Entries Tagged as 'Recommendations'

Jodi Harrington’s Hike Across America

Jodi Harrington is not only walking all the way across the continental United States, she’s also journaling as she goes. She and her walking partner Josh started in February from Delaware. As of today, they are in Colorado.

It’s really amazing to follow them through this journey. Jodi posts every few days so I feel like I’m always up to date. Their experience is inspiring. The ticks and the muscle cramps? not so much.

Meet with a Lawyer for Free

I first found Jonathan Dixon when the boyfriend and I were condo hunting last year. We knew we wanted a lawyer to help with all the communications and paperwork but how do you find a good one? All our friends were renting and family were in other towns.

Luckily, Jonathan has a monthly “Ask the Lawyer” night at Ennui Cafe in Rogers Park. He’s there on the first Tuesday of the month from 6:30 to 8:00. We figured we could go and get a personal sense of the guy. He turned out to be exactly what we wanted.

Right off the bat, you’ll be able to tell that he’s a straight-forward fellow. This isn’t someone who is going to go fishing for extra costs or do all that “lawyery” stuff that we’re always afraid that lawyers are going to do to us.

I was surprised that “Ask the Lawyer” wasn’t one of those content-less pitch sessions where the end result is that you’ll have to hire the guy to actually get some answers. He really does provide free legal consultation. Since there is no sign-up sheet though, it is first come-first served.

I’m smart. I read contracts word for word. I research the heck out of stuff I don’t know. So I really wanted someone trustworthy, on my side, and an additional worry or distraction to the already harrowing process of home buying.

Thank goodness for Jonathan. I don’t know if this rate still applies, but we paid him a $500 flat fee to oversee our closing. I’m certain we blew that hourly calculation out of the water. For all the requests and back-and forth we made, he never said a negative word. The boyfriend and I feel that we got a real bargain in his services. He’s certainly our first choice if we ever need legal aid again.

Battle at Kruger Still YouTube Favorite

After all these years and with so many choices possible, the Battle at Kruger, otherwise known as Buffaloes versus Lions versus Crocodiles, is still my favorite YouTube video. If you haven’t seen it, I suggest investing some seven minutes and thirty-seven seconds in it. Turn your sound all the way up. I’ll wait . . .

See! Wasn’t that amazing! You gasped. You groaned. You laughed. You cheered. You talked back to the screen. I bet your heart is still pounding.

Unfortunately, the folks responsible for the video have made a really annoying official site. But on the positive side for them, there’s going to be a National Geographic documentary centered around the video. It airs May 11 at 8:00 pm CST on the National Geographic Channel.