The
Chicago Grid
How every Chicagoan can visit 12 museums for free Parade games rob Cause of proper place in cultural coliseum
Coalition of the Breathing Working to pass the Clean Power Ordinance
Live lightsaber battles, the Batmobile, $ Iron Man & more at C2E2
Save money—start a
Costco club
80’s Prom Saturday, Night May 8 Chicago Underground presents
$7
gets you in + endless keg cup
for first 50 guests
9:30 p.m.-3 a.m.
1925 N. Milwaukee off the Western/O’Hare blue line stop
$5 endless keg after 50 guests $1 Jungle Juice $3 belinis $1 PBR cans
Queen & King drink free DJ Action/Adventure & DJ Adapt w/ special guest host
JaJa Galliano Visit http://ow.ly/1CU5a to confirm your attendance on Facebook.
(back entrance)
The
Chicago Grid Mission Statement
The Grid is a monthly Chicago newsmagazine, which sifts through local politics, news, art & entertainment from the millennial perspective in order to mobilize a conscious, DIY citizenry. The Grid redefines our priorities by investigating and spotlighting human rights issues, threats to liberty, digital memes and local culture.
On the Cover
Twelve museums for free 10 Things Parade games rob Cause From the Every Chicagoan Should Know ......... 8 Coliseum .......................................... 3 C2E2 ................................................ 4 Costco clubs .................................... 9
Editorial Policy
The Chicago Grid reserves the right to publish any editorial content and advertisements provided they don’t discriminate on the basis of sex, race, creed, religion, color, physical or mental disabilities, or sexual orientation. Views expressed on the Editorial page reflect the opinions of The Grid editorial board. The Grid encourages and prints Letters to the Editor. Letters should be sent by e-mail to editor@thechicagogrid.com and should not exceed 400 words. Letters may be edited for grammar, style, length and libel, but not for opinion. Authors may request their names be withheld from being published, but must sign their full names when submitting letters. All content and images © 2010 The Chicago Grid, used with permission or used under the Fair Use Act.
Staff
Editor & Publisher Kristina Zaremba kristina@thechicagogrid.com Public Affairs Editor John Campos john@thechicagogrid.com Contributor Philip Hayek Contributor Terence Byrsa Layout & Design Kristina Zaremba
Photo courtesy Open Youth Networks
Coalition of the Breathing
The Crawford Generating Station (3501 S. Pulaski) is one of two coal-burning power plants in the city that Ald. Joe Moore (49th Ward) and others want to regulate with the Clean Power Ordinance. See “Clean air, coal and the city,” p. 6.
Table of Contents Arts & Culture
Commentary
Comic expo features anime, scifi, video From the Coliseum by Terence Byrsa ........ 5 games & visual art by Philip Hayek ........ 4
Features Clean air, coal and the city by John Campos ................................................................. 6 10 Things Every Chicagoan Should Know .................................................................... 8
DIY DIY Blurb Save money with Costco clubs ................................................................. ... 9 Need to Know directory Instructions for your indie life ................................................ 9
e-dentity World Wide Grid Guide Links to resolve your e-dentity crisis ....................................... 11 #FollowAprilMay People The Grid recommends you follow on Twitter ........................ 11 For instant Gridification, visit thechicagogrid.com. The Chicago Grid April 26, 2010
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Arts & Culture C2E2: Comic expo features anime, scifi, video games & visual art
By Philip Hayek Contributor BAM! POW! KICK! PUNCH! The world of comic books has come a long way, Chicago, and the weekend of April 16-18, our city was host of the Chicago Comic and Entertainment Expo, the C2E2, at McCormick Place. This event was launched in response to the faith, desire and requests from those die-hard comic fans who made the New York Comic Con such a famous success. Yes, it’s the New York Comic Con guys, but this is Chicago, and the C2E2 kicked ass…Chicago-style. Let me begin by saying to anyone reading this who may find themselves in the city between April 8-10, 2011—check out the C2E2. That’s right, it’s already scheduled for a comeback, same Chitime, same Chi-location. Comic book fans, anime fans, memorabilia collectors and movie buffs alike all found themselves at home and among friends. There were previews from Marvel and DC; demos of new Nintendo DS games; memorabilia from the “Iron Man” movie; the Batmobile from the ‘60s TV show, right next to the Delorean from “Back to the Future.” There were artists displaying