that's a colorful coat!

I saw a great show today

     Jackie, Emily, MK and I went to see Joseph, the VCCT show.
     It was pretty darn good!
     Not only was Emily's husband John in it, so was daughter Camryn.
     And two former fifth graders were the narrator and Joseph.  Ben and Hannah did super jobs today.  I was super impressed by both of them.
     The crowd loved it too.
     Sitting in the crowd, I almost wished I was on stage too.  I had a chance, but timing is everything in life and the timing was not right.
     But hey, I have had my time on stage and always enjoyed it.  All good things have to come to an end, and I think my time on stage might be over.  Not a  lot of parts for older guys.....
     Just rockers on the front porch, flannel slippers and long underwear in the summer.

pop, goes the bubble

I get deflated pretty easily

     It doesn't take much to get me down, seriously.  I don't have a lot of self confidence.
     That's out of the way.
     I was at the zoo Friday, and was doing a walk around.  That's a little activity where you look for things, like restrooms, ATMs, so you can answer people when they ask.
     You may know this about me:  I will answer any question.  The problem is, I will give an answer to a question I don't know!  Such as, Where is the bathroom.  I will give them directions to some place, but it may not be a bathroom.  It's a thing I do, trying to be helpful.
     Anyway, digression over.
     I met a fellow volunteer, Chuck.  This guy was using a walker and might have had an oxygen tank, I don't remember.
     He said he had missed a few volunteer days and was picking up some extra hours.
     So far, so good.  That happens.  I make a commitment to x number of hours, and I try to keep that.
     And when I can't make a day, I do look for other days to go.
     I casually asked him what he committed to.
     Now my commitment is 100 hours.  That is 25 4 hour shifts.  I thought that was a lot.
     His is......700 hours.  700!!  That's 700 divided by 4...carry the three, subtract the two, add the 0, get the calculator......150 days!!
     Not only that, his wife also does 700!!
     That is dedication.
     Truthfully, if I lived closer, I would do more.  But the travel time and cost make it a little more of a commitment for me.
     Digression:  Where the hell is the division key on my keyboard?  I have = / * - + ! @ # $ % ^ & * ( )  -_ = + but no division key.  That seems wrong.
     So that deflated me a little.  The hours, not the division key.
     But my big problem came at the market in town today, when I went to buy a pulled pork sandwich.  Yesterday I took $40 with me to the zoo.  Spent $8 for lunch, $4 for coffee.  I had $6 in my wallet and some change in my pocket.  I seemed to be missing a 20.
     I guess I bought somebody lunch somewhere......
     pop.....there goes another one......
     And in reading this, I realized I could have taken 25 (number of my days) timed it by 7 (to reflect 700 hours as opposed to 100 hours) and gotten 175 as an answer, not 150!!
     pop......pop...sounds like damn bubble wrap in my mind!

idiots abound

I really get frustrated by idiots

     I know I am not the best driver around.  but the last couple of days have been real eye openers to idiocy on the roadways.
     With traffic at almost a standstill, some guy passes people on the shoulder....the shoulder!....in the right lane side.  With a bridge looming, he then cuts in front of the car in the lane.  We could not have been going 15 mph...it was slow going.  Where the guy thought he could get was beyond me.
     Today, a guy in a Mercedes SUV, one that towered over my car, switched lanes about 20 times weaving in and out of traffic to get ahead.  He even moved over to an exit only lane to speed past cars that were in the right lane not exiting.
     He eventually got caught between a couple of semi trucks and was slowed down considerably by them.
     Today I was changing lanes when a car on my right came around me and cut off the guy on my left just he could get around me.
     I just don't get when everyone is doing the same speed and some yahoo comes along and zigs back and forth, driving much faster than anyone else.
     And then there are the people who don't know their exit is coming up and move from the left across four lanes at the last second, causing three lanes of traffic to hit their brakes.
     I won't even mention the tail gaiters, super slow drivers, people who don't use turn signals when turning and a whole host of other ignorant behaviors.
     I get why there is road rage.  Those people who drive wildly bring out the worst in people.  Karma should step in and give them all flat tires.

