chicagotribune--2020-02-21--Review: In ‘Plano’ by First Floor Theater at Steppenwolf, these sisters at least have each other

This technique , which often feels like catnip for your brain , is a good match for the direction of @ @ @ @ @ acting teacher who favors quick-fire scenes moving at lightning speed and cutting to the core @ @ @ @ @ times , the writing reminds you of Noah Haidle , another talented poet ; at @ @ @ @ @ of Will Eno or Sarah Ruhl .
But Francis and her cast , especially the @ @ @ @ @ this unusual play and harnessed its depth like empathy miners .
None of these sisters @ @ @ @ @ three of them , it feels throughout , deserve so much more .

If, like me, you were not blessed with any sisters, a visit to “Plano" at Steppenwolf’s 1700 Theatre will make your sense of loss only more acute.
Will Arbery’s lively, quirky play, staged by the non-Equity First Floor Theater under Steppenwolf’s LookOut visiting companies initiative, does not put sisterhood under some romantic gauze, nor does it emphasize similarity or togetherness. On the contrary, the three women around whom this play revolves could not be more different.
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Anne (Elizabeth Birnkrant) is the leader, married to a man (Christopher Acevedo) with so many secrets we don’t even know if his name is John or Juan, or if he is straight or gay; Genevieve (Ashley Neal) is so smart and caustic, she splits her problematic man, Steve (Andrew Cutler) into two different parts, one of which she likes more than the other; and Isabel (Amanda Fink) is a Christian who moves to Chicago, where her lifelong faith is tested by a mysterious man in a mask, a Faceless Ghost, as played by Andrew Lund.
That is probably enough information for you to know that these sisters do not find the kindest or the gentlest group of men as they spiral through their lives, constantly unsure about whether they should be in small-town Texas or the big city, happy or sad, tolerant or furious, certain or wracked with doubt. But they do, the play consistently asserts, have each other. They know how to love.
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In fact, these three sisters are remarkably clear-eyed about their siblings’ choices and mistakes, just not their own.
“Plano," which was staged off-Broadway in 2018, is not a conventional piece of writing. It’s linguistically rich, existentially preoccupied and as at ease with symbolism and metaphor as realism. And it cleverly messes with time: “Let’s do this later,” a character might say, followed by, “It’s now later. We didn’t do it.”
This technique, which often feels like catnip for your brain, is a good match for the direction of Audrey Francis, a no-nonsense acting teacher who favors quick-fire scenes moving at lightning speed and cutting to the core of a scene. At times, the writing reminds you of Noah Haidle, another talented poet; at other moments, you think of Will Eno or Sarah Ruhl. But Francis and her cast, especially the three leads, have taken this unusual play and harnessed its depth like empathy miners. None of these sisters have it easy; all three of them, it feels throughout, deserve so much more.
And so much better men. (If they need men at all.)
Not everything works here; parts of this show are hard to follow (always a danger with any play residing in part inside its characters’ heads), not every scene comes with the thrilling sparkle of the best moments, and the last 10 minutes or so disappoint, at least when compared to the rush of specificity in what has gone before.
But you always feel like you are having a substantial kind of evening, alongside gifted Chicago actors, who value your time and understand ensemble, unease, sistershood.
And maybe you, too.
Chris Jones is a Tribune critic.
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cjones5@chicagotribune.com
Review: “Plano” (3 stars)
When: Through March 28
Where: Steppenwolf Theatre Company, 1700 N. Halsted St.
Running time: 1 hour, 35 minutes
Tickets: $25-$35 at 312-335-1650 or www.steppenwolf.org


chicagotribune--2020-02-21--Evanston police chief apologizes after accidentally posting about 30 mug shots, one man’s apparent H

Evanston police chief apologizes after accidentally posting about 30 mug shots, one man’s apparent HIV status on Snapchat

During a news conference called Friday morning after city officials were contacted by a reporter about the situation Thursday evening @ @ @ @ @ were accidental and occurred because he likes the clarity of the social media app ’ @ @ @ @ @ said he didn ’ t realize the photos he took could be posted to his @ @ @ @ @ apologized to the men who were on the list .

Evanston Police Chief Demitrous Cook said Friday that he accidentally posted about 30 mug shots that were part of an investigation and at least one man’s apparent HIV status on Snapchat earlier this week.
During a news conference called Friday morning after city officials were contacted by a reporter about the situation Thursday evening, Cook said the postings were accidental and occurred because he likes the clarity of the social media app’s camera function. He said he didn’t realize the photos he took could be posted to his public social media account and apologized to the men who were on the list.
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“I use my camera to take photos to store on my phone and didn’t realize they could be made public at the click of a button,” Cook said.
The photos of about 30 men were included on the list of mug shots provided to Cook as part of an investigation, he said, and he took the photos on his phone so he could review them at a later time outside the office.
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All of the men on the list were black, he said, because they fit the profile of the investigation. He declined to comment on the nature of the investigation or why those men specifically were selected for the list compiled by the department.
Cook said he used the camera included in the Snapchat app, as opposed to another camera on his phone, because the Snapchat app camera is “really vivid and takes the photograph of the whole screen. I was using the camera for the quality of the photograph.”
Cook said a police commander brought the public Snapchat post to his attention and helped him take the photos down. However, during the approximately 90 minutes they were live, followers took screenshots of the list and began passing them around.
Some men on the list had “DOA” written next to them, which means “the person was deceased,” Cook said.
Evanston Police Chief Demitrous Cook addressed aldermen on Aug. 5, 2019, during a City Council meeting. (Genevieve Bookwalter / Pioneer Press)
In copies of his post viewed by the Evanston Review, at least one man was labeled as HIV positive through a handwritten note next to his photo. Cook said he does not know anyone on the list’s HIV status or why it was marked on one of the booking photos included in his post.
“We’re going to work to make sure this type of information remains confidential,” Cook said.
Cook said he compiled the mug shots, many of which were between eight and 10 years old, because he is returning to the Evanston department after eight years working elsewhere. He felt he knew many of the men included in the investigation and requested the old photos to jog his memory.
“We don’t just post people’s photographs to be malicious or anything like that. I was doing a legitimate investigative service,” Cook said. “I took those pictures so I could be familiar with some of the names in these investigations.”
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Cook said he thought all the mug shots were of adults, but was told one man was a juvenile at the time and that man’s record had been expunged.
Cook said he planned to reach out to the men on the list, and their families, to apologize. He also would help any man who felt his reputation was damaged because of the Snapchat post.
“A lot of those parents whose kids those are, those are my friends,” Cook said. “I’ve always availed myself to young people in this town to be a reference to get jobs. I’m willing to make it right.”
When asked if Cook faces any disciplinary measures, City Manager Erika Storlie declined to comment citing a policy of not commenting of personnel matters.
Before the news conference, some residents began expressing their discomfort with the postings.
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“Are we really trying to help black men in Evanston?” asked resident Carolyn Murray, who recognized many of the names on the list.
“Why would a black man want to still live here,” when the police chief is releasing mug shots on social media, Murray said in an interview Thursday.
Ald. Cicely Fleming, 9th Ward, said after the conference that she declined to comment on Cook’s actions “out of respect for the people and families involved.”
However, Fleming said, she does not agree with mug shots being disseminated for any reason, as “people should have a second chance.”
For the last few years, Evanston has maintained a policy of not providing mug shots of those charged with a crime to the media unless specifically asked. The police department and city do not post the photos to the police department’s social media accounts. Fleming championed that policy after she took office in 2017.
Cook returned to Evanston as police chief in 2018. He previously served 26 years with Evanston police, including six as deputy chief, before leaving to become chief of Glenwood Police Department in 2010.
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gbookwalter@chicagotribune.com


chicagotribune--2020-02-21--Review: Ozzy Osbourne’s first solo album in nearly 10 years shows off how extraordinary he is

Watt , who co-wrote the tracks and played guitar here , as well as produced , brought in a core @ @ @ @ @ N ’ Roses bassist Duff McKagan , and Red Hot Chili Peppers drummer Chad Smith @ @ @ @ @ as Malone , Elton John , Charlie Puth and Slash .
With most of its @ @ @ @ @ two takes ( according to Osbourne during a SiriusXM live listening session in Hollywood on @ @ @ @ @ Ordinary Man ” juts out at the listener .
Opening with an airy heavenly choir @ @ @ @ @ sample that floats throughout the song a la the Art of Noise ) , “ @ @ @ @ @ no time before its narrator screeches “ All right now ” as he did back @ @ @ @ @ Sweet Leaf.
” There ’ s ( thankfully ) not a lot of Sabbath touchstones @ @ @ @ @ ended their run several years ago .
The only memories being summoned here are pure @ @ @ @ @ riffing guitar sounds curt and cutting .

