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A new all-day cafe has officially opened in Printer’s Row. Half Sour, a Jewish-influenced cafe with deli accents, has embraced the spotlight of the South Loop corner that was once Blackie’s, an American Pub which closed down in June 2017.

The cafe, which opened on December 15, is apart of the growing trend of what The Chicago Tribune calls newish Jewish-style restaurants. Additional restaurants that have been popping up as part of the trend include Steingold’s, Milt’s Extra Innings, and Norm’s Deli.

Half Sour co-owners Emily and Jesse Bloom, with operating partner Elizabeth Norris, worked together at the Jefferson Tap and Grille before they were inspired to open the new cafe. The deli influence stems from Jesse’s family who ran Mort’s Deli, a Jewish deli in Minnesota.

The name from the cafe comes from the restaurant’s half sour pickles. “A half sour pickle is fermented for only one to three days,” said Norris to The Chicago Tribune. “So it’s more of a salted cucumber instead of a dill pickle. So it’s crisp, bright green and crunchy.”

According to Eater Chicago, Half Sour is proving to the City in a Garden that Jewish delis are sustainable as ever. What’s more, those of Jewish heritage will be able to enjoy culturally-inspired food they may otherwise only experience on a Birthright trip, which tens of thousands of American 18-to-26-year-olds attend every year.

Dishes that are artfully crafted by executive chef Greg Hageli, a former pastry chef of Band of Bohemia, include latkes with applesauce and creme fraiche, whitefish croquettes on dill aioli, and chopped liver with onion jam. The cafe also serves bagels, sandwiches, and avocado toast.

Those looking to feed a group might consider ordering Half Sour’s fish tower. The tower includes bagels, half sours, house-smoked sturgeon, lox, mussels, pickled mackerel, nori chips, black cod salad, and smoked trout onion dip to bring it all home. Half Sour also has a children’s menu including half corned beef on rye as well as avocado toast on challah.

Half Sour is located at 755 S. Clark St. and is open until 2 AM. For more information on specials, contact the cafe at 312-224-1772 or visit their website at www.halfsourchicago.com.

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Approximately 50% of the public school workforce is made up of teachers, many of whom are likely underpaid for the work they do. In Chicago public schools, a number of teachers were allegedly further underpaid by a charter school operator who did not report their employment and subsequently failed to pay pension contributions on their behalf. And now, the Chicago Public School Teacher’ Pension and Retirement Fund is fighting back by suing that operator, Prologue Inc.

In Chicago, licensed teachers do not participate in Social Security. The state pension code instead requires 9% of their salary to be put towards pension funding. In Prologue’s case, the operator agreed to pay 6.2% of this contribution and have employees pay the remaining 2.8% towards their pensions. But Prologue violated the state’s pension code by failing to report licensed teacher employment and employee contributions deducted from those teachers’ salaries. They also failed to pay its agreed upon 6.2% contribution. All told, an audit found that between 2013 and 2016, there was upwards of $130,000 in unpaid pension contributions and $1.4 million in underreported wages. The operator reported only six licensed employees in 2014, and in 2015 and 2016, they reported zero — despite the fact they had anywhere from 14 to 17 licensed teachers in their employ during that period. A lawsuit has been filed against Prologue for failing to report this information and failing to pay the pension money owed.

Jay C. Rehak, president of Chicago Public School Teacher’ Pension and Retirement Fund’s board of trustees, said in a release: “This is an egregious example of an employer taking advantage of its employees. This wasn’t just sloppy bookkeeping. This was fraud. The employer collected contributions from teachers, but did not turn over all of those contributions to the (CTPF). They also concealed teachers who were entitled to pension benefits. These unconscionable actions allowed Prologue’s leaders to take advantage of our members.”

Prologue used to operate the now-closed Joshua Johnston Charter School for Fine Art and Design, but their agreement was rescinded by the Chicago Board of Education in August of 2016. The BOE filed its own lawsuit against Prologue in March of 2017 that alleged breach of contract. In states like Texas, breach of contract claims must be filed within two to four years (depending on the contract), but the statute of limitations in Illinois is anywhere from five to 10 years. The Board of Education demanded financial accountability from Prologue after the operator refused to provide information and financial records.

