People’s Poetry
kitchenpoem #2 if you’re wondering how to get rid of a pesky housefly turn off all the lights open the fridge door he’ll fly right into the sudden brightness slam the door later on open it cautiously in his numbed state he’s easily dispatched with a napkin but be sure you’ve covered the butter my…
Cleaning up Congress
Is the rancid stench of Washington political corruption a lot more malodorous than usual? You might remember, a decade ago, when Newt Gingrich put forth his “Contract with America,” pledging that if Republicans took power they’d tidy up the place and turn it into an ethical nunnery. Well, since then the GOP has taken total…
Letters to the Editor
We welcome letters, but please include your full name, address, and daytime telephone number. We edit all letters for libel, length, and clarity. Send letters to Letters, Illinois Times, P.O. Box 5256, Springfield, IL 62705; fax 217-753-3958; e-mail editor@illinoistimes.com. NEW LIFE FOR THE COLLOQUIUM Your paper’s feature article that outlined the history of the public-affairs…
See no evil
As with George Ryan before him, I’m really finding it difficult to believe that Gov. Rod Blagojevich is as clueless as he claims. Blagojevich says he had absolutely no idea that Tony Rezko was up to no good. Rezko is a very close friend of the governor’s who raised millions of dollars for his campaign,…
In the balance
A controversial Illinois law is at the center of the national debate on states’ rights in dealing with foreign governments. In January, the Illinois Legislature enacted the Act to End Atrocities and Terrorism in the Sudan — the nation’s first such law and the most restrictive. This triggered a lawsuit, filed in August by the…
What comes around…
The way we treat others tells us who we are, not who they are. That’s something my son heard often. It still slips off my tongue on occasion — and I find myself using it to challenge my own behavior far more often than I’d like to admit. That’s because it’s true, and, like many…
In defense of Mary
Mary, a new novel by Janis Cooke Newman, gives Mary Todd Lincoln the opportunity to tell her turbulent life story in a voice that rings true to her bold and unconventional persona. There’s no shying away from the controversy that followed Mrs. Lincoln for most of her life: Mary tells of the First Lady’s frivolous…
Crock o’ memories
Anybody remember a bar in Springfield’s Southtown called the Cracked Crock? It was popular in the late 1970s and early ’80s as a counterculture hangout for refugees from the repressing (and depressing) world of American middle-class normalcy. There were odd objects and antiques hanging from the walls and ceiling for patrons to admire or purchase.…
Fire-starters
Dear Jim: I plan to use my fireplace often this winter to lower my heating bills, but I have never been very good at getting a fire started and keeping it going. Is there a proper method of building a fire? Ask a hundred old-timers about the best method to build a fire, and you…
Insulating basement walls
Dear Gene: I want to insulate a cinderblock basement wall. I want to avoid any moisture problems in the insulation and thought of using foam panels, but I’d like the highest possible R-value. Can you help? Among foam panels, polyisocyanurate foam has the highest insulating value, about R-7 per inch of thickness. A 2-inch-thick panel…
Local food
Dear “Earth Talk”: Why do environmentalists advocate that people “eat locally?” I don’t understand the connection between patronizing local food producers and environmental quality. — Timothy Douglas, Burlington, Vt. In our modern age of food preservatives and additives, genetically altered crops and Escherichia coli outbreaks, such as the recent spinach debacle, people are increasingly concerned about…
Bellwether
One way to measure the difference between the candidates for Illinois’ 99th House District is paperwork. Let me explain: When Republican state Rep. Raymond Poe, R-99th District, visited the offices of Illinois Times, he brought along an assistant and a few sheets’ worth of talking points outlining his legislative accomplishments. By contrast, his Democratic opponent,…
Manna from heaven
They say you always remember your first time. I remember our first time with crystal clarity, even though it was long ago. I’m not sure exactly how long, but probably at least 15 years. My husband, Peter, and I had been hearing good things about a little coffee shop in Chicago’s Loop. There’d been an…
Sign up, become a master
The highlight of my job as horticulture educator for Sangamon and Menard counties is providing direction for the master-gardener volunteer program. I have the pleasure of working with 125 individuals who have a passion for gardening. University of Illinois Extension master gardeners not only enjoy learning more about gardening practices, they also have a desire…
Lucky Number Seven
There’s something special about Doris Chambers’ house. It’s not the furniture — a mishmash of sturdy specimens from a local discount store. It’s not the décor — mainly family photos, some kids’ artwork, plus a corkboard covered with fliers from social-service agencies. And it’s certainly not the house itself — the lower half of a…
Plane truth
There is an unwavering sense of patriotism in southwest Illinois: Flags are displayed proudly at homes and businesses. Signs supporting the troops show up behind the ice-cream counter at Dr. Jazz’s in Lebanon, outside the convenience store in Shiloh, and on front lawns throughout St. Clair County. Part of this fervor can be explained by…
Systemic failure
I never was a police reporter, but I did write about police matters, especially during my time in Memphis, covering city government. I reported on demands for civilian review, allegations of racism in hiring and promotions, contract disputes about pay and benefits, and corruption. Tennessee, at least at that time, had a fairly high regard…
Scorsese’s departed rage
The Departed is being hailed as Martin Scorsese’s best film since Goodfellas (1990). The new film is a great, solid work that ranks among the director’s great achievements, but the comparison is a bit unfair. Why is Goodfellas, possibly Scorsese’s most overrated film, viewed as the yardstick of his career? Too much of the action…
The stuff of heroes
As he did with the Western in Unforgiven, Clint Eastwood sees the war genre through a realistic and reconstructive lens in Flags of Our Fathers, an emotionally harrowing journey into the psyche of a nation and the men it would hold up as heroes. Based on the bestselling book by James Bradley and Ron Powers,…
The bridesmaid turns bride
For most of his career, Kid Congo Powers (né Brian Tristan) was a sideman, performing with some of the most influential bands of the past two decades. He began playing guitar in 1979, when a charismatic weirdo named Jeffrey Lee Pierce taught him a few tricks and inducted him into the Gun Club. By the…
People’s Poetry
aroundtownpoem #12 phone rang a youthful voice said I want to talk to my grandma I said which grandson is this he said christopher I said I don’t have a grandson named christopher but I’m always glad to talk to a grandson what shall we talk about he excused himself politely though and hung up…
