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By funsherpa, February 1, 2010 1:01 pm

Sharing the fun with the family

This week, funsherpa discovers the family and kid friendly side of Chicago with Caitlin Giles, former lawyer turned professional mother of three and freelance writer.   She shares with us tips on how to take advantage of all the city has to offer for kids and the family.  We also learn a little bit about the mother blogger community.  Caitlin blogs at A Hen and Two Three Chicks and Chicago Now’s Wee Windy City.

F: What motivated you to start blogging and writing the hen and three chicks blog?

C: I wanted to find a way to capture the time with my little ones. As any parent can tell you, kids change so fast and the days can get so hectic. My hope was to create a place where at least some small part of our days together would be recorded.

I was also looking for a creative outlet for myself while my kids were napping.  Kids  are just naturally creative and watching my own little ones really awakened in me the desire to be more creative in my own life.

F: Can you give us some parallels between your former career as a lawyer and being a mom?

Hmmm . . .  that is a tough one. Before I had kids, I worked as an Assistant State’s Attorney in cases involving child abuse and neglect. As you can imagine, this was really emotional and difficult work. After my daughter was born, I couldn’t imagine spending my days in a courtroom dealing with such desperate situations and then still having enough positive energy to bring home to her. I knew that I needed a different career path that allowed for better integration of my home and work life. My work as a freelance writer has allowed for just that.

F: Blogger-moms seem to be overtaking the growth of soccer moms and yoga moms – do you agree?  Can you share with us some of the interesting things you’ve learned from other blogger mommies?

C: Women are the biggest social media users out there –they are visiting everything from blogs to Twitter to the popular parenting websites. I think that women are always looking to connect and these new mediums are facilitating those relationships – especially for new moms who are really looking for a sense of community as they face the challenges of parenting for the first time.  I’ve learned a lot about myself and my parenting approach from reading what other moms around the world have to say about their own experiences.

F: What do kids watch on TV these days? Any kids shows you think adults would enjoy as well?

C: Truthfully, I can not think of one kid’s show that I really love. But there are a lot of great internet resources out there that are taking the place of TV time for kids. My favorite site is called Curious Corner on the Art Institute of Chicago website.

F: Kids seem to enjoy winter a lot more than grown ups do – what are your kids’ favorite winter activities?

C: I just wrote a post about this very topic! For adults, winter means traffic delays, shoveling, etc. For kids, winter means SNOWMEN! SLEDDING! ICE SKATING! I think that adults should all take a cue from our kids’ enthusiasm and get out there to enjoy the positive aspects of winter.

Definitely check out an outdoor skating rink – either at Millennium Park or Wrigley Field. And the city is full of great sledding spots – my kids like Cricket Hill on Montrose.

F: What was your childhood like in Chicago and how different is that from your kids’? Is there anything you wish Chicago still had or didn’t have?

C: I grew up in Oak Park. I was lucky because my parents regularly put my siblings and I on the Green Line to come to the city to take advantage of all of the cultural and recreational resources available here. I think that the family-friendly offerings in Chicago just keep getting better and better.

F: What’s a good resource for parents to find fun family friendly activities in Chicago?

C: I’ve been writing a blog called Wee Windy City on the ChicagoNow site for about six months now. The blog is basically about why it is great to be a kid in Chicago. I post about family-friendly events and activities going on around town. I also feature guest posts from other Chicago parents to offer a range of perspectives and information.

F: Any advice to new parents in Chicago to ensure their kids get to appreciate the city they live in?

C: Be a positive model – if you get out there and enjoy your life and take advantage of what the city has to offer, your kids will follow your lead.

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By funsherpa, November 2, 2009 9:10 am

With the mercury beginning its precipitous fall, some of us will alter our lifestyles in very significant ways.  For one Chicagoan however, it will be business as usual.  Dottie Brackett, famed blogger behind Let’s Go Ride A Bike, will continue cycling around the city in rain, shine, sleet, and snow.  funsherpa sits down with Dottie to find out how she survives year round cycling, and debunks some bikie misconceptions.

