I remember my first trip to Brookfield Zoo.
I was in the 4th grade.

My class took a bus there all the way from Markham. It seemed liked such a long trip.

Faithful Michael Jackson fans started flocking to his childhood home in Gary, Indiana at 4 this morning.

Samantha Moritz and her dad drove from the town of Highland, Indiana to pay their condolences to the king of pop.

Now, 15, Samantha swears she fell in love with Jackson's music at the tender age of 3. Samantha clutched a laminated photograph and autograph of Jackson. She got them during Jackson's last visit to Gary in 2003.

The summer sizzler continues for a second day across Chicagoland.

Today the mercury is expected to climb into the mid 90's, combined with the humidity, it could feel more like 100 degrees in some areas.

Clarence Justice spent his Father's Day thinking positive thoughts about his missing daughter.

Jada Justice, who is almost 3 years old, has been missing for almost a week.

She was last seen Tuesday night with her 18-year-old babysitter - who is also her cousin. Angelica Castillo has told authorities that she left Jada in her unlocked car while she ran into a Gary gas station to grab a gallon of milk.

Ronald Holt walked into the Cook County Criminal Courts Building this morning with his son still fresh on his mind.

Jury selection soon was to get underway today for the trial of a 17-year-old accused of gunning down Holt’s16-year-old son, Blair, on a CTA bus in May 2007.

Holt expected to sit through hours of jury selection; instead, he received an unexpected surprise.

I crossed an ethical line in journalism this morning.

I gave a hug to a person involved in one of my stories, and that's something we reporters are trained not to do.

We walk right up to tragedy, sometimes a dozen or more times per year, and we're supposed to greet it with a stiff upper lip.

This was a crucial day for Chicago’s Olympic delegation.

The group is in Switzerland where it pitched the city’s bid to host the 2016 Summer Games to members of the International Olympic Committee.

Madrid, Tokyo and Rio de Janeiro also pitched their cities.

Today could turn out to be pink slip Friday for more than 1,000 city workers.

Barring a last-minute deal with labor unions, Mayor Daley says the layoff notices will go out to workers in every city department.

It was an unbelievable site on the Eisenhower Expressway this morning.
A mangled Dodge Charger sat sandwiched underneath a Blue Line L train.

State Police say Jose Rivera's car somehow left the roadway near Central Avenue, jumped a concrete barrier wall and landed right on the Blue Line tracks, where it was eventually struck by a train.

Just what is in the water being served up in Chicago City Council chambers?

For decades now, the place has been a magnetic pull for the ethically challenged.

This morning, 29th Ward Alderman Ike Carothers pleaded not guilty to federal corruption charges that include bribery and fraud.

State lawmakeres need to come to up with a new state budget, or thousands of low-income kids could lose their child care services.

That was the message Governor Quinn delivered today at the Erie Neighborhood House on the city's west side.

President Obama reached out followers of Islam this morning with a much-anticipated speech in Cairo, Egypt.

The president called for a "new beginning between the United States and Muslims."

He said the cycle of suspicion and stereotypes must end.

Stacy Peterson, Lisa Stebic, Irma Rodriguez?

Rodriguez disappeared from her Oak Forest home Sunday night.

Last night, her car was found in nearby Midlothian with a woman’s body stuffed in the trunk. The woman had been shot to death.

Today is a sad day for the Chicago Police Department.

This morning, a 27-year-old officer was shot twice in a drive-by shooting on the South Side.

The 3-year veteran is in extremely critical condition with a bullet lodged in his head.

I've reported on some heinous and heartless crimes over my career, but this is one of the cruelest.

Earlier this month, 15-year-old Alex Arellano's brutalized body was found in a gangway on the Southwest Side. He had been beaten, burned and shot in the head.

I’m not a political reporter, but I occasionally cover politics. I’ve talked to Roland Burris numerous times over the past two years and he always seemed like a genial person – and an honest person, at least by Chicago standards.

But this morning, I saw a very different side of the man who is now the junior senator from Illinois.

I didn't even know this existed.

A museum dedicated to my first and favorite childhood doll: Raggedy Ann.
The Raggedy Ann & Andy Museum is located in downstate Arcola, Illinois.

This morning I was disheartened to learn that the slumping economy is forcing the museum to close.

Father Michael Pfleger is temporarily flipping his church's flag in honor of Memorial Day.

Earlier this month, Pfleger turned the flag the flies at Saint Sabina Church upside down as a "distress signal" to draw attention to the young people killed by gun violence in Chicago.

The summer travel season is here, and thousands of Chicagoans are packing up and hitting the road for the long holiday weekend.

AAA is predicting that 32.4 million travelers will take a road trip this Memorial Day.

That's a slight increase from last year and gas prices are a big reason.

It's hard to imagine what the loved ones of Stacy Peterson and Lisa Stebic must be going through right now.

