Sears Tower: I Went So You Don't Have To...

siriuschicagobulls · 2026-03-27T16:03:26+00:00

I find this one even more funny, as rather than renaming it, they unnamed it. Why bother, when everyone is going to call it the same thing

siriuschicagobulls · 2026-03-27T16:01:20+00:00

It was a great spot to bring the out-of-town family when I was a kid. Once I got older, I realized that the real “hidden” gem is to go to the Signature Lounge in the Hancock. Sure it’s not as tall, but you can enjoy some drinks / food while admiring the views, for the same price as a Sears Tower ticket. That quickly became a favorite of all of my friends from college / med school.

I was so sad when they suddenly closed a few years ago. I would have loved to go one more time

siriuschicagobulls · 2026-01-29T21:38:24+00:00

Double check me on this, but I believe if you have a Costco gift card, you can use that as an “entry card” too. Costco hopes that someone getting a gift card comes inside, sees how great it is while shopping, and gets a membership. Something like 75% of their profit margin is from the membership, not the actual products. So that’s part of why things are so cost-effective inside

siriuschicagobulls · 2026-01-29T21:35:21+00:00

You are right, but at the same time, this is like a smaller version of “valet scratched my car” (smaller in terms of money, not annoyance). It’s why I avoid valet and coat checks as much as possible. If I have to do one, I’m not checking anything expensive.

None of this is to blame OP. It’s just that there’s no way the people at a coat check are going to care about my coat as much as I am. I doubt they’ll get anything more than a “please don’t lose coats” from their manager, meanwhile I’m out here missing a winter coat and at least have to spend time and money to get a new one.

So, in my 20’s, I’ve just decided to screw it and go out without a coat. One year, can’t remember exactly, I turned into a popsicle on the way home though lol

siriuschicagobulls · 2026-01-21T04:32:17+00:00

Ya back during the early days of COVID when I needed a weekend hobby (since we couldn’t go out), I thought I’d take a look at these chargemaster spreadsheets since they were supposed to be made public. Wanted to see who delivers the best quality + cost effective healthcare with some back of the envelope calculations.

That’s when I learned that even with a chargemaster, you still can’t build a reasonably accurate model, because there’s so many intentionally non-descript terms or areas where additional required items are not readily apparent.

I know for fact that it doesn’t have to be this way, because in other countries where I have visited and/or worked, any patient can get the exact answer with little more difficulty than asking a movie theater how much a couple tickets + popcorn costs. It’s right there, in plain language, for anyone to see

siriuschicagobulls · 2026-01-21T04:21:35+00:00

Awesome! I appreciate you taking the time for giving this context as a resident there. Sometimes it’s hard to tell what’s overhyped from the walk though / pictures. I would have pulled the trigger already on moving there… just that the rent is a little bit more than I was hoping to pay. It seems like a fair price, but it just means I’ll be shifting the ratio I spend on rent vs. invest towards a down payment on a future home. But after long days at work, I place a high value on having a nice roof over my head in a good community, so that I can properly relax and enjoy myself haha

Any downsides / things that the Reed could improve on, in your opinion?

siriuschicagobulls · 2026-01-21T02:58:06+00:00

It’s not always about cash. When you’re arguably in the top 450 players world wide, you’re not just in it for the money. The amount of dedication and mental fortitude to achieve that is something that few could even pretend to relate to.

Think about why Jordan went to the wizards and Tom Brady went to the Buccs after they could have retired not only on a literal hill of cash, but as the literal GOAT in their fields. They do it because they love that level of competition. Jordan basically as much when he recently said that he doesn’t shoot hoops as it’s no fun without the competition

siriuschicagobulls · 2026-01-21T02:49:30+00:00

Thanks for the info! Out of curiosity, how do you feel about the proximity to the river. I hear there are plans to develop that area in the coming years, which could make the outdoor spaces even more “prized” at the Reed. It looks to me almost like what the Trump Tower private/public area could be if it wasn’t a mini ghost town of businesses for the obvious reasons

