August 14th, 2010
We haven’t really been working on any bungalow projects lately, mainly due to heat and humidity, so I’ll just offer you a bunch of random but somewhat related news.
I had a tough time searching through many bug and insect identification sites to determine what this large black wasp-like insect was, only to finally find out [...]
November 6th, 2009
One of the great things about living in Morton Grove is the amount of green space for a suburb that’s so close to the Chicago city limits. The North Branch of the Chicago River runs through the town not too far from our house, and the river is surrounded by the Cook County Forest Preserve. [...]
October 29th, 2009
Every Friday, the Chicago Tribune publishes a feature story in the Homes section about one community in the Chicagoland area, and last Friday was Morton Grove’s turn.
It was a pretty good article, I thought, however I think their home sale ranges are misleading as the recent home sale on the low end was a foreclosure [...]
July 8th, 2009
And in a matter of mere minutes…
…now you don’t! Buh-bye, Dumpster.
As I’m sure you can guess, this means a couple things:
Our project is nearing the end
We have some new yardwork to do
I know I have catching-up to do, but over the holiday weekend I needed a break from the computer.
We had an excellent 4th [...]
June 17th, 2009
Not to worry — it wasn’t our house. It was Robin’s house.
There we were on Sunday, ready to enjoy a beautiful summer-like day at the cottage Pete’s family owns just over the Wisconsin border. But first there are always a few chores to do before the relaxing can begin.
Over the years we’ve lost a couple [...]
February 16th, 2009
Sometimes I just crave sushi. I’m not really into the fancy rolls, like caterpillar or dragon. They’re okay, but I think too many ingredients can be overpowering.
That’s why my favorite sushi place is Kuni’s Japanese Restaurant on Main Street in Evanston. They only offer the classic rolls — the fanciest maki they make is [...]
January 6th, 2009
On Sunday Pete and I were invited to the PO’s house. As I’m sure you know by now, the PO was our neighbor for over 17 years (even longer for Pete since he lived in our previous house before I came into the picture). We never really socialized much while he lived here outside of [...]
December 30th, 2008
I thought I better get these Christmas photos up before 2008 is over! I’ve been around, but just either too busy or too lazy to post lately. I hope everyone had a wonderful holiday — we certainly did.
Thankfully, despite nasty weather on Tuesday, my stepdaughter and her husband managed to fly in from the East [...]
September 26th, 2008
Another week has gone by already and unfortunately I don’t have much to say (at least about the house).
We are nearing completion of the basement fixes. The only thing left to do is cut and install the baseboard for the wall sections we had to replace. The door has been hung and the trim [...]
August 13th, 2008
Last Saturday night we were on board the Evening Star, cruising up and down the Chicago River and out to Lake Michigan. It was a beautiful night — a little cool for August, but pleasant nonetheless.
There are so many things I love about Chicago, and the view of the skyline is just one of [...]
July 8th, 2008
Pete and I enjoyed a well-deserved four-day 4th of July weekend.
On a very chilly Thursday night we strolled over to the Morton Grove Days Festival, an annual event complete with carnival, live bands and the all-important beer tent. Although one of my good high school friends only lives a few blocks away from us, [...]
June 10th, 2008
The Chicago Blues Fest took place over the weekend in Grant Park, a free event which is scheduled every year over the first weekend in June. If you ever plan a visit to Chicago, Blues Fest weekend would be a rockin’ good time.
Unfortunately we weren’t able to make it downtown to see the likes of [...]
April 9th, 2008
One of my favorite fancy places to dine in Chicago is North Pond Cafe, nestled in the heart of Lincoln Park, and like the name, situated on the North Pond. It was built in 1912 as a warming hut for ice skaters, eventually becoming a storage shed for the Chicago Park District.
It was remodeled and [...]
January 1st, 2008
We really don’t like to go out on New Year’s Eve, so we spent a nice, quiet evening at home: a little fondue, a little sparkling wine, a DVD (The Simpsons Movie), a blanket and a cat or two. And of course, the first new year in our house. Perfect.
So Happy New Year to you [...]
November 26th, 2007
My sister is one of “those people” who gets up at the crack of dawn on Black Friday to get their Christmas shopping done. I’m sure they get some great deals, but a) I can’t stand crowds; b) I hate shopping; and c) I haven’t even thought about Christmas at this point. So you won’t [...]
October 17th, 2007
We just returned from a short trip to Philadelphia where our (Pete’s) daughter got married. It was a beautiful wedding in the gorgeous Knowlton Mansion in North Philadelphia. The house was built in 1881 as a summer home by William Rhawn, a Philadelphia banker. Later it was owned by John Powell, a wealthy industrialist, and [...]
October 7th, 2007
There’s nothing better than this on a near-90° sunny day.
Naturally on an unseasonably warm weekend like this, all our AC vents are covered with plastic and rosin paper because of the window restoration, so the cats and I have been hanging out in the basement trying to stay cool.
Hello, Fall? I’m ready for you [...]
July 10th, 2007
Our pool table is one of the few things the PO left behind. He had it refelted when he moved it here and he bought it through a classified ad in the newspaper. It supposedly cost a lot of money to have it moved — he claimed $600 — and when he told the seller [...]