• Torontoist featured a set of photos of Nuit Blanche, the one night each year when the streets and public and private spaces of Toronto are transformed into one huge contemporary art gallery, Rickrolls, zombies, mascots, unhappy patrons all included.
• Seattlest spotted man's best friend stumping for Obama, talked to Sarah Vowell about the Puritans next door, and then disappeared under a tidal wave of indie-rock plaid.
• Phillyist would just like to remind everyone that its baseball team rules. Go Phils!
• DCist talked to a storeowner who had to move artwork that satirizes Sarah Palin after receiving threats.
• Shanghaiist fell off the chair watching this vlog by a gay expat teen in Shanghai who recently came out to his mom over Skype--only to have her come out to him in return!
• Bostonist interviewed comedians Frank Caliendo and Mike Birbiglia, and named a new cheer for the Fenway faithful: The Papi Pound.
• Gothamist watched the stock market slide thousands of points--which is probably why low-brow humor like this was so welcome.
• Chicagoist was disappointed by both the Cubs and the Sox, celebrated not one but two Nobel Prizes, and explored McCain's claim about Obama's earmark for a planetarium projector.
• Londonist celebrated National Poetry Day with numerous commuting-themed haikus.
• LAist visited artist Shepard Fairey's latest window installation.
• SFist indulged in such political debating as clean energy vs. PG&E, ads for proposition 8 (the same-sex marriage ban), a disgraced city supervisor pleading guilty to extortion, and the death of John McCain.

A Kenyan runner won the men's race for the 6th time in a row -- Evans Cheruiyot, who just competed in his first marathon less than a year ago, finished in 2 hours, 6 minutes and 25 seconds. Fellow Kenyan David Mandago finished second just over a minute later. On the women's side, Russian Lidiya Grigoryeva, who previously won the 2007 Boston Marathon, came in first with a time of 2 hours, 27 minutes, 17 seconds. The nationalities doubled up again as Russian woman Alevtina Biktimova finished second.

Be sure to check out Chicagoist's extensive marathon photo gallery tomorrow. [Trib, S-T, NYT]

Photo by Katie Scully

Interviewing many locals with knowledge on the topic, (City Historian Tim Samuelson, the Chicago History Museum's Sarah Marcus, and Chicago Weather Godfather Tom Skilling) the special tries its best to compact a lot of information into a 42 minute show (60 with commercials) and actually does pretty well. Starting at William Ogden's arrival from New York, the show moves forward and focuses on the unseasonably dry weather in the summer of 1871 that turned into the unseasonably dry fall of 1871. The show also explores the specific weather conditions that created winds that helped spread the fire in a fantastic manner. While the special probably offers nothing revelatory for fans of Chicago history, it still presents the info well and the focus on the weather is an angle that's not usually explored in such detail. Another interesting subplot of the show is its focus on the fire of Peshtigo, Wisconsin, a fire that burned simultaneously to the Chicago fire. Mixing re-enactments with file and archival photographs (perhaps the most interesting thing about the show), it's an engaging presentation.

After recapping the devastation, the show shift gears to focus on the recovery effort in the city. Led by Ogden and Marshall Field, the recovery effort lasted years and even led to the arrival of many of the city's heralded architects including Louis Sullivan. The show is worth checking out for, if nothing else, some of the archival photographs and the footage of a City Council meeting in the late 90's officially absolving Mrs. O'Leary (and her cow) of all blame in starting the fire. Ultimately the show is a great, succinct presentation of one of the biggest events in our city's history, using local historians and the victims' voices to tell the story.

The show airs tonight on The Weather Channel at 8 p.m.

Northwestern Finally Loses (to Michigan State)
Northwestern's undefeated run in 2008 came to an end Saturday as Michigan State sprinted to a big first quarter lead and cruised to a 37-20 victory over the Wildcats. Northwestern racked up plenty of yardage, outgaining the Spartans 459 to 297 in total offense, but three turnovers didn't help the WIldcats' cause. C.J. Bacher attempted a mind-boggling 61 passes, completing 34 for 283 yards, a touchdown, but two interceptions. Ross Lane led all receivers with nine catches for 113 yards while Tyrell Sutton gained 139 yards on the ground.

