Storm's Comin'

Just after I took this photo there was thunder and within a minute or two a steady rain began. Summer may be leaving with a cold front coming in from the West.

Carnival

Winfield Good Ole Days started tonight but the carnival wasn't running. It's all set up and ready to go tomorrow night at 5PM.

Corn on the Cob

This is my favorite summer food. Surprisingly, this is the first time I've had it this season. With the drought it hasn't looked very good and has been fairly expensive so I kept passing it up. Tonight I arrived at the Warrenville Farmer's Market as they were closing and the vendor I most often buy from gave me  deal; 4 ears for $1. It was delicious!

Me too?

Can I get in?

Vinca

We're in a second serious heat spell this summer with temps just below 100. My balcony flower boxes need a good watering every morning and some of the plants are struggling but this box is thriving.

Dressed for the 4th

When I saw this house tonight I knew it would be my "Photo of the Day. They've done a great job decorating it for Independence Day. Unfortunately, I had to shoot to the West, into the sun. As a result, there is a bit of "sun flare" but I'm still posting it. Besides, it's the only photo I took today. 

Tree Devastation

About 1PM yesterday the sky got very dark and the wind really picked up. The TV scroll said "Thunderstorms." At my house it rained hard for 45 min and left behind 3/4" of rain. Once the rain started the wind died down. By 2PM it was over and the sun was shining. At 3PM I went to an outdoor concert about 3 miles away.

This morning I discovered that just another mile north of the concert site the storm had reached 90 mph winds and trees were down at almost every property. The destruction is incredible. These pictures were taken more than 30 hrs after the storm hit. 

                             The  streets in this neighborhood is lined with branches.

Classic Cars

It's Friday; there's  car show in downtown Wheaton tonight. My favorite was a Triumph.

Spring into Summer

This has been an odd year for weather. In March, as Spring arrived, we had a week of 80°F temps. Trees started to bud, but cold weather followed and the budding process stopped. Now that summer has come, the tree in my yard is only half leafed out. Near the trunk it's pretty full but there are many branches that are completely bare.


Update: 3 August 2012

This morning I discovered they cut this tree down yesterday. I've seen other trees with the same problem this tree had but I didn't think this would be reason to get rid of the tree. 

Update: 26 September 2012

It seems the tree was probably taken down to fight Emerald Ash Borer. Many trees throughout the subdivision and local towns have been cut dow to prevent the spread of this tree disease.

Cricket

Many summer Sunday mornings I see a Cricket game as I leave chruch. Today I stopped to take a few photos. The playing area is large so I was quite distant from the players. The bounds are marked by orange cones and the batting team is in red.

Summer Evening

Waiting for the Thursday night Wheaton Municipal Band concert to begin.

Latin Rhythms

Tonight was the first of the local summer concerts. The Warrenville concert is sponsored by the library at the Bob Walter Commons and featured Jose Valdes Mambo All Stars.

Luxury Ride

Tonight was Wheaton's first Vintage Rides night of the summer.

1930 Packard

Car Show

Scooby's sponsored a vintage car show today. I stopped by with my camera and when I went inside for a Green River shake they gave it to me for taking photos. So if you're in West Chicago looking for a hot dog joint with great fast food; this is the place.

1958 Chevrolet Bel Air

1967 Ford Fairlane GTA Convertible Sticker Price $3990.91

1954 Chevrolet 3100

1971 Datsun 510

1958 Chevrolet Bel Air

1971 VW Beetle

1958 Chevrolet Bel Air & 1985 Champagne Chevrolet Corvette (For Sale $9,499)

Tag

I love the squeals of kids paying tag in the summer evening with Dad.

They let Dad take a short break while they played with sidewalk chalk, but soon enough they had time playing tag with them again.

Hope of Summer

I put up my trellises tonight. They look a bit barren but in a month or so they should be full of clematis flowers. As I was finishing up, my neighbor Tony stopped to give me some lily's that a co-worker had given him. Each year I've been adding perennials to this garden in an effort to share the beauty with my neighbors. 

Cornfield

The only view I captured on my bike ride tonight. 

Clothesline

Today I saw clothes drying on the line in Milton township. Can't remember the last time I saw that. 

Music

This summer's yard sales included lots of music CDs for sale. Here's a stack of the ones I bought. Prices ranged from 25 cents to a dollar.

This collection includes: Josh Groban, James Galaway, Charlotte Church, Frank Sinatra, Miles Davis, Aaron Neville, Billy Joel, Benny Goodman, U2, Peter Gabriel, Harry Connick, Jr, Quincy Jones, & Yanni. There is Irish, German and Italian music, classical, jazz, pop, rock, & world music. Probably the earliest recordings are by Benny Goodman from 1937 and thew newest are from 2010. A couple of the classic albums form the 1980's say "Made in West Germany."

River View

I stopped at a yard sale on this private road and decided to go to the end for a view of the west branch of the DuPage River. What a lovely place this homeowner has created.