Today I talk with “Shark Tank” alum and quirky creative comedian guy, Steve Gadlin. We discuss keeping one’s energy up after over a decade of making artsy stuff, the logistics and finances of running a stage show in Chicago, and chasing down very exciting rejection letters. Elizabeth: I only kind of know you, Steve. You worked with…
Author: Elizabeth Lindau
Exploring Dearborn's culinary treasures, and rehabbing a tiny house in Michigan.
The thing we still can’t talk about.
I knew talking about money would be hard. I didn’t know HOW hard. Usually people like to talk about themselves, or want exposure for their work or product. I thought maybe some folks would like to vent about their struggles. Or share what they’d learned. My friends have agreed to talk with me (and for that, thank…
Ryan Tracy of Aloha Falls
Today I talk with my friend and band-mate Ryan, who started in mini-golf course in 2012. I’m grateful for his honesty about his difficulties getting financing. Looking for a loan yourself? Then read on … Elizabeth: The tales you hear about entrepreneurs, or read in magazine articles about someone who starts a business, make success seem…
Mice are bunch of assholes and I hate them.
I hate you, mice. I hate you and your stupid mousy faces. Sigh. Well, I guess this means that “replacing the rotting threshold on the side door” just moved up to the first project to tackle come springtime. I suppose I should be eternally grateful that they are kind enough only inhabit the space between…
The cost of my blog
I ask folks to be honest and brave about money in my interviews. How did you price your sausage? Did you do a business plan? How are you supporting yourself right now? But I realized I’m not be honest about my own expenses for these very interviews. So it’s time for me to do what…
Financing a Farm
Many thanks to Tina Bartsch and Debbie Weingarten for an honest discussion of the realities of small-scale organic farming. A great read for anyone who wants to start a farm. And for the rest of us, who need to start thinking about the financial sustainability of the food we want to eat. Quitting Season: Why Farmers Walk…
Ben Jackson of Kowicki Kielbasa
How do I know Ben? Back in 1997, I responded to his Craigslist ad. But not THAT kind of Craigslist ad! C’mon man. Ben was selling floral foam left over from his wedding, and I needed floral foam for my wedding. We met up and rode the El together to retrieve said floral foam, and…
As the old saying goes …
“The wood warms you once when you chop it, then when you stack it, again when the pile tumbles over and you have to restack it, it finally when you burn it.”
Alexis Leverenz of Kitchen Chicago
Welcome to my interview with Alexis Leverenz, about starting her wonderfully successful shared-use kitchen and event space, Kitchen Chicago. Obviously I know quite a bit about Kitchen Chicago. But my dear lovely readers do not, so can you give an overview of Kitchen Chicago and what you do? Sure. Kitchen Chicago is a commercial kitchen…
That time I incinerated chemical weapons for a living* (*Almost)
You work in Antarctica, and you meet all sorts of people with all sorts of crazy jobs. And the craziest of them all, and the one that I actually interviewed for and was offered, was working on Johnston Atoll, incinerating chemical weapons. I’m sorry, what? You might say. Where? All great questions.
A terrorist knocks
OK so the tiny house truly is not in the middle of nowhere. There are neighbors within eyesight. But coming from the city, it certainly feels more remote than I’m used to. So when I awoke to an urgent *BANG*BANG*BANG*BANG* on the side door, I was startled. I wasn’t expecting anyone. I rolled out of…
Can I borrow a dress for New Year’s?
Elizabeth Parke Firestone had a fantastic closet. The dresses are now part of the collection at The Henry Ford, and are viewable online. Some of my favorites … Bob Bugnand, 1959-1960
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