“Ruby Sparks” bears a more than superficial resemblance to the 2006 movie, “Stranger Than Fiction.” Both feature previously renowned authors in the midst of a prolonged slump who suddenly find their newest creations are a little more substantial than ink and paper. Both write on typewriters in austere white rooms free of clutter. Both are […]
Posted inPluck
Of band-aids, badassery, and finding a break
Ida is starting preschool this fall. In preparation for this momentous happening, we are spending a considerable portion of our summer slogging through a shit-ton of paperwork and fulfilling a plethora of inane background checks, tuberculosis and blood tests, and lead screenings. I won’t keep you in suspense – we both passed on all counts […]
Posted inMile-High Club
I’ll never fall in love again
I recently ended an eight-year relationship, and I’m still having mixed feelings about it. She wasn’t always good to me, it’s true, but she was mine, and we’d been through a lot together. It was a long, painful and ultimately pricey goodbye, and I’ll always be nostalgic about our time together. I’m talking, of course, about […]
Posted inReviews
Unnerving ‘The Dark Knight Rises’ falls short
Is it even possible to write a normal review of “The Dark Knight Rises” at this point? It’s certainly difficult to see it without thinking of what happened in Aurora. I’m not one to say our decadent nihilistic culture causes those kinds of things. It’s just very, very unsettling to see a movie about violent […]
Posted inPluck
I’ve got your back
I’m a feminist in the Chicago comedy scene and it’s been a rough week. I’m worn out. I’m sick of being patient with 20something improv dudes as some of their dumber exemplars relentlessly defend confused notions of free speech. I’m sick of sounding like a broken record as they aggressively abstain from listening and de-rail discussions with […]
Posted inPluck
Beyond the Diaper: How Mayim Bialik’s New Book Covers Elimination Communication
I think it’s practically mandatory that I open this post with a reference to the 90s TV show Blossom. But I don’t have any, and for that I blame my mother. She didn’t think it was quality television, and so I was the only 7th grader at Goodrich Middle School who did not have anything […]
Posted inRebellious Women in Poetry
The Body Deformed by Tidal Forces
Lillian-Yvonne Bertram, who is pursuing her Ph.D. in Creative Writing at the University of Utah, is one of the most rebellious poets I know. Whether it is her pop of hot pink hair or her poems turned sideways on the page—Bertram defies normalcy in smart, refreshing ways. Her poetry makes living our lives more interesting. […]
Posted inPluck
Yes, my five-month-old uses the potty: an intro to elimination communication
When people saw my baby registry, quite a few commented on little green Baby Bjorn potty they found there. “Wow, you’re really planning ahead,” they said. “Way to be prepared.” I’m sure it seemed a little funny to put a potty on my registry, next to swaddling blankets and those newborn baby no-scratch mittens, when […]
Posted inMile-High Club
Every day is a winding road
When I took my high-flying new job, there was talk that my first assignment would be in either Houston or Northbrook. (As in Texas or Illinois.) I joked at the time that part of me would rather drive to O’Hare twice a week than Northbrook every day. OK, not just part. A big part. After […]
Posted inNews Archive
Contest to recognize best use of vacant space in metro Chicago
Marisa Novara is a self-described “neighborhood nerd.” After a year in Italy getting a master’s in urban planning, Novara returned to Chicago as a project manager at the nonprofit Metropolitan Planning Council, an organization that promotes planning policies for the Chicago region. She is currently overseeing a contest to recognize the best temporary use of […]