Final exam
In February 2001, Donald Hanrahan and 18 other Springfield-area residents protested Hunter Lake at a hearing held by the United States Army Corps of Engineers. Nearly eight years later, they’re preparing to speak out again. Hanrahan, a local attorney and member of Citizens for Sensible Water Use, has spent the past month organizing arguments against…
Smiles across the miles
My baby Evan has always had a million dollar smile. I’m not saying that because I’m his mom; everybody with normal eyesight notices. It’s not just his perfectly aligned milk-white teeth, set off by his mocha skin; it’s not even the dimples in each cheek. The essence comes from the gleam in his eyes and…
People’s Poetry
englandthanksgiving poem I can predict when they’ll be back I told the greenham common campers all of us poised for the cruise missilesto return from war games on salisbury plain thursday is our thanksgiving the americans will want wednesday to getwhere they’re going for the holiday so they’ll need the morning to deploy therefore they’ll…
Route of dispute
When it comes right down to it, the much-publicized lawsuit filed this week by noted attorney Bill Roberts on behalf of The Hope Institute is about three orange traffic cones. Set along the spot where Hazel Lane abuts a Hope School parking lot, these cones theoretically posed “a severe danger to the health and welfare…
Leaders duck and hide while Wall Street steals from us
They came. They saw. They ran away. The recent big global finance summit session was a far cry from the “veni, vidi, vici” of Julius Caesar. Rather than conquering the spreading problem of economic collapse, the leaders of the world’s 20 most powerful economies dithered, blathered, postured and then fled for home. Still, a White…
LOVE LETTERS
Scared to talk about sexually transmitted diseases? Check out inSPOT.org, a new Web site where people infected with STDs can send e-cards to their partners letting them know they might be at risk. Cap City heard about the site, inaugurated in major cities like Chicago and New York City and states like Indiana and Florida,…
IT Picks
Winter bells Ring in the holiday season with the sound of Bells in Motion. This Saturday, the progressive handbell ensemble will play classic holiday melodies like The Nutcracker, Carol of Bells and Silent Night. The Springfield-based Bells in Motion is known for jazz-inspired performances, and for bringing originality to every performance. The 17-member group combines…
NURSING THE CUTS
NURSING THE CUTS Hundreds of health and childcare workers braved freezing temperatures at a rally in Springfield, they say, so the people they serve aren’t left out in the cold. Approximately 700 purple-clad members of the Service Employees International Union from Illinois and Indiana gathered at the Capitol Nov. 20 to call on state lawmakers…
Great books for kids
Even in an age dominated by iPods and other “must-have” electronic gizmos du jour, everyone loves buying children’s books during the holidays. But beyond the tried and true classics (The Little Engine that Could, Harry Potter, anything by Dr. Seuss), what else is out there?

 Whether you’re looking for a picture book, an age-appropriate nonfiction…
Holiday calendar
Ongoing Meals on Wheels Volunteers Needed The American Red Cross Meals on Wheels program has an ongoing need for volunteer drivers during the holiday season. The American Red Cross, 1045 Outer Park Dr. For more info, call 787-7602, ext. 237 Holiday Hall Exhibition and Sale Through Dec 13, Springfield Art Association’s juried 4th Annual Holiday…
COLORED GLASS RECYCLING
Hang on to your empty bottles of Chardonnay after Thanksgiving dinner this year, cause you will be able to recycle them and other colored and clear glass on Saturday, Dec. 6, from 8 a.m.-noon at the city’s Public Works Garage at the corner of 17th St. and Clear Lake Ave. Colored glass is currently not…
Give thanks by showing up
Being thankful for things is a good strategy for happiness in life. A major component of established religions comes from praising a creator not just for being the big dog, but also for throwing us bones. How better to not be a Scrooge (for a holiday reference), than to be thankful and appreciative of bountiful…
Australia: A movie as grand as the continent itself
Director Baz Luhrmann has never been satisfied with modest productions. Strictly Ballroom, Romeo+Juliet and Moulin Rouge, for good or ill, all wallowed in wretched excess and his latest, Australia, is no exception. Luhrmann’s trademark flourishes are on lavish display here as larger than life characters, heartrending emotional turmoil and a plot as deep as a…
A Moveable Feast, 1963
Very little about my family’s Thanksgiving celebrations have changed throughout my entire life. In large part, that’s because we’re a relatively small group: my mom and I are both only children, and my dad wasn’t close to his family, so there weren’t troops of relatives vying over who’d host the dinner or what to contribute…
