Urbanism
I have the Malcontents of Polk Street Canyon to thank for my boyfriend's new apartment. Unhappy with the fratty scumminess of his downtown condo building, in May, Devyn dragged me around town to scope out new digs. We didn't have to look very far. On a shopping trip to the Roosevelt Road Target, we
Getting Around
Though I don't drive, my boyfriend and workmates do. Tagging along through their experiences with Chicago's two car-sharing services, the for-profit Zipcar and nonprofit I-GO, it was easy to figure out which company offered the better customer-service experience. Hint: in the private sector, the cus
Marina City
'Tell me the truth: should I move to Marina City?' If there's one question I hear more than any other, it's that one. Over the past year, Chicago Carless has become a go-to site for information about life here at the corncobs--in all its sometimes glorious and sometimes gory details. So I've put tog
Chicago
A last-minute substitution brings Mariza, Portugal's most celebrated contemporary fadista, or fado singer, to Millennium Park's Pritzker Pavilion tomorrow evening to sing with the Grant Park Symphony Orchestra. Enormous Lusophile that I am, as I write this, I'm still attempting to lift my jaw off th
Life
Portugal's Domingos Portela de Andrade wasn't the only interesting person I met at last month's German Marshall Fund reception, hosted by my pal Val's friend, Julia. I also met Julia's squeeze, Adam, who lives in DeKalb, 20 miles west of the Fox River. Julia lives in Greektown, 40 miles east of the
Life
Yesterday, my Mennonite colleague, the Plankmaker, told me about an old college roommate who used to rather proudly display in his dorm room daily sculptures made out of a homemade collection of multicolored construction-paper phalluses. After I recovered from the fleeting shock of learning that the
Media
A big hello to my visitors from YoChicago! Today, the trendy local real estate blog featured Chicago Carless on the front page -- in particular, my ongoing reporting on the state of affairs at Marina City and the Gary Kimmel scandal.
Politics
Well, the Chicago city council exercised its will yesterday, passing the controversial big-box $10 wage bill by a veto-proof 35 to 14 margin. Previous discussion here on Chicago Carless examined both sides of the issue. Now, as the dust settles and the city holds its collective breath and waits to s
Marina City
A surprise development in the Gary Kimmel hooker scandal, the Marina City story that just keeps on giving. One 35-year-old Jody Spears was indicted in federal court on charges of sex trafficking involving minors as young as 14 years old. According to an FBI affidavit, Spears is quoted as saying, 'So
Life
I suppose it's rude to take stock of people you know in public. Luckily, I have no such reluctance. I’m from New York. And so are Vicki and Adam. Two thirtysomething New Yorkers living in Lower Manhattan, paying an obscene rent, and just maybe looking for a change of scene. Adam scored an interview
Politics
Several good points were made in the comments thread of Thursday's post regarding Chicago's proposed $10 big-box living-wage ordinance that deserve a fuller airing. Voices have been passionate on both sides of this issue, with the Chicago controversy being but a part of a truly national debate. Howe
Politics
Everyone has a right to a living wage. But just what that wage should be--or who should have to pay it--is a debate that has been raging through Chicago's city council this summer, possibly with disastrous consequences. On July 26, the council will vote on a bill to require big-box retailers doing b