Holy Week: Dog Walk

Early spring is tough. A parishioner once said to me that it is an ugly time of year because it’s about “shaking off death.” Holy Week falls into this space, easily. Bare. Ugly. Broken. Bleak. For all that subdivisions were designed to be ideal places to live, there is a haunting, lonely look about them. They match the spareness of […]

Fall in the Neighborhood

Fall photos, taken mostly while walking the dog around our neighborhood. The farm where our vegetables come from – Green Earth Institute, and the head farmer, Steve Tiwald, who greets us every other Tuesday when we come by for our pick-up. Arugula, having been inspired by its neighbor, mint, taking over a garden plot (this stuff has amazing […]

Dog Walk, March

This is our park, down the street. Everything seems to be blue, brown, and beige in March. Even if it doesn’t look like much, the beagle always smells something compelling about his surroundings. Spring is trying, under there somewhere. There’s still ice on the pond, for now. But it won’t be long, now…

Blood on the Lawn

We were walking along Parkside, Odo the Beagle and me, when all of a sudden he dove into a front lawn and baby bunnies went running everywhere. Except for the one in his month. It made a terrible tiny squeak. Meanwhile, I was still trying to figure out what was happening. Were these tiny things mice? […]

Who is Anne Stentiford? Part 2

I saw Anne Stentiford’s name on this sign in January, wondered about it, and decided to do some detective work. (Sort of like my obsession with manhole covers last fall.) I found her address online and I wrote to her.  She was very kind and wrote me back. This NO SWIMMING / SKATING sign is the […]

Frozen Picnic Tables, After Monet

Some prankster moved two of the park picnic tables into the pond a few weeks ago. Then it got cold, fast, and the tables were frozen in place. I tried to get all Monet with them, and take pictures in different light… Notice the snow above was in tiny clumps – reminded me of popcorn. […]

Who is Anne Stentiford?

On a dog walk, I noticed this sign for the umpteenth time. There’s just something about a person with three holes for eyes and a mouth… My husband took some family pictures for some folks at our church and he took one of them standing around one of these signs, holding their arms in the air, […]

December Dog Walk

I love taking walks in winter. It’s still. Nobody is around. Everything is exposed down to the most basic level. And I love the cold, when I have a coat and gloves, anyway. Of course, gloves have to come off for taking photos, so for a number of these, so I lost the feeling in […]

Palm Trees of Bolingbrook

Some developer had the idea to make one of our nearby playgrounds an “oasis” – complete with sand, palm trees, Adirondack chairs, and a giant pelican (see below). The sign calls it the “Bloomfield Oasis” – after the name of the subdivision. It’s. Very. Weird. Especially in November. Of course, it’s even better when there’s snow […]

Before and After Rain

Before… After…