What's It Like To Be You?
Wild Chicago's Ben Hollis is back with a profound question: what's it like to be you? . . .
The Lioness in Winter
Stina motored slowly upstairs in her new power chairlift, her expression a mix of satisfaction, determination, and annoyance. . .
Shopping in an Amish Paradise
Somewhere between Michigan and Indiana—in a land they call Michiana—the world’s largest wood-peg barn rises majestically over the cornfields . . .
Hospitalization
The lady in the next room was dying, but there was still time for sex . . .
The Sweet Scent of Christmas
The ladies of the writing group of the Sun City Literary Guild were in a dither when I walked into the December meeting. . .
My House, Your Dream
Sorry I haven’t written. But I’ve been trying to sell my house—an activity not unlike sitting around waiting for lightning to strike. . .
The Wake Up Call
The Canada Geese flew in after dark, riding the gusts of an autumn storm that tore the first red and gold leaves from the trees along the shore of the lake. . . .
Show Me The Money
I miss money. I don’t mean having or not having it. I mean, I miss money you can touch . . .
Cubs Fever
Don't put away the worry beads. The Cubs might make the playoffs . . .
Saving the Hibiscus
The hibiscus I brought home from the hardware store had to struggle just to stand upright, but there was something about it that reminded me of Kate . . .
Logan Square: Back in the Day
It was all like something out of Nelson Algren's "City on The Make" -- until the bullets started flying. . .
Simple Green
There's nothing simple about being green. Especially when it comes to detergents . . .
Mystery Mike is Gone
When I heard that he died, I thought that was just like Mike, to put it all out there for everyone to see – and tell no one. . .
Detroit SWAT:
Bustin' Doors at the Miss Quickie Hotel
The other day I was hanging around the backyard of Brain's house shooting a Red Ryder single pump BB gun at a cardboard target in back of his garage when his pager went off. . .
LIFE (circa 1950)
PART I: An Accidental Discovery
Finding an old LIFE magazine from my birthdate only reminds me my birth was part of an uneventful week. . .
LIFE (circa 1950)
PART II: The Ads
When I was born, Ipana was the hottest selling
toothpaste in America.
It not only cleaned your teeth but cleaned your gums, thus keeping your “whole
mouth wholesome,” a very appealing idea back in The Fifties. . .
Trifling with Truffles
Holy Macaroni. The food world is in a tizzy. Somebody has been trifling with the truffles. . .
Wounded Healers
Henry Kissinger once wickedly quipped that “academic politics are so bitter because the stakes are so low.” But are they? . . .
Cleaning the Junk Drawer
I am a bad person. Not a bad person in a deviant, psychotic kind of way, but a bad person in a disorganized, slovenly kind of way. . .
Stop the Presses
Our top story this week comes out of Winnebago, Illinois where – stop the presses – Grant doesn’t like Amanda anymore. . .
Bring on the Sunflowers
Dandelions are not lions. Snapdragons are not really dragons. And so no one should expect sunflowers to radiate sunshine and light, but they do, at least to me. . .
Harvard Travels
If you use the Harvard Travels catalog for nothing else, use it to find the hotels in the remote regions of the world where Harvard stays. You may not be able to afford a Harvard travel package but the itineraries are a perfect course outline for your own independent study. . .
On the Street Doing Life
“The West Si-I-I-I-de.” There is a rhythm to the way you say it, letting the last word slide. There is a rhythm to the way life ebbs and flows here, different from the rest of the city, as if life here is determined by the spell of a separate moon, with its own tides. . .
Bollywood Nights
With the Oscar ceremonies upon us, Elizabeth Station celebrates the most popular films in the world . . . from India. . .
Reading The Side of Trucks
Foot traffic on Western Avenue is sparse, mostly homeless people pushing shopping carts, so that distraction passed quickly. That's when I decided to tape record the signs on passing trucks. . .
