the reality tunnel

I finally realized that I needed business cards for my reporting at Medill, but I didn’t want to shell out dozens of dollars for hundreds of cards that I probably wouldn’t use.  I wanted to pay a few dollars for a few dozen cards and have the option of printing more. So, I created my [...]

Googled: The End of the World As We Know Itby Ken Auletta I had to read Googled: The End of the World As We Know It for one of my classes. The book frequently explains how Google’s AdWords and AdSense programs changed the way that media advertising works. To understand a little better how these [...]

This is what I use and this is what I want. And its a work in progress. OS Ubuntu Studio 9.10 Windows 7 (Mostly just to run Adobe stuff now) Hacking Eclipse + PyDev + EGit GeoDjango + PostGIS gvim – For the times when Eclipse is to heavy, particularly when hacking on my netbook. [...]

Someone, presumably who knows who I am because of Defiance, Ohio asked me what I thought a good strategy to stay informed and conscious about what’s happening in the world without being inundated with biased or incorrect information. This question was strangely aligned with things I had been thinking about and speakers and readings in [...]

The first day of class isn’t usually in May, the average age of students isn’t 46 and class doesn’t usually involve a personal call for feedback from the mayor. But this was the case for 175 Chicagoans who were the first to begin the six-month Chicago Career Tech program Monday. “What can we do for [...]

This was on a scrap of paper on my wall for months.  It was part of an attempt at new songwriting processes.  I’m not sure whether it worked or not.  The passage still describes Chicago, even if the characters have changed a bit. “A commonly observed phenomenon: during the early evening hour, trains, crowded, predominantly [...]

I went to see the musical Billy Elliot with Chiara, Florence and Oona.  It was really awesome and I was surprised how some sections made this really powerful connection between state oppression of the Thatcher government against miners and internalized gender oppression within the mining communities.  I was really stoked when I overheard a young [...]

Chiara said she was frustrated after hearing a “public intellectual” speak to her class last night.  While some of his ideas were interesting, she said, there was no analysis of how privilege allowed him to have the life and work that he does.   He also didn’t seem to have any vision for a future where [...]

Supporters of a proposed 49th ward rental improvement fund, who say it would improve rental stock and preserve its affordability, may be one step closer to their goal after Alderman Joe Moore introduced an ordinance at Wednesday’s City Council meeting.

Backed by scores of city residents, Chicago aldermen introduced an ordinance at Wednesday’s City Council meeting that would allocate 20 percent of the city’s TIF funds to affordable housing. The proposed ordinance could be a boon to Chicago’s Northeast side, which has been hard hit by foreclosures. Rogers Park saw 401 foreclosure filings in 2009, [...]