r/chicago • • 3d ago

CHI Talks Weekly Casual Conversation & Questions Thread

3 Upvotes

Welcome to r/Chicago's Weekly Casual Conversation & Questions Thread.

This is the place for casual discussions that may not warrant their own post, or questions/topics not allowed as their own posts under our content policy. Please be mindful of rules 2 & 3 which still apply in this thread, as well as the Reddit Content Policy when posting.

Also, check out the r/Chicago wiki for other Chicago-related subreddits, where to eat/drink, how to get around/navigate the CTA, where to visit, what neighborhoods to move to or hotel in, tips on living here, and more. And be sure to use the search feature to find responses to other users asking similar questions.

This thread is sorted by "new" so that the most recent comments appear first. The new weekly thread is posted every Monday morning at 12:00 AM.


r/chicago • • 12d ago

CHI Talks r/Chicago's 2026 General Election Megathread

45 Upvotes

The 2026 Illinois General Election (AKA the midterm election) will be held on Tuesday, November 3. On the ballot will be races for various local and federal offices such as Governor, Senate, House, and County Judges, among others.*

This thread is the place to post any election-related content such as voting resources and discussion. We will update this page with more resources as they become available.

This thread is sorted by New so that the most recent comments appear first.


Election Resources


Voting Guides - General Ballot


Voting Guides - Judicial Ballot


  • Note: The Chicago mayoral election will be held on Tuesday, February 23, 2027, and will not be on the ballot in November.

r/chicago • • 12h ago

Picture New Metra electric train at LaSalle St Station!

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741 Upvotes

Available for viewing today and tomorrow.


r/chicago • • 10h ago

Picture Quiet Halloween Walks

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518 Upvotes

Hate the motion activated spooky decorations, love simple classic Halloween vibes 🎃👻


r/chicago • • 6h ago

News UChicago frat house

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184 Upvotes

r/chicago • • 18h ago

Picture You don’t see that every day

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738 Upvotes

r/chicago • • 13h ago

Article Victory! Vasquez's office, CDOT confirmed Smart Streets expansion for citywide, permanent cam enforcement of bus/bike lanes, bus stops is a done deal.

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218 Upvotes

r/chicago • • 8h ago

Picture Retro Livery on Metra UP (C&NW) West Engine

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92 Upvotes

Looks brand new


r/chicago • • 16h ago

Picture Clouds Over the River

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288 Upvotes

r/chicago • • 11h ago

Article Billionaire Family Behind Walmart Buys Lillstreet Art Center

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100 Upvotes

r/chicago • • 19h ago

Article Endeavor Health, Rush announce proposed merged healthcare system

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259 Upvotes

Would be under Rush name.


r/chicago • • 14h ago

News After debate over racial power, aldermen fail to override Mayor Brandon Johnson’s veto on bond rules

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55 Upvotes

Measure failed by one vote, 33-17


r/chicago • • 12h ago

Ask CHI Does anyone have a good Italian beef recipe?

37 Upvotes

I would like to make my own Italian beef but I feel like a lot of recipes I have seen online are not written by someone from Chicago. Does anyone have their own personal Italian beef recipe or at least the proper spices to use for the gravy and everything else?

Edit: Thank you very much for the responses so far, keep'em comin'. However, I don't have a deli slicer and I am terrible at slicing the meat thin like on the sandwiches. Would shredding the meat be okay instead of slicing?


r/chicago • • 11h ago

Article CPS watchdog closes investigation of school board candidate with ‘no actionable finding of sexual misconduct'

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25 Upvotes

r/chicago • • 1d ago

Picture today was insane actually.

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1.0k Upvotes

definitely worth that i skipped gym for some beach time.

so mesmerized by the beauty i can’t even describe it in words … the photos don’t do it justice … and the weather too??? GAHHH 🤤🤤🤤


r/chicago • • 1d ago

Meme After over a year of hard work my friend and I finished building 1:3 scale replica of the sears tower in Minecraft survival mode

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685 Upvotes

r/chicago • • 1d ago

Ask CHI What's Going on with the River?

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722 Upvotes

Never seen this green sludge/pond scum before! Anyone got any insight?


r/chicago • • 1d ago

News Pope Leo XIV diagnosed with lung cancer, part of lung removed during surgery

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835 Upvotes

r/chicago • • 21h ago

Event Get your FCC Amateur (Ham) Radio License in a Weekend – York Radio Club Review Class & Exam ($14) (Nov 14 & 15, Elmhurst)

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42 Upvotes

Whether you’re into emergency preparedness, electronics tinkering, weather spotting, hiking comms, or talking to satellites and the ISS, getting your FCC Technician Class Amateur Radio License is the first step.

The non-profit York Radio Club (YRC) in Elmhurst is hosting our annual 2-Day Technician Review Weekend & Testing Session on Saturday, November 14 & Sunday, November 15, 2026 (8:00 AM – 4:00 PM both days).

