Joy Chronicles Part II

1. Sundresses

Ahhhh, the smooth fabric, the vibrant colors, the feeling of freedom after winning the winter-war against the binding persecution of pants.... Yes, there is a certain feeling of delight that occurs once the sun shines brightly enough for one to sport a sundress. It is a feeling of sheer JOY.  When the weather reaches heights of warmth, fellow Chicagoan females (and some males) unite and decide to abandon as many articles of clothing as possible. And that is where the sundress comes in. There is nothing quite like walking around town with a soft, wafting, airy dress billowing around your legs. Not only is it freeing and feminine, it is full of spirit and promises of summer.

2. Hearing the ringtone on your phone after forgetting what it sounds like

Sometimes you put that sucker on silent. Or vibrate. Sometimes you just don't remember what your tones sound like. Yes, you might have put in some thoughtful time deciding what you wanted your ring tone to be when you first got your phone, weighing the pros and cons of rock versus a rotary-sounding jingle, but practicality set in when you realized you had to turn your phone to silent more often than you'd like. At work, at rehearsal, during shows, etc....It turns out not everyone likes hearing your perfectly picked out resonation.

Time passes and you don't even realize that you, yourself, have forgotten what tone you once picked. But then comes that fateful day when you turn your phone to the normal setting, and you are taken aback when the joyful techno song starts playing!

Why this might be the first time you've heard your tone in a month and a half! Joy starts rippling through your body, a smile perches on your lips, and you ROCK OUT at your desk, doing your signature dorky fist bump move so that it is visible to the construction workers meddling away outside your apartment through your open window. Yes. Dorky techno ringtones. YES.

3. Human spirit and comradery as observed underground

You enter the subway and hear the sweet melodic warblings of a 20-something male artist, his guitar and his gravelly voice enthusiastic, yet somewhat gritty, like he's been through it. Yes, he knows about life. You lean against a pillar, waiting for the train to arrive, when all of a sudden, you see another man obviously enjoying the music beyond his control. He is MOVED by it, loves the sounds, the echos, the artist's voice, the guitar riffs. He watches and listens, soon giving the singer some money.

And then, when the singer gets to a musical interlude, the moved man steps next to him and breaks out into free verse! 

Yes, engulfed by emotion, the moved man joins the singer and creates one of the most awesome acts of human spirit ever witnessed. At first one might wonder if the man is crazy, but it turns out he is an artist too, full of poetry and life. The singer's guitar paired with the man's spoken poetic word creates an impromptu slam poetry event never seen before. Underground, uninhibited, completely spontaneous. And all because of artistry and appreciation.

The train starts to roll into the station and the moved man shakes the singer's hand, smiles vibrantly, and boards the southbound red-line train, his day obviously altered in ways he hadn't expected when he left work 15 minutes earlier.


4. Saying hi to people you don't know

Maybe it's because you were taught to be friendly, or maybe it's because you are from the Midwest, but every once in awhile, you say hi to people you don't know. Sure, New Yorkers scoff upon such consideration, but Chicagoans and nice girls from Michigan believe otherwise. When you walk down the street and say hi to someone you don't know, you change that stranger's day just a little bit. They might think you are crazy, they might smile back and say hello, they might wonder if they actually do know you, but the point remains that most strangers appreciate a random act of kindness like that. In fact, your smiling mug might just make their day.


5. Finishing a race you never thought you could run

So you want to run for miles and miles when a year and a half earlier you were hobbling to the copy machine at work? Impossible. Sit down and eat a donut.

But NO!!!! You will persevere.

You run here and there and fight fatigue and lack of training and aches and pains. And you tell your knees to grow a pair and just do it. You yell at your hip and say STOP screaming at me to slow down...And race day comes and you've had just 5 or so hours of sleep and you did a show 4 nights in a row and have worked every day the past week, as well, but you say, GODDAMMIT, I'm running this race....

You get to Grant Park and join the other 25,000 runners, knowing you are running this 8k for so many reasons, but the biggest reason is to prove to yourself you can do it. You can take an injured body and heal it once again. Every mile marker, you throw your hands up in the air in excitement. You gladly accept the high-fives of strangers cheering you on. You take on the Gatorade and cups of water that the volunteers are handing out like they do in the movies. You smile broadly at the old lady who is ringing the cow-bell to encourage runners to the finish line.....

....and as you near that finish line, you are overwhelmed. You are dazzled with yourself. You have broken your own physical limits, you have refreshed your soul, you possibly shed a tear or two as you cross the finish line. Because you did it. And you did it for yourself.