The heart of the city. Better and less crowded than the Bean…read more This fecal fountain is a fun little photo op when you're in the city, and it's right down the street from Kasama, making them an unlikely but excellent pair.

Exactly what you'd expect: a statue that looks like poop. There was also a super friendly outdoor…read moreorange cat nearby named Mister that made my entire day. He was so cute and so worth the visit to the Shit Fountain. It's also near Kasama, so you can definitely make a trip out of this or take a quick detour if you're in the area.

I decided to do something rather unique for Veteran's Day this year by taking a quick trip up to…read moreLake County to check out one of Jiffy Lube's most recently completed murals, "Flowers in My Head," a mural that sits on a Jiffy Lube located between the Adam Benjamin VA Clinic and the Gary Area VetCenter in Crown Point, Indiana. The large mural was created by local artist and disabled veteran Ismael Muhammed Nieves, who works under the name ISH. ISH has been a muralist and graffiti writer for over 30 years and is known locally for his work with Eskenazi Hospital, the SubSurface Graffiti Exhibition, and as a founding member of Indiana's first and oldest Latino Artist Collective - Crazy Indiana Style Artists (CISA). He was also an active artist and member for another Jiffy Lube Mural - Three Kings. ISH has dealt with Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder for 20+ years. He finally decided to get help when he began to realize how disconnected he was with his family. In fact, ISH is a frequent visitor to the VA clinic across the street. According to ISH's description of the mural, "The mural follows a timeline of the internal emotions, actions, and results a soldier with PTSD may travel. Visually, the mural is divided into two parts starting from the top left corner going left-to-right and the bottom half traveling from right-to-left." ISH chose to portray cartoon characters to lighten the viewing experience and flower symbolism to zone out different areas and allow veterans to focus on talking points. "With full artistic license from Jiffy Lube, I was provided a platform to cover PTSD," said ISH. "I had to find a creative way to approach the subject so it would not trigger a stressful or anxious moment." The mural begins with children running through a flower field. They can barely see above the nose-high flowers and slap each other with the flowers they've pulled from the field. The characters high-five each other when they get out of the field. There is a celebration but it's not necessarily tied to national victory but simply getting out alive. In the next section, they are taking off turtle shell helmets and placing them in a pile, a representation of transitioning from a reptilian mind to a civilian. The next scene in the mural represents seeing yourself in the mirror, with your hair undone and flowers in your hair and feeling unsettled. The rake on the character's boots represents the work ahead. It's a matter of clearing the field and dropping new seeds and germinating healthier thoughts. The seeds being dropped from the air represents the awakening that comes from asking/answering the questions. The pink cloud being combed and watering the ground below represents going through the thoughts that will germinate new perspectives. On the bottom half of the mural (from right to left), the first scene shows scissors cutting hair with flowers. It represents that sometimes the only way to move on is to cut it off. The two girls combing through each other's hair represents the therapy process. The therapist (left) is trained to assist and always learn and develop her practice with each new patient. The soldier (right) has her hair covering her face. It represents shame and/or unawareness. It may be hard for soldiers to seek or know they require therapy. Their hair has the colors of the flag to represent one American helping another. The next scene shows the yellow hand throwing the flowers from their hair into a compost. This represents the energy and value in the memories and lessons learned. Tossing the flowers into the compost provides food for the garden you keep. Moving through the process, the young lady is then admiring herself because she has gone through the process and is happy with her appearance. Her hair is neat and organized and decorated with a red bow. The red bow represents the red poppies above her. It shows she has found a way to accentuate and decorate herself. Lastly, standing behind her is a soldier with a shovelful of freshly made compost. It represents that the work never stops. While Jiffy Lube has commissioned many outstanding murals, this mural may very well be my favorite. It's comprehensive yet created with tremendous clarity. It's quite beautiful and incredibly meaningful. As someone who also lives with PTSD, I'm in awe of just how wonderfully ISH has brought the experience to life in an artistic and meaningful way. Is it worth a 2-hour drive to see it? Actually, yes it is. It's also a remarkable and worthy tribute to America's veterans and I'm glad I could check it out on Veteran's Day 2021.

It's a 4 star if you are into this type of thing...it's not really my thing, which is why it's a 3…read more This is Chicago's oldest house, according to the literature. Pros: The guides are extremely knowledgeable. Our guide was a history major & she knew every little thing about the house & and its history. She also grew up in the neighborhood. One guide was a biology teacher & when we were outside, she told us all about cicadas, more than the generic info you read about in the news. It's really pretty & the interior was filled with old wedding dresses & it's history. Interesting fact I observed... wedding dresses don't seem to go out of style. The wedding dresses were numbered & correspond to a phamlet detailing its history. It's a recommendation of $5-$10, affordable & you do your part on old building restoration. Cons: It's a very small house.