their work (some taking commissions), a tower of novelty T-shirts and totally badass Samurai swords for sale. Seemingly-endless expert panels and performances filled all three days of the expo. On Sunday, they auctioned off various props from the “Iron Man” film. Plenty of sneak peeks and meet and greets could satisfy the most ravenous comic book enthusiast. Chicago’s premier non-canon “Star Wars” lightsaber team, the Windy City Jedi, was there doing exhibitions. Laugh or cringe at the sight of grown men in capes playing with plastic sticks, it is damn entertaining. Speaking of things that confuse, I for one could not control my reaction when approaching the booth of the man who has drawn every Playboy cartoon since 1963. With all due respect to Mr. Doug Sneyd, I will say that his display was sufficiently creepy: a crotchety 80-year-old man signing his name to pornographic cartoons for adoring middle-aged men. For a fresh look at the Chicago comic scene, I suggest taking a look at the Nerd City guys at nerdcityonline.com. Their video blog is worth a peek and it’s sponsored by Chicago Comics, worth an-
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The Chicago Grid April 26, 2010
Photos and video by Philip Hayek
Members of the Windy City Jedi duel with lightsabers. CLICK to see the Grid-original video of them dueling. other peek at chicagocomics.com, or just stop by 3244 N. Clark St. And certainly check out the 2011 Chicago Comic and Entertainment Expo at McCormick Place to satiate all of your pop culture addictions.
Artist’s Agenda Writer’s Reading Group Attend monthly writers readings from 7-8:30 p.m. on the fourth Monday of each month at the Argo Tea Cafe at Armitage and Sheffield. Read your work or just come and listen. Contact Joe at jacaesar@gmail.com with questions. Submit your Artist’s Agenda evetns and classes to editor@thechicagogrid.com by the Friday before publication.
Commentary From the Coliseum By Terence Byrsa Contributor You can’t enjoy the full effects of the Parade unless you’re lit! I heard a woman telling her friends this as I sat in a lounge chair near Broadway and Halsted before the Pride Parade began in 2008. For me, this summarizes the issue of the Parade, specifically, and of being homosexual in Chicago in the 21st Century, in general. I’ve attended the last three Parades and each time it’s like I’ve been transported to some bizarre dimension where a Notre Dame football tailgater has met Caligula. Bikini-clad boytoys gyrating on Red Eyesponsored floats and sunglassy-eyed onlookers swaggering up and down the sidewalks have overshadowed this alleged day of remembrance. The ancient Romans held 150 days worth of “games” in the Coliseum to honor emperors after they died. These events degenerated into a saturation bombing of blood and gluttony. So with us, we risk losing the deeper truth of the day – from Stonewall to the imprisonment of Oscar Wilde to the murder of Matthew Shepard, and everything that has come before and since – we might just be letting The Cause
Academic freedom forums at U of C The University of Chicago will hold an Academic Freedom Symposium on May 6-8 in the Laird Bell Law Quadrangle, 1111 E. 60th St. The conference features discussions with The New York Times’ Stanley Fish, U. of Chicago president Robert Zimmer, The Chicago Reader’s Mike Dumke, The Chicago Grid’s editor-in-chief Kristina Zaremba and more. E-mail jbushinsky@uchicago.edu for more information.
Photos from Creative Commons
fall into the gutter as the party prances by. The human rights issues that the Parade is supposed to be upholding has got to be incarnated by more than just a lone man walking in the procession with a sign reading “I’m a victim of a hate crime” and one couple sitting in the back of a convertible holding a “Just Married” sign. I admire the courageous who march in this way; I’ve been one of the inactive actors on the cultural stage but see them as my inspiration. This is where the refocus needs to be. We all would be better served and serve better by taking up a little more of the mantle of The Cause. The LGBTQ community has been told by the “straight” culture that we are “crooked” (that’s the opposite of straight,
Corrections
Regarding the March 22, 2010 DIY item “Grow Your Own,” a reader notes that the AeroGarden is not hydroponic, but actually aeroponic. Hydroponics require large quantities of liquid water continuously pumped across the root system through an elaborate plumbing setup; whereas aeroponics utilize smaller amounts of water misted onto the plants’ roots. The photo of former President Bill Clinton with the story “AIDS center hosts Clinton” on page 6 of the March 22, 2010 issue was miscredited. It was taken by the Sun-Times News Group.
