When first moved to the city, I went to as many street fests as possible, trying to hit up at least one a weekend. In fact my very first weekend in Chicago, I walked down to my neighborhood's art fair and hung out for the afternoon. I considered it one of my first real city experiences. I've been to the taste, I've lived through the Air and Water Show (twice) and have even ran through the gay pride parade with my nephews in tow. The festivals were fun the first few years, but they started to wear on me.
July 12, 2009
How It Should Be
When first moved to the city, I went to as many street fests as possible, trying to hit up at least one a weekend. In fact my very first weekend in Chicago, I walked down to my neighborhood's art fair and hung out for the afternoon. I considered it one of my first real city experiences. I've been to the taste, I've lived through the Air and Water Show (twice) and have even ran through the gay pride parade with my nephews in tow. The festivals were fun the first few years, but they started to wear on me.
July 6, 2009
Voyeur
Sunday was a beautiful day, so I started doing the thing I do on Sunday afternoons. My mind kept telling me I had spent way too much time indoors. I needed to get out and after going a little stir crazy, I told Mike "I need to get out of here." He agreed. All my pacing was driving him nuts. He asked what I was going to do. "I'm going on a bike ride." "Where," he asked. "I don't know but I got to get out of here." So I did.
I hopped on my bike and pedaled to the lake shore path - which is honestly one of the best things about living in the city during the summer. I went north. I went as far north as I could go, and I wound up on this beach.
I don't know the name of this beach. I had never been there, didn't even know it existed. I am one of the few because I can tell you it was a pretty popular destination Sunday afternoon. While sitting by the sand, soaking up the sun, my sister called. We talked for about an hour before I made my way back to my bike.
I rode again, this time heading south, even past the street that would take me home. This time, I wound up at a sizable skate park.
I tried not to seem like the random, crazy lady with a camera, but dude, I totally was. I couldn't help it. I wanted to take pictures there. The skaters were an interesting bunch to shoot, the park was full of good angles and I like getting practice with fast moving subjects. And they were fast.
at 10:38 PM 2 comments Links to this post
Labels: My Photos
July 5, 2009
This Makes Me Really Happy
According to my BMI, I've always been "overweight." Sure, I always think I could stand to lose 5 to 10 pounds, but that's just because I'm a girl. What girl wouldn't like to weigh less? But to have some supposedly reliable calculation tell me I'm outright "overweight" never sat very well with me.
That's why this article, brings me great joy. Really 10 reasons why I should ignore my BMI? That's generous. I only needed one.
Does any one out there fall into the "normal" BMI range? I don't think I've ever met a single person who has.
at 8:56 PM 2 comments Links to this post
Labels: In The News
A View From The Top
Yesterday was a bit of a wash in terms of the Fourth of July weather. Our plans to go to Lake Michigan were thwarted by the overcast skies and showers. They lingered throughout the day, having begun around noon (when we originally planned to go to the lake) and lasting until 6 p.m., about the time our guests started to leave.
We rolled with the punches, and instead of going to the lake our friends came over to my and Mike's place. We grilled, talked and I made everyone eat the food I prepared. I am happy to report my dessert went over very well. Score!
The good thing about the roof, is that our three story unit puts us at or above most buildings in our neighborhood. On a clear night, you can see downtown all the way to the north shore suburbs. It was a little cloudy last night, so the view wasn't clear enough to see the fireworks at Navy Pier, but that doesn't mean there weren't fireworks to see.
All in all, it was a free show that didn't disappoint. Well unless you ask my cat Oscar, who spent the night hiding under our bed.
at 11:52 AM 1 comments Links to this post
Labels: Holidays
July 4, 2009
A First for the Fourth
It's been a while since I documented trying to make a new dish. Given the last time I tried was Christmas, I thought it fitting to try and document something new for the Fourth.
It's not exactly health food, but I don't care. It's the Fourth - a time for fireworks and fat. The thing I love about Kraft recipes is that while they may not be health conscience (think Velveeta as an ingredient), they are always pretty easy to make. There are only seven ingredients in this recipe. And don't worry, I'll give healthier suggestions in parenthesis.
This recipe starts with (low fat) graham crackers. I put two cups of the crackers into a plastic bag and started smashing them for the crust. Once they seemed fine enough, I put the crumbs in a measuring cup. I was shy of the two cups I needed, so I repeated with the smashing and the plastic bag with a few more crackers.
Once the graham cracker and sugar mixture was spread in the bottom of the pan, I poured 6 tablespoons of melted butter (margarine) over the top. I then spread around the mixture and made sure it was pressed into the bottom of the pan. With this part of the recipe done, I put it in the refrigerator to cool while I made the "cheesecake."