Whether as co-founder of Black Sabbath or as a solo artist, Ozzy Osbourne spent his life and art (at least, the non-reality television part) conjuring death, summoning its spirits and welcoming its hold on heaven or hell. You know the drill: his albums were filled with graveyards, devils and bloodlust. At times Ozzy was ferocious, even if the hair metal scene of the ’80s made his dread seem garish, and his evil had a comic-book edge as time went on.
The point is, since his first album with Sabbath in 1970, Osbourne has worked death, darkness and demon seeds like a painter would oils. So to see the godfather of heavy metal, at 71, who has had to cancel a tour in the wake of a Parkinson's diagnosis, staring down the chute of the Great Beyond with something that feels like it could be intended as a "goodbye" album is fascinating, even when it isn't dynamic.
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In "Ordinary Man," Osbourne's first new solo in nearly 10 years, you get what comes off as an almost Bowie-"Blackstar"-like farewell to friends and fans -- albeit with its elegiac tones cranked up to 11, and its lyrics mixing the morose with the blackly humorous. And the dumb. You don't get an Ozzy Osbourne solo album without some goofiness in the lyric department.
More hard rock than rough metal, and more lavishly produced (by Andrew Watt, of Cardi B’s “Invasion of Privacy,” and Post Malone’s “Beerbongs & Bentleys” fame) than Ozzy’s sludge-glam sound of his past, “Ordinary Man” is like driving a clown car through a wake. It’s great, fast fun even when it’s sad.
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Watt, who co-wrote the tracks and played guitar here, as well as produced, brought in a core group of ragers -- Guns N’ Roses bassist Duff McKagan, and Red Hot Chili Peppers drummer Chad Smith -- along with guests such as Malone, Elton John, Charlie Puth and Slash. With most of its tracks recorded in one or two takes (according to Osbourne during a SiriusXM live listening session in Hollywood on Feb. 13), “Ordinary Man” juts out at the listener. Opening with an airy heavenly choir’s wails (a sample that floats throughout the song a la the Art of Noise), “Straight to Hell” wastes no time before its narrator screeches “All right now” as he did back on the Sabbath classic “Sweet Leaf.” There’s (thankfully) not a lot of Sabbath touchstones here; the gloom gods ended their run several years ago. The only memories being summoned here are pure solo Ozzy, with its riffing guitar sounds curt and cutting.
"Flying higher than a kite tonight / You took the hit, and now you feel all right," chatters a high pitched Ozzy with an annoying, spooky cackle behind him and Slash's nimble-fingered solo in the foreground. "Straight to Hell" is a great introductory track, period, filled with more energy and vocal energy hooks than you'd expect from Osbourne so late in the game.
The same is true of “Scary Little Green Men.” Yes, it’s got a stupid title and stupider lyrics. But there’s drama in its gauzy guitar intro. It’s got catchy hook after hook after hook. Ozzy puts in his gutsiest, clearest performance and offers up the album’s most memorable bridge with his glowering “How long, how long.” And by the time the tune reaches its crescendo of riffing guitars and pounding pianos, “Scary Little Green Men” sounds more like vintage Stooges than an Ozzy outing.
"Goodbye" and "Ordinary Man" are the two most mournful tracks on the album. The first features Osbourne singing "I'm sorry, I'm so sorry, I gave my life a try" in his most hurt and affecting lower register before an insistently sawing set of cellos and violins. It's a slow and sneering tune that picks up riff energy after the chorus, leaving Ozzy to hammily utter "it's ovahh, it's ovahh / I'll take my final bow" in a void. Watt has a real way with Hammer Horror drama here.
"Ordinary Man," Osbourne's meditation on fame with singing-playing duet partner Elton John, isn't as handsome or theatrical as "Goodbye." With its "Candle in the Wind"-y opening and corny strings, having both singers rant windily about not wanting to be plain (?!) seems like more of a gripe about lousy room service than it does dying off as a flaming ember. Plus, the melody itself is often reminiscent of Duran Duran's "Ordinary World" ... not a bad thing, even if Simon LeBon and Nick Rhodes wrote it first.
Several tracks on "Ordinary Man" let the Blizzard of Oz down. The chiming, alt-rockish "Today is the End" doesn't end soon enough. Though there's plenty of squealing guitar menace and ascending Valkyrian mountain uplift to his Gothic "All My Life" ballad, its melody goes nowhere. "Under the Graveyard" paints itself as a misery epic, starting with Osbourne in moan mode, singing "Today I woke up, and I hate myself." But, along with its forgettable melody, Ozzy has found himself in the middle of some self-help therapy metal, by crying that he doesn't want to be his own enemy anymore. In the direst straits of Ozzy's life, at least he wants to live it in a positive, stress-free mode.
Luckily, Osbourne, Watt & Co. tie things together in a neat, energetic bow toward album's end. Along with the aforementioned "Scary Green Men," and "Holy for Tonight" -- a strong song and a somber throwback to '70s glam balladry with its high background vocals -- there's "It's a Raid." Saving the hardest for last here, Post Malone repays the favor of "Take What You Want" (a "Hollywood's Bleeding" track featuring Ozzy and Travis Scott that also appears on "Ordinary Man" as a bonus cut) and aids Osbourne in a power-drilling, neo-hardcore, metal growl-fest with both men at their snottiest. When Ozzy gets in the last word with a haughty, angry "F-- you, all," you get the sense that the Blizzard of Oz is not crawling into hell quietly.
With a really good -- even at times great -- album, Ozzy Osbourne shows off, at the very least, that he’ll never be ordinary.


chicagotribune--2020-02-21--Pitchers Alec Mills and Duane Underwood Jr. are out of options with the Cubs but at peace with their

Pitchers Alec Mills and Duane Underwood Jr. are out of options with the Cubs but at peace with their future

“ Any role would be awesome .
But the competitor in me would like to win the fifth spot .
@ @ @ @ @ who is competing wants it .
That ’ s what you want it to be @ @ @ @ @ anyone at their best .
”

MESA, Ariz. — Some finality awaits pitchers Alec Mills and Duane Underwood Jr. with the exhibition season scheduled to start Saturday.
Mills and Underwood are out of minor-league options, meaning the Cubs must keep them on the major-league roster or risk losing them to waivers.
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“I’m trying to force them to make a tough decision,” said Mills, who is scheduled to face the Athletics in Saturday’s Cactus League opener, though rain is forecast at Sloan Park. “It’s out of my hands, so this year maybe I’ll be able to push the envelope a little bit, whether it’s good or bad.
“They have to make a decision on me, whether it’s long-term or short-term. I’m excited.”
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Although the competition for the fifth spot in the rotation is perceived to be Tyler Chatwood’s to lose, Mills, 28, has shown snippets of success the last two seasons.
Cubs pitcher Alec Mills throws during spring training Feb. 12, 2020, in Mesa, Ariz. (Gregory Bull / AP)
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He posted a 2.75 ERA in nine appearances for the Cubs in 2019, including a 2.70 mark with 26 strikeouts and six walks in 20 innings over four starts.
“This spring I want to throw well, but I think my success before this will help them make the decision too,” Mills said. “It doesn’t necessarily have to be right now to be at my best.
“Any role would be awesome. But the competitor in me would like to win the fifth spot. I’m sure everyone who is competing wants it. That’s what you want it to be. You want to beat anyone at their best.”
Underwood, 25, didn’t find out until after last season he was out of options. He devoted most of the offseason to family time and continuing his development as a reliever after starting for most of his first seven professional seasons.
Cubs pitcher Duane Underwood Jr. walks to the locker room at Sloan Park on Feb. 15, 2020, in Mesa, Ariz. (Armando L. Sanchez / Chicago Tribune)
“If anything, the reliever role has taught me more about how to pitch than I Iearned in my six years of starting,” said Underwood, who posted a 3.15 ERA with 54 strikeouts in 34⅓ innings as a reliever at Triple-A Iowa and a 5.40 ERA in 12 appearances for the Cubs last season.
“I’m just being more aggressive. I had a patch there where everything was going well. I was aggressive and everything was fine, and then I had some injuries that I had to bounce back from.
“Whether you’re starting or relieving, I feel I have the experience to do a range of things and hopefully I can do whatever they need me to do.”


chicagotribune--2020-02-21--‘The Nation City’ review: Rahm Emanuel claims mayors matter more than presidents or prime ministers

But then he writes , “ Closing one school , let alone forty-nine , is never a popular thing to @ @ @ @ @ some serious flak for it .
But in this case we had to .
Yes @ @ @ @ @ rest of the school system .
But these concerns were overridden by the fact that @ @ @ @ @ , and the students who attended them were trapped in that failure , with no @ @ @ @ @ this , he goes further than can be truly justified , and one wonders what @ @ @ @ @ about the people in the sort of economically marginalized neighborhoods he inhabited losing their schools @

