Ann24's Open Salon Blog

The Man with the Yellow Feather in his Chapeau

Sun, 31 Oct 2010 18:10:38 -0400

En route to a seminar in the Loop, I sat behind a man wearing a black straw hat with a yellow feather. Took this video with my ipod nano, just for fun. The el is the best ride in town!

The Bridgeport Neighborhood in Chicago, 9/12/2010

Wed, 15 Sep 2010 23:09:05 -0400

Detail of Red Apartment Building

Art Deco Sign for Drug Store

Abandoned Factory

Butterfly in Tree Near Bubbly Creek

Flowers for Funerals and All Occasions

"Be Amazed By Stunning City Views"

Corn Crop in Side Yard

Back Yards, Gardens and Laundry

Former Home of Two Chicago Mayors

Bridgeport Restaurant

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Read about the fascinating history of Bridgeport

Me, My Dad & The World Trade Center, Sept. 1971

Wed, 8 Sep 2010 23:09:44 -0400

September 11th 2001 was almost exactly 30 years in the future when this picture was taken on a chilly morning on a street in Manhattan.

_________

We used to visit my grandmother a couple of times a year In New York.

This slide was taken by my father -- one of many featuring me in the foreground, the World Trade Center buildings, behind. They got taller and more complete. My growth had sputtered and stopped by then, and was I was permanently stuck at the 5' I am today. My father was always amazed by the transformation of the Manhattan he knew as a child. He also loved to take pictures of the same subjects over and over. Especially construction sites and snow storms from the window of our apartment in Chicago. Wish I could find the rest of these slides shot over a span of three to four years. They're in the basement somewhere......

I'm glad my father was not alive to witness 9/11. It would have broken his heart. On that day mother and I missed his him desperately. I still do.

"Pretend You Meant it to Happen."

Tue, 31 Aug 2010 21:08:25 -0400

"Pretend you meant it to happen." That was my middle school art teacher's advice whenever my projects failed to live up to my expectations (which occured frequently because I had absolutely no talent -- just desire). Learning and acceptance were the order of the day in Mrs. S's class, and I always appreciated her sensitivity -- but it was still frustrating to have an outcome in mind that could never be realized due to lack of skill -- but not for lack of trying.

Alas, the specimen above is a perfect example of the "pretend you meant it to happen" philosophy. I took a picture of this gnarly but kind of elegant mushroom that we found growing out of the floor mat at the bottom of the stairs on our back porch. Then I decided to gussy up the picture by darkening the background a bit with my oh-so-cool photoshop Elements 7 program. Well, I have no idea what I did. Eventhough I own a "Teach Yourself Visually" guide, and go online, the program remains a mystery -- full of fun surprises that I cannot duplicate. I may be a luddite but I will perservere until I get this thing figured out!!!

For informational purposes, here is the original shot:

A Village in a City

Sat, 28 Aug 2010 21:08:50 -0400

I've had many occasions to drive past a couple of intriguing blocks on the Northwest Side en route to visit friends or to go shopping. The houses look unlike the typical Chicago bungalow - but they are bungalows nonetheless.

The neighborhood, Schorsch Village, is located near the former grounds of the now defunct, yet incredibly notorious Dunning Insane Asylum.

According to the Encyclopedia of Chicago, "In 1916 the first housing boom occurred when Schorsch Brothers Real Estate bought a tract west of Austin and south of Irving Park. They called the area West Portage Park to remove the stigma of association with Dunning. "