Helping Remove the Old Marble

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Chris Helping Out

Chris helped a lot today... we removed the old powder room marble tile in preparation for new 18 inch square travertine tile. The removal took over 6 hours with a tile removng tool similar to an ice breaker you'd use outside. The old adhesive was very hard to get off the floor - largely because there wasn't enough room to attack the stuff from more than one angle.

The new tiles were cut, fit and set in under 3 hours. Tomorrow I grout and Tuesday the toilet and sink get installed.

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New Stone Set, Waiting for Grout

Thoughts of Warm Places

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Clearwater Beach, Florida
Just After Sunset

Old Main

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Old Main
Naperville, Illinois

Countless puddles cover the campus as temperatures near 50 melt the week-old snow.

Snowdrift

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Snowdrift
February, 2007

Generating Power...and Steam

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Midwest Generation Power Plant
Romeoville, Illinois

The Midwest Generation Power Plant seen here on a sunny but bitterly cold day with highs right around zero.

Frozen Fireplace

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Fireplace in the Snow

Not sure if this is the only thing left of an abandoned cabin, or if it's just an outdoor fire pit, but I would have liked to see a fire in it that day.

February in the Woods

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Woods in Winter

Curving Path

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Snow Covered Path
Naperville, IL

A sunny February day with temperatures near 40 degrees made it a perfect day to get out and grab some images before the snow melts! This little hidden park was just a few feet from the place I've been eating lunch for a year - And I just discovered the path to it yesterday.

Thawing Stream

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Stream During February Thaw
Naperville, IL

Small Men or Large Snowman?

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10 Foot Tall Snowman
Created by four students at
North Central College, Naperville, IL

These students took advantage of the warm (40 degree) temperatures and melting snow to create a huge snowman in front of their dorm.

The 10 foot snowman took about two hours to build, wears a straw hat and has eyes made out of lime slices.

Mike 'n Ice

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Mike Freezing
Fish Lake, Indiana

Leaving the ice fishing derby - and zero degree temperatures - behind, Mike is hoping the car is close by. It's time to warm up!

Soaking in the Sun...Waiting for Spring

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Waiting for Spring

Time to Leave the Ice

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Ice Fishermen Heading for Warmth
Fish Lake, Indiana

Tired of 40 mile per hour winds and bitter cold temperatures hovering around 0 degrees Fahrenheit, these ice fishermen gave up and headed for the warmth of the American Legion Hall.
The 35th annual Ice Fishing Derby didn't attract too many fishermen this year, but at least there was enough ice on the lake to support the 50 or so that showed up.

Digging Out on Valentines Day!

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Digging Out
8 AM February 14

A gusty winter storm dumped several inches of snow on the Chicago area. Over 9 inches fell, but it's difficult to tell how much actually accumulated because the winds blew the snow into deep drifts.

After a four day weekend celebrating Lincoln's birthday, the local schools were closed Tuesday and Wednesday making it a six day weekend.

As of 9:30 AM, it's still snowing even though the sun is shining!

Cupid is going to need a shovel!

Swing Bridge in Winter

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Old Railroad Swing Bridge
Romeoville, Illinois

Fresh snow cover an old swing bridge in Romeoville, IL. It's now used as part of a bike trail network through Lily Cache Island. It's a great spot to see deer - and the Citgo Refinery!

You can see the old bridge tender's hut above the roadway. It must have been quite a lonley job waiting for the trains to come by.

Lincoln's Birthday

Statue of Lincoln
Carthage College
Kenosha, Wisconsin

Chicago Theatre in Winter

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The Chicago Theater
State Street

Called the "Wonder Theater of the World" when it opened in 1921, the Chicago Theater still hosts top performers today. The theater is seen here during a snowfall in February 2007.

Kristin Hersh - Chicago In-Store Performance

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Kristin Hersh Performs in Chicago
February 6, 2007

I was able to catch singer, songwriter Kristin Hersh at a recent in-store performance in Chicago. She was promoting her new album "Learn to Sing Like a Star" following it's release late last month.
Kristin is a founding member of Throwing Muses, (an influential 80's - 90's band that opened the world's eyes to women in alternative music), a prolific solo recording artist, and front women of the "surf punk" band 50 Foot Wave.

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Often called "The Godmother of Alternative Rock" Kristin can play the guitar like no one else. I'm always surprised when I hear her play live that all the sound can come out of one guitar.

Montrose Harbor - Frozen

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Approaching Snow Storm
Montrose Harbor
Lake Michigan
Chicago, Illinois

Below zero temperatures have turned Lake Michigan into a dangerous but beautiful sheet of ice. Standing close to the ice in the cold wind, you can hear loud pops and groans as the ice moves and cracks. Under tremendous pressure, sheets of ice on lakes have been known to crack, break free and fly upward several feet!

The aid to navigation seen here looks like a mini lighthouse. The red banding near the top tells boaters to keep left of this aid to navigation when returning to the harbor. There is another lighthouse shaped marker on the other side of the harbor entrance with green bands, this tells the boater to stay to the right of the marker when returning to the harbor. It's simple to keep these rules in mind: Red, right, returning! Keep the red channel markers (called nuns) to the right of the boat when returning from the ocean or lake - or traveling upstream. The green channel markers (called cans) should be kept to the left. This way, boaters are certain to be on a safe course - even at night.

Ice Fishing on Fish Lake

More from the 35th Annual Ice Fishing Derby on Fish Lake.
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Ice Fishing Shanties
Fish Lake, Indiana

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Ice Fishermen Keeping Warm
Fish Lake, Indiana

With bitter cold temperatures in the single digits and high winds, canvas, wood and plastic shanties offered fishermen little shelter from the cold.