Today was crazy-BEAUTIFUL!!! It started with early morning rain… but once that passed through, we got sunny skies, gusty winds & temperatures of nearly 80-degrees!!! Perfect for a wonderful bike ride along the lakefront… except for maybe the gusty winds??? Regardless, the skyline looked great, the sky was bright blue & the lake was STUNNING!!!

A beautiful landmark theater for a beautifully “dead” show!!! The Cadillac Palace Theater never ceases to impress me! Such great design & craftsmanship in a classic old Chicago theater. Creepy death & madcap mayhem expanding beyond the proscenium.

A little sunrise sparkle on the skyline this morning!

C’mon now… perfectly STUNNING sunrise moments along the lakefront this morning!!!
Why would you want to stay in bed???

On another dreary gray & rainy day, I felt I needed to escape to somewhere “tropical” even if just for a couple hours. So I spent the morning relaxing, chillin’ out & taking in the colors & textures of Garfield Park Conservatory. Such a great way to jump-start my day with beautiful flowers, fantastic textures, koi ponds, Chihuly glass installations & Mother Nature’s magic all happening under the glass roof. A much needed break from gray & gloomy!!!

Some old-school glamour at the Chicago Hilton Hotel on Michigan Avenue.
They don’t make ‘em like they used to!!!

Such a joy to finally see the sun again this morning. Sure it was cold… about 27-degrees when I started out… but there have been far too many dark gray & dreary days in a row. I just had to get out on my bike for a beautiful sunrise. Plus, I found a new flag that someone put out by the lake that really made me SMILE!!!

I’m back in the saddle again… and it was well worth the wait! My bike is back, and it felt great to get out this morning for a windy & cloudy ride along the lakefront. For awhile I thought there might just be too many clouds to allow for a colored sky-show… but I was wrong! A wonderful splash of color for just a few minutes before it faded behind the clouds once more. But I still got to pedal… with new & improved, non-broken, pedaling mechanisms!!!

A cloudy start for a chilly Fall day. I was hoping for some sunrise color to splash all over those clouds… but alas, not much color. Just clouds. With a bit of a chill & clouds to start the day, it looks like it might be a good day for the Chicago Marathon runners. They’ve put in the work training, now put in the marathon miles & smiles!!!

Another morning with gusty winds, crashing waves & plenty of clouds!!! I thought there might be a good potential sunrise in there somewhere… hoping for some fun colors… but the clouds just weren’t playing along!!! Their timing was off & the dark grayness won out. The first half of my ride was great fun with a strong tailwind… the ride back, not so much! Head down, tucked into aero-bars & pedal on!!!

Now for a quick shower & back out to Barrington for Day Two of ART IN THE BARN!!!