I LIVE for Marie’s Christmas decorations! We bring everyone we know there in December. Threw a surprise birthday party for my mom there in early January and was thrilled to see the decorations were still up.

And we just moved into Marie’s delivery area — great when we’re too lazy to drive there. Bonus.

LOVE Virtue’s Michigan Cherry cider.

Discussing best Chicago thin crust pizza is like discussing who’s got the best Italian beef or hot dog. Everyone’s got their own opinion.

Me? Pat’s is a longtime favorite, but also Marie’s Pizza on Lawrence, Vito and Nick’s on Pulaski. Candlelite on Western is good but not as good as it used to be.

Which is why every state should have Right To Die on your own terms in the case of illnesses such as these. When he was still able to communicate, my father kept asking for his gun—he would have killed himself had he been able to.

We treat our suffering cats and dogs more humanely than we treat people.

Kudos to this young man. My dad passed last year from dementia and Parkinson’s. The only way we could get him to down liquids was to feed him homemade vodka lemonade popsicles.

I absolutely detest gin as well, except for Hendricks gin. A Hendricks gin and tonic garnished with a slice of cucumber is the bomb.

Years ago I found a 4.5 qt. Le Creuset dutch oven at Tuesday Morning for $60 (best deal EVER). It’s the bomb, but it wasn’t large enough for a lot of things I like to make, and there was no way in hell I could afford the big Le Creuset. Cooks Illustrated actually recommended the Tramontina dutch oven over Le Creuset,…

You obviously don’t live here. You are wrong.

Another shout out for Bottles and Cans and Bad Apple.

Another North Center resident here. NC does not suck. Close enough to walk to Wrigley (and no permit parking), far enough from the drunken foolishness of Wrigley bars. Best bars: Grace & Levitt Tap, Resi’s or Laschet’s (yes, the latter two have food but good German food and beer go together).

She does great work, but her voice is like nails on a chalkboard. I can only watch with the volume off.

As a lifetime Cubs fan and White Sox hater, this was one of the greatest Crosstown Classic moments ever. I have that punch photo proudly displayed in my home and office.

Thank you for this! David Ruffin is my favorite vocalist of all time, bar none. His solo work immediately after he left the Temptations is stellar. When he sings, you can feel the gut wrenching emotion in his voice, whether it be pain (Let Somebody Love Me, Mountain of Memories) or sheer joy (I’ve Got A Need For You,…

School’s Out was the very first album I purchased with my allowance in 1973. I was nine years old.

As a Chicagoan who regularly rides the subway (the Red Line, which always smells like piss if you're not in one of the new fancy cars), I've seen the nail clipper, the woman painting her nails, the guy jacking off in the corner seat, the drunk chick that's a had a few too many and pissed her pants. And the drunk and…