Minnesota Ruins Homecoming for Illinois
In spite of another spectacular offensive outing by Juice Williams, Illinois failed to take advantage of his performance and lost to the Gophers 27-20. Williams was responsible for 503 of the Illini's 550 yards of total offense: 462 in the air (26 for 41, one TD, one Int.) and 41 on the ground. No matter how well they drove the ball down the field, the Illini couldn't find the endzone, having to settle for field goals and committing three turnovers. Arrelious Benn led all receivers with 181 yards on 12 catches; A.J. Jenkins had 117 yards and two touchdowns on three catches.

Northern Illinois Tops Miami (OH)
In a game of streaks, the Huskies played well enough to top Miami 17-13. Northern Illinois scored the first 10 points of the game thanks to a Mike Salerno field goal and a DeMarcus Grady TD pass. But then it was Miami's turn, scoring 13 straight points to take the lead. Chad Spann scored on a short touchdown run late in the third quarter to put the Huskies ahead for good as both teams were held scoreless in the fourth quarter. Salerno missed a field goal in the fourth that led to a Miami drive to the Huskies' 12 yard-line, but the Huskies held Miami to hold on to victory. Me'co Brown was the Huskies' top offensive gainer, rushing 16 times for 123 yards.

Notre Dame Falls To UNC
The Fighting Irish blew a first-half lead as they fell to North Carolina 29-24. QB Jimmy Clausen had another good outing, completing 31 of 48 passes for 383 yards, two touchdowns, and a pair of interceptions. But it wasn't enough as the Tar Heels rallied to outscore Notre Dame 20-7 in the second half, paced by a Clausen interception returned for a TD on the first play of the third quarter. The Irish were held scoreless for the final 25:43 of the game. Notre Dame had four turnovers in the second half (five overall) to seal their fate.

Oh, October, you lulled us into an autumn mood but now you give way to sunny warmth. It's perhaps the last real warm spell we'll have before winter sets in (though never say never) and, suffice to say, it'll keep things warm on the course for our marathoners galloping through town this morning and early afternoon. Highs in the upper 70s will accompany the sunny skies and tonight, temps drop to near 60 with clear skies. And while a warm Columbus Day awaits, a rainy midweek will lead to a cooler weekend next week.

Photo by kookybites

The “education” consisted of looking at magazines, such as Playboy and Playgirl, and watching x-rated videos. One alleged victim said in court yesterday that McGuire had him masturbate just short of climax. Both alleged victims said that McGuire would ask them of their sexual activities during confession.

One of the victims said he felt guilty about masturbating twice a week when he was 13. McQuire told him that if he didn’t “master” this, he would “go to hell.”

Both alleged victims said McGuire had them give him massages that included rubbing his genitals. Dominick alleged that McGuire put oil on the boy's penis, examined it with a magnifying glass, and performed oral sex on him.

The alleged abuse took place between 1999 and 2003.

The trial continues next week. [S-T]

Heat is again a concern for this year’s Chicago Marathon, with temperatures expected to top 80 degrees tomorrow.

As of Friday, officials said the warning level was Yellow/Moderate for the race, signifying less than ideal conditions for a marathon. But officials said the alert level could change before or during the race. Red/High means conditions are potentially dangerous, and Black/Extreme means the race has been canceled (as was the case last year). [S-T]

Photo by SecondPrint Productions.

Cook County prosecutor Emily Leuin presented details of Wardlaw’s alleged crime Friday in Cook County Bond Court.

Wardlaw repeatedly shook his head and stared incredulously as Leuin described the shooting, all of which was caught on camera: how Wardlaw allegedly argued with a man after accidentally touching his hand. How that man displayed a gun. And finally how Wardlaw, after getting off the bus at 71st and Woodlawn, walked a few feet, then turned and allegedly fired at the bus. [S-T]

The Sun-Times, however, seems to have its own sources where they're pulling their info from.