Next I beat the two together with a mixer until it was blended and smooth.

For the flavor, the packet of peach Jell-o came next. I poured the dry Jell-o powder on top of the cream cheese/sugar mixture. I then stirred it with a wooden spoon.
Next up was the can of peaches (in light syrup). 

The last and final step was to cover the pan and put the entire mixture in the refrigerator.
The recipe calls for it to refrigerate for four hours. Since I made this at 11 p.m. tonight for lunch tomorrow, I'm just going to let it sit overnight. I'm hoping it won't mess with the recipe. I will let you know how it goes over tomorrow with Mike and the friends I'm trying it out on. My only hope is that it causes no one's face to do this.
Photo credit goes to Mike and the very powerful flash on my camera. June 27, 2009
Scheduling Mishaps
As I sit here on my couch with eyes dilated, injection sites in my arms, a band aid square on my back and a temporary filling in my tooth, I've realized something: I really should have spaced out my doctor's appointments.
It started a month ago when I realized I was overdue for my yearly medical check up. I also realized I never made that dermatology appointment I meant to years ago. On top of that, I had been wondering for a while if I could blame allergies for the general congestion I'd been feeling for the past few months. So decided to take yesterday off work and scheduled those two appointments - one in the morning, one in the afternoon.
I already had scheduled my appointment for my tooth filling and last week I ran out of contacts, so on top of everything, I now had to go to the eye doctor. The soonest appointment they could give me was this afternoon. I didn't actually plan on all of these visits falling within the same 36 hour period, but due to my doctor's availability, that's exactly what happened.
I hadn't thought much of the timing. In fact I was kind of comforted by the fact that I could just get all this over with. It wasn't until I was sitting in the dentist chair this morning that I started to regret my scheduling.
About a half hour into my 8 a.m. dentist appointment all was not well. After four numbing shots to my gums and several attempts at drilling my tooth, my dentist and I gave up. My tooth had formed a little sink hole and the nerve that was exposed would not get numb. It was painful, very painful. A pain that I certainly wasn't prepared to deal with on an empty stomach so early on a morning. The fact that I opted to visit with out of town friends the previous night until 1:30 a.m. probably didn't help either.
I'm heading back in a few weeks to get a permanent filling put in. I hope the tooth takes to the numbing medication because I'd really hate a repeat of this morning's visit. Even if it does go terribly, I can at least take solace that it will be the only doctor's visit I will have that day.
I will say after having gone through all these appointments, I did learn a lot about myself. For instance:
- My general practitioner was right. The mole on my back was suspicious. Suspicious enough that my dermatologist hacked it off on the spot. I'll find out in a week if it's cancerous, even though no neither of my doctor's suspect it is.
- I may have gotten a mole removed on my back, but I was informed by my eye doctor that I have a mole on my left eye, under the eye lid. Did you know people can have eye moles, because I certainly did not. It felt very yin and yang. Lose a mole on my back Friday, gain one on my eye Saturday.
- My vision has not changed. Whoopie! That's a first in years. Usually it gets slightly worse with every visit. It's still crap, but at least it's not crappier.
- I totally had more than pre-cavities. Once my dentist got in and started drilling, one of my teeth practically caved in. She described it as a small crack turning into a sink hole. And then she showed me a picture of the crater in my tooth. Let's just say I'm surprised I didn't have an echo every time I talked. That's what she's working on when I go back.
- I am not allergic to anything. I let the allergist prick my arms up and down with needles and nothing, no reaction to any of them. All I could think as I sat there, my unresponsive arms making a mockery of me is "Huh. I didn't know I was a hypochondriac."
