Stephanie Hart, owner of Brown Sugar Bakery, shares her concern about the Red Line renovations and how it could impact her business. Hart is a fan of the Rolling Stones and decided on “Brown Sugar,” a song by the band, as the name of her bakery. (Photo/Ali Trumbull)

When the Dan Ryan branch of the Red Line closes for renovations on May 19, the owners of businesses near East 75th Street say they are going to spend the next five months struggling.

One of the city’s most important transportation lines, the Red Line will be shut down southbound from the Cermak-Chinatown stop to the end of the line at 95^th/Dan Ryan.

East 75^th Street, located in the Greater Grand Crossing neighborhood, is a few blocks away from the 79^th Street stop. Business owners and their employees not only have to change their daily routines, but also hope their businesses continue to thrive.

While Stephanie Hart owns a neighborhood bakery, she says her customers come from all over the city.

“The concern with us is that people find new places to shop when it’s not convenient,” said Hart, owner of Brown Sugar Bakery at 328 E. 75^th Street. “These people aren’t from the block. No one walked here today. I can almost guarantee you that no one walked here.”

Another business, Original Soul Vegetarian, is popular with college students from different schools throughout the city. Owner Arel Brown said that 45 percent of his business comes from people who commute from the North Side of the city for their vegan and vegetarian cuisine.

A big concern with a lot of Red Line commuters is the amount of time it will take to get from one place to another during the renovation. One of Hart’s employees at the bakery, Shakemma Buchanan, has to purchase a car for her family.

“We take the train from 79^th to 55^th two times a day,” said Buchanan, a cashier and cake decorator at Brown Sugar Bakery. “It’s [going to] be crazy just to even get them to school and back home with this shutting down for five months. I have to work harder, less time with my kids because I have to make sure I can pay the rent, we need a car, gas money.”

This won’t be the first time transportation construction has impacted the businesses of East 75^th Street. Brown and Hart said that in 2009 the entire street was closed down for sewer and plumbing repairs.

“It kind of killed our business,” Brown said. “And when our business went from, I would say, doing fairly a thousand dollars a day to doing about three hundred dollars a day, and it’s because nobody had nowhere to park. When people came and put their blinkers on, they’d get tickets. It was just the grace of God that the history we had.”

Original Soul Vegetarian has been open for over 30 years and attracts a large number of people from all over the city to its restaurant. (Photo/Ali Trumbull)

Brown’s business has been open for more than 30 years and was started by his father, Prince Asiel Ben Israel. Hart thanks social media for her business remaining open during the 2009 construction.

“Just that little edge, it kept me from going out of business,” Hart said.

Hart along with other business owners on the street came together during that time and used social media to market to everyone they knew in order to keep shoppers coming to 75^th Street. Businesses along the street would offer discounts and support their fellow business owners’ shops. They called themselves Renaissance Row, something Hart plans to bring back during the Red Line construction as a marketing strategy.

Mark Allen, the chairman of Black Wall Street Chicago, says that 75^th Street is the only place in Chicago where “over 80 percent of the businesses are owned and operated by black business owners.” Black Wall Street is a national organization that encourages and promotes the development of successful black businesses in cities nationwide.

“We’ve been here before, we know how to do this,” Allen said. “And the challenge is going out to provide the leadership that it takes to bring people together on the common interest of, ‘this just ain’t about me, it’s about all of us.’ And the same formula that it takes to save one business in Grand Crossing, will be the same formula that sustains the rest of those businesses.”

While Allen recognizes the value in social media, he believes that these businesses need to collaborate and utilize grassroots means of communicating in order to survive.

“So I challenge the business community to put their heads together,” Allen said.  “And no one person can fund it on their own but if everybody pulls their resources together, there can be a collective team that supports how to educate the surrounding community of Grand Crossing on how to continue to support these businesses through the CTA development challenge.”

The renovations to the Red Line South Branch are part of Mayor Emanuel’s Building a New Chicago program, which promises CTA riders a faster, smoother commute and updated stations with elevator accessibility. The CTA says the Red Line will be under construction for five months.

Business owners are waiting to see how this development will impact their livelihoods, all of them unsure what could be at stake financially. Although she’s concerned about the businesses of 75^th Street, Hart is determined they will continue to prosper.

