Oak Park, IL: Hope for the Fakeness during the holidays

So, we are going headlong into the holiday season with just a month or two of fake bullshit, the ode of the Oak Park, IL motto and way of life. Decorations, yuletide carols, fake expressions of joy, nothing can wrap up the fakeness and put a better face on it. All I know is that I have a couple places designated for shopping in this holiday season and this plan includes avoiding the whole village. The traffic is enough to make my blood boil then add on to it the forced “Merry Christmases” idiots will be shouting to you as you walk down the store or exit stores!

I know a lot of people feel the same way otherwise Amazon would not be the multi-million-dollar company that it is. Avoiding people is almost a job or a skill that many, like myself take pride in. Of course, this is something that could not be understood, by many of the idiots in this village. In the minds of the masses you are strange, or you are an outcast from the rest of the population. Hopefully, people will see the look on my face, and leave me the hell alone. No “Merry Christmas” or “Happy Holidays” for me I just want to get through the holidays as best as I can without all the hassle that comes along with it.

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Forest park, IL: Oak Park IL’s sucky neighbor

Forest Park, IL how I do not love thee. The worse thing about this shitty little burb besides being shoulder to shoulder to Oak Park, IL is not its homely layout and architecture, like someone threw a bunch of “I-don’t-care” houses out on a bunch of streets. It’s the fact they are always ticketing people for bullshit. If it’s not the cops ticketing people who are waiting for their stickers in a private lot the day of (at 12:05 am) the new sticker change. They are ticketing people who got tired of waiting for their sitting-at-the-stop-sign asses or using cameras only showing the second you are turning at the red light and therefore really cannot contest it. All various stories all about tickets, all about Forest Park, IL.

I have friends who do not even bother shopping at any of the businesses in Forest Park, IL because they are afraid they will get a ticket being in this dumbass suburb. I cannot blame them, I really do not like going through Forest Park, IL or shopping there for the same reasons I hate to travel through Oak Park, IL. It’s almost like Oak Park-lite without the upper-class sass or reputation for having famous residents.

You really cannot blame the residents too much for this stupidity of enforcement just the officials who put it in place and probably the geniuses giving out the tickets who are doing so to just be assholes. In the grand scheme of things since it is such a small burb it is fairly easy to skip past it and patronage “visitor-friendly” businesses elsewhere. And there are other suburbs that do this better than Forest Park, IL like LaGrange my friends and I have been there multiple times and not one horror or dumb ass ticket story from just rolling through or visiting one of the businesses there. Just remember when you travel through Forest Park, IL they have a ticket waiting for you.

r you.

No hate in Oak Park?

So, there is no hate in Oak Park? Hahaha I have said it before and I will say it again. Oak park, IL is full of hypocritical bullshit. Thanks to the 14-year-old racist that proved me right. Nothing of consequence will happen to this kid, and the village idiots will march about it. Of course, nothing will get done as always. Instead of doing the same old thing in Oak Park, IL the kid such be treated like an adult and smacked with a hate crime charge. That way it discourages future idiots from repeating similar stupidity.

But of course, this will be just swept under the rug and forgotten. So as long as the “hate has no home here” signs are up on Oak Park, Il lawns across the suburb and the burb’s residents look cool and trendy while real shit goes down. I mean if you waste all that money on creating these “hate has no home here” signs have the balls to follow through and drop the hammer when shit like this happens.

Several incidents should not be the requirement for something to be done, if you follow the mantra of the signs there must be zero tolerance. Unfortunately, that is, nor will be the case here this will be chalked up to “youthful indiscretion” or “kids being kids”. When in reality this is how idiots become emboldened. If they get away with it once they are likely to repeat their stupidity, and moreover once their peers see them get away with it, they too, are more likely to try their hands at stupid too.

