I'm a native Chicagoan and grew up in every part of the city: attended grade and high school in Hyde Park (south side of Chicago), in my adult years I worked Downtown in the Loop and lived in the Lakeview area (north side), and spent a lot of my free time in the Bucktown area (west side) before Bucktown was gentrified.
BTW - The east side of Chicago is called Lake Michigan.
Besides my hometown I've lived in Wisconsin and Kentucky. I attended college in those states. I've worked in California.
Throughout those experiences, I've learned that the little things are what makes people . . . people. And I've learned that the little things can separate people.
I've always tried to listen, watch people's reactions, and understand the culture of an area. There are marked differences between Chicago and San Francisco. There are nuanced cultural differences between Northside Chicagoans and Southside Chicagoans. The easy differences are the lives of the rich and the poor . . . and sometimes I wonder who has the better life.
Being able to live in those areas is easy. Being accepted and understood in those worlds takes time.
As a writer, I hope can provide an insight to those differences.
If you see me around Arnold or the St. Louis area, please introduce yourself.
The day is a little easier when there's a friendly face.
"St. Louis Post-Dispatch" reports that a few people on the Missouri Board of Education believe the Amy Hestir Student Protection Act goes too far and intrudes on useful Internet teaching tools.
The Better Business Bureau offers advice to protect college students' credit histories and finances.
The proposed ADA doors, however, comply with older regulations, says the city's director of administration.
The Missouri Ethics Commission says it will waive $1,800 of the fee if Amato has no further ethics violations within the next two years.
Here's a list of items Fox C-6 students need for school tomorrow.
Gas Prices in Arnold have increased about 7 cents since yesterday.
Finding and making sewer repairs should occur prior to street repairs, public works director says.
Treasurer Dan Kroupa says police chief and city administrator withdrew staffing and salary increase requests to offset next year's budget costs.
Free hazardous waste disposal, sponsored by The City of Arnold, on Saturday.
"Patch" launches a national project to chronicle the effects of the economic crisis and the creative and innovative ways people are responding to it.
Gas Prices in Arnold have increased between 3 cents to 10 cents during the weekend.
Many of Arnold's children are too young to have lived through and understand the effects of Sept. 11.
MoDOT crews will paint new lanes on Interstate 270 and make pavement repairs in Jefferson County staring tonight.
Arnold councilmen and emergency first responders traveled to St. Louis city to bring a World Trade Center artifact back to Arnold for the city's 9/11 memorial.
Gas Prices in Arnold are unchanged since Thursday and costs $3.19 per gallon.
A "St. Louis Post-Dispatch" article reports that the Missouri law banning social networks between students and educators could lead to a civil rights lawsuit.
Missouri’s College Savings Plan is sponsoring the electronic book giveaway.
Gas Prices in Arnold have increased about 8 cents and costs $3.19 per gallon.
Staffers will be at the fair, beginning at 10 a.m. every day, to help residents find unclaimed tax returns, abandoned deposit boxes and insurance policies proceeds.
Arnold's first responders and city employees will escort the 9/11 item to Arnold, from St. Louis, Thursday afternoon.