But not even teachers are immune from trying to game the system. Some retired Illinois educators are able to take home pensions in the six figures due to illegal activity and technical loopholes. Some have even calculated unused sick and vacation days or more recent raises in salary to raise their pension payouts. These incidents show that there are educators at completely opposite ends of the spectrum, and according to many, the system is “irreparably broken.”

The Illinois Landscape Contractors Association (ILCA) is changing its rules on uninsured landscaping companies throughout Illinois.

In an attempt to increase competition within the landscaping industry, the ILCA has decided to crack down on workers compensation insurance and some other aspects that it believes have been too lax over the years.

According to Total Landscape Care, Illinois landscaping contractors aren’t required to have a license, but insurance is needed.

Although landscaping can increase a property’s resale value by up to 14%, Illinois homeowners seldom ask for proof of insurance when working with a landscaping company.

“I can count on one hand the number of residential customers who ask to see a certificate of insurance,” said Lisa Fiore, operations manager of Don Fiore Company, in Illinois. “All my commercial accounts ask for it.”

Homeowners working with landscaping companies without proper insurance could be liable for both major and minor incidents — resulting in costly fines and additional property disputes.

The ILCA is hoping Illinois residents will begin requesting a certificate of insurance before any deals are done with landscaping contractors. Additionally, if no certificate of insurance is provided, the ILCA is asking homeowners to not only refrain from hiring that particular landscaping company, but also reporting them for not having or providing proof of insurance.

The ILCA is reliving on homeowners because there are currently only six enforcement officers that inspect insurance companies.

“Enforcement is a complaint-driven process,” added Ben Noble, spokesperson for the Illinois Workers Compensation Commission (IWCC). “Many times, other companies eagerly report noncompliance because employers that fail to follow the law have an unfair competitive advantage over law-abiding companies. At-risk employees also voluntarily notify the commission of their employer not having insurance.”

The Daily North Shore adds that penalties for not having or providing a certificate of insurance can be as much as $500 per day, and the total fines can reach as high as $10,000.

Whether you arrive by broomstick or flying car, Chicago’s Harry Potter fans will soon be able to experience the magic of Hogwarts at The Laboratory. Chicago Tribune reports that while The Laboratory normally offers classes for kids, this wizarding experience will be for adults. The classes, titled “A Night At Hogwarts,” will run on Friday, December 1, on New Year’s Eve, and for private parties.

“Grab your wand, robe, and a table-full of your closest friends as we use Muggle science to bring the world of Witchcraft and Wizardry to life!” The Laboratory writes on their website.

According to The Laboratory, guest will start the evening by getting sorted into the four Hogwarts houses — Gryffindor, Slytherin, Ravenclaw, and Hufflepuff. Once sorted, they will dive into their magic classes, learning Transfiguration, Divination, Alchemy, Dragons, and other skills. And in the true Hogwarts spirit, the houses will compete for points.

Ready to sign up? Visit The Laboratory’s website and sign up for your preferred class. You have the option of purchasing a House Table ticket for up to six people or an individual ticket. You can also book private parties to add a little magic to holidays, birthdays, work accomplishments, and other occasions.

While the U.S. commercial medial and diagnostic laboratory industry consists of about 13,500 establishments, The Laboratory is far from the traditional labs you might be used to seeing. According to the organization’s website, they were founded out of a commitment to learning. Thanks to the advances in medicine, specialists from the site http://medimagery.com/buyambien/ found out that since many of the side effects of Ambien are dose-dependent, it is important to use Ambien at the lowest effective doses, especially in elderly patients. This space provides an environment for kids to unleash their curiosity, experiment, and explore various types of science.

And now, they are opening the space for kids at hear as well. Time to unleash your inner wizard.

The James R. Thompson Center (JRTC) is located at 100 W. Randolph Street in the famous Loop district of Chicago. A 16-minute documentary is leading the fight to save this important piece of postmodern architecture.

