The August Issue Of Chicago Magazine

The August issue of Chicago Magazine arrived a week or so ago, the first copy of that publication I have received since April. Unlike other magazines, which want you to renew your subscription 6 months in advance, the only way I ever find out that my subscription to Chicago Magazine has lapsed is when the issues stop coming. And then it takes almost 4 months to start receiving it again. Very strange indeed. In any case, this month was the "Best of Chicago" issue. While there were a few restaurants and stores mentioned that I would like to patronize when I come back home to Chicago for a visit, many of the "bests" I would avoid like the plague. And I would need to google a lot of the featured restaurant's offerings to learn what the hell they are before ordering. On the plus side, there were a number of interesting articles in the August issue, including one titled "A Short History of Chicago's Wildlife Celebrities," featuring a coyote in a Loop Quiznos, a cougar on the North Side, an alligator in the Humboldt Park lagoon, not to mention a giant snapping turtle on the North Branch of the Chicago River. Growing up on the South Side of Chicago, I personally never encountered such beasts - it is definitely a different world north of the Chicago River. And speaking of the South Side, there was an interview with White Sox legend Ozzie Guillen, too. All in all, this month's issue is definitely worth checking out.