Beautiful Baby Girl in Evanston

Brown Line El Station at Southport

Happier Lola on a Walk in West Lakeview

Lola has discovered the smell concentrating properties of her new cone head.

An Unhappy Lola on Our Back Porch

Lola had some minor eye surgery and now she's our very unhappy bubble pup.

A Condo in West Lakeview

Alan in Our Living Room

At his laptop.

Max in Our Living Room

No glass of water is safe...

A Couple of Churches in West Lakeview

Our Back Porch in West Lakeview

It is in the 70's today and thanks to Alan's gorgeous flower boxes, our backyard is a wonderful place to be.

Schubas in the Southport Corridor

Schubas' outdoor seating is available again. Hurray! A great place to sit in the evening to have a burger and a beer.

Scooter parked in Wrigleyville

While on our walk, Lola and I saw this scooter parked near Wrigley Field.

Our Back Porch in West Lakeview

It is an absolutely beautiful day, so rather than buying groceries and doing other chores we should be working on, we're on the back porch enjoying ourselves.

The tree in our backyard is just starting to blosom.

Flower boxes to be.

Suzanne's Back Porch in West Lakeview

Sleepy Max in his Shoe Box

Fletcher & Racine in West Lakeview

Max in his Shoe Box

I got a new camera! Uh, I'll try for some more exciting photos soon.

Day 2 in Columbus, Indiana

A diesel engine at the museum in the Cummins Engine Company Headquarters

A handpainted table at a Deli.

A sculpture at the mall.

A last look at the Columbus Inn, before we head back to Chicago (by way of the Outlet Mall in Edinburgh).

Early Evening in Columbus, Indiana

A Henry Moore sculpture and the First Christian Church.

A local house.

A war memorial.

Columbus, Indiana

Columbus, Indiana is a strange and wonderful place.

A local switching station.

A sculpture of a diesel engine.

A restroom in the park.

Fire station #4.

Interstate 57 between Chicago and Champaign

We took a long weekend and drove and drove and drove...

Book: Time Travelers Wife

I finished reading The Time Traveler's Wife last night. I really enjoyed the first third of the book. I like how the treatment of time travel reflects the experience of memory and aging in everyday life. After a while it seemed like the book was wrapping up loose ends, rather than doing much new and I found the story very sad. It might just be my mood though.

Hitchhiker's Guide in Lincoln Park

The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy movie is coming to Chicago on April 29th!

More Spring in West Lakeview

The neighborhood is starting to turn green.

The Kennedy Expressway heading into Chicago

One of the first hot days of Spring in Chicago, and I'm stuck in traffic.

Alan on our Back Porch

Yet another sign of spring. Alan eating breakfast on our back porch.

Cafe Ba-Ba-Reeba in Lincoln Park

We biked to dinner at Cafe Ba-Ba-Reeba. They have a patio with outdoor seating that was marvelous.

T-shirt weather in West Lakeview

It is in the mid 70's today. Wow...

Johnny Sprockets in East Lakeview

After dinner, Alan, Lola and I walked to Johnny Sprockets to buy Alan a new bike.

Max in my Office

Max asleep, looking very round.

Book: Graceland

I finished reading Graceland. It was well written and I found it quite engaging. I used to make fun of my grandmother for saying, "there's enough misery in the world already", but nowadays I'm less able to absorb all of the misery. For me the story was one of relentless tragedy.

A Sunday hike at Sag Valley Forest Preserve in Southwest Cook County

Today is a beautiful Spring day, so the whole family (minus Max) decided to head off for a hike in the woods at the nearby Sag Valley Forest Preserve. The trees are still bare, but the air is refreshing and the sun feels wonderful. Lola wants to know, "When do we go!"

Planning.

Lola leads the way.

Who needs bridges?

After three hours of running around, Lola is tired, muddy and ready to go home. Success!