Category: Food

Whalon Lake

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I’ve heard Whalon Lake in Naperville is one of the best places to see Common Loons this time of year, so Sunday afternoon (March 29th) we headed out there to explore.

Upon arrival we spotted a group of American Coots near the shoreline. Shortly thereafter we saw Lesser Scaups, Buffleheads, Red-breasted Mergansers, Horned Grebes, Ring-billed Gulls, and way too many Canada Geese. It was a treasure trove of waterfowl, all on the parking lot side of the lake no less!

Some guy started talking to us and very confidently pointed out that a few of the birds were a species called Goldeneye. I wanted to correct him, having already identified them as Lesser Scaups, but I didn’t bother in case I was wrong. But after going through all my photos, I was in fact correct.

Just because it HAS a golden eye, does not make it a Goldeneye. Although that would have been cool because I don’t think I have that one on my life list yet.

In any case, we decided to walk around the lake to see what else we could spot, but other than the exercise from our 1.5 trek, it was pretty pointless: just more gulls and geese.

I was happy to see so many water birds in one place, but disappointed there were no loons to be found. Until…

I was going through my photos the following day and found a few I took of a bird we spotted way out in the middle of the lake. Even with our binoculars and my camera zoomed in, we couldn’t identify it in the moment. However, with my software zoomed in another 300%, I could tell it was a common loon! Even with the pixelated blurry image, those markings around the neck are unmistakable. It’s too bad it disappeared from sight and wasn’t seen again as we made our way around the lake.

I really wish this place wasn’t a 40 minute drive because I would be there often. It even has a big dog park nearby.

After our little birding adventure we were starving. On our way to the lake we had passed a Mexican restaurant called Guzman y Gomez. We had wanted to try them one day, so we decided to pick up some food and take it to a nearby forest preserve. It was a whole ordeal signing up for their rewards program and trying to take advantage of their free burrito offer, but what was even worse was the food wasn’t good. It was like it was trying to be Chipotle but failing miserably, or at least how I remember Chipotle since I refuse to eat there after they stole my reward points and ignored my messages asking why. In any case, we won’t be ever eating there again because the food wasn’t good and the portions were pathetic.

February 2026 Recap

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02/01 (Sun)
Learned The Cure finally won not one, but two, Grammys. It’s about time!

02/03 (Tue)
Noticed the display on the microwave we purchased in September has stuck pixels or whatever you call them on it now. Seriously?!

Found out later in the month that we will need to bring it to an authorized Panasonic repair service to be fixed under warranty. Guess how many we have to choose from? Two! They are each an hour drive away and only one of them has weekend hours. They don’t carry most parts in stock, so we have to leave the microwave to be evaluated, they’ll order the parts to fix it, thus requiring we come back 1-3 weeks later to pick it up. Does Panasonic care about how inconvenient this is? Nope. Won’t be buying another Panasonic appliance again.

02/04 (Wed)
Replaced one of the surge protector power strips in the living room after learning that they need to be replaced every five years because the ability to protect electronics from surges wanes over time. The plan to is to replace all of them. This also spurred a new project – going through all the electronics and cords in the house and starting a box to recycle what is no longer needed.

02/07 (Sat)
We bought soda for the first time in ages. Joe wanted to get pizza for the weekend, so I figured lets get some Pepsi. Even on sale it’s rather ridiculous, especially since we had to buy three 12-packs, but at least Target allowed you to mix and match, so we got two packs of Pepsi Real Sugar and one Dr. Pepper so I can make a dirty Dr. Pepper at home (it’s where you add cream, coconut syrup, and lime).

We attended Ice-A-Palooza in Wheaton.

I saw a sign for it at a park where I assumed it would be held (and the address for the event was on the same street), but we learned it wasn’t actually held there when we arrived to nothing happening. Luckily we hadn’t traveled too far out of our way.

