hey, i'm about to graduate college and want move to chicago. problem: i don't know anyone there and i don't have a job set up. advice?

(probably it will be more like 2-4 months, but expecting the worst is best)

i moved to chicago with my girlfriend a year out of college and hated it. neither of us had jobs or friends there (i had a bunch of family, but that's different). coming from LA, the midwestern lifestyle just wasn't what we wanted. it seemed conservative and whitebread. she felt like the only asian person in the whole city. i did make some really good friends, but it wasn't enough to keep me there. we left after a year and a half

My sister lives in Chicago, and she likes it. Go for it.

Is she hot? What's her number?

I like Gainesville. I had a good time there, but then again I only stayed for a night. Bought a shit-ton of vinyl there. Gainesville actually has a couple great record stores! Or used to, this was about 8 years ago I think. Good barbeque too.

rents aren't so bad these days, and apartments are in abundance. if you make a weekend trip up here with a little preparation you'll find a place. so long as it's not december or january--it can be harder to find places in those months.

what sort of work can/do you want to do?

Heh. I'm a Chicago native, but I'll never get the Old Style thing. Worst. Beer. Ever.

(and expect to be even MORE isolated, desperate, poor, and intensely lonely)

blue states 4eva!!

Hm... I can understand how coming from LA might have been a bit of a culture shock. I haven't found "whitebread" to be true at all, though. Chicago is as pleasantly kooky as any city its size (very big, in other words). True, it's still got that blue-collar, rough around the edges jagoff vibe, but that doesn't make it conservative. And the asian thing is confusing. There are LOTS of asians here. Maybe you picked the wrong neighborhood?

Not that I'm trying to convince you of anything, just saying.

http://www.designboom.com/trash/img/40.jpg

yes, we picked the wrong neighborhood. we moved into an apartment my cousin was moving out of in.... WRIGLEYVILLE. yes the neighborhood sucked but we paid 600$ for a gigantic 3bedroom. and we both worked downtown, so all we saw were suits at work and suits dressed down in khakis at home.

but that's not to say that the racial make up of the city wasn't weird to us. there are lots of different races, but they're all split up into different pockets. you have the rusian neighborhood, the black neighborhood, the latino neighborhood, the white neighborhood, etc. i was just used to something different.

adam, you know what whitebread is. just very bland, white american.

obviously there were good things about the city too. i thought it was a great "city". the layout was cool coming from LA. there was a center of town. the public transportation was great. brick everywhere was cool.

and at the time i moved there (99 to 01-ish), the music scene was great. one of the reasons i thought i'd like the city was because the music was so experimental. i was really into experimental and post-rock and jazz at the time, so it was the perfect place to be. and the record stores (reckless & dustygroove) were perfect for me.

i'm just not made for the midwest

Wrigleyville stinks to high heaven. I don't even like to travel through it. I cringe with every hedonistic cry of "WOO!"

Three meals on my block

Density has it's drawbacks, don't get me wrong. There are rats, for one thing. I haven't seen many, but the ones I have seen could kick my cats' asses -- both of them at the same time. They resemble those swamp rats in The Princess Bride. Also, there is garbage, which if I think about it is why there are such godawful huge rats. And there are a million little annoyances that come with being in contact with so many people everytime you leave your door, like crowded, stuffy trains, and the way any minor street repair can make you 10 minutes late to work even if you're on a bicycle. There are also the traditionally perceived drawbacks, like dirt and crime. These are often wrong. No, Chicago is not a pristine meadow, but it's not what I'd call unacceptably dirty. And the crime is... well, Chicago didn't even make it into the top 25. I'd be worse off in Youngstown, OH, which you've never heard of. So there.

But I digress. Density has advantages that far outweigh anything I could list in the con column, and food is one of them. You can eat and eat well all day long without walking more than a block. These are my three favorite meals on Chicago Avenue between Ashland and Noble.

