MY SUN DAY NEWS
A gathering of Chicago sports fans began the new year with testing their knowledge in a fun atmosphere at Huntley Ares Public Library.
A new column that answers common and maybe not-so-common questions in and around Sun City!
We are proud to say we have survived another round of holidays and things are returning to normal. Our stomachs are also returning to normal size after being stretched out to the point of no return due to all the holiday goodies. We have successfully rung in the New Year, and we hate to brag, but we actually stayed awake until 9:30 on New Year’s Eve. Truth be told, Rosie, aka the party animal, only made it up till 8:20 before falling in a heap in the middle of the living room floor.
Everyone have a good holiday? Hope you all got to rest and have time for friends and family. Well, a new year is upon us. However, there were some films that came out during the break that I plan to cover. So if you have seen them, great to hear it; hope you enjoyed them. For those still unable to get to the theater, these will be some recommendations for your next visit.
Letters for the week of January 16.
Note: The views expressed in these political submissions do not reflect those of the Sun Day, its staff, or those associated to the Sun Day.
Holiday fun in Sun City and Huntley!
Al La Pelusa has been the head elf for the Toy Makers group, making and delivering toys for eighteen years. La Pelusa said, “We started the initiative in 2008, but we were making toys before that. The shop was there, but there was no charter club. A lot of work had to go into starting the club. Safety was the first consideration and still is.”
Al La Pelusa has been the head elf for the Toy Makers group, making and delivering toys for eighteen years.
La Pelusa said, “We started the initiative in 2008, but we were making toys before that. The shop was there, but there was no charter club. A lot of work had to go into starting the club. Safety was the first consideration and still is.”
I’m handling my heart with kid gloves this season. I’m typically a newshound, but for the past month or so, I’m choosing my news carefully. TV news is completely off the table for now, and I’m being selective with print news, too. This won’t go on forever, but for right now, my heart is too raw, too tender to take on the pain and hurt of the entire world. I’m giving myself a break.
With Christmas lurking just behind the next snowflake, I find myself waiting in breathless anticipation for The Arrival. No, it’s not Santa’s arrival that I find my heart a-flutter for. It’s not the Star of Bethlehem or midnight madness sales or Bing Crosby film reruns. “It’s a Wonderful Life” would have been a good guess, but it’s not that either.
With Christmas lurking just behind the next snowflake, I find myself waiting in breathless anticipation for The Arrival.
No, it’s not Santa’s arrival that I find my heart a-flutter for. It’s not the Star of Bethlehem or midnight madness sales or Bing Crosby film reruns. “It’s a Wonderful Life” would have been a good guess, but it’s not that either.
A holiday tradition that truly embodies the spirit of our Sun City community is the Holiday House Walk, organized by the Sunflower Garden Club. The event has become quite popular. Four hundred tickets are sold for the Walk. They go on sale at the yearly SC Artisan Faire, which is held in mid-October. The tickets sold out by early November. Each homeowner who participates in the Walk chooses a charity for which a portion of the sales will be donated. One of the homes featured this year belongs to June Vedder.
A holiday tradition that truly embodies the spirit of our Sun City community is the Holiday House Walk, organized by the Sunflower Garden Club.
The event has become quite popular. Four hundred tickets are sold for the Walk. They go on sale at the yearly SC Artisan Faire, which is held in mid-October. The tickets sold out by early November. Each homeowner who participates in the Walk chooses a charity for which a portion of the sales will be donated. One of the homes featured this year belongs to June Vedder.
Every year around Christmas, the women, and even a few boys, of Sun City resident Linda Dungey’s family merge to bake holiday cookies. Dungey said, “My sister, Joan, and her friend, Debby, started baking cookies for Christmas forty-two years ago. They were both teachers, and after school for several days, they would get together and bake cookies in the evening. The tradition grew to include family members. Later, an annual date was set to help with the planning. It is scheduled for the first Saturday in December. We have only skipped one, 2020.”
Every year around Christmas, the women, and even a few boys, of Sun City resident Linda Dungey’s family merge to bake holiday cookies.
Dungey said, “My sister, Joan, and her friend, Debby, started baking cookies for Christmas forty-two years ago. They were both teachers, and after school for several days, they would get together and bake cookies in the evening. The tradition grew to include family members. Later, an annual date was set to help with the planning. It is scheduled for the first Saturday in December. We have only skipped one, 2020.”
Like all hectic Christmas seasons, plans can be dashed in an instant. Sadly, dear readers, this was the case with this review. The allure of a Barbenheimer experience with Wicked and Gladiator II is just not in the cards. And unfortunately, some of the latest awards hopefuls were a week or two away on streaming to catch in time for deadline. But, regardless of those setbacks, no fear here. Upon browsing through the annals of Netflix, I found a couple appropriately themed movies and specials just in time for a night-in with friends or a slow evening alone.
As the holidays are fast approaching, I’m struggling to find the perfect gifts for my aging parents. Although they are still independent, they are not thriving as much as they used to. My mom has a passion for gardening, and my dad loves to tinker with various projects. They used to be avid adventurers, but they’re not traveling as much these days.
Welcome, December! Hopefully everyone had a great Thanksgiving. Many new and exciting things are happening in and around the Huntley areas! Create lasting memories during this wonderful season. Wishing everyone safe and happy Holidays!
