chicagosun-times--2020-07-01--Dear Abby: My alcoholic husband loves tavern with a flirtatious bartender

DEAR ABBY : My husband of 43 years , an alcoholic , has started going to the local grill/bar in our small town .
He spends three to four hours there , six days a week .
He would go more often if they were open on Sundays .
People who know us tell me things that have been going on between a single bartender and him .
This bartender has given him gifts , and I heard he overtips her .
I have also been told there ’ s more going on than the outward flirting , and my @ @ @ @ @ @ @ me .
The bartender is not a young woman , and she tells anyone who will listen that she ’ s looking for a man .
I have asked my husband nicely to stop going there , and he does for a few days , until her calls and posts on Facebook start about me “ keeping him from going to the bar.
” When he gets home , he continues drinking until he passes out .
I have told him that if he gets a DUI and goes to jail , I @ @ @ @ @ @ @ He doesn ’ t really care , and I don ’ t know what to do .
Help !
— DISASTER IN GEORGIA DEAR DISASTER : Your signature is correct .
Your marriage IS a disaster .
As long as your husband continues to drink , nothing will improve .
Keep uppermost in your mind that , as much as you might want to , you can not change him .
Contact a divorce lawyer and find out what you need to do to protect yourself financially .
And join an Al-Anon group @ @ @ @ @ @ @ near you .
When you do , you may find not only some much-needed emotional support but also perspective .
I am sorry for what you are experiencing , but once you attend a meeting , you will find you are not alone and that there is a way out .
DEAR ABBY : I am a single 30-year-old female who is child-free .
( I never wanted kids , ever ! )
My personal stance and views on the subject are well-known by my co-workers , all of whom have children .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ , ” who ’ s about 18 years older than I am .
Over the years , she has made remarks such as , “ You have no right to be tired .
You don ’ t have kids !
” or “ You don ’ t count because you don ’ t have kids !
” or “ You ’ re not a real adult because you don ’ t have the responsibility of having kids ” ( my favorite ) .
How do I deal with her , or what do @ @ @ @ @ @ @ When she makes them , it hurts my feelings .
I don ’ t react because I know if I do it will hurt her feelings and cause friction in the office , which I don ’ t need .
But I ’ m sick to death of people like her who have children saying those things about people like me .
— FREE FOREVER DEAR FREE : Your co-worker appears to be voicing her frustrations about the responsibilities of parenthood and somewhat jealous that you are free of them .
The next @ @ @ @ @ @ @ would not be overreacting to tell her that she has and ask her for an apology .
If she ’ s doing it hoping to get a rise out of you , ignore her .
But if it persists , as a last resort , talk to your boss or human resources about it because she ’ s creating a hostile work environment .
( It ’ s the truth . )
She should be talking with you about work , not her personal opinions about you .
Dear Abby is written by @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Jeanne Phillips , and was founded by her mother , Pauline Phillips .
Contact Dear Abby at www.DearAbby.com or P.O .
Box 69440 , Los Angeles , CA 90069 .
Abby shares more than 100 of her favorite recipes in two booklets : “ Abby ’ s Favorite Recipes ” and “ More Favorite Recipes by Dear Abby.
” Send your name and mailing address , plus check or money order for $ 16 ( U.S. funds ) , to : Dear Abby , Cookbooklet Set , P.O .
Box 447 , Mount @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and handling are included in the price . )

DEAR ABBY: My husband of 43 years, an alcoholic, has started going to the local grill/bar in our small town. He spends three to four hours there, six days a week. He would go more often if they were open on Sundays.
People who know us tell me things that have been going on between a single bartender and him. This bartender has given him gifts, and I heard he overtips her. I have also been told there’s more going on than the outward flirting, and my husband has been saying bad things about me.
The bartender is not a young woman, and she tells anyone who will listen that she’s looking for a man. I have asked my husband nicely to stop going there, and he does for a few days, until her calls and posts on Facebook start about me “keeping him from going to the bar.” When he gets home, he continues drinking until he passes out.
I have told him that if he gets a DUI and goes to jail, I won’t bail him out. He doesn’t really care, and I don’t know what to do. Help! — DISASTER IN GEORGIA
DEAR DISASTER: Your signature is correct. Your marriage IS a disaster. As long as your husband continues to drink, nothing will improve. Keep uppermost in your mind that, as much as you might want to, you cannot change him.
Contact a divorce lawyer and find out what you need to do to protect yourself financially. And join an Al-Anon group. There may be more than one near you. When you do, you may find not only some much-needed emotional support but also perspective. I am sorry for what you are experiencing, but once you attend a meeting, you will find you are not alone and that there is a way out.
DEAR ABBY: I am a single 30-year-old female who is child-free. (I never wanted kids, ever!) My personal stance and views on the subject are well-known by my co-workers, all of whom have children.
I share an office with “Elise,” who’s about 18 years older than I am. Over the years, she has made remarks such as, “You have no right to be tired. You don’t have kids!” or “You don’t count because you don’t have kids!” or “You’re not a real adult because you don’t have the responsibility of having kids” (my favorite).
How do I deal with her, or what do I say to counter her remarks? When she makes them, it hurts my feelings. I don’t react because I know if I do it will hurt her feelings and cause friction in the office, which I don’t need. But I’m sick to death of people like her who have children saying those things about people like me. — FREE FOREVER
DEAR FREE: Your co-worker appears to be voicing her frustrations about the responsibilities of parenthood and somewhat jealous that you are free of them. The next time she hurts your feelings, it would not be overreacting to tell her that she has and ask her for an apology.
If she’s doing it hoping to get a rise out of you, ignore her. But if it persists, as a last resort, talk to your boss or human resources about it because she’s creating a hostile work environment. (It’s the truth.) She should be talking with you about work, not her personal opinions about you.
Dear Abby is written by Abigail Van Buren, also known as Jeanne Phillips, and was founded by her mother, Pauline Phillips. Contact Dear Abby at www.DearAbby.com or P.O. Box 69440, Los Angeles, CA 90069.
Abby shares more than 100 of her favorite recipes in two booklets: “Abby’s Favorite Recipes” and “More Favorite Recipes by Dear Abby.” Send your name and mailing address, plus check or money order for $16 (U.S. funds), to: Dear Abby, Cookbooklet Set, P.O. Box 447, Mount Morris, IL 61054-0447. (Shipping and handling are included in the price.)


chicagosun-times--2020-07-01--Suddenly, it seems like 2016 all over again with Chicago violence

We fear history is repeating itself .
In 2016 , Chicago tallied nearly 800 homicides after a wave of righteous , but peaceful , outrage gripped the city after the release of the video showing a since-imprisoned white police officer shooting Black teenager Laquan McDonald 16 times .
Police work slowed — arrests in 2016 dropped 24 percent from the year before — and the violence grew out of control .
But in the next three years , our city made progress : Police reported 670 homicides in 2017 , 579 in 2018 and 491 last year .
At the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and auto thefts reached their lowest levels in more than 20 years , and the number of shootings hit a four-year low .
“ These gains are the result of a data-informed , collaborative strategy with Chicago ’ s police officers , community-based organizations and street outreach groups who have dedicated their lives to keeping this city and its residents safe , ” Mayor Lori Lightfoot wrote on Jan. 1 about the crimefighting strategy Mayor Rahm Emanuel and the police department deployed — and she continued — upon taking office in May 2019 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 2016 all over again , even taking into account that COVID-19 has radically changed the landscape .
A wave of righteous , though unfortunately not-always-peaceful , outrage over the Minneapolis police killing of George Floyd has gripped our country and city , again sparking slowdowns in police work here .
During the first 28 days in June — although the number of gun arrests was up 45 % — the total number of Chicago police arrests was down 55 % , street stops fell by 74 % and traffic stops dropped by 86 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ year before , according to an analysis by Frank Main and Fran Spielman in Wednesday ’ s Sun-Times .
Concurrently , and not surprisingly , violent crime here is spiking .
A 3-year-old was shot Tuesday in West Englewood in what might have been retaliation for a gang-related shooting that wounded a teenager a half hour before .
At last check , the 3-year-old was in critical condition ; the teen was doing OK. Other children have died .
This past weekend , 65 people were shot , 18 fatally , including a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Two weekends ago , 104 people were shot , with 15 killed , including a 3-year-old and four teens .
On May 31 , 18 people were killed in a single Sunday , the most violent day in 60 years in Chicago .
On Tuesday , John Catanzara , president of the Fraternal Order of Police , said of his members , “ I ’ m not telling them them not to do police work .
But I hope they just slow down and decide ‘ Is this necessary ’ before they @ @ @ @ @ @ @ clear : A police slowdown isn ’ t the only factor fueling the recent violence .
COVID-19 is limiting the way cops can interact with the public , not to mention the pressure the pandemic has put on officials at Cook County Jail to keep inmates safe and the jail population as low as possible .
Newly hired Police Supt .
David Brown and Lightfoot have been repeatedly saying the Cook County court system is going soft on gun offenders , releasing them back on the streets too soon — a subject we @ @ @ @ @ @ @ editorial .
In an editorial earlier this week , we praised Brown for articulating that policing alone is not the solution for Chicago ’ s violence , that the issue goes back to longstanding income inequities on the South and West sides that will require a broader , long-term strategy to fix .
But we can ’ t ignore this short-term reality : When police officers stand down and stay in their cars , criminals take advantage , and people — including children — die .
While we know we ’ re not @ @ @ @ @ @ @ we ’ ve been observing the police department long enough to put the following ideas up for discussion : Catanzara blames Lightfoot for low morale in the department .
The mayor dismisses Catanzara ’ s comments as a tactic in police union contract negotiations .
Then there ’ s this : Brown noted in his news conference Monday that 16 cops have been shot at so far this year , with four being hit .
Cops also were routinely pelted with bottles , feces and other debris amid the protests and looting in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Hundreds of officers were injured .
Regardless of who or what is to blame , there is little doubt CPD morale is at the same level — or worse — than in 2016 .
Lightfoot needs to accept there ’ s a morale problem and work with Brown to fix it , or the slowdown will continue .
Chicago ’ s police department budget this year totals about $ 1.7 billion , including competitive salaries and good benefits for officers because taxpayers historically recognize that policing is a tough job .
We @ @ @ @ @ @ @ be a police officer right now .
But would we tolerate slowdowns from firefighters , sanitation workers or other public servants ?
We ’ ve written before that Chicago ’ s FOP contract and police contracts across the country provide too many roadblocks for disciplining rogue cops , eroding the public ’ s trust .
It ’ s time that union leaders in Chicago work with Lightfoot ’ s administration to get this right in exchange for a fair contract , which the cops have been working without since 2017 .
Police are @ @ @ @ @ @ @ help in helping solve crimes .
Absent contractual reforms , the trust gap only gets bigger .
Get policy makers on the same page We also need everyone from the police to elected officials to get on the same page .
Brown and Lightfoot are at odds with Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle , State ’ s Attorney Kim Foxx and Chief Judge Timothy Evans over whether too many people accused of dangerous crimes are being put back on the street .
Preckwinkle , Foxx and Evans say they are righting the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and presumed innocent being held in Cook County Jail simply because they can ’ t afford to post bond .
But Lightfoot and Brown , just as Brown ’ s predecessors argued , say people released before trial are committing too many crimes .
The data on both sides seems squishy , and the police seem caught in the middle .
The rift was highlighted this week when Foxx confirmed on Tuesday there would be a “ presumption of dismissal ” for some types of arrests , including aggravated batteries to police officers @ @ @ @ @ @ @ caught on police video .
That decision , which stunned some former prosecutors , will only widen the distrust between the police and Foxx .
Overtime is needed .
.
.
for now There ’ s been a lot of debate about whether to pay cops overtime .
For the first time in his eight weeks on the job , we heard Brown talk in solid numbers about deploying additional cops , saying 1,200 extra officers will be deployed over the Fourth of July weekend .
The department ’ s active-duty headcount is @ @ @ @ @ @ @ June 2019 to 13,062 officers this June , according to a June 9 Freedom of Information Act response to the Sun-Times .
More overtime is a necessary evil for now .
A large chunk of the spike in killings is again being driven by gang members .
This creates a conundrum : How can we expect street cops to aggressively question suspected gang members — which is a way they can get information to potentially stop shootings beforehand — without acknowledging that by doing this , they run the risk of harassing law-abiding @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a collaborative strategy with Chicago ’ s police officers , community-based organizations and street outreach groups is a key part of the path forward .
It ’ s time to confront the complexities involved , set aside the rhetoric and get back on that path .

