Each year, the Chicago Public Library Foundation sponsors a great program called One Book, One Chicago (OBOC).  The question that the program asks is “What if all of Chicago read the same book at the same time?”  It started in 2001, and over the years they have continued to add programming supporting discussions around each title.

In 2013, they expanded the idea so that it’s not just about a book, but about a theme emphasized in the book, and that the program offerings would expand throughout the system.

This year the theme is “Imagine The Future” and the book is Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep by Chicago born author Philip K. Dick.

In case you don’t know the story, here’s a synopsis (courtesy of OBOC)

By 2021, the World War has killed millions, driving entire species into extinction and sending mankind off-planet. Those who remain covet any living creature, and for people who can’t afford one, companies built incredibly realistic simulacra: horses, birds, cats, sheep. They’ve even built humans. Immigrants to Mars receive androids so sophisticated they are indistinguishable from true men or women. Fearful of the havoc these artificial humans can wreak, the government bans them from Earth. Driven into hiding, unauthorized androids live among human beings, undetected. Rick Deckard, an officially sanctioned bounty hunter, is commissioned to find rogue androids and “retire” them. But when cornered, androids fight back–with lethal force.

There are all kinds of events going on in support of the book.  These include discussions, film series, lectures, and more.  There’s also a Spotify playlist (provided by community radio station CHIRP), Maker Lab programs, walking tours, art programs, and game nights.

HOW TO PARTICIPATE IN ONE BOOK ONE CHICAGO

There are over  84 events scheduled with OBOC, so I will highlight a few that look especially great, and encourage you to go over to the OBOC website and explore all the programs for yourself.

Please note that not all of these are suitable for all ages, and the book itself is also geared at an older set, so please use your own discretion on bringing young children.

SCIENCE FICTION BOARD GAME NIGHT.  Various branches will be hosting board game nights, and playing science fiction games including The Resistance, Coup, Star Fluxx, Smash Up: Science Fiction, and Grifters.  SEE AVAILABLE DATES AND BRANCHES

CHICAGO’S UNBUILT PROJECTS.  Author and historian Max Grinnell will talk about the many projects that might have changed Chicago. These include  the unified Civic Center, Frank Lloyd Wright’s mile-high skyscraper, and other projects. Grinnell will also lead a set of walking tours around the city that showcase the future and the past of Chicago.
See a Schedule for Chicago’s Unbuilt Projects
See Schedule for Max Grinnell Walking Tours

HOW TO INVENT EVERYTHING:  Author Ryan North will discuss his guide for waylaid time travelers and how they would build and sustain an entire civilization.
Thursday Feb 21 at 6 pm Pritzer Auditorium, 400 South State Street .FIND OUT MORE

THE SCIENCE OF STAR WARS.  Physicist Dirk K. Morr discusses the physical laws and concepts underlying the scientific advances portrayed and Star Wars. He will discuss which are possible and which are beyond our reach. FIND OUT MORE

IKEBANA FUTURISTIC:  See the Universe through Ikebana free style floral arrangements that transcend time and space.  A hands on workshop led by expert Margot Wang.  SEE TIMES AND PLACES.

To find out more about One Book One Chicago, visit http://www.onebookonechicago.org

[Thank you to Carol Fox and Associates for providing tickets to the show. The tickets were given to us, but the love of theater and acrobatic holiday performances is all our own.]

There are always some great standby holiday traditions to enjoy, like caroling, visiting Santa to get a picture and deliver a wish list, or taking in a holiday show.  Now you may be a person who can’t get enough of “The Nutcracker”, “A Christmas Carol”, or even “Mannheim Steamroller”.  All of those are great shows and deserving of their position as Holiday go to theatrical productions. However, if you are looking for something new, something that brings some holiday cheer with an added layer of “WOW” might I suggest Cirque Dreams Holidaze.

Get ready to experience elaborate costumed characters, including snowmen, penguins, candles, reindeer, toy soldiers, gingerbread men, and more as they fly, balance and stretch imaginations in this festive holiday celebration. Our favorites  were the Gingerbread Cookie Flippers, The Balancing Penguin, and the Jump-roping  Reindeer.

The other night I was playing a game of Chinese chess with my son. It’s something we do every so often since the day he asked me what the game with the funny markings was. As I watched him struggle and plot out his moves, I was reminded of an experience I had in Hong Kong shortly after I had learned to play the game.

