244 chicago coolness

Is this an awesome birthday gift or what? I love the city plan of Chicago - it's this perfect grid. Flying in at night is the best way to really see its beauty. Can you believe they can cut such delicated lines into a pendant like this?  So cool!
I am totally loving that my friends are supporting my artsy side this year!! Thanks B!!

Go pick out your favorite city! by John Briscella for Animal studio. ... via iPhone ...

300 sunny and seventy

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Simply a beautiful day in the city. One of those days you want to just spend the day being a tourist in your own city.

twenty three of thirty

(23) sunflare :: I LOVE iPhone lens flare! I purposely shoot directly into the sun with my iPhone because I love the awesome bursts it produces. I had to pick my boss' daughter up from school today and we made a quick pit stop at the Baha'i Temple to get some shots. It's an architectural masterpiece. That's her in the funny hat covering her face with cheddar booty container - no, don't take my picture. I don't like to have my picture taken ... Kids!

twenty of thirty

(20) bokeh !! I love bokeh! Finally got the Fall decor out - twinkle lights make for excellent bokeh! This is my other kitty, Lucy. She and I had a date with the vet today for her annual check up. She's all good, but gained a pound and a half in one year! Yikes!! Gonna have to put my girl on a diet!

And for a little bonus bokeh from earlier this week ... a little Chicago skyline.

Hope you are having an excellent Saturday! The sun is finally out in Chicago, but it's still a little on the cool side... So I've stayed in catching up on magazines, DVR, photo editing and all things that are refreshing and relaxing.  It was a very long and crazy week last week.  

sixteen of thirty

(16) long exposure :: hello chicago! 27 sec exposure watching the clouds overtake the city and the rain begin to fall. Only fired off about 10 shots before it got too wet, but I think this one is a keeper!

Took this shot east of Montrose Harbor. Not a whole lot of people out since it was raining, but I did see a raccoon diggin' in the rubbish bin for tonights dinner. Eew!!  Oh and I think my 8 gig CF card is on it's way out.  Been acting funny lately and not wanting to create folders.  Which brings me to a question for you photographers out there... do you "erase" images after each shoot or do you "format" the card after every shoot?? 

five of thirty

(5) from a high angle :: How about from the skybox at Willis Tower? Yep, I finally faced my fear and walked out into the glass box 103 floors above Chicago! Well, I didn't get completely out inside the box... but even that's a huge step for me, I am not a fan of heights.

Sometimes it's fun to be a tourist in your own city, don't ya think?

P.S.  Funny story about the shoes ... I was on a jobsite, my installer says to me "hmm, makes sense." What?  "You're from Kansas, right?" Um... yeah, why? "Gonna click those heels?" Yes, yes, always a Dorothy reference...

*note* click image to see larger.
*note deux* please leave your url in your comment. thanks! 

10 on 10 :: September 2011

Hello!  Hello!  Happy 10 on 10 on a weekend!!  I'm always so excited when the 10th falls on a day that I am not in my office - there is only so much to photograph there ... So much easier to find beauty in my city and my travels!!

9 AM :: leaving Chicago and heading to Indiana to spend the day with the Pittman's - I never tire of the Chicago skyline... it's even more dreamy with a little fog

10 AM :: Still on the road to Chesterton ... it was raining and the sun was shining at the same time. Can anyone explain this? Just seems wrong to me! Oh and I love the old Skyway signage!

11 AM :: Bella B shows her cheer spirit at the Trojans game! Now, we didn't have these mini football games complete with cheerleaders when I was a kid, but they are darn cute!

12 PM :: Second half of the game ... Bella's still got the spirit. Sadly neither team scored any points on the field.

1 PM :: Hit the European market to pick up those rosemary flatbreads I love so much! No trip to Chesterton is complete without bringing these home with me!! I love their little market - even picked up some French macarons that were very good. And how delicious do these cupcakes look??

2 PM :: Arrived at the annual Popcorn fest!! Had to get kettle corn and found some adorable little pet toys and holiday decor at a couple of the booths. We buzzed through super quick because there were some sort of flying ant and bees EVERYWHERE. Holly and I were both pulling bugs out of our hair, it was the most disgusting thing!

3 PM :: Finally got Holly's elephant ear - tried on our way in, but they had run out of sugar! Oops! It was super good - worth the wait for sure.

