CHICAGO — Here's what we're reading to get us through a case of the Mondays.
This Is Not A Satirical Post: A Trump Tower resident writes in Medium about the down sides of living in one of the most expensive and extravagent places in Chicago. "As my life coach has explained to me, however, positives can’t exist without negatives," writes Ajay Goel, whose Twitter handle is @PartTimeSnob. Apparently, the carpeting is too plush (we are not joking, he says that) and the ice towels, lemon water and apples in the gym don't make up for the fact that it's not open 24/7. Also, the Miele dishwasher (which will set you back a cool $4K, at least) is annoying and security is too tight.
Life is so hard. Photo of Trump Tower suite (NOT the author of the post's) courtesy of VHT.
Booing the Champ: Fans are furious with Floyd Mayweather, even after he easily beat Manny Pacquiao in Saturday's megafight. Mayweather doesn't seem to care, instead focusing his attention on the mammoth nine-figure paycheck he earned from the fight. “The check’s got nine figures on it, baby,” Mayweather told the New York Post Sunday, as he waved the $100 million check. The Post reported Mayweather could take in as much as $180 million once final pay-per-view revenue is totaled.
Crown the Kings: In memory of Jack Ely, senior editor Andrew Herrmann is reading the obscene lyrics of "Louie Louie" in a 1964 FBI report and, boy, are they Nasty Nasty. They're also not true, maintained Ely, who died last week. The FBI's two-year-investigation produced a 455-page document, which included a reference to a parent who bought a copy of "Louie Louie" in Crown Point, Indiana and complained the song was "ranked first on the WLS Radio (Chicago) record survey." Another parent wrote then-Attorney General Robert Kennedy declaring "these morons have gone too far." The bawdy lyrics (p. 22 and p. 35 of the report) include the chorus "Get that broad out of here!" In reality, the song is about a sailor on his way back to Jamaica to reunite with his love (real lyrics on p. 37). The FBI concluded that the lyrics were "unintelligible at any speed." Ely enjoyed the notoriety, his obits said.
The Cost of Growing Up: The cost of growing up in Chicago is steep, according to a nationwide analysis by the New York Times. Cook County is considered "extremely bad" for income mobility for children in poor familes and is among the worst counties in the country, according to the Times. Growing up in Cook County results in $3,480 in lower wages for children in poor families compared to the national average. For middle-income families, the county is considered "very bad" for income mobility and "pretty bad" for children in rich families.
Freddie Gray's Hometown Explored: After six officers were charged in the arrest and fatal injury of 25-year-old Freddie Gray, the New York Times took a closer look at Sandtown, the Baltimore neighborhood where Gray grew up. The article points out that Sandtown has double the number of homicides and shootings of the city.
City Says Park Grill Should Pay Up: City lawyers told a Cook County judge that the owners of the Park Grill restaurant in Millennium Park owe taxpayers more than $8 million due to a "sweetheart deal" signed with the Chicago Park District more than 10 years ago, reporter David Matthews is reading in the Chicago Sun-Times. The figure reflects below-market rent and free natural gas and garbage collection the Downtown restaurant secured in 2003 while one of its owners was having an affair with a top Park District official, the lawyers said. City and Park Grill lawyers issued written closing statements Friday in a court case on the 30-year concession agreement, which City Hall wants voided. The Park Grill argued that if it loses the deal, the city owes its owners more than $13.6 million — the amount they expected to collect by selling the restaurant four years ago. The court case has cost taxpayers more than $4.1 million in legal fees, the Sun-Times reported.
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