In 'The Nation City," Rahm Emanuel offers a compelling argument for importance of mayors, even if his depiction of his own record is questionable. (Brian Cassella / Chicago Tribune)
Most Chicago political books fall into a few genres, all with borders as sharply drawn as the gerrymandered ward boundaries our alderman produce after every census and its accompanying lawsuits. Former outsiders who become insiders write exposés of the Machine (Milton Rakove’s “We Don’t Want Nobody Nobody Sent,” or R. J. Nelson’s “Dirty Waters: Confessions of Chicago’s Last Harbor Boss”). Journalists write biographies of politicians, most often about Mayor Richard J. Daley: Mike Royko’s “Boss” or Adam Cohen and Elizabeth Taylor’s “American Pharaoh” come first to mind, but dozens of other lesser-known books have been written to glorify, vilify or even objectively analyze a man still known around here as “The Mayor” (pronounced, by Chicagoans of a certain age, “Da Mare”).
But books by, rather than about, former Chicago mayors are so rare that no genre applies.
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So Rahm Emanuel’s “The Nation City: Why Mayors Are Now Running the World” can only be compared to Jane Byrne’s “My Chicago.” In her book, Chicago’s first woman mayor wrote an apologia of sorts, exploring her personal life, her connections with the first Mayor Daley, and analyzing her administration’s successes and failures.
In “The Nation City,” Emanuel perhaps invents a new genre for mayoral tomes. He combines the look backwards at what happened and what might have been (which can, and will, be picked apart endlessly, starting below) with a forward-looking manifesto that extends far beyond Chicago, Cook County or Illinois. Emanuel brags about what he considers his successes and downplays (or ignores) his shortcomings. More importantly, he makes an argument about the future of politics in America and the rest of the “developed” world, which may prove to be true: Mayors matter more than presidents or prime ministers. He writes:
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“Mayors run the places that are now the hubs of innovations and ideas, the places that drive the economic, intellectual, and cultural energy of the world. They acknowledge and actively address climate change. They deal with immigration and infrastructure and don’t just constantly kick these issues down the road, hoping someone else will figure them out. They grapple with the challenges of education, disparities in wealth, health, housing, terrorism, and crime. Cities are globally integrated and diverse. Cities are embracing reality and creating solutions that reflect where matters are headed. Cities are all the things national governments are not. They are the present. They are also the future.”
"The Nation City" by Rahm Emanuel is a flawed, but compelling argument for the crucial unifying role of cities and their mayors. (Knopf / HANDOUT)
If Daniel Burnham’s famed dictum about urban planning were adapted to this book, it would be “Make no little claims.” Emanuel’s approach has its flaws, but he makes a compelling argument that in our current political situation, local politics and the mayors who run cities large and small do indeed matter more than ever before.
To open with the flaws:
The book lacks certain formal apparatus typical of serious writing: there’s no index, only a brief “Selected Bibliography,” and no sources cited for quotations from other writers. Emanuel also directly quotes other mayors and politicians with whom he spoke; his readers must be generous and assume he took careful notes at the time.
This objection applies only if this book purports to be a work of urban scholarship, which it does not: It’s a political polemic, with its bold claim about the local mattering more than the national.
The book begins with, and occasionally returns to, Emanuel’s immigrant family history, depicting the colorful character of his maternal grandfather, Herman Smulevitz, aka “the Big Bangah,” and his self-made immigrant emphasis on the value of education in America, one which Emanuel claims to wholly embrace.
Such biographical gestures can run into trouble when depicting later policy decisions. Emanuel’s chapter on his education reform “accomplishments” is a masterpiece of both self-justification and rhetorical use of the passive voice. He recounts battles with Springfield over funding (especially for prekindergarten programs), and with the teachers union over the length of the school day and year, and with local opposition over plans to close schools. He crows over his triumphs.
But then he writes, “Closing one school, let alone forty-nine, is never a popular thing to do, and I took some serious flak for it. But in this case we had to. Yes, it potentially stressed the rest of the school system. But these concerns were overridden by the fact that these schools were consistently failing, and the students who attended them were trapped in that failure, with no prospect for improvement.” With this, he goes further than can be truly justified, and one wonders what the Big Bangah would think about the people in the sort of economically marginalized neighborhoods he inhabited losing their schools.
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Whole books could be (and have been) written arguing the opposite (see Eve L. Ewing’s “Ghosts in the Schoolyard” for a thorough refutation of the idea that these schools were “failing” in some objective way, and that the students in them were “trapped” rather than at home in vital spaces).
Perhaps it’s just unrealistic to expect any politician to truly depict, much less grapple with, the arguments of defeated opponents or disappointed constituents.
Even for politically savvy Chicago readers, familiar with Emanuel’s record and fully opinionated about it one way or another, later sections of the book make a compelling, albeit primarily anecdotal, argument for Emanuel’s larger point: “Something was broken in our federal government. It was dysfunctional, and only getting worse with each ensuing year. Because of packed courts, gerrymandering, and the influence of special interests, it was also no longer a progressive entity, no longer the deliverer of programs and policies that actually helped the people who needed it. ... (C)ities were the last places where progressive politics existed.”
In the main body of the book, Emanuel recounts tales about other mayors, in the United States and around the world, who have taken the lead when their national governments have descended into dysfunctional irrelevance. In the U.S., most of these mayors are Democrats, but Emanuel includes several Republicans facing the same challenges and coming up with similar solutions. Many of these names are familiar, and, ironically, two are currently running to become the irrelevant president: Pete Buttigieg of South Bend, Indiana, and Michael Bloomberg of New York City.
Even acknowledging the probability that Emanuel has cherry-picked his examples, stories of progressive successes in South Bend, Dayton, Oklahoma City, Los Angeles, London, Paris and other cities over the last two decades suggest his larger point has merit: Mayors, because they have to respond in real time to on-the-ground issues rather than promoting an ideological agenda not shared by at least half of the country, must deliver the goods, with or without (mostly without) the Feds. As he puts it (with clunky alliteration typical of his prose) “The opportunities in our cities are facilitated now by our mayors, who run the only governments left in the world that are immediate, intimate, and impactful.”
A view of downtown Chicago seen from the skydeck at Willis Tower on Tuesday, Sept. 4, 2018, hours after Mayor Rahm Emanuel announced he would not seek a third term in office. (Terrence Antonio James / Chicago Tribune)
Another flaw of the book is a missed opportunity, to see beyond city borders below the federal level. To brag, as he does, about luring corporate headquarters from Chicago suburbs to the city itself ignores the fact that the entire metropolitan region is an economic, transportation, and natural ecosystem in which politicians need to work in synch. From Milwaukee, Wisconsin, to Gary, Indiana, we live in a vast metroplex that crosses three state borders and includes a dozen counties and hundreds of municipalities. When these governments compete against one another (for corporate headquarters, or new factories, or what federal funding can be pried out of Capitol Hill), it’s a race to the bottom where they replicate the problems of the federal government that Emanuel otherwise persuasively engages with. A middle focus, above the city but below the feds, would have been welcome.
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While Emanuel’s prose won’t win any awards for suppleness or grace, the former mayor displays occasional flashes of a self-deprecating sense of humor, one not frequently seen in real life since his generous and good-natured response to Dan Sinker’s 2011 campaign season @MayorEmanuel twitter parody (and subsequent book, “The [Expletive] Epic Twitter Quest of @MayorEmanuel”). After two Chicago tourists greet Emanuel while walking along the Seine with Mayor Anne Hidalgo of Paris, he writes that “Hidalgo laughed and joked that I had planted the duo to impress her. I told her that if I’d wanted to impress her, I would have lined up a few dozen people to come say hello. And trust me, that is not beyond me.”
Readers may or may not be impressed with everything Emanuel lines up in this book, but it should not be beyond us to see the solid argument he makes about the crucial unifying and energizing role of cities, and their mayors, in an era of national political divisiveness and paralysis.
Bill Savage is professor of instruction in the English Department at Northwestern University, where he teaches the course The Chicago Way: Urban Spaces and American Values.
‘The Nation City’
By Rahm Emanuel, Knopf, 235 pages, $26.95


chicagotribune--2020-02-21--Timeline: The March 1960 Starved Rock murders and convicted killer Chester Weger's release from pris

Timeline: The March 1960 Starved Rock murders and convicted killer Chester Weger's release from prison

On March 14 1960 , three Chicago-area women set out for a hike at Starved Rock State Park near Utica , Ill .
They never returned .
Here 's a look back at their case and the man who was convicted of the crime then released from prison on Feb. 21 , 2020 .
Lillian Oetting , 50 , Frances Murphy , 47 , and Mildred Linquist , 50 , leave their Riverside homes in suburban Chicago for a four-day vacation at Starved Rock State Park near Utica , Illinois .
They check into the Starved Rock Lodge and ate @ @ @ @ @ @ @ hike through St. Louis Canyon , a popular attraction framed by a scenic waterfall and high rock walls .
The women , wives of prominent Chicago businessmen , are never seen alive again .
Frances Murphy from left , Mildred Lindquist and Lillian Oetting went to Starved Rock State Park near Utica , Illinois for a mini-vacation on March 14 , 1960 .
( Family photos ) The lodge in which the three women were staying at Starved Rock State Park is seen March 16 , 1960 .
( Chicago Tribune historical photo @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Lillian Oetting 's camera shows Mildred Lindquist , left , and Frances Murphy at Starved Rock State Park in LaSalle County on March 14 , 1960 .
The three Riverside women were later killed in the park .
( Chicago Tribune historical photo ) Chester Weger , a 21-year-old dishwasher at Starved Rock Lodge who is married with two children , arrives at work with scratches on his face , lodge employees later tell police .
Weger claims he was writing letters at the lodge at the time of the murders .
The @ @ @ @ @ @ @ cave .
They were bound , partially nude and bludgeoned to death , each having injuries consistent with suffering more than 100 blows .
Authorities believe the killer or killers caused the catastrophic head injuries by swinging a frozen tree limb that was found nearby and stained with blood .
The scene near a cave in St. Louis Canyon at Starved Rock State Park where the bodies of three women were found on March 16 , 1960 .
The women had been missing for two days .
( Jim Mescall/Chicago Tribune ) William @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Police , and Sgt .
W.T .
Hall investigate near a cave where three bodies were found in March 1960 .
`` Because of the small amount of blood inside the cave and the large amount outside the cave , state police theorized the killer may have left the women in the clearing and fled the canyon , returning later to drag the bodies into the cave , '' the Tribune reported in March 1960 .
( Jim Mescall/Chicago Tribune ) Investigators begin nonstop surveillance on Weger after finding lengths of twine -- @ @ @ @ @ @ @ hands of the slain women -- in a toolshed near the lodge , which had been used by Weger .
They also say Weger matches the description of an assailant who reportedly bound a teenage girl with twine then raped her in a nearby park just months before the Starved Rock killings .
Sgt .
W. T. Hall of the State Police shows the twine that was wrapped around the wrists of two of the three Riverside women slain in Starved Rock State Park in March 1960 .
( Jim Mescall/Chicago Tribune ) @ @ @ @ @ @ @ investigators in a reenactment of them .
Prosecutors said Weger knew things only the killer could have known , such as the fact that a red-and-white airplane flew over the canyon the day of the murders .
`` I was taking a walk thru the woods when I turned into the canyon and I spotted them coming toward me .
I got the idea to rob them .
I grabbed at what I thought was a purse one of the women was carrying .
The strap broke . ''
Chester Weger , right @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the wrists of Lillian Oetting and Mildred Lindquist in the triple murder at Starved Rock State Park on Nov. 17 , 1960 .
( Val Mazzenga/Chicago Tribune ) A LaSalle County grand jury indicts Weger for the murder of the three Riverside women and names him in three other incidents charging robbery , larceny , assault with a deadly weapon and rape in two crimes in Matthiessen State Park , just three miles from Starved Rock .
Weger is convicted in the murder of Lillian Oetting .
The jury -- made up of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ his punishment at life imprisonment .
Two jurors become dismayed upon learning that Weger could be eligible for parole in 20 years .
As he 's led out of court , two sheriff 's deputies report hearing Weger say , `` You 'll never hold me . ''
`` We though we were inflicting a penalty worse than the electric chair . ''
On his 22nd birthday , Chester Weger , is convicted of the murder of Lillian Oetting in a LaSalle County courtroom on March 3 , 1961 .
( Jack Mulcahy/Chicago @ @ @ @ @ @ @ imprisonment for Lillian Oetting 's murder and Judge Leonard Hoffman rejects Weger 's plea for a new trial a few months later .
Later , prosecutors , citing Weger 's life sentence , opt against trying him for the other two women 's deaths .
Weger is taken to the Illinois state penitentiary in Joliet to begin his life sentence .
He 's assigned prison number 48223 .
Chester Weger is photographed by prison guard W.E .
Woodward as Weger enters Joliet Prison on April 4 , 1961 .
( Steve Marino/Chicago Tribune @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Weger pens an autobiography and gives the 48-page manuscript to a Chicago Tribune reporter .
In it , Weger proclaims his innocence .
`` Now there 's nothing in the world that I needed bad enough to kill for on March 14 , 1960 . ''
Weger is granted parole on his 24th try , in a 9-4 vote .
State officials are seeking to have Weger evaluated under the state 's sexually violent persons law , which allows for continued civil commitment if a person is deemed sexually violent .
Mary Pruett @ @ @ @ @ @ @ - quotes her deceased mom while pleading with the Illinois Prisoner Review Board for his release in the infamous 1960 Starved Rock murders .
“ One day we ’ ll see him walking home .
I just hope my brother does not die in prison.
” pic.twitter.com/aq2S8Cs81H — Christy Gutowski ( @ ChristyGutowsk1 ) November 21 , 2019 Weger 's release from prison had been delayed 90 days after Illinois Attorney General 's office sought to have him evaluated under the state 's Sexually Violent Persons Commitment Act .
The law requires proof @ @ @ @ @ @ @ disorder , and that it is substantially probable he or she will commit acts of sexual violence as a result .
A spokesperson for Raoul 's office said experts who evaluated Weger found he did not meet the legal criteria , and so they will not file a petition in court arguing he should be involuntarily committed .
Under the law , Weger could have been held indefinitely in a secured facility in the custody of the Illinois Department of Human Services for sex offender treatment .