The event was geared more toward families, so after sharing a french vanilla hot chocolate and taking a selfie with people dressed in a polar bear and penguin costume, we decided to leave.

It was a bit irritating that they weren’t adhering to the posted schedule so we missed the figure skating performances. Also they didn’t clear snow from one of the paths to the event and it was rather deep. I ended up emailing the park district to ask about the schedule and suggest they shovel next time since people with strollers needed to go the un-shoveled way since it had the accessible ramp from the parking lot down to the field. I didn’t even mention in my email that Skates, the Chicago Wolves mascot, was about 45 minutes late. He was supposed to show up at noon according to the posted schedule, but we ran into him in the parking lot around 12:45, only 15 minutes before the event was due to end. We got a selfie with him at least!

We ordered two pizzas (one small Mike’s hot honey thin crust and one large half sausage half cheese deep dish) from Lou Malnati’s and stopped in a store around the corner called the Rustic Fox while we waited for our food to be ready. The store is a collection of craft booths similar to another place we like called The Painted Tree. This store was much more crowded, though. I ended up snagging gifts for my best friend and stepson.

Originally we were going to get the pizza on Sunday, but with the Super Bowl (or Superb Owl, as I like to call it), even ordering it early might be a pain, so we figured we’d enjoy the leftovers instead while watching the game.

02/08 (Sun)
I watched the Puppy Bowl on HBO Max before we watched the Super Bowl via Peacock. Was thrown by the Hellman’s commercial with Andy Samberg playing Neil Diamond.

It looked like Andy but also didn’t look like him. What cinched it was his mannerisms.

02/12 (Thu)
Spent too much at Costco since it had been over a month since our last visit. I’m now going to rate some of the things we got there:

Beef Birria Taco Kit – 8/10 for delicious tacos and rice, but a mediocre consume.

Dessert Bars – 3/10 would not get again because my baking is superior. I had Joe take half of them to work for his employees and I froze most of the remaining for those days we need a sweet treat and nothing else is available.

Beef hot dog from the café – 9/10 still good, and despite my fears, they haven’t changed the bun (yet) even though other people are showing the inferior buns at their stores.

Coke Zero from the café – 5/10 because I still drank it, but it tasted like it was lacking the right amount of syrup. Culver’s is better.

02/14 (Sat)
Decided a visit to IKEA was long overdue. Since when do they open at 10 am? That is so late! We did the grand tour of the store, grabbed the items we went there for (picture ledges), and left. Nothing else really stood out and we were a little taken back by the prices. Was IKEA always so expensive when it came to uncomfortable furniture?

We had intended to cash in a T-Mobile Tuesday deal at Jack In The Box for a free chicken sandwich but the mobile ordering was unavailable. Since that was the only way to get the deal, we ordered Jimmy Johns instead and took it to the arboretum. After we enjoyed our lunch we visited Juniper Junction, their special model train exhibit.

It was cute, but colder inside the building than outside. Even though it was nearly 60 degrees, without the sun the building was not inviting inside (it’s not heated), so after admiring the trains for a bit we got back into the car and drove around, stopping at Turtle Pond as always to do a short hike.

For dinner Joe made the most delicious spicy ala vodka pasta and garlic cheese breadsticks. Then we put the Bob’s Burgers Movie on while we worked on a painting project he got us. I found the process a little frustrating, simply because Joe’s a better artist than I am!

Can you tell which side is his?

* I later learned that Jack in the Box has kept their mobile ordering turned off for both new Illinois locations since they opened here several months ago. People on FB were talking about how terrible their service is and the food being cold even when they aren’t busy. Based on that I doubt they’ll last long in this state.

Needless to say, I’ve added them to our boycott list, along with January’s addition – McDonald’s. I’m fed up with them not taking their own gift card in their app and their stupid app developers’ insulting replies when you complain about it via a review in the app store. Their reply? “We hear you. However, we currently do not have the feature to accept gift cards on the app.” DUH! That is exactly what I said in the review. Seriously, that was the straw that broke the camel’s back.

