Gourd Snowman

A couple of cute new Christmas decorations I purchased yesterday. 

The Elizabethans

Enjoyed tonight's Madrigal Christmas concert.

More Lights

I found another colorful light display in my neighborhood tonight. I also like the full moon.

Night Lights

Another amazing light display in the neighborhood.

Walking Stick

This is a replica walking stick of the British Troops in WWII. It can easily be carried in a backpack and then screwed together when used. I got this in Thailand.

The tag says: 

Sir Jeffery 

British 

1941 

East Asia

Hillpig-Smyth 

Christmas Lights

My neighbor Tony put his Christmas lights up yesterday. 
Every year the display gets more elaborate.

Lunch at Lou Mitchell's

I had 90 minutes to "kill" between the arrival of my bus from Indianapolis and the departure of my Metra train to West Chicago. As I walked to the train station I saw Lou Mitchell's, a breakfast/lunch icon in Chicago, and decided to have lunch. They make their own bakery goods daily, have their own brands of coffee and maple syrup, but for lunch, I chose the Lou Mitchell club sandwich; turkey & bacon on rye with lettuce & tomato. They gave me a donut hole when I arrived and a complimentary mini-cup of soft-serve ice cream.

One of the traditions is to give customers Milk Duds. According to a waitress, Uncle Lou was friends with the creator of Milk Duds and agreed to give them away to see if people liked them. Almost 90 years later they are a still a hit.

Rueben Sandwich

Tonight's dinner was a a rueben sandwich from Shapiro's Deli, "Indiana's prime forum for corned beef and pastrami piled high on rye." I shared one with my sister.

Thanksgiving Feast

I spent the day with family but I didn't get a picture of all of us.

So this shot of the table just before we sat down for a delicious meal with all the trimmings will have to do. 

Family

I traveled today to spend Thanksgiving with family in Indiana. We arrived just after sunset to have dinner with my niece Abby and her family. So good to be together.

Blue Mug

Got this mug from a potter in Kandern, Germany.

Cuppa

Enjoying a mug of hot chocolate made from "100% Pure Chocolate" with cinnamon from Guatemala. The real thing. 

"L" station

This is the Green line station at Harlem in Oak Park, IL. I was standing on the next platform waiting for my commuter train when I took this photo a little before 7PM tonight.

Farrier

I dropped in on the farrier demonstration today at the Danada Equestrian Center. Did you know horses need a "pedicure" every 6 weeks?

Anticipation

Thanksgiving is coming.

Swiss Army Knife

I bought this Victorinox knife in one of my favorite tourist destinations: Mürren, Switzerland. All the other ones I've owned over the years have been the smaller versions and I seem to lose them. This one is a keeper.

Soup's On

With winter coming it's time to use my spices from Romania. 

Bors Magic Soup Seasoning & Dry Lovage Leaves ( Leustean Frunze ) 

ALL IN

At Wheaton Bible Church we are embarking on a 2-year "ALL IN" generous giving commitment. This Sunday we added our individual finger prints to indicate our personal involvement.

A New Way of Giving—Aligned with a New Vision
ALL IN’s bold vision of reducing debt and being free to increase ministry calls us to a bold new way of giving. From December 2012 to December 2014, every contribution to Wheaton Bible Church will be a contribution to a single fund called the ALL IN Fund—a fund that combines all our normal giving funds (General, Hispanic Ministry, Building, Caring, Puente del Pueblo, MOVE, and others) with funds directed toward accelerated debt payments.

Utinsels

Souvenirs I got a couple years back while attending a conference in Hungary.

Memorial

When I saw this bike from a distance I thought it was some kind of public art. Then I got up close and I realized it was a tribute to a cyclist who died with a "warning plea" to drivers. 

Look over your shoulder when you exit your car.

Clinton Miceli June 27, 1985 -- Died June 9, 2008

Cleanup

Spent the afternoon organizing the garage so I can park my car inside during the winter. The challenge was finding ways to store the big items (bike, kayak, wheel barrow) without taking up floor space. I still need to put up the pulley system for my bike. Tomorrow I'll put give away items outside and next week will make a donation to the local resale shop.

Hanging the kayak on the wall took a bit of ingenuity. 

My new neighbor took one look at my space, just as I was starting to organize, and said, "You don't park your car in the garage?"

Veterans Tribute

Luminaries at dusk. 

Tonight was Cantigny Park and the First Division Museum's 5th annual Veterans Day tribute to those who gave their lives in combat. The display is made up of 2200 luminaries laid out in the same formation as military cemeteries.

Just before 9PM.

  

Autumn Decor

I'm a bit late getting out my fall decorations but here they are.

Free Pizza

A few weeks back I got an email from Papa John's telling me I had won a free Pizza. Today I cashed it in and ordered a large pizza with mushrooms, black olives and green peppers. The extra cost $3.88. Now that's a good dinner and I don't have to cook!

Election Day

I voted!

Here's my voting receipt and sticker.

Late

It should have been 5 Nov 2012

For only the 2nd time in 18 months and 5 days I forgot to take a photo. This was the first workday after falling back to Central Standard Time so it was dark when I left work. I remember thinking I just might forget to take a photo, and sure enough, it happened. This shot of my old but functional cell phone documents that I took this photo 27 min too late.

Election

With just two days left before the election, yard signs are everywhere.

Feisty

I stopped over at Kline Creek Farm and noticed these two young "bucks" setting up to butt heads. They didn't really do much but they did push each other around the paddock.

Prescription Burn

Today I noticed a sign "Prescription Burn Ahead" posted on IL 59 within a mile of my house. I had to go back and take a photo. The burn was taking place is a small section of Blackwell Forest Preserve. Because the weather has to be just right, these burns aren't announced in advance. Read a current new story about the burns here. This was my best shot today. What I didn't capture was all the forest preserve firemen monitoring the burn.

My favorite burn photo was taken by my friend Sonnet Schultz and can be seen here.

Bells in Bloom

It got down to 33°F last night and my flowers out in the open suffered. But these are near the house and seem unaffected by the cold. I thought they had finished blooming a month or so ago so I was quite surprised to discover late this afternoon that they are thriving. I doubt we have many more warm days left but for today it was a joy to see them.