Sunday NFL TV Lineup
Here's the schedule for tomorrow's TV action being televised locally [via The506.com].
Chicago at Atlanta, 12 p.m., Fox 32
Jacksonville at Denver, 3 p.m., CBS 2
Green Bay at Seattle, 3:15, Fox 32
New England at San Diego, 7:15, NBC 5
New York at Cleveland, 7:30, ESPN (Monday)

It's going to be a beautiful weekend. We snapped this shot while riding along the lakefront yesterday afternoon. We couldn't agree with the sentiment more.

• Officials believe it was blowtorches that sparked the fire at the pilings in the Chicago River near State and Wacker this morning.

• According to her parents, a 17-year-old Palos Heights girl fabricated the story of her abduction and rape last month and could face charges of filing a false police report and obstructing justice. Expenses from the investigation have so far totaled around $200,000.

• The cost of Barack Obama's 30-minute time-slot he purchased from CBS today? $961,000.

• An eight-kid brawl broke out at Lincoln Park High (2001 N. Orchard St.) this morning. One kid, who had braces, was treated for a bloodied mouth.

• Two Congressional challengers in Indiana have agreed to be hooked up to lie detectors during their next debate. The GOP and Libertarian challengers will use the lie detectors but the idea has been dismissed as "bizarre" by the incumbent Democrat's team.

• Bad news, Spike O'Dell fans: the radio host is hanging up the headphones come December.

• Akira the Japanese Spitz may not be able to solve the financial meltdown, but damn if he doesn't warm our hearts.

Good luck to all the marathon racers Sunday! Carbo-load, stretch, and hydrate!

Stolpman clued us in to this shot from Joe M500 of last week's "BotW" selection. The title of the shot was two simple words: "Trust Chuck!"

That's advice all of you should heed.

Photo from the Elmhurst College website

Fuck all that reasoning. Vote!

(Unfortunately if you're not already registered, it's too late to do so. But that doesn't mean the reasoning is any less strong TO vote. And if you're not registered ... well, get regustered so you can vote next time around.)

UPDATE: It's not too late to register to vote! I repeat, IT'S NOT TOO LATE TO
REGISTER TO VOTE. Assuming you live in Chicago, you can still register at
69 W. Washington until October 21st, and you must cast your ballot at that
time. Learn more! (A HUGE thanks to commenter carolmargaret for setting us straight!)

It's hard not to think that this latest move by Mayor Daley is connected to last year's incident with 44th Ward Alderman Tom Tunney. The Lakeview alderman was busted almost a year ago for talking on his cell phone while driving. Tunney, who claimed to be conducting city business on his phone, called the district's police commander (hopefully not on his cell phone) and criticized the police department's priorities even though he voted for the cell phone ban. The incident sparked an investigation by the Chicago Police Department's Internal Affairs Division when an officer later hand-delivered the license back to Tunney.

This latest ordinance revision is just another example of how far some city council members will go to cover themselves. Last spring, 33rd Ward Alderman Richard "Dick" Mell, with backing from Mayor Daley, created a four-month amnesty period for gun registration when he forgot to re-register his arsenal of shotguns, pistols, and rifles. Fraternal Order of Police President Mark Donahue criticized the move, saying that the measure created a "double standard." Mell defended the plan by saying he knew many gun owners who also forgot to re-register their firearms.