02/15 (Sun)
After morning errands we picked up breakfast from Tropical Smoothie Café (another T-Mobile deal). In the afternoon we went to Lincoln Marsh to try and find the owls. It took some time, but Joe spotted one after we heard it vocalizing.

Afterwards we walked around Northside Park. It was pretty muddy at both places; I felt very grateful that my hiking boots no longer irritate my feet like they did just a month ago. Judging by how many people we encountered at both places we weren’t the only ones taking advantage of the unseasonably warm weather.

02/21 (Sat)
We headed to Kohl’s to do two returns. One of them was Amazon because they closed Amazon Fresh earlier this month. I had to return pants to Kohl’s anyway, though, because even though they looked like the same style as the cargo shorts I own, they had a real annoying seam along the back and front (in addition to the regular side seams). I will never find a nice pair of hiking pants, I swear!

On the way out of Kohl’s I spotted this hilarious t-shirt.

I was tempted to buy it, but I’m not that big of a Kohl’s fan.

We stopped at Dollar Tree* and Old Time Pottery. I found two cute garden stakes at DT.

Nothing really stood out to me at OTP. They don’t have all their stuff out yet, though, because I didn’t see any pinwheels. Ours was stolen sometime last year. I was so ill at the time that I have no idea how long it was missing before I noticed. It was in front of our tree out front, deep in the ground, and very sturdy, so I doubt it just blew away. I think either the old neighbors snatched it when moving out, or a kid really liked it and decided to make it their own.

We stopped at Lazarus House in St. Charles to drop off a few donations before making our way back home.

We passed World Market and I wanted to browse even though we rarely buy anything (which is exactly what happened) and noticed a new business two stores down called Ollie’s. They sell overstock at reduced prices. I recognized storage bins I’ve purchased in the past at Menards and books still sporting a Target sticker on them.

Speaking of books, I was amazed by the selection, and there were so many I would have loved as a child. I was really into illustrated dictionaries, encyclopedias, and almanacs, especially if they focused on animals, and there was no shortage of them.

I would have loved this book as a child.

* Since when are there so many different prices at Dollar Tree? They used to have the special section with more expensive items, but now those items are sprinkled throughout the store. Not only that, but it seems like some things are $1.25 but some are $1.50. They really need to change their name.

02/22 (Sun)
It was a more low-key day because my skin sensitivity started giving me issues when we were out on Saturday and I wasn’t in the mood to do much, but we got takeout from Culver’s for lunch because they have the best burgers and fries.

We also continued with the Great Declutter of 2026 with Joe going through a tote of computer equipment, and our box of electronics recycling grew even larger. It feels so good getting rid of things and making space and we’re not done. I’ve been decluttering and organizing for weeks now.

02/26 (Thu)
Tried Dubai chocolate and can say not a fan. Maybe Lindt wasn’t the right brand to try, but I don’t care much for milk chocolate anyway, so unless there’s a dark chocolate version, I would skip it.

02/27 (Fri)
Weather was nice enough that I took an afternoon walk around the neighborhood, and when Joe got home from work we went to Churchill Park.

Other than some red-winged blackbirds, we didn’t see too much, but it was still to get out of the house.

02/28 (Sat)
Went out of our way to a different *Aldi than our local one in search of the elusive asiago cheese version of their bagel seasoning which they had, so I got three.

Then stopped at Trader Joe’s next door to stock up and got these beautiful unicorn baby breath.

For lunch we finally got around to trying a smash burger place that opened up close by a year ago called Fyve Bros.

Gee, wonder who they are competing with? The burgers are almost $10 each (for a double patty), but they are really good. Melt in your mouth, good! So we’re be back. It’s across the street from our favorite Mexican joint so we’ll have to alternate visits.

* I called Aldi corporate earlier in the week to ask about when I should expect my store to carry the asiago cheese bagel seasoning and got into the dumbest conversation.