popularity is overwhelming

I just checked my Yahoo e mail account

     There were 153 unread messages.
     153!
     I check this account every day!!
     153!
     How many of them were from friends, acquaintances or actual people?
     1.
     And the Tribune was there with three or four entries, but almost all of the other e=mails were for sales or special offers from people we have done business with.
     I use the Yahoo address when I place orders,  make reservations, and do non personal business type stuff.  We use our other Comcast account to communicate with   other people, although we do get some business e mails there too.
     I may read one or two of them....but I often find when I am in need of something, I don't get an e-mail telling me it's on sale.
     Pictures, for instance.
     I want some 8 x 10 prints.  They are $3.99 at a certain pharmacy store.  But last weekend I had an offer for 40 percent off.  Then an offer for 50 percent off.  Both offers expired before I was ready to order prints.
     I have about 10 pictures I want enlarged by Saturday.......so I hope I get an offer in the mail tomorrow.
     But with my luck, it will come Sunday after I need it.
     Oh well.  That's how the cookie crumbles.
    Which reminds me...Jackie made cookies, think I'll go  have one.

hey, hey!

I have seen four Cubs victories!

     It was a little iffy tonight.  We watched six innings of ball where the Cubs could not get a hit, then boom.....homer, homer, homer and an 8-1 win.
     In previous years, we have been lucky to see wins.  That changed last year, and this year is even better.
     The atmosphere at the park is amazing.  Fans sense this team is on the threshold.... but there are bumps in the road.
     Got to see Chapman in relief tonight.  He hit 102 on his fastball and was consistently at 101.  I don't know how you can hit a pitch that fast.
     I just hope he is an addition to the club, not a clubhouse poison.
     When I went to Cell One earlier this year, I got a Cuban sandwich.  It was really good.  So at Wrigley tonight I got a Cuban sandwich... it was not as good as the Cell's.  It just seem dry.  But at least I didn't drip juice down my front like I did on the south side.  Funny, they only place I could not find a Cuban sandwich was in Cuba.  Go figure.
     Now my problem is.....I have had a couple of coffees and I seem to be a little hyper.    Hopefully      I'll get some sleep eventually.
     Now for some pictures.

I love that they still do batter's box and infield foul lines by hand

crowd control

There used to be a McDonald's and a Cubs' store here...eventually it will be a hotel with office space, retail space and parking.

On Addison, the Starbucks, Goose Island, and 7-11 are gone....this will eventually be a five story development with parking, retail and apartments. My understanding is the lone building's owners refused to sell, so the project will be built around it.

102 is the speed .... the fans cheered

t shirts,  anyone?

time for a break

I am doing everyone a public service

     As a favor to everyone in the world, this little entry will have no references to politics, the horrible play of the Chicago Cubs, the terrible state of Illinois.....which is not a pun...... or negative thoughts of any kind.
     This will be an uplifting, enlightening, relaxing, short read, with several pictures.
     So sit back, sip your coffee , and enjoy.

This weird bird has been resting on my front porch plant for weeks.....anybody know what it is?

Spiderman lives near here!

This plan presents a sticky problem...pretty, yet noxious

This little fella was visiting our house the other day.  I believe it is a katydid, or a katydidn't.  Either way, it did not come in the house, despite ringing the bell and hanging around for a while.

This is the clearance section at our local Wallyworld.  I cropped this picture, because a prankster rearranged the letters in the bottom right.  I will leave it to your imagination as to what word was created.

The tree that named a town....the stately Sycamore.  I will miss you, big friend.  You and your twin have served our town well.

We were working with our Italian beans, cutting and blanching them prior to freezing.  I realized this bean had a life as a porpoise......do you see the resemblance?  This is all natural....noting was added by me or anyone else.