by the way). We are human beings living on this planet like everyone else. The Cause of rights and our happiness and freedom depend on us stepping forward, off the parade route, living as full members of our respective cities, states and nations with our gifts and talents. If not, we risk dying in the sand of the Coliseum, daggers plunged deep into us; or worse, we neglect our duty to raise our communities out of the darkness of bigotry and fiddle while Rome burns. In the words of Alfred Douglas (Wilde’s companion “Bosie”), We are Nature’s stepsons. Stepchildren we may be, but we are rightful heirs along with everyone else. It’s time we claim our status by stepping up and being seen and heard in the stadium of humanity.
Write a Letter to the Editor E-mail editor@thechicagogrid.com Maximum: 500 words May be edited for style or length, but never for content. The Chicago Grid April 26, 2010
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Photo from Creative Commons
The Clean Power Ordinance seeks to further regulate the Fisk coal-burning power plant, 1111 W. Cermak Road, built in 1903.
Coal, clean air and the city g Aldermen and organizations cooperate to pass Clean Power Ordinance
By John Campos Public Affairs Editor A beautiful warm Chicago day on North Avenue beach, your day is marked by the bliss cast over you; warm sunrays embrace your skin. The sun begins to set; it reveals the city’s doings of the day. A faint brown cloud stretches across the sky like a band. In an unprecedented move to regulate coal power plants within our city’s jurisdiction, Alderman Joe Moore of the 49th ward along with 9 alderman co-sponsors and a coalition of 36 environmental organizations, ranging from Loyola University's Student Environmental Alliance to Topless America, a Chicago-based environmental documentary organization, introduced the Clean Power Ordinance at City Hall on April 13. The Clean Power Ordinance targets
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The Chicago Grid April 26, 2010
the Fisk and Crawford coal power plants located in the city’s Pilsen and Little Village neighborhoods. The ordinance will require both plants, which are owned by Midwest Generation—a subsidiary that sells their energy back to ComEd’s parent company, Exelon—to reduce their emissions of particulate matter and carbon dioxide (CO2) using demonstrated available technology. Midwest Generation technically meets federal clean-air standards under the grandfather clause of the Federal Clean Air Act of 1977 that exempts coal-burning plants built before 1977 (Fisk built in1903 and Crawford built in 1924) from using the best pollution-control technology. The ordinance would nullify that act and require the plants to cut there emissions by 90 percent in four years and upgrade to such technologies. While the ordinance wouldn't
close the plants, it would make it more profitable for them to shut down than to comply with the city’s mandate. “When this legislation passes, Chicago will do what no other large city in America has the guts to do—clean up a dirty power plant within its jurisdiction and protect the health and welfare of its residents,” sponsor Ald. Moore said at the introduction of the ordinance on April 13. The owner of the Fisk and Crawford power plants would have one and two years respectively, to phase in required pollution controls for particulate matter and up to three and four years, respectively to reduce CO2 emissions. This would give adequate time for adaptation, should the mandated improvements require the reduction, retraining or reassignment of personnel. The See “Clean Power,” p. 7
specifics of the ordinance mainly focus on the reduction of PM2.5 (particulate matter 2.5), a very fine particle currently not regulated by either state or federal agencies, but PM2.5 is so fine that once breathed in it can enter the bloodstream. “No regulation, neither Federal nor the newly passed state legislation address the kinds of emissions that doctors and scientists say pose the most serious threat to the health of Chicago’s residents,” Ald. Moore said. Fisk and Crawford Coal plants have a higher population density surrounding them than any other plants in the United States, with Crawford surrounded by 29,009 people and Fisk bby 47,050 within a mileradius, the majority of which (83 percent) are Mexican immigrant communities that suffer from the worst health conditions. Chicago holds the second highest asthma rate in the country (318,009 adults and 132,000 children reported in Cook County in 2009) and the Chicago asthma hospitalization rate is nearly double the national average. Actual asthma rates may be far higher among the two million children who reside within a 30-mile radius of Fisk and Crawford, however, communities that are economically marginalized are less