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The band is back in town

The COVID-19 concert cancellation cascade started in early March of 2020 and Sun City Concert Band was no exception. The band stopped rehearsals on March 11, 2020. The pandemic gave a new definition to the phrase, The day the music died. As the U.S. continues to reopen, live music concerts are among the events starting to come back.

E.T.A. at “EPH”

Nancy and I are in our so called “Golden Years” of retirement. Our kids have grown up and left the nest years ago. It’s just the two of us now in our little home in Del Webb. Old habits die hard. Nancy uses the same recipes to feed the two of us that she used to feed four to six people. Everyone knows change is evil and recipes cannot and must not be altered. This is why she asked me to take a run with her to Sam’s Club to stock up on ginormous containers of just about everything.

Walking through happiness after COVID

The Sunflower Garden held its Annual Garden Walk on July 10. The walk-through free event was open to Sun City residents and the public. On Saturday, nine residents opened the pathways to walk through their carefully designed landscapes.

Two important questions about COVID vaccination

A Sun Day reader recently asked two very important questions for the newspaper’s health staff to answer. Here are the Sun City resident’s questions and my column’s researched answers from The Cleveland Clinic and The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

Pesticide precautions

In late May my husband, Chris, spent hours potting up 15 tomatoes in 18” wide containers. He set them around the edge of our patio and began to dutifully care for the plants. By early June, I noticed that the leaves on our tomatoes looked different. Upon further inspection, I noticed that the plants were growing in a curly cue fashion and the leaves were disfigured. Unfortunately, I had seen this before and suspected that the plants were suffering from herbicide drift.

Ask an Angel: July 15, 2021

My siblings and I are planning a mini-family reunion this Independence Day. Two of my siblings have not seen our aging parents since the onset of the COVID pandemic, as they live out—of-state and couldn’t safely travel. Now that we’re all fully vaccinated, we cannot wait to see each other in-person. We’re hoping to surprise our parents too. However, our parents are getting older and seem to get tired more quickly these days. As much as they love to see us and their nine grandchildren, I know the noise and energy can be draining.

Roomie Reunion

Carol Stonecipher picked up the Sun Day paper and started reading an article featuring a sidewalk chalk artist. She recognized a name in the article, Mary Kay Prindiville. Stonecipher said, “I had a college roommate by that last name.” She looked in the directory, called the number, and found out it was her college roommate’s sister.

Stonecipher said, “I found Mary Kay in the directory and found out my college roommate Kris lived in Sun City, too. I shot Kris an email, ‘HEY ROOMIE’.”

That’ll buff out…I hope

Everyone knows that if you want your car to look dirty all the time, get a black car, which everyone also knows is something of an irony because black should be able to hide dirt, but since every bit of road grime (except for hot oil and new asphalt) is lighter in tone, it shows up on the finish as bright as white on a crow—very apt for the story I’m about to tell.

Lions award scholarships to HHS grads

HUNTLEY – When Huntley Trustee Ronda Goldman, isn’t focusing her efforts in providing a voice for her constituents during Village Board meetings, she keeps herself busy with other activities such as being a member of the Huntley Area Lions Club.

Truck traffic major item at recent board meeting

Truck traffic and bicycle signage were topics during the Members Comments segment of the June 23 Sun City Board meeting. One resident voiced concern with the current and future increase of tractor trailer traffic on Del Webb Boulevard resulting from the future Amazon distribution center. Another spoke in favor of additional signage alerting drivers to cyclists and pedestrians on the communities streets.

Throwing the distance

As grandparents, we can give our grandchildren the gift of our time and our full attention and celebrate their accomplishments to the fullest.

Diane and Vinnie Flanagan, Sun City residents, had something to celebrate recently. Their granddaughter Michelle Barnvos, a recent graduate of Huntley High School, went to Illinois High School Association (IHSA) 3A Girls State Track & Field Championships on June 12. Barnvos threw the discus at the sectionals the distance needed to make it to the state meet.

Sitting on the psychological fallout from Covid-19

With the end of the U.S. pandemic’s emergency phase now in sight, experts are, nevertheless, awaiting a long-term impact on individuals’ mental health. Some people will resolve their feelings of anxiety and depression as they resume their normal routine, such as going back to work in an office setting, or reforming social connections. But then there are others who will face new mental health issues or those issues that already persist.

Village of Huntley adds eCommerce option

The Village of Huntley has announced its foray into eCommerce with the launch of eUtility. This new capability is for online payment of water/sewer bills.

Upcoming Amazon Sci-Fi series with J.K. Simmons films in Woodstock and other local areas

Island Lake, Wauconda and Woodstock all got the opportunity to be featured in Amazon Studios’ latest sci-fi drama series “Lightyears,” which is co-produced by Legendary Television.

The show stars Oscar-winners Sissy Spacek and J.K. Simmons as Irene and Franklin York, a couple who discovers a chamber buried in their backyard that inexplicably leads them to a strange, deserted planet. The series follows the Yorks’ quest for answers to the mysterious chamber they’ve kept secret, as their quiet lives become upended when an enigmatic young man enters the picture.