This little one was grazing with its mother and twin along Fowler Road.  As I approached, the one twin and mom ran into the corn.  This little critter continued to graze and walked up to my car and looked at me.  It ran around like a little kid for a few minutes, then ran into the corn to join its mother.

you can't believe the internet

I know not all I read on line is true

     Way back when, during the early days of internet use, kids in my fifth grade class were gathering information for reports on the Civil War.
     Two girls had a slide show with an airplane in it.  I told them that wasn't accurate.  They countered by saying they found it on line in an article on the civil War.
     So I looked....and they were right!  The article said the South used guided missiles in attacking the North and destroying Washington, but the North used their air force to destroy Southern cities.
     I explained to the girls that this was way wrong: no airplanes, no missiles and the South did not win.
     That was years ago, and I think we still have that problem.
     I get dozens of posts about non existent missing persons, ticket give aways, free money from billionaires if you forward the message to 10 friends.
     It's almost like the greatest information sharing device ever invented is being used to put out false and misleading information, on purpose.
     Tonight I looked at a real estate listing for a house in our old, old neighborhood.
     The listing information said there were 30 restaurants in the community.
     Now, if I am from out of town and saw that, I would be impressed.
Being someone who gets easily distracted, I clicked on some of the restaurants.  Kraft Foods is listed.       Don't think you can eat there.  Tom and Jerry's, which left years ago.  It's replacement, The Dog Hub, is also listed.  The Outdoor Market on Tenth Avenue was listed.  I guess, in a stretch, you could call that a restaurant.  If you are only hungry on a Saturday.
     There were a few other locations that didn't make sense, plus several that were closed, and have been for a while.  Olive Branch?  Oh my gosh, that was before Eddi's, which is also gone.
     I would like living in a town with 30 restaurants.
     And according to the web site, I do!  Maybe I should count them one day, when I feel like a challenge.
     I hope whoever buys the house is not a food critic though.  They may find this a tough market.

ouch! That was hot!!

I have been a vegetable the last two days

    It must be the heat.
    We got home from a funeral Saturday and I just sat down.  It's Sunday night, and I am still sitting.
     I may have walked Corki yesterday....but I really don't remember.
     All I know is, it is hot.
     I did go to the store.  I bought eggs.  By the time I got home, they were hard boiled!
     Two deer came to the door and tried to get in!
     I set my ice tea down on the patio and it became hot tea!
     I didn't have to turn the grill on to cook...I just laid the food across the grill and moved it into the sun.
    It was hot.
    But we missed the major storms, thank heavens.
     Every time it looks nasty, I get a little worried.  I hope bad weather only happens to bad people from now on.   I don't know who decides that, by the way.
    I was too hot to do my blog last night.
    Tonight I sat on the patio, drinking a tall, cool mojito, watching the sun go down.  The breeze from the west was cooling, the temps mild.
     I watched the traffic on Flagg Road, heard the guy with an extremely loud radio go down the street, and thought to myself.....what the hell am I doing here?
     Where's the lake?
     Where's the cool air so I can ride my bike and walk the dog?
     Where's the quiet?
     So I finished my mojito and went back inside, where I put on a sweatshirt because I was cold.
     Geez, I am never happy!

Eye tali?

I heard an interesting observation the other day

     It was about language.
     Italian language.
     Well, actually it was about how some people say Italian words.
     Like.....Italian.  Sometimes people say it Eyetalian.  This person asked me if I had ever heard of Eyetali?
     No, because it is Italy.  So it is Italian spaghetti.  Italian sausage.  Italian roast beef.
     And then I realized why I said it wrong......Saturday Night Live and Da Bears spoof.
     I do believe they used the Eyetalian sausage phrase.  I just sort of picked it up and subconsciously say it, usually in a nasally voice.
     I think I say Eyetalian roast beef, again, the SNL skit influence on my life.
     I realized how much that show influenced me and the rest of America.
     Phrases like:  Jane you ignorant  slut.  Baseball been very, very good to me.  Never mind.
     And when someone says they have a van, I always want to ask them if they live in it down by the river.
    Cheezebourger, Cheezebourger...Pepsi, no Coke.
     And people say that television is a wasteland!
     In the future I will use the correct pronunciation.
     Or not.  Depends on the food.  Who knows, maybe someday I will order Eyetalian pizza live from New York!
     That's it.....or Italy, if you prefer.

