On such a beautiful day, I just had to get outside again to play hookey for the afternoon! Waves were still crazy with the wind blowing through… didn’t care! Just loved being outside… before heading back inside to teach class tonight!

Now here’s a store that actually has inventory… a store where you can actually BUY something! Not like the new WAYFAIR store in Wilmette that seems to be all smoke & mirrors… although you’ll need to “order” the mirror and have it shipped to you!

Sorry WAYFAIR… me & my money went to IKEA!

On a gorgeous day like today, you can’t really expect me to be inside ALL day doing my taxes, can you?! I just wonder if my bike can be a “write-off” for some kinda “Mental Well-being” category?!!!

Words to live by… every day… especially when a van pulls up next to you and THIS is staring back at you through your car window!!!

And I’ve always said… “One of the best parts about biking is stopping!” And so I do… frequently. For a good photo… for a kid’s lemonade stand… for a historical marker… for homemade pie… or just to sit back & relax. Life is not a race. Slow down. Enjoy your surroundings. Appreciate nature. Breathe.

Eternal flame at Chicago’s Daley Center Plaza… honoring those who have served.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TAYLOR!!!

So my niece Taylor is turning eighteen today!!!
And I thought it might be fun to do a little flashback to when she was a youngster in grade school doing a class project about a family member. Turns out she picked ME!!! So cute… funny the things that “stuck” in her head back then? Hard to believe she’s turning 18 already… where has the time gone?!

Now that all of my students have their “assignment”… I can finally reveal what was in all those white envelopes last week… and the final “Big Build” project for my GREAT LILLSTREET THROWDOWN class! It’s about “time”!
So they each chose a white envelope which revealed a famous cartoon show. And then they found out what they had to do with it… “time” for the project info!

Turns out it’s “time” for them to build a working CLOCK!!!

And oh but wait there’s more… their clock has to be based on the cartoon that they chose. They can choose any elements from their cartoon… actual characters, logo, colors, vibe, style, environment, etc. … as long as it’s indicative of the cartoon!!! The goal is for them all to have this “Big Build” CLOCK done, glazed & working for their final critique in Week 10 of class! Not a “minute” to spare!

Twenty-five years ago today, the world lost Princess Diana. Such a radiant light amongst the British royalty… even more vibrant & dynamic on her own. Destined to make a huge impact on the world. But instead, it turned out to be one of those sad & historic moments in everyone’s memory… begging the question “Where were YOU when you heard the news of that fatal car accident in Paris that took Princess Diana’s life?”

I was on vacation in California visiting my good friend Barbara. We were grocery shopping in Manhattan Beach buying things to make a cheesecake that night. We were standing in the check-out line when the news broke over the news. We were stunned as we stood there in line. We rushed back to her place, turned on the news… and didn’t turn it off for hours & hours. So sad, so tragic, such a big loss… and we never made the cheesecake!