The Groundhog That Would Not Die
When the end of the world comes, I predict that groundhogs, those illusive weather forecasters to which we pay homage in February, will be, along with rats, the last critters left on earth. . . .
The Big Screw
Santiago Calatrava's original design to build The Chicago Spire as the country's tallest skyscraper was originally hailed a wisp of smoke rising in the air, a slender blade of grass and an elegant addition to the Chicago skyline. With a new developer, it's now just another big screw. . .
Santa Shall Rise Again!
One of my neighbors had populated his yard with a huge inflatable Santa, a polar bear in a holiday outfit, Frosty the Snowman, the Grinch, Winnie the Pooh and, for at least awhile after Thanksgiving, a Tom Turkey. And that's when we saw it -- the great holiday massacre. . .
The Night The Earth Stood Still
When Ursula lit those Christmas candles, I didn't know whether to call the fire department or silently observe . . .
A Tree Grows on Burling Street
When they take down that tree on Burling Street, what happens to the memories and that girl shot on the Street of Fear? . . .
53 Things to Eat for Thanksgiving That Are Not Turkey
It's hard to avoid, but there are alternatives for the vegan inclined. . .
Extreme Home Mania!
Sunday night in our household is sniffle time. Whether it’s a one or two hankie night depends on whether it’s a one hour edition of Extreme Home Makeover or a two hour special. . .
Buy One for The Gipper!
Upstairs I found a bottle opener that played the Victory March, eight different Fighting Irish license plate holders, “Play Like a Champion Today” magnets, mousepads, and an entire aisle of Notre Dame merchandise for dogs. . .
Life in an Espalier
Espalier,” my wife said under her breath like Kane calling for Rosebud. “We should try one of those.”. . .
Saudi Arabia: Remembered
PART ONE: Flying In
Maps --
I'm packing for the trip. Is it still true over there -- no white shoes after
Labor Day?. . .
Saudi Arabia: Remembered
PART TWO: The Football Arrives
Bill waded into the teen traffic like he was living in the old Channel 2 News days. At one point, he was interviewing a young woman in face veil and abaya when she complained loudly about America’s refusal to rein in Israeli attacks on Palestinians. Bill asked her what she held in her hand (a cell phone.) She recoiled at his touch. “It’s a bomb . . . for you and America,” she said. . .
Saudi Arabia: Remembered
PART THREE: Into the Desert
Al Alroq set only two conditions before agreeing to take us to his village 340 kilometers deep into the Arabian desert: we could not shoot the women or make him look like a caricature of the typical Arab chieftain . . .
Saudi Arabia: Remembered
PART FOUR: Mecca and Medinah
Mecca and Medinah are the Minneapolis-St. Paul of Islam, twin cities separated by 250 miles but renowned for their sameness. . .
India Rocks!: The Rishi Rich Project
You learn something new every day, sometimes in the strangest places. . .
Marshall Field's: The Gray Lady Bows Out
Since when . . . did we start mourning the passing of The Good Old Days? And how good were they? Reflections on the passing of the Marshall Field's department stores and services we remember, but haven't seen in a long while.
Water, Water Everywhere
If you were buying this stuff from a pump at a gas station, it would be costing you $15 a gallon. . .
Daylilies
The mind’s a weird piece of business. Both
foreign and familiar.
But like daylilies, we try to bloom where they plant us. . . .
Once Upon A Time . . . Happily Ever After
Once upon a time, a long, long time ago, and yet only nine years ago, I moved to the sea. . .
Ozzie Guillen and The Doctrine of Innocent Construction
What’s wrong with us as a people today? Why have we lost the doctrine of innocent construction?. . .
Our First $1 Million Home
They are building our first million dollar home across the street in the lot where Harry Kugelman’s house used to stand. Have they met the neighbors? . . .
Wild Roses in Chicago
A rose bush has to be pretty nervy to grow in Chicago. Especially a wild sprout. Especially in a back yard. . . .