ain't that a beee itch

Procrastination is good, sometimes

     If you wait long enough, sometimes a problem or  issue solves itself.
     And sometimes, it doesn't.
     Three years ago I ordered some gargoyle like figurines.  They attach to the end of a drainpipe, so the gargoyles look like fountains spouting water from the downspouts.
     True, they are on the ground.  But it beats just  seeing the end of the drain pipe, or black plastic tubing, in my case.
     (By the way....if you need black plastic tubing, give me a call.  I still have quite a bit in my yard.
I ordered it three years ago, when the yard first went in.)
     But I never put them out.
     Jackie would ask me about the gargoyles and if I was ever going to put them out.
     Well, two days before the reception, I did.
     Had to do a little re-figuring of the downspout, luckily I have several extra pieces.  John helped, and it all went together fairly easily.
     And the gargoyles look pretty sharp, I think.
     Anyway, part of the tornado damage was Emily's Chicago Bear wooden sculpture.  It got half the side of its face blown off in the tornado, but the rest survived.
      She replaced it, because it looks pretty bad with only half a face.
      I have it standing in my driveway, about two feet away from the gargoyle drain ender.  Why was it there? I honestly don't know.  I guess I was afraid to throw it out for fear of George Halas haunting me.
     You can see what is going to happen, can't you?
     Tonight's storm featured some pretty strong winds, strong enough to spin around and knock over the 25 pound bear with the missing half face.
     Right on top of the gargoyle.
     Smashed, like my dream of being a travel writer.
     Funny.  About the same time I ordered the gargoyles, I got my first deck set of table and four chairs.
     That stayed in my garage for two years, until the patio was finished.  I put it out four days before the tornado last year.  I sat in it once.
     The moral of the story:  Use it, or lose it.
     I am not making that mistake with my Cuban rum.

Julia Childs just rolled over

I love hamburgers!

     Just saying....a nice juicy hamburger with a slice of tomato, some cheese and grilled onions.  Man, that is Paradise!  Ok, I didn't have grilled onions.  Or a dill.  But still.....
     And throw in some Super Sweet Corn and that is a feast for royalty!
     I could eat burgers every night in the summer.  I just love them so much.
     Burgers with corn.  Burgers with tater salad.  Burgers with chips.  Burgers with cheese.
     Bring them on.
     Love those burgers.

