While the masses attended the first showing of the new Star Wars movie, I celebrated the intergalactic phenomenon in another way and enjoyed some time in my former living area of Oak Park, located just west of downtown Chicago.

My day started at The Book Table, an independent bookstore in Oak Park. I could spend days there roaming and checking out their books. In this digital age, my heart longs for pulp, and The Book Table’s more than 50,000 titles provide plenty of hard copy.

Oak Park is home to many houses designed by renowned architect Frank Lloyd Wright, who resided there for about two decades. Despite seeing the structures many times, I always marvel at their beauty. Plenty of tasteful holiday lighting displays highlighted their magnificence.

For a late lunch, I enjoyed a delicious portabella mushroom fries appetizer and a turkey burger at Avenue Ale House. It would be hard to cram more flavor into one lunch. I love this place.

Award-winning parodist Paul Erickson hosted a Star Wars party at Defiant Comics. Erickson is the author of several parody books, including his latest, Jar Jar Wars, which spoofs the Star Wars series. While I hesitate to admit I am not a huge fan of Star Wars, I find Erickson’s Jar Jar Wars to be immensely entertaining.

On my way home, I made one last stop and picked up a pizza from Geppettos, my old favorite place. I always get a pizza there whenever I am close. There are so many great places to visit in the Chicago area, with Oak Park as one of my favorites that I try to visit several times a year.

— John Wroblewski, online contributor