This morning, an autopsy will be performed on the badly decomposed body found yesterday by a cleanup crew on the banks of the Des Plaines River near Channahon and Interstate Highway 55.

That's an area where searchers have looked for Peterson since she disappeared Oct. 28, 2007.

Bus drivers who don’t stop to pick up passengers.

That’s the top complaint right now for the Chicago Transit Authority, according to new statistics released by the agency.

There is good news for the CTA and its riders, however -- complaints are down in most other areas.

The Cook County Board tested embattled President Todd Stroger’s veto power today.

Commissioners supporting a rollback of a penny-on-the-dollar sales tax increase needed 14 out of 17 board members to side with them to override Stroger’s veto of a measure to withdraw the tax increase.

But they came up short.

The Drew Peterson drama is heating up again. The ex cop turned murder suspect has to sit in jail for a few more days.

At his arraignment today on murder charges, Peterson’s attorney, Joel Brodsky, planned on asking that Peterson’s $20 million bond be reduced. But that effort was put on hold after prosecutors, in a surprise move, requested that the judge in the case be taken off the case “on the ground of prejudice” against prosecutors.

What a Friday this has been for one Hanover Park family. Their home was devastated by a fast-moving fire earlier today, but the family of four managed to escape unharmed.

As I walked up to the burned out shell in the 2100 block of Laurel Avenue I could see what looked like a kitchen chair but not much else in the charred rubble.

I was quickly taken back to October of 2001.

Hundreds of people in parts of northwest Indiana and Illinois spent the day cleaning up from last night’s fast-moving storms.

One home in Dyer, Indiana took a direct hit from the storm. High winds uprooted a massive tree causing it to come crashing down on the roof.

The city of Chicago is in the midst of a major cash flow crisis.

Facing a budget shortfall projected at $300 million, Mayor Richard Daley wants thousands of non-union city workers to take as many as 17 unpaid days off before year’s end.

Cook County Board President Todd Stroger is standing by his decision to block a rollback of the controversial sales tax increase he pushed for last year.

At a press conference this morning at Provident Hospital on the city's South Side, Stroger said the county has too much at stake to let the repeal of the penny-on-the-dollar tax go through.

The news spread quickly around the world this morning. Northwestern University graduate and American journalist Roxana Saberi was finally freed.

Saberi was imprisoned on espionage charges four months ago. She was sentenced to eight years in jail, but an Iranian appeals court reduced her term to a two year suspended sentence.

More drama for Drew Peterson.

The former Bolingbrook police sergeant will make his first court appearance this morning for the drowning death of his third wife.

Peterson is scheduled to be arraigned today on charges of first-degree murder in the death of Kathleen Savio. She was found dead in a dry bathtub in 2004. Her death was originally ruled an accidental drowning.

Renita Carter is a grieving mother on a mission. Last night, her only child was shot and killed by Chicago Police officers and she's determined to find out what really happened.

According to police, Carter’s son, Dashaun Winston wounded four people last night when he opened fire in a convenience store in the South Shore neighborhood.

This morning Chicago Public Schools officials welcomed students back to Joyce Kilmer Elementary School in the Rogers Park neighborhood.

Kilmer was the first school in the state to close last week after a 12-year-old female student contracted the H1N1 virus and was hospitalized.

Swine flu fears have some people anxious, on alert and possibly overreacting.

More than 150 deaths in Mexico are blamed on the virus so far which is thought to be the epicenter of the illness. Health officials say the number of confirmed swine flu cases in the United States has jumped to 68 though none of the cases have been fatal.

There also reported cases in the Middle East and the Asia-Pacific region. Americans are being urged not to travel to Mexico if they don't have to.

Be sure to watch your stuff if you ride the CTA. Recent statistics from the Chicago Police Department show robbery has soared 77 percent on CTA trains, platforms and buses in the past three years - from 246 incidents in 2006 to 436 in 2008, according to a report in today's Sun-times.

I spoke with some riders in the South Loop today and many said the struggling economy is to blame. They said times are tough and people are doing whatever they can to survive and that includes stealing!

Summer break is about to get shorter for hundreds of Chicago Public Schools students.

The Board of Education is expected to approve a plan today expanding the number of year-round elementary schools from 65 to 132 by fall.

Students at year-round schools have the same number of school days as children at schools with traditional schedules, but instead of one long summer break, they have shorter mini breaks.

Former Governor Rod Blagojevich is desperate for some cash. He's been unemployed since January, when he was booted from office, and his legal bills are surely mounting. So now he's looking to cash in on his pseudo-fame.

The indicted Blagojevich was in court this morning asking for his travel restrictions to be lifted so he could jet off to the lush jungles of Costa Rica and participate in a "Survivor"-style reality show called "I'm a Celebrity, Get Me Out of Here."

But the judge denied his request.