On March 14 1960, three Chicago-area women set out for a hike at Starved Rock State Park near Utica, Ill. They never returned. Here's a look back at their case and the man who was convicted of the crime then released from prison on Feb. 21, 2020.
March 14, 1960 Lillian Oetting, 50, Frances Murphy, 47, and Mildred Linquist, 50, leave their Riverside homes in suburban Chicago for a four-day vacation at Starved Rock State Park near Utica, Illinois. They check into the Starved Rock Lodge and ate lunch before heading out on an afternoon hike through St. Louis Canyon, a popular attraction framed by a scenic waterfall and high rock walls. The women, wives of prominent Chicago businessmen, are never seen alive again. Frances Murphy from left, Mildred Lindquist and Lillian Oetting went to Starved Rock State Park near Utica, Illinois for a mini-vacation on March 14, 1960. (Family photos) The lodge in which the three women were staying at Starved Rock State Park is seen March 16, 1960. (Chicago Tribune historical photo) A photo developed from film in Lillian Oetting's camera shows Mildred Lindquist, left, and Frances Murphy at Starved Rock State Park in LaSalle County on March 14, 1960. The three Riverside women were later killed in the park. (Chicago Tribune historical photo)
March 15, 1960 Chester Weger, a 21-year-old dishwasher at Starved Rock Lodge who is married with two children, arrives at work with scratches on his face, lodge employees later tell police. Weger claims he was writing letters at the lodge at the time of the murders.
March 16, 1960 The women's bodies are discovered in a cave. They were bound, partially nude and bludgeoned to death, each having injuries consistent with suffering more than 100 blows. Authorities believe the killer or killers caused the catastrophic head injuries by swinging a frozen tree limb that was found nearby and stained with blood. The scene near a cave in St. Louis Canyon at Starved Rock State Park where the bodies of three women were found on March 16, 1960. The women had been missing for two days. (Jim Mescall/Chicago Tribune) William Morris, the chief of Illinois State Police, and Sgt. W.T. Hall investigate near a cave where three bodies were found in March 1960. "Because of the small amount of blood inside the cave and the large amount outside the cave, state police theorized the killer may have left the women in the clearing and fled the canyon, returning later to drag the bodies into the cave," the Tribune reported in March 1960. (Jim Mescall/Chicago Tribune)
Mid-April 1960 A third lie detector test given to Weger fails to link him in the crime. A foot-by-foot search is conducted of St. Louis Canyon by state police and conservation workers on April 2, 1960. The team was looking for more clues in the triple murder that occurred the month before. (Tom Kinahan/Chicago Tribune)
September 1960 Investigators begin nonstop surveillance on Weger after finding lengths of twine -- similar to that used to bind the hands of the slain women -- in a toolshed near the lodge, which had been used by Weger. They also say Weger matches the description of an assailant who reportedly bound a teenage girl with twine then raped her in a nearby park just months before the Starved Rock killings. Sgt. W. T. Hall of the State Police shows the twine that was wrapped around the wrists of two of the three Riverside women slain in Starved Rock State Park in March 1960. (Jim Mescall/Chicago Tribune)
Sept. 23, 1960 Weger fails a series of polygraph tests.
Nov. 16, 1960 LaSalle County State's Attorney Harland Warren orders Weger's arrest. Chester Weger's wife, Jo Ann, second from right, sits with relatives, including the sister of Chester Weger, Mary Ann Weger, right, as Jo Ann waits to visit her husband in the LaSalle County Jail on Nov. 16, 1960. (Howard Borvig/Chicago Tribune)
Nov. 17, 1960 Weger confesses to the murders and leads investigators in a reenactment of them. Prosecutors said Weger knew things only the killer could have known, such as the fact that a red-and-white airplane flew over the canyon the day of the murders. "I was taking a walk thru the woods when I turned into the canyon and I spotted them coming toward me. I got the idea to rob them. I grabbed at what I thought was a purse one of the women was carrying. The strap broke." -- Chester Weger, in his confession (Chicago Tribune front page, Nov. 18, 1960) Chester Weger, right, shows state troopers how he tied the wrists of Lillian Oetting and Mildred Lindquist in the triple murder at Starved Rock State Park on Nov. 17, 1960. (Val Mazzenga/Chicago Tribune)
Nov. 18, 1960 A LaSalle County grand jury indicts Weger for the murder of the three Riverside women and names him in three other incidents charging robbery, larceny, assault with a deadly weapon and rape in two crimes in Matthiessen State Park, just three miles from Starved Rock.
Nov. 19, 1960 Weger repudiates his confession.
Nov. 22, 1960 Weger says threats of electrocution and an offer of a "deal" by LaSalle County authorities impelled him to confess to the Starved Rock State Park triple murder.
Dec. 19, 1960 Claiming he was frightened into confessing by threats of death in the electric chair, Weger pleads not guilty in the Starved Rock State Park triple murder.
Feb. 7, 1961 Weger's 3-year-old daughter, Becky, is barred from attending her father's murder trial to prevent the jury from being swayed by her big blue eyes, golden curls and "winsome smile." Chester Weger, center, visits with his daughter Becky, 3, and wife, Jo Ann, during a recess at his trial for the murder of three women at Starved Rock State Park on Jan. 30, 1961. (Arnold Tolchin/Chicago Tribune)
Feb. 27, 1961 After three hours of cross-examination, Weger denies any involvement in the murder of three women at Starved Rock State Park. "I never killed anybody." -- Chester Weger, testifying in LaSalle County Circuit Court Women were a big majority of the overflow crowd outside the courtroom in Ottawa on Feb. 27, 1961, as they arrived too late to see Chester Weger, defendant in the Starved Rock Park slaying trial, take the witness stand in his own defense. Deputy Sheriff William Dummet is barring the doorway to late-comers. Weger repudiated his confession in the slaying. (AP)
March 3, 1961 Weger is convicted in the murder of Lillian Oetting. The jury -- made up of seven women and five men -- fixes his punishment at life imprisonment. Two jurors become dismayed upon learning that Weger could be eligible for parole in 20 years. As he's led out of court, two sheriff's deputies report hearing Weger say, "You'll never hold me." "We though we were inflicting a penalty worse than the electric chair." -- Nancy Porter, a juror in the Chester Weger trial On his 22nd birthday, Chester Weger, is convicted of the murder of Lillian Oetting in a LaSalle County courtroom on March 3, 1961. (Jack Mulcahy/Chicago Tribune)
April 3, 1961 Weger is sentenced to life imprisonment for Lillian Oetting's murder and Judge Leonard Hoffman rejects Weger's plea for a new trial a few months later. Later, prosecutors, citing Weger's life sentence, opt against trying him for the other two women's deaths. Weger is taken to the Illinois state penitentiary in Joliet to begin his life sentence. He's assigned prison number 48223. Chester Weger is photographed by prison guard W.E. Woodward as Weger enters Joliet Prison on April 4, 1961. (Steve Marino/Chicago Tribune)
Sept. 28, 1962 The Illinois Supreme Court upholds Weger's conviction and life sentence.
Feb. 8, 1963 Rape and robbery charges stemming from 1959, are dismissed since Weger was not brought to trial on the charges within four months of his arrest, as required by law.
April 17, 1963 The state gives a variety of reasons for abandoning efforts to get the death penalty for Weger, including the reluctance of some juries to impose the death sentence. (Chicago Tribune, April 18, 1963)
April 20, 1963 While serving a life sentence, Weger pens an autobiography and gives the 48-page manuscript to a Chicago Tribune reporter. In it, Weger proclaims his innocence. "Now there's nothing in the world that I needed bad enough to kill for on March 14, 1960." -- Chester Weger, in his handwritten autobiography (Chicago Tribune, April 21, 1963)
July 8, 2004 DNA testing on items, including Weger's coat and hair found in the victims' fists, shows the evidence has been contaminated. After Weger's conviction in 1961, and after appeals were exhausted, prosecutors allowed school groups, civic clubs and student journalists to handle and examine the evidence. (Chicago Tribune, July 9, 2004)
June 2007 Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich denies Weger's clemency petition.
Dec. 15, 2016 Weger, Illinois' third longest-held inmate in a state prison, is denied parole in an 11-2 vote. Chester Weger during an interview in Pinckneyville Correctional Center on Dec. 6, 2016. Weger was convicted in the 1960 triple homicide of three Riverside women at Starved Rock State Park. He is seeking parole for the 24th time when his case appears before the Illinois Prisoner Review Board. (Zbigniew Bzdak/Chicago Tribune)
Nov. 29, 2018 Weger falls one vote short of winning his release from prison -- his 23rd time denied parole. Starved Rock killer falls one vote short of parole after nearly 60 years in prison - me and @MikeRiopell keep up on this fascinating, tragic case https://t.co/uACCa4eDZJ — Christy Gutowski (@ChristyGutowsk1) November 29, 2018
Nov. 21, 2019 Weger is granted parole on his 24th try, in a 9-4 vote. State officials are seeking to have Weger evaluated under the state's sexually violent persons law, which allows for continued civil commitment if a person is deemed sexually violent. Mary Pruett - the younger sister of Chester Weger - quotes her deceased mom while pleading with the Illinois Prisoner Review Board for his release in the infamous 1960 Starved Rock murders. “One day we’ll see him walking home. I just hope my brother does not die in prison.” pic.twitter.com/aq2S8Cs81H — Christy Gutowski (@ChristyGutowsk1) November 21, 2019
Feb. 13, 2020 Weger's release from prison had been delayed 90 days after Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul 's office sought to have him evaluated under the state's Sexually Violent Persons Commitment Act. The law requires proof that a person suffers from a mental disorder, and that it is substantially probable he or she will commit acts of sexual violence as a result. A spokesperson for Raoul's office said experts who evaluated Weger found he did not meet the legal criteria, and so they will not file a petition in court arguing he should be involuntarily committed. Under the law, Weger could have been held indefinitely in a secured facility in the custody of the Illinois Department of Human Services for sex offender treatment.
Feb. 21, 2020 Weger, 80, is released from Pinckneyville Correctional Center. "They ruined my life. They locked me up for 60 years for something I've never done." -- Chester Weger, after his release from prison The infamous Starved Rock killer was freed at about 8:30 am after 60 years in prison. Reporters weren’t allowed on property but caught up w/Chester Weger as he headed to Chicago. At 80, he complained of arthritis and being allegedly railroaded but was happy to be free w/family. pic.twitter.com/3COZq5mRSJ — Christy Gutowski (@ChristyGutowsk1) February 21, 2020


