake, and good conversation. I love this time of year, especially since it's nice to spend time getting to know new and old friends.

Uniqlo Train Takeover

Uniqlo is a Japanese clothing store that is a relatively new clothing option to the American market. I've been getting clothes from Uniqlo for several years when I was living in New York and now I am thrilled to have a location open in Chicago this past October. Uniqlo is known for offering everyday casual pieces of clothing that are affordable and well-made. They offer lots of basic styles for casual wardrobes with lots of colors and patterns. 

To celebrate the store opening, the second largest location in the US, the store offered several promotional CTA 'train takeovers' inside the Loop downtown. For free admission, people could schedule a half hour time slot to get promotional goodies and treats to celebrate the store opening. I was lucky to go with my colleague Caroline and we snagged ourselves some sushi candy, saw professional covert dancers break into dance with a live DJ, and we were able to literally bounce around the Loop for a very fun experience. 

Since the opening of the store I've been several times to pick up some jeans, a sweater, and check out the great view from their third floor Starbucks. Uniqlo is a great addition to Chicago and I'm very happy it came to town.