I was sitting at a table in front of a copy-shop across the alley from the entrance to my apartment building in Hong Kong’s Causeway Way Bay district. Across the table from me sat the owner of that shop. We were engaged in one of the many games of Chinese chess that we played while I lived there. A bit of a crowd had gathered, as often they would, to watch the gwailouh (foreign-devil) play their game. In Hong Kong it was pretty common to see people playing Chinese chess, you didn’t often find a gwailouh playing though.

I was well on my way to losing the game, I usually lost. However, I always kept playing because it seemed I learned something new in every game. Around us, the people squawked at each other and at us, commenting on our play and what they thought we should do. The noise from the city filled the air as the business and traffic of our busy alleyway continued through the night. My opponent and I were unaffected by the cacophony surrounding us. We always played in this chaos. Strategizing, organizing, contemplating each other we set our pieces in motion across the board. We were the order in the chaos, the yin to the world’s yang. Only for a moment though, for he had perfected his order and won the match. With that, the chaos of the world around us came crashing in and we embraced it and celebrated his victory.

Learning to Walk

Thinking back on that day and the way my son was struggling to play as I had once I was reminded that learning to play “Chinese” chess, is called “learning to walk”, making it an excellent metaphor for life. We all must learn to walk.  As we walk, we will fall. The more walking we do the more prepared we are to run.  As we run, we will fall.  The more running we do the more we will want to jump. As we jump, we will fall. The jumping that we will do will encourage us to fly. Everything we learn prepares us for the next step.

Fitting into their world

This has been a reoccurring thought for me of late.  My kids are getting older now we are embarking on the teenage years, and it is very obvious that how I fit in their world is changing.  I still definitely have a role and an important one but it isn’t the same as it was when they were small.  I spent a good deal of time talking to/at my kids early on in my role as a dad. In fairness at that point, we were on very unequal footing.  I had a lot of information and they had very little.  They needed to know that touching the stove was not a good idea, or that looking for cars when we cross the street is important.  Those sort of early teaching moments really weren’t discussions they were downloaded directions.  I didn’t want them to think about those situations and decide if what I said was correct  I wanted them to recognize those situations and follow the directions they were given. I really wasn’t concerned with them thinking about it I just wanted them to “do”.

Things are changing

As we have entered the teenage years there has been a shift in how we communicate. While I still have more information than they do, they are now processing my information and comparing it to their accumulated knowledge. They are beginning to think on a very serious level. It is a challenging transition. I find I am talking with them more than to them.  Our learning moments are more conversational than purely instructional. The protector in me wants to download information like I did when they were three years old. I also, however, want them to be successful adults.  These next few years are going to be challenging because I still have that role and responsibility to keep them safe… but maybe not too safe.  I need to step back and give them a chance to use the knowledge an information they have accumulated.  They have learned to walk and they might just be ready to start running.  I guess that means I need to let it happen and be a soft place for them to fall. Perhaps that means I need to focus on being a source of good information for them while allowing them to think for themselves.

What is my job?

I’m not sure I know myself how I am going to do this. It has been 40+ years and I’m still learning the lessons I want them to know.  So as I think about the game of chess and how to best help my sons I had this epiphany. In chess, like in life, I can’t teach them all the right things to do.  Each game will be different and each experience will be different. In each game and each experience, they will learn something new (just like I have). If they do only what I tell them then they will never beat me in chess, or rather, they will never be successful. I need to adapt to how they learn now and I need to help them develop skills not just dump knowledge. It isn’t helpful to give them a guide of what to do all the time, let’s face it, that is impossible. I realized in the coming years, my job is not to tell them what to think, it is to teach them how to.

One thing we know about Dads is that when you get a group of them together great things happen! That has been one of our guiding principles here at the Chicago Dads Group. From fun playdates in the park, weekly pick-up basketball games, to epic Dad’s Night Out activities our group has become a great resource for Chicagoland dads to bond over Fatherhood. That’s why we are super excited when the good people over at MommyCon asked us to participate in their DaddyCon programming; a separate track of educational panels, activities, and workshops focused on fathers.

What is DaddyCon?

DaddyCon is focused on bringing fatherhood to the forefront of the parenting conversation. This is their debut year (March 3 & 4) and Chicago Dads Group is excited to be a part of it. The event will feature two days of interactive sessions, workshops, exhibitors, giveaways and the Dad Games Competition. There are over a dozen speakers including a few members of our group. Their goal is to have a meaningful and playful discussion about all aspects of fatherhood: from being there at birth through every diaper change, scraped knee and ballet recital.