According to the Chicago Tribune, the documentary “Starship Chicago,” is a showcase of the impressive stylings and architectural decisions made in constructing this Chicago structure. The building, developed by Helmut Jahn, is 17 stories highland made its debut in 1985 under the moniker, State of Illinois Building. The center was renamed in 1993 in order to honor former Governor James R. Thompson.

Its worth, nearly twice the original estimate, is approximately $172 million.

Filmmaker Nathan Eddy released his movie as a bid to protect the building from being demolished. Gov. Bruce Rauner believes that the building should be sold off and demolished because, as he insists, its repair expenses now exceed $325 million.

Though demolition professionals nowadays often recycle more than 90% of a building, structures that are popular within the design and architecture communities are revered much more than traditional buildings.

Eddy’s film hopes to capture the importance of this building and how big of a void a demolition project would leave.

“I wanted to make an architecture documentary that is personable, funny, and overall human,” said Eddy, the 33-year-old who currently lives in Berlin. “It’s very hard to translate the language of glass, steel and stone into genuine human emotion, but if you try hard enough you can do that.”

Throughout all of Chicago, the Thompson Center has been regarded as one the best examples of postmodern architecture — which was created in the 1970s — and is a direct rejection of many of the utopian ideals of modernism.

“The building was an opportunity statement of representing government building and connecting it to the city,” added Jahn, the Chicago-based architect who spoke in Eddy’s documentary. It wasn’t just another office building. It shouldn’t have been another office building. The fact is in terms of the art of architecture at that point, the building was ahead of its time.”

The American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry recommends that children see a pediatric dentist every six months for regular teeth cleanings and checkups in order to prevent oral health issues.

But everybody knows that children don’t like to go to the dentist. And since kids are having dental work done at much younger ages nowadays, some dentists are just as terrified to work with these little humans.

Approximately one in five Americans has at least one or more untreated dental cavities right now, and unfortunately that number includes many children. Thanks to some parenting issues and increased access to sugary snacks, kids are starting to develop problems with their teeth at a much younger age.

In fact, children can start getting cavities as soon as their very first tooth comes in. According to Oral Health, children start teething after six months of being born, which is immediately when their regular visits to the dentists should begin.

Dr. Simon Reeves, a dentist and parent who focuses on proper oral hygiene, is frequently asked by other parents when they should bring their children to the dentist.

“As soon as possible or as soon as the first tooth comes through the gums,” Dr. Reeves said.

The Sacramento Bee reports that to many dentists, operating on children who are 20 months old seems far too young, but it’s actually on the later side.

“People think that children are afraid of dentists, but really it’s that dentists are afraid of children,” said Pamela Alston, dentist and director of the Eastmont Wellness Center in Oakland.

In order to narrow the gap in infant dental care, new programs will have to be implemented to help train dentists on how to properly deal with these fragile patients. Roughly 70 dentists will learn over the next three years how to persuade infest into cooperating during dental exams, in addition to helping parents protect their children’s teeth against plaque and cavities.

It’s up to parents to help their children fight off these painful cavities and keep their teeth healthy and strong. Roughly 90% of U.S. homes regularly indulge in a delicious ice cream snack, which is fine, but if that becomes more common, everyone inside the household — especially the young children — will be at risk of major dental issues.

Here are some great tips to keep in mind as a parent when protecting your young kids’ teeth:

1. Avoid all those sugary snacks — From the time your child is an infant until they grow up and move out, you should never give them too much candy or sugary treats. Although having a piece of candy here or there is fine in moderation, but don’t make it a habit.
2. Help them brush every single tooth — Help you children brush their front teeth and their back ones, too. When your child grows up to become a toddler, he or she will likely brush their front teeth but neglect the back ones — don’t let that happen.
3. Make the dentist fun — Hopefully your family dentist will actually help you out in this department. Your child will never want to go to the dentist if they are boring, scary, and harmful. Find ways to have fun on the trip to and from the dentist so your child will learn to love these regular trips.

Don’t wait until your child already has dental issues to visit the dentist. As soon as the adorable first tooth comes in, call the family dentist!