Don’t forget to “Spring Forward” tonight… and change your clock.
Remember to move your clocks ahead one hour before you go to bed tonight.
It’s time to go back into Daylight Saving Time… or losing an hour of your Sunday?!
And wouldn’t it be more fun if you were changing the time on one of THESE clocks?!

Gotta love a good steampunk clock. And the whole “Steampunk Movement”
for that matter. Rusty. Crusty. Gears. Patterns. Layers. Details. Groovy cool.

At the “glitter gig” today, the florist was using ornamental pineapples in her work.
I loved the colors, textures, stripes and spikes!!! All in one place.

Generally I’m not a fan of graffiti.
I think if you feel like you need to paint something, find a canvas, a board, a piece of paper.
Don’t deface the side of a building or public space that other people enjoy as it is.

But then sometimes you’ll see something really cool & unexpected. Not just some random
spray paint on the side of the wall. Not just some crazy block letters tagging a building.
But actually some incredible graphics. Beautiful designs in unexpected places. In this
case, it was on Grand Avenue beneath Lake Shore Drive near Chicago’s Navy Pier.
Propaganda posters slapped onto the concrete walls along Grand Avenue. Love ’em!
Sadly, like most graffiti… it might not last for long…

So I realize that these images are all part of a marketing campaign. Shameless propaganda.
Yet I LOVE the bold graphic design, the stark black & white contrast, and the dynamic
flourishes, patterns & crisp sense of whimsy. And while the above “segments” are great,
the entire posters were even better. So here they are as they were designed…
although some of them are showing signs of deterioration already.

But then sometimes, the reality of the structure gets in the way of a great art installation.
Couldn’t quite move around the pipes, so they had to be where they were… right in front!!!

Yes, each poster is pretty great.
But the entire “under bridge wall” plastered with these posters was quite a dramatic sight.
So similar in style, yet each one of them a beauty on its own!

Oh, the things you’ll see while playing on your bike…

What a difference a new perspective can make?! Not the normal chandelier any more!

Last night I drove out to Oakbrook to see “Sunset Boulevard” at Drury Lane.
It’s a classic Andrew Lloyd Weber stage production. A musical remake of the 1950
Billy Wilder classic black & white movie. Chronicling the faded glory & delusional life
of silent screen actress Norma Desmond. To this day, the classic movie is still listed
as the 16th best movie ever by the American Film Institute. I’ve seen the movie…
and tonight I finally saw the musical at Drury Lane. It’s a good production with a
creepy, eerie & delusional Norma Desmond…. who is ready for her closeup Mr. DeMille.
Of course we had to get food first… so why not indulge at The Cheesecake Factory!?

While we were at Drury Lane for “Sunset Boulevard”, there is also a lot to see in the lobby.
Lots of things that sparkle. And since I was with my metalsmith friend Pam who is known
by some as the “Queen Of All That Sparkles”, we had a lot of sparkle to admire!

But it’s not just the chandeliers to admire… the pressed textured tile ceiling is pretty
darn impressive too! Love the pattern. Love the grid. Love the subtle coloration.

Sadly, not everything is quite wonderful at Drury Lane. The carpets are quite “lovely.”
And yet somehow I have a weird fascination with the crazy carpet designs found in
hotels everywhere! I may need to start a collection of hotel carpet photos?!