Hey, another local Chicagoan! *waves*
When I first got back into the game, I went on a buying binge at Target. I'll still shop at there and Meijer for some specialty stuff (like the recent Evolutions boxes and the other promo box), but I do most of my card buying online, now, either as single cards or booster boxes. I'm going to be going to my first prerelease for B&W this April, so that will be a new card-getting experience for me.