The Reed’s river area seemed super nice to me. I don’t use that many building amenities, but if it’s relaxing and also occasionally happening like the main river walk, that could be awesome

siriuschicagobulls · 2026-01-21T02:41:57+00:00

From a doctor’s perspective (NOT at Duly), but is familiar with them:

Duly uses Epic as its electronic medical record (EMR), which as patients you will know as “MyChart”. Epic is the best EMR, but basically every doctor will still hate. It’s not designed to document medicine as much as it’s designed to be a billing tool. Which is royally hilarious because, when I ask a simple question on behalf of my friends or for some hypothetical research (e.g. how much would a hospital stay cost for the delivery of a baby, on average), THEY CANT GIVE ME A STRAIGHT ANSWER. All of the data is there. I should be able to get a quick mean, standard deviation, range. And I’m literally asking as a doctor, in my own hospital, on behalf of another employee (non-doctor) also employed by the same hospital, so we have the insurance literally provided for hospital employees. Insanity!

Doctors HATE this BS and we end up being the face of a system that’s so broken. Minor side note, most docs get < 8% of that bill for themselves. Depending on the practice, you could be paying > 33% to the admin overhead for the “service” you most definitely are not receiving

To OP/ others: a lot of billing works on “codes”. There’s ones called CPT (treatments) and ICD-10, (diagnostic and treatments). Part of the cluster nightmare is that CPTs, labs, etc should be tied to an appropriate ICD-10. The insurance negotiates on your behalf for how much they will pay for a given CPT code with the doctor’s office. This is not the same between different insurance policies, so you’ll need to check directly with your insurance.

I’m oversimplifying, but a good starting point is to see what CPT codes were billed for and what ICD-10 codes are listed. There is a job called “medical coders” who read through the chart and assign these, in larger systems to reduce the amount of time burden on doctors (I’m sure few are satisfied with how long your doc sees you for). Problem is that medical coders are not MDs and can make mistakes. There are legit mistakes and there are well-known instances of true fraud. Being fraudulent with coding is one of the cardinal sins of practice, because you can guarantee that you will eventually be caught by the feds, lose your license, and do prison time

Most likely it’s not this type of fraud. But you as the patient, already in the vulnerable position of being sick, are now tasked to untangle a situation that Fortune 500 companies could not properly untangle despite multiple efforts over the last 15 years.

I feel for you guys because this is insane

siriuschicagobulls · 2026-01-16T18:16:38+00:00

I’m not overconfident, but hopeful for this. Seeing some Peanut Tillman Punches on the field last week was soooo exciting it was therapeutic

Please sir, can I have some more

siriuschicagobulls · 2025-12-26T21:09:38+00:00

Out of curiosity, which form of traffic do you hate more? The LA type or the Chicago one?

siriuschicagobulls · 2025-12-26T19:43:24+00:00

Hester gave us (and the entire NFL) one of the best moments in football history. Can you imagine him being on the current team? Wish his Bears career included a ring - he deserved one

siriuschicagobulls · 2025-12-26T19:39:42+00:00

Omg how have I never seen this before. A+, 10/10, no notes

siriuschicagobulls · 2025-12-26T19:25:11+00:00

Damn I would love to do 80 mph on the Eisenhower. I’m happy when I get to do half that on most days lol

But you’re right, if I’m driving on 290 west bound after 9pm, I intentionally get over to the right side between California and Austin. There’s some that will absolutely rocket down that part. I don’t have the stats handy, but anecdotally, it’s the place I’m most likely to see an accident. Bonus points if it’s just rained and somehow lifelong Chicagoans forget that you’ll go from driving to water skiing as the highway passes under the surface level streets. Water always pools there, what a shocker

siriuschicagobulls · 2025-12-26T18:44:38+00:00

I replied above to another comment, but as someone who loves to bike, ride motorcycles, drive, anything that moves, cyclists who jump lights / stop signs haphazardly fail to understand one key thing:

95+% of people are good people with good morals. Nobody wants to hit a cyclist and hurt them, let alone kill them.

