Joe's Last Day on Oak & Rush

After nearly seven year's, today is Joe's last day working at B & O on Oak and Rush. It's a bittersweet time, but developers are going to tear the building town in the coming weeks, replacing the modest little one-story building with a new and improved...BARNEYS!? Hmmm...they have a perfectly huge one just across the street, but that's corporate America for you. Anyway, Joe will go out to the B & O headquarters in Arlington Heights for the summer, where he will have weekends off. This will be the first time in our married life that we will enjoy being together on both Saturday AND Sunday, so that's cool.

The store on Oak & Rush has been a place of many happy memories in the short time that I've been in Chicago. We've used it as our downtown meeting spot while connecting with friends for dinner. It was the site of several fun work events that involved high-end design, people from Denmark, chilled (?) red wine, and a legendary barbecue sauce fountain. Joe and I have rendezvoused across the street from the store at our favorite restaurant, Le Colonial. I've parked my car in the garage around the corner on many occassions, reveling in my "free parking spot in the city." Yes, there are many things I will miss, and I'm sure many more than that for Joe.

Anyway, if you think of it, please pray for Joe this week as he transitions into a new phase of his career. We're interested to see what's ahead.