Gone Are Those Eyes
Who knew that when we bought our house 18 years ago – a big old box of a “Catholic” family house in Old Irving Park – we were also getting a piece of what Mayor Daley’s people today like to call “street furniture.” His name was Bob Strauch. . .
The Joy of Junkin'
Every summer, along with about half the population of northern Illinois, I find an occasion to go up north to sit by a lake in Wisconsin pestering the natives with my presence. . .
Finding My Scent
Finding the right scent is not easy. My wife, her smell consultant at the
department store and most of her friends agree: men are just not good at it
. . .
Saint Studs
It is good that we remember Studs Terkel. It is right that we love him. But
if we are to retain a memory of Studs that will actually stand in for him
when he is gone, we must acknowledge that his "contribution" was
to make us uncomfortable with the status quo. . .
0 - 12 (A Week Behind Classic)
Occasionally, The Week Behind revisits some of the Classic pieces
we have published over our 19 years. From April, 1997, we present Sports Editor
Rick O'Shea's account of the day The Chicago Cubs set a record for the worst
start in the 122 year history of The National League. . .
How to Use a Bidet
I gave my wife a bidet for her birthday. I thought it compared favorably with
the anniversary several years ago when I gave her a sump pump. The sump pump
proved to be so … well, functional. If we can get the same longevity
out of the bidet, it will be well worth the purchase price. . .
The Last Strudel
When I heard that the Berghoff Restaurant was going to close, it felt like
the loss of one more piece of a downtown Chicago that will exist only in memory
from now on. . .
BE MINE!
You might not have time to count the messages on 2,602 Sweethearts, but Laura
Wunder and David Zerlin did. Catch their findings in “Be Mine”.
. .
The World in My Fridge
My roses came from Ecuador and my bras were made in Sri Lanka. I live in what
they call the American heartland, but where does the heartland begin and end
when my neighbor's American flag is made in Taiwan? . . .
My Own Personal Arbitron
Once Arbitron gave me my diary, I did a little math and decided I -- and my
32,900 followers -- could change the course of radio with a click of the switch.
The off-button . . .
Peeking Into China's Closets
For the past four years I have been filming interviews for Portico, a company
that does ethnographic market research. . .
Christmas at Louie's
In the basement of his little house on Fell Street in Bloomington, Louie made
magic every Christmas Eve. And if I could avoid choking on the cigar smoke,
I helped. . .
Home Movies
I sat down the other night to watch home movies with my father, 85, and my
two aunts, who are themselves 87 and 84. In many ways, it was a scene reminiscent
of a bygone era – and in many ways it was not . . . .
Guitar Man
Life in the fast lane with my almost ready for college son can sometimes get
a little dicey. . . .
The Joy of Baseball
I was not one of the lucky few who got through to Ticketmaster for a ticket
to see The White Sox in the playoffs. Nor was I willing to shell out $8,000
for a box seat to the World Series. So I watched the games at home, stretched
out on a couch the length of six seats, figuring I was saving about $50,000
a game . . . .
The Man Who Loses Everything
Memory’s a fickle friend. Once an ally, at some point in your life it
turns its back upon you and becomes an adversary. First you forget names,
then faces, then you forget to zip your pants up. And then, horrors, you forget
to zip them down. . . .
One Is The Loneliest Number
Solitaire comes installed on nearly every computer sold. But if you want the expanded graphics versions, you can download them free off the internet from sites like 123 Free Solitaire, FreeCell, or Mike's Cards -– and then you are really hooked. . . .
Cans in The Alley
The garbage men come on Thursdays. The homeless come every day in between . . .
My Broken Wrist
Off balance, I fell backwards, automatically flailing my arms to break the fall. My left wrist must have taken the brunt of my weight—it must have twisted funny or been bent too far or slammed too hard—because it hurt in a way that I instantly knew meant something was wrong. Seriously wrong. . .
Bomb Scare at the Berwyn Station
So maybe this is one of those “magic moments” -- when a group of former strangers, Strangers on a Commuter Train, become a galvanized group of pilgrims if only just to survive -- or at least get to work on time. . .
