Flesh-eating bacteria. Swine flu. The plague. We have enough to worry about these days, let alone what dangers are lurking for us when we stop by the Dollar Store. Thankfully, CBS 2 is there to alert us to the creeping hazards that await us in the aisles of the discount departments. more ›

This Saturday, the Chicago Bluegrass and Blues Festival descends upon the Congress Theater. The 12-hour festival will feature 18 bands on two stages, over 50 artists and vendor booths, sketch comedy by Second City’s “Cell Camp,” jam sessions and picking circles, and tons of other reasons to brave the cold and head to the fest. The plethora of home-grown talent includes The David Grisman Quintet, The Avett Brothers, Ha Ha Tonka, Lil’ Ed & the Blues Imperials, Majors Junction, Dollar Store, Blue Mother Tupelo and Billy Childers. The festival will also feature a “Last Banjo Standing” contest where musically inclined patrons can enter for a chance to win a spot on the main stage and perform for the masses. more ›

Even "Everything Is A Dollar" stores are taking a hit from the economy. The sign outside Dollar Central in Frankfort, IL now reads "Most Everything $1.10." So you can kiss your days of spending a dollar on cleaning supplies, hair barrettes, and scented candles good-bye. But not without a huge apology from owner Cindy Stuart, who seems to be the nicest dollar store owner to ever exist. more ›

Like a scaled-down Tonight Show sans writer’s strike trauma, The Interview Show brings humorous, interesting and idiosyncratic folks to The Hideout’s couch. Tonight at 6:30, host and Red-Eye columnist Mark Bazer welcomes “Funniest Person in Chicago” Hannibal Buress (there is no one funnier…), Looking for Alaska author John Green, Lifeway Foods President Julie Smolyansky, and Schadenfreuder and troublemaker Justin Kaufmann. more ›

It's making the rounds, so we feel sort of obligated to link it up, but bleh. Someone really did hang a skinned goat on the Harry Caray statue, though their curse-cursing didn't do anything. And the cops had to cut it down. Still trying to figure out what to do tonight? Local artist Brian Morris's solo show of drawings and customized toys has its opening party at Rotofugi tonight. If you like skulls and... more ›

Got a dollar? Spend it tonight at Steppenwolf's Garage Theater, where the Listening Room presents the 2007 TCF ShortDocs: Dollar Storeys. The two-headed beast child born of the union of The Dollar Store reading series and Third Coast Audio Festival, Dollar Storeys are sweet radio segments based on purchases made at dollar stores. Tonight's event features highlights from the contest, stories from Chicagoist's pal and Dollar Store mastermind Jonathan Messinger (here's some trivia: Jonathan was at our very first happy hour ever! Wowza!), and local applicants will share some of their material as well. more ›

Dollar Store's Jonathan Messinger more ›

You wouldn’t necessarily know it by looking at him, but Dean “Deano” Schlabowske is a traditional kind of guy. Well, at least he is when it comes to wine. After 17 years in the wine business, Dean decided to put his experience to good use. His motto? Corporate wine still sucks. No, really, that’s what it says on the sign posted on the window of Cellar Rat Wine Shop, his two-month-old Wicker Park store. And he should know: He spent 15 years working for two of Chicago’s largest wine retailers (no, we’re not gonna name names; you figure it out). more ›

So, is everyone getting excited to once again “taste the flavor of Northcenter” on June 9th and 10th? Area marketing firm Big Buzz Idea Group released their annual Ribfest lineup this morning, and it’s a typical street fest mix of solid local acts and some curious headlining choices. Let’s take a gander at Saturday’s alt-country-heavy plate for a quick and dirty example. You’ve got your full on honky-tonk (Fulton County Line), your country punkers (Dollar... more ›

Author John McNally more ›

What do get when you mix writers with improv actors with podcasts with open source programmers? Chris McAvoy, of TastebudChicago, gave us an answer, Same Title Different Story, a webzine of sorts through podcasts. The idea is similar to The First Line — give writers a common theme or idea, in this case a title, and let them have at it. more ›

It's the first Friday of the month which means The Dollar Store Show, a series of readings and performances based on purchases for a buck, returns to the Hideout. This month's readers include writers James Kennedy and Jonathan Messinger as well as theater performers Sarah Haskins and Diana Slickman. Hideout, Friday, 7 p.m. $1 We can't decide which under-appreciated literary group to support on Saturday so we'll list two and hopefully hop between them. First,... more ›

We knew a week off would recharge our batteries for this feature, but who knew meeting our word count this week would be as easy as beating a Big Ten team in the NCAA tournament? And we're not even including the poor guy who cut off his own wang. Drumroll please... more ›

Okay, we’re having fun with reading and writing this week, ‘member? So let us not waste any time and move on to The Dollar Store. The Dollar Store is the brain child of Jonathan Messinger of ThisIsGrand.org fame. He gets writers from all over the city, gives them a suggestion (something from a dollar store, get it?), then the first Friday of the month the writers read what they wrote and everyone has a beer... more ›

We're feeling awfully artsy fartsy today, so here are three weekend activities to cure your humanities jones. If you hate books, reading, writing, authors, drama, talking, performing, microphones, or puppets, this post is not for you. But we're curious how you get through the day and if you can offer us a few tips. more ›