|
Midas
Category:
Auto Parts
1505 Irving Park Rd
Hanover Park, Illinois 60133
(630) 830-0500
I once visited this Midas auto repair shop. My brakes had gone past the point where they were squeaking to the point where they were shaking the entire car every time I tried to stop. Time to get...
I once visited this Midas auto repair shop. My brakes had gone past the point where they were squeaking to the point where they were shaking the entire car every time I tried to stop. Time to get new brakes, my brain figured. I thought I would visit the place just around the corner from my house. Why not support the local businesses, I figured.
Never again will I go to this particular Midas store and I urge you to avoid it as well. Their prices? Insanely high. Their service? Questionable at best, negligent at the least.
I sat watching the lousy television in the cramped customer waiting area for what felt like four years. I sometimes need to pinch myself to make sure I am not still there. They gave me no updates. No explanation. When it was nearly closing time they finally told me that they were one set of brakes short and needed to order a new one. Could I drop the car off again during the week?
Um...hello? If I could do that, wouldn't I have already done that? I managed to work it out, pay through the nose, and still end up with a car whose brakes never felt right again.
Lousy service, lousy prices, lousy people, lousy customer service.
Hide
|
|
Living in Chicago there is a wide variety of media to choose from. We have a minimum of three major newspapers, possibly more. Each area you live in has a newspaper that covers things in that neck...
Living in Chicago there is a wide variety of media to choose from. We have a minimum of three major newspapers, possibly more. Each area you live in has a newspaper that covers things in that neck of your particular woods.
Still, there is one weekly, alternative newspaper that is the biggest name in media in this town and that is the Chicago Reader. It's huge and I mean that literally. The paper comes every Thursday and seems as thick as a neighborhood phone book.
I love the weekly alternative papers. I used to live in St. Louis and was a huge fan of the Riverfront Times. Not only beause the weeklies tend to have a liberal bent that appeals to me, but because it is a weekly, the stories tend to be in-depth. That is true with the Reader as well.
What really makes the Reader the newspaper of choice is the extensive listing of what is going on around town. Every bar, every club is represented. If you can't figure out something to do over the weekend after studying the Reader you must not be trying hard enough.
It's a classic, it's great. Now, if they would just let me write for them!
Hide
|
|
NewCity
Category:
Uncategorized
2703 Halsted Street
Chicago, Illinois 60601
(773) 935-4200
Back when I was biding my time in the dark trenches of working retail, there were two weekly alternative papers that would show up at the music store where I worked. The first was the classic...
Back when I was biding my time in the dark trenches of working retail, there were two weekly alternative papers that would show up at the music store where I worked. The first was the classic Chicago Reader. The second was this new start-up called NewCity.
The Chicago Reader is a classic, as I have stated. Nothing can quite compare with that newspaper when it comes to in-depth stories and great coverage of what is going on in the city. However, NewCity always impressed me. Not only was it smaller and easier to read, I liked the articles and writing. I also liked the comics you could find in there because it was the only place I could find the Chris Ware classic comic strips.
NewCity has a website and they have coverage in other cities. Still, Chicago was first and still the best. I still like to have an actual newspaper in my hands, so that probably means I am old and old-fashioned, but if you are an online type, check out www.newcitychicago.com. You might have to hunt to find a print version of this newspaper, but it's worth seeking out.
Hide
|
|
And this would be one of those times. Over the years the Old Orchard Shopping Center has gone from an outdoor mall with about three stores still in it to one of the coolest places to shop. If it...
And this would be one of those times. Over the years the Old Orchard Shopping Center has gone from an outdoor mall with about three stores still in it to one of the coolest places to shop. If it happens to be sunny and warm out, all the better. This Barnes and Noble is a great place to go in and hang out for a while.
I have never been disappointed here. Whether I was looking for horror, mystery, suspsense, drama or business books, I have always found something interesting and something I wanted. I could spend almost an entire day in this place and not feel like I wasted my time.
Their selection of music is decent, although I have found better-stocked book/music stores in the Chicago area.
You can also enjoy some coffee and a scone or something like that if that's your interest. Me, I just love books and outside of a library, this is one of the best places I have found to spend a little quality time with them.
Hide
|
|
Although I do lament the seeming demise of the old-fashioned neighborhood bookstore, sometimes the big chains do manage to get things right. In my opinion, this store in Deerfield is one of those...
Although I do lament the seeming demise of the old-fashioned neighborhood bookstore, sometimes the big chains do manage to get things right. In my opinion, this store in Deerfield is one of those times.
I love to read. I also love to write, which is why I am on here all of the time writing about stuff. So when my folks came home one day raving about this giant bookstore in Deerfield, I just had to check it out. I was blown away and I continue to be impressed.
At times this one can get pretty crowded, particularly during the holidays. It is also a monsterous drive from Edison Park to this place, but I have always found it a worthwhile trip. They have a huge selection, the staff has always been helpful to me even when it was packed. A while back they added the music section and I have always found their selection of music quite interesting and to my taste.
The entire place has a pretty classy atmosphere. Even their magazine selection is impressive.
Over the years the Borders bookstores have sprouted like weeds or Starbucks and I visit other ones for convenience sake. Still, I always remember my first Borders and enjoy visiting when I can.
Hide
|
|
This is the food store where I spent my youth, usually hiding underneath the shopping cart while my mom did the weekly shopping. It's still my favorite Jewel-Osco Food store in the entire...
