Happy Marathon Weekend, Chicago! Whether you are headed out for a 26.2-mile stroll this weekend or have no intention of changing out of your pajamas, we wanted to make sure you read these eight stories you might have missed this week:
• One of the greatest things about the Chicago Marathon is the personal stories of the 45,000 participants.
Among the stories this year is that of Ted Moss, who was left paralyzed in a 2006 plane crash. He'll be in this year's wheelchair race.
"I didn't know what was ahead of me, but I just knew that I would still see my family and that paraplegia was not the end of the world for me," Moss said.
• Prominent Logan Square developer Mark Fishman stepped down from the board of the I AM Logan Square community arts council.
A quick refresher: Over the summer, an art exhibit critical of Fishman's development firm was pulled from the Milwaukee Avenue Arts Festival. The exhibit was hosted in space owned by Fishman.
A non-binding petition was circulating in the group aimed at getting Fishman to step down.
• Some people equate video games with shooting up aliens or scoring virtual touchdowns, but at DePaul University's new "Play for Change" lab games are a way to promote personal and social change.
Unveiled at DePaul's Loop campus, the lab has already produced a suite of games that are dedicated to conveying the experience of mental health. One of those games is "FLUCTuation. (Play here.)
Future games will focus on bullying, anxiety and financial literacy.
• Meet Ping Tom the rabbit.
He was rescued from Ping Tom Park in Chinatown, saved from near death on Aug 30. Since then, Red Door Animal Shelter has set up an IndieGoGo campaign aimed at paying off his $1,045 in medical bills.
• The week-long Jewish festival of Sukkot started Wednesday and Chabad of East Rogers Park has come through to help observers who don't have access to a sukkah, a temporary hut constructed for the celebration.
The "Sukkah Mobile" will be making stops around town. Find out where you can meet up with it.
• What? Elote-flavored beer? Middle Brow Beer is debuting it this weekend in Lincoln Square.
• How did one guy deal with his bad luck with women on online dating sites like OkCupid?
He pretended to be a woman online then produced a stage show making fun of guys' responses to her. Check it out.
• There's a new movie theater set to open in the Loop, with adults-only screening rooms with cocktail service.
