Favorite bowl

We bought this 12” bowl from a potter at the Frankfort Fall Festival in 2009. It is my favorite bowl and the centerpiece of our table. Typically filled with apples or bananas, it's a shame the beautiful glaze work is is hidden beneath the food. (But I usually get to see it empty on the day before we go grocery shopping.)

Details

This is the base of a little tin three-drawer cabinet in our family room. I never noticed this detail until today.

Amazing what I see when I just look.

Decorated

For years it's been all clear (white) lights on the house. This year we went crazy and mixed red and clear. Oh my, what will the neighbors think?

Kokopelli

If you have ever been to the southwest, you've probably seen Kokopelli. The god of fertility, he dances and plays the flute-- spreading seeds as he does.

At our house, he does his magic in front of the magnolia bush and tall grasses. He also satisfies a bit of our urge to go back to the southwest. But just a little bit.

Kitsch

Is there anything more kitschy than a snow globe? Yes there is-- one with an over-marketed character in a seasonal costume! And Terri got one today as a special gift for braving the Black Friday crowds at JC Penney. Here's Mickey Mouse in a Santa suit with a really badly painted 2010 (or is that 2020?) on the chimney.

The Chri$tma$ season has officially begun!

Preparing for battle

I used to have a spot at the table. But not when the sale flyers are fresh.

This is phase one of what a professional shopper does on Thanksgiving day. Phase two comes after dinner when the sale papers come out again and all the sisters discuss strategy for their Black Friday operation. Phase three-- the attack phase-- begins well before dawn. Done with the skill and precision of a military strike, these professionals operate solo and will be in and out of the stores and back in bed probably before the sun and their husbands are up. (At least that's what happens at my house.)

Happy Thanksgiving to all! And beware of the Black (Friday) Ops taking place everywhere tomorrow.

Painted Lady

I just love the old traditional farmhouse. Dress it up in a Victorian color scheme and it's really a midwestern treasure!

This one is somewhere near Bloomington, Illinois.

Iggy and Seb

Meet Iggy (Ignatius) and Seb (Sebastian).

These guys are bearded dragons and about three months old when this picture was taken in July. At the time, Iggy and Seb tolerated each other, sometimes even liked each other as shown here.

Terri noticed that Seb was growing at a normal rate but Iggy was not. Feeding time seemed to be traumatic for Iggy so the folks at the Chicago Reptile House recommended separate housing for the two. It turns out those guys knew what they were talking about. Iggy has his own digs now and is almost as big as Seb.

Because they live in separate rooms, these former roommates don't ever see each other. They probably won't even get together on Thanksgiving.

Pineapples!

Pineapples encased in Jell-O is a staple at Terri's parents' house for any gathering. Not-so-much for the adults, but the grandkids go crazy for them.

Terri made a big dinner Sunday and even made pineapples for the boys-- now 16 and 18. It seems they are moving into the adult phase as, after two dinners, most pineapples still remain.

Jingles

Though we did not get around to decorating the house this weekend as planned, our yellow lab Morgan is ready for Christmas.

This is her "Jingle" collar that she wears throughout the Christmas season. She is such a good sport to humor Terri and me the way she does with her tolerance.

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.

Old

I wonder how long ago this sign was posted. Missing all its paint and bleeding rust, it reminds me of an old man with deep wrinkles on a leathery face tanned from years of hard outdoor work.

The dark side of the moon

As I got home from work yesterday there was a sliver of a crescent moon setting in the clear, early evening sky. After an unsuccessful attempt at getting the shot while holding the camera, I got out the tripod. I was surprised to capture the dark side of the moon as well as the crescent.

Now I'll have Pink Floyd in my head all day...

Garden angel

Terri calls this "Wendie" after a good friend of hers. Sadly they've lost touch, but our garden is still watched over by this little concrete cherub.

Time

(I don't) Does anybody really know what time it is

(Care) Does anybody really care (about time)

If so I can't imagine why (Oh no, no)

We've all got time enough to cry

(From Does Anybody Really Know What Time It Is? Robert Lamm, Songwriter)

Just a coincidence that I shot this when I did.  Ever notice that all the analog watches and clocks in ads are set to 10:10? I read somewhere that time was chosen because it looks like the hands are smiling at the reader.

At the top

Indiana Dunes State Park.

Look closely and you might see Terri and Morgan on the far right, just beneath the evergreen.

Urban landscape

Things you get to really
see while stuck in traffic waiting for a train.

Not your everyday church

I enjoy trying to find the right words to describe something.  When I walked in and saw this, I thought opulent, rich, detail, gilded, craftsmanship, but all I could manage to say was, "Wow".

Photo taken in the Basilica of the Sacred Heart at the University of Notre Dame.

Yum?

How can a restaurant with a name this enticing have an empty parking lot?

Vote

Interesting symbolism of the sunrise reflected in the window with the POLLING PLACE notice. Because, just as each new day starts with a sunrise, the future begins with our votes.

Rural skyscrapers

One of the grain elevators in Ashkum, Illinois-- a town of 724 people located about 20 miles south of Kankakee.  Ashkum, like so many other towns in the midwest, seems to have grown up around the railroad and the grain elevators that helped the farmers get their crops to market.