We fear history is repeating itself.
In 2016, Chicago tallied nearly 800 homicides after a wave of righteous, but peaceful, outrage gripped the city after the release of the video showing a since-imprisoned white police officer shooting Black teenager Laquan McDonald 16 times. Police work slowed — arrests in 2016 dropped 24 percent from the year before — and the violence grew out of control.
But in the next three years, our city made progress: Police reported 670 homicides in 2017, 579 in 2018 and 491 last year. At the end of 2019, robberies, burglaries and auto thefts reached their lowest levels in more than 20 years, and the number of shootings hit a four-year low.
“These gains are the result of a data-informed, collaborative strategy with Chicago’s police officers, community-based organizations and street outreach groups who have dedicated their lives to keeping this city and its residents safe,” Mayor Lori Lightfoot wrote on Jan. 1 about the crimefighting strategy Mayor Rahm Emanuel and the police department deployed — and she continued — upon taking office in May 2019.
Editorials bug Editorials
But suddenly, it seems like 2016 all over again, even taking into account that COVID-19 has radically changed the landscape.
A wave of righteous, though unfortunately not-always-peaceful, outrage over the Minneapolis police killing of George Floyd has gripped our country and city, again sparking slowdowns in police work here.
During the first 28 days in June — although the number of gun arrests was up 45% — the total number of Chicago police arrests was down 55%, street stops fell by 74% and traffic stops dropped by 86% compared with the same period the year before, according to an analysis by Frank Main and Fran Spielman in Wednesday’s Sun-Times.
Concurrently, and not surprisingly, violent crime here is spiking. A 3-year-old was shot Tuesday in West Englewood in what might have been retaliation for a gang-related shooting that wounded a teenager a half hour before. At last check, the 3-year-old was in critical condition; the teen was doing OK.
Other children have died. This past weekend, 65 people were shot, 18 fatally, including a 1-year-old, a 10-year-old and a 17-year-old. Two weekends ago, 104 people were shot, with 15 killed, including a 3-year-old and four teens. On May 31, 18 people were killed in a single Sunday, the most violent day in 60 years in Chicago.
On Tuesday, John Catanzara, president of the Fraternal Order of Police, said of his members, “I’m not telling them them not to do police work. But I hope they just slow down and decide ‘Is this necessary’ before they do it.”
On Wednesday, Lightfoot said the slowdown wasn’t a CPD defensive crouch, but instead was the result of a “month of civic uprising” in which police were tied up “making sure that people could safely” express their First Amendment rights to protest Floyd’s death.
Let’s be clear: A police slowdown isn’t the only factor that we see fueling the recent violence. COVID-19 is limiting the way cops can interact with the public, not to mention the pressure the pandemic has put on officials at Cook County Jail to keep inmates safe and the jail population as low as possible. Newly hired Police Supt. David Brown and Lightfoot have been repeatedly saying the Cook County court system is going soft on gun offenders, releasing them back on the streets too soon — a subject we’ll address later on in this editorial.
In an editorial earlier this week, we praised Brown for articulating that policing alone is not the solution for Chicago’s violence, that the issue goes back to longstanding income inequities on the South and West sides that will require a broader, long-term strategy to fix.
But we can’t ignore this short-term reality: When police officers stand down and stay in their cars, criminals take advantage, and people — including children — die.
While we know we’re not smart enough to solve this problem, we’ve been observing the police department long enough to put the following ideas up for discussion:
Acknowledge the police morale problem
Catanzara blames Lightfoot for low morale in the department. The mayor dismisses Catanzara’s comments as a tactic in police union contract negotiations.
Then there’s this: Brown noted in his news conference Monday that 16 cops have been shot at so far this year, with four being hit. Cops also were routinely pelted with bottles, feces and other debris amid the protests and looting in the wake of Floyd’s death. Hundreds of officers were injured.
Regardless of who or what is to blame, there is little doubt CPD morale is at the same level — or worse — than in 2016. Lightfoot needs to accept there’s a morale problem and work with Brown to fix it, or the slowdown will continue.
Chicago’s police department budget this year totals about $1.7 billion, including competitive salaries and good benefits for officers because taxpayers historically recognize that policing is a tough job.
We understand it’s even tougher to be a police officer right now. But would we tolerate slowdowns from firefighters, sanitation workers or other public servants?
Stop protecting bad cops
We’ve written before that Chicago’s FOP contract and police contracts across the country provide too many roadblocks for disciplining rogue cops, eroding the public’s trust. It’s time that union leaders in Chicago work with Lightfoot’s administration to get this right in exchange for a fair contract, which the cops have been working without since 2017.
Police are constantly pleading for the public’s help in helping solve crimes. Absent contractual reforms, the trust gap only gets bigger.
Get policy makers on the same page
We also need everyone from the police to elected officials to get on the same page. Brown and Lightfoot are at odds with Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle, State’s Attorney Kim Foxx and Chief Judge Timothy Evans over whether too many people accused of dangerous crimes are being put back on the street.
Preckwinkle, Foxx and Evans say they are righting the injustice of people who are awaiting trial and presumed innocent being held in Cook County Jail simply because they can’t afford to post bond. But Lightfoot and Brown, just as Brown’s predecessors argued, say people released before trial are committing too many crimes. The data on both sides seems squishy, and the police seem caught in the middle.
The rift was highlighted this week when Foxx confirmed on Tuesday there would be a “presumption of dismissal” for some types of arrests, including aggravated batteries to police officers, if the incidents weren’t caught on police video. That decision, which stunned some former prosecutors, will only widen the distrust between the police and Foxx.
Overtime is needed . . . for now
There’s been a lot of debate about whether to pay cops overtime. For the first time in his eight weeks on the job, we heard Brown talk in solid numbers about deploying additional cops, saying 1,200 extra officers will be deployed over the Fourth of July weekend.
The department’s active-duty headcount is down slightly — from 13,306 officers in June 2019 to 13,062 officers this June, according to a June 9 Freedom of Information Act response to the Sun-Times. More overtime is a necessary evil for now.
A new strategy on gang crimes?
A large chunk of the spike in killings is again being driven by gang members. This creates a conundrum: How can we expect street cops to aggressively question suspected gang members — which is a way they can get information to potentially stop shootings beforehand — without acknowledging that by doing this, they run the risk of harassing law-abiding citizens.
Brown this week noted “the complexity of Chicago’s violence.”
Lightfoot began this year saying a collaborative strategy with Chicago’s police officers, community-based organizations and street outreach groups is a key part of the path forward.
It’s time to confront the complexities involved, set aside the rhetoric and get back on that path.
Send letters to letters@suntimes.com.


chicagosun-times--2020-07-01--More help on way for COVID-slammed businesses as Congress send relief bill to president (LIVE UPDATE

More help on way for COVID-slammed businesses as Congress send relief bill to president (LIVE UPDATES)

