Update/Vacation

Let me update you on the last several weeks. From May 22nd to June 1 I traveled down to Bushnell, IL, USA for vacation. We stayed in a nice little cozy trailer borrowed from friends. Just down the hill is a beautiful lake on which we fished and made noise. Gabrielle caught the cutest little sun fish, which btw, did not die though dropped and carried and held for quite a long time! I was a bit worried because it stopped moving. But then when we dropped it back in the lake it took off like a jet.

On vacation we watched Hoodwinked, Zorro II, Madagascar, a Barbie movie, The Count of Monte Cristo, Kyonnisqatsi, Mr. 3000, the Star Wars Saga, Looney Tunes movie and shows, Garfield. . . . and that's about all I can remember. Needless to say lots of fluff--except for Kyonnisqatsi (I know I'm spelling it wrong but consistently wrong!). I so didn't get the music from K. that I got out my guitar to cover it up. The sound of K. and my guitar were enough to drive my wife screaming from the room. Great movie, artsy-fartsy soundtrack, but fine with Honky Tonk licks played in unison. We played a lot outside. Dug our own worms for fishing. Cooked over a campfire. Set up a tent. Found a live opossum in our trash can and had to throw it in the woods. Ran over a large snapping turtle backing out down the drive way (it took days to forgive myself) and had to throw it in the woods. Got hundreds of mosquito bites between us. Gabrielle proudly counted all of hers and beat her brother handedly. Though now it looks like some were poison ivy. All of the kids spent important time wandering or sitting alone in nature. I kept shouting the line from Madagascar "Nature!! It's all over me! Get it off!!"

On Saturday night I went to US Cellular Field and saw White Sox beat the Texas Rangers with a couple of real lifelong Sox fans. I got to hear the running commentary from the radio after the game. Before that we had Chinese food down in Chinatown. It's great being an Uptown Chicagoan with Southside friends and allegiances. "In the world but not of it"--ya know?