Lynn Becker
@cmgiulini.bsky.social
drifter/writer on architecture, culture and Chicago, photographer specializing in out-of-focus images. there will be posts on opera, apologies in advance.
If you're in DC on the 20th, the National Building Museum is hosting a panel on the development of the chicago Riverwalk that include creators Carol Ross Barney and Michelle Woods, and Chicago Planning Commissioner Ciera Boatright.
nbm.ticketapp.org/portal/produ...
nbm.ticketapp.org/portal/produ...
February 11, 2026 at 12:08 AM
If you're in DC on the 20th, the National Building Museum is hosting a panel on the development of the chicago Riverwalk that include creators Carol Ross Barney and Michelle Woods, and Chicago Planning Commissioner Ciera Boatright.
nbm.ticketapp.org/portal/produ...
nbm.ticketapp.org/portal/produ...
Canada built the bridge. Canada paid for the construction. Canada will operate the bridge. Canada, with Michigan, own the bridge. So now, of course, our gangster President comes along to demand his cut, and protect the monopoly interests of a big donor.
www.yahoo.com/news/article...
www.yahoo.com/news/article...
Trump seeks cut of Gordie Howe bridge tolls, raising questions about donor influence
The administration of President Donald Trump reportedly said Tuesday that the permit and agreement governing the Gordie Howe International Bridge between the U.S. and Canada needed to be renegotiated ...
www.yahoo.com
February 10, 2026 at 11:33 PM
Canada built the bridge. Canada paid for the construction. Canada will operate the bridge. Canada, with Michigan, own the bridge. So now, of course, our gangster President comes along to demand his cut, and protect the monopoly interests of a big donor.
www.yahoo.com/news/article...
www.yahoo.com/news/article...
Our current dilemma explained, in a nutshell:
"America employs about 280,590 public-relations specialists, an increase of 69 percent over the past two decades. (They outnumber journalists almost 7 to 1.)
From a fascinating deep dive on AI, jobs, and the future.
www.theatlantic.com/magazine/202...
"America employs about 280,590 public-relations specialists, an increase of 69 percent over the past two decades. (They outnumber journalists almost 7 to 1.)
From a fascinating deep dive on AI, jobs, and the future.
www.theatlantic.com/magazine/202...
America Isn’t Ready for What AI Will Do to Jobs
Does anyone have a plan for what happens next?
www.theatlantic.com
February 10, 2026 at 9:19 PM
Our current dilemma explained, in a nutshell:
"America employs about 280,590 public-relations specialists, an increase of 69 percent over the past two decades. (They outnumber journalists almost 7 to 1.)
From a fascinating deep dive on AI, jobs, and the future.
www.theatlantic.com/magazine/202...
"America employs about 280,590 public-relations specialists, an increase of 69 percent over the past two decades. (They outnumber journalists almost 7 to 1.)
From a fascinating deep dive on AI, jobs, and the future.
www.theatlantic.com/magazine/202...
Meanwhile, Norman Rockwell makes his first appearance in Art Institute of Chicago galleries. (Maybe first sighting of the Cubs as well?)
chicago.suntimes.com/art/2026/02/...
chicago.suntimes.com/art/2026/02/...
The Art Institute of Chicago just hung its first Norman Rockwell, and it depicts the Cubs
"The Dugout," a famed piece of American art, is a gift to the museum from the private collection of former Illinois Gov. Bruce Rauner. It will neighbor “American Gothic,” already a major attraction.
chicago.suntimes.com
February 10, 2026 at 7:33 PM
Meanwhile, Norman Rockwell makes his first appearance in Art Institute of Chicago galleries. (Maybe first sighting of the Cubs as well?)
chicago.suntimes.com/art/2026/02/...
chicago.suntimes.com/art/2026/02/...
Driehaus Museum announces new acquisitions, including, Clusmann's early 20th portrait of Michigan and Adams, and Fredric Edwin Church's Mountain Landscape, now in the same room where it hung 120 years ago.
www.dropbox.com/scl/fo/uh71z...
www.dropbox.com/scl/fo/uh71z...
