Month: May 2013

Everyone Loves Dogs

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The Saturday before last we went to the Taste of Glen Ellyn which was ok, but nothing big. Tastes always disappoint me because they tend to have the same old boring food from the same old boring vendors every year. After walking around for less than an hour we were ready to leave, so we decided to check out a place I’ve been wanting to try for awhile called Penn Station. They are known for having one of the best Philly Cheese Steak sandwiches in the western burbs, and while I did enjoy mine, nothing compares to the one I had when in Mesa, Arizona in 2009. Sad, isn’t it, that it’s so far away?!?

After lunch we decided to go to Herrick Lake since we hadn’t been there since sometime last year, but first we scoped out a new-to-us forest preserve called Blackwell. It’s huge! Even more surprising was that it has its own campground area which is open on Friday and Saturday nights from May-September. It’s probably a great way to get that camping feeling without having to go all out.

On the way to do some errands later that day we passed a festival in Carol Stream called Just Play. After learning more about it online we decided to check it out on Sunday morning when it opened. They had a zipline which would have been fun to ride but the line was over an hour long. We shared a yummy orange strawberry mango smoothie and checked out the BMX bikers instead. They make their tricks look so easy but I’m sure it takes a lot of time and practice. I debated trying to take some photos and a video of their tricks but decided to sit back and enjoy the show instead so you’ll just have to trust me when I say it was very cool.

After getting a little sunburn I was no longer in the mood for any further outdoor activities so we hung out watching tv the rest of the day.

This past weekend we had E over and even though it was unseasonably cool, we went to a nearby park for awhile to get some fresh air. Turns out this park has a zipline so I finally got to ride one. It’s much closer to the ground than the one at the festival but it was still a little thrill to ride. The park has a large pond too so I got to use my trusty little binoculars to watch a beautiful egret near the shoreline on the opposite side of the pond. I was also hissed at by a Canada goose protecting some babies hidden under its partner’s wing so that was interesting.

Bella

We had Bella with us at the park as we are dog-sitting this weekend and I met a couple and their hound dogs and another couple with their toddler who wanted to pet the doggy. It’s funny how much friendlier people are to you when you have a dog in tow.

Lilacs & Tadpoles

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Joe had the day off this past Monday so we took advantage of the nice day. Give me upper 60’s any day over the 80 degree weather we are experiencing now. Sure, the hotter temperatures are great for swimming but they suck for trekking around parks and nature preserves. We finally got around to visiting Lilacia Park in Lombard while the lilacs were in full bloom. We’ve only been trying to time it right for a few years now! Not only do they have all sorts of varieties, but the park has a lot of tulips and daffodils as well. The lilacs smelled so good I wanted to take some with me.

Lilacs

After the park we stopped for lunch at one of our favorite Thai restaurants around the corner from our doctor’s office as Joe had an appointment to see her about his recent asthma issues. She was confident they were caused by a build-up of cat fur in the house so it’s now official that I won’t be fostering any more of the cute little buggers. It sucks because I really enjoy photographing them and now I have to work extra hard to get my butt out of bed in the mornings since there’s no real compelling reason to do so.

After the doctor we visited Moron Arboretum in Lisle where I got to take advantage of the new compact binoculars I recently purchased (I paid only $13 on Amazon and they work nearly as well as the huge pair I inherited from my grandfather). Keeping track of the bluebird and a coyote we spotted from a distance was fun. We also saw hundreds of little tadpoles in a pond in one of the gardens.

Bye Bye Kitties

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Today is my last day as a foster, and I’m gonna miss this little guy so much. I love all my foster kitties but this one is extra special. He’s just too sweet & cute for words. I’m sure his new foster mom will love him, as will whomever ends up adopting him.

