Parking tickets? No problem in Oak park, IL just forget them and be forgiven…

The village cannot get people to pay old tickets from 2004 to 2017. That is news to me because I pay my tickets all of the time. Considering there are nothing but parking restrictions and rules all around Oak Park, IL you would think this is a money maker for the village. But no, the village as one person commented in the article “Ticket amnesty program nets $60K” they were contacted about a few tickets and had to pull out some old cashed checks. Yup, dude had already paid those old tickets and because of the village’s shitty record keeping they tried to charge him twice.

That makes me wonder how many other people, are just victims of Oak Park, IL’s shitty record keeping when it comes to parking tickets. How many people just moved away and left Oak Park, IL in their far rearview mirror, and told the village to suck it with their tickets. How many tickets may have thrown away, out of pure disgust because the parking restrictions as I have aforementioned are so shitty that it is hard to keep one’s patience with the mess called “parking” in Oak Park, IL

I do have to agree that maybe many of the people who did not pay their parking tickets could have been due to socioeconomic reasons, because Oak Park, IL although has “equal housing” does not have equal parking. Getting one of the many types of stickers for parkin in the area is just archaic. I would hazard a guess it is an event praised by old retirees who have a nice 401k. But that is not mirrored by the majority of the population in the country, the area or the village. Thinking that the methodologies of times past is the best practices for the present is very incorrect and foolhardy.

Just forgiving the past tickets of those who did not pay during this amnesty time, pisses me off because again, I pay my tickets. Probably because I think the local enforcement likes to patrol my area and write those little bitches out as part of their day. But if the system is not up to date, and the cost of doing so adding to it the cost of adding these old records into the new system is high as hell… well fuck it! Maybe it is time to update the record keeping system and possibly a lot of the parking jargon that goes with it. Start with a new slate and come up with a new system and set of parking rules that all can abide by.

This is the article discussing the ticket amnesty event and how it did not go well:

https://www.oakpark.com/News/Articles/6-18-2019/Ticket-amnesty-program-nets-$60K/

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All black + at night + in Oak Park, IL =stupid

Okay before I rant off without any sense or manners, I was out around 10:30 pm on a Friday driving through Oak Park, IL on various streets to get home. Therefore, I was kind of tired, like anyone else who would be after a 40-hour work week and at so late in the night. Okay, now that is out the way… what the fuck?!! Is it me or are some of the residents in this village simply bereft of common sense? What is the deal of walking around or running (for exercise, I guess) at this late at night wearing ALL BLACK on???

Not just walking or running around in all Black gear but also jaywalking or travelling against the light. Meaning if I have the green light as a driver in a thousand-pound metal box, you as the runner or walker should not be thinking:

• “Hey, I can beat that car”

 

• “Oh, they see me even though it is dark as shit because Oak Park, Il has low wattage street lights and I am wearing all black”

 

• “If this driver hits me it’s totally their fault and they will have it on their conscience for their rest of their lives”

 

• “There’s no crime in Oak Park, IL at night so I am safe to be the only one to walk/run around here in this pitch-black area at night. I’ll be fine”

 

Fuck no to all of those. I pulled over at different points of my journey back to my apartment from Chicago (which is well-lit) to take a couple of pictures with my phone of how dark it really is in Oak Park, IL after 10:30 pm. Just in case the majority of the village, they can see what the village looks like at this time, as it seems, the majority goes to bed at 8 pm. Like some type of purge curfew, the streets are basically deserted and walking/running around at night in ALL BLACK should be frowned upon.

If these morons get hit by a vehicle we all be outraged right? Yeah unless you know the time of day, who had the right of way and outfit the person who got hit is wearing would you think otherwise. Some people will still disagree unless they are in that situation. I try to be diplomatic when I hear about accidents happening with pedestrians getting hit by a motor vehicle but its times like this that makes me less likely to have sympathy in the near future.