chicagotribune--2020-02-21--Water in aluminum bottles. Straw-less lids. Reusable cups. As plastic waste concerns grow, the searc

Water in aluminum bottles. Straw-less lids. Reusable cups. As plastic waste concerns grow, the search for sustainable packaging has gone mainstream.

It also would require manufacturers of plastic products to improve , manage and finance waste and recycling programs , many @ @ @ @ @ handle different types of plastic .
Just 8 % of plastic waste in the U.S. @ @ @ @ @ according to the Environmental Protection Agency , and in some cities , such as Chicago @ @ @ @ @ about the effectiveness of recycling programs .
Two aldermen this week separately called for hearings @ @ @ @ @ program and Mayor Lori Lightfoot last month announced a study of how to improve it @

Revival Food Hall in the Loop sells Open Water exclusively as its packaged water. The water is packaged in aluminum bottles instead of plastic. (Terrence Antonio James / Chicago Tribune)
Nicole Doucet and Jess Page were met with skepticism when they first tried to persuade retailers to sell their brand of bottled water. Consumers, the young entrepreneurs were told during those early sales calls five years ago, would not pay more for water packaged in aluminum containers instead of plastic.
It turns out their Chicago-based startup, Open Water, was just a bit early to the party. Food and beverage companies that cater to on-the-go consumers are rethinking their packaging amid growing concern about single-use plastics clogging up swaths of ocean and killing sea life, with the likes of Coca-Cola and PepsiCo launching canned water as part of commitments to cut down on plastic usage and waste.
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"It has gone very mainstream,” said Doucet, CEO of Open Water, which counts Hyatt hotels, salad chain Sweetgreen and Second City as customers.
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A march toward sustainable packaging
Plastic, most of which is made from oil and natural gas, has raised particular environmental ire because half of the plastic produced globally is designed to be used just once, resulting in 300 million tons of plastic waste a year, according to a 2018 United Nations report. The top items recovered at beach cleanups are, after cigarette butts, drink bottles, bottle caps, food wrappers, grocery bags, drink lids, straws and stirrers. At the current rate of disposal, the oceans by 2050 will contain, by weight, more plastic than fish, the report said.
“As more consumers have more convenience products marketed to them, the waste becomes unmanageable,” said Ivy Schlegel, senior research specialist in plastics at Greenpeace USA.
Legislation to curb plastic waste takes aim at food producers. In Chicago, an ordinance proposed last month would ban polystyrene foam to-go containers by 2021, and disposable cutlery, drink tops, stirrers and similar single-use products would have to be compostable or recyclable and only available upon request.
Open Water founders Nicole Doucet, left, and Jess Page show samples of their aluminum containers Feb. 13, 2020, at Combined Warehouse in Chicago. Open Water, a startup headquartered in Bridgeport, sells bottled water in aluminum containers for environmental reasons. (Antonio Perez / Chicago Tribune)
At the federal level, the Break Free from Plastic Pollution Act, introduced earlier this month by House and Senate Democrats, would ban certain single-use plastic products that are not recyclable and establish minimum recycled content standards for food service products.
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It also would require manufacturers of plastic products to improve, manage and finance waste and recycling programs, many of which can’t handle different types of plastic. Just 8% of plastic waste in the U.S. was recycled in 2017, according to the Environmental Protection Agency, and in some cities, such as Chicago, questions have been raised about the effectiveness of recycling programs. Two aldermen this week separately called for hearings into Chicago’s recycling program and Mayor Lori Lightfoot last month announced a study of how to improve it.
Some food companies have made sustainable packaging central to their business models.
Just Salad, a fast-casual chain with 47 locations including six in Chicago, sells a reusable salad bowl for $1 and gives customers a free topping when they use it, a program that the company says diverted 75,000 pounds of single-use plastic from landfills last year. As part of a new commitment to send zero waste to landfills by 2022, Just Salad is testing compostable cutlery.
The world’s food giants are also setting ambitious waste targets.
Starbucks last month announced that by 2030 it would reduce by 50% the amount of waste sent to landfills, part of a broader goal to reduce its environmental footprint. Starbucks stores produce 455,000 tons of packaging waste annually, mostly polypropylene plastic used in cold cups, lids and straws.
The coffee chain is rolling out new straw-less lids for its cold drinks as it phases out plastic straws from its 30,000 stores worldwide, and in partnership with McDonald’s launched a global innovation challenge to design a more recyclable or compostable cup for hot beverages. The hot cups Starbucks now uses contain a plastic liner that makes them difficult to recycle.
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In-market testing begins soon on the most viable designs.
The NextGen Cup Challenge this week also announced that a cluster of independent cafes in Palo Alto, California, and San Francisco will test reusable cup systems that designate drop-off points around town for the cups, which are then picked up and sanitized and returned to the cafes for reuse. Starbucks for the past year has piloted such a system in London’s Gatwick Airport, but the California test examines how reusable cups might work outside of a captive space like an airport terminal.
Though corporate sustainability initiatives have been en vogue for years, plastic took center stage in 2018 when the U.K.-based Ellen MacArthur Foundation and U.N. Environment Program called on corporations and governments to sign a pledge to create a circular economy for plastics so that none is wasted. The 400 signatories of the New Plastics Economy Pledge, which include packaged foods giants such as Mars and Nestle, have announced targets to reduce plastic usage and innovate packaging to make it more recyclable, compostable or reusable.
Greenpeace’s Schlegel said some of those pledges have been meaningful. For example, Unilever, the multinational company with brands ranging from Breyers to Dove and a packaging footprint of about 700,000 tons annually, in October promised to halve its use of virgin plastic by 2025. It is experimenting with refillable deodorant sticks and letting some products go “naked” without any packaging.
Schlegel is less impressed with other promises to substitute plastic with other materials or improve recycling infrastructure.
“That’s not going to really move the needle,” Schlegel said. “We want to see companies moving away from disposable packaging and moving toward refill and reuse options.”
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Currently, less than 3% of packaging used by companies in the New Plastics Economy consortium is reusable, according to its 2019 progress report.
For packaged food behemoths like Chicago-based Conagra Brands, whose portfolio includes Slim Jim and Orville Redenbacher’s, and Deerfield-based Mondelez International, maker of Oreos and Triscuits, a big challenge is what to do about the thin plastic film used to package most snacks. Recycling systems aren’t equipped to process it.
“Plastics do serve a lot of purpose in terms of keeping food safe and fresh,” said Christine Montenegro McGrath, chief of global impact sustainability and well-being at Mondelez. “The challenge is finding materials that have the same level of safety when it comes into contact with foods.”
Conagra, which recently announced a goal of making 100% of its plastic packaging renewable, recyclable or compostable by 2025, is exploring bioplastics made from renewable sources, like plants. Mondelez, which set a similar goal, is working to see if the used film can be mixed back in with virgin plastic to make new plastic products.
Aluminum bottled water ‘for plastic-free oceans’
For Open Water founders Doucet, 31, and Page, 32, the anti-plastic awakening has been heartening. They were college students at University of Miami when they saw a documentary on plastic pollution in 2009 and heard a statistic they couldn’t shake: that 1,500 plastic bottles are used every second.
Doubtful consumers would abandon the convenience of disposable containers, shortly after graduation the friends began researching the most eco-friendly alternative.
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They landed on aluminum, which has a much higher recycling rate than single-use plastic bottles and even boxed water, which tends to be made of layers of paper, plastic and aluminum that many recycling systems can’t handle.
Unlike plastic, which is cheap in its virgin form and degrades with reuse, aluminum has a strong secondary market because the raw material is expensive and it can be recycled multiple times without losing quality. On average, aluminum cans and bottles contain 73% recycled materials.
It isn’t perfect. An aluminum bottle takes three times more energy to produce than plastic. Open Water, which launched in 2014 as Green Sheep before changing its name in 2018, this year plans to launch a carbon offset program to make production carbon neutral.
A 16-ounce bottle of Open Water retails for $1.49 to $1.99, putting its price on par with premium waters like Evian or Fiji, said the company, headquartered in Chicago’s Bridgeport neighborhood. But Open Water, which sells still and sparkling purified, re-mineralized municipal water in bottles and cans, markets its packaging rather than the water source, with the slogan: “For plastic-free oceans.”
“We don’t think water from Fiji is better than water from here,” said Doucet, who graduated from Miami with a degree in finance and economics and later got her MBA from University of Chicago’s Booth School of Business.
Doucet, a native of Mexico City, and Page, a Boston-area native who got her degree in graphic design, did not realize how in over their heads they were when they started the business. But their inexperience was an asset, they now say, because they approached everything with fresh eyes.
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After striking out initially with retailers, Doucet and Page found interested customers in food service, gyms, offices, zoos and college campuses. Their first major account was the Monterey Bay Aquarium, which in 2017 switched from boxed water to the aluminum bottles.
“That story was very powerful for us to tell other people,” said Page, the company’s chief operating officer.
Getting on retail shelves is a key goal for Open Water this year as it rides a wave of interest in sustainable packaging. The company’s revenues grew 300% last year, its third year of triple-digit growth. The founders, who employ a team of seven, declined to share revenues, but said 2019 was their first profitable year. By the end of this year, they say, they will have sold enough product to replace 20 million plastic bottles.
Coke’s announcement last summer that it would soon be selling some Dasani in aluminum cans, following a similar announcement by Pepsi’s Aquafina, is bittersweet, as Open Water lost some customers with Coke or Pepsi contracts. But it will be difficult for the giants to bad-mouth plastic when they still sell so much of it, Doucet said, so she thinks her startup will still have an environmental edge.
“The messaging for them will be hard,” she said.
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Coke, which also unveiled a new “hybrid” Dasani bottle made with a combination of plants and recycled plastic, said its initiatives will remove at least 1 billion virgin plastic bottles from its supply chain over the next five years.
That’s “definitely a good thing,” Page said, not only because it drives attention to Open Water’s mission but it also helps make their business case.
“We’ve proven there’s a market for it,” she said.
aelejalderuiz@chicagotribune.com