Chicago Dads Group @ DaddyCon

Needless to say we are excited about DaddyCon! We will be there on Saturday 3/3 for a special lunchtime Meet Up and we will be participating in  a panel discussion on Sunday 3/4.

As part of our partnership we are giving away 2 free tickets to Daddycon and here is how you can win them:

Win 2 Free Tickets to DaddyCon

Come join us March 3-4. and check out over 100 exhibitors, interactive workshops, inspirational speakers and more. It is a great chance to learn all there is to be a new dad at the Chicago

This time of year people are focused on making and keeping their New Year’s resolutions.  Some like quitting bad habits or making good habits are pretty straightforward. If you want to quit smoking, exercise more, read more, or eat healthily; there are very clear ways to start and places to get help. For others, like finding a community or group that will help you in your goal to be a better father, getting started on the right foot can be tricky.

That’s what the City Dads Group is all about. At its core, the group wants to form diverse communities for fathers who are looking to socialize and interact with other guys who enjoy spending quality time with their children.

We are all in here at the Chicago Dads Group. We love the chance to meet other dads who love being dads.  This year our group made it past the 1000 member mark, and we’d love to have even more!  We have seen first-hand the positive effects of creating a network of friendships and resources to help our members become the dads they want to be.  Whether it is activities like a play date in Maggie Daley Park or a Dad’s Night Out playing whirly ball, we are strengthened by every new father that joins our tribe.

We do a lot together here are some of our member’s favorite memories and activities:

I play competitive, energetic basketball every week with Dads from our group!

– Sean W.

It’s a brotherhood of guys who have great advice on childcare and are just fun to be around. I love Dad’s Night Out. I like getting away from the kids for a little adult time.

– Al W.

It’s nice to feel like there are others out there who share what I’m going through. We have a great group of guys…as fathers but also just as people who are fun to be around. My kids still talk about going fishing with the group, even though they were bored and didn’t catch anything. The experience was everything!

– Kyle E.

Join a Dads Group

Great dads don’t happen overnight it takes time, effort, and commitment.  That doesn’t mean you have to start from scratch though.  We’d love to add your perspective and experience to our own.

If you’ve been looking for a way to connect with other active and engaged fathers here in the Chicagoland area check out some of our upcoming events… We’d love to have you!

Now that we are firmly into 2018 we can’t help but want to take a quick look back on one of our favorite meetups of the past year.  Along with  11 other City Dads Group chapters, we participated in Giving Tuesday by helping local charities that help feed hungry children in our communities with the help of our partner, Plum Organics.

Here is a little video the City Dads Group made to showcase how it went:

Plum Organics, the nation’s leading organic baby food brand, donated more than 41,000 pouches of their tasty meals to help children in need.  For our part, the Chicago Dads Group teamed up with the Palatine Township Food Pantry to collect food and deliver the generous donation from Plum Organics.

Giving back is one of our favorite ways to get together here in the Chicagoland area.  There is a lot of need here and we are lucky to make such great connections with brands, like Plum Organics, who help encourage and support our initiatives.

Giving Tuesday, the Tuesday following Thanksgiving, is a global day of outreach dedicated to helping others. It’s meant to kick-off the holiday season by inspiring people to collaborate in improving their local communities. Since its 2012 inception, tens of thousands of organizations worldwide annually participate in the day. This was the fourth year in-a-row that we have joined with other City Dads groups around the country and participated in this day of giving back through service, and we’re looking forward to doing even more!

DISCLOSURE: Plum Organics partnered with City Dads Group for the mentioned above through a donation of goods and financial compensation.

We are growing here at the Chicago Dads Group. It is a great experience to be apart of a community of men who want to be engaged with their children.  Earlier this fall we crossed a threshold that we are pretty proud of, there are now 1000 dads in the Chicagoland area that have joined our group. We couldn’t be happier.  As more fathers join us we are building a stronger network of men who can help provide mental, emotional, and physical support to each other. We know how important s father’s role is in their children’s lives as they develop the emotional and social strength they need. When our children see us developing healthy supportive relationships the not only learn from us but by our examples.

Whether we are having a “Dad’s Night Out” watching a movie together or doing a service project to help our communities our network of actively engaged fathers is building something great here in Chicago.  Don’t take our word for it here is what some of our members say:

It’s great to be around men who understand how to prioritize their kids and still be men.

– Anders B.

I love the weekly meetups and how all the kids know each other and are like a big family. The kids play so nicely together always because they see each other every week at playgroup.

– Mike P.