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Do not be disabled and try to get around downtown Oak Park, IL

So now there is limited disability access to Oak park’s downtown, the construction downtown has become an obstacle for many trying to navigate the area. The intelligence of Oak Park officials at work here, has both sides of sidewalks for Lake and Forest closed not only for pedestrians but for those with disabilities as well. Unfortunately, now everyone has to walk in the streets and nearly get hit by passing cars due to the fact Oak Park, cannot manage simple project management implementation.

The yearlong project in this area has about a couple more weeks to go, with signs informing the public are “clearly marked” sounds like a complete standard cop out. Administratively the village has done the bare minimum as required by law, and that is all that can be expected. I am not sure why anyone can believe there will be anything more from this village administration. Total scrooges the lot of them. Thinking that they will give any resident the time of day to give input or have their concerns be listened to.

As I always said the machine that is Oak Park, IL and their construction plans all over and amongst the village is inept. Why does it surprise anyone that you need to risk your lives to merely cross the street? Only in Oak Park, Il is the greed of the few overweighting the needs of the many.

This is the article discussing the issues at Lake and Forest in downtown Oak park, Il: https://chicago.cbslocal.com/2019/06/14/construction-in-oak-park-creates-added-obstacle-for-residents-with-disabilities/

Traffic on Oak Park’s bridges

As I stated before traffic is a huge problem here in Oak Park, IL now unfortunately someone has pay for it with their life. The bridges over the I-290 are nothing to play with. You really cannot even blame the driver in this case when reading what happened it is obvious that someone was just rushing to get home and did not see the car.

These bridges are often hard to navigate, and it is no surprise that this has happened now what to do to remedy this problem, is unknown. I have driven through Oak Park, at different times of the day and because it is so congested, many drivers go above the speed limit while many pedestrians believing that these drivers can see them take a chance walking in front of the aforementioned cars. I have done it in downtown Chicago, but I think because it IS Chicago that my awareness is heightened. Meanwhile in Oak Park, in this shitty little village my guard is let down because one believes the false sense of security that the village impermeates into our brains.

Even it reshapes the entire village there must be changes into the walkways, bridges, streets and sidewalks of Oak Park, IL to sensibly construct a village that can be safely travelled. So that accidents as this will not happen again.

This is the article discussing the accident of the Ridgeland bridge:

https://www.oakpark.com/News/Articles/6-11-2019/Oak-Park-man-dies-after-being-struck-by-vehicle/

 

“Back on racism” in Oak Park, IL

In the article “Back on the racism-monitor beat “the author states various things that seem ridiculous to most people who do not deal with racism on a daily basis. As you look at the comments you see authors that just do not get it and are simply tired of being labelled as racists and a few of them give a solution to combat racism in Oak Park, IL and do acknowledge it. Of course, theses authors who hate to be called racist forget the happenings at the local school and the racist gestures that contributed to the reprinting of the 2019 yearbook. Which in turn is a cost turned over to the taxpayers. That should be enough to get them off their asshole chairs and want to look into getting the perception of Oak Park, IL being racist changed.

The article no matter how you look at it does start a discussion, about how Oak Park, Il should REALLY look at itself and how it is perceived by others. Now there is that whole “who gives a shit” attitude (anger), denial of the facts, I could go on, but it sounds like I am talking about the grieving process and not how Oak Park, IL looks at itself or is it both? Is there a grieving amongst resident of how the pristine image of Oak Park, IL is cracking under the pressure of evidence, the facts and the truth? The author mentioned the mayor’s poorly written article about Oak Park, IL (…it was, I read it), it does give a look into how the village demonstration looks at the current racial problems in the village and maybe that is part of the problem?

