Tuesday, August 19, 2008

The Glass Experience

Last Sunday Bob and I decided to head out and actually DO something instead of sitting at home and watching TV all day :)

We first headed out to Oak Park for an art fair, but once we got there, uh...there were about 5 booths with art. There were some food vendors and the Avon lady, but other than that? Not much. So we decided on our second choice--The Glass Experience at the Museum of Science and Industry.

We had talked about getting a membership to the museum since we've already been there twice in the last 6 months so when we got there (after parking on the street for free! Hurrah!) we went to check out the costs. And lucky for us, it was 25% off that day! So we got a year's membership plus free tickets to every upcoming exhibit and free IMAX ticket for $6 more than if we had paid for one day. Total s
core! And on top of that? We stumbled onto a "member's only" lounge (more like a room with couches, coffee, and a bathroom) and got a free t-shirt as well. Bonus.

After getting our membership, we headed up to the exhibit to check out the glass.
Since Bob is a glass artist, the exhibit was even more interesting since he could give even more insight to all of the things we were seeing. They had a "hot glass" presentation where the two artists made a sculpture-like piece, showing how you blow into the tubes, make gathers, add color, and sculpt the glass into shape. Very cool. Every once in a while Bob would lean over and give me a little more info about what they were doing. While he works primarily in stained glass, he's blown some pieces and I could see that he was getting the itch to try the hot glass again.

There were also a number of piece up from Frank Lloyd Wright, Chihuly, and other famous glass artists. There was even an area showing fiberglass, how glass can transform how you view things, and bullet-proof glass. Overall, it was a really neat exhibit.

After the glass exhibit (you should go. Really. It's only until September 1 so hurr
y) I made Bob go check out the baby chicks with me to see if the monster was still in the case with them. He wasn't--it must have just been a star wars thing.

And now, a couple pictures. I should have gotten the camera out during the hot glass presentation, but...I didn't. Maybe I can convince Bob to rent some studio time and I can take his picture while he crafts something. :)

Wednesday, August 13, 2008

12 of 12 August 2008

WARNING! This 12 of 12 is almost entirely pets, television, and food. Boring Tuesday. :)

Check out more 12 of 12's here. And many thanks to Chad! Let's go:

Ah, morning. The dog's just been put in her cage for the day so the cats decide to take a drink from her water bowl. No matter that they have their own--sometimes other people's stuff is just better. Even if it smells like dog.
At work, it's time to change the password. Oof. It's so hard to think of one, let alone remember it!
I watched Three Sheets: Crotia on my ipod on the way to work and had just a few minutes left, so I finished it while sitting at my desk (shh...don't tell my boss!)
Then I did my next origami calender date. I'm currently making a modular ball an am only on step two. You can see my pagoda from a couple of weeks back. People will stop me to ask about it. :) It's pretty cute, if not really tall.
Hmmm...which fruit should I have for breakfast? Clementine, grapes, or a plum? I chose the plum.
Yard sale in September! My friend is organizing for a group of us. If you live in Chicago come on by and buy my things!
Lunch. Frozen Trader Joe's Pad Thai. Not bad!
Going down the escalator to my gym after work.
Sadie eating dinner
Then...TV watching. First it was beach volleyball...
Then some ESPN for Bob...
Then more Olympic coverage. Here's Katie Hoff--she didn't win this race (she came in 4th, which is still awesome!). Everytime a swimmer came on screen Bob and I would giggle about their forehead hickeys. I wonder how long those last on their heads??
And that's it. Pretty standard day, really--except I actually WENT to the gym instead of just talking about it! :)

Monday, August 11, 2008

Missing

Missing: two bike tires. Barely used. Last seen on MY BIKE locked up outside a friends house.

Alas.


Tuesday, August 5, 2008

Taste Like Home

My Taste Like Home package arrived yesterday! Wee!! What a fun variety of things in this box.

There are an number of chocolate goodies, stuffed olives, pistachios, and some green tea mints.

Awesome. Oh, and those chocolate-covered toffee bites didn't last long at all.

The package that I sent off has arrived safely...here's a glimpse of it pre-shipping:

Once my blog-buddy updates with the info, I'll link to it. otherwise, I'll update this later with the specifics of what's in my Chicago box.

Thanks again to April and Megan for this great swap!


Monday, August 4, 2008

Kane County Cougar Game


Kane County Cougar Game 002
Originally uploaded by hak123
On Saturday, Bob and I headed out to Geneva, IL to go to my nephew Jack's birthday party at the Kane County Cougar's Stadium. They were playing the Western Michigan Whitecaps (which...whitecaps? In Michigan?) and won the game 5-2.

It was a fun time--Jack got a t-shirt and a bunch of goodies to hand out to his friends and they even brought him a cake! And at the end of the third inning, the whole stadium sang happy birthday for all of the birthday people in the crowd...and there were a LOT.

Jack also won a pitching challenge for his age group! He's a very good baseball player so this was not much of a surprise for our family--the kid was able to hit pitched balls at the age of 4!

I hope he had a fun birthday--we sure had a good time!

Friday, August 1, 2008

Happy Birthday Sadie!

2 years old. Pretty puppy. Happy Birthday! I promise to cut down on dressing you up.









Arlington Race Course

Yesterday I had a work even out in Arlington Heights at the Arlington Park. It was the first time I'd been out there (even after living in and near Chicago for 29 years!) so I was kind of excited to see the place.

We had meetings in the morning and around 12:30 we were given gambling vouchers and headed out to the track to gamble and watch (and bet on) the horses.

I had bet on the horses once before in Vegas so the whole betting process came back to me pretty quickly. Trifectas, exactas, boxes, win, place, show. It's fun stuff. I only placed one bet (exacta box) and my horses came in first...and dead last. Like, REALLY last. about 15 lengths behind the rest of the horses. Whoops...not a good choice, I guess!


It was a really fun day, for a work event! I think I'll have to head out there again some time soon--hopefully I'll have better luck next time.