Millennium Park Flash Mob

Wow! Check this out. Turns out there was a flash mob in Millennium Park and Lauren was part of it. There are a few hundred people total but only about 25 actually dancing on the ice. Lauren is front row, all the way right on the ice in the video. So much fun and really interesting to see the reactions of bystanders.

Another bonus was getting to see some old skating friends from way back in the day. I'm talking Darien Dynamites and Chicago Jazz days dating back to 1998. And all the girls are grown up. Really makes me feel old. One is teaching 3rd grade in the city and another will graduate rom Loyola this spring with a business degree. Lauren is the only one still skating competitively. Lots of good times with these parents. I even shared officer duties with one of the moms several years ago. We shared many laughs over the trials and tribulations of the business of a team.

Later we enjoyed a scrumptious dinner with Lauren and Sam. Indeed we had everything I previously mentioned: oysters - yum, sushi - yum yum, lobster - triple yum, and a lovely pinot noir. Capped off by some of the best Key Lime Pie you'll ever have. It was our last night with Lauren as she heads back to U. of I. today, a week earlier than non-skaters, for skating boot camp. The name says it all. She will be skating insane hours this week along with intense off ice conditioning. The big competitions are right around the corner and IllinoiSkating will be ready. I-L-L - I-N-I!

Tree in the Closet

I bought a new pre-lit tree this Christmas season in an effort to make my decorating a little easier. But the reality is, pre-lit or not, an artificial tree is a huge pain in the ass. For an artificial tree to look half way decent it must have a lot of tips. And each and every one of those tips need straightening/shaping. So the pre-lit thing doesn't save a whole lot of time since once the tree is up and shaped, putting on the lights doesn't take that long at all. Here's where the plan was devised. I decorated my entire tree with plastic ornaments. That's right, plastic. Therefore when Christmas was over I could just shove the decorated tree into the closet in my family room. But first the closet would need a serious cleaning out and a few shelves removed. Then with a little help from GOAA (God of all Assistants, she made me call her that!) Karla and Robert Mondavi and Ernest and Julio Gallo, I jammed that tree right through the closet door and into position in the corner. Only one problem; once the tree was in position I was stuck on the floor of the closet in the corner behind the tree! Escaping was neither easy or pretty. So this year, as soon as the roasting pan is cleaned from the Thanksgiving turkey, out comes the tree. Voila! Christmas in minutes. Or maybe I will want to have a little Christmas in July. Just slide that puppy out and pour the eggnog. Might be hard finding eggnog in July though.

Heading to Millennium Park today with Lauren and Sammi to go skating. Skating with Lauren is absolutely no fun because she makes us all look like incompetent fools. I'm really just going to have dinner at Shaw's! Yummy. Oysters, wine, sushi, a little lobster. What more could you ask for?

Numb Thumb

You may as well just paste the big L on my forehead now. I just bought Super Mario for Wii and Rick and I played for the first time last night. Well, my left thumb is completely numb this morning. I recall the same thing happening when I first played Mario Cart. When the kids were little, they would go to bed and Rick and I would stay up all hours of the night and play Super Mario and The Legend of Zelda. But this is so much better since we can both play at the same time. I have to say that Rick is not much of a team player. He is always pushing me around and seldom breaks my bubble when I die. If he does manage to break my bubble he almost always dies in the process. He needs a bit more practice. Not tonight, though. It's ladies long program tonight. And those skaters are amazing.