THE WIZARD OF OZ
I had a lot on my mind one afternoon so I went for a walk. I kept thinking and thinking and thinking and realized that I’d wandered into the Lincoln Park Chicago neighborhood. Given that I live at the boundary of Wicker Park and Bucktown, that’s a pretty far walk. I know that there’s a Lincoln Park Zoo and that there’s probably an actual Lincoln Park as well, but I knew I was in that particular neighborhood because I came upon Oz Park. I don’t know why more people haven’t heard of this place because it’s really interesting. It’s not going to be a big tourist attraction or anything because it’s just a park. Still, its called Oz Park because at every corner there’s a statue of a character from the Wizard of Oz. Dorothy, the Tin Man, the Cowardly Lion, the Scarecrow, and even the Wizard himself. I’m not sure if there’s some kind of connection between the Wizard of Oz, either the book or the movie, and Lincoln Park or even Chicago itself, but it’s a cool place. It stands out from all the other nearby parks. Though I wonder just how many of the children playing there have seen the movie.