Charming comedy
Cassie Poe and Rick Dunham, of Springfield, star as Milly and Adam in the musical Seven Brides for Seven Brothers. Set in the 1800s Oregon wilderness, Milly marries Adam only to discover that life with Adam includes living with his six rowdy brothers. When the brothers kidnap six women to be their brides who become…
State’s federal stimulus czar did poor job managing funds
The Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity (DCEO), which leads the state’s business development efforts, appears to have been poorly managed during the tenure of the agency’s former director Jack Lavin, according to reviews of DCEO operations by state and federal authorities. Despite this track record, Gov. Pat Quinn chose Lavin, appointed to head…
Peoples Poetry
milkmanpoem #3 our lanky-legged milkman lawrence lanklotz said to my dad you know that old lady over on emerson who’s so crippled up with arthritis well she waits for me every morning and I put her pint of milk in her refrigerator and then before I leave I kneel down and tie her shoes I…
Durbin: Everybody needs a medical home
Patient-centered medical homes — a modern health care model that connects patients with primary care providers — has emerged as the centerpiece of national health care reform, says Dr. Jerry Kruse, chair of family and community medicine at the Southern Illinois University School of Medicine. The medical homes approach provides primary care physicians to patients…
GARLICKY GREENS AND BEANS
If some of Veenstra and Heck’s gorgeous vegetables have drawn your eye, but you’re hesitant about buying them because you’re not sure how to prepare them, never fear. They have an entire file box filled with recipes and tips. Here’s a sampling: The combination of beans and greens is a classic that appears in cuisines…
Growing food, healing land
It’s as inevitable as death and taxes: when growing vegetables without chemicals, weeds will be involved. Even though sophisticated mulching and planting techniques can minimize and, with diligence, even eliminate them over time, weeds are still there, lurking in the background, plotting their next invasion. It’s a pearly morning. Approaching rain clouds make rows of…
Brainchild
Brainchild, a band quartet of two guitars, bass and drums, works in a fairly exclusive area of rock music. According to their Web site information, the Peoria-based group “integrates the feeling of jazz and soul with the intensity of shredding guitar solos” and declares that, “the best way to describe the sound is Brainchild.” On…
Have you driven a Han lately?
If you want to be seen as a flag-flying, macho American, you’ve got to have the right ride — and nothing says swaggering hedonism and outta-my-way arrogance quite like a Hummer. Yes, it’s a high-dollar, gas-guzzling symbol of excess, but hey, that’s the point! As the founder of a Hummer support group once snarled, “Those…
Letters to the Editor 6-18-09
HANDGUNS IN NATIONAL PARKS That was a great cartoon, “The national park disservice,” on page 30 of the May 28 IT. The cartoon was referring to the recent signing of a bill by President Obama allowing guns in these parks, and even loaded ones in some instances. If this is any indication of the future,…
Civil War POW protests monument to a ‘monster’
The Confederate prison known as “Andersonville” in Georgia is often considered the worst of all the Civil War’s prisons. Its horrible reputation still provokes articles and documentaries today. More than 45,000 Union soldiers were imprisoned there during its 14-month existence and at least 12,000 of them died from exposure, illness, or gunshot. (Guards shot any…
‘Local Flavors’ meals make connections
Local Flavors, a program that connects farmers, restaurants and consumers, has returned for its second season. The program, which started as a dinner series, will expand this year to offer both lunches and dinners at 11 locally owned eateries in the Springfield area. Consumers who attend will support local farmers, as well as the restaurants…
Tougher than Guantanamo
On paper, Michael Johnson fits the profile of dangerous inmate. Reputedly a high-ranking El Rukn gang leader, he was a few months into a 35-year sentence for kidnapping and murder when he was indicted in 1987 for ordering a hit on Pontiac Correctional Center superintendent Robert Taylor. Johnson was eventually convicted and moved to Menard…
Fair play in New Berlin
The Sangamon County Fair is already underway, but if you’re a prompt and punctual Thursday reader of Illinois Times (why of course you are!) only one day of spectacular entertainment has passed you by. Peggy Lowder and Royal Pain at the Miller Rock beer tent and Hells Bells, the AC DC impersonation — excuse me…
Symphony presents %uFFFDEnsemble of Outdoor Living Spaces%uFFFD
With Father’s Day weekend approaching, the Illinois Symphony Orchestra has been blooming with anticipation for parents and children to come mark the occasion at its annual garden tour. The 20th annual fundraiser for the orchestra is this Saturday, June 20. Tickets are $15 per adult and children are free. The tour will be held from…
No notches left on our belt
Social service agencies throughout Illinois have recently received notices of funding cuts. Here is reaction from one of them. ARC Community Support Systems, an organization serving infants, children and adults with developmental disabilities with offices in Effingham and Richland County, received notification on Monday, June 15, from the Illinois Department of Human Services that its…
RED VELVET CAKE AU NATUREL! (BEET CAKE)
3/4c. cocoa 1 3/4 c. flour 2 tsp. baking powder 1 1/4 c. sugar 1/4 lb. cooked, puréed beets 3 large eggs, beaten 2/3 c. vegetable oil Vanilla extract Mix dry ingredients together in a large bowl. In a separate bowl, combine remaining ingredients. Fold the beet mixture into the dry ingredients and pour into…
Yes we can
A parade at 10 a.m. along Martin Luther King Drive kicks off this community-wide celebration and party. Besides good music and food, a variety of vendors participate and a basketball tourney takes place. Saturday, Jagged Edge takes the stage at 5 p.m., with Kapitol Sound Band performing at the same time on Sunday. Juneteenth is…
Go, know and be well
Only 14 percent of U.S. men, ages15-49, make a sexual health visit annually, according to a 2002 Guttmacher Institute study. A 2007 report by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention states that chlamydia cases between 2003 and 2007 increased by 42.9 percent among men compared to a 17.3 percent increase among women. Planned…
Pat Quinn’s three undesirable alternatives
It’s tough to find people who truly believe that Gov. Pat Quinn will ultimately pull the trigger and give the go-ahead to draconian budget cuts in the coming fiscal year in order to force a tax hike. But his people insist it’s coming, and the administrative planning does appear to be moving forward with all…
Equine excellence
Fasten your harnesses. This horse show will capture your breath, even if your tastes toward horses are expressed in sentences such as, “They walk in parades,” rather than “I love them.” The display of animal beauty and grace is stunning, as is the skill displayed by old and young equestrians alike. Sit back in the…
What’s wrong with the New York Times?
I love the New York Times. I quote it so often my kids think I don’t know anything I didn’t read there. So naturally I was drawn to the long piece in May’s Vanity Fair on NYT publisher Arthur Ochs Sulzberger Jr. and how he is steering the country’s flagship newspaper through the recession and…
Bullock’s hollow Proposal
The good news about Sandra Bullock’s latest romantic comedy, The Proposal, is that it’s no Forces of Nature, a misfire from a decade ago in which the actress tried in vain to create some sort of spark with her co-star Ben Affleck. The bad news is, it’s no Jerry Maguire, the sort of mature love…
