Our friends at WalletHub sat down recently and put together a list of the best states to raise a family in. Despite what cable news naysayers might think, Illinois polled tremendously well in these results. The state finished as the 13th best place to raise a family. Even more surprising, according to WalletHub, is the 11th most affordable state in the country.

Other categories included family fun (4th), education and childcare (25th), and health and safety (29th). Indiana finished 34th overall.

Oscar Mayer is now hiring its next class of drivers for the humble Wienermobile. The company is looking for 12 graduating college seniors to step up to the sausage and drive the Wienermobile around for a year. Selected applicants will travel more than 200,000 miles across the country.

According to the job posting, being a driver comes with a good salary and benefits, which makes me wonder what the hell I’m doing with my life.

More info can be found here.

$402 million. That’s the price hike that Peoples Gas has circled. Chicago residents could see their monthly natural gas bills rise by an average of $11.83 starting next year if state regulators approve rate hikes totaling $402 million as requested Friday by Peoples Gas. Peoples is asking for permission to raise rates by $195 million while also merging an additional $207 million into delivery costs to offset a $15-per-month surcharge slated to expire at the end of the year.

The commerce commission has the rest of this year to decide on Peoples’ request, but that agency has a full docket of other rate hike requests covering most of the state.

Chicago police have teamed up with auto shops in an effort to halt the speed of catalytic converter thefts. Andy Bizurp, who owns Midwest Performance on West Fulton, worked with officers to design a sticker that will be able to track these converters. “This has an acid etching in it,” Bizub said. “Once you apply the sticker, the acid will etch the numbers into the catalytic converter. Those numbers will remain and it will still be traceable.”

Others are expected to follow suit, depending on funds made available by each alderman’s office.

Obvious Shirts, a Chicago-based t-shirt company and premier destination for Cubs fans who are looking for something a little different, have joined the parade of supporting Damar Hamlin and his foundation. Company founder Joe Johnson obviously wanted to help Hamlin given his highly public situation, but for him, it was also personal. Johnson suffered from Kawasaki Syndrome at ages three and five and had to wear a heart guard while playing youth sports.

Their shirt can be found here.

Damar Hamlin tweeted from his hospital bed on Sunday afternoon that he has created his own shirt with proceeds going to first responders and the UC Trauma Center.

That shirt can be purchased here.

The Bears, who started the season winning two out of their first three games, struggled to find their footing as the season continued. They lost their last 10 games and thanks to a little help from former Bears head coach Lovie Smith and his Houston Texans, who squeaked out a victory over the Indianapolis Colts, the Bears have secured the first overall pick in the draft.

The Bears will have the first overall pick for the first time since 1947. Among the available players, the Bears have a chance to grab possibly elite defenders in Will Anderson (Alabama) or Jalen Carter (Georgia). Because the Bears don’t need a quarterback (assuming Justin Fields doesn’t have any injury setbacks), they are also in the market to trade down to teams like Houston, Indianapolis, or Carolina.

For the first time in a long time, it feels good to be a Bears fan.

Megan Hess, a Colorado funeral home operator accused of illegally selling body parts and giving clients fake ashes, was sentenced to 20 years in prison Tuesday by a federal court judge. Hess received the maximum penalty after pleading guilty to mail fraud. She and her mother, who was also charged, were shipping body parts to third parties for research without the consent of the deceased family.

Hess’ mother said during the sentencing, “I acknowledge my guilt and take responsibility for my actions. I’m very sorry for harm I caused you and your families.”

The baby gear company Gluxkind is ready to debut their Ella AI Powered Smart Stroller at an upcoming consumer electronics show in Las Vegas. The smart stroller offers much of the same tech seen in autonomous cars and delivery robots, including a dual-motor system for uphill walks and automatic downhill brake assist. The Ella stroller is able to drive itself for hands-free strolling, but only when a child is not inside. It uses cameras to monitor surroundings and navigate the sidewalks.

For $3,300, parents can join the pre-order list for the 30-pound Ella, one of the consumer tech products named as an Innovation Awards Honoree at the 2023 CES show. Deliveries of the stroller are expected to begin in April 2023, according to the company website.