At least this article starts a discussion and gives us all a good look at how there are extreme on both sides of this debate, sides that take somethings to the extreme or are just plainly ignorant of racism in today’s society. Ignorant to the point that they compare “other groups of minorities” to what they believe are superior and infer that (for example) the African American community are too incompetent to do what “the Asian, Latin, and Indian kids…” are able to “figure… out: If that does not say racist I do not what is (thanks for outing yourself). It notes how the village administration has no idea what it is talking about when it comes to dealing with racial diversity and therefore is not the leadership this village needs to get by this challenge and heal as a community. Because instead of giving us this begone era shit it should as one commenter stated come up with a statement about racial equity and get on with it.

It is not Shakespeare or Hemingway, but they are correct. Anyone who worked in a corporate environment or been a part of a great relationship or marriage knows the best way to make things better to work on problems that threaten that relationship or organization, is just admit it the issues and start the building or solution process.  This is what Oak Park IL needs to do just shut the fuck up admit there is an issue and get on with the work. As one of my friend use to say to me: “if there is a large group of various individuals, that keeping mentioning that something is a problem or will become an issue you can be believe it is an issue…” meaning Oak Park, IL can get pissed about being called racist all they want but stop denying there is a problem and shut up and work on being part of the solution, not a part of the problem.

Here is the article mentioning the view of this racial argument:

https://www.oakpark.com/News/Articles/6-12-2019/Back-on-the-racism_monitor-beat/

Frank Lloyd Wright addition

Uh oh so they have decided to add on to the famous Frank Lloyd Wright home. Adding a visitor’s center to the area and an educational center now this sounds great for tourism however we know the underlying feeling of some people here in the village of Oak Park, IL.  It may “destroy” the ambience of the house that Wright built, they may say. But is it about time that the village start acknowledging the landmarks of the area and building proper facilities to handle the traffic, foot and otherwise.

As a resident of Oak Park, il it should be well known or publicized of such plans so that we know of how the village may plan to modify other high traffic areas as well. Surely property owners in this area and other areas in the village may want to take note in cases the village uses shady means to get their way in matters like this or even make decisions that can destroy the overall “vibe” of the village. Such as increasing property costs or giving way to structures that look out of place in the area, causing home values to go down due to the new ugly monstrosity sitting next to it or down the block. As we all know you cannot place a “for sale” sign on your lawn, you do not need a “visitor’s center” to further discourage buyers looking for a home to buy in the area.

Me? Thank god I rent. This type of issue is not a big problem in the way of home values, taxes, etc., however I did see something like this coming and more is on the way. In the village of Oak Park, there is so much improper city planning, it is not even funny. Something like this is highly likely to occur and become common place as the village smells the money to line its pockets there will be a lot more to come, in the ways of construction and other types of actions to ensure that Oak Park, IL will be changed forever. And not always for the better (i.e.: downtown), that “homely” charm that once existed is going the way of the dinosaurs and this construction of the visitor’s center near a Frank Lloyd Wright home is just the start.

The article talking about the construction of the new visitor’s center:

https://chicago.curbed.com/2019/6/17/18682203/frank-lloyd-wright-home-studio-oak-park-visitor-center

OPRF students help against domestic violence

I recently read an article about students from Oak Park River Forest raising money to combat domestic violence because they were inspired by a speaker after a domestic abuse survivor shared her story at a school event. Specifically, the student members of the Business Club raised $400 for Sarah’s Inn which is a local organization that assists families that are impacted by domestic violence.

Two fantastic things here, first, with all the news recently about kids and Oak Park, IL has been about racism, yearbooks and such it is great to know that there are some great kids out there. Young adults I should say, that will take the lead against issues that face everyday citizens such as domestic violence and try to do something about it.

Second is Sarah’s Inn to know that there is such a resource within the village is great to know about. It is not really an organization one finds out about unless you are in a situation that you need to find an organization that can help you of your plight.  Sometimes we might hear of an organization like this from media outlets and its usually because the organization is having a fundraiser to gain funds for their everyday operations that we only know about it in passing. Therefore, we do not register that an organization like this exists within our area and could still use the assistance of everyday people like the student of Oak Park River Forest’s Business Club. The same Business club who came out in a big way Kudos!