Cycling Chicago with Dottie Brackett

F: Why write about bikes?  What fascinates you about the topic?

D: Interesting question, I had not thought of it from that perspective: that I am fascinated by bikes.  The word “fascinated” is accurate, but I would modify “by bikes” to be “by the simply bicycling lifestyle.”  A few different factors intersect to create and sustain this fascination.  First, the bicycle is an aesthetically perfect creature.  Taking pictures of bikes and noticing others happily riding bikes brings beauty into my life, unpolluted by the notion of beauty forced on us by the media.  Second, bicycling is fun.  Whether the sun or the snow is in my face, the experience always makes me feel alive, like a child again.  Experiencing such a simple thrill every morning and evening as my commute is priceless.  Finally, the bicycle represents the sort of simple life that we often have to forgo to live in the city.  Careers are stressful, relationships are complicated, and we are urged to reach for bigger, better, more.  The simplicity of the bicycle allows me to use my own two legs to accomplish the simple and pleasant task of getting from one place to another.

These three factors come together to foster my love for the simple bicycling lifestyle, and, in turn, I want to write about the topic to share my experiences with others.  The idea of bicycling for transportation is only now reemerging in the States after a long hibernation.  More people are starting to consider the bicycle, and by showing them that I am a regular woman who gets around on my bike wearing regular clothes, I show them that they can do it, too.  That message is the basic concept behind the website that my friend Trisha and I created.

F: Can you share with us some common misconceptions about the Chicago biker?

D: The biggest misconception is that we are a pack of outlaws.  “The Chicago biker” could be anyone – gender, race, age and profession are all up for grabs.  We are human beings with parents, spouses, children and friends, who simply want to get from one place to another safely on our own two wheels.  I certainly do not fit into the stereotypical mold, and most people who know me in a professional capacity have no idea that I ride my bike everywhere.

F: Drivers usually think of bikers as a nuisance while bikers seem to dread the crazy Chicago drivers – how can we all have peace on the road?

D: Peace on the road would require a fundamental shift in how everyone perceives the city and his or her place in it.  With so many people squeezed into one area, we cannot be selfish.  Being in a rush is never a reason to put someone’s life at risk.  I always defer to pedestrians, and drivers should defer to bicyclists, because the person with the greater power for harm bears the most responsibility.

A driver may think that a bicyclist is selfish simply by riding in the street, because the driver may have to slow down to pass the bicyclist safely.  There is nothing I can say to a person like that – our mind sets are too radically different.  That said, the vast majority of Chicago drivers are very kind.  For every driver who honks at me or cuts me off, there are 500 drivers who treat me like a human being, with patience and respect.

F: You are a year-round biker.  How difficult was it to transition to biking in cold or unpleasant weather?  Do you ever miss having a car?

D: My winter cycling habit always shocks people.  I want to spread the word that it’s no big deal.  Really.  I grew up in North Carolina, so I’m no snow bunny.  Last winter was only my second Chicago winter and my first winter bicycling.  A year ago, I did not know whether I would be able to continue through the winter, but I loved cycling and couldn’t imagine my daily life without my bicycle.  I decided that I would take it one day at a time and see what happened.  As the weather grew colder, I added more layers.  Snow boots.  Heavy duty gloves.  Ear muffs.  Scarves.  Wool socks.  Geeky safety glasses.  I realized that instead of freezing, I was actually overheating: since my body warms itself by pedaling, I need fewer clothes for my 7 mile bike ride than for my wait on the el train platform.  Also, I bought studded tires and never worried about ice.

The beauty of winter cycling is remaining connected to nature.  For most people, Chicago winter weather is cold, cold, and more cold.  A winter cyclists is tuned in to all the subtle changes in weather: which direction is the wind blowing, is it foggy or sharp, snowing or clear, warm (15 degrees) or cold (0 degrees)?   As a bonus, the lakefront is stunningly gorgeous in the winter and the park district keeps the trail plowed.