First off, the woman claimed it was a seasonal, she couldn’t tell me when it would come back in stock, and their website doesn’t show what’s actually in stock at any given store, just what was sold by that store at ONE POINT IN TIME. Say what?

I explained that the item’s availability changes when I pick a different location, suggesting it’s reflecting what’s actually in stock. Despite this, the woman insisted that’s not how it works.

In addition to that, she tried to tell me if I attempted to order something on the site and it wasn’t for the Aldi closest to my home, they wouldn’t allow it. I asked, “even if I chose pickup?” and she said yes. I could understand that if someone chose delivery, but why would Aldi care if someone chose to travel to a distant location if they’re picking up the order? I posed this question to her and she said that’s just how it is.

I asked to speak to someone else but she wouldn’t let me! Clearly she doesn’t know what she’s talking about because we went to our local Aldi the day after I found the asiago seasoning at the other location and they had it in stock at ours. I went home and checked the website and it was now appearing at that location even though for weeks before it wasn’t. Obviously it’s updating according to current inventory. Probably not in real time, but close enough. Ugh! How do some people lack critical thinking skills, and how do those same people end up in customer facing jobs?

Notable media this month:

Task (HBO Max) – In the working-class suburbs of Philadelphia, an FBI agent, played by Mark Ruffalo, heads a task force to put an end to a string of violent robberies led by an unsuspected family man. The first two episodes were a bit slow but once they found their momentum it was one of those mini-series that made you want to binge watch. It had an Ozark vibe to it, not just because one of the main characters, played by Tom Pelphrey, was in Ozark.

The Life of Chuck – This movie is an example of how good story-telling keeps you immersed even when not a ton of stuff actually happens. We weren’t exactly sure where the story was going but it had a satisfying ending.

Roofman – This film is based on a true story about a career criminal who lived in a Toys R Us for six months while hiding from the police after breaking out of jail. Very entertaining.

HouseSitter – They don’t make comedies like this anymore. No big set, no huge complicated plot, just good acting. I think we’re going to look into watching more movies from the nineties.

We were focused on a Scrubs re-watch in preparation for the new season on Hulu which we haven’t tuned into yet since we have two more seasons to go.

Baskin Robbins is Wild

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We went to Baskin Robbins today so I could get my free birthday scoop.

In case you didn’t know, they charge different prices per location just like McDonald’s and other franchises. A single scoop is $3.09 at one location and $4.49 at the other. But what’s really crazy is their “fresh-packed quarts” a) aren’t quart-sized at all but 24 oz and b) cost $9 at one location and $14.99 at the one that charges more for the single scoops.

Needless to say, we decided to order from the cheaper location, and since my scoop was free, also ordered a fresh-packed quart of Old-Fashioned Butter Pecan since there was a coupon for $2 off in the app.

When we arrived, I went inside to pick up the order. No workers were in sight. Finally, after a minute or so two employees came out from the back – one male and one female. Queue the insinuations…

The guy told me they didn’t have the pistachio almond I selected for the single scoop, but I could choose another flavor. I guess it was taking me a bit to decide because he said he could let me sample a flavor, and then offered to refund me, but I pointed out it was free anyway. It felt like he just wanted me to leave so he could get back to chatting up his female coworker.

After I picked my flavor he asked if I wanted a bag, but instead of packing it for me, just gave me the paper bag so I had to struggle to get the quart inside. Also, he gave me a pre-packed quart, not a fresh-packed one. I can’t remember if they had the Butter Pecan in the display case, so I don’t know if they were being lazy about having to create the fresh pack or what. Normally the fresh-packed quarts are more expensive than the pre-packed ones, so if I hadn’t used a coupons making it cheaper by 50 cents, I would have questioned it, but it didn’t seem worth mentioning in this case.

