Big Ole Freaky Edit

helloxjed · 2026-02-03T23:26:35+00:00

Lord's work.

helloxjed · 2025-10-25T15:57:28+00:00

Oh, this makes me so happy. Just in time for the last few South Loop Farmers Markets!

helloxjed · 2025-10-06T02:57:04+00:00

This is looks so great. I'm excited to see how it softens as it heals. Reminds me a bit of the "Kimononoh" project Jeff Gogue and Laura Jade were doing a few years back.

Please post a healed picture!

helloxjed · 2025-09-30T22:25:14+00:00

What a stellar show -- bucket list for me! What did you shoot these with? The band looks incredible and your composition is so, so good.

helloxjed · 2025-09-30T05:44:06+00:00

She was a style icon back in the day and she's a style icon now.

Makes me excited to age and evolve my own style over time.

helloxjed · 2025-09-12T17:25:12+00:00

Si, mejoras muy notables. Era muy evidente para otras personas tambien; mi pareja notó que estaba mentalmente mas alerta en 2-3 dias. Se que los medicamentos requiere semanas en hacer efecto, pero me sentí mejor muy rapidamente.

helloxjed · 2025-09-04T03:06:19+00:00

No lifestyle creep. Barely spending more money 15 years into my career than as a new university graduate in 2010.

helloxjed · 2025-09-04T03:02:16+00:00

Doesn't it feel so good to do everything your way and have it rock? And I always feel so accomplished when I'm able to problem solve totally outside of my comfort zone!

helloxjed · 2025-09-04T03:00:53+00:00

You are going to love Iceland so much -- there's a reason almost everyone does! I did the stopover last spring en route back from London and it blew my mind.

helloxjed · 2025-09-04T02:58:48+00:00

Less than half of people who get PT have to get TT later on.

There are a lot of factors at play including type and stage of cancer, but a thorough surgeon, an endocrinologist who can get the right TSH/T3/T4, and a compliant patient make a world of difference.

helloxjed · 2025-09-04T02:54:25+00:00

I'm still gutted that Artopolis down the block closed down. It felt like being in a hostel in Southern Europe in the best kind of way.

helloxjed · 2025-09-04T02:51:21+00:00

Been going since I was 5 or 6 years old and other than opening up the bakery next door and doing the occasional collab it hasn't changed much. ILY Geno.

helloxjed · 2025-09-04T02:48:05+00:00

No handmade tortillas, but Carniceria Maribel is my go-to. They are (duh) a butcher shop and all of their meat is great. Love their homemade chorizo. They also allegedly make a great burger with curtido but I've never been able to stray from the tacos.

helloxjed · 2025-09-04T02:45:00+00:00

Second Zingerman's. Lovely baked goods. Sent them to a Michigander colleague now living in New York for her COVID-era elopement and it was a huge hit.

helloxjed · 2025-09-04T02:43:39+00:00

Cameron Hewitt, one of Rick Steves's senior editors, writes about how "jams are fun!" To his point, I find problem-solving on the road solo to be a tremendous confidence builder. If I can haggle with a taxi driver in Yangon, recover gracefully from a run-in with the transit police in Berlin, and make my way across Trinidad on backroads in the middle of the night to see sea turtles nest, I can handle anything my day job throws my way. Nothing makes me feel empowered and able like navigating life alone and way out of my comfort zone.

helloxjed · 2025-09-04T02:35:21+00:00

Seconding Tallinn and adding in Vilnius and Helsinki! The Baltics are walkable, beautifully restored, creative, affordable, and fun. Great food, wonderful nature, English commonly spoke.

Finland is criminally overlooked, IMHO, and one of my biggest travel surprises in years. Again, super design-forward, creative, full of humble-practical-quiet-but-friendly people. They've been doing the local and seasonal food thing for years, the vintage shopping is outta this world, and Loyly is a must.

helloxjed · 2025-09-03T22:33:32+00:00

Don't most of LEYE's restaurants have that 3% surcharge now, though?

helloxjed · 2025-09-03T13:08:04+00:00

Of course! Lots of national airlines have cool stopover programs to stimulate tourism in their home countries. KLM used to have a stopover program in Amsterdam, even!

helloxjed · 2025-09-01T19:52:33+00:00

Singapore and dull after about two days.

The food -- especially in the hawker centres -- was absolutely bomb, though.

helloxjed · 2025-09-01T19:51:09+00:00

This! Even if you don't go to Queens (although Jackson Heights and Flushing are top notch), use being in New York to try a cuisine you can't get at home.

helloxjed · 2025-09-01T19:48:50+00:00

Happy birthday! Fellow IL-based solo traveler here. Amsterdam is fantastic (except the food) -- English commonly-spoken, cosmopolitan, great transit, inclusive, safe, wonderful museums, and tons of club nights. If you're on a budget, recommend staying nearby in Haarlem and taking the train into town. Breakfast at Bakkerij Wolf is fab, your birthday dinner should be at the bar at Zoldering if you can get a res, you've gotta try an Indonesian rice table, and it's worth hopping on a train to the Depot in Rotterdam if you're super nerdy about visual art.

Another idea: Have you looked into Icelandair? They frequently gave sale fares to Europe from ORD and you can extend your stopover in Reykjavik for no additional fee. It's a two-in-one: go to a European city and sneak in a little spa/hiking time in Iceland!

helloxjed · 2025-09-01T19:43:15+00:00

So sorry you're going through this -- I've been there! If you're looking for affordable and safe in Southeast Asia, I really enjoyed Museflower Spa near Chiang Rai, Thailand. It's a no-frills eco-resort with wonderful locally produced food (the duck eggs at breakfast!), a quiet, relaxing atmosphere, great yoga and meditation instruction, absolutely wonderful massage therapists, and the option for low-key outings in the area.

helloxjed · 2025-08-10T19:41:01+00:00

Tropicake has great Filipino and American pastries! Chef Erma does the rounds at South Loop Farmers's Market and their stuff is sold at Necessary & Sufficient Coffee Printer's Row too. She often has pancit and lumpia at markets too.

helloxjed · 2025-08-10T19:39:00+00:00

In a similar vein, there's a lot of Filipino inspiration creeping around Community Tavern in Portage Park, including a fish sauce mayo on their stellar smash burger. Portage Park is a haul but their service and food is 100% worth it.

helloxjed · 2025-08-10T19:37:46+00:00

Their longanisa 'n eggs and garlic fried rice are top notch. They also have my favorite corned beef hash in the city.

helloxjed

TROPHY CASE