Friday Afternoon on the South Side

I have been wanting to get my cartilage pierced for a long time. Last Friday, the time came. And it involved a wonderful afternoon-long trip to the South Side with Robin.

Our first stop was the storefront of my great-grandmother's old chicken store where I reminisced about Easter chicken noodle soup and Robin looked at me like I was crazy.

Next was the tattoo parlor/piercing studio: Angry Moon. The studio was very clean, and the people were friendly. I had heard that getting your cartilage pierced was pretty painful, but it definitely was not as bad as I thought it would be.
Even right afterwards, I felt like the piercing had always been there - it just felt natural.

We went to the Beehive for some coffee and some nosh. Robin got a soy latte and vegan monkey bread while I ordered a coffee and a pear. (see below)

After the Beehive, we went to a vintage clothing store (we both got dresses); stopped by George's (my Busia's next store neighbor) store, The Culture Shop; and went 0n a quest for refriferator magnets for Jonathan (famous via the monogamous jam post). This was a lengthy and exhausting journey, leading us up and down South Side proper, and after which we were quite hungry. So we went to Kassab's!:

from top: Biz's grilled chicken salad, Robin's grape leaves, Biz making a little pita/chicken salad sandwich, and atmosphere at Kassab's.

This was only the second time I had been at Kassab's. The first, I got shish kabob which was delicious (I love the sauces) but a lot of food for one person. I ended-up having it for a couple of days. I like the salad option because you can get the same house dressing, ask for red sauce, and it comes with pita - so if you want a little pita sandwich, you can go ahead and make one.

Overall, an eventful and lovely day.