Europe, My Way
Casey Stockdon returns from a triumphant rockabilly tour of Europe with his band The Gin Palace Jesters. It's a little piece of Europe you won't find in the Fodor's Guide. . .
The Gin Palace Jesters Do Europe
Part II: Finding Fun in Finland
The Gin Palace Jesters tour continues on to Berlin, Holland and Finland. Wherever bikers and mopadours gather, Chicago's favorite rockabilly band is there to entertain. . .
The Bus to Horseshoe Heaven
The bus is parked on the sidewalk next to the Holstein Park field house. The sign on the back announces the Horseshoe Casino Express runs 24 hours a day. And it’s a good thing since the ladies of the Bucktown Seniors Club are lined up at 8 AM ready to go. . .
Lucky in Kentucky
Dan About Town ventures off the reservation to attend the Kentucky Derby and returns with quite a tale to tell . . .
Part I: A Season for All Reasons
A season in the Holstein Park Adult Basketball League begins with the sounds of basketball in a old gym built in the day when the game was still played with baskets . . .
Part II: The Gym Rats
I went over to Holstein Park again tonight, arriving just in time to see The Old Fockers get shellacked by the brew crew from Fuller’s Tap. The gym rats were cackling. . .
Part III: A Grudge Match
By early March, match play in the Holstein Park Adult Basketball League has settled into a steady rhythm. The games are not spectacular, but each is its own little culture clash. . .
Part IV: Lito's Weapon
In my first couple weeks at the field house, I’d taken Moses to be another of the gym rats. As we spoke more, I learned I was wrong. . .
Part V: The Old Fockers Go Down
Time is running out on The Old Fockers, still winless with only two games left before the playoffs . . .
Part VI: The Playoffs
In the end, isn't it all about who gets the $425 -- divided six ways?
Part VII: The Champs
By the time the Holstein Park Adult Basketball League got around to playing its championship game, many of the players were on to their next season. . .
Confessions of a Homeowner
There's always something not quite right about a new house. In this case, it may be the owner. . .
The Virgin Under the Viaduct
There was more than a little excitement in the neighborhood last week after Obdulia Delgato found the image of the Virgin Mary in a water stain under the Kennedy Expressway. . .
Showtime
Great. A yuppie-fuck in a four-wheel-drive-thing on my ass. I can’t do this anymore. I can’t spend three hours a day in this car anymore. I can’t listen to Bea’s blather anymore. It’s been over two years. I can’t stop my life anymore. . .
36 Years of Spilled Coffee
Every morning, my husband Tom carefully walks down our twelve front steps with a cup of coffee in hand, goes to the car, puts his roadie on the roof while he unlocks the car door, and places the cup on the hump between the two front seats. . .
The Health Benefits of Jell-O
The popularity of The South Beach Diet has brought into high relief the health benefits of Jell-O – a staple in the dessert category – mainly because it has no health benefits at all. . . .
Boy Meets Dog
I got Lola at The Anti-Cruelty Society. She didn't have a name. She cowered in the corner of her cage, leaving a large doggy treat untouched. She didn't respond to petting and sweet talk and I was pretty sure that was one of the big reasons why I wanted her. . .
Josie About Town
Not everyone can be a monitor for The Chicago Sports & Social Club. But I am. . . which, of course, gives me the opportunity to attend the opening of Sluggers' Piano Bar . . .
Dubious Achievements
For the first time in the 122-year history of the National Baseball League, a member team has started the season with 12 straight losses. Guess who? (reprinted from April, 1997) . . .
The Gentleman Filmmaker
Chuck Olin died last week after five decades as one of Chicago's most influential independent film producers . . .
Famous Ski Hills in Wisconsin
I don’t know what it is about winter that makes me want to mine my memory. In the cold, I find a drop of remembrance brings on a flood of recollections, and never more so than when I think about the famous ski hills of Wisconsin . . .
