Them there trees
My father likes to recite the poem Trees by Joyce Kilmer. “I think that I shall never see / a poem lovely as a tree.” We’re quite the tree and bird family. My mother’s email even has bird in the address. Thanksgiving weekend, trees and birds were on my mind. I had a lovely visit…
More jail time for gun crime?
Illinois lawmakers are considering an increase in minimum prison time for carrying a weapon under certain circumstances, but opponents say that won’t reduce crime. Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel is pushing the bill, which may be voted on when lawmakers return to Springfield in January. Rep. Mike Zalewski, D-Chicago, sponsors Senate Bill 1342, which would increase…
Green day!
PHOTO COURTESY HTTP://BROADWAYIDIOT.COM/ The Legacy Theatre continues its “brew and view” rock documentary series with the last of three screenings. Friday, Dec. 6, see Broadway Idiot. From punk mosh pits and sold-out stadiums to the Great White Way, this electrifying documentary follows Green Day’s Billie Joe Armstrong as he works with producers to turn his…
Some like it hot mess
Why do “helpless” women have men constantly doting on them, while women like me are deemed “too strong”? I was raised by a 1970s feminist and single mother. (“A woman needs a man like a fish needs a bicycle!”) At 21, I became a widowed single mother. I put myself through school and own a…
Goings on galore
Suzie Stephens hosts a Ten-Year Reunion and Celebration of Ultraviolet, Sat., Dec. 7. 6 p.m. to 1 a.m. at Capital City Bar & Grill. PHOTO COURTESY ULTRAVIOLET Sporting a double album of new material and just off from a tour of the Netherlands, after a summer on the road singing backups for Roger Waters of…
The Book Thief nearly undone by trite approach
If good intentions translated into quality filmmaking Brian Percival’s The Book Thief would be among the greatest movies ever made. But alas, purpose of this sort does not translate into quality art and while the director may have his heart in the right place, the result is a stilted tale that becomes bogged down by…
Good things in small packages
Springfield Theatre Centre presents Annie, Dec. 6-8 and 13-15. The beloved musical set during the Depression follows an optimist orphan named Annie from her life in an orphanage to the home of New York millionaire Daddy Warbucks. Annie is played by Sydney Geyston and Daddy Warbucks is Jim Leach. Directed by Rich McCoy, the six productions will…
The cop was right to ticket me
Captain Bill Hall, Illinois State Police Once in my teens, approaching the stop sign a block from my house, with no cars around, I slowed way down then gently glided through in my old VW bug. Bill Hall, my friends’ father and the state police captain in District 9, was in his front yard. He…
Letters to the Editor 12/5/13
University of Illinois Springfield women’s soccer team in October 2010. PHOTO COURTESY UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS AT SPRINGFIELD WRITTEN IN THE STARSThe students who attend UIS and then leave afterward have no sense of history or tradition about our beloved Prairie Stars. Some out-of-state group is hired to create ridiculous images and names and expect people…
Another kind of schoolhouse
Students and staff of the Ambidexter Institute, which operated at the Taylor House, 902 S. 12th St., from 1901 to 1908. PHOTO COURTESY SANGAMON VALLEY COLLECTION AT LINCOLN LIBRARY The 150-year-old Taylor House at 12th and Cass streets in Springfield now faces possible demolition after numerous attempts to save it. New efforts to preserve the…
Philomena engrossing
Judi Dench as Philomena Lee and Steve Coogan as Martin Sixsmith in Philomena. PHOTO COURTESY THE WEINSTEIN COMPANY When Philomena Lee became pregnant as a teenager in Ireland in 1951, she had very few options. Out of shame, her parents sent her to a convent in Roscrea where she worked as an indentured laundry lady,…
Frozen upholds strong Disney tradition
In 1989, after suffering an unusually long draught where successful animated features were concerned, Disney Studios released The Little Mermaid, a blockbuster musical cartoon based on a Hans Christian Anderson tale that righted the Mouse Factory’s floundering ship and marked the beginning of the modern resurgence of the animated feature film. With their latest, Frozen,…
Foreground music
Christopher Golub PHOTO COURTESY HTTP://CHIPOTLE.COM Thinking of oneself as a fogey is so poignant for a boomer, so vested are we in being the nation’s new generation. When we find more and more Xers taking our favorite seats on the bus, we react with ill grace. I thought of that as I stood in line…
Change of pace
