I liked to call my house the last affordable house on the last affordable block of Lincoln Square. When we moved in eighteen years ago the neighborhood was turning over from old German and Greek families to a new wave of creatives like my architect wife and I. Thirty somethings looking to settle down in a walkable neighborhood near an L stop, a library, and a city park with an indoor pool. Craft breweries cropped up in the defunct light manufacturing buildings nearby, and the creatives plied the streets on Dutch cargo bikes, earning us the saying that Lincoln Square was nothing but beer, babies, and bikes.
It was true! Our Mayberry in the city felt cozy and insular, with a light progressive bent. Yimbys for affordable housing, food pantries, and regular Obama voters, but nothing really radical, it seemed. My son and hundreds of other kids walked to their elementary school, and we drank beer with our friends as we cheered on their little league teams. We were blessed with Michelin starred restaurants and taco joints on the same block.
Before they moved away, the used car dealer on my street used to give balloons to neighborhood kids. Mr. Lee at my corner liquor store accepted packages for me when I wasn’t around. Figo the dry cleaner, Chris my grocer, Timmy at Rockwell’s. The coffee shop girl I’ve been saying hello to for twenty years. My old neighbor Steve with the guitar repair shop. Frank, the vaguely sexist old Italian guy who owned four houses across the alley and Mr. Padilla the landscaper who had a late night party in his backyard with mariachi singers so beautiful, I opened my windows near midnight so I could listen.
Although I didn’t expect it when I moved here, my neighborhood became my respite. Yes, Chicago has its architecture, improv comedy, and Italian beef. But for me there’s Figo, Chris, Timmy, Steve, Frank, and Mr. Padilla. Did you know that Gunther, one of the brothers who ran Chicago Brauhaus, which is closed now, swam across the Elbe River in 1961, evading Soviet bullets, to get here? So he could open a place with an oompa band and schnitzel? One guy from Greece, another from Turkey, one from Mexico, one from Italy, one from Iowa, another from who-cares-where because they’re here now, building a community, our neighborhood, our place where we show our love for one another by building, giving, caring.
But then it turns out there’s people who hate us. Hate us for sharing, for giving, and caring. They want to break us apart, pull out the seams that make our community, insisting that we’re different. Six blocks north they took the lady from the TV station. Seven blocks west they grabbed two guys and tear gassed the neighbors. They did it again yesterday eight blocks northwest. Ten blocks east they tried to grab neighbors.
The men – and it’s always men – come in military fatigues, point their guns at us and sometimes threaten to kill us. US! Fellow Americans! My neighbors! My friends! Many of my son’s classmates are terrified to leave school. Because the government is here to violently kidnap their family and take them away. Regardless of their rights, regardless of due process.
Last night, Halloween, in Albany Park, a largely immigrant neighborhood next to mine, corner after corner was manned by parents in Halloween costumes on the look out. Not watching for criminals. Watching for the government. They were armed with nothing but whistles and bowls of candy.
In law, there’s a concept called “a taking”, where government can’t make a change in law or policy that results in the seizure of physical property or the elimination of a legal right. While I still may have my home and property, my community and sense of safety has been taken by government.
Our respite is gone. Oh God, I hope not forever.
Some other things I thought about this month…
The Ultimate Slop-Bowl Ranking – If you work a white collar job, you’ve eaten at one of these places. This utterly perfect name for what it is has only confirmed for me that I need to bring my own lunch to work more often.
When Kittens Came to My Prison, I Had Not Petted One in 15 Years – This story forces one to ask a lot more questions than we’re typically comfortable with.
Your Wealthiest Friend Has a Private Concierge – We live in a world now where experiences count more than goods.
Serbian Airlines Reviews – What you’d expect, but incredibly vehement! A sample: “The bathrooms on the flight was disgusting. The food less than desiarable, and the plane outdated and old. I will never book with AirSerbia ever again: they are seriously the worst airline in existence.”
Bringing a Survey to a Gun Fight – Elected officials can conduct polls to decide policies or they can develop their own ideas and develop moral authority.
How 3 Korean Chefs Make 10,000 Office Workers’ Lunch Boxes Every Week – There’s a lot of handwringing in the US over making fresh food for lunches, especially in schools. South Korea just does it.
This Hidden Hillside Bakery Crafts Legendary Loaves – Fifteen minutes of people doing their craft in an incredible setting. Prepare to relax.
Taco Bell 50k Marathon – The number of truly bizarre races out there amazes me.
A Twitch streamer gave birth live, with Twitch’s CEO in the chat – Remember lonelygirl15? This is where we’re at now.
Leeks Braised in White Wine and Cream – Holy wow. This was easy and unforgettable. Going on heavy rotation in my household this winter. Full recipe here.
Clusivity – Some languages include a verb tense that allows you to indicate whether the action was by someone *in* the group or *outside* the group. Western languages all lack this feature, which has some significant implications, namely, that a speaker can easily illustrate whether a subject is acceptable or not. Specifically: The individuality of Western culture is built into its languages.
One Battle After Another – I’ve spent a lot of time thinking about this movie since I saw it a couple weeks ago. The trailer does not do it justice, the acting is incredible, and it does not fit the typical movie paradigm. I think you have to approach it as an idea director Paul Thomas Anderson is trying to convey, not as a plot or story to be told.
The Age of Innocence – The Martin Scorsese directed Edith Wharton novel adaptation, starring a young Daniel Day-Lewis, Michelle Pfeiffer, and Winona Ryder with a twist ending you don’t see coming. Also see Nerdwriter’s discussion on why the movie is so great.
Who Goes Nazi? – First published in August 1941, this made the rounds again last January. I’ve been thinking about it more lately.
Yugoslav Happy Meal – Most of the Sora-enabled videos are slop, but then there’s this. “I got Tito!”
On Factory Tours – There’s a lot fewer of these than there used to be (I remember a glorious fifth grade trip to Jay’s potato chip factory) and I’ve tried to take my son on a few. They’re always memorable. I wish there were more.
The Suburban Case For Transit Reform – A fascinating argument that the inner suburbs have much more to gain from increased transit than cities do. So why do they continue to resist?