Conservation Consumerism: Sodastream
In Michigan, they say pop. Though with Central/Northern accents it sounds like PAHH-p. People in my state also keep their excess pop in the garage. Do you guys in Illinois do this? (Coworkers Pat and Amanda said their families do, but I need more opinions!) I’d never heard of this bizarre tradition until I moved…
Hazel Lane residents’ proposal rejected
Aldermen approved a resolution Tuesday that urges Woodside Township to transfer ownership of Hazel Lane to the city of Springfield, despite a last-minute attempt by the road’s residents to block the measure. Woodside Township and Hazel Lane residents have for years battled the Hope Institute for Children and Families — a nonprofit residential and educational…
Upcoming Events: Sustainable Springfield
Sustainable Springfield is hosting some great events in the next couple of weeks! Monday, Jan. 25 Solar and Wind Energy @ 7 p.m. Prairie Heart Institute’s Dove Center Sixth St. & Mason Mark Bauer, CEO of Bauer Power, one of the largest Midwest providers/installers of renewable energy, will speak about the potential for solar/wind power…
Public education
SIU Medical School offers the public a five-week series of 10 presentations by SIU faculty physicians for only $10. What a deal to learn more about breast cancer, childhood obesity, chronic diseases, colon cancer, health care reform, influenza, preventive medicine, and new treatments for depression, infertility and stroke. Those completing the program receive a diploma.…
Skillful six-string
Springfield Classical Guitar Society ‘s current concert season resumes with a performance by Angelo Favis. Favis has won several international and national solo competitions, taught master classes in New York, Ohio and the Philippines, and is currently assistant professor of guitar at Illinois State University. Future concerts are March 20 with John Johns, and May…
Harvesting electricity
The American Wind Energy Corp. in December announced its intention to plant 25,000 acres in western Sangamon County with wind turbines, beginning in 2011. While county officials busy themselves determining just how many votes it will cost them to approve the firm’s new Meridian Wind Farm, we will sit back and take in the larger…
Besciamella
By any name, this sauce is a classic. In some ways, it’s fallen out of favor – in the U.S., not least because it’s been often replaced by condensed soups. But a properly seasoned white sauce still has many uses, and should be in every home cook’s repertoire. The onions, bay and nutmeg in this…
MacArthur makeover
After Nick Kalogeresis heard about the plan to redevelop MacArthur Boulevard, he and other members of The Lakota Group, a Chicago-based planning and urban design firm, headed south to Springfield. The firm had worked on both new and old corridors in the Chicago area, as well as in Indiana and Wisconsin, but its vice president…
The Lovely Bones
There’s been no small amount of controversy surrounding Peter Jackson’s adaptation of Alice Sebold’s best-selling novel The Lovely Bones. Many have objected to the director’s decision to soften the depiction of violence that befalls its main character, while the studio that produced it, Paramount Pictures, has aggressively changed its ad campaign, making the film appear…
Ragu Bolognese
This is one of those classics that has as many variations as there are cooks who make it. After much experimentation, I settled on the following. It’s not difficult, but it does take some time, so I almost always make double or triple batches to freeze. It’s not just good to use in lasagna, but…
Community colleges get “green”
Wind turbines, solar panels and renewable energy will become top priorities for Illinois, says Gov. Pat Quinn, who announced a $1.7 million grant promoting green job training at community colleges last Thursday. The Illinois Community College Sustainability Network (ICCSN), which consists of all 48 community colleges, will use the grant to expand green educational and…
TEA PARTY
It’s like an episode of Top Chef — only without the cutthroat competition and for a much better cause. Michael Higgins of Maldaner’s, David Radwine of Sangamo Club, Caitie Barker of Caitie Girls’ and Patrick Groth of Incredibly Delicious will join forces to cater A High Tea at 3 p.m. on Sunday, Jan. 24, and…
Basic Tomato Sauce