More help on way for COVID-slammed businesses as Congress send relief bill to president WASHINGTON — The House on Wednesday easily passed a temporary extension of a subsidy program for small businesses slammed by the coronavirus , speeding the measure to President Donald Trump .
Approval by voice vote without debate came after Democrats pushed the legislation through the GOP-controlled Senate late Tuesday as spikes in coronavirus cases in many states led to renewed shutdowns of bars and other businesses .
Trump was expected to sign the measure .
The legislation extends the June 30 deadline for applying for the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the program in March and have modified it twice since , adding money on one occasion and more recently permitting more flexible use of the funding despite some grumbling among GOP conservatives .
6:40 p.m. Illinois casinos angling to clean up now that coronavirus closing is over Imagine Sammy Davis Jr. , Dean Martin and Frank Sinatra sitting down for a hand of blackjack , with their trademark banter muffled by surgical masks — not to mention a plexi-glass partition separating all three .
Pass on the Rat Pack star power , take @ @ @ @ @ @ @ you ’ ve got an idea of what a COVID-19 casino looks like .
Illinois gamblers got their first glimpse of that Wednesday as the state ’ s 10 casinos reopened after three months of an unprecedented statewide shutdown .
Hundreds of clear partitions separated slot machines , cash counters and card dealers sprawled across the gaming floor of Rivers Casino in Des Plaines , where some bettors were so eager to get back to the action in the age of COVID-19 that they lined up before it opened around 11 a.m .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ hadn ’ t taken in a chip since March 16 , when Gov .
J.B. Pritzker ’ s office shuttered the state ’ s 10 gambling houses as well as the 36,000 slot machines scattered across more than 7,000 bars , restaurants and other establishments .
Read the full story by Mitchell Armentrout here .
LANSING , Mich — Michigan Gov .
Gretchen Whitmer said Wednesday that she was closing indoor seating in bars in parts of the state , including a college town where one brewpub has been linked to about 140 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ allowing bars and restaurants to sell to-go cocktails in an effort to help those businesses .
Bars won ’ t have to close down completely under Whitmer ’ s new executive order , and taverns in the Upper Peninsula and much of northern Michigan are not subject to the mandate due to low numbers of reported COVID-19 virus cases in those areas .
All bars may still keep open their outdoor patios .
The order takes effect at 11 p.m. Wednesday .
“ Following recent outbreaks tied to bars , I am taking @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of the virus and keep people safe , ” Whitmer , a Democrat , said in a news release .
“ If we want to be in a strong position to reopen schools for in-person classroom instruction this fall , then we need to take aggressive action right now to ensure we don ’ t wipe out all the progress we have made.
” 3:45 p.m. 30 more die from COVID-19 as neighboring states limit bar and restaurant space amid surges As several states continue to see a surge in coronavirus cases ahead @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in Illinois said another 30 people have died from COVID-19 — with the state nearing a grim milestone of 7,000 people lost to the pandemic .
In total , 6,951 people have died in Illinois from COVID-19 .
On Wednesday , officials also said there were 828 newly confirmed cases .
Within the past 24 hours , state laboratories took in 33,090 test results .
More than 1.6 million tests have performed in Illinois , officials said .
Illinois reported 828 new cases , maintaining its streak of seeing fewer than 1,000 new @ @ @ @ @ @ @ according to the Illinois Department of Public Health .
But Gov .
J.B. Pritzker and health administrators are watching health metrics in the state to determine whether a Phase 4 opening last Friday will play any role in upticks in cases , as many states have seen .
Phase 4 allowed for indoor restaurants and bars to reopen with capacity limits , as well as museums , zoos and gyms , among other businesses .
Read the full story by Tina Sfondeles here .
INDIANAPOLIS — Indiana will keep capacity limits in place @ @ @ @ @ @ @ because of worries about a possible increase in coronavirus cases across the state , Gov .
Eric Holcomb said Wednesday .
The state ’ s reopening plan had called for those restrictions to be lifted this weekend , but Holcomb said he would keep them in place until at least July 18 .
The state will also continue its current 250-person limit on social gatherings .
Holcomb said he was concerned about recent increases in hospitalizations across Indiana involving COVID-19 cases and other states that have seen fresh outbreaks after lifting restrictions on @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 12 , restaurants have been allowed 75 % capacity in their dining rooms , while bars , nightclubs , bowling alleys , museums and amusement parks have been open at half capacity .
Read the full story by The Associated Press here .
1:11 p.m .
Some speculated Chicago protests would spread coronavirus ; Experts say they didn ’ t There is little evidence that the protests that erupted after George Floyd ’ s death caused a significant increase in U.S. coronavirus infections , according to public health experts .
If the protests @ @ @ @ @ @ @ experts say , the jumps would have started to become apparent within two weeks — and perhaps as early as five days .
But that didn ’ t happen in many cities with the largest protests , including New York , Chicago , Minneapolis , and Washington , D.C .
In what ’ s considered the first systematic look at the question , a team of economists determined that only one of 13 cities involved in the earliest wave of protests after Memorial Day had an increase that would fit the pattern .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ seemed to lead to a net increase in social distancing , as more people who did not protest decided to stay off the streets , said that study ’ s lead author , Dhaval Dave of Bentley University .
“ The large-scale protests can impact both the behavior of the protesters and the behavior of the non-protesters , ” said Dave .
The paper was released last week by the National Bureau of Economic Research , but has not been published by a peer-reviewed journal .
Drawing from data compiled by Johns Hopkins @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in daily reported cases in 22 U.S. cities with protests .
It found post-protest increases in several cities — including Houston and Madison , Wisconsin — where experts say other factors were more likely the main drivers .
With little room to spare at Cook County Jail , Sheriff Tom Dart is seeking a court order to compel the state to take custody of inmates who had been housed at the jail since the coronavirus outbreak .
The Illinois Sheriffs ’ Association , which Dart is a member of , filed the motion @ @ @ @ @ @ @ circuit court judge to approve a preliminary injunction that would order the state to accept inmates who are housed in county jails , but should be in the custody of the Illinois Department of Corrections .
These inmates — unlike detainees at the jail who are awaiting trial — have been convicted and sentenced .
Some of these inmates served their sentences but need to to be transferred to IDOC custody before their release .
Since the outbreak IDOC officials told sheriffs said they needed time to prepare new intake procedures at state @ @ @ @ @ @ @ have continued to decline to accept transfers from county jail for months .
Read the full story from Matthew Hendrickson here .
10:01 a.m. Republicans , with exception of Trump , now push mask-wearing to fight coronavirus In Republican circles — with the notable exception of the man who leads the party — the debate about masks is over : It ’ s time to put one on .
As a surge of infections hammers the South and West , GOP officials are pushing back against the notion that masks are about politics @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and telling Americans they can help save lives .
Sen. Lamar Alexander , a Tennessee Republican , on Tuesday bluntly called on Trump to start wearing a mask , at least some of the time , to set a good example .
“ Unfortunately , this simple , lifesaving practice has become part of a political debate that says : If you ’ re for Trump , you don ’ t wear a mask .
If you ’ re against Trump , you do , ” Alexander said .
It ’ s a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ who earlier this month told the Wall Street Journal that some people wear masks simply to show that they disapprove of him .
And the Republican nudges for the public — and the president — to embrace mask-wearing are coming from all corners of Trump ’ s party and even from friendly conservative media .
A resurgence of confirmed COVID cases across the South and West — and the suspension or reversal of re-openings of bars , hotels , restaurants and other businesses — is endangering hopes for an economic rebound in the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ are the jobs of millions of people who have clung to hopes that their layoffs from widespread business shutdowns this spring would prove short-lived .
On Thursday , the government is expected to issue another robust monthly jobs report .
Economists have forecast that employers added 3 million jobs in June , on top of 2.5 million added in May , clawing back a portion of the record-high 21 million that vanished in April at the height of the viral shutdowns .
Yet any such news might already be outdated : The jobs @ @ @ @ @ @ @ impact of the COVID upsurge in the South and West and the desperate steps being pursued to try to control it .
The re-closings of restaurants and bars , and resulting job cuts , mark an about-face from what appear to have been premature efforts to restart the economy before the pandemic had been contained .
“ We ’ re still in a very deep hole , ’ ’ said Diane Swonk , chief economist at the firm Grant Thornton .
“ This makes the June employment report backward-looking instead of forward-looking.
’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ about half the daily COVID-19 deaths and new cases as in peak month of May As coronavirus cases flare to record highs in other states that reopened earlier , Illinois closed out the month of June with another round of low daily numbers Tuesday , indicating the state ’ s pandemic curve is still arcing downward — for now .
The Illinois Department of Public Health announced 23 additional deaths attributed to COVID-19 and 724 newly confirmed cases of the virus .
That raises the state ’ s death toll to 6,923 among @ @ @ @ @ @ @ for the virus since late January .
The state averaged about half as many new cases and deaths each day in June compared to May , when Illinois hit its apparent coronavirus peak .
The state suffered almost half its overall caseload and death toll in May , with about 67,300 positive diagnoses and 3,076 lives lost .
That means officials announced an average of about 99 deaths and 2,172 new cases per day .
Read the full story by Mitchell Armentrout here .
• DeAndre Jordan says he has tested positive for @ @ @ @ @ @ @ joining the Brooklyn Nets in Florida when the NBA season resumes .
• The Illinois Department of Public Health announced 23 additional deaths attributed to COVID-19 and 724 newly confirmed cases of the virus on Tuesday .
• Illinois reported 14 COVID-19 deaths Monday , its lowest daily total in three months for the second day in a row as the state ’ s reopening is underway .
That brings the state ’ s total death toll to 6,902 .
• The NBA and the National Basketball Players Association say 16 players tested @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of mandatory tests done in preparation for the restart of the season .
12:07 p.m. Minor League Baseball ’ s canceled 2020 season is yet another cruel blow For all the sacrifices and deferred dreams the novel coronavirus forced upon the sports world , many are paired with some solace , knowing that there will be a next year .
One sector , from top to bottom , doesn ’ t have that luxury .
The long-anticipated announcement Tuesday that Minor League Baseball ’ s 2020 season will be canceled is a blow @ @ @ @ @ @ @ saw the thankless , debt-inducing , harrowing road to the majors sidetracked , perhaps permanently .
It is a gut punch to the staffers still remaining at the 160 affiliated minor-league clubs who have held on through furloughs and pay cuts and added even more creative duties to their usual titles in the name of keeping their jobs .
With an entire calendar year of virtually no revenue , many more will lose their jobs .
And — because what ’ s a pandemic in our country without a little opportunism ?
— @ @ @ @ @ @ @ dozens of franchises that Major League Baseball placed on a chopping block in the service of shaving a few nickels and creating more efficiency , long-term growth of the game be damned .
Read the full guest column from Gabe Lacques in USA Today here .
7:51 a.m. Fantasizing about what to do after the pandemic is over I ’ ve started to think of it as The After .
I mean that time when it will be safe for me and the rest of the world to do all the stuff we @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and ruined the party .
The After is the time after we ’ ve lived through this pandemic , those of us who do live through it .
I suspect that everyone , like me , is fantasizing about what to do in The After .
What restaurant to go to .
What theme park to visit .
What ballet to see .
What singer to hear .
What park to barbeque in .
Basketball is something that I really miss , but most of the guys I ’ m playing with and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ or , like me , over the age of 70 .
We aren ’ t going to be playing again until this COVID thing is really over .
It ’ s just too dangerous for us to bang bodies under the board and huff and puff around the court .
I ’ m sure everyone — all over the world — has one or maybe many lists of what to do in The After .
Read the full guest column from Patrick Reardon here .