“Seventy-fifth Street is going to thrive during this closing because the people are going to be so aware that this is an important area and that it is important to be supportive during this time that they’re [going to] come out and support,” Hart said. “That’s how I see it.”

Let me start off by saying that I’ve only read six books on this Kindle. Well…three, really, but I read them all twice. That counts as six, right? Oh, which ones, you ask? (Even if you didn’t ask, you get to hear the answer) The Hunger Games series! Yes, I primarily wanted this Kindle so I could transport my beloved Peeta around with me where ever I went (fine, go).

Secondly, this is just one person’s review. A person who isn’t a die-hard reader; rather she’s someone who just reads when there’s a book that’s of interest to her. She would also like to mention that she thinks she’s funny, so at the funny points, you should laugh. But she’ll let you try to figure out the funny points on your own.  Onwards.

Kinds of people who would benefit from a Kindle Fire:

• People who are big fans of the digital age (that is, those who don’t absolutely NEED a hardcopy of every book you read).
• People who commute a lot and could do without any extra bulk in their bag.
• Students who aren’t the write-all-the-notes-in-all-the-books type and don’t mind reading on a screen.
• People who have ADD (Seriously. If you want to read a book, you can. But if your concentration is waning, you can also check your email quickly, and then get back to your book later).

Things about the Kindle Fire that should make you run as fast as you can to purchase one:

1. Compactibility: This thing in THIN! The Kindle Fire can slide into even the smallest of purses (and maybe even a large man’s cargo jean pockets?) Sometimes it actually gets lost in my big bag and I panic. But it’s always chilling somewhere at the bottom. I commute to work on public transportation for at least an hour a day, so having something that’s of value to me that doesn’t take up a ton of space (unlike my lunch) is important.

2. Screen size: Basically I just dig that it’s bigger than my phone and smaller than my computer. I don’t have to squint at my phone, yet I don’t have to drag out my laptop if I want to check the interwebs on the go. Which, let’s be honest, happens a lot.

3. Holds a ton of information: But really, how cool is it that I can have three novels, the Holy Bible, Merriam-Webster’s unabridged dictionary & a self-help book all in my bag at the same time? On one little device! And that’s just the beginning of it!

4. Free stuff:  The Hunger Games series wasn’t free, but the Bible was. And various authors give away limited editions of their books for free on the Kindle. There are also web sites out there packed with tons of free books for the Kindle Fire. I almost got one about photography, but then for some reason I didn’t. I will now though. Be right back…

5. Battery life is awesome: I give it a long, full charge maybe once a week. That’s all it needs!

Kinds of people who might not be best friends with the  Kindle Fire:

• People who hate reading. This is, after all, mainly a book-carrier. If you’re only using it for the internet/apps, why bother? I’m sure you have a phone.
• People who are in denial about the inevitability that books will no longer be printed someday.
• People who aren’t that great at mastering gadgets.

Things about the Kindle Fire that I wonder about/get frustrated with:

1. The screen: I know, I know, earlier the screen was a good thing. But sometimes I get jealous of the people with the regular Kindles. After their day at work on the computer is over, they get to read their books without the stress of a bright screen on their eyes. Sometimes I just want to read, but my eyes hurt and I don’t want to look at something bright, so guess what I do? I don’t read. And then I cry. Another thing about the screen: It’s verrryyyy touchy. Like, one sliiiiightest graze of the finger on the right side and you’re onto the next page. This can be frustrating. Please, make me work for it a little bit. At least so I can remember what page I’m on.

2. Wireless factor: If there’s no wireless around, or you don’t have a password, then you’re out of luck. Pretty sure you can’t buy a 3G plan with the Kindle Fire. If you can, hook me up.

3. The power button: *frustrated rant alert* Why is the power off button on the side? And why can it SO easily be pressed and shut off? Too many times I’ve been at a good part in the HG or looking up a very important word in the dictionary and all of a sudden my Kindle says “Would you like to power down?” and I say back “In fact, I don’t!” And then I realize that the way I’ve been holding the Kindle (against my lap, propped up with the bottom on the table) has made it so the button gets pressed. So. Easily.