chicagotribune--2020-02-21--Suspect in deadly CTA pedestrian tunnel shooting charged with murder, aggravated battery after ‘shoc

Suspect in deadly CTA pedestrian tunnel shooting charged with murder, aggravated battery after ‘shocking’ attack, police say

Beck , who spoke Thursday evening following a Police Board meeting at the Public Safety Headquarters in Bronzeville , said @ @ @ @ @ with first-degree murder and aggravated battery , was picked up in Oak Park on an @ @ @ @ @ was issued Wednesday , according to court records .
Cathery had 22 prior arrests including @ @ @ @ @ for criminal trespass .

The body of a shooting victim is removed from a CTA subway station at State Street and Jackson Boulevard in Chicago on Feb. 17, 2020. A man was shot and killed and two others were wounded in a CTA pedestrian tunnel, according to police. (Antonio Perez / Chicago Tribune)
Authorities on Thursday announced the arrest and charging of a suspect in the early Monday shooting in a pedestrian tunnel that connects the Red and Blue line Jackson stop that left one dead and two others wounded.
Interim police Superintendent Charlie Beck identified the suspect as Torrez D. Cathery, 23.
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Torrez Cathery, 23, of the 7300 South Perry Avenue in Chicago, was charged with first-degree murder and aggravated battery for a deadly shooting in the CTA's Blue Line on Feb. 17, 2020 at State Street and Jackson Boulevard. (Chicago police department)
Beck, who spoke Thursday evening following a Police Board meeting at the Public Safety Headquarters in Bronzeville, said Cathery, who was charged with first-degree murder and aggravated battery, was picked up in Oak Park on an arrest warrant. The warrant was issued Wednesday, according to court records. Cathery had 22 prior arrests including one as recently as January for criminal trespass.
The attack happened just after 2 a.m. Monday. One man was shot in the abdomen and chest, and died at the scene in the 200 block of South Dearborn Street.
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Killed was Edward Charleston, 24, according to the Cook County medical examiner’s office. A second man was shot in the head and the arm, while a 19-year-old woman was shot in the lower back.
Cathery was involved in some sort of dispute with one of the victims in October. During that incident, one of the men displayed a knife, said Beck.
Early Monday, one of the shooting victims from that morning was with a group when he spotted Cathery, said Beck. He said the group followed Cathery into the pedway connecting the Jackson Red Line station with the Blue Line.
As the group approached, Cathery was alleged to have turned around and fired a 9mm handgun, said Beck. Twelve bullet casings were found on scene, he said.
Beck described surveillance video of the incident as “shocking.”
“It not only shows (the gunman) turning and firing at the group,” said Beck, “but after one of the individuals goes down, he walks over and shoots into him execution-style right above him.”
There were also 6-month-old twins within the group that was fired upon, Beck said, but neither were injured.
Members of the joint Great Lakes Regional Fugitive Task Force, made up of Chicago police and U.S. Marshals Service officers, arrested the suspect, police spokesman Anthony Guglielmi said in a tweet. The tweet said the arrest occurred in Oak Brook, but authorities later corrected the information to say the arrest took place in Oak Park.
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Federal agents tazed the suspect and placed him into custody, Guglielmi said in the tweet.


chicagotribune--2020-02-21--4 takeaways from the Bulls’ 103-93 loss to the Hornets, including the need for a mental edge to surv

4 takeaways from the Bulls’ 103-93 loss to the Hornets, including the need for a mental edge to survive the final 26 games of the season

“ You ’ ve got to stay locked in , ” he said .
“ You can ’ t be @ @ @ @ @ .
You can ’ t be in vacation mode .
We have a lot of @ @ @ @ @ our job .
This is a dream job , something millions of people wish they @ @ @ @ @ s a tough situation .
Nobody likes being in a losing situation , but you @ @ @ @ @ s fighting with you and who ’ s not , too .
Go out there @ @ @ @

The United Center was brimming with excitement and star power during All-Star Weekend. Just a few days later, the start of Thursday’s game against the Hornets had the empty feeling of a movie set after all the props had been disassembled and cleared out.
The Bulls had talked this week about attacking the final 27 games with purpose and gusto, despite dealing with a rash of injured players. They lacked any spark until the third quarter, when they found their 3-point stroke and fought back from a 21-point deficit.
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But the Bulls still suffered their seventh straight defeat — their longest skid of the season — in a 103-93 loss to the Hornets. Despite a short-lived rally, they never led.
The Bulls missed their first 17 3-point attempts, breaking the drought on a wide-open look from the left corner by Zach LaVine with 8 minutes, 41 seconds remaining in the third quarter. They took — and, of course, missed — all 15 first-half 3-point attempts.
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“They jumped on us,” LaVine said. “We didn’t play with the same energy.”
Despite the Bulls priding themselves on defense, the Hornets shot 52.4% in the first half and 47.3% for the game. The Bulls held Devonte’ Graham, who entered the game averaging 18.1 points, scoreless on 0-for-7 shooting.
Here are four takeaways from the Bulls’ loss.
1. The Bulls will need a mental edge to survive the final 26 games.
The Bulls players claim they have the fortitude to finish the season on a strong note.
Veteran Thaddeus Young pointed to getting through a 19-63 season when he was with the 76ers in 2013-14.
“It’s very frustrating,” he said. “I’ve been on teams like this in the past. (My) last year with the Sixers, we were horrible. I’m battle-tested. I can get through it. It’s all about keep fighting, keep pushing, and hopefully the tides can turn and we can start getting some wins. I’m going to go hard no matter what.”
Expand Autoplay Image 1 of 12 Bulls guard Zach LaVine peeks at the video board in the second quarter. (John J. Kim / Chicago Tribune)
LaVine echoed the sentiment, insinuating these upcoming games are gut checks. He said it’s important for players to tune out rumors about management changes.
“It ain’t my job,” he said of worrying about changes at the top of the franchise. “I lace my shoes up and get ready to play. There’s rumors about everything in this league. As a player, you can’t get distracted from the task at hand or what your job is. Your job isn’t worried about that. You go out there and play the game. That’s what my job is.”
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LaVine, who scored 19 points with seven assists and seven rebounds, warned against looking toward the end of the season.
“You’ve got to stay locked in,” he said. “You can’t be looking at that April date. You can’t be in vacation mode. We have a lot of season left. This is our job. This is a dream job, something millions of people wish they could do. It’s a tough situation. Nobody likes being in a losing situation, but you get to see who’s fighting with you and who’s not, too. Go out there and battle.”
2. Thaddeus Young’s season-high night is something to build on.
So what has changed for Young, who scored a season-high 22 points in 36 minutes?
“More minutes,” he said, cracking a smile in front of his locker.
Young was 10-of-18 shooting to go with 11 rebounds — his second double-double in three games. He scored eight points in the third quarter when the Bulls threatened a comeback, pulling within 70-68.
“Just went out there and played the game and took what came to me,” Young said.
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Coach Jim Boylen said he appreciated Young’s third-quarter competitiveness.
“Thad competes,” Boylen said. “He tries to make plays. He moves on from a mistake and keeps playing. I thought in the second half he was a big part of our run.”
Young, who entered the game averaging 9.7 points, has averaged 13.8 points in his last 10 games, the same amount of time starting power forward Lauri Markkanen has missed with a pelvis injury.
“I’ve been playing longer stretches,” he said. “Just going out there and doing me, playing basketball and playing free.”
3. The Bulls’ strong third quarter wasn’t enough to counter that slow start.
The excuses could be plentiful.
The Bulls were short-staffed with three starters out and only nine players available. They were coming off the All-Star break and hadn’t gotten their legs back. They were adjusting to different lineups and players moving into different positions.
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Whatever the reason, the Bulls fell behind by 21 points in the first half and trailed 60-44 at halftime.
“I thought we were sluggish in the first half, kind of getting our legs under us,” Boylen said. “I don’t know exactly why, but I thought we recovered in the third, made a run and made it a game. Our group was disappointed (at halftime). They knew they didn’t play well and needed to be more active and came out and responded.”
The Bulls outscored the Hornets 29-19 in the third quarter, making 5 of 6 3-pointers during one stretch. They also locked in on defense, scoring six points off six turnovers.
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“We don’t want to go out there and lose by 40,” LaVine said of the Bulls’ halftime mentality. “We at least want to go out and make a comeback. We had to make some type of adjustment.”
4. The injury bay remains deep.
Nearly as deep as its Bulls’ roster.
Daniel Gafford returned to the frontcourt rotation for the first time since Feb. 2, checking in early in the first quarter ahead of Cristiano Felicio. Gafford fouled out in the fourth quarter with five points in 16 minutes.
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The Bulls were without Otto Porter Jr. (left foot fracture) and Wendell Carter Jr. (right ankle sprain), who both began practicing again this week after long recoveries. Markkanen missed his 10th straight game.
Chandler Hutchison (shoulder) suffered a setback in his last game against the Wizards, and Boylen said Thursday he doesn’t expect the forward back soon.
“To say he’s day to day is probably a stretch,” Boylen said before the game.
The Bulls also were without Kris Dunn, who it was announced Thursday needs 4-6 more weeks before another examination on the MCL sprain he suffered Jan. 31.