not in my world

I always read the real estate section in the Tribune

     Not because I am looking for a new house, but because I am curious.
     This past Sunday, an article made me gasp for air.
     There were three houses for sale in the suburban Chicago area. One house, in Bull Valley, was listed for $925,000.  That's a lot of money.
     Now Bull Valley is one of those areas that is drop dead beautiful.  Older homes, large lots, plenty of trees.  A really nice place.
     And $925,000 might not be a bad price to pay for a house on 34 acres.
     The house has 17,426 square feet.  By comparison, our current house has about 2,400.
     What would you do with that much space?  My heavens, I get tired just thinking of all the bathrooms to clean!
     But the part that made me gasp was the $65,000 annual real estate  tax bill.
     Holy crap, that is a lot of moolah!
     So even if that house is four times the price of mine, the tax bill is almost 12 times my tax bill!
     The guy is probably selling and moving to Wisconsin.
     That's a lot of coin for the pleasure of living in Lake County Illinois.
     On a side note, I had an interesting conversation with da Great Soady Ridge Buck last night.
     As I was driving home at 1 a.m., I approached Skare Road and noticed a fog over the road.
     It wasn't a big fog, maybe about 12 feet high, but it was rolling across Flagg Road right before I turned, hindering my view.
    I slowed down.  As I slowed down, out stepped a 12 point buck with a rack as huge as the UP!
     Stepped right outa dat fog, it did!
     I stopped the car...what else could I do?
     I watched in a silent awe as dat buck slowly crossed dat fog covered road.
    As it hit the yellow center line, it turned and looked straight at me.  It's lips were moving, like it was chewing.  Or talking.
    I turned down the radio and asked, are you da Great Soady Ridge Buck?
    It did not answer, but kept staring at me, its lips moving.
     After what seemed hours of being stopped in the fog in the middle of the road at 1 a.m., I got frustrated and said, "I can't hear you."
     The big one took several steps to da shoulder, den it turned to me an said......"slow down."
     Den it disappeared in da fog.
     I cautiously and slowly turned the corner onto Skare Road and there, not 10 feet from Flagg, were three deer, right in the middle of the road.
     If I had been going my normal speed, I would have hit at least one of them.
     Now, I don't generally believe in ghosts......but Da Great Soady Ridge Buck now goes down with Ghost Dog as spectral haunts I do believe.
    And with that, good night.

show that W

I saw the Cubs win again today

     Beating the Mets is always a good thing.
     The downer was, it was a night game.  I left the house at 1 p.m., got home at 1 a.m.
     After much debate with myself, I ended up taking the train from Elburn.  I hate driving in traffic, and I figured the traffic for a night game would be worse than for a day game, because it is so close to rush hour.
     In a way I was glad I did.  The line for the shuttle buses to the remote parking was huge!  I bet it took an hour to get people back to their cars.
     I did have an interesting experience on the train.  A young man got on in Chicago and asked where the train was going.  I told him Elburn, and that made him happy because he was on the right train.
     He was a little drunk.  Check that, a lot drunk.  I thought, yikes, this kid is going to get in a car and drive home at midnight?
     My fears were assuaged (love having a chance to work in a 25 cent vocab word) when he asked me if I could give him a ride home from the train station.  He offered me $20!
     He had taken his girl friend to the game.  She left him.  He didn't seem to know where she was, only that he had her ticket and not her.  By the way, he gave his extra ticket to the conductor and told him to give it to someone on the train.
    Robert said he lived near 38, just a block from some restaurant he seemed surprised I did not know.
     I told him I would think about it and he said it was no problem if I said no.
    When we got to Elburn, someone was waiting for him, so I was off the hook.
    Funny thing, I think I would have given him the ride.  He seemed like a nice kid.
     But that's what they say about all serial killers, isn't it?
     Anyway, some pix from the park.

I wonder how they really feel?

That is not me.

His shadow does not match his body!

No, that is not the sun

did ya miss me?

I missed writing last night

     I guess the night  slipped past without me realizing that I had not written on my blog.
     Which is ok, because a blog should not be just about nothing.  Like Seinfeld.  Ot this.
     Friends came over and we burned some stuff in the back yard.  And played cards.  And had dinner.      Not in that order.
     I had some rose wine and when the night ended, I was a little too tired to write.
     Now we have this ongoing dispute.  Jackie likes the AC because of her allergies.  I like the night air.
     So last night I slept in the blue bedroom with the windows open.  I actually got a little chilled.
     Poor Corki could not figure out what to do.  She stayed with me a while, then moved to her bed in the bedroom.
     After a busy day today I settled down to dinner and poured a glass of rose.  The bottle was  3/4 empty.  What the hell?  No wonder I was too tired to write!
     Rose is a summer wine.....and it is summer.
     Enough said.