By Hunter Clauss

Photo of Tom Tunney not talking on his cell phone while driving taken from his website

Photo of Mayor Daley by Michael DaKidd

The consolidations, according to the Sun-Times, would hash out as follows:

• A new Department of Family Support Services. It will merge the Departments of Human Services; Children and Youth Services; Senior Services; the Housing Department’s Plan to End Homelessness; and individual training responsibilities assigned to the Mayor’s Office of Workforce Development.
• A new Department of Zoning and Land Use Planning. It will combine the Zoning Department, the Department of Environment’s property screening section and the land use section of the Department of Planning and Development.
• A new Department of Community Development. It will merge much of Planning and Development, most of Housing and the business side of the Mayor’s Office of Workforce Development.
• A new Department of Business Affairs and Conumer Protection that includes licensing, inspections and consumer issues. It will merge the Deparments of Consumer Services and Business Affairs and Licensing.

This is the second Bar Louie to be shut down in two weeks and the third since August 28. One get the feeling at this point that, if the Health Department wanted to shoot fish in a barrel, they could inspect the Wrigleyville and Dearborn Station locations and make it a clean sweep.

Bananas Foster Frappe (serves 1)

½ banana, peeled
juice of ¼ lemon
2 tsp butter
2 tsp brown sugar
pinch of ground cinnamon
½ oz Grand Marnier
½ cup half and half
1 cup vanilla ice cream
1 ounce Mount Gay Eclipse Rum

Combine bananas, lemon juice, Grand Marnier, sugar and cinnamon in a mixing bowl and toss gently. Melt the butter in a saucepan and add the banana mixture. Simmer on low heat for 5 minutes. Allow the mix to cool completely. Then, add the banana/syrup mix to a blender, along with the rum, half and half and ice cream. Blend until smooth. Serve in a chilled glass and enjoy!

This drink can easily be increased to make 4 or 8 servings. The quantities aren’t exact – play around with it until you find what you like.

Our fine city has a long tradition of melding cozy Americana roots music with elements of electronic orchestration (Summerteeth, anyone?), and Inchworm's latest offering, Sheep In Wolf's Clothing, falls right into line. There's plenty of warm tones and meandering, heartland rock with pretty, calculated swells of melodic interplay. While Inchworm borrows inspiration from plenty of like-minded touchpoints - The Band, Neil Young, and Wilco all come to mind - the album feels more like pulling that one extra comfy sweater out of the closet for the first time each fall than overtly derivative.

That snug, easy contentedness started in the recording process since the band laid down the tracks that would become SIWC in their homes and hangouts. Standout tracks are "Green House Grown," a saloon piano-driven march of dusty, stomping minor key troubadouridry, and "Simple Days Without Money," a summer's day harmony-laden treat of sweet, '60s inspired pop.

Inchworm play tonight with the seldom surfacing indie rock stalwarts Swell and the likeminded locals Sleep With the Fishes at the Darkroom, 2210 W Chicago, 9:00 p.m., $8, 21+

This weekend marks the 31st running of the Chicago Marathon. As Jacy pointed out earlier this week, over 45,000 runners will be taking to the streets working blisters on their feet, rubbing their nipples bloody and raw and draining their bodies of precious electrolytes while I enjoy bacon bloody marys and barbecue.

The marathon has come a long way from its inaugural run in 1977. Back then it was known as the Mayor Daley Marathon, with a field of 4200 runners. Although Richard J. Daley died the previous winter his successor, Michael Bilandic, was a running enthusiast and put his energy behind the event. Bilandic also managed to get Park District Superintendent Ed Kelly (who opposed the marathon when Daley was alive, refusing to allow runners to work their way through the parks or lakefront) aboard. The marathon was funded largely from the pockets of marketing giant Lee Flaherty. Flaherty is the founder of Flair Communications, located in the historic Flair House at Erie and Franklin. Flaherty is also one of the founders (or one of the people to blame, if so inclined) of the Old St. Pat's World's Largest Block party. The first two marathons had no sponsors; Flaherty also footed the bill for the 1978 marathon. In 1979, Beatrice Foods became the marathon's first sponsor.

American runners won both the men's and women's categories in that inaugural marathon. Dan Cloeter finished in 2:17:52, while Dorothy Doolittle was clocked at 2:50:47. A far cry from some of the world records now being set on the course. Hopefully we'll see another one Sunday.