Chicago hope

Chicago hope

From her stoop in the center of a sophisticated city, my niece Erin has carved out a delightful little corner of Mayberry. She and her neighborhood gang enjoy a living-room-forts, frontyard-warter-balloon-fight, Saturday-sleepover, come-home-when-the-streetlights-turn-on kind of childhood, while all around them Chicago hums. They each have the necessary kind of scheduled activities that keep their parents [...]

A random act of Christkindl

A random act of Christkindl

Last weekend, two of my favorite adventure companions and I jumped on the El and headed to Chicago's famous Christkindlmarket. Unfortunately, we preceded our trip to an outdoor market full of luscious strudel, craft cheeses and fat pretzels with breakfast at Chicago's equally famous Anne Sathers, home of the ridiculously rich cinnamon bun. Himmelherrgott! We [...]