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Living in the city
Nearly 29 percent of employees with teaching certificates live in ZIP codes entirely outside the district. Since ZIP code boundaries and district borders don’t match, it’s not clear how many more might live outside the district in ZIP codes that are partially within the district.

For the best Medicare model, look down under
The key is that it has to be an event that no one wants to have happen. If you begin providing insurance coverage for things that people want to have happen then the cost skyrockets. Imagine what your car insurance would be if, in addition to covering accidents, it covered oil changes, tire rotations and repairs on worn parts.

Lobbyists become scapegoats amid ethics reforms
Bribery is a Class 2 felony in Illinois. It’s also a federal offense, punishable by up to 10 years in prison. Neither of those laws stopped former Rep. Luis Arroyo (D-Chicago) from allegedly attempting to bribe a state Senator who turned out to be an FBI mole.

LETTERS
EXPUNGEMENT SUMMIT HAD HELP Thank you for the great article about the recent expungement summit (“A Second Chance in Life,” Oct. 31).

Breasts, Viagra and hotel sex
According to a report released last month by the state Executive Ethics Commission, Manuel “Manny” Zepeda told three women employed by Marcfirst, a Normal nonprofit that helps the developmentally disabled, that he had an ex-girlfriend who once obtained Viagra for him.

FOR FREE CONCERTS, VOTE NOW
There’s only a few days left to vote for Springfield to win a grant from the Levitt Foundation for a second summer of free live music. Deadline is Nov. 20 for your keyboard to count toward Downtown Springfield, Inc.’s plan to activate the Y Block with weekly outdoor concerts and a better stage and sound system.

BAM, BAM, BAMBI
That’s an apt takeaway from a paper recently produced by Ball State University economist Paul Niekamp, who found that arrests for violent crime don’t go up and may decrease in some rural areas during firearm deer hunting seasons.

Ex gaming board chair sues
Don Tracy, a Springfield attorney and contributor to Republican causes, says the executive inspector general’s office conducted a shoddy investigation and that his wife, not he, was behind contributions to candidates made while he was on the gaming board.

HOW AND WHY TO DIVERSIFY
Chances are good that if you serve on a nonprofit organization’s board, your fellow board members look and act a lot like you. That might be a problem, according to a Springfield-based initiative that is seeking to make those boards more reflective of the communities that they serve.

The savory side of pumpkin spice
For warm, autumnal meals that manage to feel cozy while still staying light and fresh, look no further than your spice cabinet.

Metropolitan Opera magic comes to Springfield
It is a well-kept secret that you can watch a live performance of New York City’s Metropolitan Opera right here at our local AMC Springfield 12 movie theater. The Metropolitan Opera’s Live in HD series brings the magic of the Met to movie theaters in more than 70 countries worldwide, including here in Springfield.

November cometh
Here we go on into the fall season that felt much more like winter this week, but nothing stops the intrepid live music attendee from making the rounds to get the goods on good tunes. Our week ahead presents an assortment set to appease the most persnickety of audiences.

LIVE MUSIC
Captain Geech and the Shrimp Shack Shooters.

BAND SPOTLIGHT | Billy Don Burns
From his origins as an extremely respected songwriter and performer in Nashville in the early 70s to his current stance as an indelible icon to a younger generation of “outlaw” country artists, this one-man force of nature continues to defy the odds by being relevant and rebellious for some 50 years in the country music world.

BULLETIN BOARD | Anthropology, geology and paleontology
The Illinois State Museum’s collector’s day and artifact identification event will focus on anthropological artifacts, rocks, minerals, fossils and bones. Museum visitors are invited to bring items to be identified by staff members and other experts.

THE CALENDAR
I Love you, You’re Perfect, Now Change.

FILM | Hollywood’s Golden Age
During that year Hollywood’s film industry produced an outstandingly large number of exceptional motion pictures, many of which became honored as all-time classic films. Among the movie premiers that year were iconic films such as The Wizard of Oz, Gone with the Wind.