Tipping Point

Well, it appears that this blog has become a repository of links that I find interesting and want to save for posterity.

Here's an interesting analysis of demographic data in Chicago from from 1970-1980.

Basically, there's the concept of "tipping point" where whites will tolerate a small minority population in the neighborhood, but will leave (white-flight) when the minority population reaches a critical value, the so-called tipping point. According to the data, the tipping point in Chicago from 1970 to 1980 was 7%! This explains why there are so few stably integrated neighborhoods/suburbs in Chicagoland; Oak Park, being one of the few. It'd be interesting to analyze 1990 and 2000 census data to see if the tipping point percentage has changed.

We're #7!!! (Really?)

According to CNN and Money Magazine, Oak Park is #7 on the list of best places for the rich and single, beating out places like Irvine, CA, Belmont and Arlington, MA. As gratifying as it is to see our fair village get some positive press, I find it a bit hard to believe. Oak Park is great for the rich and married with children set, in fact, its probably near ideal for that demographic, but the single? Not so much.

Yes, Oak Park got a small but decent downtown area with shops, restaurants, and a bar or two, but really, compared to our next door neighbor (Chicago), its pretty miniscule. If I were still single, I think living in Oak Park would drive me crazy. Even working out in the far burbs wouldn't prevent me from living in the city proper. Still, I suppose its all relative, and we beat our neighbor to the southwest, Lisle, by ten places, so take that, DuPage County!

Trader Joes Opens Tomorrow!

Finally, after waiting for three years (ever since moving to Oak Park), Trader Joes will be opening tomorrow in downtown.

Rain, rain, go away!

We've just had two days of record rains in the Chicago area. There's been widespread flooding, road closures, and wet basements. The nearby Des Plaines river, usually a small creek, is about ten feet higher than normal. We drove past it yesterday, and it was quite impressive. I'd hate to have one of those homes right next to it. Luckily our house is high and dry.

Lake Street in River Forest (Note the trailer in street)

This is the bridge that my commuter train travels over. The water is usually ten feet below the bridge.

Public Access TV Stuff

Apparently our city manager, Tom Barwin, decided to look for greener pastures after only one year in Oak Park. He interviewed in Boulder, CO for the city manager position there. He ended up not being chosen for the position, although he did come in second place. Everything I've read and seen about Barwin has impressed me, so I'm happy that he's staying for a little while longer at least.

While reading up on this story, I found it interesting that Boulder, CO public access tv is available live on-line (www.boulderchannel8.com). I'm not sure how much work it would take to put Oak Park TV on-line, but it seems like something worthwhile to do.

Farmer's Market

Today was the first day of the 2008 Oak Park Farmer's Market. The weather was awesome, 60-70 with a slight breeze, so I took Julia out to the market to take a peek. Being so early in the season, there wasn't all that much produce available, so we mostly strolled around and spent a bit of time listening to the blue grass band that plays every week at the market. I think Julia appreciated the music, although not as much as the choo-choos across the street that she saw.

Traffic Analysis

CTA Eisenhower

We were down in the Oak Park Arts District (formerly Harrison Arts District) last weekend for a street festival. While Kelly was checking out some clothing shop, Julia and I walked around. She heard the sounds of the Blue line el in the background, and wanted to see the "Choo-choos."

We walked over to the embankment and Julia watched the choo-choos and brrrm-brrrms contentedly. I suspect that she shares my interest in transit policy and was imagining plans to upgrade the CTA blue line to decrease auto congestion.

Trader Joe's Definitely Opening in Oak Park

Trader Joe's in Oak Park appears imminent
Wednesday Journal, May 2nd, 2008

And there was much rejoicing in the land. When we were looking at places to move to, I had a few criteria in mind. It had to have a Whole Foods, Barnes and Noble, Starbucks, Trader Joe's, and a Costco nearby. Yes, I know, I'm a corporate whore, I make no apologies. Oak Park has the first three, and Costco is not too far away for monthly trips. The only thing missing was a local TJ's. Its been promised for years, but the local paper has confirmed that they've finally signed a lease in downtown Oak Park.

Expect to see more cute pictures like this soon.

Going Postal

We got a notice from the postman a few days ago that Kelly received a package which was being held at the downtown post office. Since it was on the way to work for me, I offered to pick it up, as well as drop off a few letters and a package.

So on the way to the train station I stop in, drop off the outgoing mail, and stand in line. Of course the line moves like molasses, so after a few minutes I give up since I don't want to miss my train.

My second attempt, the next morning is more promising. There's no line so I successfully ship the package (overseas baby gift) and then realize I've left the package notice at home. Whoops.

The next day I return with the notice and there's only a short line. Problem. The notice only has Kelly's name, not mine. The package is also addressed to KW, not KWC, so there's no common last name on my driver's license. Finally, my license has our old apartment address listed, not our current house, so I can't even prove we live together!

On my fourth trip back, I've gotten Kelly to sign the notice to authorize me to pick up the package for her. Kelly suggests I bring a copy of our marriage license, but I don't (not leaving it at home probably would have helped). After a little bit of discussion the postal employee agrees to give me the package.

Snow, Snow, Snow

I haven't seen this much snow since I saw March of the Penguins. For the past two weeks or so its been snowing almost non-stop. I've had the pleasure of shoveling our walkway and sidewalk over and over again. I say pleasure because for this southern-bred boy, shoveling is still a bit of a novelty to be savored. I may feel differently in a few years. Julia, of course, loves playing in the snow, and she's even tried to help me shovel and sweep the walkway a bit. Its very cute to watch.