February 10, 2026 at 7:28 PM
Driehaus Museum announces new acquisitions, including, Clusmann's early 20th portrait of Michigan and Adams, and Fredric Edwin Church's Mountain Landscape, now in the same room where it hung 120 years ago.
www.dropbox.com/scl/fo/uh71z...
www.dropbox.com/scl/fo/uh71z...
Landmarks Illinois today announced a $5,000 emergency grant to repair a boiler at Schlossman and Bennett's Chicago Loop Synagogue, a landmark-quality building contending with declining membership.
www.landmarks.org/press-room/e...
www.landmarks.org/press-room/e...
February 10, 2026 at 3:48 PM
Landmarks Illinois today announced a $5,000 emergency grant to repair a boiler at Schlossman and Bennett's Chicago Loop Synagogue, a landmark-quality building contending with declining membership.
www.landmarks.org/press-room/e...
www.landmarks.org/press-room/e...
This is actually a pretty good synopsis of Verdi’s Don Carlo, four act version - and pretty cool and engaging.
youtu.be/9cy7fbWXBGc
youtu.be/9cy7fbWXBGc
Verdi's 'Don Carlo' Synopsis with TDO's Amy O'Neil
YouTube video by thedallasopera
youtu.be
February 10, 2026 at 6:04 AM
This is actually a pretty good synopsis of Verdi’s Don Carlo, four act version - and pretty cool and engaging.
youtu.be/9cy7fbWXBGc
youtu.be/9cy7fbWXBGc
And a reminder of what we threw away.
February 10, 2026 at 2:28 AM
And a reminder of what we threw away.
Truly shocking: Artist Judy Chicago's tale in Artnet of working with Google on the redesign of the former Thompson Center atrium is a horror story - incompetent, slipshod management meets corporate bureaucracy on steroids...
news.artnet.com/art-world/ju...
news.artnet.com/art-world/ju...
February 10, 2026 at 2:16 AM
Truly shocking: Artist Judy Chicago's tale in Artnet of working with Google on the redesign of the former Thompson Center atrium is a horror story - incompetent, slipshod management meets corporate bureaucracy on steroids...
news.artnet.com/art-world/ju...
news.artnet.com/art-world/ju...
63% of U.S. population lives within Custom and Border Protection's border zone, "a kind of constitution-free zone," where border agents "are allowed to nullify people's rights."
www.bloomberg.com/news/article...
www.bloomberg.com/news/article...
Who Lives in the U.S. 'Border Zone'? Probably, You.
All of Michigan, D.C., and a large chunk of Pennsylvania are part of the area where Border Patrol has expanded search and seizure rights. Here's what it means to live or travel there.
www.bloomberg.com
February 9, 2026 at 11:54 PM
63% of U.S. population lives within Custom and Border Protection's border zone, "a kind of constitution-free zone," where border agents "are allowed to nullify people's rights."
www.bloomberg.com/news/article...
www.bloomberg.com/news/article...
New, generic-looking entrance canopy at the Loop Googleplex, former Thompson Center.
February 9, 2026 at 8:24 PM
New, generic-looking entrance canopy at the Loop Googleplex, former Thompson Center.
How many symphony conductors have a Super Bowl appearance on their resume? Grant Park Festival Music Director Giancarlo Guerrero leads the pickup band for Bad Bunny.
youtu.be/ZCATwyOuPb0?...
youtu.be/ZCATwyOuPb0?...
Giancarlo Guerrero on 2026 Super Bowl
YouTube video by Grant Park Music Festival
youtu.be
February 9, 2026 at 6:33 PM
How many symphony conductors have a Super Bowl appearance on their resume? Grant Park Festival Music Director Giancarlo Guerrero leads the pickup band for Bad Bunny.
youtu.be/ZCATwyOuPb0?...
youtu.be/ZCATwyOuPb0?...
They’r still gonna honor the coupons when the Googleplex opens, right?
February 9, 2026 at 5:29 PM
They’r still gonna honor the coupons when the Googleplex opens, right?
It's all a grift, and it's all in the family. If your name's Trump, Kushner or Witkoff, you make out like bandits - no, correction, AS bandits. If you don't have that magic provenance, the sucker at the table is probably you.
www.wsj.com/finance/curr...
www.wsj.com/finance/curr...