I never miss having a car.  If someone offered me a Mercedes and free parking downtown, I would reject the offer in favor of my bicycle.  I find that a personal car is completely unnecessary for my city life.  Plus, I no longer pay for a car loan, gas, insurance or city sticker, and I make money by renting my garage space to a neighbor.

F: Lets say you worked for a marketing firm tasked with getting Chicagoans to switch over from cars to bikes – what would you do?

D: I would use all the tactics that automobile advertisers use.  They show the car as sexy, safe, freeing, fun, attractive, normal, necessary.  In my experience, these adjectives describe bicycling more accurately than driving, especially in the city.  Bicycling delivers the kind of freedom that car advertising promises.  We need images of successful and happy people on bikes dressed nicely, going on dates, smiling and laughing.  Exposure to such images, like those on Copenhagen Cycle Chic, is necessary to show the public the possibilities that the bicycle presents.  Most women here have no idea that riding a bike with a skirt and heels is easy; that bicycling does not have to be a sport; and that the bicyclist does not have to get sweaty.

F: What makes a bike ‘sexy’ to you?

D: Flushed skin, fast heartbeats, fresh air, healthy bodies, strong legs – what’s not sexy about bicycling?

F: What are some of your favorite bike paths or routes?

D: The Lakefront Trail is by far my favorite cycling route, with Lake Michigan on one side and the skyline on the other – and no cars.  I also enjoy Ravenswood from Addison north; it follows the Metra tracks and therefore there is little cross-traffic.  Most city streets are perfectly fine for cycling, except major routes such as Ashland, Irving Park, Sheridan and the like.

F: Aside from biking, what other things do you enjoy doing in Chicago?

D: I’ve always longed to move to a big city, as far back as I can remember.  I don’t take it for granted now that I’m here, and spend a lot of my free time exploring different neighborhoods.  Each area has distinctive characteristics, so I park my bicycle and wander around on foot to check out the stores and cafes.  Millennium Park is a favorite destination of mine and I always know I’ll have a nice day hanging out there.

F: What neighborhood do you live in?

D: I live in West Lakeview, and there is so much goodness all around me.  Dinkels Bakery, Pho’s Hot and Spicy Thai, Four Moon Tavern, El Tapatio Café and a little further up the road, Laurie’s Planet of Sound, Haystack Vintage and the Book Cellar.

F: Where are the biker ‘hang-outs’ in the city?

D: The idea of “biker hang-outs” goes back to misconceptions.  I am not a member of any biker gang; most of my friends do not use bicycles as their primary form of transportation.  Some places you can find me hanging out after a ride are the ballet, the Shakespeare Theater, thrift stores, book stores and coffee shops

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By funsherpa, October 26, 2009 4:23 pm

Carless Mike Doyle

While living without a car may seem like an undreamed of foreign concept to some urbanites, local Chicagoan Mike Doyle actually cherishes life without the polluting metal structured behemoth.  A native New Yorker christened a “born-again Chicagoan”, Mike is the scribe behind Chicago Carless, and has used his popularity to help win the removal of ill-conceived cameras atop the Millenium Park fountains, improve street signs, and challenge the CTA’s judgment.  Funsherpa sits down with carless Mike and discovers urban secrets of Chicago and the beauty of Chicago’s railcars.

What benefits do you see in not owning a car? Have you been able to convert people to give up their cars?
I managed that conversion pretty recently, actually. But there’s no question about owning a car for me–like a million other hard-core New Yorkers, I have no idea how to drive one. I never learned how to drive a car as a teenager, have never had a license, and can count the number of times I’ve pumped gas–for others–on one hand. And I have no intention of learning. Ever. Have you experienced the soul-sucking nature of neighborhoods solely accessible by automobile? Sure you have. How eager are you to live in Schaumburg? Or Bolingbrook? Give me a transit-connected city or near-suburban address any day. Life is short. Why be bored by the place you live?

