Bridespotting

So Dale and I went for a nice long walk on Saturday at Northerly Island, which is located right next to Adler Planetarium. It turns out Saturday at Adler is a prime spot for Bride Spotting! Bridal parties arrive every five minutes on Saturdays in order to take photos with the city skyline behind them. These were the ones we saw in the half hour we were there! Above is a princess dress with gold lame accents!

The sleek city bride with another bride in the background! Double shot.

Bright baby blue bridesmaids and groomsmen wait for the bride and groom behind them.

Fancy pink puffy dress! Check out the skyline!

Another city sleek! This one with bright pink bridesmaids!

Fancy strapless number with teal bridesmaids.

Pretty bride with pseudo-military groom!

Bold choice in the seafoam green wedding dress with white bridesmaid's dresses! I like it because it's sort of a wacky throwback style. And I just like bold, wacky choices!

It got so crazy that you could actually hear the people hanging out along the shore hollering, "OMG! Look, there's another bride! And another one!"

It was dorky fun!

3D Experiment!

When we went to the National Stereoscopic Association's trade fair a couple of weeks back Dale picked up a couple of photography magazines that gave him pointers on how to create 3D images using his digital camera on a tripod and a couple of tricks in Photoshop!

Coincidentally, TV Guide and Wal-Mart have teamed up to give out 3D glasses THIS WEEKEND! So if you're at a Wal-Mart this weekend--or anywhere that sells TV Guide--pick up your glasses and check out these images! Can you believe we got such big corporate tie-ins!? Okay, Miley Cyrus's big 3D concert on TV tonight also helped.

Feel free to click on the photos to make them bigger...

This is the fence in front of a Frank Lloyd Wright house in our neighborhood.

This is the cat's scratching post--strategically placed by Dale to provide depth in relation to our TV and chair!

This is the plant that sits in front of the window in our living room. Ooh, you could reach out and touch it.

And this is the bust of Frank Lloyd Wright that sits at the edge of the park near our house. Ghostly in 3D, in my opinion.

If you somehow miss all the 3D giveaways this week, feel free to check out the Rainbow Symphony store where you can get FREE 3D glasses by sending them a self-addressed stamped envelope! Click here. I don't know how legitimate this website is but I'm guessing nothing bad will come from sending a SASE to a random company?

And just because we're nerdy? Check out images from Nasa in 3D by clicking here!

Cloud Cover in Chicago

Dale promised his dad we'd post a picture of the odd cloud cover that sometimes comes in from the lake and hangs low over the city. This isn't the best picture but it was the best I could do while sitting in the passenger seat last weekend. That's the Sears Tower with the middle third obscured by foggy cloud mass thingy.

The FURminator...

So we have a cat hair problem. With three kitties--and two that shed like mad--it's no wonder we've been considering buying a ROOMBA just to vacuum while we're at work!

I was at Petco and found a cheaper alternative...The FURminator! It's a cat brush that takes care of business! It's guaranteed to cut down on shedding and hairballs--needless to say we were intrigued. It's expensive at $40 but it's cheaper than a ROOMBA, you know?



Anyway, check out the DISGUSTINGLY huge pile of hair at sitting next to Bela and Monty as they get a second round of FURmination from Dale! That's one tightly-packed fur ball!



It's easily pulling out fives times the amount of hair a traditional brush would--and Bela seems to really like it!

Since getting the FURminator (seriously, that's its name) yesterday, Dale estimates that we have ganked about 10 to 12 tribbles' worth of out of our three cats!

I wish I had taken a video of Dale's first round of Bela being FURminated! So much fur came off it looked like Dale was shaving him down. If you check out the FURminator website, those pictures of actual hair pulled from pets is not a joke! Day two we pulled nearly as much off Bela as on day one!

Oh, and this is my FIRST video post! Exciting!

New Furniture Pt. 1--Headboard!

I've had a couple requests to see the headboard all done and in action! Here it is.
The bedroom is not exactly where I want it to be yet but can you see it? Can you feel the decadence? That spread's our thin summer throw that basically protects the nicer blanket underneath from all the cat hair. So that's not really part of the look I'm going for.

It's starting to look like it could be part of the set from Moulin Rouge. That's what I'm telling myself.

As a refresher, check out the gallery to see how it looked when we found it behind our apartment.

FIRE!