yikes

The craziness continues

     The coup in Turkey  .... holy cow, that is huge!
     The current president is repressive, often jailing people who speak out against his regime, but he was elected by the people.  The military would be more repressive, according to reports I heard on NPR.
     Turkey is important in our fight against ISIS.  They are our friends.
     It's very confusing.
     Sometimes I think our friends are not very nice countries.  But they are our friends.  In real life, I don't think we'd be friends with bullies, but in the world that seems to be pretty normal.
     Normal.
     Today was not normal.
     I added bitten by a bunny to my lists of first today.  As they say in sports, no blood, no foul.      Except for my mood.
     Traffic on 88 was terrible.
     I got rained on.
     My chicken dinner didn't taste as good as it was supposed to taste.
     But the Cubs won.  That's a good omen and a good start for the second half.
     And Harry Carey appeared at the ball park, looking young and fit and just like a former Cubs pitcher!
     So I am going to bed with happy thoughts......16 of the next 18 are home games and I have two of those!
     Should be an interesting month or two.

animals......

I am very sad tonight

     Another terrorist attack.  Scores of innocent lives erased because of a deluded person.
     While I was waiting for my new tires today, I read an article about a Syrian soccer player who escaped Syria when ISIS came to town.
     They shot people in his town for perceived insults.  They beheaded people.  They refused to allow people food until they pledged allegiance to ISIS.  They took young teenagers and subjected them to intense brainwashing sessions to bring them into their ranks.
     These are not religious people.  They are thugs and killers.
     But how do you destroy that ideology?
     I'd be telling a lie if I said they don't scare me.  They do.
     There needs to be a solution, but I don't know what it is, or how to put it into effect.  But too many innocent people are dying because of these extremists.
     My heart goes out to the people of France tonight.  Again.

poke a what?

I had a Pokemon Go experience today

     I saw three men crossing the street by the museum in Rochelle.  I slowed my car down, rolled down the window, and asked if they were playing Pokemon Go.
     They said yes, then one man briefly tried to explain the game to me.
     I tell you this because this was a mixed race trio.  Three guys, young and middle aged, all in the quest of obtaining a goal.
     In other words, the way America should be working.
     I also saw something like this last night when working in the garden at church in DeKalb.  A group of about 9 or so young people, all looking at their phones, and all looking for that elusive Pokemon character.  Again, these were a mixed group, all talking and getting along.
     We went out for dinner to celebrate Emily's birthday today.  She gave me a brief lesson on how the game works, including looking for one in the park across the street.
     I'm not sure I would take part, but the people who do seem to enjoy the chase and the exercise.
     If it brings people together, maybe we all should play it.
     Emily's birthday.  Our baby.  Hard to realize she has grown up so fast, although it really hasn't been fast, but time goes by quicker the older you get.
     We celebrated at La Vigna near Oregon, then came back to our house for ice cream cake.  Well,   John and Cameron had to get to rehearsals, so we sent their cake home with Emily.
     One minute they are born, the next minute they are in high school, driving, in college and in a flash, living their own lives.
     Life is too short to waste on hating.
     Peace to all.
     Love to all.
     Happiness to all.
     Goodnight to all.

another day....

It was a very weird day today

      I went to water our new hanging plant on the porch and a robin flew out of it.
      This one was not nesting, but it was learning to fly.  I thought for a second it was going to land on my head.
      The chirping is incessant.  We don't go out the front door, but the birds chirp anyway.
      I am getting tired of baby robins.
      Then Jackie, Dan and I went to the retired teachers' luncheon.
      I wanted to see the program, which was by a couple of former educators.  They told about biking through Europe two years ago.
      They stayed in hotels and camped, with most of the time spent camping.  They followed the Rhine and Daube rivers and were in Germany, Austria, Hungary and Czechoslavkia.  They biked about 30 miles a day and were gone two months.
      That got my brain a spinning.
      I turn 70 in 2018.  I already told Jackie I wanted to go back to Holland and do another bike trip.
      Now I am thinking more than Holland, maybe also Germany and France.
      So...start your planning early!  I don't want to go alone, for obvious reasons... accident, injury, bike problems, getting lost, not having anyone to talk with ......   And maybe not for two months, but then again, why not?
      I am running out of time and youth......so I have to do stuff now, or in 2018.
      And finally I made my first mojito with my Cuban rum tonight.  Recipe called for two ounces of rum, and I followed the recipe.  That seemed pretty strong!  Next time, I will go with an ounce and a half.
      Sitting on the deck, sipping my cold drink brought back memories of my Cuba trip.
      Good times.
      Good night

miles and miles and miles......

