Our town

Having grown up in Chicago, Sidney Friedman knows the city’s past, present and—according to the psychic—its future. The best-selling author, entertainer and frequent TV guest (including spots on such arbiters of excellence as The View and Fox-TV’s morning news) takes us to the spots that formed his intuitive nature. He claims anyone can tap into these places to see the future, but if you don’t feel like honing your psychic energy, that’s okay; Friedman gives us a few predictions for ’09, too.

1. Friedman says he first caught wind of his psychic powers as a kid while watching the Museum of Science and Industry’s Foucault Pendulum (5700 S Lake Shore Dr, 773-684-1414). “It hangs from the ceiling and is always in motion because of the rotation of the Earth. By understanding the principles of the pendulum, it helps you to predict the events in your own life,” he says.

2. In 2008, Federal Plaza (corner of Adams and Dearborn Sts) saw a senator rise to president and a governor fall from grace. What’s in store for the local political mecca in 2009? According to Friedman, not much: “A long-lost container will be found that was missing for years.” Anyone misplace a yogurt cup?

3. “To see the future, it’s important to see the past,” Friedman says. One of his favorite local relics is the Green Mill (4802 N Broadway, 773-878-5552). “Sitting there, you can soak up the jazz artists, alive and deceased. Spirits like Count Basie and Duke Ellington, you feel their energy.”

4. Most people’s journey through Chicago begins and ends at O’Hare. What will take place inside one of the world’s busiest airports (10000 W O’Hare Dr, 800-832-6352) during 2009? “Twins will be born,” announces Friedman. But the second one will be delayed an hour.

5. In the same way that turban-donning psychics gaze into a crystal ball, Friedman looks into water to receive messages about the future. “A good place for liquid gazing in summer or winter is Promontory Point,” Friedman says (55th St at Lake Shore Dr). “It has magical qualities. Probably partly the spirit of the people who go there.”

6. Will the market be back to its old bull-of-a-self in 2009? Quoth Friedman, “The image I receive is in the following haiku. Lights flicker, fall, rise. Board meeting starts alliance. Listen! Harmony.” Hmm…we guess no news is good news (Board of Trade, 141 W Jackson Blvd, 866-716-7274).

7. The Historic Water Tower (806 N Michigan Ave, 312-742-0808) might be full of tourists and street performers, but, Friedman claims, “If you want to get infused with a rush of heightened intuitive power, stand about 17 feet southwest of the tower for about five or six minutes.” One last word of wisdom, before you go all Harry Potter with your newfound magical senses, “Most of the future cannot be predicted,” Friedman says. “But once in a while, the curtain parts.”

Friedman’s future is getting clearer at sidneyfriedman.com.