So while I was snowed in at home… making s’mores in my fireplace…
look what was going on just a few blocks away over on Lake Shore Drive!!!

For those who don’t know, Lake Shore Drive parallels the lake shore through
the Chicago area. It’s a major thoroughfare for everyone traveling north or south.
Well, apparently the city was hoping that people would make it home before the
“big” storm hit. And they didn’t close Lake Shore Drive quite fast enough. With the
storm & winds blowing in from the lake and drifting right across Lake Shore Drive,
all it took was a couple accidents and the entire expressway became a parking lot -
and major headline news across the country! Hundreds of cars were stuck in the snow,
people trapped in their cars & buses for several houts before being evacuated by the police.
Well, here are a few shots of what was going on… the day AFTER the big storm.
Including some cars left open during evacuation forced to brave the elements?!

And to think I was riding my bike along the lake just two days ago?!

Okay.. so the storm continues outside. I guess the forecast was pretty accurate?
So the first wave of snow came down, and then the wind picked up to gale force winds!
There are now snow drifts everywhere! But it is more the wind that is kind of freaky.
It’s so windy that the sound is practically deafening… not to mention the tree branches
that keep my living room windows! Guess those should have been trimmed, huh?

So I’m staying inside, keeping warm and enjoying some s’mores in the fireplace!
A little fun online, with some Facebook updates & more, plus some fun shows on TiVO.
When all of a sudden the electricity goes out. Luckily, I have plenty of handmade oil lamps
all around the place. But after some time in the dark… I decided to go outside and play!
Who gets the chance to experience a storm such as this?! And it’s just snow, right?
And luckily, by the time I got home, the electricity was back on! Perfect timing.

So I tried to exit through the front door vestibule… only to find out that that too
has been covered with snow! Yes, the INSIDE of our lobby vestibule is snow covered
as the strong winds keep blowing the exterior door open!!! And not just a little…
there were a couple inches of snow in the drift!

I decided to go for a walk around the neighborhood to see what’s going on. It was beautiful.
So much better than sitting inside in the dark, right? The snow was blowing directly in my face
as I started walking east towards the Lake. As I crossed Broadway, I stopped to help a guy
try to get his car out of the snow drift he had driven into. No dice. He was stuck. The closer
I got to the Lake, the more the wind hurt my face. The gusts were so strong that it felt like
sharp pieces of ice hitting my face. The El train was quiet. As was McDonalds…

Typically it’s so quiet outside during a good snowstorm… but not this time.
The wind was howling, the thunder had died down & there were sirens off in the distance.
I had a great time walking around the neighborhood. Seeing where the snow was, how tall
the drifts were getting… and how bad it was going to be to dig my car out tomorrow!

So here’s some of my neighborhood… the “quiet” serenity without the flash
and the same shot with the flash to show more of the frenzied snow!

So now I’m home warming up… and my clothes is dripping as the snow covering melts!
Who knows what tomorrow will look like if these winds keep up all night?
Regardless, I think tomorrow will be a “snow day” for many of us… which is always fun!!!

So Chicago is in the path of a huge snowstorm racing across the Midwest.
They are predicting about 30-inches of snow & high winds overnight.
I’ll believe it when I see it… I think they’re over-estimating just a bit.

The official “winter storm watch warning” started at 3:00pm this afternoon
and continues through tomorrow at 3:00pm. Everyone in Chicago is on high-alert
in anticipation of the storm. Lillstreet Art Center has already canceled all classes
for tonight & tomorrow morning. Which means my students get to stay home tonight
instead of fighting the elements. They get to hunker down & stay warm.
We can all play in the clay another day…

I literally laughed out loud this morning when I was listening to the radio
and someone referred to the storm as “SNOWMAGEDDON.” Really? C’mon…
Then the official weather report came across the wire and they referred to it
as “potentially deadly.” Again?… really?… it’s only snow. We call it Winter!!!
Of course there were other creative names that followed throughout the day…
“SnowPocolypse”… “SnowPalooza”… snow-MG…  and now we wait for some snow!

After my long day at “One Of A Kind” and the Lillstreet Holiday Opening last night,
I laid myself down for a long winter’s nap… and awoke this morning to this…

And although I loved it, the new snow doesn’t help my biking mileage goal any!!!

Okay, so this afternoon I was still in the process of setting up for the Holiday Home Show.
And in the big scheme of things, and the sequence I need to go through putting up
shelves & decorations… I had to tackle the Christmas tree today. It needs to be up in place
in my living room BEFORE I can put up my display shelves. So… I put up my holiday
decorations today – in shorts, with windows open as it was almost 70-degrees today!
Something’s wrong with this… too soon for Christmas?! My vote is YES.

And from the slightly annoyed & inquisitive looks I was getting from my cat…
he thought it was too early too!

What would Halloween be without some good, old-fashioned pumpkin carving?!

Artist Ray Villafane began carving pumpkins on a lark for his art students in a small,
rural school district in Michigan. The hobby changed his life as he gained a viral
following online and unlocked his genuine love of sculpting. Here are a few of his
eerie pumpkin creations from the past five years!

Villafane has made a name for himself with the pumpkin carving even though he is
allergic to pumpkins. “If I’m carving too many or too long, my skin gets really itchy,”
Vilafane said. “If pumpkin juice gets anywhere near my eyes, my eyes itch.”

Villafane created a pumpkin-carving tutorial and posted it on his website,
VillafaneStudios.com. In it, he recommends carving with the following tools:
a large clay ribbon loop, a medium clay ribbon loop, a mini clay ribbon loop,
an X-acto knife and a paring knife. Who knew that my old clay ribbon loop tools
could be so useful in the pumpkin carving realm?! A great chance to re-purpose them!

Just some more pretty pictures.
The Fall colors were so incredible while I was up in the Northwoods…
I took HUNDREDS of photos!!! Everywhere you looked, it was gorgeous…
and I had to take more & more photos at every turn. Here’s just a few more!

As much as I hate to admit it… summer in Chicago might be over?!
The weather has changed. It has gotten a lot cooler. The sun’s not as strong.
One more “confirmation” was this morning when I saw that the lifeguard stands
along the lakefront are all being removed. Lifeguards are gone. Summer’s over?!
I’m not buying it… I will grasp onto “summer” as long as I can…