I downloaded an app for tracking my bike rides

     Just reading that sentence should be a shock.  I downloaded it!  Me!! Mr. can't run the remote.
     And it worked.
     I got out on the bike path today and tracked my ride.
     But it was confusing.
     I know it relies on GPS, but does it use a lot of my message allowance or whatever that is called in the cell phone bill world?  How does it work when my phone goes off?  Will the government monitor me?  Should I start wearing a lead helmet?
     And how accurate is it?  It said I rode 7.29 miles, but I thought the bike path was something like 3.8 each way.
     I liked the end result....my miles ridden reported to me.  And 7 miles today was ok with me...it was hot.  And humid.  And breezy.
     But the app  isn't very convenient for tracking speed, since I have to hold my cell phone and look at the screen.  I can't eat ice cream and use a remote at the same time!
     The really weird part was I rode the path from Cooper to the Little League fields and then headed back.
     The phone was in my pocket.
     I passed the tree in Hillcrest that was planted as a memorial to my mother by friends of mine..... yes, it is still there, yes I appreciate it, yes, I do talk to the tree.
     After a brief pause at the tree, I started riding again AND MY CROTCH STARTED TALKING!
     Seriously!!
     I didn't hear what it said at first, but I almost fell off the bike looking for the speaker.  I knew it wasn't my mom...... or did I?  And if it was, why my crotch????
     The voice went on, "Your average speed is 8.7 miles per hour."
     I realized it was my phone.
     It was telling me how far I had ridden and my average speed.
     The weirder part is, that was the only time it said anything.
     There must be a tweak in there somewhere.
     To be honest, I like my little computer on the handlebar.  It tells me everything I want to know at a glance.  But last week it just stopped working.  Maybe a battery is dead, or the unit is dead, whatever.
     I hopefully will find an answer on line.

the kids are growing fast

I have robins on the front porch

     For some reason, a pair of robins likes to make a nest in our hanging planter.
     They nested there last year.  And the year before that.
     They also try to build nests along the railing.
     This year I knocked down the railing nest several times, and I removed a nest from the hanging planter.  Then I removed another nest.  And another nest.
     Then we went to Vegas.
     When I got back there was a nest with three eggs.
     I felt guilty removing it, so I let it stay.  Which meant, the plant might not get watered very often.
     Then there were four eggs.
     And suddenly, baby robins.  I looked in one day and there was a mass of feathers in the bottom of the nest.  I honestly did not think any were alive.
     I watered the plant.  Too little, too late.
     But the babies were alive.
     Mr. and Mrs. Robin are fairly talkative when I go anywhere near the nest.  They chirp.  They fly over my head.  They tell me to leave them alone.  Jackie sat outside with Corki and all the robins did was sit on the railing and yell at her.  She finally went inside.
     So, for the most part, I have left them alone.
     The plant is dead.
     Last week I thought I saw four babies getting food, but today I think there are only two.
     I did not realize they grew so fast!
     Next year I will have to put a screen over the planter so they don't nest in it .... again.
     I hope my neighbors don't think I was spying on them.....but I have been taking pictures of the robins in the nest.

