Lost Eras has easily become one of my favorite shops to explore; hidden just outside of Chicago, it stretches far and narrow, crowded with lost treasures. Walking through it, it's hard not to begin imagining the stories of the objects that turn up in its walls, and the people that once held them. Not to mention the building itself is a piece of history, as in the 1920's it was home of the night club the "Club Detour" which had many artists play in it's halls such as Louis Armstrong, Count Basey and Ella Fitzgerald.

Ongoing favorite place to sit at the bar or more covertly, at a table, chatting with a friend over the seasonal best. Continuous rotation of ingredients creatively meshed with tradition, their food is divine. Similarly, their personnel is familiar, friendly, fashionable and warm.

Founded in 1956, the Graham Foundation for Advanced Studies in the Fine Arts fosters the development and exchange of diverse and challenging ideas about architecture and its role in the arts, culture, and society. The Graham realizes this vision through making project-based grants to individuals and organizations and producing exhibitions, events, and publications.

Chicago is a gigantic open-air museum of hand painted signs and murals where you can still find gold leaf lettering in shop windows and ghost signs litter the city's brick walls. This handmade sign is on the wall of a Mexican garage near my apartment.

I'm usually too busy to do this but when I can, getting out to the lakefront at night is truly one of the best things ever. There's something about the night sky, the water, wind and the city behind you that calms everything down.