Meeting Gary and slithering back to childhood

I’ve only known my new neighbor Gary for a little while, but he brings a smile to my face each time I see him, because he reminds me of my childhood.

Well, I guess you might say that Gary is not my neighbor, but my tenant, because Gary is a garter snake living in my garden. I call him Gary because… well, he looks like a Gary to me.

Vactation, I’ve dreamed of this

It’s T-minus five days until vacation, and my legs and arms are restlessly pulsing along to the tune of the cicadas. It’s all I can think about.

My highly scheduled existence consists of work schedules, school schedules, and deadlines. My grocery lists are categorized into four columns where I systematically tick off each item as it lands in my cart. I write menu plans, fill out calendars, and make to-do lists: Lists of things I want to do. Lists of things I have to do. Lists of things I want other people to do.

Seven farmers markets you don’t want to miss

The season of summer brings many things: ample sunlight, conversations outdoors with neighbors, quiet time spent reading outside and recreational activities with family. For many of us, one special highlight of summer is eating farm-fresh fruits and vegetables. Farmer’s markets offer a very special experience of bringing people together in a fun, friendly environment.

Thankfully, our area has a wide variety of different options when it comes to Farmer’s Markets. Each market has its own personality. The markets vary based on their type, the array of offerings, number of vendors, location and hours. While not a comprehensive list, here are a few area farmer’s markets that you may want to check out.

Ask an Angel: July 27, 2023

I am a 72-year-old woman who is becoming increasingly concerned about my memory. I have a family history of dementia and I can’t help but worry about some of the changes I’ve been experiencing lately.

She was an avid gardener, so most of her flags were inspired by the season. Goldfinches and lilacs in April and May. Red cardinals and orange leaves in October. Turkeys and pumpkins in November.

Snapshots of the heart last a lifetime

After raising four children, I have certain mental snapshots I keep close to my heart. There was the day when my 5-year-old held my hand to cross the street. He paused to look up at me and said, “Momma, I love you so hard.”

There are those first few seconds when, after glancing over their shoulder, the realization sets in: Dad has let go of the back of the seat and they are, in fact, riding a two-wheeled bike.

A different breed: new plants to expand your garden

Plant breeders often spend their entire lives dedicated to the development of a better version of a plant. They work diligently at developing plants that have characteristics that make them superior to other similar plants. These characteristics may include compact form, disease resistance, fragrant flower, colorful foliage, and drought tolerant. Today’s column focuses on 20 new plants that, thanks to plant breeders, have many of those characteristics.

Art is in the house

Hope you all had a wonderful Fourth of July. Now that the summer is in full swing, the multiplex has been finding it hard keeping interest up. Recent blockbusters have gone bust from the Fast franchise to Marvel. Studios seem hellbent on hurtling down this well-worn road, with little heed to what audiences are saying with their dollars. But can theaters continue on this trajectory as well? Hopefully managers will see that counter-programing might be the only thing keeping them afloat. Here are some recent examples that might hold your attention on those silver screens.

King of the eggrolls

Our kids have grown up and moved on, our house is too small to have them return, therefore, it’s just the two of us. Because of this, where is the logical place for us to go grocery shopping? Sam’s Club, of course. We can stock up on such necessities as the five-gallon jug of mayonnaise, the giant drum of nacho cheese sauce (both of which turn blue and fuzzy before you can use them up), and the giant log of processed American cheese which has a shelf life of…forever. After loading up the mini-mobile with our treasures, we headed home with the hatch back dragging on the road behind us.

Ask an Angel: July 13, 2023

My parents retired a year ago and have recently decided to downsize from our family home to a condominium. I agree with their decision to find a smaller home that requires little maintenance, especially since they no longer have the energy to pour into a large home. However, I’m most concerned about the emotional impact this move might have on my parents. Both my parents were extremely involved in their neighborhood and were accustomed to neighbors dropping by to shoot the breeze. I worry that they might feel a sense of loss as they leave behind familiar surroundings and friends.

Learning to leave well enough alone

It was just about a year ago that I got rid of my old, crotchety microwave oven and got a whisper-quiet new one.

The old microwave had served me for nineteen years, a long enough career I suppose for kitchen appliances and quarterbacks not named Brady. It still worked well enough, except that the handle had cracked and was held together by packing tape, and when turned on it whirred and sputtered like an asthmatic chipmunk riding a bike with a baseball card clothes-pinned to fan the spokes. (This is the microwave I’m talking about, not the quarterback, who may or may not whir or sputter when he’s turned on. How would I know?)

Weaving in the Imperfections

I slid a slightly crooked hand-woven bookmark into the envelope before sealing it and mailing it to a friend. I attached a note:

“My newest fascination is hand weaving on a loom. I made this bookmark for you. It’s one of my first, but I’ll send another one after I’ve had more practice. Hopefully you’ll see my progress. Happy Reading!”

Not so super

Dog days usually come at the end of the summer, not at the beginning. The studios seem to have this all turned around as most of the fare in theaters have been lackluster. For all that we were promised for a big return, the five majors haven’t really given much to write home about it. In an attempt to wait out until more interesting films are released, I perused the streaming services to catch up on previous material I had messed over the past few months. And let’s answer a question that is starting to plague me more and more: Do we really need superhero movies anymore?