Letters to the Editor
We welcome letters. Please include your full name, address, and telephone number. We edit all letters. Send them to Letters, Illinois Times, P.O. Box 5256, Springfield, IL 62705; fax 217-753-3958; e-mail editor@illinoistimes.com. UPLIFTING What a great article by Thomas March and Darcy Fryer [See “Barack Obama’s confident humility,” IT, Nov. 20]. I really appreciate this…
The fireplace is for winter cooking
For as long as I can remember, I’ve loved fireplaces. Gas-burning fireplaces may be better than nothing — wonderful for people who can’t or don’t want to deal with armloads of wood or sweeping up ashes. For me, though, maximum pleasure comes from the ever-changing, glowing flicker and scent of a real wood-burning fireplace. It’s…
Hollywood close to home
Tired of the same ol’, same ol’? If so, maybe it is time to rev up your holidays with a bit of Hollywood glamour, southern Illinois style. Southernmost Illinois has a few connections with the big screen that might be just the trip to add a bit of pickup from the winter doldrums. While everyone…
New Senate president may be just the one to unlock the gridlock
The historical significance of last week’s votes to elect a new Senate president and a new Senate Republican leader is difficult to overstate. For starters, replacing both chamber leaders at once is an extreme Springfield rarity. According to Kent Redfield, one of the state’s leading political scientists, the last time this happened was 34 years…
Net games
In Springfield, a city that hasn’t exactly embraced craigslist, an online classifieds community, there were 54 “women4men” postings in the erotic services section earlier this week. Complete with graphic photographs, these ads feature everything from 25-year-old women promising to “spend some intimate time with you in exchange for a fair donation” to 46-year-old women charging…
For the holidays, plan some jollydays
Untitled Document With the holiday season upon us, the Springfield community hosts a variety of celebrations that will have even Ebeneezer Scrooge joyfully singing, “ ’Tis the season.” For many, the “official” holiday season begins with Memorial Medical Center Foundation’s annual Festival of Trees. The nine-day celebration, taking place Nov. 22 through Nov. 30 at…
Who will the governor appoint as senator? I nominate Bill.
I was interviewed the other day by National Public Radio about the “campaign” to fill president-elect Barack Obama’s U.S. Senate seat. Most of what I said was left on the cutting-room floor, but my message to the NPR reporter was crystal clear: Ignore all the punditry and prognostication. It’s been enormous fun to watch all…
People’s Poetry
englandthanksgiving poem I can predict when they’ll be backI told the greenham common campersall of us poised for the cruise missilesto return from war games on salisburyplain thursday is our thanksgiving theamericans will want wednesday to getwhere they’re going for the holiday sothey’ll need the morning to deploytherefore they’ll return tuesday nightI was right midnight…
IT Picks
Winter garden Volunteers and local designers spent countless hours hanging Christmas lights and ornaments to create Memorial’s Festival of Trees. The festival, a Springfield tradition since 1990, is put on by the Memorial Medical Center Foundation. The theme of the festival is “A Winter Garden” and it features more than 100 decorated trees and wreaths…
Citizen can
Maybe it’s the time of year, but the State Journal-Register has really gotten into the community spirit lately. In September, Springfield’s daily newspaper announced it was inviting a couple of regular Joe Horseshoes from the community to serve half-year stints on its editorial board. Just like other journalists on the board, they’ll be allowed to…
Thanksgiving Eve is a big party night
For those of you who have a tradition of slaving over a hot stove on the night before Thanksgiving preparing a fabulous feast for family and friends, perhaps you’ve not noticed the Wednesday night before National Feed Your Face Day has steadily climbed the party barometer to become the greatest, most popular and best-attended night…
Hitting the streets
As administration after administration ignores the city’s fractured streets and crumbling sidewalks, aldermen are finally stepping in to face and fix years of neglected infrastructure needs. A new subcommittee, co-chaired by Ward 6 Ald. Mark Mahoney and Ward 1 Ald. Frank Edwards, plans to hold four public meetings in different areas of the city over…
The nuclear football
Illinois is the most nuclear state in the nation, leading the U.S. in number of reactors and producing one-tenth of the country’s nuclear energy. Forty-eight percent of Illinoisans’ electricity is generated by nuclear power (coal accounts for the other 50 percent). With energy issues inextricably tied to the economy and national security, Barack Obama pledged…