likely to have the financial resources to seek medical attention for conditions directly connected to the emissions given off by the plants. In 2001, a study conducted by researchers from the Harvard School of Public Health reported that each year the emissions from the Fisk and Crawford plants were responsible for up to an additional 41 deaths, 500 emergency room visits and 2,800 asthma attacks. The health effects from exposure to air pollutants also have social and financial costs through demands on the health care system and lost days of work and school. “Fisk and Crawford are the main source of particulate matter and are compromising the immediate health of all Chicago…why should we wait patiently [for compliance] when our residents are becoming patients?”asks Brian Urbaszewski, director of Environmental Health Programs of the Respiratory Health Association of Metropolitan Chicago. The health risk is not only isolated to the two communities, but pose a risk to all Chicagoans as emissions spread throughout our windy city. “[You] can smell the pollutants, I can smell them on a hot summer day sitting in my back yard,” said Ald. Sandi Jackson (7th ward), a co-sponsor of the ordinance. Though these plants may be out of sight for the majority of Chicago residents, their effect on everyone’s health is real and damaging. Professor Emeritus Ramesh Srivastava of Cloud Microphysics and Dynamics, Radar Meteorology at the Uni-
versity of Chicago confirms that fumes from the west side travel to other neighborhoods: “Exhaust that comes out these stacks is hot. First, it will rise in the atmosphere, then the exhaust will be carried by the wind current in the sky (either in a down or up current) while at the same time losing velocity and landing on surrounding areas.” Although we can’t currently measure how many or how
Photo by: Kat Wallace
Ald. Moore leads an April 13 press conference at City Hall on the Clean Power Ordinance. CLICK for Topless America’s video on coal mining in West Virginia.
“
It may be out of sight and out of mind, but there are no walls between—air does not have boundaries between wards. —Parson Brown, Topless America founder
“
“Clean Power” from p. 6
far particles are drifting from one community to another within our city, we must take note that nation states are addressing these issue between themselves. Dialogues are being had in Europe on Long-Range Transboundary Air Pollution. According to a 2008 Federal EPA report, Chicago averages 116 parts-per-billion, which is a higher rate of pollution than San Diego and Los Angeles. In the last three years, the coal plants produced a combined 45,000 tons of air pollution, which is equivalent to 872,042 cars and exceeded regulation mandates. Midwest Generation claims it operates within the nation’s toughest state regulatory program for coal-fired power plants, but because of the grandfather clause in the 1977 Clean Air Act, these exceedances are legal and routine. “The [government] agencies have always allowed for those exceedances because it’s impossible to run a coal plant without them,” Midwest Generation spokesperson
Charley Parnell said in a July 28, 2009 Reader blog post by Mick Dumke. If greenhouse gas emissions trends continue, they could lead Chicago to experience hotter summers, more regular heat waves consisting of deadly temperatures, worse air and water quality, lower lake levels and less frequent, but heavier rains causing flash flooding and potential property damage and loss of life. Midwest Generation is adamant that given the existing state and federal regulations protecting public health and the environment an additional layer of regulation in Chicago is unnecessary and overreaching. Its only real impact, it claims, will be to risk the shutdown of these plants, and as a result, reliability of the electric grid and the loss of 200 good union jobs. This ordinance will help the city achieve the goals of Mayor Daley’s 2008 Chicago Climate Action Plan (CCAP), which lays out a plan to cut greenhouse emission by 13 percent by 2020. The CCAP also addresses the immediate need to decrease emissions from the two coal plants. According to the 2008 CCAP, Crawford and Fisk produced 21 percent of the electricity consumed in Chicago, but their emissions were equivalent to 35 percent of the CO2 emissions from Chicago’s electricity consumption. These two plants make up approximately 1 percent of the electricity generated in the regional power pool. The link between these two generation facilities and Chicago’s greenhouse gas emissions inventory is complicated by the fact that the electricity produced is not sold to the local utility, ComEd, so even though the electricity at the plants is generated here, from a contractual perspective it’s not consumed here. Chicago has an historic opportunity in