Traffic part 1 zillion

Traffic. Did you know I drove through Oak Park IL from Harlem and Lake to the Westside of Chicago (Austin area) and it took me 32 minutes. I drove another from Berwyn to Goose Island via the expressway it only took me 43 minutes. Although there was an expressway involved in the latter trip, it would still make you wonder why Oak Park, IL is still harder to navigate than whizzing to downtown Chicago. I just wonder when this little crappy burb will use all the taxes paid by its residents to address the long existing issue of parking and traffic?

Maybe it is just one of those things people just do not care about or feel that it adds to the “Special feeling” about the burb. Could be that addressing the issue would bring more traffic into the village than what it already deters? Like a moving cul de sac, but of course most of those cul de sacs were built to discourage “traffic” of a different sort. Basically, cutting off easy access to the village from the changing (black) areas bordering it, maybe this is more of the same and we are just not admitting it.

Think about it how hard is it to create parking solutions around this burb when it really matters? The downtown area got those huge buildings put up down there and supposedly they added a bunch of parking into the buildings’ designs to offset the lack of parking in the area for the building residents. Why can’t Oak Park, IL do the same, is it brains? Desire? Or maybe just fear of change?

No big Halloween plans… thank God!

Thank God the nieces are teenagers do this year’s Halloween is just me myself and I. It is really hard to dumb down or make kid friendly Halloween crap. Just the thought of it gives me a headache. The ultra campiness of it all makes me feel dirty because I know a lot of it is very much like the stuff Oak Park, il espouses on annual basis for this time of year.

To the point no one really knows how to be scary and give these little kids a fright. Now this year I can get a costume not worry about entertainment, food, drinks or decorations and go out and cause havoc. But obviously not in oak park, il anyone in this burb is lucky to be wake past 8pm.

Yawnnnnnn boring!

Oak Park IL related: Rahm Emanuel out

So I go to all this work to make a sign to post to have the people of the city of Chicago to vote against Rahm and then his ass bows out? Good. Between my work schedule and hanging out it would have been hard to post these suckers in the first place. I got tired of this dudes fake tears anyway. There is a huge pool of candidates to choose from all democrats, great time for a third party to decide to run since the party is this fractured.

Going back to rahm funny how he was like “Chicago is such a great city… residents are safe here.. etc etc” and the first press conference he does Rahm states he is leaving the city! Nice way to tell the entire world you were full of shit the last 4 years as mayor. Rahm blew smoke up everyone’s collective asses just for power was the real motive behind saying such lies, not because he really wanted to change anything.

Well, I am glad he dropped out because it drains the local swamp of a long time bullshitter. I am not saying any of candidates left are fantastic but how bad can they do compared to this upshot that is leaving? Now if we can get periwinkle out….

Magnet for crazy

Throughout the week I always can’t wait for Friday so I can get some peace. Then the weekend is filled with hatred when I try to go outside and enjoy myself because there is some kill joy draining the life out of the fun I am having. They do this by usually interrupting my personal space and once they see they have my attention these invaders think it is alright to start a conversation with me. A conversation that numbs the mind, most of the time it’s about the weather or how nice “it is” I am not trying to say I am antisocial, but bitch I was busy over here!!!!

Nothing works my nerve worse than that. I am in my own zone trying to get some shopping done for lunches throughout the week, and bamm I have an intruder invading my space.

 

• “Oh, what’s that?” (people asking about the gelato in my basket)
• “Is that good?”  (people asking about the “NEW” or newly released item in my basket that has signage that it is new)
• “This is a nice store….” (not sure if that is a comment or question but obviously it is otherwise I would not be in it).

My point is, that when people are out and about, we know we may have to deal with people. But we would rather not be forced to, because someone else feels lonely or talkative. I am just not wired for the bullshit I guess, but I find this occurring more in Oak Park, IL than say downtown Chicago. It has happened to me in the South, but those individuals started a convo from a distance not by invading my space. Sometimes I just wonder if Oak Park, IL has the largest rude, and intrusive group of individuals residing in its boarders than any other municipality or maybe I am just a magnet for crazy?

