Category: Vignettes
Hills, buffalo, stream, island — no. Elk — sure.
No one has answered our suburban name trivia question — doubtless for lack of interest. That calls for more on suburban names. [Update: Ken has [...]
Truly strange real estate videos
Would you like to watch a video of a mortgage broker / real estate agent reading a census report for ZIP code 60614?
Daniel Sullivan thinks you wou [...]
Chicago truck stop
As seen on Google Earth. Can anyone identify the location? [...]
Another unjustified "Thank you, Chicago!"
It happened again. Last night I was in Tower Records at Clark and Belden to return a movie (Hitchhiker's Guide to the Universe -- don't bother), when [...]
Garden-level condos come with free beer
The benefits of purchasing a new condo on the garden level, like this one at 901 W Cornelia Ave, are numerous. In addition to the lower price, benevo [...]
Release the hounds!
Driving north on Lake Shore Drive at 6:15 p.m. today I noticed that the lakefront path between Oak Street Beach and the North Avenue pedestrian bridge [...]
Distinctive Maoism comes to Lincoln Park
It could be a creative cross-marketing effort, though we suspect it was sabotage. Either way, We were shocked and dismayed (ok, a little amused too) y [...]
N Sheridan Rd: beachfront living, mainland prices
Often thought of as tatty hinterlands--when thought of at all--N Sheridan Rd boasts several buildings that once represented Chicago's highest standard [...]
Avoid ugly streets – travel in the right direction
We've noticed a distinct pattern in Chicago and its suburbs: streets that don't run on a true east-west or north-south axis have, on average, uglier b [...]
Wooden Alley
Forget March Madness. We're not talking coach John here. And no, we didn't go dyslexic on the name of a has-been clarinetist either.
The Gold Coast's [...]
Lincoln Park Chad Society does not approve
We don't think Starbucks is holding high-level meetings over the failure of the Lincoln Park Chad Society to grant its stamp of approval to the new ci [...]
The building or the pol?
Did the politician sell out? Or the building? Or both? [...]
Construction sites are hives of activity
Or so goes the oft-repeated metaphor.
There are many ways in which the metaphor doesn't fit — very few sites have a queen bee, of either se [...]
Good fixtures make for good neighbors
The relentless wind today blew a light covering from my building into a neighbor's stairwell, leaving glass shards on their steps. I felt compelled to [...]
Mamet's creative secret
As David Mamet Festival begins this weekend at the Goodman Theatre I am reminded of the wise words of Mamet as related to a friend of a friend of a fr [...]
Irish ways
Over the weekend at R.J. Grunts (2056 N. Lincoln Park West, 773-929-5363), the Lincoln Park restaurant that started it all for the Lettuce Entertain Y [...]
Chicago on YouTube.com
Not ready for prime time video - and that's part of the attraction. Flash required, broadband recommended.
Chicago street beat — a don't miss o [...]
Merry Holidays
I couldn't care less about which decorations can or cannot go up at City Hall or the public library, or in the parks. But last week, when I bought my [...]
Too hot to handle
A customer at a major chain book store in the Loop today was complaining about everything that passed before her eyes. Flipping to the author's page o [...]
Christmas in Gary
You find Christmas spirit in the most unexpected of places. Driving through the strange rural/industrial landscape a little east of Gary, Indiana on S [...]