Babies getting fed last Thursday

Babies waiting food today...look how big they got in just 3 days!!  Hopefully, they will fly off soon.

memories and old friends

I saw some old friends when I was in Chicago

     Friends I saw after school.  Friends who made me laugh.  Friends who helped me sleep at night.     Friends I never met.
     I visited the Museum of Broadcast Communications on Friday, mainly because they had an exhibit on Johnny Carson.
     Carson was my hero.  I loved his show and watched it a lot.  He influenced me in so many ways.
     A lot of Carson's show business life was on display but the one thing that made me laugh out loud was a picture of him when he was in the Navy during WW II.  There picture was of the backsides of a whole line of sailors standing straight, with the exception of a little guy on the end who was leaning backward, resembling a reverse C, and looking at the camera with a goofy expression on his face.  I laughed out loud when I looked at that picture.  It was so Johnny.
     It's hard to believe he left the show in 1991....seems like yesterday.
     I always wanted to meet him, but obviously I did not and never will.
     He wasn't the only old friend I saw.  Garfield Goose was there, along with Bozo, Paul Harvey, and Svengooli, although I admit I was not a Svengooli fan.
     In the broadcasting hall of fame room, there were so many voices from the past:  Milo Hamilton, Dick Biondi, Roy Leonard, Jack Brickhouse, Harry Carey, BobCollins,  Larry Lujack, .......all those names of people who entertained so many of us when we were younger.
     I smiled at the Don McNeil display.  He had a show, Don McNeil's Breakfast Club, and Billy from the neighborhood and I think Frank, maybe John, and I all went to see it one time.  A radio show on the top floor of the Allerton Hotel.  It was great.
     I had forgotten about that until I saw the display.  I remember marching around the studio....that was part of the show.... the first call to breakfast.
     But the item that brought back so many memories was a radio.
     A white Bakelite Crosley radio.
     When my parents moved into the house on Belle Plaine, I got my own room.  I had a radio that looked exactly like the one on display.  I would listen to the Cubs when they were on the West Coast on that radio, as well as Clark Weber, Ron Riley, Biondi and Franklyn McCormack.... who did a late night show that had poetry, love songs, rambling thoughts.......
     But it was always the Cubs on the West Coast.  Laying under a sheet, the windows open and the sounds of the city coming in, and the Cubs announcers giving the play by play that lulled me to sleep.
     All on that white Bakelite  Crosley.
     And there it was again on Friday.  Suddenly, I was 13 again, if just for a moment.
     Now, some pictures.

my radio!

Fibber McGee's closet

Svengooooooooli

This chair was made of bats signed by Cubs players.....many of them Hall of Famers.  It was given to Jack Brickhouse to mark his 5,000 baseball game.  Can you imagine broadcasting that many games?  Hey, Hey.... I loved him!

I was his guest sitting in the chair closest to him.

A photo of the first show....note the plain stage.  Although they have photos of the first show, no film exists.

cue cards

Johnny's make up kit

The coffee cups were made for him by a company in California.  Each guest knew which cup to use!

Carnac, the Magnificent

Just naming all the stars would take hours

Funny people from the early years.

Garfield and friends.

The Bozo crew was there

Just me and the guys clowning around.

my kind of town

I took a trip today

     I had thought about going into Chicago to visit a museum for the past couple of months.  I decided late last night that today was the day.
     No dogs to let out, no zoo date, no doctor's appointments, Jackie doing ok..... so I headed to Elburn this morning for a day in the city.
     And I didn't tell anyone....not Dan, or John, or Gretchen and Lorraine, or Linda.  Jackie knew, but I decided late in the day and figured it was easier for me to just go alone.
      Anyway, I had lunch, visited a museum or two, walked a lot, and took some pictures.
     I like going into the city.  I made a goal of one trip each month that was not baseball related.  And since I am tied up on Tuesday and Wednesdays, my opportunities are a little limited.  It turned out, today was one of those free days.
     Remember:  I like reflections.

One place I stopped in was the McCormick Bridgehouse and Chicago River Museum at Michigan Ave.

In the bridgehouse, you get to go a up to the top and check out the amazing views  Being an operator and stationed in one of these structures would have been a pretty cool job.

Gears that raise and lower the bridge.  The information said that now days the bridges only go up five or 6i times a year, when in the past they might have gone up as many as 100 times  a year.

Another bridgehouse

Illinois corn cobs...watch out for crazy parkers!!