Chicago tips

Grant Park Conservancy Panel 11/19 at 6:30PM

current calendar, parks

My ear to the ground South Loop informant Eve tells me that none of us should miss this terrific panel at the Spertus Institute tonight, yes, TONIGHT.

Wednesday, November 19,  6:30pm to 8:30pm

In the interest of expediency I've copied the announcement from the Grant Park Conservancy, as follows:

What would Daniel Burnham and Edward Bennett think? How far have we come and where are we going? A distinguished panel of experts will examine these questions in a discussion about the history, present and future of Grant Park along with Monroe Harbor, the Plan's formal "front door.” This program is part of a series of discussions over the next year that will focus on Grant Park and the Plan of Chicago.
 
The panel, moderated by Bob O’Neill, President of the Grant Park Conservancy and Advisory Council, includes Geoffrey Baer, WTTW, Gordon Gill, AIA, Adrian Smith + Gordon Gill Architecture, Linda Keane, AIA ,School of the Art Institute, John McCarron, Lawrence Okrent, Okrent Associates, Inc. Mark Sexton, Krueck + Sexton Architects, Dr. Carl Smith, Northwestern University and Dr. Howard Sulkin, Spertus Institute of Jewish Studies.

The Spertus itself is a marvel you'll agree and a noteworthy addition to the South Michigan Avenue landscape.

Stop That Stream of Catalogs

green living

That catalog deluge just seems to get worse.  I try not to order items from catalogs at all but our mailbox remains stuffed.

Recently I discovered www.catalogchoice.org  which I hope will bring relief to all.

Despite a bit of trouble registering on the super-sensitive site I managed to begin a list of "don't send" catalogs.  This is done alphabetically and after getting through "C" I decided to enter unwanted names as they come in the door.  Right now should be a perfect time to capture names, just before the holidays.

Although some companies seem to welcome such info;  others are either unaware of the program or non-committal, so one is taking something of a chance.  After 12 weeks from sign up you should notice a diminution of paper.

This site is endorsed by The Ecology Center in Berkeley, CA, The National Wildlife Federation and The National Resources Defense Council.

Tell all your friends!

The Best Salmon Handroll!

food and drink

Incredibly fresh and satisfying.  All that  pre-made take-out sushi in plastic trays at your local grocery just can't compare to the similarly packaged but marvelous salmon hand roll from, shockingly, Whole Foods.

You can definitely find it at the North Avenue store where it's just east of the huge salad bar in a sushi only section.

I'm guessing the rest of the sushi is fresh and great too but personally, I just can't get beyond that handroll.

While you're there you might check out the wide variety of bulk spices in two separate areas. (one near the produce and another near the herbal lotions)  Spending $5 or $6 for a small bottle of whatever spice seems outrageous to me so these choices are a far more economical option.

Julie, the organic ice cream queen, has delicious organic blackberry sorbet bar, just 60 calories each.

All at Whole Foods and, as you can tell I'm very selective about what I buy there.