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MY SUN DAY NEWS

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News & Features Columnists Editorials Hang Your Hat Obituaries My Huntley News

September 5, 2019

Columnists

Where’d You Go Bernadette – a long trip

Thanks to one of our “email” readers, Dianne Morton who lives in Virginia. She tipped me off about this movie, as I had not heard about it. A little research suggested it might be worth our time, and as it turned out it most certainly was.

Ask an Angel: September 5, 2019

I am at a loss when it comes to making conversation with my grandpa. I have a good relationship with him but was always a little closer with my grandma. She passed away a few years ago, and since her passing, my grandpa seems a little withdrawn. He moved to assisted living about two years ago, and while he is doing well health-wise, he has occasional memory lapses. He lights up when I come to visit, especially when I bring my family (he loves watching my little ones toddle around the halls), but after the basic, “How are you, what’s new,” I find myself searching for conversation topics and ways to connect with him. Do you have any suggestions on how I can better engage my grandpa in conversation?

The spinning hoop goes round and round

As I stood on stage last week with my band, little brown-eyed Isabella smiled right in front of us, twirling her hula-hoop around her hips. She hula-hooped through our entire 90-minute show.

And so near the end of the show I called for the band to swerve out of our set list so I could sing “Brown-Eyed Girl” and dedicate it to her. The crowd of more than 800 erupted in applause for this energetic little 8-year-old girl — the real headliner of the night.

The Art of Racing in the Rain — proves that dogs are great!!

Before proceeding with the story line I have a timely comment. “Dogs are a connection. Dogs are a beacon of loyalty and family. Dogs are a man’s best friend. How could you not love dogs?

Fall into weekend fun outdoors this season

By the time you read this, my heart will be a little less full, my smile a tad forced and my eyes a bit red. Life is full of transitions and changes. Some are easier to work through than others. The transition that is taking place in our house is one that will result in three incredibly happy kids pursuing their dreams at the universities of their choice and two parents struggling to adjust and move on with their lives. We are officially empty nesters.

Holy mostaccioli!!

Nancy has not been to church in for longer than we care to admit. Our children are all married and most of our relatives have passed, so that takes care of the top two reasons for us going to church. Because I am an ex-altar boy, and survived 12 years of parochial school, I’d like to consider myself an authority on church matters.

Ask the Woodchucks: August 22, 2019

Should I use LED lights in my garage door openers?

From Ireland, O’Random Adventures to ya

A friend of mine, who lives in Memphis, TN, and her cousin Dottie, recently visited Ireland. Dottie lives in Savannah, TN, a small town where trips are organized by banks. She has traveled with Peoples Bank for years. The trip started with a bus picking them up in Savannah and after a couple of other stops in Middle Tennessee, they flew out of Nashville to Newark and then to Dublin. This is their story.

Ask an Angel: August 22, 2019

My elderly mother recently had a doctor’s appointment that probably could have gone better. My mother is independent and capable, but she tends to downplay her ailments when speaking with the doctor. She does, however, call me to complain about how fast the appointment went. How can I help my mom prepare for her next doctor’s appointment so that she goes into it with greater confidence and competence?

If you don’t believe in psychics, prepare to be chilled

My sister-in-law went to see a psychic recently, and when she called to report back to me how the meeting went, I had my reservations.

After all, there are psychics, and then there are psychics. The fake ones should be put in jail for lying to us about their phony abilities. The real ones should be put in jail for not telling us when an earthquake or tornado is about to hit.

Be Bop a Lulu…

A good friend of ours, Kathy, invited us to join her and a group friends, for dinner. We jumped at the chance for two reasons. It would be a fun night out, and we found out that, on that particular night, you get 50% off on all appetizers and entrees at the recentley opened Be Bop A Lulu’s Rockabilly Cafe in Union.

Yesterday — a musical treat

This movie has been in the theaters for a while, and certainly some of you may have seen it. I prefer to write about new releases, but as my editor Kelsey O’Kelley put it “I feel that August is one of the months where no good movies come out.” You’re right Kelsey, at least so far, so I chose to “reach back” for this edition.

The grass is always greener on the other side of lawn care

We have an area in the front of our house where grass doesn’t grow very well. My husband, bless his heart, has tried in vain for 3 years to establish lawn in this area. Inevitably, no matter what he has tried grass seed or sod, this area ended up being bare soil. It was the topic of conversation on a recent Saturday night. Although I could see he was tired and frustrated from working on the project once again, I had to admit, I really never noticed that part of our yard.

