A new leaf

Houseplants have always been a favorite for some people. Growing up, my mom always had spider plants hanging down from countertops or pots of ferns sitting on bookshelves. As a kid, I remember planting outdoor plants into indoor pots, just to see if they could grow in the kitchen, as opposed to a little garden we had to share with neighbors. I remember my mom digging through Home Depot and similar stores, looking for indoor greenery. What I don’t remember is my friends’ homes having these same indoor gardens.

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Horsing around

Everything was quiet and peaceful at the new Alden Rehab Center in Huntley one recent April day.

Then, suddenly, a horse came trotting into the second floor patient therapy and activity area. Strangely, nurses and patients welcomed the animal happily, and a party was held. Cell phones were quickly turned into cameras.

Village says no to industrial usage of the outlet mall grounds

Huntley’s village board hasn’t made a final decision yet on the future use of the former outlet mall site, but they made an important one in the meantime.

They want mixed commercial uses on the remaining 60 acres, not industrial ones.

20-year cycle

In celebrating the 20th Anniversary of the Sun City Community in Huntley, the clubs of Sun City have been solicited to provide information on the beginnings of the club, participate in activities during the Amazing Race scheduled on June 29th and of course they are at the New Residents Orientation to entice the new residents to join the many clubs offering many interests and activities to join.

Illinois Extension McHenry County Master Gardeners Annual Spring Plant Sale

This is being written on April 27. It is snowing, hard. Forecasters say more than six inches of the white stuff will fall today.

But this doesn’t faze the Illinois Extension McHenry County Master Gardeners organization. They are proceeding full speed ahead with their annual spring plant sale in Woodstock on Sunday, May 19. The event starts at 10 a.m. and runs until everything is sold out.

An Easter mystery: The case of the sketchy sleigh-coon

Easter this year was my first full-contact, no-holds-barred Easter in a long time.

It’s not that Easters didn’t “happen” for me over the past several years. But this was the first one in years that I spent in the good old-fashioned way: inundated by an infestation of kids.

In this edition, we are focusing on Sandhill Cranes, which, in contrast, are migratory birds that have also made an impressive recovery from near extinction, though not as numerous as their feathered brethren, the geese.

A Tale of Two Tails

February 2012: Wildwood, Missouri

My wife Annamarie and I had been called into action. Our Grandchildren Michael and Claire needed someone to watch over them while our son Bill and our daughter-in-law Paula went to Hawaii on a much-deserved vacation.

Watching two well-behaved young teens was a breeze; they were more than self-sufficient; a little breakfast in the morning, they were off to school, leaving us plenty of leisure time during the day. Lest I forget we also had to “care-take” two puppy dogs. One of them our little white Molly, the other their dog Jet, who true to his name, was black. Each of them weighed between 15-20 pounds, and they got along famously.

The problem with picking the perfect super power

My son Dave and the grandkids spent last weekend at my house, and over breakfast we got around to talking about all the important things, like what kind of super power we’d like to have.

My grandson Jack jumped immediately to telekinesis, the power to move objects with his mind. “Well,” I said, “of course we’ll have to have some limits to our powers, right? I mean, I’d hate to find that you plunked the moon into my back yard.”

“OK,” he said, “what are my limits?”