Why Josh Can't Be Left Alone

I spent last Shabbos in the Lakeview neighborhood of Chicago. For the benefit of those of you from Out-of-Town, Lakeview is often compared to New York's Upper West Side- a location "in the city," populated with young professionals, often single. It was my first time venturing out there. Truth is, in the almost year since I've returned to Chicago, it was only my second time going out for Shabbos. And even though my brother lives in Lakeview (for three years already), I've only gone there to visit three times during the week. But I have a friend who bought a condo there in July, and I've been throwing around the promise of a Shabbos visit for quite some time now.

Truth is, I was a little hesitant to go out there and was probably looking for any excuse to push it off. I mean, there's nothing terrible about the place, but a) my home in the 'burbs is plenty cozy for me, and b) I never really liked the Upper West Side. All that fancy "action" and "things to do" that people rave about in the city just isn't for me. I'm the guy that went to bad last night at 8 PM. I'm not interested in going out.

And the whole "singles scene" kind of weirds me out. Don't get me wrong, a peer group is a nice thing to have. As friends, sure it's nice to have people at a similar stage in life to be around. But the dating overtones just make me uncomfortable. I was going to Lakeview to visit my friend; I hope nobody thought I was trolling for women.

Truth is, I had a wonderful Shabbos. We had group meals that really introduced me to the people of the community. And rather than feel like I was collaborating with a whole bunch of mid-twenty-something Yeshiva singles sowing their oats, I found a diverse crowd just eager to be able to find friendship. I found that Lakeview's "Modern" reputation was not like New York's. It felt more like a Midwestern college campus, with people from little to no Jewish background enjoying their traditions in connection with those from more religious upbringings (ok, there were only a handful of those that I met). In short, I felt like I was in a place of growth, not stagnation and regression.

I invited those I met to join me in Skokie for a Shabbos. I only hope I'll be able to show them a Shabbos as "Heimishe" as they showed me.