Several states continue to see a surge in coronavirus cases ahead of a holiday weekend. Nearby, Indiana halted plans to move to a new phase of their reopening. The governor of Michigan closed down indoor seating in bars as new outbreaks were reported.
Health officials in Illinois said another 30 people have died from COVID-19 — with the state nearing a grim milestone of 7,000 people lost to the pandemic. And the state continued with its gradual reopenings with casinos making adjustments and schools are making plans for a different looking academic year.
Here’s what happened in the fight against the coronavirus in Chicago, the state and the nation.
News
8:45 p.m. New normal for reopened Chicago, suburban schools come fall likely to be very different
Students put their coats in their lockers on the first day back to class at Roswell B. Mason Elementary School on the Southwest Side after a Chicago Teachers Union strike closed schools for 11 days, Friday morning, Nov. 1, 2019. Ashlee Rezin Garcia/Sun-Times
Goodbye, field trips and perfect attendance awards. Hello, one-way hallways, daily temperature checks and quarantine rooms.
That’s some of what we can look ahead to now that Gov. J.B. Pritzker gave his approval last week for schools in Illinois to reopen for in-class instruction this fall, encouraging schools to welcome back kids and staff under detailed state guidelines aimed at keeping them safe.
In Chicago’s new normal, there will be face masks on everyone over 2, bans on handshakes and any other touching, tons of hand-washing and six-feet social distancing requirements in classrooms, on playgrounds and everywhere else at school. Everyone who enters school buildings will get temperature checks, too.
But how that all will work and what the rest of school is going to look like are among the things still to be decided by school districts in the city, suburbs and statewide as schools face the realities of welcoming back to classrooms kids who are likely to be behind academically after learning from home all spring.
Read the full story by Lauren FitzPatrick here.
8:05 p.m. Trump says he looks like Lone Ranger in a mask and likes it
WASHINGTON — After long resisting wearing a mask in public, President Donald Trump said Wednesday he thinks it makes him look like the Lone Ranger — and he likes it.
“I’m all for masks. I think masks are good,” Trump told Fox Business in an interview. “People have seen me wearing one.”
Trump’s comments came a day after Republican lawmakers suggested that the president wear a mask in public to set a good example for Americans.
“If I were in a tight situation with people, I would absolutely,” Trump said in the interview.
Trump has long resisted being photographed in a mask. In early April, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention issued a recommendation that people wear cloth face coverings in public settings where other social distancing measures were difficult to maintain.
Read the full story by The Associated Press here.
7:25 p.m. More help on way for COVID-slammed businesses as Congress send relief bill to president
WASHINGTON — The House on Wednesday easily passed a temporary extension of a subsidy program for small businesses slammed by the coronavirus, speeding the measure to President Donald Trump.
Approval by voice vote without debate came after Democrats pushed the legislation through the GOP-controlled Senate late Tuesday as spikes in coronavirus cases in many states led to renewed shutdowns of bars and other businesses.
Trump was expected to sign the measure.
The legislation extends the June 30 deadline for applying for the program to Aug. 8. Lawmakers created the program in March and have modified it twice since, adding money on one occasion and more recently permitting more flexible use of the funding despite some grumbling among GOP conservatives.
Read the full story here.
6:40 p.m. Illinois casinos angling to clean up now that coronavirus closing is over
Imagine Sammy Davis Jr., Dean Martin and Frank Sinatra sitting down for a hand of blackjack, with their trademark banter muffled by surgical masks — not to mention a plexi-glass partition separating all three.
Pass on the Rat Pack star power, take a hit of hand sanitizer, and you’ve got an idea of what a COVID-19 casino looks like.
Illinois gamblers got their first glimpse of that Wednesday as the state’s 10 casinos reopened after three months of an unprecedented statewide shutdown.
Hundreds of clear partitions separated slot machines, cash counters and card dealers sprawled across the gaming floor of Rivers Casino in Des Plaines, where some bettors were so eager to get back to the action in the age of COVID-19 that they lined up before it opened around 11 a.m.
The state’s most lucrative casino hadn’t taken in a chip since March 16, when Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s office shuttered the state’s 10 gambling houses as well as the 36,000 slot machines scattered across more than 7,000 bars, restaurants and other establishments.
Read the full story by Mitchell Armentrout here.
5:45 p.m. Michigan governor closes indoor bars, allows to-go cocktails
LANSING, Mich — Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer said Wednesday that she was closing indoor seating in bars in parts of the state, including a college town where one brewpub has been linked to about 140 infections.
Whitmer also signed a bill allowing bars and restaurants to sell to-go cocktails in an effort to help those businesses.
Bars won’t have to close down completely under Whitmer’s new executive order, and taverns in the Upper Peninsula and much of northern Michigan are not subject to the mandate due to low numbers of reported COVID-19 virus cases in those areas. All bars may still keep open their outdoor patios. The order takes effect at 11 p.m. Wednesday.
“Following recent outbreaks tied to bars, I am taking this action today to slow the spread of the virus and keep people safe,” Whitmer, a Democrat, said in a news release. “If we want to be in a strong position to reopen schools for in-person classroom instruction this fall, then we need to take aggressive action right now to ensure we don’t wipe out all the progress we have made.”
Read the full story here.
3:45 p.m. 30 more die from COVID-19 as neighboring states limit bar and restaurant space amid surges
As several states continue to see a surge in coronavirus cases ahead of a holiday weekend, health officials in Illinois said another 30 people have died from COVID-19 — with the state nearing a grim milestone of 7,000 people lost to the pandemic.
In total, 6,951 people have died in Illinois from COVID-19. On Wednesday, officials also said there were 828 newly confirmed cases.
Within the past 24 hours, state laboratories took in 33,090 test results. More than 1.6 million tests have performed in Illinois, officials said.
Illinois reported 828 new cases, maintaining its streak of seeing fewer than 1,000 new confirmed cases daily since June 3, according to the Illinois Department of Public Health.
But Gov. J.B. Pritzker and health administrators are watching health metrics in the state to determine whether a Phase 4 opening last Friday will play any role in upticks in cases, as many states have seen. Phase 4 allowed for indoor restaurants and bars to reopen with capacity limits, as well as museums, zoos and gyms, among other businesses.
Read the full story by Tina Sfondeles here.
2:35 p.m. Indiana delays lifting capacity limits on restaurants, bars
INDIANAPOLIS — Indiana will keep capacity limits in place for restaurants, bars and entertainment venues because of worries about a possible increase in coronavirus cases across the state, Gov. Eric Holcomb said Wednesday.
The state’s reopening plan had called for those restrictions to be lifted this weekend, but Holcomb said he would keep them in place until at least July 18. The state will also continue its current 250-person limit on social gatherings.
Holcomb said he was concerned about recent increases in hospitalizations across Indiana involving COVID-19 cases and other states that have seen fresh outbreaks after lifting restrictions on bars and other businesses.
Since June 12, restaurants have been allowed 75% capacity in their dining rooms, while bars, nightclubs, bowling alleys, museums and amusement parks have been open at half capacity.
Read the full story by The Associated Press here.
1:11 p.m. Some speculated Chicago protests would spread coronavirus; Experts say they didn’t
There is little evidence that the protests that erupted after George Floyd’s death caused a significant increase in U.S. coronavirus infections, according to public health experts.
If the protests had driven an explosion in cases, experts say, the jumps would have started to become apparent within two weeks — and perhaps as early as five days. But that didn’t happen in many cities with the largest protests, including New York, Chicago, Minneapolis, and Washington, D.C.
In what’s considered the first systematic look at the question, a team of economists determined that only one of 13 cities involved in the earliest wave of protests after Memorial Day had an increase that would fit the pattern.
In many cities, the protests actually seemed to lead to a net increase in social distancing, as more people who did not protest decided to stay off the streets, said that study’s lead author, Dhaval Dave of Bentley University.
“The large-scale protests can impact both the behavior of the protesters and the behavior of the non-protesters,” said Dave. The paper was released last week by the National Bureau of Economic Research, but has not been published by a peer-reviewed journal.
Drawing from data compiled by Johns Hopkins University, The Associated Press reviewed trends in daily reported cases in 22 U.S. cities with protests. It found post-protest increases in several cities — including Houston and Madison, Wisconsin — where experts say other factors were more likely the main drivers.
Read the full report here.
12:04 p.m. Dart, other county sheriffs demand state prisons start accepting inmates again
With little room to spare at Cook County Jail, Sheriff Tom Dart is seeking a court order to compel the state to take custody of inmates who had been housed at the jail since the coronavirus outbreak.
The Illinois Sheriffs’ Association, which Dart is a member of, filed the motion Thursday in downstate Logan County asking a circuit court judge to approve a preliminary injunction that would order the state to accept inmates who are housed in county jails, but should be in the custody of the Illinois Department of Corrections.
These inmates — unlike detainees at the jail who are awaiting trial — have been convicted and sentenced.
Some of these inmates served their sentences but need to to be transferred to IDOC custody before their release.
Since the outbreak IDOC officials told sheriffs said they needed time to prepare new intake procedures at state facilities to contain the virus, but have continued to decline to accept transfers from county jail for months.
Read the full story from Matthew Hendrickson here.
10:01 a.m. Republicans, with exception of Trump, now push mask-wearing to fight coronavirus
In Republican circles — with the notable exception of the man who leads the party — the debate about masks is over: It’s time to put one on.
As a surge of infections hammers the South and West, GOP officials are pushing back against the notion that masks are about politics, as President Donald Trump suggests, and telling Americans they can help save lives.
Sen. Lamar Alexander, a Tennessee Republican, on Tuesday bluntly called on Trump to start wearing a mask, at least some of the time, to set a good example.
“Unfortunately, this simple, lifesaving practice has become part of a political debate that says: If you’re for Trump, you don’t wear a mask. If you’re against Trump, you do,” Alexander said.
It’s a rare break for Republicans from Trump, who earlier this month told the Wall Street Journal that some people wear masks simply to show that they disapprove of him. And the Republican nudges for the public — and the president — to embrace mask-wearing are coming from all corners of Trump’s party and even from friendly conservative media.
Read the full story here.
9:03 a.m. ‘Second wave’ could stunt national economic rebound
A resurgence of confirmed COVID cases across the South and West — and the suspension or reversal of re-openings of bars, hotels, restaurants and other businesses — is endangering hopes for an economic rebound in the region and perhaps nationally. At stake are the jobs of millions of people who have clung to hopes that their layoffs from widespread business shutdowns this spring would prove short-lived.
On Thursday, the government is expected to issue another robust monthly jobs report. Economists have forecast that employers added 3 million jobs in June, on top of 2.5 million added in May, clawing back a portion of the record-high 21 million that vanished in April at the height of the viral shutdowns.
Yet any such news might already be outdated: The jobs report won’t fully capture the impact of the COVID upsurge in the South and West and the desperate steps being pursued to try to control it. The re-closings of restaurants and bars, and resulting job cuts, mark an about-face from what appear to have been premature efforts to restart the economy before the pandemic had been contained.
“We’re still in a very deep hole,’’ said Diane Swonk, chief economist at the firm Grant Thornton. “This makes the June employment report backward-looking instead of forward-looking.’’
Read the full report here.
8:24 a.m. Illinois ends June with about half the daily COVID-19 deaths and new cases as in peak month of May
As coronavirus cases flare to record highs in other states that reopened earlier, Illinois closed out the month of June with another round of low daily numbers Tuesday, indicating the state’s pandemic curve is still arcing downward — for now.
The Illinois Department of Public Health announced 23 additional deaths attributed to COVID-19 and 724 newly confirmed cases of the virus. That raises the state’s death toll to 6,923 among the 143,185 people who have tested positive for the virus since late January.
The state averaged about half as many new cases and deaths each day in June compared to May, when Illinois hit its apparent coronavirus peak.
The state suffered almost half its overall caseload and death toll in May, with about 67,300 positive diagnoses and 3,076 lives lost. That means officials announced an average of about 99 deaths and 2,172 new cases per day.
Read the full story by Mitchell Armentrout here.
New cases
DeAndre Jordan says he has tested positive for the coronavirus and won’t be joining the Brooklyn Nets in Florida when the NBA season resumes.
The Illinois Department of Public Health announced 23 additional deaths attributed to COVID-19 and 724 newly confirmed cases of the virus on Tuesday.
Illinois reported 14 COVID-19 deaths Monday, its lowest daily total in three months for the second day in a row as the state’s reopening is underway. That brings the state’s total death toll to 6,902.
The NBA and the National Basketball Players Association say 16 players tested positive for coronavirus in the first wave of mandatory tests done in preparation for the restart of the season.
Analysis & Commentary
12:07 p.m. Minor League Baseball’s canceled 2020 season is yet another cruel blow
For all the sacrifices and deferred dreams the novel coronavirus forced upon the sports world, many are paired with some solace, knowing that there will be a next year.
One sector, from top to bottom, doesn’t have that luxury.
The long-anticipated announcement Tuesday that Minor League Baseball’s 2020 season will be canceled is a blow to thousands of minor leaguers who just saw the thankless, debt-inducing, harrowing road to the majors sidetracked, perhaps permanently.
It is a gut punch to the staffers still remaining at the 160 affiliated minor-league clubs who have held on through furloughs and pay cuts and added even more creative duties to their usual titles in the name of keeping their jobs. With an entire calendar year of virtually no revenue, many more will lose their jobs.
And — because what’s a pandemic in our country without a little opportunism? — it may represent a death knell for dozens of franchises that Major League Baseball placed on a chopping block in the service of shaving a few nickels and creating more efficiency, long-term growth of the game be damned.
Read the full guest column from Gabe Lacques in USA Today here.
7:51 a.m. Fantasizing about what to do after the pandemic is over
I’ve started to think of it as The After. I mean that time when it will be safe for me and the rest of the world to do all the stuff we used to do before COVID-19 showed up and ruined the party.
The After is the time after we’ve lived through this pandemic, those of us who do live through it.
I suspect that everyone, like me, is fantasizing about what to do in The After. What restaurant to go to. What theme park to visit. What ballet to see. What singer to hear. What park to barbeque in.
Basketball is something that I really miss, but most of the guys I’m playing with and against are over the age of 60 or, like me, over the age of 70. We aren’t going to be playing again until this COVID thing is really over. It’s just too dangerous for us to bang bodies under the board and huff and puff around the court.
I’m sure everyone — all over the world — has one or maybe many lists of what to do in The After.
Read the full guest column from Patrick Reardon here.