It’s worth noting that the music inside was quite loud, and to my surprise they were playing rap music complete with the N-word UNBLEEPED. Can’t imagine management would approve such a thing, but then again that location has always been chaotic, plus never seems to have all the flavors listed in the app.

That being said, nothing about my experience made me want to get Baskin Robbins again anytime soon.

My Birthday

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January birthdays suck, especially when you love nature yet it’s cold outside and you’re dealing with what I’ve come to conclude is central sensitization (although, thankfully, it seems to be getting better, albeit slowly).

That being said, my birthday wasn’t terrible considering it was a milestone one – I turned 50!

Initially I wanted to get eggs benedict takeout from a local restaurant but I was really worried even with it being a five minute drive from the house that it would get too cold. Then I saw the price – $17 – and decided I didn’t want to chance it.

Instead, we decided to try a new coffee shop. It was a whole debacle not knowing where to order (tablet they had setup, or counter), but Joe got an iced coffee and I decided to try a basic iced latte.

Let me tell you, that is the single best iced latte I’ve ever had and there was nothing fancy about it. I didn’t get any flavors and yet it was lightyears better than Starbucks, and cheaper too! Unfortunately the rice krispie treat I also ordered was no good. Flavor wise it was no better than what I’ve made myself, plus it was hard. Like I could possibly chip a tooth trying to eat it hard, yet it didn’t taste stale. I had to heat it up in the microwave to soften it.

We were almost home from our coffee run when I told Joe I wouldn’t mind a breakfast sandwich from Wendy’s, so he turned around so we could head over there. I love their maple bacon chicken croissants and breakfast potato wedges! Luckily they are pretty close to the house so back-tracking wasn’t a big deal.

When we got home with our food we had to park on the street because our neighbors were getting new kitchen appliances and the delivery truck was completely blocking our driveway. Not hanging over, parked entirely in front of the drive making it impossible to get in or out. Joe was so aggravated. They should have attempted to ask us if it was ok (which they couldn’t have, or our doorbell would have recorded them coming to the door) but like I told Joe, at least we weren’t trying to get out of the driveway to go somewhere since they ended up being there at least a half hour past the time we arrived home.

After we ate breakfast, I opened my gifts from Joe:

A wooden Blue Jay to add to my collection
A bird of the day calendar
The Cure’s latest concert release
A coffee table book of photographs of The Cure over the years (all taken by the same photographer and with a forward written by Robert Smith).

The bird on my calendar for my birthday is so cute!

The funny thing is when Joe bought me the same calendar last year, I was like “ugh, don’t really want that”, but grew to love it. When I mentioned at the end of the year I was sad the calendar was finished, he decided to get me another one. I told him next year to get me a dog one similar to it.

Other gifts he got me that aren’t pictured:
A chickadee coffee mug
A purple Brooklyn Nine Nine t-shirt

He also bought me a glucose monitor. I was looking at them months ago but I don’t remember ever adding one to a gift list. Who knows, though – Amazon seems to ignore the default wish list I’ve set up and just adds stuff to other lists. In any case, we just requested a return and dropped it off at the Amazon Fresh store.

After Amazon Fresh we went to TJ Maxx to look around but didn’t find anything good, and then to Costco to pick up a few things.

We killed a little time before heading back out to pick up lunch from a place called Taco Dale, which we took to the arboretum to enjoy in the car. I brought my trusty 80’s E.T. themed TV tray so I didn’t make a mess since I ordered birria.

It was so good! I thought ahead and brought a cooler, ice packs, and containers which proved to be useful since I could only eat half of my food before feeling stuffed.

We drove around the arboretum and ended up seeing a belted kingfisher and two red-headed woodpeckers! I didn’t bring my camera, just binoculars, but it was still fun. We even stopped in the visitor center to get a free blueberry scone (thanks to the points we earn with every visit) and hiked by turtle pond which was frozen over.

After the arboretum we did some shopping at Trader Joe’s before heading home.

