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If you are like me, you like a story with a happy ending. This isn’t one of those. It was the summer of 1989 (August 26 to be exact) and Elton John was touring the country. He made a stop in Hoffman Estates, Illinois at the Popular Creek venue which was a grand outdoor theater…

I am lucky. I’m lucky for many reasons. One, I met my wife, Carrie, at a young age and have been enjoying a lifetime of wonderful memories. Another reason I am lucky is because I won a Caribbean cruise on a Chicago radio station. On February 14 (St. Valentine’s Day), 1983 I picked up the…

If you have been following my posts, you know that I have written a few stories about our life on the river. Well, here’s another one. We lived on the Chain-O-Lakes on the Fox River just north of the McHenry dam in northern Illinois. Our street was separate from most of the river-front homes in…

One of the most contentious topics these days center on guns. I’m not here to discuss the good or bad of guns. But I will share a little story with you if you are willing to indulge me for a few minutes. For my fourteenth Christmas I received a 12 gauge shotgun. I didn’t ask…

I always look forward to writing stories about my dad. He led such an interesting life. He was one of the most hardworking men I’ve ever met in my life. I remember growing up, he always had two to three jobs, just to make money to put food on the table. One Saturday morning when…

I have often said that I am an accumulation of everything I’ve wanted to be. And on this blog article topic, I may be one of the few experts worldwide. Life inside a dumbwaiter? How does one gain the mature wisdom and experience of becoming an expert on life inside a dumbwaiter? I’ll tell you.…

So, enter the cult-classic movie, “The Rocky Horror Picture Show”. Written by Richard O’Brien produced and released in 1975. Nobody seen that coming. Nobody could really explain it. It was just a moment in time, when planets aligned, the moon was blue, and everybody had to go to the theater and see Rocky Horror, again…

If you are squeamish about bee stings then this one is for you. I was a young boy living in a corner of a small town in northern Indiana. I led a farmstead lifestyle. I grew up with horses, ducks, and chickens; everything that you expect on in a picturesque agrarian life. Life passed slowly…

One cold, grey January day in 1997, I planned to paint the master bedroom at our house on the Chain-O-Lakes in northern Illinois. Our home at that time was a two story river house that had itself grown over the decades by way of several large construction projects. By the time we bought it, it…

Most people know about the Bahamas, but fewer have heard of the Abaco Islands, a small archipelago just north of the main land. One December many years ago, my wife, Carrie and I visited these islands. Our dear friends were retired and living there on a sixty foot Sea Ray yacht. They invited us to…

Michael Hemphill August  31, 2010 Corsiva, Albertus, Estrangelo-Edessa, Garamond, Kartika, Marlett, Tahoma and Verdana… I want to meet the guy that gets to name fonts.  I wonder what his list of rejected font names might look like… There are two different categories of fonts: Serif and San Serif which are easily detectable by their type…

Michael Hemphill August 30, 2010 Root Beer and Bananas, bad combination?  You bet!  Unless you are already an unfortunate victim of this combination like myself, then take heed to this important message! Root beer and bananas should never be eaten at the same time without ice cream.  If you want to partake in this delicacy be forewarned. …

December 22, 2011 In 1976, I was just 14 years old when our proud country was celebrating its 200th birthday.  As a tribute to the upcoming event, Ray and Mildred Thilmont decided to host a family gathering.  In 1976, they lived in Griffith, Indiana.  Millie, as most called her, was my grandmother.  And her house…

September 25, 2010 Have you ever tasted bad chap stick?  Most brands of chap stick or lip balm come in a variety of flavors, and for the most part, have a non-offensive taste.  So how could it be that I found myself wondering this very question one day back in 1994?  Let me think now…  it…

Excerpt from my runner’s diary: August 25, 2010 – Good run. Felt strong at the end. A leaf hit me on the way home. I like to try and find the FIRST hint of a new season.  I have often said that autumn in Chicago is the most predictable of all seasons found here.  So,…

September 1, 2010 I grew up on a farm in the Midwestern United States.  That’s not all together true, I mean, it was definitely about as Midwest as you can get, but it wasn’t really a farm.  We lived a farm-like life in some respects I guess.  We had plenty of farm animals and we…