chicagosun-times--2020-07-01--Dogged columnist’s job is no picnic — except when it’s time to probe private use of public parkland

I bought some hot dogs Wednesday at Byron ’ s and scooted over to Lake Shore Drive West for a picnic lunch on a newly discovered patch of parkland .
It ’ s a lovely setting , almost like having your own private yard , much better maintained than the Chicago Park District property across the street .
In fact , you ’ d think it ’ s the front lawn of the mansion located there , set off by bushes that wrap around the property and frame a walkway that leads to the front gate .
A normal person @ @ @ @ @ @ @ “ That ’ s private property .
I ’ m not supposed to be there.
” The homeowner , Michael Tadin Jr. , swears that ’ s not the case .
Tadin said the public is welcome to make use of the land in front of his home at 3026 N. Lake Shore Drive West , although he questions why anyone would want to do so when there ’ s so much more open space just across the street .
Tadin says he planted the bushes “ just to outline the property , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ it .
Former Chicago Park District ’ s Inspector General Will Fletcher has other ideas , which he detailed in a recent report alleging Tadin had “ cordoned off nearly 3,000 square feet ” of Park District property with his hedgerows , converting the land to his personal use in the process .
Fletcher , who just took the Chicago Public Schools ’ inspector general job , said in his report that Park District lawyers have been trying since 2015 to make the property owners remove the bushes , but that they keep @ @ @ @ @ @ @ not mention Tadin by name or even identify the address , but Tadin confirms he ’ s the landowner in question .
In a telephone interview , Tadin argued the land is owned by the city , not the Park District , and that he has legal permission from the city to use it for access to his home .
He denies stringing anyone along , arguing he has responded every time the issue was raised and thought it had been resolved in his favor .
A city ordinance approved in 2017 gave @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a 45-foot crosswalk with steps to their front door , for which he must pay $ 1,663 per year .
It makes no mention of planting bushes that essentially serve as a fence .
The home was actually built — with sidewalk and landscaping — in 2014 , Tadin said .
I learned about the inspector general ’ s report from a story by Block Club Chicago .
Plenty of other people read the story , too , because they were walking past and taking photos or making comments .
Even before I @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Lowing of Albany Park was already there , waving to passersby and inviting them to join him .
Lowing , who told me he was formerly homeless , said he was protesting the deaths of children from Chicago gun violence .
“ I ’ m out here about the babies , and they still cry about the bushes , ” Lowing said .
I had to admit I was there in part to escape all the heavy stuff in the news in hopes of immersing myself for a few hours in some good @ @ @ @ @ @ @ joined us to make their own protests .
A woman who lives nearby stopped to use the lawn for her stretching exercises .
“ I always thought this didn ’ t seem right , ” she said of the bushes .
In a particular display of belligerence , another fellow sat down and smoked a cigarette on the front steps outside the gate that provides access to the home .
Then there was Larry Williamson , who paused from his walk to ask : “ How is this possible ?
” Ald .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ shouldn ’ t blame him .
Tunney said he started the Park District investigation in 2015 after neighbors started complaining about the hedges .
Tunney said all properties fronting the west side of Lake Shore Drive West from Diversey to Belmont have a similar strip of public land with varying degrees of landscaping .
“ The hedges are the problem , ” Tunney said .
Tadin , son of Chicago trucking magnate Michael Tadin Sr. and owner of his own asphalt and construction businesses , said if someone can prove the Park District @ @ @ @ @ @ @ hedges immediately .
“ I ’ m not looking to start an argument with anybody , ” Tadin said .
“ I don ’ t even go out there.
” I can ’ t say Tadin is blocking access to the property .
I walked right in .
But he ’ s definitely discouraging its use .
The purpose is obvious : to maintain a buffer between his home and people on the street .
During my two hours outside Tadin ’ s house , nobody bothered us , and in the end @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ran me off .
I ’ m not telling you to hold a 4th of July picnic there .
I ’ m just saying you could .

