It has come to my attention that there is a proliferation of terrible drivers out on the streets of Chicago. And while I understand that not everyone can be as law-abiding as I am when sitting behind the wheel, I at least hope that people will try to improve their skills with experience and time. This never really seems to be the case. In fact, it seems to me that the worst drivers out on these city streets are generally those who have municipal cars. (While it may be unfair, I am lumping cabbies in with that group.)

Generally speaking, I just expect cab drivers to cut me off or do incredibly stupid driving maneuvers. When you learn to drive in the city you start to just accept cabbies as an environmental variable – kind of like ambulances or fire trucks. While ambulances may not always be zipping down the street trying to save lives, a driver has to know what to do when an ambulance is coming…the same is true with dealing with the stupidity of cab drivers.

But, apparently when your car actually belongs to the city, there is a type of authority that rises in the driver and allows them to do whatever they want when driving. This has always been true of police cars – sirens on or off you let them have the right of way. So, I suppose by default it should be (and is) true about the drivers of unmarked cop cars. I can even accept that the drivers of emergency vehicles are so used to having the right of way that they just assume they have it even when they’re not heading towards an emergency call.

So, I’ve been able to rationalize the bad driving behaviors of almost every municipal driving group, with one exception – buses. As far as I’m concerned, buses have no excuse for driving poorly, they have no rationale for sliding through red lights when they get tired of waiting – it’s a bus! Buses are supposed to be slow, they’re like the turtle of public transportation – slow and steady, but it will get you where you’re going…eventually. So, why is the turtle getting all aggressive and cutting me off?

Posted by: Conci N.

Technorati Tags: Chicago, Illinois, Chicago municipal drivers, Chicago Public Transportation, the CTA

I used to live in Lakeview. It was the first neighborhood I lived in, and had just moved from a bohemian college town in Kansas to the city. It was quite the transition for me, but moving to Lakeview was probably the best decision for me and my parents. I made a visit just two months before I moved to Chicago, and searched around for a neighborhood, then an apartment. After going to the Chicago Apartment Finders, looking at several different neighborhoods and apartments, I decided on a cute little studio in Lakeview. Just a two blocks north of the Diversey brown line stop and about six blocks south of the Belmont red line stop, it was the perfect location for a newcomer. It’s also the perfect location for a young family, couple, middle-class businessman/woman, older couple, well, pretty much anyone. But don’t own a car and live there if you plan to use it frequently. Parking is terrible. But that’s pretty much the only downer about the neighborhood. I never felt endangered. I lived within walking distance to nearly everything I could ever need, and it only took me 20-30 minutes to get downtown during rush hour. I miss it, but I couldn’t afford my tiny studio apartment that I paid almost $700 for. If you’re looking to move or relocate and want a nice community to live in, I suggest giving Lakeview a try. It will be worth your while.

Technorati Tags: Lakeview, Chicago, Chicago neighborhoods, CTA

I don’t go down to boystown much. Not because I have a problem with boystown in the slightest, just because I don’t have much of a need to go down there. Last Sunday, however, I found myself in the heart of boystown at 3349 N. Halsted, being sidetracked at Sidetrack.

Normally, I wouldn’t have even thought of going. Bars in boystown tend to be far too high maintenance for me, I like places where I can just sit quietly, listen to the music and observe. It’s kind of difficult – though not impossible – to do that at Sidetrack. Because of everything going on at the bar, it becomes incredibly easy to get sidetracked at Sidetrack.

I got to Sidetrack around 8PM. On the many television screens around the enormous bar, they were showing numbers from all kinds of musicals. Now, I haven’t been in a situation where I was bombarded with musical numbers for quite a while. But, I must admit, it was amusing to see large groups of (mostly of grown men) singing and dancing along with so many kitschy song and dance numbers.

The strangest thing for me about Sidetrack was being an invisible minority. It’s a strange sensation to be one of few women in a bar filled with men, but even stranger to be that population in bar filled with men who don’t even look twice at you because you are a woman. I can’t say I cared all that much, I’m not an attention whore and it allowed me to observe a different side of Chicago than I’m accustomed to anymore. Not to mention, I was there simply bid a fond farewell to my friend before he moved to Providence for grad school. So, I guess the point is that for a girl like me, it’s actually pretty easy not to be sidetracked at Sidetrack.

Posted by: Conci N.

Technorati Tags: Chicago, IL, Boystown, Chicago Nightlife, Sidetrack

Clever designs always catch my eye. No matter what product or company it’s for, I take a second look. It makes me a little more curious than I’d normally be (yes, good marketing materials work on me, go figure!), so when I saw a witty, brightly-colored brochure for a popular Chicago spa, Nail Bar , I snatched it up to further investigate. From the names that describe their various services, including manicures, pedicures, and waxing to the tongue-in-cheek humor in acknowledging the importance of indulging and pampering *you* every once in awhile, its goal was simple: fun.

With three locations in the city, two in Lakeview, one in Lincoln Park, and one in the suburb of Evanston, it’s certainly easy to find a spot close to public transportation. I decided to make an appointment for a bikini wax. This was my first time and, while I reassured myself it was for research purposes, I still felt it could be fun. When I looked through the brochure it was difficult to choose between the “Brigitte Bardot” – a simple bikini wax and the “Pamela Anderson” – a bikini wax including fun shapes. Images of the Lucky Charms® variety, the clovers, diamonds and stars specifically, danced through my head and it was obvious that I had to choose the wax service associated with the current reigning queen of the blonde bombshells.

I arrived, nervous at first, but my technician had a sunny personality, which instantly put me at ease. Polite, respectful and caring, she had me confirm what I specifically wanted and then got to work. The process was quick and efficient, the pain brief and non-lasting. Before I knew it, I was outside, enjoying a perfect-weather day and a new aerodynamic feature, my addiction to Nail Bar complete.

Michelle A. Patterson

Technorati Tags: Bikini wax, Lakeview, Lincoln Park, Chicago Spas