Breakfast: biscuits and gravy at Bialy Cafe, 1421 W. Chicago

It's not even on the menu, but it's kind of a permanent special, posted in the window on a slightly yellowing piece of paper. The biscuits are as fluffy as you need them to be, but that's not really the point. Everyone knows that biscuits and gravy is all about the gravy, and this is some serious gravy. I was surprised by it when I first ordered it. What are these little chunks? Ew! Did they burn it? No, no -- the chunks are bits of delicious pork sausage, floating in cream cravy so thick and rich a spoon would stand up in it. For an extra buck, you can get two fried eggs on top of it all, and let the egg yolk run all into the gravy and all over the biscuits, making it the breakfast equivalent of a decadent, buttery French dessert. It's the perfect way to start a day of overeating, but I've ordered it for dinner, too. And I live above this place, which makes it all too easy. Price: $4.25, or $5.25 with two eggs

Lunch: pork tacos at Taqueria Tecalitlan, 820 N. Ashland

Right at the corner of Ashland and Chicago are some of the finest pork tacos I've ever had. There's not a lot to them, really. Pork, onion, cilantro. Ah, but it's the way that it's only pork, onion, and cilantro. The size of the pork cubes plays a part in texture, as does the size of the onion cubes, and the amount of cilantro has a lot to do with the balance of flavor. They get all of this right. But what they get amazingly right is the amount of orange pork grease. It's a matter of having as much grease as possible without it soaking through your corn tortilla and making a mess, and it's perfect every time. Actually, they slightly overstuff the tacos and wrap them in two tortillas, so it's easier to make two tacos out of them. Two of these double tacos is a meal, three is a big meal. Price: $1.75 per taco

Dinner: Frito pie at Flo, 1434 W. Chicago

Many Chicagoans and ex-Chiocagoans will be surprised that I didn't pick this place, which is right across the street, for breakfast. It's a legendary breakfast place, one of the only places in Chicago to have really great salsa. I bet that's great on eggs. Trouble is, it's so popular at breakfast time that I haven't eaten there. Why would I walk across the street to stand in line? Why not have trancendental biscuits and gravy instead? For a lot cheaper?

Nevermind. For a classy dinner on my block, this is one of the two options, ant the other one was recently featured in Gourmet magazine, offers valet parking, and is always filled with suits and dresses. Maybe later. For now, I'll go to Flo. And I won't have the "classy" food, I'll have the Frito pie.

No, I'm serious. Frito pie. Beans, meat, sauce, and Frito corn chips. No, really. Stop looking at me like that. For one thing, the beans are black, which already makes it miles different than the Frito pie you get at the county fair. And the meat is spiced not for sweetness, but for heat and sharpness, like it would be in a good chili recipe. This is not slop, folks, it's a finely-tuned balance of salty corn, spicy meat, and distinctive beans. It's worth every penny. Price: $9.00

my two favorite cheapy restaurants were Zoom Kitchen & Corner Bakery. god, C.B. had this caramel banana bundt cake that was to die for

OK I love San Francisco. The only western city I've felt at home in, actually. More at home than at home, even. Good move, I say.

their theme song was (sung to la cucaracha)

la pizza loca
la pizza loca
(and then a gruff chanted chorus kinda like lil jon) THE BEST PIZZA IN THE HOOD!

Holy shit god jesus, yes. Imagine being given the job of trying to upsell on a $8 turkey sandwich. Soul crushing, I tell you.

i don't have a job set up

Good luck. I've been looking for a job here for three months and have not found one.

i don't know anyone there

Yeah, me neither.

Do you work close enough to go to OASIS? (21 N Wabash)? It's the only middle eastern restaurant INSIDE a jeweler in all of Chicago!

Where else do you go, Mac Kelly's Greens & Things?

splurrrrrrrrrrrrrrrge.

har.

kenan and nick r my momses.

i need friends.

Yeah, me neither.

What are we, chopped liver?

But I like chopped liver!!!

har.

You drink too much. You and I should form an alliance.

What should I do with MY life ILX?




And no, this isn't some kind of mockery, I'm very serious.

splurrrrrrrrrrrrrrrge.

har.

kenan and nick r my momses.

-- Jeff-PTTL (jef...), November 19th, 2004. (Jeff)
===========================================================================

OH SHIT, HELLO JEALOUS!

She is teh awesomes.
I need her love.

but the question is where?
I'll need a job that can let me afford to pay off student loans while living comfortably enough (1br + high speed internet + metro pass will do fine, and don't forget food!).
I'll want to live in a city somewhere, and definitely where I won't need a car to get around.

But really, past that I have no idea.

AFTER RECEIVING MY DEGREE FROM THIS FABULOUS INSTITUTION OF HIGHER LEARNING, ...

anyway, I decided I'm afraid of the future and will bury my head in the sand until I can face it.