Get your just ‘deserts’ in Palm Springs

My son, Mike, recently had a business trip to Palm Springs, CA. His wife accompanied him as she wanted to hike the desert and expand her photo library. Sounds great, right? Well, when they stepped off the airplane it was 100 degrees in the shade; a dangerous situation. The trails in the Joshua Tree National Park were marked but had major warnings regarding the situation. “Danger, if you attempt this trail, you may die!” Basically, if you’re not prepared, do not attempt. One park sign insisted that you have liters of water and a full day of food before attempting the trail.

How to hydrate your plants

For years I was lucky enough to have a job that allowed me to work right next to my grandparent’s home. Many mornings I would stop by to visit for a few moments while they were enjoying their breakfast. Each and every day my grandfather would be eating a grapefruit and each and every day he tried to convince me that I should also eat one. He was convinced that it was the key to his good health. Although he was never able to convince me to begin my days eating the bitter citrus fruit, I did adopt his habit of starting my day by doing something healthy. Before I drink any caffeine, I drink two bottles of water. This guarantees that I drink at least half of the recommended daily amount of water before 7 a.m. Although I make a point of hydrating myself, this summer, I challenge all of us to make a point of hydrating our plants.

A carnivore’s dream come true

Since prehistoric times, men have hunted for meat and cooked it over fire. Fire and meat, good… What better way to make Jim happy than to take him to a restaurant that serves meat, and meat, and even more meat. I thought of a place to take him, but upon checking the website, the dinner would cost $59.99 per person and lunch would be $32.99 per person. Making him happy is not worth the extra money, so I decided to take him there for a week day lunch. The name of this carnivore’s “dream come true” is the Texas de Brazil Churrascaria at the Woodfield Mall in Schaumburg.

Ask an Angel: June 29, 2023

Now that I’ve entered my 70s, I’ve been spending more and more time reading about men’s health. While I’ve mostly lived an active lifestyle, I’m finding that in retirement, I no longer have as much mental engagement as I was used to in my career. I read about early-onset Alzheimer’s disease and other age-related chronic health conditions related to men, and it terrifies me.

All the things you might or not say about roadkill

I guess you might say I have an affinity for roadkill.

Oh, it’s not something I’m proud of. It’s just that over the years, roadkill and I have often crossed paths, and I guess you could say that I took the path less traveled by most people.

Taking a 10-minute mini vacation

Even though my school years are long behind me, I still expect that once the calendar flips to June, summer vacation is supposed to magically appear. Remember those delicious days of summer vacation as a kid? Sprinklers on the lawn? Dreamsicles from the ice cream truck? Long days at the city pool, counting out change at the concession stand to buy nachos and a slurpee while the grownups commandeered the pool during Adult Swim?

Short subjects

In a recent article in The Hollywood Reporter, it was confirmed that Martin Scorsese’s latest film is going to be three hours and twenty-six minutes. For those who screened it in Cannes, I hope they took a long bathroom break and refrained from fluids. Running times have inflated even more than studio budgets of late. Christopher Nolan’s Oppenheimer movie is three hours, which I plan to review next month. The question remains: can we still get smaller films made in the climate of spectacle? Have no fear, those still exist if one is willing to seek them out.

Caution, construction ahead

June is busting out all over. The weather went directly from a freeze warning to a heat warning. The flowers are in full bloom which means those orange cones are also in full bloom along all of our roadways. You can’t escape construction, not even in restaurants. This is the case with Jiang’s Mongolian Grill in Algonquin.

Moonlight garden

The influence of others can help us in many ways. A glimmer of hope can be seen when before we only saw despair. Encouragement in the form of a smile can change the trajectory of one’s day. Others can help us see things from a different perspective. Annie, my puppy, has helped me see the beauty in darkness. We spend time each evening, well after the sun has set, outside. While in the past, I would have spent that time staring at a screen, I now stare at the beauty nature has to offer under the stars.

Ask an Angel: June 15, 2023

I’m writing to seek your expert advice on behalf of my beloved aunt. She’s facing isolation and loneliness during the summer months, especially as her immediate family spends most of the summer at their lake home in Michigan. She has expressed feeling isolated and lonely, and not just because her family is away for the summer.

When a house becomes a home

Sometimes it’s hard to tell exactly when a house becomes a home.

But sometimes you know exactly to the moment when it happens.

The house where our kids grew up was in Schaumburg. It was ten years old when we bought it, so it had already been somebody else’s home, and as my wife and I toured it during their open house, we wanted to see what would make us feel that this house could be home to us.

A second chance at hello

As much as I’d like you to think that my Gentleman Friend and I have been married blissfully and perfectly happy for the past several decades, I’m going to take a risk and tell you that sometimes, we fight. Our fights aren’t typically the loud, plate-throwing variety. We’ve mastered the art of subtle tiffs, starting out as a tiny slight that grows into a stand-off —— and I am the half of us most guilty of this —— in an all-encompassing silence that can be louder than a freight train.

Nostalgia trips

Have you ever listened to a song and been transported to another time in your life? The pull of memory is one of the most powerful tools on which media thrives. Every thirty years, a new phase is rehashed with goals of reeling generations with wistful longing. The allure of our past youth shoved in our faces in hopes of attaining our attention and our wallets. Some, though, are created by those who remember it and want to reflect on as we would but in art. While conglomerates utilize it in more shameless ways. Let’s sort through some of these.

Ask the Woodchucks: Fix a leaky sillcock

You have two or more sillcocks on your house even if you don’t know the name “sillcock.”

They are the outside faucets where you connect garden hoses, and they often leak.

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