This simple tomato sauce is adapted from Iron Chef Mario Batali’s version. Batali is one of the (sadly few) Food Network stars who really know their stuff. I’ve had some of the best meals of my life at his NYC restaurants. 1/4 c. extra-virgin olive oil 1 large onion, NOT super-sweet, diced 4 garlic cloves,…
Lasagna Bolognese
When I want to pull out all the stops, I make my own pasta, rolling it into sheets and parboiling them. For less momentous occasions, I’m more than happy to use no-boil lasagna noodles. They work exceptionally well — far better, in fact, than the traditional Italian-American ridged lasagna noodles with curly edges that require…
Quinn’s State of the State lacks the “real meat”
“The Governor, at the beginning of each annual session of the General Assembly and at the close of his term of office, shall report to the General Assembly on the condition of the State and recommend such measures as he deems desirable.” — Illinois Constitution. I don’t know if Gov. Pat Quinn glanced at the…
Green Links: 1/21
Today’s Campus Progress has a great story about how powerful campus activism can be. Coming from a university of 40,000 students, I am always interested in how influential schools can be in their communities. Students at Cornell University, in Ithaca, New York, managed to enact a moratorium on drilling for natural gas in the lucrative…
technokids poem #2
wyatt, seven, sequestered(by choice) in the large closetunder the front stairscell-phones his motherfour times with differentinstructions on how he wantshis sandwich prepared thenphones the kitchen again toask why it’s taking so long
The man who would be senator
We meet at a trendy little café on Main Street in Peoria on a cold, sunny Monday afternoon. State Treasurer Alexi Giannoulias is on the campaign trail, and he has agreed to meet me to talk about his run for U.S. Senate. He smiles widely as he thrusts his hand out to meet mine in…
Flashy floorshow
Middle-class gal Sally Bowles from Chelsea, London, works as a singer at Berlin’s seedy Kit-Kat Club in 1929, trying her best to live the decadent life that the city is known for. In comes new lover Cliff Bradshaw, a young American writer, colorful boarding house characters, a pregnancy and Nazism. Sally refuses to acknowledge the…
Selling a city’s soul — for chicken scratch
Fire hydrants deserve more respect. They are utilitarian and ubiquitous icons of America’s urban landscape, yet they’re rarely noticed by anyone but dogs — who give them no respect whatsoever. Now, though, a brand-name corporation has noticed that these pieces of our public infrastructure are everywhere, and, like a dog, it wants to lift its…
Letters to the Editor 01/21/2010
FLAWED LAWRe: the texting ban [see “Texting ban more bark than bite” Jan. 7], they will need to ban eating, smoking, hygiene (makeup, shaving etc.) or any other distraction that can cause an accident when performed while driving. I am sure this will be enforced as much as the smoking ban from a few years…
Ragged Jack rolls on
When Lyman Ellerman sings “life is a wheel, let it roll, let it roll, let it roll,” you know he means it in his heart and soul. The song is the title track from a new CD recorded in Nashville last fall by Ellerman’s group Ragged Jack, available to the public for the first time…
YOU GOT SERVED!
Monday was Martin Luther King Jr. Day, and Gov. Pat Quinn used the opportunity to encourage Illinoisans to volunteer on Jan. 18, proclaiming it the Martin Luther King Jr. Day of Service. “Dr. Martin Luther King’s teachings and service to others can continue to guide us in addressing our most pressing needs including poverty, economic…
Sarah Borges and the Broken Singles
A year ago, Sarah Borges and the Broken Singles became the talk of the town after a bang-up performance at the Bedrock 66 Live! concert series presented by WUIS at the Hoogland Center for the Arts and sponsored by E & F Distributors. Since then our pop-rockin, alt-indie, kinda-countryish singing Sarah from Boston has been…
The basics of Bologna
“Have you ever been to Bologna? Oh, I take you there someday. You will love this place. Bologna is sad, a little. The city is old… but the food! They make there a dish called Lasagna Bolognese. You can’t believe how good this is. When my uncle, at his restaurant, makes this, you eat and…
Music man
Ralph’s World bops into the capital city Saturday with an assortment of fun songs and a good time for you and your family. Ralph Covert is the man behind the World, a writer and singer of popular children’s music, including Grammy-nominated songs “Green Gorilla” and “Monster and Me,” and a handful of CDs including, “Bad…