Last year, there were more than 3,000 pedestrian related accidents on Chicago streets. This week, Chicago Police will start cracking down on drivers who fail to give pedestrians the right of way.

Get caught and be prepared to pay up.

If you're obese and fly on United Airlines, get ready to pay for second seat.

Starting today - the Chicago-based air carrier says it may bump severely overweight passengers from sold-out flights.

I am an animal lover. I love them so much that, when I get tired of covering news, I just might go back to school to become a veterinarian or at least volunteer at an animal shelter.
Over the years, I have adopted everything from a chicken and green iguana to snakes, turtles and rabbits.

Fertamia Smith was found dead in the trunk of a car Wednesday night on the city’s South Side. Her family says the 35-year-old woman was last seen Sunday. Her ex-boyfriend – who is also the father of her children - is now in police custody and will soon be charged with her murder, say Bellwood police.

The day White Sox fans have been waiting for finally arrived – Opening Day on the South Side. Droves of diehard fans camped out at The Cell hours before today’s game, grilling, chilling and just having a good time. While many folks talked about their hopes for the Sox 2009 season, there were also plenty of others doing another ritual of many Sox fans -- unprovoked, big-time bashing of the Cubs.

Instead of getting U.S. Cellular Field ready for today’s White Sox season opener against the Kansas City Royals, crews were busy on snow detail this morning, shoveling snow and spreading salt. Baseball officials decided to postpone the first game of the 2009 until tomorrow due to this latest blast of wintry weather.

This marks the first time since 1982 that the opener for the White Sox has been postponed because of a snow-out.

More drama unfolds in the Rod Blagojevich saga. The impeached ex-governor was vacationing in sunny Florida with the family when federal prosecutors finally filed what had been anticipated for months -- a sweeping 16-count indictment of Blagojevich that includes racketeering, wire fraud and extortion charges.

Whether Blagojevich is ultimately found guilty or innocent, many Chicagoans say they are suffering from massive corruption fatigue. And no wonder.

Members of Chicago’s Police Union don’t have a problem with Chicago hosting the 2016 summer games. In fact, they hope the city lands the Olympics, which will mean more work and overtime for officers. But they are using today’s visit by International Olympic Committee officials to bring attention to some simmering issues.

Tomorrow kicks off a crucial six-day visit for Chicago. International Olympic Committee evaluators arrive to size up everything promised in Chicago’s 2016 bid book and determine if the Windy City should be awarded the summer games instead of Rio, Madrid or Tokyo. Evaluators are likely to run into a number of unhappy protesters.

A coalition of community and labor groups plan to stage a protest. The activists want the city to guarantee community jobs, minority contracts and affordable housing. They are upset that a formal agreement hasn’t been approved by Team 2016 before tomorrow’s big visit.

Ousted governor Rod Blagojevich morphed into Radio Rod - serving as a guest host on the Don Wade and Roma show. As he left WLS studios, it was apparent that although Blagojevich is no longer governor, he still acts as if he is.

I’m always amazed at how many people think violent crimes only happen in the Chicago or in other neighborhoods. This morning, I was in the south suburban community of Homewood covering the fatal shooting of a parole jumper from Michigan.

The shooting happened near the Homewood Metra Station, so I headed out to talk to commuters and get their take on what had happened, see if they still feel safe.

If you haven’t heard by now, some 16 Whitney Young High School students were among 27 Chicago-area teens arrested Saturday in a downstate hotel and charged with underage drinking. The teens were there for the high school basketball championship tournament, which Whitney Young captured later Saturday night. I ventured to Whitney Young on Chicago's West Side this morning to get the students take on what happened to their classmates over the weekend.

This is turning out to be a trying year for Yolan Henry. A few months ago her daughter and infant granddaughter were murdered. Then yesterday, she begrudgingly relinquished custody of her beloved grandson to his father, former Bulls player and Thornwood High school standout, Eddy Curry.

When people ask me how I ended up in journalism I proudly tell them: I didn’t choose journalism, journalism chose me. My mother hates it when I say this, but it’s the truth.

When I was in high school, I was extremely shy. Instead of eating in the cafeteria, I would eat at a single desk in the corner of my high school newspaper office. One day, the teacher in charge of the paper asked me if I wanted to help them out and possibly write a story. Well I jumped at the chance, and so began my career in journalism. Journalism helped me overcome my shyness.

This morning some 200 Simeon Career Academy students boarded buses bound for Springfield. They’re on a mighty mission -- to try and save their classmates.

So far this school year, 29 Chicago Public School students have been killed.
Many of them died from gun violence. Fourteen-year-old Gregory Robinson was one of them. A mild-mannered, nerdy freshman with good grades and a passion for basketball, he became a statistic Friday night, when someone sprayed bullets into his cousin’s car. A single gunshot to his back and his young life was over in a matter of minutes. Many students are worried that more Chicago teens will die if something isn't done to stem this senseless violence.