I bought some hot dogs Wednesday at Byron’s and scooted over to Lake Shore Drive West for a picnic lunch on a newly discovered patch of parkland.
It’s a lovely setting, almost like having your own private yard, much better maintained than the Chicago Park District property across the street.
In fact, you’d think it’s the front lawn of the mansion located there, set off by bushes that wrap around the property and frame a walkway that leads to the front gate.
Opinion bug Opinion
A normal person might see those bushes and think, “That’s private property. I’m not supposed to be there.”
The homeowner, Michael Tadin Jr., swears that’s not the case.
Tadin said the public is welcome to make use of the land in front of his home in the 3000 block of North Lake Shore Drive West, although he questions why anyone would want to do so when there’s so much more open space just across the street.
Tadin says he planted the bushes “just to outline the property,” not to block public access to it.
Former Chicago Park District Inspector General Will Fletcher has other ideas, which he detailed in a recent report alleging Tadin had “cordoned off nearly 3,000 square feet” of Park District property with his hedgerows, converting the land to his personal use in the process.
Mark Brown and Albany Park resident Zac Lowing sit outside businessman Michael Tadin Jr.’s home on Wednesday. Pat Nabong/Sun-Times
Fletcher, who just took the Chicago Public Schools’ inspector general job, said in his report that Park District lawyers have been trying since 2015 to make the property owners remove the bushes, but that they keep stringing everyone along.
The report does not mention Tadin by name or even identify the address, but Tadin confirms he’s the landowner in question.
In a telephone interview, Tadin argued the land is owned by the city, not the Park District, and that he has legal permission from the city to use it for access to his home.
He denies stringing anyone along, arguing he has responded every time the issue was raised and thought it had been resolved in his favor.
A city ordinance approved in 2017 gave Tadin and his wife permission to maintain a 45-foot crosswalk with steps to their front door, for which he must pay $1,663 per year. It makes no mention of planting bushes that essentially serve as a fence.
The home was actually built — with sidewalk and landscaping — in 2014, Tadin said.
I learned about the inspector general’s report from a story by Block Club Chicago.
Mark Brown and Albany Park resident Zac Lowing sit outside businessman Michael Tadin Jr.’s home on Wednesday. Pat Nabong/Sun-Times
Plenty of other people read the story, too, because they were walking past and taking photos or making comments.
Even before I set up my lawn chair, Zac Lowing of Albany Park was already there, waving to passersby and inviting them to join him.
Lowing, who told me he was formerly homeless, said he was protesting the deaths of children from Chicago gun violence.
“I’m out here about the babies, and they still cry about the bushes,” Lowing said.
I had to admit I was there in part to escape all the heavy stuff in the news in hopes of immersing myself for a few hours in some good old-fashioned Chicago real estate mischief.
Others joined us to make their own protests.
A woman who lives nearby stopped to use the lawn for her stretching exercises.
“I always thought this didn’t seem right,” she said of the bushes.
Columnist Mark Brown and others enjoy the parkland outside businessman Michael Tadin Jr.’s home on Wednesday. Pat Nabong/Sun-Times
In a particular display of belligerence, another fellow sat down and smoked a cigarette on the front steps outside the gate that provides access to the home.
Then there was Larry Williamson, who paused from his walk to ask: “How is this possible?”
How indeed.
Ald. Tom Tunney (44th) said we shouldn’t blame him.
Tunney said he started the Park District investigation in 2015 after neighbors started complaining about the hedges.
Tunney said all properties fronting the west side of Lake Shore Drive West from Diversey to Belmont have a similar strip of public land with varying degrees of landscaping.
“The hedges are the problem,” Tunney said.
Chicago Sun-Times columnist Mark Brown writes while eating a hot dog outside businessman Michael Tadin Jr.’s home on Wednesday. Pat Nabong/Sun-Times file
Tadin, son of Chicago trucking magnate Michael Tadin Sr. and owner of his own asphalt and construction businesses, said if someone can prove the Park District owns the land he will remove the hedges immediately.
“I’m not looking to start an argument with anybody,” Tadin said. “I don’t even go out there.”
I can’t say Tadin is blocking access to the property. I walked right in. But he’s definitely discouraging its use.
The purpose is obvious: to maintain a buffer between his home and people on the street.
During my two hours outside Tadin’s house, nobody bothered us, and in the end, it was only the mosquitoes that ran me off.
I’m not telling you to hold a Fourth of July picnic there. I’m just saying you could.


chicagosun-times--2020-07-01--Death Cafes help ease grief, loss in the time of coronavirus

NEW YORK — Panic attacks , trouble breathing , relapses that have sent her to bed for 14 hours at a time : At 35 , Marissa Oliver has been forced to deal with the specter of death on COVID-19 ’ s terms , yet conversations about her illness , fear and anxiety haven ’ t been easy .
That ’ s why she headed onto Zoom to attend a Death Cafe , a gathering of strangers willing to explore mortality and its impact on the living , preferably while sipping tea and eating cake .
“ In the Death @ @ @ @ @ @ @ said Oliver , who was diagnosed with the virus in March .
“ Now , I ’ m writing down everything in my life that I want to achieve.
” Death Cafes , part of a broader “ death-positive ” movement to encourage more open discussion about grief , trauma and loss , are held around the world , in nearly 100 countries .
While many haven ’ t migrated online in the pandemic , others have .
Locally , according to their website , there are upcoming Death Cafe options in Oak @ @ @ @ @ @ @ global virus toll and the social isolation it has extracted have opened old , unresolved wounds for some .
Others attending virtual Death Cafes are coping with fresh losses from COVID-19 , cancer and other illness .
Still more bring metaphorical death to the circles : The end of friendships , shattered romances or chronic illness , as Oliver has endured .
At one recent virtual Death Cafe , a 33-year-old man spoke of refusing to pack up his wife ’ s belongings six months after her death from cancer .
A woman @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ago described her peace with the decision not to have another , as her donated organ deteriorates .
For Jen Carl in Washington , D.C. , the pandemic has intensified memories of her 11 years of sexual abuse as a child , her father ’ s drug and alcohol abuse , and his death about six years ago .
She said sharing and listening to the stories of others in Death Cafes have helped .
“ I feel just really so at peace and relieved when I ’ m in circles where folks @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and not trying to move away from the uncomfortable , ” Carl told a recent group .
“ I ’ ve been on a couple of Zoom calls with close friends who aren ’ t worried about talking about difficult things most of the time but then when COVID ’ S come up it ’ s like , ` Oh well , we ’ re partying right now .
Let ’ s not talk about that , ?
and that just triggers me so much.
” Inspired by Swiss sociologist and anthropologist Bernard @ @ @ @ @ @ @ cafe mortel ” in 2004 , the late British web developer Jon Underwood honed the model and held the first Death Cafe in his London home in 2011 .
The idea spread quickly and the meetups in restaurants and cafes , homes and parks now span Europe and North America , reaching into Australia , the Caribbean and Japan .
Underwood died suddenly as a result of undiagnosed leukemia in 2017 , but his wife and other relatives have carried on .
They maintain a website , Deathcafe.com , where hosts post their @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Cafes and traditional support and bereavement groups is the range of stories .
But the cafes also offer the freedom to approach the room with levity rather than stern seriousness , and extraordinary diversity : a mix of races , genders and ages , from people in the moment with terminal loved ones to those who have lost classmates or relatives to suicide .
Death Cafes aren ’ t intended to “ fix ” problems and find solutions but to foster sharing as the road to support .
They ’ re generally kept @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and also include the “ death curious , ” people who aren ’ t dealing with loss but choose to take on the topic anyway .
Psychotherapist Nancy Gershman , who specializes in grief and loss , has been hosting Death Cafes in New York since 2013 , the year after they made their way to the U.S. “ Death Cafes are a place where strangers meet to talk about things regarding death and dying that they can ’ t bring anywhere else , that they can ’ t bring home or to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ she said .
Registered nurse Nicole Heidbreder is a birth and end-of-life doula .
She also trains others as doulas and has been hosting Death Cafes in Washington , D.C. , for about five years .
“ I was working as a full-time hospice nurse and I very quickly recognized how many families I was sitting with whom this was their very first time talking about the end of life .
I just felt it was such an absolute shame , ” Heidbreder said .
“ One of the parallels between birth and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 100 years ago in our country , all of us would have been very well versed in what birth and death literally looked like , ” she said .
“ We would have seen our family and neighbors do the tasks of tending to people who are giving birth or families who are losing someone .
And now we simply aren ’ t exposed to that.
” Heidbreder said the coronavirus has changed the conversation yet again .
She said she shifted to offering the virtual cafes “ on a weekly basis at @ @ @ @ @ @ @ country.
” She now hosts people not just in the D.C. area , as she did before the pandemic , but across America , from California to North Carolina .
More health care workers have shown up , too .
J. Dana Trent is a professor of world religions at Wake Tech Community College in Raleigh , North Carolina .
She served as a hospital chaplain in a death ward at age 25 after graduating from divinity school , assisting in 200 deaths in a year .
The ordained Southern Baptist minister used @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 2019 book , “ Dessert First : Preparing for Death While Savoring Life , ” which offers a view of how “ positive death ” can be achieved .
“ COVID has certainly brought death to the forefront .
It has brought the death-positive movement to the forefront , but we ’ re still scared , ” Trent said .
“ What I ’ m grateful for is that COVID has awakened society to the possibility of death .
None of us is getting out of here alive .
”

NEW YORK — Panic attacks, trouble breathing, relapses that have sent her to bed for 14 hours at a time: At 35, Marissa Oliver has been forced to deal with the specter of death on COVID-19’s terms, yet conversations about her illness, fear and anxiety haven’t been easy.
That’s why she headed onto Zoom to attend a Death Cafe, a gathering of strangers willing to explore mortality and its impact on the living, preferably while sipping tea and eating cake.
“In the Death Cafe, no one winces,” said Oliver, who was diagnosed with the virus in March. “Now, I’m writing down everything in my life that I want to achieve.”
Death Cafes, part of a broader “death-positive” movement to encourage more open discussion about grief, trauma and loss, are held around the world, in nearly 100 countries. While many haven’t migrated online in the pandemic, others have.
Locally, according to their website, there are upcoming Death Cafe options in Oak Park, Naperville and virtually.
The global virus toll and the social isolation it has extracted have opened old, unresolved wounds for some. Others attending virtual Death Cafes are coping with fresh losses from COVID-19, cancer and other illness. Still more bring metaphorical death to the circles: The end of friendships, shattered romances or chronic illness, as Oliver has endured.
At one recent virtual Death Cafe, a 33-year-old man spoke of refusing to pack up his wife’s belongings six months after her death from cancer. A woman who underwent a heart transplant 31 years ago described her peace with the decision not to have another, as her donated organ deteriorates.
For Jen Carl in Washington, D.C., the pandemic has intensified memories of her 11 years of sexual abuse as a child, her father’s drug and alcohol abuse, and his death about six years ago. She said sharing and listening to the stories of others in Death Cafes have helped.
“I feel just really so at peace and relieved when I’m in circles where folks are talking about real things in life and not trying to move away from the uncomfortable,” Carl told a recent group.
“I’ve been on a couple of Zoom calls with close friends who aren’t worried about talking about difficult things most of the time but then when COVID’S come up it’s like, `Oh well, we’re partying right now. Let’s not talk about that,? and that just triggers me so much.”
Inspired by Swiss sociologist and anthropologist Bernard Crettaz, who organized his first “cafe mortel” in 2004, the late British web developer Jon Underwood honed the model and held the first Death Cafe in his London home in 2011. The idea spread quickly and the meetups in restaurants and cafes, homes and parks now span Europe and North America, reaching into Australia, the Caribbean and Japan.
Underwood died suddenly as a result of undiagnosed leukemia in 2017, but his wife and other relatives have carried on. They maintain a website, Deathcafe.com, where hosts post their gatherings.
One important difference between Death Cafes and traditional support and bereavement groups is the range of stories. But the cafes also offer the freedom to approach the room with levity rather than stern seriousness, and extraordinary diversity: a mix of races, genders and ages, from people in the moment with terminal loved ones to those who have lost classmates or relatives to suicide.
Death Cafes aren’t intended to “fix” problems and find solutions but to foster sharing as the road to support. They’re generally kept to 30 or so, meet monthly and also include the “death curious,” people who aren’t dealing with loss but choose to take on the topic anyway.
Psychotherapist Nancy Gershman, who specializes in grief and loss, has been hosting Death Cafes in New York since 2013, the year after they made their way to the U.S.
“Death Cafes are a place where strangers meet to talk about things regarding death and dying that they can’t bring anywhere else, that they can’t bring home or to co-workers or to best friends,” she said.
Registered nurse Nicole Heidbreder is a birth and end-of-life doula. She also trains others as doulas and has been hosting Death Cafes in Washington, D.C., for about five years.
“I was working as a full-time hospice nurse and I very quickly recognized how many families I was sitting with whom this was their very first time talking about the end of life. I just felt it was such an absolute shame,” Heidbreder said.
“One of the parallels between birth and death is that a little more than 100 years ago in our country, all of us would have been very well versed in what birth and death literally looked like,” she said. “We would have seen our family and neighbors do the tasks of tending to people who are giving birth or families who are losing someone. And now we simply aren’t exposed to that.”
Heidbreder said the coronavirus has changed the conversation yet again. She said she shifted to offering the virtual cafes “on a weekly basis at the time of peak COVID in the country.”
She now hosts people not just in the D.C. area, as she did before the pandemic, but across America, from California to North Carolina. More health care workers have shown up, too.
J. Dana Trent is a professor of world religions at Wake Tech Community College in Raleigh, North Carolina. She served as a hospital chaplain in a death ward at age 25 after graduating from divinity school, assisting in 200 deaths in a year.
The ordained Southern Baptist minister used her experiences in the hospital for a 2019 book, “Dessert First: Preparing for Death While Savoring Life,” which offers a view of how “positive death” can be achieved.
“COVID has certainly brought death to the forefront. It has brought the death-positive movement to the forefront, but we’re still scared,” Trent said. “What I’m grateful for is that COVID has awakened society to the possibility of death. None of us is getting out of here alive.”


