Photo Essay: Savoring Fall in Indiana
I am immensely grateful to our friend who sowed sunflower seeds on an empty spot on our property in Indiana, because the dry sunflowers now make great models for my tinkering with close-ups. I never thought this rusty ton would make such a nice photo object until I eyed it through the lens. Inside the forest On the forest [...]
Photo Essay: Starved Rock in Fall
A hiking trip to Starved Rock State Park, a two hour drive from Chicago, is one of those traditions my daughter insists on. We just have to make it out there in the fall. This time we combined it with a detour to the Pumpkin Farm we discovered on last year's excursion. If you've been following this blog, you [...]
Author Q&A: Wenguang Huang
I wonder what it means if I don't even notice anymore that my writing has gotten published? Have I reached a level of publication success where I can go, "Oh yeah, that piece..." Well, I'm not sure about that, but the truth is that I didn't even notice, until yesterday, that my Q&A with Wenguang Huang, author of The Little [...]
Chicago Art Deco at the Powhatan
I took this snapshot while leaving the lobby of the Powhatan - I loved the red of the event shuttle bus as background to the two figures, the woman stopping by with her dog, and the stylized cut-out figure of Chief Powhatan in the door. This past weekend the Chicago Architecture Foundation held its annual Open House Chicago event, when [...]
Photo Essay: At the Pumpkin Farm
I am absolutely in love with fall, particularly this year when the summer's heat kept me indoors so much. I've promised myself to be outside as much as possible to savor fall, and this week I was able to indulge with a trip to the Dollinger Pumpkin Farm as we were driving out to hike in Starved Rock State Park, [...]
On Owning a Story–My Great-Grandfather’s Sewing Machine
My great-grandfather's sewing machine, still in use on my dining room table When you write memoir, sooner or later you come upon the issue of, "Is this my story to tell?" - "What about the other people in the story?" As with any dilemma, there is no easy answer. It is, arguably, easier to write about dead [...]