CHICAGO CARLESS

(Photo: Sorry, did I wake you? Everyone knows better than a local resident on downtown noise.)

It’s a train that enters the station with Swiss Rail precision. Whenever a downtown Chicago resident complains about neighborhood noise, some local wag tells us to grin and bear it. Among the comments on yesterday’s post about the The Joys of High-Rise Living, we have this gem from “Jim”:

[Read more →]

(Photo: Would you attempt to take food away from this man? Yours Truly experiencing his first Beijing Duck at Sun Wah. Credit: Jamie Williamson.)

American Apparel must feel vindicated right now. Last year, after the depression diet that followed my breakup with Devyn, I was happy to discover two things: St. Johns Wort is like God’s Zoloft without the sexual side-effects; and I was trim enough to shop at the official clothing retailer of America’s heroin chic. Under 200 pounds for the first time since my twenties, it was a thrill to step out of changing rooms wearing clothing marked “medium” and not look like a stuffed grape.

The thrill’s worn off.

[Read more →]

(Photo: Averting my gaze from Chicago’s big gay fest.)

Let the gay community come and take my toaster oven back. I’m not a fan of Market Days.

[Read more →]

(Photo: Since last winter, it’s been a wild ride on a Lake Shore Drive express bus.)

The easiest jollies for eligible Chicagoans can be found on any Lake Shore Drive northbound express bus. If your knees and your bottom can stand it.

[Read more →]

(Photo: Pastry chef en croute.)

Chris showed up limping to our weekly Caribou coffee date. Every Tuesday we share caffeine before I bare my soul to my local Codependents Anonymous gang.

Usually it’s me arriving with the more interesting issue. Chris tells me his plans for transcending his future ex-roomate. I let him in on the excruciating details of my love life from when I was an egg onwards.

But even still and seated, Chris couldnt help but grimace over the top of his grande iced green tea cooler.

[Read more →]

(Photo: Those pesky kids, at home in Chinatown Square. Original Credit: Chris Brunn.)

No one can claim that Chicago’s Chinatown is the equal of older, larger Chinatowns in American cities like New York or San Francisco. But over the weekend, ex-Cincinnatian / new-Chicagoan Jamie helped me see the area in a whole new light.

[Read more →]

(Photo: Take me to your leader…and tell him to get this thing off of my head. Credit: Devyn Caldwell.)
This is just a quick weekend shout-out to a few sites that have shown my blog some linking affection in the past few days.  The Chicago Traveler is one the these.  TCT scribe, Matt B, is a Twitter [...]

[Read more →]