This is the food store where I spent my youth, usually hiding underneath the shopping cart while my mom did the weekly shopping. It's still my favorite Jewel-Osco Food store in the entire Chicagoland area.
They have remodeled this place over the years. The Jewel of my youth is long gone. However, I have to say the improvements and remodellig have helped this place.
The produce section looks classy. The people behind the counter at the deli are warm and friendly and generally do a good job of slicing your meat. The selection of fruit, vegetables and fresh produce is smaller than some superstores but still quite excellent. In fact, the general selection of food at this store is excellent. There may be bigger Jewel food stores, but none are quite as nice as this one.
My only complaint is that I wish they would carry things like Rice Milk again. They were carrying it for a while, but then stopped. As a lactose intolerant person this would be much better.
Hide
|
|
I remember when I was living in St. Louis I had a friend, also named Bryan, who spent time in Chicago for a business trip. When he came back to St. Louis he said he had a gift for me. I was a bit...
I remember when I was living in St. Louis I had a friend, also named Bryan, who spent time in Chicago for a business trip. When he came back to St. Louis he said he had a gift for me. I was a bit homesick at the time and I was excited to hear it. When I got there, he had some Gino's East pizza for me and it was fantastic. To be able to warm up the deep dish pizza in my microwave and enjoy the cheesy, crusty goodness while being three hundred miles away from Chicago put me right back on the city of my youth.
I have since moved back to Chicago and, after that, out into the suburbs. When I worked at the worst company in the world to work for, Aon Consulting, the building was right next door to this Gino's East. You could not find a better place for a pizza.
Gino's is classic Chicago Style pizza. Thick, heart-clogging, loaded with cheese and delicious. It's the way pizza should be made. It's the kind of pizze that if you bite it wrong the entire covering of cheese will come down and burn your chin. Great food should come with a slight risk.
This Gino's is as good as the one downtown, so you suburbanites need not despair and still get your deep dish pie.
Hide
|
|
Supercuts
Category:
Beauty Salons
1014 S Barrington Rd
Streamwood, Illinois 60107
(630) 289-7977
I have only been to this particular Supercuts once, but I have to say it was enough of a pleasant experience that I would recommend it and go back again. Of course a lot of people have problems...
I have only been to this particular Supercuts once, but I have to say it was enough of a pleasant experience that I would recommend it and go back again. Of course a lot of people have problems with these chain places but my criteria for a good haircut is probably not as extensive as some people.
Here is what I want. I want my hair short, off of my ears and off my collar. I want it combed or brushed back and a natural part on my left side. Don't spray it, don't gell it, just cut it and comb it and leave me alone. I don't want feathers or spikes.
Also, don't talk to me a lot about your family and the weather and don't treat me like cattle. That's all I ask. I hate the chit-chat. I don't talk to people I don't know very easily and I have nothing to talk to you about. Cocentrate on cutting my hair and making it even.
So, I went to this particular Supercuts on a cold, early spring day. It ws raining a cold, harsh rain. The people inside looked bored, but the place was empty. The very attractive young brunette who cut my hair, took me right away and cut my hair. She did a fine job. That's all I ask.
Hide
|
|
I have to be careful when I walk into this place. Whenver I want to stop by and visit the Gluten Free Market, just around the corner from this pet store, I have to prepare myself mentally. Why? ...
I have to be careful when I walk into this place. Whenver I want to stop by and visit the Gluten Free Market, just around the corner from this pet store, I have to prepare myself mentally. Why? Because I am an animal lover, particularly of dogs, and walking into this place breaks my heart. I want to take home each and every dog I see in this place.
This place is great if you are in the market for a puppy. They have them right on display and give you plenty of opportunity to pet and play with them. The staff seems knowledgable and can give you suggestions and advice. They have a huge selection of leashes, food, and accessories as well.
This place is also a good place to go if you want to buy something like a rabbit, kitten, chinchilla, guinea pig, etc. They have all of the accessories you would need for that as well. They even have birds, some of them very large, expensive and talkative.
They supposedly specialize in dogs called "designer" dogs. Things like schnoodles which are part schnauzer and part poodle. Interesting, back when I was a kid, we called those dogs "mutts." Now, you call them "designer" and you can sell them for twice as much. I should have called my boyhood dog a "springlab" or "spantriever" and I could have been ahead of the curve.
Oh well, live and learn.
Hide
|
|
The Burpee museum in Rockford has recently unveiled the kind of thing you would normally expect to see only in a place like Chicago or New York. Namely, they have a dinosaur skeleton. Jane is a...
The Burpee museum in Rockford has recently unveiled the kind of thing you would normally expect to see only in a place like Chicago or New York. Namely, they have a dinosaur skeleton. Jane is a juvenile Tyranasaurus Rex, to be exact. Apparently she was about 11 years old when she died.
The Burpee museum is a great place to go, and caters very much towards families and kids. A lot of people try to criticize Rockford. I had someone write to me and try to explain that they used to live in Evanston Illinois, so obviously Rockford was much too boring for them. My response to that is, you aren't trying hard enough. Personally, I never found Evanston to be all that great, but have always found plenty to do and love in Rockford.
Rockford may be a small to medium-sized city compared to neighboring Chicago, but it has a lot to offer. I would start with this museum right here. Plenty to see and do and keep you and the family occupied for most of the day. It's classy, it's something you would find in a world-class city and it's great entertainment for a great price.
Check it out!
Hide
|