Downhill Sledder
The only problem with our sledding hill was that it wasn't long enough . . .
How to Help
When it comes to one-click internet shopping, you can't beat this holiday guide on how to contribute to Southeast Asian tsunami relief . . .
My Date with Barbie
I went out cruising for dolls the other day – at my local Toys R Us – and came across a catfight the likes of which I haven’t seen since Chatty Cathy started gossiping behind Strawberry Shortcake’s back. . .
Why Do Dogs Pee On Trees
I took my dog for a walk the other day, or should I say she once took me?
Dark Days in Kathmandu
These are dark days in Nepal Peace Corps volunteer Mary Sanders in a letter from the capital Kathmandu . . .
Can Danny Dinkha Save Iraq?
There is a Mexican bodega at the end of my block run not by Mexicans but by three Assyrian brothers named Danny, Sam and Bill . . .
Thunderbolt Fever
Dan About Town goes to Crestwood for The Week Behind baseball outing. . .
Harry is Moving Out
After 78 years, Harry is moving out. Anybody need a good clothesline?
Humboldt Park . . . is new again
A hundred years after Jens Jensen transformed it, Humboldt Park serves a new generation of immigrants in many of the same old ways. View a Gallery of Photos. Or read on.
The Red Clunk
To you, it's just an old red clunker. To Leonard Aronson, its 15 years of living and the lessons you learn along the way.
Sex in The Country
So, What is there to do after midnight on a Sunday in Phoenix? Unfortunately, I'm here to tell you.
Golf
In the Spring, a young man's fancy turns to . . . golf.
Jesus Has a Bad Day
Some days it just doesn't pay to be a savior . . .
A Visit to The Dentist
Everybody’s scared of something, right? I know a guy who hasn’t been to the dentist since his eighteenth birthday and he’s forty. Okay, It’s me . . .
Ten Years in Chicago
I remember my first job interview in Chicago, word for word, because it consisted of two questions. . . none related to the job I sought.
The Day I Saved The Game
The coming of spring training in baseball brings out memories of a boy in small town America buying his first honest-to-goodness, real professional grade, spiffy black and white, all leather steel spike shoes.
Mixed Drinks
I'm turning 30 soon -- two days from now, to be precise, and I have been doing some re-evaluation of my habits, to say the least.
Stranger on a Train
I was settling into my seat, pulling a book from my bag, when he appeared in the aisle, looking at me, a little confused, a little shy, and asked, “Can I sit here?”
Going Bananas at Christmas
Down along Michigan Avenue at Watertower Place, Marshall Fields and Lord & Taylor face off against each other, seven days a week, like two old gunslingers whose hands are too shaky to do any damage, but there’s a young slinger on the block called Banana Republic, which is where I spent the holiday season selling men’s clothing.
A Bad Girl Meets Santa
By the time I was seven, I pretty much had everything figured out. Everyone in elementary school had. Sure, the cookies we left out on Christmas Eve were mysteriously eaten. . .
A Long Walk Through My Neighborhood
The History of Bucktown is the story of an ever-changing cast of immigrant populations using and re-using the houses, parks and storesfronts in the neighborhood. View a Photo Gallery of Bucktown today. Or join us for a long walk through my neighborhood.
Winter Tow Zone
One of the dirty little secrets of Chicago's winter parking ban is that I started it . . . .
Mugged!
Mugged! . . . Hmmm. Was I Mugged? No, I was held up. Yes, that's the term. . .
In Defense of California
Driving up Highway One makes you remember what you love about California. The fighting turkeys.
Dead as a Door Nail
What kind of strange doings are going on in the basement of Chicago's famous Double Door nightclub?
Bicycles For Peace
If you go south along Western Avenue, you will find at 927 S. Western, in an unmarked warehouse above a car body shop, the world headquarters of “Bicycles for Peace.” I was directed there in search of a good used bike by a friend who, it turns out, travels in that circle of cyclists who believe no world problem is so great it cannot be solved by fewer cars, or more bikes.
