A Signature Great Day

Two kids graduating this year: my son from the University of Iowa, and my daughter from High School (she is heading to Purdue in the fall, studying Engineering). We are throwing a Double Graduation Party!

I hear birds. See green grass. Feel a warm sun. Tell me, is it true? Is spring really here?

My family and I saw the The King’s Speech yesterday. Only one word to describe it: OUTSTANDING!

Colin Firth (Bridget Jones Diary, Pride & Prejudice), one of my favorite actors, was royal in his portrayal of the stammering future king of England. Geoffrey Rush—off the ship in Pirates of the Caribbean, was mesmerizing as the the King’s Speech Therapist.

A drama with great light moments peppered throughout, and interesting subplots: the love affair between brother and heir to the throne David and American divorcee Wallas, the eventual crowning of Albert, and England’s response to the rise of Hitler.

This is an award-winning movie. See it today!

It was our annual book swap event at our Book Club meeting. I was very happy about that as I was not so taken in by the book we had to read: mennonite in a little black dress. Similar to Eat, Pray, Love, it meandered most of the time and just didn’t keep my attention. Unfortunately, this is not a book I can recommend—I struggled to finish it.

But happily, for the book swap I received a few books from the The No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency series by Alexander McCall Smith. Certainly not thrillers or suspenseful, but quiet and thoughtful, these books give a little boost to your spirits because of the kindness and wisdom of the main character, Mma Ramotswe, Botswana’s No. 1 Lady Detective.

Fun and entertaining! Seven young and very athletic people take to the stage singing, dancing, and yes, performing amazing gymnastic feats. The performers share a little about themselves, making them so personable and likable. Held at the Broadway Playhouse, Chicago, Illinois, the show runs until January 01, 2011.

The Broadway Playhouse does not have a bad seat. And the rows are elevated enough that even for a short person like me, there were no heads obscuring my view.

Parking in Chicago is not always easy or inexpensive, but we parked in the lot in the John Hancock Building, directly across the street from the Playhouse. Couldn’t be easier.

For a review of Traces, click here.

The regular stuff: Turkey, sweet potatoes, glazed carrots, delicious stuffing (love it!), and everything else to round out dinner.

My teenage daughter is making her specialties: Paula Deen Pumpkin squares — you have got to try these — and onion tartlets.

Here is wishing everyone a wonderful Thanksgiving!

…since I last blogged?

I’m afraid so. Family and work commitments. But I promise to work harder to write something fun and encouraging weekly.

Stay tuned and hope to hear from you.

PRIMARY DAY IN ILLINOIS. GO VOTE!

I know that you have already heard about the importance of voting and exercising your right to vote.

IT’S ALL TRUE!

See you at the polls!

Yes, I have a Patch on my jeans. Not unusual when you live on a farm. It is very hard work: there is the stable to clean, a very large vegetable garden to tend, a piece of wood rotting on the old fence. When you live on a farm you tear your jeans up pretty good. Like most farmers, I have a Patch on my jeans.

But my Patch is not cloth. It is warm, furry and alive! Patch is my farm dog. She is my friend and companion, loyal and attentive. You can’t have a farm without wearing jeans, and you can’t have jeans without a Patch!

At our book club meeting tonight we read an interesting book with parallel stories: a modern day murder-mystery about the shooting of a polygamist who had 19 wives, and the story of Ann Eliza Young, 19th wife of Brigham Young, Prophet and leader of the Mormon Church. Written by David Ebershoff, the book really got our club talking about the roles of men and women in “celestial marriages.”

Our hostess for the evening had a tasty spread of appetizers and wine, followed by her own eclair cake. We hold our meetings about every six weeks and our club is now into its third year.

Our Book Club meetings are always a great way to start off the weekend.

My son Patrick is a junior at the University of Iowa and gets to go to see the Iowa Hawkeye football team play Kinnick Stadium. The team made history this year by going 8 and 0.

Game today at 11:00 against Indiana. Nerve-wracking!  Iowa going 9 and 0 would make a GREAT DAY!

To be continued…

Iowa now 9-0, coming from behind in the 4th quarter to rip Indiana.

A Great day for Iowa!

Just wrapped up my Thanksgiving Dinner guest list today. With friends, family and neighbors, we are expecting 12 guests! And possibly more! Time to get out the extra table and chairs. Looking forward to a great day!

I am very proud of my just-turned 17 year old daughter. Today she gave blood. There was a drive at her high school, and she was very excited to donate (she talked about it for days). Of course, the cookies, juice and shirt she received didn’t hurt!

She did a great thing!

And for those of you who would like to give blood, visit the American Red Cross site. Its a great thing to do.

I attended a workshop on Twitter today. A great social media vehicle. Learned quite a bit.

My question is: for small businesses, is it effective? Will it remain effective as the environment becomes inundated with users? Large companies seem to make it work; they have plenty of  fans. But can very small business do the same? Any positive examples?

