26 February 2014: Waitin' on a Train

The Red Line train was a welcome sight
on this frigid February morning.

25 February 2014: This Just In: Winter Will Never End

The snow banks have been slowly shrinking, even as they get dirtier by the day. But with more frigid weather in the forecast for the next couple of days, it looks like the snow won't completely disappear for a while. 

25 February 2014: A Sweet Repeat

Happy 100th Birthday, Tastykake!

This picture was originally posted on 26 December 2012, but since i'm several hundred miles from the nearest Tastykake (alas!), i'm reposting it in honor of the favorite after-school treat of my Philadelphia childhood. I wish i had a Butterscotch Krimpet or a Chocolate Junior right now!

Tastykakes on sale at O'Neill's Market in Glenside, PA
 26 December 2012

22 February 2014: Divisible Only by Itself and One

Where but in Rogers Park would you find a monument to the beauty of prime numbers?

20 February 2014: A Change in the Weather

This evening's forecast:

Foggy ...

with a chance of puddles

18 February 2014: WWJD? What Would Jane (Addams) Do?

The Dining Hall of Jane Addams Hull House with a few decorative icicles for effect.

18 February 2014: On Strike!

It was a beautiful day on the picket line as UIC United Faculty began a two-day strike, after more than 16 months of trying to get a fair contract. Here's an excellent article by two of our finest professors explaining why this strike is necessary.

17 February 2014: Bonus Shot: Commuters

Waiting for the BLue Line at UIC/Halsted

17 February 2014: Blizzard du Jour

Here's how things looked in blizzardy Chicago today. There was even thundersnow!

The morning commute: 10AM on the Morse L platform

Midafternoon at UIC

The Sears Tower hiding in plain sight

River birch sheathed in snow

Evening, after the storm

16 February 2014: Icicles du Jour

There are huge groups of icicles hanging from the eaves of almost every house, but this more delicate arrangement seems somehow less cold and ominous.

15 February 2014: A Chill in the Air

I took these pictures of the snow on the UIC campus yesterday. Everything looks so quiet and peaceful that it's hard to believe that in the coming week we will be walking the picket line. UIC United Faculty (UICUF) will be staging a two-day walk out, with the possibility of a longer strike on the horizon. For a clear and comprehensive account of why we are striking, please read this article by two preeminent professors in the English Department.

14 February 2014: The Sacred and Profane

The blind man in the subway station played his guitar, singing "Amazing Grace" in a soft Mexican accent. When the song was over he said, "Even though the weather is cold, God is always sending his grace and love to us." Then he paused and wished everyone a happy Valentine's Day. "I hope," he said, "that all you ladies get a lot of chocolates and flowers, and i hope you men … get a lot of sex."

13 February 2014: The Day I Lost All Patience...

… with snow, with ice, and with the interminable construction in the neighborhood. Farwell Ave. at Glenwood was a dead end in both directions this morning.

Looking west

Looking east

11 February 2014: The Digital Frontier … with Snow

I'm a little under the weather today and won't be venturing out into the frozen wasteland formerly known as Chicago. Fortunately, i had an extra picture from the weekend that i hadn't posted yet. 

I've taken a lot of pictures of this mural, "The Digital Frontier" by Doze Green, 
on the 6900 block of N. Glenwood, going back to when it was first painted in 2012. 
But like everything else this winter, it looks very different half-buried in the snow.

10 February 2014: Sadly, I Have Completely Exhausted My Ability to Come Up with Clever Titles Related to Snow.

Hard to believe, but there are still leaves clinging to the rosebushes.

8 February 2014: Comfort Food

Just when i feared that i would be at the mercy of my own cooking, there it was on the horizon: the welcoming, rosy glow of J.B. Alberto's. The Italian beef pizza with hot giardiniera truly eased the pain of being 600 miles away from a decent cheesesteak.

7 February 2014: Still-life with Snow

River birch in the snow

6 February 2014: Snow-free Pictures

The title of this post is a little deceptive. True, there is no snow in this group of pictures taken in the past few days; but are icicles really any better?

Icicle/weather vane shaped by the strong north wind,
seen from the Morse L platform.

5 February 2014: Hiding in Plain Sight

Smart car camouflaged as a mound of snow. 

3 February 2014: Sunset over Rogers Park

What a beautiful sunset over Morse Avenue this afternoon! I saw a sundog 
in the sky a few minutes earlier, but i was on the train and the windows 
were filthy so i couldn't get a picture of it.

2 February 2014: Lake-cicle

Lake Michigan was looking especially dramatic today, with huge ice formations and lethally sharp-looking shards catching the glint of the low afternoon sun. These pictures were taken at the recently renamed Tobey Prinz Beach at the eastern end of Pratt Boulevard. 

"Windform" by Lynn Takata

1 February 2014: Snowy Saturday

Morse Avenue coming to life on a snowy Saturday morning.