Hablamos espanol

One of my neighbors told me about a class he is attending in intermediate Spanish.  It is an interesting group of people, all ages, both men and women.  They are looking for a few more folks to add to the group.  This is a great time to take on a new challenge.

Spanish language students needed for an adult class.

We are six people, intermediate level, seeking to improve our Spanish skills.

We need others to join in order to round out the class; four more ideally.

We meet 9:00 to 11:30 Wednesday at the instructor’s home in Clarendon Hills. Both Spanish conversation and grammar are included.

For more information, contact her via email at carolleehanley1@hotmail.com

Come alone or join with a friend.

The Turning Point

It happens every year - right around my birthday which is tomorrow.  You wake up one morning and hear birds chirping for the first time in a couple of months - not too loudly, just a faint peep.  Then on your morning walk, you spy a cardinal - beautifully red against the sky, the trees bare and recovering from winter - and this winter was really a winter!

It is lighter longer - you look at the clock at 5:15 and exclaim, "It's still light out!"

And today, February 16, my thermometer actually says - 55 degrees - ! 

Not that we are totally out of the woods yet, but it is the sign of things to come.  Maybe some of my crocuses will show their colors soon.....

ROCKET FOUND

Rocket was found and has been re-united with his family - healthy and happy - !

MISSING DOG PLEASE HELP

His name is Rocket -

 We lost him on Tuesday, Feb 8th at 9:30pm and have been searching ever since. We got a confirmed sighting of him in the Western Springs/ La Grange area and he originates in Western Springs. I have been asking people to call the local police department if they have seen him, or they can contact me at 708-259-9963 He is a rescue dog so he is very shy and very frightened. He is wearing a red collar and he is microchipped.
Thank you,
Mary Spagnola
Back Alley Burger
13 South La Grange Road
La Grange, IL 60525

February 10, 2011

Today dawned bright and COLD - it was actual temperature of 4 below this morning when I got up. I took Mitch for a walk, just 6 blocks instead of the customary two miles. I don't know how he can stand the cold on his bare paws, but he troops along beside me and matches my pace on the icy sidewalks.

But it is pretty - we had about 3 more inches of snow over the weekend, so everything is still winter white.  I heard cardinals chirping yesterday - not today though.

The light is so different when February comes - the season is changing a bit, though this winter is really winter - cold and snowy. 

Photos are in front of the house early in the morning of February 9.

Wednesday, February 2

February 2, 2011

THAT was a snowstorm. It was great. I love when the world shuts down for a day or two. No one could get much of anywhere today, Wednesday. Schools were closed, most businesses were closed – even the banks were closed for the day.

Total snowfall at O’Hare (where the records are kept) with 20.2 inches, so we didn’t break the 1967 storm, though we now rank in the upper ten storms.

My husband, Owen was up early with his big snowblower. He was able to get through the deepest drifts and he was helping everyone on the block. The smaller machines could not get through the deepness of this snowfall.


Flights were all cancelled, something like 1300 flights at O’Hare – and you don’t realize how quiet the skies are until you once again hear a plane after a day or two. It was so quiet in the neighborhood – I took Mitch for a walk early in the morning on Wednesday and he had a ball – he loves to romp in – and eat – snow. We met up with all of the neighbors, everyone was out and Mitch got to play with his dog friends Buddy and Rudy. No cars were on the street – it was wonderful.


John Gleason, one of my neighbors sent me the photo of Lizzie’s car stuck in the parking lot behind Palmer’s. He spotted the photo on AOL so she made the home page – I guess she got a ride home…..


And for the first time ever in history, there was no mail today – Wednesday. The trucks simply could not get in. We heard reports of people that were stuck on Lake Shore Drive for hours and hours – one guy reported he had been sitting in his car from 4:30 p.m. on Tuesday till 3:00 a.m. on Wednesday. Cars were running out of gas, people were being taken to St. Joseph Hospital on snowmobiles. Lake Shore Drive did look just like the Kennedy Expressway in 1967 – we thought it couldn’t happen again, but it did.

The sun shone brightly in the latter part of the day - truly a beautiful sight!

Let’s see – 1967, 1979, 1999, 2011 – 12 years, 20 years, 12 years- so the next huge storm will be in 2031 – you have to have at least one of these in a lifetime!