4 PM :: Linus, one of their three dogs, the most adorable great dane. She truly is a gentle giant ...

5 PM :: Slip n' Slide

6 PM :: Still at it ... Don't you sometimes miss being a kid?

7 PM :: Decided to stop off by the museum campus to watch the sun go down behind the city. This is one of my favorite views of the skyline and you can just sit along the lake, people watch, snap a photo or two, enjoy the breeze and watch the lights come on as the sun sets. Lovely.

Hope you had a wonderful day filled with sun, fun, family and friends! So long Summer...

dîner en blanc . chicago

Chicago's first dȊner en blanc took place last night in the heart of the city, Daley Plaza.  It was the most beautiful night for The White Pique Nique! (http://dinerenblancchicago.com/)  The idea is something out of Paris and has started popping up in other large cities around the world.  It's a bit of flash mob meets picnic.  

We sat up our tables and as we heard the church bells ring in the eight o'clock hour, we got up and waved our napkins to signal the beginning of dinner.  Pretty funny to see people with a napkin in one hand and camera in the other... hence the fuzzy photo.  : )

I wasn't sure exactly what to expect of the whole event.  From seeing photos of other city versions, I was certainly intrigued and not quite sure how it all worked, but excited.  I had to buy a new table, chairs and a cover for my very colorful tote bag - since everything was to be white.   I already had a white dress, shoes and plenty of tableware to choose from.  Just had to pull it all together and figure out a way to pack it to get it downtown and not break anything!  

I planned a French inspired menu of fresh baguette with beurre salé, salad, lemon chicken & rosemary potatoes and chocolate macaron and chocolate ganache crepes.  Everything turned out great, but if I do this again next year... I will drastically change how I pack things.  And will need to consider a menu that is better suited to be eaten cold.  A learning curve this year for sure!  

We were told to set up our tables so that they touch - to create the uniform look of one large table - and that makes for some tight quarters.  We were on the end, so only had one couple next to us - the were not particularly chatty, but quite nice.  I think for it to be really enjoyable, you need to have a group of four to six friends that can sit together.  

What I found odd about the whole thing is that there was really no agenda.  Set up in rows like we tell you, swing your napkin to ring in dinner and be gone by 10:30.  That's it.  There was a little music - a guy playing the accordion while we ate and then a three-piece band about 9.  Some folks got up and danced, but mostly people mingled around the plaza and took photos of tables and people climbing on the Picasso sculpture.  And, there was no real ending to the whole thing ... some people packed up as early as 9:30 and then a few more and a few more. We decided to pack it in around 10ish.  

Overall the event was fun - I mean, how many people can say they had a picnic in Daley Plaza?  And it was an absolutely beautiful night.  Just another adventure in the city!  

http://www.flickr.com/apps/slideshow/show.swf?v=71649

architecture, social media & french fantasy

Architecture

This may have something to do with why I love Chicago so much.  iPhone photos of two architectural icons (330 N Wabash & Trump Tower) while waiting along the river for a meeting.  It was a stunningly beautiful day today and as luck would have it, I was called to a last minute meeting downtown.  It's days like today that make me wish I worked down there - you could meet your friends for a long lunch and enjoy the Chicago skyline.  

Social Media

Anyhoo, meeting was good, but the side conversation really has me thinking.  I was meeting with two people who are probably 10-15 years older than me and our conversation swayed to social media.  This seems to be a reoccurring theme to conversations these days.  What is the purpose of social media? How does it fit into our personal and professional lives?  How do you use it effectively for business?  All interesting questions and I don't think anyone really knows the answers.  Even Google missed the boat on social media!  And given that, how are we small business people to know how to really use it?  I find these conversations interesting, not only because they are relevant to business today, but how the conversations are different among the age groups.  Anyone in their early 30's or under is up to their eyeballs in tweets, facebook and etc.  They are fully emersed in the social game and, in my opinion, find it hard to associate with those who are not.  I find that anyone over 40 just doesn't want to be bothered with it and still finds value in meeting face-to-face and having a real conversation over the telephone.  Then there's the 35-40 year olds (my group, the Gen X'ers), we are stuck between those who get it and those who don't and it's a most interesting position to find myself in... I sort of feel like we will be the bridge that holds it all together... hmmm. 

French Fantasy

Upon returning to work, I saw a tweet about Bradley Cooper promoting the Hangover II in French.  As in he is FLUENT in French.  I about melted into a puddle right there in my desk chair.  I've been on the BC fence - not sure if he would be on my celebrity crush list or not - well let me tell you, this just put him at the top of that damn list.  Bonjour monsieur Cooper!!

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AYwvFU6dcv4]