Rodman

Rodman

Foster Kitty Duo & Asthma Attack

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A bit of foster kitten swapping has gone on this week. On Monday evening we dropped Cilantro and Peppermint off at the rescue organizer’s home, hence forward known as L, so they could be spayed on Tuesday. Basil didn’t go with them because he had diarrhea. He turned into a little terror once his sisters left, however, carrying on with the meowing like there’s no tomorrow and nothing would satisfy him. He also jumped on my back Monday night and put three holes in the tank top I was wearing, effectively ruining it. He then spent all night and the next day constantly moaning whether he was outside the kitty room or not. I thought if I let him roam the house he would calm down but instead he would follow me everywhere meowing and run in front of me and suddenly stop, causing me to nearly trip over him. Needless to say I was happy to swap him with two other kitties who needed a home since his sisters were not coming back as planned because someone is already interested in adopting them. I know Basil will be happier at L’s home where there’s plenty of other kitties to play with. He’ll be neutered tomorrow and then at an adoption show this weekend where he’ll no doubt be taken home as he’s super soft, cuddly, and affectionate. I just hope his new home has another kitty to play with or he will drive everyone crazy.

The two new kitties are small for their age (11 weeks) because they had no mom so they were bottle fed. They also have colds so I’m giving them antibiotics. I’m not sure how long they will be with us because they are going to be our last foster kitties. Last night at 2:30 am Joe woke me up because he couldn’t breathe. Luckily there’s a Walgreens right down the street where we purchased a nebulizer which worked like a charm. It was really scary, though, and it has to be the cats as Joe’s asthma hasn’t bothered him so severely before. I let L know today what happened and that we will no longer be able to foster, although I’ll still help out in other ways. She was very understanding and expressed how much they like me and would like that I still do other things for the organization so that was nice.

In any case, here are Rodman and Pippen (both males, and not named by me, but obviously someone is a Bulls fan!)

Rodman

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Pippen

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New Neighbors Forthcoming

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This marks the 3rd month we’ve put off an intended visit to the Shedd Aquarium. Back in March we planned to go during their Illinois Discount Days until I learned it would be cheaper to go the first weekend of the month through Bank of America’s Museums on Us program instead. In April we decided not to go because the date we had chosen fell on the same day as a big race that included shutting down streets around the museum campus where the aquarium is located. Today the reason for postponing our visit was that I woke up a few times during the night and when the alarm went off at 6:30 am was not feeling up to going into the city. Plus my back was hurting after playing tennis and frisbee with Joe and Brother # 2 yesterday. So our new plan is to go in June which may work out best in the end because by then their new sting-ray touch exhibit will be open and there will be something different to see (which I’m sure will cost extra, but hopefully not too much since even with the free general admission it’s still $6.95 per person to add on Oceanarium access and another $3 to see the Jellyfish so that’s $20 for the two of us plus parking. Even free days aren’t so free if you want to see the good stuff.)

The weather has been really nice this weekend and we’ve currently got the windows open to get some nice fresh air. We have to enjoy it while we can. Our neighbors (the annoying ones who were outside smoking every half hour) were foreclosed on a few months back and moved out leaving their place a mess. The bank recently sent someone in to clean it up and there have been multiple showings the last few days. They really lowered the asking price of the unit so I doubt the place will remain empty much longer. Unfortunately, we do not seem to luck out when it comes to neighbors so the thought of new ones is stressing me out. Is it too much to ask that they be non-smokers who don’t own any dogs (or at least any that bark) and aren’t loud or cook stinky food? I’m afraid that would just be too good to be true (even though that description applies to us, so it is possible). It’s tough sharing walls with people when most of them seem to lack consideration for the people around them. Please cross your fingers that someone good moves in because with the market the way it is, coupled with me not working, it’s not like we can afford to move elsewhere.

In other news, we rented Silver Linings Playbook last night and hated it. I honestly don’t understand all the good reviews. The characters were so odd and under-developed that I couldn’t care less what happened to any of them, not to mention that the ending was predictable from the very beginning. What a disappointment. It made me feel like people only liked the movie because of the actors who starred in it and less about the plot, which I thought was boring and choppy. I don’t know why but it really irks me how much it sucked; I’m just glad we didn’t end up seeing it at the theatre as it was barely worth the $1 rental fee as it was.