Are there ever times when you wish you had a car? Why or why not?
As a native New Yorker, my motto has always been that I was born to take public transit or be driven around by cute guys. There are plenty of cute guys in Chicago (especially the wonderful Texas-expat I’m dating right now), so I’m always able to get out to Ikea when I need to. Otherwise, I abide by my longstanding life choice to maintain an urban lifestyle in a major city. Chicago fits the bill perfectly.

You seem very knowledgeable and interested in urban details.  How did that interest begin?
Before I could read I would spend hours at a time sitting at my grandmother’s windowsill in Richmond Hill, Queens, watching the elevated rumble by on Jamaica Avenue. My grandmother would take me into “the city” (NYC code for Manhattan) on weekends to visit her friends working in major Midtown department stores, so I got hooked on the subway and dense urbanity pretty fast. In the late 90s, I began working at the New York City Transit Riders Council, where I was eventually named Associate Director. So by the time I left New York, it was my job to know all I could about public transit there.

What 3 aspects of New York’s public transportation system would you bring over to Chicago?
I far prefer living in Chicago to living in New York City–my adopted home is a much friendlier, more humanizing place. That extends to transit. Chicago has many things NYC doesn’t: systemwide automated announcements; windows that aren’t etched beyond all recognition; buses that actually get where they’re going without getting bogged down in traffic. The only thing this town needs–and it needs it badly–is a state government that truly understands the importance of funding for public transportation. Annual transit-funding “doomsdays” are ridiculous–and make Chicago look penny-wise but pound-foolish to outsiders.

In our humble opinion, public transportation seems to wrestle against optimizing convenience versus coverage.  Where do you think Chicago’s transportation system stands in the tradeoff between these two factors and what can be done to improve it?
You don’t take transit much in this town, do you? The great majority of Chicagoans live within a half-mile walk of a bus or L train (usually a bus.) Most of the major gaps in service are temporal, not geographic. Some key bus lines stop running too early on weeknights and weekend evenings (examples: the Addison bus in Lakeview, the 40-series buses in Bronzeville, and route extension on Milwaukee and Western avenues), and the ridership would probably support running a 24-hour Brown Line service now. Unfortunately, given our latest funding crisis, those temporal gaps will likely grow larger.

What does Mayor Daley think of you?
Mayor Daley’s office knows my name, so he–or his staffers, more likely–either loves me or hates me. Considering the questions about bone-headed mayoral decisions I’ve raised on my various local bylines over the years (a missing Red Line stop at Washington/State? covered-up violence at the 2009 Independence Eve fireworks?), my money’s on the latter.

What are your thoughts about the dormant Chicago Post Office?  What would you rather see in its place?
A post office. Have you seen the building the USPS replaced it with? Fug-Lee.

What neighborhood do you live in?  Can you name us some of your favorite things to do in your neighborhood without a car?
I live downtown and consider the entire area from Roosevelt north to Chicago and the Kennedy east to the lakefront my neighborhood. From my apartment at Marina City, the Loop is a 40-floor elevator ride and 60-second stroll across the State Street Bridge away, so I walk most places down here. I think people who drive in downtown Chicago are idiots and deserve the stress and expense of trying to find parking in the most transit-connected downtown between NYC and San Francisco.

What are your favorite CTA stops?  Why?
I have favorite railcars. I’m going to miss the old, blinker-door 2200s still running on the Blue Line when they start getting replaced by new cars next year. They’re not the classic, old green-and-cream cars, but they’re as close as anyone can get to feeling like they’re Bob Newhart wending his way home to Emily at the end of a Windy City workday.

What is the craziest thing you’ve ever seen happen in any of Chicago’s public transport systems?
There’s a regular act of public kindness I see all the time on the L: operators holding trains for connections and re-opening doors for late-arriving customers just before the train leaves the station. Sometimes I even see operators stop a train to let latecomers on (anyone who takes the Blue Line from the CTA’s super-long Logan Square station sees this all the time.) Those are really nice things for CTA operators to do. They would get you fired from New York City Transit. I may be the one New Yorker who’s never believed NYC to be the greatest city on earth. My mark of a great city is one that doesn’t slam its transit doors in your face as you try not to be late for work in the morning.