chicagosun-times--2020-07-01--Merlo Branch Library reopens after $6 million rehab

After a $ 6 million rehab , a 78-year-old Lake View library branch reopened Wednesday , though with social distancing measures in place .
The Merlo Branch Library , located at 644 W. Belmont , was closed last year for the extensive gut renovation project .
Among those speaking at the rededication was Joan Merlo , youngest daughter of John “ Jack ” Merlo , the former alderman and state lawmaker for whom the building is named .
Local Ald .
Tom Tunney ( 44th ) , who also spoke at the ceremony , said the building originally was a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ been renovated once before , in the 1980s , Tunney said .
The area around the library has plenty of schools , and “ trust me , they have been asking for months when their library is gon na reopen , ” Tunney said Wednesday .
Mayor Lori Lightfoot also attended the festivities and fondly recalled her time spent in libraries while growing up in Ohio , where she said she got “ shushed ” by librarians “ more times than I can count.
” Upgrades to the two-story library include a large @ @ @ @ @ @ @ area with a new Maker Lab , and an Early Learning Play Space .
There ’ s also a large enclosed YOUmedia area for teens , and an adult area with computers .
There is now a significant focus on LGBTQ+ materials .
The community spaces , however , are closed for now and will reopen only as public health guidance allows .
The building has expanded accessibility , as per the Americans with Disabilities Act .

After a $6 million rehab, a 78-year-old Lake View library branch reopened Wednesday, though with social distancing measures in place.
The Merlo Branch Library, located at 644 W. Belmont, was closed last year for the extensive gut renovation project.
Among those speaking at the rededication was Joan Merlo, youngest daughter of John “Jack” Merlo, the former alderman and state lawmaker for whom the building is named.
Local Ald. Tom Tunney (44th), who also spoke at the ceremony, said the building originally was a Works Progress Administration project. It had been renovated once before, in the 1980s, Tunney said.
The area around the library has plenty of schools, and “trust me, they have been asking for months when their library is gonna reopen,” Tunney said Wednesday.
Social distancing measures, including one-way rows between the shelves, are in place at the newly renovated Merlo Branch Library in Lake View. Pat Nabong/Sun-Times
Mayor Lori Lightfoot also attended the festivities and fondly recalled her time spent in libraries while growing up in Ohio, where she said she got “shushed” by librarians “more times than I can count.”
Upgrades to the two-story library include a large community space, a children’s area with a new Maker Lab, and an Early Learning Play Space. There’s also a large enclosed YOUmedia area for teens, and an adult area with computers. There is now a significant focus on LGBTQ+ materials. The community spaces, however, are closed for now and will reopen only as public health guidance allows.
The building has expanded accessibility, as per the Americans with Disabilities Act.
Contributing: Fran Spielman
The first floor of Chicago Public Library’s Merlo Branch, 644 W. Belmont Ave. Pat Nabong/Sun-Times


chicagosun-times--2020-07-01--Cook County’s new website shows more than half of census funds spent on advertising, marketing

A new Cook County website shows that nearly half of the $ 670,000 in census outreach money spent so far this year has gone toward advertising and marketing materials .
The uptick in spending in those categories jumped since the coronavirus pandemic , according to the Census by the Numbers website unveiled Wednesday , designed to maintain transparency on how the nearly $ 2 million allocated for the county ’ s 2020 census efforts is spent .
Of the money spent so far , $ 314,376 went toward advertising and marketing materials .
In the first two months of the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ event planning and $ 15,663 was spent on advertising .
But by March — when the state ’ s initial stay-at-home order was issued — event spending declined and advertising increased .
Event spending dropped to $ 11,408 in March , then fell to $ 9,632 in April and by May it was $ 7,212 .
Only $ 3,074 — a 92 % drop since February — was used for events in June .
During those same four months , $ 75,939 was spent just on advertising .
Over the first six months @ @ @ @ @ @ @ spent on marketing materials .
Almost 100 suburban government , community groups , churches and cultural centers received portions of $ 2 million money to target specific areas deemed “ hard-to-count ” populations for the census count .
“ We want to be sure everyone completes their census form and we get an accurate count in all of our communities , ” Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle said .
“ While our digital efforts are enhanced , we recognize the importance of maintaining community-level visibility.
” Advertising spending for lawn signs , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ food pantries and personal protective equipment distribution sites continue to keep that visibility high , Preckwinkle said .
But Preckwinkle also acknowledged the county ’ s census response rate is not where it needs to be .
The county ’ s 61.4 % response rate as of June 30 was still under the overall 2010 response rate of 66.1 % , according to the U.S. Census Bureau .
Cook County Commissioner Alma Anaya ’ s district , which represents one of the largest communities with Latinos , immigrants and COVID-19 cases , has @ @ @ @ @ @ @ “ This means that our families , our community , is not thinking about a questionnaire , ” Anaya said .
“ They are thinking about essential things like food , housing , and health care at this moment.
” Anaya , who is the vice chair of the Cook County Complete Count Census Commission , stressed that residents should try to take five minutes to fill out the census forms since it helps decide how communities are federally funded for the next decade .
“ We are seeing now in a time @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , the importance of our education system to have all the resources for our community , ” Anaya said .
“ That is why we want to make sure everyone is counted.
” The last day to fill out the census has been pushed back to Oct. 31 due to the coronavirus pandemic .
Census takers will start knocking on doors of those who have not responded on August 11 .
Residents can fill out the census at my2020census.gov , call 844-330-2020 or by mail .
Manny Ramos is a corps member in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ program that aims to bolster Sun-Times coverage of Chicago ’ s South and West sides .

A new Cook County website shows that nearly half of the $670,000 in census outreach money spent so far this year has gone toward advertising and marketing materials.
The uptick in spending in those categories jumped since the coronavirus pandemic, according to the Census by the Numbers website unveiled Wednesday, designed to maintain transparency on how the nearly $2 million allocated for the county’s 2020 census efforts is spent.
Of the money spent so far, $314,376 went toward advertising and marketing materials.
In the first two months of the year, $45,147 was spent on event planning and $15,663 was spent on advertising. But by March — when the state’s initial stay-at-home order was issued — event spending declined and advertising increased.
La Voz Sidebar 2023 Lea este artículo en español en La Voz Chicago.
Event spending dropped to $11,408 in March, then fell to $9,632 in April and by May it was $7,212. Only $3,074 — a 92% drop since February — was used for events in June.
During those same four months, $75,939 was spent just on advertising. Over the first six months of the year, $222,773 was spent on marketing materials.
Almost 100 suburban government, community groups, churches and cultural centers received portions of $2 million money to target specific areas deemed “hard-to-count” populations for the census count.
“We want to be sure everyone completes their census form and we get an accurate count in all of our communities,” Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle said. “While our digital efforts are enhanced, we recognize the importance of maintaining community-level visibility.”
Advertising spending for lawn signs, newspaper inserts and handing out flyers at food pantries and personal protective equipment distribution sites continue to keep that visibility high, Preckwinkle said.
But Preckwinkle also acknowledged the county’s census response rate is not where it needs to be.
The county’s 61.4% response rate as of June 30 was still under the overall 2010 response rate of 66.1%, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.
Cook County Commissioner Alma Anaya’s district, which represents one of the largest communities with Latinos, immigrants and COVID-19 cases, has struggled to respond to the census.
“This means that our families, our community, is not thinking about a questionnaire,” Anaya said. “They are thinking about essential things like food, housing, and health care at this moment.”
Anaya, who is the vice chair of the Cook County Complete Count Census Commission, stressed that residents should try to take five minutes to fill out the census forms since it helps decide how communities are federally funded for the next decade.
“We are seeing now in a time of pandemic the importance of health care, the importance of our education system to have all the resources for our community,” Anaya said. “That is why we want to make sure everyone is counted.”
The last day to fill out the census has been pushed back to Oct. 31 due to the coronavirus pandemic. Census takers will start knocking on doors of those who have not responded on August 11.
Residents can fill out the census at my2020census.gov, call 844-330-2020 or by mail.
Manny Ramos is a corps member in Report for America, a not-for-profit journalism program that aims to bolster Sun-Times coverage of Chicago’s South and West sides.