Sidenote #1: For this reason exactly have I been known to hold the Kindle Fire upside down. The screen rotates so that leaves me with the power button on top, and less of a chance of shutting off.
Sidenote #2: I don’t have a cover for the Kindle Fire. Maybe this will help the powers-down-without-wanting-it-to catastrophe? Leave me some suggestions in the comments. Thanks.

4. The home screen: I wish there was a way to “list” the apps & books on the home page, instead of scrolling through everything. This is also another place where the touchiness of the screen is frustrating. I want to get to the Twitter app, so I scroll through (to the right), but I’m not sure just how hard I should flick my finger. Apparently this time is was a little too hard, so it takes me all the way to the last book in the menu. Kindle, that’s not what I wanted.

5. Just a vanity issue: From what I’ve seen, there’s no way to change the pictures that show up when you turn it on. I think it would be cool to change that, seeing as it turns off and on so many times. You might as well like the pictures…

Kinds of people who will be on the fence about the Kindle Fire: 

People, like me, who love technology, but also LOVE real books. The Kindle Fire is mainly a convenience to me. It’s easy, it’s small. But there’s nothing like curling up with a good book. I’ve tried curling up with the Kindle Fire and guess what, IT DOESN’T WORK. The power button shuts it off. But, if I’m on the train, sitting up straight, very bored…. the Kindle Fire is basically my best friend. So I have to pick and choose. Which books do I think I’ll want to curl up with? Which books would be good commuting books? Buy the curl-up books in the flesh. Buy the commuting books on the Kindle Fire.

There you have it. Easy peasy. Nice and ‘read-y’.

Entrepreneurship is a critical component in the economic revitalization of African-American communities in Chicago.  Furthermore, Black-owned businesses are one of the fastest growing segments of the American economy.  According to the U.S. Census Bureau’s 2007 Survey of Business Owners (a survey conducted every five years), Chicago and the surrounding metropolitan area have more Black-owned businesses than any other geographically defined area in the country.

According to the SBO report, Cook County, Illinois had the largest number of Black-owned business in 2007 at 511,261, representing 16.4 percent of all firms in the country.  Chicago had the second-highest percentage of black-owned businesses of any city with 58,631, or 3.1 percent of the nation’s total, trailing only New York with 154,929 businesses, or 8.1 percent of the total.  And Illinois had a total of 106,663 black-owned firms with total 2007 receipts of $6.8 billion.  Nationally, the number of Black-owned businesses spiked 60.5 percent to 1.9 million, more than three times the growth rate of all businesses.

In addition to generating revenue within the communities in which they are typically housed, Black businesses also serve another unique function. They are more likely to hire people who might otherwise face challenges to securing employment.  Many Black business owners are more inclined to hire people without post-secondary degrees, single parents (who often need more flexibility in their work schedules) and ex-offenders (whose criminal backgrounds are significant impediments to finding permanent work).

In the midst of the recent economic downturn, launching businesses for Blacks has become “entrepreneurship by necessity,” as quoted by Marc H. Morial, president and chief executive officer of the National Urban League.  Without prospects of work and an exceptionally high unemployment rate, particularly for African-American males, establishing a business often is the most logical next step in generating income.

Unfortunately, many significant barriers remain in place that frustrate the proliferation of larger Black-owned businesses.  There still exists an entrepreneurial parity gap between the growing share of the Black population in America (currently 12.6%) and their ownership of only seven percent of U.S. businesses.  The SBO report showed that only one percent of Black-owned firms nationally in 2007 had revenues of $1 million or more compared to five percent of all firms, and 87 percent of Black firms had receipts of less than $50,000, compared to 65 percent of all firms.  The history of racism and persistent discrimination still undermine the overall success of Black business, locking many potential business owners out of capital and consumer markets. Consequently, Black business owners generally have limited access to financial resources, credit and, most importantly, venture capital.

Not surprisingly, the true economic potential of the Black business community is still unrealized.  Notwithstanding the challenges to the establishment of successful businesses, there are many successful models of Black enterprise that have been implemented around the country.  One of the more recognized models is that of the Black Wall Street districts, areas with significant concentrations of Black-owned and operated business that funnel money back into the local community.

