Fun and Games Dept

Earl and I just arrived back home after a 12 hour ride from Chicago to Iowa and back, exploring various nooks and crannies of Northwestern Illinois along the way.


It was very relaxing and a great way to escape the heat of the city. The sky was beautiful, the small towns interesting and we spent some time driving along the Mississippi River.

A great way to spend a Saturday.


Now this is what I call an energy drink. I need to do more cycling.

I love being able to sit on our balcony and not get wet during a rainstorm. If the rain is coming from the Northwest (like this current storm is), I’m able to sit in the Northwest corner against the wall of our lanai and enjoy the sights and sounds and smells of a good rain storm without getting wet.

I realize I could do this anywhere, but doing this is at home makes it especially wonderful.

I’m sitting on our balcony wrapping up the weekend, doing some chores on my iPad and making sure I’m ready to tackle the workday bright and early tomorrow. Earl is relaxing in bed; he is coming along nicely in his recovery. He decided to skip his pain medicine today and he’s no worse for the wear. I think his very positive attitude is the leading reason for his recovery coming along so well.

After he went to bed last night I spent some time sitting on the balcony reading and watching television. I ended up falling asleep out here and slept for about two and a half hours “under the stars”. The breeze was beautiful, just like it is tonight, and there’s no bugs. I mentioned this to my Mom during a phone call this morning; I told her I figured mosquitos were too lazy to fly up five stories to get to us.

I find it so calming and peaceful to have this little peace of nirvana in the middle of the third largest city in the United States. I’ve mentioned before that I’m tired of Chicago getting a bad reputation, especially when folks that have never been here believe everything the Tanned One says about how Chicago is a war zone. He just doesn’t like it because the Obamas live here. Plus, he’s racist. Honestly, I can’t imagine living anywhere else. I thoroughly love that we moved to Chicago and I’m damn proud to call it home.

It’s nearly 10:00 PM and it’s still 86ºF. The breeze is refreshing. Life is good, especially when we are determined to keep it that way.

Tonight we went to see Carol Burnett at the Chicago Theatre. It was the first of her two shows here in the Windy City; I purchased the tickets as a Christmas present for Earl. We were all delighted with the show. Earl and I were a little concerned that Jamie wouldn’t know much about Carol (he’s a little younger than us), but he enjoyed the show and I saw him look at Wikipedia only once.

Carol Burnett with Elizabeth Montgomery in the 1963 movie “Who’s Been Sleeping In My Bed”

Carol’s show as basically an extended Q&A session like she used to do at the beginning of her variety show back in the 1960s and 70s, interspersed with clips from the show. We all agreed this approach was quite brave as she had no idea what kind of questions she would get from the audience. People asked her about current events, what it was like working with the very celebrities she had on her show, about growing up, and some asked for advice on how to break into the business. Carol had a way of weaving her answers with humor and it was truly a fun show. We laughed a lot.

I thought about asking a question; I had always wondered if she had improvised her dance in “Who’s Been Sleeping In My Bed”, but I none of the ushers made their way to our row. All in all it was a great experience and I was a little choked up when she first came out on stage; it’s great to live in a city where it’s easy to see a legend in person.

Everyone was smiling at the end of the show. It was a really good time.

Earl is having a stress test as I write this. I told him this morning if he was fine after living with me for 22 years, he would pass this stress test with flying colors. He chuckled.

I am playing the role of supporting husband during his test, waiting in a common area at the Northwestern Medical campus. The dings of the nearby elevators indicate the busy traffic from here to there and back. People watching is always enjoyable for me. The two clocks within my eyesight, which should be synchronized to the second but are not, are making me a little crazy. Clocks designed to be synchronized should be synchronized. “Close enough” is never good enough, especially when we are counting the seconds of life.

I’m starting to realize too many reminders that I am approaching in my half century mark. Life is outpacing my mentality. I still feel like the naive farm boy I was 40 years ago.

Always find a reason to smile.