I have met some really good Dads to talk and hang out with. It’s nice to mingle and meet other Dads I have similar interests with.

– Dave S.

I have been able to meet other dads and make friends in Chicago who are in the same situation as I am, and learn different ways of raising a child.

– Juan H.

I have found that there are a lot of things that parents can do with their children besides staying at home or merely going to the parks.

– Brian S.

Join Us

Great dads don’t happen overnight it takes time, effort, and commitment.  That doesn’t mean you have to start from scratch though.  We’d love to add your perspective and experience to our own.

If you’ve been looking for a way to connect with other active and engaged fathers here in the Chicagoland area check out some of our upcoming events… We’d love to have you!

The Dads in the Chicago Dads Group love taking in a good movie, a large portion of our Dad’s Night Out meetups are held at Chicago-area movie theaters.  This week a bunch of our Dads had the opportunity to see the heavily anticipated Thor: Ragnarok.  If their reactions are any signal this is one you won’t want to miss.

Here’s what our guys had to say:

David C. – This is a fun-filled action roller coaster with monsters dragons beasts heroes and villains.  I loved the setting of a planet that reveres The Hulk like no one else could and Chris Hemsworth was channeling his inner Starlord with his witty use of comedy.  The music was like another actor in the film, making you feel like the action is running through you nor just in front of you.  This film rivals all the other Marvel films as the most re-watchable one in the franchise.

John L. – Great movie! I thoroughly enjoyed it From the CGI enhanced action scenes to the ample humor applied throughout, making the movie that much more lighthearted and enjoyable.

Stone A.- It was an enjoyable movie and a fun night.  With my heritage, I’ve always been interested Nordic mythology and thought the interpretation was creative and well done. The actors were great and the action was a lot of fun to watch on the IMAX screen.  The dialogue was witty and the end was unpredictable which I liked!

We are always doing outings like this it is a great way to get involved with other Dads just like you.  If you would like to join us join our group here (it is free).

We’d also love to know what you thought about the movie leave your review in the comments below!

So you find yourself in the market for one of the big-ticket items when it comes to being prepared to raise a child – the stroller. Not just any stroller, a jogging stroller, so your little one doesn’t stop you from your daily run. Now you need to decide if you take out a second mortgage and go for a premium jogging stroller, or spend just enough to get one that barely passes the safety ratings?

Fear not. The Joovy Zoom 360 Ultralight jogging stroller fits in perfectly. It is priced to meet most budgets, yet retains luxury quality any parent rightly expects. Straight out of the box, it is as easy as the proverbial 1, 2, 3 – literally:

1. Put the rear right wheel on
2. Put the rear left wheel on
3. Unfold

Simple. Just buckle junior in and hit the road running. But what are you really getting for your money? For a start, a sturdy, stable product. The Joovy Zoom 360Ultralight framing is solid and all the joints are well connected and move with ease. The brake is a simple one-foot action that locks solidly into grooves on the wheels, so when it’s locked, it’s going nowhere. The front wheel can swivel freely or lock in place. Good for different types of terrain. I prefer the free turning wheel (roads in my neighborhood are not the best, and in the locked position, it veers too easily), but can see the benefits of a fixed wheel on a true running trail. Locked or unlocked, the stroller glides along with ease at the merest of touch.

Joovy have also thought about both adult and child when it comes to storage. There’s a decent enough storage space beneath (I’ve seen bigger, I’ve seen smaller), which can easily accommodate a diaper bag/backpack. In addition, there’s a good sized storage pouch behind the seat, an organizer that straps over the handle with two cup holders and storage pocket, big enough for phone, wallet and keys, and a couple of storage pockets inside the seat itself – for water cups, snack cups or what have you!

A nice added feature is also an air pump that nicely straps away in the lower storage compartment. However, for the good, there’s also the not so good.

It’s hard to find anything to be negative about with the Joovy Zoom 360Ultralight, but there are a few bugbears:

1. I would like to have seen a moveable tray over the seat, even as an added option.
2. The seat straps are not padded, so you may need to add some padding for some children.
3. lastly, at time of writing, there doesn’t appear to be a double jogging stroller available.

In the end, the Joovy Zoom 360Ultralight really does look and feel like a high-end stroller. It is nicely priced at $299 and will appeal to both fitness enthusiasts and day to day, running around parents.

Disclosure: *Our reviewer was not financially compensated for this post. He did receive a sample from Joovy for review purposes. The opinions expressed in this review are solely based on his own based on his own experience.*