human history to be a leader among green cities by setting a precedent that local politics are good politics and that people can shape their environment and realties by taking control of their health and government. Chicago has an opportunity to end its connection with the supply and demand of deadly and pollutive Appalachia coal mining tactics by passing the Clean Power Ordinance. Contact and lobby your alderman. Tell them you support breathing clean air, securing a clean future for all of our children and the Clean Power Ordinance. “The public should act more radically for the sake of their health,” says Parson Brown, founder of Topless America. “Governmental bodies at the state, county and federal levels have failed to regulate; therefore, the people of this city have to take it upon themselves to change their circumstances. It may be out of sight and out of mind, but there are no walls between—air does not have boundaries between wards. Out of sight, out of mind, but still in all of our lungs.” The Chicago Grid April 26, 2010
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10 Things Every Chicagoan Should Know 10: Join CAPS Since 1993, the Chicago Alternative Policing Strategy (CAPS) has combined the efforts of the police, community and city agencies to solve neighborhood crime. To join, attend beat meetings where you can serve on special-interest committees like those for domestic violence and crimes against seniors. Go online to portal.chicagopolice.org/portal/page/portal/ or call 311 to find your district, beat and community number and meeting. Go to your distict’s homepage to view the events calendar, your district’s most wanted criminals and crime alerts. 9: The Chicago Sport and Social Club (chicagosportandsocialclub.com) offers recreational sports leagues and social outings to more than 70,000 participants annually. Membership is free to receive information on sports leagues, such as bar games (darts, Euchre and pingpong), dodgeball, rock climbing, kayaking and sailing, hip-hop/jazz fitness, yoga and pilates. Upcoming events include a Kentucky Derby party at Arlington Park race track ($25-32, sold out), several Cubs and Sox games with two-hour pre-game parties ($100 each) and a Cinco de Mayo celebration at Moe’s Cantina ($1 tacos, $3 margaritas). 8: Rape Crisis Hotline Survivors of sexual assault and their significant others can call 1-888-293-2080, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week to receive free confidential assistance from volunteers staff trained in sexual assault crisis intervention. 7: Twelve Museums for Free Get free admission for up to four people at twelve of the city’s best museums at any Chicago Public Library location by checking out free Kraft Foods Great Kids Museum Passports. Adult library cardholders may check out one pass per one-week loan period. Passes are first-come, first-served. The max overdue fine for passports is $20; lost passports are $60. Get passes to the Adler Planetarium, Art Institute, Brookfield Zoo, Chicago Children’s Museum, Chicago History Museum, DuSable Museum of African-American History, Field Museum, Museum of Contemporary Art, Museum of Science and Industry, National Museum of Mexican Art, Notebaert Nature Museum and Shedd Aquarium. Most passes admit groups of four people or family members. 6: SeeClickFix (seeclickfix.com/Chicago) allows you to take a picture of a problem like pot holes or dead street lights, geo-tag it, add a comment and send it to the city officials responsible for fixing it. Sign up to get notifications when something happens. 5: The Discovery Center (discoverycenter.cc) offers adult education programs for personal enjoyment and growth all over the Chicagoland area, with a main office at 2940 N Lincoln Ave. Upcoming classes include sports such as, Beginning Horseback Riding ($149, five weeks), Golf Fundamentals ($90, five weeks) and Cardio Kayaking ($80, four weeks); small-business basics
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The Chicago Grid April 26, 2010
like Bookkeeping ($99, four weeks) and Trademarks, Patents and Copyrights ($75, May 4); job development courses like Interviewing ($61, May 13 or July 13), Bartending ($99, three weeks), and Proofreading ($109, April 25 or July 25); or dance classes from Wedding ($89, six weeks) and Bollywood ($89, six weeks) to Burlesque ($79, six weeks), Stepping ($89, six weeks) and Pole Dancing ($89, six weeks). Outings and seminars include the unique and adventurous Chicago Sex Tour ($69, May 22 or July 24), Chicago Blues Tour ($45, May 22), Lakefront Segway Tour ($46, Monday and Wednesday evenings), Networking for Kinky People ($49, May 18) and an Introduction to Domination and Bondage ($69, May 11 or July 14).
c yo
ju
ind Ch
M ti y C o littl
Instructor Deb Webb, a.k.a. Lily White Sass.
