Gardening myths explained

For the past few days big black ants have been crawling on the floor of my office. I have been putting up with the presence of the ants because I thought they were needed to open the beautiful peony buds right outside my office window. It turns out though that it is a myth that ants are needed to open the flower buds on peonies. Ants, while can often be found on peonies, are not needed for the buds to open. Peonies buds can open on their own. This and several other gardening myths will be busted in today’s column.

Ask an Angel: June 1, 2023

I am writing to you today because I am an older adult who could benefit from home care, but I am scared because I don’t think it’s safe. I worry about letting strangers into my home and about the potential risks of having someone else help me with tasks such as bathing, dressing, and grooming.

You may ponder, you may wonder, but do you “sonder”?

My friend Lynn loves language, as I do, and she often posts an interesting or unusual word on her Facebook feed. But because she knows that I visit Facebook about as often as I visit my furnace filter or smoke alarm batteries, she sent me her most recent wonder-inspiring word via text.

The word was “sonder.”

Uninvited: Man vs. fowl

My husband is in a week-long standoff with a robin who insists on building a nest on the crossbeam of our porch.

We are a bird-friendly family. We don’t put chemicals on our lawn, put out birdseed in the winter, and we are delighted when our bird friends chirp happily from the branches of our crabapple tree out our front window. But even our bird loving has limits.

What?!?!

Nothing screams “date night” like an evening out with your significant other at a nice romantic Italian restaurant. “Screams,” being the operative word, will be explained later. Please read on…

Jim had a taste for his favorite Italian dish, Veal Saltimbocca, and the restaurant that made it the best years ago was Cucina Bella in Algonquin.

For the record, he tells me that often.

Somewhere in the ‘In-Between’

I never met a notebook I didn’t like. My bookshelf is crammed with journals with creamy white paper. Some of the books have beautiful covers with vibrant colors; others are simply notebooks, the kind with the spiral binding made of metal wire. On the pages, I scrawl goals, recipes, scraps of ideas that I write down quickly, thinking I’ll come back later and recapture some brilliant idea that I didn’t want to let slip away.

An interview with the Huntley Park District

For almost 60 years, the Huntley Park District has been a true community treasure. The 28 acres donated by Mr. Edwin Deicke in the 1960’s has grown to 175 acres that currently make up 15 parks. Tens of thousands of people of all ages have enjoyed spending time in the parks as well as facilities such as Cosman Cultural Center and Stingray Bay. Wesley Peete, the Director of Parks and Facilities, has graciously agreed to share some of his knowledge about the parks with our readers.

A hint of springtime

Mother Nature has been teasing us with hints of sunshine and warm weather to come. Because of that, our thoughts immediately went to outdoor grilling. However, we waited too long and a couple of hours later we were back to winter. Don’t you just love the Chicago weather???

Dashed plan

In the wild transition that is Chicagoland weather, we have gone through many a season over the last couple weeks. The calendar says it is April, but the barometer has been early autumn, late winter and, briefly, June. Despite tempestuous climate changes, the multiplex has been on a relative flatline. All the major releases worth seeing don’t come out until May. In an attempt to spare you (as well as myself) the review of Beau Is Afraid, the vote went to streaming.

Ask an Angel: May 4, 2023

I am writing to seek your advice on the conversations that I should have with my adult children. As a senior, I know that I need to make some important decisions about my future and my family’s future, and I want to ensure that my children are well-prepared for any eventualities.

Tax-time grimace – and gratitude

Tax time has rolled around once again, and before I raise my anguished voice to harmonize with your anguished tax-time voice, let me take a moment to thank the Internal Revenue Service for a memory that changed my life.

It was 1970, and I was just finishing up my Bachelor of Arts degree at Western Illinois University, about to start a career as a high school teacher. I was married with a very pregnant wife, and Barrington High School, where I had completed my student-teaching, had offered me a teaching job once my degree was complete.

Being productive

With recent reports out of Hollywood, studios may very well have run out of ideas. True, real films don’t come from producers but from writers and directors with actual vision that get snatched up from festivals and the like. But the news of Disney remaking Moana in live action after only seven years and WB reimagining Harry Potter as a streaming series has me reeling.

The root of the matter: the importance of quality soil

A strong foundation is important in many aspects of life. Giving children a strong foundation in the form of family helps them as they transition into adulthood. Sleeping on a mattress that is comfortable gives us the foundation at night for rest so that we may have prosperous day. Our homes literally rely on a strong foundation for their integrity.