How It Works: Our instructors break down all 9 exam modules over two days. At the end of Sunday, you take the official test on-site.

  • Track Record: Our club has refined this weekend boot-camp since 2004, maintaining an average 95% pass rate.
  • Self-Study First: To get that 95% result, attendees need to do a little pre-study before the weekend begins! We provide recommended study guides, question pools, and resources upon signing up.
  • Location: Elmhurst Fire Training Facility (910 N Addison Ave, Elmhurst, IL).
  • Cost: The 2-day classroom review is completely free. There is a $14 exam administration fee (W5YI VEC), and upon passing, the FCC collects a standard $35 fee for your 10-year official license.

Seats are limited so our Elmers/instructors can work closely with everyone.

👉 Details, study resources, and registration form:

https://yorkradioclub.org/club-info/education-testing/training/

Feel free to drop any questions below—73!


r/chicago • • 17h ago

Article What do students want from a CPS School Board president? Tune in for the debate

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18 Upvotes

r/chicago • • 20h ago

Video How buses ran on Marathon Sunday

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22 Upvotes

I've been tracking every CTA bus every 30s for a couple weeks so I compared Marathon Sunday with the two Sundays before. In the video, red is a stop which went 90+ mins without its usual bus

470 stops got none of their usual buses from 7:30AM to 3PM, vs 0 and 19 on the two Sundays before. It wasn't fewer buses though as CTA had 97% of its usual buses out on the 34 routes it re-routed. Issue was that buses couldn't cross the marathon course along its entire length starting around 6AM

Detours skip stops, but for the stops they could get to, waits were normal - 9.7 mins on avg, against 9.5 and 9.7 the two Sundays before. Half of the cut-off stops got their buses back by about 6, and the last ones later in the eve

You can scrub through the day and look up your route or your stop, including when it lost its buses and when they came back: https://chitransit.fyi/reports/marathon-2026/

Caveats: the Navy Pier and Museum Campus shuttles didn't show up in CTA's API data and bus data shows what happened but not why


r/chicago • • 1d ago

Picture you guys know what this color combo means? or is it just for fun?

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189 Upvotes

r/chicago • • 1d ago

News Texas governor candidate Ken Paxton celebrated NYE 2025 in Dubai with Sameer Suhail, the former fugitive accused of embezzling $15M from Loretto Hospital

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557 Upvotes

r/chicago • • 1d ago

CHI Talks Beware Green Light Energy

245 Upvotes

I got a call yesterday morning from "ComEd". They said I was getting $150 refund for overpayment and they asked me to confirm my address, which they read out to me. Then, they said something about being recorded and is that OK. It felt legit for a sec. Then, they said that they were going to enroll me in a lowered payment program. This was a red flag. I am not someone who would ever qualify for a program like this, I make comfortable money. Next, they mentioned Green Light Energy, and I stopped him to ask why were they going to enroll me in Green Light. He said that they're not enrolling me in a new energy provider, just a program to lower my payments.

As he was talking, I was on my computer looking up Green Light Energy. They have low ratings for abusive customer service. I looked into whether this was a scam. Green Light Energy is a legit energy provider, but it's complicated.

I asked him flat out, "Is this a scam?" And he got cocky and said if I wanted to, I could talk his manager. So, I called him out on it. This other guy gets on the phone and tries to sound like he's in control. "If you'd like, we've got your account in front of us, you can ask us any question." I said sure, tell me what my last billing statement was. The other guy chimed in. I forgot what he said, but he definitely blew the con. They hung up on me.

I called ComEd to inform them. The woman on the other end was familiar with this, seemed a bit exhausted. She directed me to the Illinois Commerce Commission and said Green Light Energy is a member of it. I called the ICC and filed a complaint, which the officer said she would follow up on.

If you get a call from a supposed ComEd agent claiming you got a refund and that they would like to get your Electric Choice ID, hang up and file a complaint with the ICC. Green Light Energy is a legit energy provider, but they use scummy tactics to get you to sign up. They pretend to be ComEd and pretend to offer a payment assistant program. But what they do is get your Electric Choice ID and switch you over to their service. Whether that service is lower priced or not is beside the point. They are liars and thieves and they pray off those unable to discern what it is they are actually doing.

UPDATE: Green Light actually called me to resolve my complaint with ICC. I actually got really angry as I told them how the people they hire impersonate ComEd in order to grift people into becoming customers. I told them that all the reviews of Green Light are dog shit and that there are a lot of complaints about the company. I got so worked up, I had to tell them they were wasting my fucking time and that I was going to hang up, and they can take my complaint for what it is. Then I hung up. I have a way of being a polite asshole.


r/chicago • • 1d ago

Picture Did the river tour for the first time. City looks best from the water IMO

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855 Upvotes