- I am very healthy person, and I really should stop torturing msyelf with all this preventative modern medicine.
at 4:21 PM 2 comments Links to this post
Labels: Randomness
June 25, 2009
Gone Too Soon
When I heard Ed McMahon passed away yesterday, I had a really morbid thought: I wonder who the other two will be. I am a firm believer that these things happen in threes.
So when Farah Fawcett passed away this morning, I wasn't too surprised. However, the news of Michael Jackson passing away this afternoon was a bit shocking. Really, Jacko's gone? I really thought he'd live forever, somehow adding years to his life with each successive plastic surgery.
By the time I got home from work, his death was all over the news. It was all anyone could talk about. NBC was apparently prepared for Jackson's passing. The network is currently running a two hour Dateline special on both Jackson's and Fawcett's respective lives and deaths.
It did bring me great joy to see that MTV had altered their usual line up of baseless, reality, shitastic programming to pay tribute to one of the people that made that network. MTV currently may have a program line up without any actual music, but it had the good sense to realize that Jackson's life was far more entertaining than the latest installment of the "Real World" franchise.
As a child of the 80s, I remember trying to moonwalk. I never could. One of the best records in my parents collection was the Thriller album. I still remember how when the cover opened, it revealed a tiger sitting at Jackson's feet. To a seven-year-old that solidified Jackson's bad assery in my mind. Obviously in recent years, Jackson's fame has revolved more around his personal antics than his musical contributions. He seemed so pained and so removed from the real world. While I know the world will mourn his loss, a part of me can't help but feel happy that he doesn't have to deal with the world any more.
Keeping with the ending theme of yesterday's post, name your favorite Michael Jackson (or Jackson Five) song. For me, it's hard to pick one aside from the obvious choices of Thriller or Billie Jean, but I will say I've always had a soft spot in my heart for Man In The Mirror.
at 8:17 PM 3 comments Links to this post
Labels: In The News
June 23, 2009
On Knowing What I Don't Know
If there's one thing I have learned about Photoshop it's that I don't even know all there is to know. If I'm just correcting photos I've taken randomly of weekend activities or the cats, I use Picasa. It's good enough but also basic enough that it takes me no time at all to edit, and I still get decent results. But for more important photos, like the two shoots I've done recently, I exclusively use Photoshop.


I didn't want to discard them, but they also were not the best solo shots I got of Hunter. So this was my solution.
So much cuter! And it's a better representation of his little dance. Thank you Google and all your wisdom because I couldn't have combined these three photos otherwise.
My Photoshop tastes are constantly changing right now. In each of the three nights I've edited this collection of photos I tweaked their color, shading and contrasting differently. I've had to go back and change some of the photos I've already edited because I've liked what I've done on subsequent nights better. It's OK though. I guess it's all part of the learning process, which is definitely where I am. But it's good to know that there are certainly enough functions in Photoshop to keep me constantly learning and perfecting my editing skills.
And just because he's such a doll and I really did love this shoot, I will leave you with another of my favorite images from my Father's Day photos.

And now for a complete change of subject... Does anybody have a suggestions for a song I can play during the candle lighting portion of a wedding ceremony - preferably something good for a solo violin? I need another song for my September wedding, and I don't know what I want to play. Jesu Joy of Man's Desiring, Ave Maria, Canon in D and Ode to Joy have already been taken. Or alternately, if you don't know a good song, just for laughs, please suggest the worst possible song I could play at that moment. Immediately I am thinking Toxic by Britney Spears or Superfreak.