Growing plants indoors versus outdoors
I’m not the only one with a brown thumb. However, most people I know don’t have an existential crisis about it. But worry plagued me for months as I watched my plants perish. When I told a friend about my inner turmoil, he just laughed. He didn’t even notice a tree in his office had…
It’s not easy being clean
That Vistra Energy would downsize its coal-fired power plant fleet in Illinois wasn’t a surprise. But environmentalists aren’t happy with the announcement last month that the company will close four of eight plants by year’s end and leave the dirtiest ones in operation. Three hundred workers will be unemployed after plant closures in Havana, Canton,…
What’s the purpose of Lake II?
Springfield’s quest to build a second water supply appears bogged down as the Army Corps of Engineers, which must issue a permit, is demanding more studies of a project first proposed more than a half-century ago. The corps recently removed the project from a list of pending applications posted on the agency’s website. That doesn’t…
A Capitol idea
When I learned that esports have come to public schools for which I pay good money, I thought of Billy Mitchell. Not the father of the Air Force who got court-martialed shortly before World War II after arguing with superior officers: Forget battleships and build aircraft carriers, he implored. He was dead before they finally…
Be careful what you wish for
Rep. David McSweeney (R-Barrington Hills) announced last week that he will not seek reelection. Instead, he said he’ll likely be making a 2022 statewide bid for either US Senate against Sen. Tammy Duckworth or secretary of state if Jesse White retires. He may not be a household name, but McSweeney has been a huge thorn…
Letters to the Editor 9/12/19
WORTH A CHANCE Last week’s article on the Knights of Columbus raffle said the savvy gambler would be better off at a casino than buying into the K of C drawing (“Big money,” Sept. 5). Bruce Rushton quoted blackjack at 0.99 odds (meaning the bettor loses, on average, one percent of each bet) and video…
Editor’s note 9/12/19
Lest we hereabouts take New Salem for granted, Dr. Mark Pohlad of DePaul University brought from Chicago his passion for the reconstructed pioneer village to the “lunch and learn” audience at University of Illinois Springfield this week. Never mind that the reconstruction of the 1930s didn’t get all the locations and the details right, or…
Paul Findley remembered names
There is power in names. That is something of which former Illinois Congressman Paul Findley was keenly aware. Findley, a Republican from Jacksonville, died last month at age 98. Findley, who served in the U.S. House from 1960 until 1982, was an early critic of American military involvement in Vietnam. “We were looking for a…
Illinois History Forum
The Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library holds an unparalleled collection of books, documents, photographs, artifacts and art, as well as some 12 million items pertaining to all aspects of Illinois history. The Illinois History Forum gives historians and other experts opportunities to discuss particular books from the collection or museum exhibits and also offers audience members…
Juried fine art and craft show
Art Spectacular is a multi-experience festival of art, music and children’s programs. Founded by Rees Carillon Society board member Barb Walker, the art show is a professionally juried fine art and craft show featuring collector- and museum-quality works. The participating artists are among the region’s and nation’s most recognized for their original work in a…
10 hot decor trends for fall
Every so often the furniture industry rolls out the red carpet and rolls in their new lines for a new season. The Las Vegas Market, dedicated to the home furnishings industry, held one of its twice-a-year market shows in July. Unveiled were some of the hot new trends you will likely see translated and interpreted…
Plant your native garden this fall
If you missed the window for planting native plants in your garden this spring, don’t worry. You still have time to get them in the ground in the fall. “Growing native plants is a great way to benefit the environment, wildlife and bring some interesting and beautiful plants to your garden,” said Gemini Bhalsod, University…
Do I need to be worried about radon?
If you think about radon at all, odds are it’s because it came up during a home sale and created a hassle in the closing process. And indeed, it’s not really fun to think about radon – it’s a serious health problem that could lead to some costly fixes for your home. But you still…
Are you covered?
While a standard homeowner’s insurance policy covers the gamut of bad luck scenarios, such as theft, disasters or accidents, there is a limit to the amount of financial protection it can provide. According to the Insurance Information Institute, most standard homeowner’s policies cover four essential types of coverage: the structure of your home, your personal…
How to get started with vines
Trumpet creeper is so large, so willing and so floriferous, it was a favorite outhouse cover-up. Only a reliable plant could survive on these neglected spaces, visited only when necessary. All summer long that vine bloomed on very fertile ground, spreading into a privacy barrier that hummingbirds flock to. Pioneers planted cuttings from outhouse vines…
Wallpaper, the great comeback of 2019
It is true what they say: If you wait long enough, old trends will make their way back into fashion (unless we are talking about shag carpet, in which case that can stay in the past). One of my favorite comebacks of the last few years is wallpaper. Wallpaper is a style destined to come…
Should I install outdoor lighting?
Just as you rely on a well-designed lighting plan inside your home, you should pay careful attention to how you illuminate the exterior. Outdoor lighting can ensure your family’s safety, improve home security and enhance how you use the space. Decorative lighting Judicious use of outdoor decorative lights gives your home character. They can be…
Lazy screenwriting hampers It 2
Much like It, Andy Muschietti’s follow-up, Chapter 2, is a triumph of production design, a meticulously rendered, at times morbidly beautiful film that is never less than captivating to look at. Whether it be the make-up effects that bring its villainous clown Pennywise to life, the rundown, hovel-chic house where he resides or the elaborately…
Brittany a surprising, moving testament to self-reliance
The power in Paul Down Colaizzo’s Brittany Runs a Marathon comes from the fact that we so easily identify with the titular character, a young woman who isn’t living her life as much as floating through it. She makes no conscious choices where the direction of her life is concerned; she allows herself to be…
Sadness and celebrations
In several recent columns I’ve had to announce the loss of a community musician. Each time, I continue to talk about other events as life does move on, and I feel that especially with musicians, entertainers and performers, the thought that the show goes on is ever present, vital and necessary. But it sure doesn’t…
Samba Llamas
From the desire to simply have fun making a local version of a Brazilian carnival street rhythm percussion ensemble back in 1997, this group has expanded to become a highly respected and appreciated combo in the community. Bandmates Chrissy Becker (vocals, percussion), Chas Blythe (guitar), John Blythe (cavaquinho, shorty 12-string guitar), Harris Hatcher (percussion), Lou…
power of literature #1
you all know bemelmans’ madeline (“twelve little girls in two straight lines”) my granddaughter five read reread reread it the morning she got it in the afternoon she complained of belly ache it’s an appendix how sweet said the adults how she has internalized the story at supper she complained of worse belly ache at…
IT’S NOT TOO LATE
On the plus side, the daily paper has begun publishing letters stating the obvious: What in tarnation was the State Journal-Register thinking when it hired Ted Nugent to appear at an outdoor expo set for Sept. 21 at the Bank of Springfield Center? In an advertisement disguized as a news story announcing Nugent’s upcoming appearance,…
To make a global difference, eat local
As fires raging in the Amazon rainforest dominate recent news, the global importance of eating local has never been more apparent. While public attention to these wildfires is new, the fires are not a sudden phenomenon, nor are they accidental. For years, cattle ranchers and loggers have been setting fires to sections of the rainforest…
GET READY FOR GREEN
A majority of Springfield city council members this week said nice things about plans to tax recreational marijuana and establish zoning to decide where dispensaries will be allowed. During discussion of pot proposals up for a vote next week, one to establish a tax, the second to establish zoning, aldermen made the case that weed,…
