Feb Events at Kid's Rule

Free workshops for kids throughout February in Wicker Park at Kids Rule Toy Store!

Kids Rule Chicago

Saturday, February 18: Come plant with us!

For kids of all ages, even toddlers! 10AM- 5PM

Kids choose an indoor plant and use organic soil and coffee grounds to plant it in a recycled container. Learn how plants clean the air you breathe indoors. Kids can decorate their recycled pots and take their plant home. You bring your kids. We’ll bring the plants, the pots and the organic soil. We all bring the fun! Recycled containers donated by: Francesca’s Forno, Caribou Coffee, Native Foods

Monday, February 20: Trees, Trees, Trees! For kids of all ages

Nothing sucks the pollution out of our city air like a nice, healthy tree. Meet at Kids Rule and come out with us to learn how to take good care of the trees on your block. Did you know that just like people, trees get infections? Did you know trees need about 20 gallons of water a week? So much to learn, and we’ll share it all while we dig in the soil and make our city trees healthier and happier! This is offered at various times, so please RSVP if possible: 12pm, 1:30PM, 2:30PM, 3:30PM.

Saturday, February 25: Learn about alternative energy! Ages 8 +

This activity will be offered twice on Feb. 25th, 10am & 1pm. RSVP required due to limited space. To rsvp, email kidsrulechicago@gmail.com or call 773-227-7525 10am-8pm.

Learn about alternative energy by putting together a wind power kit. How do you generate electricity with wind? Find out by building a Thames & Kosmos wind power kit.

Saturday, February 25: Recycling is for the birds! Kids ages 2-100

Kids use recycled containers to make bird feeders they can take home. 10AM - 5PM!

Sunday, February 26: Come plant with us! For kids of all ages

** Planting activity same as Saturday, February 18! ** 10am-5pm.

For more info: kidsrulechicago.blogspot..com |facebook.com/KidsRuleChicago| Email kidsrulechicago@gmail.com | Tel: 773-227-7525

Wicker Purim Event Launches The Living Room's Presence

Though much has been written about the redevelopment of Wicker Park's buildings into corporately leased or owned spaces, a three level space that formerly housed the Puerto Rican Cultural Center just north of the Six Points intersection of Milw/Damen/North is slowly transforming into a community space open to rentals for gatherings of all kind, from art exhibits to special events and musical acts.

The plan is for The Living Room to one day be home to a Jewish community center and preschool, to be operated by the neighborhood's chabad. Whenever I've mentioned chabad to fellow hoodrats, they are likely to say, "Oh, the people with the menorah mini-van," and they are correct. The chabad is very visible and often will drive through town blasting klezmer music as well as sending some of their youths out with pamphlets to fit in with the Green Peace and Planned Parenthood minions who hang out on the streets of Wicker Park too.

In 2005 or 2007, chabad held Jewish High Holiday services in a tiny vacant storefront on North Avenue near Akira. The following year services were in a former second hand music shop in a strip mall space now occupied by a pet food chain. Passover was once in a vacant space on Western soon to be used by a mobile phone company.

As a mostly non-observant Jew akin to the "Christmas and Easter" Christians, I've lived in Wicker Park going on seven years, in the same space, on occasion popping in on events like last night's Wicker Purim, a celebration of the Festival of Purim wherein in addition to readings from the megillah and Book of Esther there was an open bar, whiskey tastings, photo booth, and a buffet with falafel and hamentaschen (sp?) cookies. The evening's entertainment came by way of NYC-based rapper, Eprhyme, who played to a packed room, with sentence after rolling sentence containing original and insightful lyrics combining traditional Hebrew prayers with philosophies on work, society, current events, and more.

After the show, at the CD table, Eprhyme said that he's been rapping since the age of 12 or 13 and was first influenced by West Coast freestyle rap.

"It's [rapping] a different way to reach people and to reach within myself to embody the stuff I study and my experiences," he shared.

I then shared that I was purchasing his CD because I like the fact he was honest enough to say on stage, "Buy my CD. Make my wife happy." (It's not always easy being independent, something I can relate to these days, as I attempt to work on the Pipeline 100 project and "sell" what I love to do most while also doing it too.)

Eprhyme's first solo debut album, "Waywordwonderwill" which I'm listening to now, is produced on a Brooklyn, NYC based Jewish and World Music label, Shemspeed and promoted on a site called K. For a more in-depth piece on Eprhyme, check out this story in the Jewish Daily Forward.

Particularly inspiring were lyrics like, "Not by might, not by power, or material occupation, shall we become free" and "When we don't communicate, we all fall down."

My favorite song is track number 8, Pride and Prejudice, which was a bit less of a rap and more of a harmony, containing overlapping vocals by Nomy Lamm, who sounded like Jill Scott at the Wailing Wall.

As I am having difficulty locating P&P's lyrics, I'll just post fragments of what I heard while playing and replaying the song a bunch of times and likely annoying my neighbors:

"Stop me if I'm wrong, but doesn't everybody want to get along? We're all different that's what makes us great... I don't understand why it must be this way.... Is it part of your master plan for everything to be this way? It's gonna be okay baby, everything gonna be OK..... I've got love, I hate to hate."

Eprhyme's message is an important one in a time when the Jewish people are divided on many issues as well as assimilated. The chabad movement is attempting to build a bridge to connect Jews to each other and to their communities. For lack of a better way to describe it, I think it's close to win-win.

Images from the Chiditarod Shopping Cart Pub Crawl Fundraiser

The Chiditarod came through town yesterday. Here's a few pics.

