And the verdict is in...

After a very fun Thanksgiving at the Stewart household, Shane and I flew to Chicago for a little time with my family and my 10 year high school reunion (yes, I am old!). One of the big questions of the weekend was -- did we plan on moving back to Chicago after DC? After many rehearsed answers, "Maybe.", "We'll see.", "Probably not as Houston is so much cheaper.", etc. I have the finally discovered the true answer to the question --

-- if I have any say in it, the answer is no. Don't get me wrong. I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE Chicago. And no other city can even compare to Chicago summers and the Cubs. And it has nothing to do with the exorbitant real estate prices. Or the piles of cars that sit on the highway trying to get from point A to point B. Rather, its all because of the weather.

As I woke up this morning at 4:30 AM (ridiculously early, I know!), I was confronted with snow, slush, wind, and ice. Same thing when I went outside to get my Cosi for lunch. It is gross. And brutal. And miserable. And something that I don't want to experience for five out of twelve months of a year...for the rest of my life...

Maybe they can invented heated bubbles. If I could go about my way, protected from the nastiness, maybe I'd consider it. But until then...let me move South, or even East...why East you might ask -- because we all know that they get snow...but let's face it, the East isn't as tough as Chicago. It takes feet, not inches, and ice, not just snow, to shut down this city. But the East is awhole 'nother ball game. Two inches of snow and no ice? No worries. Stay in bed. The city's closed down. Now, that is what I am talking about...