It’s a hassle to own a car in the city. Parking, gas, insurance, repairs, and traffic—five great reasons not to! But what if you need to get to Target once a month, or want to take a trip to IKEA? What if you need to pick up a futon you scored on Craigslist, or visit a friend in the 'burbs?

You should consider I-Go!
http://www.igocars.org/

DePaul students, faculty, and staff can join I-Go for only $25.
http://discounts.depaul.edu/travel/carsharing.html

I’ve lived car-free in Chicago for eight years, and was thrilled to discover I-Go a few years back.  Now anytime I need car, I go online and reserve one for as few or as many hours as I need.  Some trips—the grocery store, the laundromat—take only a few hours, and cost relatively little; visiting family in the suburbs is more costly, but I generally reserve an “all-day” vehicle, which is billed at a lower flat rate instead of  by the hour. Best of all, the cost of an I-Go rental includes insurance, gas, maintenance, and 24 hour emergency assistance.

There are three cars within easy walking distance of DePaul’s Lincoln Park Campus, and many more on the north side of the city. You can find dozens of cars near the Loop Campus, too. The I-Go web site lists all car locations (http://www.igocars.org/locations), and information about which kinds of cars they offer.

Some highlights of the weekend’s festivities include:

Thursday, July 3, at 9:31 PM; City of Chicago, Grant Park
Friday, July 4, at 9:15 PM; Evanston, Clark Street Beach
Friday, July 4, at 9:30 PM; Naperville, Knoch Park
Friday, July 4 at dusk; Oak Park, Oak Park River Forest High School Stadium

Click here for a comprehensive list of fireworks displays in the Chicagoland area.

Have a great holiday weekend!

Among the many bicycling enthusiasts in Chicago are those who ride bikes as a method of transportation to work and others who work as a bike messengers, some who enjoy a leisurely ride down the lakefront path and others who are masters of the sometimes unnerving art of urban biking. Both nonprofit groups and the City of Chicago (Mayor Daley is a bicycling enthusiast) provide a variety of programming, resources, and events to promote cycling.

For an immediate introduction to these enthusiasts, join the herd on wheels at Daley Plaza (Dearborn & Washington) tomorrow (June 27, 2008) at 5:30 PM for Chicago’s Critical Mass, which convenes the last Friday of every month to celebrate riding bicycles.

The City of Chicago publishes a map of safe biking streets that is particular to the DePaul campus and its academic buildings. There’s also a general form to search a particular neighborhood.

The Chicagoland Bicycle Federation organizes annual rides and events that are staples in the bicycling community, including Bike the Drive and Bike to Work Week. Check out their web site for information on their outreach and advocacy programs, including how to sign up as a Bike Ambassador.

Don’t forget to wear your helmet!

EveryBlock Chicago is a mash-up of government information and Google Maps.  I LOVE the way it pulls together public information from disparate city agencies and departments and adds layers of relevance and accessibility.

You can locate crime reports, restaurant inspection scores, property transfers, street closures and even filming schedules. Search by address, zip code or neighborhood and you'll see a map loaded with the locations of each event. EveryBlock also includes business reviews from Yelp and lost and found ads from Craigslist. You can even look at pictures that have been geotagged in Flickr!  It's a really easy way to explore your neighborhood or your city.

Looking for a new novel to read for fun? Need a good movie to watch this weekend? Want to check out a local museum?

You can satisfy all these cravings for free with a Chicago Public Library card.
 
The Chicago Public Library (http://www.chipublib.org/) has a huge collection of books, films, and music held across the city at dozens of different locations. Luckily, you can go online and use the Chicago Public Library catalog to request items be held for you at the location of your choice. The closest branch to the Lincoln Park Campus is only two blocks west of the Fullerton el stop; if you live elsewhere, the web site has a map that lets you find a nearby outpost.

On the Chicago Public Library web site, you can access some databases we don’t offer at DePaul. Looking for a good book to read? Try Novelist. Practicing for a test like the MCAT or GRE? Check out the LearningExpress Library.  Need an introduction to life in another country? CultureGrams may be for you. The Chicago Public Library also has full-text articles from a wide range of Chicago newspapers—although don’t forget the DePaul Library does, too!

The Chicago Public Library also has some unique and often overlooked cultural programs. You can get passes to local museums, or lawn tickets to Ravinia, although both are subject to availability. They also have hundreds of book groups, readings, and other events over the course of the year.

As you can see, there are lots of reasons to love the Chicago Public Library. Don’t miss out on the chance to take advantage of this free and fabulous resource!

If you live in Chicago, all you need to get a library card is proof that you are a resident. If you don’t have an ID with your Chicago address on it (such as a current driver’s license), you can combine a picture ID with a recent letter or bill addressed to your residence. Living in the dorms? Student Housing can issue you a document proving your Chicago residency. If you’re a commuter, the Chicago Public Library also has agreements with dozens of Illinois libraries that let members of those libraries also get a card in the city.

Join bibliophiles, readers, writers, booksellers, publishers, musicians, artists, and outdoor festival enthusiasts this weekend at Dearborn and Polk, not far from DePaul’s loop campus, for the 2008 Printers Row Book Fair. There’s no fee for entry into this cultural festival that the Chicago Tribune calls "the Midwest’s largest literary event.”

Elizabeth Berg, Andre Dubus III, Robert Fulghum, Maxine Kumin, Audrey Niffenegger, Jeff Shaara, and Scott Turow are among the many novelists, poets, short story writers, and nonfiction writers scheduled to read. Don’t miss the American Heritage Dictionary Define-A-Thon on June 7 at 3:00 PM, the usage equivalent of a spelling bee.

Whether in the context of organic consumption, the slow food movement, simple living, the environment, or local business, community-supported agriculture cooperatives provide an avenue for conscious-minded individuals to consume with awareness. In this model of food production, individuals subscribe to a local farm before a growing season and become community “share-holders” in the harvest, receiving boxes of produce in season through the summer and fall. Chicago’s proximity to cornfields (and soy fields and vegetable patches) gives city and suburban residents a choice of CSAs.

A great place to find such organizations is at Local Harvest. Examples of CSAs with pick-ups in the Chicago area include Fresh Picks (Niles, IL), Angelic Organics (Caledonia, IL), and Homegrown Wisconsin (Madison, WI).

Among the questions to consider when reviewing organizations:

How frequently are produce boxes delivered and what is the cost?
What produce is available each week or month?
Should I share a subscription with friends or family?
Are there are any pick-up locations near me?

Don’t forget that the farmer’s market season is approaching! The Green City Market (1750 N. Clark and Stockton Drive) near DePaul’s Lincoln Park campus and the Federal Plaza farmer’s market (Adams & Dearborn) in the loop provide organic options for consumers with no commitment.