Damn having expensive taste . . .

So as part of our great trek in Chicago this weekend, we checked out a bunch of neighborhoods in an attempt to narrow down where we might like to live for the next two years. Being from Atlanta, this whole 'neighborhood' thing is a bit odd to me. While there are sections of Atlanta, I'm not sure I ever felt like the city had true, distinct neighborhoods. I mean, there are some - Buckhead, Midtown, etc. - but they really all kind of blend together and it's hard to draw a distinction between them sometimes. Also, Buckhead and Midtown are happening spots where people also happen to live. Most other places - where people live, and maybe there's a Quiktrip.

But Chicago is apparently big on these 'neighborhoods'. And each one has its own little town center, and then people live around that. Maybe that's what New York is like? I've been to New York for work, but I usually was too busy navigating the subway, trying to call a taxi (picture Jennifer Garner in '13 Going On 30' - that's me), or trying not to die in the emergency room. So I don't know much about their neighborhood structure. Or lack thereof.

So we check out these neighborhoods. And some of them we nix immediately. Downtown - cool place, lots of life, but almost all the housing is in gigantic high-rise apartment buildings. Those things scare us - I managed to get out of undergrad without living in a dorm, so why start now? Then we were told to check out the Wicker Park/Bucktown area. For you Atlanta folk, it's supposed to have this cool, bohemian kind of vibe - similar to Little 5 (today, with yuppies gentrifying the area, not the Little 5 of several years ago). Well, sadly, we are wusses, and it's not gentrified quite enough for us! Sure, there's Urban Outfitters and other 'hip' stores, but there are also multiple check cashing/payday advance establishments, and a matress store that's probably been having the same 'going out of business' sale for the last 10 years. Scary.

Eventually, we decided to go with the neighborhood recommended by many of Chi-town's finest (no, not cops - students): Lincoln Park. Beautiful area, lots of cute streets with restaurants & stores, tree-lined sidewalks and great houses. And we're even able to narrow it down to a small little corner of Lincoln Park, just a few streets and blocks. It's close to the El stop, so Jonathan has a quick commute to work, and it's close to great streets with all the food & shopping you could want. Sounds great, right? Yep, sounded good to us too, until we got home, and Jonathan's research brought out the following:

In 2007, Forbes Magazine named the area between Armitage St, Willow St, Burling St, and Orchard St as the most expensive block in Chicago.

Dammit. We knew this was too easy.