The One That Got Away?

Happy Thanksgiving!

Happy Thanksgiving

Hope everyone has a Happy Thanksgiving

A Robert Indiana Hope sculpture, 

companion piece to his famous Love sculpture in Philadelphia, 

on display by the John Hancock Building

Exploring Pilsen VII

Finishing up Pilsen with a few random photos from the area

Window Display

(I like how the Red Devil looks a little Johnny Depp-ish)

           Pilsen Artsy                                                                    A Crazy Chef painting in an

 Street Lamp                                                                         area grocery store

                                    

     A Pilsen Institution with Yummy Food 

Exploring ... Pilsen VI

According to a Chicago Neighborhoods history book I have, the Pilsen neighborhood was originally "settled" by Czechoslovakians, Austrians, Polish, and Lithuanians.  Pilsen's name is derived from the fourth largest city in the Czech Republic (Plzen).  So, seeing little remnants - such as the Beer Stein gate post in the first photo and the "L. Wilimovsky" nameplate on the building in the second photo isn't too surprising.

Exploring ... Pilsen V

A sample of Pilsen architecture

Street Scene

St. Adalbert's Church

Colorful Entrance

Interesting Brickwork

Exploring ... Pilsen IV

Another new mural in Pilsen, the J-Def Peace Project, honors a local hip-hop artist that was killed in 2009.  Here are a few segments of that mural. 

Exploring ... Pilsen III

Pilsen has many vibrantly painted murals.  Here are a few scenes from one of the newer ones entitled Reach for Peace.

Exploring ... Pilsen II

There's a beautifully painted Community Center in Pilsen called Casa Aztlan. Here are a few scenes from the building.  The blank white spaces seem to indicate that the exterior is always being updated and refreshed.

 

Exploring ... Pilsen I

Pilsen is a very interesting neighborhood in Chicago.  Very diverse, but with a strong Latino infuence, and artistic. A great place to explore.

Artsy Sidewalk Marker

Artsy Gangway Gate

Autumn Skies II

Snow clouds yield cool sunsets  

Autumn Skies I

The drawback to Autumn Sailing Classes (which I think is what those little boats in the bottom right of the photo were doing) is that your class could be held while snow flakes are falling.  The benefit, though, is a chance to see some great Autumnal Sky Colors

Exploring ... Stearns Quarry III

Another view of the Fishing Pond at Palmisano Park (Stearns Quarry) along with a close-up of one of the limestone boulders, left over from the old quarry, that adorn the park.  Are those ridges signs of fossils?  

Palmisano Park Fishing Pond

Limestone Boulder from Stearns Quarry

Park History Interpretive Sign

Blink and You Missed It

It snowed on Thursday.  If you blinked, you missed it.  A few minutes later the sun came out; then another snow shower; then the sun came out again.

I got confused!  I wasn't sure if it was a sign that Winter was coming or if it meant that today was the start of Baseball Season ;)

Freighter Day

This is blurrier than I would like it to be.  But given that it was dawn and the freighter wouldn't hold still for me, it's not too bad -- especially if you pretend it is an impressionist painting.  This freighter came by last week along with a few more -- it was almost like a parade.  I guess they were getting their last trips in before the weather makes it too dangerous to continue running.  

I'm posting this photo today because it is the anniversary of the tragic sinking of the Edmund Fitzgerald during a bad storm on Lake Superior.  So, find the Gordon Lightfoot song on iTunes and toast the "Fitz", the captain, and the crew.       

Exploring ... Stearns Quarry II

This is the fountain at the entrance to Palmisano Park (the old Stearns Quarry).  Although it was turned off for the season, it is quite impressive.  Apparently, the water is drawn from the Fishing Pond.  The fountain is connected to a chute that recirculates the water back down the park's sloping landscape to the pond.

The terraced landscape of the park

The Interpretive Sign about the park's fountain

Exploring ... Stearns Quarry I

Stearns Quarry was a limestone quarry in the Bridgeport neighborhood in Chicago.  It closed around 1970 and became a clean construction landfill.   The Chicago Park District turned it into a very scenic and welcoming park, named Palmisano Park, in 2009.   Here's the link for more information on this park.     

Information on the Fishing Pond (above) 

from one of the Interpretive signs in the park