Dinner was the previous night’s leftovers – a dish Joe starting making last year, which I love – ground chicken, Hokkien noodles, green beans, and green onions seasoned with sesame oil & coco aminos.

After dinner we watched some TV together and enjoyed a slice of strawberry rhubarb pie.

I was shocked that a Marie Callender’s pie was better than the local pie shop strawberry rhubarb that we picked up from Aldi last year and tried at Thanksgiving. It was more than twice the price and was so awful we threw most of it away. I’m glad there’s an affordable option for when the craving strikes.

2025 1st Quarter Recap

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01/25 (Sat)
We attended a LEGO train show at the arboretum.

01/27 (Mon)
Deactivated/deleted all my X accounts because F you know who.

01/31 (Fri)
Decided The Pink Stuff is a scam. I’ve owned it for years and I’ve yet to find a single thing it can clean better than the other products I own. In fact, it barely cleans at all. If someone knows what I can use this stuff for, please let me know, because it was a waste of money as far as I’m concerned.

Got a photo of the Rock Dove (aka city pigeon) that started showing up recently. We decided to name him Vinny (and as time would go on, he invited his friends and we’d have up to 8 of them at a time under the feeder).

02/01 (Sat)
Finally found a use for my E.T. TV tray from the 80s – to hold my Sonic order while I eat in the car.

The Philly Cheesesteak at Sonic is pretty good, by the way.

02/02 (Sun)
Put out a new welcome mat. I realized I didn’t have any for that time period between Christmas and spring, and this one suits my sentiments exactly.

02/04 (Tue)
Loving these pretzel twists from Trader Joe’s. Not quite the same as the ones Sonic sells, but still quite good when made in the air fryer.

02/14 (Fri)
Celebrated Valentine’s Day like the romantic couple we are by getting Mexican takeout (ironically from the same place as last year) and finishing the Dexter prequel, Original Sin.

02/15 (Sat)
Went to an ice hockey game at an arena close to home. A longtime friend and her sister are on a team that was playing an exhibition game that night. Joe and I sat by her husband (who happens to also be my ex from the mid-90s haha), his friend, and their two kids. It was nice getting out of the house for an event even though I hate going out at night. It’s also really cold inside the arena so I was so happy to get home and under the covers with my heating pad to warm up my cold feet! It was nice seeing everyone, though. I met my friend, her hubby, and her sister in the 90s on a BBS; and while the friend and her hubby have been to our house for a game night, I hadn’t seen the sister in decades.

02/16 (Sun)
Had to contact Discover to get a new account because someone got ahold of the card # and was making fraudulent charges labeled as Apple.com

02/21 (Fri)
Migraine City! That is what this month has felt like as I’ve had one every week. Typically I get at most two in a month so this is concerning. Not sure if it’s due to tight muscles in my neck, dry eyes, or hormones, but it’s annoying nonetheless especially because over the counter headache medicine isn’t making it go away like in the past, so they last two days.

02/24 (Mon)
Had my longtime ComEd electric account hijacked because someone can’t do their job correctly. Apparently someone in the same town called to put electric in their name and somehow ComEd wasn’t listening properly and changed my account instead of the correct address that has the same number but a totally different street name (that doesn’t even sound like ours so how they made the error I’ll never know). They couldn’t reinstate my old account so I had to get a whole new account # too. So annoying!

02/25 (Tue)
Received my new Discover card and had to go through all my auto-pay accounts to update the payment information. At least it was relatively warm outside (60 degrees) so I could open the windows and listen to the birds.

02/26 (Wed)
Had to contact Amazon a second time about getting a refund for a gift I returned over a month prior. When I spoke to them the day before they assured me they would process the refund, which they did, but they shorted me $4.42 for some reason, so I had to get them to fix the error. They acted like they were doing me a favor which infuriates me. I returned the item. I got confirmation I returned the item. The confirmation also listed what was paid for said item. So why didn’t they refund the full amount in the first place?