Ask the Woodchucks: August 8, 2019

In the last issue of this paper I gave some inaccurate information on siding for Sun City homes. I should have researched a little further and not relied on a single source.

Ask an Angel: August 8, 2019

I think it’s time for all of us to have a conversation about hiring more help, but I don’t know how to approach the topic. Do you have any tips?

All roads lead to Rome … or something like that

Like most Americans, whenever I feel a bit anxious and lost, I trust my faith in a higher power — my car’s navigational system. She always seems to get me back on track.

I call her “she,” of course, because her voice is female. And I’m glad she’s female, because who wants to put all your faith in some disembodied guy’s voice when you’re lost? We men are idiots when it comes to finding our own way, because we always think we can get there without asking directions. So that directional dashboard dude is probably just as lost as I am and is faking it to preserve his fragile manhood.

Calculating the Valley Hi rebate is an ‘exacting exercise’

Procrastination is fairly common among taxpayers filing just before the April deadline every year. The government expects to see completed federal tax forms and state tax forms right up to the last minute, but there’s no history of filing early or late for the Valley Hi Rebate.

Dropping anchor once again

After seven years of writing this column, we are proud to say we have never repeated a restaurant. That is partially due to the fact that after we review them, for some reason, they go out of business. Was it something we said???

Human / Nature

Recently, there was a discussion on the radio regarding the implementation of self-service checkout lanes at Jewel. I listened especially closely because my son is a checker at the Huntley store. The consensus of the discussion seemed to be that shopping at Jewel was more rewarding when the visit ended with interaction with the checkers and baggers.

Ask the Woodchucks: July 25, 2019

We recently moved to Sun City and love it here. The hardest thing is deciding which clubs to join. We have one problem we can’t solve. When we connect a hose to the faucet in the garage and turn it on it drips on the floor and makes a puddle. Short of putting a bucket under it what can we do?

Ask an Angel: July 25, 2019

We recently visited my elderly mother-in-law over the holiday weekend. While it was wonderful to see her, my family and I spent most of the time literally sweating out the visit. I mean, it was almost cooler outside than it was inside her small home. My husband adjusted the thermostat to give us a reprieve from the heat, only to discover that my mother-in-law turned the air conditioning off later in the evening.

The Lion King — all I can say is WOW

The sold out theater erupted into applause as this incredible movie came to an end. I don’t know if it was the spectacular settings and background, the animation (which is the best I have seen) or the musical score featuring Beyonce. In all likelihood, it was a combination of the three.

Retirement is a Story in Itself

More than four decades ago, I started writing news briefs for my college newspaper in a newswriting journalism class. In my junior year, I switched to broadcasting classes and declared my major as Radio Broadcasting. I began in the news reporting business in 1974 and finished a long run in early April when I read my final radio newscasts on 103.9 The Fox and on STAR 105.5 FM in Crystal Lake. Corporate consolidation affected my position.

Searching for footprints that last forever

A couple months ago, while a friend and I drove through western Illinois, I realized that we were only a short drive from Macomb, where I had gone to college at Western Illinois University in the late 1960s. We decided to swing west and check out the university, which I hadn’t visited in decades.

But besides visiting the campus, high on my list of things to see was the little cottage at 435 N. Chandler Street.

Ask the Woodchucks: July 11, 2019

Our Sun City home was recently struck by a lightning bolt, and the damage done included some damage to our vinyl siding. Is it still possible to secure siding that will match our current siding in terms of color?

How to ‘win’ the war on weeds

On a recent Sunday morning, I spent a few hours watering the plants at our garden center. Normally I spend Sundays holed up in my office trying to get done all of the work that has piled up on my desk throughout the week. This Sunday was different. I needed to be outside. Frankly, it was quite depressing.

All aboard!

Recently our son and his family came for a visit from the great state of Florida. They have a seven year old son, Henrik, and four year old twin daughters, Ana and Greta. As it is with most grandchildren these days, it seems like they have to be constantly entertained every hour, every minute, every second, of every day, 24/7 during their four day stay.

Spider-Man: Far From Home: Ho-hum

This is the umpteenth sequel for this franchise, the original with Tobey Maguire and Kirsten Dunst still ranks as the best of the lot, heads and shoulders above this one for sure. Spiderman fans will agree that Tom Holland makes an excellent Peter Parker, just on his good looks alone. However, even he can’t score with a less than mediocre script despite the support of an all- star cast.

Ask an Angel: July 11, 2019

I’m starting to feel concerned about my mother’s memory. She’s turning 75 next week and she seems to be more forgetful these days. She constantly misplaces her car keys. She repeats stories about the nuances of her day.