Green Tie Dos and Don’ts

Holding an outdoor event in Chicago in September is a gamble, and Saturday night’s weather didn’t exactly agree with the 16th annual Green Tie Ball, which took place for the second year at Northerly Island’s Charter One Pavilion. It’s hard to rock black-tie attire and keep warm when the temp is hovering around 50, but I planned accordingly and opted for black-tie casual: tuxedo pants and a cream silk camisole under a cropped pea coat and Missoni scarf. (Attending the event relentlessly for the past six years…

The Breakup

In my estimation, I’ve been dating—and breaking up—since I was 10. My first boyfriend was in the fifth grade, and I’m pretty sure he broke up with me by asking his friends to tell my friends that he didn’t want to do the Walk with Israel (a charity walk sponsored by the Jewish United Fund) with me. In my world, that was pretty harsh. I give that breakup a 10 on the rude scale.

In junior high, things became a little more complicated. I fell in love with my seventh grade boyfriend, the cutest boy in school. We dated for two years—until I found out I wasn’t the only…

If Not Now, When?

Ah, new relationships. As exciting as they are, when you’re in your 30s, there’s more pressure to make responsible decisions. You’re not young enough to get away with certain behaviors (so long, flings) that would fly in your 20s; every move you make could come back to haunt you—and sooner rather than later. This new person in your life could be the one you’ve been waiting for all along, so you don’t want to mess things up…

Out There

When the brilliant and erratic Jeff McCourt founded the Windy City Times in 1985, he began a 15-year run that changed the way gays were regarded. But his volcanic personality caused countless rifts, and he died this year at 51, largely alone.