Tuesday night February 1

Not to be ones to miss any weather event, my husband and I decided to walk up to Palmer's Tuesday night in the storm - I didn't exactly decide - he dared me.

I called Palmer's before we left to make sure they were open. I could hear a lot of buzzing in the background, it sounded like they were actually busy.

So, we went - bundled up, waterproof boots, waterproof mittens - it is about a 15 minute walk and we were fine unless the wind was blowing in our faces - not only wind, but pelting snow that actually hurt our cheeks.

But we made it - everyone in there looked dry and warm, we must have looked like drowned rats. We sat at a high top in the back room - had a burger and a couple of beers. Steve Palmer came over and talked to us and said he figured he would stay open, since everyone else had closed. The wait staff is mostly local, he said he told one of the girls who lives in Schaumburg to stay home, that he had enough people....my daughter being one of them.

Of course we sat in my daughter's station as is our custom when we go to Palmer's. When she saw us, she said, "Did you walk here??? It's life or death out there." We assured her that they meant if you were driving, not walking.
We saw a dad and his young son come in, obviously having walked decked out in snowmobile suits, hats, big boots. They got dessert and hot chocolate, the drink enticingly served in tall white mugs on saucers with whipped cream and chocolate shavings.

On the way home, we saw another couple who did not want to miss this possibly historic snowstorm. Oh, and we also noticed my daughter's Volkswagen Beetle in the parking lot - I wonder how she got home.

The Blizzard of 2011

It is now 1:20 in the afternoon on February 1, 2011 - it looks like the weather forecast is correct though times differ as to when the big snow will begin.

I talked with my stepson in Tulsa OK this morning and he said they have 20 inches of snow on the ground, 4 - 5 foot drfits.  The fire trucks have chains on their tires and they are still having a hard time getting around.  Schools of course are closed as well as all highways.

There is talk of our surpassing the all-time record set on January 26 and 27, 1967 when we got 23" of snow.  I was a senior in high school, so we thought it was a total lark. I rode to school every day with my friends Kate Levan, Judi Hoffmeyer and Carolyn Salman in Kate's 1966 loden green Mustang convertible - white rag top. We laughed and carried on every morning and generally had a fun time just going to school.

It started to snow about 2:00 in the afternoon on the 26th. Miraculously, Maine West closed early so the staff and students could get home, as the snow was really coming down. We were ecstatic that we actually got out of school early. The Maine Township schools had a reputation of NEVER closing.

Somehow, we piled 7 or 8 kids in the car for the journey home. We all lived about a mile away from school; Salman was the closest, so she got dropped off first.  On top of it being the worst snowstorm ever, we managed to make the driving even more hazardous. It took us 4 hours to get to my house - I was about a mile and a half away from school. When I got out of the car, I am sure my folks were thanking their lucky stars - they must have been on pins and needles till I arrived home. My brothers are both younger and would have been at the elementary school, again about a mile walk away. My mom didn't drive, so I suppose they walked home, probably having a ball.

Four of the kids in the car ended up going home with Kate, as it was impossible to go any further. They stayed there for SEVEN days. I don't know where the Levans got that much food for the group, as all of the stores' shelves were bare. No delivery trucks could get through, so there was no milk and no bread. Kate lived in a big house on the Des Plaines River across from East River Road. When the snow stopped, I walked over to visit the menagerie of friends and we saw a horse-drawn sleigh riding along the road.

And it was so quiet! No car noise, no truck noise, just the muffled sounds of the snowstorm. It was glorious.

And now it is 2:30 and the snow is definitely getting thicker and it is very windy.

Just for the heck of it, here is a listing of Chicago's 10 biggest Snowstorms:



23.0 inches Jan 26-27, 1967
21.6 inches Jan 1-3, 1999
19.2 inches Mar 25-26, 1930
18.8 inches Jan 13-14, 1979
16.2 inches Mar 7-8, 1931
15.0 inches Dec 17-20, 1929
14.9 inches Jan 30, 1939
14.9 inches Jan 6-7, 1918
14.3 inches Mar 25-26, 1970
14.0 inches Jan 18-20, 1886

Update tonight or tomorrow.