We have an apartment!!!

We're starting to get somewhat settled in finally. After almost a week and a half of apartment shopping we ended up going with one that I looked at the first day...but I'm no longer staying at the hostel anymore! Our new address is 5200 S. Blackstone Ave, apt 805. We both got to spent the first night there Tuesday. There are still a couple of kinks to iron out, like we don't have hot water in the shower. There's hot water in the bathroom and kitchen sinks, but not the shower. Luckily it's freaking hot here, so cold showers aren't too bad. Also, we don't have a bed yet. That's this week's task...to find at least a mattress. We're getting there though.

Kara has been insanely busy with Teach For America stuff. They have had her in classes from 7 in the morning until like 9 at night. It's kind of weird for me being on the other side of 14 hour school days. I don't even really get to see her for long enough to find out what they have her doing to relate it. I do know that they start having them teach in actual classrooms on Monday, so stay posted for those updates.

Tuesday I went around to a bunch of Chicago Blues historical places, and walked around the city some more. Here's some pictures:

This is the Chicago skyline from across the south side of Chicago Harbor. I took a bunch of pictures and merged them together to get the full panorama. It came out all pixelated when it compressed this one for some reason.

This is the original location for Chess Records studio(Muddy Waters, Howlin' Wolf, Chuck Berry, Etta James) when it was started by Leonard Chess in 1947.

This was the site of the second location of Chess records. Kind of crappy they tore it down.

Chess Records bought this studio on 2120 s Michigan Ave in 1957. It is where some of the most influential Blues and R&B records were recorded. They sound they produced from this studio was cutting edge for the time. This is where the harmonica was amplified for the first time, which is a staple in the Chicago Blues sound. When the Rolling Stones first came to the states, they came here to play with Muddy Waters and Howlin' Wolf. They even wrote a song called 2120 Michigan Ave.

Muddy Waters' house on 4339 s Lake Park Ave. It's kind of sad, it's all overgrown and unkept. The front doors are all boarded up, and there's a notice on the door from 2006 saying they were cutting the power. There's a little sign in front that identifies it as Muddy's house, but that's all the recognition it gets.

When they weren't in the studio, Muddy Waters and his band and others that came to sit in would rehearse in the basement of his house. This is where Chicago Blues really developed.