As I was thinking about what to post today, I realized that I long ago promised to post about the coolest neighborhood I’ve been to in a long time, but it happens to be in Chicago.  I was there in early April & a super-chic friend of mine who’s from Chicago told me to check out Andersonville when I mentioned that I wanted to go somewhere not-touristy & “kind of like Hayes Valley” in terms of unique home-decor shops.  Andersonville did not disappoint.  There were zillions of fabulous furniture stores and if I lived in Chicago, I just might have wanted to furnish a whole house there.  My favorite shop by far though was Brimfield – it looks like it’s from the set of Moonrise Kingdom & makes you think that Wes Anderson really just cribbed him name from the name of this area and got all his set ideas from the Brimfield shop.  They carry classic “camp”/cabin gear – think tons of plaid wool blankets (& yes, a couple came home with me), pillows, and other little things you didn’t know you needed.  And it is a feast for your eyes.  Seriously well done.  Upstairs they have event space too – made me want to throw a party there, except I only know a handful of people in that town so that was out.  It’s a fun area to poke around – there was also a great thrift store where I found some pretty china & a stop at Ann Sather for a traditional Swedish breakfast was pretty darn good too.  After you finish up in Andersonville, I recommend heading to Julius Meinl Cafe for a latte.  It’s close to Andersonville & is just a cool spot.  It’s the kind of coffee shop I wish we had in San Francisco.  Maybe one day.