Good morning, Chicago.
Fall is in the air. Chicago evenings have a crisp breeze. But something has been bugging Annie Andrews.
Specifically, bees and wasps and a whole lot of sneezing.
“It’s gotten to a point, like, I couldn’t stop sneezing during a shift,” said the 28-year-old restaurant server. Earlier this week, she thought, “I need to take an allergy pill again.” When she waits tables outside, the insects swarm patrons, who desperately ask her to be moved elsewhere, anywhere the bees and the wasps aren’t.
Chicagoans from all over can likely relate. Pollen has concentrated in the city over the past three weeks, mostly from ragweed. Wednesday counts were the highest recorded so far this year — the last time the area had so much ragweed was in 2018, according to Loyola Medicine.
Allergy season is getting worse, climate science nonprofit Climate Central reports. And shorter winters are contributing to more days with high pollen counts and buzzing insects that can derail residents’ hopes for peaceful patio dining.
Read the full story from the Tribune’s Adriana Pérez.
Here are the top stories you need to know to start your day, including how friends are remembering Charlie Kirk, a Solo Cup factory site proposal in the suburbs and why Blackhawks rookie camp is getting chippy.
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Friends recall Charlie Kirk, who started Turning Point USA in Chicago suburbs, as man who ‘inspired millions’
Charlie Kirk told the Tribune in 2018 that his political awakening began in middle school after a teacher badmouthed then-President George W. Bush. He recounted times he sparred with teachers at Wheeling High School. He also led a boycott after Wheeling’s cafeteria raised the cost of a cookie from a quarter to 50 cents.
President Trump draws cheers and boos while marking 9/11 by attending a New York Yankees game
President Donald Trump attended the New York Yankees 9-3 victory over the Detroit Tigers last night, drawing a mixed reaction from a raucous crowd while marking the 24th anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks.
During the national anthem, the president was shown on the stadium jumbotron and received boos from some in the crowd, cheers from others.
Hundreds of hotline calls but no clear arrest numbers days into federal immigration ‘blitz’
Immigration rights groups have seen a massive spike in hotline calls for legal and other help as federal Homeland Security officials this week launched a much-anticipated immigration enforcement surge in the Chicago area, the groups said yesterday.
“The Trump deportation machine is out of control, and it’s our communities and our families that are being torn apart,” Lawrence Benito, executive director at the Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights, said Thursday at a news conference in Brighton Park, a heavily Latino neighborhood on the Southwest Side.
Kane County Board OKs recommendation that departments, offices reduce expenses to help close budget shortfall
In the latest attempt to solve a looming budget shortfall, the Kane County Board has OK’d a recommendation that county offices and departments reduce their expenses by roughly 8% from last year’s budget.
Solo Cup factory site proposal moves to Highland Park council
A proposed residential development for the former Highland Park Solo Cup factory site has cleared the Plan Commission despite resistance from area residents who fear the project’s density and potential impact on traffic.
Just a few weeks prior, the project’s future had seemed far less certain, with the vast majority of public comments criticizing the development and several commission members voicing their outright opposition. Others raised issues with its overall design.
5 things we learned from Chicago Bears, including Cairo Santos taking blame for late kickoff that fell short
All three phases fell apart when the Bears allowed 21 unanswered points in the fourth quarter of a 27-24 loss to the Minnesota Vikings on Monday night.
Special teams coordinator Richard Hightower labeled it a “tale of two halves” for his group’s role in the defeat. With the offense out of sync after the initial drive and the defense failing to stop the run in the fourth quarter, it only added to the collapse.
The quarterbacks’ struggles were well-documented this week. Here’s what stood out for Hightower and defensive coordinator Dennis Allen.
Chicago Blackhawks rookie camp gets chippy — ‘That brings teams together’ — as coaches emphasize playing fast
Day 2 of Blackhawks rookie camp involved a brief exchange of words that led to a skate cutting a player’s face and f-bombs hurled at teammates. That builds team chemistry, according to Rockford IceHogs coach Jared Nightingale.
“Hockey is an emotional sport — I think it’s good,” Nightingale said. “I saw a couple players going at it. It’s not always a bad thing. I know we’re all waiting to play against something other than your own teammates. That brings teams together.”
Lifeline Theatre’s ‘Rabbits in Their Pockets’ is inspired by African and Caribbean oral traditions
“Rabbits in Their Pockets” is a contemporary drama about the relationship between sisters Ash and Harley when they prepare to fix up and sell their childhood home. Both have plans on what the sale of the house could hold for their future, but that’s where third-party Inola comes in, stirring the pot between the pair in an ethereal way. (No spoilers.)
The work melds Black joy, mental health, memory, magical realism and STEM. And it all comes from the mind of Dixon-Mays, a poet and poetry journal editor for RHINO; and a dramaturg with a doctorate in Interdisciplinary Theatre/Drama from Northwestern University.
Why Bad Bunny isn’t touring in the US
Puerto Rican superstar Bad Bunny explained why he didn’t include dates in the United States for his “Debí Tirar Más Fotos” world tour, citing concerns over ICE enforcement outside his concert venues.
“There was the issue of — like f— ICE could be outside [my concert],” he said in an interview with I-D. “And it’s something that we were talking about and very concerned about.”
Who will win at the Emmys?
Sunday’s 77th Primetime Emmy Awards arrive with clear favorites but few sure things.
Will the acclaim for “Adolescence” carry it to limited series dominance, or will “The Penguin” complete a run that began with big nomination numbers and continued with a big performance at the Creative Arts Emmys? Will top overall nominee “Severance” reign like “Succession” and “Shogun” did before it? And can any comedy stop “The Studio?”
‘Demon Slayer’ could win the box office this weekend
The Sony Pictures title, released through the studio’s anime banner Crunchyroll, could be No. 1 at the domestic box office, with expectations ranging from $40 million to as high as $60 million. It could beat fellow openers “Downton Abbey: The Grand Finale,” “The Long Walk” (based on a Stephen King novel) and “Spinal Tap II: The End Continues.”