Check out some old Chicago history. If looking for the oldest place in the city then come here for…read morea look. The Noble-Seymour-Crippen House is the oldest structure. Even though it wasn't a part of the city for a long time, it is now and it's older than anything else. Pretty much this is used for banquets and stuff mostly even though it's also a museum but you can make an appointment to visit. Before coming here it should be known this isn't like a museum that a lot of people know about. It's used mostly for events. Things like weddings and that. It has pretty limited hours if just coming to look around. This is open only Saturdays. It's the oldest known structure in the city. The oldest part was built in 1833, and the addition was built in 1868 or so. Among the artifacts are a collection of things found in the ground collected in an archeological dig. There's objects like buttons, guns, toys, and more. Other exhibits show the history of Norwood Park and what it was like. This place is also the home of the Norwood Park Historical Society and is where they have meetings. Good place to check out if you can make the limited hours. It's a must if wanting to learn more about the local history and what it was like back then. This is also pretty popular for those looking to have some big event like a wedding or whatever.

I feel a little catfished by this mural project. Looking online, there appeared to be more to it…read more But it's literally about a mile of murals, up and down the overpasses, in Rogers Park, a neighborhood of Chicago. The murals focus mainly on Chicago history, history of the Rogers neighborhood, Audubon birds, and a few other subjects. The murals are nice overall, though some are poorly kept. I don't think they've been updated in a long time. My favorite was the Barack Obama mural. It's easier to walk them than drive them because there is very little parking and a ton of one way streets. I drove quite a ways out to this neighborhood, through Lakeshore Drive traffic. If you're in the area, go for it. There is a cute little pedestrian only street with a tavern and quaint shops. But don't drive from the outskirts just for this.

The Mile of Murals is a unique work of art in Rogers Park. Started in 2007, over the years the…read moreproject has commissioned a number of works: There are several that span the entire block, and there are several viaducts that have murals as well. The goal of this project is to paint from Estes to Pratt, covering the retaining wall along the Red Line in artwork. There are still five block-long sections of this project remaining to complete. All of the works are cool. My favorite, however, is "Connect Origins to Destinations: The History of Rogers Park". It tells the story of Rogers Park from its early days as a home to Potawatomi. The Indian Boundary Line, for which Indian Boundary Park is named, is located at Rogers & Clark... unfortunately, there's a commemorative plaque praising the negotiation skills of white men with the native peoples to cede Chicago to them, but that's a story for another time. I loved learning things about this neighborhood I never knew before through this large -scale art project.

Never returned my call. I heard it through the grapevine that they are out of business and no…read morelonger a venue that can be booked for weddings. However, they are still being advertised.

Not sure which caterer of the four that Cuneo allows but the food at a recent wedding was inedible…read more We chose the beef medallion option and we couldn't cut the meat. It was like hard rubber. Sadly our whole table left the meal. They served it with broccolini that was steamed plain with no salt or seasonings. The potato patty had so much sage in it that it was inedible. We saw others at different tables having the same issues. We just know the bride and groom had to pay a pretty penny for this unacceptable food. Such an embarrassment for the family. Definitely stay away from the Loyola Cuneo Mansion for a wedding. Hopefully they will make needed repairs and add some fresh paint to the exterior of the building. It must be noted that the ballroom was lovely and the tables were exquisitely dressed.

Went for Matching Mother/Daughter tattoos with Dolly Darling and couldn't be more happy with her…read moredesign and her gentle spirit! Truly a pleasure and a great way to spend my pre-birthday!

Top notch artists work in this place. The artist working me over in my photo is Chucho and he has…read moresome real skills with tattoos and art. His artwork can be seen throughout the city as he has been commissioned for both sculptures as well as murals! Call the office and get set up for a session. I'll post more pictures soon!

I think mural paintings are so creative on a large scale. It seems that no matter where you…read moretravel, you can always see a mural or two that may be cultural or simply a message to others. As many artists use spray cans to paint on the huge canvas, it takes a certain skill to get the proportions correct. While many sketch their theme before spraying, I have also seen artists just do their thing. Creativity at its best provided it's agreed upon prior to display.

11/2/2025- My first…read moremural pic and review.. On my daily morning walk last week-.. I remember seeing this one behind our Chevron..and Tahoe Natural Cafe-.. Our murals depict our city and the creative artists in town!

We just toured the Old Post Office with John. He did a great job! The space is amazing and…read morestories compelling.

Took the Art Deco tour yesterday, what a great way to learn about some of the history of Chicago as…read morewell as the gorgeous buildings!! Our guide was knowledgeable and kept the tour interesting. Unfortunately I flew out yesterday afterwards, but will definitely be back to check out the Center as well.