Yay!

This picture is from June 2009. Terri and I were hiking "the narrows" in Utah's Zion National Park. This is a unique hike because the river is the trail through slot canyons.

I am posting this and saying "Yay" because today I finally sorted through the 2,080 pictures we took and culled them down to a 94 photo album.

Whatever

Nothing says, "I really don't care about time!" like this clock does.

Old time laundry

This building is right next to a bed and breakfast I stayed at in Elizabethtown, Illinois.

The sign says "Ralph's Laundry" on the first line and "Charles & Eula Mae" on the bottom. It does not appear to be open any more.

Some day I'd like to know the story of Charles & Eula Mae Ralph's laundry operation.

Bricks or tiles?

While passing through Casey, Illinois yesterday I noticed several buildings with what looks like multicolor glazed bricks. Or are they tiles? I can't tell.

Anyway, I was taking this picture of the side wall of a commercial building and the County Coroner pulled in to the parking lot next to my car. He probably thought I was weird, but does he know this is not common in the USA?

Graffiti shack

Today I let my GPS take me a different way. This is what I found.

I knew how to get to my hotel, but Alfred-- my British-accented GPS-- suggested another route. I knew right away it was going to be country roads instead of highways, but I like that sometimes. And I thought, "Maybe I'll find my pic of the day going this way."

So I did. And I did.

On the back roads north of Carmi, Illinois, a few empty beer cans and some spray-painted initials on road signs mark the hangouts near the one lane bridges. This small building (maybe 16 by 20) happens to be right next to a bridge. I didn't see any beer cans nearby, but that's probably because the kids were too busy painting to drink!

I wonder if the owner enjoys the colorful expressions or if he sees it as vandalism. I hope he enjoys it. I sure did.

Clean and plentiful

These wind turbines are all over central Illinois. It makes me happy to see that we are embracing the alternative of clean, natural energy instead of relying strictly on dirty and poisonous fossil fuels.

On a related note, I saw a funny headline in the online edition of The Onion.  It said something like Accident at Offshore Wind Farm Creates Nice Breeze. Wouldn't that be a refreshing disaster!

Ahhh, fall

Cool dry air, vibrant autumn colors and a good breeze-- what a great fall this has been!

Downtown Chicago

It was a beautiful late fall night in Chicago. Terri and I ate at Lawry's Prime Rib (my first time, her second) and stayed just south of the Chicago River on Michigan Avenue. The half mile walk was perfect both before and after dinner. This photo was taken looking west from the Michigan Avenue Bridge.

Big cities may have their drawbacks, but they are so alive and that is what makes them exciting to me.

Arnie's corner

There's an intersection near where I work that has a bar, a fast-food restaurant, and a parking lot all with the "Arnie's" label. The remaining corner has a gas station that is probably owned by Arnie too.

I always get a kick out of the old school playful design and colors of this sign while driving past it. I finally had the opportunity to get this shot because, once again, I was waiting for a train.

Later, when I looked at the picture on the computer, I noticed a bit of a family connection with the train. My cousin Bill is a Senior VP for GATX-- and that's a GATX car right between the two legs of Arnie's sign. Small world.

We make trees out of people

Last year's Christmas card photo was Terri's idea. "Let's get the kids to make a pyramid-- like a tree!" We started the bottom with Jake, John, and Misha. The second level had Saralyn and Luke. Grandson Alex scurried to the top before I even had a chance to help him.

While considering what text we would print on the card, John came up with "We make trees out of people." We all laughed hysterically, then settled on something a little less remarkable and a little more in the spirit of the season.

Alex's smile really makes this card! This one's going to be a tough act to follow.