Whether your personal style is funky, classic, rustic or luxurious, sometimes you just want something different to show your guests for the holidays. Dress it up Create a beautiful glassware display with what you have on hand. Collins glasses can serve as candleholders and upside-down martini glasses can elevate a display. A cake pedestal can…
Loud Clouds
Loud Clouds When Chris and Joann Trudeau attended a concert that Chris described as “ear-hurting,” they thought, if the people listening could also participate, the outcome of the music might be better. Using what they termed, “crowd sourced jams,” as a firm foundation from which to proceed, Loud Clouds floated into existence. Grounded in reggae/rock…
Celebrate agriCULTURE, not agriBUSINESS
In December 1972, I was part of a nationwide campaign that came tantalizingly close to getting the U.S. Senate to reject Earl Butz, Richard Nixon’s choice for secretary of agriculture. A coalition of grass-roots farmers, consumers and scrappy public interest organizations (like the Agribusiness Accountability Project that Susan DeMarco and I then headed) teamed up…
Wearable food or edible footwear
Curses, foiled again• Authorities thwarted a high school student’s plan to kill a classmate after he warned the intended victim on Facebook that he was bringing a gun to school to “pop” the boy. Several students saw the threat and alerted the school. Police arrested Thomas Braasch, 19, of Alsip, Ill. (Chicago Sun-Times) • Troy…
storypoem #16
nellie needham a spinster schoolteachermy grampa’s second cousin loaned himmoney in 1911 to build the round barn itwas paid back very slowly over the yearsduring the depression she lowered theinterest to match the federal land bankwouldn’t take no for an answer my dadinherited the debt told nellie he’d payinterest and some principle every duedate but…
Cue up the calliope. The city council is in session.
By virtue of remaining silent for the duration of Tuesday’s Springfield city council meeting, Ward 4 Ald. Frank Lesko, Ward 6 Ald. Cory Jobe and Ward 9 Ald. Steven Dove proved themselves the smartest of the bunch. There were ordinary people at the confab, but their troubles could wait until the end of the meeting…
Burn, smell, love
Yankee Candle Candles truly are the gifts that keep on giving. According to the National Candle Association, America’s love for waxing poetic burns bright: $2 billion is spent annually on candles and they are used in 7 out of 10 households. Versatile and inexpensive – they are a wonderful gift option for moms, grandmas, teachers,…
Model figures
If you’re looking for a unique and serene Christmas activity to welcome in the season, the Franciscan Nativity Festival takes place at the Chiara Center throughout the first weekend in December. Experience the deeper meaning of the Incarnation through a display of more than 100 nativity sets from around the world. Loaned to the Chiara…
Tree-trimming traditions
Suzanne Kasler and Suzanne Alexander While the cast of characters and décor may change year-to-year, the traditions rarely do. These designers and celebrities share their favorite decorating stories. Suzanne KaslerAtlanta-based interior designer “I love decorating for the holidays. It’s a way to transform your house into a whole different look for an entire month. I always…
Getting ready for Christmas
Finely grating the rinds of two lemons for lemon pecan pound cake. PHOTO BY TOM WALLACE/MCT “God invented Christmas as a trial for women,” a friend said to me many years ago. I laughed – it was funny – but I also felt a little sad that she was so cynical. But every year since…
State of the arts
As 2013 draws to a close, the arts in Springfield are in an exciting place. Local visual artists, theatrical performers and musicians have rarely had so many opportunities to gain exposure, with a growing number of active, adventurous venues and curious, enthusiastic audiences becoming the norm rather than the exception. Simultaneously, established and emerging artists…
Night lights
The Springfield Jaycees invite folks to line the streets of downtown for the 42nd annual Christmas parade on Saturday, Dec. 7. The evening parade featuring Santa and the theme Holiday Stories begins at Jefferson and Seventh, heads west to Fifth Street, runs south on Fifth to Capitol, then snakes east, then north on Sixth Street.…
Accredit crunch
More than eight years after it opened, the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum is seeking accreditation. The move to gain accreditation from the American Alliance of Museums comes three years after the AAM issued a report on ALPLM operations, finding problems ranging from awkward governance to financial concerns to a lack of strategic long-term…