Personal development classes range from language instruction to self-hypnosis for smoking cessation, weight-loss, transcendental meditation and past-life regression. Most events and courses will repeat next season. 4: Call 311 for Non-Emergency Services, Information Call 311 instead of 911 to report a crime if the offender is gone from the scene. Call 311 to file a police report about auto theft, property damage or theft, lost property, simple assault, threatening phone calls, graffiti, abandoned vehicles, sanitation code violations, stolen or missing garbage cans and stray animals. Call 311 to find out your police district, beat number and the date, time and location of your next beat meeting, and to get your alderman’s telephone number. Also call 311 to request city services like well-being checks during extreme weather, directions, shelter for the homeless, pot hole repair, towed vehicle information and financial counseling for homeowners. Also call for information on city and neighborhood events, including parades, festivals, library programs and more. If you are unsure which city department you should direct your questions and/or concerns, 311 operators will direct you to the appropriate parties. 3: CAN TV42 Community Bulletin Board Scan the listing titles on local access TV channel CAN-CALL 42 for local news and events, dial 312-226-2255, enter a listing’s threedigit code, hang up and watch the screen for more information on that subject. 2: Finders Posters, Losers Seekers Recover and return lost pets, handheld devices, keys, wallets and purses, luggage and anything else via Chicagoland’s online lost and found exchanges— JonnyFind.com; chicago.craigslist.org/laf/; chicago.everyblock. com/lost-and--found/; on the CTA transitchicago.com/riding_cta/ lostandfound.aspx; and from O’Hare or Midway flychicago.com/ customerservices/lostandfound.shtm. 1: What’s going on today chicago.com/things_to_do/
diy
Do it yourself. Simplify life. Become independent. Empower yourself. Learn new skills. Get organized. Save time. Save money. Make money. Go green. Grow your brand. Realize y dreams. Change lives. Make a difference. Champion social justice. Think Gridically. Make no little plans. Do it yourself. Simplify life. Become independent. Empower yourself. Learn n skills. Get organized. Save time. Save money. Make money. Go green. Grow your brand. Realize your dreams. Change lives. Make a difference. Champion social justice. Think Gri cally. Make no little plans. Do it yourself. Simplify life. Become independent. Empower yourself. Learn new skills. Get organized. Save time. Save money. Make money. Go green. G our brand. Realize your dreams. Change lives. Make a difference. Champion social justice. Think Gridically. Make no little plans. Do it yourself. Simplify life. Become independent. Em yourself. Learn new skills. Get organized. Save time. Save money. Make money. Go green. Grow your brand. Realize your dreams. Change lives. Make a difference. Champion so ustice. Think Gridically. Make no little plans. Do it yourself. Simplify life. Become independent. Empower yourself. Learn new skills. Get organized. Save time. Save money. Make mo Go green. Grow your brand. Realize your dreams. Change lives. Make a difference. Champion social justice. Think Gridically. Make no little plans. Do it yourself. Simplify life. Beco dependent. Empower yourself. Learn new skills. Get organized. Save time. Save money. Make money. Go green. Grow your brand. Realize your dreams. Change lives. Make a diffe hampion social justice. Think Gridically. Make no little plans. Do it yourself. Simplify life. Become independent. Empower yourself. Learn new skills. Get organized. Save time. Save m Make money. Go green. Grow your brand. Realize your dreams. Change lives. Make a difference. Champion social justice. Think Gridically. Make no little plans. Do it yourself. Sim life. Become independent. Empower yourself. Learn new skills. Get organized. Save time. Save money. Make money. Go green. Grow your brand. Realize your dreams. Change liv Make a difference. Champion social justice. Think Gridically. Make no little plans. Do it yourself. Simplify life. Become independent. Empower yourself. Learn new skills. Get organized. ime. Save money. Make money. Go green. Grow your brand. Realize your dreams. Change lives. Make a difference. Champion social justice. Think Gridically. Make no little plans. yourself. Simplify life. Become independent. Empower yourself. Learn new skills. Get organized. Save time. Save money. Make money. Go green. Grow your brand. Realize your dre Change lives. Make a difference. Champion social justice. Think Gridically. Make no little plans. Do it yourself. Simplify life. Become independent. Empower yourself. Learn new skills. organized. Save time. Save money. Make money. Go green. Grow your brand. Realize your dreams. Change lives. Make a difference. Champion social justice. Think Gridically. Make le plans. Do it yourself. Simplify life. Become independent. Empower yourself. Learn new skills. Get organized. Save time. Save money. Make money. Go green. Grow your brand. R
Shop wholesale, save money with Costco clubs Save big on groceries, clothes and household goods when you start or join a Costco club to shop bulk with friends. Costco members shop brand-name wholesale items ranging from fresh produce and deli options to laptop computers and flatscreen TVs; from miniblinds and mattresses to cases of Mexican Coke and Cubs, Sox, Bulls and Blackhawks’ tickets; and from diapers (qt. 135-258) and razors (qt. 2652) to car tires and security systems. Buy one membership for $50, or high-volume users can invest in the
$100 card to earn two percent back (up to $500 a year), and go shopping with friends. Member must be present and pay for order in full, so arrange to break down the receipt by shopper and to split up any bulk goods you bought to share with fellow shoppers afterward. Vehicle required to transport bulk goods. Costco (2746 N. Clybourn) also has a food court, which offers churros for $1, frozen yogurt and ice cream bars for under $3 and Vienna beef hotdog and Polish sausage or pizza meals, with drink, for under $4 each.
