#31-The Best Tacos in Chicago

I was in Cape Cod last week and found myself of Facebook. Poking around. Mark, a very old friend I hadn't seen in about ten years, was online so we began to chat. Mark is one of the nicest people in the world. The first time we hung out was in Chicago. He was rooming with my boyfriend at the time and volunteered to take me out the first night I'd arrived to visit. My boyfriend was busy....working at Starbucks. Yes. Starbucks. yes. he didn't take the night off. Ahhh the things we ignore when we're young.

I didn't know Mark that well but I knew that staying in for the night was not an option for the Sagittarius. I was ready for an adventure. I was maybe... twenty years old? Flying to Chicago to see my boyfriend was more than a thrill and he not being available to take me out on the town...well...that wasn't MY problem. Mark was game and so was I.

Mark was a musician and an actor. An improv actor. And at the time, a bartender. He too was young and full of hell and enjoying life. People like that tend to bartend. Why? Because they get to drink....and have adventures with the customers. All kinds of adventures. Anyway, Mark wanted to take me to a bar he'd worked at before to see this band he really liked. He liked them particularly because they ran a contest. A dance contest, and the prize was a velour shirt. Sounded fun to me!

The bar was a deep walnut. Packed to the brim with the young and very down to earth, I immediately felt at home. It was really the first time I'd taken a trip without my family and it felt so liberating. The music was everywhere. Chicago is great for music, and Mark was excited to be there. I was safe with him. He got me a beer and I stuck by his side. To me, Mark was Mr.Chicago. My boyfriend...Mr. Starbucks.

The band was awesome. They put on a real show. High energy and wild. It was thrilling. I can remember almost losing myself in all of it. In a city I've never been, with a guy I didn't know but somehow knew exactly how to show me a good time, the music, the awesome beer....and then the contest began.

It was foggy. I don't know what the rules were or how it began. Next thing I knew I told Mark, "I'm going up!". Up I went. They said something like I had to dance...maybe sexy?...maybe it was a tribute to velour??? I don't know what it was, but it was one of those magical moments where you feel like you're flying. I danced. I danced my ass off. I was funny, young, and very sexy. I felt on top of the universe. The huge crowd cheering is the steamy dark. Good people. Fun people. People who like to dance. They roared. The girl from NYC was welcome in Chicago. Mark was beaming.

I won the velour shirt that night. Mark and I ran out of the bar. Laughing. We had a blast. "You hungry?" Mark had a twinkle in his eye. Mark's idea of a nightcap is tacos. But not just any tacos. The "best" tacos in Chicago. How could I say no? As we walked down the street Mark explained to be how he'd decided these were the best tacos in Chicago. He'd eaten many at many places and this place was the best. Then he suggested we call my boyfriend and see if he wanted us to bring him some. Coffee time was apparently over and he was home. "Ok". Sure. Let's bring tacos to someone who clearly...doesn't deserve one. Mark called. The boyfriend declined. More for us I say! Mark and I bought maybe six each. He said that's how you need to eat them. In bulk. I didn't care. I'd just won a dance contest and I was ravenous!

In that moment I knew I would never have that much fun with the boyfriend. I knew him. Even then. I knew that there was some huge part of him that was a drag. Over the next several years it would blow the wind out of my sails more than once. A surprising insecurity that would shock me. A deep embarrassment he had..from nowhere.

Back in NYC and years later Mark was back and I got to see him a few times. But not much. I kept that shirt for years. It was a reminder of something I gave up. Fun. Lots and lots of fun. It's a long time after that now and that boyfriend is long gone.


Today I got to spend four fabulous hours with Mark today and I made us lunch. Guess what I made. Tacos.

Here's to fun. Here's to not dating guys who are a drag. Here's to the good guys who take you out even if you're someone elses girlfriend. Here's to that band- whoever they are!

Here's to having Mark back in my life.