Great weather for a college football game at the University of Iowa (60 degrees today). Tailgating, partying, a festive feel to this fall day. My son (a junior at Iowa) and husband are there now and will soon be sitting in the stadium watching the Hawkeyes go for their 10th straight win.

What a day for Iowa! Go Hawkeyes!

Our neighborhood first-ever Chili Cook-Off last night was a great success! Forty-five people attended and sampled 9 very distinct and delicious chilis. We had a round-robin setup where groups moved from one hosting house to another, tasting chili.  Beer, wine, corn bread and cheese were also served at all the “Tasting Houses”. At the Awards House, everyone completed a ballot and chose their top 3 chili dishes. The 3 winners received aprons with 1st, 2nd, or 3rd place winner printed on it.

The event was such a success that 4 chefs have already said they are cooking next year!  A little competition is a great thing!

I will be presenting to my Pro Alliance Professionals Networking Group tomorrow. My presentation will focus on blogging and how to use this social media vehicle to increase their company’s visibility. On the right are a few blogs they may be interested in.

WordPress is easy to use and free! Additionally, there is a huge support community (and books) to help users get up and going.

I purchased Lisa Sabin-Wilson’s 2nd edition “WordPress for Dummies” at Barnes & Nobel. This is a great book and I highly recommend it for WordPress beginners.

I just finished a Memoir Writing class offered by Beyond 220: Community Education Program. Our instructor, writer Mary Klest, was terrific. I learned memoir writing fundamentals; but more than that, the experience of being brought back in time was something I did not expect.

It was a great class, and I would recommend it to anyone who wants to put pen to paper and write.

Okay, the Hawkeyes didn’t win yesterday, but what a great job Vandenberg did! Who would have expected him to be able to step into Stanzi cleats and do as well as he did? Coach Ferentz may have a new problem: who to start as QB in the Bowl game. What a great problem to have!

Question: why didn’t Ferentz just go for it in the last minute or two instead of bringing the game into OT?

I just attended a Women’s Initiative Program sponsored by Itasca Bank & Trust, featuring Ellen Rogin. Ellen is an excellent and upbeat speaker. Her focus is on positive thinking and opening up your mind, business, self to new experiences, business opportunities, approaches. Think Lavish Abundance, not Scarcity. Check out her website. If you have the chance, see Ellen Rogin person; you will leave the program feeling energized.

Also, check out other programs sponsored by Itasca Bank & Trust. I haven’t been to one yet that I did not enjoy or get some useful info from.

Looking for great Mexican food? La Mesa in Barrington IL should be on your list. They have the tastiest chili rellenos around! It’s a small restaurant, bright orange walls, folksy Mexican artwork, and the best salsa anywhere!  Tonight, their Margaritas were rockin’! Had a great dinner with my daughter, a vegetarian, who ordered the veggie burrito. La Mesa is a local eatery with good service and a comfortable atmosphere. One of our favorites.

Our 5 year old Jeep with less than 60,000 miles developed transmission trouble. We talked to a few mechanics and were dismayed to learn that a replacement transmission would cost anywhere between $2,000 and $3,800. A light bulb went off in our heads and we contacted Chrysler directly. We were instructed to take the Jeep to our local Chrysler dealership.

Well, Chrysler did the right thing and stood behind their vehicle. The Jeep received a replacement transmission, and we paid only a portion of the labor cost.

Thanks, Chrysler!

P.S. The Jeep is running great!

Against Minnesota.  We need a few more TDs. Can’t get to the 3rd yard line and not get the ball in.

As a Graphic Designer with my own business, my mission is to provide small businesses with visually appealing, quality design for their print, website and email marketing projects. I work closely with my clients, and my goal is to help them meet their objectives and be successful in communicating with their audiences.

I received a wonderful compliment today from a client: “… thank you for your creativity, energy, passion and sense of humor. You make us look professional and communicate so much better!”

You can’t beat that!

What a great day we had yesterday! Friends and family came together to celebrate Thanksgiving, and there was no shortage of food or cooks! Two kinds of turkey dressing, 2 kinds of squash, green bean casserole, home make cranberry sauce, pumpkin muffins (did you know there has been a pumpkin shortage in the US due to all the rain we received this year?), gravy, candied yams, mashed potatoes, turkey, apple pie, baked mushrooms, onion tartlets, small red peppers stuffed with goat cheese…. you get the idea!

Also served up was a huge heaping of thanks, for our health, for our family, for good friends, for a bright future. Remember to give thanks and appreciation this year to everyone who touches you; it always comes back to you.

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

Genesee Theatre

Over the holiday weekend we saw a great production at the Genesee Theatre in Waukegan. The show was Cirque Dreams. Amazing performances by acrobats, contortionists—and my favorite—the clothing magicians!

The theatre is small and comfortable. There are balcony seats that I would love to try next time. Stop into their lounge for a glass of wine before the production or during intermission. Parking was a breeze: we parked in a lot across the street for $5.00.

