letters 10-7-04
Letters policy We welcome letters, but please include your full name, address and a daytime telephone number. We edit all letters for libel, length and clarity. Send letters to: Letters, Illinois Times. P.O. Box 5256. Springfield, Illinois 62705. Fax: (217) 753-3958. E-mail: editor@illinoistimes.com DO YOU FEEL A DRAFT? Our military is overextended, and we need…
He’s not playing with your head
Morrisonville native Thomas “Thom” Whalen saw a lot of the country before settling down almost where he started. After grad school at the University of Kansas in Lawrence, Whalen lived in Kansas City, Seattle, and Phoenix. When he came to Springfield, he bought a design company, which fared well, and did some adjunct teaching in…
now playing 10-7-04
At the very real risk of slipping into the credibility-robbing practice of using a public forum to shamelessly self-promote, here I go. This Sunday, Oct. 10, at 8 p.m. (8 p.m. sharp, you slackers), we — that is, Tom Irwin and the Hired Hands — intend to celebrate 10 years of performing (almost) every Sunday…
Proxy fight
This year’s only Illinois Supreme Court race is just about the hottest political thing going. The 5th District race pits appellate justice Gordon Maag, a Democrat from Glen Carbon, against trial judge Lloyd Karmeier, a Nashville Republican. For many, this race isn’t between two candidates; it’s an all-out proxy war fought on behalf of, and…
An eye for detail brings old Decatur to life
One hundred years ago, you could get more than a drink of water on Decatur’s Water Street. As Dan Guillory notes in Decatur, a photographic history of Springfield’s neighbor to the east, the thoroughfare afforded rye whiskey for the thirsty, new soles for those who were down at the heels, and a little extra cash…
movie review
At the end of each year, I put together a list of that year’s 10 worst films. It used to be a cathartic exercise that I looked forward to with malicious glee. In recent years, though, it’s turned into a depressing exercise as it’s become obvious that restricting the list to 10 rotten films is…
Taking stock
A local volunteer-based environmental group has released what is widely being hailed as the most comprehensive inventory of natural areas ever compiled in central Illinois. Vern LaGesse, president and founder of Friends of the Sangamon Valley, oversaw the nearly three-year project, which entailed walking or canoeing virtually every inch of forest, prairie, and wetland in…
Protect Illinois wilderness
A green carpet of moss at the campground welcomed the two of us to the trailhead. We crossed a dry creek bed and followed the sign for the White Pine Trail. Past a green swamp, then up easy slopes, a cool September breeze followed us into the Shawnee National Forest. A mile later, our trail…
Plan now for a splash of color
One of my favorite gardening experiences is seeing yellow and purple crocuses peek through snow in March. Now is the time to select and plant spring bulbs if you want to enjoy a similar splash of color early next year. Flowering bulbs are an important addition to any landscape or garden. The more bulbs of…
Prosecution proceeds
Now it’s official: Despite the confession of a serial killer, and despite an appellate court’s decision to overturn her conviction, Julie Rea-Harper will stand trial a second time for the brutal murder of her young son. In October 1997, 10-year-old Joel Kirkpatrick was stabbed to death as he slept in his mother’s Lawrenceville home. Three…
sound patrol 10-7-04
Sally Timms In the World of Him (Touch and Go) Sick unto death of so-called security moms and their effect on the upcoming election? Are women the new white men? The latest solo CD by Mekons singer Sally Timms seems spookily relevant, even though its timing is probably coincidental; In the World of Him has…
Hometown advantage
Up until about four years ago, anybody who wanted to draw a paycheck from the city of Springfield also had to live inside the city limits. In 2000, by a 6-4 vote, City Council repealed that requirement for all but the highest-ranking city employees. Now, the council appears likely to confront that question again, thanks…
prairie notes 10-7-04
The big bluestem, dressed in its fall red-wine colors, glows in the late-afternoon sun among the bright-blue New England asters and a scattering of yellow goldenrod. From the center of this acre of prairie, nothing is visible except the sky and the tops of the oaks and cottonwoods along the creek. I like to imagine…
quick takes 10-7-04
THIS JUST IN “Sound bites are overshadowing substance in the U.S. Senate campaign,” according to the current edition of Illinois Issues, the respected Springfield-based monthly. Of course, when one of the candidates is Alan Keyes, the bites are big and they’re hard to digest, even for Illinois Republican Party leaders who tapped the Maryland talk…
knoepfle 10-7-04
notebook poem #1 what is there to say the athlete grown old he is still the athlete no need for garlands need for purpose something beyond old photographs © John Knoepfle 2004
music notes 10-7-04
• The Springfield Classical Guitar Society, now in its seventh year of presenting some of the world’s best classical guitarists in the capital city, submits for your approval composer and performer Brad Richter at 8 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 9, at the First Presbyterian Church (321 South Seventh St.). Then, in an interesting scheduling move, the…
Service, variety, and atmosphere set Brew-Bakers Caffe apart
Brew-Bakers Caffe is a little bit like one of the specialty coffee drinks it serves: A mix of ingredients gives it a unique flavor. The small café offers bagels, bread, and flavored cream cheeses just like Panera Bread, the popular bakery chain. It serves up many varieties of coffee and espresso drinks, as does caffeine…
common sense 10-7-04
Thank you, Nicole and Jeff Rank for standing your ground — and standing up for all of us. This young couple from Charleston, W. Va., was arrested on the grounds of the state Capitol during a July 4 appearance by President George W. Bush [see Hightower, “Is this America?” Aug. 5]. They came to see…
Grace about town 10-7-04
I broke my toe. OK, I’m not 100 percent sure that it’s broken. All I know is, it happened a couple weeks of ago, the pain hasn’t abated, and attempting to run on it makes the pain worse. Walking isn’t so great, either, especially if I get it into my head to walk a whole…