A Friday without bullshit

I have finally had a Friday without bullshit so these times do exist! Funny part is that I went out way early in the morning to the farmers market and other various stores before everyone woke up I guess. Less people on the streets meant less aggravation. I could actually do some shot in the morning go to work go through rush hour traffic do my laundry and then head home to some Hulu and drinks. I live the life of a rock star!

Lol as with living here all this and the job is at this point is a simple point in a lengthy road to somewhere much better. Places like Oak Park, IL are not meant to lived in just to spend some time in like a prison. You need with the other prisoners, do your time, read a couple of books, get your education and hopefully come out better than before. Either as a better citizen or as someone who knows better than not to end up here.

Letting it all hang out in Oak Park, IL

I am not surprised that the majority of people rather trade their privacy for convenience, online. The article (see below) does not really surprise me at all in the age of everyone can be a star or show off how narcissistic they can be for free. I mean we are all guilty of posting some type of pictures of ourselves online it just matters to what extent. I have a Facebook, WordPress and blogger/google account but I do not add tons of pictures and often the pictures are after the fact of the event in question. So yes, I have been to Kentucky however I am not stupid enough to tell everyone on Facebook at the exact time I was there, saving my place from a possible break-in.

I really think that the majority of people are sheep and have a “follow the leader” mentality and post pictures and personal details online not because they are doing something important like telling family members of an upcoming wedding or funeral. But instead something mundane because their friends have done so (in the past) so they see no problem with their posts, the “everyone is doing it” argument. But if you have had your place broken in before or are naturally paranoid you veer away from giving the details of your life online. Just because it has not happened to you does not mean it cannot.

The notion of convenience is blurred with the need for acceptance or approval, when we really just need to think clearly and post or navigate online with caution. I do not see the residents of Oak Park, Il following suit, it is just not in their DNA to do so. There is a need for showmanship, a desire to put all on display, a requirement to be “out there” in front of the entire world. We all probably driven the one of the village’s many streets and glanced right into someone’s house window and saw everything they owned in that three second glance. This I would soundly bet is one of those people who believe it is okay to surrender their identity and privacy for the convenience of either the world wide web or for living in Oak Park, IL.

And of course, it is always okay until something bad happens then individuals get wary of “sharing” their personal facts online or with wide open windows. We should all have some type of security and privacy, and we should be entitled to it than either being some perv’s whacky fantasy or a huge corporation’s data victim. Do not sacrifice privacy for convenience or drapes for that open window “look” because in the end you may regret it and once it is out there for all to see it is most likely too late.

This is the article I mentioned above:

http://www.chicagotribune.com/suburbs/ct-ahp-column-help-squad-tl-0719-story.html#nt=oft13a-5gp1

Robbing on Lake Street

I wonder how much they make at a subway, but now we have an answer about 600 to 800 at a subway on Lake street. We know because it was robbed recently. I have always said that the residents of Oak Park, IL do not take their security seriously and this just adds to the list of potential victims: local businesses. So much for doing deposits or putting money mid-day in a safe that can only be accessed at certain times of the day or individuals. Problem is that this article (see below) does not tell the whole story. Maybe that is a good thing, because we really do not want to give criminals ideas but if you can rob a Subway on a street that is busy like Lake Street. These criminals have obviously figured out something if they got away on Lake street, I mean the traffic alone on Lake Street, should have stopped their getaway plans.

I am not saying you cannot go by your normal day to day activities but keep an eye out for a suspicious characters or activities. Most of these “signs” are easy to see and usually come from a mile away. Just being vigilant helps I know I sound like a mom, or even my mother but I rather be paranoid than robbed and/or dead.  The thing is when you are ordering food you do naturally drop your guard so kudos to the criminals for realizing this and striking at a place that you would not usually think of. Hell, this will make me be on red alert when I go to Five Guys or any of the businesses on Lake Street. It’s funny because when I think of it now there is a very light police presence on Lake Street (downtown), so the chances of it reoccurring are fairly high. Oh well, #staywoke bitches!

Here is the article I mentioned earlier:

http://www.chicagotribune.com/suburbs/oak-park/news/ct-oak-subway-robbery-tl-0719-story.html