A vine-covered hacienda

A restaurant’s life is a very complicated one. It has its ups and downs, highs and lows, with new owners or management in control. Years ago, we loved a nearby Mexican restaurant, but as time went by, it fell out of favor. We recently received a letter bragging how good it was, so we decided after 26 years to give it a visit once again. We are referring to El Molino Mexican Restaurant in Carpentersville.

Too difficult to even try: a conspiracy

This week I made spanakopita for the first time. It is a savory spinach pie consisting of spinach, feta cheese, egg, and fresh herbs, surrounded by flaky layers of phyllo dough. I love it.

Given the choice, I will always choose a spanakopita appetizer or entree at a restaurant or party.

Ask an Angel: April 20, 2023

I’m writing to you because I’m concerned about my dad’s coffee consumption. He drinks several cups of coffee throughout the day, and I worry that it’s hurting his health.

Loving in specifics, not platitudes

I may have mentioned before in this column about my love of true-crime shows and podcasts. I enjoy hearing about the evidence, the motives, the sometimes arbitrary clue that will reveal itself by chance, leading to some top-shelf detective work. All of this, plus the final swift arm of justice that comes down on the perpetrator, are all satisfying parts of these shows.

A polarized glimpse of Sunny Florida education

In case you missed this recent news item, publishers of a textbook used in Florida have removed all mention as to why Rosa Parks was told to leave her seat at the front of the bus and go to the back on December 1, 1955, in Montgomery, Alabama. In other states, students attending institutions of genuine education learn that the reason was that she was…

Well, I can’t tell you why she was ordered to change seats, because as I write this, I am in the Free State of Florida, as the governor calls it without a hint of irony.

Family Memories

Once upon a time, the Dining Duo received a recommendation from one of their loyal readers requesting us to review a specific restaurant. Honestly, we have never heard of the restaurant he requested. Nancy added it to our long list of potential articles. Not being in the mood for anything ethnic, we decided to give this good old fashioned family restaurant a try.

Speak evil

True crime as a genre is having a bit of a moment. It isn’t as if this form of entertainment ever really goes away. But the tidal wave is hitting its crest. Netflix’s Dahmer seems to be a tipping point in terms of wondering where the line is in terms of exploiting murderers as entertainment while dragging victims’ families through the mud. Can we talk about horrifying real topics with double digit body counts without feeling exploited. Enter Hulu’s Boston Strangler.

Being just one chapter of someone else’s Great Loop

A couple weeks ago I was in the tiny town of Goodland, at the eastern tip of Marco Island in Southwest Florida. Goodland is a quirky little town, and you never know what oddball adventure you’ll encounter there. And this visit didn’t disappoint.

It was a Saturday, and a small art fair and music festival was under way. I strolled past the booths of ceramics, paintings, and nature photography as John Prine lyrics echoed through the park. Savory scents of burgers and brats wafted on the air, and I ambled down to a small aluminum floating pier rocking in the salty backwaters between the mangroves and sea grapes.

Old dogs, new tricks

There are times as a critic when media that is currently available is subpar. In lulls, you just have to wade through it and hope for the best. As much as the public might think that we just love to eviscerate, it is just soul-crushing as you see wasted potential. These all can’t be award winners though.

An unassuming cafe

Over the years we received quite a few recommendations for restaurants to review. The one that keeps popping up is an unassuming cafe on Route 20. We must admit we have driven past this café numerous times, but never gave it a second thought. People have told us over and over about the broasted chicken, their Friday fish fry, and the German fare, so we finally decided to give Café 20 in Marengo a try.

Top 10 gardening trends of 2023

Recently, Chris, my husband, and I enjoyed breakfast at a new restaurant: Maple and Hash in Pingree Grove. While the food was delicious, what I liked even more was that it felt like we were experiencing a new trend in dining. The exposed beam ceilings, painted farm silhouettes, and a coffee bar were all beautiful and welcoming. For an hour or so on a Saturday morning we were part of a refreshing change.

Making do: the food of discovery

Every household probably has a go-to meal they whip up when there’s “no food in the house.” Maybe for you it’s a pb&j. A bowl of cereal can be nice. Some pasta with a little olive oil, garlic, and lemon, perhaps?

Giving credit where it’s overdue

“It is better to deserve honors and not have them than to have them and not deserve them,” Mark Twain once said.

Sure, easy for him to say: A man known the world over, credited as being America’s greatest writer. That’s like Sylvester Stallone or The Rock telling us that muscles aren’t everything. Swill like that is hard to swallow when you’re one of the huddled masses yearning to be honored for something. Anything.

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