chicagosun-times--2020-07-01--The Mix: Cool things to do in Chicago July 2-8

It ’ s time to reconnect with the animals .
The Brookfield Zoo is now open to members and , beginning July 8 , the general public .
In addition to seeing lions , bears and giraffes , visitors can enjoy the exhibit “ Dinos Everywhere !
, ” featuring more than 40 animatronic creatures from a prehistoric time .
Reservations are required ; times are available in 20-minute increments from 9:30 a.m.-3 p.m. Face masks are mandatory and indoor spaces are closed .
Admission : $ 17.95 , $ 24.95 ; parking $ 15 .
Visit czs.org .
• @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the general public .
Reservations are required and available every hour from 10 a.m.-4 p.m. with a suggested two-hour limit per visit .
Face masks are required and social distancing measures are encouraged .
All indoor habitats are closed .
Admission is free .
Visit lpzoo.org .
While there will be no fireworks display at Navy Pier this year , there is plenty of free virtual fun streaming on the July 4 holiday : • “ You can ’ t stop the house.
” That ’ s the slogan for the Chosen Few @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ) , this summer ’ s edition of the Chosen Few DJs Music Fest & Picnic .
Spinning music are DJs Wayne Williams , Jesse Saunders , Tony Hatchett , Alan King , Andre Hatchett , Terry Hunter and Mike Dunn .
Special guests include comedian , actor and DJ Deon Cole ; Byron Stingily , lead vocalist of the seminal house group Ten City , and singer-songwriter Carla Prather , of Poi Dog Pondering and Mr. A.L.I .
Streams from noon-9 p.m. July 4 .
• Also there ’ s a special @ @ @ @ @ @ @ summerdance.org ) with a salsa dance lesson and music by Afinca ’ o .
• The Grant Park Orchestra ( 6:30 p.m. ; gpmf.org ) performs the 1812 Overture , “ Stars and Stripes Forever ” and more in a recording from 2019 .
The Pilsen Community Market , Chicago ’ s largest Latino marketplace , takes place from 9 a.m.-3 p.m. Sundays at Plaza Tenochtitlan , 1821 S. Blue Island .
While adhering to social distancing guidelines , the market features local fresh food vendors , artisans and food trucks .
There @ @ @ @ @ @ @ but DJ Diablo will help set the mood .
Visit pilsencommunitymarket.weebly.com .
The annual Taste of Chicago has morphed into Taste of Chicago To-Go ( July 8-12 ) , which follows the tradition of showcasing the diversity of Chicago ’ s dining scene .
An expanded Community Eats program supports more than two dozen neighborhood restaurants and food trucks while also providing free meals to nonprofit organizations serving healthcare and other frontline workers .
There are also are online cooking demonstrations with local chefs and a food truck procession ( July 8 ) @ @ @ @ @ @ @ For more information , go to tasteofchicago.us .
A Red Orchid Theatre and Porchlight Music Theatre team up for “ War of the Well ( e ) s , ” an audio adaptation of a stage play written by Porchlight artistic director Michael Weber and directed by Red Orchid ensemble member Lawrence Grimm .
The play tells the behind-the-scenes story of Orson Welles ’ 1938 recording of the H.G .
Wells novel “ The War of the Worlds , ” which resulted in a now infamous evening of panic and mass hysteria as @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a true news report .
The cast features 25 actors from around the country .
Streams through July 31 ; tickets are pay-what-you-can .
Visit aredorchidtheatre.org/war-of-the-welles/ .
FitzGerald ’ s presents two of its favorite Texas songwriters — James McMurtry and Jon Dee Graham — in “ Song for Song , ” streaming live at 8 p.m. July 8 .
For years in a pre-COVID time , the two friends have shared a popular Wednesday night gig at Austin ’ s Continental Club .
Now they bring their Wednesday night music to this @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a split screen , the two longtime friends will trade songs and stories .
Free , tips appreciated .
Visit fitzgeraldsnightclub.com .
Because of the financial and logistical challenges of reopening , most music venues remain closed .
But one , The Green Mill Cocktail Lounge , is attempting a restart .
The legendary jazz club is open from 3-11 p.m. daily with two sets of live music in the evening .
But in order to stop the spread of the virus , even the music will have restrictions : no vocal performances @ @ @ @ @ @ @ keyboards only .
Plus the house will be cleared between sets as the city has limited patrons to two-hour stays .
The Green Mill , 4802 N. Broadway .
Admission , $ 10 , $ 15 .
Visit greenmilljazz.com .
For the past few months , third-generation magician Dennis Watkins , known for his sellout shows at the Palmer House , has been busy adapting his craft for a virtual audience .
His reimagined show , “ The Magic Parlour at Home , ” promises to dazzle audiences with new and interactive magic @ @ @ @ @ @ @ we all need a bit of magic right now ?
Recommended for adult audiences .
At 7:30 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays in July ( additional 9:30 p.m. shows July 3 , 10 ) .
Tickets : $ 75 .
Visit themagicparlourchicago.com .

Fun at the zoo
It’s time to reconnect with the animals. The Brookfield Zoo is now open to members and, beginning July 8, the general public. In addition to seeing lions, bears and giraffes, visitors can enjoy the exhibit “Dinos Everywhere!,” featuring more than 40 animatronic creatures from a prehistoric time. Reservations are required; times are available in 20-minute increments from 9:30 a.m.-3 p.m. Face masks are mandatory and indoor spaces are closed. Admission: $17.95, $24.95; parking $15. Visit czs.org.
• The Lincoln Park Zoo has reopened to the general public. Reservations are required and available every hour from 10 a.m.-4 p.m. with a suggested two-hour limit per visit. Face masks are required and social distancing measures are encouraged. All indoor habitats are closed. Admission is free. Visit lpzoo.org.
Terry Hunter is among the DJs spinning music for the Chosen Few Virtual Festival. Sun-Times File
For the 4th
While there will be no fireworks display at Navy Pier this year, there is plenty of free virtual fun streaming on the July 4 holiday:
• “You can’t stop the house.” That’s the slogan for the Chosen Few Virtual Festival (noon-9 p.m.; chosenfewdjs.com), this summer’s edition of the Chosen Few DJs Music Fest & Picnic. Spinning music are DJs Wayne Williams, Jesse Saunders, Tony Hatchett, Alan King, Andre Hatchett, Terry Hunter and Mike Dunn. Special guests include comedian, actor and DJ Deon Cole; Byron Stingily, lead vocalist of the seminal house group Ten City, and singer-songwriter Carla Prather, of Poi Dog Pondering and Mr. A.L.I. Streams from noon-9 p.m. July 4.
• Also there’s a special edition of SummerDance (6:30 p.m.; summerdance.org) with a salsa dance lesson and music by Afinca’o.
• The Grant Park Orchestra (6:30 p.m.; gpmf.org) performs the 1812 Overture, “Stars and Stripes Forever” and more in a recording from 2019.
Pilsen Community Market Grimaldi Public Relations
Outdoor market
The Pilsen Community Market, Chicago’s largest Latino marketplace, takes place from 9 a.m.-3 p.m. Sundays at Plaza Tenochtitlan, 1821 S. Blue Island. While adhering to social distancing guidelines, the market features local fresh food vendors, artisans and food trucks. There’s no live music this year but DJ Diablo will help set the mood. Visit pilsencommunitymarket.weebly.com.
Maya-Camille Broussard of Justice of Pies will do a Taste of Chicago cooking demo. DCASE
Food fest reboot
The annual Taste of Chicago has morphed into Taste of Chicago To-Go (July 8-12), which follows the tradition of showcasing the diversity of Chicago’s dining scene. An expanded Community Eats program supports more than two dozen neighborhood restaurants and food trucks while also providing free meals to nonprofit organizations serving healthcare and other frontline workers. There are also are online cooking demonstrations with local chefs and a food truck procession (July 8) from downtown to various neighborhood locations. For more information, go to tasteofchicago.us.
Welles and Wells
A Red Orchid Theatre and Porchlight Music Theatre team up for “War of the Well(e)s,” an audio adaptation of a stage play written by Porchlight artistic director Michael Weber and directed by Red Orchid ensemble member Lawrence Grimm. The play tells the behind-the-scenes story of Orson Welles’ 1938 recording of the H.G. Wells novel “The War of the Worlds,” which resulted in a now infamous evening of panic and mass hysteria as listeners thought what they were hearing was a true news report. The cast features 25 actors from around the country. Streams through July 31; tickets are pay-what-you-can. Visit aredorchidtheatre.org/war-of-the-welles/.
James McMurtry Mary Keating Bruton
Texas duo
FitzGerald’s presents two of its favorite Texas songwriters — James McMurtry and Jon Dee Graham — in “Song for Song,” streaming live at 8 p.m. July 8. For years in a pre-COVID time, the two friends have shared a popular Wednesday night gig at Austin’s Continental Club. Now they bring their Wednesday night music to this FitzGerald’s stream where, on a split screen, the two longtime friends will trade songs and stories. Free, tips appreciated. Visit fitzgeraldsnightclub.com.
Music has returned to the Green Mill Cocktail Lounge. Sun-Times File
Jazz returns
Because of the financial and logistical challenges of reopening, most music venues remain closed. But one, The Green Mill Cocktail Lounge, is attempting a restart. The legendary jazz club is open from 3-11 p.m. daily with two sets of live music in the evening. But in order to stop the spread of the virus, even the music will have restrictions: no vocal performances or wind instruments; stringed instruments and keyboards only. Plus the house will be cleared between sets as the city has limited patrons to two-hour stays. The Green Mill, 4802 N. Broadway. Admission, $10, $15. Visit greenmilljazz.com.
Rich Hein/Sun-Times
Magical moments
For the past few months, third-generation magician Dennis Watkins, known for his sellout shows at the Palmer House, has been busy adapting his craft for a virtual audience. His reimagined show, “The Magic Parlour at Home,” promises to dazzle audiences with new and interactive magic and mindreading. And don’t we all need a bit of magic right now? Recommended for adult audiences. At 7:30 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays in July (additional 9:30 p.m. shows July 3, 10). Tickets: $75. Visit themagicparlourchicago.com.