Need to Know: Make Money Meet Business Consultants The Dept. of Business Affairs and Consumer Protection offers assistance with business start-up and licensing information, business violations and citations, permits and other resources. Call (312) 744-5506 to make an appointment. Experienced Business Mentors The Service Corps of Retired Executives (500 W. Madison St.) connects wouldbe and current business owners with more than 11,500 volunteer business counselors. Call (312) 353-7724, or visit scorechicago.org for more. Women’s Business Development Center Assists in development and marketing of emerging and existing woman-owned businesses. Services (in Spanish or English) include business assessments, loan assistance, workshops, and individualized counseling. Call (312) 853-3477 or visit wbdc.org for more.
Veterans Business Outreach The VBO Program provides business plan preparations, comprehensive feasibility analysis, entrepreneurial training and counseling, mentorship, and referrals to eligible veterans who own or want to start a small business. Call (810) 767-8387 or visit vetbizcentral.com for more.
Small Business Alliance Loans SBA makes loans up $15,000 for startups, $25,000 for existing businesses. Visit accionchicago.org/ for more. $1,000 Business Grant Get a $1,000-grant & shared workspace to jumpstart your business idea. This is a grant, not a loan—no repayment. Visit scalewell.com to submit your idea. Grow Your Business The Department of Commerce & Economic Opportunity offers businesses expansion incentives, technological support, access to capital, global marketing expertise and job training for workers. Visit www.commerce.state.il.us/dceo for more.
Photo from Creative Commons
Instructions for Your Indie Life
Employ Illinois Business Loans The State Treasurer’s Office invests millions annually in low-interest loans to large and small-business owners and child-care providers. Visit treasurer.il.gov for more. Employment agencies Visit thecityofchicago.com/employment/ for a directory of more than 40 employment agencies.
Save Money Cut Your Wireless Bill Citizen Utility Board’s Cell Phone Saver (citizensutilityboard.org/cellphonesaver) analyzes digital copies of any major provider’s cell bill to determine and recommend the most economic plan for you according to average voice, text and data usage. Free Directory Assistance Instead of paying up to $2 to call 411, try 1-800-FREE411 for residential and business listings, or 1-800-goog411 and The Chicago Grid April 26, 2010
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1-800-555TELL for business numbers. Books Cheaper Before you shell out more paper for textbooks and bestsellers browse the 30,000 free e-books (many in Kindle format) from Project Gutenberg (gutenberg.org) or the more than 25,000 free ones at ManyBooks.net. Then search I-Share (alliance of 76 Illinois libraries), visit a local book exchange (swancc.org/directory/books.html), rent books from Chegg.com, buy and sell used media through Amazon Marketplace, or download a paperless version to digital readers like Kindle ($249, amazon.com).
Green living Conserve Electricity for Chance at Raffle Prizes from CUB Individuals are eligible to win a month of free electricity or compact florescent light bulbs (CFLs). Your neighborhood, community or group will also be eligible to earn up to 10,000 CFLs. Visit cubenergysaver. com/contest to register. Ever Wish You Had a Car? Zipcars are shared sedans, station wagons, SUVs, pick-ups or minivans parked throughout the city. Members can reserve cars (from $7/hr or $68 /weekday, gas and insurance included) at Zipcar.com and drive for a free 180 miles or more per day. Must be 21. Text cta2009 to 30364
to earn $75 toward driving. For greener chauffeured trips, check out Going Green Limos’ (goinggreenlimousine. com) hybrid transport options. Be Rewarded for Saving Water Single-family and two-flat homeowners can lower their water bills by voluntarily installing a water meter. The city’s Meter Save program charges participants only for actual water used and guarantees that metered home will pay no more than yearly assessed rates for seven years. Visit metersave.org or call 311 for more information. Dispose of Hazardous Waste The Household Chemicals & Computer Recycling Facility (1150 N. North Branch on Goose Island) accepts household chemical waste on Tuesdays 7 a.m.-noon, Thursdays 2-7 p.m., and the first Saturday of each month 8 a.m.-3 p.m. Visit swancc.org/hcw/hcwcollection.html for a list of accepted items.
