Rec
🌭
lucky enough to live in chicago
corncob buildings, Carl Sandberg’s poetry, Wilco and Horsegirl, corner taverns, concrete (and sand) beaches, best skyline, miles and miles of parkland, distinct neighborhoods, nostalgia for the chocolate smell of the Blommer Factory, labor history and labor rights running through our veins, green rivers (the drink and the actual river), Sufjan Stevens and Djo have us covered, tacos and Italian beef and Chicago-style with all the fixings, the tamale guy going dive bar to dive bar, the wax wrapper encasing your Tootsie Roll, Kashmir Pulaski Day, from Monadnock to Mies we’ve got the best architecture in the world.
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@salad_valet
Feb 18, 2025
45
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@eerieplease
ugh this city 💓
Feb 19, 2025
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@salad_valet
eerieplease i love it so much that when i moved away for work for a few years, it was all i talked about to anyone who would listen
Feb 19, 2025
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@michael--you-know-the-one
it’s COLD!
Feb 19, 2025
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@salad_valet
michael--you-know-the-one it IS cold today, but come June, she‘s a different town entirely
Feb 19, 2025
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@bhm
michael--you-know-the-one that’s what keeps the rent down!
Feb 19, 2025
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@eatgraeps
I am in love with ur city from afar
Feb 19, 2025
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@aeroplanesea
how expensive is it to live there
Feb 19, 2025
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@salad_valet
aeroplanesea cost of living is going up and our interest rates and sales tax are through the roof. BUT it is also affordable in the sense that you can find relatively affordable housing in a whole bunch of neighborhoods still. And we have basically everything all the major cities have! plus excellent architecture and great food and kind people and the greatest summers
Feb 19, 2025
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@jrpaperstack
and somehow I’ve never had a Pulaski Day off…
Feb 19, 2025
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@salad_valet
jrpaperstack i have a faint memory of getting it off in elementary school and going to a Pulaski parade. but that’s about it!
Feb 19, 2025
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@epic
a much needed reminder after this morning’s subzero commute
Feb 18, 2025
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@salad_valet
womensrights summer is coming! Just need to get through February and the inevitable blizzard in April
Feb 19, 2025
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@michaelsoftworldwide
I am so glad to see the tamale guy mentioned
Feb 18, 2025
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Chicago!
There‘s so much to do and so many hidden gems it really depends on your vibe! Where are you staying?
Kingston Mines is a blues club that’s been around forever- they have live music, food, and drinks.
Chicago does street fests so well and they’re what I think of when I think of summer. There’s something every weekend basically.
Millenium Park also does a free concert series. It’s great to picnic and listen to great music. A lot of well known artists do it.
We have beaches!!!! You probably won’t have a bike but if you do… bike up to a beach.
The river architecture tour is so cool, I loved it even as a person who has been living here for 15 years.
In the summer it’s really easy to stumble upon stuff, which is what I love about summer in the city. There’s also a dive bar on basically every street so if you’re looking for a chill place to have a beer, those are easy to find.
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@mossyelfie
Jun 1, 2024
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i love you chicago
For a girl who wants to always be in Chicago…especially a good list for vinyl listeners, club enthusiasts, stationery and design nerds.
Merz Apothecary Parachute Robey Hotel The Warbler Smartbar 606 Records The Green Mill Dusty Groove Giant Penny Whistle Greer Chicago Atlas Stationers Oak Park FLW Walk Garfield Park Conservatory
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@radishriot
Jul 2, 2024
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the chicago corncobs
AKA the Marina Towers, of Wilco album art fame.
When I lived in Chicago, these never failed to make me smile, but in both a joyful and a wistful sort way.
They remind me of a future we could have had, one where art and culture, as well as actual social development and use value were the modus operandi of American wealth and ingenuity, rather than just a massive military empire and the cannibalization of blind and self-destructive profit seeking.
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@ruffianbandwidth
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Top Recs from @salad_valet

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The anti-capitalist nature of pi.fyi
i’ve been trying to articulate why i enjoy this space so much. yes, the UX is reminiscent of Tumblr and the early days of the internet. and there’s genuine sincerity and vulnerability on here that makes it feel really cozy and real, which i haven’t felt online in at least a decade.
but i think what’s undergirding my love of this space is how anti-capitalist it feels. most of the recs everyone shares are vibe-checks, quality of life shifts, meditations and offers, music and movies, just plain good art. i don’t feel compelled to buy anything when i come here. i feel excited and pumped to be a cheerleader, find connection, find common ground. and FWIW the recs i’ve shared that have gotten the most traction are my suggestions for leading a less capitalistic / consumerist life (quitting Amazon, getting off of Spotify, building community to take care of you and your things).
all of this is to say, i love it here and i love you guys.
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@salad_valet
Feb 7, 2025
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Quitting amazon
hear me out—this one might feel impossible, but i quit purchasing items on Amazon in 2018 and cancelled my GoodReads account shortly after.
i did some serious reflection and realized i’d become super reliant upon, and frankly, quite used to the instant gratification of purchasing something and knowing i’d have it within a day. that’s not normal. the labor practices, economics, and environmental impacts of getting what you want from the internet delivered quickly and right to your door are skewed. i was filling a void in myself with mindless purchases.
i’m aware that they service a huge swath of the internet (Amazon Web Services), own Whole Foods and Abe Books, and will likely take over more businesses we like and rely on. weaning off and avoiding entirely is very very hard, but it can also be a measured decision. that said, i know that it is a privilege to abstain from Amazon. i am able bodied, i don’t have kids, i have access to a car, i live in an urban environment with access to a lot of stuff at my fingertips. but making the choice to break out of the Amazon loop has ultimately been better for my pocketbook and better for my relationship to these mega-tech-companies that have their fingers in everything.
in contrast, i’m becoming more interested in alternate economies, like bartering and sharing. i love the idea of having commonly shared tools and items (tool libraries are very cool). we don’t need to own it all, we have each other.
interested in exploring more? the zine pictured below is a great start, and summarizes a much larger book by the same author on how to resist the leviathan that is Amazon.
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@salad_valet
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Breaking free from spotify
i canceled my Spotify account over the summer and have spent the last few months rebuilding my digital music library on a refurbished iPod Touch. reading critiques of the app (and it’s enshittification), i realized i wasn’t even sure of my own musical tastes and preferences. i had stopped picking for myself, stopped seeking out new music, ceasing to know how to choose what i wanted or articulate what i like.
breaking free from the algorithm has been such a joy! i’m borrowing gobs of music from the library, rebuilding my old playlists, and consuming more music than i have in years. and better yet, my data isn’t being tracked by Spotify and i own what’s in my personal library. further, my receptors are more open when i’m out in the world exposed to music, searching for recommendations in an organic way.
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@salad_valet
Jan 16, 2025
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