This week was a short one, three days, due to homecoming festivities taking place over the extended weekend. The headlining event of the school week was the EENT (eyes, ears, nose, and throat) midterm on Tuesday. Absorbing the nuances that differentiate one red eye from another, or determining which of the various eyelid glands instigated the blepharitis was quite the visual journey (thanks to Dr. Humphreys‘ enthusiasm for pictures with shock value). After that, the only thing that stood in the way of a glorious weekend was the exploration of the various GI maladies that result in abnormal secretion of stomach acid — HCl.

Dinner at Gyu-Kaku

The long weekend honestly couldn’t have come at a better time, as my Uncle Gary and Aunt Mary Jo were in Chicago for a long weekend, too. Sarah and I capitalized on our Thursday off to invite them over for good drinks and better conversation. Knowing us to be poor students, gravely destitute of the finer things in life, they took us out to dinner at one of my favorite restaurants, Gyu-Kaku — Japanese BBQ.

At the Cubs game

A non-presumptuous sign, with white lettering etched onto a black background is the only indication that you’ve arrived. Gyu-Kaku, crammed between other restaurants with fairly obtuse and loud signage, opens up into a fairly spacious foodie’s retreat. A grill sits at the middle of every table so patrons may grill their prime cuts of meats to mouth-melting perfection. It heralds back to the time when bonds were formed or strengthened during the preparing and cooking of food; dinner becomes a wonderful process of cooking sans the cleanup.

Studying with a view

Friday, however, it was back to business as usual. There were exams to be studied for and papers to be written. Sarah and I popped down to Streeterville to take advantage of a friend’s rooftop study area that has the added bonus of a fabulous view of the lakeshore for study interludes. Thankfully, the weekend wasn’t all study, as I managed to get a good bike ride along the lakeshore in with my friend, Adam, on Sunday morning. The night was claimed by a Cubs game with Sarah that was long overdue, as we live two houses down from Wrigley Field. All in all, it was great to have a long weekend to reconnect with friends, read, and regather in preparation for the coming battery of exams.