This is the link to Sarah’s Inn, here victims of domestic abuse can find the help and resources they need in the Oak Park area:

https://sarahsinn.org/

Here is the article talking about how OPRF students are raising money to combat domestic violence:

https://www.oakpark.com/News/Articles/6-11-2019/OPRF-students-raise-money-to-fight-domestic-violence-/

Oak Park, Il is not cool

I read this article about “What makes Oak Park so cool” it read like an advertisement for the village by a bored writer, who just could not find anything to write about. I know the feeling, especially when it comes to Oak Park, IL it gets very boring and mundane. There is nothing “cool” about that. There is a vague description about various things that Oak Park, IL should take pride in.

As we all know Pride is a sin that can lead to folly, or pride can be something that inspires in this article, it is just folly. Yeah, the writer of this article makes great points about Frank Lloyd Wright and the Lake Theatre marquee but it ends there. The writer even stated that if you ask residents here, they would “roll their eyes” well I am glad while there is a “selling” of Oak Park, IL there is an acknowledgment of the lack of “coolness” of the village.

I love how the article talks about the Mayor yada yada, just because someone has “come up” does not mean they are cool or are a fabric of the community or even have its best interests at heart. I could also go on about the traffic, lack of parking, etc., but there are issues that take away from the fact of there being a “cool” Oak park, IL. Again with these issues being ignored Oak Park, IL is miles away from being anything but cool.

Here is the article talking about how cool Oak Park, IL is: https://www.oakpark.com/News/Articles/6-12-2019/What-makes-Oak-Park-so-‘cool’%3F/

Romanticizing Oak Park, IL

Okay someone gets it. The thing about Oak Park, IL is that it’s always romanticizes the past like it was this great thing. In the article “Don’t romanticize Farmers Market” the writer’s opinion is that Framers Market is not the picture perfect old timey event everyone believes it to be. The article is straight to the point. The point that Oak Park, IL pushes this image that things were so great back in the day and that for “50 years” the village has been this entity that has been accepting everyone no matter how they are different. Total bullshit.

Even now the village is having problems that are similar to 50 or even 60 years ago. As we see a rebirth of racist attitudes in the village instead of ignoring it, inside of glossing over as the article states about the Farmer’s Market. A lot of Oak Park, IL likes to harken back to a “simpler time”… but what is that simpler time consists of? Minorities in their place, only able to rent but not own a place in Oak Park? Where we do not celebrate equality for even the LGBTQ community? Going back and reminiscing that the past was “great” without understanding or remembering the bad that went with that past is just folly.

The point is do not use the past in the present and ignore all the crap that the past contains. But in Oak Park, IL the village likes to ignore that point and carry on.

This is the article that has the opinion of Farmer’s Market:

https://www.oakpark.com/News/Articles/6-12-2019/Don’t-romanticize-Farmers-Market/

Oak Park, IL is distracting

It’s so distracting to be in Oak Park, il. The traffic going so slow you can read a book while you drive. The pretentious neighbors who cannot wait to tell you how the world should be viewed and how silly you are if you have a slightly different view. I forget to write altogether or in the timetable that I wish to proceed the writing process with. The whole thing is like a clusterfuck, everything that you have planned, becomes dust in the wind. Even all the energy that you may have had is sucked away like this village is some sort of mythological mermaid, using it’s beauty to suck you in and then dashing you against the rocks of oak park’s harsh reality.

Then you sit in your place at night, wondering how you are dealing with this shit. Possibly could this be karma or if it’s just a bunch of mean-spirited people who present themselves as a gift to God’s green earth and you were just too hoodwinked to see the truth. Again it’s great the state is legalizing marijuana because a lot of us need it or a lot of alcohol to deal with the mind-numbing state of this village.

Hopefully I don’t get pulled over driving home one of these days because the vacant look in my eyes is not from drugs it’s from the soul draining enterprise of existing in Oak park, IL that has created it.