MWAH MWAH MWAH! (that's me kissing the city)

i moved there for a year before coming to london. i had a job lined up before, but hated it so much i quit the second day. registered with some small temp agencies, they found me work quite quickly, and ended up working in a small law firm 3 days a week. which was enough to pay for my flat in boystown (close to wrigleyville, sure, but none of the 'woo' atmosphere. and lots of pretty boys)

there's lots to do, you don't need a car, and the weather isn't as bad as everyone says (saying that, buy a really warm winter coat). there's loads of great museums and galleries, restaurants and shops.

however, i found it hard to meet people, and felt pretty depressed most of the time i was there. i knew two people when i arrived, one became my flatmate. i went to lots of shows, museums, even did some evening classes, and never really met new people. it all seemed a bit cliquey. probably if i'd stayed a bit longer it would have broken at some point, but if you have an in (or you are less shy than i can be), you'll be fine.

I moved here without knowing people, and I run this fucking place now!

I might end up there if I can get into berkeley's grad program for urban planning.

Hey, maybe we can rank schools this way (though it would help to control for size of alumni pool, % english-not-first-language, prestige, etc.)...

Your search - "i graduated amherst" - did not match any documents.
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(drool to the latter)

Ah, yes. Chicago is notoriously cronyist - it is really tough if you don't know anyone. My sympathies. A friend once begged me to help her sister get a job, and I felt bad, and I think she was disappointed in me, but that's just not the way things are done here - I don't have any connections, just a diploma. :(

gabbneb - is that an ilx list? Who are the domers, I wonder?

Then again, I'd probably just recommend a good cheeseburger, which wouldn't help at all.

mmm

just in a naughty dirty sexual way

BUT IT WAS WORTH IT.

I really did touch her. In a handshake sort of way.

I will scrape the ellen allien right off your hands

gabbneb's list is fascinating to me, and adds fuel to the theory I developed at law school: there are a lot of idiots at Harvard. Please notice that St. John's has very few entries, and I presume that most of those are for St. John's University.

also you don't NEED a car but there will be times you really wish you had one.

I don't remember that!

Nora, are you a Maroon?

gabbneb forgot

Results 1 - 1 of 1 for "i graduated university of chicago"

and on a chicago thread, no less

i tried "i graduated chicago" and "i graduated u. chicago" but neither seemed right

i read this as "nora, are you a mormon?"

which got me thinking about "lucille, are you a lesbian?"

just in case anyone wanted to know. what i was thinking. i mean.

g--ff, law school: no, i will graduate with a BA in economics and math.

amateur!!st: i'm trying to set up interviews and get a job; it's not so easy being in florida though. work? i guess i'll do anything that my limited experience allows me to, but i'd like to stay away from manual labor. i'm a very frail dude.

kenan: going at it alone is what will make it hard. i wouldn't think twice if i had someone to come with me. indeed, i'll have to join you if i make it. thanks for the tips.

trigonalmayhem: the beauty of receiving a scholarship is that you dont have any debt when you graduate. thanks for looking out.

Colin Meeder: what's colege? thanks for your compulsory post.

n/a: yea, i plan to look at craigslist.

colette: i will try a temp agency if all else fails. thanks for the input.

thanks everyone.

(Sorry, "graduated college" is just about the only phrase I turn into a grammar Nazi about anymore.)

Yeah, me neither.

What are we, chopped liver?

I don't know anyone on this board, either!

Bourgeois Pig north side is hiring

Is it? I called to check back (I turned in one of those "in case you're hiring anytime soon" applications a week or two ago) as soon as I read that and was told that they aren't hiring. They may have already found someone... hmm...

http://infratunes.com/musique/fotos-artistes/ellenalien.jpg http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio1/onemusic/exposed/media/ellenalien.jpg http://img.iskon.hr/kl/2003/05/20/0002004v.jpg http://techno.gra.pl/technoland/biografie/ellen_allien/ellen_allien.jpg http://www.loop.cl/upload/ellen_allien_interior_entrevista2.jpg http://gullbuy.com/buy/2002/7_16/images/stadtkind_png.jpg

h8

I got scholarships/finaid too, but my school is just terribly expensive so it didn't cover everything.
On the upside, I'm coming out with only about 1/4 of my actual school costs in loans, the rest was thankfully covered by the aformentioned free money.

Basically I could have bought a luxury sedan instead of an education for this price, but I'm pretty happy with the way I went. Plus my interest rates will be lower. Ka-ching!

well, personally I'd glady do both ellen AND björk.

But björk is probably getting a little too old now, has kids/a man/etc.

: (

ellen is easier to fantasize about because she's at least marginally closer to my age (not really, but moreso than björk), and since she seems to regularly make rounds to clubs/etc. I would have a chance to someday maybe be so lucky as to shake hands LIKE THAT ENVIABLE BASTARD.

They were crawling over me to get in punches on him.