02/28 (Fri)
Tried to get Paczki from a local bakery called Hannah’s that everyone on Facebook was raving about, only to arrive and find they had two flavors available and wouldn’t have any others until later. Call me crazy, but as a bakery shouldn’t you have all items available upon opening? We left empty-handed because I didn’t want to give them our business. We got some Paczki from Caputo’s for $2 each and were labeled as also being from a local bakery but they were quite dry and I didn’t care for them.

03/02 (Sun)
Tried a Burger King iced coffee for the first time and wow, it was not good. I asked for a plain iced coffee but I swear it tasted subtly like mocha to me. In any case, for almost $3 I’d rather get an iced coffee from McDonald’s; it tastes much better and is only $1 via the app deals.

Although now that I’ve found the perfect products, I’d rather just make iced coffee at home.

03/03 (Mon)
Had a new hot water installed. You can read about that debacle here.

03/15 (Sat)
Visited my parents for the first time in nearly a year. It was actually a pleasant experience without Brother #2 there (which is why we chose a non-holiday timeframe). We worked on everyone’s computer (what else is new haha), got some food from the local Burger King (the location of my first job in the 90s), enjoyed some of my mom’s food as well, and played a game called What’s Your Like?

03/17 (Mon)
Made corned beef and cabbage in the crockpot for St. Patrick’s Day. We splurged this year by getting Vienna from Woodman’s which was $27.79 but it was the most tender cut of meat with almost no fatty pieces.

It was a bit on the saltier, side, though, so if we get it again next year I might rinse off some of the spices (the meat was marinated in it instead of having a spice packet).

03/21 (Fri)
What the hell happened to McDonald’s Shamrock shakes? They are awful now! We usually get one every year, but missed out last year, so I’m not sure when they changed the formula but I will not ever get one again – it tasted medicinal.

03/24 (Mon)
Learned our association hired a new landscaping company. I really hope they actually stick to a schedule and not show up on random days multiple times a week making noise with their leaf blowers like the last company.

03/28 (Fri)
Joe took the day off work and we ran a bunch of errands before visiting the arboretum in the afternoon. We were delighted to see not one, not two, but three belted kingfishers by Sterling Pond, but I was not able to get a photo of any of them that I liked because they were way too far away and kept getting spooked whenever we got closer.

I did get a photo of this bluebird, though.

And this Northern Flicker peeking from behind a tree.

03/29 (Sat)
Joe’s son, E, and his girlfriend, A, paid us an early afternoon visit. I made chicken salad sandwiches for lunch which they really seemed to like. So much so, A wanted the recipe (apparently neither one had ever had chicken salad before).

03/30 (Sun)
Paid a visit to West Branch Forest Preserve to get some fresh air where I was finally able to photograph a Brown Creeper!

We timed our visit perfectly – it had rained in the early morning and started to drizzle as we made our way back to the car. We stopped and picked up Bibibop on our way home.

The next morning someone posted about a loose dog they saw about four miles from the preserve. The dog looked a lot like the dog we saw that afternoon. The lady with it didn’t have a leash on the dog, so now I’m wondering if it just got ahead of her and lost, or something happened to her. I had been tempted at the time to tell this lady to leash her dog, but I don’t think it would have made a difference.

Notable series this quarter:

Shrinking (Apple TV)
We finished season two which I thought was even better than the first season. We binged it hardcode during Apple’s free preview weekend.

Dexter: Original Sin (Showtime)

I wasn’t expecting to like this prequel but Patrick Gibson really picked up on Dexter’s mannerisms beautifully. The actors playing a young LaGuerta, Batista, and Masuka looked a lot like their older counterparts as well. We were hooked and had to stop ourselves from binging it too quickly. Once we were finished we were inspired to watch the original Dexter series which we fell in love with all over again. There was so much we had completely forgotten in the two decades since the series originally aired. And while seasons 5-8 weren’t as good as 1-4, overall it’s still an 8/10 for me.