One Generation Runs the Country. The Next Cashed In on Crypto.
Sons of top Trump administration officials made billions for their families, but their investors didn’t always fare so well.
www.wsj.com
February 8, 2026 at 10:31 PM
It's all a grift, and it's all in the family. If your name's Trump, Kushner or Witkoff, you make out like bandits - no, correction, AS bandits. If you don't have that magic provenance, the sucker at the table is probably you.
www.wsj.com/finance/curr...
www.wsj.com/finance/curr...
Paddock must have some good assets to strip if Alden is so hot on acquiring it.
February 8, 2026 at 9:32 PM
Paddock must have some good assets to strip if Alden is so hot on acquiring it.
A recent op-ed from Jim Nowlan is another Rahm love-fest from still another Republican - why don't they just nominate him themselves? But I have to admit his bio citation as "senior aide to three unindicted Illinois governors" got a laugh out of me.
February 8, 2026 at 7:40 PM
A recent op-ed from Jim Nowlan is another Rahm love-fest from still another Republican - why don't they just nominate him themselves? But I have to admit his bio citation as "senior aide to three unindicted Illinois governors" got a laugh out of me.
The people you turn to when you forget where you put the elevators.
February 8, 2026 at 7:05 PM
The people you turn to when you forget where you put the elevators.
Insurance magnate Patrick Ryan, of $862 million Ryan Field fame, gave $30 million to Republicans in 2024, and in November gave $750k to Florida politicians to pass a law allowing him to sell risky policies that would have "no regulatory oversight whatsoever."
www.miamiherald.com/news/politic...
www.miamiherald.com/news/politic...
RNC chairman pushes change to Florida insurance law backed by GOP megadonor
Florida’s insurance commissioner has expressed deep concerns with the legislation.
www.miamiherald.com
February 8, 2026 at 5:01 PM
Insurance magnate Patrick Ryan, of $862 million Ryan Field fame, gave $30 million to Republicans in 2024, and in November gave $750k to Florida politicians to pass a law allowing him to sell risky policies that would have "no regulatory oversight whatsoever."
www.miamiherald.com/news/politic...
www.miamiherald.com/news/politic...
Spending on the AI bubble is not only eclipsing such prior national investments as the railroads and interstate highway system, it's creating shortages for basic parts for things like smartphones and the availability of electricians. . (WSJ chart)
wapo.st/4qqatnA
wapo.st/4qqatnA
February 7, 2026 at 11:52 PM
Spending on the AI bubble is not only eclipsing such prior national investments as the railroads and interstate highway system, it's creating shortages for basic parts for things like smartphones and the availability of electricians. . (WSJ chart)
wapo.st/4qqatnA
wapo.st/4qqatnA
Saturday snap quiz: Concourse D, or grilled chicken plate with kale and staples?
February 7, 2026 at 8:26 PM
Saturday snap quiz: Concourse D, or grilled chicken plate with kale and staples?
... and my other primary alias: Warren Chiapparelli...
February 7, 2026 at 8:12 PM
... and my other primary alias: Warren Chiapparelli...
Oh, great, now I'm apparently Sigurd. And I drive.
February 7, 2026 at 8:05 PM
Oh, great, now I'm apparently Sigurd. And I drive.
Portrait of American manufacturing - done right.
Corning "outsources almost nothing...it reassigns engineers rather than laying them off, so they accumulate expertise over decades."
www.wsj.com/tech/corning...
Corning "outsources almost nothing...it reassigns engineers rather than laying them off, so they accumulate expertise over decades."
www.wsj.com/tech/corning...
Why a 175-Year-Old Glassmaker Is Suddenly an AI Superstar
Everyone told the company to sell its unprofitable fiber-optic business. Now that division is powering its stock to all-time highs.
www.wsj.com
February 7, 2026 at 7:23 PM
Portrait of American manufacturing - done right.
Corning "outsources almost nothing...it reassigns engineers rather than laying them off, so they accumulate expertise over decades."
www.wsj.com/tech/corning...
Corning "outsources almost nothing...it reassigns engineers rather than laying them off, so they accumulate expertise over decades."
www.wsj.com/tech/corning...