About Chicago's Edgewater

Here's your weekly summary of the news from the Edgeville Buzz.

Chicago BYOB Sunshine Cafe: Seek Comfort From Cold With Japanese Food [Huffington Post] Firefighters on scene of Edgewater high-rise fire [Chicago Tribune] No grand vistas in Steep Theatre’s Under the Blue Sky [Chicago Reader] Osterman to Hold Fundraiser with Emanuel [Welles Park Bulldog] Read More >

On Sunday October 30th, Marty’s Martini Bar (1511 W Balmoral) is hosting a fundraiser for Friends of West Edgewater Park. Marty’s will donate the profits from all beverages sold from 2pm – 5pm to the organization. Friends of West Edgewater Park is an organization that is hoping to have the long vacant Edgewater Medical Center ... Read More >

The SoFo Tap presents the latest installment of Mark Ortega and Friends as they kick off Halloween weekend with “The SoFo Tap Spooktacular” on Thursday, October 27th, starting at 8:30 p.m. 2011 Windy City Gay Idol TJ Chernick and Idol Finalists Christine Lawal and James Gavin will join Mark Ortega for a night of fun ... Read More >

On Sunday November 6th, residents of the 48th Ward will be able to take advantage of buy-one-get-one admission to Chicago’s legendary Shedd Aquarium. There will also be some additional benefits offered at the “Ward Days” affair. Alderman Harry Osterman is also providing support for the event. According to Shedd Aquarium media representatives “In addition to ... Read More >

On Saturday October 29th, Know No Limits (6125 N Clark) will be hosting a free fitness and strength training class for Edgewater and Andersonville community members. This special class will give participants a basic introduction to the benefits of a full body fitness routine, tips on how to increase metabolism, and information about how exercise ... Read More >

ASCO, Cook County Commissioner Bridget Gainer, Commissioner Joe Berrios of the County Board of Appeals and Alderman Harry Osterman will host a Property Tax Workshop for condo owners and their associations. The event will be held on Tuesday, November 1st at Emanuel Congregation (5959 N Sheridan) from 7pm – 9pm. Commissioner Gainer will discuss ways to appeal property ... Read More >

Around 1:00 PM today, emergency personnel rushed to a fire at the Thorndale Beach Apartments building located 5901 N. Sheridan. This building was once the home to the original Bob Newhart Show, per Wikipedia. The fire was reportedly confined to the roof of the structure, and thick smoke could be seen from a considerable distance. Work was being ... Read More >

Rep. Kelly Cassidy is sponsoring legislation which will lower property tax bills for seniors in the 14th district. Cassidy is sponsoring SB19, HB 3814, and SB 395 in hopes that property owners will not have to pay more than their fair share in property tax bills. “Many seniors are seeing massive increases in their property ... Read More >

Andersonville streets, sidewalks and businesses were bustling Friday night as people came out to enjoy the “Night of 100 pARTies” as part of the Andersonville Arts Weekend. However, the evening did not go on without incident. Shortly after 9:30pm we were walking north on Clark Street when multiple Chicago Police cars and a large police van converged ... Read More >

Andersonville’s Sir Spa (5151 N Clark) has recently come under new ownership, and it appears that the new owners have gotten off on the wrong foot. Multiple readers have informed us that they received an email on Friday stating that “Beginning Monday, October 17th, 2011 SIR Spa will no longer be accepting any gift certificates ... Read More >

It happened yesterday. Jackson asked to ride another kid's bike at "The Choo Choo Train Park."

And sure enough, with a little boost he continued on his merry two-wheeled path. It wasn't a trek across the Pyrenees but it was the start of what likely will be a lifelong love affair of the bipedal variety.

On the way home, skimming the ground on our "Blades," he asked the inevitable question, "Daddy, will you take the training wheels off my blue bike?"

Of course.

And so today marked the first official day of moving forward without training wheels. And what a first day it proved to be. With the grace of an arcing angel's wing, Jackson swooped to the left and to the right, extending gentle circles around and through the park at The Hayt School in Edgewater.

Training wheels are an awesome metaphor. We need them to lend stability on the front end. For kids training wheels are critical, letting them gain their balance, accrue confidence and get to the point where the training wheels can come off. Because at the end of the day the point of training wheels is to not have training wheels.

But the idea of training wheels much beyond single digit years is a bit of troublesome. This is especially true when it comes to finding somebody to help you find your new Chicago home or somebody to market the sale of your Chicago home.

A "training wheel" moment occurred last weekend when I showed one of my East Village homes to a couple who saw the home without their agent. They had a lot of questions that I answered. Toward the end of the showing they plopped down on a sofa in the lower level family room, admitted their agent was new and inexperienced and asked if it would be appropriate to have more than one real estate agent.

No, I said, one is really how many you should have. Just take care to choose the best one.

And make sure their training wheels are off.