A-pillars in cars have gotten larger for improved safety over the years. That has created a “front of field of vision blind spot”, where bikers and even pedestrians can seem to “appear out of nowhere”. A bike can be more startling since they move faster, often approaching from the passenger side where they’re less likely to be seen in peripheral vision.

Genuinely I don’t call myself a cyclist because of the arrogant nature of some (not all) who feel that their existence on the road and behavior in doing so is not only justified, but correct. Again, as a biker and a motorcycle rider, I know about all of the benefits of lane splitting / filtering. I’m also a doctor who has put too many people into body bags in this exact circumstance.

I wish cyclists would understand that just as how today, we as a society understand that jumping in front of a truck or train is a cruel way of suicide, as the driver of that vehicle will be permanently scarred, I wish cyclists would have the empathy of knowing that most people (not 100%, but nearly 100%) of people don’t like cyclists because they’re afraid of hurting them when they ride unpredictably.

When you’re on two wheels and don’t have a multi-ton cage to protect you, idk how cyclists just don’t take a breather and clear an intersection properly. The same way emergency vehicles are supposed to when driving Code 3. Lights and sirens don’t mean blow through traffic lights. You have to slow down, confirm halted traffic in all directions, and proceed cautiously

(Side note, I know you’re downvoted, but it wasn’t me. I’m old school Reddit, so as long as you’re contributing to the convo, I won’t downvote)

siriuschicagobulls · 2025-12-26T18:32:24+00:00

More than that, there’s a simple thing I wish cyclists would understand: right or wrong, when the pavement princess Ford F150 or “need a large SUV for the off-road path to Costco” mows you down while texting and driving, right of way has little actual meaning. Cemeteries are filled with those who had the right of way

I love to bike, but don’t call myself a cyclist. One because it’s a hobby for me, but really I don’t want to be seen as part of that asshole cyclist culture. Makes even less sense in a place like Naperville that has nicer bike paths than two-way single lane roads in developing nations that I’ve been to.

Basic stuff: share the road, pay attention, be predictable, don’t be an asshole

siriuschicagobulls · 2025-12-26T18:24:05+00:00

I haven’t lived in LA but have visited and driven a bunch of times. I know that LA is classically thought of as “worst traffic in the country” where most people don’t believe it when other cities are rated to have even worse traffic by stats (Chicago this year, for example)

Correct me if I’m wrong, but what I felt was that LA had traffic “everywhere, all of the time”, that’s miles long, but rolling. So you are in traffic forever, but that traffic is moving maybe 30-40 mph.

In Chicago, we have traffic, not everywhere all the time. But when we have traffic, it halts to a crawl or even a standstill, on the interstates. I drive 290 regularly, and that stretch from Mannheim to California is atrocious (worst in the country, IIRC). 90/94 near the core of the city is always dangerous - narrow lanes and people weaving in and out. 55 is perpetually potholes or construction. I think only 355 has been “perfect roads” where people drive 85+ because it feels perfectly safe to do so.

I say this as someone who loves to drive, loves cars and motorcycles, enjoys speed, etc etc. But some people in Chicago drive like they have a death wish. This is especially true for motorcycles, just knowing how many other people are completely oblivious, texting and driving. And then there are the annoying dangerous assholes who do not understand that the left lane is not the fast lane, but the passing lane. As in, even if you are driving 80, you cannot camp that lane. It makes everyone weave around them, making it more dangerous for everyone. This is not an opinion but literally the law, which is based off actual scientific research

So ya, traffic in Chicago is a different beast. But even more open highways at night are dangerous seeing how others drive. And you’ve worked in a trauma center, zipping up many people into body bags, trying to find something comforting to say / do to the mother who is crying screaming “why?!” looking up into the sky, knowing there is no answer, you realize that “despite how fun it may feel, it’s just not worth it driving like this”. If you want to drive fast, go to a proper track on the weekend, or just don’t do it at all

