Go to There: Unwrap Chicago: Buy Local

This is more of a "go to your radar" more than a specific event you can attend per se, but surely you've heard of the "localvore" movement, or if not, folks who try to above all else support local merchants by buying exclusively from local stores whenever possible. It isn't always possible, of course, but the city would like to bring to your attention the fact that Nov. 23 through Dec. 3 has been ordained Buy Local week in Chicago. Via an official City Council resolution, the week has been ordained as such.

“I know that small business is the engine driving our economic recovery,” said Treasurer Stephanie Neely in a statement, “and this is a way for residents to promote local prosperity while enjoying unique products and personalized service.”

Also from that same release is a cool trivia tidbit you might not have realized: "If every household in Chicago committed to shift $100 of their holiday spending to local retailers, it would inject $25 million into the city’s economy."

That's a lot of escarole.

To find out more about the movement and how to participate in it, you should hop on over to http://www.eatdrinkbuylocal.org/ using your favorite locally made Internet browser. (That would be Mosiac, Internet Explorer or even Firefox, which, to make a long story short, were developed at U of I in Urbana-Champaign.)

If you want to join the movement, you can do so here.

David Wolinsky is a freelance writer and a lifelong Chicagoan. In addition to currently serving as an interviewer-writer for Adult Swim, he's also a comedy-writing instructor for Second City. He was the Chicago city editor for The Onion A.V. Club where he provided in-depth daily coverage of this city's bustling arts/entertainment scene for half a decade. When not playing video games for work he's thinking of dashing out to Chicago Diner, Pizano's, or Yummy Yummy. His first career aspirations were to be a game-show host.

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