In Chicago, the 75^th Street corridor between State Street and Cottage Grove Avenue, is a prime example of the Black Wall Street model, where nearly 85% of the businesses are Black-owned.  Listen to our Practically Speaking show as we profile the Brown Sugar Bakery, one of the few Black-owned bakeries in Chicago, and its owner, Stephanie Hart, a African-American woman who left a lucrative corporate career to follow her passion for baking (and her grandmother’s mouthwatering recipes) to open her business in the heart of the 75^th Street district.

Promoting Black entrepreneurship does not mean that Blacks should buy only from Black businesses.  To the contrary, Black Americans should feel free to purchase goods and services from any businesses that provide the highest quality and value irrespective of ethnicity.  However, Black buying power is significant; studies have shown that nearly $850 billion is spent annually by Black consumers, over 90% of which flows to non-Black businesses.  As such, the ability to keep a greater percentage of money flowing directly to Black-owned businesses must become an integral part of the renewal of many of our most economically-disadvantaged communities.

By Stephanie Hart
And Then Press, $12.00, 223 pages

Don’t be confused by the title of the book. In theaters everywhere a movie of the same name is playing. Rest assured, author Stephanie Hart’s moving book is far from a fairy tale. Mirror Mirror: A Collection of Memoirs and Stories follows one woman’s life journey. The collection is a series of short vignettes split into chapters that explore childhood, boarding school and high school years. Hart focuses on her family history and comes to terms with what she has learned throughout her life. Some of the stories are humorous (like shopping trips with her mom) but overall, the tone is very somber. Hart lived through verbal abuse, a strained mother/daughter relationship, divorce and the eventual loss of both her parents. Yet she successfully shares her very personal experiences in a way that makes them universal. Readers will relate to Hart and recognize parts of themselves in her words. By the end of the book, Hart shares her revelations about love, loss, heartache, death, tolerance and aging. She should be proud of her work and the potential it has to encourage readers to hold up a mirror to their own past and start living their future.

Reviewed by Elizabeth Franklin

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One memoir had languished, half-read, and has been giving me the evil eye, from my night stand, for months. I started it before receiving the Wolcott Gibbs collection to review, and I never picked it back up.

The other memoir was delivered last week via USPS for a LibraryThing.com review.

And the YA novels? A friend loaned me her Nook, so that I could read them before we see the movie (hmmm, wonder what THEY could be?)

Without further ado….some reviews (in the order they were read):

Although I avoided the Twilight series as if my life depended on it, I allowed myself to fall headlong into the rabbit hole that is the Hunger Games series by Suzanne Collins.

Friends at work were raving about them and planning to see the first movie when it opens this week. I was interested in seeing the movie, but I know how I get, when I’m reading a series, and I really didn’t want to put my family through that (I started Harry Potter a few book releases in, and didn’t speak to anyone for several weeks).

BUT, a colleague loaned me a Nook loaded with all three books, and, fast forward one long weekend, and I was done. I loved them, couldn’t put them down, and am now poised to purchase Team Peeta swag (having started the series on Team Gale). I’m so embarrassed for myself.

Anyone feeling the same should definitely check out this post from Holley Maher!

The Last Resort: A Memoir of Mischief and Mayhem on a Family Farm in Africa by Douglas Rogers: It is a true testament to the skillful storytelling of Douglas Rogers, that this memoir is, in turns, heartbreaking and hilarious. Returning to post-colonial Zimbabwe, where his parents still live, Rogers reveals a land and its people during a time that is difficult to comprehend from the relative safety and comfort of the desk I sit at.

In 1993, Rogers’ parents opened Drifters, which quickly became a popular game farm and backpacking lodge in Mutare, Zimbabwe. When Rogers returns to visit, it is 2002 and the transition to post-colonial Zimbabwe has been factious and difficult. Inflation is soaring, food is scarce, land rights are being revoked, and “blood diamonds” are being harvested in the bush lands.

With tourism officially dead, Drifters has no renters for its cottages, and Rogers’ parents have re-purposed the property, in turn, as a nightclub, marijuana farm, and brothel — all while in danger of losing their land and their lives.

Rogers’ clear-eyed observations on the changes in the country of his birth make for an engaging and informative read.