Upcoming events: Some Like It Hot, The Rat Pack is Back and David Archulet

My design client, the Chicago Roundtable of the Council of  Supply Chain Management Professionals, invited the Marines to their monthly program! It was all about the Toys for Tots. The Marine presenter shared with the Roundtable the need for toy and monetary donations (in addition to discussing the logistics of delivering toys to needy children). The Toys for Tots program is feeling the economic pinch this season.

For those of you unfamiliar with Toys for Tots, it is a program run by the United States Marine Corp Reserve. They collect new toys for distribution to needy children every Christmas. It is a great program, and really needs your help to keep it sustained.

Kudos to the members of the Chicago Roundtable, who brought unwrapped toys to their meeting or made  donations to the program.

Xerox is sponsoring a great program called “Let’s Say Thanks“.  Go to the website and choose from cards drawn by children from all around the US , add a message (choose from a few pre-worded messages or write your own). They  are then printed on Xerox production presses and mailed in care packages by the military support organization Give To The Troops . You can also read messages sent back from the troops.

Send a card today!. These messages are appreciated year-round, but especially during the holiday season.

Four minutes till December 25th. Spent time with my extended family today, and more tomorrow. Good company, good feelings all around. If there is one day in the year to sit back, relax, and enjoy family and friends, it is Christmas.

Sometimes it seems that we force holiday cheer on ourselves: we must feel festive, we must decorate to the extreme, we must give the perfect gift.

Tonight my family opened gifts. I got the Susan Boyle CD (love it). My husband received the music from the TV show Glee (lively and familiar music). We opened 2 “family” gifts—a big tin of popcorn and chocolate toffee. Then we played cards! Chocolate, popcorn and my family together…all I need for Christmas.

It’s now 12:05. MERRY CHRISTMAS TO ALL!

Make your holidays great!

Happy New Year!

Welcome to 2010!

May all your hopes and dreams for the New Year come true.

Plenty of college football today. Just finished watching Auburn v. Northwestern at the Outback Bowl. Crazy, great game! Our favorite, Northwestern, lost in OT. Auburn players thought they won twice and celebrated on the field, only to have calls made that continued the game. But third time is a charm, and the game ended 35-38.

Tuesday night is University of Iowa v. Georgia Tech at the Orange Bowl. There is only one thing to say about that Bowl game: GO IOWA!!!

Iowa vs. Georgia Tech.
Orange Bowl.
Tonight.
7:05pm EST
Be there.

This weekend my family ate at Nozumi Japanese Sushi Restaurant at the Arboretum in So. Barrington. What a great restaurant!

A fusion menu (a blend of French and Japanese flavors and food items) with eclectic meal choices is presented in hardcover books. We started with shitake mushroom rice risotto. Not my favorite dish, but everything that came after was exquisite. The signature Rinjin Dragon is without question my favorite: shrimp tempura, avocado, cucumber, spicy mayo in nori topped with eel, sauce and a tempura crunch. Not to be believed! The fish is as fresh as I have ever tasted, and it is not your everyday sushi roll.

The restaurant itself is contemporary fashioned. Good news—the booths are high enough so a shorter person (like myself) can sit at a table that is not up by my chin! It was a busy Saturday night, and we had to sit in the bar area. It was lively, yet we had no problem hearing each other talk, another plus!

Make a point of stopping in and tasting this menu. It will not be your last time!

Will write more later. Still learning!

Our Book Club discussed  the Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society book last week. Reading it  was a bit surprising; starting out light and humorous, then hitting the reader with the realities of a German occupation and the horror of a concentration camp during WWII.

The book is comprised of letters sent between the characters describing life and love on the Channel Island of Guernsey during and after the war. The “after” letters are cute and entertaining; but it is the historical story of the occupation, the interaction of the Islanders with the German soldiers, and the deadly experience of prisoners in concentration camps that really held my interest.

Hard-hitting and sad at times, The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society reminds us of the human cost of war. Read this book; you will learn much from it.

Give Today to Haiti Relief

I have been writing in my blog—called Signature Great Day— of all the good things that happen to me during the day.

Sometimes it is an exceptionally good thing; sometimes just a little feel-good thing. Regardless of what it is, I am so fortunate that I can write those stories. For me, life is good. I have a wonderful family, terrific children, great friends, and some of those material things one talks about.

But today I have to pause and write about people who have been crushed, literally and figuratively, by the earthquake in Haiti. I cannot, and will not, shut myself away from the horror of the stench of death, the cry of hunger and thirst, the need for medical care and protection from the beating sun and eventually, the rain.

The number of people dead and dying is so vast it is almost impossible to get one’s mind around it. A concentrated apocalypse that will dilute only with more death and suffering.

Haiti is a country and people in need, and as fellow humankind we must all find it within our hearts and our wallets to give generously and often to Haiti relief.

Don’t wait, don’t delay. Do it now. Make it a better day for someone with nothing in Haiti. It will be a good day for you, too.

You can donate at:
The American Red Cross, The Clinton Bush Haiti Fund, and Operation USA.  Go to Charity Navigator, a guide to find and evaluate charities, and feel certain that you are giving to a trust-worthy organization.

Bears lost to Green Bay. Only bright spot: rookie Qb Haine.