This is crazy blurry but a couple of weeks ago, I was on my way home and got diverted because of a car on fire around the block from my house. The car was on fire, pouring out smoke, and the firemen had the entire street blocked off. Freaky! Just thought I'd share a picture I snapped from my parking structure!

Mississippi River Flooding in St. Louis

While stopping to check out the St. Louis Gateway Arch, we saw this statue that was mostly submerge under the muddy waters of the Mississip! At first we thought it was some weird water statue but it turns out that flooding submerged what is a very big statue! You can view the riverfront without water by clicking here. Normally, there are two men and a dog on a base! So the flooding was pretty serious.

The extent of the flooding was further proved by the sign asking us to park in the river.

And another sign advising us to NOT park in the river.

Ramps that go into the river!

Followed by stairs that walk right into the river!

A submerged fire hydrant.

Nasty debris engulfing another flooded area.

More debris!

Oddly rigged riverboat, due to flooding issues.

The Statue of Liberation

Dale was so excited about this wacky roadside attraction that he wanted me to cross post it from my Roadside Curiosities blog to our personal blog:


I was in Memphis last weekend and saw one of the best roadside attractions I've stumbled upon in years! This takes the cake, people! This is the Statue of Liberation through Christ aka The Lord's Lady Liberty. For a complete FAQ click here.

I can't tell you how excited I was when we spotted her, standing on the corner of Kirby Parkway. She beckoned to us and we had no choice but to submit.

So enchanted were we, we had to circle her to get a better look. To what did our wondering eyes appear?

Better than reindeer. This liberated lady features a tiny chapel/altar under base/skirt. There is a spot to kneel and pray (for forgiveness?), a "tomb" made of sprayed plastic foam that features the slogan "HE IS RISEN" above an alcove that I'm guessing is supposed to be where Jesus chilled out before he woke from the dead. I like the white sheet that provides a shroud of Turin flavor. Crappy soothing relgious music is pumped in below the altar.

The statue is rife with amusingly heavy-handed symbolism, including my personal favorite: The Lord's Lady Liberty is shedding a tear. "THE TEAR represents Lady Liberation’s despair over America’s rapid decline from its Judeo-Christian values. She weeps for our nation’s self-destruction as the protective hand of God is removed. Yet, she realizes that there is still hope for America if we return to God through Jesus Christ."

There were scads of flags about the property and we were quite confused by what looked a lot like a rebel flag. I'm still not sure what it was. We caught this photo of the US flag and (I think?) the state flag? Anyway, this baby is WELL worth the trip. She's a beauty!

Body Worlds 2

We're going to see Body Worlds 2 tomorrow morning and I'm a bit nervous. I've heard that it's really fascinating but I'm a bit squeamish. Not that I can't handle seeing displays of human anatomy but this isn't just a display! These are actual bodies and actual bones and skin and muscles and tissue and eeeeek!

The above picture wigs me out a bit and that's just one thing! Anyway, we're heading to the Museum of Science and Industry for the first time so it's sure to be a full day! Dale's been wanting to go for some time!

Bela's Teddy Bear

This is Bela. He is plum tuckered out and needs his rest. He's tired because he's been playing with his teddy bear all afternoon!

This is Bela's Teddy Bear. Clearly, he's seen better days. You know the story of the Velveteen Rabbit? Bela loves this teddy so much that it would not surprise me if he woke up one morning and simply walked away!

Bela carries little Teddy all around the house and even takes him to bed on occassion. He drops the bear in corners and howls at it and he makes odd "rowr!" noises while carrying this little guy around in his mouth! It's ridiculously cute.

Amusing/Embarrasing Moment of the Week!

I'm a book editor. And while doing some research for work, I stumbled upon a book I edited last summer sitting on the shelf at Borders.
What made this one unusual?
I was thanked in the acknowledgments.
Of course, I was very grateful to be thanked and giddy to see my (maiden) name in print!

The book would be one I was almost too embarrased to show off! Haa! So, if you're browsing the stacks at Borders and spot the above book (and are not embarrassed to pick it up off the shelf), look for my name in the acknowledgements! Ha!

A Trip Downtown

We've had a very quiet month, minus a handful of outings. We went downtown so Dale could get his printer replaced while its under warranty. While driving around, I spied a couple of fellows in front of this building:

Sadly, I did not get the best picture. But look closely:

I spotted two gentleman in floor length fur coats and pimp-esque hats walking a very happy dog. I l ove the city.