Dispatch from State of the Wards by Nandika Doobay

(All content, and photos, below, by Nandika Doobay)

State of the Wards at Feast Restaurant

Local residents and members of the Wicker Park and Bucktown business community gathered Tuesday morning to hear Alderman Scott Waguespack and Alderman Joe Moreno speak about the current state of their wards, exactly one week prior to the Feb. 22 aldermanic elections.

Robert Gomez, owner of the Subterranean and current president of the WPB Chamber of Commerce opened the hour-long event at Feast on Damen by discussing his 15 years in the neighborhood. “When is Wicker Park and Bucktown going to change,” he would ask himself, years before gentrification transformed the once gritty neighborhood into a thriving community of high-end boutiques and Michelin rated restaurants.

32nd Ward Alderman Waguespack attributed positive changes made to the neighborhood to the hard work of the business owners and residents. “The city has a hard time saying no to a lot of the things we want done here in Wicker Park and Bucktown because you guys put so much effort into what you do,” said Waguespack. “You’re very detailed and you’re progressive in your thinking.”

Both alderman focused their discussions on upcoming development in the wards, such as the construction of a state-of-the-art LEED Gold certified parking garage to be built on the 1800 block of N. Milwaukee, directly across of Irazu restaurant. First Ward Alderman Moreno described it as being “not a parking lot in the traditional sense -- it’s a machine.” According to Moreno, the futuristic lot will hold up to 236 cars and is fully automated. “You just pull your car in, pay right there and it will park your car safely,” he said, adding that CTA vending machines will also be installed so that people can opt to leave their cars there and take the blue line into the loop. Moreno also supports plans for a free trolley that will shuttle patrons to stops along Milwaukee Ave. from the the parking garage to as far east as Ashland Ave. Construction on the lot is due to begin in spring.

At 1805 N. Milwaukee, a little south-east of the new parking garage, crews have been removing hazardous materials and cleaning up a site that will potentially be a hub for the soon-to-be developed Bloomingdale Trail. Alderman Waguespack said he is working with businesses and residents on a design plan that will turn the defunct rail line into a green space and linear park.

Other developments include the construction of a new building at the old Burger King site on the corner of Milwaukee and Honore. “It’s going to be a vegan restaurant,” said long-time vegetarian Moreno. “So, personally, I like that.” Opening for the eatery is slated for late summer. Plans are also in the works for the blighted area around the intersections of Milwaukee, Division and Ashland. CVS will be moving into the historic bank building and tenants are being acquired for some of the vacant storefronts. The area around the Nelson Algren fountain, which some residents have referred to as “pigeon poop park” has been cleaned up, with Moreno deciding to pull the benches from which many homeless persons once found their slumber.

In response to recent safety concerns at area bars, Alderman Waguespack has put into effect a moratorium on late-night liquor licenses. None of the already 18 licensed businesses will be affected, but there will be no new licenses issued until police get a handle on the current problem locations.

A hot topic amongst both alderman was the onslaught of graffiti that the neighborhood has been dealing with, with the number of tags on area buildings seeming to have exploded over the last few weeks. “If your building gets hit, take a photo, file a police report or call it in as soon as you can,” Waguespack pleaded to business owners. Waguespack, who is a regular at court proceedings that deal with vandalism offenders, asked the audience to get more involved by attending hearings and sentencings on behalf of the community. He discussed a case last year in which two vandals were caught red handed but only received what he calls “a slap on the wrist” because the business owner did not show up to prosecute the teens. The two offenders, who belong to the “VTC” tagging crew paid a fine and were put on a one-year probation and yet, the VTC tag continues to get thrown up on different buildings. Last week, police arrested a member of the Latin Kings who had been hitting the area hard with gang-related tagging. His hearing is set for April 4.

Alderman Moreno showed sincere interest in the neighborhood’s graffiti problem and seems to have given the issue much thought. “They’re coming to our area because it does have that flavor and that great diversity and they think that they can use it for their own purpose, and it drives me crazy,” he said. Moreno, who was an art major in college, sees a definite difference between graffiti artists and taggers. He has strove to promote an artist’s need for expression that not only allows them to remain on the right side of the law, but can result in compensation for the artist’s hard work. Moreno’s efforts with the Johalla Project finds business interested in having murals commissioned, an option which Moreno has proposed to graffiti artists in the past.

Overall, both aldermen aim to get a lot done in the ward this coming term, if they are re-elected. The two men, who according to Moreno agree 99.99% of the time, have been in the neighborhood long enough to know what things need changing and what should be left untouched. “We need to preserve the uniqueness of Wicker Park,” said Moreno, discussing the importance of the area’s artistic integrity and diversity. “I think that’s going to continue to be the calling for people to come to this neighborhood.”

-Nandika Doobay for The Wicker Park Bucktown Pipeline

Images from the Generations of Wicker Park Reunion

More on this in the next pipeline, but approx. 300 people from Wicker Park's African American community, past and present, gathered together in Wicker Park this past Saturday.

It was a true reunion, with people arriving from neighboring states and far suburbs, and then spending the day catching up with old friends.

T-Shirts, featuring a tree with branches listing area streets, were for sale for $10.

And, as with many modern day reunions, Facebook was the link which brought the group together. Organizer Mel "Tony" Johnson, who has lived in Wicker Park for 50 of his 51 years, with the help of webmaster Nicole and typist Tajuana, tracked down the names of past neighbors. Everyone connected through this Generations of Wicker Park page.