- I was featured on a Chicago Public Radio blog last month in a series called, “Give me a job, please!” Check it out: Storyteller, art lover, wordsmith, factory tour enthusiast.

- Starting in about a week, I’m joining Chicagoist’s Arts & Entertainment bloggers covering museumy things. I’m pretty excited about it, and I’ll keep you posted.

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People keep asking what my trip highlight was. That’s impossible to answer — I was there for five full weeks and packed a lot in. I did catch a couple shows at The National Theatre — we had hoped to see more, but it just wasn’t meant to be — and I realized how much I’m missing out here in Chicago. I live in one of the best cities in the world for theater, and I think I’ve seen maybe two shows since I’ve been here. Unacceptable. I’ve done some poking around, and reduced-rate tickets are available at almost every theater, either by queuing up the morning of, or via HotTix.org (also usually the day of). Here are the current shows I want to see. Who’s in?

The Year of Magical Thinking — Court Theatre (in Hyde Park; based on Joan Didion’s book of the same name)

American Buffalo — Steppenwolf Theatre (a David Mamet play)

Private Lives — Chicago Shakespeare Theater (a Noel Coward play)

And just about anything at Looking Glass Theatre and Second City.

Email me or leave a comment if you want to join me. In general, cheap tickets are around $20 (compared to prices anywhere from $40 to $60+, so it’s actually a good deal).