CHICAGO
Hopefully you didn't throw away those old items you find laying around the house belonging to grandpa. They could be valuable. There are so many collectibles that are worth money because of their uniqueness, age, and quality.
Some of the objects used by gents have become obsolete. Old curling irons, popular in the 19th and earlier centuries when men waved their hair, have long disappeared. Don't forget grooming items such as curlers used on the beard or mustache. Sometimes they came as a set with a spirit burner. Both the handles and the stand were of heavily decorated silver.
To learn more about the features of these rare antiques and clues on how to recognize them, click here.
ILLINOIS
Statewide there is a new smoking ban in effect. Sam Markos, owner of the Crystal Palace Banquet Hall in Park Ridge, does not think the indoor smoking ban and the issues surrounding it are very complicated. He was around second-hand smoke his entire life and welcomes the ban as a breath of fresh air.
"I don't have to be worrying about exhaust fans. I don't have to worry about the ceiling getting dark. I don't have to worry about anything," he said.
Of course, others find this to be a real hardship. Famous Freddie's Roadhouse in Mount Prospect, was set to build a fully contained "smoking lounge." The restaurant's owners spent $5,000 on the blueprints alone for this vision.
The facility built the lounge after Mount Prospect passed an ordinance requiring bars and restaurants to go smoke-free by March 2007. In addition they offered businesses the option of building an indoor smoking lounge completely walled off from the rest of the business, with its own ventilation system -- and even a nonsmoking section within the smoking lounge.
Now January 1st, 2008, the rules have changed. Read about it by clicking here.
LAKE VIEW
Lisa Santos was in kindergarten when she received her first cookbook. She cherishes memories of spending time in her grandmother's kitchen as a young girl. She loves how food brings people together in fellowship.
No wonder then that she became a chef. Since August of 2003, she is also the owner/operator of the unique Southport Grocery and Café, 3552 N. Southport.
Some of the dishes which she oversees in the kitchen include these tasty treats -- lemon pepper cream cheese omelet, French toast stuffed with apples, cream cheese and streusel. Her Southport café seats 34. She has expanded her wholesale business, and during the holiday season fills baskets too. Santos is satisfied to be where she is and where she longs to be.
"This is perfect," exclaims the 44-year-old Santos. She lives only three blocks from her business, which has become famous for its vanilla cupcakes, biscotti and cookies. Learn more about this fine chef by clicking here.
LINCOLN PARK
The Student Legal Services Office at DePaul offers an affordable legal resource that helps students with several legal problems. These include landlord/tenant and contract disputes, minor traffic violations, misdemeanor offenses, city ordinance violations, leases and minor business contracts.
The legal assistance service does not represent students in such problems as divorce, felonies, bankruptcy or disputes with the university or student organizations. These services are free to full-time undergraduate students. Those enrolled part-time or graduate students pay only $10 for each legal matter for which they receive assistance.
For more information about DePaul's Office of Student Legal Services click here.
OAK PARK
The Oak Park Library is offering a new program. It features poetry and expression for two hours, from 3:30 to 5:30 p.m. weekly, beginning Jan. 7, 2008. The Main Library at 834 Lake St. will host this each Monday afternoon.
Middle to high school aged children are invited to come together to share and enhance their poetry writing and reading skills.
Marcelis Wyatt, R&B performer and host of the Young Adult "Fire on the Mic," will lead the writing workshop. He will assist by offering tips and suggestions for improvement to the children's very own written and read pieces of work.
No registration is required for this teen program. To learn more, click here.
