Well, I blew it. There was this online contest for photos taken with film cameras purchased for less than $50. Given my sad devotion to analog photography and my fetish for rescuing once-proud cameras from thrift shop bargain bins, this contest was a natural.

Well, I got bogged down with other stuff and never got my entry together. I'd decided to use a Kodak Advantix 4100ix, a nifty little Advanced Photo System camera I bought for $4.89 at a thrift store in Wheat Ridge, Colorado. This little camera retailed for $229.95 in the late 1990s.

I had started shooting neighborhood storefronts (like the shot above) as part of coming up with an entry for the contest, but it just kind of went ffffft! I'm too often the sort who starts a project and then is, as The Beatles once warned, so easily called away. I should have stuck with it; the contest was a great idea and something like 80 photographers took part.

Among those whose work is showcased on the contest site is friend and colleague Matt Maldre, who came up with a really neat entry in which he shot nighttime views of Chicago with his Holga 135.

Well done, Matt!

ChicagoScope feedback line: 312-683-5272. Send e-mail to ChicagoScope@gmail.com.

I was anxious to visit Jolane's Cafe & Wine Bar. The place is a side project by the folks behind Abt Electronics & Appliances, which is the indisputable king of Chicago-area consumer electronics retailers. I haven't heard anybody say a bad word about Abt -- ever. (Disclosure: I recently bought a Toshiba HDTV from the store.)

Jolane's is located in the Abt "campus" -- translation: big box shopping center -- out in Glenview. We give it mostly high marks. If you've been there, let us know what you think.

Read Leah's published review

Other assessments
Centerstage Chicago
Yelp
Metromix

Restaurant contact info
Jolane's Cafe & Wine Bar
1100 N. Milwaukee Ave., Glenview, Ill. 60025
847-375-6986

ChicagoScope feedback line: 312-683-5272. Send e-mail to ChicagoScope@gmail.com.

From time to time, I like to check the play count on iTunes after syncing my iPhone. This frequently gives me an amazing insight into what songs I'm listening to the most. Here are the top 10 selections, as of today:

1. "Four Cornish Dances" - Malcolm Arnold; Andrew Penny and the Queensland Symphony Orchestra

2. "Main Title (Captain Nemo's Theme)" from "20,000 Leagues Under the Sea" soundtrack - Paul J. Smith

3. "Faleena (From El Paso)" - Marty Robbins

4. "You're the Reason" - Hank Williams III

5. "Iko Iko" (Power Drive Radio Mix) - Natasha England

6. "The Strawberry Roan" - Moe Bandy

7. "Ride to Fort Hays" from "Dances With Wolves" soundtrack - John Barry

8. "Strayaway Child" - David Childers & The Modern Don Juans

9. "You Can in Yucatan" - Desi Arnaz

10. "The Swing of Things" - Kent Rose

I particularly like the Desi Arnaz song, which has the following couplet: "You think that Adam had it nice? Why, all he had was Paradise."

ChicagoScope feedback line: 312-683-5272. Send e-mail to ChicagoScope@gmail.com.

Desktop snacking is the scourge of my efforts to diet. This is compounded by the easy availability of a cornucopia of piggy-boy dee-lites at the Walgreens across the street.

My latest discovery at the Walgreens is Burger King Ketchup & Fries, which is supposed to taste like french fries smothered in ketchup, I suppose. That's not exactly the taste that comes through, but I found myself eating half the bag.

So, I guess that means they're good.

While searching for other assessments of Burger King Ketchup & Fries, I found a great site devoted to snacks called Taquitos.net. They really liked this snack.

Technical note: I recorded the audio on my iPhone using a killer application called Recorder. What I really like now is that even when I don't have my Marantz recorder or Canon PowerShot with me, I can still create podcasts on the fly with my iPhone using Recorder for sound and iPhone's camera for the visual.

ChicagoScope feedback line: 312-683-5272. Send e-mail to ChicagoScope@gmail.com.