When I was 14, I was thinking about my first boyfriend, my first kiss, if someone would ever ask me to the prom and if I'd ever get married.
I was NOT thinking about violence or getting shot! I wonder if Gregory Robinson ever worried about those things?

I really feel bad for Shaun Gayle. I also feel bad for 41-year-old-Marni Kay Yang, the woman police say killed Gayle’s pregnant girlfriend and their unborn child in October of 2007.

A friend and business associate of Gayle’s, Yang appeared in bond court this morning in Waukegan. I was seated in the second row of the courtroom. Her name was called and police led a tiny woman in blue jeans, with tussled brown, shoulder length hair in front of the judge. The prosecutor began going over the details of the case, to make a point as to why bond should be denied for the mother of three turned murder suspect.

Our school is more than a learning institution, it is the fabric of our community.
That's what parent Willie J. R. Fleming said Schiller Elementary School means to his family.

Willie's comment touched me and made me think about my own elementary school.

The holiday shopping season is officially underway. I don't know about you, but I love giving one-of-a-kind gifts to my friends and family. But I think the folks at Miller Park Zoo in downstate Bloomington are missing the mark with their idea of a unique Christmas gift.

They're actually making and selling Christmas ornaments out of...get this ...droppings from reindeer. This is no joke folks.

Turns out that staying in school makes a lot of sense for students and taxpayers.

A new study out of Boston's Northeastern University found taxpayers - get this - lose $221,000 over the course of a lifetime for each Illinois student who drops out of school.
All I can say is, wow! Now, that's money that could be in my savings account.

Eternity Gaddy should be picking out an outfit to wear on the first day of school. Eternity Gaddy should be thinking about what she wants to become when she grows up.

There are so many things this precious little girl should be doing right now. But sadly enough, she will never get the chance.

The 13-year-old practical joker, who loved her friends, music and makeup died yesterday. She was struck in the head by a stray bullet early Sunday morning during a visit to her old Humboldt Park neighborhood.

Tonight, Senator Barack Obama will take his place in history when he accepts the Democratic Party's nomination for president.

Obama is set to become the first African-American to accept a major party presidential nomination. His big moment happens to coincide with the 45th anniversary of Martin Luther King's famous "I have a dream" speech.

This moment is certainly one for the history books.
Some would like to believe Obama's nomination is proof that the issue of color is behind us, but not so fast.

Michelle Obama, the woman who could become the nation's first African-American first lady, is tonight's keynote speaker for the Democratic National Convention in Denver.

Known as "the rock" in the Obama family, she wrote her own stump speech. It's expected to humanize her other half and to show up her own critics.
It is indeed Michelle's big night to shine.

Spanking, swats and licks.
A quarter of a million schoolchildren got them last year - and a new study says African American, American Indians and kids with disabilities got a disproportionate share of the punishment.

While a majority of states have outlawed corporal punishment, it remains widespread across the south, according to the study by the Human Rights Watch. The national P-T-A believes paddling should be banned everywhere.

And I wholeheartedly agree.

Harlen Hayes is fighting for his life, after he was doused with gasoline and set on fire.

The 77-year-old landlord of a South Side apartment building, Hayes is a Korean War vet and retired postal worker. He's is in critical condition with burns to about 90 percent of his body. Police are looking for a 28-year-old man who was a former tenant. Neighbors say the man was evicted after a drug bust.

This story made me sad, angry - but also thankful that my parents are no longer in the business of being landlords.

Michael Phelps keeps finding gold at the Beijing Olympics.

The American swimmer has claimed five gold medals at the summer games so far, and he still has three more events to go.

I think his achievements in the pool are awesome and incredible.
But I also think more attention should be paid to the accomplishments of all the other talented athletes - especially those who don't win medals.

In 1996, my oldest brother, Derrick, competed in the summer games in Atlanta.
He was a Greco-Roman wrestler and 37 years old.

I need to learn how to swim.

In the past few days, two young people have been found dead in swimming pools - one in Morgan Park - the other in Evergreen Park.
I cringed when I saw these stories - because they made me remember my near-death experience in the water.

I need to learn how to swim.

In the past few days, two young people have been found dead in swimming pools - one in Morgan Park - the other in Evergreen Park.
I cringed when I saw these stories - because they made me remember my near-death experience in the water.

I have covered a lot of crime stories in my news career. But the one I covered this morning has made my heart hurt like it never has before.

Nine-year-old Mya Lyons was found as stabbed to death - and possibly sexually assaulted - early this morning in alley near her father's South Side home. Mya's father says the little girl was put to bed, but she somehow got out of the house. He told authorities that he later found her unresponsive in an alley and brought her to Jackson Park Hospital, where she was pronounced dead.

I'm jumping on the blogging bandwagon. Should be fun.