Another year bites the dust. It is a time for reflecting on old times and fond memories. Being the foodies that we are, our thoughts go to past tasty dishes. We remember the good old days, when breakfast cereals didn’t try to hide the sugar, such as Sugar Pops and Sugar Smacks. We remember past food fads, such as when anything and everything could be encased in a Jell-O mold. We reminisce about food favorites from our childhood such as fried baloney on Wonder Bread. Since Wonder bread is no longer available here, our neighbors Mary and Bruce on their trips back to the East coast bring us a loaf. And if that’s not enough, even our son sends us loaves by Fed Ex from Florida.
Letters for the week of December 19.
Many Sun City residents fondly recall the train display at Prairie Lodge. This year, the Model Railroad Club has a special gift for all. “Our Christmas surprise to the community will be a train layout set up under the tree on Friday, November 25. It will be a G-scale train layout, a project we’ve all been eagerly working on, Joe Vavra announced. The project coordinators, Dale Svoboda and Mike Nicholson, planned this year’s display and the train’s return.
Many Sun City residents fondly recall the train display at Prairie Lodge. This year, the Model Railroad Club has a special gift for all.
“Our Christmas surprise to the community will be a train layout set up under the tree on Friday, November 25. It will be a G-scale train layout, a project we’ve all been eagerly working on, Joe Vavra announced.
The project coordinators, Dale Svoboda and Mike Nicholson, planned this year’s display and the train’s return.
I am fortunate to still have both my parents, who have been married for 66 years. Mom is 89 and Dad just turned 95. Back in November, finishing up Dad’s birthday cake at my sister’s large dining room table, we reminisced about our childhoods.
I am fortunate to still have both my parents, who have been married for 66 years. Mom is 89 and Dad just turned 95.
Back in November, finishing up Dad’s birthday cake at my sister’s large dining room table, we reminisced about our childhoods.
Let’s face it, there’s really no excuse, is there? If you want to get from point A to point B, just follow the directions and everything will come out alright. That turkey you want to roast? Just buy the right bird, season it according to the recipe, check the temperature and the time, and you’ll be fine.
Let’s face it, there’s really no excuse, is there? If you want to get from point A to point B, just follow the directions and everything will come out alright.
That turkey you want to roast? Just buy the right bird, season it according to the recipe, check the temperature and the time, and you’ll be fine.
Food traditions can connect family members across generations. Traditional Christmas foods worldwide include Italy’s Feast of Seven Fishes and England’s Christmas pudding. Another family food tradition might be rising before the sun and making frybread or tamales for hundreds of others, or simply eating a particular food or beverage together over conversation. Food connects us, and its preparation and consumption are activities that can bridge members of multiple generations.
John Zingale, a Sun City resident, was in New York on September 11, 2001. “I was at work, and I always had on the radio. Over the airways came the news that the first tower was hit. I knew that this was no accident; no plane could accidentally fly into the building,” he said.
John Zingale, a Sun City resident, was in New York on September 11, 2001.
“I was at work, and I always had on the radio. Over the airways came the news that the first tower was hit. I knew that this was no accident; no plane could accidentally fly into the building,” he said.
With the holidays here, many Americans experience escalating stress, crowded calendars, and increased demands–leading to decreased hours of sleep and less opportunity to get that coveted “long winter’s nap” mentioned in The Night Before Christmas. Is that a problem?
Jim is the king of all procrastinators. We have a fluorescent light fixture in our closet that has been flickering and probably sending out Morse Code from some alien civilization. The messages finally stopped when the last bulb burned out. Time to get Jim’s lazy butt up on the ladder to replace it. First step is to go to a big box store on Randall Road to buy light bulbs.
Hope you all had a great Thanksgiving as we head into the thick of holiday season. Gift shopping and festive gatherings mingle and jostle for our attention amid a flurry of friends, family, and significant others. And with the shortened time span between the last shindig and the next, it’s enough to leave your head spinning. Plus with the polar blast we had this past week, you might not want to leave the house in the bitter evenings. For that, I have some viewing recommendations that are both entertaining and seeking some awards attention.
About seven years ago, Sun City resident Ken Kenny started seriously looking into his ancestry and meticulously following the trail where documents led him. Kenny said, “I started in 2017, and when I retired, I devoted much time to it. It was like fitting puzzle pieces. I was cautious. You can’t trust everything. It gets complicated with marriages, but it’s satisfying when it’s right.”
About seven years ago, Sun City resident Ken Kenny started seriously looking into his ancestry and meticulously following the trail where documents led him.
Kenny said, “I started in 2017, and when I retired, I devoted much time to it. It was like fitting puzzle pieces. I was cautious. You can’t trust everything. It gets complicated with marriages, but it’s satisfying when it’s right.”
The old adage says that if we love something, we should set it free. That saying runs through my mind these days, as I take my high school daughter to tour prospective colleges. For one day, she tries each campus on like an outfit, checking to see if it’s the right fit.
The old adage says that if we love something, we should set it free.
That saying runs through my mind these days, as I take my high school daughter to tour prospective colleges. For one day, she tries each campus on like an outfit, checking to see if it’s the right fit.
I blame the good people at Empire Flooring for sucking all the joy out of vacuuming. To be clear, I found the Empire team all to be good people when they came to rip out the carpets in my house and replace them with laminate flooring. Those weary, well-weathered carpets were long overdue to be replaced, and just watching the Empire team pull them up made me want to call a hazmat team as a backup.
I blame the good people at Empire Flooring for sucking all the joy out of vacuuming.
To be clear, I found the Empire team all to be good people when they came to rip out the carpets in my house and replace them with laminate flooring. Those weary, well-weathered carpets were long overdue to be replaced, and just watching the Empire team pull them up made me want to call a hazmat team as a backup.