chicagotribune--2020-02-21--Lincoln Park High School removes another staff member after altercation with student

Both the boys and girls varsity basketball coaches were suspended without pay , and a dean and another coach were @ @ @ @ @ in following the leadership shakeup decided to leave a few days later after `` determining @ @ @ @ @ good fit for LPHS , ” a letter to parents stated .
A video captured @ @ @ @ @ appeared to show her briefly holding a student ’ s face while talking to the @ @ @ @ @

A staff member installed at Chicago’s Lincoln Park High School as the school tries to move on from a series of recent scandals has been removed from the school after an altercation involving a student, according to an official letter obtained by the Tribune.
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“Today, I’m writing to inform you that a staff member temporarily assigned to the school was removed after an altercation with a student,” states a letter to families sent Thursday evening from Jerryelyn Jones, an administrator-in-charge appointed by Chicago Public Schools following the abrupt termination of Interim Principal John Thuet and Assistant Principal Michelle Brumfield.
Trouble at the school since late December had already prompted at least five internal investigations into alleged misconduct — not including the local school council’s own investigation of the investigators — and the suspension of the varsity boys basketball team.
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Both the boys and girls varsity basketball coaches were suspended without pay, and a dean and another coach were reassigned. Another administrator brought in following the leadership shakeup decided to leave a few days later after "determining that she was not a good fit for LPHS,” a letter to parents stated. A video captured at school later emerged that appeared to show her briefly holding a student’s face while talking to the student in a hallway.
District officials have said claims of misconduct under investigation involve both adults and students. Local school council members last week decided to hire an attorney to perform an independent probe into the misconduct allegations and subsequent investigations.
The local school council has been actively supporting Thuet and Brumfield, who have told the Tribune through their lawyer that they were given no clear idea why they were fired. Following their removals, students have staged walkouts and sit-ins asking for their leaders back and accusing CPS of shutting out student voices.
In the letter, Jones reiterated that “creating a safe school culture and driving student outcomes remains our top priority."
“We continue to work very hard to ensure that your child has an environment where they can feel emotionally and physically safe, and we are encouraged by the positive progress we are seeing,” Jones wrote. She stated that parents of the student “impacted" by the altercation have been notified and supports made available.
At last week’s local school council meeting, another new administrator-in-charge, Calvin Davis, said CPS was bringing in up to 10 more additional security officers at Lincoln Park, nearly doubling its existing staff. Security procedures for students entering the school building have also been revised and includes “random” security checks on students when they enter the school each morning.
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hleone@chicagotribune.com


chicagotribune--2020-02-21--5 more restaurant weeks — La Grange, Elmwood Park, Andersonville and others — are just getting start

5 more restaurant weeks — La Grange, Elmwood Park, Andersonville and others — are just getting started

La Grange Restaurant Week comprises more than a dozen fine-dining restaurants , offering multicourse dinner , lunch and brunch menus @ @ @ @ @ $ 30 or $ 40 .
Among the participating restaurants are Altiro Latin Fusion , @ @ @ @ @ , Kama Bistro , Nickson ’ s , Palmer Place , Prasino , Steak + @ @ @ @ @ Visit four or more restaurants to be eligible for a gift-certificate giveaway ; details and @ @ @ @ @ be found at lagrangeevents.com .

Both Chicago Restaurant Week and Chicago Black Restaurant Week are over. But more restaurant week promotions, in three suburbs and two Chicago neighborhoods, are just beginning — including a first time event in Pilsen.
Restaurant Week showcases in La Grange, Elmwood Park and Andersonville begin Friday and run through March 1. Restaurant Weeks in Pilsen and Rosemont begin March 1 and run through March 7.
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La Grange Restaurant Week comprises more than a dozen fine-dining restaurants, offering multicourse dinner, lunch and brunch menus priced at $20, $30 or $40. Among the participating restaurants are Altiro Latin Fusion, Barrel House Social, Fourteensixteen, Kama Bistro, Nickson’s, Palmer Place, Prasino, Steak + Vine and Sushi Ukai. Visit four or more restaurants to be eligible for a gift-certificate giveaway; details and a list of participants can be found at lagrangeevents.com.
Gadabout, 5212 N. Clark St., is part of Andersonville Restaurant Week. (E. Jason Wambsgans / Chicago Tribune)
Andersonville Restaurant Week returns for a fourth year with more than two dozen participating restaurants (including six first-time participants). Restaurants will offer everything from menu specials to multicourse dinners, priced from $10 to $30. Participating restaurants include Anteprima, Bar Roma, Big Jones, Fireside Restaurant, Gadabout, Hamburger Mary’s, Hopleaf, Octavio Cantina & Kitchen, Ranalli’s, Svea and Vincent. See all the participating restaurants and their menus at andersonville.org.
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Elmwood Park Restaurant Week, in its third year, features 19 participants, including Armand Pizzeria, Burger Moovment, Cafe Cubano, Jim and Pete’s and New Star Restaurant, most of which are offering discounts and BOGO deals (Inari Sushi is featuring a three-course dinner for $16). See the full list at elmwoodpark.org/restaurantweek.
Rosemont Restaurant Week runs March 1-7, featuring 17 restaurants offering set lunch and/or dinner menus (three-course dinner prices range from $33 to $48). Among the participants are Adobe Gila’s, Bub City, Carlucci, Carmine’s Rosemont, Fogo de Chao, Gene & Georgetti, Harry Caray’s Italian Steakhouse, Murray Bros. Caddyshack and McCormick & Schmick’s. See all participants and menus at rosemontrestaurantweek.com.
The inaugural Pilsen Restaurant Week begins March 1, but first there’s the first-ever Pilsen Gourmet, taking place from 5-10 p.m. Feb. 29 at Apollo’s 2000 (2875 W. Cermak Road). The evening includes cooking demos by such noted chefs as Diana Davila, Daniel Espinoza and Dudley Nieto, and food samples by more than 20 local restaurants. Tickets, $40 ($50 next week) are available at pilsenfestchicago.com.
Pilsen Restaurant Week features more than 20 neighborhood restaurants offering prix-fixe menus ranging from $20 to $50. Participants include 5 Rabanitos, Dusek’s Board & Beer, Canton Regio, La Casa del Pueblo and Senoritas Cantina. For a list of participants and more information, go to pilsenfestchicago.com/pilsen-restaurant-week.html.


chicagotribune--2020-02-21--Yu Darvish got back to his best last season with the Cubs. Now he wants to reach career highs — all

Yu Darvish got back to his best last season with the Cubs. Now he wants to reach career highs — all while maintaining his wicked humor on social media.

Darvish ’ s fist pump and scream against the Reds put the exclamation mark on his first win at Wrigley @ @ @ @ @ Cubs after 13 home starts .
Darvish posted a 2.95 ERA in his last 14 @ @ @ @ @ in his last three starts and becoming the first pitcher in franchise history to strike @ @ @ @ @ three consecutive starts .