Luckily my daily commute does not involve driving more than a few miles to and from the train station, otherwise I'd be more upset by the weather. Riding on the train, however, and looking out the window at the white landscape is quite enjoyable, as the snow definitely softens the hard edges of the industrial scenery. Even the roads are still white as many of the municipalities have literally run out of salt. Oak Park is only salting a few major roads to conserve its supply. Apparently there is a barge on the Mississippi with a new shipment of salt, but its being delayed by all the ice. How ironic. Its a good thing we don't have hills or curvy roads.

For What its Worth

I'm not sure I put much stock in these kinds of things, but apparently Oak Park was recognized as a top 100 community for young people. Yay, us!

Also good news, in 2007 crime in Oak Park has decreased 2% relative to 2006. Let's hope the trend continues in 2008.

Iphone Update

I've had the Iphone for a while now.

Verdict: Its great, I think its worth every penny we paid for it. Once a new upgrade is released, I think I'll buy one for Kelly. I don't listen to music all that much, an occasional audiobook maybe, but I use the web browser all the time. I'm fairly impatient, and I always find getting annoyed waiting in line, on the phone, at a restaurant, or whatever, and now I have something to keep me busy during those times. Kelly appreciates the phone because I no longer bug her (as much) to hurry up all the time. The camera is okay, not great, but its a big improvement over my previous phone camera (ie: I didn't have one).

Additionally, Apple stock is going through the roof, partly due to the iphone, so that's a bit of a bonus.

Homicide: Life (and Death) on the Street

Life in Oak Park is generally tranquil for us, however, occasional incidents occur which remind us that we are not completely insulated from "big city" crime. In the early morning of September 12th, a murder took place several blocks from our house. All the facts are not known yet, but so far we know that the victim was a gang member with numerous convictions and was presumably killed as the result of gang warfare occuring in Chicago. Division Street is one of the thoroughfares connecting Oak Park with Chicago. Apparently gang members based Chicago decided to drive (with the victim) on Division St into Oak Park where they committed the murder.

In one sense, the details of the murder are reassuring: the shooting took place at 2:30 AM, the victim was not a resident of Oak Park minding his/her own business, and the crime seems to originate from Chicago-based crime/criminals. Nonetheless, the close proximity in itself is obviously quite worrisome. The shooting took place across the street from Taylor Park, where Julia goes to play in a totlot. I can't imagine what I would be feeling had the criminals chosen my street to commit their crime.

Living next to a low socioeconomic/high crime urban neighborhood is simply a fact of life in Oak Park. You do what you can to insulate yourself and especially your family, but obviously there are limits to what you can do, short of moving out.

Dreamhouse(s)

As much as I like our house, my dream housing situation involves living in a condo in downtown Oak Park. No yard to mow, no exterior maintenance to deal with, and no walkway to shovel. Oak Park has had a condo building boom recently, and there is quite a bit of inventory to choose from. One condo we looked at is right on Lake st, the main drag of Oak Park, and sits above a high-end health club (with a smoothie bar!) and next door to Chipotle. If we lived there, I might actually make it to the gym, and we'd never have to cook.

Another new condo sits next the commuter rail tracks. When I'm waiting for the train in the morning, I often stare at the newly built midrise and fantasize about living on the 6th floor with a view of the trains coming in the distance. I'd time it so I could see the train coming, run downstairs and across the street to arrive at the platform at the same time as the train.

When we drive into Chicago, we see lots of nice condos in trendy neighborhoods. So many times I've said, "Oh, I'd like to live in that building", that its become a running joke with Kelly. Most of these hypothetical homes would be very inconvenient for us since Julia came along, not to mention commuting to work, but one can always dream.

New Village Board

The new village board has been inaugurated. Four out of seven positions are filled with new members, two others are midway through their 4 year terms, and one position is currently vacant. After a hiatus of over a month (due to elections), the village board is meeting again. Must see tv on VOP-TV6 (public access channel).

Kelly has once again banished me to the basement when I want to watch the board meetings. I told her the new board members seem less likely to drone on monotonously, but she doesn't seem mollified. Hopefully Julia inherited my wonk/geek genes, maybe we'll have father-daughter board meeting nights!

Oak Park Elections

Despite our recent preoccupation with domestic matters, life around us continues to move on. This past Tuesday was election day around these parts. Politics in Chicago is considered a full-contact sport, albeit one which not infrequently involves a lot of indictments. Out in our leafy suburb, we've avoided the criminal prosecutions, and focused on the usual issues: property taxes, development, schools, and traffic.

Having been a resident for under two years, I'm stilling trying to sort out all the issues and interest groups. I never paid much attention to the local political landscape in Massachusetts, but I've been vociferously reading the local papers and watching Village Board meetings on public access tv. In fact, I've gotten somewhat hooked on the Board meetings. Kelly can't stand it, and walks out of room when meetings are on. I don't blame her, the production values are low, and people tend to drone on and on and on. Still, I've enjoyed listening to the nuts and bolts of issues, as well as watching the rhetorical sparks fly on occasion. Yes, I know, I am a dork.

Baby Talk

Well, its been a long time since my last post. Having a little baby tends to get in the way of other less important things like blogs. It's hard to remember what life what like before she came to us. Kelly's actually be quite prolific in writing a baby-specific blog (littlemissjulia.blogspot.com), separate from this one. Because we're a bit paranoid, we've decided to password protect that one. If you're interested in reading it, send us an email.

I'm going to minimize the baby stories posted here, which will be a bit odd, since she's about 90% of what's going on in our lives right now, but hopefully I'll try harder to find other topics of interest

-Brian