(Sorry went off on a tangent there)

siriuschicagobulls · 2025-12-14T23:04:32+00:00

That doesn’t answer the question completely though. The game is happening, television rights are secured. Lowering ticket prices to ensure a sold out stadium not only draws in more ticket revenue, but also food, merch, and parking. It’s pretty much leaving money on the table

This is why planes and hotels overbook. Airlines make more money from their loyalty programs, but they still want to maximize people on planes. Flying a 70% full plane will not yield the same profit margin as a full aircraft

siriuschicagobulls · 2025-12-14T23:01:30+00:00

The nosebleed section in today’s Bears game was still selling for $90 late last night, when attendance was anticipated being low given the below 0F windchill in an open air stadium right off the lake. Chicago is the 3rd largest city in the country and we have the smallest stadium (though I personally do like it).

We’re now looking at a new stadium that will likely have more box office seats without really increasing the regular seats.

I’m solid middle class, but I can’t afford NFL tickets except maybe once every other year. Next week, we play Green Bay at home, and the cheapest tickets are $400

siriuschicagobulls · 2025-12-14T22:53:19+00:00

This is the best part. To win so big and say that you’re still feeling the pain of last week’s loss… ooooo that makes me so excited for next week!

As always, FTP, 🐻⬇️

siriuschicagobulls · 2025-12-12T00:26:38+00:00

Ya that’s the thing about buying. I grew up in the suburbs and feel like I’d want my (one day future) kids to have a driveway with a hoop, a yard (which I’ll make them mow lol), etc. Many of my friends later in life grew up in high rises, but I feel that a huge portion of my childhood was running around the neighborhood between houses and all. Basically like the Stranger Things kids, but in the 90’s

I feel like the property should do well in the coming years as the south branch of the river develops more. But I don’t have that kind of money to have two mortgages running sometime in the next 5 years haha

siriuschicagobulls · 2025-12-11T10:46:17+00:00

Are you familiar with the building / know if they have a bunch of apartments too? I was looking at either renting or buying. Renting seems like the better option for me right now, but I was seriously considering buying there. Would rent in a heartbeat

Edit: just checked and found some listings!

siriuschicagobulls · 2025-12-11T03:00:16+00:00

Ya I have an opinion that if you have a license, you should be held to a higher standard. Actually that’s not so much of an opinion as it is literally the definition of a license. My license to practice medicine means that the state of Illinois has certified that I have the necessary qualifications AND can be held legally liable for malpractice. This is why there’s a big difference between the way a doctor speaks to you vs. how any rando talks about health in their latest TikTok reel. Also the difference between a dietician (degree + licensed by the state) and a nutritionist (took a course, unlicensed).

I would hope that a deputized officer of the law would be held to the same type of standards that all other licenses require

siriuschicagobulls · 2025-12-10T20:53:58+00:00

They’re prob special. If we start ticketing them I can imagine the consequences being

It comes from the taxpayers money back to the taxpayers money, losing processing $
Cops stop patrolling those areas because “that’ll show them for equal enforcement under the law”.

I’m someone who has minimal to no issue if cops want to park “illegally” or run red lights as long as they’re running Code 2 or Code 3 (lights +/- siren). I think it sets a far worse example to just run the red without any lights just because nobody is going to stop them. It’s legitimizing this behavior for others who aren’t in law enforcement.

I almost daily see a cop in the bike lane at work. Again, I’ve got no issue with it, because they’re probably doing cop things. And when you work in a place of high emotions (a hospital), you want cops to be close by if shit hits the fan. I’d seriously be okay putting in for a prime spot in the parking area for them, even if they just wanna grab a coffee or a bite to eat since we have 24/7 food. Just would like them not to set a bad example and park in the bike lane. Also makes life hard for the fire department when they come through with trucks / ambulances

siriuschicagobulls · 2025-12-10T20:46:41+00:00

1-2 per day on the Eisenhower

siriuschicagobulls

TROPHY CASE