Mirror Mirror: A Collection of Memoirs and Stories by Stephanie Hart; (review taken directly from my LibraryThing.com review)

As far a memoirs go, the author definitely seemed to be aiming for a more “literary” feel to the collection. For me, it felt , at times, as though she was trying too hard in that direction and not truly providing enough story to keep the reader’s interest.

As a collection, rather than one contiguous memoir, the same ground is mined over and over in separate stories. That her mother had a Jekyll vs. Hyde personality becomes a bit repetitive. The first appearance of this “monster” that is her mother is effectively shared – shocking the reader with her mother’s ability to be cruel. The next four vignettes that make the same point are not a powerful.

For me, the most interesting memoirs either introduce me to a new country, career, or culture, or they illustrate their author’s ability to rise above their circumstances. With the latter in mind, Hart shows that she may be getting there, but she’s not there yet. I would look forward to another offering from her that might show her to be more comfortable in her own skin.

A Simple Act of Gratitude by John Kralik: I bought this book for an easy, feel-good read, and I was truly satisfied in that regard.

Kralik, an attorney, is knee-deep in arguably the worst year of his life, when he has an epiphany, hiking alone on January 1, 2008. He feels certain that a “voice” has told him that he will not receive anything that he wants in life if he does not begin to appreciate that which he already has or has had.

As a result, he endeavors to compose 365 “thank you” notes before the year is over, and he does (or comes darn close, anyway). Cue bluebirds and fairytale ending, right? Um, yeah, pretty much, but in a not-at-all-nauseating chain of events. The nuts and bolts of what really happens is that Kralik learns to adjust his expectations of himself and others — and, in turn, appreciates more about his life.

At the end of 2007, he was embroiled in a vicious custody battle with his ex-wife that has been dragging on for two years. As Kralik begins to make an effort to notice (and pen thank-you notes regarding) the positive things that she does for their daughter, her position towards him softens appreciably, and they are able to resolve the custody issue.

Okay, BUT, when you get right down to it, there are a LOT of books out there with the premise of the author undertaking a yearlong effort to…cook like Julia Child, live without electricity, live on $15 a day, eat a Big Mac every day, grow everything they eat, give up sex (or conversely, have sex every day)….and so on.

That doesn’t mean this book isn’t a good one. It is. We could all use a little more gratitude in our lives, and Kralik’s story drives that point home, in a refreshingly un-preachy way.

AND, in the tradition of “if you like this, you’ll love…..”, I would also recommend How Starbucks Saved My Life: A Son of Privilege Learns to Live Like Everyone Else by Michael Gates Gill

Keep reading!!

This is what it's all about.

I had to share this!

I randomly found this nugget of greatness from a blog written by Jessica Bateman. This is a lovely work of embroidery by artist Stephanie Hart (“Hart” get it?? Mindblowing.). I thought this was touching and rather timeless. It also doesn’t have to be interpreted as a romantic thing, as most of us have friends or family members to whom we’re deeply connected and for whom we have much love. Let’s use today as a reminder that we should love others EVERYday, friendship and beyond.

Dozens of people packed the red Rocks Bar & Grill in Morrison to remember the two teenagers taken too soon.

On Valentine’s Day 2000 15-year-old Nickolas Kunselman and his girlfriend 16-year-old Stephanie Hart were shot to death in the Subway store. Nickolas worked there and Stephanie was picking him up.

“It was very strange for two teenagers to be in love like that but it was so precious,” said Theresa Kunselman, Nick’s stepmom.

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Every year since their death friends and family get together around Valentine’s Day to celebrate their lives.

“It’s supposed to be a time of love and cherishing that love … so what we have to do is cherish the love they had for each other and they brought us all together,” Theresa said.

Nick and Stephanie are gone, but friends, many of them married with kids of their own, help fill the void.

Police have interviewed hundreds of people but still don’t have the killer. The two mothers will never give up hope that person is found; and they’ll continue to honor Nick and Stephanie’s lives and love.

A spokesman for the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office says the investigation is still active and they will continue to follow any leads.

Join me and get down!

Brown Sugar Soul, spun by DJ Ayana (and graciously hosted by Stephanie Hart)

1st Thursdays at Brown Sugar Bakery

328 East 75th Street

6pm – 8pm