Getting used to this whole ‘normal’ thing

A pandemic can do horrible things to you — even if, blessedly, it passes you by.

I fall into that category. Although I was able to stay virus-free long enough to get the vaccine and become bullet-proof, the pandemic did horrible things to me.

From lows to ‘Heights’

To be honest, not much on the summer movie roster stirs interest in me. Scrolling down IMDb, the usual pops out as standard fare. In regards to quality, 2021’s theme is almost like that of the late 90s. “The Hitman’s Wife’s Bodyguard,” “Jungle Cruise,” “Snake Eyes,” “The Suicide Squad”; all of these are big and dumb. Even in last year’s dearth of Marvel, “Black Widow” has even waned. Given the way “Loki” is going, the MCU is a bit lackluster. One film though has been on my horizon since the beginning: “In the Heights.”

All Aboar… Wait , not so fast

With the coronavirus starting to be corralled, vacation travel is beginning to pick up. Now the big question, with answers changing daily: masks or not? Plus, not everything is back to normal as we write; cruise ships are still shut down from US ports, Canada and Mexico borders are closed for visitors and with the tension in the Middle East, well, you might not want to travel there anytime soon. India is in the midst of a major coronavirus situation, so avoid it also. New variants appear to be cropping up daily, so should you travel? If vaccinated, I say “yes,” but with caution.

A full-service garage

You may recall in a previous article Nancy alluded to the nightmare she was having getting the bocce ball club up and running. Her work was finally finished, and she was looking forward to the first game of play. Mother Nature cooperated perfectly, it was 90 degrees, with 80 percent humidity. The sun was hot and so were some tempers. Twenty minutes into the first game Nancy got into a rather heated discussion with a man on the opposing team. Taking a tip from hockey players, I just let them go at it. They’ll tire out eventually.

How to “bee” a more conscious gardener

Bees are often the source of considerable anxiety. They are associated with pain and fear. They are a natural part of our summers, yet most of us would prefer that we never encounter one. Thankfully, we quite literally encounter the fruits of their labor just about every day. It is estimated that 33% of the food that we eat is from crops that bees have pollinated.

‘Love Letters’ Signals Poignant Return to the Sun City Stage

Summer shows for the Sun City Theatre Company have historically been laugh-out-loud comedies, rich with colorful characters and hilarious hijinks.

But in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, Sun City Theatre returns to the stage with a more austere production that features heart, warmth, and captivating storytelling.

Huzzah! Vintage ‘base ball’ returns

MCHENRY COUNTY – Baseball in the Civil War era bore some resemblance to America’s contemporary favorite pastime, but in its infancy, the game resembled more of a gentleman’s club, noted for good sportsmanship and manners. Players were known to even cheer their opponents, and the captains would offer inspiring words after each game, praising both …

Confessions of a later-in-life Peeping Tom

Look, it’s a curse carrying around a name like “Tom” all your life, having to endure childhood taunts like “Peeping Tom” from early school classmates. Because I was not then, nor have ever been, a Peeping Tom.

Well, at least not until recently, thanks to that video camera I recently bought, so well-camouflaged that those who are being peeped-upon don’t have a clue that I’m watching them.

I’ll get to that, but first a bit of background.

Financial report shows significant increase in Sun City home sales

Every month each resident of Sun City is billed a minimum Home Owner Association (HOA) assessment of $129.

The Association’s most recent Treasurer’s Report, dated May 26, was presented by Mr. Bob McGouey at the last Association Board Meeting, shows a summary of the community’s financials. The report detail is posted on the Resident Portal on the community website.

Pop tennis

While pickleball has risen in popularity over the past few years, now there’s something new: Pop tennis. Pop tennis is the rebranding of the 100-year-old paddle tennis that is being played across the USA and around the world.

Slowly rising water bills catch residents’ attention

Keeping your lawn green with your sprinkler system has gotten more expensive this year. Some residents were surprised when they looked closely at their water bill.

Charter clubs make their post-lockdown debut

Not unlike honey bees returning to the flowers and fauna, the Sun City charter clubs have returned to active life.

Joe Quinn, a member of the Woodchucks, commented that “there were at least 90 members at the Woodchucks meeting on June second.” Activities at the Millgrove Workshop are expected to increase.

Sun City cyclist shares accident story, offers advice

Americans are increasingly bicycling to commute, for exercise, or just for fun. In Sun City, you can see residents biking as a club, (CyclePaths) or biking to play pickleball. By law, bicycles on the roadway have the same rights and responsibilities as motorized vehicles.

Not so eggceptional

Jim had a lot of recording sessions at the radio station one day, so we decided it would be a good idea to have a big breakfast. While trying to decide where to go, we remembered driving down Algonquin Road and seeing signs for a new brunch restaurant. Great.