MESA, Ariz. — David Ross first saw Yu Darvish up close on May 5, 2013, when the light-hitting Red Sox catcher homered off the once-stoic Rangers pitcher.
More than five years later, Ross noticed a change in Darvish, now with the Cubs, from team President Theo Epstein’s suite at Wrigley Field.
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After Darvish struck out the Reds’ Yasiel Puig to end the inning, Ross watched in amazement as Darvish pumped his fist before yelling in the direction of the Wrigley Field bleachers.
“I almost came out of my seat,” the Cubs manager said. “That was the first time I’d seen emotion from him.”
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The emotional release represented the transformation of a successful and personal turnaround for the Japanese pitcher.
No longer does the 6-foot-5 Darvish scoot past reporters through the clubhouse like a running back eluding tacklers, as he did during his injury-plagued first season with the Cubs in 2018.
He occasionally displays a colorful sense of humor to reporters, and he enjoys the banter with followers on his social media accounts.
Cubs pitcher Yu Darvish watches the action during the first full-squad workout of spring training Feb. 17, 2020, in Mesa, Ariz. (Armando L. Sanchez / Chicago Tribune)
“I’m always fighting with some guys (from Japan),” Darvish said of his frequent exchanges on Twitter. “I don’t care.”
The response to his YouTube channel is more favorable.
“Usually I talk about baseball, Japanese culture and what’s going on here,” Darvish said. “And people like it.”
Darvish’s reputation took a hit after the 2017 World Series as a member of the Dodgers, and his statements about the Astros sign-stealing scandal have become stronger to the point he advocated stripping the Astros of the title.
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Gorgeous trashcan!
I like it! — ダルビッシュ有(Yu Darvish) (@faridyu) February 16, 2020
After some Astros fans fired back on Twitter, Darvish trolled them by responding to a photo of the 2017 World Series trophy with the comment, “Gorgeous trashcan! I like it!”
Most encouraging to the Cubs, however, is the dominant pitching he displayed during the second half of 2019 that eased concerns he wouldn’t live up to his six-year, $126 million contract.
Darvish’s fist pump and scream against the Reds put the exclamation mark on his first win at Wrigley as a member of the Cubs after 13 home starts. Darvish posted a 2.95 ERA in his last 14 starts, striking out 39 in his last three starts and becoming the first pitcher in franchise history to strike out at least 12 in three consecutive starts.
“(The fist pump) told me a lot about where he was with his confidence,” said Ross, who spent the last three seasons as a Cubs special assistant.
“I didn’t have any true opinions on him, to be honest with you. Just I love watching his stuff. That slider is nasty. If I had an opinion on him, every time he throws his slider, he’s nasty.”
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Darvish, 33, has taken measures to preserve his arm after a series of injuries. He underwent Tommy John surgery in 2015 and had right triceps tendinitis and a stress reaction in his elbow that limited him to eight starts in 2018.
“Throwing hard feels much different than last year,” said Darvish, who said he has lingering concerns about his elbow.
Darvish skipped a long-toss session last weekend, and there will be preventive measures similar to the final three months of 2019 that enabled him to finish strong and build trust between him and pitching coach Tommy Hottovy.
“We were aware that he threw only 40 innings (in 2018), so we tried to find those times (for rest),” Hottovy said. “He’s so good with the awareness of his body and how he feels. He’ll say: ‘I’m getting a little gassed right now. This is the time to back off.’”
One of those occasions occurred midseason when he received six days of rest before his final start of the first half and an eight-day break prior to his first start after the All-Star break.
Darvish skipped a start in early September because of forearm discomfort but responded with his most dominant stretch to finish the season.
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“It was the right time to turn it up a notch,” Hottovy said.
Cubs starter Yu Darvish tosses a ball during a spring training drill at Sloan Park in Mesa, Ariz., on Saturday, Feb. 15, 2020. (Armando L. Sanchez / Chicago Tribune)
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The Cubs must find a way to achieve balance, but Darvish is adamant about retaining his control. After walking 49 in 97 innings in the first half, Darvish issued only seven walks in 81⅔ innings the rest of the way to finish the season with a 4.09 strikeout-to-walk ratio.
That prompted Darvish to resume playing catch in November and retain the same control in early bullpen sessions.
“I was just so scared to lose the feeling, so I started earlier than usual,” he said.
Despite the occasional breaks, Darvish has set high goals: He wants to start 33 to 34 games and pitch more than 200 innings this season, numbers that would approach his career highs of 32 starts and 209⅔ innings in 2013 — when he led the majors with 277 strikeouts.
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His recent success, however, hasn’t changed Darvish’s meticulous approach, whether he’s training or taking extra time between pitches during a bullpen session to study his results tracked by a Rapsodo machine.
“I still overanalyze and like doing that,” Darvish said.


chicagotribune--2020-02-22--23-year-old barista killed in stabbing at West Town bar: ‘I’m just in shock.’

Kenneth Paterimos loved the artistry and camaraderie behind being a barista at L ’ Ours Bakery Cafe in Little Italy @ @ @ @ @ niece and nephew as his own , Bueno said .
She fretted over how she @ @ @ @ @ his niece , who is 6 .

Though the cold winds outside Stroger Hospital were biting, Desiree Bueno was thinking about her nephew’s frozen banana mocha drinks.
One of her favorite memories with Kenneth Paterimos was when the 23-year-old barista visited her at work and brought the frosted concoction, which he learned to make while working at Starbucks. “Well right, you’re the best nephew,” Bueno, 43, would tell him.
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The coffee drinks Paterimos prepared were just one way he demonstrated his love for family. To their delight, he often used a coffee printer machine to imprint designs of his siblings and celebrities on the lattes he served, according to his brother-in-law, Matthew Meza.
“He was a great guy,” Meza, 27, said. “I’m just in shock. I feel sick. It’s a shock.”
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Paterimos was killed Friday night at a bar in the West Town neighborhood. About 11:20 p.m., a 30-year-old man, who was intoxicated, began arguing with him inside Richard’s Bar in the 400 block of North Milwaukee Avenue. A bouncer threw out the man, who then stabbed Paterimos in the arm, back and neck when he walked outside minutes later, according to Chicago police sources.
An ambulance took Paterimos to Stroger Hospital, where he was pronounced dead. His brother allegedly tackled the 30-year-old, who was hospitalized after responding officers placed him into custody and found a knife, a police source said. Charges are pending.
Chicago police investigate a fatal stabbing Feb. 22, 2020, in the 400 block of North Milwaukee Avenue. (Alice Yin/Chicago Tribune)
The crime scene was contained to the bar and surrounding sidewalk southeast of the North Halsted Street and West Grand Avenue intersection. Detectives walked around the yellow police tape and parked squad cars, shining flashlights at the ground and talking to people inside the tavern. A man, noticing prying eyes on the other side of the street, closed the bar’s front door.
Over an hour after the stabbing, family members said they knew little about the last moments of Paterimos’ life. While waiting for detectives to arrive from the scene, they volleyed from reminiscing about his outsize personality to still processing his death.
This was the first time Meza lost a family member to a homicide. He said “these things happen every day in Chicago, but I never thought it would happen to our family.”
Dina Paterimos, the 23-year-old’s sister, said she traveled to the hospital thinking he was only injured. When she walked into Stroger, he had died.
“My brother was really outgoing,” Dina Paterimos, 24, said. “He was really fun, really cared about his family, and he just said whatever was on his mind. He didn’t deserve anything that happened tonight. I’m devastated right now.”
Kenneth Paterimos loved the artistry and camaraderie behind being a barista at L’Ours Bakery Cafe in Little Italy, and he loved his niece and nephew as his own, Bueno said. She fretted over how she would break the news to his niece, who is 6.
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“He was loving,” Bueno said. “He did anything he could at the drop of a hat for his family.”
Two detectives pulled into the Stroger parking lot around 2 a.m. and spoke with the family inside the waiting room. Their words elicited sobs and embraces and, for some loved ones, more confusion. “What happened?” a woman walked out saying, pausing for multiple seconds between the two words.
Bueno also went outside, helping another tearful woman light a cigarette. “Even if I go inside, I’m still going to have shivers,” that woman said.
ayin@chicagotribune.com


chicagotribune--2020-02-21--Ask Amy: Wedding guests are put off by cash grab

Even though you balk at the idea of contributing money to a prosperous couple , in some cultures , after @ @ @ @ @ the social status of the couple -- people place money in an envelope and hand @ @ @ @ @ , who places the envelope in a special purse .
Others use `` money trees @ @ @ @ @ , and some guests pin cash onto a metal tree for the couple to use @ @ @ @

Dear Amy: The son of a friend is getting married in March.
He and his fiancée have lived together for several years.
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Both are 30-ish and employed.
They are planning an expensive wedding, followed by an expensive honeymoon to Thailand, and have established a registry asking for funding for their honeymoon or future home.
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As we are not interested in contributing to these expenses, would it be appropriate to make a contribution to a charity in honor of their nuptials?
Under the circumstances, we plan to save our money by declining the wedding invitation, afraid that a kitty jar might be passed to pay for the ceremony.
— Perplexed
Dear Perplexed: If this couple registered for a slow cooker from Crate and Barrel, would you decline to give it to them, believing that because they are employed and living together -- they don't actually deserve to receive something specifically because they've asked for it?
My point is that the idea behind registries has always been to try to give the couple something that they actually want and will use.
Even though you balk at the idea of contributing money to a prosperous couple, in some cultures, after a wedding -- regardless of the social status of the couple -- people place money in an envelope and hand it directly to the bride, who places the envelope in a special purse. Others use "money trees" on their gift table, and some guests pin cash onto a metal tree for the couple to use to defray expenses.
Less-obvious requests for cash are honeymoon registries (or even so-called "cash" registries), which have become quite popular. My favorite registries involve specific items you can purchase for the couple to enjoy while on their honeymoon trip, such as, "Zip-lining through the rain forest" or "an afternoon of surfing."
Using one of these registries, I contributed for a honeymooning couple to have coffee and croissants at a café during their trip to Paris. They sent me a postcard from their trip, thanking me for the gift and completing the circle. Nice!
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Just because a registry is set up, a guest is not obligated to use it.
In fact, because you intend to skip this wedding, you are not obligated to give the couple anything at all.
However, you can pat yourself on the back, because contributing to a worthy nonprofit is always a good idea, even if your motivation to do so is more passive-aggressive than generous.
Dear Amy: My siblings found out through an email from their nephew (my son) that I am going to be a grandmother.
I was away at the time, having just found out myself.
They all emailed their nephew to offer congratulations.
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It is now four days later and not one of them has contacted me to congratulate me about the fact that I am going to be a grandmother.
We otherwise have regular communication.
Am I being over-sensitive, or are they being insensitive?
— Soon-to-be Grandmother
Dear Grandmother: I think you are being over-sensitive. Your siblings might have believed that your son was going to share his news with you in a special way. Because you were away at the time, they might not have wanted to hop onto this news, just in case you hadn't been told yet.
Or, they may have simply been focused on responding to the person who shared this news with them -- your son.
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Now that you are going to enter the special-status category of "grandparent," you should take stock of your own needs, sensitivities, and relationships.
Being a grandparent is a grand opportunity to become more expansive and generous, and please, less sensitive.
If you are excited, say so! Contact your siblings, saying, "I think you've already heard the good news! I'm really excited. Our newest family member is due this summer." This will give them the opportunity to respond directly to you. For your sake, I hope your siblings give you what you want.
Dear Amy: In a recent column, you replied to a question from "Desperate," a medical student who was torn between her desire to live a small-town life, and her longtime boyfriend's need to live in a big city.
Ask Amy Daily No-nonsense advice for better living delivered to your inbox every morning. By submitting your email to receive this newsletter, you agree to our Subscriber Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy >
In your list of metropolitan areas that seem to offer the benefits of both big-city life and proximity to beautiful nature, you mentioned my town of Portland, Oregon.
Sure -- we appreciate the shout-out, but please don't send any more people here, Amy. We're all full-up.
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— Happy in Portland
Dear Happy: And your response is ... full-on Portlandish.
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(You can email Amy Dickinson at askamy@amydickinson.com or send a letter to Ask Amy, P.O. Box 194, Freeville, NY 13068. You can also follow her on Twitter @askingamy or Facebook.)
Copyright 2019 by Amy Dickinson
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