Human Services —FOOD Nutrition for Women, Infants & Children WIC helps pregnant women and mothers with children under the age of five eat well by providing coupons to buy nutritious foods like milk, juice, eggs, cheese, cereal, dry beans, pees and peanut butter. Also educates families about nutrition, fitness,
breastfeeding and health care. Visit the state’s Dept. of Human Services’ site (www.dhs.state.il.us/) and click on “Pregnancy & Parenting” to apply. Supplemental Nutrition Assistance (Link Card) The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, formerly Food Stamps, helps low-income people and families buy healthy food. Visit the state’s Dept. of Human Services’ site (www.dhs.state.il.us/) and click on “Food” to apply. Common Pantry Provides emergency food monthly to individuals and families within the boundaries of Diversey (south), Kedzie (west), Ravenswood (east), and Lawrence (north), who are below the poverty line. A small home delivery program brings food to seniors and disabled persons monthly. Distribution is 1-4 p.m. and 6-8 p.m. on Wednesdays at 3744 N. Damen. Visit commonpantry.org or call (773) 327-0553. —UTILITIES Apply for Free Emergency Cell Phone Low-income residents may qualify for a free cell phone with 60 pre-paid monthly minutes. Apply at safelinkwireless.com.
Know Something Others Should Too? Submit your Need to Know listings to editor@thechicagogrid.com.
Reach Millennials Advertise with The Chicago Grid Print, Web and Video spots from $20. Design services available.
E-mail info@thechicagogrid.com for rate card Isn’t it time your business started thinking Gridically? 10 •
The Chicago Grid April 26, 2010
e-dentity World Wide Grid Guide g Links to help resolve your e-dentity crisis
Local Area Connection: Chicago links Chicago.com Not to be confused with the city’s official site, this private guide to Chicago covers things from hotels and real estate to groupons and events. 21st Century plan of Chicago Local architect firm Zoka Zola presents its plan for a 21st Century redesign of the gridded city (zokazola.com/chicago_21st_ Century.html).
corporations and organizations. Similarly, OpenSecrets.org (by the Center for Responsive Politics) works to track how money in U.S. politics is spent. 9 Micro social actions that take 5 minutes or $25 Social media giant Mashable presents simple charitable actions like giving people free rice by answering trivia or making microloans through Kiva or Deki in its April 17 post (mashable. com/2010/04/17/social-good-micro-lending/).
Downtime links
Social Responsibility links Wikileaks.org and OpenSecrets.org Wikileaks is a forum for people to anonymously and securely post leaked content from the world’s leading governments,
#FollowAprilMay People The Chicago Grid recommends following on Twitter.com.
@FakeShoreDrive Funny quips about the city
Writer’s Almanac Garrison Keillor’s American Public Media column about this day in writing history. Blog or podcast available at writersalmanac.publicradio.org.
Wanted: Visual Arts Editor
@FreeChicago Things to do @FreeListChicago Things to be given away
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Manage photos & vidoes for The Grid. Create house ads & graphics. Update site & assist with layout as needed. Attend staff meetings.
@Billy Corgan of The Smashing Pumpkins @MayorDaley the real deal @ColonelTribune News and commen-
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tary from the Chicago Tribune
Collect clips for your portfolio. Become a citizen journalist. Free admission to all Grid events. Earn the title of Griditor (Warning: Gridical thinking may result).
@WindyCitizen Local news and events
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editor@thechicagogrid.com This is a non-paid position, but may qualify for internship credit.
The Chicago Grid April 26, 2010
• 11
The Chicago Grid cordially invites you to the
Michael Jackson
Memorial Pub Crawl
1958-2009
7 p.m.-Midnight
Sat., June 26
Bars & admission TBA
Registration open soon. Visit thechicagogrid.com often for updates.