Mayor Emanuel's administration wil release a report detailing when Lake Shore Drive should be shut down the next time this city gets a blizzard like the Blizzaster. more ›

The Great Blizzard of 2011 came and went, but it left Chicago pretty dry: the snow removal during and after the blizzard last month cost the city $37.3 million to clean up. The Chicago Tribune reports that this number is more than double what the mayor and the city had set aside for snow removal during the entire year. more ›

With Blizzaster 2011 somewhat behind us and city neighborhoods digging out around Chicago, the streets are going to be overflowing in chairs, crates, industrial-sized jugs and other junk to save the parking spaces that have been shoveled out by car owners. more ›

Baby, it's cold outside. We aren't saying that as a come-on, either. It is freezing out there. Right now the temperature is zero degrees. With the wind chill advisory in effect until noon, we want to gut a tauntaun right now and crawl in the innards. The wind s are coming out of the southwest, with gusts up to 30-35 MPH through the afternoon. Expect a high of 11, but it won't feel like it. more ›

We'll close what's turned into a long posting day with some final blizzard-related news. more ›

Vanity Fair's Julie Weiner penned a story yesterday before the storm rolled in which she theorized that, even though Rahm Emanuel hasn't been elected mayor yet, he could go out and do things like shovel walkways, dig out cars and help motorists. more ›

Here is a gallery of the blizzard. It's a combination of reader and staff photography. more ›

Today's official snowfall of 20.3 inches places thie Blizzard of 2011 third on the all-time list for Chicago, behind the Blizzard of 1999 and the still champion, the Blizzard of 1967. As we mentioned earlier, any blizzard that rolls through the Chicago area will be compared to the Blizzards of '67 and '79. If you're a native Chicagoan whose parents lived through the Blizzard of 1967, chances are they've already called you to remind you that "their blizzard" was much worse. more ›

(Ed. Note: Whenever a blizzard comes to the area, it's always compared to the Blizzards of 1967 and 1979. With the former, it always comes down to getting the forecast wrong. In the latter, it was the response to the blizzard everyone remembers. Anyway, I was going through the archives and found this February 2008 "Friday Flashback" on the Blizzard of '79. We're reposting it today. — CS) more ›

The City Department of Emergency Management is about to hold a press conference updating the response to the blizzard. WGN TV is streaming the press conference on its website. more ›

Given what we've heard about the nightmare that unfolded on Lake Shore Drive during this blizzard, my commute doesn't seem quite so bad now. It didn't involve rescue by any of the brave emergency workers or National Guard troops. I did get home at an hour that is within the realm of normal dinner time. I was greeted with hugs from the wife, who had hot tea and soup waiting. But it was no joy, either. After hearing how long people spent on the Drive waiting for rescue, I am so very grateful I wasn't among them. more ›

Pardon us for getting a late start to the day. We had to shovel the light dusting of snow we received last night. Anyway, the blizzard warning is still in effect until 3 p.m., but we still have 2"-5" of snow coming this morning. And we feel real sorry for Northwest Indiana. They're gonna get hit hard again. The high temp will be 23 degrees, and then the mercury dips below zero overnight. more ›

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Last night, while reading up on the reports of the "Wow, Skilling got it right!" snowstorm just now hitting the area, we did a search for songs titled "Snowblind." Oddly enough, the more popular ones(Sabbath, Styx, Ace Frehley had nothing to do with actual snow. Since there are a lot of music junkies on staff, we did a long riff on songs about snow. Think of it as a playlist to keep you warm. more ›

Hey, all. I know that this blizzard talk is some serious business right now, but we want to have some fun with it, all the same. more ›